The MotoGP season is about to start, and Valentino Rossi is expected to shine again. However, with Casey Stoner, Dani Pedrosa, Nicky Hayden, and Jorge Lorenzo dragging along behind him, the championship will be even harder to win this year.

So is the Italian set for an eighth MotoGP title? Well, nobody would bet against him. Despite 2006 and 2007, the Doctor has been the king of this sport, although regularly starting slowly. In the first couple of rounds Rossi finishes inside the top 10, but every year he makes a dramatic run for the finish and comes up with nail-biting manoeuvres to outwit his fellow riders.

So do the others stand a chance?

Well, 2007 champion Casey Stoner will have a say in the matter. The Aussie secured more pole positions than anybody else last year, but he gifted Rossi to many wins last year. Stoner will compete, but he will have to be better to take the title.

Pedrosa: Well, the Spaniard is mister consistent, and last year he showed that he can challenge for the title by finishing third in the championship. Whether he can keep his cool in pressure situations though is the key to his success.

Nicky Hayden's switch to Ducati could revitalise his career and prove that his win in 2006 was not just a one-off. Being out of the Repsol Honda team will do him a lot of favours, and he will hope that there is no repeat of last year, as he ran out of fuel in Assen on the last lap to gift Colin Edwards a podium finish.

Lorenzo, Rossi's teammate, should come back better than ever this season. After a couple of bad ankle injuries last year, the young rider was unable to continue his fantastic form at the start of the year. He though, like Hayden, will probably just fall short of the mark.

MotoGP starts in April—prepare yourself for some breathtaking motor racing.

My prediction for the 2009 season:

1. Valentino Rossi
2. Casey Stoner
3. Dani Pedrosa
4. Nicky Hayden
5. Jorge Lorenzo
6. Colin Edwards
7. Andrea Dovizioso
8. James Toseland

Motocross can trace its roots back to loosely organized off-road motorcycle races called scrambles held in Great Britain back in the mid 1920s. The bikes used in those original races were heavy and rigid street machines merely modified slightly for off-road riding, and the events initially drew sparse attention.

The sport has obviously evolved dramatically since those early days. Over the years, technological advances have made the bikes lighter and faster. Today’s rides have been built specifically for maneuvering over rugged terrain and contain sophisticated suspensions capable of handling intense dirt track racing.

The sport has also grown in popularity producing many dirt bike enthusiasts and hard core fans. Some though, including many devoted fans, believe that motocross racing has stagnated in its development and needs to modernize the off-road motorcycle racing experience in order to stay competitive in today’s action sports arena.

The American Motorcycle Association (AMA), the governing body of motocross racing in the US, has heard these cries and taken action. Up to this point, the AMA had been handling all of the operations, organization and promotion for its professional and amateur races under the umbrella of its subsidiary organization, AMA Pro Racing. But in March of this year, the AMA spun that subsidiary off to the Daytona Motorsports Group (DMG).

DMG, who will operate under the AMA Pro Racing title, now owns the rights for all operations of the AMA Toyota Motocross Championship, the premier US motocross series, and the AMA’s amateur motocross racing events-the Monster Energy AMA Supercross series will still be operated separately. DMG has also entered into a contractual arrangement with MX Sports to handle much of the operations and promotions for motocross racing.

The long and the short of all that alphabet soup is that change is coming to motocross. And that change is coming fast and furious.

MX Sports has hit the ground running, and motocross events and the coverage of those events will be getting an immediate face lift for the 2009 season which starts on May 23, at the Glen Helen Raceway in San Bernardino, Calif.

All races have been moved to Saturdays to allow for better fan access. The racing classes have been modified. Nick McCabe, MX Sports’ man in charge of commercial development, has promised that the racing experience for fans at motocross events will be substantially modernized.

Most importantly, however, might be the strides that MX Sports has taken to increase the exposure of motocross racing worldwide. MX has entered into a marketing partnership with the Alliance of Action Sports (Alli), an international organization owned and operated by NBC and MTV.

The press release issued by the AMA states the partnership will provide for “unique opportunities in television programming, global media content distribution, online coverage, sponsorship sales, marketing and promotion,” and that, “The companies will work in harmony to develop an even stronger connection with the youth demographic by increasing the exposure of American motocross, while at the same time maintaining the sport’s tradition and heritage.

While official TV coverage for the 2009 season has not yet been announced, rumors are circulating within the motocross community that some events will be televised live on NBC-certainly a major breakthrough for the sport.

In a recent conversation with McCabe, he commented that the changes coming to the sport are things that the hardcore motocross fans will welcome with open arms and an attitude of, “Oh, God, it’s about time!”

McCabe believes that the sport was due for an upgrade. He commented that the overall motocross experience had become somewhat antiquated, and that these modifications will provide not only for a better experience for the fans but for better racing overall.

What does all of this mean for agents and representatives? First, motocross is poised for growth. Between the current surge in interest in action sports in general, evidenced by the ever-growing popularity of ESPN’s X Games, and the passion and dedication of the new motocross operating group, the sport possesses a unique opportunity to expand its already dedicated fan base.

The new media package will inevitably provide increased access to the sport. The top riders in the series routinely earn six figure incomes. While many of those riders may already be represented, the AMA is grooming tomorrow’s stars in its amateur series.

The future looks bright for motocross in the US, and now is the time to join in as dirt bike racing modernizes and makes the leap into the 21st century.

Guest contribution by Michael C. Frilling, Esq.; General Counsel; www.fksportsmanagement.com.

Jake Zemke was beaming as he stepped out of the Erion Honda truck and spotted his wife and children. Motorcycle racing fans took quick notice of his presence and soon he was swarmed by a handful of people vying for a second of the newly crowned 2008 AMA Formula Xtreme Series Champion.

As one of his fans asked to take a picture with him, Zemke cordially agreed. Trying to establish a connection with the rider, the fan shared that he is a father as well.

“I have four kids,” Zemke revealed following the snap of the camera. He tried to beckon one of his children over with no success.  After individually addressing the crowd around him, the No. 98 rider retreated to the corner where his family waited.

Even on the track, Zemke had his family close. On the track, there was mention of how being the number one racer meant he had the prettiest umbrella girl.

“Yeah,” Zemke agreed. “My wife is the most beautiful girl out here.”

On the podium, the family man proudly accepted his awards as he stood with two of his children. 

The win was a long time coming. Four times the runner-up, Zemke was more than ready for the title.

Zemke won the race by a 1.119-second margin. Zemke’s teammate Josh Hayes and Attack Kawasaki’s Steve Rapp came in second and third, respectively. The race results mirrored the series results.

Hayes revealed that his start was a disappointing one—especially since he was the pole-sitter.

“There is no better way to disgrace a pole position than to get the start that I got,” the runner-up acknowledged. “It was bad.”

However, Zemke was on a mission. From lap one, it was obvious that the champion wanted to show how he earned his title—Hayes, the 2006 and 2007 Formula Xtreme Champion witnessed it first-hand.

"I sure would have liked to have won this race but things didn't happen for me at the end. I don't know if I could have beaten Jake anyway but I sure would have given it a good shot,” revealed Hayes. “Congratulations—the champ beat me today."

The jovial winner enjoyed every moment of the race. The two battled with Zemke leading 15 laps and Hayes leading the remaining two.

“We should have had some great races like this but it wasn't working out. One of us would have a bad start or something would happen,” explained Zemke. “But it was a lot of fun. We made quite a few mistakes and we were both pushing extremely hard. It was a lot of fun."

With the future of AMA Formula Xtreme uncertain, Zemke accepted the win as just another win. The type of race doesn’t matter, what matters is the victory.

“It’s all just a race,” Zemke revealed. “I’m sure I’ll be racing somewhere next year and I’ll be just as happy.”

As the 2008 AMA Superbike season came to a close, there were reminders of the celebrations and controversies that made up this thrilling season.

Ben Spies secured the Superbike title at Road Atlanta, while Mat Mladin was second place for the third year in a row.  On September 28th at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, the two Rockstar Makita Yoshimura Suzuki riders finished in the top two, just as they have done repeatedly over the past years.

Standing on the Superbike Championship podium, first-place race finisher Mat Mladin reminded everyone of his displeasure with AMA Pro Racing’s decision to disqualify him at Virginia International Raceway. The appeal was denied and Mladin’s DQs from the two races he won stood.

When the checkered flag was handed to Mladin, he was congratulated on his 72nd win.

“Thank you for my 74th win,” Mladin replied with a touch of sarcasm.

The rivalry between the two Suzuki riders was apparent as they commented on the last race of the season during the post-race press conference.

“I understand it's Ben's last race here so I certainly wanted to send him off with a win,” explained Mladin. “I tried hard and it's good to get the win here at Laguna, a track he does very well at.”

Spies admitted that the pace that Mladin was running made it difficult for anyone to catch up. By lap two, there was a 1.029-second gap between first and second place. Mladin would extend that gap to 14.007 seconds in the 26th lap.

“I could see the pace he was running, and the gap we had—I'm not superhuman so there is no way that was going to happen,” Spies reflect upon the beginning of the race. “We just made it our Sunday farewell cruise. It was a good race and I had a lot of thoughts. I actually had a lot of fun riding out there. I'm looking forward to everything that's coming up."

The rumblings of Spies exiting the AMA race circuit grew louder as the season went and the rumor of a MotoGP entrance by the three-time Champion was one that many heard.

Clarifying that he’s not going to GP, Spies confirmed he was “looking for something different.”

Three times this season Spies rode as a wildcard in the MotoGP Rizla Suzuki team and fared quite well in each race. Many assumed he would make the jump after this season.

“I guess I’m not fast enough. I don’t know,” reflected Spies.

After a brief silence, Mladin stated, “I’m fast enough.”

With that, the press conference concluded just as the season—with the two Suzuki riders competing until the very end.

This weekend is the Round 13 of the 2008 Moto GP season, which will be taking place at Misano.

It has been a very exciting season so far providing a lot of twists and turns along the way, and this weekend will see a critical race in the championship fight. However, it is Valentino Rossi who is at the top of the championship with a 50-point lead, which is equivalent to two Moto GP victories with 6 rounds to go.

Full championship standings/Stats

1. Valentino Rossi              237 points
2. Casey Stoner                187 points
3. Dani Pedrosa                172 points
4. Jorge Lorenzo               120 points
5. Andrea Dovizioso          110 points
6. Colin Edwards               102 points
7. Chris Vermeulen             99 points
8. Nicky Hayden                 84 points

Number of wins

1. Valentino Rossi              5 wins
2. Casey Stoner                4 wins
3. Dani Pedrosa                2 wins
4. Jorge Lorenzo               1 win

Number of Pole positions

1. Casey Stoner                6 poles
2. Jorge Lorenzo               3 poles
3. Colin Edwards               1 pole
4. Dani Pedrosa                1 pole
5. Valentino Rossi             1 pole

Summary of the championship so far

The start of the season was very mixed with three different winners in the first three races. Stoner started as he finished last season with a win in the first night race in Qatar. Dani Pedrosa then took victory in Spain in front of his home fans. In the next race Jorge Lorenzo took his first Moto GP win in only his third race to go along with the three straight pole positions he had already taken in his first three races.

At that point the championship looked like this

 

Pedrosa 61             Lorenzo 61     Rossi 47        Stoner 40

Valentino Rossi then won his first race of the season in China, which he won in a race long battle with Pedrosa by turning on the style in the last few laps. This ended one of his worse win droughts in his career. Rossi then won the next two races as he mastered the changeable conditions in Le Mans and continued his winning streak in Mugello in front of his home fans.

After this race the championship looked like this:

 

Rossi 122            Pedrosa 110            Lorenzo 94     Stoner 76

Rossi’s return to the winner’s roster had seen him back at the head of the championship whilst Pedrosa’s consistency kept him well in the hunt. Stoner however was having a disappointing run, which included technical failure at Le Mans, and he was slipping back fast.

Next was the second Spanish race in Catalunya. Pedrosa won again in front of his home fans. Sadly Lorenzo had to withdraw from this event through injury and since this point in the championship the Lorenzo we saw in the first three races hasn’t returned due to injury issues and a general lack of confidence due to this.

After this race it was the return of Ducati and Stoner. Ducati had a major update on the bike and this brought a big increase in performance. Stoner comfortably took pole and dominated the next two races at Assen and Donington.

He also took a third win at a rain soaked German GP. However unlike the last two races he hadn’t led from start to finish. Pedrosa, a rider who isn’t normally comfortable in the wet stormed away with the lead. He was around 10 seconds ahead when he made an error on the pit straight going into turn 1 and fell in a very high speed crash. Stoner inherited the lead and took his third straight victory.

This series of races left the championship looking like this:

 

Rossi 187            Pedrosa 171   Stoner 167            Lorenzo 114

 

This crash for Pedrosa whilst leading comfortably has turned out to be a real turning point in his season. His injuries from his high-speed crash meant he couldn’t take part in the next race at Laguna Seca.

This left it to Rossi and Stoner to battle it out at the front. It was clear Stoner’s Ducati was fastest again as he took pole position. Rossi needed to get in front before turn one to have any chance of victory, which he duly did.

Laguna Seca is a hard track to pass at and try as he might Stoner could not find a way past Rossi who was making his Yamaha as wide as possible. This was turning into a classic duel which saw Rossi and Stoner running side by side into the corkscrew and kicking up dirt off the track at times. In fact Rossi nearly ended the race for both of them at one point! It was hard racing of the extreme nature. Stoner was definitely getting a little flustered and he fell at the last turn but was able to carry on. Rossi was long gone now but at least Stoner got second place.

Stoner wasn’t happy about Rossi’s hard racing tactics and this ended up in a war of words with Stoner ending up as the enemy. Rossi has psychologically beaten rivals in the past and there were signs of this here.

The next race (and the last race) was in Brno. Pedrosa was struggling on his Michelin tyres and Lorenzo was still lacking confidence meaning it was to be the sequel of the Rossi and Stoner duel. Stoner took pole and went off in the lead. However he wasn’t able to scamper into the distance and Rossi kept him in his sights and put the pressure on. Mid-race, Stoner pushed slightly too hard and fell off his bike allowing Rossi into the lead to take a comfortable victory.

Looking ahead at the rest of the championship

 

The last two races have certainly had a huge impact on the championship. Pedrosa has only scored one point in the last three races due to his big accident in Germany and Michelin’s extremely poor performance in Brno. This means that his championship charge has fallen back dramatically and he trails Rossi by a massive 65 points. Due to Stoner’s fall in Brno and zero points he has also slipped back further from Rossi and has a 50 points deficit.

Winning a championship from that far behind isn’t impossible (Rossi almost managed it in 2006 before throwing it all away in the final race) It means that Stoner can’t afford any more errors and needs to win the majority of the last six races and hopes Rossi drops big points somewhere to have any chance of the title.

Stoner’s main problem with closing the gap is there are hardly any riders who can finish between him and Rossi which means that he is only realistically going to be able to take a maximum of five points off him per race. Lorenzo is lacking confidence and is on the Michelins, which are weaker than Bridgestone at the moment. Pedrosa is still recovering from the crash in Germany and like Lorenzo is on the Michelins. Stoner’s team mate Marco Melandri has been struggling to adapt to the Ducati all season long, meaning that Stoner doesn’t have a wingman in his own team to help him out and take points off Rossi.

It’s a shame that Lorenzo and Pedrosa have both had falls .This ended up affecting their championship campaigns so badly as we could have had a 4-way fight instead of a possible 2-way fight or a 3-way fight if we get a really crazy conclusion to the season.

It is certainly Rossi’s to lose now and it all seems to be going his way. However, Stoner won’t stop trying and he will keep on fighting until it is mathematically over and hope that Rossi encounters a problem somewhere. Pedrosa will be hoping the same thing but his bike isn’t as strong as Stoner’s and he is struggling with Michelin tyres so his chances are pretty slim. One mistake in Germany has effectively destroyed his championship.

Overall I feel Rossi has one hand on the trophy. In Stoner’s favour is the fact that all the pressure is on Rossi to wrap up the championship whereas Stoner can maybe relax a little bit more. However it would be a huge shock to everyone in Moto GP if Rossi were to throw away a 50-point championship lead within just six races. Of course in motorsport, anything can happen.

 

Predictions for Misano

 

So the fightback for Casey Stoner has to start here. Can he beat Rossi this weekend? I think Ducati definitely have the fastest bike at the moment but I feel Yamaha have been closing the gap recently. Also this is effectively a home GP for Rossi (despite the San Marino GP tag) so he will be inspired in front of his home crowd and this will act as a real leveler between the battling pair. However Rossi has never won a race at Misano strangely enough, and he will want to put that record straight in this weekend’s race (although Misano only came back onto the calendar last season after a 14 year absence). Talking of records, if Rossi wins this weekend, he will equal Giacomo Agostini’s record 68 victories in the premier class. Many recognize Agostina, as the greatest Moto GP rider of all time so to equal his record would be a big achievement.

I wouldn’t like to predict which way this one is going to go. I think Stoner definitely has the edge over Rossi in qualifying. Stoner has qualified on pole for the last 6 races so he is on a role at the moment whereas recently, qualifying hasn’t been Rossi’s strong point. I think this race will follow a similar pattern to Brno with Rossi trying to keep up with Stoner in the early stages of the race and try something later on in the race (he didn’t have to in the end). Hopefully we will see another classic battle between them as we did in Laguna Seca. My money has to be on Rossi though, mainly due to his home advantage and the hostile reception Stoner may get all weekend, which may agitate him. Saying nasty things about Rossi after a race (as Stoner did after Laguna Seca), when millions adore him, is never going to win over fans in Moto GP and I think Stoner will have learnt his lesson from Laguna Seca.

I can’t see anyone else bothering Rossi and Stoner at the front as both are just to quick for anyone at the moment and as mentioned earlier, Pedrosa, Lorenzo and Melandri all have their problems.

The midfield battle between Suzukis, the improved Kawasakis and the other Ducatis and Hondas in the last race was absolutely electric and one of the highlights of the race. This weekend I think the home crowd might inspire Capirossi to sneak a podium here.

The other main talking point of last weekend was the dismal performance of the Michelin tyres. For 2 race weekends running the Michelins has been next to hopeless in terms of performance. At the beginning of the season it looked as if they could take the fight to Bridgestone but they have got worse as the season has progressed.

Some of the cynics were hoping that Rossi’s controversial move to Bridgestones would put egg on his face. At the start of the season, that seemed possible as in qualifying particularly, Michelin were stronger. However, at the moment, it’s looking like Rossi may have made a very shrewd move.

The pressure will be really on Michelin in Misano to find a solution to their issues otherwise, we could get a situation where nobody will want their tyres next season and we could end up with Bridgestone being the sole tyre supplier. This one could rumble on till the end of the season. How will Michelin cope with the track surface in Indianapolis in the race after Misano? They showed they couldn’t cope with it in F1!

Back to Misano I think all the ingredients are there for a classic race and even though Moto GP isn’t my first love in motorsport I am eagerly anticipating this race.

My top three prediction

1. Rossi 2. Stoner 3. Capirossi

 

Enjoy the race!

I don’t know why people have such a fixation with those questions.  Could it be that some are so emotionally attached to their athletic entertainment of choice that it causes them mental distress to question its place or could it be that they cannot go against what they have been told by popular culture?  

I have never really had to wrestle with that question as I have always found the answer to be cut and dry.

A sport is a competition that requires both physical and mental skills where the victory achieved is decided by the competition itself and not judged.  Depending on the sports it can be achieved in many ways whether its most points scored, first to the finish or longest distance covered. If a competition’s outcome is decided by the arbitrary judgment of an individual or individuals than it has become an artistic competition.

Some would argue that sports like football, baseball and basketball have referees that impart judgments that decided outcomes.  These referees just decided if the rules are followed.  A football referee does not award more points because a receiver made a spectacular catch nor does and umpire grant more runs because a homerun went over the center field fence at Fenway Park as opposed to the right field fence.

The physical ability argument doesn’t hold water either.  Yes, gymnasts display incredible physical prowess and strength but the winner is decided by who looks best not by who vaulted the farthest or who jumped the highest on the balance beam.

Here is a partial list of activities that many question if they are sports with my designation applied.

Sport: Olympic Swimming.  Not a sport: Olympic Diving, Synchronized Swimming.

Sport: Golf.  Not a sport: Poker (No physical skill involved)

Sport: Autoracing.  Not a sport: Drifting

Sport: Downhill Skiing.  Not a sport: Ski Jumping (If it was just distance then it would be a sport) Olympic Halfpipe.

Sport: Olympic Wrestling. Not a sport: Boxing (Unless it is decided by knockout)

Sport: Motocross.  Not a sport: Moto-X.

A quick acknowledgement for the famous often used quote. Mountain Climbing and Bull Fighting are both Sports. They both have clear cut winners. The man versus mountain or bull in each sport respectively.