MORE!!
Rather like the man on the Titanic who ordered ice with his gin and tonic and got rather more than he bargained for, the call for more aggro seems to have been answered big time. In Ireland Cameron Donald and Michael Dunlop indulged in a paddock brawl following "manoeuvres" in the Supersport race at Kells.
Superbrat Scott Redding got fined £2,500 for punching the world 125cc champion Marc Marquez following an "incident" during Moto 2 practice at Sachsenring. You may recall the 18 year old mop-head complaining about riders with rich parents buying into MotoGP. He was talking about Czech rider Karel Abraham hinting that he wasn't much kop. So far Karel (in MotoGP) has outperformed Scott (Moto 2) handsomely!
And now we have the riders versus promoters battle over Motegi. The Editor has opined rather more knowledgeably and eloquently than I on this contentious matter which seems to have split the MotoGP paddock and must be causing considerable strains within IRTA, the international race teams association, led by ex-racer and businessman Mike Trimby.
IRTA is part of a quartet, including rights owner Dorna, the manufacturers and the FIM, which organises MotoGP. IRTA is as close as you can get to a riders trade union without actually having one and so the confrontation between the riders (chief spokesman Casey Stoner, increasingly looking like Arthur Scargill) and the teams view as represented by Yamaha Tech 3 boss Herve Poncharal who describes the riders as "childish" and having a lack of respect for Japan, must be a serious source of embarrassment for the gentlemanly Trimby.
Quite properly there are differing views over the risks posed by any form of nuclear incident but the prevailing one seems to be that millionaire riders should be doing rather better than biting the hand which has fed them handsomely. But that view is coming mostly from people like me who don't have to go!
IT'S SIMPLE, STUPID
Why have I been so naive, so stupid. For some time I have been banging on about the need to reduce the cost of racing and highlighting one particular aspect which I have never been able to understand - what is the point of qualifying tyres?
Doggedly pursuing this point with a world series race promoter a few weeks ago, he patiently explained that it was all to do with television and making the battle for grid positions as competitive and exciting as possible. Sounded convincing.
It was only when talking to a team owner rather more recently that the penny dropped. He told me that the tyre bill per meeting, payable to the company which has paid to get the contract, amounted to several thousand euros!
Qualifying has taken on a new meaning.
WILD ....OR JUST MAD!
What is the point of the Samsung Suzuki team, contenders for the British Championship, competing against the World Superbikes this weekend at Silverstone? John Hopkins is a quick rider and John Kirkham no slouch but they will get blown to the weeds. Remember the humiliation that Honda suffered last year.
And why, a week later, is Paul Bird lining up his works Kawasaki team, featuring Tom Sykes and Spaniard Joan Lascorz, against the BSB boys at Brands Hatch?
You could argue they are getting free track time. In the case of Kawasaki, if they repeat Sykes success of last year it could give them a welcome boost in what has been, so far, a mediocre season.
But Suzuki? Crafty Jack Valentine might have something up his sleeve. Wouldn't it be great to see Hopkins doing the business. Is it possible?
