Various reports flying round the interweb at the moment are speculating that Ducati's sponsors Philip Morris, owners of Marlboro, have tabled a deal with Jorge Lorenzo to the tune of $13m.

Yes, $13m. Sorry but this is getting out of hand. I was stunned to read a few months ago that footballist Cristiano Wossname had moved from one red team to another for £80m and that he would be paid, in three years' time, the best part of half a million quid a week.

Motorcycle News' Matthew Birt has broken the story. Now Matt is the best reporter in that paddock and a friend but I really hope he has got it wrong. Not from a rival's point of view, but from a this-is-bad-for-the-sport view.

No-one is worth this sort of money.

Yes, Lorenzo may be the second best motorcycle racer in the world, and yes he may put his life on the line every time he sits on a bike. But he also does that when he gets in his car, gets on a plane, walks up the road, sleeps with someone he shouldn't. He might choke on a pip from a lime in the top of a bottle of Corona Extra.

MotoGP is trying to cut costs in order to have a decent grid. If Marlboro start flinging this kind of money around, it can only spell the end. So, Lorenzo is worth, allegedly, $13m dollars and he hasn't yet won a MotoGP World Championship.

What does that, then, make The Doctor worth? Lorenzo has proved he caves in to pressure from Rossi and just can't live with the man. If the Lorenzo deal sets a precedent, and a very dangerous one, Rossi could command double that at the end of next season when his Yamaha contract runs out. And someone will pay it because he is Valentino Rossi.

Rossi is reportedly on a multi-multi million dollar package from Yamaha, plus his own sponsorship. Lorenzo is currently being paid nothing like that, it is said, by those who can operate a calculator. Whatever it is, a massive hike in wage bills when costs are trying to be cut is bad.