Nicky Hayden looks to have all but given up hope of retaining his factory Honda ride for next season. He has said that switching to Ducati is definitely an options for 2009, which will then open the door for Andrea Dovizioso to walk into the Repsol garage.

Colin Edwards is due to ink a new contract with Tech 3 Yamaha today (Thurs) and will remain as James Toseland team-mate for 2009 despite saying this was his final year in MotoGP. We wonder where manager Herve Poncharal has got the cash from to meet Edwards' huge pay demands...

Scott Redding has been linked with a new team for next season and may well be riding with another Brit for a team-mate, all at the behest of Cumbrian chicken magnate Paul Bird. We tried to contact Bird about it, but the line was fuzzy and all we could hear was someone mumbling something about installing a jacuzzi on the deck, next to the helipad alongside the unobtanium-plated Veuve Clicquot dispenser...

After the news that Marco Melandri will be released from his Ducati contract at the end of the year, rumours have reached us that he might well be sacked on Sunday night, freeing him up to go, erm, somewhere else. The smart money says he will replace Anthony West at Kawasaki for 2009 but can Kawasaki afford a third bike for the rest of the season?