After hearing the hubbub about Ruben Xaus, his four crashes, and his rumored early departure from World Superbike if he doesn’t get his act together, we thought we’d share this video that the folks at WSBK put together that highlights all the off’s at Phillip Island. Right up front you’ll get a chance to see Xaus taking out Haga from a variety of angles, and you can also see why Xaus didn’t participate in PI’s races because of disorientation. Check it out after the jump.
The World Superbike Championship has returned to us, helping fill the winter snow & rain blues. Coming to us this weekend from Phillip Island, Australia, WSBK shows some new faces in the Superpole mix now that Ben Spies has left World Superbike for greener pastures. With the weather holding out, Superpole at PI had some surprising results, and some not so surprising results. Click past the break to get the low down.
The last qualifying session of the year is in the bag, as the gorgeous sunshine of Valencia, Spain bore down on the MotoGP paddock. With the Championship sealed up, all eyes were not on this season, but the next. With more than a few MotoGP riders finding their way into new venues for 2010, we bid them goodbye, yet also welcome the new talent that’s pouring into the premiere class next year. Qualifying results after the jump.
On its second to last stop of the season, MotoGP heads to Sepang, Malaysia for the 2009 running of the Malaysian GP. Looking to clinch the MotoGP Championship is Valentino Rossi, who really only needs to finish in the top 10 of the next two races to keep his Championship status alive. The situation is more dire for Jorge Lorenzo, who needs to grab as many points as he can this weekend, and hope that Rossi makes a mistake along the way. More on this, after the jump.
We typically don’t cover the Free Practice/Qualifying sessions in World Superbike, but considering that the entire season will come down to Sunday’s race, we’re making an exception. With QP1 in the bag already at Portimao, we get some insight into how the grid could come together for the last race of the WSBK season, and the results might surprise some people. More after the jump.
MotoGP action comes from the land down under this weekend, taking to the Australian track of Phillip Island. Treading on the home turf of Casey Stoner, fans will surely be treated to some good racing from the come-back kid. Stoner will have to show his strength has returned though, as both Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo are looking for as many Championship points now that the MotoGP is getting closer to its conclusion.
With San Marino officially the third smallest country by territory size, the San Marino GP does not actually take place within the soverign’s borders. Instead, MotoGP action comes to you this weekend from the coastal Italian track of Misano, where a slew of MotoGP riders are looking for redemption from their performances at Indianapolis.
The track temperatures have been scortching hot all week, and even with a coastal breeze blowing through the course today, the ambient temperature was still over 98° F. With only 25 points now separating Jorge Lorenzo from Valentino Rossi, all eyes are on the Fiat-Yamaha pair to see who will take the MotoGP Championship.
MotoGP returns to the USA for the second time this year, this time trading in the heat and surf of Laguna Seca for the rain of Indianapolis. Riders battled a wet then dry track this week, and a shrinking number of spots for rides next year. With that pressure starting to ramp up, it comes as no surprise that we see some lurkers making their move on the grid. The end result thus far: one broken pole record.
After a two week hiatus, MotoGP is back to racing with a stop in the Czech Repubilc. Amongst the press conferences, and positioning for next year, the riders actually made it out to the track to qualify for Sunday’s race. The masters of two-wheels clearly used their break to hone their game, and for the first time a pole position record was broken since the introduction of the one-tire rule.
World Superbike action this weekend comes from Brno, where riders are hot off a recent testing session at the former Soviet Block track. The Superpole results clearly speak to who did their homework, with fresh faces entering into the upper ranks. This Sunday should be set to have some good production motorcycle racing, and hey…if we’re wrong about that, there’s still eastern European umbrella girls, and that always makes people happy.
With this being MotoGP’s last stop at Donington for the foreseeable future, the British venue seems to be putting its best foot forward. Agreeable weather, rabid fans, and close qualifying makes Sunday’s race and send off that much more enjoyable. It won’t be all clear skies though, Sunday’s weather forecast is showing some rain, and undoubtedly riders are practicing their bike swapping out in their minds.