It’s been an entertaining couple of weeks in the MotoGP paddock, with one of the most exciting races of the season at Estoril and the crowning of a new World Champion at Motegi. However, the incident that remains the most prominent in the mind of anybody associated with the world of motorsport is the death of one of our greatest champions, Colin McRae.
It came as a tremendous shock to the paddock on the eve of the race in Portugal, when the majority of the hospitality units were tuned in to the Rugby World Cup and the ticker bearing the tragic news came up at the bottom of the screens. For it to emerge that Colin’s young son also died is beyond words.
Colin’s love of motorcycles made him an important part of our community and, as a racer, when you lose somebody with such a great passion for speed then you truly feel as though you have lost one of your own. I was lucky enough to meet Colin on several occasions – the first time as a wide-eyed fan at the Rally of Catalunya in 2000 – and he always told me how keen he was to come on the two-seat Ducati with me. He was a huge MotoGP fan so an exciting and entertaining race, with victory for his good friend Valentino Rossi, was the ideal tribute to him.
In the hospitality unit of Alpinestars, a picture of Colin was put up as soon as the terrible news broke. Just looking at his face made me smile because he was such great fun, a wonderful personality and, like all great champions, he took those qualities with him out onto the track. His recent performances in the X-Games and the legacy that he leaves in his video games have made him hugely popular with young fans and brought rally driving to a whole new audience. I haven’t spoken to Travis Pastrana yet but I know that he will be desperately upset, having gotten to know Colin after competing against him at the X-Games. I guess the biggest competition between those two was who is the biggest daredevil!
The television images that we have seen since his death will never do justice to the skill and courage of this great champion and incredible ambassador for motorsport. Colin will be missed, but more than that he will always be remembered.
Our latest World Champion was crowned last Sunday at Motegi, with Casey Stoner clinching the MotoGP title with three races to spare. I have always seen Casey as being like a cat because it seems that no matter which way you throw him up in the air he always lands on his feet. Well, I guess you could say that in Japan he became King of the Jungle! The records that he has set, equalled and broken this season have been remarkable and, regardless of the great job done by Ducati and Bridgestone, you just have to take your hat off to the kid.
It is rare to see a motorcycle racer who is so immune to pressure. There have been so many occasions this year – Qatar, Catalunya Le Mans and Motegi immediately spring to mind – where other riders might have cracked, but he has remained completely focused and single minded. Sometimes you can see that he is totally in awe of the guys he is racing against, like Valentino Rossi or Loris Capirossi, people he has grown up watching on television – but once that visor goes down he is not affected by reputation and simply worries about doing his job.
It was a dream come true for Ducati to win the race with Loris and the title with Casey on Sunday but I think there will have been a hint of a bittersweet feeling on Loris’ side of the box. After all the effort he has put in to making Ducati competitive over the past five seasons it must have been hard for him to see Casey be the one to win the championship but he knows that the title partly belongs to him and he can walk away from that team with his head held high.
Going from the humble surroundings of Misano just a couple of weeks previously – the circuit where World Ducati Week was celebrated earlier in the season – to the futuristic home of Honda at Motegi gives you a feeling of the size of the Italian factory’s achievement. They sell just 35,000 bikes every year compared to the 12 million of Honda. If ever there was a victory for David over Goliath in MotoGP, then this was surely it.
the best amateur road racers from around the nation gathered at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio
A lot has happened since my last column and first of all I must apologise
