The new MotoGP World Champion Casey Stoner returns home to a hero’s welcome when he makes his one and only appearance in Australia at the GMC Australian Grand Prix at Phillip Island on Sunday. Twenty one year-old Stoner clinched the title at the previous round in Japan. Since that moment the sports mad Australian public have doubled the sales of grand prix tickets from last year at the magnificent venue. Riding the GP7 Marlboro Ducati, Stoner has dominated the Championship, winning eight grands prix but he’s never won a Championship race at the 2.763 miles Phillip Island. Victory in the 26-lap race would really be the icing on the cake in a truly remarkable season for the Australian and his Italian team.
Stoner’s team-mate Loris Capirossi returns to the track where he clinched the 1990 125cc World Championship, fresh from his victory in Japan. He leaves Ducati to join Suzuki at the end of the year and he would love to sign off with another victory.
Valentino Rossi has a love affair with Phillip Island and his record at the circuit tells the story. The Italian seven times World Champion has won seven grands prix at the track, two in the 250cc class followed by five successive MotoGP wins. He returns after a tough year on the Fiat Yamaha but still holds second place in the Championship, 26 points in front of Spaniard Dani Pedrosa, who has very mixed memories of the circuit.
He won the 250cc race in 2005, the previous year clinched his first 250cc World title and in 2003 crashed and broke both his ankles in practice just four days after winning the 125cc World Championship.
The real battle in the MotoGP class with three rounds remaining is for fourth place with Rizla Suzuki team-mates John Hopkins and Chris Vermeulen and last year’s winner Marco Melandri separated by just eight points. World Champion Nicky Hayden is picking up some of the pieces after a disastrous defence of his title and last year started the rain-affected race from pole and eventually finished fifth, riding the Repsol Honda.
Frenchman Randy De Puniet and Spaniard Toni Elias took full advantage of the conditions in Japan to finish second and third respectively and both would be delighted with another podium finish although it will be tough.
Colin Edwards knows the track like the back of his hand from his World Superbike days, Australian Ant West returns home to show the Australian fans just what a threat he is on the Kawasaki while the likes of grand prix winners Carlos Checa, Alex Barros and Makoto Tamada could be making their last MotoGP appearances in Australia.
Spaniard Jorge Lorenzo will return to Phillip Island next year partnering Rossi in the Yamaha MotoGP team but on Sunday he has some unfinished business in the 250cc class. Riding the Fortuna Aprilia, he holds a 36 point lead over Italian Andrea Dovizioso and a repeat of his victory last year would be enough for the 20 year-old to retain his title with two rounds remaining.
It will not be easy with the Aprilia duo of Alex De Angelis and last year’s 125cc winner Alvaro Bautista and the KTM team of in-form Mika Kallio, who won in Japan and Hiroshi Aoyama capable of delaying the celebrations.
The 125cc Championship looks certain to go down to the final showdown in Valencia at the beginning of November. The 23-lap race on Sunday could have a massive bearing to the outcome with just nine points separating Bancaja team-mates Gabor Talmacsi and Hector Faubel. The problems for the two leaders are that there are many other riders capable of winning the race and finishing on the podium. The first seven riders in the Championship have all won races this year and they include Mattia Pasini whose victory in Japan was his fourth of the season.
Vermeulen To Honour Sheene
In a special tribute to Barry Sheene, Australian Chris Vermeulen’s MotoGP Rizla Suzuki will be presented in the famous Sheene Suzuki livery while Vermeulen will wear Sheene-style leathers and helmet at Phillip Island over the weekend.
It was 30 years ago that Barry Sheene won the second of his 500cc World title for Suzuki. When he retired Sheene moved to Australia and was a great influence in Vermeulen’s early career that intimately led to a MotoGP ride and a grand prix victory.
Sheene’s daughter Sidonie and son Freddie will be at Phillip Island to celebrate the event. Barry was diagnosed with cancer in 2002 and died in March 2003. He is the last British rider to win a premier class MotoGP grand prix.
British Riders
Davies Relishes MotoGP Chance Twenty year-old Chaz Davies has been given the chance to put himself in the MotoGP shop window by replacing German Alex Hofmann in the Pramac D’Antin Ducati team for the final three grands prix of the season, starting in Australia on Sunday.
The Herefordshire-based rider impressed the team when he rode for them with just 30 minutes notice after Hofmann broke his hand in a practice crash for the Red Bull US Grand Prix at Laguna Seca in July. Also Davies has had an impressive season in the AMA Supersport Championship in America.
He started grand prix racing when he was just 15 years old and has great knowledge of the three final venues at Phillip Island, Sepang and Valencia on both 125 and 250cc machinery.
Despite his crash in Japan, 16 year-old Bradley Smith is confident of a good finish to his 125cc World Championship campaign. He was holding fifth place in Japan when he crashed out in the rain.
Another 16 year-old Danny Webb can’t wait for his first race in Australia after scoring his first world championship points in Japan. He gave his confidence an enormous boost with a 13th place riding the De Graaf Grand Prix Honda in the Motegi rain.
In the 250cc class Ulsterman Eugene Laverty will be hoping the handling problems under braking on his production LCR Honda can be cured for his Australian debut.
Chaz Davies: “I’m just hoping to do myself justice and if I had to pick three tracks to race the 800 Ducati on they would be the three I have been given my chance on. Phillip Island will be exciting and especially with that fast run onto the straight and it should be pretty hairy on a MotoGP bike. I want to do well to put myself in the MotoGP shop window for the future.”
Bradley Smith:“I really like Phillip Island and I think the bike will go well there. I rode well there last year for the first time but crashed out because I was so desperate to finish in the top ten. It’s so important to do well in these final three races of the year starting on Sunday.”
Danny Webb:“It was great to at last score points in Japan and now the aim is to repeat this at the final three rounds starting on Sunday. It will be my first visit to Phillip Island and it looks a great circuit.”
Eugene Laverty:
“I’ve enjoyed the two week break in Australia and now I’ve got to concentrate on scoring points in those final three races, starting on Sunday. I think the circuit should suit the Honda as long as we can get the chassis setting correct. I’ll be looking to repeat some of the rides that Jeremy McWilliams produced round there.”
Phillip Island Track Facts
The magnificent 2.763 miles Phillip Island circuit is one of the truly great MotoGP venues. Situated overlooking the choppy waters of the Bass Straight it provides a tremendous test of rider, machinery and tyres in an idyllic setting that can only be spoiled by the weather.
The undulating track provides a variety of corners including the fast left hand Swan corner onto the downhill main straight which in turn leads into the very fast Doohan right hand corner. At the other end of the speed scale Honda corner and Lukey Heights provide a much slower and equally as difficult challenge.
The very first Australian Grand Prix was held at Phillip Island in 1989 and won by Australian Wayne Gardner riding the 500cc Honda. Gardner won the next year and then the Grand Prix was switched to Eastern Creek on the outskirts of Sydney for the next four years. It returned to its spiritual home in 1997 and has staged the Australian Grand Prix ever since.
The weather in this Southern outpost of Victoria can be a problem. High winds and rain have spoiled some grands prix whiles others have basked in glorious spring sunshine. The grand prix on Sunday is one month later than last year and so hopefully the weather will not spoil a very special event.
Length: 2.763 miles
Pole Position: Left
Width: 13m
Right corners: Five
Left corners: Seven
Longest straight: 0.599 miles
Constructed: 1988
Modified: 1998
Flashback 2006
MotoGP
Winner: Marco Melandri (Honda) 44m15.621s
Record lap: Melandri 1m30.332s (2005)
Pole lap: Nicky Hayden (Honda) 1m29.020s
250ccWinner: Jorge Lorenzo (Aprilia) 39m17.327s
Record lap: Sebastian Porto (Aprilia) 1m33.381s (2004)
Pole lap: Porto 1m32.099s (2004)
125CCWinner: Alvaro Bautista (Aprilia) 24m30.115s
Record lap: Bautista 1m36.927s
Pole lap: Mika Kallio (KTM) 1m36.625s
Television Practice, qualifying and racing will be shown at the following times on British television.
BBC Sunday125 and 250cc races live BBCi 02.45-05.15
MotoGP race live BBC One 05.45 – 07.00
Races re-run BBC Two 13.00 – 14.00.
Eurosport
Friday:04.45 – 06.00 MotoGP Live
06.00 – 06.45 250cc Live
06.45 – 07.30 125cc Live
19.00 – 21.00 Highlights
Saturday:04.45 – 06.00 MotoGP live
06.00 – 06.45 250cc Live
06.45 – 07.45 125cc Live
21.45 – 23.00 Highlights
Sunday:
00.45 – 01.15 MotoGP Live
04.00 – 05.15 250cc Live
05.15 – 07.00 MotoGP Live
09.30 – 10.30 Highlights
16.00 – 17.30 Highlights
