What a fantastic weekend for us petrol heads!
One of the best Moto GP races I have ever seen. Casey Stoner has now proven to the world that he is 'the' man to beat this year. Away from the frenzy of fans' opinions, I'm sure Valentino has known this since pre season testing.
It was a remarkable last couple of laps from Casey, proving he had ridden a measured race, and had just that little bit more in reserve, in particular with regard to braking! Valentino was just awesome, he tried everything he knew and was on his absolute limit.
To beat Valentino in this manner at Catalunya is significant. The title is by no means Casey's yet, Valentino is too good, and we're all waiting to see if Casey actually makes any of the mistakes we have become accustomed to with him. But you have to say, he's looking up for the challenge, and psychologically Valentino knows he has a huge battle on his hands. Fortunately, he is a truly great champion, and if anybody can regroup and take the battle to Casey, it is Vale. You have to admit though, he threw everything at Casey at Catalunya, historically a victorious circuit for Valentino, and came out second best, albeit a superb one.
The F1 on the other hand was a very different story. I'll stand up now and be ready to be shot down in flames, Lewis Hamilton will be 2007 World Champion! He has huge natural talent, unrivalled determination, a fantastic car and World Champ or not, a fragile team mate. This result, the comparison between how Lewis and Fernando handled the situation, and the championship points table will certainly tip the McLaren balance in Lewis's favour.
Fernando needs to be protected, if the team supremacy doesn't work in his favour and he is left to his own devices to make up the difference, he will make mistakes. As his team mate, Lewis doesn't fit into that mould.
Ron Dennis is a PR guru, he always says the right thing publicly. Of course having taken on the reigning World Champion McLaren are going to be seen initially to be giving him the total respect he deserves. But they have invested a lot of money in Lewis, and his introduction into the team well planned. How much of Fernando's appointment is simply due to the fact that he was available, and it is better to have the World Champ in your team rather than with a rival? I'm sure Ron will take greater satisfaction from Lewis taking the title, not to mention the publicity it will generate.
So, I think a significant weekend, a sign that a new era is upon us in both sports. What do you think? Who are the other youngsters going with Casey and Lewis? The F1 shows huge potential for Nick Heidfeld, Robert Kubica, maybe a few others. The Moto GP is harder to predict for me still.
One of the best Moto GP races I have ever seen. Casey Stoner has now proven to the world that he is 'the' man to beat this year. Away from the frenzy of fans' opinions, I'm sure Valentino has known this since pre season testing.
It was a remarkable last couple of laps from Casey, proving he had ridden a measured race, and had just that little bit more in reserve, in particular with regard to braking! Valentino was just awesome, he tried everything he knew and was on his absolute limit.
To beat Valentino in this manner at Catalunya is significant. The title is by no means Casey's yet, Valentino is too good, and we're all waiting to see if Casey actually makes any of the mistakes we have become accustomed to with him. But you have to say, he's looking up for the challenge, and psychologically Valentino knows he has a huge battle on his hands. Fortunately, he is a truly great champion, and if anybody can regroup and take the battle to Casey, it is Vale. You have to admit though, he threw everything at Casey at Catalunya, historically a victorious circuit for Valentino, and came out second best, albeit a superb one.
The F1 on the other hand was a very different story. I'll stand up now and be ready to be shot down in flames, Lewis Hamilton will be 2007 World Champion! He has huge natural talent, unrivalled determination, a fantastic car and World Champ or not, a fragile team mate. This result, the comparison between how Lewis and Fernando handled the situation, and the championship points table will certainly tip the McLaren balance in Lewis's favour.
Fernando needs to be protected, if the team supremacy doesn't work in his favour and he is left to his own devices to make up the difference, he will make mistakes. As his team mate, Lewis doesn't fit into that mould.
Ron Dennis is a PR guru, he always says the right thing publicly. Of course having taken on the reigning World Champion McLaren are going to be seen initially to be giving him the total respect he deserves. But they have invested a lot of money in Lewis, and his introduction into the team well planned. How much of Fernando's appointment is simply due to the fact that he was available, and it is better to have the World Champ in your team rather than with a rival? I'm sure Ron will take greater satisfaction from Lewis taking the title, not to mention the publicity it will generate.
So, I think a significant weekend, a sign that a new era is upon us in both sports. What do you think? Who are the other youngsters going with Casey and Lewis? The F1 shows huge potential for Nick Heidfeld, Robert Kubica, maybe a few others. The Moto GP is harder to predict for me still.
