The Class of 2015.
Steady start for the 2014 Moto3 world champion Alex Marquez on his Moto2 debut.
Andrea Dovizioso could be a good outside bet for a podium this weekend.
On a hot, sweltering, hazy day in Buriram, race day began and ended in green — Irishman Johnny Rea on his Kawasaki had a belated St. Patrick’s Day celebration, absolutely dominating the field in almost every session.
The design of the new Chang International Circuit allows for several places to get shots of fast-sweepers, particularly in the second half of the lap – with a thoughtfully constructed concrete path for media scooters to quickly cover the track capturing the race.
However, the relative absence of texture – apart from lots of concrete and track markings – means the possibilities for creating classic images of riders at iconic corners are harder to come by.
Perhaps the most moving moment was when local boy, Ratthapark “Film” Wilairot won the World Supersport race. Parc ferme was a delightful chaos of emotion, with Film’s young son finding his way into his father’s arms. I Hope you enjoy this selection from race day.
The first ever round of the World Superbikes Championship in Thailand is underway this weekend. Here are a collection of images from the action on Saturday. — the combination of heat and dampness created for some interesting shimmers for the photographers.
As you will see, a rainy morning practice got the riders rather thoughtful. Phillip Island pole-sitter, Jonathan Rea, seemed to begin where he left off in Australia. In Superpole 2, he had five laps out of seven, any one of which could have got him into the Top Five. No wonder, he seemed all smiles afterward. Enjoy the photos!
With the start of the 2015 MotoGP Season right around the corner, we have some more changes to the official regulations that govern MotoGP.
Some changes have been talked about for quite a while, such as that when a rider comes in to swap bikes during a flag-to-flag race, the waiting bike must be closer to the track than to the pit box; lower bodywork on the bikes must be designed to catch oil and other fluids that might leak (Moto2 and MotoGP bikes must be able to catch five liters of fluids, Moto3 bikes three and a half liters); and so on.
But some other items have been added to the rules that haven’t received much attention. Why am I thinking about all of this? Something just caught my eye that will directly affect my work as a photographer on the grid.
There is a famous quote, often attributed to Ernest Hemingway, that says “there are only three sports: motor-racing, bull-fighting, and mountaineering. The rest are just games.” Watching and shooting the season opener of World Superbikes track-side at Phillip Island, I couldn’t agree more.
Jonny Rea, Leon Haslam, and Chaz Davies put on a show that rose and fell like the crescnedos in a beautiful piece of music. It was more than just racing, it was a race that had a heart and a beat. Emotional just about starts to describe it. It was a privilege to capture some of the action. Hope you enjoy the images.
I’m going to start the 2nd and final part of my 2014 photo retrospective with the image above of Marc Marquez. Taken at Woodcote during Sunday mornings warm up for the British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
Woodcote was one of the most exhilarating sections of track I shot last year. The sensation of speed as the riders came past, back wheel sliding, only feet away was indescribable.
As the countdown to the new season gathers momentum I thought I’d have a look back at some of my favourite photographs from 2014.
The image above of Scott Redding was taken as he came in for a tire change during qualifying at Le Mans. Sometimes the riders will disappear to the back of the garage during qualifying.
If you’re lucky they will stay on the bike while the crew get to work. If they do, it provides a great opportunity for a portrait as was the case here.
After 13 races, 4 continents, 10 countries, 48 flights, 4 ferry journeys, and a train ride. It was time to pack my bag for the last time and take my final four flights of the 2014 MotoGP season.
I had been looking forward to the Valencia weekend. Despite it being the final race of the year. I was sharing a house with friends, and it promised to be an enjoyable weekend.
While Marc Marquez, Brad Baker, and Jared Mees grabbed most of the attention at this past weekend’s in Barcelona, each of the other forty-five racers has his, or her, own story for the two-day event.
Scott Redding had high hopes of a strong performance, but crashed heavily and tore a muscle in his chest. Guy Martin, with 17 Isle of Man TT podiums and many victories on the Irish roads circuits, never looked at ease on Barcelona’s tiny dirt oval. Moto2 champ Tito Rabat didn’t see his experience or recent practice pay off with a good result.
The greatest disappointment probably goes to Baker, whose crash and resulting concussion and dislocated shoulder forced him to retire from competition, and miss his chance to defend his title. The story of Superprestigio’s unrealized hopes has many characters.
When the story reaches Shayna Texter, the plot takes a unique turn. Miss Texter is the five-foot-tall, 95-pound flat tracker from Willow Street, Pennsylvania, and the only female racer to participate in the Superprestigio competition.
