Two races into the start of the 2015 season and The Doctor leads the championship after a win and a third.
25 MotoGP bikes safely make their way through one of the tightest first turns on the MotoGP calendar.
A great day for British fans as they watched Sam Lowes back up Danny Kent’s win in Moto3 with a win of his own. It was also Sam’s first grand prix victory. I have a feeling he’ll have a few more before the season is finished.
“That’s why we line up on Sunday. You never know what’s gonna happen.” Nicky Hayden was replying to one of my typically stupid questions after the race in Indianapolis in 2009. The day before, I had asked him if he had given up hope of a good result after qualifying in 6th on the Ducati in front of his home crowd.
That Sunday, he had ridden a solid race and taken advantage of the misfortunes of others, ending the day on the podium. The heady mixture of hope, determination, talent and a smattering of luck put him where he wanted to be. Or close to it at least.
Hayden’s phrase is one of the most succinct and accurate descriptions of motorcycle racing, as the events of the season opener at Qatar go to show. The script that we all thought had been written on Saturday got torn up and thrown out the window on Sunday. Because you never know what’s gonna happen.
Valentino Rossi on the grid prior to the start of today’s Grand Prix of Qatar.
MotoGP observed a minute silence in memory of the victims of the Germanwings flight 9525 that crashed into the French alps last week.
Losail in daylight. Nicky Hayden slides his Honda through turn 10 during warm up.
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.
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.
Marc Marquez has ended the year on a win, beating the reigning AMA Flat Track champion Jared Mees in a thrilling final. The two men got caught up in traffic when Thomas Chareyre, who got the jump at the start, forced them wide.
That gave the lead to Kenny Noyes and Gerard Ribalta, but Marquez and Mees soon chased the two down, passing Bailo with ease, Noyes with difficulty. Marquez had gained enough of a cushion to keep Mees at bay, finally getting revenge for his loss to Brad Baker in January this year, at the inaugural event.
Noyes went on to score a respectable 3rd, ahead of Bailo and Ribalta. The 16-year-old British rider Oliver Brindley gave an outstanding account of himself, finishing in 6th, ahead of Bradley Smith, who got caught up in the first lap incident, and Chareyre, who caused it.
