My hero : Guy Martin

I started looking at road racing a few years ago. I was familiar with the Isle of Man TT but besides that, I didn't really know much about it, neither did I pay much attention to it. That all changed when I bought a copy of Motorcycle Racer magazine and I saw a picture of Guy Martin. Apart from the fact that I didn't know him, those sideburns very much caught my eye. Who is this guy ? ( no pun intended ). It turned out that he was relatively new on the scene, participating in his first senior TT in 2004 and finishing 7th on his maiden visit to the Isle. On top of that, he smashed the lap record set by a rookie with an average speed of 122,10 mph, i.e. 196,46 kmh . Even though he is English, he has been riding with an Irish license for some time. He lost his English one over a dispute with some officials where he allegedly had closed a laptop applying some minor force to it while an official still had his fingers on the keyboard...

Unfortunately, until today Guy hasn't been able to win a senior TT at the Isle of Man yet. After one year on the R1 in 2006, he switched to Hydrex Honda for 2007. He got 2nd place in the Senior TT that year and since he was staying with the same team for 2008, he became one of the favourites to win it. He has come close though in 2008 when mechanical problems forced him to retire when battling at the front. In 2009, he was running 3d when again mechancial trouble hit and ended his podium challenge.

Although unlucky at the Isle of Man TT, Martin's career has been far from fruitless. In 2009, he clinched his 7th straight victory in Scarborough ( pictured above ). His stats include 5 wins at the Ulster Grand Prix, 2 podiums in the NW200 Superbike race and 8 podiums at the Isle of Man. Like many other road racers, Guy participates in a number of events during the same race weekend. apart from the Superbike races, he also rides in the Superstock class and Supersport.

 

What makes him so special for me ? First of all, all road racers are heroes. Guy Martin has this flair over him that I haven't seen with any of his current competitors. His Wolverine-look, his bold statements, his wit and his talent as well as the invisible swith that is being turned off ( or on if you like ) when taking to the track is truly remarkable. Being dressed by the same leather couturier as Valentino Rossi and waring the same helmet brand, he has made friends with one of the greatest rider of all times, a rider that has massive respect for Guy and his colleagues. It takes more than just riding on public roads. It takes determination, skill and no fear to race bikes and in a way not thinking of what might happen without the "safety" of closed race tracks. He will turn 29 this year, and still has plenty of opportunities to break the seal on the Isle of Man. It is just a matter of time.For sure, I will be keeping a close eye on him uring the 2010 road racing season.

My hero : Jonathan Rea

Pull the Pin, Just Ruthless ! I got acquainted with his name and awesome riding style when watching the 2005 BSB season review on DVD. I gained a big interest again in the series when GSE returned and the way Lavilla went on to take the title. This young lad from Northern Ireland was brilliant. Riding the Red Bull Honda Fireblade he managed to get pole position in Mondello Park at the age of 18. It was a tremendous performance considering the strong field in BSB as well as the level of factory bikes present. Ok, he ran a factory spec bike but did it anyway. He didn't get to savour his exploit though since he went off after just a couple of hundred metres. But it was already clear that he really had talent. He spent the 2006 season aboard the same bike with the same outfit and managed 4th overall with a couple of podium finishes.

For 2007, he got promoted to the HRC HM Plant factory Honda team to partner 2006 champion Kiyonari. An excellent season produced 16 podiums and 6 wins out of 26 races to land the runner up spot behind his teammate Kiyonari, who succesfully defended his title. Apart from this, he also won the Suzuka 300km race that year. By now, he had the superbike community courting him.Several options were presented to him ( e.g. a full factory ride at Xerox Ducati, one more season on the HM Plant Honda ) but surprisingly he signed a deal with Ten Kate to contest the World Supersport Championship. The deal stated that he would be moving up to World Superbikes for 2009 and 2010, whatever the outcome of the 2008 WSS championship. I thought it to be taking a step down instead of one up. After all, he already had been riding the 1000cc Honda for 3 years with a considerate amount of success. He did prove that he made the right choice. Challenging for the title until he got punted off by Harms at the penultimate round and by collecting 3 wins, JR returned the investment Ten Kate and Honda had put in him. during the final round in portugal, he swapped places with Kenan Sofuoglu within the Ten Kate garage. The 2007 WSS champion didn't seem to get to grips with the Fireblade and had been underperforming all season in World Superbikes. Johnny jumped on his bike, qualified on the front row and was running at the front battling for a podium finish until a crash ruined his chances. It was merely a sign for things to come.

2009 didn't start that good though. The new bike arrived very late which limited testing time before the season opener in Australia. For some reason, the handling wasn't good and like his teammates, Johnny couldn't bring home solid results and wasn't really on the pace. Unlike his teammates, Rea managed to break the downward spiral and came home in 3d place to claim a podium at Kyalami. Misano turned out to be the place where Johnny would open a winner's account. After a fierce battle with Fabrizio and Haga, Johnny won the second race and his first World Superbike race ever. At this moment, Johnny was the only Ten kate rider who was able to run at the front and it would stay that way for the rest of the season. In fact, during the second half of 2009, he was consistently on the pace, both in practice and races. At the Nurburgring, he added another victory. Going into the last round at Portimao, 4th place in the standings was still very much in sight. Even though a very strong finish to the season with a double podium result, he would come 4 points short for 4th place overall. 8 podiums, 2 wins, one 2nd and 5 thirds.What looked to become a difficult season at first, turned out to be a great rookie season on world level. Normally, this would suffice to run away with the title of "Rookie of the Year" but in 2009 there was one other rookie who did even better. This one simply took the crown and is off to MotoGP now.... 2010 looks very promising for Johnny. The competition is stiff but he definitely has a shot at the title. I'm already looking forward to Assen at the end of April.

What makes him so special for me ? I got the pleasure of seeing him ride during the opening round of the 2006 BSB season at Brands Hatch. He is so spectacular to see, it is amazing. Coming from moto-x, he has incorporated it somehow in his riding. I have hardly seen anyone else braking so many times with the back sliding and doing it on purpose. One other thing, just look at the picture at the top of the page. One of his favourite tracks, possibly the most, is Cadwell Park and the Mountain is always crowded with people because the bikes lift off. In 2007, JR had his picture taken with one hand in the air and the other on the handle bar...fantastic ! On top of all this, he is a genuine nice guy. When you see him, he is enjoying himself all the time, on and off the bike. A good sense of humour added to it and you have a very popular rider indeed. He is very quick, sometimes he seems to overdo it, but that's his young spirit. I also think it takes quite a strong character to say no to race a factory Ducati bike in WSBK at such a young age. The setting would have been perfect alongside Bayliss. He could learn so much from the master and no one would expect him to match him - although I think he might have at some occasions - and yet he decides to move to WSS. Very bold I'd say but very wise it turned out to be. I am relishing the thought that the motorcycle racing world can enjoy his antics for many years to come. Simply, I just love him.
Johnny Rea, Just Ruthless !

My hero : Troy Bayliss

Baylisstic ! I got familiar with his name when he replaced Carl Fogarty at Infostrada Ducati in 2000 after his big crash in Philip Island. At that time Bayliss was the reigning BSB champion, and the Ducati 996 didn't have many secrets for him since he had been riding it for GSE Racing in the UK. His first win came at Hockenheim after a fierce battle with Yanagawa, Haga and Edwards. It only took him a few races to climb on top of the podium. He managed to clinch another victory in front of his "home" crowd at Brands Hatch and got the whole superbike world amazed with his fight with haga in Assen. He did crash though, on many other occasions as well, but had established a name for himself and quickly built a huge fan base. 2001 looked very promising for Bayliss and Ducati and he delivered alright. Troy Bayliss - World Superbike Champion 2001!

To celebrate this achievement a special paint job - a tribute to Paul Smart's 1973 win at Imola - would be presented at the penultimate round at Imola.

He looked to repeat this feat in 2002 but a strong comeback from Colin Edwards on the Honda during the second half of the season led to the championship being decided at the final round. Imola was the place and two fantastic races that afternoon sent the title towards Edwards. It was already decided that Troy would make the move to MotoGP with Ducati in 2003.

The Desmosedici proved to be a very good bike which resulted in a 5th place for Troy at the opening round of the season. This great debut would be followed with 3 third places and ended with 6th in the standings of the 2003 MotoGP World Championship. Not bad for a rookie season in Grand Prix... However, 2004 proved very dispappointing and with one podium finish in the final round, Troy would leave Ducati for a satellite Honda in 2005. That didn't prove to be a successful combination either and for 2006, he returned to World Superbikes and his family at the Borgo Paginale factory. Result :12 wins and a second championship crown.

To celebrate his World Superbike title, he would also be drafted in to replace the injured Sete Gibernau at the Ducati MotoGP squad for the final round in Valencia. On his return, a front row start and victory left him conclude his business in Grand Prix racing. Unfortunatley, all the attention went to the drama that enclosed the title decision but Troy made his point. In 2007, again his title defence wouldn't be succesful. A season with highs and lows ended with 7 wins and 4th place in the standings. Already Troy had announced that 2008 would be his final year as a professional motorcycle racer and with a new bike, the 1098, a last shot at another title. Oh boy, did  he do it or what ?!. 11 wins and a third World Superbike Title. The final round of the season at the brand new track in Portimao was the icing on the cake of a great career. Pole Position, double win and fastest lap. 39 years of age, a triple World Champion on three different types of Ducati ( check the helmet ) calls it a day...

What makes him so special for me ? I was in awe when I saw him ride that Ducati 996 and a big fan ever since. He really is a nice guy and he has proven that raw talent isn't attributed to just anybody. His records show that he is truly on of the greatest Superbike riders ever. 3 world championships, 152 races, 26 poles, 94 podiums, 52 wins and 35 fastest laps. Statistically, he is the second most successfull rider behind Fogarty. But well, statistics can be interpreted in many ways. Okay, he has less victories ( 7 ) and comes one title short but in percentages he is at the top of the standings. 62% podium rate and 34% winning rate compared to 49,5% and 27% for Fogarty. Anyway, I was attending the road cycling world championships in October 2002 in Zolder. At one stage, I looked to my right and saw a familiar face. Since I live nearby, it is quite common to run into familiar faces there, but this one I had never seen in real life. I walked up to him and simply addressed him by saying "Hello Mr Bayliss". I was surprised to see him there and he told me that one of his friends was working for the Australian national cycling team. It was two weeks after his title showdown with Colin Edwards and we talked for nearly 20 minutes. We talked about the title he didn't win, the test on the Desmo16 and about Australia since I was to embark on a trip Down Under two months later. It was just fantastic to meet him in person and he was very friendly. His positive attitude and approach just made me respect him even more! To me he is probably the greatest of all my heroes and he really is Baylisstic !

 One of his trademarks...sparks flying from his boots...

My hero : Ben Spies

Elbowz from Longview, Texas ! Ben Spies is probably one of the biggest sensations of the last decade in global motorcycle racing even though he still has to compete in his first full season of  MotoGP. Spies turned into a professional rider at the age of 16. He raced Suzukis from day 1 and started off in 2000 in the AMA 750 Supersport class. His first championship trophy came three years later in the AMA Formula Xtreme. His move to Yoshimura Suzuki in 2005 was pivotal. The young gun would partner Mat Mladin in the AMA Superbike and became runner up that season. With 14 podium finishes, he had already established himself to be a threat to Mladin. In 2006, Ben beat the legendary Ozzie by recording 17 podiums out of 19 races ( 10 wins ) . Mladin, not being used to face challenge within his own team, was not amused and tried playing games with Spiez. The gloves were definitely off and Ben succesfully defended his crown in 2007 and 2008.

MotoGP was beckoning after three wild card rides on the Rizla Suzuki GSV R800. What a surprise it turned out to be ( and a huge disappointment for Spies ) when it was announced that both Vermeulen and Capirossi would stay at the Suzuki MotoGP squad for 2009. His loyalty to Suzuki, his performances in the AMA superbike as well as his MotoGP results as a wild card entry, were seemingly not enough to grant him a seat in the pinnacle of motorcycle racing. A costly mistake it turned out to be.

Yamaha grabbed the opportunity and offered him a ride on the new Yamaha R1 and a shot at the World Superbikes. And Ben responded with 14 wins out of 28 races, 9 poles in a row ( first 9 races of the season, mostly upon his first visit to the track ) and the biggest trophy of all, the World Championship and Yamaha's first ever in this category. Yamaha entered a third factory M1 during the final race of the 2009 MotoGP season for Ben and his team from Sterilgarda Yamaha. A solid and consistent ride ended with 7th on Sunday on a bike and tyres he never tried before. A statement on his whereabouts for 2010 had already been made official. Yamaha didn't want to waste any more time with this American talent and moved him to the satellite Yamaha team of Hervé Poncharal. Ben will join fellow Texan Colin Edwards at Tech3 Monster Yamaha in 2010 and his first test results ( the two days following the final race in Valencia ) were very promising and a great career in grand prix racing awaits.

What makes him so special for me ? I first heard from Spies when reading motorcycle racer magazine. The fact that this young guy would provide a challenge to the untouchable Mladin was remarkable. His style...those two elbows sticking out ( hence the nick name )....very strange yet very fascinating. The fact that he has beaten his teammate at Yoshimura on the same bike three years in a row definitely means something. Suzuki made a very costly mistake by not signing him for their MotoGP outfit and Yamaha took probably one of their best decisions ever ( along with signing Rossi in 2003 ). It is just breath taking to watch him ride that R1. His tally for 2009 speaks for itself. But most of all, getting these results at tracks he had never seeen before ( apart from Miller in the US and Donington in the UK ) is simply extraordinary. His cool, his unique style, his dedication and his ability to communicate makes him a world champion in the making. It's that combination that make the difference between  a good  rider, a very good rider and the best. And Spies has it. At the Dutch round in Assen, I was very excited to see him race and he didn't let me down ( even though he crashed out of race 2, but then again, he won race 1 :o) ). I expect a couple of flashes of his brilliance this year - 2 or 3 visits to the post race press conference should be possible - and a move to the Fiat Yamaha garage for 2011 with a serious title challenge. I can't wait for the Italian Grand Prix in 2010 in Mugello and see him take on Valentino, Casey, Jorge and Dani....

My hero : Tetsuya Harada

Harada first got noticed as a wild card rider - like many of his compatriots - during the Japan Grand Prix 250c and after winning the Japan 250cc Championship, he earned himself a full season of 250cc World Championship Grand Prix racing in 1993 with the Telkor Yamaha Valesi team. He won the first race in Australia and clinched victory in three more rounds. It would take him to World Championship glory at his very first attempt beating the likes of Capirossi, Biaggi, Reggiani, Romboni, Bradl and his former rival in his home country, Tady Okada. His title defence wasn't very much of a success, mainly due to injury. In 1995 & 1996, he couldn't reach the same level of performance as in his debut season and thought about retiring. Aprilia stepped in and offered him a ride to take Biaggi's place ( who had rejoined Kanemoto on a Honda to try and clinch a 4th consecutive 250cc crown ). After a very strong and competitive season, he finished 3d behind Waldmann and Biaggi.

 

1998 proved to be a very succesfull and yet very disappointing year. It was Harada versus the Italians. Capirossi was again his teammate and 125cc world champion Valentino Rossi had moved up to 250's. Harada managed 5 wins and , going into the final race, needed at least 4 points more than his teammate to clinch the title. Tetsuya was leading the way in Argentina and on the final lap had a gap of around 0.5 seconds to Capirossi come the final corner. Championship in the bag one would think but not the Italian. He braked extremely late and rammed Harada. The Japanese had to retire and Capirossi finished second and ran away with the title to disgust of the racing community. Aprilia immediately broke their engagement with Loris but it left Harada empty-handed...

The #31 followed Aprilia into 500cc and finished 10th in the overall standings in 1999, gathering a few top five finishes along the way. The bike was not competitive in 2000 and in 2001 he returned to the 250's for a final shot at his second world title. With very good results, he completed the Japanese domination of the 250cc class but had to leave the title to the late Daijiro Katoh. Joining MotoGP on Pramac Honda NSR 500, 2002 was a season to forget and he decided to call grand prix racing a day.

What makes him so special to me ? In the early nineties, the Japanese were always very strong when competing in their home round of the world championship and Tetsuya was no exception. However, winning his first 250cc grand prix at the first race of his first full season outside of Japan and a track he doesn't know was very remarkable especially considering the stiff competition he was up against. His daring style and yet being in control of the bike was simply fantatstic to see. I remember him passing one of his rivals at the Dutch TT in Assen 1993. Accelerating from the southern loop onto the fast section leading to the Geert Timmer chicane, he simply stuffed it inside at high speed, taking his rival by surprise. It was a demonstration of his confidence and audacity which led to his world title. In 2005, I had to pleasure to meet him during the Spa 24hours race. He was racing in the Trofeo Maserati and I made sure to catch up on him come end of race. He was very polite, smiling and quite small...a typical motorcycle racer. I expressed my joy in finally meeting him in person and told him I was a huge fan of his. He was very grateful for that and thanked me. When I expressed my discontent on Caporissi's move in 1998, he lifted his shoulders, smiled and said : "Yes, that not good." and then he moved on to join his team. Maybe, Tetsuya was just too nice of a person...

My hero : Daijiro Katoh

The first Japanese rider destined to become world champion in the premier class. Katoh bursts on the Grand Prix scene as a wild card rider ( like many other Japanese riders ) in the opening round of the 1996 Grand Prix season at Suzuka. After finishing 3d, he won the race the next two years. he won his second All Japan 250cc championship title in 1999 and switched to world championship level in 2000. He managed to win 4 races in his debut season and propelled himself as a championship contender for the following season.

Well, the 2001 250cc season will go down in the history books as Katoh's season. There was simply no stopping him and he demolished and demoralised the competition. He won 11 out of 16 races and still holds the record for most wins in one season in 250's. It is very unlikely that this record will ever be broken since this category will be replaced in favour of 600cc bikes as of 2010.

2002 saw him debut in the first year of MotoGP for Fausto Gresini's team. It was the season where 500cc two strokes were allowed to ride alongside the "new" 4 stroke 990cc bikes. Daijiro started on a 500 and switched to the 990 later on that year.

 

Early on, it was too hard to fight at the front due to the sheer lack of horsepower. Yet he managed to finish 2nd in Jerez behind Rossi. At round 10, in Brno, a RCV211 990cc Honda was at his disposal and he made full use of it. A second podium finish, only Biaggi was faster. 7th in the final standings was a decent result that year for a rookie and starting of on an inferior machine. 2003 looked very promising. Katoh, being Japanese, got additional support from Honda and as such Gresini had a non-factory factory rider and ride. Rossi was well aware of Katoh's potential and tipped him to be one his biggest rivals for the 2003 season. However, that day in April 2003 in Suzuka changed it all...

What made him so special for me ? He was an atypical Japanese rider. The Oriental style is synonymous with Norick Abe's wild wild card ride in the 1994 500cc Grand Prix opening round. Most of them were very fast, but none so smooth and with hardly any mistakes as Daijiro. It almost seemed that he had grown up on European race tracks and championships. He was very likeable and had a lot of fans and it was good to see that another young guy stepped up and left his mark during his debut season. The focus was on the rivalry between Biaggi and Rossi but he impressed on ond off the track. The way he rode that NSR250 in 2001 was just awesome and seriously being tipped as a MotoGP world champion in the making does his talent and dedication justice. It is hard to say if he would have succeeded, especially with Rossi in there, but I am sure that he would have given Vale a run for his money during several seasons and I still strongly believe that he could have pulled it off... maybe only once but he would...

My hero : Max Biaggi

The Roman Emperor ! Massimiliano Biaggi is building a reputation for himself during the 1991 European Championship 250cc. Unlike 98% of all other motorcycle racers, he only started at age 18 and shot through to the elite in no time. That following year, he contested a full season of 250cc World Championship Grand Prix racing and he made full use of it. Riding for the Valesi team he managed to win his first race in the last round and for 1993, he signed for Erv Kanemoto's Rothmans Honda 250cc team replacing his compatriot and double world champion Luca Cadalora. He managed only one win and for 1994, he rode an Aprilia again and it proved to be a perfect couple. 3 World Titles in a row and in 1997 he returned to Kanemoto on a Honda. He managed to clinch a 4th consecutive title and decided, after 29 250's victories, the time had arrived to move up to the big boys and to challenge Mick Doohan.

Suzuka 1998 : Pole position, fastest lap and win...on his debut in the premier class. Max was a force to be reckoned with. 8 podium finishes ( 2 wins ) led to 2nd place in the final standings of the 500cc World Championship that year. In 1999 he switched to Yamaha and for the next four years it was highs and lows and facing Valentino Rossi on and off the track. They have never ever been friends ( and I guess they never will ) but the mutual respect is there. After a fall out with Honda at the end of the 2005 season, Max was forced to sit out a year and in 2007 came back to world championship racing although in a different category, World Superbikes. 3 wins and 3d place in the standings with Alstare Suzuki was followed by a disappointing season on a satellite Ducati 1098. For 2009, Aprilia had announced their comeback in World Superbikes with a brand new bike and...reunited with Max Biaggi. 1 win and 4th place in 2009 was his share but for 2010, Max and his true love have a good shot at world title glory again...

What makes him so special for me ? His charisma, his smooth riding style and having an opinion and not being afraid to express it. He openly criticised Honda when he rode for HRC on the Repsol RCV211. Since the Japanese still consider the rider inferior to the material ( the main reason why Rossi deflected to Yamaha to prove them wrong and so he did ), Biaggi got sacked by Honda and they even vetoed his return to Sito Pons' team on a satellite Honda. Pons had to back out of MotoGP due to lack of sponsorship ( Camel wanted to continue their sponsorship but Biaggi had to be on board ) and no support from Honda to supply bikes if he decided to give Biaggi a ride. Basically, Pons had nowhere to go. Biaggi has ridden almost every bike that has been out there. Aprilia 250, Yamaha 250, Honda 250, Honda 500, Yamaha 500, Honda 990, Yamaha 990, Suzuki 1000 K7, Ducati 1098, Aprilia 1000 RSV4. At age 38, he is backed in a position to fight for the championship and I simply adore his true fighting spirit.

My hero : Mick Doohan

The Thunder from Down Under! Michael Doohan joined the Rothmans Honda team in 1989 to partner Wayne Gardner and Eddie Lawson at HRC.  He missed a couple of races due to injuries but managed 9th in the final standings of the 500cc world championschip. His first victory came in Hungary in 1990 and as such became a very strong opponent for the dominating Americans Rainey, Lawson and Schwantz in the early nineties. After Schwantz', Lawson's and Rainey's retirement ( albeit the latter was forced to due to a crash at Misano in 1993 which left him paralyzed from the waist down ), Mick's reign over the 500cc category started and he managed 5 world titles in a row between from 1994 to 1998. During this period he was partnered by Spaniard Alex Crivillé in the Honda factory squad. They never got along and this resulted in quite a number of clashes on and off the track. Crivillé managed to beat Doohan once in a while but could not help but playing second fiddle to the Aussie. When Michael crashed in 1999 at Jerez which resulted in severe injuries, he decided to end his racing career.

 

Doohan's tally of premier class wins stands at 54 out of 137 starts and he still holds the record for most wins in one single season, i.e. 12 out of 15 during the 1997 season.

What makes him so special for me ? He was the guy who managed to get into the fight with the big guns and the fact that he got drafted into the HRC team, is a confirmation of the faith and belief Honda put in him. I didn't really like the characters at that time. Rainey was too clean, Lawson too boring, Gardner too much of a hillbilly and Schwantz was a mix of them all ( I liked his bike though ). Doohan's style and throttle control were very different from the dirt trackers and he introduced a new style of racing and riding 500cc monsters. His aim : increase corner speed instead of brutal engine power. In the end, it proved to be a turning  point because more European guys started to get into the mix as well and he more or less ended the era of the dirt track bred racers and the domination of  500cc Grand Prix racing by the Americans. In a way, he changed the face of grand prix racing...

My hero : Valentino Rossi

From Rossifumi over Valentinik to The Doctor. Rossi is truly a living motorcycle legend and still racing. 9 world championships and 103 Grand Prix victories, the #46 is the Greatest of his Era. To me he is the greatest of all time but since you cannot compare eras, it is hard to say who is the G.O.A.T. Some say it is Agostini, other stick with Hailwood and to me it is Rossi mainly because I have the privilige to watch him race on television and live. I am fuly aware that I am witnessing history in the making and enjoying every moment of it. He is one of the biggest sportstars in the world today alongside Schumacher, Tiger Woods ( whose performances off ht e golf course seem even more impressive lately ;o) ), Kobe Bryant, Michael Phelps, Usain Bolt and Roger Federer.

Rossi's on track performances speak for themselves. His friendly face, his funny accent when being interviewed by the BBC, his post race celebrations, his flair, his sense of humour, his colourful helmet and bike designs makes him popular all over the world and adored by many.

But his sheer speed, skill,  determination, mental and physical ability on the bike make him so very special. Every wants to beat him and that's his true challenge...show the others that he is still the best. Only a few have had the privilige to beat him in a straight fight. Capirossi, Barros, Biaggi, Gibernau and Stoner have succeeded but not consistently. Colin Edwards ( his team mate at Yamaha from 2005 to 2007 ) had a look into his data once after a rain soaked British Grand Prix where Vale crushed the opposition. His reply was "the guy has built-in traction control stuck up his ass"...

What makes Valentino so special for me ? His dedication and skill. He has raised the standard of motorcycle Grand Prix racing and even when he seems to be off the pace, you never know what he still might find to be right up there when there were no previous signs of him being able to keep up with the front runner(s). Ask Stoner what happened in Laguna Seca 2008 and Assen 2007. I was there and after his poor qualifying ( 11th and on Michelins ) I didn't think he had a chance against Stoner and the Bridgestone tyres that were outperforming Michelin on all tracks. Stoner took the hole shot and took off while Vale had to work his way through the field. In the end he managed to close the gap to Stoner but I thought that was the maximum he could do. He must have wrecked his tyres by now but...I was wrong. He passed Casey and won with over 2 seconds. A remarkable performance by a remarkable racer. Later, Rossi declared this race to be one his top five races he had ever ridden. It basically says it all for me...

My hero : Luca Cadalora

Luca, my first true motorcycle hero. He already was a 125cc world champion but it were his 250 days that really caught my eye. At that time, I had reached the knowledgeable age of 16 and was considered to be able to think for myself. The #3  Rothmans Honda NSR250 and the distinctive white helmet with a gentle green line on both sides and two larger red lines on the front and top, crushed the opposition.

Riding for Erv Kanemoto, Luca ran away with the championship in 1991 and 1992. He won 15 races during these two seasons and beating the likes of Helmut Bradl, Carlos Cardus, Loris Reggiani, Frankie Chili and one certain young rider from Rome, Massimiliano Biaggi. His charisma on and off the track made him a very popular rider and the prospect of him taking on the Ozzies and all conquering Americans on a 500cc was something to look foward to in years to come. He was the only European rider that was considered to be able to take the fight to the guys with a dirt track background.

His time in 250's was definitely the most successful period of his career winning 22 races out of his 34 career wins and two championships. He finished runner up twice in the 500cc class and in 1994 he was the last winner of a 500cc Grand Prix being held in Laguna Seca, the only non-American to ever win the 500cc US GP in Monterey.
What made him so special for me ? His character, fine riding style and the prospect of "a box of chocolates"... You never knew what you were going to get from Luca.