It has been one hell of a MotoGP season so far, one of the very best since I first started writing about MotoGP. That was in 2006, and though the racing was mostly better in that year, the championship seems to carry much more tension this season. It helps that the protagonists are more evenly matched in 2015, with Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo both being on the same bike, in the same team, and on the same tyres, while in 2006, Rossi faced Nicky Hayden who was on a Honda, rather than being a rival on a Yamaha. Rossi’s main foe in 2006 seemed to be his bike, rather than the American. That year’s version of the M1 suffering chatter bad enough to destroy a tyre in China, blow an engine in both Le Mans and Laguna Seca, and generally misbehaving in the first half of the campaign. Meanwhile, Nicky Hayden led the championship through sheer consistency, always on the podium, and bagging two victories to help him into the lead.
The biggest difference between 2006 and 2015 is that both Rossi and Hayden were extremely likeable. Rossi was then as much a sports phenomenon as he is now, a rider whose name and reputation rises above the discipline and is recognised globally. Hayden was a favourite among racing fans, his cheeky style and charm endearing him to men and especially women around the globe. Now, Rossi faces Lorenzo, and while Rossi remains as adored as ever, the fans have never really embraced Lorenzo in the way he wanted. He’s admired for his ability and liked well enough but I never get the sense that he is truly loved. I have seen grown women break down in tears when they get close to Valentino Rossi. The most I have seen when Jorge Lorenzo appears is enthusiasm.
Then there’s the fact that Rossi and Lorenzo have history between them as teammates. Rossi allegedly tried to stop Yamaha from signing Jorge Lorenzo for the 2008 season. In the middle of 2007, when rumours of Lorenzo replacing Colin Edwards for the following year were running rampant (and rightly so – the contract had already been signed by then), Edwards was telling reporters off the record that there was no way that Lorenzo would be joining Rossi in the factory Yamaha team, as Rossi had told Yamaha he would not stand for it. Yamaha rightly ignored Rossi and signed the young Spaniard. Their faith, and Rossi’s fears, were confirmed from the very start of the 2008 season. Lorenzo took pole in the first three races of the year, finished on the podium in his first two races, and won the third.
Rossi had already won a small victory of sorts, however. After being crushed by a rampant Casey Stoner the year before, the Italian had engineered a switch in 2008 from Michelin tyres to the Bridgestones the Australian had won the title with. As Lorenzo raced on Michelins, Rossi asked for a total separation of the garages and his wish was granted. A wall, physical and virtual, was placed between the two sides of the Yamaha pit box, and though the physical wall was little more than a large sheet of plastic plate with stickers on, the virtual firewall preventing data flowing from one side of the garage to the other was impenetrable. Rossi was determined that Lorenzo should learn as little as possible from him, and could justify the veto because of they were using two different brands of tyre.
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