Published in the Daily Mirror - Saturday 25 May
MOVE over Formula One, the real racing is coming home.This weekend sees a return of the bikes to Britain’s cathedral of motorsport, Silverstone.
It’s a first for the World Superbike boys, previously they have ridden at Donington Park for the British round and Kent’s Brands Hatch for the European.
But now, after the fiasco at Austria nearly a fortnight ago and the certainty of no overtaking at Monaco tomorrow, Troy Bayliss, Colin Edwards and British hope Neil Hodgson will make a refreshing change. Unfortunately more people will still tune in to watch the possible controversy in Monte Carlo rather than a British rider gunning for glory in a competitive championship.
For years the ‘racing’ in F1 has verged on a procession. It has always been a team sport of course, and has a different philosophy to the bike paddock. Team orders in bikes are illegal. But in F1 it still goes on. Remember the farcical situation in 1998 when David Coulthard allowed McLaren team-mate Mika Hakkinen through because they had made a ‘driver’s agreement’ that whoever led at the first corner would be the first home. Fans were led to believe those kind of tricks were outlawed, or that teams would at least be a bit more subtle about it!
But then Rubens Barrichello "waves on" Michael Schumacher in Austria – well, I suppose if you had just signed a new contract worth £10 million, you’d even consider washing the car!
Come on – the deals on wheels may be a part of F1 culture, but beside the politics what’s in it for real race fans?
Without a Bernie Ecclestone figure, World Superbikes hasn’t the media profile and is a youngster in comparison to the historic F1 circus, but they have the ingredients for true motor racing - passion, determination and competitiveness.
The desire to win eats the riders away. As a viewer, you daren’t blink in case you miss a new race leader; the overtaking is spectacular, breathtaking and the dedication from the riders second to none.
Tomorrow, Briton Hodgson has an excellent chance to stand victorious despite the intense competition he will face from Bayliss, Edwards and Steve Hislop.
"Although I respect the level of skill required to drive a F1 car, it’s disappointing to watch a race and know they aren’t racing," said Hodgson yesterday. "We race from the first corner to the chequered flag as hard as we can. Although Ducati support my career, I’ll still kick Bayliss’s backside whenever I can!"
Neil is thrilled at the prospect of riding in front of a home crowd and realises not only are they here to see great action, but primarily to support him.
It would be a perfect world if the Superbikes hit the news for a rider winning rather than the winner in F1 losing. But at least we can say in the real world, the most spectacular competitive racing belongs to World Superbikes – a great tonic for frustrated motorsport fans.