Ducati rider Neil Hodgson comes to America after a season of MotoGP racing. image by dave james and the busty one

Continued

Q You've spoken in the past about how important is to have a good team around you. How big of a say are you going to have in the Austin team as to who your crew will be? Are you settled with Ernesto Marinelli (Ex-Ben Bostrom wrench and current Ducati WSC technical director) and the boys, or how will it be?

A Well, Ernesto, unfortunately for me—I'd have liked to have kept my relationship 100% with Ernesto, because we had a great working relationship in 2003. But unfortunately for me, he's too high up in Ducati. Unfortunately they can't clone Ernesto. So obviously, he's going to have to stay closer to the factory. But he's going to come to a lot of the pre-season tests, and he's going to come to maybe five or six events throughout the season.

But as it stands, I'm happy, I know some of the mechanics that have come over, some of the Italian guys. I don't know any of the American guys, but I've heard really good things about them, and I'm just looking forward to getting out there and seeing how it all works, and not making any decisions beforehand. I've heard that the Austin team's got some great technicians, and I'd like to work with them.

Q How do you rate the various top-level Superbike championships: World, AMA and British? How do they stack up to each other?

A Well, it's so difficult—it's a difficult one to judge. Now, I can judge between the two that I've done. And what I could say about the British championship, a lot of people say that that's the top championship. And what I'm going to say, I don't mean it as disrespectful to anybody racing in the UK. But everyone that wins the British championship moves on. I moved on, and Chris Walker moved on, and Troy Bayliss moved on, and Shakey Byrne moved on. And at the moment, there's nobody else—in my opinion, there's nobody else—no one's upped the level.

At the moment, John Reynolds is the champion. He's a great motorcycle racer, but, you know, the top guys have left. What it looks like in AMA, apart from Nicky Hayden leaving, all the top guys stay. And I think a lot of that is because, financially, the AMA pays good money. Why should they come over and do World Superbikes and get paid 50% of the salary?

So I would rate, in its best years, World Superbikes was number one, definitely, but it certainly is on its way down. I think it's going to come back. Hopefully it will come back. I'm a fan of it. But I'm going to rate AMA, then World Superbikes, then BSB. It'll be something I'll know better after I've done three rounds. Because I don't really know 100%. But that's how I see it.

Q Mat Mladin's well known for being very psychologically tough with his competitors. Are you prepared for that?

(Listen to this answer here. MP3 format, 230k in size)
A Absolutely. I enjoy racing motorcycles, and I enjoy rivalry. It's all part of it. It's all part of the big game. For me, in my good seasons, I had really, really big rivalries with people. So I'm happy. If Mat wants to be my best friend, then great. If he doesn't, then great. It's not going to make me go any faster or slower. It's all part of it. It's all about fun. I just get stuck in and just go as hard as I can.

Q Aside from his win in Colorado, Eric Bostrom severely struggled in 2004. Any thoughts?

A I don't really know. I don't know what level of machinery he had, so I don't really know that much about it, to be honest. I know he lost a little bit of confidence. I know, having been in that position in the past, if you lose a bit of confidence, it only has to be a small percentage, and it's the difference being on the podium every weekend and battling for sixth.

So hopefully we can work together as a team. I really like Eric, and hopefully we can help each other. Hopefully, maybe, I've got something to show him on how to ride the bike. Not how to ride a bike, but how to ride that bike. And hopefully he can show me some secrets of the tracks. If we can work as a team, for me, this is what I see, and help each other, it would be just great to see the Ducatis back up there.

Q What's the most appealing aspect of the AMA series? The competition? The challenge? The ability to contend? The money? The weather?

A [Laughing] The girls? You know what, a combination of them all. The tracks, I've got to say, I've been watching them. I really like the look of the tracks. I've always liked motocross-style tracks. I want something that's got a bit of character. I hate real featureless, characterless circuits. I've been watching some of the videos. It's funny, because it seems weird that I'm going to be riding them now. Because I've sat there watching them, thinking, "Shit, that looks like a good section there," or "That looks fast." So I'd say the tracks definitely play a major part in it.

Q Besides the Daytona tire test, do you plan to test anywhere after the New Year, in America?

A I've not seen the test dates. I've asked for them as soon as possible. I think they're still finalizing some of them. The team said to me, they want me to come to the AMA Championship, and we're coming to win. We're not coming to ride around and just have some fun. So I want to test as much as possible. Myself and the team are thinking along the same lines. So hopefully they can pencil some tests in and I'll be keen to stay out there and just get doing some laps.

Q The AMA series definitely doesn't offer as much Superbike practice and qualifying time per round that you're accustomed to in World Superbike and maybe MotoGP. Is that a problem, in that you haven't raced at a majority of these tracks?

A Yeah, it's going to be a problem. I'd like to say no, it's not. The more laps the better. That's something I'm going to have to deal with, and hopefully, like I said, the team can—if we can work as many tests as possible prior to any of the events, then it's only going to help. If I turn up and just have an hour and a half on a circuit, it's going to be tough. I can't imagine someone coming to Cadwell Park, in England, which is one of our technical, twisty tracks, having an hour and a half's practice, and beating John Reynolds. It's not going to happen. You wouldn't get near him. Because he's ridden that track for 12 years. So, yeah. The more testing, the better.

Q Will winning the 2005 AMA Superbike Championship be necessary to declare next season a success for you?

A Ummm, yeah. Yeah. But. You've got to be ... you've got to see how everything pans out. You can have a great season and not win the championship. So, obviously, I want to win the championship, and I start the season with no other thought. I'm not going to sit here now thinking "top three, I'll be really happy." I'm going in there to achieve the goal of winning the championship. And I don't mean it disrespectful to anybody, because I know the challenge I've got ahead of me. I'm not going into it unprepared. I'm not going in thinking, "Oh, I'm going to cruise this."

I'm expecting this to be the toughest season I've ever had.

Q Final question and perhaps the most important question. Are those goofy (Hodgson) fan guys with the wigs and the orange shirts going to be coming to America now?

A I hope so. It's been well received in the UK. No English rider's really come and had a real go at the American championship. All the Brits love America, it's one of the number one holiday places for British people. So everyone's so excited, all my genuine fans, I've been getting so many emails about they're going to come over and support me. So I'd love that. That's one thing I'm going to miss, the home support, because there's nothing quite like going to a track in, say, Germany, and seeing all these crazy guys dressed in orange and waving. So hopefully that can continue.