Team orders when you've got these two under one tent? Good luck. image by marty mad eyes

Anyone who thought the end of the season might be a bit boring because Dani Pedrosa's injury more or less handed the title to Jorge Lorenzo can think again.

Casey Stoner won for the second race running but this was a very different race to Aragon where the Ducati world from the word go. In Japan the team struggled to find a set up that worked and took a gamble after morning warm-up saw them take a step back. Once he took the lead off Dovizioso early on the first lap he was never headed although Dovi kept him honest for the whole race. After being fastest for most of the weekend and starting from pole, Andrea didn't look overjoyed with second place.

Jorge was not happy. Even his official press release complained about Rossi's riding, and he was more vocal to individual journalists face-to-face.

The real action was the battle, and I mean battle, for third between the Fiat Yamaha team mates Rossi and Lorenzo. It started on the first lap with Lorenzo muscling past at turn three and caught fire on the penultimate lap when they touched at least twice. Lorenzo went past at the righthander at turn five that takes the track under the oval. Rossi ripped back inside Lorenzo on the exit barging the Spaniard towards the edge of the track. Jorege immediately attacked on the inside at the next lefthander—V Corner, unfortunately for him that put Jorge on the outside for the next right and Rossi conceded not an inch and shoved Lorenzo aside again. Jorge got past again half way round the last lap but Rossi immediately retook third and got a couple of bike lengths advantage that he held to the flag. Make no mistake this was as tough as it gets, right up there with Rossi's attacks on Stoner or Gibernau in previous years, and was followed by the usual calculated verbals. As at Laguna, Rossi's first tactic was to act as if it was a perfectly normal race and congratulating Jorge on a good fight. Look a little deeper into his pronouncements and you see the disappointment in not being able to fight for the lead because he couldn't get past Lorenzo. In other words ?he held me up.' Then vale said his tyres started sliding, which translates as ?he only got back to me because I had problems.' Then he called the closing stages ?proper racing,' so anyone who complains is a wimp.

Jorge was not happy. Even his official press release complained about Rossi's riding, and he was more vocal to individual journalists face-to-face. He even managed to get the team management to say that they thought Rossi shouldn't have ridden as he did. Jorge also threatened to take the gloves off in future. Rossi's mask slipped when he talked to the press: ?He's been saying all year he wanted a last-lap battle with me; well today he got it.'

As the championship will be Jorge's if Dani Pedrosa's name isn't on the entry list for Malaysia next week, then he will be able to fight Rossi without and distractions. Bring it on. But don't bet against Casey Stoner carrying on with his run as his home race approaches. Boring? Don't think so.