Hi everyone,

I'll be filing a column here on SuperbikePlanet.com this season, and here's the first installment. I'll write about MotoGP, WSBK, racing in general and maybe even some DMG/AMA racing.

World champion Kevin Schwantz at Jerez GP in '94, his bike wearing the number one plate. image: DFA

The first GP race at Qatar was fairly processional. It didn't look to me that things had changed much, from a passing standpoint. Once you got a bad start, or a good start and got in front, it was difficult for riders to find their way by. All the way at the front, Stoner leading, Pedrosa catching him, Pedrosa passing him, and then Casey just kind of checking out and making a fairly boring race of it. Looking at all the pre-season stuff, it was a pretty impressive ride by Lorenzo to get between the Hondas. I really felt like those two guys are going to be the show this year, in perfect conditions. Obviously, the wet throws up a whole different perspective, and as we saw, some different results as well. But it was kind of where I expected everybody to be. The front two guys, Casey and Dani, Lorenzo tagging on; Spies, Simoncelli, Dovizioso and a possible Rossi to pick up any of the pieces, any doors that those front two or three might have left open by making a mistake and giving some spots up. But it was pretty much a procession at the front.

The thing that really makes Qatar different is racing at night, under the lights. There are so many things that come into play, as we've seen trying to run the Daytona 200 at night a few times. If you don't start it well into the evening, the humidity, the condensation, everything changes. The track, the grip. A good setup that you might have had in practice typically will not work, or doesn't seem like it would work very well, in the evening, because temperatures are going to be cooler. There's either going to be a whole lot more grip or a whole lot less grip, depending on what the surface does in terms of humidity and condensation. We used to do the Suzuka Eight-Hour under the lights, and I always made sure that I didn't have to finish the race, because I don't think I see very well in the evening. I think I'm just a touch night-blind, as well as color-blind. So I don't know that I would've enjoyed racing in the evening. Maybe there are some faceshields that can help that. Qatar does seem to be lit really well. None of the guys ever complain about any dark spots on the track, or not being able to see stuff. But it sure seems like shadows would play a big part in it. It's definitely a different environment to race in. I don't know how much I would've liked it, but as hot and as miserable as it can be there during the day, it seems like the night is the best time to do the race, the best time to try and get some fans in the stands, as well.

I wasn't looking forward to a whole season of processions, so it was interesting to see Jerez come around. I'm sure my man Bernie Ecclestone is looking at that race, going, "See, we've got to have those wet races - there's no telling who might end up at the front!" It's going to be that same group of guys, but the opportunity to make a mistake and end up in the gravel, but with a bike or a car that you can still drive, is still there. I don't know that it's something that we want to see happen in motorcycles, but I was always a real firm believer that no matter what the bike was like in the dry, the wet pretty much equalized it and put it into the rider's hands. You had to be smart, and you couldn't make any mistakes, and you couldn't be over-anxious or over-zealous. You really had to remain smooth and stay focused. That's all the way to the last corner of the last lap, until you get that bike turned around and pointed down that straightaway, you cannot put a wheel wrong. One time too deep in on the brakes, one little bobble mid-corner like Simoncelli had. Lost the front, started to tip off it; when his weight shifted inside, the whole bike went sideways, and when it bit, highsides him off.

It was a good race. It was interesting for me to see as many different people lead that race as had the opportunity. It was interesting to see some of the guys who didn't get great starts, make up a lot of ground. Typically, in the dry, you get a bad start and you lose a couple seconds the first lap, you're struggling all day to make that up. The wet just seemed to really bring the racing back to MotoGP. Lots of passing. In just a little bit wide, somebody's running up the inside of you and he's gone.

The spectacle of Rossi and Stoner - Rossi now being on Casey's old bike, and actually when Casey was laying on it, sliding off the edge of the track, I'm sure he's thinking to himself, "You've got to be kidding me!" But to see Rossi pick the Ducati up and Casey not be able to get back into the race because of the very unhelpful marshals ... . I'm not sure but what the rule reads you're not allowed outside assistance. Yes, sometimes riders get it. But for the most part, I believe, the marshals are told that if the guy can't get it started himself, you're not allowed to help. I guess there must not be any rule that actually states if you do get outside assistance, you cannot score points, or anything like that.

For Stoner the reality is that he's racing against Valentino Rossi, by far the most popular guy in racing. He didn't need any assistance getting his bike picked up. He didn't need assistance - he kept it running, I'm assuming on purpose. Casey was obviously thinking a little bit, as he hit the ground, too, to turn the thing off, so that he didn't suck any dirt up in the engine. But at the same time, when it didn't go quite into the dirt, now you can't get that bike re-started. So you're in a Catch-22. I know he's turning the engine off to save the engine, because he's only got six engines to use all year. So Casey may have just outsmarted himself a little bit there. But at the same time, reading some of the comments that he's made, it's all about not getting assistance, not getting assistance. You can't depend on that. The really popular kid in school gets support from everybody. The kid that's not liked, or is not as popular as the most popular kid, isn't going to get as much support. Unfortunately, that's the way it is in racing right now, when you're trying to compete against Valentino Rossi. In Spain, in Jerez, with Lorenzo and Pedrosa racing as well. You're probably not top of the list as far as favorite riders go. If it were Phillip Island, I can see people doing whatever they can to get Casey back out and get him running. But you can't count on it, and you really shouldn't count on it. It's frustrating, but I don't think Casey should be trying to come up with a solution on how to get more consistent marshaling. "The marshals should all push until they die, to get my bike started." Or anybody's bike started. That's not a rule that's going to get implemented. It's just bad luck. I'm sure Casey has the ability, and it's only the second race of the year, so we've got 16 left. He'll have the opportunity to make those points up. He's just going to have to be smart and work from the back now.

But back to the racing. It was unbelievable to watch and see how when somebody just kind of got things sorted out, how fast they were coming through the field. the kind of move Valentino was making, from how far back he'd come. The same with Spies. Trailing Pedrosa by five seconds, and whoops, Pedrosa's front tire goes off a little bit, the next thing you know, Ben's on him. It was one of those things that my understanding was, Bridgestone did not have a tire that would last the entire distance in the situation they were racing in. It was going to be pushing the front and watch out at the end, because it was going to be pretty ragged. Lots of guys with cords showing on their tires, and lots of guys who tipped over, who seemed to have really slowed down as the race came to a close, those last three, four, five laps. Frustrating. I've fallen off at Jerez with five laps to go with a worn front, because I chose the front that I liked. That's not the situation these guys were in this weekend. The front they used was the only front that they had.

Moto2 and 125, no real surprises. I think looking back in 125 and seeing Danny Kent and Taylor Mackenzie finish fourth and fifth in their race, to me, that's awesome, because those kids were both Red Bull Rookies' Cup kids last year. To have gotten a race with a little bit of moisture, dry track, wet, wet track going to dry, all the different situations that were out there, as they learned racing with Rookies' Cup, they've got to be able to adjust to differing conditions. That bike that they raced the past couple of years was never anything that was perfect. It was something that you got close, and then as the fuel ran down, you had to compensate as a rider. That's what makes great racers. Not being the fastest guy out there for a lap, but being able to race and ride around all kinds of different problems or issues that you might have with the bike.

I think Jerez is the same spectacle that it's always been, 125,000 fans there for most of the day Sunday in the rain. MotoGP in Spain, or at least in Jerez - I think it's probably even a step higher than football and Formula 1. The fans really enjoy MotoGP that much.

One thing we teach at the Schwantz School is that in the wet, everything has to be that much smoother than it does in the dry. You can get away with making some little mistakes in the dry. You can't even begin to hold onto the brake too long in the wet. Three or four years ago my dad came to the school, when we were still at Road Atlanta, and it rained one afternoon. He said, "Aw, I'm not going out." I said, "What do you mean?" He said, "I don't ride in the rain, Kevin." I said, "Dad, what do you do if you're on the road, if you're coming back from Mexico, or wherever you and your buddies have been, and it's raining, you need to get home?" He said, "I pull over, I find a hotel, and I call your mom and tell her I'll be home when it quits raining." I said, "Come on. Get on the bike. Let's go. We're going to go out and ride. In the wet." So I put him on the bike, I got on my bike, and we went out and rode. And when he came in, all he could say was, "It's amazing how much grip there is out there. I really thought, because the surface was wet, that there was absolutely no grip at all." You don't find yourself braking really deep into corners. You go in, you get the bike stopped, you get the bike set, and it really does teach a lot of the technique that we try and implement, even in the dry - and that is, get off the brakes while you're still upright, try and get back to neutral throttle, and be as smooth as you possibly can. Because inevitably, smooth is what's fast.

World Superbike at Phillip Island had no real surprises. We all knew that Checa and the Ducati were going to be something to contend with this year, especially with so many guys changing teams. Leon Haslam going from Suzuki to BMW, the Yamaha crew all being new. There really wasn't anybody besides Biaggi that I felt had an opportunity to win that first race. Carlos went out, dominated qualifying, dominated practice, dominated both races.

Then we go to Donington, and weather can always play a part there. I'm sure it was cold. I don't know that it was ever wet and miserable as it can be, but I think there were some real surprises there. Melandri on the Yamaha, winning? With what Marco's done in the past year or two, I wouldn't have bet that in a million years. It's great to see that he and Laverty both had decent first races. I think Melandri had a decent second race and Laverty didn't. That's good to see, that the Yamaha's still competitive, and still up there.

The lone Suzuki is Fabrizio. All I've got to say is good luck to Francis Batta. Fabrizio was inconsistent when he was on the best bike out there, when he was on a Ducati. He's on a good bike now, I think his results are going to be even more erratic. It's true that Carlos Checa has won three of the four races, but it's good to see a championship that's got some depth. To see the Yamaha win again, to see the competition is deep through the field with as many manufacturers as they have - I think seven different manufacturers in the top ten at both Phillip Island and Donington - it's good. I don't know what else World Superbike can do except maybe drag some big names from Grand Prix racing back, to try and make it that much more popular of a sport. But I think right now the competition seems to be good, it seems to be pretty close. I don't think I'll wake up in the middle of the night to watch it, but I'll for sure record it and watch it first thing in the morning when I get up.

The Daytona 200 - wait, no, 149. A bunch of question marks, is all that I want to say.

The Superbike races were good. I think those guys got everything out of the bikes and the tires that they could. Blake Young just happened to be at the right place at the right time, to capitalize on a bike that was a little bit faster than Josh Hayes'. The second day, I didn't think he was in the right position. I thought Tommy Hayden was going to draft by them both. But Tommy's bike pushed the front a little bit coming out of NASCAR 4, and he had to get off the gas, and with that, Blake just went sailing right on by Josh. It's going to be interesting to see what happens. We've got a test at Miller before Infineon. It'll be interesting to see what happens with the Superbike boys at the test, and going to the first real racetrack of the year at Infineon. At Daytona, you can be half-decent and still do really well; at Infineon, you've got to be good everywhere. It'll be interesting to see how the Yamahas and the Suzukis and the BMWs all match up against each other.