Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

Bv Mrcsarl Scorr IN THE PADDOCK nn g a I n E-u Lsed with care. One of them I i. ng".'' The orher "Gold- I en. The last time the ohrase I could reasonably be bandied about in racing was in the late 1980s and early 1990s, when those two classic rivals, Wayne Rainey and Kevin Schwantz, found themselves going head to head among a gridful of talent that included Eddie Lawson, VVayne Gardner and Mick Doohan. Nobody knew who was Soing to win the race back in those days - a fact that gave rise to aching nostalSia in the years when Doohan, and later. Valentino Rossi, would win almost every one. calculating perfectionist Rainey. Which may serve as a working model, but I have my own memories, and my own parallels. Stoner, for me, evokes more memories of his countryman Wayne Gardner - the 1987 World Champion. Listening to him energetically refuting Rossi's suggestion that he'd faded in Qatar because of lack of experience on degrading tires, it could have been the feisty old Digger himself. Stoner insisted he was perfectly happy on slidinS tires. His problem had been purely physical. A nightmare iourney to Qatar had entailed two consecutive overnighters in airport lounges, and when oyerdue for one of their periodic techni- cal tours de foace- With a quiet demeanour, a soft accent, highly articulate comments and a matter- of-fact air of commitment. Vermeulen has been unobtrusively getting on with an important learning year in very impressive style. His pole position in the wet at lstanbul was anything but a lucky lap; he was riding brilliantty, one fast lap after another, not merely seftin8 the pace but continualb/ uppinS it. After a safe and solid race, he missed sixth by a lfth, when Loris Capirossi's more powerful Ducati outdragSed him to the line, Vermeulen is 23, actually a year older Or the new Barry Sheene? All ridiculous, of course. Comparing one rider to another is invidious, The ioy of this sport is the individuality it breeds and fosters. Each rider is exactly like himsell On a good day, anyway. It will be individuals who will drive this nascent Golden Age forward, but perhaps these gilded youths do have something in common with those old soldiers, They share an enioyment oI riding motorcycles that shines out on and off the track. A far cry from the weary ennui of the dear departed Biaggi, for example. This means they actually dare to be funny in the formal pre- and post-race MotoGP fans, however, could be forgiven for think- in8 themselves on the brink of another one. At the risk of banging on about the sprinS tide of youth, it is by far the most striking thing about the way this year has begun - three different winners in three races on three different mar- ques, three different pole qualifiers, and a handful of riders barely in their 20s, who obviously weren't lis- tening when they were told how hard it is to ride a MotoGP bike. l'm not the only one thinking like this. Consider ex- l25cc GP winner. and now team owner, Lucio Cecchinello, who was lucky enough (in all the Camel/tlax Biaggi to-and-fro in the win- ter) to end up with his prize rider Casey Stoner back in the fold, and his own one- bike Honda MotoGP team. Stoner has been nothing if not sensational - pole and battling for the lead in Qatar, all but winning in Turkey. Cosey stoner - tfie next Kevin S

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