P138
CN
III IN THE PADDOCK
BY MICHAEL SCOTT
I
t's Proud and Happy time
again. As the 2017 MotoGP
season assembled at Qatar, a
great tide of the painfully obvious
swept through the paddock, as
one rider after another spoke un-
revealingly about his hopes and
dreams.
Here's a sample, from Marc
Marquez: "I am very motivated to
try to fight for the title for another
year." Well, there's a surprise.
All the others, they revealed
exclusively, likewise plan to give
maximum effort and dedication,
aiming to achieve the best pos-
sible results.
I mean, what is the alterna-
tive? Nobody's really going to
say: "I'm just going to show up
for the races and play it safe,
while looking for a good invest-
ment advisor to maximize my
earnings."
There was another shared
emotion, lapping at the ankles
in the desert, beyond pride and
happiness with oneself and
one's team. It was more to do
with the beating heart of the
MotoGP family.
And it's as fake as a cuck-
older's cry of "I'm sorry."
Oh, maybe that's a bit harsh.
Maybe my cynicism has got the
better of me. Again.
But the emotions I've always
detected in racing, especially
among the denizens of the start-
ing grid, have been the direct
opposite of familial altruism.
Racing at this level is the
WE ARE FAMILY?
