Seven Straight for Spies

Ben Spies now has the all-time WSB record for consecutive SuperPoles ... seven. The riders seem to be struggling a bit with the Miller track, with the normal grid order shuffled and shaken. Biaggi ended up gridding way back in 16th, with Haga doing a little better in 9th. Jamie Hacking is ahead of Haga on the grid in 8th, with Jake Zemk way, way back in 23rd. First two rows go like this: Spies, Checa, Kyonari and Fabrizio, then Smrz, Byrne, Parks and Hacking. I think this will shake up a bit, with Spies running away at the front in both races. I'm thinking Fabrizio on the podium with Spies and then who knows. Could be anybody, with quite different results in the two races. It's possible that Hacking could finish in the top five. Unless Haga gets a really good start, he's going to have a tough time working through the traffic to the front group. he could also make top five. Biaggi won't in either race.

Lorenzo's At It Again

Lorenzo captured pole position during today's MotoGP qualifying, leaving Rossi less than 2/10ths of a second behind and back on the second row. This is the first time Valentino has not qualified on the first row at Mugello ... ever. Joining Jorge on the front row are Stoner and Capirossi. Joining Vale on the second row are de Puniet and Colin Edwards. Third row is Dovizioso, Pedrosa and Elias. Interestingly, the highest top speed (341.988kph) in qualifying was set by Mika Kallio (Ducati) who had the slowest lap times ... seems they may have the setup a little out of wack ... no point going fast down the straights if you can't get round the corners. Tomorrow's winner? It wouldn't surprise me if Lorenzo takes it. Rossi is seriously motivated now that he missed pole position and will most likely be on the podium, one way or the other. Watch for a rocketship start by Pedrosa as he tries to leap to the front group from the third row.

Miller Time for Biaggi

Max Biaggi pulled off a great finish to today's first WSB qualifier at the Miller circuit in Utah, beating favourite Ben Spies by 2/10ths and posting a top speed of 307 kph on the straight. He did put in more laps than any other rider, but obviously this track suits Biaggi. There's still another qualifier and Superpole sessions to go, so although Haga was way down the board, there's not much doubt that he'll be joining Max and Ben at the front of the grid. Biaggi seemed to be fading a little in the last two races, so it's good to see him back at the pointy end again. The tighter the competition at the front, the better the race. The forecast for Sunday is around 80F/28C, with possibility of scattered thundershowers.

Lorenzo - Rossi Lead FP1

Usually, the first MotoGP Free Practice bears little resemblance to the final result, however, today in Tuscany, Lorenzo finished top of the board, 2/10ths faster than Rossi. Stoner finished third and Pedrosa fourth, setting setting the all-time MotoGP speed record in the process, at 349.3 kph. Colin Edwards finished 5th with Alex de Angelis rounding out the second row. Rossi has 7 consecutive wins at the Mugello circuit, so he's still the favourite for the win, but Lorenzo is going to do everything he can to break Rossi's track dominance. Pedrosa and Stoner won't be far behind. This could be a very tight race between Lorenzo and Rossi and with both riders probably riding right on the edge, there's a possibility that at least one of them will go off-track in the process. Both Pedrosa and Stoner have the ability to ruin Rossi's day. It's going to be a great race on a great track.

Lanzi Rejoins WSB

Lorenzo Lanzi has signed as Laconi's Ducati DFX Corse replacement for the rest of the 2009 WSB season. Lanzi played the spoiler at several races over the past few years, taking three firsts including Valencia last year. If he's not out of practice, we should see him running the blue and white Ducati with the lead pack of 6 or so riders and he's entirely capable of making the podium. Haga might have the season championship well in control, but there's still a lot of great racing to come with so many excellent riders in the series. Let's see what happens next week at Miller in Utah.

Laconi Recovering from "Perfect" Surgery

Regis Laconi came out of surgery this morning in Jo'burg, with doctors claiming a "perfect" outcome. As planned, a plate was put in his neck to stabilize the fractured vertebrae, a bone chip by his spinal cord was removed and a skin graft topped off the whole shebang. Apparently he'll remain in the Sunninghill Hospital until the end of the month, then be flown back to Paris for further recovery and any follow-up procedures he may need. The official word is that "there should be no physical consequences", although there's not much chance of him returning to racing this season.

Did Baylis "Fix" the Ducati?

Troy Baylis completed testing for Ducati at Mugello on Friday and seems to be happy with the results, with a best time of 1'51.2". Um, wait a minute, I'm a big fan of Baylis, but that's almost exactly what Nickey Hayden rode last year at Mugello earning 10th place during the last Free Practice. Troy might have had a nice sportbiker's holiday, riding exclusive trackdays at one of the sweetest circuits in the world,but somehow I don't think it's going to do much for Hayden's results.