The long and gruelling MotoGP season draws to a close this weekend in Valencia. New champion Casey Stoner has had the season of his life and is aiming to notch up his 11th win of an incredible year. Since he won the world title in Japan he has been at the top of the podium and there is no reason why he won't go and do it again. And to think we thought his Ducati was only going to be good on fast tracks - how wrong we were! I'm not sure just yet whether he can go on and dominate the sport like Mick Doohan or Valentino Rossi did as it is only going to get more difficult to do so.
There are so many talented kids in the 125cc and 250cc classes that competition is getting stronger year-on-year and more Stoners will soon come through the ranks. One thing that hasn't changed throughout his stellar season is his personality. He is quite an angry young man and grumpy like his fellow Aussie Doohan used to be. He wants the best in his garage and is very focused on doing all he can to win.
He stomps around when things don't go his way, but he is there to win and that is exactly what he has done. Second placed Rossi has had a completely different season to Stoner and his problems with Michelin tyres look set to end as he is almost certain to ditch them and move to Bridgestones next year. The rest of the Yamaha team will still be on Michelins which certainly isn't common practice. I think it is a mistake and he would be better off staying with Michelin. I'm pretty sure that over the winter they would have thrown a lot of resources at the problems, worked hard and really dug deep to rectify their errors. But it is his decision and best of luck to him, however, if he doesn't win he could look like a fool. It's time for my end of season review of the main teams on the grid. Ducati: 10/10 - A truly phenomenal year, but only on one side of the garage. There aren't enough superlatives to describe Stoner, but Loris Capirossi just has hasn't gelled with the 800cc bike at all. The team worked so hard for their success and they thoroughly deserve it. Yamaha: 7/10 - The package they had wasn't as good as their main rider. Rossi was let down by his bike and tyres this year. Things for them just didn't go well from the start and weren't helped by Colin Edwards having a poor year. Honda: 7/10 - They really underperformed at start of the year and underestimated the threat of the Ducati. Last year's champion Nicky Hayden had a nightmare, although he has since recovered well. Dani Pedrosa also didn't make the impact we thought he was going to. Suzuki: 9/10 - They have moved on immensely from last year after working hard over the winter and the partnership of John Hopkins and Chris Vermeulen dovetailed brilliantly. Kawasaki: 7/10 - It has been onwards and upwards for them. I feel that the bikes have been better than the riders on them, but they will be boosted by Hopkins's arrival next year. Although there isn't much to play for this weekend, the riders will be pumped up for it. There is a lot of prestige and kudos attached to winning the last race of the season and they will push that little bit harder. The track at Valencia is quite slow and its tight corners mean it normally produces good races. I wouldn't say it was a favourite of the riders, but they know it so well due to the amount of testing they do here. See you next year - Steve! Prediction: 1. Rossi 2. Pedrosa 3. Stoner You can watch MotoGP races live on this website (UK users only).
Source: BBC Sport
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