Mind Over Matter

Being physically and mentally prepared for any new task in life is always important, especially when that task is racing a Grand Prix motorcycle around at dizzying speeds. Motorcycle racing has grown up a lot since the times of post-race conference beers and deathly 500s. Now to be at the top a rider has to be at the peak of not just bike riding ability but also physical fitness and mental strength. Some say this has made Grand Prix racing too serious taken out a lot of the bad-boy rebel attitude it once had. Regardless of the truth behind the statement, the maturing of GPs has lead to some devilishly fast and competitive rookies. Riders such as Jorge Lorenzo, Dani Pedrosa and especially Marc Marquez have been highly competitive from the word go.

Things have not always been so easy for rookies on factory machine however. Mick Doohan’s first season in GPs was less than stellar. A 3^rd in Germany was the highlight of a season filled with injuries and teething problems with his NSR. The 500s were obviously a beast for anyone to learn but Doohan also had to contend with off track distractions. Europe offered all riders a plethora of distractions off the track, especially to a rookie such as Doohan with little experience outside of his native Australia. It has been widely noted that Doohan spent perhaps too much of his rookie season ‘distracted’ and that it detracted somewhat from his performance. The late 80s was also the cusp of the fitness craze that has now enveloped GPs. Riders were fit, but not top athlete fit and this too meant that rookie seasons were spent adjusting physically to the new demands.

Unlike Doohan, Valentino Rossi took a far more conventional route up to GPs, competing in 125cc and 250cc prior. However, this didn’t mean that he had an easy rookie season. A double DNF greeted Rossi when he achieved his dream of racing a 500cc Honda. Rossi’s season would eventually turn around into a near title-winning season. But why didn’t he win the title? He knew the tracks, he was quick and he was physically strong. But Rossi, as noted by himself, didn’t believe he could win the title in that first half of the season and this mental doubt cost him. Rossi, like Doohan before him, overcame this initially tough season to dominate for multiple seasons.

Marquez has the advantage of being in a GP environment where peak physical fitness is a must for top riders. He has also grown up watching Rossi play mind games with everyone from Biaggi to Stoner and carefully studied how important mental strength is. Marquez has been prepared and groomed for this since he was in mini-moto, eliminating rookies’s greatest weakness: their own mind. Marquez has no outlandish parties to distract him, no self-doubt; he is a machine who is full of self-belief and confidence. But there is only so much the likes of Alzamora can do, in the end the belief and confidence comes from within Marc.

Having stormed to his third victory of the season while Pedrosa and Lorenzo struggled with injuries, Marquez has cemented himself as not only a title contender but also a title favourite. The natural talent of 20-year-old Spaniard is un-doubtable, but a thought must be given  to how each generation has been able to learn from the mistakes of the last.

The Australian Racers' Guide To Retirement

Australia has a proud history on two wheels: Mick Doohan, Wayne Gardner and Casey Stoner are all, even now in the case of Wayne and Mick, household names. But beyond these champions there is litany of other Australians who have fought for wins and championships in GPs and WSBK. Yet many of them, such as Garry McCoy, have faded into a quiet existence on Australia’s Gold Coast, well, most that is. Anthony “The Go-Show” Gobert has taken his retirement a little differently to the soft-spoken McCoy.

Garry McCoy was, and still is, a quiet man, more timid than you’d expect from someone known for slides that would make even a Japanese street drifter think he was crazy. McCoy burst onto the GP scene in 1992 in the 125cc class, having only been road racing for four months. The four years of 125s was McCoy take two victories and six podiums, enough to gain himself a ride on the big 500s in 1999. His impressive style earned him three victories, nine podiums and a truck full of burnt up tyres. The switch to MotoGP saw McCoy struggle aboard a variety of different bikes such as the Aprilla, Kawasaki and even the Ilmor, eventually landing in WSBKs on a Ducati where he won his home race at Philip Island. An ill-fated stint with Foggy Petronas saw a brief stint to supercross. Triumph then offered him a lifeline in WSS that saw McCoy score several podiums and dramatically improve the Daytona 675.  

            Despite this McCoy found himself without a third year on the Triumph and instead McCoy found refuge, all be it brief, with the FB Corse Team. The team, and the deal, fell through, leaving the once mullet graced McCoy without a ride. Then there was nothing, no one really heard from McCoy.  The Troy Bayliss Classic saw McCoy return to some form of racing and public venue. Since his stint in WSS it seems that McCoy has opened his own race school and has coached several younger Australian riders, although probably with less emphasis on being sideways as often. The combination of his school, general track days and being Australia’s Pirelli representative seem to be keeping McCoy’s head well above water as he quietly enjoys his retirement.

            Of all the Australians at the Troy Bayliss Classic there was one 'old-timer' who was a notiveable absence. The Go-Show was perhaps as far away from McCoy in attitude as anyone could get. The youngest ever WSBK winner, Gobert burst onto the international racing scene as the hottest property in a long while. His win and third place at Philip Island in 1994 on the Kawasaki was one of the most impressive rides around the world famous track. It was a strong enough result to get Gobert a fulltime Kawasaki WSBK ride in 1995, where he yet again showed strong results and finished 4^th overall. The ‘96 season was trickier, but a double win at Philip Island earned him a spot on the Lucky Strikes Suzuki 500cc squad.

             Unfortunately this is where things began to nose dive for the wild Aussie. Injuries interrupted the start of his season and the drug abuse began to become more apparent. He once famously showed up after the Brno test with nothing but the ripped leathers he had crashed in. The combination of this saw Suzuki remove him from the squad. 1998 and 1999 saw Go-Show go State side and compete in the AMA, and a WSBK round at Laguna, which he won. Gobert gave the world stage one last try with a Bimota in 2000, yet again winning at Philip Island. But the drug battle continued and the once young talent returned to Australian Superbikes with mixed results. Gobert had one last flash before fading away; he got arrested for stealing 50 Australian Dollars off a pensioner, and it apparently wasn’t the first time. In court he said he had applied for a job at Subway, he didn't get it.

              McCoy and Gobert both had careers that saw them ride in almost every championship around, and both had their ups and downs. Each rider overcame injuries and battled with demons, it’s greatly saddening that the Go-Show’s final episode was such a long way from his where he’d debuted. Chris Vermeulen is another Australian talent who is in limbo between retirement and racing. Currently he races in Triathlons at a very high level, waiting for a testing ride to appear. Luckily it looks as though he’s learnt from Gobert and McCoy and is spreading his post-racing career net wide, hopefully to avoid having to steal handbags from grannies.