The 2006 MX1 and MX2 Motocross World Championships enters its last three rounds at Northern Ireland this weekend, where newly crowned ten-times world champion Stefan Everts will be aiming to win his 100th GP.
Everts has dominated his final season, winning all twelve grands prix to date to clinch the title in front of his home fans at Namur. The event effectively turned into a big celebration for the Belgian champion, but in Porters Pit there will be another crowd waiting to party for Everts – if he can continue his unbeaten run and complete a record breaking century of wins.
With the title gone, Stefan's beleaguered rivals are simply hoping to stop the Yamaha star's domination before he retires. They are led by Suzuki riders Steve Ramon and Kevin Strijbos, second and third in the standings with just16 points between them.
Positions are equally close further down, with CAS Honda's Ken de Dycker and Kawasaki's Tanel Leok fourth and fifth in the Championship. de Dyker is 37 points behind Strijbos, but just six ahead of Leok.
But while those four young guns jostle for position - in a dummy run of the 2007 title fight - there is also a veteran showing great strength at the moment. That man is CAS Honda's Josh Coppins, who will replace Everts at Yamaha next season and has been on the podium ever since his return from injury at Matterley Basin.
But one man is likely to receive more Desertmartin support than most - local star Gordon Crockard. After several seasons in the wilderness, the Wulfsport rider has been rising back to towards the top this year and will hope home support can carry him to a debut 2006 podium.
Meanwhile, the MX2 class crown is still to be decided, with current leader Christophe Pourcel well aware that consistency should keep him on top. With one grand prix win in Germany and six other podiums, the young Frenchman is the most consistent MX2 rider and holds a 26 points advantage over reigning champion Antonio Cairoli as a result.
