BSB » BSB free practice times (2) - Donington Park.

No chance !!! Shakey'll be looking for the double. There's no such thing as holding back. The difference between 1st and 2nd or 3rd at Donny could be the difference at the end of the season between winning the title or not. Besides, the so called weight penalty is already planned to kick after Donny anyway, so why hold back ? You've obviously not watched much motorcycle racing my friend...

BSB » BSB free practice times (2) - Donington Park.

Wow !! Look at those oh so dominant and competitively advantaged Ducati 1098''s go !! They''ve only gone and got themselves into.... 4th, 6th and 7th fastest after Free Practice 2... That''s shocking... absolutely shocking.

BSB » 'Shakey' shakes off controversy in P1.

BSB only being available on Eurosport isn't a mess at all Tootal, its a result. When the TV rights switched from Sky to ITV a couple of years ago, it went completely down hill. We had 'highlights only' coverage of race 1, with the only full coverage being shown at 23:30 at night (on a Sunday when most people have to be up at god knows what time for work the next day), plus there was no coverage of any support races, plus it was presented by an ex rower (of all people) in the form of James Cracknell !! At least now Eurosport have the rights we get to see 90% of the racing live, plus the program is presented by people who have a background in the sport i.e Jamie Whitham, James Haydon etc...

BSB » BSB free practice times (1) - Donington Park.

....continued. If Shakey's lead in the championship this year were solely down to how much of an advantage the 1098 Ducati has over the rest of the field, then (as has been stated numerous times already throughout posts on this subject), Camier, Rutter et al would all be flying in formation behind Shakey every race in a 1-2-3-4 order, with all the others (if they could stay on 2 wheels that is) 25 seconds back up the road. That hasn't been the case, in fact I was at Brands to witness Shakey's efforts courtesy of Airwaves VIP hospitality, and it actually took Shakey around 8 laps to catch and pass Sykes and Crutchlow on his way to winning race 1. That's not advantage, that's ability !!

BSB » BSB free practice times (1) - Donington Park.

pagoda - 'Shakey, over the last couple of years has done nothing at all,yet he jumps on one of these Ducati's and hes cruising the championship.This is a shame' What are you talking about ? The Stobart Honda last year was an uncompetitive Privateer bike being run by a team (Paul Bird Motorsport) who arguably have had much more success running Ducatis (aka MonsterMob), hence Shakeys dominance in BSB in 2003, and him claiming a unique double on the same bike at Brands Hatch in August 2003 in front of the entire WSBK field, including both Factory Ducatis. Success in motorcycle racing is about a 'package' of rider and machine. Get the two right and the results will follow....

BSB » BSB free practice times (1) - Donington Park.

Oh Dear, Shakey''s on the pace already in Free Practice 1. Quick MCRCB...., change the rules again and add some more weight, else he might win more races and, god forbid, even the 2008 title. Come on Shakey - a nice ''double'' at Donny, another wildcard double at WSBK Brands in August, then disappear off to WSBK in''09 with either GSE or take one of the Bayliss / Fabrizio rides, and let the MCRCB pick the bones out of that. That''ll do me nicely.

BSB » Ducati weight penalty delayed.

What we need to see now is Shakey and Shafter to do a double 'one-two' in both races and then MCRCB can go stick that in their pipe and smoke it !! Haslam may be a handful round Donny on the Firebucket tho

BSB » Airwaves threaten Donington withdrawal.

Another point that needs making about Shakey Byrne is that he always goes well on a decent Duke. Have people forgotten the 2003 BSB championship ? He blew the rest of the field away on the MonsterMob 998 Ducati simply through quality riding, not because the 998 was 200cc bigger than the rest. I don't recall him streaking away with a 25 second lead every race. Similarly, look what he did on that 998 Ducati in front of the WSBK field in 2003 when he was a wildcarder !! He beat the entire field twice in one day, whilst riding a Privateer Duke, and competing against several other 998 Duke WSBK teams such as GSE with Toseland and Walker aboard. He even beat Hodgson/Xaus on the factory Dukes !!

BSB » Airwaves threaten Donington withdrawal.

This point has been made several times already in a round about sort of way, however I'll make it again just for the record. Shakey Byrne has been consistent so far this season and has finished all 6 races so far this season. The emphasis here is on 'finished' i.e. he has kept the Duke on two wheels rather than throwing it up the road, riding other racers off the track, or blowing up engines at key points in the race. That's why he has a 40+ point advantage over his competitors. He was even gracious enough to give second place back to Sykes in race 2 at Brands a couple of weeks ago, rather than risk being penalised. Had he not have done that, he may well have taken the top spot again.

WSBK » Bayliss: It began with Nori in 2000...

Haga should get a crack on a factory Duke and realise his potential and win a WSBK title before we lose him for good. He'd have won in 2007 if not for Biaggi's impatience to pass when he clearly shouldn't have been. As for the second Duke ride in 2009, providing Shakey Byrne wins BSB '08 convincingly (and maybe does the WSBK Wildcard double at Brands again - although in 2003 when he did it Bayliss was in MotoGP !!), I think he'll have earned his slot as Ducati wingman. Likely to be someone already within WSBK who replaces Bayliss due to track knowledge, although I wouldn't rule out Bayliss staying on to surpass Foggy's race / championship records. Imagine a Bayliss & Byrne Ducati duo in '09!