F1 » Hamilton: One day a woman will kick a*se in F1

The gynophobia seen in motorsports is unfortunate, there is no reason a woman couldn't compete at the same level as men. BTW Patrick cut her teeth racing Formula Fords in the UK, so she knows how to turn right as well.

WSBK » POLL: What has surprised you most in 2009?

And to think that Shakey was in the running for the Ducati Corse ride that eventually went to Haga. He has been a total bust this year, while Haslam and Rea have rode better than I expected. Many knew Spies would be good, but not this good. The guy could conceivably get every pole in his rookie season. Other guys that don't seem to be going as well as I expected: Nakano, Checa, Kiyonari, Kagayama. The BMW looks fairly hopeless at the moment as well. But they will figure it out evetually, this isn't Petronas. Hopefully it is a development issue and not an inherent problem with the bike that is not easily fixed in a production series like WSBK.

F1 » Brawn admits he underestimated Button's talent

Rubens is a decent driver for sure, but many (most?) people consider him to be average in talent on the grid and a little long in the tooth. Yet more often than not he finishes right behind Button. This tells me the car is so outstanding that even an old & average driver could win with it. Button will probably be WDC this year with Rubens second. When Button has a proven teammate, an Alonso or Kimi or even a Vettel level of talent, and consistently beats them by several places (because the car is merely acceptable not great), only then I will be impressed at Button's talent. For now it looks like he paid his dues, finally got lucky with a great car, and is making the most of it.

F1 » FOTA eyes MotoGP organiser Dorna for breakaway

Am I the only one who finds it ironic that in MotoGP all the focus for rules has been on saving money recently, while the same guy now is going to possibly possibly the F1 manufacturers because they refuse to accept a spending cap? If the split happens, I don't see it ending well for anyone in the short term.

WSBK » Hacking to continue with Kawasaki

Kawasaki to me looks like a joke. They pull out of MotoGP to save money, but Melandri is having their best year ever on the orphan bike. Hacking was the only rider to challenege Yoshimura Suzuki in the AMA, and they demote him to racing 600s and only sign him at the last minute in 2009. Roger Hayden, for reasons still not really known, refused to ride the bike for the first rounds for Kawasaki. And in WSBK they have had good riders but when they score points it is a surprise. Their streetbikes are as good as any, why they can't do well racing and stick with it is a mystery.

WSBK » Hacking to continue with Kawasaki

Spies was around $2M with Mladin about the same. Mladin earned several more million from other related activities and businesses. No way Yosh Suzuki spent $10M on salaries alone. More like $5M including Tommy Hayden. Maybe $10M for the entire year to race the three bikes, travel, salaries for all employees, etc. Still big money though.

F1 » Button defends Brawn as rivals say battle 'already over'

Cinderella has turned into the overdog. The other teams should stop whining and start building new parts for their cars.

MOTOGP » Hayden '09 mirrors Melandri '08.

The 800cc Ducati is rapidly developing a reputation as a career killer. The only person who can ride it competitvely and consistently is Stoner (Barros, Capi, Elias all had podiums though). So in the future you might see the top riders avoid it like the plague. The only riders on it being Stoner and guys just happy to have a ride. Actually 2009 looks like that now...

WSBK » Spies eager to chase Haga down

I would much rather Spies be a little quiet and "boring" and let his riding do the talking for him. The other Texas rider who is in a world championship series suffered from an excess of personality. Early in his MotoGP career Edwards talked a lot of s***, but after a few years of having his teammate beat him every race it finally appears to have humbled even that puffed up rooster.

WSBK » Spies revels in 'special moment'

Madmonk you might have a point, although he is in a different place in his career than when he joined Yosh Suzuki. Then he was unproven and relatively unknown, today he has 3 AMA championships and just might win the WSBK championship in his first try. It is conceivable he could get every pole this year. Part of my reasoning I didn't include was this choice he might have to make: 'OK Ben, we will make you the highest-paid rider in WSBK or you can get paid 50% less to ride MotoGP. You will be the #3 rider there and until you prove yourself the big money won't be available in that series." That might make it a tougher choice. Ask Mladin.