Holy crap! Waiting the couple of extra days to see the first race of the 2009 season, was worth it. Stoner won by a solid margin. Rossi finished second, and second year rookie Lorenzo, took the last podium spot. Once Rossi fought his way up through the pack, he was able to keep a consistent gap between himself and Stoner. At times, he was even able to close it, a bit. It was clear though, that Rossi’s abuse to the tires getting into second position, prevented him from closing on Stoner at the end of the race. Just judging from this race, it appears that the 2009 season will be a fierce battle between Rossi and Stoner for the championship.

It is hard to make that kind of prediction, given all of the injuries and the incoming rookies. Pedrosa was riding with an injured left knee. I’m sure that it didn’t help being slammed into by De Angelis after running wide in a left hand corner. It was amazing the Pedrosa was even able to keep his bike on 2 wheels after that one. Hayden, was riding with several injuries sustained in a very ugly high-side crash sustained during practice.

There were a couple of rookie riders that were shooting the lights out. Andrea Dovizioso, Pedrosa new teammate, rode the wheels off of is Factory Honda Monday night finishing fifth. De Angelis, crossed the line right behind Dovizioso in 6th. Both rookies had very impressive rides. Lorenzo was also looking very promising with his third place finish. He is looking strong agian, after a his first season in GP, last year was plagued with several serious injuries. Yuki Takahasi (pictured below), another rookie, earned 1 GP world championship point finishing 15th.

Other Veteran in this race had varied results. Caprirossi actually got a great start and mainted second place for several laps. His race ended early, however, after a walk-away low-side tumble. Edwards finished just off the podium in 4th. Returning veteran, and nemesis of Rossi, Sete Gibernau, had an unimpressive performance finishing 13th. Here is a link to the full results.

The next race is slated for April 26th at Motegi Japan.

[photo by motogp.com]

I would be lying if I said that I wasn’t totally freaking excited for this year’s round of MotoGP action. The season hasn’t even started yet, and there has already been drama. Pedrosa, who took a nasty tumble during pre-season testing, underwent surgery last week, but is still shooting to open the season next month in Qatar.

American, and former world champion, Nicky Hayden, will be back in the mix, after leaving Honda/Repsol. He claims to be feeling confident on his new Ducati. Stoner, also former world champion, and Hayden’s new teammate, has been putting up some impressive numbers during testing. Stoner will be coming into 2009 with a chip on his shoulder, after blowing a huge lead in last year’s world championship, letting Rossi run away with it.

Speaking of drama and chips on shoulders, Sete Gibernau is back in action this year. It would be an understatement to say that there is some bad blood between Gibernau and the Yamaha Fiat team, principally Valentino Rossi. It stems from an incident that occured at the same track hosting the 2009 opener.

Finally, the Losail circuit in Qatar is the only race currently in the GP lineup, which is held at night, under the lights. 2009 will be the second season for the night race.

I am also excited for this season, because Reagan and I are tentatively planning on travelling to see the Indianapolis race this year, in August. That is only if I can’t talk her into going to Laguna for the July 4th weekend.

Who knows, in a month we may even have a new sofa. Either way, I will be taking reservations for those who would like to join me in watching the season opener on April 12, which also happens to be Easter. Hahahah.

Yamaha released the specs of the 2009 YZR-M1 (Valentino Rossi’s bike) this week. It is all of the usual crap: >200 hp, >320 kmph, Ohlins, Marchesini, Brembo, etc., etc.. But the part worth noting, was not in the spec sheet. Rossi gave a Q and A, which was also released this week. Rossi spoke briefly about the testing he has been able to do on the new M1, stating, “I had the chance to try the 2009 prototype briefly after Valencia but more so in Jerez, when I was very fast. The bike seems better and I was faster than I was with the 2008 version.” Fast enough to hang with the Italian bikes on the straight? I guess we will find out, in April. One more part of the interview that I thought was great, is that Vale enjoys snowboarding. Of course he does. I swear, we should be homies.

In unrelated, yet equally good news, Beastie boys are releasing a 20th anniversary edition of the Paul’s Boutique album. I woke up with the following note in my inbox:

Celebrating the 20th anniversary of Paul’s Boutique we have digitally re-mastered and reissued the record. The reissue comes in five versions offering everything from a digital-only package with 320kbps MP3 downloads to an exclusive limited-edition V.I.P. Type package that includes a CD, 180-gram vinyl, a Paul’s Boutique t-shirt and a never seen before poster that’s 8 ft wide. (OH WHAT!?????!!!!!!???) Most items are available exclusively at beastieboys.com

Digital downloads are available in lossless formats (FLAC and Apple lossless). You’ll also find band commentaries, videos, original album art, and more.

Drop by http://paulsboutique.beastieboys.com for more info.

Sincerely,
Paul

Isn’t it great that they let Paul break the news? Hahahahaha. I’m totally on this thing, man. Finally, I can get a copy of “car thief” that is the same volume as the rest of the songs on the playlist.

I know that this may be a little bit premature, but this morning I was reading about Hayden’s move to Ducati and I really started to get excited. In a pre-season interview, Hayden talked about looking forward to the 2009 season, and having Casey Stoner as a team mate. Hayden also addressed the fact that the Ducati GP9 is a very difficult bike. He admitted that he was a bit nervous when he signed with Ducati, because of this aspect, but followed up by stating that testing has been going better than he expected. I feel like, with this move, and Gibernau returning, Rossi is going to have his work cut out for him this year.

Finally, a celebrity that I would actually be interested in meeting, came through NYC… and I totally snoozed. This weekend, for the first time ever, Moto GP will be at the Indianapolis Speedway. It is a pretty big deal, if you are evenly mildly interested in motorcycle racing. Anyway, Valentino Rossi stopped through NYC for his first time, on his way to Indy. I didn’t discover until today that he had even been here. According to the article on Motogp.com, Rossi loves NYC and said that he enjoys the fact that no one recognizes him here. Well dude, if you decide to visit again, hit me up. We have an extra bedroom. Just sayin’.

Side note= Nicky Hayden was in Men’s Vogue this month