MotoGP: French Grand Prix Preview
Ah, Le Mans. Racing in the dark, fairgrounds, Tetre Rouge, the Mulsanne straight, the Ferrari 312P, the Ford GT40 and an overly elaborate final chicane all spring to mind. However, we'll have to wait for the 24 hours race to experience all that, as this weekends MotoGP race will be ran on Le Mans' smaller 'Bugatti' circuit (Boo!). It's round five of the championship for high powered two-wheelers and Valentino Rossi will be looking capitalise on his win at the Chinese Grand Prix two weeks ago.
It's been known for quite some time now that if you want to watch wheel to wheel racing, MotoGP is the series for you. If you want to see highly-skilled maniacs taking big risks on all types of terrain, watch the World Rallying Championship (Don't get me wrong, I LOVE rallying). If you prefer a lot of gung-ho yanks turning left four times a lap in front of some rednecks having a barbeque, then NASCAR or a course of anti-depressants will suffice.
Anyway, back to the runners and riders for this weekend. Jorge Lorenzo may not be up to full fitness after his Shanghai accident, but he is confirmed to race. Dani Pedrosa is still leading the championship, but Rossi's victory last time out has cut his lead down to nine points. If the Doctor wins this weekend, it will be his 90th Grand Prix victory, equaling Angel Nieto. Chris Vermeulen is hoping that a repeat of his win at Le Mans last year will kick start his season and James Toseland, now signed up for next year with his team, will be aiming to keep up his string of points finishes.
Oh, and for all you dedicated followers of fashion out there, Randy de Puniet shall be wearing a special livery of Red, White and Blue on his bike and leathers, specially for his home race. It is so him, don't you think darling?
Now for the Retro bit
I was quite interested to see that the Le Mans Bugatti track has hosted the French Grand Prix on and off for nearly forty years. In fact, looking at those seasons of the late 60's and early 70's and the races that went towards the championship, the French round looked like an oasis of light relief, considering the demands of the other events. The Sachsenring and Brno also hosted rounds, but they were then in their original guises as super-fast road tracks. Assen is still a backbone of the championship, but it was Tilke-ised a few years ago. The Bugatti track is practically unchanged.
Here's what Agostini had to content with in 1968:
Round 1: West German Grand Prix, Nurburgring.
14 miles every lap of every concievable type of corner you could think of. A truly scary rollercoaster ride through the Eifel Mountains, labelled by Jackie Stewart as the 'Green Hell'. The original Nurburgring was and is a king amongst racetracks, probably placed first in the calendar to scare off anyone without nerves of titanium.
Round 2: Spanish Grand Prix, Montjuich.
A fantastic romp through the streets of Barcelona, picturesque and very fast. Unlike most street circuits, where you spent most of your time driving slowly, trying not to make a mistake; Montjuich was wide open and demanding. The last section required you go flat out through a series of ultra-quick curves, all the time trying to keep out of your mind that the organisers were a bit lax when it came to fixing up the armco barriers properly...
Round 3: Isle of Man TT, Isle of Man.
Yes, the most famous bike event of them all used to be the British round of the championship until 1976. And what an event it still is. A wild blast across the island, through towns and villages and out onto the mountain roads. It's reputation as a widowmaker is not unfounded, several riders still die there every year and back in the late 60's it was no different. Just more dangerous.
Round 4: Dutch TT, Assen.
The Dutch round has been a mainstay of the championship for many years. In 1968, the track was a lot longer and faster, with many long, banked corners to increase speeds.
Round 5: Belgian Grand Prix, Spa.
In it's original form, Spa was one of the most deadliest tracks on the planet. A super-fast layout combined with truly unpredictable weather meant that races were fraught with thrills, oil spills and extreme danger. Corners such as the Eau Rouge are still scaring drivers today. In 1968, the wrong line through the flat out Masta Kink would literally land you in someone's front room.
Round 6: East German Grand Prix, Sachsenring.
The first trip behind the iron curtain that year, the original Sachsenring road track was roughly triangular and like Spa, long and very fast. This was laughably in contrast to the cars built by the Trabant factory situated near the Start/Finish line.
Round 7: Czechoslovakian Grand Prix, Brno.
Another track designed for racers, stuntmen and wearers of iron underpants. The Brno-Masaryk track boasted some sickeningly quick sections through several villages and some suprise (!) slow corners to catch out the reckless. It has since been superseded by the modern Autodrome track, but the old pits are still standing today, a reminder of a time when men were men etc.
Round 8: Finnish Grand Prix, Imatra.
A street track with long straights, quick corners, promenant lamp posts and railway crossings...yes, you read it correctly. They probably stuffed a timetable in their leathers before the start of the race.
Round 9: Ulster Grand Prix, Dunrod.
If you made it to this round without losing a limb, your marbles or simply your life, you'd done very well. But Dunrod is a tough, demanding track itself and the Ulster Grand Prix is a road racing event that is still run today (although it is no longer part of the world championship).
Round 10: Nations Grand Prix, Monza.
The last race of the '68 season was a nail biting, no-holds-barred slip streamer at a chicane-less Monza. Those iron underpants still came in handy.
Probably the most amazing aspect of that season was that Agostini won every round!
