GMC Australian Grand Prix - Phillip Island MotoGP Preview - World Championship Round 16

This weekend thousands of Australian fans will be packing away
for a trip down south as they congregate at Melbourne's Phillip
Island circuit. The rabble will be there to scream and shout amidst
the roar of MotoGP engines, with Round 16 of the 2007
Championship in town.

No doubt most of the fans in attendance will be cheering for the
newly crowned MotoGP champion, Australian Casey Stoner, who
sealed the 2007 title last round at Motegi. The crowd will be eager
to see the young Aussie usher back memories of fellow
countryman Mick Doohan's dominance a decade ago. Just
because the title is tucked away, however, don't expect Stoner to
let up. If anything, it gives the Ducati ace even more reason to go
for broke and wrestle away yet another checkered flag from
Valentino Rossi's hands.

"It's going to be a special feeling going to my home race with the
championship already won," said Stoner, "but I will be going out
to win, same as ever, because that's what I enjoy doing."

Valentino Rossi enjoys winning too, but the wins have been few
and far between in '07 - at least by his standards. The Doctor has
always enjoyed immense success at Phillip Island. Perhaps this
Sunday the Yamaha ace will summon up memories of his past
glory, with the Australian circuit the site of five career MotoGP
victories, including the title-clinching win for his first championship
with Yamaha in 2004. A testament to his absolute domination of
the world's premier motorcycle racing series, it is the first time in
his illustrious MotoGP career that Rossi enters a race with the
possibility of the championship gone.

"I am determined to have a good race there," said Rossi of the
Phillip Island circuit. "It's an especially important race because
many of my mechanics are Australian so for them it's their home
race. I love the track and Phillip Island is a special place; I'm
really looking forward to this race. It's a pity that we couldn't
keep the championship alive a bit longer but we have no pressure
now, we will just take it race by race and try to win all three."

Dani Pedrosa sits 26 points behind Rossi in the championship,
giving the young Spaniard a lofty goal for the remainder of the
season. It was Pedrosa who was tapped out to dominate the
800cc realm, not his former 250cc rival Stoner. If the Repsol
Honda rider can leapfrog into second, it would be a great boon for
the off-season as Honda tries to catch up to its rivals. Teammate
Nicky Hayden will also be gunning for a good result this weekend.
The pole position winner the past two years at the Island, Hayden
knows how to get around the Island in a hurry, but can the
Kentucky Kid salvage what's left of a dismal title defense?

The Rizla Suzuki squad arrives at Phillip Island determined to
continue the most successful season for the Japanese marque in
the modern four-stroke era. At 308 the team is just 14 points
behind the Fiat Yamaha squad for second in the Team
championship and within shouting distance of Yamaha and Honda
in the Manufactures Title. With seven podiums between them,
John Hopkins and Chris Vermeulen are looking to improve upon
their fourth- and fifth-place positions in the championship. Riding
in special livery in honor of Barry Sheene, Vermeulen, in
particular, is keen to deliver a podium for his home crowd at the
Island.

"This is a going to be a huge event this year as ticket sales are up
so we are expecting a pretty crowded house at Phillip Island and
we will be trying to make sure that we put on a good performance
in front of my home fans," said Vermuelen. "I got a podium here
last year and will be looking to at least repeat that this season!"

Kawasaki has not met with the same success as the Suzuki's this
season, but its riders, Randy de Puniet and Anthony West have
both shown flashes of brilliance. De Puniet snared a surprise
podium last round at Motegi, while West has been notching solid
results since his mid-year replacement of struggling rider Olivier
Jacque.

Other riders who figure to have strong cards to play at Phillip
Island are Marco Melandri and Loris Capirossi. Supermarco
claimed a win last year in Australia and the Bridgestone-shod
Honda rider figures to be in the thick of it on Sunday. The man
Melandri will replace on the factory Ducati next year, Loris
Capirossi, is riding the momentum of his dominating Motegi
victory.

The Phillip Island Grand Prix races will be televised same-day
delay on Speed Channel Sunday, October 14, with the 250GP race
airing at 5 p.m. (EST) and the MotoGP race at 6 p.m. (EST).
motorcycle-usa.com - pics from motogp.com