Chris V is looking forward to the upcoming stop at Assen, with the Aussie having found great success in the past aboard the Dutch-based Ten Kate team in World Supersport and Superbike.
This part of the MotoGP season is my favorite without a doubt. We race at some of the most famous race circuits in the world and in front of some of the most passionate fans.
Italy, together with The Netherlands and Great Britain are the only three countries that have hosted a motorcycle Grand Prix event each year since the motorcycling world championship series started in 1949.
Almost sixty years on and those three countries make up the backbone of the series, but these days the World Championship is just that, with its tentacles spreading to all four corners of the globe.
So while we enjoy the shorter trips around Europe during this part of the season, remember we've already been to China and Qatar for races and Australia and Malaysia for testing. That doesn't count races in Spain, Portugal and France. My point is that you must be able to handle the side show that goes with MotoGP to be successful.
Take Ben Spies for instance. His efforts at Donington in the British GP were terrific and he should be very proud. He's set a good base for his two wild card rides on the Suzuki in the United States and it will be interesting to see how he progresses. He will race on a track that he knows extremely well and one that none of us know, then after a short haul domestic flight will be home on Monday morning. It's not until you add in the demands of travel that you get a real picture of how a rider will handle a world championship season.
Donington was one of those weekends that promised so much and delivered only more frustration. I feel as though we are really close to getting our season going, but we just can't find that one little thing needed.
I was excited about getting on the bike after our Catalunya test and for the first two days of the weekend we were on the money. Once again in the race the rear tire let us down. After ten laps there was no grip and it's becoming frustrating. We got good points, but I really thought we could fight for a podium at Donington.
Cold hands and getting hassled by security after a crash, qualifying at Donington had its up and downs but resulted in a solid front-row start.
Another downer was my crash on Saturday. It wasn't a big off, but it did provide a lighter moment. I was left standing at the wall in the rain and wind. It was so bloody cold my hands stopped working. I actually ended up having to walk back to the garage and when I got to the paddock gate was asked where my ID pass was. Here I am kitted out, mud and crap all over me from sliding down the road and I had to deal with a security guard. I gave him my most pleasant smile and said a few words under my breath.
Mugello is a classic circuit but I've got to say it's one that's hard to come to terms with. It was my third visit to the layout as opposed to my teammate Loris Capirossi's 18th and that showed in qualifying. Finding a fast way around Mugello was difficult. I made a mistake on my last quick lap and that cost me around a tenth of second, so that meant another fourth row start.
A poor start and in a blink I was almost last. I was able to fight back despite the tires going off and salvage a top ten finish and secure some points. Things will turn and we just have to keep the faith.
For Suzuki, Mugello is not one of our happiest hunting grounds. We've only had two premier class victories at the Italian circuit. The first time a Grand Prix event was held at Mugello was in 1976 and that was won by Barry Sheene, on a Suzuki, by a margin of just 0.1 sec from Phil Read in one of the closest finishes of all-time. The race lasted over 62 minutes.
Since that first event Suzuki has won just once more at Mugello, with Kevin Schwantz in 1992.
A front-row start ended in an eighth-place finish for Vermeulen at Donington thanks to more tire woes, but the Suzuki rider looks forward to another "home" race this weekend at Assen.
Donington and Assen are back to back races and it's an abnormally quick turnaround. The Great Britain GP is on a Sunday, while the Assen TT is on Saturday, so you need to be on top of your game.
The old Assen circuit used to be one of my favorite race tracks in the world. That was until 2006 when plans to develop a theme park saw the northern loop cut from the track. It went from a fast flowing 7.7 kilometers down to the 4.5 kilometers of the current layout. The northern loop was the best bit of racing bitumen anywhere and it was exhilarating. Lucky I get such good support in the Netherlands because it's still a great place to race. I raced for a Dutch team for many years and the Vermeulen name is pretty common place. So I'm happy to claim it as my second home race of the year.
- Chris
www.chrisvermeulen.com
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