Casey Stoner - Sepang Test

Chris Vermeulen - Sepang Test

Valentino Rossi - Sepang Test

John Hopkins - Sepang Test

Colin Edwards - Sepang Test

Loris Capirossi - Sepang Test

The Doctor - Sepang Test

Nicky Hayden - Sepang Test

KRJR - Sepang Test

Marco Melandri - Sepang Test

Shinya Nakano - Sepang Test

Dani Pedrosa - Sepang Test

John Hopkins - Sepang Test

John Hopkins - Sepang Test

Alex Barros - Phillip Island Test

Alex Hofmann - Phillip Island Test

Casey Stoner - Phillip Island Test

Alex Barros - Phillip Island Test

Loris Capirossi - Phillip Island Test

Carlos Checa hit a seagull during testing at The Island - Phillip Island Test

Toni Elias - Phillip Island Test

Chris Vermeulen in the pits - Phillip Island Test

Hopkins and Co. try and figure things out in the pits - Phillip Island Test

John Hopkins - Phillip Island Test

Shinya Nakano was sick during Day 1 of the three-day test - Phillip Island Test

Marco Melandri - Phillip Island Test

Dani Pedrosa - Phillip Island Test

Nicky Hayden - Phillip Island Test

Kenny Roberts Junior - Phillip Island Test

The Kentucky Kid was fastest on the final day of testing - Phillip Island Test

Colin Edwards - February Sepang Test

Colin Edwards - February Sepang Test

Valentino Rossi returns to action for yet another test at Sepang - February Sepang Test

Randy de Puniet - February Sepang Test

De Puniet and Jacque - February Sepang Test

Rossi and Edwards - February Sepang Test

Sylvain Guintoli - February Sepang Test

Makoto Tamada - February Sepang Test

Valentino Rossi - February Sepang Test

Ilmor GP's Andrew Pitt - February Sepang Test

Ilmor GP's Andrew Pitt - February Sepang Test

The Ilmor GP machine.

The Ilmor GP team.

Alex Barros - Qatar Test

Loris Capirossi - Qatar Test

Colin Edwards - Qatar Test

Valentino Rossi - Qatar Test

Casey Stoner - Qatar Test

John Hopkins - Qatar Test

Colin Edwards - Qatar Test

Hopper - Qatar Test

Barros - Qatar Test

Valentino Rossi was fastest in the final test of the preseason - Jerez Test

Valentino Rossi snagged a new BMW as the fastest man at Jerez. Thumbs up! - Jerez Test

LCR Honda's Carlos Checa - Jerez Test

LCR Honda's Carlos Checa - Jerez Test

Hannspree Honda's Toni Elias - Jerez Test

Reigning MotoGP champion Nicky Hayden - Jerez Test

Team Roberts rider Kenny Roberts Junior - Jerez Test

Hannspree Honda's Marco Melandri - Jerez Test

Konica Minolta Honda's Shinya Nakano - Jerez Test

Konica Minolta Honda's Shinya Nakano - Jerez Test

The two factory Yamahas celebrate - Jerez Test

The Tech 3 Yamaha team of Makoto Tamada and Sylvain Guintoli - Jerez Test

Capi-T-Rex is ready for 2007.

Marlboro Ducati's Casey Stoner.

Pramac d'Antin's Alex Barros - Jerez Test

Pramac d'Antin's Alex Hofmann - Jerez Test

Chris Vermuelen - Jerez Test

The Konica Minolta team has added Varese 2008 as a sponsor.

The Yamaha factory team is sponsor-less no more, enter Fiat for 2007.

The two Yamaha Fiat riders pose for the cameras.

Yamaha's Tech 3 rider Makoto Tamada.

Yamaha's Tech 3 rider Sylvain Guintoli.

Olivier Jacque - Jerez Test

Rossi was the fastest as MotoGP action got underway - Qatar

Rossi and Edwards were all smiles as they claimed front-row starts in qualifying - Qatar

Rizla Suzuki's John Hopkins rode a valiant race with his recent injuries still not completely healed. He finished fourth at Qatar.

Carlos Checa - Qatar

Hayden's off to a poor start, but will the Kentucky Kid be smiling at seasons end?

Randy de Puniet - Qatar

Toni Elias - Qatar

Nicky Hayden - Qatar

KRJR - Qatar

Marco Melandri - Qatar

Nicky Hayden - Qatar

Look for Ducati Marlboro rider Loris Capirossi to bounce back after from his wreck at Qatar. - Qatar

Hopper and Capirossi. - Qatar

Rizla Suzuki's John Hopper proved his professionalism as he finished a respectable 4th despite having to ride through pain from injuries he sustained weeks earlier at Qatar. - Qatar

Olivier hangs on tight with Ducati rider Alex Barros pushing hard behind him. - Qatar

Olivier Jacque finished in 12th place for the Kawasaki Racing Team. - Qatar

Now that he's got his first career MotoGP victory out of the way, Stoner might find out he likes being atop the podium. - Qatar

Aussie Casey Stoner was able to hold off Rossi to claim his first-ever MotoGP victory. - Qatar

Stoner and Rossi at Qatar.

Dani Pedrosa claims the pole position at Jerez

Rossi and Edwards celebrate a double podium for the Fiat Yamaha team - Jerez

Valentino Rossi is back on top with his win at Jerez

Alex Barros was 11th at Jerez but finished ahead of fellow Ducati rider Loris Capirossi - Jerez

Capirex was unable to find the right setup on the GP7, with the veteran rider finishing a disappointing 12th in Spain - Jerez

After Hopkins crashed, Chris Vermeulen was the top-place Suzuki in ninth - Jerez

Stoner was unable to match his impressive win at Qatar but he remains tied with Pedrosa for second in the championship - Jerez

The Doctor took control early and was never challenged by Pedrosa - Jerez

Melandri finished eighth, one spot behind Hayden - Jerez

Melandri leads Elias at Jerez. By the race's conclusion, it was the Spaniard who got the better of his Italian teammate - Jerez

Kenny Roberts Junior was running new livery at Jerez, as Team Roberts pickep up some Vegas sponsorship - Jerez

KRJR ran into trouble in the latter laps at Jerez due to problems with the KR212V - Jerez

Hopper has a heartbreaking lowside on Lap 17 while running in fourth - Jerez

We had a hunch Elias would perform well on his home soil and the Spaniard proved us right with a fourth-place finish at Jerez - Jerez

Unable to capitalize on his pole-position victory, Pedrosa gives his best to the home crowd after his second-place finish - Jerez

The Texas Tornado completed an impressive day for the Fiat Yamahas with his third-place podium finish - Jerez

Rossi was able bowl over his five-GP winless streak and get his post-race antics back on track at Jerez - Jerez

Rossi leads the pack and the title after Round 2 - Jerez

Due to new-for-2007 tire regulations, MotoGP riders are limited to 31 total tires which are barcoded and controlled.

Rossi, as always, takes this MotoGP thing much too serious. Perhaps that's why he doesn't have any fans.

Casey Stoner is a giant-killer so far this season, exceeding expecation on the Marlboro Ducati and owning a 10-point lead in the championship after his Istanbul victory - Istanbul

Valentino Rossi is the unquestioned king, but his tires let him down at Istanbul - Istanbul

Alex Barros was a top-5 rider in Turkey thanks to his GP7 and Bridgestone tire combination. The usual back-of-the-pack Pramac's almost found the podium - Istanbul

Pedrosa may have gotten a bit of karma when Olivier Jacque delivered an improbable DNF reminiscent of when the Repsol rider took out his teammate in '06 - Istanbul

Kawasaki's De Puniet gathered an eighth-place finish, thanks in large part to his Bridgestones, which were clearly the better rubber at Turkey - Istanbul

Never count out Toni Elias, as the Spaniard pulls out remarkable results out of the blue sometimes - Istanbul

As with Estoril last season, Elias was a bit wild, but incredibly fast, sliding around the track on his Honda - Istanbul

The group made it through the first turn okay, but later on Jacque took out four riders in a heartbeat - Istanbul

Nicky might consider swapping number-1 for number-7, because three rounds in he's got a pair of seventh-place finishes, giving him seventh overall in the title hunt - Istanbul

Hayden is gritting it out on the RC212V, the Kentucky Kid not getting along on the new mount as well as he did with the 211 - Istanbul

Hopkins was looking good for the podium, even leading the venerable Rossi - Istanbul

Although Stoner's lead was never in doubt, there was excellent racing for the remaining podium positions - Istanbul

Hopkins had to pick it up on one particularly aggressive move and the American found himself drop from third to sixth - Istanbul

Melandri was awful in practice and qualifying but still managed a top-5 finish at the circuit he were he had won the previous, and only, two GPs - Istanbul

Hayden is scrambling to catch up with Melandri in the points - Istanbul

Pedrosa's positive beginning to the season went south mighty quick, courtesy of Olivier Jacque's disastrous move - Istanbul

Rossi got steamed at an over-aggressive move from Elias, which caused The Doctor to pick it up - Istanbul

Stoner is beginning to look comfortable on the podium - Istanbul

Stoner found the MotoGP podium last season and was the victor in the inaugural Turkish 250GP - Istanbul

Rossi couldn't fend off the charges of rivals in the latter laps and was relegated to 10th-place - Istanbul

No one was able to match the pace of Stoner, who led almost the entire race - Istanbul

John Hopkins - Shanghai

Valentino Rossi and Colin Edwards claim the 1-3 spots on the grid yet again in qualifying - Shanghai

Casey Stoner won his third GP of the season at Shanghai, with the Aussie now owning a 15-point lead in the title hunt - Shanghai

The Hopper gets his first taste of the podium. - Shanghai

Loris Capirossi rode his Desmosedici GP07 to sixth-place, battling off Rizla Suzuki's Chris Vermuelen and Kawasaki's Randy de Puniet. - Shanghai

Rizla Suzuki's John Hopkins shows off his elation at grabbing a third-place finish in the Grand Prix of China. - Shanghai

A stream of riders jockey for position in the early stages of the race in Shanghai. - Shanghai

The Doctor made Stoner earn his victory, passing him momentarily until running wide off the track into the grass. - Shanghai

This scene is becoming a familiar one so far this year - Stoner leading with Rossi hot on his heels. - Shanghai

The young Australian Stoner has been the man to beat so far in the young MotoGP season. - Shanghai

Nicky Hayden was the victim of a first-lap mishap by Toni Elias that took him out of rostrum-contention early at Shanghai. - Shanghai

Pedrosa rode his Repsol Honda to a fourth-place finish in China and is holding down third place in the championship points standings with 49. - Shanghai

Colin Edwards took the pole position during Saturday's qualifying - Le Mans

The Texas Tornado has room to smile. He just captured pole position at Le Mans with a record-setting time. - Le Mans Qualifying

Rizla Suzuki's Chris Vermeulen celebrates his first career MotoGP win with a wheelie across the finish line at Le Mans. - Le Mans

Casey Stoner kept his Ducati GP7 upright and on the podium - Le Mans

Kawasaki Racing's de Puniet rode bravely in front of the home crowd until the 26-year-old Frenchman lost control of his 800cc Ninja ZX-RR and ended up in the gravel. - Le Mans

The LCR Honda pit crew of Carlos Checa was busy setting up his bike for wet riding conditions. - Le Mans

Chris Vermuelen is joined by Marco Melandri and Casey Stoner on the Le Mans podium. - Le Mans

Kawasaki Racing's Fonsi Nieto rode his Ninja ZX-RR to an 11th place finish, earning five championship points for his efforts. - Le Mans

The Doctor salvaged a sixth-place finish after he opted for a harder-compound wet tire that cost him valuable traction. - Le Mans

Yamaha satellite rider Sylvain Guintoli had the crowd on its feet when he led early in the race before he pushed too hard and crashed out. - Le Mans

Vermuelen entered pit-lane at the end of lap nine to change to his wet-weather prepared Suzuki GSV-R and then never looked back in claiming the Le Mans checkers. - Le Mans

The rain-soaked race saw seven riders DNF. - Le Mans

Rizla Suzuki's Chris Vermeulen won his first-ever MotoGP race at the rain-slickened Grand Prix of France. - Le Mans

Loris Capirossi runs his Marlboro Ducati through the rain-slickened turns of Mugello's free practice Friday.

John Hopkins - Mugello Qualifying

Chris Vermeulen - Mugello Qualifying

Valentino Rossi - Mugello Qualifying

Capirossi and Stoner lead the charge through a tight turn but the Ducati Factory team was squeezed off the podium by the Pramac d'Antin team on Lap 20. - Mugello

The Doctor put on a clinic at Mugello. - Mugello

Rizla Suzuki's Chris Vermeulen and company. - Mugello

Marlboro Ducati's Stoner and Capirossi engaged in the first straightaway matchup between the GP7 riders, with Capirossi edging out the young Aussie. - Mugello

Jacque missed Le Mans due to an arm injury but gritted it out at Mugello for a 16th place finish. - Mugello

Pramac d'Antin's Alex Barros claimed a spot on the podium with a third place finish. - Mugello

Kawasaki Racing hoped to build on Jacque's second row start, but de Puniet crashed out early and Jacque finished just outside the points. - Mugello

Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa finished on the podium with a second place time of 42'45.459. - Mugello

Pedrosa ran an excellent race at the Tuscan circuit, leading at one time until Rossi tracked him down. - Mugello

Rizla Suzuki's Chris Vermeulen started the race from the front row but was only able to secure an eighth place finish. - Mugello

Pump it up, Rossi. With six consecutive victories at Mugello, he deserves all the accolades he receives. - Mugello

Valentino Rossi has been unbeatable at Mugello, claiming a record sixth consecutive victory on the Italian course. - Mugello

The Doctor at work - Catalunya

Casey Stoner was victorious once again at Catalunya.

Kawasaki Racing's Randy de Puniet fought off the pain of a knee injury and a bum shoulder to capture a best-ever fifth place finish at Catalunya. - Catalunya

John Hopkins kept pace with the frontrunners for most of the race and finished in fourth place. - Catalunya

Thanks to de Puniet's heroic effort, Kawasaki Racing enjoyed its best finish yet this season in motorcycling's premier class. - Catalunya

LCR Honda's Carlos Checa finished well off the pace at Catalunya. - Catalunya

Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa shadowed Stoner and Rossi for numerous laps waiting for his opportunity to capitalize on one the the frontrunner's mistakes. - Catalunya

Pedrosa could get used to this whole podium thing. - Catalunya

The Doctor rode his M1 hard and finished second overall at the Spanish circuit. - Catalunya

Valentino Rossi does his best impersonation of Old Faithful. - Catalunya

Marlboro Ducati's Casey Stoner returned to the top of the podium as his team had the GP7 dialed in better than last week at Mugello. - Catalunya

Stoner and Rossi are hording the share of victories so far this MotoGP season. - Catalunya

The GSV-Rs ran well at Catalunya with Chris Vermeulen knocking down a seventh-place finish. - Catalunya

Not even the rains of England could slow down championship points leader Casey Stoner. - Donington

Capirossi was in fifth place late in the race until crashing out and DNFing. - Donington

Though Kawasaki's Jacque has been replaced, de Puniet has been impressive the last two weeks aboard his ZX-10R and finished sixth at Donington. - Donington

Colin Edwards enjoyed a good weekend, taking the Donington pole and finishing in second place in the main. - Donington

John Hopkins stays focused as Repsol Honda's Nicky Hayden goes down on a rain-slickened Donington course. - Donington

Tech 3 Yamaha's Makoto Tamada was able to stay upright under adverse conditions and rode his M1 to a 15th place finish. - Donington

The Pramac d'Antin squad was pleased with its top ten results as Alex Barros finished seventh and teammate Alex Hofmann took ninth. - Donington

Marlboro Ducati's Stoner continues to be impressive, scoring his fifth victory in eight races. - Donington

The 21-year-old Australian riding phenom Casey Stoner raises the cup. - Donington

It seems like whenever it rains, Vermeulen shines, as the Rizla Suzuki rider tends to find his way atop the podium when it's wet. - Donington

Vermeulen rode hard to stave off The Doctor and secure the final Donington podium spot. - Donington

Newcomer Anthony West did an admirable job in his first MotoGP main event, finishing 11th after crashing earlier in the race. - Donington

Valentino Rossi sports the 1950s Fiat 500 inspired graphics on the Yamaha for the Assen TT.

The Fiat Yamaha 800 looks good in the 1950 Fiat 500 50th Anniversary livery.

Randy De Puinet has come on strong in the last few rounds of MotoGP - Assen TT

Anthony West rides the wheels off his Z-RR in only the second appearance on the bike - Assen TT

Rizla Suzuki's Chris Vermeulen on the way to pole position at Assen.

Colin Edwards in his Fiat Yamaha retro get-up - Assen

Valentino Rossi wins his 3rd race of the year and etches his name in Yamaha lore by earning the 150th GP victory for the marque - Assen 2007

John Hopkins (21) leads Nicky Hayden (1) and Dani Pedrosa (26) - Assen 2007

Chris Vermeulen leads the pack early on at Assen.

Marlboro Ducati's Loris Capirossi had front tire problems early on and a slipping clutch had him retire to the pits by Lap 9. - Assen 2007

Nicky Hayden found himself on the podium for the first time this season, finishing third behind Rossi and Stoner. - Assen 2007

Marco Melandri leads the pack down the straightaway with Hayden and Pedrosa in hot pursuit. - Assen 2007

When push came to shove, The Doctor stepped up to the challenge, roaring to the victory after starting back in the pack in 11th place. - Assen 2007

Marlboro Ducati's Casey Stoner has had his share of champagne showers this season and retains a 21 point lead over Rossi in the championship points standings. - Assen 2007

Anthony West finished ninth at Assen, cracking the top ten in only his second MotoGP race ever. - Assen 2007

Casey Stoner didn't go for broke, instead finishing a consistent fifth and extending his lead over Rossi to 32 - Sachsenring

Dani Pedrosa will work his way back into championship contention with more results like his win at Germany - Sachsenring

Nicky Hayden surged in the latter laps, overtaking fading Bridgestone riders with his Michelin-clad Honda - Sachsenring

Loris Capirossi seems to solve the mystery that has plagued him in 2007 with his second-place finish in Germany - Sachsenring

Anthony West has been impressive in his few MotoGP appearances, finishing for a solid eighth-place result at Sachsenring.

Colin Edwards benefited from his Michelins to surge up to fourth by the finish - Sachsenring

Rossi pitched it after passing De Puniet, who also earned a DNF - Sachsenring

Pedrosa celebrates his first win of the season - Sachsenring

John Hopkins has yet to win a race, but the American sits fourth in the standings after his seventh-place finish - Sachsenring

Kurtis Roberts is filling in for his big bro on the KR212V, but with similar back-of-the-pack results - Sachsenring

Marco Melandri was in the hunt for the podium, until his Bridgestones gave out - Sachsenring

Michel Fabrizio opportunity to prove himself on the Gresini Honda resulted in a 10th-place finish - Sachsenring

Nicky Hayden seems to be finding some of his mojo again with two podiums - Sachsenring

The two Repsol riders atop the podium - Sachsenring

The Doctor wasn't able to save the low-side this time and earned a costly DNF - Sachsenring

The Sachsenring circuit looks like fun!

At 32 points down, Rossi is finding himself in a similar position as 2006 - Sachsenring

Dani Pedrosa led from the first turn to the last - Sachsenring

Colin Edwards and his posse are digging his red-white & blue M1 - Laguna Seca

Colin Edwards' 2007 Fiat Yamaha M1 in Texas Tornado colors - Laguna Seca

Loris Capirossi with Hayden in the background - Laguna Seca

John Hopkins aboard the Rizla Suzuki - Laguna Seca

Factory Yamaha riders Valentino Rossi and Coline Edwards - Laguna Seca

Casey Stoner and Nicky Hayden - Laguna Seca

Stoner heads down the corkscrew. Laguna Seca was no problem for the points leader.

Davies didn't score a point, but his brought the Pramac d'Antin Ducati to the finish line - Laguna Seca

Edwards was sporting new livery for the USGP - Laguna Seca

Edwards knows Laguna, but it didn't result in a top-10 finish for the Texan - Laguna Seca

Chaz Davies was an unexpected replacement for Alex Hofmann - Laguna Seca

Duhamel started on Sunday but couldn't finish it out - Laguna Seca

It seems like Edwards should be a podium finisher, but he hasn't found the pace at home on the GP machines - Laguna Seca

Neil Hodgson - Laguna Seca

Nicky Hayden - Laguna Seca

The number-1 plate is proving to be unlucky in '07 - Laguna Seca

The Kentucky Kid's 2007 campaign got worse at home - Laguna Seca

Hayden's second-row qualifying looked positive, but it all fell apart on Lap 1 - Laguna Seca

Hayden's three-peat plans were thwarted by his fellow American - Laguna Seca

Dani Pedrosa was looking like a lock for the podium, but faded as the laps wore on - Laguna Seca

Roger Hayden's 10th-place finish was the tops for an American - Laguna Seca

Rossi rules still, but is behind Stoner in the points - Laguna Seca

The Doctor was not his usual masterful self in the States - Laguna Seca

Rossi's rear tire and M1 held up in 2007 - Laguna Seca

Rossi still couldn't find the podium, but his fourth-place finish was better than last year - Laguna Seca

Rizla Suzuki's Chris Vermeulen was second at Laguna Seca

Casey Stoner was unstoppable in the U.S. - Laguna

The podium featured no Americans.

Two Aussies and a Spaniard: not what we expected for the USGP.

Valentino Rossi hasn't quite found that USGP mojo.

The Doctor on the run at Laguna.

Roger Hayden was ultra-impressive on the ZX-RR as the top-finishing American in 10th-place.

Rossi flies down the corkscrew.

This pic was from early in the race, as it was as close as Stoner was victorious by a great margin.

Nicky just might have had what it took, if Hopkins hadn't been right next to him.

Dani Pedrosa wasn't able to repeat his Laguna Seca podium from 2006, but the young Spaniard did get a top five at least - Laguna Seca

Vermeulen was on the gas, but couldn't match his countryman's race-winning pace - Laguna Seca

Loris Capirossi leans into the turn with The Doctor hot on his rear tire. - Brno

Carlos Checa rounded out the top ten on his LCR Honda. - Brno

Carlos Checa chases Toni Elias with Anthony West in pursuit. - Brno

Randy dePuniet rode his Ninja ZX-RR to an eighth-place finish after jockeying for position with Rossi, Vermeulen and Capiroosi. - Brno

Nicky Hayden equaled his best finish of the year at Brno, finishing atop the podium in third place. - Brno

After a dismal start to the season, Repsol Honda's Nicky Hayden is finally adjusting to the 800cc MotoGP bike and seeing the results in podium finishes. - Brno

John Hopkins posted his best MotoGP results of the year at Brno, finishing in second place. - Brno

It's a shame Hopper is taking his game to a new team next season. The GSV-R's have shown a lot of promise this season. - Brno

Anthony West battled up from his 16th place start for a 12th-place finish. - Brno

Kawasaki's Anthony West had problems with his qualifying tires and had to start on the grid in 16th place. - Brno

Tech 3 Yamaha's Makoto Tamada played the part of caboose on the MotoGP train at Brno, finishing in 17th place. - Brno

Is there a Doctor in the house? Rossi's results recently are a hard pill to swallow for the five-time MotoGP champion.

Casey Stoner has been enjoying an unforgettable season and looks primed to run away with the championship. - Brno

Casey Stoner notched his seventh win of the season at Brno in dominating fashion, leading from start to finish. - Brno

Rizla Suzuki's Chris Vermeulen inked a deal to don the Rizla blue for another season earlier in the week then came out and posted a 5th-place finish at Brno. - Brno

Anthony West saw his string of top ten finishes come to a close, finishing in 12th on a tough Brno circuit. - Brno

Randy de Puniet (Airborn) crashes into Dani Pedrosa on lap one - Misano

Chris Vermeulen (71) chases down John Hopkins (21) at San Marino - Misano

Ducati's Casey Stoner crosses the finish line in style - Misano

Rizla Suzuki's Chris Vermeulen celebrates his fourth podium of the year with John Hopkins - Misano

Ducati Xerox teammates Casey Stoner and Loris Capirossi gave the Misano Ducati fans plenty to cheer about. - Misano

Rumor has it that Colin Edwards will no longer be on the Fiat Yamaha team next year and will opt to join former teammate James Toselend in the Yamaha Tech 3 camp. - Misano

Marco Melandri and Loris Capirossi fought it out for the 4th and 5th positions. - Misano

The race gods did not smile on The Doctor at Misano as the Fiat Yamaha rider DNFed due to mechanical problems. - Misano

Casey Stoner continues to live out a dream season. His win at Misano means he can mathematically close out the championship at Estoril. - Misano

Rizla Suzuki's Chris Vermeulen pops it up in celebration of his second-place finish. - Misano

MotoGP hadn't visited Misano in 14 years, and now the course runs in the opposite direction making it virtually a new track. - Misano

Anthony West signed on to race for Kawasaki again next year and then ran a solid race at Misano to earn an eighth-place finish. - Misano

Carlos Checa mixed it up in the middle of the pack and finished in seventh at Estoril. - Estoril

A mechanical problem took Kawasaki Racing's Randy de Puniet out of the race. - Estoril

Nicky Hayden captured pole on Saturday then ran a solid race on Sunday to earn a fourth-place finish. - Estoril

Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa battled it out against Fiat Yamaha's Valentino Rossi with Marlboro Ducati's Casey Stoner in hot pursuit. - Estoril

John Hopkins: 'I made up as many positions as I could at the start, but I got stuck behind Marco and Nicky and they were getting kind of crazy at the beginning – they were all over the place passing each other.' - Estoril

Marco Melandri diced it up with Repsol Honda's Nicky Hayden and finished with a respectable fifth place. - Estoril

Estoril has been kind to Rossi. He has podiumed in all seven MotoGP races he's entered at the Portugal track. - Estoril

The Doctor edged past Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa and won by a slim 0.175-second margin. - Estoril

Michelin doesn't mind Rossi sacrificing a few tires as long as he wins races. - Estoril

Though Casey Stoner didn't solidify the championship title this week, he still leads the points race by 76. - Estoril

Stoner showers Rossi with champagne but had to store the bubbly Ducati's got set aside for his championship celebration, at least until next race. - Estoril

Vermeulen, Guintoli and de Puniet bring up the rear in Portugal. - Estoril

Makoto Tamada held down 8th place for much of the race before crashing out with only four laps to go. - Estoril

Rizla Suzuki's Chris Vermeulen started near the back of the pack and was never able to mix it up with the leaders at Estoril. - Estoril

Dani Pedrosa inks a new two-year deal with HRC - Motegi

Dani Pedrosa - Motegi

Loris Capirossi's victory at Motegi marks his third consecutive at the Japanese circuit.

2007 MotoGP Champion Casey Stoner

2007 MotoGP Champion Casey Stoner

Marlboro Ducati's Loris Capirossi should think about becoming a naturalized Japanese citizen - he has won Motegi three years in a row.

Gresini Honda's Toni Elias ran a determined pace at Motegi and was rewarded with his first podium of the season. - Motegi

The Kawasakis were fast on the Japanese circuit, with Anthony West finishing seventh while teammate Randy dePuniet grabbed second. - Motegi

A cluster of MotoGP racers grab for the brakes and look for a line through the congested turn. - Motegi

Marco Melandri finished fifth, placing both Gresini Honda riders in the top five. - Motegi

The champagne would rain down on Loris Capirossi, Randy dePuniet and Toni Elias during their Motegi podium celebration. - Motegi

The Rizla Suzuki team struggled all weekend and spent most of the time looking up the exhausts of other riders. - Motegi

There will be no sixth championship this year for Fiat Yamaha's Valentino Rossi as The Doctor's 13th-place finish handed the title to Ducati's Casey Stoner. - Motegi

Fist pumps and thumbs up filled the Marlboro Ducati garage as Casey Stoner clinched the 2007 World Championship title and teammate Loris Capirossi won the race. - Motegi

Tech 3 Yamaha's Sylvain Guintoli barely missed a podium spot, finishing in fourth place behind Gresini Honda's Elias. - Motegi

For the Phillip Island round, Rizla Suzuki ran colors honoring the late Barry Sheene.

Chris Vermeulen was running this retro livery scheme in honor of Barry Sheene, the late racing legend having played a part in Vermeulen's early career.

Capirossi and Rossi mixed it up for much of the race, but it was the Marlboro Ducati that would eventually cross the line first. - Phillip Island

Champagne shower, anyone? - Phillip Island

Fiat Yamaha's Colin Edwards finished ninth at Phillip Island, claiming seven points and moving up one place in the championship to eighth. - Phillip Island

Kawasaki Racing's Randy de Puniet has come on strong in the last few races and earned a hard fought sixth-place finish in Australia. - Phillip Island

John Hopkins had his work cut out for him, starting back in 14th, but the Rizla Suzuki ace rode hard and finished in a respectable seventh place. - Phillip Island

Wet weather wreaked havoc during the practice and qualifying rounds but it was clear and sunny come race day. - Phillip Island

Tech 3 Yamaha's Makoto Tamada 'I was very happy with the bike setting we had and the front tire was great but I didn't have a lot of side grip in the rear.' - Phillip Island

Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa started in the pole position but tire deterioration prevented him from taking the battle to Rossi and Capirossi for very long. - Phillip Island

Fiat Yamaha's Valentino Rossi earned a podium spot at Phillip Island for the tenth consecutive year. - Phillip Island

Rizla Suzuki's Chris Vermeulen finally flashed some of the brilliance Sheene recognized on race day after struggling with his bike's setup all weekend long. - Phillip Island

Kawasaki Racing's Anthony West: 'I tried to push as much as I could until I'd pretty much destroyed the rear tire. I couldn't keep my speed up through the corners and it was particularly difficult to feel comfortable when the bike was leaned over on the left hand side.' - Phillip Island

Randy de Puniet in action at Sepang.

Casey Stoner leads the pack at Sepang.

Sepang marks Stoner's 10th win of the 2007 campaign and his MotoGP victory compliments the Aussie's Sepang wins in the 125cc and 250cc classes.

Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa grabbed the pole on Saturday then rode to a third-place finish on race day. - Sepang

Rizla Suzuki's John Hopkins and Marlboro Ducati's Loris Capirossi duke it out in Malaysia. - Sepang

Randy de Puniet and a slew of riders fight for the holeshot while heading down the front straight. - Sepang

Ant West dices with Valentino Rossi early in the contest. - Sepang

Gresini Honda's Marco Melandri enjoyed his best results of the season, grabbing a second place finish. - Sepang

So you want to be a MotoGP racer? Think you could handle running into a corner three abreast with Rossi hot on your tail? - Sepang

Just as he's done for much of the season, Casey Stoner waved goodbye to the opposition at Sepang. - Sepang

Chris Vermeulen finished seventh at Sepang, just ahead of Rizla Suzuki teammate John Hopkins. - Sepang

Casey Stoner on the gas at Valencia

Pedrosa celebrates his win and second place in the championship. - Valencia

Stoner found himself in an unfamiliar situation, with a rider ahead of him. - Valencia

The Spanish fans were rooting for their boy, Pedrosa. - Valencia

The newest members of the MotoGP paddock, JiR Team Scot. - Valencia

Valentino Rossi goes over data with the Fiat Yamaha team before Sunday's race. - Valencia

Loris Capirossi earned a fifth-place finish at Valencia in his last race aboard a GP7. Capi T-Rex is headed to Rizla in 2008. - Valencia

Kawasaki Racing's Randy de Puniet got off to a slow start and struggled with tire problems that prevented him from putting up a strong final showing aboard the ZX-RR. - Valencia

It was not a stellar day for Fiat Yamaha, with Colin Edwards finishing in 13th place while Rossi DNfed. - Valencia

The Hopper ran a solid race at Valencia, capturing a podium spot in his last race for Rizla Suzuki. The talented rider will race for Kawasaki next year. - Valencia

Hopkins and Melandri battled it out for the 4-5 spots in the final point standings, with Hopkins claiming the fourth position courtesy of his podium finish in Spain. - Valencia

Kawasaki Racing's Anthony West had his worst weekend of racing at Valencia, bringing up the rear in 16th place. - Valencia

Marco Melandri overcame midseason injuries to race strong in the final quarter of the MotoGP season, finishing fifth in the overall point standings, only two points in back of Rizla's John Hopkins. - Valencia

The Doctor manned up and kept his consecutive race streak intact but mechanical problems kept him from finishing the race and securing the single point he needed to wrap up second place in the point standings. - Valencia

It's OK, Casey, occasionally you've got to let somebody else win. We look forward to your title defense next year. - Valencia

Toni Elias finished in tenth. Not bad for a guy who's still on the mend from a broken leg. - Valencia

Rizla Suzuki's Chris Vermeulen will run the No. 7 plate in the 2008 MotoGP season , using the iconic crossed seven made famous by Suzuki's double World Champion Barry Sheene.

Fiat Yamaha's Valentino Rossi and newcomer Jorge Lorenzo stand with the M-1 at the official team launch in Turin.

The 2008 Rizla Suzuki Team of Chris Vermeulen and Loris Capirossi

Randy de Puniet on his way to the fastest lap of Day One's testing session at Sepang.

Loris Capirossi on the GSV-R during testing in Malaysia.

Valentino Rossi headed the small contingency of riders testing at Sepang this week.

The introduction of the 2008 Repsol Honda team.

Casey Stoner posted the fastest time at the BMW M Award qualifying shooutout at Jerez and won a BMW Z4 M Roadster for his efforts.

Casey Stoner was the fastest rider after the first official night test at Qatar.