What DO we have to do?
By TMX Archives on 7th Oct 09
JD wonders watched the Yanks win yet another Nations on the telly and wonders how the Europeans can get back on top...
WELL, after all the hoo-hah and political machinations on the run-up to the Motocross des Nations regarding the British team, it was really good to see that the boys put all that behind them and just got on with the racing. Like many of you, cash restraints meant there was never a chance of my going to Italy to see the show live and so I watched the Nations on telly Sunday afternoon and, despite the efforts of the director who made some strange decisions regarding what was broadcast, really enjoyed the show.
From my seat on the sofa, I personally thought that Shaun, Tommy and Billy did a great job and the only real disappointment was that we got pipped by the Germans on the tie-break for fourth.
Simpson and Searle both showed great speed and commitment and Billy made the finish of both his races – which certainly confounded all those who forecast a podium followed by a DNF.
That the Americans won with what was effectively their second team should still leave Europe wondering what they have to do in order to get back on top of the ongoing battle with America. Cairoli turned on the style in the first race, where he was shadowed by Aussie Chad Reed, who of course plies his trade in America, but as a team the Yanks came out on top. And think of the team they could have fielded, Stewart, Villopoto, Alessi...
Whatever, you probably wat-ched it yourself and you can read Alex Hodgkinson's on-the-spot report in this week's paper. On Monday I had several spirited conversations with various people regarding the venue. One well-known former British MX champ bemoaned the fact that Europe effectively gave the Yanks a head start by running the Nations on a track that was heavily supercross oriented. And you must admit that he had a point.
ll three American riders are top SX runners and you can just see the class when they hit the whoops or rhythym sections.
They can pull out yards on the Euro runners which is enough to make a huge difference come the end of the race.
You can't take it away from the them though, the Yanks are a collective class act. They didn't just get lucky 20-times in the Nations!
One point I would make about the Nations is that even to me, from my vantage point in the living room – which I have since been told made for much better viewing than trackside – I did notice that there were definitely some riders from some Nations who definitely were not pulling their weight. OK, so their country may not have been in with much of a shout and they were obviously not going to kill themselves. But, you are representing your country and if you aren't going to give it your best, then why not opt out and let someone have a real go. I'd far rather see a lad giving it everything for 25th than a ‘name' drifting around keeping out of trouble.
One final point, while crowds have dropped off alarmingly for many major events including MXGPs, British MX champs etc, it is good to record that the Nations continues to excite and draw the fans through the gates. Don't really know what conclusions to draw from this. On the one hand it is obvious that motocross remains an exciting sport that has a ‘potentially' huge fan base.
The trick though is to persuade these fans to come out on a regular basis. It's one for the promoters to think on... maybe the current format is outdated and needs looking at afresh as clearly at the moment, spectator-wise they aren't hitting the sweet spot. They may well be hitting all the criteria beloved of the promoters and teams – tarmac paddocks, VIP tents, TV coverage, etc, etc – but maybe it's time to refocus a little on the guys who get hit in the wallet – and who are forever being told that "...it's for the good of the sport!”
Yes, I'm a gnarly old cynic, and I don't fall for the old ‘for the good of the sport' line too easily as experience has shown me that behind it, the main focus is actually ‘for the good of the promoter!'
Out there, in MX promoter land, things are certainly hotting-up for 2010 with the ACU, AMCA (Pro) and the MCF all vying for supremacy at top-level MX in Britain. On the one hand this is good, as competition ought to lead to better events.
On the other hand we are now looking at too many National Championships and the signs are that simple economics mean that not all will survive.
So as we race towards 2010 it looks like we are in for some interesting times... choose your series and choose your weapons!
