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MOTOGP: Noyes’ Notebook - Butler: “Roadracing Is A Contact Sport,” Pt. I
The public spat of Jorge Lorenzo and Marco Simoncelli has brought the concept of fair play in racing back to the fore. Race Director Paul Butler lays down the law…
Dennis Noyes  |  Posted May 11, 2011   Borrego Springs, CA
(Photo: Getty Images)
There are lots of rules -- a book full of them -- but when it comes to rules concerning rider conduct during races, judgment calls are required. And although Race Direction is composed of four men, the primary responsibility falls to the Permanent Race Director who chairs the meeting and sets the agenda.

And that man is MotoGP Race Director, Paul Butler of Great Britain, who will retire at the end of this season after a run in the tower that began with the final race of the 1999 season.

Paul is quick to point out that the other members of Race Direction, Belgian Claude Danis from the FIM, Italian former 500cc World Champion Franco Uncini, and Spanish Dorna representative Javier Alonso, all take part in every decision, but the leader in the tower is the Race Director.

Butler’s final year before passing the torch to current FIM Technical Director Mike Webb of New Zealand could very well prove his most difficult: Casey Stoner has repeatedly claimed that Valentino Rossi is “a dirty rider.” At the most recent round in Portugal, reigning World Champion Jorge Lorenzo openly criticized the riding of former 250 World Champion Marco Simoncelli. And, just as the teams are rolling into Le Mans for the French GP, Rossi has told Italian journalists that Stoner “waited” on track in Estoril during the post-race tests and “obstructed” him.

Italian TV rights holders Mediaset report that "a little bird" told them that Stoner ran Rossi off the track. But any complaints to Race Direction and the FIM would have to come from someone a bit more concrete that 'the little bird' of Estoril.

These final 15 rounds (or perhaps 14 if Japan is not run) have the potential to bring Butler and Race Direction into the spotlight.

Butler makes his understanding of roadracing very clear with a single statement: “Roadracing is a contact sport.”
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