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World Superbike
WSBK: In Yer Dreams - The World Cup Of Superbike
The Suzuka 8 Hours isn't what it once was. Neither is the Daytona 200. No more Match Races these days. So why not create a bigger, better Superbike race to trump them all?
Valentino Rossi aboard a Ducati 1198 Superbike (Photo: Ducati Corse)
This past weekend at the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix, British Superbike supremo Stuart Higgs approached me, and after simple introductions, the next words out of his mouth were a good humored, "So who exactly do I have to speak to around here about getting the Match Races going again?"
It was the fourth or fifth such conversation I'd had with various interested parties on the subject of bringing back the Anglo-America showdowns over the past week. Clearly there is a void and an interest in filling it -- however difficult it might be to actually achieve.
But what has been haunting the back of my mind for years now is something considerably grander. Admittedly more pipe dream than daydream, but as far as "What If?" scenarios go, it's a pretty damn cool one.
And it's so difficult to imagine all of the pieces falling into place that I've previously held off on writing about the idea, but several factors have conspired at once to make the timing for such an ambitious plan feel more ripe than ever before.
Besides the resurgent Match Race talk, this week also sees John Hopkins set to make a high-profile wild card appearance in the Silverstone round of the Superbike World Championship. 'Hopper's' efforts will provide a bit of extra excitement for American and British Superbike fans alike while reminding us of the good ole days when wild cards were one of the biggest draws of the series. Still existent but on a much-reduced scale for BSB racers, wild cards are a thing of the past for AMA Superbike heroes, and the American-less WSBK grid provides compelling evidence of what a massive impact that reality has had in recent years.
And, whether you realize it or not, the Suzuka 8 Hours race weekend officially gets underway just hours from now. The mere fact that I even assume many of you aren't aware is further proof of how much has changed over the past decade, along with the need for a special event to step in and fill that vacated role.
There's also the lingering memory of Valentino Rossi's behind-the-scenes attempt to force Yamaha's hand and create something of a de facto version himself on a couple of occasions in 2008 and 2009.
Version of what you ask?
Why, the World Cup of Superbike Racing, of course.
It was the fourth or fifth such conversation I'd had with various interested parties on the subject of bringing back the Anglo-America showdowns over the past week. Clearly there is a void and an interest in filling it -- however difficult it might be to actually achieve.
But what has been haunting the back of my mind for years now is something considerably grander. Admittedly more pipe dream than daydream, but as far as "What If?" scenarios go, it's a pretty damn cool one.
And it's so difficult to imagine all of the pieces falling into place that I've previously held off on writing about the idea, but several factors have conspired at once to make the timing for such an ambitious plan feel more ripe than ever before.
Besides the resurgent Match Race talk, this week also sees John Hopkins set to make a high-profile wild card appearance in the Silverstone round of the Superbike World Championship. 'Hopper's' efforts will provide a bit of extra excitement for American and British Superbike fans alike while reminding us of the good ole days when wild cards were one of the biggest draws of the series. Still existent but on a much-reduced scale for BSB racers, wild cards are a thing of the past for AMA Superbike heroes, and the American-less WSBK grid provides compelling evidence of what a massive impact that reality has had in recent years.
And, whether you realize it or not, the Suzuka 8 Hours race weekend officially gets underway just hours from now. The mere fact that I even assume many of you aren't aware is further proof of how much has changed over the past decade, along with the need for a special event to step in and fill that vacated role.
There's also the lingering memory of Valentino Rossi's behind-the-scenes attempt to force Yamaha's hand and create something of a de facto version himself on a couple of occasions in 2008 and 2009.
Version of what you ask?
Why, the World Cup of Superbike Racing, of course.
WSBK: Monza Race 0513
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