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More than Europe’s<br />
largest MC store<br />
By Matthew Roberts<br />
When Rossi punted Gibernau off<br />
in the final corner of the race at<br />
Jerez, or hustled Stoner for 32 laps<br />
around Laguna Seca, he shrugged<br />
his shoulders in parce fermé and<br />
laughed at them for overreacting.<br />
I’m not even sure Foggy or Rossi<br />
did it on purpose but because they<br />
were honest and showed that they<br />
truly didn’t give a damn about their<br />
rivals’ feelings, nobody else did<br />
either. To millions of viewers around<br />
the world it didn’t matter who was<br />
in the right – Foggy and Rossi were<br />
heroes and anybody else was a sore<br />
losers, end of.<br />
<strong>No</strong>wadays we are entering different<br />
times, when riders seem more<br />
bothered about protecting the<br />
clean-cut image they think is best<br />
for their profile - appealing to all<br />
fans and appeasing their sponsors.<br />
But they often end up projecting<br />
a dull, diluted version of their true<br />
self. You can never please everybody,<br />
so why try?<br />
Don’t pretend to be upset because<br />
you have knocked another rider off.<br />
Don’t play down your expectations<br />
to protect your reputation. Tell us<br />
what you really think.<br />
Tell us the truth - that all you care<br />
about is winning and you will do<br />
anything to achieve it.<br />
<strong>On</strong>ly this weekend, Daniel Riccardo<br />
increased his reputation as<br />
the most interesting thing about<br />
Formula 1 in a post-race interview<br />
with Dutch television, when he was<br />
told that some other drivers had<br />
complained about his dangerous<br />
moves. “Fuck ‘em all, how does<br />
that sound?” he said, with a massive<br />
grin. Who wouldn’t love him for<br />
that?<br />
Riders shouldn’t need to worry<br />
about boosting their social media<br />
numbers with lame videos of their<br />
training programme or their photos<br />
of their latest nutritional creations.<br />
Race fans don’t worship vloggers,<br />
they worship racers.<br />
So split opinions, create some<br />
rivalries and bike fans will vote with<br />
their feet rather than their fingers,<br />
showing their colours not on Instagram<br />
or twitter but in the grandstands.<br />
Humans are tribal by nature and<br />
every pantomime needs a villain<br />
just as much as it needs hero.<br />
A motorcycle racer shouldn’t be<br />
afraid to be either.
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