MotoGP – Preview Laguna Seca – The point, Troy Bayliss speaks

Both partners are a little on edge. Coming back to Laguna Seca is like meeting an ex-girlfriend you haven't seen in a while. Will everything go as smoothly as if we had met the day before or will there be those little moments of awkward silence or worse still an argument about the reasons for the separation? The MotoGP World Championship and Laguna Seca reunite next weekend after many years and neither of them knows for sure what to expect from each other.

Laguna is a spectacular circuit but until recently it was considered too dangerous for the powerful MotoGP bikes. This year major changes have been made to improve safety standards and the MotoGP World Championship is preparing to rediscover the American track in its eighth round of the season. Only on Friday morning, when the roar of the four-stroke engines will resonate in the eardrums of the inhabitants of Monterey, will it be possible to verify how significant the changes introduced are. MotoGP will be the highlight of the program but side races such as the AMA Superbike championship are also planned.

Americans have never seen MotoGP bikes in action live, but there is no doubt that once Valentino Rossi & Co. have assimilated the new track, they will be enthralled by the noise, speed and exploits of the latest generation of bikes from the grand prix and their riders.

However, if the bikes will be an absolute novelty for enthusiasts, some of the names of the protagonists are already known to the American public. In addition to compatriots Colin Edwards, Nicky Hayden, John Hopkins and Kenny Roberts, in fact, there is one who took part in the last edition of the GP before the eleven-year interruption. The Brazilian Alex Barros and the Italian Max Biaggi for example contested the last US GP in 1994, the former finishing eighth in the 500cc and the latter finishing behind the 250cc winner Doriano Romboni.

Of course, many years have passed and perhaps those who can really predict the impact MotoGP will have not only in California but throughout the States are those who have recently competed in it in the SBK world championship. The former world champion of the category, Troy Bayliss has no doubts.

“It will be the most important motorcycle race ever held in America,” prophesied the Australian, who will return to Laguna Seca with the Camel Honda team. “The Superbike has always been a great event but the MotoGP will be an impressive show. Everyone is excited to race there and you can easily count me among them.”

Bayliss won Superbike Race 1 in 2002, finishing second behind great rival Colin Edwards in Race 2 of the same year. Troy loves the 3610 meters of the US track on the Pacific Ocean, just as he loves the beautiful town of Monterey, but at the same time he warns his colleagues.

“Safety is vitally important and I'm sure the track has been made much safer, but the fact that it's a bit treacherous adds a little extra excitement,” explains Bayliss. “In any case, I love Laguna and I think that racing here with the MotoGP will be a fantastic experience”.

While Assen has the renowned Veenslang curve and Spa Francorchamps the Eau Rouge, Laguna has the Corkscrew. A left right over a bump with a lightning-fast entry, the Corkscrew is certainly part of motorcycling folklore. But if many champions have sweated in this corner, Bayliss believes that the track offers even more challenging points than the famous uphill S.

“Certainly the Corkscrew, with its fast entry, is a fantastic and very technical corner, I never believe that it is curve number one that should be paid the most attention to,” warns Bayliss. “It's very fast and with the Superbike the wheels leave the ground. With MotoGP it can be a big mess."

“Turns two, three and four are nothing special but then you start to climb towards turns five and six, which are spectacular and then towards the straight that leads to the Corkscrew. I also love the next section, down towards the Rainey curve, number ten and then the last, which is a kind of stop and go that launches towards the finishing straight”.

Bayliss' excitement at the thought of returning to California reflects that of the entire MotoGP paddock. Everyone wants to make a good impression in front of a market and an audience so accustomed to shows and glamor and they want to make people understand what they have been missing so far.

So will the old lovers meet again in an embrace or will there be awkward silences and arguments about the past? Only one thing is certain, both are eager to meet again. In reality the union seems more favorable than ever and certainly the spectacle offered to the American public will be better than that of its "cousins" in Formula One.

Camel Honda