Those MotoGP Confessions in Full...

Even though the paint was barely dry, TwitGP flung open the doors of its newly built CONFESSION BOX tonight and welcomed followers to OWN UP to all their motorcycle-related embarrassments, mistakes and howlers that have plagued the mind and prevented sound sleep.

We were looking neither to condemn nor jeer – instead this was a cathartic exercise designed to exorcise demons.

In truth, we hoped all hopes that the TwitGP followers would have very little to say on this matter, given their expert and knowledgeable standing.

They had other ideas. 

Goodie Grand Prix - Race Report

There's only ONE story worth reporting on in MotoGP at the moment - and that's the high jinks and hilarity surrounding @alex__briggs, the failed bus mechanic who now chews gum in Valentino Rossi's box, and his Twitter-based Goodie Grand Prix.

While the rest of the motorcycle press snoozes, they, er, loses, as it's TwitGP that has pieced the facts together to bring YOU the GoodieGP race report. Who cares about confirming if Dovi is going to Gresini? That's a waste of journalistic effort. THIS is what matters. Read on.

"I love you" - Rossi's goodbye note

How cool is this? Valentino's handwritten goodbye letter to Yamaha - and translation below. Dare you to read it and not well up...

Bye bye Valentino - the official team press release

We're not in the habit of copy and pasting...but just this once:

YAMAHA AND VALENTINO TO PART COMPANY AT END OF 2010

Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. would like to announce that the partnership between Valentino Rossi and Yamaha will come to an end at the close of the season, when Valentino will move on to new challenges.

Yamaha and Valentino have enjoyed seven fantastic seasons of racing, during which time they have won four MotoGP World Championships together.

Valentino has played a huge part in the history of Yamaha and he will always remain an important part of Yamaha's heritage. Yamaha is extremely grateful for Valentino's contributions to its racing successes over the past seven years and it would like to wish him the very best in his future racing endeavours.

Yamaha will be putting all its efforts into ensuring a successful and happy end to the partnership over the remaining races.


Lin Jarvis, Managing Director of Yamaha Motor Racing, said "On behalf of the Yamaha Motor Group, I would like to express our sincere gratitude for the amazing seven years that we have spent together. Valentino joined Yamaha in 2004 at a moment when Yamaha was struggling in road racing after eleven seasons without a championship victory. Valentino's victory at his first GP race for Yamaha in South Africa in 2004 was an incredible moment and was just the first of many more race wins that have thrilled MotoGP fans and Yamaha fans around the world. His unsurpassed skills as a racer and a development rider enabled him to win four MotoGP world titles to date with us and helped Yamaha develop the YZR-M1 into the ‘the bike of reference' for the MotoGP class.

"There have been so many wonderful experiences and victories and we are very proud to have been able to make history together. Whilst we regret Vale's decision to move on, at the same time we fully respect his decision to search for a new challenge and we wish him the very best for 2011 and beyond.

"For the remaining eight races of 2010 Valentino will remain a Yamaha Factory rider. As such he will continue to benefit from our full support and we hope and expect to see some more race wins with him ‘in blue' before the season is over!"

Rossi Ducati Bla Bla - the Ducati website cock-up

TwitGP has had great fun today making up spoof announcements about Valentino Rossi signing for Ducati. Little did we know Ducati themselves would trump us by constructing a far funnier web page, with the simple text "bla bla", and release it three hours before they were allowed: 

Rossi Confirms Ducati Switch

We are indebted to Valentino for confirming that this is indeed a Ducati switch.

All You Need To Know About Elena Myers (Who???)

Did you hear this business about the Suzuki team offering a ride on their MotoGP bike to Elena Myers...who is 16 YEARS OLD...and wait for it...A GIRL?

This is what she looks like when she's blipping the throttle of a GSV-R in front of a not entirely convinced mechanic:

John Hopkins - Nothing But the Tooth

Imagine how funny it would be if the website belonging to shiny-toothed John Hopkins, a man whose mouth is home to not so much a Hollywood smile but a 1/10th scale model of the White Cliffs of Dover, carried adverts for cosmetic dental surgery.

Well imagine no more:

V Rossi, Bologna - not known at this address

Continuing our new game of acting like a REAL journalist (we got a reply from LCR Honda the other day, do keep up), here's a round-up of the day's exciting Rossi-going-to-Ducati events, which are becoming increasingly like an old French farce, and hence are fun to record for posterity:

Randy de Puniet is OK

TwitGP thought it was a shame that everyone had forgotten silken-chested Randy de Puniet broke his leg at the German GP, after Mika Kallio mistook an outstretched shin for a piece of track.

A fair few TwitGP followers had been asking us about his welfare so we used all the power at our disposal to write an email. Look, here's a picture of it:

Yes! I’ve Met a MotoGP Rider, and Guess What...

When TwitGP asked its followers “have you ever met a MotoGP rider in REAL LIFE?”, we figured we'd get just a handful of responses. After all, we're talking about an exclusive band of riders, operating in a rarefied world, who only leave the rear bedroom of their motorhome in exceptional circumstances. Statistically, according to TwitGP's Department of Statistics, you're more likely to bump into someone who's NOT a MotoGP rider.

But oh, how our followers proved us wrong.

Freestyle Motocross Heroism

No MotoGP content here, but if you're into bikes and skilful riding you'll still get a kick out of this carefully selected vid from this year's X Games hype-fest. Treat it as, er, a treat, which will help while away the hours until the next grand prix.

Useful pre-amble:

Cam Sinclair 101 - crash lands double backflip in 2009 and is left fighting for his life; somehow gets better; tries double backflip again; crowd go wild. Respect.


(PS ignore the boring advert at the start.)