KTM

Scott Jones took too many fantastic photographs at the Sachsenring, so many that we've had to split our review of them over two days. Double the quantity, double the pleasure, and what better way to get 2010 started?

Wheelies whatever the weather

Colin Edwards takes the art of looking through the corner to the extreme

Best helmet of the year for Niccolo Canepa

The weather at the Sachsenring was best described as changeable

Another day, another set of beautiful photographs taken by MotoMatters.com snapper Scott Jones. That weekend saw the weather play a major role, with race day finally drying up and producing three great races, including a scintillating MotoGP contest. Relive it all again in glorious color:

Valentino Rossi had things well under control in Germany

Still probably the best looking bike on the grid

58, the number of the Fabulous Furry Freak Brother

The Red Bull Rookies Cup provided some of the most entertaining racing of the year for spectators attending the European MotoGP rounds, but given the nature of the competitors, that was to be expected. Having thirty-odd teenagers with hyperactive hormones and no fear of death all racing for glory on identical bikes is a recipe for both spectacle and disaster. Fortunately, the skill these young boys and girls displayed helped avert disaster in most cases, leaving just the spectacle to enjoy. My personal favorite moment was at Assen, watching the Red Bull Rookies head into the final GT chicane eight abreast, none of them with any intention of giving ground to each other.

Unfortunately for people who weren't at the races, or couldn't follow the races live on the Red Bull Rookies website, there was little coverage on live TV. That appalling error has now been remedied, with the online broadcaster VBS has put together an eight-part series covering the 2009 Red Bull Rookies Cup. You can watch all of the episodes over on the VBS website, or watch the trailer or the first episode below.

Trailer

When KTM announced they would be withdrawing from the 250cc class at the end of last year, it was generally put down to the bitterness felt by the Austrian factory over the way the Moto2 class was forced through. That announcement was followed shortly by both the onset of the global financial crisis, and a string of very poor financial results by KTM. Since then, KTM has been gradually screwing back its involvement in two-stroke road racing, including withdrawing support from the US Red Bull Rookies series, causing that class to collapse before the start of the season. Earlier this month, when the 2010 Red Bull Rookies Cup was announced, the press release made no mention of KTM, and the Red Bull Rookies web site states that the bike the rookies will be using next season is the Metrakit Pre GP 125.

Good news for aspiring MotoGP champions. The Red Bull Rookies Cup is to be run again in 2010, giving teenagers between the ages of 13 and 16 a chance to race at some of the finest racetracks around the world on motorcycles close to Grand Prix spec, with professional coaching and under the watchful eye of some of the great names in the sport. The fact that the current 125cc Grand Prix field contains a number of riders who came up through the program such as Johann Zarco and German sensation Jonas Folger is proof enough of the value of the program, and this season's top riders Sturla Fagerhaug and Jakub Kornfeil have made their Grand Prix debuts as wildcards.

The selection process is set to be much stricter this year, as the level of entries has increased each time the program is run. The rising quality of entrants is a result of the increasing popularity and name recognition of the series, and it is becoming one of the best ways into the MotoGP championship. As a result, applicants will need to have proven experience on high performance motorcycles. This does not necessarily mean that they must have road racing experience; any form of motorcycle racing experience will do, or some other form of participation in high-speed motorcycle activities.

The Red Bull Rookies cup is open to boys and girls born between January 1st,1993 and March 31st, 1997, though exceptions will be made for those born within a year of the entry dates under exceptional circumstances. Applications need to be submitted by September 20th, 2009, via an online entry form which can be found on the Red Bull Rookies website. The entries will be judged by a panel of experts including KTM's race team director Harald Bartol, Austrian racer Gustl Auinger, former 125 and 250 racer Raul Jara and the former team manager of the WCM 500cc and MotoGP racing team, Peter Clifford.

Valentino Rossi walked away from Donington Park smiling

Donington Park, first lap madness

Gabor Talmacsi's Honda wastes fuel in an aesthetically pleasing way

The men in orange hand Elias his trashed bike back

The Ducatis gambled and lost

The Repsol Posse

The Red Bull Rookies produced great racing, as ever

Bradley Smith, flying the flag

MotoGP, brought to you by these people

Yet more photos from Scott Jones, this time of the rain-soaked qualifying session. The conditions may have been horrific, but this did not deter either our intrepid photographer or the subjects he was shooting.

Jorge Lorenzo. He's supposed to be injured, but he refuses to let that deter him.

Niccolo Canepa, before Nicky laid the Kentucky Smackdown on him

Usually, underwater conditions suit Chris Vermeulen, but a bruised hip was working against him

After the cold drizzle of Le Mans, MotoGP hit Mugello under a sweltering Tuscan sun. The heat met with no complaints, however, as everyone in the paddock is sick to death of the wet weather which seems to follow them wherever they go.

As the bikes took to the track, Valentino Rossi did his best Casey Stoner impression, being fastest out of the gate, and staying on top for the first 20 minutes of the session. At that point, the rest of the Fantastic Four started to catch up, and leapfrogged each other for the lead. First Casey Stoner took the top spot, then with 32 minutes left Jorge Lorenzo took back the fastest time for the Fiat Yamaha team, only for Stoner to take it back again 5 minutes later.

With a quarter of the session left, Valentino Rossi reasserted himself atop the timesheets as Master of Mugello, but his team mate refused to be impressed. The young Spaniard took top spot again with 11 minutes to go, smashing the race lap record in the process and cracking into the 1'49s. Lorenzo then continued to set a string of lightning fast laps, eventually running three laps inside the 1'49s.

Valentino Rossi was left down in 2nd spot, just under 2/10ths off his Fiat Yamaha team mate, but capable of about the same kind of race pace. If The Doctor planned a spot of psychological warfare at Mugello, by coming out fast and trying to dominate practice, he ended up hoist by his own petard, coming up against a truly remarkable Jorge Lorenzo. But Rossi always has something special at the Tuscan track, so no doubt he'll be even faster tomorrow.

The Red Bull Rookies Cup has been set up as a breeding ground for talent, and with Marc Marquez and Cameron Beaubier currently doing well in the 125cc championship, is proving to be exactly that. The only problem for fans who are keen to find out about the stars of tomorrow is that the races are not screened anywhere.

Red Bull have recognized that, and will be showing the races live online on the Red Bull Rookies Cup Website. The first race will be shown online today at 4:15pm CEST. The races so far have always proved to be incredibly close and some of the best racing of the weekend, so they are well worth checking out.