September 25, 2007 at 11:59 am
· Filed under Racing

Casey Stoner has secured the 2007 MotoGP Championship with three races remaining in the season after finishing sixth in this weekend’s race in Motegi, Japan. Stoner becomes only the third Australian rider to claim the title, and the second youngest overall at just 21 years. The race at Motegi started in the wet but finished in mostly dry conditions, meaning that the riders had to pit for their spare bikes (with dry setups) during the race. Valentino Rossi, Stoner’s closest title rival, came out of the pits with handling problems due to low tire temperatures and fell out of contention for the title by finishing the race in 13th position. This is the second year in a row that seven-time world champion Rossi has failed to win the title, having finished behind American Nicky Hayden last year as well. The Australian GP at Phillip Island is next on the schedule in three weeks time, and Stoner is sure to receive a champion’s welcome for his home race.
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September 17, 2007 at 12:57 pm
· Filed under Racing

The world rally fraternity has lost another member in Colin McRae, who was killed in a helicopter crash near his home in Scotland on Saturday. McRae’s passing follows the recent deaths of 2001 WRC champion Richard Burns, who died from a brain tumor in 2005, and Michael Park, co-driver to Markko Märtin, who was killed in a crash during the 2005 Wales Rally Great Britain. McRae was arguably the best-known rally driver in the world despite not having contested a full season in the WRC since 2003. More recently he drove in several one-off rallys for Škoda and Citroën, as well as running in the Dakar Rally, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and the Race of Champions. His final WRC event was the 2006 Rally Turkey, subbing for Sébastien Loeb, which ended in a retirement due to mechanical failure. McRae remains the only Scottish driver to have won the World Rally Drivers’ Championship, which he did with Subaru in 1995. One of rally’s true legends, he will be missed.
Obituaries: McRae website | Motorsport.com | Speed Channel | BBC | Autosport
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September 10, 2007 at 12:02 pm
· Filed under General

I finally got around to uploading pictures from the Kansas City Wizards / Chicago Fire match Sara and I saw several weeks ago. It was a good victory over a close conference rival, and after a lot of rain earlier in the week the weather was perfect. I also got a good shot of Blanco’s goal in the 44th minute, which was a big crowd-pleaser (we saw a ton of new #10 jerseys). The new soccer-specific stadium in Bridgeview was really nice and our seats were terrific. There was plenty of parking available, and the drive was less than an hour from Sara’s parents. Less hassle (and less expensive) than a Bears game, or even a Hawkeyes football game recently. I think we are definitely planning on going to a few more Fire games in the future.
Looking at the playoff picture, the Fire have just moved into the last playoff spot with seven games remaining in the season. I don’t expect them to go far should they eventually make the playoffs, but it’s a bit of a pride issue when you can’t even finish among the top eight teams in a 13-team league.
Game recap: MLS | ESPN
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