2007 will be remembered as the year the crown prince of MotoGP Valentino Rossi was dethroned, and a young boy from down under named Casey Stoner ran away with the coveted title of World Champion.

While Rossi disappointed with a third-placed season finish — a whooping 126 championship points behind Stoner on his Marlboro Ducati and one point short of Spain’s Dani Pedrosa on his Honda — his legion of fans (this writer included) will be willing him on for a return to the throne in 2008.

But first, treat yourself to this video, the highlights of MotoGP 2007.

Can’t play the video? Watch it here at Youtube!  

Thanks to NOCOMPROMISE for this excellent clip!

With just 10 days to go before MotoGP kicks off in the first race of the season in the moonlit night in Qatar I hope you’ve got your popcorn ready for some exhilarating action in front of the TV!

Will Australian Casey Stoner prove he is no flash in the pan and dominate the field once again to wheelie off with the title this year? Or will The Doctor — fan favourite #46 — have a trick or two up his sleeve to wrest the throne back from the upstart usurper? After all, Rossi has finally resolved his tax evasion issues with the Italian authorities, opting to pay off EUR 35 million to the taxman, and has claimed that he is now free to concentrate on what he does best — winning races in most spectacular fashion.

Honda’s Dani Pedrosa is perhaps one of the most under-rated stars in MotoGP. He might have finished runner-up last season, but remains in the shadows with all the cameras trained on Stoner and Rossi. Ironically, he has hogged the headlines in pre-season 2008, but only because he fractured his hand on the very first day of test rides at Sepang late last month. Will the Spaniard overcome his injury — and the intimidating popularity of his peers — to walk away with the title?

Apart from the top 3 finishers last year, there’s plenty the rest of the field has to offer. The Kentucky Kid Nicky Hayden, Pedrosa’s Honda teammate, looks to be in top form in pre-season and is consistently registering lightning fast times around the practice tracks. His Honda RC212V could prove to be the bike to beat, especially with Hayden’s impressive confidence on Michelin tyres.

Newcomer Jorge Lorenzo will surely aspire to follow in reigning champion Stoner’s footsteps by winning the MotoGP fresh from impressive records in the 250cc and 125cc categories. The 21-year-old ran away with the 250cc crown in consecutive seasons in 2006 and 2007, and will be hoping his Yamaha M1 carries him to victory as his RS250 did in previous seasons. Well, I’m partial to the Aprilia RS250 — my previous ride! — and maybe that’s why a part of me hopes young Jorge does well. Hmmm… It looks like I’m gonna be a Fiat Yamaha supporter through and through this season! Go Rossi! Go Lorenzo!

Speaking of title contenders, we can expect Loris Capirossi, Colin Edwards, John Hopkins and Marco Melandri are never going to be far from the leading pack as well. MotoGP 2008 is going to be one hell one a thriller!

Mark these dates down on your calendar!

Round 1 - Qatar Grand Prix (Losail International Circuit) - March 9

Round 2 - Spanish Grand Prix (Circuito Permanente de Jerez) - March 30

Round 3 - Portugese Grand Prix (Autódromo do Estoril) - April 13

Round 4 - Chinese Grand Prix (Shanghai International Circuit) - May 4

Round 5 - French Grand Prix (Le Mans Bugatti Circuit) - May 18

Round 6 - Italian Grand Prix (Mugello Circuit) - June 1

Round 7 - Catalan Grand Prix (Circuit de Catalunya) - June 8

Round 8 - British Grand Prix (Donington Park) - June 22

Round 9 - Dutch TT (TT Circuit Assen) - June 28

Round 10 - German Grand Prix (Sachsenring) - July 13

Round 11 - United States Grand Prix (Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca) - July 20

Round 12 - Czech Republic Grand Prix (Brno) - August 17

Round 13 - San Marino and Rimini’s Coast Grand Prix (Misano World Circuit) - August 31

Round 14 - Indianapolis Grand Prix (Indianapolis Motor Speedway) - September 14

Round 15 - Japanese Grand Prix (Twin Ring Motegi) - September 28

Round 16 - Australian Grand Prix (Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit) - October 5

Round 17 - Malaysian Grand Prix (Sepang International Circuit) - October 19

Round 18 - Valencian Grand Prix (Circuit de Valencia) - October 26

Looks like my weekends are fully booked to the end of the season! Anyone thinking of going for the Malaysian GP at Sepang on October 19? Drop me an email!

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