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The Motorsport Brief: Phillip Island MotoGP Preview with Chris Vermeulen · Rusty's Garage

0:02
A listener production.
0:04
Welcome to the Motorsport Brief.
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It's Monday, the 16th of October, 2023.
0:09
Race week for MotoGP in Australia.
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The sport is in flyaway mode, jetting in with that precious two-wheel cargo, having raced in Indonesia at the weekend.
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Today, we will preview the race with a member of the Network 10 on-air team who knows what it takes to win in the Premier Class.
0:28
Music.
0:31
Hi everybody, Greg Rust here for another edition of our short cast.
0:34
The motorsport brief as we affectionately call it.
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October is such a good time of year with the 1000 we're now gearing up for the Australian Grand Prix on two wheels.
0:45
And the Gold Coast supercars just around the corner.
0:48
Don't forget as well the big double header in early November with the best in the world headed down under...
0:54
as the TCR World Tour hits Sydney Motorsport Park and Bathurst on back-to-back weekends.
1:00
We will release a special feature episode of the pod in the weeks ahead with the Barguanas, Jason and Ben coming on to talk about that, running the Peugeot TCR car, and Ben's plans to take on Macau, plus some great father-son reflections on Jason's career.
1:20
Tomorrow morning, as a part of the build-up to Phillip Island, the voice of MotoGP, Nick Harris joins us.
1:26
A brand-new feature episode dropping from working with Barry Sheen in the early days, juggling his work in the World Motorcycle Championship and Formula One, plus observations of working with legends like Eddie Lawson, Wayne Gardner, Jeremy Burgess and more, plus some cool Phillip Island memories.
1:45
You will enjoy that one.
1:47
Today I'm joined by an old friend who worked briefly with me in studio for Network 10's coverage of Phillip Island before going off and doing great things with Fox Sports for many years.
1:57
10's been able to lure him back for this weekend for their coverage.
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Christopher Mullen is a world champion in super sport, a race winner in MotoGP, a great communicator on this subject and he properly loves bikes.
2:11
He is on the line from his home in Queensland.
2:14
Hello mate, welcome back to The Garage.
2:16
Yeah, very good to see you again, Rusty.
2:18
It's been a while, but I talk about you every Phillip Island because my, you know, obviously I was a racer and then I come back in and I do the TV stuff every year and I go, oh, my first ever go at television.
2:30
I worked with Darrell Beattie and Greg Rust at Channel 10 and they showed me the rope.
2:34
So it's great to always come back and have a chat to you at this race weekend.
2:38
It brings back some really good memories.
2:39
And what I love is that you had a little lucky charm that day too.
2:43
If I recall, you had your nice shirt and tie, but underneath the desk were thongs.
2:47
They were thongs on, which is great.
2:49
My buddy Mark Howard, I think, is a bit of a guru for that.
2:51
Isn't TV all smoke and mirrors?
2:52
That's what it all is, isn't it, Rusty?
2:54
But no, it's good times, really good times.
2:57
Can we open the bank in that way then, Chris?
2:59
I mean, does it come easy to you?
3:01
Because the thing I love on the broadcasting side is that it's the same Christopher Mullen on camera as it is off.
3:07
It seemed like a fairly straightforward transition for you.
3:12
And you enjoy sharing all those insights from the business that you have been around for so long.
3:18
Well, and I think, you know, I don't want to be a TV personality.
3:22
I don't want to be a TV host.
3:23
That's never my goal.
3:24
It's, I love motorcycle racing and I love it that our sport gets coverage.
3:29
And if I can share some side to that coverage, that's what I want to bring.
3:33
And it's the one thing I know about, you know, I can't talk about anything else.
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I don't know what goes on in a game of rugby or, you know, whatever.
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But motorsport racing, I know it.
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I did it to a high level and I enjoy it.
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So, yeah, if I can bring that, why be any different, you know?
3:51
Just be yourself and tell them what you think and, you know, just be careful of what words you use because you can't use the wrong ones when you're live on TV.
3:58
No, exactly.
3:59
Exactly, exactly.
4:01
You keep good ties with people in the sport you have always done, and I think that's great from a research point of view.
4:07
What things have you learnt from the season so far?
4:09
Give us a kind of broad brush report card of MotoGP 23.
4:13
Well, for me...
4:15
the sprint race is a big thing this year.
4:17
So the whole championship changed.
4:20
And to be honest, I'll put my hands up and say, I wasn't a fan when it was launched.
4:23
So MotoGP, it was Grand Prix racing.
4:26
You had your, your race on Sunday.
4:28
That was what it was all about was this Grand Prix and you had the build up and that's where it was.
4:31
And I thought getting points for a half race on Saturday, I don't know, but as a fan, wow, hasn't it brought some excitement to the championship?
4:39
So for me, that's, that's the biggest thing of this year.
4:41
And it's really changed the dynamic of the sport.
4:43
The guys have got to,
4:45
They've got to be fast earlier.
4:47
The teams have got to get set up earlier.
4:48
There's perhaps more risk in the sport because of it.
4:52
But watching from the outside, we get a race on Saturday, and it's a short one.
4:56
And how's that going to play out for Sunday and what's different?
5:00
So I've really enjoyed that.
5:02
The other thing is Ducati's dominance.
5:04
I mean, as a...
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you know, a manufacturer.
5:07
They've got the most bikes on the grid.
5:09
They haven't won the championship until last year since Casey Stoner.
5:13
And now, I mean, they've already wrapped up the constructors' championships.
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They're fighting between different Ducatis on the track, different teams.
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It's so that they are really leading the way in development.
5:24
Back-to-back weekends for the sport.
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Indonesia, in some respects, had it all.
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Jorge Martin looked like he might win and the title fight story might go another direction.
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That all changes with an incident for him.
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His rival in Pekka Bagnia storms through in a manner that we haven't seen for many years.
5:41
I mean, it was the perfect entree for our event, wasn't it?
5:46
I think it was the best race of the year so far.
5:51
I think because of the technology in the sport, it's going down the Formula One track where, you know, and that's just the way things go.
5:57
And when they're in Europe, the tracks, they know them inside out.
6:00
They know how to do the perfect lap.
6:02
They go to these circuits in Indonesia.
6:03
They've only been there twice.
6:05
The track's been resurfaced.
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It's very dirty offline.
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So there's a narrow line.
6:09
The conditions are difficult to manage.
6:11
The tires are dropping away.
6:13
It was just very, very difficult.
6:15
And I think the cream rose.
6:17
You know, you saw...
6:19
and I don't mean to say this in a nasty way to any otherwise, but you saw the smartest guys come through, Bagnaia, how he managed that race from 13th on the grid.
6:26
Fabio Quattararo on a Yamaha, not a very good motorbike, put it on the podium.
6:29
Maverick Vinales, you know, very controlled, very sensible, managed his tyres during the race, second place.
6:35
And I think...
6:36
It just showed that that was maybe more experience and more being calm in the situation than having the best motorbike.
6:44
So that was cool.
6:45
But I mean, what a lead up to Phillip Island.
6:47
Now, we come to Phillip Island with the track that generally puts on the best racing of the year.
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And what...
6:52
What I'm excited about, we've never seen a sprint race at Phillip Island.
6:54
Can you imagine that?
6:55
Like a half distance, right?
6:56
I'm just, I'm hanging out for Saturday.
6:58
I can't wait to see these guys go battle and how many passes there's going to be around this place.
7:02
Me too.
7:03
We cherish the kind of Barry Sheen era.
7:06
Then the Kevin Schwantz, Wayne Rainey, Gardner, Doohan, et cetera, 500cc period.
7:11
There was Valentino and Casey.
7:14
We probably, just based on what you were saying in the last couple of answers, need to stop and appreciate just how insanely competitive the current era is and how difficult it is to win, Chris.
7:26
It's not like those eras where, even a Marquez era, you know, there was dominance, wasn't there, by...
7:34
you know, doing, you know, winning those championships, you know, Baz was dominant for a couple of years and then, uh, and then Kenny Roberts came in it, but now at the moment it is, it's so close.
7:45
I don't think we've seen motorcycle racing this close, um, you know, as a sport, you know, the, the, the guy finishing 15th place, he might only finish seven, eight seconds off the win, you know, over a 40, 45 minute race.
8:00
It's,
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The differences are so small.
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We're talking 0.1 of a percent.
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And it is.
8:07
It's exciting from that side.
8:09
The thing I would like to see, and I know there's lots of people talking about it, I want less electronics, less aero devices, and make the racing in a bit raw again.
8:18
But for how close it is right now, Dorner have done a fantastic job.
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If you have never been, we should point out to our listeners as well, you can still get tickets.
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Go to the official website, motogp.com.au.
8:30
Chris, in a broad sense, you have to go and appreciate it at some point, don't you?
8:34
Because 300-plus kilometres an hour down the Gardner Strait there are technically what the bikes are capable of are seriously impressive too, aren't they?
8:45
It's the acceleration, the noise.
8:48
And I mean, I rode these things, okay, you know, 10, 12 years ago.
8:52
So they're a little bit slower, not quite as fast, all that stuff.
8:55
But now I go and look at them and the first time you see them come around that track, whether it be Friday morning or you only come to the race on Sunday and you see them, the speed they carry through the corner and they pick the bike up and the acceleration, every year it blows my mind again.
9:11
Every time I see these bikes on track and when you're riding them –
9:16
Okay, we used to race it all year, then perhaps we'd have four weeks off at the end of the season, then you go testing, it would normally be in Malaysia, and you're right out of the pit lane and the speed limit is set for 60 k's an hour and you flick the button to go off and the bike accelerates.
9:30
They accelerate faster than a Formula One car and your stomach comes up inside you and you go, that's right, these things are quite quick, aren't they?
9:37
You just got to get your head and your mind into gear
9:39
And when you're doing it all year, for these guys, it feels normal.
9:42
That's their job.
9:42
But when you go and see them and if you've never seen them, it will blow your mind how special, how fast, and just the excitement it is of watching these things go on a track fast.
9:53
One of the big headlines throughout the year has been Mark Marquez announcing that he'll leave...
9:58
the Honda fold.
9:59
You know, he's been with them for so long now.
10:01
He's off to ride a Ducati in 2024.
10:03
He's done, as you know, in statistics terms.
10:06
Some incredible things in that period.
10:08
I mean, six world titles in the Premier class, not to mention his Moto2 and Moto3 crowns as well.
10:14
I think youngest ever MotoGP world champion.
10:17
Almost 60 wins, Chris.
10:19
I mean...
10:21
There's been some well-documented injuries for him, right, in the recent years.
10:25
Can he win again on a different bike, do you think?
10:28
And only a few have achieved such a feat over time, haven't they?
10:33
Well, very much so.
10:34
And this is the question.
10:35
And I, without doubt, still believe in the current field, Mark Muckers is the most talented rider.
10:42
And he's the package, the ultimate package.
10:45
But he doesn't have...
10:46
the machine underneath him at the moment to show what he can do.
10:50
If we saw what he was like and his speed in 2019 and his, his, his, his 2018 championship, you know, like how dominant he was.
10:58
The, the, the guy is, is, is sensational.
11:00
He's very fast.
11:01
He's, you got to put him on the level of doing Rossi, you know, at least.
11:06
And I think it's, it's hard to know.
11:09
So from two, I,
11:11
I don't know how to answer this question because I'm really excited to see because the Ducati is a unique specimen and I think it's so far advanced that I don't know if you can override the Ducati or you just need to ride it to what the bike can actually do and the bike can do a lot.
11:28
And how Mark is going to react with that because his whole career, he's overridden bikes and he, like from the outside, looks cool because he's sliding the front and he's sliding the back.
11:37
He's picking it up on his knee.
11:39
And he's been able to get away with that.
11:40
But as the technology's evolved, I'm not sure how he's going to go on the Ducati.
11:45
But like I started this answer, I still think he is the most talented rider.
11:49
So it's going to be interesting to see how he adapts, how long it takes him to adapt and what he can get out of a Ducati.
11:55
Chris, we'll get you to hang on there for us for just a moment.
11:57
A quick break now on Rusty's Garage.
12:00
More of our Island Preview in just a few moments.
12:07
This is the Rusty's Garage Shorty on race week for the Guru by Griffin Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix.
12:13
We are chatting with Channel 10 co-host and analyst Chris Vermeulen.
12:21
CV, people will want some thoughts on Jack Miller's chances at the Island.
12:25
He was on the pod with us in recent weeks.
12:28
He thought in that conversation then around the time of the round in Japan there that the KTM could be in a good place by Phillip Island, that it would perhaps suit that layout.
12:37
What do you think of his season so far?
12:39
What chance do we give Jack of potentially having a win or perhaps even a podium at home?
12:45
Look, to wrap up Jack's season so far, I think where he's finishing at the moment is perhaps what I expected because...
12:53
The Ducati, let's face it, was a better bike than the KTM when he signed to go to KTM.
12:57
But what impressed me was the early part of the season and Jack's input to that team and how they really progressed.
13:05
And the team say we put that down, you know, Jack Miller's experience and what he's brought over.
13:10
And some races on the podium early on were very impressive.
13:15
I think at the moment...
13:16
It seems like he's a little bit lost.
13:18
And I haven't spoken to Jack, so I don't know where he's lost.
13:21
But he's, you know, he just seems to use the tyre a bit harder than some of the other guys.
13:27
His consistency isn't there through a whole race.
13:29
But saying that, he's faster on the island.
13:32
He loves racing in front of his home crowd more easily.
13:36
more than anyone I know, I think.
13:37
And he's going to put on a show.
13:39
He's got a corner named after himself around the circuit now.
13:44
I think the KTM can work around there.
13:46
I think he's got a real shot, and I think Jack Miller loves the island.
13:50
And if he could, you know, put on the – if he could win a Grand Prix, his first Grand Prix on KTM and could pick a track, it will be Phillip Island, you know.
13:57
So, yeah, there's definitely a good chance for him, and let's hope the weekend goes smoothly.
14:01
What about some of the other riders or machines that might star in Australia?
14:04
I mean, you mentioned a couple of them before, Maverick Vinales on the Aprilia, for example, Fabio Quotararo on the Yamaha.
14:11
They both did a very good job to grab that podium, respectively, in Indonesia.
14:16
I think the island's a tricky one.
14:18
I mean, last year, Marquez and Honda were nowhere really all season.
14:21
And then Mark stuck it in second place.
14:23
And I mean, a Suzuki one, it's unfortunate we don't have those guys out there.
14:27
So the track is very unique.
14:29
It's the highest average speed circuit we go to.
14:32
There's a lot of fast flowing corners that it brings the bikes close together.
14:37
What's,
14:38
generally separates the racing is when there's all these hairpins that go on the big straights and everyone closes up and then extends out.
14:44
But Phillip Island is all that fast flowing and everyone stays together and they can make a pass and there's opportunities to pass between one corner and the next one.
14:51
And I think that,
14:53
pretty much all the machines have got a chance to get a good result around there.
14:57
If they can get their basics set up well, if they can manage the situation, and when I say manage the situation, Barry Sheen famously said, Philip Island is the gateway to hypothermia.
15:08
It is.
15:09
You do not know what weather you're going to get.
15:12
the temperature can change 10 degrees in the middle of the race, you know.
15:15
So it's who can manage that situation the best and put himself in a good position and who's going to be a fighter, who's a racer, and who's going to battle to the end and try and get that race win.
15:26
Those iconic words of his are etched in your mind and mine permanently, aren't they?
15:31
Oh, look.
15:32
How you dealt with him, I don't know, Rusty, because you had to put up with him and try and be serious on air.
15:36
We just watched.
15:37
I was a young fellow.
15:38
I watched him at home and loved it.
15:40
Amazing.
15:40
Amazing human being.
15:41
Best of the Honda riders at the Mandelica circuit was Alex Rins in ninth.
15:46
I know there's a few stories there that we need to consider in saying that.
15:51
What about the Japanese giant down under, Chris?
15:54
You talked about Marquez and what he did there last year, a minute ago.
15:57
Could we see some Marquez magic there?
16:00
And that might be a nice little bookend to his chapter with them.
16:05
I think the big H is in Honda, could have a chance around there, in Marquez and Alex Rins.
16:11
Alex won last year on the Suzuki.
16:13
Alex is a racer too.
16:14
We've got to remember he's coming back from a massive injury as well.
16:17
And the damage to his leg, you know, the one bone was pretty much shattered and it's taken him, you know, months and months to get him sorted.
16:26
And he's still not walking properly, but he, I mean, he fought around his first race back, ninth place.
16:31
He's coming to one of his favorite tracks as well, so he loves the island.
16:35
Like I said, Mark's Mark.
16:37
Mark's special.
16:38
And if the thing's got any chance of being on the podium, he's going to be the guy to put it there.
16:43
So I would love to see Hondas in the mix and give it a fight.
16:47
They look spectacular too because they're not as refined as the Ducati or the Aprilia.
16:50
So the bikes are sliding around, they're moving.
16:54
It's fun to watch and it's fun to watch a Marquez when he's on the limit.
16:57
Saturday's a big one for fans with qualifying one and two around about lunchtime.
17:02
Then at 3pm the sprint and Chris talked about that relatively new addition to the sport a little earlier in our conversation here.
17:10
You're enjoying that aspect of the weekend.
17:18
yes i'm going to go out say yes i i really don't think what happens at philip island because it's it's a situation that changes and i think the races will be close i'm and we're well before the weekend here rusty but i'm going to say the top three in the sprint won't be the same top three um necessarily in the race because i i think it's going to be really close around here and really exciting
17:38
The second and third tier are there for the fans, as always, Moto2 and Moto3, plus the Oceania Junior Cup.
17:45
Are you keeping an eye out for, and if I know you, you will be, kind of the next Casey Stoner, Christopher Mullen or Jack Miller coming through that Aussies will be able to get behind in the years to come?
17:56
Look, we've got a lot.
17:58
We've got great racing.
17:59
We've got our domestic championship, our Australian Superbikes.
18:01
He's developing and it's becoming a really strong championship again and some great riders in the smaller classes there doing the feeder classes for MotoGP.
18:08
But I think we've got Joel Kelso at the moment in Moto3, the Aussie.
18:13
He's had an up and down season, but when he's on form, he could really challenge well inside that top 10.
18:17
But next year, we've got Jacob Ralston coming into Moto3.
18:20
He's had a sensational season in Europe so far doing a junior championship, and he's joining the Tech 3 Red Bull KTM in Moto3, so one of the top teams.
18:30
So look out for that name, Jacob Ralston.
18:32
And Santa Agius, now he's just wrapped up the –
18:36
I think they call it the Junior Moto2 Championship.
18:40
And that's basically the Spanish Championship, but they call it the Junior World Championship.
18:43
And he's got a full-time ride in Moto2 next year.
18:46
So that's a championship that we've had an Aussie win not that long ago in Remy Gardner.
18:50
So yeah, two Aussies that are going to be full-time with Jack Miller next year.
18:55
So it's great for Australian racing.
18:57
Can we get a Phillip Island memory from you before you go?
19:01
If I know you well enough, is it 2006 with Marco Melandri in those changeable conditions, sliding that bike out of the final turn and taking the win, and a young Christopher Mullen getting to experience the roar of the home crowd by finishing on the podium too?
19:17
Well, there's been so many cool memories for me to watch around there, but the one to be in was without doubt 2006.
19:23
So my first ever MotoGP podium, it was the first ever flag-to-flag race in the MotoGP World Championship.
19:30
So, you know, we started on dry tyres, came in, changed bikes and went out.
19:34
It was chaos.
19:35
But, you know, to finish second, to beat Valentino Rossi and the crowd to sing Vermeulen kicked Rossi's ass, doodah, doodah, like on the podium, it was...
19:44
It's something I'll never forget.
19:46
And that power slide that Marco Melandri did, that gets spoken about every year.
19:51
I was probably the last guy to ever see it because I was too far behind him to see it in real life.
19:56
And then I did the podium and everything and then saw it after the race and just thought, wow, that guy's cool.
20:02
Awesome.
20:02
The Network 10 coverage is on Saturday from 1pm to 4pm Australian Eastern Daylight Saving Time.
20:09
On Sunday from 12 till 3.
20:11
You'll be with my good and mad mate, Darrell Beattie, for the coverage.
20:16
Wish me luck, Ross.
20:17
I might need it.
20:18
Good luck controlling all that.
20:20
Thank you very much for coming on and chatting with us on the podcast today.
20:23
And Chris is a very proud, a very safe rider.
20:27
We know that every year lots of people make the pilgrimage on two wheels to the island.
20:32
If you do that, enjoy your road trip, but ride safely.
20:36
Definitely.
20:36
Can't wait to see all the bikes down there.
20:38
And yeah, have a great weekend, everyone.
20:41
You can find the long-form or feature ep with Chris Vermeulen in the Rusty's Garage Library too.
20:47
Just search for it and enjoy yarns like Barry Sheen, noticing Chris's talent very early on, and that was both on and off the bike, and helping to mentor him to a world supersport title before Chris went on to race for Suzuki in MotoGP.
21:04
Plus, the cars in Chris's collection, including one that he owned...
21:09
that he purchased off Top Gear or the Grand Tour's James May.
21:15
A couple of other pieces of news before we go.
21:16
Tom Blomquist, Elio Castroneves and Colin Braun have won the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta for Meyerschank Racing.
21:24
Scott Dixon was part of the Cadillac Racing Team, home second.
21:27
Matt Campbell, fourth for Porsche Penske Motorsport.
21:31
Lots of action in the class where it all really started for Matt in Australia.
21:36
Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge was at the Bend about an hour out of Adelaide at the weekend.
21:41
Marco Giltrap won the round and now has a 171 point lead with 180 up for grabs at the decider in Bathurst in a few weeks time.
21:52
Well done to young Clay Osborne too.
21:54
A gun in carts who impressed in the Toyota 86 New Zealand series last summer, he made
22:01
quite the debut there with McElroy Racing.
22:04
Speaking of the bend, the brand new multi-million dollar drag strip there officially opens this week.
22:10
It looks incredible.
22:12
This is a great asset for our sport in this part of the world, bringing a similar kind of feel to what fans enjoy at premium drag racing venues in the United States.
22:24
So we now have Sydney, the Perth Motorplex and...
22:27
And the bend, plus the new television coverage we spoke about with Nathan Prendergast in his episode a little while back.
22:34
The sport is in for a great new chapter.
22:38
And finally, well done to Molly Taylor, back in action in the Australian Rally Championship with Subaru.
22:43
She won her class at the weekend on those awesome SA roads.
22:48
In outright terms, Toyota Gazoo Racing's Lewis Bates and Anthony McLaughlin scored their second round win of the season, taking out the Adelaide Hills Rally.
22:57
The ARC will now go down to the wire in Canberra in November.
23:03
That is it for this edition of The Brief.
23:05
Keep an eye out for notifications on Nick Harris, the legendary voice of MotoGP.
23:10
A feature ep drops in the morning with Nick.
23:13
And the new boss of the Australian Grand Prix Corporation will join us in the days ahead as well for a special bonus episode of the Rusty's Garage shortcast this week.
23:23
That's it for today.
23:24
We'll catch you soon, everybody.
23:25
Bye for now.