The performance is good – no problem

“The performance is good – no problem.”The 30-year-old makes his wrestling contest with the Ducati seem no more hazardous than piloting a wayward supermarket trolley. So are things getting out of hand in MotoGP racing, with car-sized engines pushing out more than 220 horsepower? Capirossi dismisses the question “No, it’s not too fast,” he exclaims. It was a mind-blowing breakthrough – an accident at this speed would dash the rider on to the tarmac at around 300- feet-per-second. Then he gave the bike its first victory after only six rounds, when he defeated Rossi in Catalunya.Capirossi also achieved the fastest speed recorded in motorcycle racing when he hit a breathtaking 207mph on the long straight at the Barcelona circuit. “But at the start of the season we see that the bike is strong, and now we have the chance to win races.”Capirossi put Ducati’s Desmosedici (16-valve desmo, for the techno-freaks) on pole position in only its third race – astounding progress in a sport in which a new bike often needs a season of development to become competitive. Therefore, the Capirossi/Ducati combo is the underdog package – and how the British love to see the underprivileged toppling the establishment (in sport at least).”The project and the bike are new, and we just wanted to gain experience this year,” Capirossi said yesterday.

So the 93,000 fans expected here this weekend for the British Grand Prix will probably be cheering for Capirossi and his Ducati, rather than championship leader Valentino Rossi and his Japanese Honda.Rossi, 24, is that rare phenomenon – a world class sportsman who has no downside. He drifts his five-cylinder Honda sideways at 150mph like a speedway rider on a 50mph dirt-track, he displays a wicked sense of humour, and he shows grace in defeat.If there is a problem, it is that Rossi is motorcycling’s top gun, the dominant figure who rides the best bike made by the world’s biggest manufacturer.Capirossi stands 5ft 5in tall, and at 9st 4lb is less than half as heavy as his 990cc, four-cylinder Ducati charger. Ducati has yet to win the MotoGP title; Honda has dominated it since 1985 with 11 victories. Best Outsider: ImmelmanTim Glover, sports writer1 Jose-Maria Olazabal 2 Ernie Els 3 Mike Weir 4 Justin Rose Best Outsider: LangerNick Harris, sports writer1 Ernie Els 2 Retief Goosen 3 Padraig Harrington 4 Tiger Woods Best Outsider: RoseJames Corrigan, sports writer1 Ernie Els 2 Mike Weir 3 Tiger Woods 4 Bernhard Langer Best Outsider: Lawrie. Best Outsider: RoseAndy Farrell, Golf Correspondent 1 Ernie Els 2 Darren Clarke 3 Justin Rose 4 Tiger Woods. Best Outsider: OlazabalBrian Viner, columnist1 Darren Clarke 2 Ernie Els 3 Padraig Harrington 4 Justin Rose Best Outsider: CaseyKen Jones, columnist1 Tiger Woods 2 Sergio Garcia 3 Vijay Singh 4 Padraig Harrington. James Lawton, Chief Sports Writer 1 Tiger Woods 2 Ernie Els 3 Vijay Singh 4 Retief Goosen.

Rest assured, though, that the young guns will make their mark.PLAYERS 25 AND UNDER IN WORLD TOP 100 World ranking, Player, Age, Tour, Total pts15, S Garcia, (Sp), 23, Europe/US, 202.16 22, C Howell III, (US), 24, US, 220.47 32, P Casey, (Eng), 24, Europe, 145.99 33, J Rose, (Eng), 22, Europe, 160.30 39, T Immelman, (SA), 23, Europe, 167.27 42, A Scott (Aus), 22, Europe/US, 148.03 74, J Byrd, (US), 25, US, 119.68 91, A Baddeley, (Aus), 22, US, 76.64 .. There is also Hunter Mahan (21) and Troy Matteson (23), college players champing at the bit.The Open may follow the trend set by 33-year-olds Mike Weir and Furyk, the respective winners of the Masters and the US Open this year, with another thirty-something player lifting the Old Claret Jug. For every Rose there is a Charles Howell III (24), Jonathan Byrd (25), Matt Kuchar (25), David Gossett (24) or Ricky Barnes (22), who made the cut in both the Masters and US Open All are young and ambitious. This helps explain why Europe dominated the Ryder Cup in the late 80s.

The same cannot be said today.American golf is also full of youngsters snapping at the heels of established players such as Woods, Phil Mickelson, Davis Love and Jim Furyk. The 23-year-old then narrowly missed out on the Volvo PGA Championship at Wentworth, losing a play-off to Spain’s Ignacio Garrido He has the game to win the Open. The 23-year-old is widely regarded as the one who will take over from Ernie Els as South Africa’s driving force Els agrees “He’s definitely our next superstar,” Els said. The 22-year-old is coached by Butch Harmon so it is no surprise that his swing is almost a carbon copy of Woods’s.