MotoGp: Valentino Rossi 2008 MotoGP World Championship
Valentino Rossi´s MotoGP World Championship season was not a matter of a straightforward title victory for the Italian. Follow his road to the 2008 crown in the accompanying video, reviewing the eight steps to the sixth premier class crown.
The action starts in preseason with the Fiat Yamaha sponsor rider´s first test with Bridgestone tyres, and continues up until Sunday´s A-Style Grand Prix of Japan, taking in plenty of thrills and spills along the way.
`Scusate il ritardo´ (Eng: Sorry for the delay) was the phrase emblazoned on Valentino Rossi´s celebration t-shirt in Motegi, referencing the two-year wait to regain the MotoGP World Championship. There was no waiting around for the Italian in Motegi, as he clinched the title on the first available opportunity afforded by his premier class rivals.
The competition has been fierce for Rossi in 2008, as he emphasised after his 70th race victory and confirmation of a sixth MotoGP crown. The Fiat Yamaha rider –the only man to win 500cc, 990cc and 800cc titles- put the most recent triumph at the head of the accolades taken in his illustrious career, alongside his maiden championship win for the Japanese factory.
`For sure it is a great achievement, maybe at the level of 2004 when I first won the title with Yamaha,´ said Rossi after beating rivals Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa to the win at the A-Style Grand Prix of Japan.
`The battle was very hard and the season was very long, so I´m very happy. We worked very hard with Yamaha and with all the team to be able to put in good speed at every track, under every condition. The race today was a great battle, like it has been all season with Stoner and Pedrosa.´
Rossi´s race win –his first on a four-stroke machine at Motegi- came with the customary Fan Club-assisted celebration, this time involving a desk, a camera-pen and a commemorative helmet. For the new MotoGP World Champion, sharing the glory only added to the moment.
`This occasion is always an excuse to have a laugh and a bit of a party with my friends,´ beamed Rossi after his jovial act of revery, as always remaining elusive as to the meaning behind the showmanship.
The 2008 title in the bag, there will be little time to soak up the glory for the new champion. Preparations for the defence of the crown begins on Monday, with the first test of the 2009 Yamaha M1 scheduled at Twin Ring Motegi. Rossi will be in attendance, but don´t expect him to be the first man to arrive at the track…
`Tomorrow I have a test, but I am fighting to make it start in the afternoon!´ concluded the 29 year-old, who could be permitted a party and a lie-in after the two-year wait for the title.
From: http://www.motogp.com
Sports Sponsorship : Champions League Final: 21 May 2008, Moscow Luzhniki
UEFA Champions League Final will take place in Moscow at Luzhniki stadium on 21 May 2008.
Luzhniki Stadium will host the Champios League Final for 2008 on 21 May.
The Grand Sports Arena of the Luzhniki Olympic Complex in Moscow, or briefly Luzhniki Stadium, is the biggest sports stadium in Russia.
Its total seating capacity is 84,745 seats, all covered. The stadium is a part of the Luzhniki Olympic Complex, previously called the Central Lenin Stadium.
Luzhniki Stadium has been scheduled by UEFA to host the 2008 UEFA Champions League final. The Luzhniki Stadium also hosted the final game of the 1957 Ice Hockey World Championship between Sweden and the Soviet Union, attended by a crowd of 55,000 and setting a new world record in Sports Sponsorship.
Motorsports, car racing : Woman driver makes racing history
Danica Patrick became the first female winner in IndyCar history after claiming the Indy Japan 300 race at the Twin Ring Motegi racetrack on Sunday.
The 26-year-old, in her 50th IndyCar race, finished 5.8594 seconds ahead of Helio Castroneves in Japan.
“It’s been a long time coming - this is fabulous,” said Patrick.
Patrick made her name in American motorsport by finishing fourth in the Indy500 in 2005, and came seventh in the overall standings last season.
“It was a fuel strategy race, but my team called it perfectly for me,” added Patrick, who drives for the Andretti Green Racing team.
“I knew I was on the same strategy as Helio and when I passed him for the lead, I couldn’t believe it.
“I knew there was a good reason for coming to Japan. I want to thank my team, the fans and everyone who supported me.
“I’ve been asked so many times when and if I could win my first race and finally, no more of those questions.”
Patrick took the lead from Castroneves on the 198th lap of the 200-lap race after starting in the third row.
“I think Danica is such a fantastic person and I’m thrilled for her that the monkey is finally off of her back,” said Michael Andretti, co-owner of Andretti Green Racing.
“We have all believed in her and she proved today that she is a winner. Frankly, I think this is the first of many.”
From BBC News
: Promotion Sport Sponsorship : Bomb Boogie Sponsor Motor Show 5 Years in a Row
The Promotion Sport Sponsorship between Bomb Boogie and the Bologna Motorshow celebrates its 5th birthday: once again in 2007 the now-famous brand of street and casual wear will kit out staff at the Salone Internazionale dell’Automobile (International Automobile Showroom) as Official ShowWear.
The deal carries the signature of RTR Sports Marketing, a leading agency in the world of sport sponsorship, which has handled the sponsor’s deal since 2002.
For the 2007 Motorshow, Bomb Boogie is launching a range of jackets with completely new colours and materials, while retaining the unmistakable style that has made it a “must-have” brand amongst a young, casual buying public. It is no coincidence that the show’s target audience, mainly male between the ages of 17 and 34, perfectly fits the profile of those who love and choose Bomb Boogie.
In this sense the Motorshow event makes it possible to conduct a large-scale Promotion Sport marketing operation, being able to count upon a visiting public totalling 1,203,618, according to 2006 data.
>> Read more about this Promotion Sport Sponsorship >>
RTR SPONSORS ALAN RACING TEAM - INTERNATIONAL FORMULA MASTER CHAMPIONSHIP
RTR, a Professional Sports Marketing firm, promotes the advantages of motor racing sponsorship with Alan Racing Team.
RTR Sports Marketing have signed a sponsorship deal which will add the RTR logo, already on Gatto’s helmet since the start of the championship, to the cars of the team leading the 2007 IFM championship.
An original “marketing-within-marketing” initiative, then, and one which sees RTR on “the other side of the fence” in a sports sponsorship campaign.
The agency headed by Riccardo Tafà, based in Bologna and boasting an international portfolio of customers, has decided to team up with the stable from Cologno Monzese, on the one hand because it believes in its potential, and on the other hand to promote the countless opportunities offered by sponsorship in connection with so-called “minor” series too, by entering the fray itself. >> Read more about this motor racing sponsorship >>