MotoGP title decider, Phoenix NASCAR, Valais ERC

MotoGP - Valencia: Hayden is feeling the emotion of his final Ducati race.

"I have a great group of guys I work with, I'm really going to miss them," he said. "It wasn't easy today. We became friends, like family. It's more than just being work partners. But it's time to move on."

Crutchlow, who is replacing Hayden at Ducati after two seasons with Tech 3, was disappointed with qualifying fifth and says they have concocted a "funny plan" for the race.

He paid tribute to the team he is leaving: "I don't need to think about Ducati; leaving here will be emotional but it'll probably be after the race it'll be worse because we still have a job to do."

MotoGP - Valencia: There was a good result for Tech 3 in qualifying - Bradley Smith was on the front row at one stage, and though he slipped to sixth by the end, the satellite Yamaha squad has both riders starting on the second row.

Smith, who "loved" qualifying, "felt super comfortable and nailed the lap" will start sixth but team-mate Cal Crutchlow was not satisfied at all, despite qualifying fifth.

"I'm not very happy at all," he said. "It was rubbish. We're normally a lot faster than this. But we have a plan - I don't know if it will work, it could be a funny plan."

MotoGP - Valencia: A word also from top CRT rider in qualifying Danilo Petrucci (who really did put together a mega lap to make it into Q2).

"I think it's my best day since I arrived in MotoGP so I'm really, really happy. It's the second time I got into Q2 but the first time I'm into Parc Ferme! It's fantastic. Tomorrow I hope to be on the pace for the whole race but it will be difficult. We will see [if I can] win tomorrow."

MotoGP - Valencia: While his team-mate ponders over his impending title showdown, Dani Pedrosa intends to "focus on my own race".

He also has a tribute to the fans who have filled the grandstands: "It's beautiful to see that."

MotoGP - Valencia: But while the poleman was happy with his session, title rival Lorenzo was left bemoaning an engine problem that forced a change of bikes.

Having been on provisional pole prior to that mid-session switch, Yamaha's reigning champion reckons there's still all to play for - despite Marquez's apparent advantage.

Jorge Lorenzo (2nd, 7 wins, 305 points): "On the second lap the engine started to fail and I didn’t have power and with the other bike I didn’t have the same feeling. I did a very good laptime with the first bike, so that’s a pity. We could have made pole position. But I think the important thing is we are only one or two metres behind Marc tomorrow."

MotoGP - Valencia: After an entertaining qualifying session in which Marc Marquez blitzed his way to pole, there's just no way of choosing between him and Lorenzo for either the race win or the championship.

Just ask Toby Moody.

Still, somebody has to win - and Marquez reckons pushing for the victory is his best strategic choice.

Marc Marquez (1st, 6 wins, 318 points): "My confidence is pretty high. The target was to be on the front row, it’s difficult to overtake other riders here and also the start is not my best point, so it was important to beat the others. The most important thing is tomorrow, we have a big race. I will try to do my best. We will fight, I need to try to push. This is where I keep concentration and feel better on the bike."

ERC - Valais: Lappi's delighted, understandably so:

"It's been a quite good two weeks. I never believed I would win here and this is absolutely fantastic. For sure it's special on tarmac, my first proper win. It's very good to end the season like this."

ERC - Valais: Now, that's very close. Breen's almost gifted second in the rally by Burri who comes through 50.6s slower and ends up only eight seconds ahead of Breen at the finish!

"It was a tough weekend," he admits. "The car is very good, but the driver is not good."

Ouch.

ERC - Valais: Despite a tough season, Breen seems rather pleased.

"A podium was the aim," he says at the stage's conclusion. "I set my sights high and to get back to the podium is very nice, a good way to finish the season.

"I can't wait for the first rally of next year and getting behind the wheel of the 208 T16. It will be a dream come true for me."

Moto3 - Valencia: If you thought the fight for the premier grand prix motorcycle racing crown was tough, look a bit deeper: Moto3 is going to be a sensational fight.

Five points separate the top three riders - Luis Salom, Maverick Vinales and Alex Rins - in the standings, with Rins landing pole position for the decider, Salom second and Vinales third.

The trio have run in tandem almost all season, filling the podium in eight of the 16 races (pictured running 1-2-3 at Le Mans). Here are their thoughts ahead of the finale:

Luis Salom (1st, 300 points, 7 wins): It will be tough, like always. Everyone will fight really hard for the win. It’s not just a race we are fighting for the world title. We will see what happens.

Maverick Vinales (2nd, 298 points, 2 wins): I think we’ll race as a group and then [it will] be decided at the final corner. It’s important tomorrow to be consistent and have a really good pace.

Alex Rins (3rd, 295 points, 6 wins): I feel very good on the bike. I think I have a good rhythm and good pace but we will see tomorrow. I think I will be more nervous before the race.

MotoGP - Valencia: Reckon Dani Pedrosa will help Marquez's title cause tomorrow? That's not on his mind right now. At the moment, Pedrosa's just happy to be starting third.

"I’m very happy for the front row," he said. "It’s been a long time since I was performing well in qualifying. Today didn’t start well, but it ended up quite good so I'm happy with that. It’s hard to make the choice for the tyre for the race. I’ll just try to focus for tomorrow."

MotoGP - Valencia: If you're wondering how Lorenzo could set such a storming lap time straight away and then only improve by a tenth, we might have your answer.

An engine problem, according to the reigning champion, necessitated a change of bikes mid-session.

"With the other bike I didn’t have the same feeling," he reveals. "I think we could have made pole position but I think the important thing is we are only one or two metres behind Marc tomorrow."

MotoGP - Valencia: That pole-claiming lap from Marquez almost defied belief. He'd only just set a new circuit record in FP3, then he goes and blasts it out of the water by more than half a second.

Understandably, he's beaming from ear-to-ear. "The confidence is pretty high," he says. "The important thing is tomorrow. I need to try to push because this is where I keep concentration and feel better on the bike."

Craig Breen

ERC - Valais: Breen flies through SS16 quicker than anyone else so far, and is pleased and amazed to be on course for a podium again.

"Luckily we're back up to third, I have no idea how that happened after we were 17th the other day."

Can he catch Burri for second...?

"It's a minute and a half, you've got to be real... I'm not a superhero, but we'll give it a try."