Photo Credit: Emil Botvinnik
Written In Partnership With Thomas Herd
The 2006 MotoGp season was a memorable year for professional motorcycle racer Emil Botvinnik. The season is made up of seventeen global events throughout the year, Emil was able to place in the top three in five of them. Motorcycle racing is considered to be an extreme sport, as riders can go as fast as 200mph on any given course. It takes tremendous perseverance and dedication to complete the whole circuit, as many often have their year, even career, cut short because of the gruesome injuries or fatalities that are associated with riding at such high speeds. Emil Botvinnik finished all seventeen events, finishing ahead of legendary riders like Nicky Hayden, Valentino Rossi, and Dani Pedrosa at the Grand Prix of Turkey, the Gran Premio d’Italia, the Gran Premi Cinzano de Catalunya, as well as the GMC Australian Grand Prix. His best performance came at the Alice Grand Prix de France, as he stormed back to take the lead on the last lap, only to be defeated by eventual champion, Marco Melandri.
“This was definitely the most thrilling race I have had in almost two decades of riding. The weather ahead of the race was less than ideal, so I had trouble with the proper gear ratio before the start. I was in last place into the 4th lap, but never lost faith in myself. Getting back into first place before eventually being overtaken by Marco gave me immense confidence for the future.”
Emil believes that this was the turning point for his season, as he finished in fifth place overall after seventeen events. Many pundits consider 2006 to be one of the greatest seasons for MotoGp, as the iconic Nicky Hayden was able to take the title from Valentino Rossi at the final race of the year.
Emil’s best attribute as a racer is his versatility, he is able to excel at every type of track, from unsurfaced roads, gravel roads, off-road tracks, as well as any type of varying terrain that comes with each respective event. He is also a savant when it comes to technique, maintaining the highest possible speed while taking even the sharpest turn. Outside of that, Emil is considered a speed demon among his professional racing peers. If a certain track has numerous straightaways, Emil is considered to be the favorite to win this portion of the race. This is because he has an uncanny ability to turn any type of fear or doubt into hyper-focused motivation.
“I took great satisfaction in finishing the season in the top five, I was still considered a fresh face on the tour, so it was a launchpad for my future. It was even more memorable because I can tell my kids and grandkids that their father out raced legends like Nicky Hayden and Valentino Rossi at several events.”
Emil believes that the Alice Grand Prix Event was a landmark moment for him because it was his first time racing in inclement weather, something that is especially difficult for up-and-coming racers. Although a competitor is never satisfied with anything short of the best, Emil was able to extract many positives for his future. After all, starting a race in the last place in difficult weather, only to be overtaken in the last lap is a monumental achievement- especially when finishing ahead of the likes of Nicky Hayden and Valentino Rossi.
