Laguna Seca is, as I'm sure I've mentioned before, an amazing circuit. It's as fast as anything, with a couple of really long full power sections, yet it also has tight, ultra technical elements as well as what is, without a doubt, the most daunting corner in the world - the notorious Corkscrew. Notorious it should be, as well. Entered blind after cresting a long fast hill, The Corkscrew drops away so steeply that standing up on it is a genuine effort. Oh, and it's a sharp left, sharp right off camber thing as well. Certainly something to focus the attention, and it makes Paddock Hill at Brands look positively tame.

So one week ago the circus was soggy and cold. What a difference as bikes and riders emerged into the California sunshine. Laguna Seca has some interestingquirks. It's in a bit of a dustbowl, so although the tarmac is warm and grippy, get off the line and there's a fine coating of sand and grit that sees grip drop off pretty well exponentially as you approach the edge.

Practice was, as is increasingly common, utterly dominated by Casey Stoner. Valentino Rossi, Chris Vermeulen and Nicky Hayden, all of whom have a pretty good record here, bounced around the top but were unable to even get close to the pace being set by the World Champion. It was good to see Marco Melandri making a long overdue return to at least something approaching his old form, though, the Italian climbing as high as fifth in practice. Alex de Angelis made life difficult for himself with not one but two crashes, breaking his little finger when he clipped a marker post at turn one and then breaking his thumb highsiding a little later. Dani Pedrosa, second placed in the championship, is in too much pain from last week's big crash and ruled himself out while John Hopkins also misses his local round while he recovers from surgery. The Tech 3 Yamaha boys suffered all sorts of problems in practice that saw them some way down the field and off the pace.

Qualifying, of course, is a different story. Toseland confounded his critics by getting a solid fifth place, knocked down by Lorenzo but very respectable nonetheless. Lorenzo himself achieved fourth while de Punietcompleted the second row. At the front it was Casey Stoner almost all the way, the Australian putting in a string of fastest laps to ensure his invulnerability. Rossi was lagging some way behind until, with a sudden burst of genius just a few minutes from the end he produced a scorching lap to put him second, just under half a second slower than Stoner. Nicky Hayden also did very well, taking the last slot on the front row. Row three saw a disappointed Colin Edwards heading Chris Vermeulen and Andrea Dovizioso while the top ten was rounded out by an on form and seemingly resurgent Toni Elias on the Alice Ducati.

But it goes without saying that qualifying is a very different animal to the race. And in warmup, though it was Stoner who dominated again, with Rossi second, Marco Melandri was right there in fourth, looking good for the race. Everyone, in fact, maintained an excellent pace in warmup. But that's not really the race either, though it's good for psyching out the opposition. And when the lights went out for the race itself it was, of course, Stoner who left the line like a rat up a drainpipe with Rossi, Hayden and Dovizioso in very hot pursuit. James Toseland madea similarly spectacular start, challenging for fourth place by the first corner before being swamped as he suffered with a slight lack of confidence in the harder tyre and dropped back. Halfway around the first lap, Stoner already had a half second lead, which speaks volumes for the pace he was sustaining. And makes Rossi's successful attempt to catch and pass Stoner before the end of the lap even more impressive. The next thirty two laps were real edge of the seat stuff. So much that I virtually no notes about the rest of the race because I was totally hooked. There was some racing further back - de Puniet and Toseland had a race-long tussle and Vermeulen, Hayden and Dovizioso also had a long term fight. But the cameras didn't stay on the other riders for long as what was happening at the front was too exciting. Banging elbows, knees and plastics as they went, Rossi and Stoner extended and astonishing lead in a ridiculously short time. Lap three nearly saw it all over as Rossi ran into the gravel at The Corkscrew but somehow managed to hold the bike up and barely faltered in his pace. Though it gave Stoner a bit of a shock, being just a couple of metres back. And this lead swapping, real hard racing continued for lap after glorious lap. And it was fantastic - without a doubt the best race I have ever seen. Then just eight laps from the end, Stoner made a rare unforced error. Running wide, he picked the bike up and hit the gravel, nearly saving it only to have the front tuck as it hit deeper gravel. Though there was no damage whatsoever to the bike, Rossi was long gone. But they were so far ahead that Stoner had time to remount, get himself ready to continue and get back on the track before hard charging Chris Vermeulen in third place even had the chance to step up on the podium. Jorge Lorenzo, by the way, managed to launch himself into orbit on the first lap and broke his foot fairly badly. Again. And his bike was destroyed as well.

So there you have it. A totally dominating performance by the leading pair that saw them extend such a gulf that even falling off didn't cost places. If it was just one bike I'd be worried. As it is, though, I think everything will be OK.

Chris Vermeulen secured third from Dovizioso and Nicky Hayden, while Randy de Puniet and Toni Elias held off everyboy else. First timer Ben Spies, deputizing on the Kawasaki, acquitted himself admirably, passing Toseland in the last knockings of the race.

So all in all a fantastic race to watch. Fast, safe, agressive racing - exactly what we need. Unfortunately, Stoner doesn't see it that way, compalining about the overtakes being too aggressive and not safe. I think he's thinking of the incident at The Corkscrew when Rossi ran off the track and then came back in front, forcing Stoner wide, but maybe he's just sore. Next round is at Brno, which is equally fantastic as a circuit so should be good to watch. Can't wait...

SB

United States MotoGP Results

1. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha)
2. Casey Stoner (Ducati)
3. Chris Vermeulen (Suzuki)
4. Andrea Dovizioso (Honda)
5. Nicky Hayden (Honda)
6. Randy de Puniet (Honda)
7. Toni Elias (Ducati)
8. Ben Spies (Suzuki)
9. James Toseland (Yamaha)
10. Shinya Nakano (Honda)

MotoGP standings (after eleven rounds)

1. Valentino Rossi 212
2. Casey Stoner 187
3. Dani Pedrosa 171
4. Jorge Lorenzo 114
5. Andrea Dovizioso 103
6. Colin Edwards 100
7. Chris Vermeulen 89
8. Nicky Hayden 84
9. James Toseland 72
10. Shinya Nakano 70