As I sit in my hotel in Shanghai, recovering from jetlag, the humid conditions and the time difference, one thing that always gets me, is how tough these conditions must be for the riders. I mean, I am 100% one of the biggest pussies on earth, so I know what I feel isn’t what these tough men will feel, because they just block it out and get on with it, but the human body, well, it does have something to tell you, even if your mind is telling you everything will be okay.

This weekends MXGP of China is going to be sensational and for many reasons. We now have the two-way battle for the MXGP championship with Tim Gajser holding a slight 14 points over Jorge Prado. The five-time World champion, in my eyes, the best in mental toughness, and then the defending champion, without question, the most gifted of the MXGP field.

I have a feeling somebody is going to bust this weekend and often, my general gut feeling is good. The pressure has risen to a ridiculous level and both Gajser and Prado have to be feeling it. In Turkey last weekend, Prado showed us he isn’t giving up the title without a fight and Gajser showed us, with a 19-point lead going into the Sunday show in Turkey, he didn’t need to be stupid and bin it. His podium finish was more than enough to still be the favourite to win the title in a couple of weeks’ time.

Now, with the time zones, the heat, the jetlag and what is starting to look like, the rain, I have to wonder what this Chinese circuit delivers. Greg Atkins is out here, and fortunately that means the circuit will be in brilliant condition, but heavy rain expected on the Sunday and thunderstorms on the Monday (YES, DO NOT FORGET), could destroy the circuit. Add to the fact, temperatures will still be around 33 degrees and history tells us, humidity can get as high as 87% this time of the year, so rain and hot as hell, just work that one out for a second.

When I saw the forecast for thunderstorms, it worried me a little, because we can’t be racing with thunderstorms, but the day will really tell us what happens and as we all know, a thunderstorm can last an hour in Asia and then an hour later, its bright sunshine and boiling.

I don’t want to write Jorge Prado off, because I did that for Turkey, and he put egg on my face. I really expected the undefeated (in Turkey prior to this year) Jeffrey Herlings to win, but he was a long way off and that crash and burn on his arm, didn’t help the situation. I would then have picked Gajser to win, as he loves that place, but no, Prado came out and showed his title defence is for real. I shouldn’t have been so dumb to write him off, but I did.

Now, Sunday has 70% chance of rain and Monday, 86%, at least in my forecast. We all saw in previous rain races, Gajser is very good, and Prado can be somewhat average, but again, I am not writing Prado off because of rain, because he has also shown throughout 2024, that he has improved big time in rain and also his ability to pass riders. At 22 years of age, he will continue to improve until he is probably 27 or 28, so exciting times to see that transition as he moves to USA.

While my brain tells me its 11.30am here, my body is telling me, its 5.30am and I have been up since 2.30am. Damn, I pity these riders, many who will arrive in a day or two and be mentally drained and physically tired. I am just glad these guys are tougher than me, because we might be in for another Thailand 2015 GP, where riders were being given intravenous drips as they fell by the way.

I still remember Tim Gajser and Jeremy Seewer laying motionless on the ground and riders ruled out of the second MX2 moto and I still remember Ryan Villopoto, winning and showing us what a legend he was in that brutal heat. I might add, the complete set-up in MXGP is much more professional than a decade ago and riders are much better prepared now for such conditions, but believe me, Sunday and Monday will not be pleasant for anyone here in China.

In saying that, this 2024 battle for the MXGP championship maybe deserves something like this, because this will be a huge challenge and something that will possibly decide who deserves this title race victory, because whoever it is, be it Gajser, or be it Prado, they will be considered the fastest man on the planet.

Now, I am heading out later today, and maybe even enjoy a Kung Pao Chicken and I do feel the need to hydrate and why not with a nice cold Tsingtao, China’s number one beer. Fortunately for me, I have a few days to recover from the flight and don’t need to line up on the gate on Sunday and Monday.