With just one round remaining in the 2008 FIM MX1 Motocross World Championship only three riders are still in with a shot of lifting the title - reigning MX1 World Champion Steve Ramon, his Teka Suzuki WMX1 team mate Ken de Dycker and current series points leader David Philippaerts.
The battle ground for the 15th and final round of this year's epic championship will be the fast Italian hillside circuit of Faenza and with the mid-September temperatures expected to be in the region of 30 degrees Celsius - or more - the temperatures off the track are going to be equally as hot as the action on it.
Ramon currently sits just 14 points behind Philippaerts in the championship standings and with 50 points still on the table for a double win it's far from a done deal. De Dycker is 11 points behind Ramon and 25 behind the leader which means he must beat the Italian rider in moto one to keep his championship hopes alive which makes him something of an outsider. But if there's one thing De Dycker likes it's being the underdog.
Something that increases his status as an underdog in the battle for championship honours this year is his blatant dislike of the Faenza circuit despite him being the highest scorer of the three contenders there at last year's Grand Prix Citta di Faenza.
"I don't really enjoy riding at Faenza," said De Dycker. "The track is hardpack and it's quite like riding around a Moto GP circuit because it's so fast and with very few bumps. It's one of those tracks where everybody is on the same pace and so quite often where you start is where you finish - it's very hard to make time on the other guys and that's going to make this race very tough."
Ramon too accepts that the task ahead of him is going to be extremely tough and as a two-time World Champion knows he can only try his best and see what unfolds.
"I want to win but of course I can only try to win or at the very least ride a really good GP and then wait and see what Philippaerts does," said Ramon. "14 points is a big gap and on that track it's going to be very difficult to make 50 points because it is fast and it's hard and there's not much to separate the riders. Last year my results were not so good there but I know that this year's factory Suzuki is much better on hardpack tracks and so my results should be better also, my riding has mostly been good lately and I'm feeling fit and strong so I'm still confident of a good result."
As well as the two Teka Suzuki WMX1 riders being in with a great shot of winning the championship, Suzuki also have a real chance of becoming the Manufacturer's World Champions with their factory RM-Z450 also as they're level on points with Yamaha going into the final round this weekend.
World Championship standings (after 14 of 15 rounds): 1 David Philippaerts (Yamaha - ITA) 477 points, 2 Steve Ramon (Suzuki - BEL) 463, 3 Ken De Dycker (Suzuki - BEL) 452, 4 Jonathan Barragan (KTM - ESP) 419, 5 Josh Coppins (Yamaha - NZL) 415, 6 Max Nagl (KTM - GER) 394, 7 Sebastien Pourcel (Kawasaki - FRA) 392, 8 Tanel Leok (Kawasaki - EST) 337, 9 Billy MacKenzie (Honda - GB) 293, 10 Marc De Reuver (Honda - NED) 277.
Manufacturer World Championship standings (after 14 of 15 rounds): 1 Suzuki 543 points, 2 Yamaha 543 points, 3 KTM 525, 4 Kawasaki 494, 5 Honda 443, 6 TM 33, 7 Aprilia 23.
