We’re reaching the business-end of the racing season, with all kinds of events and performances painting the picture that is 2015. Whether it’s MotoGP, other international competition or domestic racing, there’s been many ups, and plenty of downs. These are some of the more notable topics we’ve taken note of so far.

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1. Rossi leads the way:
There was never any doubt that Valentino Rossi would be competitive this year, but after winning the opening race of the season, claiming four in total and with an unbroken podium run, he’s proven himself again and again as a true title threat. Following his incredible Silverstone win on Sunday, The Doctor’s stretched a 12-point lead on teammate Jorge Lorenzo with six races to go. Can he claim a 10th world title once and for all?

2. Marquez’s points deficit:
With four non-finishes and a rocky campaign so far, Marquez is 77 points behind Rossi with just six races remaining. He isn’t mathematically out of the equation yet, but clawing such a gap may be too far for even Marquez to achieve. He’s won three races so far, but by this time last year he’d won 11 already!

3. Lorenzo reigns:
After finishing off the podium in the first three races, Lorenzo bounced back with four dominant performances on the trot to put himself back in title contention. Since then he’s won another at Brno, but Rossi isn’t making it easy for his Yamaha stablemate and dual MotoGP champion.

4. No repeat FX-ASC winners:
Four rounds into the 2015 Australasian Superbike Championship and we’re yet to see a repeat winner. Troy Herfoss won Sydney’s opener for Team Honda Racing, but since then it’s been the Yamaha Racing Team with Yamaha Motorcycle Insurance trio of Wayne Maxwell (Mallala), Cru Halliday (Sydney) and Glenn Allerton (Queensland) that’s led the way. Herfoss still leads the title, but he’s coming under all kinds of pressure from the R1Ms.

5. Rea rides away:
We knew Jonathan Rea would be handy on the Kawasaki Racing Team ZX-10R in WorldSBK, but few predicted such dominance on his way to 12 race wins already. It’s almost certain Rea will wrap it up in race one at Jerez later this month, with two rounds afterwards still remaining. Only disaster will end his hopes from here.

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6. R1 meets expectations:
Yamaha might not be in WorldSBK with its brand new YZF-R1, but results have been impressive worldwide. Capped off by a huge win at the Suzuka 8 Hours with Bradley Smith, Pol Espargaro and Katsuyuki Nakasuga, the R1 also leads with Josh Brookes (Milwaukee Yamaha) in BSB, Cameron Beaubier (Monster Energy Graves Yamaha) in MotoAmerica.

7. Miller’s mission:
When Jack Miller stepped up directly from Moto3 to MotoGP, there were concerns with how he’d adapt to the power of a premier class machine. But he’s shown on numerous occasions that he has what it takes on board LCR Honda’s Open class entry. There’s been mistakes made along the way, but to be tied with 2006 world champion Nicky Hayden on similar equipment indicates he will be a mainstay in the class.

8. Hook puts himself on the map:
When Josh Hook committed to a season in Japan with TSR Honda, the goal was always to do good at the Suzuka 8 Hours. And he did. Hook led the race at times, did exactly what was asked of him the entire way, and displayed world class speed/consistency on his way to the runner-up. Where that gets him next is anyone’s guess, but it was great for his international career.

9. Ducatis in MotoGP mix:
We anticipated the factory GP15s of the Andreas – Dovizioso and Iannone – to be strong this year, but aside from those guys scoring seven podiums between them, the satellite teams have also been competitive in their own right. With Danilo Petrucci on the box last Sunday at Silverstone, Ducati is making strides on a number of levels

10. Stoner’s Suzuka exit:
There was massive amounts of hype surrounding Casey Stoner’s racing return at Suzuka 8 Hours, which was all going to plan until the throttle on his factory Honda CBR1000RR stuck and put him out of the race. Stoner was injured in the incident and it’s unclear if we’ll see him back again, but it was good while it lasted.