
Twelve years ago it was a case of ‘build it, and they will come’. A vast sunken ‘dip’ in the green English landscape outside the ancient capital city of the country was the site chosen for a racing circuit that could take one of the oldest motorcycle sports into a new era. Matterley ‘Basin’ was born in 2006 for the British Grand Prix and just over three months later a crowd of almost 80,000 people found space across the panoramic space for the Motocross of Nations: the biggest, historic, most celebrated and unique contest in the world.
For the 71st edition of the annual event Matterley is readying the grassy slopes once more for the wonderfully eclectic gathering and the only one-day bike racing team event in the FIM canon. This week thirty-nine countries will bring their three fastest athletes and a slew of patriotic supporters to Winchester to vie for the Chamberlain Cup and to try and dethrone the French who have ruled in the last three incarnations in Latvia, France and Italy.