Max Biaggi has announced his retirement from racing, following the 'quit while you're ahead' rule. He is the current WSBK champion - but he is also 41 years old, so fair play to him.
Mad Max began his career two decades ago and has slugged it out with the likes of Mick Doohan and Valentino Rossi. He won four straight 250GP championships before moving to the premiere class, where he fared well but never became champion. He then moved back to WSBK where he won two championships in 2010 and 2012 astride an Aprilia. He has decided to quit while he is world champion because, to quote him, "It's my choice to retire now. I'm not injured and had a new contract offer from Aprilia - same bike, same money - but I think I've taken enough time from my children and my wife. It's the right time to stop.'
While we can't deny that we'd have loved to see a rematch between him and Rossi, which contributed enormously to the popularity of MotoGP, at the end of it all, he's right. We wish Biaggi all the best for his life beyond racing.
