The last ever 500cc Grand Prix in Europe takes place at Valencia on September 23. Team Proton KR will be hoping to write their name in the role of honour.

After this last hurrah in Spain, the GP circus takes to the long-haul airliners for the four "flyaway" rounds in Japan, Australia, Malaysia and Brazil. And from next year, the premier motorcycle racing class will be open also to 990cc four-strokes.

Massive crowds are expected at the stadium-style Ricardo Tormo circuit to share in the history. Proton KR3 rider Jurgen van den Goorbergh is confident he can put on a good show for them, on the lightweight three-cylinder rival to the Japanese factory four-cylinder heavies.

One reason is the nature of the track. Its 4 kilometre length is crammed into a small area, overlooked by packed terraces and towering grandstands, looping back and forth as if demented. But though the corners are almost continuous, only a handful are very slow while there is a fast straight, and the track offers plenty of technical challenge to the hard-worked 500 riders.

The other reason is the growing maturity of the latest development of the KR3 - the Big Bang engine, now coming up for its fourth race. Since its first steps in Germany, the Proton has been getting better and better - qualifying on the front row in Brno, and securing a year's best seventh at the last round at Estoril.

"We're inching ahead - every race it's getting better," said team owner Kenny Roberts, a former triple 500 champion, looking back over the past few GPs.

Last year, current Proton rider Jurgen van den Goorbergh finished 10th at Valencia, riding the nimble twin-cylinder Honda. After a race-long battle, he finally pounced on David de Gea on the last lap to lead him past the flag by less than two tenths of a second.

De Gea was riding the machine that Jurgen is racing this year - the same KR3, then in its first season. "I hope it doesn't mean I get jumped by a two-cylinder bike there this year," joked the Dutchman - not a likely scenario, after one full year of intensive development. Instead, the KR3 has been challenging the four-cylinder machines this year - and the team is hoping to beat a few more of them at Valencia.

Jurgen - "I'm really looking forward to this race - everything has been improving so much over the last few GPs, and I hope we can continue the same way. If so, I am sure I can get another good top ten finish. It's not a particular favourite track, but it should suit our bike even better than Estoril. There are not so many very slow first-gear corners, and you keep the speed up more at Valencia. That's good for us. One thing you have to watch out for is that there are many more left-hand corners than right-handers. In cold conditions at the tests there I crashed, because the right-hand side of the tyre was not up to working temperature. It should be warmer now, but it's still something to bear in mind over the first laps. As for me, I'm in a really good mood for racing. I'm enjoying riding the bike so much, I just want to get back on it and keep going. We've had no problems with the engine, and we have the settings really good. I'm confident I can finish in the top eight again - and perhaps even higher".