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MotoGP starts Sunday, April 11
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April 10, 2010 at 12:58 pm #3860Jeff in KentuckyParticipant
Here is some of the latest news for tomorrow’s race:
http://moto-racing.speedtv.com/article/motogp-lorenzo-and-rossi-second-and-third/
April 10, 2010 at 11:21 pm #25620eternal05ParticipantAnd I’ll be watching. Hopefully Stoner will keep his pants on and avoid embarassing everybody else with his big ol’ Ducati stones. Watching him win the race at Qatar every year is just getting boring…
April 11, 2010 at 4:36 pm #25638Jeff in KentuckyParticipantand Stoner will probably win at least some of the tracks this year- a couple of years ago his bike was the fastest everywhere and he got the championship. Stoner had some kind of a virus last year. I think Rossi is the best rider, if his Yamaha is behaving. Lorenzo is young and takes too many risks and often crashes out, but he is very fast if he stays on.
April 11, 2010 at 5:02 pm #25641ranetteParticipantStoner’s mystery “virus” last year ended up being diagnosed as lactose intolerance.
April 11, 2010 at 5:39 pm #25642Jeff in KentuckyParticipantThe Texan with his elbows in the air will be fun to watch this season too. I also hope Hayden can improve from his 9th place in qualifying.
from a longer article by Chris Martin | Posted April 08, 2010:
Last year I was one of the bolder preseason prognosticators, calling for Spies to win multiple World Superbike races and leave no doubt as to who was the most gifted rider in the series, but I was unwilling to predict a championship for the rookie, thinking it would take a while for the Texan to come to grips with his new environment. He proved me wrong, but not nearly to the degree that he proved most others wrong.
Spies is once again managing expectations, claiming that points are the immediate goal, not titles, wins, podiums, or pole positions. No doubt his personal goals are considerably higher than what he’ll let on, but he’s right to not hope for victories, at least not right away.
Considering the talent, the history, and the machinery issues that stand in his way, a single win from Spies this season might be considered a bigger achievement than all 14 he logged last year combined. In the same way, just one pole might grab more attention than the 11 of 14 Superpoles he took in ’09.
What would the makings of a marvelous season for Spies be in 2010? I’m going to say Rookie of the Year honors backed up by a multiple podiums — a strong enough performance to earn him a slot on the factory squad in 2011, which would pave the way for a serious title run in 2012 when the championship returns to literbike machinery.
This is the future I predict. Bookmark it.
But just for fun, let’s recall the entrance of Spies’ mentor, Kevin Schwantz, as a full-time GP regular. Rookie Schwantz, armed with an over-matched Pepsi Suzuki RGV500, shocked the world by defeating reigning world champion Wayne Gardner and his Rothmans NSR500 at Suzuka in the ’88 season opener. Just sayin’.
April 11, 2010 at 9:13 pm #25644eternal05ParticipantNot at all what I was expecting, and I’m very happy for it. Stoner crashed out, Rossi won, and the fight for 2nd, 3rd, and 4th was excellent. Lorenzo ended up passing up from 4th to 2nd right in the last three laps. Hayden, who’d been fighting for second the whole race in one of his best rides in the last three years, got picked at the finish line by the faster Honda of Dovisioso who nabbed the last spot on the podium. Hayden lost 3rd by 0.011 seconds. Such a shame. Spies, as expected, rocked an honorable 5th in his first race as a MotoGP rider.
As far as Ducati being the fastest bike out there on the straights, it’s not anymore. That was true last year, but in order to meet more stringent engine lifetime requirements, they’ve lost some power. They’ve also gone for the Yamaha-style big-bang crank which, while helping riders like Nicky tremendously, cost them a few mph off their top speeds.
Just to rub it in, Rossi had by far the slowest top speed in the entire paddock, yet he still won the race. His dominance is no fluke.
April 11, 2010 at 9:58 pm #25647Jeff in KentuckyParticipantIt seemed like Lorenzo was helped by riding with a broken hand- it made him a little more conservative, but he was still passing to get second place. Davisioso was a big surprise at third place on the Honda, along with Stoner crashing. I was glad to see Hayden and Spies in 4th and 5th place, better than the qualifying.
The other riders will be glad when Rossi retires or gets too old, and the change from 800cc to 1,000cc bikes in a couple of years will likely help some riders and hurt others.
April 12, 2010 at 1:08 am #25650IBA270ParticipantBut I’m not sure if his Yamaha is up to the pace. Still, I think he’ll have an OUTSTANDING season. Hayden needs some redemption from last year, and looked pretty strong today.
April 12, 2010 at 11:06 am #25654Jeff in KentuckyParticipantSometimes they have the best machinery, sometimes they are more healthy, sometimes it is good luck, sometimes they are the best rider.
The Faster DVD has one announcer saying that MotoGP is 80% the rider and 20% the bike; compared to car racing which is 80% the car and 20% the driver.
April 12, 2010 at 8:24 pm #25676eternal05ParticipantBurgess is the crew chief for Rossi (and was for 5-time world champ Doohan before Rossi hit the 500cc class), and he made that claim long ago (a decade). Most people these days admit that, with all the fandangled electronics and assorted technology, the rider is less important than he used to be, though still more important than the bike he rides. I’m hoping that the move up to 1000ccs in 2012 will change that….if the universe doesn’t explode. Going back to 350 lbs machines that put out 260-270+hp will hopefully leave a lot more room for the rider to excel.
I was really happy to see Nicky running in the front. Regardless of his riding skills, he’s always been one of the best sportsman in the paddock, always gracious in good times and bad, and always humble. I really hope he has a good year this year; he sure as hell can’t do much worse than last year.
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