| Author | Message | ||
     Jens |
>The only top team that may struggle this weekend could be Ducati... Maybe Ducati give a sh##, they sign now Rossi and look out for 2011. Rossi is out for the next races, Pedrosa will be at least the best 2011 Yamaharider, if he not win anyhow the chamionship. Valentino will not accept to handle a situation like that what´s coming up now at Fiat/Yamaha. The world like to see the Ducati / Rossi dreamcombination and he is not willing to hassle around in his last 2-3 years as an GP rider. I bet it come like that. Jens | ||
| Trojan |
Hmmmm, I don't know if Rossi will sign for Ducati or if he will just decide he has had enough of motoGP altogether and go to Ferrari instead (probably a 50/50 chance of either happening really). However if he decides to stay in MotoGP I would think he will stay at Yamaha rather than try to develop a new bike in his last couple of years (despite the attraction of the challenge that would give him). Will Yamaha sign Pedrosa? I don't think so as long as Lorenzo is there. If Lorenzo or Stoner defect to Honda then maybe it is a chance for Pedrosa (if he doesn't go to Ducati either!). Hayden has been pretty much confirmed at Ducati for 2011 and Dovi has a contract with HRC covering next year (as does Simoncelli), but all other options are open of course.....Spies could replace Rossi at Fiat Yamaha with Jules Cluzel moving into Tech 3 from Moto2 (He is one of Poncharels favoured riders after all). Stranger things have happened........  | ||
| Jaimec |
Is Dovi consistent enough to be an "Alien?" Colin Edwards beat him last year to 5th place, after all... | ||
| Jens |
Matt, I think Rossi and Ducati is unfinished business (-: If it happen the press will be filled up till the start of the 2011 season with Valentin, Valentino, Valentino... Jens | ||
| Trojan |
It will certainly be an interesting time in teh scond half of this season, as there will be manymore riders looking for teams than there will be places available that's for sure. In addition to all of the 'out of contract' riders there will also be a batch of riders coming from Moto2 expecting to find rides in 'rookie' teams, and also some riders who may have MotoGP contract clauses in their current WSB contracts (Crutchlow and maybe Haslam spring to mind). Unless there is a sudden influx of privateer teams (unlikely) there will be some disapointed riders without a ride next year. | ||
| Jaimec |
Tony Elias may be getting a "second look" as well. Don't forget him... | ||
| Trojan |
Exactly...Elias should never have lost his MotoGP ride if talent had anything to do with it. Unfortunately there were just to many bums for not enough seats  | ||
| Jens |
Will Yamaha sign Pedrosa? I don't think so as long as Lorenzo sorry, I meaned Lorenzo.... Looks like Ducati needs a new rider if it is true that Stoner already signed at Honda... (-: Jens | ||
| Jaimec |
Anyone care to guess who was fifth fastest in today's practice on a track he's never seen before? http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2010/Jun/100618a.ht m | ||
| Jaimec |
Randy DePuniet is apparently doing exceptionally well in the practice sessions. According to a couple of sources, he actually participated in a "Track Day" at Silverstone about a week or so ago to learn the track. I wasn't aware this was allowed (although I'm sure he was riding a STREET bike), but if it is, why aren't ALL of the competitors doing this? Jorge rode a scooter around the track on Thursday, but I'd think riding a 1000cc sport bike might've been more beneficial. And can you imagine being "Percy Track Day" out riding your heart out when this French guy comes blasting by you like you were parked in the grass? Must've been an interesting session! | ||
| 46champ |
Matt what's the deal with the MZ that Ant West is riding reinforced tube swing arm looks like early 80's superbike. Is the rest of the bike just as advanced? | ||
| Simond |
The seat unit looked like it was about to vibrate itself to bits this afternoon too! | ||
| Jaimec |
Is it just me, or are there a LOT more crashes this year than last year at this same time? | ||
| Amafan |
Great race for Ben Spies ,but I think Nicky Hayden's tire choice probably cost him at the end of the race . Only 3 rider's used the hard rear tire Hayden and DePuniet and Pedrosa ,and the other 2 seemed to fade at the end of the race . | ||
| Jaimec |
C'mon Matt... ready to admit Ben is the "Real Deal" yet? | ||
| Gaesati |
great race for Ben. Top step of the podium by Phillip Island! Nicky seems fated to be the bridesmaid. Good race by Nicky though. What happened to Tony Elias in Moto2? | ||
| Jaimec |
Shocking statistic I was only remotely aware of... so far this year there hasn't been a single Ducati rider on the podium!! | ||
| Trojan |
Great result for Speez but what a shockingly dull MotoGP race(again). Apart from the battle for 2-5th there was miles of clear track between individuals and small groups of riders. Stoner's ride through the pack wasn't even that enthralling and everyone from Simoncelli backwards looked like they were just riding around for points and not racing (what has happened to Colin Edwards?). Tyre issues for Pedrosa/De Puniet and Melandri crashing out pretty much spoiled what had promised to be a very close race from 2nd right down to 9th position. Silverstone is the widest and longest track on the calendar so that just emphasised how bare the MotoGP grid has become, and with just 13 finishers (and only 15 starters!) something needs to be done sooner rather than later to rectify the poor state of the sport at this level. Ho hum, roll on Assen I suppose. I think it is indicative of the state of the sport that 30,000 advance ticket holders just didn't bother attending on the day (probably because Rossi wasn't going to be there). The organisers sold 100,000 tickets for race day and got an attendance of just 70,000 which is pretty shocking for a British GP in recent years. Thankfully the Moto2 race provided lots of entertaining racing (again) and Jules Cluzel managed to keep it the right way up to score his first win (told you he would eventually ). | ||
| Davegess |
That Moto2 was insane! Almost, but not quite, as much action as a mile dirt track event. The GP was sorta interesting, with Ben and Nicky doing so well but they really need more bikes and more passing. | ||
| Jaimec |
I swear I watch a different race than you guys. All of my friends were jumping up and down and screaming at that close race for the final two podium positions, which took place the entire race. Yeah, Jorge checked out... nobody was surprised by that. Without Rossi on the grid I don't know if there is anyone else who can consistently push the Spaniard for the rest of the season. It was still AWESOME to see Ben and Nicky up there fighting for the podium, though. Maybe it's just because I'm an American, but that race was spectacular from where I sat. | ||
| Trojan |
Matt what's the deal with the MZ that Ant West is riding reinforced tube swing arm looks like early 80's superbike. Is the rest of the bike just as advanced? The MZ Moto2 bike looks like it has been built in a shed and they certainly haven't spent any time or money on such fripperies as paint, aerodynamics or aesthetics thats for sure! If you look under the seat you'll see it doesn't even run an undertray and you can see the bare glassfibre seat underneath I've seen tricker looking track days bikes and their performance isn't too great either unfortunately. In pre season testing the MZ team were using a stock CBR600 (frame as well!) and were running pretty respectable times, but since they have been racing their own chassis it has been appallingly uncompetitive. I don't know how long their finances can stretch to but i know that a few of the Moto2 teams are starting to run out of money only a few races into the season. Alex DeAngelis team mechanics were rumoured to be going on strike at Silverstone because they haven't been paid, but as DeAngelis crashed again and didn't make the start nobody noticed! I think the Moto2 field will get whittled down to sensible numbers by season end this year, and those that are left will be very similar in terms of performance. Hopefully they will be jined by a few o the top Spanish CEV teams that didn't quite make it into GP Moto2 this year and who seem to have their finances in order. | ||
| Jaimec |
Oh yeah... one more thing... it was GREAT to see Nicky dispose of the little midget so easily!! | ||
| Blake |
I'm with you Jaime. Watching the battle for the podium kept me plenty entertained. The way Spies rocketed past Nick on the last lap was astounding. It's too bad he didn't have another lap or two to make the pass for 2nd. I don't bother watching Moto2. Absolutely no interest in it. Don't know the players; don't care about a bunch of Hondas racing each other. | ||
| Davegess |
If you are not watching Moto2 you are missing some great racing. These are the guys who will be in GP in the next few years so they are all comers. Fantastic racing action, the spec engines make sure that no one has a big edge in power. I would like to know more about the various chassis and suspension that are being used as that is the only area that can be really played with BUT there is no time to discuss that when these guys are going 4 wide into the turns. Absolutely stunning road racing. It really rivals the dirt tracks here for action. There were 5 guys who could have won at the start of the last lap. Heck there were 4 guys with a shot half way around on that last lap. Insane stuff. Sideways into the turns, standing guys up with inside passes, guys passing on the outside of turns, just about anything you can imagine. | ||
| Fresnobuell |
I cutoff the MOtoGp race a few laps into it..turned on the Moto2...WOW. went from snoozing MotoGp to an AMAZING Moto2 race. MotoGP simply is awful and Moto2 is the only thing worth watching on the GP stage right now. Sorry guys. | ||
| Fresnobuell |
I don't bother watching Moto2. Absolutely no interest in it. Don't know the players; don't care about a bunch of Hondas racing each other. Whoa Blake. While defending AMA DSB in another thread, didn't you state you would rather watch a bunch of nobodys dice it up all race long (AMA DSB) versus a typical MotoGP processional race? Gotta pick a side bro. | ||
| Trojan |
The way Spies rocketed past Nick on the last lap was astounding. It's too bad he didn't have another lap or two to make the pass for 2nd. I don't bother watching Moto2. Absolutely no interest in it. Don't know the players; don't care about a bunch of Hondas racing each other. Speez undoubtedly did well to get on the podium, but he only got past Hayden becaue Nicky made a mistake on the last lap. I don't think he would have caught Dovi for second even if they had another 5 laps (or maybe he would, who knows?). As for Moto2, it is absolutely the series to watch this year with some fantastic racing. I don't think anyone bothers that the engines are all the same or from Honda, as the chassis war is hotting up and the racing is so close and exciting The thing thatmakes it exciting for me is that different riders are getting wins and running at the front every week. I love Rossi but even watching him win week after week can get boring, so a series that throws up any of 20 different winners each time is a real shot in the arm for international racing. We (The UK and USA) need to get a national Moto2 series running asap if we are to get a chance of running with the Spanish based teams in future years, as they are already two steps ahead of us and running their national series now. (Message edited by trojan on June 22, 2010) | ||
| Jens |
Moto 2 is outstanding motorsport. It is a great show to watch and impressing to see riders and constructors skills. www.kalex-engineering.de where racing with us and their AV1 project the last years. They deliver the chassis for Moto 2 Team Pons. In Mugello they had Sergio Gadea on the podium, now they finished 15 and 21. We will hear more from Kalex, for sure! The pack is so close, there are fightin 7 guys 20 laps for the victory... Great motorsport. Nobody cares or talk about who made the engines... | ||
| Jaimec |
I'll say it again: I would LOVE to see Erik Buell Racing get involved in Moto2. Chassis design is Erik's strong point, so I'd love to see what he could do vs. the world. | ||
| Trojan |
I'll say it again: I would LOVE to see Erik Buell Racing get involved in Moto2. Chassis design is Erik's strong point, so I'd love to see what he could do vs. the world. I agree Moto2 is THE place for chassis manufacturers to promote their wares to the world now, and make a profit in the process. Because teams have to buy their chassis there are no factory teams and so racing is 'relatively' affordable. The strange thing to me was that some of the chassis manufactures (Harris & FTR in particular) came up with some quite radical ideas before the season started, but teams didn't want to risk anything out of the ordinary, and the manufacturers had to build 'conventional' frames in order to get the teams to buy them. Hopefully there will be more ambitious ideas tried once the series gets established. Harris, FTR, Suter, Moriwaki, Bimota and many others have already seen the light, so it would be good for Erik to join them If you want to see how a small dedicated team of individual builds a Moto2 bike from the ground up then check out this blog site: http://bottpower.com/eng/ |
