| Author | Message | ||
     Benm2 |
When I finally sat down last night to watch the two superbike races I taped from Fontana, I ended up being disappointed at the state of US racing. Has the Superbike class become the playground of the has-beens? While Matt certainly displayed absolute dominance, I can't help but not like him just the same. I saw an interview with him after the first race, where he was asked how he felt about tying Miguel's record. He felt that was a good time to point out that he'd won four Superbike championships to Miguel's one. What an jerk. Listen Matt, I wish that Nicky, Hopper, Kenny, Colin, and Kurtis all took time out of their GP schedules to come over here and kick your a**. While AMAPR has been a growing space for new talent, the top guys get their GP rides (or pre-Ducati Cup WSB) and suffer at the hands of the truly fast till they learn the ropes. You speak of your four superbike championships as if you deserve to be honored with the same reverence as Eddie Lawson, Wayne Rainey, or Freddie Spencer. Here's a hint: You won more AMA races than them because when they mastered the minor leagues, they went to play with the big boys on the world stage. You're nothing other than a playground bully, bragging about how fast you are to the other has-beens and the learners. You generally have negative comments about all your opponents, or the status of your bike versus theirs. Don't worry Matt, the young talent will continue to move on once they start to pass you. Perhaps your role is that of teacher. You set the bar for the class, and once they beat you they can go to the big leagues. Big fish, little pond... | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
i have a different take on Mat. yep, he's high on himself, but i've seen the human side of him as well. and man oh man, he's in a league of his own right now in AMA Superbike. he seems to like the fact that some folks don't like his personal style, but based on what i've heard him say on TV, and based on what i heard him say with my own ears yesterday at Fontana, i'm considerably beyond ok with him as a person and as a representive of the sport. just an opinion. FB | ||
| Bigj |
Hey, Jerry, why the name reversion?  | ||
| Blake |
I like Mat. He's more of an asshole then I am. I have no doubt that Mladin would do well in world competition. He's whooping up on Ben Bostrom, winner of more than a few WSB races. Give Ben and the Honda time to get acquainted, likewise for Eric and the Duc, the season may become much more interesting. | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
Bigj: personal reasons. Benm2: i wonder how Jake and Eric and Ben (much less DuHamel) would like to be called "has beens". | ||
| Bigj |
Jerry: Rog-O. I don't think Mat Mladin is a jerk. He's certainly cocky, but a real jerk wouldn't be hanging out autographing like he did. Actually, he's the protypical Aussie male  | ||
| Benm2 |
Jake's on his way up. Eric perhaps had suffered too long with Kawasaki, but doesn't seem to have real drive. Ben WAS fast a while ago, but he can't seem to find his legs either. I was a BIG BB fan during the '01 season, and the '02 season was disheartening to watch. I wonder how history would be different if Eric had been with Yoshimura Suzuki for the past three years. The Bostrums seem to be "flashes of brilliance" riders, who can under the right circumstances provide amazing displays of riding skill. But if they don't "feel" right, it doesn't seem to come together. They both seem to be proper "spokesmen" though, for their companies. Jerry, meeting someone in person I'm sure will affect anyone's personal opinion. I've never met Matt, so my opinions are based on what I've heard and seen. You've seen different, and now I've got different information to moderate my opinion. He's certainly fast enough, its the constant digs at his opponents that bother me. Blake, that's an interesting test to put someone too. I do have a doubt that Matt would do well in world competition. I think he would get his ass whipped, and would be sucking fumes at the back of the pack with the rest of the suzuki, aprilia, and kawasaki riders. I think on the right bike (like an RCV), he could elevate himself to almost Biaggi-esque proportions, providing the same commentary about how he's not getting the "good stuff" and that's why he's not the champion. Eric, Ben, Miguel, Jake, etc. all appear more humble than Matt. I'm sure that Ben knows what it takes to ride on the world stage, and mostly seems to keep his mouth shut about it. I haven't heard Ben say lately that he could be cleaning up in MotoGP. | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
Ben, i started to rethink my position on Mladin a little bit after he won at Daytona and he could barely speak, choking back tears of emotion. you could tell that he had put his heart and soul into that race, and that he was more than just a machine on a machine. it was while bs'ing with Zemke in the pits on Sunday that Mladin's emotions at Daytona became clearer, as Jake pointed out that one of the Yosh crew members had just suffered a family tragedy, and that Mladin had dedicated the race to his crew member and his family. (maybe they mentioned this on TV at Daytona; if they did, i missed it.) anyway, we're all at a disadvantage when it comes to this stuff, because we only get the tiniest glimpses into what these people are REALLY like as humans. Denise have talked a lot about what we saw on Sunday, and both of us would be honored to call Mladin a friend. Ben, thanks for this good conversation. FB | ||
| Coyote_xb12s |
Jerry, I enjoyed your pictures in the other post.I was also at Fontana Saturday with my 8 yr old daughter (it was her turn to go). She is a BIG Mat Mladin fan, always picks him to win, etc. Well, Saturday we were hanging around the pits because she wanted a picture with him. We caught him on the way back from setting the fastest lap. I approached him and asked if I could bother him for a picture with my daughter, he said sure, smiled at her and put his arm around her while I snapped the pix. I will post a copy later when I get home. He was as nice as can be. Needless to say, she has a bigger crush on him now, especially because of the Koala bear and all. Benm2- I would disagree with the comments in regards to Mat not doing well at the world level. There are so many riders in GP that have in my opinion "political" rides due to their nationality and sponsorship deals that are less talented than Mat and Eric B. You may forget or may not be aware that Mat was at the world level early in his career with Cagiva and did well considering the circumstances. I think he would more than hang with those guys. In regards to Eric not having "the drive", have you not watched him win races on the OLDEST Superbike in the paddock the last 3 years? Were you not watching Daytona this year? He was actually pulling away from Mat and the rest when his bike went down. We shall see in the near future when Ducati takes him to Moto GP. Capirossi and Bayliss are getting up there in years you know. I have had a chance to meet the majority of the racers at the tracks at one time or another. I have been going to Laguna since 93, Fontana the last 3 years and a few races in Phoenix. There has never been any jerks among them. Mat's thing is a head game... seems to be working, doesn't it? He was untouchable at Fontana. Let's hope for a better race at Infinion. | ||
| Benm2 |
Experience beats opinion in any circumstances. I've never met him, you have. You say he's a standup guy, so I'll give him that. Still don't think he'd win a GP though. Political? Nicky Hayden beat Mladin, and was going up an obvious learning curve in GP. Some may be political, but they're still dang fast. Who's ride is political? Rossi, the benchmark? Nope. Biaggi? Nope, beats Rossi sometimes. Capirossi? First Ducati GP win. Bayliss? Earned his stripes in WSB. Edwards? Um, no. Kenny Junior? One title. Barros? No, beat Rossi. What political favors do you need to pull to get an Aprilia or Kawasaki ride? Whatever they are, avoid them at all costs. Being lapped sucks. Robert's Proton team? Political? Hmmm, no Muslim riders.... I have watched Eric race the old Kaw, and watched the obvious frustration. But, those three years are gone, and maybe Daytona affected his attitude. Daytona was a major bummer, to be taken out by a rock to the oil cooler. I'd love to see Eric on the desmosedeci, or whatever they call it. But, the Bostrum's do seem to be "moody" riders. Maybe Rossi will try Ducati's, after he wins a few championships on the Yamaha. What's he got now, a two-year deal? | ||
| Coyote_xb12s |
You know, these last couple of years have changed Moto Gps quite a bit. It wasn't more than 3 years ago when the ONLY American out there was KR JR. The press that I read in regards to that was that the Spanish and some Italians were given more of a shot than say Americans and Australians. Even just last year when Hopper ran into Carlos Checa and Tamada hit Gibernau, they were both fined and suspended. Then Checa hit someone else and nothing like that happened, people were saying there were different rules for Spanish riders... I am happy to see the Americans taking back the MotoGP scene. I know Nicky, Colin, Kenny, Hopper and Kurtis will shake up the scene this year. Especially now that Suzuki seems to be getting the development down. I am glad that the Superbike riders are also coming on strong in the scene. Bayliss, Xaus and Hodgson will be a good addition. I am counting the days till the start of the season!! I think Rossi's deal is for 2 years. He might not win the championship this year, but will win a few races and be there next year. I would like to see him with Ducati. I like the Bostrom Boys, they could be a little thicker skinned IMHO. I wish Mat wouldn't rattle them as much. You don't hear Miguel ever mention anything Mat said. But, we all have our weaknesses. Finally, I don't knock on any of the GP riders as far as talent, I wish I had a pinch of their talent!! I base what I said on what I have read mostly on coverage of the races and opinions from Motogp.com and superbikeplanet.com Check them out sometime. And if you want, spend the $35 bucks to subscribe to the MotoGp Package and watch all the races live with no stupid commentary... like Brian Dumber on Speed. Ride on... | ||
| Bomber |
it's great to see some first tier road racers talking to fans (good on you and denise, jerry) . .. for years, the accessibility of riders was one of the draws, to me, of AMA flat tracking . . . you could (can) literally talk to any of the riders, green kid from a local track to #1 plate holder, and all understood the linkage between your presence and their paycheck . . .. . lets' hope some more of this attitude shows up in road racing . . . .it would be a shame for top rung bike road racing to go the way of Formula 1 car racing, I think | ||
| Al_lighton |
I tell ya, I'd love to see Jeremy Toye (#57) on Mladins bike...anyone that can take a bone stock R1 to 11th place needs to be riding for someone's team. The guy apparently owns a little performance shop here in San Diego, just came off of broken ankles from the Supercross here in SD a few months back.. | ||
| Benm2 |
Jeremy's ride was OUTSTANDING! Geez, the bike still had the plate holder on it. Simply amazing. Forgot about the Checa / Hopper disparity. That certainly smacked of political BS. I think Rossi WILL win this year. The Yamaha will be better (closer) to the RCV, and he is practically unstoppable. The race where he was told about his time penalty during the race (can't remember which one right now) this past season where he put his head down and pulled the whole gap back was a display unlike any other. Was Yates there signing autographs?  | ||
| Jerry_haughton |
i JUST missed getting a photo/autograph of/from Yates. saw him in the garage area, but he disappeared before i could reach him. i REALLY wanted to try to get a read on him one on one. i hope this whole deal for him has some positive effect. betcha he's plenty motivated at the next race. | ||
| Rocketman |
Seeing as this topic is headed "Superbike" I'm gonna jump in. Moto GP is owned by Dorna. Dorna have recently bought the rights to run British Super Bike. This season Honda are campaigning their new CBR900RR Fireblade in BSB. This is NOT a factory effort. Saying that, Honda have appointed 6 mechanics from their factory race team to look after the 4 Fireblades they're campaigning in BSB this season. Those Fireblades were hand built in Japan. Next year Honda will enter a full factory team in WSB. Whilst Dorna run the show in BSB, and Honda use BSB as their stepping stone to a future in WSB, this can only be a good thing for BSB but it is also the future for IL 4 racing. This seasons BSB opener saw the Fireblade take 1st place in race 1 and the GSX1000R take first place in race 2. The highest place Ducati 999 all weekend was 4th. The question is, have Ducati got something up their sleeve with their V twin, or is this the end of V twin domination in Superbike racing? Then again, Ducati could I suppose homologate their V4 MotoGP bike then they could race it in Superbikes. That of course means a V4 street bike. We live in great motorcycling times. Rocket |
