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Blake
| Posted on Monday, October 23, 2006 - 10:03 am: |
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2005 Valencia Grand Prix Results: 1. Marco Melandri (ITA) Honda, 46’58.152 2. Nicky Hayden (USA) Honda, +0.097 3. VALENTINO ROSSI (ITA) Yamaha +2.959 If Nicky can improve on last year's results by a mere 0.100 seconds, and with all else equal, he'll win the MotoGP championship. Good commentary for the run-up to the race... http://www.roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=27401 and... http://www.roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=27420 |
Trojan
| Posted on Monday, October 23, 2006 - 10:09 am: |
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If Nicky can improve on last year's results by a mere 0.100 seconds, and with all else equal, he'll win the MotoGP championship. And if I can improve my 100 metre time by 3 seconds I'll be Olympic champion Or maybe if Rossi forgets to set his alarm clock and misses the race? When you say 'all things being equal' you assume of course that nobody else will improve their performance from last year too, and of course that Rossi doesn't follow him home in those same positions, or that Melandri (or another rider) won't win. I think the saying 'grasping at straws' is relevant here |
Glitch
| Posted on Monday, October 23, 2006 - 10:12 am: |
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'grasping at straws' Well, Nicky is from Kentucky after all.
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Jackbequick
| Posted on Monday, October 23, 2006 - 03:07 pm: |
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Here is the circuit, nine lefts, five rights, and it is a track for rider's, not tuner's. http://tinyurl.com/yztnxp Jack (Message edited by jackbequick on October 23, 2006) |
Slaughter
| Posted on Monday, October 23, 2006 - 03:23 pm: |
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Rossi is undeniably awesome. He so richly deserves the praises which are being heaped on him already AMAZING - if he wins, he will have RULED MotoGP racing for the era just ended: from the transition to the 4-stroke/990 bikes to the end. He deserves it. Back once upon a time, our shop cat was named Giacomo (after Ago) - my cat now is named Rossi (he has red fur) My emotions still say the greatest racer of all time is Surtees (350cc, 500 and Formula 1 in the same season) It'll be interesting to see where Rossi is in a decade. (Message edited by slaughter on October 23, 2006) |
Zac
| Posted on Wednesday, October 25, 2006 - 03:41 pm: |
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I'm predicting CEII will battle with Rossi for the win, and take them both out... Uh, maybe not. Or Rossi's Yamaha will blow smoke as seen a couple times this year... Or, just maybe, Hayden will outride Rossi and win the race, and one of the other Honda minions (or KRJR) will battle into second, pushing Rossi back into third. It would really suck if Hayden wins with Rossi second though.... -z. |
Blake
| Posted on Thursday, October 26, 2006 - 10:06 am: |
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"CEII"? |
Moboy516
| Posted on Thursday, October 26, 2006 - 10:10 am: |
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Colin Edwards II, I think. |
Trojan
| Posted on Thursday, October 26, 2006 - 11:42 am: |
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Ther is more chance that Rossi would lose the race due to pregnancy than CE taking him out Danger man of the weekend could be Troy Bayliss, having a one off ride on the Ducati. I don't think he will win but he could play a part in losing somebody the title. |
Davegess
| Posted on Thursday, October 26, 2006 - 01:54 pm: |
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Bayliss will trying to show off that is for sure. Rossi will ride to win the race. He almost always rides that way. If he feels he has a shot at winning he will risk all to do it. He is not one to sit behind anyone and wait for the checker, if he thinks he can win he will go for it. That could keep him from the title in the very unlikely event that in going for the race win he makes a mistake. I do think that the other Honda riders will be gunning for Rossi, not to crash him out, but keeping from winning the title will be very important to them. Should be a fun race. |
Rocketman
| Posted on Thursday, October 26, 2006 - 02:38 pm: |
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I just got hold of Danny at the Barcelona Hilton. Said he's going balls out to win on Sunday, and screw Hayden for getting in his way in Portugal. He tells me there are no team orders in the Honda camp and he's delighted to be allowed to go for the win in front of his home crowd. Troy Freaker |
Rubberdown
| Posted on Thursday, October 26, 2006 - 02:52 pm: |
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Thought it was "Dani" but you probably know him well. |
Glitch
| Posted on Thursday, October 26, 2006 - 03:12 pm: |
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Yo, Troy! How's by you, babe! Send me Danny-boy's autograph. |
Blake
| Posted on Friday, October 27, 2006 - 10:38 am: |
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FIM MotoGP World Championship Valencia, Spain October 27 Friday's Best Combined Practice Times: 1. Loris CAPIROSSI (Ducati) 1:32.220, Bridgestone 2. Randy DE PUNIET (Kawasaki) 1:32.408, Bridgestone 3. Chris VERMEULEN (Suzuki) 1:32.786, Bridgestone 4. Nicky HAYDEN (Honda) 1:33.019, Michelin 5. Casey STONER (Honda) 1:33.080, Michelin 6. Dani PEDROSA (Honda) 1:33.254, Michelin 7. Valentino ROSSI (Yamaha) 1:33.274, Michelin 8. John HOPKINS (Suzuki) 1:33.369, Bridgestone 9. Shinya NAKANO (Kawasaki) 1:33.394, Bridgestone 10. Troy BAYLISS (Ducati) 1:33.433, Bridgestone 11. Colin EDWARDS (Yamaha) 1:33.545, Michelin 12. Marco MELANDRI (Honda) 1:33.556, Michelin 13. Makoto TAMADA (Honda) 1:33.689, Michelin 14. Kenny Lee ROBERTS (Roberts/Honda) 1:33.795, Michelin 15. Carlos CHECA (Yamaha) 1:33.860, Dunlop 16. Toni ELIAS (Honda) 1:33.954, Michelin 17. James ELLISON (Yamaha) 1:34.323, Dunlop 18. Alex HOFMANN (Ducati) 1:34.681, Dunlop 19. Jose Luis CARDOSO (Ducati) 1:35.292, Dunlop 20. Gary McCoy (Ilmor X3) 1:36.076, Michelin GO!!! Nicky!!! |
Glitch
| Posted on Friday, October 27, 2006 - 01:26 pm: |
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GO NICKY!!! |
Bdabuell
| Posted on Friday, October 27, 2006 - 06:24 pm: |
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GO VALENTINO!!! |
Ebear
| Posted on Friday, October 27, 2006 - 09:34 pm: |
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GO AMERICANS!!!!!! |
Trojan
| Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 09:54 am: |
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Qualifying: 1. Rossi 2. Bayliss (told ya so ) 3. Capirossi 4. Nakano 5. Hayden 6. Pedrosa 7. Stoner Will Hayden decide to commit ritual 'Harry-Karry' and throw himself on his banjo before tomorrow? How impressive is Bayliss? A year away from MotoGP and two years since he rode the Ducati GP bike, and only just misses out on pole position. I bet Gibernau is glad he isn't there to show his embarrassment |
Blake
| Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 10:01 am: |
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Qualifiying ResultsPos. | Rider | Team | Bike | Time | 1 | Valentino Rossi | Camel Yamaha Team | Yamaha YZR-M1 | 01:31.00 | 2 | Troy Bayliss | Ducati Marlboro Team | Ducati Desmosedici GP-6 | 01:31.21 | 3 | Loris Capirossi | Ducati Marlboro Team | Ducati Desmosedici GP-6 | 01:31.31 | 4 | Shinya Nakano | Kawasaki Racing Team | Kawasaki Ninja ZX-RR | 01:31.34 | 5 | Nicky Hayden | Repsol Honda Team | Honda RC211V | 01:31.38 | 6 | Dani Pedrosa | Repsol Honda Team | Honda RC211V | 01:31.38 | 7 | Casey Stoner | Honda LCR | Honda RC211V | 01:31.47 | 8 | Chris Vermeulen | Rizla Suzuki MotoGP | Suzuki GSV-R | 01:31.61 | 9 | John Hopkins | Rizla Suzuki MotoGP | Suzuki GSV-R | 01:31.66 | 10 | Colin Edwards | Camel Yamaha Team | Yamaha YZR-M1 | 01:31.71 | 11 | Randy De Puniet | Kawasaki Racing Team | Kawasaki Ninja ZX-RR | 01:31.89 | 12 | Marco Melandri | Fortuna Honda | Honda RC211V | 01:32.06 | 13 | Toni Elias | Fortuna Honda | Honda RC211V | 01:32.14 | 14 | Kenny Roberts Jnr. | Team Roberts | KR211V | 01:32.36 | 15 | Makoto Tamada | Konica Minolta Honda | Honda RC211V | 01:32.47 | 16 | Carlos Checa | Tech 3 Yamaha | Yamaha YZR-M1 | 01:32.75 | 17 | Alex Hofmann | Team D'Antin Pramac | Ducati Desmosedici GP-6 | 01:33.29 | 18 | Jose Luis Cardoso | Team D'Antin Pramac | Ducati Desmosedici GP-6 | 01:33.76 | 19 | James Ellison | Tech 3 Yamaha | Yamaha YZR-M1 | 01:33.95 | 20 | Garry McCoy | Ilmor SRT | Ilmor X3 | 01:34.81 | Looks like an uphill battle for Nicky Hayden. Let's hope his race settings are on the money and still improving. GO NICKY!!! (Message edited by Blake on October 28, 2006) |
Jackbequick
| Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 10:09 am: |
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Two Ducatis on the Front row! It will be great to hear something that sounds like a motorcycle for a change. Jack |
Blake
| Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 10:28 am: |
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Last year at Laguna, I thought that the Kawasakis were the baddest (read wicked cool) sounding MotoGP bikes. |
Daves
| Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 11:01 am: |
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"throw himself on his banjo" Now that is funny,even if you are a Hayden fan |
Slaughter
| Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 11:13 am: |
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Nicky, Nicky, Nicky... You gotta pull down Dani's pants and git out yer belt, give dat boy a WHOOPIN! Good luck next year. All else is wishful thinking. |
Diablobrian
| Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 12:27 pm: |
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Should be an exciting race no matter who you're rooting for. How long has it been since GP in whatever form has come down to the last round? I wonder what kind of ratings the race will draw (outside the US where a ridiculous number of people want NASCAR, replays of NASCAR and even more NASCAR) Go Nicky! (He's the only one of them I've actually met, Now that Kurtis Roberts is back in the US) Despite all the hubub and fame it hasn't gone to Nicky's head. He still greets the fans with a smile and makes time for them. In short success hasn't spoiled him yet. Other than that I just hope for a good clean race. I'm expecting Marco to stir things up in the front my self. In addition to Vale, Dani, Kenny, Loris, Troy, and Casey. I was surprised with the results of the "BMW best Qualifier award" http://roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=2 7484 (below the qualifying results) Nicky came out ahead of Colin by nearly 7 seconds for the year as the top qualifier by being consistent. Interesting stat, but kind of meaningless if he loses the championship. If he wins, people will definitely point at it as the reason why he won. While it is true that consistency wins championships you need to win races to put it away. That's how we ended up with the last race deciding the whole shooting match. 2 wins isn't enough. Although 3 might be |
Blake
| Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 04:17 pm: |
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That is interesting. That is impressive! The top five are separated by less than 9 seconds while Hayden is almost 7 seconds up on his nearest competitor. Hayden isn't championship material? Bollocks!
2006 BMW M Award For The Best Qualifier: (This classification is made up by accumulating the qualifying time of every rider at every Grand Prix, with the addition of the MotoGP Official Test session in Catalunya. Any rider who does not complete all 18 events is discarded.) 1. Nicky Hayden, 30:57.341 2. Colin Edwards, -6.935 seconds 3. Shinya Nakano, -7.274 seconds 4. Valentino Rossi, -7.670 seconds 5. John Hopkins, -8.667 seconds 6. Loris Capirossi, -9.507 seconds 7. Marco Melandri, -11.999 seconds 8. Chris Vermeulen, -12.846 seconds 9. Kenny Lee Roberts, -14.638 seconds 10. Randy De Puniet, -15.100 seconds 11. Dani Pedrosa, -15.591 seconds 12. Makoto Tamada, -25.377 seconds 13. Carlos Checa, -26.772 seconds 14. James Ellison, -47.392 seconds 15. Alex Hofmann, -48.185 seconds 16. Jose Luis Cardoso, -68.785 seconds
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Blake
| Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 04:33 pm: |
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More interesting stats...
Year | Hayden Final Championship Position | Hayden DNF's | Rossi DNF's | 2003 | 5th | 2 | 0 | 2004 | 8th | 5 | 2 | 2005 | 3rd | 3 | 1 |
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Bads1
| Posted on Saturday, October 28, 2006 - 04:39 pm: |
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He's getting there just like he sooner or later beat he Matt here in the states. |
Blake
| Posted on Sunday, October 29, 2006 - 04:43 am: |
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Rossi cruising or tried a setup that didn't work so well?...
Morning Warm-Up Stats |
Slaughter
| Posted on Sunday, October 29, 2006 - 07:42 am: |
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Hayden? PUuuuuhhleeease... As my Father told me: "Wish in one hand, and sh*t in the other and you tell me which one fills up faster." It's going to be Rossi. |
Diablobrian
| Posted on Sunday, October 29, 2006 - 08:18 am: |
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whoops...25 seconds adrift of the leaders its....Rossi |
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