Arsen Q
Groups | Search | About
Login Password
Register Now! Lost Password?

Motorcycle Racing - Discussion of all aspects of racing motorcycles. 

Page 2 of 3       < 1 2 3 > last >> Bookmark this page:  YahooMyWeb Yahoo!  Google Google  Windows Live Favorites Windows Live  del.icio.us del.icio.us  digg digg  Add to Netscape Netscape
Subject Author Date
Arsen Q Mark N 06-27-2008
If you were  Registered and logged in, you could reply and use other advanced thread options
Posted by on June 27, 2008, 11:56 pm

I feel bad about Hopkins.

Stoner and Ducati are coming back, hopefully it stays a close battle
and no one establishes boring material superiority - be it Ducati
electronics, Yamaha, or Honda's pneumatic engine. Sure these guys a re
great riders, but the way their fates swing back and forth depending
on tires and electronics and what not is getting a tad over the top.
Have them throw dice against a wall... at least that way they forego
the risk of breaking bones.

Posted by Mark N on June 28, 2008, 1:45 am
paul_liesenberg@yahoo.com wrote:
> I feel bad about Hopkins.

Me too. Now let's wait to see the righteous indignation - Hopkins, it
appeared, gets off the bike, slides all the way through a gravel trap
and hits a tire barrier feet first, breaks bones in his ankle and leg
and messes up his knee, no air fence to soften the blow. His bike goes
straight into the wall, the front end destroyed. Hell, if that had
happened at Laguna we'd hear the entire paddock up in arms about how
dangerous it is (well, at least the part of it that grew up in 125 and
250 GP) and the Euroscribes would already be penning editorials about
how GP simply shouldn't be going there.

But no, it's the f*cking cathedral, so we'll hear nothing, I'd guess.
Hell, I can't even find the video of it on the MotoGP website, although
I did catch it live. Oh, well, at least Hopper's chances of getting
seriously hurt at Laguna have gone down - he may not be back in time,
Assen having blessedly saved his ass...

Posted by Slazenger on June 28, 2008, 9:51 am


>> I feel bad about Hopkins.
>
> Me too. Now let's wait to see the righteous indignation - Hopkins, it
> appeared, gets off the bike, slides all the way through a gravel trap and
> hits a tire barrier feet first, breaks bones in his ankle and leg and
> messes up his knee, no air fence to soften the blow. His bike goes
> straight into the wall, the front end destroyed. Hell, if that had
> happened at Laguna we'd hear the entire paddock up in arms about how
> dangerous it is (well, at least the part of it that grew up in 125 and 250
> GP) and the Euroscribes would already be penning editorials about how GP
> simply shouldn't be going there.
>
> But no, it's the f*cking cathedral, so we'll hear nothing, I'd guess.
> Hell, I can't even find the video of it on the MotoGP website, although I
> did catch it live. Oh, well, at least Hopper's chances of getting
> seriously hurt at Laguna have gone down - he may not be back in time,
> Assen having blessedly saved his ass...

Give him a pint of Bitter someone.



Posted by Champ on June 28, 2008, 9:39 am

>Rossi and Pedrosa have to be really careful here. Assuming they both
>expect Stoner to ride off into the distance, they both need to be
>second, but a slip by either will let Stoner right back in the game.

And so it turned out.
--
Champ
neal at champ dot org dot uk

Posted by Mark N on June 28, 2008, 3:31 pm
Champ wrote:
> Champ wrote:
>
>> Rossi and Pedrosa have to be really careful here. Assuming they both
>> expect Stoner to ride off into the distance, they both need to be
>> second, but a slip by either will let Stoner right back in the game.
>
> And so it turned out.

Well, sort of - it's not obviously the case that he was pushing it to
beat either Stoner or Pedrosa when you go down in the third corner on
the first lap in heavy traffic. But, yes, that changes everything for
Rossi, who's now only 25 points up on Stoner. For Stoner, he's now only
29 out of the points lead, so certainly within reach, although he
can't really afford his own mistake down the road either. Nine races to
go, so now at the halfway point and plenty of time left.

One of those rare situations where I woke up, booted up the ol' box and
was disappointed to see it wasn't raining. Then when Rossi went down it
was pretty much certain there would be very little drama at the front.
The scrap between the faster riff-raff - Vermeulen, Nakano, Dovizioso
- was the best of the racing, although it was also interesting to watch
Colin work his way through, on his low-mid 37 pace that should have had
him in 2nd if he hadn't been balked by the Rossi crash. His usual luck,
but at least the sun showed through at the end and gave him a podium.

I had a premonition of sorts on Hayden, watching the MotoGP live timing
on the last lap to see who came through first (the video being delayed
some), thinking motor failure or fuel shortage being possible with the
new motor, and it seems it was the fuel. I guess you can say Colin
earned it then, as Nicky perhaps had to wick up the mix when he saw
Colin coming (he did four straight 37.6s near the end). But after the
race he said it should never run out of fuel if the electronic engine
management system is doing its job. He also said the bike has been
having issues in the dry all weekend and he had warning lights going off
on the grid, so a very good result to even get fourth.

This comment after the race put a wry smile on my face: "You know, the
bikes are so much... electronics play such a big deal, and sometimes
it's not just about the rider who rides it hardest, it's sometimes the
guy with the computer who hits the right buttons..." Although he might
not admit it, you have to think Stoner feels the same these days.

In any case, it sure seems like Hayden should be right in the mix at the
next two rounds, his best tracks, if they can make more progress with
that motor. Hard to say how much of his stepped-up pace is the motor and
how much is finally getting the chassis that Pedrosa has been running.
But you would think Pedrosa will have the new motor at Brno after the
break, unless he simply doesn't like the way it delivers power. He can't
afford to run it before then with the reliability question, but it may
yet determine who wins this championship. While Lorenzo is definitely
out of it now, it sure looks like headed toward a three-way collision
between Stoner, Rossi and Pedrosa at the end...

Page 2 of 3       < 1 2 3 > last >>

Contact Us | Privacy Policy

XML SitemapXML Sitemap