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Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Tue Aug 13, 2019 10:25 pm
by sandman1347
Invade wrote:I'm also just a casual followed of MotoGP. It's scary to think what Marquez might achieve by the end of his career. He's showcasing a rare dominance in the history of sports which making me think of the likes of Bolt or Jahangir Khan.

But out of those three I'm inclined -- despite him not even beginning to make good on his maximum potentially funnily enough -- to give Bolt the most respect for his dominance. Squash is still not a particularly popular global sport, nor does it have a particularly large player base. Now can somebody tell me, does the world of bikes and MotoGP suffer similarly? An awful lot of drivers are either Spanish or Italian. What is the depth of talent here? Does Marquez shine as he does as merely a single anomoly, where in many other sports 2-3-4 anomalies are more likely to exist at the same time making it nearly impossible to demonstrate sole dominance and superiority over the field?

Comparisons are impossible but what I'm basically asking is, just how special is M.Marquez? Phil Taylor showed this type of dominance for many many years in darts, but the stats show that Michael Van Gerwen is no worse - actually he's probably better. He sure as heck won't win as much though. Taylor dominated darts for such a long period as the only special anomoly in the whole field. When a talent which rises above the rest presents itself in chess, I'm inclined to give it far more credence given how global and widely played the game is. As such, Kasparov's exploits were quite extraordinary and Carlsen is forging a similar path today.

Thoughts?
You can't compare any motor sport to something like track and field. There are no economic barriers to entry in track and field and the talent pool from which you must rise to be the best is comprised of literally millions of people. Same with football, basketball, etc. Usain Bolt is a one in a billion athlete as is Messi, Lebron, etc. There are maybe a few thousand people in the world who even compete in motorcycle racing seriously and even fewer who got started young enough for MotoGP to be remotely realistic. Car racing has a larger pool of participants than motorcycles but it is still minuscule by comparison to sports that aren't prohibitively expensive and extremely exclusive. If motor racing was as accessible as football, it's likely that many of the drivers that we think of as all-time greats would not have even been good enough to make it to F1.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Tue Aug 13, 2019 10:41 pm
by Invade
sandman1347 wrote:
Invade wrote:I'm also just a casual followed of MotoGP. It's scary to think what Marquez might achieve by the end of his career. He's showcasing a rare dominance in the history of sports which making me think of the likes of Bolt or Jahangir Khan.

But out of those three I'm inclined -- despite him not even beginning to make good on his maximum potentially funnily enough -- to give Bolt the most respect for his dominance. Squash is still not a particularly popular global sport, nor does it have a particularly large player base. Now can somebody tell me, does the world of bikes and MotoGP suffer similarly? An awful lot of drivers are either Spanish or Italian. What is the depth of talent here? Does Marquez shine as he does as merely a single anomoly, where in many other sports 2-3-4 anomalies are more likely to exist at the same time making it nearly impossible to demonstrate sole dominance and superiority over the field?

Comparisons are impossible but what I'm basically asking is, just how special is M.Marquez? Phil Taylor showed this type of dominance for many many years in darts, but the stats show that Michael Van Gerwen is no worse - actually he's probably better. He sure as heck won't win as much though. Taylor dominated darts for such a long period as the only special anomoly in the whole field. When a talent which rises above the rest presents itself in chess, I'm inclined to give it far more credence given how global and widely played the game is. As such, Kasparov's exploits were quite extraordinary and Carlsen is forging a similar path today.

Thoughts?
You can't compare any motor sport to something like track and field. There are no economic barriers to entry in track and field and the talent pool from which you must rise to be the best is comprised of literally millions of people. Same with football, basketball, etc. Usain Bolt is a one in a billion athlete as is Messi, Lebron, etc. There are maybe a few thousand people in the world who even compete in motorcycle racing seriously and even fewer who got started young enough for MotoGP to be remotely realistic. Car racing has a larger pool of participants than motorcycles but it is still minuscule by comparison to sports that aren't prohibitively expensive and extremely exclusive. If motor racing was as accessible as football, it's likely that many of the drivers that we think of as all-time greats would not have even been good enough to make it to F1.

Exactly.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Tue Aug 13, 2019 11:29 pm
by Exediron
sandman1347 wrote:You can't compare any motor sport to something like track and field. There are no economic barriers to entry in track and field and the talent pool from which you must rise to be the best is comprised of literally millions of people. Same with football, basketball, etc. Usain Bolt is a one in a billion athlete as is Messi, Lebron, etc. There are maybe a few thousand people in the world who even compete in motorcycle racing seriously and even fewer who got started young enough for MotoGP to be remotely realistic. Car racing has a larger pool of participants than motorcycles but it is still minuscule by comparison to sports that aren't prohibitively expensive and extremely exclusive. If motor racing was as accessible as football, it's likely that many of the drivers that we think of as all-time greats would not have even been good enough to make it to F1.
Slightly off topic, but this leads me onto a somewhat contentious view that I hold -- namely, that the top sim racers are very likely better than their top physical counterparts in terms of raw talent. The talent pool for physical racing is much smaller, whereas there are no financial inhibitions to prevent the best out of everyone who enters sim racing from rising to the top.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Tue Aug 13, 2019 11:36 pm
by sandman1347
Exediron wrote:
sandman1347 wrote:You can't compare any motor sport to something like track and field. There are no economic barriers to entry in track and field and the talent pool from which you must rise to be the best is comprised of literally millions of people. Same with football, basketball, etc. Usain Bolt is a one in a billion athlete as is Messi, Lebron, etc. There are maybe a few thousand people in the world who even compete in motorcycle racing seriously and even fewer who got started young enough for MotoGP to be remotely realistic. Car racing has a larger pool of participants than motorcycles but it is still minuscule by comparison to sports that aren't prohibitively expensive and extremely exclusive. If motor racing was as accessible as football, it's likely that many of the drivers that we think of as all-time greats would not have even been good enough to make it to F1.
Slightly off topic, but this leads me onto a somewhat contentious view that I hold -- namely, that the top sim racers are very likely better than their top physical counterparts in terms of raw talent. The talent pool for physical racing is much smaller, whereas there are no financial inhibitions to prevent the best out of everyone who enters sim racing from rising to the top.
Having turned the wheel in anger on a few race tracks in real life and logged hundreds of hours in various racing sims over the years; I can tell you that, in my opinion, there is a substantial difference between the two. They aren't similar enough to make that statement IMO. In other words, the talent that makes you a great sim player is substantially different from the talent that makes you a great racing driver. Sim racing is much less physical, does not have anything to do with dealing with fear and just generally doesn't present the same level of overall challenge. You also get feedback from the car in a completely different way.

Every now and then there are sim racing competitions where the winner gets a real racing drive. The winners go on to have varying levels of success but none of them have become best of the best-level drivers.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Wed Aug 14, 2019 12:17 pm
by Cold Gin
Miller inks a one-year extension with Ducati and Pramac, giving him a factory ride along with Bagnaia.
The entire field is signed for next year with the exception of the now vacant KTM ride that Zarco is abandoning.

I’m guessing that KTM will tip someone for from in-house, unless there is a late surprise from another series. Pedrosa has already stated he doesn’t want to return to racing.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Wed Aug 14, 2019 1:18 pm
by pokerman
sandman1347 wrote:
Exediron wrote:
sandman1347 wrote:You can't compare any motor sport to something like track and field. There are no economic barriers to entry in track and field and the talent pool from which you must rise to be the best is comprised of literally millions of people. Same with football, basketball, etc. Usain Bolt is a one in a billion athlete as is Messi, Lebron, etc. There are maybe a few thousand people in the world who even compete in motorcycle racing seriously and even fewer who got started young enough for MotoGP to be remotely realistic. Car racing has a larger pool of participants than motorcycles but it is still minuscule by comparison to sports that aren't prohibitively expensive and extremely exclusive. If motor racing was as accessible as football, it's likely that many of the drivers that we think of as all-time greats would not have even been good enough to make it to F1.
Slightly off topic, but this leads me onto a somewhat contentious view that I hold -- namely, that the top sim racers are very likely better than their top physical counterparts in terms of raw talent. The talent pool for physical racing is much smaller, whereas there are no financial inhibitions to prevent the best out of everyone who enters sim racing from rising to the top.
Having turned the wheel in anger on a few race tracks in real life and logged hundreds of hours in various racing sims over the years; I can tell you that, in my opinion, there is a substantial difference between the two. They aren't similar enough to make that statement IMO. In other words, the talent that makes you a great sim player is substantially different from the talent that makes you a great racing driver. Sim racing is much less physical, does not have anything to do with dealing with fear and just generally doesn't present the same level of overall challenge. You also get feedback from the car in a completely different way.

Every now and then there are sim racing competitions where the winner gets a real racing drive. The winners go on to have varying levels of success but none of them have become best of the best-level drivers.
Yes wasn't Jan Magnenberg (spelling?) the first, he got a fully sponsored drive in single seaters for a few years, were is he now?

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Wed Aug 14, 2019 6:43 pm
by Cold Gin
Zarco acknowledges Moto2 is an option:

https://www.motorsport.com/motogp/news/ ... lT0hBw8eF0

Sheesh. Twice champion of a series he's now willingly relegating himself to.

I believe him that that he was so despondent about the KTM bike and his ability to adapt to it, that quitting his contract was the only option in his mind. That being said, if I were him, I'd have stuck it out another year, at least keep yourself in the game, and then challenge for a seat that would be available for the 2021 season. Now, if he returns to Moto2, doesn't do well, or even goes to WBSK---the idea that he could jump there for a year and set the world on fire again with the hopes of returning to MotoGP in 2021....that just seems so implausible. But, maybe someone will change their mind in 2021. I bet he'd like Quartararo's seat at Petronas Yamaha come 2021, as I think it is no-brainer that Quartararo moves up to the factory seat of either Vinales or Rossi---who I cannot see Yamaha keeping, either of them.

What a mess Zarco made for himself by taking the KTM job---which, I read somewhere else, his manager did for him in 2017!!!!!!!! I'll have to find that link again.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Wed Aug 14, 2019 6:45 pm
by sandman1347
pokerman wrote:
sandman1347 wrote:
Exediron wrote:
sandman1347 wrote:You can't compare any motor sport to something like track and field. There are no economic barriers to entry in track and field and the talent pool from which you must rise to be the best is comprised of literally millions of people. Same with football, basketball, etc. Usain Bolt is a one in a billion athlete as is Messi, Lebron, etc. There are maybe a few thousand people in the world who even compete in motorcycle racing seriously and even fewer who got started young enough for MotoGP to be remotely realistic. Car racing has a larger pool of participants than motorcycles but it is still minuscule by comparison to sports that aren't prohibitively expensive and extremely exclusive. If motor racing was as accessible as football, it's likely that many of the drivers that we think of as all-time greats would not have even been good enough to make it to F1.
Slightly off topic, but this leads me onto a somewhat contentious view that I hold -- namely, that the top sim racers are very likely better than their top physical counterparts in terms of raw talent. The talent pool for physical racing is much smaller, whereas there are no financial inhibitions to prevent the best out of everyone who enters sim racing from rising to the top.
Having turned the wheel in anger on a few race tracks in real life and logged hundreds of hours in various racing sims over the years; I can tell you that, in my opinion, there is a substantial difference between the two. They aren't similar enough to make that statement IMO. In other words, the talent that makes you a great sim player is substantially different from the talent that makes you a great racing driver. Sim racing is much less physical, does not have anything to do with dealing with fear and just generally doesn't present the same level of overall challenge. You also get feedback from the car in a completely different way.

Every now and then there are sim racing competitions where the winner gets a real racing drive. The winners go on to have varying levels of success but none of them have become best of the best-level drivers.
Yes wasn't Jan Magnenberg (spelling?) the first, he got a fully sponsored drive in single seaters for a few years, were is he now?
Japan. He races in the Super GT series last I heard.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Wed Aug 14, 2019 7:03 pm
by shoot999
Cold Gin wrote:Zarco acknowledges Moto2 is an option:

https://www.motorsport.com/motogp/news/ ... lT0hBw8eF0

Sheesh. Twice champion of a series he's now willingly relegating himself to.

I believe him that that he was so despondent about the KTM bike and his ability to adapt to it, that quitting his contract was the only option in his mind. That being said, if I were him, I'd have stuck it out another year, at least keep yourself in the game, and then challenge for a seat that would be available for the 2021 season. Now, if he returns to Moto2, doesn't do well, or even goes to WBSK---the idea that he could jump there for a year and set the world on fire again with the hopes of returning to MotoGP in 2021....that just seems so implausible. But, maybe someone will change their mind in 2021. I bet he'd like Quartararo's seat at Petronas Yamaha come 2021, as I think it is no-brainer that Quartararo moves up to the factory seat of either Vinales or Rossi---who I cannot see Yamaha keeping, either of them.

What a mess Zarco made for himself by taking the KTM job---which, I read somewhere else, his manager did for him in 2017!!!!!!!! I'll have to find that link again.
Yes, his name was Fellon. He signed Zarco with KTM in 17, yet in the following year he was negotiating with both Honda and Yamaha as though Zarco was contract free in 19. Zarco sacked him shortly after joining KTM.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Thu Aug 15, 2019 2:23 pm
by pokerman
sandman1347 wrote:
pokerman wrote:
sandman1347 wrote:
Exediron wrote:
sandman1347 wrote:You can't compare any motor sport to something like track and field. There are no economic barriers to entry in track and field and the talent pool from which you must rise to be the best is comprised of literally millions of people. Same with football, basketball, etc. Usain Bolt is a one in a billion athlete as is Messi, Lebron, etc. There are maybe a few thousand people in the world who even compete in motorcycle racing seriously and even fewer who got started young enough for MotoGP to be remotely realistic. Car racing has a larger pool of participants than motorcycles but it is still minuscule by comparison to sports that aren't prohibitively expensive and extremely exclusive. If motor racing was as accessible as football, it's likely that many of the drivers that we think of as all-time greats would not have even been good enough to make it to F1.
Slightly off topic, but this leads me onto a somewhat contentious view that I hold -- namely, that the top sim racers are very likely better than their top physical counterparts in terms of raw talent. The talent pool for physical racing is much smaller, whereas there are no financial inhibitions to prevent the best out of everyone who enters sim racing from rising to the top.
Having turned the wheel in anger on a few race tracks in real life and logged hundreds of hours in various racing sims over the years; I can tell you that, in my opinion, there is a substantial difference between the two. They aren't similar enough to make that statement IMO. In other words, the talent that makes you a great sim player is substantially different from the talent that makes you a great racing driver. Sim racing is much less physical, does not have anything to do with dealing with fear and just generally doesn't present the same level of overall challenge. You also get feedback from the car in a completely different way.

Every now and then there are sim racing competitions where the winner gets a real racing drive. The winners go on to have varying levels of success but none of them have become best of the best-level drivers.
Yes wasn't Jan Magnenberg (spelling?) the first, he got a fully sponsored drive in single seaters for a few years, were is he now?
Japan. He races in the Super GT series last I heard.
Cheers, he fell woefully short of making it into F1.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Thu Aug 15, 2019 2:23 pm
by pokerman
shoot999 wrote:
Cold Gin wrote:Zarco acknowledges Moto2 is an option:

https://www.motorsport.com/motogp/news/ ... lT0hBw8eF0

Sheesh. Twice champion of a series he's now willingly relegating himself to.

I believe him that that he was so despondent about the KTM bike and his ability to adapt to it, that quitting his contract was the only option in his mind. That being said, if I were him, I'd have stuck it out another year, at least keep yourself in the game, and then challenge for a seat that would be available for the 2021 season. Now, if he returns to Moto2, doesn't do well, or even goes to WBSK---the idea that he could jump there for a year and set the world on fire again with the hopes of returning to MotoGP in 2021....that just seems so implausible. But, maybe someone will change their mind in 2021. I bet he'd like Quartararo's seat at Petronas Yamaha come 2021, as I think it is no-brainer that Quartararo moves up to the factory seat of either Vinales or Rossi---who I cannot see Yamaha keeping, either of them.

What a mess Zarco made for himself by taking the KTM job---which, I read somewhere else, his manager did for him in 2017!!!!!!!! I'll have to find that link again.
Yes, his name was Fellon. He signed Zarco with KTM in 17, yet in the following year he was negotiating with both Honda and Yamaha as though Zarco was contract free in 19. Zarco sacked him shortly after joining KTM.
So Zarco had no choice, not good.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Sun Aug 25, 2019 5:33 pm
by sandman1347
Nasty crash at the start there but another great finish. I'm happy to see Rins get back on track and what a clever pass at teh end. Marquez will undoubtedly win the championship this year but all these close losses must annoy him.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Mon Aug 26, 2019 4:02 pm
by pokerman
sandman1347 wrote:Nasty crash at the start there but another great finish. I'm happy to see Rins get back on track and what a clever pass at teh end. Marquez will undoubtedly win the championship this year but all these close losses must annoy him.
Indeed but I can't help but feel they are a result of him having an inferior bike, he's in the mix regardless whereas other riders finish were the bike allows them to finish and the varying performance of the bikes reflects that, some weekends Marquez is battling the Ducatis, some others it's the Yamahas and Suzuki.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Mon Aug 26, 2019 5:43 pm
by shoot999

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Mon Aug 26, 2019 6:34 pm
by Cold Gin
Sensational finish, a millimeter-perfect pass by Rins on the last corner of the last lap----just unreal. I didn't think he was going to be able to get to Marquez but it turns out he had him the entire time, and played it absolutely perfectly right at the end. And people have been clamoring lately that it is boring---what rubbish. On a track where his bike has deficiencies, Rins and the Suzuki put on a spellbinding performance. Kudos to them, they deserve it.

Pokerman---I agree with you on Marquez. Despite his package obviously not having anywhere near the turning capability of the Suzuki, Marquez nearly overcame the recalcitrant chassis of the Honda to claim victory. Seeing him brake as late as possible (how many times did you see his rear wheel a foot off the ground for extended periods of time in the braking zone at Vale??) and enter corners at ridiculously high speeds on the limit was a phenomenal spectacle. The fact that Cal Crutchlow, accomplished as he is, finished 19 seconds adrift shows that the Honda, while having an excellent engine this year and being good on the brakes, may not be the motorcycle a lot of people claim it to be. But, I don't want to take anything away from Rins. He rode tactically, smoothly, and maximized his strong points right when he needed to. It's just that it took all of that----to nip Marquez at a track where he obviously didn't hold an advantage.

Great race from Vinales, he was pushing like a madman at the end and had there been one more lap, it would have been really, really interesting to see what would have happened, as he could have been in the mix. All in all, I good day for Yamaha. Rossi rode well enough, I was hoping he could have fougth for the podium but apparently his setup wears out his rear tire. Getting passed by your teammate for the podium must have been a bitter pill to swallow for him, but he still did a solid job.

Really sad for Dovi and Fabio. Dovi had a great start and looked like he could have been in for a podium battle as well; I don't think he would have won but 3rd was a possibility. Fabio, who knows...he's great at qualifying but is still figuring it out on Sunday.

Anyone else notice how many empty stands there were? on my TV it looked like large swaths of the circuit were completely empty. What an awesome circuit for motorcycles---hard to believe it was that empty.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Mon Aug 26, 2019 6:35 pm
by Cold Gin
Cold Gin wrote:Sensational finish, a millimeter-perfect pass by Rins on the last corner of the last lap----just unreal. I didn't think he was going to be able to get to Marquez but it turns out he had him the entire time, and played it absolutely perfectly right at the end. And people have been clamoring lately that it is boring---what rubbish. On a track where his bike got mugged on the straights, Rins and the Suzuki put on a spellbinding performance. Kudos to them, they deserve it.

Pokerman---I agree with you on Marquez. Despite his package obviously not having anywhere near the turning capability of the Suzuki, Marquez nearly overcame the recalcitrant chassis of the Honda to claim victory. Seeing him brake as late as possible (how many times did you see his rear wheel a foot off the ground for extended periods of time in the braking zone at Vale??) and enter corners at ridiculously high speeds on the limit was a phenomenal spectacle. The fact that Cal Crutchlow, accomplished as he is, finished 19 seconds adrift shows that the Honda, while having an excellent engine this year and being good on the brakes, may not be the motorcycle a lot of people claim it to be. But, I don't want to take anything away from Rins. He rode tactically, smoothly, and maximized his strong points right when he needed to. It's just that it took all of that----to nip Marquez at a track where he obviously didn't hold an advantage.

Great race from Vinales, he was pushing like a madman at the end and had there been one more lap, it would have been really, really interesting to see what would have happened, as he could have been in the mix. All in all, I good day for Yamaha. Rossi rode well enough, I was hoping he could have fougth for the podium but apparently his setup wears out his rear tire. Getting passed by your teammate for the podium must have been a bitter pill to swallow for him, but he still did a solid job.

Really sad for Dovi and Fabio. Dovi had a great start and looked like he could have been in for a podium battle as well; I don't think he would have won but 3rd was a possibility. Fabio, who knows...he's great at qualifying but is still figuring it out on Sunday.

Anyone else notice how many empty stands there were? on my TV it looked like large swaths of the circuit were completely empty. What an awesome circuit for motorcycles---hard to believe it was that empty.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Mon Aug 26, 2019 8:56 pm
by shoot999
Cold Gin wrote:Sensational finish, a millimeter-perfect pass by Rins on the last corner of the last lap----just unreal. I didn't think he was going to be able to get to Marquez but it turns out he had him the entire time, and played it absolutely perfectly right at the end. And people have been clamoring lately that it is boring---what rubbish. On a track where his bike has deficiencies, Rins and the Suzuki put on a spellbinding performance. Kudos to them, they deserve it.

Pokerman---I agree with you on Marquez. Despite his package obviously not having anywhere near the turning capability of the Suzuki, Marquez nearly overcame the recalcitrant chassis of the Honda to claim victory. Seeing him brake as late as possible (how many times did you see his rear wheel a foot off the ground for extended periods of time in the braking zone at Vale??) and enter corners at ridiculously high speeds on the limit was a phenomenal spectacle. The fact that Cal Crutchlow, accomplished as he is, finished 19 seconds adrift shows that the Honda, while having an excellent engine this year and being good on the brakes, may not be the motorcycle a lot of people claim it to be. But, I don't want to take anything away from Rins. He rode tactically, smoothly, and maximized his strong points right when he needed to. It's just that it took all of that----to nip Marquez at a track where he obviously didn't hold an advantage.

Great race from Vinales, he was pushing like a madman at the end and had there been one more lap, it would have been really, really interesting to see what would have happened, as he could have been in the mix. All in all, I good day for Yamaha. Rossi rode well enough, I was hoping he could have fougth for the podium but apparently his setup wears out his rear tire. Getting passed by your teammate for the podium must have been a bitter pill to swallow for him, but he still did a solid job.

Really sad for Dovi and Fabio. Dovi had a great start and looked like he could have been in for a podium battle as well; I don't think he would have won but 3rd was a possibility. Fabio, who knows...he's great at qualifying but is still figuring it out on Sunday.

Anyone else notice how many empty stands there were? on my TV it looked like large swaths of the circuit were completely empty. What an awesome circuit for motorcycles---hard to believe it was that empty.
Attendance was just over 50,000. But Silverstone doesn't hold a lot of love for bikers compared to Donington. Not only are you right on top of the action, but a natural bowl (like Brands) to view a good 50% of the track from most vantage points.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Tue Aug 27, 2019 9:45 am
by DOLOMITE
What a final few laps! Brilliant racecraft from Rins and to do it on Marquez of all riders. Marquez is still on another level but having Dovi and now Rins do this to him is great for the series as a whole and must be a boost to all riders that on their day any of them should be getting stuck in and not be intimidated.

Starting to wonder about Rossi. Just doesn't quite seem like the fight is in him. I'm sure he'd say it was, but the younger riders just seem to be that little bit hungrier. I'm sure Rossi could still get the job done if he had a better bike, but just left feeling that unless he's running top 3 at the end, he just accepts his lot.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Tue Aug 27, 2019 11:25 am
by pokerman
Cold Gin wrote:Sensational finish, a millimeter-perfect pass by Rins on the last corner of the last lap----just unreal. I didn't think he was going to be able to get to Marquez but it turns out he had him the entire time, and played it absolutely perfectly right at the end. And people have been clamoring lately that it is boring---what rubbish. On a track where his bike has deficiencies, Rins and the Suzuki put on a spellbinding performance. Kudos to them, they deserve it.

Pokerman---I agree with you on Marquez. Despite his package obviously not having anywhere near the turning capability of the Suzuki, Marquez nearly overcame the recalcitrant chassis of the Honda to claim victory. Seeing him brake as late as possible (how many times did you see his rear wheel a foot off the ground for extended periods of time in the braking zone at Vale??) and enter corners at ridiculously high speeds on the limit was a phenomenal spectacle. The fact that Cal Crutchlow, accomplished as he is, finished 19 seconds adrift shows that the Honda, while having an excellent engine this year and being good on the brakes, may not be the motorcycle a lot of people claim it to be. But, I don't want to take anything away from Rins. He rode tactically, smoothly, and maximized his strong points right when he needed to. It's just that it took all of that----to nip Marquez at a track where he obviously didn't hold an advantage.

Great race from Vinales, he was pushing like a madman at the end and had there been one more lap, it would have been really, really interesting to see what would have happened, as he could have been in the mix. All in all, I good day for Yamaha. Rossi rode well enough, I was hoping he could have fougth for the podium but apparently his setup wears out his rear tire. Getting passed by your teammate for the podium must have been a bitter pill to swallow for him, but he still did a solid job.

Really sad for Dovi and Fabio. Dovi had a great start and looked like he could have been in for a podium battle as well; I don't think he would have won but 3rd was a possibility. Fabio, who knows...he's great at qualifying but is still figuring it out on Sunday.

Anyone else notice how many empty stands there were? on my TV it looked like large swaths of the circuit were completely empty. What an awesome circuit for motorcycles---hard to believe it was that empty.
Interesting what you said about Rossi, given how well he qualified I wonder if he concentrated on that more than the race?

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Tue Aug 27, 2019 11:27 am
by pokerman
shoot999 wrote:
Cold Gin wrote:Sensational finish, a millimeter-perfect pass by Rins on the last corner of the last lap----just unreal. I didn't think he was going to be able to get to Marquez but it turns out he had him the entire time, and played it absolutely perfectly right at the end. And people have been clamoring lately that it is boring---what rubbish. On a track where his bike has deficiencies, Rins and the Suzuki put on a spellbinding performance. Kudos to them, they deserve it.

Pokerman---I agree with you on Marquez. Despite his package obviously not having anywhere near the turning capability of the Suzuki, Marquez nearly overcame the recalcitrant chassis of the Honda to claim victory. Seeing him brake as late as possible (how many times did you see his rear wheel a foot off the ground for extended periods of time in the braking zone at Vale??) and enter corners at ridiculously high speeds on the limit was a phenomenal spectacle. The fact that Cal Crutchlow, accomplished as he is, finished 19 seconds adrift shows that the Honda, while having an excellent engine this year and being good on the brakes, may not be the motorcycle a lot of people claim it to be. But, I don't want to take anything away from Rins. He rode tactically, smoothly, and maximized his strong points right when he needed to. It's just that it took all of that----to nip Marquez at a track where he obviously didn't hold an advantage.

Great race from Vinales, he was pushing like a madman at the end and had there been one more lap, it would have been really, really interesting to see what would have happened, as he could have been in the mix. All in all, I good day for Yamaha. Rossi rode well enough, I was hoping he could have fougth for the podium but apparently his setup wears out his rear tire. Getting passed by your teammate for the podium must have been a bitter pill to swallow for him, but he still did a solid job.

Really sad for Dovi and Fabio. Dovi had a great start and looked like he could have been in for a podium battle as well; I don't think he would have won but 3rd was a possibility. Fabio, who knows...he's great at qualifying but is still figuring it out on Sunday.

Anyone else notice how many empty stands there were? on my TV it looked like large swaths of the circuit were completely empty. What an awesome circuit for motorcycles---hard to believe it was that empty.
Attendance was just over 50,000. But Silverstone doesn't hold a lot of love for bikers compared to Donington. Not only are you right on top of the action, but a natural bowl (like Brands) to view a good 50% of the track from most vantage points.
I think it might be fair to say it's not as popular as F1 in this country unlike countries such as Spain?

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Tue Aug 27, 2019 11:32 am
by pokerman
DOLOMITE wrote:What a final few laps! Brilliant racecraft from Rins and to do it on Marquez of all riders. Marquez is still on another level but having Dovi and now Rins do this to him is great for the series as a whole and must be a boost to all riders that on their day any of them should be getting stuck in and not be intimidated.

Starting to wonder about Rossi. Just doesn't quite seem like the fight is in him. I'm sure he'd say it was, but the younger riders just seem to be that little bit hungrier. I'm sure Rossi could still get the job done if he had a better bike, but just left feeling that unless he's running top 3 at the end, he just accepts his lot.
I think it's fair to say he's holding his own against his teammates, it depends what you are expecting from him nowadays?

I have a friend who is a big Rossi fan and when asking about Rossi I expected him to be a bit despondent, this being previous to the last 2 races, but no to the contrary he's just happy to see Rossi still on the grid.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Tue Aug 27, 2019 1:08 pm
by DOLOMITE
pokerman wrote:
DOLOMITE wrote:What a final few laps! Brilliant racecraft from Rins and to do it on Marquez of all riders. Marquez is still on another level but having Dovi and now Rins do this to him is great for the series as a whole and must be a boost to all riders that on their day any of them should be getting stuck in and not be intimidated.

Starting to wonder about Rossi. Just doesn't quite seem like the fight is in him. I'm sure he'd say it was, but the younger riders just seem to be that little bit hungrier. I'm sure Rossi could still get the job done if he had a better bike, but just left feeling that unless he's running top 3 at the end, he just accepts his lot.
I think it's fair to say he's holding his own against his teammates, it depends what you are expecting from him nowadays?

I have a friend who is a big Rossi fan and when asking about Rossi I expected him to be a bit despondent, this being previous to the last 2 races, but no to the contrary he's just happy to see Rossi still on the grid.
Well I'd agree with that, but equally if you were to put together a MotoGP highlights reel for say the last 18mths, there wouldn't be many Rossi moments would there.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Tue Aug 27, 2019 4:48 pm
by sandman1347
Honestly it's time for Rossi to hang up the helmet. He's very far from his best these days. Inconsistent and simply not very quick. Even if Yamaha were to produce the best bike, I would bet against Rossi to win the title. He just doesn't have it anymore and it's time for him to accept that. I also think it's bad for the sport for him to essentially be permanently camped in one of the factory race seats so long past his prime. Let's get some of the young guys into these seats. I'm beginning to feel the same way about Jorge too.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Wed Aug 28, 2019 2:25 pm
by pokerman
DOLOMITE wrote:
pokerman wrote:
DOLOMITE wrote:What a final few laps! Brilliant racecraft from Rins and to do it on Marquez of all riders. Marquez is still on another level but having Dovi and now Rins do this to him is great for the series as a whole and must be a boost to all riders that on their day any of them should be getting stuck in and not be intimidated.

Starting to wonder about Rossi. Just doesn't quite seem like the fight is in him. I'm sure he'd say it was, but the younger riders just seem to be that little bit hungrier. I'm sure Rossi could still get the job done if he had a better bike, but just left feeling that unless he's running top 3 at the end, he just accepts his lot.
I think it's fair to say he's holding his own against his teammates, it depends what you are expecting from him nowadays?

I have a friend who is a big Rossi fan and when asking about Rossi I expected him to be a bit despondent, this being previous to the last 2 races, but no to the contrary he's just happy to see Rossi still on the grid.
Well I'd agree with that, but equally if you were to put together a MotoGP highlights reel for say the last 18mths, there wouldn't be many Rossi moments would there.
A couple of races ago I thought he was done and then the last 2 races he bounces back somewhat, the reality is that he's not really leaving points on the table in comparison to the other Yamaha riders, he's one of many riders trailing behind Marquez riding about at the same level.

For an all time great that shouldn't be enough but for Rossi he just loves being there, for Yamaha performance wise there is no real reason to drop him, commercial wise there are millions of reasons why they would keep him.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Wed Aug 28, 2019 5:28 pm
by Cold Gin
Yes, it's difficult to with Rossi. He undoubtedly has such flair and charisma, still, that from a business perspective, there is every reason to involve him with Yamaha.

From a performance side, unquestionably he is on the downside. I think his window of being at the front is so small vis a vis the package he's riding now, it is by far the most compelling argument against him. Take Silverstone, for example. Vinales quickly caught him and left him a distant 4th. Rossi had no answer for him, and on the same bike, whatever setup he used simply chewed his rear tire and he could not override the issue--a good thing probably, as doing so would likely have led to a crash. I was hoping and hoping he'd mount a challenge for 3rd but it was quickly obvious he did not have the pace of Vinales once he went past. As it stands now, the conditions have to be perfect, his bike setup has to be perfect, his tires perfect---for him to challenge the way everyone within Yamaha wants him to. That is a function of a lot of things, but ultimately, I can't see Yamaha springing something that will all of a sudden give him a sudden, tangible surge in pace. They do seem to have found something recently, but it's not enough---and I think we can all state it won't be enough this year for him to challenge for wins. Which, ultimately, he himself says he wants and needs to do.

As Sandman stated, even if Yamaha burn the midnight oil and produce a beast of a motorcycle next year, I don't see Rossi beating the likes of Marquez, Rins, et. al. on a regular basis. If Yamaha decide at some point in the next year or so to extend Rossi past 2020, I will be shocked. If not, I truly hope he doesn't use his considerable influence to get a seat somewhere else. I think he's smarter than that . But....it really wouldn't be surprising.

He has so much to offer the racing world still, but not as rider. And I say that as a fan. I hope next year he announces prior to the season starting, that it will be his last.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Thu Aug 29, 2019 5:12 pm
by pokerman
Cold Gin wrote:Yes, it's difficult to with Rossi. He undoubtedly has such flair and charisma, still, that from a business perspective, there is every reason to involve him with Yamaha.

From a performance side, unquestionably he is on the downside. I think his window of being at the front is so small vis a vis the package he's riding now, it is by far the most compelling argument against him. Take Silverstone, for example. Vinales quickly caught him and left him a distant 4th. Rossi had no answer for him, and on the same bike, whatever setup he used simply chewed his rear tire and he could not override the issue--a good thing probably, as doing so would likely have led to a crash. I was hoping and hoping he'd mount a challenge for 3rd but it was quickly obvious he did not have the pace of Vinales once he went past. As it stands now, the conditions have to be perfect, his bike setup has to be perfect, his tires perfect---for him to challenge the way everyone within Yamaha wants him to. That is a function of a lot of things, but ultimately, I can't see Yamaha springing something that will all of a sudden give him a sudden, tangible surge in pace. They do seem to have found something recently, but it's not enough---and I think we can all state it won't be enough this year for him to challenge for wins. Which, ultimately, he himself says he wants and needs to do.

As Sandman stated, even if Yamaha burn the midnight oil and produce a beast of a motorcycle next year, I don't see Rossi beating the likes of Marquez, Rins, et. al. on a regular basis. If Yamaha decide at some point in the next year or so to extend Rossi past 2020, I will be shocked. If not, I truly hope he doesn't use his considerable influence to get a seat somewhere else. I think he's smarter than that . But....it really wouldn't be surprising.

He has so much to offer the racing world still, but not as rider. And I say that as a fan. I hope next year he announces prior to the season starting, that it will be his last.
Rossi beat Vinales in the previous 2 races to Silverstone, the points table don't tell a lie, there is no other Yamaha rider doing a much better job than him.

If Rossi's goal is still to challenge for wins on a regular basis then yes that is something he may well fall short of and then consider retirement but then again there's two elements to that, the performance of the bike and his own personal performance.

We see with the likes of Kimi just the desire to compete and I see that with Rossi however I think he needs to be competitive but I believe that's more on a personal level. His recent contemplation about retirement was off the back of poor performances on his own part were he crashed out of races and not because of the performance of the bike itself.

As for Yamaha I would be guessing the decision of Rossi continuing lies with Rossi himself, he has power within the sport and within Yamaha in particular, for instance is it really in Yamaha's interests to veto either of the Marquez brothers from ever riding for Yamaha, that's clearly not a pure sporting decision?

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Thu Aug 29, 2019 9:23 pm
by Cold Gin
Disagree with you entirely on the best rider for Yamaha, Pokerman.

From a points perspective, Vinales is now besting Rossi 118 to 116, and has 1 win and 4 podiums to Rossi's no wins and 2 podiums. It's not a substantial difference, you are right, but Vinales has more pace than Rossi, and when he gets it right (setup, etc) he can beat everyone on pure pace like he did at Assen. I don't think Rossi can win on pure pace at the moment. The only way he is going to win in my mind is a race where it rains, or big names crash out in front of him.

Quartararo is setting the word on fire in qualifying, and although he is not as lethal on race day, he's gradually getting there. On tracks where Yamaha isn't punished for their mediocre engine, he may challenge for a win. I'd say Valencia is a track where he might have his first win.

Morbidelli is not having a great season, so I'd say he's bringing up the rear at Yamaha. I'd venture to say his best is still in front of him, though.

We have 7 races left in the season; will be interesting to see if Quartararo finishes in front of Rossi at the end. I'd bet money that Vinales will.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Sat Aug 31, 2019 11:47 pm
by pokerman
Cold Gin wrote:Disagree with you entirely on the best rider for Yamaha, Pokerman.

From a points perspective, Vinales is now besting Rossi 118 to 116, and has 1 win and 4 podiums to Rossi's no wins and 2 podiums. It's not a substantial difference, you are right, but Vinales has more pace than Rossi, and when he gets it right (setup, etc) he can beat everyone on pure pace like he did at Assen. I don't think Rossi can win on pure pace at the moment. The only way he is going to win in my mind is a race where it rains, or big names crash out in front of him.

Quartararo is setting the word on fire in qualifying, and although he is not as lethal on race day, he's gradually getting there. On tracks where Yamaha isn't punished for their mediocre engine, he may challenge for a win. I'd say Valencia is a track where he might have his first win.

Morbidelli is not having a great season, so I'd say he's bringing up the rear at Yamaha. I'd venture to say his best is still in front of him, though.

We have 7 races left in the season; will be interesting to see if Quartararo finishes in front of Rossi at the end. I'd bet money that Vinales will.
I didn't say he was the best rider just that none of the other Yamaha riders are doing any better than him and they are as far away from beating Marquez has what Rossi is, I think Vinales in particular has been a disappointment, he was supposed to be the rider to take over from Rossi and I would say he's part of the reason why Rossi is still around.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Wed Sep 11, 2019 4:57 pm
by Cold Gin

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Mon Sep 16, 2019 6:17 pm
by Cold Gin
Great race for Quartararo, I was really rooting for him. If I was Ducati, I'd be wanting to make him a huge offer for 2021.

And if I were Yamaha, I'd be giving him the same equipment as Morbidelli, who he is now dominating.

Does Quartararo switch manufacturers when he is deal is up in 2021? It'll be interesting to see.

Really disappointing race for Rins, I thought the track would really have suited the Suzuki. Aragon in one week's time, a great fast and flowing track. Likely to see Ducati get back in the fold with a long straight and heavy acceleration/braking areas, hopefully someone can take the fight to #93.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Tue Sep 17, 2019 12:11 am
by pokerman
Cold Gin wrote:Great race for Quartararo, I was really rooting for him. If I was Ducati, I'd be wanting to make him a huge offer for 2021.

And if I were Yamaha, I'd be giving him the same equipment as Morbidelli, who he is now dominating.

Does Quartararo switch manufacturers when he is deal is up in 2021? It'll be interesting to see.

Really disappointing race for Rins, I thought the track would really have suited the Suzuki. Aragon in one week's time, a great fast and flowing track. Likely to see Ducati get back in the fold with a long straight and heavy acceleration/braking areas, hopefully someone can take the fight to #93.
If not for Marquez the last 3 races for the lead would have been boring, he's made the racing against better bikes, first the Suzuki, then the Ducati and now the Yamaha with them finishing 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th.

Regarding Rins that's now 3 crashes this year, he needs to make sure it doesn't start to become habit forming.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Tue Sep 17, 2019 3:34 pm
by Cold Gin
Marquez is a marvel to watch. There truly aren't enough superlatives. Especially when you look at where the other Hondas are in relation.

In other news, KTM relieves Zarco permanently, Mika Kallio steps in for the rest of the season.

https://www.crash.net/motogp/news/92933 ... rco-kallio

What a colossal mistake going to KTM was for Zarco. However, the bike seems to be improving. Bit by bit. Espargaro had a very good race in Misano, and their testing program with Dani Pedrosa seems to be yielding gains. Hopefully we can see them next year pushing for top-fives.

It would be cool if they could somehow get Aleix to that seat, as the Aprilia is a disaster. Aleix is a quality rider on a bad bike, sad seeing him toil at the back.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Thu Sep 19, 2019 6:29 pm
by Cold Gin
https://www.gpone.com/en/2019/09/19/mot ... ucati.html

Iannone making quite the understatement. :lol:

I'm a bit envious of his lifestyle, also. :D

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Fri Sep 20, 2019 8:48 am
by shoot999
Poor P1 session for Marquez. One rider got with 2 seconds of him! All the rest over 2s behind him. 8O

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Fri Sep 20, 2019 11:53 am
by pokerman
shoot999 wrote:Poor P1 session for Marquez. One rider got with 2 seconds of him! All the rest over 2s behind him. 8O
It's MotoGP again, I hate it when it clashes with F1. :(

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Fri Sep 20, 2019 11:37 pm
by Cold Gin
Johann put so much stress on himself....

https://www.crash.net/motogp/news/92958 ... ss-himself


I firmly believe that KTM will challenge one day. I think Mr. Beirer's comments were very respectful and dignified, and they didn't necessarily have to be.
Interesting to see what Kallio will do.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Thu Sep 26, 2019 4:09 pm
by Cold Gin
Marc Marquez's ever increasing salary; a good problem to have?

https://www.asphaltandrubber.com/motogp ... PGtijhHJ2g

I would love to see Marquez on the Ducati or the KTM. They would appear to be the only manufacturers, together with their sponsors, that could possibly afford him. Rumors are Ducati are putting out feelers to Marquez for 2021. Does he make the jump?

I don't see why he would, but if he keeps winning, his wage demands will be astronomical, but probably not unfair of him to ask. After all, he is currently untouchable. I think Ducati would be the better bet if he did switch, but seeing him on a KTM, as that project continues to ark upward, is a very entertaining prospect.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Wed Oct 02, 2019 9:38 pm
by Cold Gin
https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/opin ... J8Pe-u-Cbg

Are track limits MotoGP's new tyranny?

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Wed Oct 02, 2019 10:22 pm
by sandman1347
Cold Gin wrote:Marc Marquez's ever increasing salary; a good problem to have?

https://www.asphaltandrubber.com/motogp ... PGtijhHJ2g

I would love to see Marquez on the Ducati or the KTM. They would appear to be the only manufacturers, together with their sponsors, that could possibly afford him. Rumors are Ducati are putting out feelers to Marquez for 2021. Does he make the jump?

I don't see why he would, but if he keeps winning, his wage demands will be astronomical, but probably not unfair of him to ask. After all, he is currently untouchable. I think Ducati would be the better bet if he did switch, but seeing him on a KTM, as that project continues to ark upward, is a very entertaining prospect.
I think it's a steal to get Marquez for what they're paying him. Rossi was making more for Yamaha back in his prime.

I would love to see Marquez move to Ducati. Have a feeling he would demolish the field by an even bigger Margin there. Ducati have had the best bike for years. I think there's a decent chance that it will happen too. Marc will want to shut people up who claim that he can't win with multiple teams.

Re: 2019 Motogp Season

Posted: Thu Oct 03, 2019 7:02 pm
by Cold Gin
Sandman----Marquez on a Ducati could be a lethal, absolutely lethal, combination. His style seems to fit the current Ducati's strength of acceleration and wickedly strong braking stability to a T. The Ducati doesn't turn the best, but it appears that the Honda doesn't either, so it may not be a large departure between the two. Ducati, with their almost endless Marlboro money, could easily pull it off. Whether or not they would do such a thing after Lorenzo, which they paid a lot of money for, is another story. It would be a repeat of paying through the roof for a rider, which I believe they have publicly said they'd never do again. I'd imagine them doing a 180 on such a sentiment if Marquez is a possibility, however. Can you imagine all of these people who diminish Marquez' current success and chalking it up to him having a superior bike, their response if he went to Ducati and did the same??? Those with the yellow-tinted glasses would lose their excrement.

In other news, Zarco to Yamaha's test program is gaining traction. With their current test rider, Jonas Folger, wanting to get back into racing, Zarco might just slide into that spot. Whether or not he'd ever get a sniff back on the race bikes is different matter entirely, but it is still a match I believe both parties would be very happy with.

https://www.crash.net/motogp/news/93056 ... rNlHOgutwU