sturd wrote:
> Champ notes:
> > I've been waiting for Stoner to make a mistake. Well, today was the
> > day for him to make it, and he didn't. In fact, he gave everyone else
> > a riding lesson, finishing 10 seconds clear at the end, I believe.
>
> Yep, I'm thinking he's the real deal now.
On of the great myths of contemporary MotoGP that has so many True
Believers is that line by Jerry the Baptist that bike racing is, "80%
rider and 20% bike". Bullsh*t, no one can win on anything but one of
the very best bikes running on some of the best tires (which is what
Jerry has always had, btw). Stoner has both of those now, so is
winning, but there are probably ten guys in the series who could be
winning on the right combination (and that's the right combination for
that particular guy - everyone's different). Rossi's been pretty much
in that position his whole career and look at what he's done. Hayden
managed to win the title last year even without his "perfect" bike;
give him that and he wins going away. Capirossi could have won last
year had he not gotten hurt, and his tires weren't the best at a lot
of tracks. Edwards was down last year, running on Rossi's rejects and
hand-me-downs, had a lower spec engine all year (according to Colin),
but when they needed him at Estoril and he was finally given the
"latest-spec" (according to Brivio), he had no problem staying with
Rossi. Gibernau finished 2nd in the championship two years in a row
when he fell into a factory Honda with the best tires after Katoh went
down. Even Tamada (who is not one of those ten guys) won two races on
a lease-spec Honda when his tires ended up better than the Michelins.
On and on.
> Hayden - dang boy, toss it two wet races in a row?
Yep, and it was the front washing out, his big problem with the
chassis so far. Seems like he was just pushing it, taking his chances
and riding through his problems, and got what will happen in those
circumstances.
> Pedrosa - maybe similar tire/setup choice as Hayden? That's
> why he went backwards (and Nicky fell)?
That was kind of weird, but I'd guess that when the tires started
going south he lost confidence in those conditions and backed off from
there.
> Edwards - not going backwards is a big plus. Well done.
>
> Rossi - hmmmm. Looked like a normal racer with issues. Maybe
> the reign is truly over?
Maybe he just doesn't have the best stuff anymore, and the various
defeats have cost him a bit of confidence. So what's the count? Only
three race wins in the last 15 races? Beaten to the line by Elias at
Estoril, crashes out at Valencia with the championship on the line
(and an 8-point lead), beaten on the last lap by Stoner at Catalunya,
fading and off the box at Donington, has been off the box SEVEN times
since his bike got fixed just over a year ago at Le Mans. I still
think he's the best overall, but how much of that is getting the right
stuff and building the confidence on a mountain of victories? Looked
pretty ordinary compared to his much-maligned teammate yesterday, and
Colin says racing is 90% from the neck up.
> Speed channel. Wankers. I actually called the track PA announcer
> at Miller to get him to strangle whoever was in charge. We're
> watching the cool off lap of Miller Stuporbike instead of MotoGP!!!
> His Griffy-ness said he'd get on it but didn't seem to really help.
> And speaking of stuporbikes, the antiChrist pulls off another
> semi miracle (from broken femur to jogging back for the restart
> in 26 seconds) and
Regarding the coverage decisions, they were the right ones, no
question. Show the damned live race until conclusion, then show the
whole tape-delayed MotoGP race. If you're not at home and instead
taping (like me), too bad. Watch or tape MotoGP tomorrow night when
they replay it. I watched what I had, and then went to the MotoGP
website for the rest. But I'd be pissed as hell if 10 laps into the SB
race they said, "we interrupt this live broadcast to show you tape of
a race run 10 hours ago in the rain somewhere in Europe...".
As for Mladin, imagine what this group would be saying if that had
been done by EuroGod - "On the ground and out, then into the
ambulance, then ignoring the terrible pain while running back to the
pits in the searing heat for more! All the while Jerry and the boys
are feverishly working over the machine and performing the usual
miracles, then Vale manages to fight back toward the front from last
on the grid in only two laps! And he missed the podium by the
narrowest of margins, just another brilliant performance goes in the
book for the Legend of Rossi"...
But, no, it's Mat, so let's compare him to Yates lying down in the
track...
> Tommy Hayden - stick a fork in him and turn him over. He's
> done.
I think that's premature. Don't know what his problem was this
weekend, but he did lead the 2nd SB race early on and hung for quite a
while, so he's trying. I suspect he's got a lesser version of the
machine (as Yates said he had), and he hasn't quite figured it out
yet. Now if he struggles like that at Laguna and Mid-Ohio, two of his
best tracks, then that's a very bad sign...
>> Stay informed about: I'm a believer (Spoiler) 
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