yet more evidence this weekend that we just need 2x 15-18 lap races where they can just go for it every lap.
I think you’re right. I was a bit of a doubter when they were implementing the sprint , but I’m now a convert. Frantic , edge of seat stuff. I love it . For me , a free practice session on Friday morning. Friday afternoon a qualifying session for first sprint. Then a further quali session on the Saturday for another sprint on the Sunday ? Maybe too hectic ? But I do know that a full race on the Sunday appears too long and I drift away a bit.
Would be great from a spectators pov but cant see someone like Ducati agreeing to it after all that dev work theyve invested in over the X amount of years to make a bike that lasts for 28-30 lasp (and theyre finally beating everyone with ease) and then told all bets are off. Two races on one day isnt the answer either imo however "entertaining" bsb is. I dont know what the answer is if you cant tell lol.
Even the sunday race, there was probably 7-8 laps in the middle where I fast forwarded, there was just nothing happening, people just ticking off the laps. The gap at the front was the same, it just seemed to be about managing which I get is a test for them in a way but as a spectator we just want to see them on the limit
Yeh "heavy drizzle" ruined the races as a spectacle largely, it was the same across all three classes (barring moto 3 of course and even that wasnt as close as it usually is). I doubt it will be raining in Texas though!
On a side note they mentioned there were 180k people in attendance over the weekend. where the hell were they sitting because the only stands I saw were on the start finish straight/down to turn 1 and they were half empty? Are DORNA adopting the Manchester City approach to counting bums on seats I wonder? (Ie just making them up as they go along)
Haha did they? That’s nuts. I heard they even counted the pit crew/media/everyone else that side of the track at Portimao and that was 70k on Sunday (apparently). It will definitely be good to get back to Europe properly and see some full stands (Cotá’s usually decent as well tbf)
I think we all knew the sprint race was going to be the star of the show, Dorna have now created something that is going to be hard to reverse or balance between Saturday and Sunday unless someone gets seriously hurt. The teams can run the bikes at full power, the tyres last long enough and I think they're allowed 1/2 tank of fuel plus 1 litre?? I can see them trying to level this up somehow, different tyres would be the obvious one, but impossible to fit practice sessions in for two different race formats. Dorna could reduce the main race, but they'd have to charge less on Sunday and that wouldn't draw the crowds or the £££.
Wouldnt be long before factories started designing/building half sized tanks too and that would make the bikes look dafter than they do with all that aero over them (how fucking pig ugly is that KTM btw).
All the bikes look horrendous in my opinion. Most look like it’s a Blue Peter project with egg boxes and sticky back plastic
KTM removed that monstrosity of an exhaust and the aero on the tail for the new season release pics, they were that ashamed lol
Simon Crafer on MotoGP.com mentioned that some if not all the teams are already using smaller fuel tanks for the sprint races, it obviously reduces the weight and helps balance bike.
Agreed, looks like Gigi rode the thing into Halfords. The KTM looks pretty much identical aero wise, I hate to say it but Honda/Yamaha are the best looking but that's probably because they are a few years behind in the aero war.
Oh really? thats interesting. Presumably they add balast elsewhere (lower down) to meet the minimum weight requirements? Or have they been abolished in favour of entertainment?
Only a guess, but I would expect the bikes make minimum weight requirements with 1l of fuel in them, in all races, as per regs. The “smaller” tanks are likely to be the same external dims but with a secondary containment inside because the amount of fuel used over the sprint race is smaller, so the placement of the mass of fuel can be optimised and its tendency to shift weight distribution away from optimum under heavy g forces reduced.
