As if JL and VR didn't have enough to deal with in MM, they go and develop a bike which is worse than last years, then pick the wrong tyres/set up/make false starts in races. Talk about kicking yourself in the balls when you are already down.
Watching that gp500 programme should be compulsory for any new riders who believe they are better than those riders.
Some people see that they are having a bad year, so go back to the drawing board, re-learn some stuff, try to understand, try to improve. Others just pout and blame everyone/thing else. Be interesting to see which way Jorge goes...
i m pritty sure that MM would hold his own amongst any old days rider. on any old days bike.. it would take him a while though ... at least 3 days.... its hard to imagine what amounts of raw talent it takes to relegate all the best riders of the last decade almost to "also rans" as of day 1
People say that riding these modern gp bikes with their electronics is easy, and I'm sure it is. But to race them against other riders of the same skill level (or higher) still requires a higher level of skill/guts/determination than any of us mere mortals can muster. Much higher. And think on this; modern gp riders are super-fit, dedicating their whole lives to the art of racing, yet they still get off the bike after each race absolutely shattered. Back in the day yer average gp god would hop off the bike and light up a fag...Don't tell me that modern gp stars dont compare, they'd murder their forebears.
Barry Sheene among others. But Sheene is a good case in point; rode a fire breathing 2_stroke on Bakelite tyres, which some would have you believe is the epitome of hard, yet he never trained anywhere near as hard as, say, Bradley Smith. Or at all. You can't tell me he was giving it all in the same way modern riders do.
MM leads all FP3 ... then leads by just .1 second..... on a fully worn race tire.... F4 : takes .4 lead.... rest comes back to .2 ... then whacks.... .55 off.... for f1 racers you could talk courage... doing what fangio did in an open car takes more balls than doing what it is they do in those supersafe carbon cockpitted current versions... but that does not go for motogp
I was'nt saying mm is'nt an exceptionally talented guy,he surely is.What i am saying is that i fear we are going too far down the f1 track re electronics on race bikes,god help us if they ever put aero aids on them.It's every top notch electrical and mechanical engineers wet dream to engineer as much human interference out of any system they design and develop,period.Thats what i meant about variation and excitement for a spectator of the sport.You could train a gorrilla (sorry rudolf) to push buttons in that sequence and set your traction control systems as well hell monkeys did the first space flights for the yanks and if it's good enough for them... As for getting mm or any other modern moto gp rider on say doohans nsr500 good luck.No traction control,no abs,no slipper clutches,no silky smooth electronically controlled throttle curve.In fact he'd have to ride it,with a level of circumspection and caution he's never dreamt of yet.Thats called riding it all by yourself,you know ? your talent.
Moto2 ( much more interesting to watch ) starts 16:20 then Gp 18:00 but if the weather stays like this looks like an all afternoon couch fest
And like him or not barry sheene and some others were genuinely entertaining guys when they gave race interviews,probably because they were under less sponsership pressure to tow the company line,who knows?
None taken mate! First round will be on you though..... I have been fortunate enough to see quite a few decent racers over the years: Hailwood, Agostini, Read, Roberts, Nixon, Sheene, Schwantz, Rainey, Lawson, Spencer, Haslam, Doohan, Biaggi, Rossi, Dunlop (Joey & Robert), Stoner - to name but a few. IMHO these top guys have the talent & determination to do extraordinary feats with whatever machine technology is available at the time of their racing era. They also have incredibly gifted technical crews working with them. When rules change the technical requirements, the top guys seem to work together to keep going faster still. To some small extent, aero aids have already played their part in Moto GP. Ducati introduced their 'winglets' during the 2010 season: Those Ducati Winglets: What Are They Really For? | MotoMatters.com | Kropotkin Thinks
If they're that easy to ride, why aren't there 50 bikes on the grid every other sunday? Fact is they're not, it still takes an extraordinary level of skill to make these bikes sing, and to say modern riders aren't up to it is to do them a massive disservice.
