| Author | Message | ||
     Pwnzor |
FINALLY got to see the Lorenzo of old. Same old Lorenzo, if you ask me. The track was dry, so he did pretty well. One more lap, and the outcome would most certainly have been different. Or without that huge wheelie by Marquez at the start of the race... I am very much looking forward to seeing Lorenzo on a faster bike next year, and we'll see how he deals with tire degradation. I think Maverick is going to be Marc's competition next year. We'll see. | ||
| Jaimec |
What should be very interesting (to me, at least) is the development of the M1 over the next couple of years. For most of the past nine years, Yamaha has been building that bike around Lorenzo's smooth, high-speed cornering style. It helped keep Lorenzo (and, by association, Yamaha) a dominant player, but other riders (Smith, Espargaro, Spies, Edwards, Crutchlow, etc) had to learn how to "ride like Lorenzo" to get the most out of the package. I'm going to ASSUME that Rossi will start the development effort on the new M1 but if Vinales lives up to his potential you know development will be centered around HIM. Rossi doesn't have many years left but barring tragedy, Maverick has a LONG career ahead of him. | ||
| Bads1 |
Rossi the last two years has changed his riding style because of Marquez and he has said this, so I dont think he had to ride the bike like Lorenzo at all. Rossi got what Rossi wanted. | ||
| Jaimec |
I think his input into development once he returned to the fold helped create a bike that they could BOTH ride (which had a trickle-down effect for Smith and Espargaro on Tech3 as well). | ||
| Gaesati |
Day one of Sepang test: Stoner on top of time sheets. Vinales 3rd. | ||
| Crusty |
Yes, and Lorenzo was way down in 17th. On day two, Iannone was fastest on the Suzuki. Rossi was 4th and Lorenzo was 8th on the Duck. Marquez was 10th. I wonder who'll be at the top of the time sheets when the season begins? I bet it's the same aliens as last year. We'll see. | ||
| Jaimec |
Maverick overall fastest over the three days. Rossi jumped from the frying pan into the fire. | ||
| Fast1075 |
Maverick will be a force to be reckoned with. Maybe not the champ this year, but one year soon, if not this year. | ||
| Vagelis46 |
It is strange but after the "external wings" ban, the motoGP teams are developing "internal wings" that are now legal, and their fairings are starting to look like the 1125R's "pods" ...... It looks like the 1125r was 10 years ahead of its time.... In 2007 the pods were considered "ugly"... I am sure that if the 1125r was introduced this year and there were some "internal wings" inside those "pods" , people would have a very different opinion on them ! As far as me, as an owner of a 1125r, I think the 1125r is the best looking bike in the world !  (Message edited by vagelis46 on February 27, 2017) | ||
| Vagelis46 |
Identical design... it just needs $20 of plastic blades inside the pods and the latest aerodynamic motoGP technology is integrated to the 1125r !  | ||
| Jaimec |
"Pods" are the new "Black."  Welcome back, Vagelis46... I've missed your input here. Now if only Trojan would come back... | ||
| Vagelis46 |
    | ||
| Figorvonbuellingham |
Weird | ||
| Jaimec |
That new Ducati fairing is... ummmm... Wow... | ||
| Figorvonbuellingham |
Well the season begins soon, lets get started. What will Jorge Lorenzo do after he wins Qatar? Tun off his playsation..... Ha! | ||
| Pwnzor |
LOL... I've got a dollar that says Lorenzo won't be on the podium. | ||
| Figorvonbuellingham |
Only on his playstation...lol | ||
| Crusty |
I like Jorge. It's a shame that he got bit by the Duck bug. He should have learned by watching Rossi when he tried. Maybe Marquez will try it in another couple of years; you never know. Then again, I think Pedrosa should make that switch. | ||
| Pwnzor |
Maverick will be the one to watch this year. Marc has his work cut out for him. | ||
| Pwnzor |
5 days... | ||
| Fast1075 |
Wasn't there some Australian guy that rode those nasty, horrible Ducatis to a podium or two? Young Mr. Vinales is going to school some masters if he doesn't get hurt. | ||
| Jaimec |
He did. But his ego says he'll show up Rossi by winning races; something Rossi couldn't do. Maybe he will... thanks to Rossi, Ducati completely revamped their entire race organization and brought in Gigi and the bike Lorenzo is now riding is COMPLETELY different from the one Rossi tried to tame. | ||
| Figorvonbuellingham |
So where is a good place to stay at circuit of the Americas. | ||
| Jim2 |
The "W" hotel in Austin is pretty nice and in the heart of Austin. | ||
| Figorvonbuellingham |
Kinda looking for something close to the track. | ||
| Jim2 |
The track is sort of out in the middle of nowhere. You might check air bnb, a lot of people rent out places during race time. There's a lot of nice ranches with full guest houses. Probably some nice cabins too. | ||
| Akbuell |
Since Maverick has pretty much locked up the off-season testing championship, it is time to race for real. Qualifying for the Qatar Grand Prix was rained out. In the desert. So the start grid was set by free practice times. Maverick on the pole; his ability continues to shine. Have to check and confirm, but I believe Rossi in 10th, Lorenzo in 12th. Interesting grid. Possibility of rain tomorrow. Since the track was not really constructed with a view towards drainage, who knows. Possibly a race on Monday? | ||
| Pwnzor |
Very interesting, indeed. I think 2 out of 3 spots in the front row would have been the same, with our without qualifying. Jorge down in 12th... shame, that. I was hoping he would do more with the Ducati than he has thus far. Iannone on the front row is awesome... on Maverick's old bike. The track was definitely not built with drainage in mind. | ||
| Crusty |
Well; you can't really blame the builders; how often does it rain in Qatar? I wouldn't count either Rossi or Marquez out of the running just yet. Both have been known to win from the back. | ||
| Figorvonbuellingham |
If they race in the rain my money would be on Petrucci. He's good on a wet track. |
