[Closed] Moto GP 2013

Let's see how Vale behaves in a few races time when the mind games start

He'll be happy go lucky just like he always is, but he'll win any mind games that are to be played with ease. I reckon Lorenzo is already cracking his pants just a [i]tiny bit......[/i] 🙂

Rossi is the master of the mind games, broke Gibernau, broke the Moaner, he keeps laughing and smiling as he slides the knife into you 😆

Pedrosa is handicapped by the fact he is so tiny IMO yes it pays off off the start but he struggles under really heavy breaking and just getting his paper weight around on the bike.

It's not only his personality that endears Rossi to millions of adoring fans, it's the impossible murderous things he does on the race track. Last night, the life was put back into Moto GP and it's going to be a brilliant season

If Cal had made a better start he would have finished second I'm sure as he was way way faster into the corners than both Honda riders but had to cut speed off and then got blasted on the straights.

I think he would have finished where he did even with a better start, as the speed difference on the straight when Rossi was following the Honda's compared to Cal, clearly showed that Cal would have been drafted and passed at some stage in the race by the Honda's .

Really good to see Rossi back and now he has less to prove, he can get on with racing with reduced peer pressure and potentially improve on last night.

Rossi is the master of the mind games, broke Gibernau, broke the Moaner, he keeps laughing and smiling as he slides the knife into you

Can't see that working with Lorenzo, though - Rossi's past his best, and Lorenzo's won enough (including the championship, of course) that he's not lacking in self-confidence. Would probably work on Pedrosa, though.

Rossi proved last night he's not past his best.. He proved his best is still better than 99% of other peoples bests.

Rossi proved last night he's not past his best.. He proved his best is still better than 99% of other peoples bests.

Problem is the other 1% is sitting in the box next to him.

With all the talk on here about Rossi lets not forget how amazing Marquez was, Texas will be a fab race,

It all makes F1 look as boring as it really is 😉 😉

Meh, he beat Crutchlow who is on an inferior bike-Rossi stayed with the Honda's much better down the straights, he then beat Dani, fair play and Marquez who whilst undoubtedly awesome was in his first race....I'd hold off on the ticker tape parade just yet, Lorenzo was in a distant class of his own!

Hopefully the tighter European stuff will suit Cal better. Redding was excellent in Moto2 too....still looks too big for the bike though, I'd love to see him on the big bike.

The question is... If Rossi had got off with the group better and not made the initial mistake that put him behind Cal/Dovi/Bradl, would he have been able to stick with Lorenzo ?

Lap times would say 'probably'

Lap times would say 'probably'

+1

 

Forget all the lap times and if and buts and maybes...... entertainment! This is the stuff! This is what they want! Go Rossi!

Very good race and that one is usually quite dull, looks to be shaping up to be an interesting season with Marquez and Rossi back on a decent bike.
Marquez is due a massive crash as is Dovi though 😯

Anybody know how Smith ended up with a MotoGP ride? He wasn't up to much in Moto2 last year but still ended up in the premier class. Not trolling, genuinely interested how it came about.

He'll come good in a few races (not sure I'd want to be Cal's team mate, scary bloke 😀 ), it's not really a fair comparison between him and Marquez, whose had full factory Repsol kit through Moto2 and Motogp (he's also an Alien 😉 )

[i]Early prediction for Sunday:

Rossi, Lorenzo and Marquez on the podium with Cal as my outside bet.

Plus Scott for Moto2 glory, or a 2nd
[/i]

What, no comments on my original post! Do I have to name podium places next time?

Amused to see a slightly more humble Rossi congratulating Lorenzo at the end of the race. A bit of a turn around from when they last shared a garage and Rossi threw his toys out the pram when Lorenzo got quicker than him (... which eventually led to Rossi insisting on a wall in the middle of the Yamaha pit, his Lorenzo or me ultimatum, his injury, his having to leave the team, and a sorry two years looking very ordinary on the Ducati.)

Let's see how Vale behaves in a few races time when the mind games start

They already have started, he basically didnt bother with Lorenzo as he is a bit more immune to the games- and went straight to Marquez and became all Pally with him. He's working on the kid already!
Plus i'm sure he was buzzing with the racing that Marquez had just shared with him.
Lorenzo is the tough nut to crack- how did he win last year? Consistency and surgeon like precision. And that's exactly what he'll do this year. He will be on the podium every race and as long as he dosen't crash he'll be right there this year.

Great racing in all three classes.

Moto3 was mental as usual and Redding in Moto2 finally came of age in my opinion....kept his cool, made the tyres last and was right there at the end instead of hanging on for a desperate 3rd like in previous good races he's had....i reckon there's a MotoGP ride waiting for him next season, the MarcVDS team certainly have the funds to lease a satellite bike for him.

MotoGP....what to say?....i still cant believe people write Rossi off.
He has been in the top class for 13 years now and is still running at the front of races, it is incredible....he is one of those rare things, a legend of the sport that he is still competing in.
People will miss him when he's gone....his talent is a once in a lifetime occurrence.

Of course riders like Stoner, Lorenzo etc will come through and beat him....they are younger and the younger generation always moves a sport on but time and time again Rossi shows he can move with them....its awesome to behold, the way he carved through from 7th to 2nd on Sunday was ridiculous.

Do people think Lorenzo will still be racing for podiums or giving the new generation a run for their money in 2021?....13 years after he joined the class?....its not likely.
Mick Doohan spent 11 years in the class before injury halted his career, other greats like Hailwood spent 10 years in GPs, King Kenny Robert's career lasted 7 years, Schwantz and Lawson both 10 years etc etc....Rossi really is something special and i cant believe people dont want to see that.

Things have been frosty between Rossi and Lorenzo and Rossi and Stoner because i dont think he has ever seen them as heirs to his throne, they have been mere rivals....quick riders who come into the class, win some championships and leave again, an annoying distraction from him going about securing his own legacy in the sport, i dont think they have ever had his respect....Stoner has left already, how many more championships will Lorenzo win once Marquez gets up to speed?....Pedrosa has started to hint that he is ready to retire....meanwhile Rossi keeps keeping on.

I believe in the next couple of seasons we will see Rossi mellow and become comfortable with not winning so may races, he proved a massive point this weekend when people said the two years at Ducati ruined him, he'll win some races this year but more importantly he'll enjoy battling with Marquez.
Rossi is a student of the sport, remember his celebrations when he passed milestones set by Hailwood, Nieto etc?....very respectful, he even gave Angel Nieto a ride around the circuit when he broke his GP win record.

Rossi sees shades of himself in Marquez, that is what Stoner, Lorenzo and the others are missing....enjoy the next couple of seasons, this is the passing of the torch we didnt get to see when injury prevented Doohan racing against Rossi.

I don't see any of that lacking in Lorenzo!! Out and out fastest bloke on a motorbike in the world at the moment. He wasn't even pushed yesterday, I'd imagine that he'd got plenty left to give had it been required-Rossi was very quick in the second half of the race, but given that he must have been riding on fumes for the last lap, it's pretty safe to say that Lorenzo wasn't on the limit. Should be a good season, what has happened to Spies though? Barely beat Espargaro on the CRT despite being 20kph quicker in a straight line, he just doesn't look comfortable on a bike at the minute.

Lorenzo!! Out and out fastest bloke on a motorbike in the world at the moment

2nd fastest. The fastest has gone fishing 😀

Great display by Lorenzo. It's going to very difficult for anyone to get the upper hand on him this year. The battle will be for second and i'm really looking forward to it. Great to see Vale enjoying riding again. Makes the show so much better when he's in the mix.

Once Rossi gets the bike set up to his liking then he'll start to get inside Lorenzo's head by mixing it up a bit, like he did with Stoner at Laguna. If Rossi can get ahead of Lorenzo early on he can stick Lorenzo into a dogfight with the two Hondas and Cal, and then it will get interesting. What we don't want is Lorezo clearing off at the front and doing a Stoner and boring the sh!t out of evereyone.

Rossi still doesn't look totally settled on the Yamaha to me but when he does I think he's still got enough to take it to Lorenzo. Should be fun.

One thing which sets Rossi apart is his attitude.

His comment when interviewed at the end of the race was "great fun" says it all and he obviously still loves to race.

Can't wait for the next one 🙂

i still cant believe people write Rossi off.

+1 Some people don't know what they have till it's gone. Enjoy it all now!!
Not many people can bridge a 10 second gap in a few laps.

His comment when interviewed at the end of the race was "great fun"

2nd fastest. The fastest has gone fishing

Did Lorenzo not beat Stoner to the World Championship last year?
Stoner was a 2 time champion as is Lorenzo....

Once Rossi gets the bike set up to his liking then he'll start to get inside Lorenzo's head by mixing it up a bit, like he did with Stoner at Laguna

Lorenzo's a lot more of a fighter than Stoner, though.

What we don't want is Lorezo clearing off at the front and doing a Stoner and boring the sh!t out of evereyone.

A massive +1 on that, though. +2 even 🙂

The fastest has gone fishing

He wasn't the fastest last year, if he was he would of won the Championship 😉

[i]i still cant believe people write Rossi off.[/i]

Agree.

There was a comment (by Whitham in the BSB coverage on Eurosport earlier on Sunday) about the styles of riding. About how Alex Lowes's differed to that of Shakey's. Shakey was quite sit-up whereas Alex hung off the bike.

And if you watched the Rossi/Marquez dual you could see exactly what Whit was talking about, as Marquez hung off and Vale stayed sat up.

Rossi has been around that long I'm struggling to remember when he wasn't racing, and I'm old enough to have watched the Roberts/Sheene era.

Did Lorenzo not beat Stoner to the World Championship last year?

I aggree that Lorenzo is fast, but he has never had to battle toe to toe to win his two championships. Each title was one at the missfortune of others. No. 1 was won when Rossi crashed at Mugello and No. 2 was won when Stoner broke his ankle missing a few races and DP crashing out alot.

I know consistancy is the key but this year it will be nice to see how JL fairs when he has to really battle, not only with VR but also MM.

I think it was a complete master stroke by Stoner - Rossi has done the mind game thing with two amazing riders (Gibbers and Biaggi) and ruined both their careers. Stoner proved a point when Rossi went to Ducati and couldn't turn it round in the 80 seconds or whatever Burgess said. Stoner left at the right time, he went out on top after proving his point. A moaner he might have been (and I didn't particularly enjoy watching him ride) but IMO he was easily the fastest out there.

Lorenzo is quick, of that there is no doubt. But for entertainment purposes he lacks something, a bit like he's trying too hard. I'm putting my money on Marquez to carry on after Rossi. He's clearly got talent and he doesn't mind knocking folk about, which is always entertaining. Rossi is and always will be the greatest though - the man is a legend

And if you watched the Rossi/Marquez dual you could see exactly what Whit was talking about, as Marquez hung off and Vale stayed sat up.

Maybe this is why Rossi failed on the Ducati- his style is different to Stoner. Remember Rossi wasn't the only rider to fail with the Ducati.

Casey is the fastest rider i've ever seen in over 35 years of following bike racing. He's not the best racer (that title is Vale's, and probably remain so for a few years yet) but he (Stoner) was unbelievable to watch.

Euro - Member
Casey is the fastest rider i've ever seen in over 35 years of following bike racing. He's not the best racer (that title is Vale's, and probably remain so for a few years yet) but he (Stoner) was unbelievable to watch.

+1

I used to regard Hailwood as the greatest natural talent. Who else could manage to come back from such a long retirement and win such an important race straight off?

If Doohan had stayed in one piece, who knows what he would have finally achieved?

But Rossi has transcended the old racers. He has only one thing left to prove - that it was the Ducati that was crap, not him losing his touch. For a brief moment I thought Dovi was going to prove him wrong - another wasted rider.

Gardner was the bravest - I still reckon that wet GP he didn't win was one of the best GPs I've ever watched, crash after crash, he'd get up and regain his position.

Rossi will be running up front with Lorenzo, so now we'll see Lorenzo pushed to his limits, and that will be great racing.

Pedrosa is no slouch and now he's got a point to prove with Marquez so they'll be hammer and tongs.

Crutchlow is the dark horse, and I pleased to finally see a UK rider who can run with the leaders.

And Brad Smith? I enjoyed watching him backing his Moto2 bike into the corners last year. he's got a riding style that's perfect for the bigger bikes. I'm expecting him to punch well above the weight of the bike he's on.

Interesting 1st practice times @ Austin

1. Marc Marquez ESP Repsol Honda Team (RC213V) 2m 8.756s
2. Jorge Lorenzo ESP Yamaha Factory Racing (YZR-M1) 2m 9.009s
3. Dani Pedrosa ESP Repsol Honda Team (RC213V) 2m 10.356s
4. Andrea Dovizioso ITA Ducati Team (GP13) 2m 10.665s
5. Nicky Hayden USA Ducati Team (GP13) 2m 10.801s
6. Valentino Rossi ITA Yamaha Factory Racing (YZR-M1) 2m 10.828s
7. Alvaro Bautista ESP Go&Fun Honda Gresini (RC213V) 2m 10.910s
8. Cal Crutchlow GBR Monster Yamaha Tech 3 (YZR-M1) 2m 11.232s
9. Stefan Bradl GER LCR Honda MotoGP (RC213V) 2m 11.929s
10. Ben Spies USA Ignite Pramac Racing (GP13) 2m 12.813s
11. Yonny Hernandez COL Paul Bird Motorsport (ART CRT) 2m 13.058s
12. Claudio Corti ITA NGM Forward Racing (FTR-Kawasaki CRT)* 2m 13.321s
13. Bradley Smith GBR Monster Yamaha Tech 3 (YZR-M1) 2m 13.339s
14. Colin Edwards USA NGM Forward Racing (FTR-Kawasaki CRT)* 2m 13.694s
15. Aleix Espargaro ESP Power Electronics Aspar (ART CRT) 2m 13.970s

Marquez likes Austin- i'll put a tenner on him winning it 😀
Hopefully with Rossi and J-Lo elbowing him for the victory

Watching on Eurosport now, good god Marquez is quick around Austin. Get your money on him now. Feel a bit sorry for Dani as I can't really see him beating Marc anywhere this year.

Marc is awesome to watch on a bike.. I think its going to be a good race for 2nd place on sunday as if Marc keeps this pace up he will be winning by quite some margin.

Only worry with Marquez is that he'll start crashing as he does seem to be giving the bike a proper thrashing. Most riders seem to have a season of crashing when they move up to the top class. Rossi did it, as did Lorenzo and Pedrosa.

Visiting friends and watching practice from Austin, what a top track.

Moto GP - Marquez fastest in 3 out of 4 sections. I cant see by him for the win tomorrow.

Moto 2 - Redding for the Win.
He really needs to move up next year. Even with the extra minimum weight rules this year he's two kilos down on all his competitors at the front.

Redding on pole 🙂

Marquez... *speechless*

Marquez was pretty special.

He's a bit quick isn't he! Cal is showing up demigod Rossi at the moment isn't he!

How do u figure that out Tom?

He's outqualified him on an inferior bike twice in a row.....hasn't he got reduced factory support for the first three races?

Cal is on last years bike it is a satellite team, he will only get the newest upgrades when the factory have superceded them. As I have said before qualifying is willy waving, Rossi second in Qatar Cal was 5th. You score points in races not quali.

Good to have a bi of banter though, Honda benefit today because of the "seamless gearbox"