Ducati Monster Forum

11th? Somebody tell me how this is not depressing (and please don't tell me "its better than Melandri did").  All I can come up with is that it is only the first day. Wish I was a Suzuki fan. Who put the bottle rocket in their asses?

granted he did fairly well in end-of-'08 testing... in mixed weather.. without the whole paddock present.. but you gotta figure that learning to ride the bucking bronco will take some time.  even if the gp09 is 'better' out of the corners than the '08, better still leaves a ton of room for improvement.

http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2009/Feb/090205c.htm (http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2009/Feb/090205c.htm)

"We started out with the same set-up as Jerez, because after two months without riding it was better to go with something we knew. We haven't made massive changes over the course of the day, mainly because before we do that I need to pick up my own pace. The bike feels good on the brakes and it is stable and precise in the fast corners. I'm struggling a bit on corner exit though because it still tends to pump quite a lot and I'm not used to that yet. We're working to reduce it and we've got a couple of ideas that we'll check out over the next two days. I like the new tyre rule. We'd got to a point where we were working too much on the tyres and there wasn't enough time to work on the set-up of the bike. Now we just have a choice of two tyres, both of which work well even though I'm not able to get the most out of the harder compound yet, and that makes the job much easier for the team."

I'm still waiting to see how he is on day 3 before i even think about worrying about Hayden not being fast enough :)

day 2, improving... http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2009/Feb/090206a.htm

stoner on pace and in pain.

Am I the only one in complete amazement at Stoner riding in pain and still setting the fastest lap. F'n awesome if you ask me (and you didn't  [cheeky])

But just like some on this board will tell you, it's the tires the bike, not Stoner ;D

My judgement is still out on Hayden, but he's no where near the pace to hang up front.  I'd give some time, but I will also not be surprised if his career takes a nosedive on the Duc just like everyone elses except Stoner.  He made the comment that the Duc "pumps too much exiting corners."  Well get used to it farmboy, because that's just the way you gotta ride it.

Stoner is still blazingly fast... but shutup about the wrist.  We know you had surgery and I'm sorry.  Where is Loren(th)o?  That Suzuki looks to be competitive!  GP really needs that to happen tbh.  If all four manufacturers can place a bike near the front, then /cheer for racing. 

I wonder how Hopper is getting along with his PS3 MotoGP?   ;D

lost confidence, new tires.

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/73157 (http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/73157)

and yeah, odds are definitely not in nicky's favor.  but we can hope.

Speaking of tires.  Burgess had remarked that the switch to the control tire will only help Rossi... and I say it helps Stoner too, but hurts the rest of the field.

I agree, seeing that a lot of the riders are griping about the new harder tires and stiff carcass.  The reason Burgess had commented on that, was because Rossi in particular, but also Stoner really like to ride on very stiff tires.  When Rossi was with Michelin, they made him his tires with a very stiff carcass, so much so that Colin Edwards commented on it that riding on Valentino's tires was like riding on cement.  He felt there was no grip and couldn't understand how Rossi rides those things.

I think Rossi and Stoner get the most out of those tires due to two reasons.  They push extremely hard, and number two, they know that the harder tires aren't going to crap near the end of a race like everyone else riding the softer tires, so they pull away on victories.

Correct me if I'm wrong... but Rossi and Stoner have always used extremely stiff tires, so this should only help them further dominate the series imo.  This is bad for racing in general and Burgess saying that the control tire will only further hurt the racing might end up being correct.  Despite everyone being on "fair" ground, its actually not as fair as it seems.  A lot of these guys aren't as good with the stiff tires, for better or worse.

actually, i think gist of burgess' statement was that, since he believes rossi to be the superior racer, "equalizing" the equipment will only handicap everybody else since it would be removing their possible advantage.

ducati basically said the same thing regarding their use of bridgestone tires.

the first thing hopper said after testing the new control tires was that Bridgestone had obviously gone with the "Rossi/Stoner front". 

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/73158 (http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/73158)

nothing new.. nicky will improve, etc

yeah, but if i remember correctly, that was due to the fact that yamaha/ducati had success with that particular part and everybody else, no matter what they used, were pretty much lost.

http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2009/Feb/090207a.htm (http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2009/Feb/090207a.htm)

Almost the top 10 within 1 sec of each other.  Is it typically that tight?

mitt

toseland... woops!

(http://pix.crash.net/motorsport/360/PA541146.jpg)

125mph highside

I wonder if some of "instability" Nicky is talking about is what we saw on the '08 bike -- losing traction on the gas after apex.  I remember noticing it was really pronounced at Laguna (particularly T2) and a few other circuits.  About halfway between the apex and the rumble strips on the outside of a turn, it looked like Casey would go into a two-wheel drift as he got on the gas.  Every time he did it, I swore he was about to crash, as the bike would just slide away from him and go in any direction it wanted.  But somehow, he'd stay upright and pick the bike up and take off.  Mebbe that's the same thing Nicky is talking about?

 

Yeah that's pretty much it.  We regularly saw Casey's bike get squirrely last year coming out of corners and so many times I was thinking "how the hell did he not crash?"  Also though, Casey did crash a handful of times last year.  I'm of the opinion that although Casey is used to the bike acting like that and can ride the snot out of it, there is no way he has a string of luck like 2007 again.  I'd expect him to crash out a handful of times again this year.

I feel sorry for Hayden.  He's already in the mindset of trying to "fix" the bikes handling.  I honestly don't think its fixable.  Nobody else could fix it.  You either ride it like Casey or you take the career nosedive.  If dirt-track was the key to having no issues with the bikes tendency to go all over the place, then Nicky would already be fast.  The Duc doesn't get out of shape like a normal bike.  It jackrabbits, where as the other bikes just power slide.

i don't get the impression he's trying to "fix" the bike, just get used to the way it behaves. it's been 12 years since he's been on anything that wasn't a honda.

you ever see nicky on the rc45? that bike was hardly forgiving by any stretch of the word.

fwiw, he improved his time on the gp9 by 1.505s over the 3 days while figuring out a new bike, new tires, and a new team. given the situation, i'm not ready to give up on his season yet.

Testing is just testing.  It doesn't tell you much about the season.  At most, it tell you whose package is competitive at this stage in its development.  But if someone is slow in testing, it doesn't mean they're screwed from the beginning of the season or that the bike won't be competitive.  For example, from the looks of things, the Suke isn't going to be outclassed at the beginning of the season.  The team might get outridden, but Capi has a potentially competitive bike.  Similarly, Yami and the Duc are faring pretty well with their development. 

I never did. Seen him on the RC51 though. When did he ride the RC45?

before the 51  =)

I thought that one was gone before his time. Guess not.
http://www.motorcycledaily.com/hayden.html (http://www.motorcycledaily.com/hayden.html)

me either  [thumbsup]

but you just like him cuz you think he's cute.... ;D

 [laugh]

i've been a fan since i started watching the gp in 05, the same year i got my ducati.

i think the reason i liked him back then, was because my bud's were all about rossi.

don't get me wrong, rossi  [bow_down]

but there is something about nicky.... i ReaLLY want him to win.

i have not given up on him, and won't until he's retired.

him being hawt has got little to do with it  ;D

From the Sepang test (http://thestar.com.my/sports/story.asp?file=/2009/2/8/sports/3222311&sec=sports):
(http://thestar.com.my/archives/2009/2/8/sports/s_p59Casey.jpg)

I smell a caption contest...

That skirt gets shorter every session!

"female team member"

pfft.

After looking at that pic for a while, my wrist began to feel hurt and overworked too.   ;D 

Now we know how Casey broke his scaphoid bone ;D

http://www.crash.net/MotoGP/News/142846/1/exclusive_paul_denning_team_suzuki_-_qa.html (http://www.crash.net/MotoGP/News/142846/1/exclusive_paul_denning_team_suzuki_-_qa.html)

interesting interview with denning after the sepang test.

notable from an american perspective is how much he basically hangs the performance of the squad on capirossi and, as usual, says not much about the mole.  they really screwed up in not hiring spies, which i suspect denning would privately agree with.

I agree with you there, and can you imagine how Spies would be taking to the updated Zuke?  He was pretty solid on last years bike and that wasn't exactly the greatest bike in the field.  Capirex rocks in the development department.  Great guy to have on your team and the dude can still rip it up at his relative old age for racing in the premier class.

I'm really hoping we see a fistful of riders on all 5 eh 4 manufacturers up front this season.  The Dornasaki doesn't count imo if it happens to get Melandri and Hopper back in the field.  While it may lend extra racers, I don't think its going to be terribly productive.  Who knows though.  Maybe Aprilia should contact Melandri/Hopper and bring back the cube!   [cheeky]

Unless every 2009 race is wet. 

that was a good read.  Mr Denning seems like he would be a good boss to have.  I liked his approach when asked about his thoughts on cost cutting options - basically saying what he thinks doesn't matter - it will be what it is, and he will do his job regardless.  Nice to see instead of people publicly b1tching about rules.

mitt

Good ol' AMA... [roll]

I was commenting on Vermulen's wet weather skills rather than the AMA's continued super-retardation, but it certainly applies.   ;)

I miss a lot.... ;)

It will be interesting to see how Ben performs in the wet...

which is actually what I thought you were referring to.

I'm interested too.  I can't remember (but I'm sure derby can  [roll]), but weren't two of his MotoGP races wet?  Indy (where wet is an understatement) and in the UK?  Or was UK dry?

I can't even remember what day it is...

NFW I'll remember the weather from Donnington. [laugh] [laugh] [laugh]

Happen to have that race saved and Spies is no doubt impressive....new bike, track, tires and qualifies 8th in the wet ahead of Pedrosa, Toseland, Lorenzo, DeAngilis, Hopper to name a few.  Finished 14th.  He is gonna get roughed up in WSBK, but once he shakes that off he is gonna be real good!

yep, donington (? - whatever UK track his first GP was), and Indy.  he also qualified very well in the UK, which was about 48 hours after he got the call to ride in that race for capi.

i'm sure he would have gotten 5th at indy too if the garage language barrier hadn't fallen down on "anti-fog stuff".  poor guy was blind at the end of the race.

Boy you blokes are hard on your own countrymen, Hayden has been on the bike 10 minutes, give the boy a chance.
Don

They don't like his hat.... ;D

 :o  Fack . . .

(http://www.motorcyclenews.com/upload/220066/images/stoner.jpg)

That's a really good pic.  :)

^^ That's f'in awesome. Is that Bubba or Casey?

Wait nevermind...just noticed the 27 on the helmet.

back of the helmet says 27 and hump on the leathers says stoner.

I know...it's late and I'm tired ;D

Great picture.  Notice the black stripe from the rear and the tucked front.  

Stoner: "maybe if I push it just another half second per lap, Rossi can't catch me.... I sure do hate racing.  He bumps into my fairing and endangers us all."   [cheeky]

What do you mean tucked front?  He is riding like that through the corner.  The front is turned and tracking in the direction of the slide(proper technique).   I'm not 100%, but from what I read Stoner did not have a get off, Hayden did.  I am sure Casey rode that one out and promptly duplicated that slide on the next left hander to even out the tire 8)

He lost me back when he proclaimed that he nicknamed himself 'Trick Daddy'

and his stupid hat

Hayden`s battling, get over it ;D

the slacker isn't even out of shape....  ;)

(http://www.motorcyclenews.com/upload/220113/images/221588.jpg)

Maybe you're right... but man that sure looks like the recipe for a crash in that picture.  his bike is darn near pointed into the grass.  I can see how he could be drifting through the turn, but I can also understand how he has those handful of crashes where he claims he doesn't know what happened.  Yeah maybe you can ride like this, but it isn't going to result in staying upright all the time.

I suspect that if you looked at photos of a sequence of top GP riders going through that same turn at Sepang, you'd see many of them sliding and sideways like Casey. It may just be that particular turn, like turn 2 at Infineon, where the back wheel just naturally sort of drifts. And the D16 probably does it more than other GP bikes ;D

no one [in the media] has mentioned him crashing in sepang.  i don't think he did at all.  besides, he was only doing a handful of laps at a time and never did a race simulation.

stoner buddy chaz davies has talked about casey's very unique way of riding that bike, which is basically pick it up really early and leave your body out in the next county.  since so far he's 1-for-9 in terms of who can successfully ride that thing (the 800), seems he's got it figured out.

crashes where he claims he doesn't know what happened -- you mean on the LCR or mid-last year?

there's a somewhat boring '2009_MotoGP_Febuary_Pre-Season_Testing_Sepang.avi' floating around the interweb that shows all the riders go through the same 3 turns.  on a fairly low speed corner exit, nicky is the only guy who looks like he's riding a rag doll...  :(

Pics like this along with the continued struggles of others on the bike just confirm for me that it's Stoner making the Ducati successful and not the other way around. 

Claiming he's just along for the ride now just sounds nuts to me -  not that I agreed with it before  ;) .  The boy can ride his ass off and to make the Duc competitive for the front he pushes it to the razors edge.  Sometimes that bites him in the ass like it did last year.   Who's to say though that if he's not on that edge that the Duc remains a viable threat given the times of everyone else on the bike?

YMMV of course but that's my View of the World.

Let me add in closing,   Hayden rules!   He'll come around.  I predict a finish in the 5-6 range with 2 or 3 podiums.  ;D

ha! i just downloaded that today but haven't had a chance to watch it yet.

MotoGP Riding Secrets is there too; kinda fluffy but... it is the offseason afterall.

Every get off Stoner had last year was on the front end...tucking it or going in too hot and running off the track.  He has mastered the rear end of that bike!

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2009/Haydens+Ducati+prospects+evaluated+by+US+media (http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2009/Haydens+Ducati+prospects+evaluated+by+US+media)

"...where they’ve been without a public face since pulling out of American Superbike racing at the end of 2006"

i know it wasn't nearly as showy as a factory effort but it's as if people completely overlook the fact that there were ducatis in fx in 2007 and 2008. 

...including our very own Tigre (http://ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=748.0).

i was including him as well  ;)