Ducati Monster Forum

early start to this thread: Josh Hayes was just announced as the Tech 3 replacement rider for CE2.

an ill fated ride I fear...he rides the R1 in AMA without as much of the computer assist as possible and it will be a major rescrewing on of his head for to race that M1 and be anywhere near to doing anything....maybe I am wrong...but it'll be cool for him nonetheless...

not even sure I can watch this one...it's too soon.

i think it's safe to assume that marco would want the show to go on.

I'm sure...but I'm not ready yet.

I wonder how the riders heads are for this race. Specially Rossi, considering the vircumstances of the crash. Stoner must look at his pretty wifes baby bump and wonder. He's already been talking about his future after bike racing.
We'll see how hard they go at it.

I'm wondering if I will even get to see it at all. Have no idea if Directv will handshake a deal with FOX, SPEED, etc. by tomorrow. Haven't heard anything yet. Anyone know?

www.motogp.com (http://)   ;D

Ouch  [clap]

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2011/gresini+will+participate+at+valencia (http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2011/gresini+will+participate+at+valencia)

...as they should. [thumbsup]

 [clap] [thumbsup]

http://superbikeplanet.com/2011/Nov/111102r.htm (http://superbikeplanet.com/2011/Nov/111102r.htm)

Well, no Lorenzo, no Sic, no Edwards, banged up Spies.... Rossi might have an outside shot at a spirited podium for his old friend with a little bit of luck.  This is assuming his head is screwed on straight and Stoner bins it during the warmup lap.

So were talking two chances...

slim and none?

An outside shot.  Three Repsols, a Zuke and half-a-Spies will have something to say about it.  Hayden, too. 

I call Hayes on the podium.  Yup, you heard it here first.  But if he doesn't get on the podium, pretend gm2 said it.  Actually, Hayes is screwed.  He's gonna go from a Dunlop-shod SBK w/o traction control to a super-twitchy, finicky rocketship tha is piloted by a supercomputer and equipped with tires with outlandish amounts of grip and an equally outlandish propensity for tossing riders.  And he'll be doing this at a track he doesn't know.  Definitely in contention for a podium.    ;)

Somebody needs to put Troy Bayliss back on a bike for Valencia...

Just have all the riders switch bikes. Drawn from a hat.

And if Stoner draws a Ducati and still places first??  ;D

my lurid podium prediction...

1)Dovi
2)Hayden
3)Capirossi

The  [laugh] icon just doesn't do this statement justice.

I think this might be the race that the Spanish Turd actually wins after Stoner decides to park his bike for a little coffee break on the side. He'll still finish second. Dovi will bring it in third. Both Rossi and Hayden will light their bikes on fire.

That'd be cool to watch.  A fitting end.

I don't think it's in Stoner's mentality to take it easy...

1- Stoner
2- Pedrosa
3- Dovi
4- Bautista
5- Spies
6- Rossi
7- Hayden
8- Capirossi

Rossi and Hayden should light their bikes on fire!  [laugh]

maybe after alvaro crashes out of 4th on the penultimate lap he'll set his bike on fire.  then call hopper over to kick it as it burns.

and Hopper will break his toe on the bike in the process requiring 2 surgeries and 3 months of rehab...

nah, he has experience kicking that thing. 

http://www.crash.net/motogp/news/174585/1/rossi_to_run_helmet_design_dedicated_to_simoncelli.html (http://www.crash.net/motogp/news/174585/1/rossi_to_run_helmet_design_dedicated_to_simoncelli.html)

 [thumbsup]

I'm oddly disappointed that the entire grid (or at least bunch of the grid) isn't running Simoncelli replicas.  I have no basis to expect them to so do, but I had that expectation anyway.  For some reason, just a sticker on the bike or patch on the leathers doesn't seem like enough.

I also really wanted a missing man formation, but didn't think it would fly.    

I already made my prediction.  Hayes FTW.   ;D

A patch/sticker seems to be the norm for any loss in any sport, so I don't see why so much is expected.  He had a week of tribute, will always be in our memories, but the show goes on.  When Shoya Tomizawa died last year, we saw small tributes on helmets/leathers or bikes... same thing for Kato when he died.  Numbers on the leathers, armbands, etc. 

But none of those guys provided us with such grand entertainment as seeing Shorty McPinthole tumbing through the gravel after getting p0wned into a corner [evil]

FP1

Pos. Rider Team Bike Time
1 Casey Stoner Repsol Honda Honda RC212V 1:45.513
2 Dani Pedrosa Repsol Honda Honda RC212V 1:45.763
3 Valentino Rossi Ducati Marlboro Ducati GP11 1:45.828
4 Nicky Hayden Ducati Marlboro Ducati GP11 1:46.073
5 Loris Capirossi Pramac Racing Ducati GP11 1:46.108
6 Ben Spies Yamaha Factory Racing Yamaha M1 1:46.259
7 Randy De Puniet Pramac Racing Ducati GP11 1:46.371
8 Toni Elias LCR Honda Honda RC212V 1:46.393
9 Andrea Dovizioso Repsol Honda Honda RC212V 1:46.402
10 Cal Crutchlow Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Yamaha M1 1:46.581
11 Alvara Bautista Rizla Suzuki Suzuki GSV-R 1:46.922
12 Hector Barbera Aspar Team Ducati GP11 1:46.967
13 Karel Abraham Cardion AB MotoRacing Ducati GP11 1:47.079
14 Hiroshi Aoyama San Carlo Honda Gresini Honda RC212V 1:47.581
15 Josh Hayes Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Yamaha M1 1:48.037
16 Katsu Nakasuga Yamaha Factory Racing Yamaha M1 1:48.382


Session declared wet.

I guess Dovi's heart isn't into this one. Rossi only 3 tenth is probably very deceiving.

Look at Capi!! I changed my mind... Capirossi FTW!!

Dont forget it was wet.

Hayes faster than STONER! (18:14 left in FP2 ;) )


# Po. Name TeamGap First
# 1HAYDEN N.Ducati Team1:50.175
# 2DE PUNIET R.Pramac Racing Team+0.320
# 3ABRAHAM K.Cardion AB Motoracing+0.689
# 4ROSSI V.Ducati Team+1.151
# 5BAUTISTA A.Rizla Suzuki MotoGP+1.519
# 6DOVIZIOSO A.Repsol Honda Team+1.742
# 7HAYES J.Monster Yamaha Tech 3+1.838
# 8SPIES B.Yamaha Factory Racing+1.897
# 9CRUTCHLOW C.Monster Yamaha Tech 3+2.329
# 10NAKASUGA K.Yamaha Factory Racing+2.752
# 11STONER C.Repsol Honda Team+2.839

Don't bust my bubble. Capi! Capi! Capi!

When I said that Rossi's time was deceiving, I meant because it was wet.

Did Stoner only run 1 lap? I need to watch the feed to see just how wet it was out there. The best run was 1:50.175  ???

The screenshots of the on bike from FP2 on motogp.com looked very wet.  Seems to be clearing a bit now, Hayes is doing a stellar job on a new bike, wet, and unknown track.

FP2 RESULTS

Results:

Pos No. Rider Bike Time Diff Diff Previous
1 19 Alvaro BAUTISTA SUZUKI 1'47.975     
2 69 Nicky HAYDEN DUCATI 1'48.316 0.341 0.341
3 14 Randy DE PUNIET DUCATI 1'48.684 0.709 0.368
4 17 Karel ABRAHAM DUCATI 1'49.021 1.046 0.337
5 35 Cal CRUTCHLOW YAMAHA 1'49.350 1.375 0.329
6 4 Andrea DOVIZIOSO HONDA 1'49.422 1.447 0.072
7 46 Valentino ROSSI DUCATI 1'49.613 1.638 0.191
8 27 Casey STONER HONDA 1'49.674 1.699 0.061
9 26 Dani PEDROSA HONDA 1'49.820 1.845 0.146
10 41 Josh HAYES YAMAHA 1'50.509 2.534 0.689
11 89 Katsuyuki NAKASUGA YAMAHA 1'51.277 3.302 0.768
12 65 Loris CAPIROSSI DUCATI 1'51.838 3.863 0.561
13 8 Hector BARBERA DUCATI 1'51.932 3.957 0.094
14 11 Ben SPIES YAMAHA 1'52.072 4.097 0.140
15 7 Hiroshi AOYAMA HONDA 1'53.286 5.311 1.214
16 24 Toni ELIAS HONDA 1'54.342 6.367 1.056

FP2 looks like it was a mess  [thumbsdown]

hayes: http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/95912 (http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/95912)

Dunno if Casey was struggling or what. He led earlier in the session.

Nicky and Alvaro had great sessions.

Ben must stop crashing. He has to be one hurting kid right now.

(http://photos.motogp.com/2011/11/04/65loriscapirossi,motogp_slideshow.jpg)

Is it a derby, or simply double posting? ;D

 ;D

thinking back, i shoulda posted it in one and quoted it in the other.

(http://pix.crash.net/motorsport/360/PA1065198.jpg)

Nice job by Randy de Puniet on that QP,  finishing ahead of both rossi and hayden  ;D

I'm praying for rain tomorrow and I think Rossi is too.  One last chance to get a win this year.

Who would have ever imagined we would be saying that Rossi needs it to rain to have a chance of winning.

Anyone else really diggin that helmet of rossi's?  I'd sport that sexy pregnant dog.  [cheeky]

tastefully done by drudi...

front half is simoncelli's design (http://www.agv-moto.com/index.php/products-details/145/moto_agv_gp_tech_marco_simoncelli_replica/) and the back half is business-as-usual rossi....

Unfortunate and sad state of affairs.

gresini moto2 livery:

(http://photos.motogp.com/2011/11/05/FTC_VAL_Moto2_QP.jpg)

(http://weridemotorsports.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/1-valentino_helmet_valencia_2011213205059871.jpg)

(http://weridemotorsports.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/2-valentino_helmet_valencia2011113205059862.jpg)

(http://weridemotorsports.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/3-valentino_helmet_valencia_2011313205059862.jpg)

I'd hit it  :-X

Bautista takes out Rossi, Hayden, and RDP? first turn of the race  [bang] [bang] [bang] [bang] [bang]

Sucks about the 1st turn.

Fantastic race otherwise though. The Dovi/Pedrosa battle was great...as was Spies passing both of them like it wasn't a big deal.  [thumbsup]

Crazy finish...it must have been really hard to ride out in front, trying to push hard enough to stay ahead, but not crash. Unbelievable that Stoner won it. Very exciting!  [bow_down]

...and we learned what is more effective than a wet track at slowing down Pedrosa...the hint of a wet track!  ;D

from what I read it was Dovi that hit Bautista and caused the crash. go figure Honda would take out Ducati the hard way after the promising way Ducati was in the wet. Conspiracy I tell you

Best finish to a race in a long while. Stoner totally played Spies on those last 2 laps. Love him or hate him Stoner is freak.

I dunno, Stoner didn't make any passes on him, but the Honda came out of that last corner like a top fuel dragster.  Granted he picked it up quick and fired it out, but the bike simply made the Yamaha look slow in a straight line.  Its the most exciting finish for there being no racing in those final laps.  It reminded me of how Stoner used to breeze past the Yams in a straight line circa 2007.

they said several times that the last 2 corners were the most treacherous.. looked like ben was a tiny bit too careful.  0.015 seconds too careful, to be exact.  one hell of a drive from stoner, i think he was as surprised as everyone.

awesome ride from everyone, great fun to see dovi and pedro thinking they were back in 125s.

first corner was a major bummer but didn't really look like anyone's fault.  what a cherry on the season for ducati that was.   >:(

helluva job from josh hayes as well.

Watching the video replays from several angles it is clear that Bautista's front tyre comes into contact with Dovi's rear tyre but its hard to tell who instigated it. Dovi was in front though so had the line. Classified as a racing incident. Pity that 4 bikes were taken out.

No one has mentioned Hayes brilliant debut performance (eighth from memory). (edit - GM2 now has).

Was a bit worried after seeing Takahashi's crash but apparently he is OK.

I thought all three races and the pre race memorial were a fitting tribute to Sic.  

You need to watch it. Dovi was in front and held a straight line the whole way...Bautista drifted into him from behind as he was braking for turn 1. Seemed like a racing incident to me...but there is no way it was Dovi's fault.

I don't think Stoner played anyone...he just got a better drive out of the last turn because Spies was being a tad too careful. Tough conditions for everyone, especially the guy in the lead...as evident by Stoner losing his huge lead in the first place.

I have to disagree about who drifted...

it wasn't anyone's 'fault'.

I'm not sure what I saw, but one view from the front of the pack shows Bautista's rear wheel an inch or two up off the ground just before the bike dropped, so he might have simply lost the front under hard braking (to avoid Dovi)?

They actually connected.  IIRC, there was a camera shot from Bautista's bike showing his front connecting with Dovi's rear tire.

That's the way baseball go.

Oh well, end of season and off to another long boring winter of no racing. [bang] Which I will spend wondering why The Ben didn't get it hooked up and running for the finish line!!! [roll] It was like he chopped the throttle for a plug check in the old two stroke days! Ah, shouldn't you keep it pinned to win... that is if you can?

Good for Stoner. Sucky for everyone else. Bring on next season. [thumbsup] I'm done with MotoGP for 2010. :P

Don't you mean 2011?   ;D

You don't think he did?  That Honda was too much for the Yami!  Didn't he run it a bit wide too?  Can't give Stoner a millisec!

the last two turns were catching people out in the poor conditions all weekend. ben was just a little too cautious, and i don't think stoner really had anything to lose by chancing a little more throttle.

in interviews before and after the race, both stoner and spies said it's very hard to lead in conditions like that because you don't have anybody to in front of you to "judge" the conditions.

Thats true, they both said that. They showed a great deal of mutual respect when interviewed and after the race, you could see the conversation between them.
Easier to chase than lead with no reference point in front of you.
Stoner had the title and thought , "bugger it I'll take a bigger risk than usual."
One commentator said they were friends, I thought Stoner and Jorge had developed a friendly rivalry also.

Jorge sounded like an ok guy in the commentary box. Why are there so many Lorenzo haters?

Yeah, I was really surprised by how relaxed and personable Jorge sounded while talking with the commentators.

That's the first time I've ever seen or heard anything from him where I didn't think he came off like a douche.

I would almost dare say that was the best race of the 800cc era...

At least top 3. I would need to look at the firat year when no one really understood what was going on and the Stoner/Rossi battle in Laguna.

those last couple of laps were a good way to kill off the 800's... was really rooting for ben to pull off a second podium.

too bad the ducs lost all chance at redemption in the first corner, that was just a kick in the nads to cap off the season.

that was his sixth GP podium   ;D

haha, sorry i meant 2nd win.

Catalunya 2009.

 [thumbsup] [thumbsup]

It is? Shit! [laugh] [laugh]

Yeah, that was an impressive hook up and run by Stoner to the line. I read where all Spies said about it was "Horsepower". True that. [thumbsup] [Dolph] [popcorn]

Two of my favorites pics from that race.

(http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a31/jroworld/rossi-lorenzo-catalunya-05.jpg)
(http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a31/jroworld/rossi-lorenzo-catalunya-04.jpg)

Anyone feel like posting that one up on R4M?   :D

I bet it's there. ;)

I looked earlier.  There's a place holder for it, but no one is seeding.

I might have it on DVD... :-\

http://www.rumblestrip.net/main/2009/6/14/5-star-epic-finish-at-catalunya.html (http://www.rumblestrip.net/main/2009/6/14/5-star-epic-finish-at-catalunya.html)

 [thumbsup]

That's a start I mean finish. 

 :D

Damn, can't believe I had forgotten that race finish. [bang] That was some of the best ever. [thumbsup] [popcorn] [bow_down] Glad we all got to see the Super Sic/Dovi dice at Phillip Island a few weeks ago. Great couple of final laps too! [wine] But that race with Vale and George kicked butt! ;)

Motegi 2010

i was gonna say that.  he really rubbed ol george's nose in it that day, too  ;)

Fantastic last-ever 125cc race.

Fantastic Moto2 race.

And, shockingly, a really good GP race. Shame about the turn 1 cluster-make the beast with two backs. Also a shame about Spies getting destroyed by Stoner on the final straight.

Goodbye and good riddance, 800cc. [thumbsup]

that was awesome

Can't wait for the year of the 1,000s to start. [thumbsup] Sorry to see it may just be the Honda, Yammyhammer, Duc show. :P It will be interesting to see what CRT bikes make it. MotoGP needs to do something to make the grid stop shrinking! Who wants to watch a GP race with 12-13 bikes on the grid from 3 manufacturers? [bang] [roll] Zzzzzzzz....

Suzuki has been testing a 1000 but it's not ready and won't be until a bit into the season.  But it's at least looking quasi-likely they will stay.  Bautista tests the 800 tomorrow. 

On Saturday reports sounded like they would be racing in 2012.  On Sunday it sounded more 50/50.

 ??? ???

Why??

...and apparently so does RdP

http://motomatters.com/press_release/2011/11/08/randy_de_puniet_to_test_suzuki_gsv_r_800.html (http://motomatters.com/press_release/2011/11/08/randy_de_puniet_to_test_suzuki_gsv_r_800.html)

Massive high side by Takahashi in the Moto2 race!  :o Bradl's looked decent as well but I only saw the quick on-board shot.