Ducati Monster Forum

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Honda+Racing+Corporation+renew+with+Marc+Marquez+until+end+of+2016 (http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Honda+Racing+Corporation+renew+with+Marc+Marquez+until+end+of+2016)

So who thinks Yourghey will actually want to get beaten by his team mate?

Apparently HRC said that their focus is to resign both MM and the Turd, who I doubt would turn down any offer. That closes the door and basically keeps everyone where they are. Ducati might be rethinking CC, but I think he signed a 2 year deal. Dovi won't go anywhere unless they can promote Iannone. I would be very interested in Aleix, but I assume that HRC and Yamaha are looking at putting him on a satellite.

Yeah, I'm guessing that the aliens wont change spots at all... but I could see AE taking Bautista/Bradl's spots.

I must missed the part about HRC wanting to keep Pedrosa.

You have a link?

I think he might be talking about this article:

http://www.asphaltandrubber.com/motogp/marc-marquez-contract-hrc-motogp/ (http://www.asphaltandrubber.com/motogp/marc-marquez-contract-hrc-motogp/)

"With Marquez under contract, Honda’s need for a rider that can win championships is already filled. That means that Dani Pedrosa’s seat looks safe in the Repsol Honda team, the Spaniard having proven that he can pick up the baton whenever Marquez falters, and is capable of pushing for a championship himself.

Pedrosa is 8th on the list of all-time winners in the premier class, and has shown that he can win races and, more importantly, finish ahead of the Yamahas consistently. Team principal Livio Suppo has repeatedly expressed his support for Pedrosa, which makes his spot at Repsol Honda look secure. Marquez and Pedrosa are clearly a winning combination, so why change?"

Nothing direct from HRC cept for Livio's support

I also read it on another article, but can't remember where. Livio's support is key, not to mention that pressure is off Pedrosa to perform, which should help him in the end. There's no reason for HRC to pay a premium for Lorenzo.

If Livio's talking and Nakamoto has gone silent about Lorenzo I'd take that as a sign.

That article also talks of Daa'Igna wanting Lorenzo.

I want to find a shoebox full of thousand dollar bills...

I think I have a better chance than Gigi does.

Rossi to start talking to Yamaha about two more years.

 http://m.crash.net/motogp/news/204490/1/valentino-rossi-to-start-yamaha-contract-talks.html (http://m.crash.net/motogp/news/204490/1/valentino-rossi-to-start-yamaha-contract-talks.html)

Purportedly Suzuki is pursuing Dovi.
IMO, that'd be worse than staying put at Ducati.

Ducati needs at least one Italian rider on the factory team. Iannone is not ready.

Rossi is a given at Yamaha if he wants, and it seems he does.

My speculation:

Too early to tell on JLo. I'm guessing he prefers to stay on the Yamaha, but he needs a win or two to convince himself the bike can do it. Otherwise he goes to HRC. I'm guessing he'll stay at Yamaha though. No way in hell he goes to Ducati...no matter what they offer.

Pedro will likely stay at HRC as well, unless JLo wants his seat. He's still an alien, so I think his seat is safe otherwise.

Aleix E. to Suzuki maybe? He deserves a factory ride, and not on a red bike. The 2 good factories are taken.

I think Cal stays at Ducati, despite the pregnant doging. There isn't another factory seat for him (his current complaining ruling out Suzuki). Dovi on the other hand could become Suzuki's second rider...leaving Ianonne to fill his seat at Ducati.

IMO, Cal's pregnant doging is warranted. How many other bikes do you see parked along the wall? He's having the same kinds of stupid issues Spies had at Yamaha.

J...you think Honda makes a seat for Jorge and drops one of the satellite bikes, or do you think they'd ditch the midget.

Yourghey won't ride a bike with Showa and Nissin components like Bautista, and I don't think Honda will give up the development of their in house bits..

I've read that Bautista and/or Barbera are likely to get sent packing due to Espeleta's aversion to so many Spaniards in MotoGP.

Both could be in the hot seat. Bautista has only completed 1 race. Barbera does not have the engine to get towed like the old days. Maybe they demote Bradl to the Gresini bike with Showas and Nissin. That would open the LCR Honda for AE. I doubt that HRC will offer JLo the amount that he would get at Yamaha.

I agree that Cal's pregnant doging is warranted. Doing it in public likely isn't making fans from any of the manufacturers though, and could be hurting future factory rides. I'd suspect the Japanese like it even less than the Italians.

I think if JLo wants a Honda, then Pedro is given the boot. My guess is HRC will delay inking Pedro until JLo makes a decision. Pedro would then likely end up at Yamaha. I agree that JLo won't ride anything subpar, and I doubt HRC would do 3 bikes again.

I think if JLo gets his confidence back he stays at Yamaha though. He's still the #1 rider there, whereas MM is the #1 at Honda...and would remain so. Even with Rossi's possible resurgence, being a challenged #1 or at worse equal rider at Yamaha may be better in his eyes than being a clear #2 at HRC.

I could be completely wrong though!  [cheeky]

it is all silly after all... ;

I just don't see the Aliens moving at all in the near future. I want to see what AE can do with comparable machinery. he can put together a great practice laps with the extra soft tire. It would be interesting to see him on the LCR.

He can crash anything... ;)

Pedro out, stoner in, if we are being silly

Pretty much agree with Triple J on all his points.  Maybe some dancing around in the satellites but the factories will pretty stay the same.

The next contract renewal will be the big one I think... that'll be when the new tires are in and the playing field in terms of machinery will be pretty different I'd say.  Thats when one of the top guys might want to think about jumping ship imo... it's gonna fall down to which team can adjust to the new tires the fastest.

 ;D

Would love to see Crazy Joe get a factory seat. If Dovi moved to Suzuki then I absolutely think that Ianonne is ready for it.

AE definitely needs to go to a satellite

If Dovi can already shove that Ducati into a fourth spot imagine what might happen if they really make more improvements to it. I say he stays right there. Suzuki is a wildcard and still unproven. They might pick up AE. Or, in a wild and crazy musical chairs, Pedrosa goes to Suzuki, JLo goes to HRC but then who would pick up the open seat at Yamaha?

The problem with Dovi, is that he's only won 1 race in MotoGP, despite riding on the factory Honda team for 3 years. He's a good rider, but he isn't bringing Ducati a championship, and most likely not a win either. I think he is better than Cal though (and I like Cal). I say bring on Crazy Joe.

Unfortunately, I'm not convinced the Ducati is any better. I think the improvement we're seeing out of Dovi can largely be attributed to the softer tire they're allowed to use.

Thats my thoughts on Dovi too... He's great rider but his most stand out ability to me is the fact that he's just really hard to pass.  He makes the best speed bump on the grid for the fast guys.  The year he was on the factory honda with Dani and Stoner... he only stood out to me because he was the guy that was always in third and basically kept everyone else away from the 2 Honda aliens.

He's the guy that will one day wind up in WSBK and destroy everyone... but the aliens are just too far ahead of him no matter the machinery imo.

+1 He's just not top class material, but I see him having the skills to be top WSBK. I would love to see Dovi and Nicky fight it out there.

http://www.asphaltandrubber.com/motogp/dani-pedrosa-suzuki-racing-contract-brown-mms/ (http://www.asphaltandrubber.com/motogp/dani-pedrosa-suzuki-racing-contract-brown-mms/)

Was expectng that pay cut from HRC... Wonder if Suzuki will even consider the amount.  Interesting back story on van Helen though, knew the rumor, didn't know the background

Honda keen in keeping Pedro around eh?

Boring

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Suppo+Hondas+priority+is+to+keep+Pedrosa (http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Suppo+Hondas+priority+is+to+keep+Pedrosa)

I wonder what's taking Yamaha so long to close the deal with Rossi.

I suspect it's that Rossi wants two years, and Yamaha, not so much.

I think they want to promote him to Brand Ambassador at a much less generous pay scale, and get nearly the same mileage off of his charisma as they do now.
And use the leftover cash to hire the next young hotness in hopes of defeating MM.

Per the MotoGP announcers, Lorenzo admitted that he and Yamaha are disagreeing when it comes to his contract for next year. What that means, I don't know, but The Turd is not signed for next year yet.

Talk is Yamaha doesn't want to pay his price.

Honda might. But they have the future sown up with the young fella.

Why would they pay George his price when they already have a rider that will never beat the kid? ;D

They probably want Podium 1, 2, 3 covered for total world domination ;) Bike superior, not rider.

Crutchlow has up to July to decide waht to do

Poor bastard.

He knew what was up with the Duc when he signed.

It was strictly financial.

He'd be smart to fulfill his contractual obligation and hope the bike gets better.

I agree, except I don't think it was strictly financial. To win you have to be on a factory ride, and the Duc was his only factory option. He was just hoping they could turn it around faster.

I don't feel bad though. I'd ride that POS around at the back for a couple million euros a year!  [laugh]

Beats diggin' ditches for a living.

I actually think Yamaha would be smart to throw Pol onto a factory bike ASAP. Moto2 riding is the way of the future, as Marquez has shown. Both Smith and Pol Asparagus have shown that when Yamaha allow them to set the bikes up loose instead of strictly staying with a Lorenzo-on-rails way of riding, they both do very well (both lap times and race results).

So would I sack Lorenzo or Rossi? Tough one. Rossi is way better for PR, Lorenzo's got a few more years in him (in case Pol can't deliver). I guess I'd give Pol a factory-spec bike to be run by Tech3 (ala Honda and Gresini with Simoncelli).

It's definitely a tough spot. Marquez has really stepped up Rossi's game and he's probably the closest to fighting him in 2014 so far (surprisingly). But... you won't beat Marquez without taking some risks. You need a young lunatic on your bike to develop it in that new style of riding.

Lorenzo didn't do himself any favors this weekend. If I was him, I would take a 1 year deal for whatever amount they offer, then come back next year. Unfortunately for him I doubt Yamaha will consider him the #1 rider and hence Rossi will be able to go back to developing the bike as he sees fit.

I thought the same thing. They won't sack him but his stranglehold on the team as "#1" certainly vanished. At least Rossi had the pace to win (not getting into any coulda/woulda/shoulda scenarios).

Rossi has confirmed 2 more years with Yamaha.   [Dolph]

Free vid...

http://www.motogp.com/en/videos/2014/Rossi+set+to+continue+with+Yamaha+for+two+more+years (http://www.motogp.com/en/videos/2014/Rossi+set+to+continue+with+Yamaha+for+two+more+years)

I swear my accent is not that thick!  ;D

http://video.gazzetta.it/rossi-ho-rinnovato-la-yamaha/862f318c-01e6-11e4-8287-df6cbc9dcfad (http://video.gazzetta.it/rossi-ho-rinnovato-la-yamaha/862f318c-01e6-11e4-8287-df6cbc9dcfad)

Pedrosa is officially staying with HRC until 2016

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Honda+Racing+Corporation+sign+Pedrosa+until+end+of+2016 (http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Honda+Racing+Corporation+sign+Pedrosa+until+end+of+2016)

marquez asked for a waterboy as part of his contract.... ;)

Not sure if HRC signing the Turd is worse for Lorenzo or Yamaha. With Pedrosa out there, Yamaha could have made an offer for him and sent Jorghey packing. In the other side of the coin, Lorenzo could have told Yamaha that he was in talks with HRC for the spot. I think that now Yamaha offers him slightly less than what he's getting now, loses his #1 rider spot and he takes it with his tail within his legs.

...but in reality-land, who's really going to believe that yamaha would take the perennial also-ran over their multi-time world champion?

Only if JLo would have jumped ship to HRC.

Correct. Right now you have the super alien (MM), the regular aliens and the rest. Since we have no clue what each rider is paid, it's not beyond the realm of reality that Yamaha would go after the Turd. Also note that JLO is not exactly burning up the competition this year, while the Turd is consistently on the podium. At this point Yamaha and Lorenzo seem to be stuck with each other unless their willing to bring up Pol, knowing that he's been more consistent than JLO this year.

It's way too early to write off JLo. He's struggling now, but one win over MM and I think he'd have his confidence back.

I think calling Pedrobot an also ran is a bit harsh too. He's been a consistent top 3 finisher, and has had terrible luck with injuries. Take a couple away and I think he has a championship or two.

I think both are about the same as far as skill goes, JLo has just been a little more fortunate on the injury front.

+1

Many of those years that Pedrosa ended up second in the championship, he missed multiple races due to injury.

Could this be true.....
2015 Ducati factory riders being Aleix Espargaro and Andrea Iannone. Crutchy moving on to somewhere else and Dovi moving to the Suk?? Not sure how much stock to take in GPxtra as a reputable site but interesting nonetheless.

http://gpxtra.com/2014/07/14/aleix-espargaro-to-sign-for-ducati-on-2-year-deal/ (http://gpxtra.com/2014/07/14/aleix-espargaro-to-sign-for-ducati-on-2-year-deal/)


Aleix Espargaro will sign for the Factory Ducati team in the coming days according to reports in Spain.

The Spaniard who signed for the NGM Forward Racing team at the start of the 2014 season is expected to move onto a full prototype machine for next season, but in a surprise move, reports emulating from Spain are saying that he will turn down an offers from Suzuki and HRC to ride in the LCR team on a RC213V, and will instead sign for Ducati, to ride in their flagship Factory team in a two year deal.

The news has come from motocuatro.com, and they say that Ducati have acted swiftly in securing the services of a rider for the next two years, after getting a resounding ‘no’ from Jorge Lorenzo.

They say Cal Crutchlow will look to move on from Ducati after just his first season, and with the ‘big four’ all staying where they are, for at least one more year, that Davide Brivio has convinced Andrea Dovizioso to also jump ship and join the Suzuki Factory team, possibly alongside reigning Moto3 World Champion Maverick Viñales. There is also interest in yesterday’s race winner Dominique Aegerter from Suzuki, with the Swiss rider competing in the Suzuka eight-hour for the Japanese brad.

This would leave the Factory Ducati team with Aleix Espargaro and Andrea Iannone with a new fresh look and team for 2015.

Espargaro is of course no stranger to the beast that is the Desmosedici. Aleix Espargaro came in on the Pramac Ducati in 2009, and then had a full season on the same bike in 2010 before going back to Moto2 for a season. But since the move to Aspar and the ART, and the subsequent spell on the Forward M1, Espargaro has seen his stock rise higher and higher and Ducati believe they have the best alternative to Lorenzo for the next two seasons.

Espargaro’s form this season has really attracted the attention of the bosses in Italy, and after his pole position, and fourth place in Assen the Ducati bosses decided to act swiftly and move to get him onboard for the future after the unsuccessful signing of Cal Crutchlow. Ducati view the 24 year old (25 on 30th July) as the young, hungry rider they want on their bike for 2015 with Gigi Dall’Igna understood to be impressed with Espargaro from his time on the ART when Dall’Igna was still with Aprilia.

The summer break is usually the time the final contracts get thrashed out, and with uncertainty over the futures of Bautista, Bradl and Smith, there will most probably be some movers by the time we come back in Indiana.

interesting. that would require aleix espargaro to be bought out of yet another contract.

I'll believe it when I see it, but an Iannone/A.Espargaro team could be interesting.

AE and Crazy Joe? I'm all for giving the young guys a chance, but I would definitely try to keep Dovi.

Crash.net confirmed Dovi for another 2 years and Crusty is staying on the Duc.

Maybe Ducati will run a 3rd factory machine for Crazy Joe?

From what I understood, Pramac is running factory versions already

My understanding was that Iannone had a ~factory bike, while Hernandez had a ~GP13.

This says Iannone will have 'factory support' but not the factory paycheck.
http://www.motomatters.com/news/2014/07/19/ducati_line_up_to_remain_unchanged_for_2.html (http://www.motomatters.com/news/2014/07/19/ducati_line_up_to_remain_unchanged_for_2.html)

Iannone, Dovi, Cal to stay at Ducati:

http://www.asphaltandrubber.com/motogp/ducati-corse-cal-crutchlow-andrea-dovizioso-andrea-iannone-contract-motogp/ (http://www.asphaltandrubber.com/motogp/ducati-corse-cal-crutchlow-andrea-dovizioso-andrea-iannone-contract-motogp/)

Pretty tame silly season so far... no changes at all yet.  But I bet there will be some changes when it comes to Gresini/Tech3... and the Suzuki spots are still open.  I'd like to see AE get a shot at that bike.

This season has not been very silly. All aliens except for JLo are signed and there's little chance that he won't.

Yeah. I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that this silly season sucks.

I wanted to see something scandalous.

Stoner back on the Suzuki?

Seems there's a good chance Miller will end up on Bradl's bike next year.

That appears to be pretty scandalous in some people's minds.....

Purportedly Aleix Espargaro and Maverick Vinales to Suzuki.

Maverick? Where did you hear this?

Found it. Is Bautista staying with Gresini? I keep hearing that Bradl is losing his seat, but also that LCR is looking at fielding another bike.

I'd be shocked to see Miller in GP next year. Moto3 to GP is a massive jump!

He's in Moto2 now. he's in third place in the standings!

I think Bautista has fallen foul of the "Too Many Mid-Pack Spaniards" philosophy attributed to Ezpeleta.
AFAIK Redding will be taking Bautista's ride (pretty sure his contract says Satellite bike for 2015).

LCR wants to do another bike, but nobody has written a check for it yet.
Lucio wants to keep Bradl, but HRC has a different opinion.


That's the general opinion.

It would make sense for Pramac to pick up Bradl, considering the Audi connection. I can see Yonny "dropping" to Avintia and for Barbara to finally get the hell out of MotoGP. We're really hitting the bottom of the barrel if we care where these guys are moving.

So you can plug in just about anyone on the second Gresini, but that would be dumb considering that Bautista actually has a podium finish under his belt. Not sure you can just dispose of him like LCR would with Bradl.

And of course we forgot about the rumors that next year Aprilia will be taking over the ART as a real team. Still open class granted, but similar to Ducati.

AFAIK, both Bradl's and Bautista's contracts are up, so they can easily be shown the door.

HRC may be calling the shots, they may have no opposition to LCR and Gresini keeping their riders, but they won't be on RCV's.

Aprilia, who knows.....

HRC is definitely pulling the strings in both camps. I understand Bradl, but it's tougher when Bautista has been one of 2 none aliens to podium this year. No one seems to know what's going on with Aprilia.

Jack Miller, not Vinales. Vinales is ready.

The breakdown we were looking for:

http://www.motomatters.com/analysis/2014/07/21/silly_season_update_ducati_confirmed_suz.html (http://www.motomatters.com/analysis/2014/07/21/silly_season_update_ducati_confirmed_suz.html)

Thanks for the link. Great info.
Cheers.

I hope Outback Jack does Moto2 next year, wins that, and then goes to Moto GP in 2016 with Ducati who have hopefully sorted the bike by then. You guys will like him, shades of Collin Edwards. ;)

"...Maverick Viñales... The young Spaniard is reckoned to be among the first of the post-Marquez generation of riders who are being tapped to challenge the reigning world champion."

???Post-Marquez generation of riders???

Pretty soon MotoGP's gonna look like Olympic gymnastics - out and retired before one's 21st birthday…. ;D

http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2014/Jul/140728mxs.htm (http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2014/Jul/140728mxs.htm)

Vinales to Suzuki.  Lets hope Suzuki can field something that can keep up with the rest of the field.

That sucks. He's likely dead in the water before the season even starts. We'll see though. Probably the best choice out there at the moment.

I'll try to be optimistic. At least now Ducati won't be the slowest factory bikes  ;D Maverick will still need at least a few races to get up to speed on the 1K bikes.

I dont see it being too bad... I mean, he's on a factory ride at least vs a satellite.  At least there is a chance that the bike might get the love it needs to be a front runner.  On a satellite or a production bike he'd just be 100% relegated to fighting for 5th/6th place.

Hopefully someone we know is fast can be his teammate so we can figure out what the bike is really capable of while Maverick get's used to it. RdP is questionable as a bench mark of it's true ability.

You're assuming that Suzuki will be putting an effort. At this point, a satellite Honda or Yamaha would be the best option for anyone coming into MotoGP.

Cal's out at Ducati, taking Bradl's ride on the Honda.

Iannone gets the Ducati factory ride.

Wow...put up or shut up time for Cal.

What happened?

This was reported 10 days ago.

http://www.motomatters.com/analysis/2014/07/21/silly_season_update_ducati_confirmed_suz.html (http://www.motomatters.com/analysis/2014/07/21/silly_season_update_ducati_confirmed_suz.html)

And one week ago Cal announced at WDW that he would be staying.

Latest MotoMatters article says the 'severance' package was the sticking point.
http://www.motomatters.com/news/2014/08/02/the_next_piece_in_the_motogp_puzzle_cal_.html (http://www.motomatters.com/news/2014/08/02/the_next_piece_in_the_motogp_puzzle_cal_.html)

Ducati press release seems to state the termination of Cal's contract is effective immediately.
http://www.motomatters.com/press_release/2014/08/02/ducati_and_lcr_press_releases_confirming.html (http://www.motomatters.com/press_release/2014/08/02/ducati_and_lcr_press_releases_confirming.html)

No idea:

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Iannone%20replaces%20Crutchlow%20at%20Ducati%20Team%20for%202015 (http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Iannone%20replaces%20Crutchlow%20at%20Ducati%20Team%20for%202015)

Sure is worded like it is effective immediately. I guess we'll see if he's riding a Duc at Indy!

It'll be interesting to see if Cal is any better than Bradl on the LCR. I have my doubts.

Caption next to the photo...

Ducati Corse has announced on Saturday that it will be parting company with rider Cal Crutchlow at the end of the 2014 MotoGP™ season, as Andrea Iannone joins the factory outfit to become team-mate to Andrea Dovizioso in 2015.

...and at the bottom of the article...

 Saturday’s short communique from Ducati Corse reads as follows:
‘Ducati Corse announced today that it has reached an agreement with its factory rider Cal Crutchlow to terminate, ahead of time, the contract that ties the British rider to the Italian team in MotoGP for 2014 and also for next season.

The two factory Ducati Team riders for 2015 will now be Andrea Dovizioso and Andrea Iannone.’

Hard to tell what is what. :-\

edit...

also from motogp

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Crutchlow+to+ride+with+CWMLCR+Honda+in+2015 (http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Crutchlow+to+ride+with+CWMLCR+Honda+in+2015)

Cal woke from the nightmare and found himself in bed with a Ducati pinning his arm. Had to chew  through his arm to escape. Mid season exit? How does he see out the season with any motivation if he stays?

THIS IS THE OFFICIAL STATEMENT

This is what I got in my email this morning:

"Sat 08/02/2014 13:28
2 August 2014 MotoGP 2014 - Cal Crutchlow announcement - REVISED VERSION
 
Ducati Corse and Cal Crutchlow terminate contract ahead of 2015
 
Ducati Corse announced today that it has reached an agreement with its factory rider Cal Crutchlow to terminate, ahead of time, the contract that ties the British rider to the Italian team in MotoGP for the next season.
 
The two factory Ducati Team riders for 2015 will now be Andrea Dovizioso and Andrea Iannone.
 

 
Ducati Corse Press"

Just as well. Better for Ducati to have Ianonne I believe and better for Cal to go to Honda. It's a win-win.

This just came up,

http://www.speedcafe.com/2014/08/03/crutchlow-leaves-ducati-lcr-honda/ (http://www.speedcafe.com/2014/08/03/crutchlow-leaves-ducati-lcr-honda/)

Better off for everyone as has been said, except maybe for Bradl. Bradl had a good run though, so fair enough.

IMHO Bradl should get more factory backing . . .

More than the 2nd best bike on the grid?

more "official" than the "official" one he has

Bradl already had about the same level of backing that Cal did when he was on the Tech3.  Asking for anymore would just basically put him on a factory bike and I think we can all agree that he's not at that level... cept maybe on a Duc :P

But yeah, at least we finally got some silliness for the silly season.

Will Iannone fare better?

Ducati have been in a hole ever since Stoner departed.

He rides pretty hard. He's doing alright considering.

Simmoncelli had an official bike with different colours . . .

Iannone has out ridden Cal all season long. In a few cases, he out rode Dovi and some of the satellites. I understand Cal's decision. There is an obvious communication gap at Ducati. Both Dovi and Crazy Joe can express themselves better to the engineers. I would definitely be looking at Cal to replace the turd after 2016 if he stays healthy and is competitive.

Cal would have to ride extraordinarily well for that to happen. Like beating Pedro on a semi regular basis. I think there are other young guys in the pipeline, as Cal will be getting old by then.

Old? You mean he won't be 21.

Valentino is 'old'...

and he beats Dani regularly.

Why all the hatin' on 'old' guys?   ;D

You guys know what I'm saying...he'll be 30 during next season. He's old, relatively speaking.  ;)

From this old guy's perspective...

he's just a kid. ;D

I'm about to be 29

You guys are calling me old?
 
:P

Triple J is...

not me. ;)

Why?






You scared?  :-*

Hardly... :-*

If he can generally e up there with a couple of podiums a season, he would break up the Spanish mafia thing they have going on at Repsol. It's time for Cal to put up or shut up. If he can't put the best bike of the bunch, even if it's slightly downgraded, at the front kinda like Super Sic did, then he won't be able to sell himself to the big 2 factories.

Bradl to Forward Racing.

JLo signs 2-year deal with Yamaha.

According to David Emmett tweet.....

Did anyone get any info on how "factory" Crutchlow's "factory-spec" RC213V is going to be?  Is he basically going to be on a satellite bike or a legit factory bike?

Purportedly same as Bradl's, which had seamless transmission and Ohlins bits.

IMO, the only better bikes on the grid have Repsol on 'em.

Well hopefully it's better than Hayden's

Completely different bike...

A slightly rearranged Fireblade is what he's got....

...and Johnny can't do much with it either. ;)

They'll bring Johnny into the MotoGP gunfight and hand him the knife again.

Hope it isn't dull... ;)

Rea has milked every last inch of fast from that bike.

The Bradl deal confirmed...

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/NGM+Forward+Racing+sign+Bradl+for+2015 (http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/NGM+Forward+Racing+sign+Bradl+for+2015)

JLo gets 2-year deal with The Big Y.
Rumored 1 year bail-out clause not mentioned, but that doesn't mean it's missing from the contract.

http://www.motomatters.com/news/2014/08/07/lorenzo_confirmed_at_movistar_yamaha_thr.html (http://www.motomatters.com/news/2014/08/07/lorenzo_confirmed_at_movistar_yamaha_thr.html)

Do we know what was the stumbling block?

The hangup seemed to be that he wanted a one year deal, or have a one year bail-out option.

Seemed his bargaining position wasn't very strong in light of this year's meltdowns and the fact of all other remotely desirable seats being filled.

I suspect that he fears that Michelin is going to provide tire constructions in squidgy, extra squidgy, and super squidgy.
Which wouldn't surprise me at all, their production road tires are only slightly more substantial than a condom.

And that Yamaha might continue to fail to get their bike any closer to the Hondas any time soon.

Or his feedback being less weighty than his teammate's.

Not everyone makes tires that resemble bricks.

Indeed.

I'm not at all convinced it's necessary for a MotoGP tire.
Just one particular way of doing it.
Pirelli provides a rather floppy construction for WSBK that gets heavier and less powerful bikes to a lap time that's quite reasonable.

All the riders just want tires that wear at a manageable rate. BS has done a much better job this year with tires that are not a complete pain to bring up to temp, but that will last a whole race and them-some. 

According to MCN via Matthew Birt:

Both Lorenzo and Yamaha have early termination options.

MarcVDS team will not have Miller on a Moto2 bike next year.
HRC talking with LCR about providing a RCV1000 for Miller to ride.
Noting that it would be the 5th RCV1000, they only wanted to have 4, so means they want Miller pretty badly.

Bradley Smith *may* get a 1 year deal for 2015 with Tech3.

Scott Redding will be on Factory RCV at Gresini.
Brembo/Ohlins or Showa/Nissin bits not decided yet.

< Some grains of salt may be necessary>

I don't get the rush to move Miller to GP. He could learn a hell of a lot in the ultra competitive Moto2 class, not to mention get used to additional power incrementally. I think moto racing is about 70% mental and confidence...it seems a stop in Moto 2 could only help that. Fighting for wins (hopefully) in Moto2 would seem better than being automatically relegated to backmarker in GP...especially with the tire changes coming to GP in 2016, when he could start fresh with everyone else.

PBM folding their tent and going home.

Grid slots for 2015 to be sold, Aprilia or Suzuki likely the buyers.

http://motomatters.com/news/2014/08/11/pbm_selling_motogp_grid_slots_focusing_o.html#comments (http://motomatters.com/news/2014/08/11/pbm_selling_motogp_grid_slots_focusing_o.html#comments)

Bradley back at Tech3...

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Smith+and+Monster+Yamaha+Tech3+to+continue+together+in+2015 (http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Smith+and+Monster+Yamaha+Tech3+to+continue+together+in+2015)

One hell of a hail mary negotiation for him I'd say... lets hope he can produce next year.  Always wondered why he got that MotoGP slot so early.

Good synopsis of the current talks here too:

http://motomatters.com/analysis/2014/08/13/brno_crunch_time_for_motogp_silly_season.html (http://motomatters.com/analysis/2014/08/13/brno_crunch_time_for_motogp_silly_season.html)

Most interesting thing is this to me:

"The most intriguing name being linked to MotoGP rides is Cameron Beaubier. The young American has made a big impression in the AMA Superbike class, as teammate to Josh Hayes. Beaubier has previous experience in Europe, having ridden the Red Bull Rookies Cup and in the 125cc class as teammate to Marc Marquez."

I think Dorna is pretty desperate to get some new American blood into the paddock and I dont think there is any other real choice.  Really wanted Herrin to do better but that's looking like a bit of a lost cause at this point.

Are there not enough good guys from Moto2 that are ready to make the jump to MotoGP? Kallio spent some time on the dream killer so it surprises me that he would be willing to head back onto anything other than an established machine. Tito should be up there at least for Forward or to get one of the RCV1000R.

I agree. He should win the lower class titles first and get that confidence as a world champ.

I'd agree too about Miller... it was a bit like how MM stayed on that extra year in Moto2.  I was surprised by it when it happened but in retrospect I think it really helped to season him a bit more.

Alex Marquez to Marc VDS... supposedly the spot that was being held for Miller.  More sign that Miller is going to skip M2 alltogether?

http://www.crash.net/motogp/news/208213/1/moto2-alex-marquez-to-marc-vds.html (http://www.crash.net/motogp/news/208213/1/moto2-alex-marquez-to-marc-vds.html)

I wonder what Kallio is gonna do.

Staying at Marc VDS from what I understood. I believe they're adding another bike.

Rumor is that Redding isn't thrown to the wolves, he'll be on a MarcVDS RC213V in 2015.
I'm hoping that's true, he agreed to a one year sentence on the nag leading to a year on the hot filly.

Since Go&Run have pushed Gresini under the bus, they've made the best of a bad situation and hooked up with Aprilia.
I'm hoping it's not the beer goggles at work, but sometimes desperation leads you to take what you can get.
They'll apparently have Melandri and Bautista as the riders, so the mechanics will have plenty of work to do.

Redding confirmed for Marc VDS in M1 with a Factory Honda:

http://motomatters.com/news/2014/09/14/official_marc_vds_to_move_up_to_motogp_w.html (http://motomatters.com/news/2014/09/14/official_marc_vds_to_move_up_to_motogp_w.html)

Glad he got the factory ride, he's been doing some great things on the pretty meh hardware he's had this year.

Redding has been very solid this year, even on the under powered Honda. Getting him on the factory bike is great!

With all the new factories coming in 2016, I'm getting pretty excited to see this new field... Suzuki, Ape, KTM customer bikes, as well as a possibly competitive Duc.  All we need now is Kawasaki to throw in and it looks like a revival of the sport... not to mention the new US series.

And with the improvements we've seen this year on the Duc I'm actually leaning toward the idea that Gigi might be able to pull the revamp off.

Not sure if this has been mentioned...

but Avintia will be running Ducs next year, and possibly as early as the next round.

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Ducati+and+Avintia+Racing+join+forces (http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Ducati+and+Avintia+Racing+join+forces)

Looking like Eugene Laverty on the production Honda next to Hayden in the Aspar Garage.

Johnny Rae has finally had enough of pooch Hondas, said 'no thanks', moving to Kawi SBK.

As far as Kawi coming back to MotoGP, IIRC they said the budget for kicking ass in WSBK was the same as for finishing ~7th-10th in MotoGP.

Is Johnny on the factory team or an Evo bike, and if factory who goes...Sykes or Baz?

I really thought he'd suffer through with Honda in the hopes of getting a ride in the 'big show'.

Maybe he figured all he'd get was lip service from them with no ride materializing.

Pretty sure Baz is out at Kawi, as he apparently had some sort of 'agreement' with Aspar for MotoGP.
But in light of his ~6'4"/174lb  frame, he's now out of the picture, as the word is he doesn't fit on the Proddie Honda.
Why this wasn't a stumbling block *before* is a bit of a mystery.
I suspect that Baz torpedoing Sykes earlier this year didn't help his cause at Kawi.

Whether Johnny is getting Baz's seat or not, dunno.

I just checked at WSBK.com and Sykes is confirmed for 2 more years at Kwack...no mention of the Rae deal that I could see.

I remembered something like that, that Sykes was definitely still there at Kawi.

I recall there was interest in him from the MotoGP paddock, but no offers of a competitive ride.
He wasn't interested in a transition from Championship Contender to 'top ten finish on a lucky day'.

Hope Rea gets it, he's been flogging that mule at Honda for too long.

Certainly looking more certain of a Miller jump to LCR. Talk of JB moving back to the paddock to guide him.

I'm kinda surprised at Baz being pushed out. He's been at the sharp end more often than not.

I realize taking out your team mate is frowned upon...

he'd do well at Honda in GP. ;D

JB is an excellent chief, but there are some really talented guys out there right now that deserve their shot as the top spot.

I didn't see the race where Baz took Sykes out, dunno how egregious it was.
Sykes did allude to it not being the first time that Baz has torpedoed folks.
Perhaps he gets a bit like Bautista, trying to win the race in the first couple corners.

Miller could do far worse than having JB as his crewchief.
Rumors of Gabbarini doing the job as well.

I think if Miller does well on the donkey in '15, and the factory/satellite in '16, he may be in contention for Pedrosa's bike.
That is, if Redding isn't astride it then...

well...

it is racing, and sometimes the desire to win far outstrips a riders understanding of physics or his talent..

Just like Stoner said to Rossi. ;)

I think Bautista's problems are partially due to him having to run Showa suspension and Nissin brakes as well. It'll be interesting to see how he does on the Aprilia next season with Ohlins and Brembo.

By 2016/17 would be interesting if Honda was Redding and Miller (or whomever else the next big thing is) ans MM was trying his hand at a diff manufacturer. As I think him on Honda will remain a procession (mostly).
Interesting watching MM last race on a bike not quite setup like he wanted. He did Not do quite as well as I pictured.

+1 for hoping 2015 is better for the Duc. Appears like progress so far. Crazy Joe banging wheels with MM was fun to watch...

I think Bautista's problems with chucking it into the gravel pre-date his Showa/Nissin handicap.

Having no database is certainly a huge issue, absolutely.

You would think it is his last shot.
Question will be who will have the least retirements in the team.  They get to keep their seat...

Always seems much more to it than just talent. Given how dmsll our market is I am surprised about the Dorna talk of Tv rights here...

 I personally think he should have had to win moto3 then do well in moto2. That would have been the test.

As an Aussie it will be good to have someone towards the front (hopefully) in the next few years to support.

I was referring to JB. In a way, those years with Rossi have kinda pigeon hold him into setting up the bike exactly how VR preferred.

There is no way MM will not be riding a Honda unless he implodes. HRC has been backing Pedrosa all these years with no championship to show for.

Aprilia get a guy that is not consistent, but can podium once in a while. He would be great as a rider that will help them get some kinks out.

http://www.asphaltandrubber.com/motogp/eugene-laverty-wsbk-motogp-move/ (http://www.asphaltandrubber.com/motogp/eugene-laverty-wsbk-motogp-move/)

Laverty to Aspar, Baz too tall for the bike as the reason given for why they killed his contract.

Miller confirmed at LCR on a proddie Honda.

Nice chart here:

http://motomatters.com/analysis/2014/09/17/motogp_silly_season_state_of_play_post_m.html (http://motomatters.com/analysis/2014/09/17/motogp_silly_season_state_of_play_post_m.html)

I was more thinking he may like a challenge...I am sure he will be there as long as he wants. HRC will match any $$$ offers as usual to keep him. He will want to win more championships than Rossi. Depends on how he wants to achieve it I guess....As Rossi did across diff manufacturers...

HRC learned from the way they handled Rossi back in the day. They will make sure to do whatever they can to keep MM happy. I doubt MM will want to jump ship unless the bike stops being competitive.

Seems like HRC has become a more family team than Ducati Corse. Stoner was treated like a king at Honda compared to how was treated at Ducati. Ducati need Eraldo Ferracci to come and make pasta for the team like in the old SBK days.

i hope that miller's move to MotoGP doesn't mess him up. Seems like a pretty solid talent and if he does well I can see him taking over Pedro's spot. But I look at hopper and all the promise that he had and where he is now and I have my doubts.

Although it'd be great to see him there, I agree he should have won Moto 2 & 3 first. Seems the thing to do. You're right, one injury can change everything.

Miller to get Gabbarini as crewchief.

Redding is not chuffed.

Suzuki confirmed for MotoGP with AE and Vinales

http://www.asphaltandrubber.com/motogp/suzuki-motogp-2015-aleix-espargaro-maverick-vinales/ (http://www.asphaltandrubber.com/motogp/suzuki-motogp-2015-aleix-espargaro-maverick-vinales/)

Petrucci to Pramac...

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Agreement+between+Pramac+Racing+and+Danilo+Petrucci (http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Agreement+between+Pramac+Racing+and+Danilo+Petrucci)

I hope Jack will be ok. It's only 200hp difference. :P

Yeah...what could go wrong? :P

At least he is on the slow version.....

It was funny when they interviewed Pramac's manager on Saturday and he let slip that they were signing an "italian" rider. After weeks of talking about Laverty being brought in, the announcers were kinda deflated.

Sooo...where's that leave Eugene?

Laverty > Aspar.
http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Eugene+Laverty+joins+DRIVE+M7+Aspar+Team+for+2015 (http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Eugene+Laverty+joins+DRIVE+M7+Aspar+Team+for+2015)

So hopefully only 180hp difference. [laugh]

Does that kick Nicky or Hiroshi to the curb, or are they going to run 3 bikes in GP?

That puts Hiroshi on the curb, Nicky's got a contract through '15.

Only seats left are:
One at Forward Yamaha, which appears to have Loris Baz's name on it.
One at Gresini Aprilia, which had Melandri's name on it, but apparently he's thought better of it...
One at Avintia Ducati, on an 'Open' GP14, seat has no name as of yet....

IMO, the Forward Yamaha seat is the best, as it'll still be a Yamaha engine, frame, swingarm and linkage.
It's probably 2014 stuff from Tech3.

AFAIK, Leon Camier is still prowling around for a ride, he's gotten a lot of attention with his speed on Nicky's nag.

The Avintia seat apparently requires the rider to bring a bag full of cash.

Oh, Ioda says they're planning to continue in 2015, despite releasing Petrucci.

So possibly a seat open there as well.

Melandri knows better than to jump on a bike that no one has really ridden.

News is that the seat at Forward Yamaha is indeed big enough for Loris Baz's azz.

So it's down to one at Gresini Aprilia, one at Avintia Ducati, one alleged seat at Ioda.

AFAIK the grid spots from PBM are for sale, unless Suzuki bought them, can't find any confirmation on that.  ???

My understanding is that PBM sold their MotoGP slots to IRTA who then sold them to Suzuki.

I did just get confirmation from a reliable source that indeed that happened.

It appears Forward will have quite a few chassis choices:
http://tinyurl.com/k42szrn (http://tinyurl.com/k42szrn)

Redding gets Johnny Rea's crewchief, Chris Pike.

Cal gets Christophe 'Beefy' Bourguignon as crewchief.

Jack Miller gets Cristian Gabarrini.

Pedrosa is losing Mike Leitner, no info on where he's going, or who Dani will get.... music is winding down... Dani may suffer.

Aaaaannndddd...

Rumors of Stoner doing a two-day test at Motegi around the end of the month.
On a Factory Honda, Bridgestones on day 1, Michelin on day 2.

Not rumor... http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Stoner+on+testing+again+with+Honda+and+achievements+of+Marquez (http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Stoner+on+testing+again+with+Honda+and+achievements+of+Marquez)

Also...anounced on the motogp feed...Mike Leightner is leaving Honda and some of the mechanics that worked for him may leave also. Report is he's going to 'Change his lifestyle'...to quote livio Suppo.

WTF does that mean?

I'm thinking he wants to not travel the globe on Dorna's schedule any longer.

Want me to call Livio and ask him?

Might have to wait until after the weekend though. He's probably busy. ;D

Livio is never too busy to take your call.

FTFY

Thanks. ;D

Update on the Leightner situation...

BT Sports announcers commenting on the unrest in the Pedrosa team. Turns out Honda, no mention if it was Repsol or corporate, decided that 2 of Pedrosa's mechanics would not be returning next year.

Leightner decided if they weren't needed neither was he and tendered his resignation.

Purportedly the mechanics were 86'ed at Pedrosa's request.

Mike Leitner is Austrian.
I recall seeing that he lives close to where KTM is.
And KTM is making their way toward MotoGP.
Some of the dots may connect that way...

I just parrot what they say on tv. :P

Those dots may very well connect. Time will tell.

Wonder who Stoner will have as crew chief in 2016?

Have a feeling there may be PI wildcard next year.

The wind seems to be blowing Melandri toward that Aprilia seat.

http://www.gazzetta.it/Moto/Superbike/30-10-2014/superbike-melandri-saluta-2015-sara-motogp-aprilia-90893475226.shtml (http://www.gazzetta.it/Moto/Superbike/30-10-2014/superbike-melandri-saluta-2015-sara-motogp-aprilia-90893475226.shtml)

In other news, Yonny will be riding the D14.2 next year.

Yonny stays with Pramac...

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Hernandez+to+continue+with+Pramac+Racing+in+2015 (http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2014/Hernandez+to+continue+with+Pramac+Racing+in+2015)

Aoyama will be a test rider for Honda, and will race the RC213V-RS (2015 customer racer) at Valencia, I suppose in lieu of getting a gold watch.
But he'll get to ride better bikes now, so that's something.

Ioda will have Alex DeAngelis in MotoGP, nothing revealed about which bike they'll be using.
Perhaps another customer Ape?

Baz on the Forward Yamaha.
Melandri on the Gresini Ape.
DiMeglio on the Avintia Ducati.

Melandri back to MGP? They do need more people battling for 10th...  [laugh]

You makin' stuff up again? ;D

Well, that's always a possibility.  [laugh]

But I'm pretty sure all of that is true.

10th may be a little optimistic  :)

Touche.  [beer]

Pretty sure Melandri hasn't been confirmed...yet.

A tidbit from a presser at Valencia, from Livio Suppo:
http://www.cycleworld.com/2014/11/08/is-motogp-racing-heading-toward-a-bright-future-manufacturers-hold-end-of-year-review/ (http://www.cycleworld.com/2014/11/08/is-motogp-racing-heading-toward-a-bright-future-manufacturers-hold-end-of-year-review/)

"I think the production bike will be a big step from Moto3 for Jack, so he will ride that bike for the first three races."

So, the donk 2014 bike, or the 2015 bike?

And what of race 4 and beyond?

I think he's talking about the slow bike.

Yes, saw in today's testing coverage, some Honda person confirmed that Miller's on the slow bike.

Melandri confirmed on the Ape:
http://www.crash.net/motogp/news/210830/1/melandri-signs-2015-motogp-grid-complete.html (http://www.crash.net/motogp/news/210830/1/melandri-signs-2015-motogp-grid-complete.html)

It appears all the seats have asses in them now.

About time. This has been the longest Silly Season ever, not only because it started so early. Usually all seats are accounted for by the time they hit Sepang.

Jack cut 71 laps! Having fun out there.