2011 WSBK Round 3 - Assen (Spoilers! Races 4/17)

[webspoke]

Toseland was actually a really good commentator, lots of insights and good observations from him.  Checa making the soft tire work even when pushed hard at the end was impressive.  He's got a nice cushion of points now to suffer through the faster tracks.

[fastwin]

Didn't they force them to use the normal belts/chain and do away with the trick valve "kit?"

That's my understanding. There was something in the rules that allowed them to run the gear driven cam set up last year. The specifics of the rule fail me at the moment, but now they have to run the stock street set up like everyone else. Someone who knows the rules better should chime in with a more clear explanation.

[Spidey]

Someone is gonna kick Melandri in his nutsack if he keeps this up.  It might even be his teammate.  In the meanwhile, I'm loving it.  

I'm still perplexed by Rea.  And the BMWs.    

Assen always makes for guuuuud racing.  

He's got a nice cushion of points now to suffer through the faster tracks.

It's definitely a cushion, but it's not that strong.  All it takes is one weekend of Max getting 1st and him getting 5th and Checa's lead won't be much at all. 

[gm2]

So what happened over the Winter ?

Did the 1098 R get faster or did the Aprilila get slower ?

the duc and checa were very fast last year, also.. at tracks that aren't monza/monza-ish.  and now that bike basically is the factory bike.

Toseland was actually a really good commentator, lots of insights and good observations from him.

 

Someone is gonna kick Melandri in his nutsack if he keeps this up.  It might even be his teammate.  In the meanwhile, I'm loving it. 

hell yeah.  those passes were all pretty ragged.  and awesome.

I'm still perplexed by Rea. 

i think if his wrist(s) started to bother him he wouldn't say it.

And the BMWs.   

like the kawis, they haven't figured out how not to eat up the rear tire yet.

[Spidey]

i think if his wrist(s) started to bother him he wouldn't say it.

Yeah, but it's more than just that.  Last year, I thought he'd be one of the front-runners with Biaggi, given the tear he went on in late 2009 (IIRC).  But then he'd alternate between brilliant and mid-pack, with an occasional rookie-lookin' raggedy Biaggi-at-Donington type of ride thrown in to boot.  I know some of the inconsistency is that the Honda is fickle and it's hard to get it set up.  And this season can mostly be chalked up to riding injured.  But I still feel like he should be consistently up front more than he is, especially if he has MotoGP aspirations.

The BMWs (and the kwaks) show that it's a lot easier to build a bike that's powerful than a bike that is well-balanced.

+ whateveritisnow on Toseland as a commentator.  I mean, he's gotta be good at something.  He is teh suxor at racing. 

[gm2]

He is teh suxor at racing. 

.  i know 2007 is now 4 years ago but he still gets credit for killing it that year. 

still, probably a better commentator now.  he sure as hell was on it in terms of who was doing what and what exactly the track was like in any given corner.  he brings a true racer's view to things, even moreso than martin

[Spidey]

.  i know 2007 is now 4 years ago but he still gets credit for killing it that year.  

Since this is an Assen thread and we're talking about way back when JT could still ride a motorcycle, wasn't it Assen 2007 where he and Bayliss beat the shit out of each other for the last coupla laps in an epic battle?

I wish JT was on this year's Yamaha.  Then we could tell if he is really broken or if it was just a bad stint in GP followed by shitty luck/bikes since then.  Until he proves otherwise, I think it's the former.  

Edit:  Ahhh . . . found the good stuff.  Enjoy.

WSBK Assen 2007 race 2

[fastwin]

Holy shit what a great race for Checa!! Just watched race #2 and damn! What a race? He kicked ass with Max on his tail. Does it get any better? Again, I also love MotoGP but the racing in WSBK is just awesome!!

[DoubleEagle]

You want to see some good racing buy the 2009 WSBK season on DVD.

Troy did some amazing racing .

He was so fast on some of the tracks you'd think the other guys just gave up.

You can see a " Duc " pretty much fly !

Dolph

[Spidey]

I'd pay a ton of money to see footage of Troy smoking people on a Duc in WSBK in 2009.  

[Triple J]

You want to see some good racing buy the 2009 WSBK season on DVD.

Troy did some amazing racing .

He was so fast on some of the tracks you'd think the other guys just gave up.

2008. Haga & Fabrizio were the Duc riders in 2009 & 2010.

[gm2]

since we're talking assen and 2009, where there was no troy, the ben in race 1 was some of the best racing i've ever seen.  that move on haslam was amazing.. then was quickly overshadowed by that unbelievable move on haga.  schwantz said something like, sure, i've considered passing there.  but i would never do it.

I wish JT was on this year's Yamaha.  Then we could tell if he is really broken or if it was just a bad stint in GP followed by shitty luck/bikes since then.  Until he proves otherwise, I think it's the former.   

his stint in GP wasn't bad.. until they took the michelins away from him.

[Spidey]

since we're talking assen and 2009, where there was no troy, the ben in race 1 was some of the best racing i've ever seen.  that move on haslam was amazing.. then was quickly overshadowed by that unbelievable move on haga.  schwantz said something like, sure, i've considered passing there.  but i would never do it.

I love Assen.

World Superbike Assen Netherlands 4-26-2009

[gm2]

World Superbike Assen Netherlands 4-26-2009

make the beast with two backsING AMAZING.

[Monsterlover]

+!

God Damn phenomenal!!!