MotoGP Round 10 - Laguna (SPOILERS)

[OT]

Wondering how many more pages would be written in this thread if it was Sic who had made the pass in the Corkscrew...

IMO, that was a bit on the dangerous side, not because it was in a chicane but because of the unusual weighing on the front/rear of the passed bike from the quick drop that could have f'd the braking by a lesser-skilled rider. 

[Speeddog]

Was it just me or did Lorenzo have a little wiggle coming out of the last turn prior to getting passed by Stoner?  I thought he might have got on it a little sooner and briefly lost it, giving Stoner a miniscule advantage as they accelerated down the straight.  Great race!!

Lorenzo was fading a bit, his lap times had crept from ~21.9 to ~22.0 at about the time Stoner got past Pedrosa.

Lorenzo's times continued to drift up to ~22.1's while Stoner was throwing down a string of ~21.8's.

Lorenzo got a crap drive off of the last corner, Stoner ran him down and drove around the outside of 1. 

Stoner cranked off another 21.8, Lorenzo collapsed with a 22.6.

[fastwin]

I still say Jorge gets a higher degree of difficulty score for his crazy 500ccGP era high side at the Chinese MotoGP a couple of years ago! Sheehan saying he was 10 feet in the air at the  Laguna high side was such total bullshit! Someone pregnant dog slap that goon. Jorge got twice the air in China and it still wasn't 10 feet! But it was make the beast with two backsing huge and nasty!!! Messed up both ankles and he still raced. It would have put Pedrobot in a wheel chair for life. I'll give props to Jorge, he's tougher than he looks.

[Speeddog]

Perhaps the Laguna highside was a foot less. 

But that's like saying Tyson didn't punch someone quite as hard. 

[ducpainter]

I still say Jorge gets a higher degree of difficulty score for his crazy 500ccGP era high side at the Chinese MotoGP a couple of years ago! Sheehan saying he was 10 feet in the air at the  Laguna high side was such total bullshit! Someone pregnant dog slap that goon. Jorge got twice the air in China and it still wasn't 10 feet! But it was make the beast with two backsing huge and nasty!!! Messed up both ankles and he still raced. It would have put Pedrobot in a wheel chair for life. I'll give props to Jorge, he's tougher than he looks.

I dunno....

If this is me...



I'm calling 10 feet.

Keep in mind...

he did not 'stick' the landing.

[fastwin]

 

[orangelion03]

Woah.  I hadnt been paying any attention prior to the race...I watched it today at lunch time.  I had no idea Jorge had had that high-side.  His leading the majority of the race was amazing seen in that light.  Those guys are frackin' gods.

[DRKWNG]

Jorge's high side pictured above was from a while back.  Still though, the off he had at Laguna this year was pretty dramatic. 

[fastwin]

I've read two different accounts. One says he turned off his traction control, the other says the TC didn't kick in. I'm going with the 2nd. Why the hell would want to turn it off? Josh Hayes? No. He doesn't do electronic bike control packages. Jorge on a MotoGP bike? Yes. Thankfully he wasn't hurt bad.

[OT]

Motomatters.com -- http://motomatters.com/analysis/2011/07/24/2011_laguna_seca_motogp_saturday_round_u.html

What made Jorge Lorenzo's qualifying performance even more astonishing was the fact that the Spaniard had suffered a monster highside at the end of free practice 3 in the morning. Lorenzo had lined up to try a practice start, taking off and heading down toward turn 5. He arrived at the corner and tipped the bike in, but as he opened the throttle again, the rear came right round and tossed him high into the air.

The cause, it was later revealed, was the traction control system on Lorenzo's Yamaha YZF-M1 not kicking in, as the Spaniard had not changed down a gear before tipping it into the corner. The system is set up so that once launch control is engaged, traction control is automatically switched off, with launch control being disengaged and traction control switch on again once the rider changes down a gear. The corner where Lorenzo elected to try his practice start meant he didn't need to change down, and when he opened the throttle, the bike pitched him off.

Though it is tempting to put the crash down to the electronics, the real cause was simply rider error. Lorenzo either hadn't remembered or hadn't realized that he needed to change down a gear to reactivate the traction control. Lorenzo entered the corner expecting the electronics to be switched on, but the bike reacted completely differently to the way he expected it to. It was not so much the electronics that chucked Lorenzo off, more confounded expectations.

"launch control" 

[Jester]

What Lorenzo's crash exemplifies is that traction control has ruined motorcycle racing.  The reason he highsided was because he grabbed a handful of throttle in a corner when pre-traction control you'd never do such a thing.  This just shows how much computers run the show and dictate the performance of the bike and not the rider.

I'm not saying the riders have no input, but they ride the bikes in a fashion that is impossible if said electronics malfuction or don't switch on.

[zooom]

What Lorenzo's crash exemplifies is that traction control has ruined motorcycle racing.  The reason he highsided was because he grabbed a handful of throttle in a corner when pre-traction control you'd never do such a thing.  This just shows how much computers run the show and dictate the performance of the bike and not the rider.

I'm not saying the riders have no input, but they ride the bikes in a fashion that is impossible if said electronics malfuction or don't switch on.

every track school training and most of the old school riders all say it...the traction control has and always will and should be "your right hand and how much twist/input you give it"

[fastwin]

I agree. I'm sure lots of folks will argue differently but I too think traction control (actually the entire electronics package) has buggered up racing. You should read what Josh Hayes says about it and why he doesn't run it. He seems to be doing OK without it.

[El Matador]

I agree. I'm sure lots of folks will argue differently but I too think traction control (actually the entire electronics package) has buggered up racing. You should read what Josh Hayes says about it and why he doesn't run it. He seems to be doing OK without it.

Doing ok, in the little leagues.

Dont get me wrong, i'm not a big fan of electronics, and I share your view that racing would be more exciting without it, but it's advantages are undeniable, you simply cannot compete in the highest level without them.

As for the Highside, that is why I'm a Lorenzo fan. He puts everything out there and is tough as nails. Stoner and Pedrobot wouldve still been pregnant doging about the crash, Jorge shut the make the beast with two backs up, got back on the bike, got pole, and came in second. That is what a champ is made of.

Lorenzo: "Aim for the moon, if you miss, you'll land on the pavement and break a bunch of shit"

[gm2]

agreed: he's a twit but he's fast and tough -- that's a rare combo.  and he has had more than his fair share of upside down superman moments in the last 4 years.

arguing about TC is like arguing against any technological improvement.  as soon as someone has it and they find a few tenths because of it, everyone is going to have it.  and it's well documented that you can easily highside yourself with TC turned all the way up.  sure it helps a lot but it doesn't take the rider out of the equation.