MotoGP Brno

The summer break is over, and the MotoGP guys go to Brno.

Stoner is out for 3 rounds...Kallio to factory duc, Fabrizio to Pramac....

I was hoping they'd call up Bayless!

Would have been nice to see Bayliss back, but that's life. What's up with Stoner though, burn out or something?

Kallio has been doing some good stuff on the Pramac Ducati, so he could go well.

I have also been reading that Ducati want to sign the Ben. But then again, who would not want to sign the Ben these days!

Henrik wrote:Would have been nice to see Bayliss back, but that's life. What's up with Stoner though, burn out or something?

Kallio has been doing some good stuff on the Pramac Ducati, so he could go well.

I have also been reading that Ducati want to sign the Ben. But then again, who would not want to sign the Ben these days!

Stoner went to Dr. Ting here in the States. He is our guru for racers. Dr. Ting said he was suffering from Anemia, and could be Epstein Barr. Some of the symptoms fit both. Who knows.

It will be nice to see Kallio on a proper factory bike...Lets see what he can really do.

As far as the Ben goes....Riders who put up results and are "team Yamaha" guys don't leave Yamaha. I don't see Yamaha letting The Ben get away. I getting the feeling Yamaha knows Lorenzo is good...but I sense they are getting annoyed at his game over money. Colin is under contract with Yamaha....Toseland is gone after the last checkered flag....Colin isn't going anywhere (the Aprilia rumors I believe are wrong). I think The Ben will be on a Factory Fiat Yamaha...but in Tech 3 Monster colors. Herve must loves this...he gets The Ben and Colin and doesn't have to pay for either of them!

I feel bad for Maio though...he gets The Ben...who makes the R1 (which appears to be only slightly better than average) look like a world beater....and then loses him 11 months later.

I don't know about the R1. Camier is killing the BSB on one as well, and that is up against two very strong Honda teams. It's a pity Guintoli got hurt because I think he could have taken the fight to Leon on the Suzuki, but regardless the Yamaha looks like a good bike. Hell even Sykes is doing pretty well on it, and he is no Ben Spies!

But I agree that Ben will most likely land a disguised works bike with Tech 3. I suppose the question then is what will Pedrosa's bike be like? Oh, and what a force Yamaha will be with Rossi, Pedrosa, Spies and Edwards!

Henrik...

We're hearing in the states that Toseland is getting punted after Brno.

Have you heard anything?

No, I haven't heard anything, but I read an interview with Herve who seems really fed up with him. He bsically said that last year JT was complaining about the tires, and that he wanted a new engineer. He got both, and his results are going backwards!

What have read though, and this is just wild rumours, is that Stoner is actually out of Ducati! Doesn't make any sense to me because I thought they were a match made in heaven, but some are talking of a Freddy Spencer syndrome...

Henrik wrote:No, I haven't heard anything, but I read an interview with Herve who seems really fed up with him. He bsically said that last year JT was complaining about the tires, and that he wanted a new engineer. He got both, and his results are going backwards!

What have read though, and this is just wild rumours, is that Stoner is actually out of Ducati! Doesn't make any sense to me because I thought they were a match made in heaven, but some are talking of a Freddy Spencer syndrome...

Wow...hadn't heard that rumor about Casey...that will really send silly season into overdrive!

I should add that I read Bautista will be on a Suzuki next year! Oh and Barbera should be on a MotoGP bike rune by Aspar.

Next year could be shaping up nicely for MotoGP. I'm really interested to see how silly season plays out and where The Ben and Jorge wind up.

WOW.... Rossi is once again impressive...even after Jorge lead every session except the one that counted.

Bummer about Kallio throwing it away.... Nicky looked pretty good. Toseland was utter crap again in 14th....Colin puts the Tech 3 into 5th.

Nice to see Marco Melandri get signed back to Gresini.

Should be good.

Any info you have on 125/250 would be appreciated Henrik...we get so little coverage.

Yeah I'm happy for Melandri. He is a good rider and deserves his spot in the MotoGP. Seems his teammate is confirmed to be Simoncelli which brings me to the 250 results.

Yup, Simoncelli is on pole but I think he is too far behind to get another championship. Aoyama in second and my hope for the title this year. I am wondering what he will be doing next year, but Honda have to get him a bike in MotoGP I think. Certainly he is a better rider than Takahashi, and I always want a good Japanese rider in the top class. Barbera and Debon fill out the front row which makes this start pretty similar to the rest of the season. I have to say Bautista has disappointed me this year as I have been a fan of his for years and really expected him to fight for the title this year, but he is just not consistent enough. I can see him struggling on that Suzuki next year.

The kindergarten class has Iannone on pole with Terol, Cortese and Simon with him up front. Simon is obviously the odd one out being older and more experienced than the others, and he should figure on the podium. Cortese is again getting better, at the same time as some of the top dogs from last year are falling behind like Bradl and Bradley Smith. These bikes always struggle a bit on the uphill at Brno, but it is always fun racing.

I don't really have much news as to who goes where in these classes for next year, especially given the change to 4 strokes in the 250.

Henrik wrote:
I don't really have much news as to who goes where in these classes for next year, especially given the change to 4 strokes in the 250.

That to me is the big story being lost here in the States. All the talk is about how bad DMG/AMA sucks.....where The Ben will go....When is Lorenzo going to decide....etc.

It seems with 600/4's the dynamics will drastically change for the old 250 class. I'm really looking forward to see who is hard on it for the first race next year.

Has there been anymore talk about a weight limit w/rider like F1? I'd really like to see the midgets stop getting preferential treatment...and allow some full grown men to race....by full grown I mean 5'9+ and 165lbs.

Freddy Spencer syndrome?

TopContender wrote:Freddy Spencer syndrome?

It's a nice way of saying burnout.

For a while there I was thinking the race was very formula 1'ish, then Lorenzo went and threw it away just as things where spicing up. I would say that pretty much seals the deal for another Rossi championship. With 50 points lead, he is way to reliable to miss the title.

Further down, Elias did his annual contract race, and got on the podium. I really wonder why he can't ride like that more often. Dovi had an incredible save there losing the front and catching it on his knee! Great stuff.

Kallio must have had some brain fade, and then thought it was Melandri's fault. Looked dangerous though, as he could have gotten his arm caught in the chain there!

Oh, and on the rumour side, it was mentioned that Randy will be riding JT's bike next year. That would rule out The Ben. However, there are still no news regarding Lorenzo, and seeing how he is folding under Rossi's pressure, I really can't see him staying with Yamaha next year. So, they could move Colin back to the Fiat Yamaha, and leave a spot for Ben on the Tech 3. Also, it seems to become more and more mentioned that we maz never see Stoner again on a MotoGP bike. It would suck if that was to be the case as the kid is special.

Henrik wrote:For a while there I was thinking the race was very formula 1'ish, then Lorenzo went and threw it away just as things where spicing up. I would say that pretty much seals the deal for another Rossi championship. With 50 points lead, he is way to reliable to miss the title.

Further down, Elias did his annual contract race, and got on the podium. I really wonder why he can't ride like that more often. Dovi had an incredible save there losing the front and catching it on his knee! Great stuff.

Kallio must have had some brain fade, and then thought it was Melandri's fault. Looked dangerous though, as he could have gotten his arm caught in the chain there!

Oh, and on the rumour side, it was mentioned that Randy will be riding JT's bike next year. That would rule out The Ben. However, there are still no news regarding Lorenzo, and seeing how he is folding under Rossi's pressure, I really can't see him staying with Yamaha next year. So, they could move Colin back to the Fiat Yamaha, and leave a spot for Ben on the Tech 3. Also, it seems to become more and more mentioned that we maz never see Stoner again on a MotoGP bike. It would suck if that was to be the case as the kid is special.

As I was watching I knew Rossi was going to get in his head. Rossi's system for breaking people has been used so often that when Jorge crashed I actually laughed. With 6 to go it felt like Rossi let him by....next lap show him a wheel going into T3....then watch the camera's follow Jorge's bike and body through the gravel. No doubt in my mind every racer in the Paddock right now is mind fucked by #46.

Kallio is on glue...I couldn't believe how hard he hit Marco. His misdirected animosity at Marco was sad. I bet when he see's the video he will get it.

I'd love to see Randy at Tech 3...man sized race by him today with a broken foot.

I wonder if Jorge goes to a different team if he will end up looking average. Burgess and Rossi...along with Colin develop a bike well. I wonder what Jorge will be able to do being a real #1 rider on a team.

I've got my fingers crossed that Casey makes it back....I'm pretty sure he would have been right there with Vale and Jorge...I missed him today.

Nice job by Nicky today. I can't agree with you more about Elias...but I think he is gone.

It seems like Jorge will do anything to 1up Rossi even it is means taking them both out. Then Rossi take a jab at him by mispronouncing his first name (unless that is the Catalonian way).

I might have said this before but every time I see Jorge fall I keep thinking of Icarus, and how his wings got clipped by getting close to the Sun.

TopContender wrote:It seems like Jorge will do anything to 1up Rossi even it is means taking them both out. Then Rossi take a jab at him by mispronouncing his first name (unless that is the Catalonian way).

I might have said this before but every time I see Jorge fall I keep thinking of Icarus, and how his wings got clipped by getting close to the Sun.

I'm pretty sure the are going to put Jorge on suicide watch by the end of the year.

It is unbelievable how Rossi can mind-fuck any other rider. I think one of the few he hasn't done that to is Capirossi. I remember one race I saw in Sepang, and the two of them were going at it hard. Rossi tried his regular stuff, but Capi didn't fold. Then after the race the two of them were laughing their heads off about it. Great to see.

It makes me wonder how Simoncelli will be. He and Rossi are really good friends, unlike Jorge. Given his size, I believe Simoncelli will be much more comfortable on a big bike, so there may be some good fighting there in the future.

As to the GP2 stuff, I don't have all the details yet, but I could talk to my friend at the FIM to get the lowdown. What I do know is that the engines will all be the same at 150hp, but it is not clear if it will be Honda or Kawasaki making them. Chassis is an open thing, and from what I have seen it is only Moriwaki who has one ready.

There has been a lot of discussion about the formula here, and many are not happy with it. I think it seems really interesting, and as you say, should be good for bigger riders. I'm sure it will be interesting.