<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Rising Sun @ Mar 9 2007, 06:20 PM)
<{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>
This is a long post, but I've never started a thread before, so I'm going all out. You've been warned.
Since last November there's been a never ending supply of topics doing all they can to diminish Hayden's achievement. Some of these have been contemptuous of 'the Kentucky Kid' from the beginning, others have ended up that way over time, but they all seem to carry the same message: 'Trick Daddy' (as his friends have called him, since, like forever) doesn't really deserve the title because he didn't win it in a "good way", and poor, poor Vale: he had such appalling, appalling bad luck and was on a bike that was so .... house that he could only win five races on it.
...hang on, that last part doesn't make sense. Let me try that again: on a bike so .... house, that Yamaha had to steal Ilmor's engine, Dunlop tyres and d'Antin's funding just to get competitive.
Reading all these threads is almost making me start to dislike Rossi, and want to see Hayden do well at his expense. So it's time to take the bullseye away from Hayden, and stick it on Valentino.
Now keep in mind, one has ever said that Hayden, across his career to date, is anything but dwarfed by all of Rossi's glittering achievements. But, in the interest of fair play, I will compare their 2006 performances to the entities known as Rossi-the-god and Hayden-the-Laguna...
In 2006, up until the summer break 'Oakley-MP3' managed 2 wins out of 11 starts and camped out on the podium 7 other times. Rossi-is-God's lofty standards would say the ratio is the wrong way around, but by Hayden-the-Laguna's standards, his performance was off the charts.
On the other hand 'I wear-crap-visor-hats-that-no-else-thinks-are-cool' had 4 wins out of 11. However, he also managed to be the only one to break a Yamaha in both France (maybe he damaged something taking out De Puniet) and in the USA (where he did his best to spread oil and/or other fluids all over the racing line for a lap or two). Furthermore, he chose a risky Michelin tyre in China--because that worked so well for Gibernau in 2005--and severely damaged his wanking hand in Assen when he crashed in practice because he was indulging in his sticker fetish at high speed. By Rossi-is-God's lofty standards... even Gibernau or Biaggi could've done all that.
Sure, he did run into an Elias roadblock in Jerez, throw a 10 second tantrum, and finish 14th, but the piece of .... he was riding was so bad, the crash probably fixed the suspension. Anway, the nation of Spain made it up to him when Pedrosa gave him some points in Turkey.
A word from our sponsor, SSIPerko, before we continue:
> I honestly don't like how he was awarded the title. That's just me. I
> don't think coasting into title is befitting a champion of any sport, that's
> just how I feel.
Coasting? If Hayden had dropped his bike at Valencia and Rossi managed to finish in 3rd place (he said himself that he thought no one had the pace to match Bayliss and Capirossi) then he would have ABSOLUTELY 'coasted' to the title as well.
Consider this:
After the summer break 'The Doctor' was 51 points down. That's a lot of points. To get back into the championship you'll need to win a lot of races, or have a lot of luck, right? No worries, Rossifumi, the absolute legend that he is, wins races as easy as the rest of us take a morning ..... Besides, Hayboy will crack under pressure too. Nothing to worry about.
So what happened?
Brno: A mile back in second place, despite starting from a pole that was about a second clear of everyone else.
Malaysia: A close fought win, starting from a lucky and dubious pole.
Philip Island: A lucky third (Gibernau, looking round, saw 46 and, as ever, obligingly pulled his pants down).
Motegi: Second, in a nothing race. Struggled to stay in front of Melandri (but at least he didn't take him out this time).
Portugal: Starts from pole again. Rubens Bara-- sorry, Colin Edwards, rides shotgun (though ends up shooting himself in the foot). Team Repsol go down in a screaming heap. Vale the Doctor makes a crucial mistake on the last lap, gets out foxed by the master tactician that is... Elias?!? and finishes second. Would've been third, actually, if the rest of the world counted the same way Roberts Jr. does...
Valenica: Starts from pole. Blows the start. Drops to eigth, then drops it altogether.
So how many wins did the greatest ever rider manage to, er, win in the back end of a desperate fight to retain his crown? A grand total of... one. Just one. Umm, that's, that's... kinda sad for Mr. 7 Times isn't it? It’s almost Hayden-the-Laguna-like. The out and out champion is supposed to be the one true race-winning man's man. So it was just luck that got him into the championship lead going into the last round, I guess.
By Rossi-the-god's standards? It stinks like the piece of .... that is the so-hard-to-set-up-that-I-could-only manage-5-poles-(just-like-I-did-in-2005)-Yamaha (via Ilmor/Dunlop/d’Antin).
Still, that one win was more than coasting-too-lucky-for-his-own-good-all-in-the-family-Hayseed could get, of course. What happened to him?
Brno: Something about mechanical problems, or a tyre? Whatever, it kept him out of his traditional 4th place.
Malaysia: A drugged-out Pedrosa got between him and the leaders.
Philip Island: The yellow flag that wasn't. Also, Gibernau doesn't just pull his pants down for anyone, you know.
Motegi: A nothing race and a dodgy clutch. Nice of Shinya to crash, going for Gibernau's pants, though.
Portugal: We don't need no stinking team orders...
Valencia: But now we do.
So there you have it. Doc Vale Rossifumi the Doctor was actually quite crap in 2006. I Kiss my Mom on the lips Farmboy had a limpet like grip on the podium up until the summer break, then had a .... load of bad luck dumped on him in the run to the finish. It probably came from that absolute piece of .... Yamaha (Ilmor/Dunlop/d'Antin) that Vespa King had to contend with...
2006 as it happened. I guess there are no superheroes, Vale.
I missed this post,.....what a corker!
