could prove costly

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (gary @ Apr 12 2008, 06:03 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>in my opinion i may be wrong but i dont think the bridgestone,s suit the machines with the large power output,

Have you considered which machine it is that Bridgestone have had their only signifcant success?

i think valentino is doing fine on the stones???

the stones durability must be good because they are on the most agressive machine "the duke"

i think rossi will be well up front tomorow the michelin sticky is just way better when it comes to qualifying.

rossi quote:
"Every time we fit the qualifying tyres it's a test for us. We tried the last tyre but I didn't finish the lap, unfortunately, but I'm happy"

he is still setting a good race pace and at the end of the day rossi is making his tyres work, he didnt beat pedrosa in qatar but towards the end of the race he was gaining on him which means there durability is good.

I think Rossi is doing OK and will only get stronger with more experience using the Bridgestones.

I'm sure he will be getting plenty of support to beat Lorenzo on the Michelins. If Lorenzo can beat Rossi that won't look good for Bridgestone.

I think the improvement in the Honda and Yamaha Bikes has alot to do with their 2008 performance.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (jazkat @ Apr 12 2008, 01:20 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>i think valentino is doing fine on the stones???

the stones durability must be good because they are on the most agressive machine "the duke"

i think rossi will be well up front tomorow the michelin sticky is just way better when it comes to qualifying.

rossi quote:
"Every time we fit the qualifying tyres it's a test for us. We tried the last tyre but I didn't finish the lap, unfortunately, but I'm happy"

he is still setting a good race pace and at the end of the day rossi is making his tyres work, he didnt beat pedrosa in qatar but towards the end of the race he was gaining on him which means there durability is good.

I think you meant Jerez,at Qatar,Rossi was in the process of being passed by a rookie for 5th place.He was gaining on Pedro at Jerez but Pedro was on cruise control the last 3 laps.

The mistake in switching to Bridgestones is not in performance. The mistake is that he has to work that much harder to figure out what Bridgestones work with which set up. It doesn't help matters that he is the only Yamaha on 'Stones and there are likely contractual agreements that keep data sensitive to tires from Lorenzo and the Tech 3 team off limits to Rossi's part of the garage.

It was a panicked move and now he will spend the better part of this season acclimating to the tires when he could have been spending that time focusing on other areas.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Austin @ Apr 12 2008, 07:14 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>The mistake in switching to Bridgestones is not in performance. The mistake is that he has to work that much harder to figure out what Bridgestones work with which set up. It doesn't help matters that he is the only Yamaha on 'Stones and there are likely contractual agreements that keep data sensitive to tires from Lorenzo and the Tech 3 team off limits to Rossi's part of the garage.

It was a panicked move and now he will spend the better part of this season acclimating to the tires when he could have been spending that time focusing on other areas.

not a panic move at all.

he had numerous problems with the michelins over the last 2 seasons and i'm not talking about "general Michelin suckiness of 2007"... i'm talking specifically about Rossi's front blowout in China and the numerous races in 06 and 07 where we watched Rossi drop from a podium spot to 5th, 6th, 7th, or worse in the last five laps of the race.

it's not like it was a surprise to him that "oh crap i forgot we have no data !!!'

and to all the people who are bitching about the move Rossi made last year, guess what ??? Bridgestone wants him and you know why ? Because he's the guy who gave michelin a 1+ second qualifier AND a FRONT Q as well. That's what Bridgestone needs... good Qs (and a front Q) which SURPRISE, they're going to start rolling out soon.

trust me, this is a win-win for everybody. rossi gets a new challenge, bridgestone gets a 1 second Q and a front Q, the field gets leveled a bit since rossi has to learn new tires.

he's not 7 times world champ because he panics or makes decisions without thinking them through.

assuming he gets another title, it'll just be another feather in his cap... two makes, two tire brands, etc. etc. etc.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Austin @ Apr 13 2008, 03:14 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>The mistake in switching to Bridgestones is not in performance. The mistake is that he has to work that much harder to figure out what Bridgestones work with which set up. It doesn't help matters that he is the only Yamaha on 'Stones and there are likely contractual agreements that keep data sensitive to tires from Lorenzo and the Tech 3 team off limits to Rossi's part of the garage.

It was a panicked move and now he will spend the better part of this season acclimating to the tires when he could have been spending that time focusing on other areas.
I agree with drumfu that his move was most definitely not panicked.

As I have pointed out before there was an interview with Edwards during the off season where he said that no-one else could ride the type of tyres Rossi wanted, and that Michelin would improve by being not having to focus on two very different development tangents.

Rossi had also spent a fair bit of time shadowing Stoner in races such as Qatar, Assen and Catalunya and said that from what he'd seen of the behaviour of Stoners tyres he believed they'd be the way to go.

Anyway, third in the last race, third on the grid for this race (both circuits where Michelin were better than the Stones last year) is looking pretty good assuming that the circuits where the Stones held sway last year continue to do so this year.

I quoted Burgess' thoughts on how long it was likely to take to acclimatise to the tyres in another thread:

LINK

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (drumfu @ Apr 13 2008, 04:29 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>he's not 7 times world champ because he panics or makes decisions without thinking them through.

I just read his book and as he said himself: "Some might say I have allways been on the best eqipment even when it's not true, but those desitions were all mine to take, often agains the wish of teams and management."

I doubt it was a panic move. As Yamaka wrote, he has trailed Stoner enough to evaluate those tires better than anyone but Stoner himself.

it'll get better for him. with the exception of stoners win in qatar, he by far has the best results & is the most consistent bstone runner. and consider the fact that jerez & estoril are not very good tracks for the stones & i'd say he's coming along quite nicely.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (drumfu @ Apr 12 2008, 08:29 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>not a panic move at all.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (yamaka46 @ Apr 12 2008, 08:50 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>I agree with drumfu that his move was most definitely not panicked.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Babelfish @ Apr 13 2008, 04:10 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>I doubt it was a panic move. As Yamaka wrote, he has trailed Stoner enough to evaluate those tires better than anyone but Stoner himself.
If it wasn't a panic move then why did he wait to make the decision until it was a unanimous decision in the paddock that Bridgestones were far superior in 2007 and it would only get better for them considering their massive resources? I'm not saying it was a mistake, I think it will work out very well for Rossi. If he doesn't reap the benefits of the switch this year, then certainly next.

It wasn't just Rossi but other riders who said that when the Bridgestone's worked, the Michelin was no match for them. Nicky said that too. Estoril is one of those tracks where in 2007 Bridgestone dd not have a significant performance advantage.