Duc to field 6 bikes in 2011

Now is that really necessary with a perfectly good seat available at paramac? cough cough Mika Killio cough. Good on duc for adding another bike to the grid. I guess that just mean they still have one more seat to fill. If it were me I would Iannone a shot.

MotoGP's transformation into F1 is now complete.

mylexicon said:

MotoGP's transformation into F1 is now complete.

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How so?

Tom said:

How so?

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I think he is implying adding more back marker teams. Like in the OP's message, the guy hasn't even achieved a podium in any class yet.

eltoro said:

I think he is implying adding more back marker teams. Like in the OP's message, the guy hasn't even achieved a podium in any class yet.

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Basically, the act of buying your way onto the grid. Talmasci did it last year, but that was with an existing team. Now new teams are being created for riders with financial backing. If teams can't make money without selling the seat, there is something seriously wrong with the price point.

mylexicon said:

Basically, the act of buying your way onto the grid. Talmasci did it last year, but that was with an existing team. Now new teams are being created for riders with financial backing. If teams can't make money without selling the seat, there is something seriously wrong with the price point.

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As you say just like F1 and a further sign that the current formula is too expensive.

What happened to the talk of Ducati having to downsize if Rossi came there?

Roll on 2012 when we`ll have more bikes out there,hopefully............although I`m beginning to lean towards lumping MGP and SBK in together with a complete new set of rules.Lets face it ,this year has been a mess so far with only Moto2 giving any solid consistent entertainment.

But I don't like Moto2 that much.



I do like MGP this year.

BarryMachine said:

But I don't like Moto2 that much.



I do like MGP this year.

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Just picture it in your mind if the Moto2 bikes had been allowed at Laguna...........would have been an awesome sight and race.But each to their own.

i think the added bikes are because of who will be developing the Factory bike...

I'm afraid that the additional Ducati bikes will be offset by Suzuki abandoning the series...??? I just don't know if they've got it in them to continue this way.

From a poster on crash.net comments:



motorkari.cz/motosport/silnicni/motogp/abraham-pojede-historicky-prvni-cech-zavody-motogp-v-roce-2011--16423.html



None (almost?) of us can read it, but there is a 1:51.00 near Abraham's name.



race fastest laps mentioned by the article confirmed:



http://resources.motogp.com/files/results/xx/2010/ITA/MotoGP/RAC/FastLapRider.pdf?v1_c04aab66





So with a few 'ifs' this could be a good sign.



If it was a race sim, if it was on hard tires, he just might be able to pull it off. I am in full support of scouting these young guys and giving them 2-3 years to develop in GP like espargaro. I think that's what it is going to take in GP to really excel with all the latest complexities. The old argument of 'he didn't do X and Y in the previous classes why would we expect him to do it now' doesn't always have to hold. Stoner never beat Pedrosa to a championship, and hell, neither did Lorenzo the few years they were together. The lower classes are too inconsistent with their rider pools to draw conclusive evidence towards future success 100% of the time. Too much is dependent on who leaves and when. If the man's paying his own way and wants to give it a shot, power to him. As long has he races safe, the only thing at stake is his pride.

mylexicon said:

Basically, the act of buying your way onto the grid. Talmasci did it last year, but that was with an existing team. Now new teams are being created for riders with financial backing. If teams can't make money without selling the seat, there is something seriously wrong with the price point.

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Do the teams profit? Doesn't most sponsorship dollars/financial backing goes toward actually keeping teams operational, i.e. developing a bike, paying rider/employee salaries, etc.

xx CURVE xx said:

i think the added bikes are because of who will be developing the Factory bike...

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Ducati must be looking at all the sponsorship money Rossi will bring with him

eltoro said:

Do the teams profit? Doesn't most sponsorship dollars/financial backing goes toward actually keeping teams operational, i.e. developing a bike, paying rider/employee salaries, etc.

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Treating the symptoms vs. curing the disease.



Yes, Abraham is bringing cash with him and he will boost grid numbers assuming Interwetten Honda doesn't fold, but the new team is only treating the symptoms of the disease. I'm not going to complain about the new team b/c the GPC can grant entrance to whomever they like, but taking medicine from a new sponsor is not preferable to curing the disease, particularly when the medicine calls the meritocracy of the sport into question.



I don't resent Abraham; however, I do lament that the starting money is not sufficient to fund private teams. The absurd complexities of the 21L 800cc formula are wreaking havoc on the finances of smaller teams. I'd much sooner see the MSMA walk away from a sport that is too simple than to continue feeding private teams to the sponsors. Even some factory teams like Ducati are owned by the sponsors. When you think about the big picture, all outside sponsorship is part of the IV drip that treats the GP disease. Sponsorship should not be a primary source of operating revenue unless a company is a media & marketing company. Do we want IRTA teams to race, or do we want them to become media and advertising companies who specialize in in placing motorized billboards in front of TV cameras at MotoGP events?



This new team is proof of that MotoGP is very sick. I understand the medicine must be taken, but I want to cure the disease b/c the side effects of selling the sport are intolerable.

What types of revenue sources would you propose? Direct and Indirect sponsorships are the main source of revenue for virtually every high profile sporting activity in the world with the only key exceptions being Boxing, mma, and all other PPV fighting.



In a perfect sportsman's world, Grand Prix racing is nothing more than a test between the riders/pilots/engineers of one team versus another. It is all that and it is an enjoyable spectacle, but in reality its mainly a tool used between businessmen and women in suits trying to sell their product. The marriage between the manufacturers and their sponsors is only natural. Both are have something to sell, and Grand Prix allows them both the vehicle to advertise their products.



So we limit sponsorship income and the alternatives are ticket sales, merchandise sales, and TV/media contracts. The ticket sales are nice, but not much more than a dent in the combined expenditures. Merchandise even less. TV/media contracts are nothing more than an indirect form of sponsorship income. Racing is always going to be a money sink for the manufacturers involved for the sake of advertising. We are lucky as it is to have even a handful of privateer and satellite teams. The best they can hope for is to break even, and most are content with that since their owners are generally motivated by passion for the sport, which is great.



I see a potential growth of sponsorship as a good thing for the sport, as a sign that it is in fact healthy, not the other way around.

yello13 said:

What types of revenue sources would you propose? Direct and Indirect sponsorships are the main source of revenue for virtually every high profile sporting activity in the world with the only key exceptions being Boxing, mma, and all other PPV fighting.



In a perfect sportsman's world, Grand Prix racing is nothing more than a test between the riders/pilots/engineers of one team versus another. It is all that and it is an enjoyable spectacle, but in reality its mainly a tool used between businessmen and women in suits trying to sell their product. The marriage between the manufacturers and their sponsors is only natural. Both are have something to sell, and Grand Prix allows them both the vehicle to advertise their products.



So we limit sponsorship income and the alternatives are ticket sales, merchandise sales, and TV/media contracts. The ticket sales are nice, but not much more than a dent in the combined expenditures. Merchandise even less. TV/media contracts are nothing more than an indirect form of sponsorship income. Racing is always going to be a money sink for the manufacturers involved for the sake of advertising. We are lucky as it is to have even a handful of privateer and satellite teams. The best they can hope for is to break even, and most are content with that since their owners are generally motivated by passion for the sport, which is great.



I see a potential growth of sponsorship as a good thing for the sport, as a sign that it is in fact healthy, not the other way around.

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Collective bargaining and revenue sharing through the league is completely different than allowing the teams to negotiate their own individual contracts. In US stick and ball leagues, sponsorship is banned from the field and the equipment specifically b/c the teams will focus on advertising during the game rather than focusing on sport. The league negotiates all advertising that occurs on screen and then the pot is chopped amongst all of the teams in the league.



Sponsorship overemphasizes the importance of TV and it distracts from the sport's purpose as an authentic contest. Individually negotiated sponsorship contracts lead to a revenue explosion which leads to a cost explosion. When the revenues fall, costs do not. This is particularly dangerous in motorsports b/c some manufacturers can subsidize the lost revenues and some cannot. Rather than "dumb" down the sport by rewriting the technical rules, the league actually allows teams to withdraw and go bankrupt. Eventually, the sport has very few manufacturers.



NASCAR is about the only motorsport that exists solely on outside sponsorship. NASCAR have addressed the perils of this business model using cost-controlled spec equipment. Obviously, NASCAR's approach creates an entirely new set of problems that undermine the authenticity of the sport. Unfortunately, most international racing series look to NASCAR whenever they get in trouble. As a result, they begin heavily regulating the equipment. It is a losing battle in the long run.



The only way to rehabilitate motorsports is to look at US stick-and-ball sports. All sponsorship should be collectively handled through IRTA and commercial rights negotiations with Dorna. It will never happen b/c motorsports is too far gone, but it is the proper way. Until the adopt the stick-and-ball model, they will always be moving towards NASCAR.