How is it that lesser riders beat the 'truly talented' Casey Stoner then at Le Mans in the wet, the 'truly talented' one who is riding arguably the best bike on the grid, and rain as we know is a great leveler....?
How is it that lesser riders beat the 'truly talented' Casey Stoner then at Le Mans in the wet, the 'truly talented' one who is riding arguably the best bike on the grid, and rain as we know is a great leveler....?
Joined Aug 2008
6K Posts | 748+
Thailand
So in your opinion the Ducati is just fine IF Ducati could have kept Casey or can find another Casey... Why didn't you just say you agree with the rest of the world - the Ducati was/is a beast that only Casey could tame!
No, No......first they need to find another Casey, then they need to get the control tyre reg removed, and find another tyre manufacturer ready to beat Bridgestone, and produce near perfect rubber that never goes off and suits their bike. If this fails then they need to hope that the 'Truly talented' Casey style rider doesn't get sick due to the way he needs to ride the bike, and they need to find a way to ensure that he doesn't end up in the gravel trap every second race......all the while they need to make Honda remove their seamless gearbox, and go back 20 or so chassis variations......and after all this, they might get their new 'Casey' style rider to win a couple of races and finish around.......5th in the championship.......and after 5-6 years of this, they need to hope that the new Casey doesn't get the ..... and retire, then we are back to square one again.......great strategy for Ducati this one......
I agree with it being a beast. Weren't the 500's beasts? Didn't every one love them? Back in the 500 era it was all Americans and Aussies doing it at the front because the bikes were beasts. Now all the Euro's want nice little placid bikes that they can ride like their little mini motos.
The Ducati was an excellent bike but it needed to be man handled by a man. Metro men need not apply.
Joined Aug 2008
6K Posts | 748+
Thailand
Apparently not 'cause men of lesser talent (ie Rossi) got on fine with them!
Where did I say any talent level? Most of the riders in GP are the best there are in the world. It just happens that, much to the disappointment of boppers, there is someone who is a step above even these great riders. Haven't seen the Honda win many championships in the last 5 or so years unless an American or an Aussie were on it so as far as churning out bikes that any rider can be competitive on, I think you will find the facts seem to disagree.
Rode the best of the bikes on the grid. Crashed it for a season then won on it. Good on him. Not like he mastered them for a generation or beat the previous multi WC on them either.
Joined Aug 2008
6K Posts | 748+
Thailand
One word answer - Pedders. 100 podiums, competitive, capice? God you're funny... please give me your take on Senna's time at Williams!
Oh - talent level... Obviously Vale is in the "lesser talent level" you brought up in the first post I replied to... yet he managed to eek out a coupla WCs while the more talented rider struggled on the Duc.
Oh - talent level... Obviously Vale is in the "lesser talent level" you brought up in the first post I replied to... yet he managed to eek out a coupla WCs while the more talented rider struggled on the Duc.
Joined Jun 2007
10K Posts | 1K+
Norah Head
Then what happened at Silverstone 2011 etc. ?
I think Le Mans 2012 was more a case of Rossi pulled his finger out .......... combined with a touch of luck.
Joined Jun 2007
10K Posts | 1K+
Norah Head
Funny how ONE good placing has raised Rossi's level again so immensely ........ I think you guys need a tad more patience yet.
Thats been ONE out a ....... >20 races, and he was still miles off Lorenzo ......... and the guy he beat for second is a retiree FFS ........ and the retiree is practically riding a gopher!
Joined Jul 2011
1K Posts | 872+
Dont Know
Maybe. Honda would have been just fine had they found another Rossi in 2004. It took the almighty Honda a full 7 years and a magic gearbox to finally dominate the championship again.
It took Yamaha 12 years to replace Wayne Rainey and win another championship.
Just because Rossi is the wrong match for Ducati doesnt mean some other kid out there is not the right fit and would kick Casey Stoners ... while he's at it.
Joined Aug 2008
6K Posts | 748+
Thailand
No doubt... let me know when yer done shaking trees and sorting through the nuts! I mean, Ducati's got the cash to sit in neutral and wait, right?
Not anymore they don't. 2011 & 12 will be the most expensive years in the history of Ducati with little to show for it. Any cash they had is gone.
Joined Jul 2011
1K Posts | 872+
Dont Know
Why wait? All they have to do based on past experience is skip down their preferred rider list to the fourth choice rookie crasher and hire him. Could be one called Bradl. Could be Crutchlow or Luthi. That or maybe just switch development to Hayden!
Joined Aug 2008
6K Posts | 748+
Thailand
Joined Aug 2008
6K Posts | 748+
Thailand
Or wait 'til hell freezes over - I'll spell it out. Casey's don't grow on trees... sure throw all the eager kids on it let them fall (getting the analogy yet?) I'll be watching MGP with my long grey beard before Ducati finds another Casey!
Joined Aug 2007
11K Posts | 3K+
Pomona NY
Joined Aug 2007
11K Posts | 3K+
Pomona NY
Yes... but this is a false equivalence. All the 500s were more or less equally cantankeous. Handling-wise it was essentially a level playing field.
