Joined Jul 2015
812 Posts | 336+
Hurricane, WV
That sounds like George. To him, everyone else is there is fill in the spots from 2nd and 23rd. So I really don't think he cares.
Joined Jul 2015
812 Posts | 336+
Hurricane, WV
This is a dangerous game for 'ole Georgie Poo. If he fails on the Duke, he will have given up an almost certain top placing on the M! for the next few years. I really don;t think the Duke serves JLO's riding style that well. But who knows how the development will go.
Joined Jul 2015
812 Posts | 336+
Hurricane, WV
I somewhat agree. He is taking a huge risk in jumping to the Duc. I myself, (as I have whined for two weeks), wish he would have stayed on the M1. One, I think it is the better bike and two, I am totally bias because I been a Yamaha guy longer than a GP fan.
But with that said, I don't think he would have made such a leap without some certainty that the bike was up to par and that he could win on it. Now, is only that certainty the word and trust in Ciabatti, or something else, I can not answer.
My take is simple, and maybe too simplistic. George is better than Dovi, and Dovi should be second in points after three races. Equals, George should be able to fair okay.. Championship.. Not sure.
Joined Feb 2015
361 Posts | 155+
Iowa
I agree. However, I am more optimistic. Gigi has worked with Jorge in the past and I think Dovi has a somewhat similar style to him. Jorge will absolutely have to fine tune it to himself, what I think they can get it close in the meantime. I hope he does well, as more bikes fighting at the point end each weekend is a good thing for everyone.
Well, I somewhat agree with you too lol.
I definitely agree that he would not have made the leap if he wasn't pretty sure he could win on that bike. BUT, what if we're wrong, and he made the move based on ego and just wants to be able to potentially do something Valentino couldn't? I'm guessing it's probably a bit of both.
I agree with your point about George being better than Dovi, and thus should do ok on the bike. But my honest thought is this: Let's look at mixed martial arts for an example. They have a saying that "styles make fights". They basically mean that even if a guy is a feared striker, a good wrestler might be able to neutralize that by taking him down a lot, etc. It could be the same with JLO's move to Ducati. Just because JLo is better than Dovi, doesn't mean his style is well suited for the Ducati machine. Again, I'm just playing devil's advocate here.
I'm actually pretty interested to see how this will pan out.
Joined Jul 2015
812 Posts | 336+
Hurricane, WV
I agree with your thinking. I think this move HAS to make Ducati more competitive, unless JLO simply can't adjust to the new machinery. It will certainly make things interesting.
And, what if Vinales moves to the M1? He's already close to Rossi while on the Suzuki, it might be scary to see what he could do on equal machinery. But with the power shifted to Rossi with Lorenzo's departure, would Rossi want yet another talented young rival barking up his tree?
Joined Feb 2015
361 Posts | 155+
Iowa
I'm not entirely convinced Viñales will leave Suzuki. The bike is certainly making progress. He said after their last test he wished he would've used their new chassis, as the bike was faster still. Who knows, maybe their would've been a Suzuki in Parc Ferme in Austin. And why leave where he at least appears to have equal support to go to Yamaha and play second fiddle.
Yeah I just read an article talking about how Vinales would go from being the number 1 at Suzuki, to the obvious number 2 at Yamaha, and why would he wan to to do that, etc. However, I really think Rossi will retire after his new contract is up, which would give Vinales 3 years to develop into the clear number 1 at Yamaha, perhaps have a say in who his new teammate would be, and be able to win a championship. I do agree that Suzuki is making great progress, but I still think they have a while to go before winning a title. I think Vinales could do it sooner if he went to Yamaha. Just a thought...
Joined Jul 2015
812 Posts | 336+
Hurricane, WV
I think it was Kropo that said he has heard if Vinales podiums this year, Suzuki can extend his contract for another year. That would make things interesting...
Joined Feb 2016
208 Posts | 107+
Mongolia
Probably depending on who would make the decision at Yamaha and whether Rossi has any influence on the decision or not. . If vinales ends up at Yamaha , it's not going to be easy for Rossi.
Joined Jun 2007
3K Posts | 309+
UK
He could get out of the contract with Suzuki but it will cost him....and yet I think he could get out the contract with a little help from Yamaha in the form a signing bonus to cover the costs....
Joined Jul 2015
812 Posts | 336+
Hurricane, WV
I heard the same thing, but how exactly does that make sense. Unless I'm reading into wrong, it's basically saying, "ok the bike probably isn't good enough to get Vinales on the podium, but if his riding is so great that he does grab a podium, then we have the right to retain him for a year, even though it was his riding that got him a podium finish and not the bike." It doesn't seem fair to Vinales, does it??
I'm obviously missing a piece of the puzzle, so what is it? It doesn't seem like a normal incentive.
Agreed, won't be easy on Rossi at all. BUT, that does lead nicely into the conspiracy theory that when Rossi retires he wants to become part of the Yamaha management. He'd be building a great team starting with Vinales.
I think I've heard Rossi speak very complimentary towards Maverick??
