JEREZ QUALIFYING

This being Stoner's least fav track - and the surface this morning being pretty unpredictable - I suspect that Stoner was not going all out to take pole. I think is especially likely because he didn't want to risk a crash in order to gain one more position on the grid when Lorenzo was so hot to fight him for it. All that... and the 80% chance of rain for the race tomorrow makes all qualifying victories pyrrhic and moot makes a good case for being conservative today and really going for it in the rain. All the aliens ride well in the wet - and while I do hate wet races it will be interesting to see how the new full wet tires pan out. Let the attrition begin!

two-stroke said:

Imagine if Hayden was 2.4 seconds back from Rossi...



What I take from qualifying... the Ducati isn't that bad. If Hayden is on the front row, it just isn't a bad bike.



Not saying its Yam or Honda. But if Hayden is on front row, surely Stoner would be too?

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Hayden is only doing well b/c Rossi developed the Ducati.

Geonerd said:

You've got to wonder...



If so, his behavior is grounds for instant termination. $20M a year should buy %100 dedication and effort.

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Maybe he's making the bike look worse than it really is trying to push Ducati (the company) to hurry up the updates. Anyway, it's a weird thing to do.

mylexicon said:

Hayden is only doing well b/c Rossi developed the Ducati.

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Lex, you're a funny guy.

Rossi has already quit. There might be a flash of the old glory here and there, but basically it is over.



Sooner or later, even his captive fans will realize it.



And last, he'll realize it too.



Sic transit gloria mundi.



Amen.

Mick D said:

Maybe he was wearing babel's glasses!

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I miss Babel. I actually PMed the guy once. Just checking if he was ok. I always liked the banter with him, though deep down I knew he was a decent person. Plus he had solid political views. Come back Babel. I miss you...seriously.

mylexicon said:

Hayden is only doing well b/c Rossi developed the Ducati.

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Well played!

Mental Anarchist said:

Exciting qualifying.



Hayden - Woohoo!

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Frizzle said:

Really exciting qualifying. Nobody knew if it was going to bucket down at any time.

I admit there was one stage I was hoping Cal had done enough & the rain would come but wasn't to be.

Mega session from Nicky. Really impressive. Pedrosa & Lorenzo trading fast laps was pretty bloody good too.

Randy in 10th in dry conditions - Wow.

Vale is going to need it wet for sure. Probably same for Stoner here.

But whatever the conditions we should have a cracker tomorrow. If it rains Nicky could win

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Same here. I really thought it was one of the most exciting quals I've ever seen. The threat of rain made them act like it was the last 5 minutes of qual which lasted 30 mins. For a moment I thought Cal had pole, and I was happy for the guy. Then the rain didn't come and everybody was putting in fast lap thinking the very next second it would down pour. hahahaha. Good for us. If tomorrows race has sketchy conditions, it will be a edge of your seat nail biter for 27 laps. Add to this, those tires will surely make for another crazy element, as they are going off within a few laps.



It was a Lorenzo and Pedro fest for the last few minutes, well ahead of the chasing pack. Nicky got in there on front row, but like he said, he just squeaked in. It could have been any of Cal, Stoner, and Nicky on that front row. I thought it was classy of Stoner to have presence of mind to congrat Lorenzo during the practice starts (btw, ....... Barbara cueing up ahead of Stoner in practice start in FP3, WTF). Cal was really trying to get that pole and crashed out trying. I'm happy for Nicky as you can imagine, but as he said, there are no points for good quals and added, he has to do the same when it actually counts during the race. Casey had a better post qual interview, as he said, if its dry tomorrow, they will improve for sure. Good for him to get qual out of his mind and focus on the task ahead. Also, i was worried for Spies all qual, then like magic, he started putting up good lap times. Still off considering his teammate and satellite ahead, but he was languishing in 10+ most of the session. Randy continues to prove he is the real deal despite given a raw deal. As far as Rossi, man, that was a bad qual, his best hope will be for rain tomorrow, which if the predictions hold up, he may get his wish.



I serious can barely wait for race. I don't want to see anybody crash, as I hate when races are decided by attrition. My simple and only hope is that Nicky wins.

Great session from start to finish. Had a big smile on my face as the flag went out.....I was just trying to imagine Jumkie's face as Nicky got 3rd. He probably had to go spank the monkey after.

I too have a simple wish

1st Crutchlow

2nd Ellison

3rd Hayden for Jums

Keshav said:

I suspect Rossi is deliberately turning the wick down to make Ducati look worse in hopes of motivating Ducati to do a better job and get the latest iteration done quickly.

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Bro, I seriously doubt that. It was a bad qual after looking promising during FP2. The man may be media savvy, but on the track, he's trying hard. That it isn't working out is certainly most frustrating for him. I don't subscribe to the turncoats like J4rno accusing him of giving up. Kicking a man when he's down looks bad for the guy doing the kicking.

Willski said:

Great session from start to finish. Had a big smile on my face as the flag went out.....I was just trying to imagine Jumkie's face as Nicky got 3rd. He probably had to go spank the monkey after.

I too have a simple wish

1st Crutchlow

2nd Ellison

3rd Hayden for Jums

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, a dream finish in the race for me would be:



1. Nicky

2. Cal

3. Barbera (just kidding, F that guy. hahaha)

Jumkie said:

Bro, I seriously doubt that. It was a bad qual after looking promising during FP2. The man may be media savvy, but on the track, he's trying hard. That it isn't working out is certainly most frustrating for him. I don't subscribe to the turncoats like J4rno accusing him of giving up. Kicking a man when he's down looks bad for the guy doing the kicking.

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Then how to explain Rossi getting so much closer to pace in Jerez test just 1 month ago? He's clearly playing a game here, trying to force Ducati to change more things on the bike.

J4rn0 said:

Rossi has already quit. There might be a flash of the old glory here and there, but basically it is over.



Sooner or later, even his captive fans will realize it.



And last, he'll realize it too.



Sic transit gloria mundi.



Amen.

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J4rno, I have little to no respect for you. You're obviously a fairly intelligent guy. On occasion you have insightful contributions. But I've always known you to be a consummate card carrying yellow army mindless worshiping bopper. You're turncoat and betrayal of rooting for Rossi lately is quite repulsive. First and foremost, we as fans root for our boys through thick or thin, and most of our banter can be chalked up to tribalism of basic colors we wear for our boys….second to that is the interesting discussions we engage regarding all aspects of the sport. It seems this thread has turned into a ‘lets all kick Rossi while he’s down’ .... fest (which I get for the proper Stoner fans, as Rossi brought that on himself) but for his previously staunch fans, its nothing less than ugly .... on your face.

gui22a said:

Then how to explain Rossi getting so much closer to pace in Jerez test just 1 month ago? He's clearly playing a game here, trying to force Ducati to change more things on the bike.

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By your convoluted logic, I suppose Casey is equally playing game, since he came in 5th, behind his teammate, a satellite bike, and worst of all, a Ducati. Ya see what you did there with your "logic"? After all, the qual conditions were dry and he was fastest during the test. I see through your hate buddy.

Boys, get a grip on your hate, its making you guy(s) look and sound very stupid!

two-stroke said:

Lex, you're a funny guy.

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Am I funny or am I serious? I hope the question is rhetorical, regarding Ducati.





I wonder if my prediction about the 1000s behaving as giant 250s is coming to pass. It seems relatively straight forward. A 250 is ridden cornerspeed b/c it doesn't have the power (nor the smooth response usually) to be ridden point and shoot. A 1000cc engine has the power for point and shoot, BUT the massive torque of an 81mm x 48.5mm 1000cc engine means that opening the throttle merely causes the rear tire to spin, or if the bike is upright, the torque causes wheelies which are sorted by the electronics. If the bikes had more fuel, they'd put weight over the front end to control wheelies, but they only have 21L and a surplus of engine torque so they can't put weight over the front and run the engine at 10/10ths.



Lorenzo is lightning. Pedrosa has pace. Crutchlow isn't complaining. Dovi is decent. The gap to Stoner has shrunk (seemingly), which suggests the 1000s are a bit 250. Spies sucks as well. His only accomplishments are in the Superbike and Superstock (1000cc in AMA) so no big surprises.



Hayden is the outlying point, but according to Neil Spalding, the new frame allows Hayden to radically alter the weight distribution. He apparently has the bike set up with a good deal of weight over the front end, which cures understeer, but makes the bike loose in the rear. Hayden loves the setup, of course, and it probably works well in qualifying when fuel limitation don't matter. I'd normally predict that the front end setup would limit Hayden's potential to mid pack running b/c he under utilizes the rear tire, BUT Bridgestone re-engineered the rear tire and made the construction softer.



Hayden will remain the x-factor for the remainder of the season, and the Marlboro Ducati operation. I wonder what will happen when Bridgestone introduce the new softer front. Nicky apparently likes the feel (he's not one of the riders complaining about the new tire), but his setup might tax the tire beyond its operating potential. Rossi, on the other hand, will hopefully start improving.

Jumkie said:

Bro, I seriously doubt that. It was a bad qual after looking promising during FP2. The man may be media savvy, but on the track, he's trying hard. That it isn't working out is certainly most frustrating for him. I don't subscribe to the turncoats like J4rno accusing him of giving up. Kicking a man when he's down looks bad for the guy doing the kicking.

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Post 2006 he's kicked Nicky's ... in one form or another. I can understand that his failure to do well on the Duc is disheartening - but for him to qualify behind a CRT is hard to swallow. For all of Nicky's stellar qualities - I still think Rossi is mentally tougher so I find it hard to believe that he's not capable of better. I wouldn't bet money on the problem being calculated foot-dragging but at least at some level of conciousness Rossi is saving his energy until he gets the new engine.

Jum- Can I hate on Barbera? IT was almost pathetic how the guy was trolling around looking for a tow....

excellent quali session but have a few things to say....



like i said lastime rossi is viewing sights and coasting around.... being a childish prk



he still has the skills but his motivation has fizzled away, he needs to take a leaf out of nicky book and stop fking crying and atleast try harder.



nicky been getting slapped in face for years but is still highly motivated thats why i love the guy.



rossi also needs to stop doing other things like driving ferrari's to feed his ego especially when hes doing .....! on the ducati....



he dont deserve updates right now just a good hard slap around the head and told to man up and get on with it.....

Jumkie said:

By your convoluted logic, I suppose Casey is equally playing game, since he came in 5th, behind his teammate, a satellite bike, and worst of all, a Ducati. Ya see what you did there with your "logic"? After all, the qual conditions were dry and he was fastest during the test. I see through your hate buddy.

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Hate dude? I'm just peace and love.



Sorry but your Stoner analogy doesn't make any sense, Stoner is up there with the leaders a little bit off the pace, Rossi is the last among the MotoGP bikes and there is an abyss between his and his teammate's pace. That's simple and doesn't need too much logic. If Rossi was pushing hard he'd be up there at least in the 2nd row, like he did only 1 month ago on this same track, with same bike setup. The track conditions can be different but it's working for GP12 based on Hayden's lap times.



Rossi is making tantrum. Himself stated in Qatar, he wouldn't push any more for 6th or 5th places. Therefore, it's not me who's saying it.