Opinions on Spies

povol · Jul 21, 2008

He finished about where i thought he would.I think top 10 for a wild card is very respectful.It did effect him tremendously on his Superbike.It appeared from the beginning of the SB race he was still in GP mode,which was whacking the throttle mid turn,a no no in Superbike racing.His bike was stepping out on him on every corner.By the time he reverted back to SB style,Mladin was gone and he settled in for an easy 2nd place for damage control.Doing a Gp race and then 30 minutes later doing SB would have to be pretty rough since they are NOTHING alike,except for having 2 wheels.

rgvneil · Jul 21, 2008

I'll reply to the question next year after he's learnt the GP bike (whichever one he rides) and tracks better. I'm indifferent at the moment.

Anders · Jul 21, 2008

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (rgvneil @ Jul 21 2008, 06:26 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>I'll reply to the question next year after he's learnt the GP bike (whichever one he rides) and tracks better. I'm indifferent at the moment.
I agree,but it will be kind of interresting to see what he can do in Indianapolis.He has tried it and gone as fast as he could and compared himself with testriders,lets see how big the difference will be with the championship riders/teams.

Tom · Jul 21, 2008

The learning curve gets shallower the more experienced Ben gets. Donington was well above my expectations but i thought Laguna was pretty standard. Indy will reveal more. Importantly with the championship looking like it will have at best 1 extra bike next year, someone basically has to leave for someone to join. Elias and West are as god as gone, but Kallio and Bautista look good to step up, is there room for Spies anywhere?

simon.h · Jul 21, 2008

to be honest, i can't see anything special in him. he is a great rider, but didnt really shine in either of the races i've seen him in =/

Austin · Jul 21, 2008

I thought he was brill at Donny but finished right about where I figured at Laguna. It really didn't help his cause that Vermy podiumed. He should do well at Indy, considering he has two days of track time. Not sure if it will be enough, I've heard a couple of times outside this forum that bosses were looking for a podium at Laguna to put him on the 'must sign' list.

mylexicon · Jul 21, 2008

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (simon.h @ Jul 21 2008, 11:57 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>to be honest, i can't see anything special in him. he is a great rider, but didnt really shine in either of the races i've seen him in =/

Is anyone going to shine brightly on a Suzuki?

Spies was pulverized by Vermeulen and he pulverized Capirossi. He was a wild card rider at home. He is an oversized rider on an underpowered bike at a circuit with a big hill.

It's hard to know what to make of the situation. I think he certainly deserves a look, but at 24 I'm wondering how long he will have to race after he learns the circuits.

Spies is a casualty of DORNA's short-sidedness, exclusivity, and favoritism. Of course, he could be the benefactor of DORNA's profit-lust, under-handed dealings, and favoritism just as easily. It will be interesting to see what Ezy decides for him.

an4rew · Jul 21, 2008

Haven't seen enough of him, but he looks kind of odd on a motogp bike with his legs flapping around.

Craig3089 · Jul 21, 2008

i think the guy has talent, but i don't think he's as good as people make out, just yet anyway. in my opinion if he doesn't get a suzuki next year, he won't be in gps. i think like nicky he's too loyal to a specific manufacturer, which could lead to be his downfall, as i believe is nicky's bigest problem, staying with hrc for too long. plus i don't think dorna will push to have him on the grid as there is already 3 americans on the grid.

simon.h · Jul 21, 2008

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (an4rew @ Jul 21 2008, 08:45 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>Haven't seen enough of him, but he looks kind of odd on a motogp bike with his legs flapping around.

but when rossi does it goin into a corner its kinda cool right?

BigAl · Jul 21, 2008

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (rgvneil @ Jul 21 2008, 07:26 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>I'll reply to the question next year after he's learnt the GP bike (whichever one he rides) and tracks better. I'm indifferent at the moment.

i'm there too... my jurys still out on this one. Indy will obviously show us more, but with CV usually going well at new/resurfaced tracks, i wonder if Spies star is fading already? The other thing as Craig pointed out is how many Americans does Dorna want on the grid?

an4rew · Jul 21, 2008

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (simon.h @ Jul 21 2008, 10:33 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>but when rossi does it goin into a corner its kinda cool right?

Everybody puts their leg out when they get too hot into a corner, thats not the point i was making.

dannyisnow · Jul 21, 2008

I reckon he'll do ok in gp, probably frequent the top ten, but i cant see him being a regular top 3 competitor. Young dovi however, now stick him on a factory team and i reckon he'll do a gud job.

simon.h · Jul 21, 2008

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (an4rew @ Jul 21 2008, 11:18 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>Everybody puts their leg out when they get too hot into a corner, thats not the point i was making.

just making a joke mate

sorry

projekZERO · Jul 21, 2008

I don't know what to think. He had a horrible race I think. Up to lap 13 he was slow and going backwards then finally hit the switch. Over the rest of the race he was fast. Damn fast actually. If he could have carried that pace from the beginning he could have ended up 4th as he was slightly faster the Hayden and Dovi. He was one of only a a few riders to do laps in the 1:22's.

This is in direct contrast to Superbike where I've seen him set his fastest laps on the second lap of the race. Spies and Mladin are known for being able to go all out from the gun. So was he still adjusting to the bike on that track?

I hope to see him go better at Indy, I certainly think he could have done better yesterday and his last lap was horrid, a 1:23.8 and letting Elias go by.

MigsAngel · Jul 22, 2008

If Spies is to be a real contender in GPs then he should have been top 5 at Laguna. He has had hundreds of laps on the Suzuki GP machine now, so you can't say he is not familiar with the bike or the tyres, and we certainly can't say he does not know Laguna....so in truth, he could come to GPs and end up being another CV or worse yet another Hopper.

So I would say Spies is average for GPs, and will end up like Mladin did back 15 years or so ago...and go to GPs for a year, and leave since cannot compete with the best of the best (see Rossi and Stoner Sunday performance for reference)

I was more impressed with Hacking in 11th since there were NO expectations for him to do really well on the bike he'd riden a few times before in Japan. I think if he had Spies' Yosh Suzuki then Hacking woudl be wining in AMA as well.

Sally · Jul 22, 2008

100s of laps?
Compared to the regular guys, he is way behind. His Malaysia test fell through because of the weather. He did about 200 at Indy, about 100 at Donnie (including race) and a further 100 or so at Laguna.

Compared to what the regular guys have done on their bikes this year that is nothing.
As for his lap times, that was the same story at Donnie. First half quite slow, second half he was running the same times as Vermeulen. I think that is more a case of just trying to get a safe start.

I don't know where to rate him as AMA is so f-ed up, but he did pretty well in my opinion.

Hacking was damn impressive, but then again, he broke a track record on his first outing. Guess that is a case of what could have been.

Bootsakah · Jul 22, 2008

It's a bad time to be entering Moto GP. Certain bikes are way faster then others. In the old days someone could come in and win on a non-factory bike. In regards to Spies, there is no way he would be able to show his talent given the circumstances right now.

KawZX7R · Jul 22, 2008

Don't forget that he was running superbike that weekend too. He claimed it took him about 10 laps to re-acclimate himself to one bike from the other.

I'd say see how he does at Indy then decide. There he'll be able to concentrate on one bike.

But I think the comments about now maybe not being the best time to go to motogp have merit. He might have some time, although he doesnt think he does and rushing into motogp no matter which team it might be is probably a bad idea at the moment.

#46 · Jul 22, 2008

Maybe Spies does have a future in the GP's, but not on a Suzuki I'd think. Give him a real bike, like a Yamaha on Bridgestones. Just not a Kawasaki.

Opinions on Spies

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povol

rgvneil

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simon.h

projekZERO

MigsAngel

Sally

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#46

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