Stirring the pot...

Tekniqs said:

i read an interview of jorge earlier today in some british motorcycle magazine and in one picture they had a shot of lorenzo mid corner. they had 5 highlights of the picture talking about loading the tires with grip..staying in an almost neutral position throughout. and one of the captions had an interesting tidbit. lorenzo didn't have to change his riding style from 250 going to 800...he even stated that the 800s are easier than the 250s. it talked about how rossi had to unlearn his 250 style when he graduated to the 500s. could it be possible that 800s suits lorenzo's style a lot better than others? it also brought up the 1000cc and how it can better suit the "animated" styles of hayden/rossi/stoner. i'm not trying to take anything away from lorenzo cuz he's obviously a talented rider..just putting it out there for the sake of conversation.

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J4rn0 said:

Lorenzo can beat Rossi on the same bike every time he has a better setup = better pace. On the other hand, every time the two bikes are evenly set up and they have to race close, Rossi wins. Rarely, Rossi has a better setup and can beat Lorenzo at his own game, through a better pace.



So it is really, between these two, a matter of setting up the Yamaha, a bike that was developed by Rossi-Burgess, but that this year has found in Lorenzo-Forcada its best interpreters.



It is also a matter of riding styles. Lorenzo is your typical 250 champion, and he arrived in MotoGP at the right moment, when it was becoming possible, thanks mainly to the electronics and the 800cc, to ride a premier class bike in 250 style without killing yourself (he came close to killing himself anyway though). Now he has survived, he has persisted, and he has matured, finding the perfect tool for his style. Yamah also have seen this, and considering his younger age, have decided to push Rossi out and keep Lorenzo. They save millions that way, and may continue winning.



Rossi had to change his style to adapt to the Yamaha -- he didn't just change the bike. His style is not the 250 -- he never rode even a 250 in pure 250 style. For him, the best bike was the Honda 990 -- something powerful and well balanced, maybe not such a easy handler as the Yamaha, but he could work his way around that.



So actually with the Duck Rossi could find a bike that suits his natural style better than the Yamaha, if he only can make it more predictable. His best ride was and would still have been a Honda though -- but Stoner was quicker...

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J4rn0 said:

Lorenzo can beat Rossi on the same bike every time he has a better setup = better pace. On the other hand, every time the two bikes are evenly set up and they have to race close, Rossi wins. Rarely, Rossi has a better setup and can beat Lorenzo at his own game, through a better pace.



So it is really, between these two, a matter of setting up the Yamaha, a bike that was developed by Rossi-Burgess, but that this year has found in Lorenzo-Forcada its best interpreters.



It is also a matter of riding styles. Lorenzo is your typical 250 champion, and he arrived in MotoGP at the right moment, when it was becoming possible, thanks mainly to the electronics and the 800cc, to ride a premier class bike in 250 style without killing yourself (he came close to killing himself anyway though). Now he has survived, he has persisted, and he has matured, finding the perfect tool for his style. Yamah also have seen this, and considering his younger age, have decided to push Rossi out and keep Lorenzo. They save millions that way, and may continue winning.



Rossi had to change his style to adapt to the Yamaha -- he didn't just change the bike. His style is not the 250 -- he never rode even a 250 in pure 250 style. For him, the best bike was the Honda 990 -- something powerful and well balanced, maybe not such a easy handler as the Yamaha, but he could work his way around that.



So actually with the Duck Rossi could find a bike that suits his natural style better than the Yamaha, if he only can make it more predictable. His best ride was and would still have been a Honda though -- but Stoner was quicker...

Click to expand...

J4rn0 said:

Lorenzo can beat Rossi on the same bike every time he has a better setup = better pace. On the other hand, every time the two bikes are evenly set up and they have to race close, Rossi wins. Rarely, Rossi has a better setup and can beat Lorenzo at his own game, through a better pace.



So it is really, between these two, a matter of setting up the Yamaha, a bike that was developed by Rossi-Burgess, but that this year has found in Lorenzo-Forcada its best interpreters.



It is also a matter of riding styles. Lorenzo is your typical 250 champion, and he arrived in MotoGP at the right moment, when it was becoming possible, thanks mainly to the electronics and the 800cc, to ride a premier class bike in 250 style without killing yourself (he came close to killing himself anyway though). Now he has survived, he has persisted, and he has matured, finding the perfect tool for his style. Yamah also have seen this, and considering his younger age, have decided to push Rossi out and keep Lorenzo. They save millions that way, and may continue winning.



Rossi had to change his style to adapt to the Yamaha -- he didn't just change the bike. His style is not the 250 -- he never rode even a 250 in pure 250 style. For him, the best bike was the Honda 990 -- something powerful and well balanced, maybe not such a easy handler as the Yamaha, but he could work his way around that.



So actually with the Duck Rossi could find a bike that suits his natural style better than the Yamaha, if he only can make it more predictable. His best ride was and would still have been a Honda though -- but Stoner was quicker...

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FACTORY said:

They might save millions on the salary sheet for right now....but if Lorenzo keeps winning, his price will go up like it did this year. Plus Yamaha will take a hit loosing Rossi for marketing.....Lorenzo can not fill that gap as a source of revenue for Yamaha.



I agree about the set up and racing between Rossi and Lorenzo....great points.

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povol said:

Marketing is about sales figures, and even Rossi's name attached to the brand had virtually no impact what so ever the last few years. Sport bike sales are in the tank, and i really doubt the average scooter or cruiser rider is buying a particular bike based off who rides what in MotoGp. Rossi was a boon for Yamaha in the first 3-4 years, since then, not so much. Now they have the current champion and a very good #2 rider for way less than what they have been paying Rossi through the years. To put it bluntly, he was expendable.

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chopperman said:

yup your probably right. I don't think many in the uk buy bikes because of which motogp rider is riding which brand, don't know about the rest of europe tho. Suzuki sell .... loads in the uk and there ..... in motogp. One thing to consider though, how much sponsorship money did rossi bring to Yamaha with his image ?

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