The future of Dani

The future of Dani...

Now I’ve said a few times that Dani really has to prove himself this season, Honda built a bike for him, sacked their only championship winner (post Vale) in a somewhat acrimonious manner because he (Nicki) wasn’t performing. Dani has managed second and third in the championship.

It has already been postulated that Honda has made an approach to Lorenzo, who but for a little consistency is showing up his much vaunted teammate at present.

So Jorge is hot, Valentino is still the goat and Stoner is leading the championship. Make no mistake it is a three horse race at present.

The problem is (for Honda) that two of the “horses” in the running for the No.1 plate are on Yamahas and one is on a Ducati. None are riding a Honda

Dovi is outperforming Dani at present. Dani doesn’t seem that he has what it takes despite the big dollars and what was once the premier seat in top class motorcycle racing (Repsol Honda). I don’t think Dovi can step it up like Jorge can, and Repsol is a Spanish company...

For what it is worth I am putting my opinion out there that Dani will only have until the expiration of his current contract then will be forced to leave Repsol, I also feel that the Spanish rider they would plan to replace him with is Jorge.

Your thoughts.

Valentino said that he and Casey could win on the Honda. Unless Pedrosa starts actually fighting for the win, not cruising behind rossi n stoner, theres no way in hell he will win a championship. Also the injuries gotta stop. I don't see him leaving Honda because right now Honda has no1 else. Prob will never happen but i bet pedrosa would be good in moto2.

I'm thinking along the same lines, as you Roo, Pedro's not one of my favourite riders, but I think honda will drop him like a hot rock, he's not managed to give Honda their next championship, and he has taken a lot of injuries over the last 2-3 years. There are now quite a few 'hungry' riders out there that could potentially give Honda there next number 1 plate.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Andy Roo @ Jun 1 2009, 07:38 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>The future of Dani...

Now I’ve said a few times that Dani really has to prove himself this season, Honda built a bike for him, sacked their only championship winner (post Vale) in a somewhat acrimonious manner because he (Nicki) wasn’t performing. Dani has managed second and third in the championship.

It has already been postulated that Honda has made an approach to Lorenzo, who but for a little consistency is showing up his much vaunted teammate at present.

So Jorge is hot, Valentino is still the goat and Stoner is leading the championship. Make no mistake it is a three horse race at present.

The problem is (for Honda) that two of the “horses” in the running for the No.1 plate are on Yamahas and one is on a Ducati. None are riding a Honda

Dovi is outperforming Dani at present. Dani doesn’t seem that he has what it takes despite the big dollars and what was once the premier seat in top class motorcycle racing (Repsol Honda). I don’t think Dovi can step it up like Jorge can, and Repsol is a Spanish company...

For what it is worth I am putting my opinion out there that Dani will only have until the expiration of his current contract then will be forced to leave Repsol, I also feel that the Spanish rider they would plan to replace him with is Jorge.

Your thoughts.

In principal Jorge on the Honda sounds like a great idea. But I reckon Yamaha is viewing him as the next big thing. He's young and beating Rossi regularly. Even if Honda offers him a boat-load of pesos - I think he would be foolish to walk away from a winning bike and a tight crew. I'd wager - if Dani goes to a satellite - his replacement would be . . .
I wouldn't care to predict who they would chose from the current line-up - unless Depuniet manages to stay in the saddle this season - in which case, he'd be the obvious choice.

Oops . . . I didn't really answer the question. "Dani's future". No way he's going to WSBK so it's either a satellite or Moto 2. Hey it's sad for him - but he's no different than lots of other guys who have been demoted after not living up to expectations.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Ngads @ Jun 1 2009, 06:45 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>Valentino said that he and Casey could win on the Honda. Unless Pedrosa starts actually fighting for the win, not cruising behind rossi n stoner, theres no way in hell he will win a championship. Also the injuries gotta stop. I don't see him leaving Honda because right now Honda has no1 else. Prob will never happen but i bet pedrosa would be good in moto2.

at last a good thread - not sure I agree with the defense of NH - ImO never a real world champion in that he was not a real race winner. the comments on DP are spot on - he used to be good on his good days, until he started to fall off even then. Dovi has balls and a lot of grit and for the money and the one-time prestige (see Doohan, Rossi days) Rep[sol Honda should be able to find a new Nr 1, could be a a guy called Marco (written off as walking wounded over the winter)

If and I just love the big if here...


If Rossi stays on and decides to chase another championship with Yamaha and Burgess is the Yamaha garage big enough (or rich enough) to afford both the cash Vale AND Jorge would ask and the ego issues that would arise.

Neither wants to be number 2....

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Andy Roo @ Jun 1 2009, 12:59 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>If and I just love the big if here...


If Rossi stays on and decides to chase another championship with Yamaha and Burgess is the Yamaha garage big enough (or rich enough) to afford both the cash Vale AND Jorge would ask and the ego issues that would arise.

Neither wants to be number 2....
well in 08 the fiat yam team was being ran as 2 ,1 rider teams , it only became a 1 ,2 rider team with the control tyre rule.
There's no way Lorenzo would go to repsol h while pedro is there, he would rather be #2 rider at yam.

i would be surprised if dani got the boot from repsol after this season. if he can beat dovi then his job is relatively safe. the rookie rule stops any bautista moves to the team so the only other spaniard available would be jorge. IMO he is at yamaha until he wins a championship for them. after that, who knows. the other riders who could replace dani are RdP and MM.
RDP did give dani a small fight for his first 250 title but compare the two and who comes out tops every time?
MM has the potential but with such a high profile team, the pressure to perform all the time will IMO be very similar to going back to ducati. might work, might not.

for a way out there scenario, how about this...
assuming that Hayate remains as so and does not return to kawasaki, MM to suzuki along with NH.
RDP to repsol with dovi and dani to ducati. yamaha to remain the same.
the satellite teams have to find room for simonchelli and bautista plus spies...

I think I alluded to this in another thread but ...

in 06 Dani looked waayy too small for the 990's.

800's .. 07 ... first year of 800's Dani looked and rode a lot better than he seemed on the bigger bikes.

Now in 09 after a bit of development ... ie. when the Pneumo valves came in .... maybe even the 800's are too much the beast for him too now?

Its a shame he's getting hurt so much lately, I like Dani's riding. He doesn't do it too often but when he's on fire he's uncatcheable.

As much as I don't like the little ...., he can ride. I would like to see him sever his ties with Puig and move to another factory ride and see what he's really made of.

If DORNA implemented a rider weight minimum, Dani wouldn't be getting hurt so much. I could see Dani on Suzuki, Yamaha or Kawasaki.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (L8Braker @ Jun 1 2009, 03:18 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>As much as I don't like the little ...., he can ride. I would like to see him sever his ties with Puig and move to another factory ride and see what he's really made of.
I never want to see any rider ever get hurt. As far as Dani goes I hope he gets better but I don't like him or ever want to see him line up on the grid again. If he gets rid of Pig and goes to a new team and does well he can earn some respect. RIght now I could care less. There will be new riders coming up very soon and Dani isn't as great as he thought. By the way his ego is and same with alberto ........ they can go to moto 2 go cart racing whatever just go. The thing that gets me is that he never fails to fail. He wins one or two and that is it for the rest of the year. I have no respect for him other than the little bit riding as a battered and bruised guy. Jorge gained respect due to his crash prone season last year and riding through it. I just can't stand his I am as good as ROssi Stchick and the friggin lollipop on the podium.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (ROCKGOD01 @ Jun 1 2009, 12:42 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>Jorge gained respect due to his crash prone season last year and riding through it. I just can't stand his I am as good as ROssi Stchick and the friggin lollipop on the podium.

I know what you mean, but really the lollipop is just a marketing thing.
And when you look back at some of Rossi's doofus post-race antics
over the years, Jorge doesn't really seem that silly. And hey, you can't
beat "the best" if you don't believe in yourself. I suspect Lorenzo will
grow on a lot folks as he keeps getting better. But he can kinda
grate on the nerves a bit. When he was in F2 I was always rooting
for Bautista.

The first thing I thought when Dani went down was "Will Nicky end up at Repsol again?"

It doesn't seem possible, but if the rookie rule is actually in effect for next season, he may be Honda's best bet because he developed the pneumatic bike. If not Hayden, then who?

I think Melandri is the only other person on the grid that Honda might go after in the event Dani is replaced. Lorenzo is in play as well, but Repsol would certainly have to pay him ungodly money. Lorenzo must know he's on the best bike, I'm not sure money could persuade him.

The timing of Pedrosa's injuries are interesting as well. About 1 month ago Honda issued a press release that absolved Pedrosa of any guilt pertaining to the RC212V's lack of performance. However, Pedrosa string of crashes injuries isn't a new trend.

He hurt himself going into the 2008 season while riding the pnuematic bike. He wrecked at Catalunya during practice amidst wide speculation that Honda was testing the pneumatic bike (Hayden was certainly on it). He crashed the pneumatic bike at PI in 2008, and he had another huge crash going into this season while on the pneumatic bike. I'm most interested to see whether Puig will drop Pedrosa and go fishing in the Moto2 class for another Honda world champ.

He hasn't won a race on the pneumatic bike and he hasn't come terribly close to winning a race either.

I also wonder what Dovi's performance means for this season (5th, 5th, 8th, 4th, 4th). His performance is less than what Hayden achieved in the last 5 rounds of the 2008 season. Nicky underperforms in spectacular fashion while Dovi uses racecraft to collect points quietly. They are two very different riders and I don't think Dovi is underperforming given the circumstances, but it does put Hayden's achievements in perspective.

I wouldn't like to say which way it's going to go actually, I don't think Dani will be back any time soon. With the Kawasaki looking shakey next season perhaps Marco will get a chance on the honda. Judging his performance so far, (and Nicky Hayen's) I think he's put to bed any doubts that he is finished, it looks more likely it's the Ducati at fault.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Andy Roo @ Jun 1 2009, 01:38 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>Now I’ve said a few times that Dani really has to prove himself this season, Honda built a bike for him, sacked their only championship winner (post Vale) in a somewhat acrimonious manner because he (Nicki) wasn’t performing. Dani has managed second and third in the championship.

Dovi is outperforming Dani at present. Dani doesn’t seem that he has what it takes despite the big dollars and what was once the premier seat in top class motorcycle racing (Repsol Honda). I don’t think Dovi can step it up like Jorge can, and Repsol is a Spanish company...

1st Don't let your hatred for Dani blind you, what you wrote there is FALSE. A lie. Dani despite no pre season testing has beaten Dovi comfortably, and leads him in the championship standings. Since he set a foot on MotoGP he's always been the quickest Honda rider by far.

2nd he has NOTHING to prove to Honda, as HRC chiefs have admited if anyone is to blame for not winning a championship it's themselves (and Michelin).

You're deluded if you think Dani would go to a non factory team considering he is in the worst case scenario the 4th best rider in the grid.

Yeah Repsol is a Spanish company, that said, they have no power to chose a rider, in 2004 when Gibernau looked like the only one that could challenge Rossi, Repsol publicly demanded HRC to tak Sete, Honda said sponsors wouldn't take decisions in their team and proceeded to leave Sete out of Repsol Honda. So that spot is not restricted to Spaniards.

In the UNREALISTIC case Dani was fired from HRC . That would only be to sign a better (as in less fragile) rider. Now the question is why would any of top 3 leave their current bike for a worse one??

Stoner has a team that's devoted to him and a bike that suits his style perfectly. Lorenzo and Rossi have the best bike, they've had it for 2 seasons jumping to Honda seems not a good idea if you're looking for performance.

If any, I think it would be Rossi, he's got the skills and the crew to develop a bike, he's towards the end of his career, and he still owes a lot to the Italian tax agency so IMO he would be the one most tempted to accept a big $$$ offer from Honda.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (mylexicon @ Jun 1 2009, 02:24 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>The first thing I thought when Dani went down was "Will Nicky end up at Repsol again?"

It doesn't seem possible, but if the rookie rule is actually in effect for next season, he may be Honda's best bet because he developed the pneumatic bike. If not Hayden, then who?

I think Melandri is the only other person on the grid that Honda might go after in the event Dani is replaced. Lorenzo is in play as well, but Repsol would certainly have to pay him ungodly money. Lorenzo must know he's on the best bike, I'm not sure money could persuade him.

The timing of Pedrosa's injuries are interesting as well. About 1 month ago Honda issued a press release that absolved Pedrosa of any guilt pertaining to the RC212V's lack of performance. However, Pedrosa string of crashes injuries isn't a new trend.

He hurt himself going into the 2008 season while riding the pnuematic bike. He wrecked at Catalunya during practice amidst wide speculation that Honda was testing the pneumatic bike (Hayden was certainly on it). He crashed the pneumatic bike at PI in 2008, and he had another huge crash going into this season while on the pneumatic bike. I'm most interested to see whether Puig will drop Pedrosa and go fishing in the Moto2 class for another Honda world champ.

He hasn't won a race on the pneumatic bike and he hasn't come terribly close to winning a race either.

I also wonder what Dovi's performance means for this season (5th, 5th, 8th, 4th, 4th). His performance is less than what Hayden achieved in the last 5 rounds of the 2008 season. Nicky underperforms in spectacular fashion while Dovi uses racecraft to collect points quietly. They are two very different riders and I don't think Dovi is underperforming given the circumstances, but it does put Hayden's achievements in perspective.



Jokingly thats the Hayden curse left for him and pig!




To answer the the original post: Don't be surprised if HRC return the favor to Yamaha. I dont think they have gotten over the Rossi thing.




.

I`ll just butt in here, and wish dani a speedy recovery and long may he race bikes in whatever form,thank you.

Not sure whats gonna happen to Dani. Just not sure he has what it takes to fight / battle for a championship for a whole season.
Another issue is the current economic crisis. To justify the large costs involved in running a factory team for a season, Honda surely need guys who run consistently run at the very sharp end of the grid and challenge for honours. I just don't see Dani being able to do this with enough consistency to win the title.
The problem is who to replace him with...Again, economically, can Honda really afford to blow the bank and try and sign Jorge ( and I don't think he would want it anyway ).

Dani has talent for sure but i dont thing he is tough enough. Lorenzo is a similar size to dani but he is so much harder. just my personal opinion.