West loses Speed Master MotoGP seat
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Hi Povol.......im not saying riders should work for free i think a salary cap of $5 Million is pretty respectable, i wouldnt class that as riding for free would you? Take Valentino he gets what (correct me if im wrong) $20 Million a year with Ducati paying $12 Million i think, and the rest is personal sponorship. I think Valentino has raped the sport for so long in terms of money we just need to think where the sport is now, does Val care? i doubt it even though the sports on its last legs.. Now im not blaming Valentino cos he has good earning potential he has also brought alot to the sport too.
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Valentino and Marco put more bums on seats and brought in more money to moto gp in a season each than Casey, Jorge, Pedrosa an Spies will in their entire careers. Not havin a pop, stating fact. Saying Rossi has raped the sport shows a complete lack o understanding of bike racing, and more importantly, the word rape
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You obviously think turning a sport into a "carni" or "clown show" is the most important thing in motorcycle racing, some don't agree Pete.
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If that was the case, what drove Vale to win 2,3, all 7 titles? Can't tell me he didn't get bored. I'd argue that him switching teams was motivated just as much by money as it was a new challenge. Yamaha paid better. Ducati paid better.
But would a cap really do much of anything? The manufacturers will run their two bikes. And no rider in his right mind will take a privateer ride for the money. So when they struggle in the financial department, it isn't because the riders make too much money, it's because the riders don't bring enough to the team.
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You obviously think turning a sport into a "carni" or "clown show" is the most important thing in motorcycle racing, some don't agree Pete.
Not at all Barry, if you remember I've said I was a huge Doohan fan, who was another greetin faced ...., but he could ride a bike like no one else. Awesome rider, defined a period in GP, didn't go home with upset tummies, he was as hard as ...., but with the personality of a shoe.
If you honestly think that Stoner an Jorge would be the riders they are without Rossi taking racing up another notch, then you are deluded and naive in the extreme. Remember, Rossi, like Sheene (who folk like to pretend is an Aussie), are the ones who put bike racing back into the public eye, and if you think thats bad for the sport, then for ..... sake you really need tae get oot more.
Barry, the stats speak for themselves.
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Firstly my lack of understanding Bike Racing (as you like to say) goes back to 1987 as a 12 year old. Yeah prob could have used a better word then Rape, just trying to get my point across that Vale has get alot out of this sport. Yeah Marco and Vale may be more Popular then Casey will ever be, but do you think Stoner took up racing to be the coolest of all the Kool Aid Kids?
I know mabe he took it up and said as a 4 year old im gonna kick that Pusy Italians ass.....
You just want to see
http://vimeo.com/31245973
Ben, is there any way we can embed Vimeo in here?
Ta
Gaz
Rape is certainly not the right word. and valentino is undoubtedly vastly more popular than stoner. I suspect dani and jorge are fairly popular in spain though.
I don't see valentino's popularity as being all that relevant though, and in particular I believe a rider's achievements have the same weight regardless of his popularity. Once only popular riders are allowed to win you have wwe wrestling, not sport. You guys should be relieved stoner has won 2 championships despite being unpopular, it is the proof valentino's are genuine as well.
I am an old fogey, but I don't necessarily see the sport as being better with more money in it (prior to the gfc anyway) than it was in the 80s and early 90s, and the influx of money has coincided with and perhaps even led to the FIM ceding control to the MSMA and dorna, and an unsustainable business model which seemed to assume valentino was both invincible and immortal.
I would love to see west in BSB and doing well there, I think superbikes might be his metier, and I remember those wss races when he happened to get on a competitive bike. With the best will in the world I don't think he has what it takes to make it at the top level in motogp though, he was lucky if he lined up on the grid correctly, and selling his possessions to get on an uncompetitive CRT bike in his 30s whilst showing admirable commitment and heart does not seem sensible to me either.
Westy is definitely not one of the all time greats, BUT, he did better on the Kawasaki in MotoGP than the statistics say, and I think he is a lot more tallented than most people give credit for. That Kawasaki was a .... bike, that constantly tried to kill him, in a series where you are nowhere on a .... bike, and he had some good results (regularly top 5), particularly in the wet. He also had some good 250 rides. You don't get race wins in the 250's if you're a .... rider.
Look at his fill in rides for Yamaha in WSS (2006). He smashed them. Three races, 2 wins and a third (where he started 18th).
Westy would make a very good WSB / WSS / AMA level rider, and would probably be close to the front on a reasonable bike. He will prob never be at the front in Moto2 or MGP, and chasing the MotoGP dream with Kawasaki probably killed the chance of a good WSS / WSB career.
I would like to see Westy on a good bike in WSB, and paired up with an established good rider, like Melandri. I think he would surprise a few people.
As for trying to sell his .... to follow the sun, full credit to him, and I hope he gets a decent ride. Westy is probably not the most naturally tallented guy, but to me seems like he works his ass off, and has massive balls.
He has probably led a pretty wild life, has a smoking hot girlfriend, and is still alive. If he's forced to walk away, he has achieved more than most.
Credit to the guy.
Look at his fill in rides for Yamaha in WSS (2006). He smashed them. Three races, 2 wins and a third (where he started 18th).
Westy would make a very good WSB / WSS / AMA level rider, and would probably be close to the front on a reasonable bike. He will prob never be at the front in Moto2 or MGP, and chasing the MotoGP dream with Kawasaki probably killed the chance of a good WSS / WSB career.
I would like to see Westy on a good bike in WSB, and paired up with an established good rider, like Melandri. I think he would surprise a few people.
As for trying to sell his .... to follow the sun, full credit to him, and I hope he gets a decent ride. Westy is probably not the most naturally tallented guy, but to me seems like he works his ass off, and has massive balls.
He has probably led a pretty wild life, has a smoking hot girlfriend, and is still alive. If he's forced to walk away, he has achieved more than most.
Credit to the guy.
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Professional motorcycle racers, for the most part, have got there by chasing an unlikey chance at making a living at racing, that is, they took a rather "unsensible" career path. Had they not, we probably wouldn't be talking on this forum today if had they taken a more 'sensible' career path.
Btw, there is a 39 year old he just became a world champ, a man who only has one more grand prix win than West, and spend the last two regular seasons in GP at the tail end. Then suddenly, like a miracle, was a front runner in another series. All it takes is for a seat to suddenly be available, and you never know. If he goes off fishing in Australia, then he takes himself out of the game.
Cheers and big up props to the "unsensible" people who have tried and put it all on the line, some didn't make it, other have actually made it in sport, even those who lined up at the highest level, kudos to them who ignored the voices of 'sensible' people.
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Jumkie, you have absolutely no idea how things are ...... in the world.
Like with all jobs, anybody who is pretty good at "something" isn't usually doing the chasing. Its not as hard as you make out.
If it is, should you be there?
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Jumkie, you have absolutely no idea how things are ...... in the world.
Like with all jobs, anybody who is pretty good at "something" isn't usually doing the chasing. Its not as hard as you make out.
If it is, should you be there?
BM, I'm not sure if you're being sarcastic. If you are using the subtle tool of sarcasm to make a point (which I doubt being that you have not normally shown to be sophisticated enough for such a convention) then yeah, I agree. If your not, then I conclude this post indicates you know .... about the world. And I would add, learn to wipe your own ass first dude. Which is it?
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Dude, this is no longer a career path. it the highway to ruin He is 31 ....... years old, his " career " is just about done. If he was 20 years old i would say go for it. If your a bike racer in your 30's, and not getting paid to perform in your chosen profession, its ....... time to move on, dreams over baby. Wake up, grow up, shut up, suck it up and go on with your life.
Im going to quit my job, take all the equity out of my home, sell my bikes, my cars, truck, and empty my savings account, and start training for next years NFL combine.
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You go for it Pov! You follow that dream!
You know Jumkie is with you, so you can't possibly go wrong!
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