What will you do when Rossi retires?

The TT is too dangerous for racing. In its current time trial format it's dangerous enough, but the 10 second staggered starts take the pressure off overtaking as if a faster rider catches another, he's generally let by to continue.
In a racing format with riders battling for position all race long, it would be carnage.
The TT is a great event and all the riders know the danger and accept the consequences, but it's not a place to bash fairings.

yamfan said:

The TT is too dangerous for racing. In its current time trial format it's dangerous enough, but the 10 second staggered starts take the pressure off overtaking as if a faster rider catches another, he's generally let by to continue.
In a racing format with riders battling for position all race long, it would be carnage.
The TT is a great event and all the riders know the danger and accept the consequences, but it's not a place to bash fairings.

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thats how the TT used to be and as said carnage

JohnnyKnockdown said:

How long before the selfie generation gets up in arms because their not rewarded participation points?

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I know you guys dont like Nascar, but even they are trying to figure out a way to capture the self indulged generations attention span who the beloved Roger Edmundson said had the attention span of gnats. Starting this Sunday at the Daytona 500, all Nascar races on the schedule will be broken down into 3 segments with a break between each segment and points awarded for each. Ever since they started the "The Chase", Nascars popularity has plummeted as they desperately tried to lure the selfie generation with gimmicks that basically boil down to participation trophies. In the mean time, they have alienated their real fans who liked it just the way it was. 36 races, guy at the end of the season with most points wins the championship. Now its point resets, elimination rounds and a bunch of other horseshit. They have a system where a driver could win 35 races in a row, finish 2nd in the 36th and lose the title. People who understand competition will not accept that. It reeks of the participation trophies mindset that has invaded our culture thanks to you know who

povol said:

I know you guys dont like Nascar, but even they are trying to figure out a way to capture the self indulged generations attention span who the beloved Roger Edmundson said had the attention span of gnats. Starting this Sunday at the Daytona 500, all Nascar races on the schedule will be broken down into 3 segments with a break between each segment and points awarded for each. Ever since they started the "The Chase", Nascars popularity has plummeted as they desperately tried to lure the selfie generation with gimmicks that basically boil down to participation trophies. In the mean time, they have alienated their real fans who liked it just the way it was. 36 races, guy at the end of the season with most points wins the championship. Now its point resets, elimination rounds and a bunch of other horseshit. They have a system where a driver could win 35 races in a row, finish 2nd in the 36th and lose the title. People who understand competition will not accept that. It reeks of the participation trophies mindset that has invaded our culture thanks to you know who

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I'm not a huge fan of Nascar but what you are talking about sounds totally ....... A sport with a rich history like that carelessly being turned on its head. More than likely the decision makers where heavily influenced by a young new age marketing guru who used to own a Toyota Prius but now he rides the bus and drinks macachinos with soy milk. Race winners will soon be decided by audience telephone votes and the drivers all take turns starting from the front.

Tony Stewart claimed NASCAR was rigged years back because they keep throwing cautions for no reason other than to bunch up the field.

povol said:

I know you guys dont like Nascar, but even they are trying to figure out a way to capture the self indulged generations attention span who the beloved Roger Edmundson said had the attention span of gnats. Starting this Sunday at the Daytona 500, all Nascar races on the schedule will be broken down into 3 segments with a break between each segment and points awarded for each. Ever since they started the "The Chase", Nascars popularity has plummeted as they desperately tried to lure the selfie generation with gimmicks that basically boil down to participation trophies. In the mean time, they have alienated their real fans who liked it just the way it was. 36 races, guy at the end of the season with most points wins the championship. Now its point resets, elimination rounds and a bunch of other horseshit. They have a system where a driver could win 35 races in a row, finish 2nd in the 36th and lose the title. People who understand competition will not accept that. It reeks of the participation trophies mindset that has invaded our culture thanks to you know who

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I guess Danica's "beauty" is no longer appealing enough to keep ratings high? Maybe MotoGP can use that tactic if ratings drop... find a hot chick and put her on a factory bike to ride around in last place and constantly crash.

povol said:

I know you guys dont like Nascar, but even they are trying to figure out a way to capture the self indulged generations attention span who the beloved Roger Edmundson said had the attention span of gnats. Starting this Sunday at the Daytona 500, all Nascar races on the schedule will be broken down into 3 segments with a break between each segment and points awarded for each. Ever since they started the "The Chase", Nascars popularity has plummeted as they desperately tried to lure the selfie generation with gimmicks that basically boil down to participation trophies. In the mean time, they have alienated their real fans who liked it just the way it was. 36 races, guy at the end of the season with most points wins the championship. Now its point resets, elimination rounds and a bunch of other horseshit. They have a system where a driver could win 35 races in a row, finish 2nd in the 36th and lose the title. People who understand competition will not accept that. It reeks of the participation trophies mindset that has invaded our culture thanks to you know who

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Who?

Keshav said:

Who?

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Povol seems like a Donald Trump voter.

Better to disenfranchise entire groups of people than to award those dreaded participation trophies.

#draintheswamp

moto vudu said:

I guess Danica's "beauty" is no longer appealing enough to keep ratings high? Maybe MotoGP can use that tactic if ratings drop... find a hot chick and put her on a factory bike to ride around in last place and constantly crash.

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Very few watched for Danica, and most have gotten tired of her been shoveled down everyone's throats. She generally sits in the middle of the pack despite having a generally good car. She will more often than not crash out of the race due to her lacking any discernible skillset to handle wheel-to-wheel racing. On the rare occasions she finishes a race, and actually, even when she does not finish a race, she trots out the same tired cliched excuses. It's never her fault...in fact it's everyone or everything else's fault for why she doesn't achieve good results. If it were not for the media attention she gets --that is not warranted-- and NASCAR's obsession with her, she would have been out of the sport a few years ago. Hopefully this is her final season....and I suspect it will be when she has another subpar year.

JPSLotus said:

Very few watched for Danica, and most have gotten tired of her been shoveled down everyone's throats. She generally sits in the middle of the pack despite having a generally good car. She will more often than not crash out of the race due to her lacking any discernible skillset to handle wheel-to-wheel racing. On the rare occasions she finishes a race, and actually, even when she does not finish a race, she trots out the same tired cliched excuses. It's never her fault...in fact it's everyone or everything else's fault for why she doesn't achieve good results. If it were not for the media attention she gets --that is not warranted-- and NASCAR's obsession with her, she would have been out of the sport a few years ago. Hopefully this is her final season....and I suspect it will be when she has another subpar year.

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Sporting bodies love sensationalising female contestants in predominately male dominated sports ... I'm guessing they see the PR potential it can bring with attracting a new demographic of fans.

It can get annoying when athletes get lots of attention and preferential treatment based on gender, race or creed rather than their actual ability. Bit of a kick in the guts to the ones who have more talent but miss out on opportunities.

Would be great to have a female MotoGP rider, one that gets a ride because she deserves it rather than because she is a female. Be really nice if she looked like Jessica Alba.

It's weird, back in 2012 Catherine Green won a 125cc British Championship race(along with several very good performances that season and finishing 3rd in the standings) and not a peep was heard. Yet in the States you can do a few commercials and run mid-pack(at best) and become a superstar, Danica peaked in 2009 when she finished 5th in the Indy championship, since then nothing despite driving for a very good outfit.

AJV80 said:

Sporting bodies love sensationalising female contestants in predominately male dominated sports ... I'm guessing they see the PR potential it can bring with attracting a new demographic of fans.

It can get annoying when athletes get lots of attention and preferential treatment based on gender, race or creed rather than their actual ability. Bit of a kick in the guts to the ones who have more talent but miss out on opportunities.

Would be great to have a female MotoGP rider, one that gets a ride because she deserves it rather than because she is a female. Be really nice if she looked like Jessica Alba.

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I don't much care if women race with the men. At the end of the day, I want good racing, and the gender of the competitors are irrelevant to me. However, I will say given the physicality of riding a 1000cc GP machine versus a Moto 3 or even Moto 2 machine, is likely going keep women from ever competing at that level. Can you see a female being able to match Marc Marquez? Never.

My only real issue with women in motor racing is the media chases after the attractive ones, and ignore the one's who have the real talent to compete with the men. In the shortened 1975 Spanish Grand Prix, Lella Lombardi became the only woman to EVER score a point in a Formula 1 Grand Prix. It was 1/2 a point due to the race being stopped after Rolf Stommelen's car crashed into the crowd. Irregardless of it being a shortened race, this was at a time when the cars were running no power steering, foot clutch manual gearboxes, bias ply tires, and cars that beat the piss out of you.

The focus on media hype stars like Danica Patrick does such a disservice to what that Lombardi did in 1975 against a field that included the following:

-James Hunt
-Jackie Ickx
-Niki Lauda
-Mario Andretti
-Emmerson Fittipaldi
-Ronnie Peterson
-Mark Donohue
-Jody Scheckter
-Alan Jones

6 past and to be future world champions were on the starting grid that day at the Montjuïc Street Circuit. Danica Patrick won a fuel-saving IndyCar race at Motegi. Okay I guess. She has never done anything since when it relied on something more than sheer luck, such as actual talent. Plenty of other females remain buried as long as same halfway attractive female competitor exists.

JPSLotus said:

I don't much care if women race with the men. At the end of the day, I want good racing, and the gender of the competitors are irrelevant to me. However, I will say given the physicality of riding a 1000cc GP machine versus a Moto 3 or even Moto 2 machine, is likely going keep women from ever competing at that level. Can you see a female being able to match Marc Marquez? Never.

My only real issue with women in motor racing is the media chases after the attractive ones, and ignore the one's who have the real talent to compete with the men. In the shortened 1975 Spanish Grand Prix, Lella Lombardi became the only woman to EVER score a point in a Formula 1 Grand Prix. It was 1/2 a point due to the race being stopped after Rolf Stommelen's car crashed into the crowd. Irregardless of it being a shortened race, this was at a time when the cars were running no power steering, foot clutch manual gearboxes, bias ply tires, and cars that beat the piss out of you.

The focus on media hype stars like Danica Patrick does such a disservice to what that Lombardi did in 1975 against a field that included the following:

-James Hunt
-Jackie Ickx
-Niki Lauda
-Mario Andretti
-Emmerson Fittipaldi
-Ronnie Peterson
-Mark Donohue
-Jody Scheckter
-Alan Jones

6 past and to be future world champions were on the starting grid that day at the Montjuïc Street Circuit. Danica Patrick won a fuel-saving IndyCar race at Motegi. Okay I guess. She has never done anything since when it relied on something more than sheer luck, such as actual talent. Plenty of other females remain buried as long as same halfway attractive female competitor exists.

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Yes, if she has a riding style similar to Lorenzo. I'm not at all saying that riding a GP bike isn't physically demanding, but I don't think it's so demanding that no woman could ever do it. There are female athletes stronger than Marquez.

I agree with the rest of your post, a woman's attractiveness is generally the most important aspect. Even in MMA, fighter's like Ronda Rousey got way more publicity than other female fighters who didn't have the look to be on a cover of Sports Illustrated.

moto vudu said:

Yes, if she has a riding style similar to Lorenzo. I'm not at all saying that riding a GP bike isn't physically demanding, but I don't think it's so demanding that no woman could ever do it. There are female athletes stronger than Marquez.

I agree with the rest of your post, a woman's attractiveness is generally the most important aspect. Even in MMA, fighter's like Ronda Rousey got way more publicity than other female fighters who didn't have the look to be on a cover of Sports Illustrated.

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Ronda Rousey is a good example of media hype, I don't really follow the MMA but from what I can gather her 'girl next door' all American looks and previous Olympic gold medal formed a good base to generate media buzz for the fledgling womens MMA series at the time trying to generate interest.

Personally I don't think she has great sportsmanship, I know fighters behave in a certain way to psych out opponents but she isn't very gracious in victory or in defeat. For an experienced multiple time champion to be blaming her coach (that she picked mind you) for her loss to Nunes. Its like a MotoGP rider blaming his crew chief because he crashed out of the race at the first corner of the first lap.

AJV80 said:

Ronda Rousey is a good example of media hype, I don't really follow the MMA but from what I can gather her 'girl next door' all American looks and previous Olympic gold medal formed a good base to generate media a buzz for the fledgling womens MMA series at the time.

Personally I don't think she has great sportsmanship, I know fighters behave in a certain way to psych out opponents but she isn't very gracious in victory or in defeat. For an experienced multiple time champion to be blaming her coach (that she picked mind you) for her loss to Nunes. Its like a MotoGP rider blaming his crew chief because he crashed out of the race at the first corner of the first lap.

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Ronda was definitely a product of media hype. It's like JPS said in his previous post, the media loves to sensationalize the attractive female athletes while ignoring other woman who may be more accomplished. For example, they were quick to call Rousey the greatest female athlete of all time. So Serena Williams who has dominated in her sport for a decade is ranked under Rousey who benefited from participating in a new division?

Unfortunately for women, having a certain standard of beauty is more important than talent.

JPSLotus said:

Povol seems like a Donald Trump voter.

Better to disenfranchise entire groups of people than to award those dreaded participation trophies.

#draintheswamp

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Geez - I really hope he doesn't mean Obama. He and Jum and I used to get into some really heated .... about politics - so I generally avoid going down that road. I used to kid the .... out of Pov and make snarky references to hillbilly ...., but I think he's sufficiently moored to reality that he wouldn't blame Obama for millennial knee-jerk liberalism that's become so pervasive. Obama was so much more conservative than his staunchest supporters dared to believe. I think the liberal (or what passes for liberal) overly PC - lack of tolerance on college campuses is a kind of myopic self indulgent parody of real progressive values, one of the most important of which is tolerance and respect for the first amendment rights of everybody. The fact that so many college student have distorted and whiny concepts of what it means to be liberal, has really fueled a lot of the disdain from the right - for progressive values. Not that the ........ on the right weren't totally contemptuous to begin with. But the sometimes whiny childish sanctimony that infuses much of the protests on campuses I think, adds substance to their justification for their hatred of Democrats.

AntG said:

It's weird, back in 2012 Catherine Green won a 125cc British Championship race(along with several very good performances that season and finishing 3rd in the standings) and not a peep was heard. Yet in the States you can do a few commercials and run mid-pack(at best) and become a superstar, Danica peaked in 2009 when she finished 5th in the Indy championship, since then nothing despite driving for a very good outfit.

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Because it has nothing to do with her talent, more her ability to fill a niche market. That is, a well known female racing driver. Given that I was racing at a young age, I knew about a lot of the current "superstars" when they were young like Danica Patrick, Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg etc so didn't buy the hype when they reached more well known arenas. Danica Patrick has never been that spectacular in terms of results but she was a woman in a predominantly male sport and her marketing team capitalised on that. Katherine Legge is a far superior driver and dominated some karting series in her day, far more than DP has done but because she wasn't marketed as well she has dropped into obscurity.

Part of Lewis Hamiltons draw was him being marketed as the first black F1 driver, then first Black F1 world champion. It was a niche, different and something markets could capitalise on. Now that has been filled, the next buzz is to find a successful woman driver, for the media opportunities it presents. Nothing else. Like Rossi in MotoGP, DP can run around at the back of Nascar but she still makes a lot of people an awful lot of money, more than many of the leading male drivers.

Theo said:

I've ridden round the IoM course, its evil I think, that they race it must be to have a death wish.

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Sheene's first and only visit to race the Island was in '71. He was very vocal about the dangers, but his campaign to remove it from the calendar allegedly had as much to do with the exorbitant cost of getting his caravan over on Steam Packet.

He's gonna be a grandfather before he leaves MotoGP.

Arrabbiata1 said:

Sheene's first and only visit to race the Island was in '71. He was very vocal about the dangers, but his campaign to remove it from the calendar allegedly had as much to do with the exorbitant cost of getting his caravan over on Steam Packet.

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Not just the price of getting there, rented accommodation is ridiculous that week. I rented a house (4 bedrooms) one August it cost £550 for a week, typically that would be £2000-£2500 during the TT