WSB test times @ losail

Will Lanzi come good this year? Or will pigs stay on the ground?

biaggi wasn't exactly on fire then.......



i'll never understand how Lanzi got that ride over Hodgson - did Bayliss put the mockers on Neil going to the factory team ? Coward.

I don't think Bayliss could influence Ducati's bosses concerning who rides with him, he's not Rossi after all. Calling him a coward is a bit rough over an assumption

Bayliss doing well on an outdated bike= Great

1100 might give domination next year?= Ok-ish

Biaggi slow= Good, as it proves GP riders aren't best in the world, as Bayliss proved at Valencia.

How long before Biaggi blames someone or the bike?

Biaggi: Ah, zese tyres, zey are too slow, give me da grippy michelins!

Rumour has it he knows so little about WSBK he asked for carbon brakes to be fitted!

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (phleg @ Dec 20 2006, 10:22 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>Biaggi slow= Good, as it proves GP riders aren't best in the world, as Bayliss proved at Valencia.
hate to be the one who starts but WTF are you smoking.
your going to judge motogp riders on this, just look at all the other wsb riders that have come over and they were wsb's top riders, the motogp riders that ended up in wsb were hardly considered motogp finest.
bayliss did do great in valencia but look back when he spent a season there.

gp riders aren't the best in the world...what a stupid thing to say

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (roger-m @ Dec 20 2006, 11:08 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>hate to be the one who starts but WTF are you smoking.
your going to judge motogp riders on this, just look at all the other wsb riders that have come over and they were wsb's top riders, the motogp riders that ended up in wsb were hardly considered motogp finest.
bayliss did do great in valencia but look back when he spent a season there.

gp riders aren't the best in the world...what a stupid thing to say

I should've wrote:

ALL gp riders aren't the best in the world....big typo.

IIRC Barros whupped Rossi's arse at estoril the year he was on a Camel Honda right?

Bayliss did do crap on a Camel Honda, but when he was at Ducati him and Capirex were close to each other. Sure Capirex claimed the first win, but they both bagged a lot of podiums. Bayliss got dumped for a Spaniard who has been past his best for a long time.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (richo @ Dec 20 2006, 09:29 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>I don't think Bayliss could influence Ducati's bosses concerning who rides with him, he's not Rossi after all.

I rekon he's in a position to call the shots over who he shares a garage with - he does after all have the #1 plate (if he wants it) to take to pretty much any garage
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (richo @ Dec 20 2006, 09:29 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>Calling him a coward is a bit rough over an assumption

maybe - unless the rumours are true .

that said, i've also heard that Lanzi got the ride for Political reasons - ie an Italian on an Italian bike and also he brings a lot of $$ to the team through sponsorship.

either way - i think it's a piss poor state of affairs.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (phleg @ Dec 20 2006, 11:19 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>I should've wrote:

ALL gp riders aren't the best in the world....big typo.
now i would agree with that.


Both Troy and Colin moved to MotoGP in 2003, and it was Bayliss who was initially more successful. In Ducati's first season in the class their bike was highly competitive, with Troy taking 3 third places and finishing 6th overall in the championship. He briefly led at Philip Island, Brno and Welkom, and only narrowly losing the rookie of the year race to Nicky Hayden. Team-mate Loris Capirossi took their first win at the Circuit de Catalunya.

2004 was a difficult year for the team however, with Troy only 14th in the standings. Despite (or perhaps due to) its prodigious straight-line speed the bike didn't handle well, with Troy often over-riding and crashing frequently, this led to Troy's subsequent sacking from the factory Ducati squad, a part of which Troy had been for five years previous. This move was considered an unpopular one by many, considering that neither Troy nor Loris were able to perform as well as they had the previous year.

According to some, confirmation that Troy's sacking was influenced by sponsorship pressure rather than any performance based reasons was seen in the appointment of Carlos Checa as Troy's replacement. However, Troy is much older than Loris, and had not been as close to him in 2004 as he had in 2003, so some questioned whether he had any more to offer the team.

However, good results near the end of the season earned him a ride with Sito Pons' Camel Honda team for 2005, but was not a frontrunner, despite promising speed shown in his first tests on the 2004 machine and Alex Barros winning in Portugal. A severely broken arm meant that Troy was unable to compete in the final 6 races, had he done so, the season ending Valencia GP would have been his 50th Grand Prix appearance. Troy did give an insight as to his inability to crack into the upper echelons of Grand Prix racing, describing the Honda MotoGP bike and MotoGP bikes in general as too inflexible, rigid, and like a 250 for his style.

A second stint in MotoGP was during the last race of the 2006 season in Valencia, Spain. Bayliss was substituted to injured Ducati rider Sete Gibernau. He qualified second and went on to win the race. It was actually his first one in MotoGP, and it couldn't have happened in a better time.

I think Troys samey performance on moto gp (at least on the Ducati) was mainly due to the fact that if the bike isn't on the pace he'll ride it harder and harder to keep up - until he bins it.

He doesn't strike me as the sort of guy who'll ride around mid-field happily.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (baldylocks @ Dec 20 2006, 09:22 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>I rekon he's in a position to call the shots over who he shares a garage with - he does after all have the #1 plate (if he wants it) to take to pretty much any garage
maybe - unless the rumours are true .

that said, i've also heard that Lanzi got the ride for Political reasons - ie an Italian on an Italian bike and also he brings a lot of $$ to the team through sponsorship.

either way - i think it's a piss poor state of affairs.

I don't think Bayliss is the kind of guy who would do that, especially to a guy like the Hodge who he gets along with. And I think there's more threatening riders out there than Hodgson, anyway. I think you'll find the lame brain who kept Lanzi on that bike was some Ducati pen pusher

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (baldylocks @ Dec 20 2006, 09:33 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>I think Troys samey performance on moto gp (at least on the Ducati) was mainly due to the fact that if the bike isn't on the pace he'll ride it harder and harder to keep up - until he bins it.

He doesn't strike me as the sort of guy who'll ride around mid-field happily.

I think the problem is he rides rough, real rough. That sorta style is forgivable on a SBK, but you won't get away with it on a 990. He refused to change his style, and it cost him a potentially great GP career.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (richo @ Dec 20 2006, 01:55 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>I think the problem is he rides rough, real rough. That sorta style is forgivable on a SBK, but you won't get away with it on a 990. He refused to change his style, and it cost him a potentially great GP career.

i've never actually read any Troy interviews after his Moto GP stomp to victory - what did he say about it ?

is the GP6 that much better than the bike he was riding ?

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (baldylocks @ Dec 21 2006, 01:34 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>i've never actually read any Troy interviews after his Moto GP stomp to victory - what did he say about it ?

is the GP6 that much better than the bike he was riding ?

I would have thought the Pons RCV would have made success easier. I don't know what it was that lead Troy to victory. Best Guess is the tyres, I'd say. I think he said he could ride the front hard on the 'stones, just how he liked it. Remember it was his first time on a Bridgestone Ducati....


Or maybe he's just GOD

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (richo @ Dec 22 2006, 04:37 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>I would have thought the Pons RCV would have made success easier. I don't know what it was that lead Troy to victory. Best Guess is the tyres, I'd say. I think he said he could ride the front hard on the 'stones, just how he liked it. Remember it was his first time on a Bridgestone Ducati....
Or maybe he's just GOD

I'd go with the later

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (baldylocks @ Dec 21 2006, 02:34 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>i've never actually read any Troy interviews after his Moto GP stomp to victory - what did he say about it ?

is the GP6 that much better than the bike he was riding ?

Im pretty sure he said something like "this prooves i still know how to ride around in circles pretty fast" I really dont like the way youve labelled troy a coward just coz hodgson cant get a WSBK ride. Hodgson is a pretender of a champion anyway, and he's BSB worthy at best. Troy is a legend of a bloke, just check out his regular diary updates on his website and see the dedication he has to his fans.

You wont see Neill winning a MotoGP race any time soon, you can put money on that..

Im sure Neills a nice bloke, and Im sure Troy wouldnt keep him away.. Lanzi kept the ride because hes an Italian, with money, riding for an Italian factory, its pretty simple to figure out really..

Peace..

I think Hodgsons still up to Factory WSB level, but is he on Bayliss's level? I don't think so. So there's no reason Troy should be scared of him, and therefore no reason to boycott or do somthing stupid like that. We're talking about level headed mature men here, not drama queens. If pigs finally do take off and Lanzi comes good, he's potentially more threatening than Hodgson would be, anyway. That kid might be rubbish nine outta ten races, but when he's on, watch out. I'm not trying to discredit Hodgson, but that rumour you heard strikes me as a load of bull, Baldy. You sure it didn't come to you when you picked up a copy of MCN in a moment of weakness?

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (richo @ Dec 22 2006, 05:27 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>You sure it didn't come to you when you picked up a copy of MCN in a moment of weakness?

err - i think so yeah

Why all the hate on Lanzi? I think the guy has great promise and potential and has shown he can win in WSBK.

Neil is a great guy. But I don't think he set the AMA on fire. I was rooting for the guy every race cuz frankly I luv the brand he was on. But for being a world champ, I really thought he would take more wins. I gave the guy slack for not knowing the tracks at first, but the last year, it seems he did worse. Now perhaps he was on a poor package, or perhaps the Suzuki was just head and shoulders above everyone else (it sure seems that way). I can't understand why Ducati showed so poorly in the AMA (if anybody can explain, I'm all ears <keep in mind they own WSBK>).

So why so much love for Neil but none for Lanzi? I don't think Lanzi has the same equipment as Bayliss to begin with. Lanzi reminds me of Stoner (perhaps I'm not making a good case here for Lanzi) but you gotta admit, they both have outstanding talent. Stoner dices it up, granted they both crash alot, but damn, they do it spectacularly when they do. During winter testing (at Qatar), he is running third fastes, only behind Bayliss and Corser (both world champs), so isn't this a good thing?

I guess it depends on how much you look into times. I'm still waiting for Lanzi to bring what he's got. A few good performances a year isn't good enough for Ducati Corse.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (baldylocks @ Dec 20 2006, 10:22 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}><div class='quotemain'>I rekon he's in a position to call the shots over who he shares a garage with - he does after all have the #1 plate (if he wants it) to take to pretty much any garage
maybe - unless the rumours are true .

either way - i think it's a piss poor state of affairs.

Quote from Troys official diary entry on his website:

"We are enjoying our first christmas in 3 years with family and friends back in Australia. It has been really nice, so nice that only 3 days ago I said to Kim I didn't want to go back to Europe. Serious I thought about ringing Neil and offering my job to him for the next 2 years. That is the truth believe it or not.

But there are alot of things to consider and first of all is that I still want to win.

I just heard today that Neil Hodgson thinks I blocked his move back to WSB on a factory ducati. He is not the only one Alex Barros thought I blocked him as well. I am flattered they think I have that much power but I am only one small piece in a big team. There are many people and a lot of factors that decide who goes where. I'm not here to bad mouth people so I will leave it there. FULL STOP.

On a happier note we are about to leave for a week on the Gold Coast then back to our local area Taree which is on the mid north coast.

Merry Christmas to all and a Happy new year in 2007 !

T B"

Sounds like Neil should talk to Troy before he goes and has a sook about him being the reason for his lack of a ride. Maybe he should look at himself, and his age, results, form etc. Maybe a change of manufacturer will do him some good. Either way, Neil's lost a fair bit of respect out of all this IMO, i cant stand slanderers.. Bloody Pommy sook.. Troy = Genuine Top Bloke..