Rossi to Ducati

+1. How cool would it have been to see Rossi on the podium using crutches. What a crazy guy!!!

 

If you think Rossi's a crazy guy, check out Tazio Nuvolari (From Wiki):

In 1925 Nuvolari was asked by Alfa Romeo to have a trial in their Grand Prix car. The car's gearbox seized and Nuvolari crashed, severely lacerating his back. Despite his injuries, he competed in the Nations Grand Prix at Monza six days later, winning the race after he had persuaded staff at the hospital to bandage him in a manner such that he could sit on his motorcycle and receive a push start.

 

Nuvolari also developed a lung condition later in life (which eventually killed him IIRC). he would frequently finish races with the front of his body covered in blood he had spit up from exertion.

He was truly a one-of-a-kind competitor.

 

He's now said he'll confirm plans Sunday after the race

 

It will be interesting to see how Yamaha treats him the rest of the year.
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You saw where Spies qualified. That should tell you the quality of equipment he's getting... I heard Yamaha didn't' offer him much money and thats why he made the move. The real question is wether or not Burgess is going also. If not, don't expect much.

Art

 

I don't think Burgess would work with anyone else. If he doesn't make the move with Rossi, he'll probably retire.

Yes, quality of the equipment is the best of the field. You can thank Rossi for that, since he is a master developer. With him gone at the end of this year, it'll be interesting to see if Yamaha can continue the pace of development from next year onwards.

Rossi is clearly not racing at 100%, or even close to that. The rest of this season will be a throw-away year for him, as he is too far back in the points to make any run for the Championship.

 

Yamaha will be completely different next year development rise because they'll be missing Furusawa as well as Burgess and Rossi. Yamaha took a big risk in choosing Lorenzo, he's shown that he can maximize performance on an already strong platform but that doesn't assure he can continue to develop it. Proof of Rossi's skill in development was shown when Crutchlow revealed that he won in Silverstone using settings suggested by Rossi after he tested the WSBK R1. The GP11 will be a BEAST!!!

 

The Gp11 will be designed before Rossi gets there. He'll be able to adjust it, but it will be what it is. I don't see him every getting back to being dominant again like he was in 09. He might win a race or two, but serious injuries like he sustained, coupled with his age, and he isn't going to be as strong, and Lorenzo has finally gotten his speed under control, and can consistently run at a level that Rossi can't.

Even the best get hurt and old. Ask my old friend Gary Nixon about it.

Art

 

We will have to see how the off-season goes. With limited testing (something Rossi didn't have as a limitation when he switched to Yamaha in '04) it will be more difficult to make changes before the season starts. I am more inclined to believe that the Ducati GP bike will be in continual development, meaning it will be difficult to see where the GP11 rev0 ends and GP11 revA begins. Without a doubt major adjustments will happen based on the tires made available as well. Designers make the initial bike for what they think the tires will be, then sometimes have to make changes if they get it wrong.

Ducati has shown over the last two years with the carbon fiber frame (and now swingarm) that they can make subtle changes to the design that will have large differences in the results. Nicky Hayden's progress with the team is proof of that.

IMO, Rossi will probably not win the championship next year because a) the Ducati will be new and developing and b) Lorenzo will still be strong on the M1. 2012 might be a different story as the return to 1000cc will potentially mix up the order of things. If Lorenzo is able to win in 2012, it will be doubly impressive. Regardless, from a marketing standpoint Rossi/Ducati is a dream paring. In some ways the anticipation of Schumacher's first four years at Ferrari were better than the dominant years that followed, this could be the same.

With all that said, Honda will probably re-establish itself as the dominant force in GP racing and Stoner and Pedrosa will swap championships for the next few years....

 

I don't doubt Lorenzo's skill but I think hes getting over hyped this season. The biggest change to Lorenzo's riding is that he's not racing anyone, the so-called "Aliens" have looked nothing more then human barring flashes from Pedrosa. Rossi showed what happens to Lorenzo when you throw pressure into the mix, that pressure will be back in '11. Many are forgetting that many of the key figures in the M1's rise to dominance are leaving after this season so repeated strength for next season isn't guaranteed to them more than Ducati or HRC.

 

Jorge reminds me of Lewis Hamilton in that he will (most likely) win the championship using settings that a multiple world champion set (Alonso...Rossi). Lewis hasn't won the championship yet, but it showing he is consistent...maybe he needs to get better at development.

I'm not sure Rossi has many more championships left in him. He's getting up there in age and making a switch like this will take away years of the chance due to having to hammer things out. Hopefully he can make an easy transition.

 

From someone with a little experience in this:

As we age, we lose some of the physical skills. The main skill that goes away from motorcycle racing is the fine tuning motor ability in our hands. In order to make a motorcycle go quickly, some sliding of the front is essential. Not a lot, but a little bit. That requires very fine motor skills in our hands, to catch the slide, to work the throttle, etc. Those skills start to diminish in our 30s. For some of us our late 30s, for others earlier. At Rossi's level, I suspect there is some noticeable difference between what he was able to accomplish in his 20s versus now. Not a huge difference, but enough so that during the course of a race, he can't consistently go as quickly as he could say 5 years before. That starts to matter, when he's racing someone with a lot of talent on equal machinery, like Lorenzo.

The first sign of this loss is crashing, usually the front end washes, and the ensuing crash hurts the rider. Classic case, 1982 (I'm guessing the year, think it was then, but it could have been anywhere from 78 tto 82), Gary Nixon leading Kenny Roberts at Laguna. Lost it going into 8, hit the barrier. From that point on it was down hill for him, big time. I think we're seeing the same thing here. You'll notice that Rossi isn't hanging it out any more. He has probably come to realize that he can't do what he did even last year, and has taken a more conservative approach. He realizes that on equal bikes, Lorenzo is going to be quicker. I suspect he's hoping that Ducati will be superior, and he won't have to ride as hard. If he takes Burgess with him, he may get his wish. If not, he will be a top 5 finisher, but unlikely to win another MotoGP race unless the front runners have problems.

It's tough seeing someone you idolize become a mere human, but it happens to all of us.

Art

 

Toby Moody is a wonderful commentator on Moto GP for Eurosport and now contributes this to the discussion

http://www.autosport.com/features/article.php/id/2990

 

Well not exactly, what about Mick Doohaghn

 

Mick had to make two trips to visit God before he was done (I don't count all his angel calls).....one tough cookie, Doohan. He was riding a very dominant machine during his final 5 year run. As I watched him highside and ragdoll into the air fence that afternoon, I got sick...I feared he was probably dead or worse.

Even Criville won the next year on that bike, IIRC. 2000yellow is right. You lose .1% of that feel and you know in your head you can no longer 'find a way to the checker' when you are in trouble, and your competitors smell it. Dominance is a fickle game, and game it is, creating all kinds of belief systems within and without.

Burgess was always a key to Rossi's dominance. He was there for Mick and others, too. I take nothing from either rider......the best typically find each other.

I think Rossi is entering the waning period of his brilliant career, and I expect to see one or two more brilliant fights before he hangs it up, but his heyday is past unless Ducati gives him something over the moon. I don't see him having any trouble beating Nicky, though, in a heads up fight, at least not next year.

I do believe that Spies will come of age next year and win a race or two and perhaps consistently move into the top 5 in MotoGP. Hell, maybe Dovi will make a run at Pedrosa and Lorenzo, but I think we can all get prepared to hear a lot more of the Spanish national anthem next year.

 

I always love your insight Art.

In Rossi's case, it was only last year that he was beating out Lorenzo consistently enough to win a WC. How much of what we are seeing now with Rossi's lack of performance is due to recovering from that crash he experienced not that long ago? He was supposed to be out a lot longer than he was, but just because he is a warrior and he came back as soon as he was able to, doesn't mean that he is anywhere close to 100%, both physically and mentally.

Also, how much of Lorenzo's success this year can be attributed to Rossi's development work on the bike? Once Rossi is gone, that level of development goes with him. It will be very interesting to see how the Yamahas perform next year.

It's all very interesting stuff........stuff that makes watching Rossi and MotoGP so enjoyable to watch. I can't wait for next year already - a healthy Rossi on a new team - it's going to be great!

 

People talk about Rossi of course, and Lorenzo, Pedrosa, and Dovizioso.

Many forget about Stoner or fails to mention him when it comes to the championship. IMO he is just riding out his contract with Ducati. Last year something changed in him, what it was is up to speculation. His "mystery illness" that caused him to miss three races and be less than 100% for several others remains a mystery to many. Lactose intolerance is what has been given, this seems like a joke it couldn't be diagnosed for months.

Then Stoner comes back and absolutely dominates most of the remaining races of 2009. His Honda contract has apparently been signed for some time. It is almost like he was riding for a job in 2011 at the end of 2009. This is a lame duc year for him if you can pardon the pun, he seems to only ride hard enough to beat Hayden. Next year to beat his teammate (Pedrosa) will require more than fifth place in most races. More like first or second.

So discount Stoner at your peril. In 2010 Honda has demonstrated they have the most powerful and reliable engine in the field. This is probably their most competitive bike in the 800cc era, and it appears to be getting stronger. Pedrosa has won three races, but for his mistakes it could easily be five to this point. Stoner is, IMO, a better rider than both Pedrosa and Dovizioso if a bit of a head case. Rossi will be adapting to a bike not known for being easy to ride. Lorenzo will have to stand on his own and develop the bike to suit him.

It would be hard to predict a championship for 2011 that is not Lorenzo (because of 2010) or Rossi (because of 7 championships). I'm saying right now that Honda will finally get their 800cc championship next yeat, most likely with Stoner.

 

Stoner is showing a lack of maturity this year. His demonstrations of emotion and tirades will eventually cause problems at Honda if he keeps them up. Perhaps getting back under Livio Supo's guidance will be the key to Stoner turning things around.

Honda has a great package. If Burgess moved back to Honda and with Supo as manager, Stoner could go dominant. He has the talent, and is pretty fearless. But he hasn't the stoicism of a Doohan or Rainey.

Time will tell.

 

^^^Very true, did you hear his post race interview where the first thing out of his mouth was a complaint about the field riding flat-out from the first lap?! Past champions must scoff at the fact that hes mentioned in the same company as them, he sounds like he wears panties under his leathers to be blunt. Pedrosa breaking the 2 win a year hump has me seeing him in a new light as less crashes away from a championship. Lorenzo as the lead development rider will be interesting to see, and i'm hoping that JB and crew join Rossi in red next season to make 2011 an unbelievable season.

 

according to the BBC coverage this is indeed the deal (JB and crew going to Ducati).

 

Everyone knew that was the case when Yamaha refused or allegedly refused to allow Rossi to test after Valencia. They'll do the same to Burgess. Their contracts go to the end of the year. Remember how quickly they caught up to Honda after Rossi and Burgess came to them? Well, they aren't stupid, and there is no way that they are going to give them that advantage. Additionally, have you noticed how Spies is qualifying ahead of Rossi? I suspect that Rossi isn't getting the good materials, the updates, and improvements, Spies is getting them. That has a two fold advantage for Yamaha: 1. Puffs up Spies, 2. Keeps Rossi and Burgess in the dark about future improvements so that the technology doesn't get to Ducati.

People forget this is a very tough business.

Art

 

For those with a memory of Rossi's move to Yamaha, it seems the company is now being hypocritical when it comes to losing their rider. They did the equivalent of crying like little girls when Honda prevented Rossi from testing until 1/1/04. They will definitely catch flak for it.

 

+ 1

 

It's a pity that Rossi's move to Ducati comes so late to be of any benefit for the Italian team.

He is now towards the end of his career and is unlikely to have the same success he enjoyed at Honda and Yamaha.

I suspect that he will race for another couple of seasons before calling it a day.
I do not expect another world title from him, at few GP victories at most.

Also, I don't think that Rossi will choose F1 as a substitute after leaving MotoGP; he wouldn't find the environment to his liking, I guess.