Vinales leaving Yamaha for Aprilia? :jaw:
What!! I gotta catch up on the races from last weekend so I can research this. I did see his interview a few weeks ago where he basically said he needs to do more researching before signing a contract, essentially saying he regretted his deal with Yamaha. Aprillia doesn't strike me as a deal he will be happy with.
This morning it was made official that Vinales & Yamaha are splitting at the end of this season. He was allowed to cancel the remaining year on his contract. No official confirmation that he's signing with Aprilia, but that's the current consensus. It's pretty obvious he's been unhappy but wow.
Now there are 2 open Yamaha seats for next year, one for each team.
Open seats for 2022 to be confirmed:
1 @ Factory Aprilia
1 @ Tech3 KTM Factory Racing
1 @ Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP
1 @ Petronas Yamaha SRT
2 @ Aramco Racing Team VR46
Wow, that will be interesting... Was really hoping Garret could have done just a little more.
Quote from: Djg8493 on June 28, 2021, 12:55:45 PM
Was really hoping Garret could have done just a little more.
Me too. I really want to see him succeed and maybe get a full time GP ride.
Last weekend though he was on a new track and he was on a slow, old bike. I think they said he was something like 16kph slower on the straights. That's just too much to give away and hope to do well.
He's going to get more chances to fill-in with Morbidelli out for 8+ weeks after his knee surgery.
Agree, the new track alone is a really tough obstacle, I think he did pretty well there after the first issue in FP1. The fact that the bike couldn't keep up made it worse. Still can't believe Rossi fell apart so quickly in the race.
Quote from: SoCal250 on June 28, 2021, 01:01:03 PM
Quote from: Djg8493 on June 28, 2021, 12:55:45 PM
Was really hoping Garret could have done just a little more.
Me too. I really want to see him succeed and maybe get a full time GP ride.
Last weekend though he was on a new track and he was on a slow, old bike. I think they said he was something like 16kph slower on the straights. That's just too much to give away and hope to do well.
He's going to get more chances to fill-in with Morbidelli out for 8+ weeks after his knee surgery.
Looks like Gerloff may not be getting more chances at the GP bike this year after all. I checked the schedule and the next round of WSBK (Czech Round 6) conflicts with the the MotoGP Styria round when they return from break. The following weekend WSBK is off during the MotoGP 2nd round in Austria but that's about the time Morbidelli is expected to return. I guess we'll see what happens.
Raul Fernandez is moving up from Moto2 to MotoGP Tech3 KTM next year. So he'll remain teammates with Remy Gardner.
As a result, Lecuona and Petrucci are both looking for a ride next season.
Now the open seat count looks like this:
Quote from: SoCal250 on June 28, 2021, 12:35:06 PM
Open seats for 2022 to be confirmed:
1 @ Factory Aprilia
1 @ Tech3 KTM Factory Racing
1 @ Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP
1 @ Petronas Yamaha SRT
2 @ Aramco Racing Team VR46
Petronas is pulling out of GP racing in 2022 :jaw:
SRT will only field a MotoGP team next year and is shutting down it's Moto2 & Moto3 teams. They probably had no choice since their primary sponsor pulled the plug. To make matters worse Yamaha will only supply two "B-spec" bikes next year to SRT for MotoGP, which is even a step down from the current bike that Morbidelli has been working with.
Overall Yamaha is going in the wrong direction!
Maverick has signed with Aprilia for next season
Now the open seat count looks like this: Only 4 remaining
Quote from: SoCal250 on June 28, 2021, 12:35:06 PM
Open seats for 2022 to be confirmed:
1 @ Factory Aprilia
1 @ Tech3 KTM Factory Racing
1 @ Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP
1 @ Petronas Yamaha SRT
2 @ Aramco Racing Team VR46
Quote from: SoCal250 on August 13, 2021, 12:45:16 PM
Petronas is pulling out of GP racing in 2022
Sounds like an Italian sponsor is stepping in next year to replace Petronas, at least that's the current rumor. And SRT is being reformed as a new team to run the Yamaha satellite effort.
With the news of Dovizioso signing with Yamaha and Morbidelli moving up to the Factory Yamaha team, there are now 3 vacant seats for nest season
Open seats for 2022 to be confirmed:
1 @ Factory Aprilia
1 @ Tech3 KTM Factory Racing
1 @ Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP
1 @ Petronas RNF Racing Yamaha SRT satellite team
2 @ Aramco Racing Team VR46
Quote from: SoCal250 on August 08, 2021, 12:19:50 AM
Raul Fernandez is moving up from Moto2 to MotoGP Tech3 KTM next year. So he'll remain teammates with Remy Gardner.
As a result, Lecuona and Petrucci are both looking for a ride next season.
Sounds like Lecuona is headed off to factory Honda in WSBK and Petrucci will be trying his hand at the Dakar for KTM
Yamaha confirmed the rider line-up for 2022-2023 and announced Morbidelli will ride for the Factory Team for the remainder of the season and the next 2 years. The Yamaha satellite team also officially announced the addition of Dovizioso for 2021-2022. There is still a vacant seat with the independent team to be confirmed for next season when Rossi departs.
Morbidelli joins Yamaha Factory Racing for 2021-2023 (https://www.motogp.com/en/news/2021/09/16/morbidelli-joins-yamaha-factory-racing-for-2021-2023/392316)
The 2020 runner-up will join former teammate Quartararo at Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP for the rest of the season and beyond
Dovizioso makes MotoGP™ return with Petronas Yamaha SRT (https://www.motogp.com/en/news/2021/09/16/dovizioso-makes-motogp-return-with-petronas-yamaha-srt/392313)
The Italian will see out the 2021 season alongside Valentino Rossi, and will also ride for Yamaha's Independent Team in 2022
We will have 3 Americans in Moto2 next year! :patriot: :clap:
American Racing announced that Sean Dylan Kelly will move from MotoAmerica to Moto2 to join Beaubier. He signed a 2-year deal with the team. This is the first time since 1992 that an American-owned team with American riders has competed in the World Championship, (Last time was Marlboro Team Roberts with Rainey & Kocinski.)
Joe Roberts will remain with Italtrans, so there will 3 US riders on the grid.
Although it has not been officially announced by Dorna/MotoGP, the "leaked" provisional schedule for 2022 has been posted by a few Euro racing news sources.
PROVISIONAL GP CALENDAR 2022 (unofficial)
(source: the-race.com)
March 6: Losail / Qatar
March 20: Mandalika / Indonesia
April 3: Termas de Río Hondo / Argentina
April 10: Circuit of the Americas / Texas
April 24: Portimão / Portugal
May 1: Jerez / Spain
May 15: Le Mans / France
May 29: Mugello / Italy
June 5: Barcelona / Spain
June 19: Sachsenring / Germany
June 26: Assen / Netherlands
July 10: KymiRing / Finland
August 7: Silverstone / GB
August 21: Red Bull Ring / Austria
September 11: Aragón / Spain
September 18: Misano / San Marino
October 2: Motegi / Japan
October 9: Buriram / Thailand
October 23: Phillip Island / Australia
October 30: Sepang / Malaysia
November 13: Valencia / Spain
Apparently, after last weekend's race at COTA the track has been given an ultimatum for repairs by the Safety Commission and the place on the 2022 schedule is contingent. Nearly all the MotoGP riders complained about it. We were there watching and the bumps are numerous between T2 and T10, and much more pronounced than previous years. With all the car races there, including NASCAR, it's only going to get worse.
"The return to Texas is still subject to the circuit being resurfaced, though recent rumor suggests that the track has agreed to tackle Turns 2 through 10, the minimum required by the Safety Commission." -- from MotoMatters, 10-06-2021
COTA's surface was always going to be a disaster. Other than the proximity to Austin, I am not sure what they were thinking building there. The layout is also a bit of a flop, though I suppose it makes sense for a Formula 1 car.
The provisional schedule was officially released by MotoGP/Dorna today
2022 MotoGP World Championship Calendar [Provisional - 7 Oct]
1 04 - 06 March Qatar MotoGP Losail International Circuit
2 18 - 20 March Indonesian MotoGP Mandalika Street Circuit
3 01 - 03 April Argentinian MotoGP Termas de Rio Hondo
4 08 - 10 April Grand Prix of the Americas Circuit of The Americas
5 22 - 24 April Portuguese MotoGP Algarve International Circuit
6 29 April - 01 May Spanish MotoGP Circuito de Jerez Angel Nieto
7 13 May - 15 May French MotoGP Le Mans Bugatti
8 27 May - 29 May Italian MotoGP Autodromo De Mugello
9 03 Jun - 05 Jun Catalunya MotoGP Circuit de Barcelona Catalunya
10 17 Jun - 19 Jun German MotoGP Sachsenring
11 24 Jun - 26 Jun Netherlands MotoGP TT Circuit Assen
12 08 Jul - 10 Jul Finland MotoGP KymiRing
13 05 Aug - 07 Aug British MotoGP Silverstone
14 19 Aug - 21 Aug Austrian MotoGP Red Bull Ring Spielberg
15 02 Sep - 06 Sep San Marino MotoGP Misano World Ciruit Marco Simoncelli
16 16 Sep - 18 Sep Aragon MotoGP Motorland Aragon
17 23 Sep - 25 Sep Japanese MotoGP Twin Ring Motegi
18 30 Sep - 02 Oct Thailand MotoGP Chang International Circuit
19 14 Oct - 16 Oct Australian MotoGP Philip Island
20 21 Oct - 23 Oct Malaysian MotoGP Sepang International Circuit
21 04 Nov - 06 Nov Valencia MotoGP Circuito Ricardo Tormo
Darryn Binder joins WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team for 2022https://www.motogp.com/en/news/2021/10/21/darryn-binder-joins-withu-yamaha-rnf-motogp-team-for-2022/397546
Binder signed a 1-year deal with the Yamaha satellite team for 2022 and an option for 2023. He will be sharing the garage with Dovi next year.
Quote from: SoCal250 on August 30, 2021, 02:18:20 PM
With the news of Dovizioso signing with Yamaha and Morbidelli moving up to the Factory Yamaha team, there are now 3 vacant seats for nest season
Open seats for 2022 to be confirmed:
1 @ Factory Aprilia
1 @ Tech3 KTM Factory Racing
1 @ Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP
1 @ Petronas RNF Racing Yamaha SRT satellite team
2 @ Aramco Racing Team VR46
Open seats for 2022 to be confirmed:
1 @ Factory Aprilia1 @ Tech3 KTM Factory Racing1 @ Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP1 @ WithU RNF Racing Yamaha satellite team 2 @ Aramco Racing Team VR46
Quote from: SoCal250 on October 21, 2021, 11:54:06 AM
Open seats for 2022 to be confirmed:
1 @ Factory Aprilia
1 @ Tech3 KTM Factory Racing
1 @ Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP
1 @ WithU RNF Racing Yamaha satellite team
2 @ Aramco Racing Team VR46
All seats are now filled in the top class.
Marco Bezzecchi is being promoted from Moto2 to join Luca Marini on the VR46 Ducati team. The team sponsorship is still not confirmed as there are reported issues with the previously announced deal with Aramco.
https://www.motogp.com/en/news/2021/11/16/2022-provisional-entry-lists-announced/402505
Quote from: SoCal250 on October 06, 2021, 03:09:18 PM
Apparently, after last weekend's race at COTA the track has been given an ultimatum for repairs by the Safety Commission and the place on the 2022 schedule is contingent. Nearly all the MotoGP riders complained about it. We were there watching and the bumps are numerous between T2 and T10, and much more pronounced than previous years. With all the car races there, including NASCAR, it's only going to get worse.
"The return to Texas is still subject to the circuit being resurfaced, though recent rumor suggests that the track has agreed to tackle Turns 2 through 10, the minimum required by the Safety Commission." -- from MotoMatters, 10-06-2021
Dorna announced that COTA will be resurfaced in late Feb 2022 and inspected about 10 days later. The circuit has agreed to resurface from T2 to the exit of T10, which is the minimum rework needed in order to hold a future GP event there, instead of resurfacing the full track as was requested by Dorna.
MGP should go to Mid Ohio.
Quote from: sav0r on December 01, 2021, 08:30:41 AM
MGP should go to Mid Ohio.
I think they should return to Laguna. But unfortunately that will never happen
The NIMBY's have ruined Seca forever. Not particularly different the Tremblant or Lime Rock.
Mid Ohio is a better track than Seca, it's just way more technical.
Quote from: SoCal250 on November 30, 2021, 02:27:14 PM
Quote from: SoCal250 on October 06, 2021, 03:09:18 PM
Apparently, after last weekend's race at COTA the track has been given an ultimatum for repairs by the Safety Commission and the place on the 2022 schedule is contingent. Nearly all the MotoGP riders complained about it. We were there watching and the bumps are numerous between T2 and T10, and much more pronounced than previous years. With all the car races there, including NASCAR, it's only going to get worse.
"The return to Texas is still subject to the circuit being resurfaced, though recent rumor suggests that the track has agreed to tackle Turns 2 through 10, the minimum required by the Safety Commission." -- from MotoMatters, 10-06-2021
Dorna announced that COTA will be resurfaced in late Feb 2022 and inspected about 10 days later. The circuit has agreed to resurface from T2 to the exit of T10, which is the minimum rework needed in order to hold a future GP event there, instead of resurfacing the full track as was requested by Dorna.
Track repaving underway at COTATurns 2 through to 10, and 12 through to 16 are being repaved and reinforced
https://us.motorsport.com/f1/news/cota-undertaking-track-resurfacing-to-fix-bumps-after-f1-and-motogp-complaints/7472219/
COTA resurfacing effort begins (https://www.motogp.com/en/news/2022/01/21/first-look-cota-resurfacing-effort-begins/403989) - Jan 21, 2022
COTA enters final stages of resurfacing operation (https://www.motogp.com/en/news/2022/01/28/cota-enters-final-stages-of-resurfacing-operation/404212) - Jan 28, 2022
The new team launch video from American Racing is pretty cool. :patriot: Beaubier and SDK ride their Moto2 bikes though a house and up to The Rock Store where Hopkins is waiting. There's also some track time at Chuckwalla with lots of wheelies and drone footage.
https://www.motogp.com/en/videos/2022/02/22/american-racing-ready-to-fly-the-stars-stripes-in-2022/407438
We are about two weeks away from the first race of the season. I love watching them!
Quote from: Hawaii-Mike on February 22, 2022, 02:53:17 PM
We are about two weeks away from the first race of the season. I love watching them!
:thumbs: I'm in my happy place. (almost)
Less than 2 weeks until MotoGP returns...
Supercross is in mid-season, NHRA & NASCAR just restarted, MotoAmerica & WSBK season kick-offs are just over a month out, and the IOM TT is just over 3 months away.
:clap: Boogety Boogety Boogety! Let's go racing!
New team liveries announced:
WithU Yamaha RNF Racing (formerly Petronas Yamaha Sepang Racing)
https://www.motorcyclenews.com/sport/motogp/2022/january/withu-yamaha-rnf-launch/
Mooney VR46 Racing
https://www.motorcyclenews.com/sport/motogp/2022/february/vr46-racing-livery/
Good news regarding US coverage, including the opening round on CNBC this Sunday
NBC Sports announces 2022 MotoGP™ telecast schedule
All 21 races will be featured on NBC and CNBC this season
NBC Sports has announced its television schedule for the 2022 MotoGP™ season on NBC and CNBC, beginning with the Grand Prix of Qatar from the Lusail International Circuit in Doha, Qatar, on Sunday, March 6, at 1:30 p.m. ET on CNBC.
NBC races:
- Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas from Circuit of the Americas on Sunday, April 10 live at 1:30 p.m. ET
- Grand Prix of Finland from KymiRing on Sunday, July 10, at 1 p.m. ET
- San Marino Grand Prix from Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli on Sunday, Sept. 4, at 1:30 p.m. ET
- Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix from Philip Island Circuit on Sunday, Oct 16, at 12:30 p.m. ET
- Grand Prix of Valencia at Circuit Ricardo Tormo on Sunday, Nov. 6, at Noon ET
Full story: https://www.motogp.com/en/news/2022/03/01/nbc-sports-announces-2022-motogp-telecast-schedule/407807
Wow that's great! No more searching for the races on the cable stations.
The 2022 season is now underway! :celebrate: Giggity!
There was some hubub around the Ducati motor, I read claims they went back to the last spec 2021 engine ditching the 2022 unit. Then I read an article from Ducati denying that.
lol.
For Hawaii residents with Spectrum, the race will be on channel 44 at 8:30 a.m.
Quote from: sav0r on March 04, 2022, 02:02:08 PM
There was some hubub around the Ducati motor, I read claims they went back to the last spec 2021 engine ditching the 2022 unit. Then I read an article from Ducati denying that.
lol.
Tardozzi got a little heated when the news came out. :dawg: But he didn't deny it, he just wanted to make it clear that the 2022 engine is not bad, it's just not suited for some riding styles.
Bagnaia & Miller are using the 2021-evo engine (so they did in fact go back to the earlier spec), while Zarco, Martin, & Marini all decided to stay with the '22 spec engine.
After results from the pre-season tests and Race 1, I think Yamaha is in trouble this year. Everyone else made a step forward and Yamaha is unchanged. No bueno :whatever:
It would be cool to see the Suzuki at the front again.
Quote from: sav0r on March 10, 2022, 04:39:52 PM
It would be cool to see the Suzuki at the front again.
You're going to get your chance in coming races. The Suzuki is now as fast as the Duc on the straights and it handles like the Yamaha in the turns
Have you seen this low side recovery in the Moto2 race? It's at 1:30 in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkG1xSoMsKo
Pretty lucky that one.
:eek:
https://www.motogp.com/en/videos/2022/03/20/marc-marquez-walks-away-from-huge-turn-7-highside/411014
Quote from: SoCal250 on March 22, 2022, 12:23:12 PM
:eek:
https://www.motogp.com/en/videos/2022/03/20/marc-marquez-walks-away-from-huge-turn-7-highside/411014
:jaw:
This is scary stuff, now they are reporting another cast of Diplopia, basically what they are saying is multiple damage to a nerve in his Eye/brain is causing double vision. This is the same nerve he injured over the summer.
Bummer, Marquez was such an excellent performer a few years ago. He's the first racer that I can think of who consistently dragged his elbows in the corners. Marc is still young, lots of injuries but maybe he can make a solid comeback.
A huge one that. Lets hope he recovers.
It's going to be an interesting weekend in Argentina with all Friday events cancelled. Compressed schedule and no FP3 or FP4. (https://www.motogp.com/en/news/2022/04/01/update-saturday-sunday-schedule-changes-in-argentina/412179) A cargo plane carrying team equipment broke down in Kenya and was delayed.
Any teams that can't get their setup dialed-in immediately will suffer.
MM93 is out (eye injury) so Bradl will sub.
Nakagami is out (positive Covid test). He was able to race after all because of the delayed schedule and tested negative just before.
Only a few days until the GP of the Americas at COTA! :olaf: Anyone going?
An unusual race schedule this weekend (https://www.motogp.com/en/news/2022/04/06/red-bull-gp-of-the-americas-new-look-time-schedule-in-place/413324) with Moto2 first and Moto3 running after MotoGP.
But it will be a few totally full days of racing (http://circuitoftheamericas.com/motogp/schedule) because it's a MotoGP / MotoAmerica double header.
Supposed to be very windy on Sunday (not very good for motorcycle racing), but Saturday should be nice.
SAT 04/09
Sunny skies. High 86F. Winds SSW at 10 to 20 mph. Precip: 0%
SUN 04/10
Partly to mostly cloudy and windy. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. High 81F. Winds S at 20 to 30 mph. Precip: 15%
And MM93 will be returning from his eye issues after missing the last round.
This season is bonkers, so far. Aleix leads the championship? Pecco scoring points in only 1 race so far? Alex Rins hasn't crashed out of a race, yet? Will Marc dominate? Will Marc launch himself into orbit, again? It's wild lol. Very entertaining.
Who do you got for the podium at COTA, Russ?
1-Joan Mir
2-Pecco
3-Fabio Quartararo
Maybe after Aleix's win, Pol will get his shit together?
This season is completely crazy. Every race is so hard to predict. The podiums prove it - 9 different riders in the first 3 events!
Picks are very difficult. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that since Aleix got his win that his confidence will surge. The Aprilia is a proven fast bike this year. And you can never count out MM93 at COTA (no matter how banged up he is). I'm sure he will be going for it as always.
1. A. Espargaro
2. M. Marquez
3. Quartararo
4. Miller Martin
The Austin GP was a really fun weekend as always, despite the wind.
Too bad for Beaubier but he's doing well and will get his chance to get on the box or even the top step.
The Yamahas were getting dusted on the back straight. (minus 10-15kph)
I only took a few photos. Nothing special since I only had my phone.
-Turn 1 (Gagne & Peterson were sitting right in front of me, lower left)
-Turn 3
-Turn 11
-Turn 11 #2
A few more shots
I thought Jack had that one in the bag and then to fall to third on the last lap only hurt more. It was a good ride by the top three, and of course Marquez still is a beast. Some issue off the line to fall to dead last and then marched back through. That Suzuki is well rounded and they spoiled the Ducati fun despite the semi lack of might down the straights. The Yamaha will do okay in some of the upcoming rounds but you have to wonder if it will hold out over the season.
Pretty awesome! It's been a long time coming. Hopefully this is the start or many for Joe, Cam, and SDK.
Joe16 :patriot:
https://www.motogp.com/en/videos/2022/04/26/unseen-i-was-crying-on-the-straight-joe-roberts/417341
It's the Italian GP this weekend at (imo) the best track on the calendar: Mugello! Home of the MotoGP Top Speed Record (225mph / Johan Zarco).
Anyone want to throw out their podium predictions?
Will Quartararo repeat his win from last season?
Will Ducati improve their top speed record?
Will Bastianini smash into the back of Zarco on the warm-up lap again?
Will Pecco crash out of the lead again, like last year? (And last race lol)
Who knows? The unpredictability of the '22 Season is incredible.
Here's my guess:
1: Fabio Quartararo/ Yamaha Monster Energy M-1
2: Jack Miller/ Ducati Lenovo GP22
3: Marc Marquez / Repsol Honda RC213V
I'm guessing Pecco and Quartararo will be first and second, it seems to be a trend.
It's going to be a wild one at Mugello! Should be really exciting with all the unpredictability and the inconsistency among the riders. And this weekend is the official retirement of Rossi's #46 will surely draw even more crazed fans in yellow.
It's anyone's race! There are probably 10 to 12 guys you could pick for the podium and still be be in the ballpark with an on-target guess, but I'll go with:
1. Quartararo
2. Bagnaia
3. A. Esparagaro
Other names I pondered for this:
Bastianini
Mir
Zarco
It was just announced today that the Finnish GP has been cancelled because the track is not ready. It was supposed to be held on July 10. The championship is now down to 20 races.
https://www.motogp.com/en/news/2022/05/25/grand-prix-of-finland-postponed-to-2023/421737
The last two days has brought some big news for the 2023 grid:
--Aprilia has re-signed A. Espargaro & Vinales for 2023 & 2024. I thought that maybe Vinales' seat was at risk with the available riders floating around but he's remaining with Aprilia.
--And today Aprilia announced that they have signed a deal with RNF to create an Aprilia satellite team for 2023 & 2024 with an option for a 2-yr extension. So there will only be two Yamahas on the grid next year and four RS-GPs.
https://www.motogp.com/en/news/2022/05/27/withu-yamaha-rnf-to-become-satellite-team-of-aprilia/421979
With Suzuki leaving, it would be great if Kawasaki can get back into it.
I am pretty amazed that the European companies (Ducati, Aprilia, KTM) are able to build competitive MotoGP bikes. Decades ago there wasn't a lot of hope for them to stay in existence due to the Japanese bike monopoly.
The days of Japanese brand domination are over. 18 of the 22 bikes on next years grid will be European.
Honda has performance issues after years of developing a bike for one rider, and Yamaha has had ongoing top speed issues for years that puts them at a disadvantage. Currently, #20 is the only one who can get anything out of the M1 and he's already said this season that he's riding at 100% all the time. Not good.
I see a lot of disappointing weekends ahead for Yamaha fans like myself.
Lots of big news lately...
MM93 is in the US. He just went through a 4th surgery on his right humerus injury, this time at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. Recovery isexpected to take 4-6 months so he's likely done for the season. Bradl will be sitting in for him while he's out.
Fabio has signed a new 2-yr deal to stay with Factory Yamaha, under the condition that they correct the engine power deficiency. (We'll see if Yamaha is actually able to follow through on their promise.) Yamaha would be nowhere without El Diablo. He currently leads the points after 8 rounds, while the next fastest rider on a Yamaha is in 19th place. That's pathetic! I sure hope he signed for a boatload of Euros! He deserves it.
KTM have suggested that Oliveira should be prepared to possibly ride for the Tech3 team next season. He has responded "I will not accept a Tech3 spot."
And, I don't think I will be picking any Suzuki riders for our podium guesses for the remainder of the season. That team seems to have already phoned it in after the news that they are quitting at the end of the season. Poor qualifying and 2 DNFs last week.
Quote from: SoCal250 on May 25, 2022, 12:15:17 PM
It's anyone's race! There are probably 10 to 12 guys you could pick for the podium and still be be in the ballpark with an on-target guess, but I'll go with:
1. Quartararo
2. Bagnaia
3. A. Esparagaro
I got all 3 riders on the podium correct last week. :thumbs: Only got 1st and 2nd place reversed
Well I got 1st and 2nd right but didn't guess for 3rd.
Let's call it a draw.
How about this weekend's race?
Quote from: Hawaii-Mike on June 03, 2022, 09:29:45 PM
Well I got 1st and 2nd right but didn't guess for 3rd.
Let's call it a draw.
How about this weekend's race?
I'm going out on a limb and repeating my picks for this week :dawg:
1. Quartararo
2. Bagnaia
3. A. Esparagaro
I would hate to see Yamaha, in an effort to placate Fabio, ruin the overall balance of the M-1 by pumping up the motor. It's like there's only a finite number of "points" to be used for performance (let's say 100 for the sake of arguing lol). Yamaha has like 60 points in chassis, 20 in motor and 20 in aero. To get the motor up to Ducati's level (say 50..) those 30 points gotta come from somewhere else. I believe that Suzuki did exactly that this year. Gained straight line speed but lost the ability to control the tire degradation and affected front end "feel" by fucking around with the aero.
Here's my question: With Quartararo being the only Yamaha pilot who can be competitive, where does Yamaha go next? They're in the Honda conundrum. Do they continue to develop a bike for a single dominant rider (who could potentially get injured ala MM 2020)? Or, leave the Yamaha DNA in there and pay FQ20 to stfu and ride the bike as is? I guess that's why Lyn Jarvis gets paid the big bucks, to figure this stuff out lol.
Ok, rant over.
G'night
I think the bike fairly well fits Quatararo already. The results say as much.
They just need to figure out top end performance on that engine.
That was an interesting race! Unfortunately Pecco Bagnaia and Rins were taken out by Nakagami in the first turn! Nakagami's helmet got caught in Pecco's back wheel, he might have serious injuries.
At the end, Aleix Espargaro was in second place, well behind the winner, Quartararo. Espargaro had another lap to go and he thought he had finished! He slowed down, waved to the crowd then realized his mistake. He sped up and finished in fifth place. He's a Spaniard and he made this mistake in Spain, what a bummer.
Looks like Quartararo has this year's championship locked if he continues at this pace.
Here are the video highlights.
https://youtu.be/CpLJwVgXKsY
Aleix....
#41's afternoon: :vroom: :wave: :bang:
Sachsenring this weekend.
I'm going with:
1. Quartararo
2. A. Espargaro
3. Nakagami
That's if Espargaro can keep track of laps this time. At least at this track the timing pylon with show 1 instead of 0 for the last lap. So he's got that going for him. :dawg:
And if Taka can keep it upgright and not take anyone else out he might make the podium
I'm sticking with:
1. Bagnaia
2. Quartararo
and add Esparago for third place.
Pecco's bike seems to be faster than Quartararo's.
Quote from: SoCal250 on June 17, 2022, 05:02:02 PM
I'm going with:
1. Quartararo
2. A. Espargaro
3. Nakagami
I wasn't aware Nakagami has a bad shoulder from his wipe out last week. Guess I shouldn't have picked him for the podium. Doh!
Bummer for Pecco, crashed and this time it was nobody else's fault.
Congrats to Quartararo - he has a huge points lead!
I'm going with:
1. Quartararo
2. Zarco
3. A. Espargaro
but it's pretty much a toss up between Zarco, Espargaro, and Bagnaia
Espargaro is out.
I think the Yamaha looks the best on a race distance again. It has been a little tough to tell with the mixed conditions.
Fabio is earning his paycheck. Whatever Yamaha is paying him, it's not enough. It's worrying that Yamaha seems to be following the HRC philosophy of building a bike for one rider. We all know how well that's working for Honda this year. What a mess they're in without MM. I'm afraid that JM36 is going to fall victim to HRC's shitshow and mismanagement by Alberto Puig. Suzuki, WTH? And lastly, what are your thoughts on Zarco? He's obviously talented but seems to lack that killer instinct that it takes to reach the top step of the podium.
Alright, my picks for "The TT":
Pecco either wins or shits the bed again
And then...
1) AE41
2) FQ20
3) JZ5 / MV12
4) (Bonus) JM36
What the heck? Espargaro started despite saying he wouldn't. Then he charged through the field and now the championship is looking a lot different.
Fabio down twice. A big one on round two.
As for Zarco, I have no doubt he could be amazing, but so much of this comes down to team dynamic, luck, timing, relationships, the number of sunspots, karma, etc.. Such is the way of racing at these top levels.
Yes, it was an amazing race! Last week it looked like Quartararo had a near lock for the championship. Today he DNF-ed, no points. Pecco finished first place, +25 points. Now I think he's 41 points down from Quartararo with half the season left to go. I like them both. The rest of the season will be more competitive if they both can avoid crashes - not easy to do when Nakagami took out Pecco's rear wheel!
Quote from: sav0r on June 25, 2022, 08:37:48 AM
Espargaro is out.
Quote from: sav0r on June 26, 2022, 02:10:15 PM
What the heck? Espargaro started despite saying he wouldn't. Then he charged through the field and now the championship is looking a lot different.
Fabio down twice. A big one on round two.
I think you're confusing your Espargaros. Pol was questionable, and after giving it a go in Free Practice decided the pain was too much due to his rib injury and breathing issues.
Aleix was never in question. He's fit and has been challenging for the championship.
That was quite a wild race. More proof that anything can happen this season. #20, Mr. Consitent crashed out for the first time this year and now he's facing a long lap penalty at Silverstone. He's only 21 pts ahead of #41 now
11 rounds down and 9 to go
Latest GP news tidbits...
Quartararo was awarded the French Legion of Honor, the highest award given to French citizens. So now, he's not only the Devil, but he's also a Knight :devil:
https://www.motogp.com/en/news/2022/07/14/quartararo-awarded-the-french-legion-of-honour/429330
Dovi 04 retiring (again) at the end of the season
Marc Marquez given a good bill of health at his 6-week post-op check-up and cleared to start physio on his shoulder that was operated on at the Mayo Clinic
Yamaha has hired a former F1 engine chief for Ferrari as a consultant on their M1 engine program. Hopefully they can find some improvements without making things worse
Rins has signed a 2-yr deal with LCR Honda. He will take the seat of Alex Marquez who is moving over to Gresini.
https://www.motogp.com/en/news/2022/07/19/alex-rins-lcr-honda-castrol-team-and-hrc-sign-new-contract/429459
I just don't see Rins's style being compatible to the V4's, particularly the RC213. Hopefully he gets through his 2 years there relatively unscathed, but with his propensity for falling off of the bike, I'm doubtful. Best case scenario for him, is 2 years at LCR and then get a seat at VR46 satellite Yamaha team (if that ever happens) or somehow finds a way on to the Monster Energy Factory Team. Suzuki's departure has really screwed things up for him. I can't see him as the new Crutchlow/development guy because his style is so different from the typical V4 pilot. You can't blame the guy for taking the seat and I hope I'm wrong but I don't have much hope for him there.
What are your thoughts here fellas?
Dovi has announced he will retire after the Sept 04 Misano round, so he only has 3 races left. Crutchlow will fill his seat for the last 6 rounds of the season.
British GP this Sunday, August 7th!
Quote from: Hawaii-Mike on August 04, 2022, 04:02:08 PM
British GP this Sunday, August 7th!
Yep, should be interesting. El Diablo has a Long Lap to complete in the first 3 laps. And everyone is back and rested/recuperated/mended after the long holiday. Weather is supposed to be good - sunny and warm.
The 120th Anniversary of Triumph (Moto2 engine supplier) will be celebrated this weekend at the GP as well. They're having a parade lap of significant historical bikes including the original McQueen jump bike from the Great Escape movie.
GasGas has announced that they will be joining the MotoGP grid next year with Tech 3. (Basically two KTM RC16s with red GasGas body work.)
Seat #1 will be filled by Pol Espargaro, seat #2 is TBA (but an offer has been made to Oliviera)
Raul Fernandez confirmed he is leaving KTM at the end of the season. No indication where he will end up, but it won't be KTM or GasGas.
Bastianini is moving up to the factory Ducati team alongside Bagnaia next season.
Zarco and Martin are staying at Prima Pramac.
That is interesting...
Honda has confirmed Mir for next year as MM93's teammate on the factory team, filling the former seat of P. Espargaro.
Aprilia RNF has announced that its two riders will be Oliviera & Raul Fernandez.
Attached is the grid line-up so far. Only a few seats remaining to be named:1 at LCR Honda, 1 at GasGas, and both at Mooney VR46
Augusto Fernandez has signed a 1-yr deal with GasGas for next year, moving up from Moto2 to fill the other seat alongside P. Espargaro.
Good race yesterday and probably remains the best championship battle of year as most of the other big racing seasons are closing in on a champion.
Bezzecchi has been confirmed for next year at Mooney VR46 Ducati. And of course, Luca is guaranteed for the other seat although it hasn't been officially announced, since his brother is the team owner.
The only seat remaining is Nakagami's current bike at LCR Honda. It's still up in the air whether he'll be retained or replaced by another rider.
Nakagami has been officially confirmed at LCR Honda for 1 more year. All seats are now filled, although the GasGas #2 ride for A. Fernandez has been leaked but not officially confirmed by the team.
Marc Marquez will return to the scene of one of last seasons best races, Motorland Aragon. I'm not expecting him to be at the front this year but who knows? I'm hoping Fabio can get a top 5 finish but that seems unlikely with the current state of the '22 M1.
Here are my picks:
Viñales (it's gotta happen eventually, right?)
Bastianini
Marini
(Pecco shits the bed at the corkscrew before the back straight...)
It's a tough decision but I'll toss this into the ring...
1. Bastianini
2. Miller
3. Vinales
A lot of surprising news today.
Remy Gardner has announced he's moving to World SBK next season and will take Garrett Gerloff's seat at GRT Yamaha. Gerloff is moving over to BMW for 2023.
Beaubier is leaving GP racing to return to the US after two seasons in Moto2 with American Racing. In 2023 he'll be back in MotoAmerica SBK, but the team is TBA. (I'm sure it will be at Yamaha, but who will he be replacing?)
Quote from: SoCal250 on September 14, 2022, 12:20:26 AM
Nakagami has been officially confirmed at LCR Honda for 1 more year. All seats are now filled, although the GasGas #2 ride for A. Fernandez has been leaked but not officially confirmed by the team.
Augusto Fernandez has been offically confirmed for the 2nd seat with GasGas, so now the grid is final for next year.
That was a rough start to that race too bad for Fabio that Marco had that cold Tire squealy and ended up taking out Fabio.
It sure changed up the championship picture.
The last 3 lap race for the lead was fun.
Yes it was opposite last week's race - Bastiani got first and Bagnaia in second place.
Down to the last lap too. Hard to believe. I feel like Bagnaia just let him through to collect the points for the championship.
On a side note, my son is a big Bastianini fan because he likes the purple bike with pink bits. So he was happy about that finish.
Fabio had a really bad (unlucky) weekend. After his crash, the scooter he was riding back on to get checked at the medical center crashed head-on into another scooter. Apparently everyone was OK but Fabio said he was very glad he was still wearing his helmet and that the marshal who was driving his scooter was going to be very sore.
Crazy.
Fabio is still looking food for the championship but that Yamaha is starting to show its age. The Ducati's are damn strong. I haven't spent too much time looking at the upcoming schedule but I'd want to be on the Duc at this point. Then again, I said that like 4 months ago and Fabio is still leading.
Quote from: sav0r on September 20, 2022, 01:00:15 PM
Crazy.
Fabio is still looking food for the championship but that Yamaha is starting to show its age. The Ducati's are damn strong. I haven't spent too much time looking at the upcoming schedule but I'd want to be on the Duc at this point. Then again, I said that like 4 months ago and Fabio is still leading.
The next 2 tracks are Duc-favorable tracks
I think FQ20 has an advantage in the next few rounds due to the fact that Pecco, Bastianini, Martin etc haven't ridden the flyaway tracks on a MotoGP bike. Fabio had some really good battles with MM93 in 2019 at those tracks. Now, is that familiarity enough to overcome Pecco's championship momentum and the huge Ducati advantage? Fuck, I hope so. I can't stand Bagnaia. I'm hoping for a FQ20 win but realistically Motegi is probably the worst of the remaining tracks for him.
On another note, how good is Pedro Acosta? A future superstar for sure imo.
True, I had forgotten that a few of the other guys haven't ridden there yet on the big bike. Although FQ20 has only been once and it was 3 years ago, same with Bagnaia when he and Fabio were rookies. Not sure how much of an advantage that is.
They're running a different schedule this weekend with FP1 on Fri and then FP2, FP3 and Qual on Sat. No FP4, so a little less track time for everyone.
Wonder if the weather will throw a wrench in things? Supposed to rain on Fri & Sat but looks like it will be cleared up by Sun.
Trivia: It's the 25th anniversary of the Motegi track (opened Aug 1997)
It seems that picking the podium is getting harder with each race. With that said, I'm throwing this out...
1. Bastianini
2. Miller
3. Quartararo
I had a few iterations of the podium before I finally had to settle on something. It's such a toss up! I'm sure Bagnaia, Aleix, and Marquez will also play a role in this one.
Quote from: SoCal250 on September 22, 2022, 12:01:52 PM
They're running a different schedule this weekend with FP1 on Fri and then FP2, FP3 and Qual on Sat. No FP4, so a little less track time for everyone.
Wonder if the weather will throw a wrench in things? Supposed to rain on Fri & Sat but looks like it will be cleared up by Sun.
MotoGP FP3 cancelled due to weather conditions. Not much track time for the top class. Only FP1, a wet FP2, Qualifying and WUP before the race.
Hope the weather clears up for tomorrow's race.
WTF Call Cruchlow doing well Yamaha....
JT
Jack was on another planet. Impressive ride from him.
Quote from: Seizer on September 14, 2022, 08:33:01 AM
(Pecco shits the bed at the corkscrew before the back straight...)
you were only off by one race on that guess :dawg: :cheerleader:
Miller was on top today!
Pecco crashed near the end of the race. That helped Quartararo maintain his points lead.
(https://cdn.newsapi.com.au/image/v1/aeb79dfbd385f110b0a3f9822c661413?width=650)
The best is the boot soaked it up so they had to add more. I don't know if I'd want the clean boot or the champagne soaked boot, but it was cool he tossed them into the crowd.
Aussies love a good shoey.
Jack was On....
Aprila did OK- not Alexis
Binder was a hoot to watch.
JT
Surprising news for the upcoming Thai round. Danilo Petrucci is going to ride the Suzuki in place of Mir who's still out with an injured ankle. Apparently Ducati gave approval for Danilo to fill in.
If this actually pans out it will mean that in one year Petrucci will have ridden a KTM GP bike, a KTM Dakar bike, a Ducati Superbike, and a Suzuki GP bike.
I literally shouted out when Pecco lost the front end! FQ20 was really lucky there in that he didn't get taken out by Pecco's bike. A big moment for the title hunt imo. Poor Aleix... but that's racing. Miller was on a mission. Very impressive.
Binder and Miller as teammates are kinda giving me those early 90's "Evil Empire"- Team Roberts vibes. Well...without the competitive bikes anyway lol. Definitely 2 of the top 10 riders.
It was almost a Schumacher-Villeneuve moment there. Or maybe a Prost-Senna is an even better comparison? Well only one is a champion, so I guess back to Schumacher-Villeneuve, but in this analogy Villeneuve would be the crasher. I digress.
Anyways, Pecco red misted. He should have waited it out a bit more. That lunge was ridiculous. That he would throw away those points on a ridiculous move like that points out to me that Fabio is the better of the two as far as patience and long term understanding of what it takes to win a championship.
I've always felt Miller was a great rider that never quite hit the mark. When you get these little flashes of brilliance it makes me wonder what could have been. Stoner comes to mind.
Quote from: SoCal250 on September 27, 2022, 01:30:43 AM
Surprising news for the upcoming Thai round. Danilo Petrucci is going to ride the Suzuki in place of Mir who's still out with an injured ankle. Apparently Ducati gave approval for Danilo to fill in.
If this actually pans out it will mean that in one year Petrucci will have ridden a KTM GP bike, a KTM Dakar bike, a Ducati Superbike, and a Suzuki GP bike.
It's looking like Petrucci ordered the weather this weekend for his maiden outing on the Suzuki. The forecast is for moderate rain every day (and temps in the mid to upper 80's).
It's looking like it will be a wet race so my picks for Buriram are:
1. Miller
2. B. Binder
3. M. Marquez
and fighting for the podium: Quartararo, Petrucci, Zarco, A. Espargaro, Olivera...
Wow! What a race! I might have to watch that one again.
Yes today's race was really interesting! Lots of lead changes and luckily there were no big crashes at the front. A couple of crashes happened farther back. I won't say too much here in case some of us haven't seen it and will be watching soon.
An absolute banger for sure. I loved the ending. I tried to keep the details minimum there too. It is too good of a race to spoil.
It's all over. Not a particularly amazing final race but I suppose a nice ending for the departing manufacturer.
Congratulations to Pecco Bagnaia. Good showing for Fabio Quartararo, I think he did well considering his Yamaha is underpowered against the Ducati's.
Also congratulations to Alex Rins, the winner of two of the last three races in the 2022 series. He rides for Suzuki and the manufacturer is calling it quits. Certainly another manufacturer will pick Rins up.
Such a shame to watch Suzuki chip away at it and end the season that way only to leave. Only Honda in Formula 1 can do it worse.
It was quite a wild season. Pretty damn exciting all the way through! I can't wait for next March!
Quote from: sav0r on November 08, 2022, 07:25:51 AM
Such a shame to watch Suzuki chip away at it and end the season that way only to leave.
Yeah, it's so sad to see Suzuki bail out after so much success. Heck, they had the world champion only 2 seasons ago! The series really needs the manufacturer variety. It's becoming the "Ducati GP Series". :rolleyes:
Quote from: Hawaii-Mike on November 07, 2022, 02:42:12 PM
Certainly another manufacturer will pick Rins up.
He's riding for LCR Honda now, alongside Nakagami. And Mir has jumped over to Respol Honda, joining M. Marquez for next season.
I watched the Valencia tests live this morning. It was interesting to see the riders on their new bikes. And Miller is on a KTM now, Oliviera on Aprilia, A. Marquez on a Duc, and P. Espargaro & rookie Fernandez on GasGas (KTM). Lot's of new aero updates being tested for 2023.
I am looking forward to next season too. Hopefully the GasGas keeps up the pace.
So far it doesn't look good for Yamaha. They have 4 new engine variants but the reported power improvements seem to have vanished. Quartararo and Morbidelli both complained about it. Honda appears to have bigger issues - engine and handling. MM93 said that with the current 2023 bike they can't win the championship.
Quote from: sav0r on November 09, 2022, 10:53:49 AM
I am looking forward to next season too.
Only 135 days to go!
Kawasaki, please return to MotoGP!