German GP

I don't watch all the time, but, I don't remember the last time the
premier class had 4 riders on (3) different brands dicing for the
lead. Love it.
If Spies is as good as he looks, that could make it even more
interesting.
I got to meet Colin Edwards about 10 years ago, and even chatted with
him for a few minutes, what a genuinely nice bloke but boy he can't
ride MotoGP.

 

Well, he may not be able to win a championship or a race, but he's
close to 'The Best of the Rest' more often than not these days. That
being said, he needs to swap rides with Ben Spies and give some fresh
blood a chance.

-Dirt-

 

what the hell are you talking about?
He is sitting 5th in the championship, so if he can;t ride then the 14
guys below him (12 now) obviously can't ride, so maybe MotoGP should
only have Rossi/Lorenzo/Pedrosa and Stoner?

Bruce

 

It would be easy to look at the people in 6th to 19th in the
championship and wonder what they were doing in MotoGP. Despite 7 of
them having won world championships and 6 of them having finished 2nd in
a world championship.

Isn't racing always like this? There are 2 or 3 guys up front, week in
week out. If you're really lucky it's 5 or 6. So what exactly is the
point of having the 10, 20, 30 riders behind them?

It seems to me that MotoGP has broken into 3 waves. There's a bunch at
the front (The Aliens!). I think Dovi might just join that group if he
has a little more luck and learns a little more about set up. Then
there's a middle bunch who are incredibly fast riders but are just never
going to make a step up any further. Or they were in the top bunch once
but can't bring themselves to do it any more. Or teams, bikes and
circumstances mean they have lost the ability to get a ride that lets
them show how good they are. Then there's a third wave who are really
just grid filler.

Let's say Ben Spies joined all this on Toseland's Yamaha. Where do you
think he would fit half way through his first year? Ahead of Toseland,
Edwards, Dovi, or getting poles and podiums (and highsides) like
Lorenzo?

 

And Edwards, and Bayliss.

If I weren't such a huge Haga fan, I'd be much more excited about Spies,
but I really want Haga to finally take the Championship.

 

I am sure the question about Spies in MotoGP will be answered soon
enough. There is no doubting his quality as a rider. But in MotoGP it
is about far more than just the rider these days - and little things
make a huge difference. Plus it is also clear there are only 4-6
motorcycles on the grid that can truly win a race, and that narrows on
race day based on minuscule setup mistakes. A very unforgiving
environment. And on MotoGP spec bikes a guy of Spies' size may have
further issues... but I'd love to see it, and have him prove us all
wrong!

Because the thing is that I also think that WSB has become more
competitive and has a deeper field than it's ever had, let us not
underestimate it. You have hugely accomplished, experienced and
talented riders that have to ride their ears off to just finish in the
top 10.

So in essence I don't know. I think both series are at an unparalleled
high level historically. But perhaps it is easier in WSB to make up
for setup mistakes with sheer talent and guts; whereas MotoGP seems
more high strung and unforgiving, and even the smallest detail can
make a big impact.

 

I think he's a very good rider on the fastest bike; he needs to be
winning races (unless he's being told not to).

 

Colin Edwards. Now the guy in the modern era who's got the most
500/MotoGP podiums without winning a race.

 

That't quite a naive view. Sure Edwards is good, and so is the
Yamaha. But can you really see him beating Rossi *and* Stoner *and*
Lorenzo *and* Pedrosa on the same day? He'll get on the podium when a
couple of them have a problem, but otherwise that's it. Last week's
British GP, when all four *did* have problems was his best chance, but
Dovi capitalised, not Colin, who was too cautious (to win) in the
early laps.

But it's always been thus. In any season there's one or two riders
who do the winning, with a 2nd group ready to cash in if they have
problems. One of the reasons this season is exceptional is that
there's as many as four riders who could seriously challenge for a win
every week.