Vermeulen Goes Kwakas!

[KS34]

Now who would have put money on this! Chris Vermeulen has signed a 2 year deal with Kawasaki in World Superbike.
http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,26159846-23209,00.html#

[James Deuce]

Yet another decent rider's career ruined by Suzuki's lack of commitment to MotoGP.

Kawasaki play at being involved in motorsport. If Chris can turn their fortunes in WSBK around then good on him. If he can't, then you can finger Kawasaki's lack of commitment in general as the problem.

[Shaun]

Yet another decent rider's career ruined by Suzuki's lack of commitment to MotoGP.

Kawasaki play at being involved in motorsport. If Chris can turn their fortunes in WSBK around then good on him. If he can't, then you can finger Kawasaki's lack of commitment in general as the problem.

Staunch comment mate. Suzuki is the smallest of the four Japa manufacturers, and they are still there as an officuall team, and doing there best with there budget!! Not Like Kawasaki

Suzuki has helped make world champions, how is that wrecking there carreers

[Zuki lover]

Ahhhh..... but Rossi is going to suzuki next year, so doesn't matter :bye:

[James Deuce]

Staunch comment mate. Suzuki is the smallest of the four Japa manufacturers, and they are still there as an officuall team, and doing there best with there budget!! Not Like Kawasaki

Suzuki has helped make world champions, how is that wrecking there carreers

They've spread what budget they have too thin for the last 15 years. Consequently they don't even perform particularly well in WSBK which should arguably be theirs to own. They'd be well advised to drop MotoGP and concentrate on WSBK now that the AMA have screwed the pooch and decided to go for a motorcycle NASCAR formula.

Don't get me started on Kawasaki. Since owning one I've discovered that they aren't a serious motorcycle manufacturer. It's someone's hobby.

[slowpoke]

Gawd, talk about jumping from the frying pan into the fire. Suzuki have been the perennial underperformers in MotoGP, showing just enough promise to keep their supporters living in hope but ultimately not delivering. Kawasaki are just a burial ground for good talent in WSB. If someone offerred a rider a Factory ride they'd be going "Woohoo!" but when the found out it was with Kawasaki they'd be "Oh....".

Bye bye Chris:bye:

[Wingnut]

Must be about the $$$$. I would imagine that he could have had a ride with better prospects - but then again maybe not. He may be off to his old stomping ground in Supersport the season following if it doesn't work out in SBK.

[GSVR]

To many good riders and not enough rides. Maybe he's just making sure he has something to ride! He's had plenty of time to impress in MGP and would have been collected up by a top team if like Stoner was if he had the goods.

[R6_kid]

If he's working for a dude name Yoda then may the force be with him.

[Wingnut]

Gawd, talk about jumping from the frying pan into the fire. Suzuki have been the perennial underperformers in MotoGP, showing just enough promise to keep their supporters living in hope but ultimately not delivering. Kawasaki are just a burial ground for good talent in WSB. If someone offerred a rider a Factory ride they'd be going "Woohoo!" but when the found out it was with Kawasaki they'd be "Oh....".

Bye bye Chris:bye:

I wouldn't write them off completely just yet. In MotoGP a few years back, Yamaha were rated as the dog in the field. Que V. Rossi and and few years later - they are the shit. I'm not saying that Vermeulen is in the same league as Rossi but anything is possible especially considering they are soley focussing on the WSBKs now.

[DELLORTO]

vemulen was never realy good enough for motogp anyway......i doubt hes going to do very well at wsbk.....

suzuki arnt slack, they are doing pretty well for the amount of crap riding vemulen has done this season, caporossi has done alright.

Kawasaki is slowly becoming abit of a joke......their motogp team is failing, their motocross teams suck and their wsbk team is worst on the track,

what happened???

[James Deuce]

vemulen was never realy good enough for motogp anyway......i doubt hes going to do very well at wsbk.....

suzuki arnt slack, they are doing pretty well for the amount of crap riding vemulen has done this season, caporossi has done alright.

Kawasaki is slowly becoming abit of a joke......their motogp team is failing, their motocross teams suck and their wsbk team is worst on the track,

what happened???
Capirossi hasn't gone well at all compared to his normal win/podium/crash MO. He's cruising cos the bike sucks.

I told you; Kawasaki Motorcycle Inc. is a hobby to keep the kid of some bigwig at KHI away from girls and drugs.

[svr]

To many good riders and not enough rides. Maybe he's just making sure he has something to ride! He's had plenty of time to impress in MGP and would have been collected up by a top team if like Stoner was if he had the goods.

Agreed - there's a lot of talent around right now - the Spanish / Italian Good Young Riders Factory is just pumping them out. Kawasaki have a reputation for going cheap for their riders so I imagine he's taken a big pay cut (if he's getting paid by Kawasaki at all). Being shown up by teammates - first Hopkins and now the old warhorse Capirossi - hasn't helped his market value, although he's still impressive in the wet. It's also been observed that he's a little too bright to race motorbikes ...

[Clivoris]

is a hobby to keep the kid of some bigwig at KHI away from girls and drugs.

That's a certified win-win. Where do I sign-up? Let me see, what shall I do today racing; or girls and drugs? If I had a budget that stretched to a PA, I bet I could do both. Oh hang on, that didn't seem to work out too good for Gobert.

[codgyoleracer]

Ive always rated Vermuelen, and still do. The green things might be a tough call for a couple of sessons though. He still young (ish)

[James Deuce]

That's a certified win-win. Where do I sign-up? Let me see, what shall I do today racing; or girls and drugs? If I had a budget that stretched to a PA, I bet I could do both. Oh hang on, that didn't seem to work out too good for Gobert.
Not just the racing division, the whole sodding company. They have no paint charts, bolt head patterns change from batch to batch, footpeg rubbers needs trimming before you can use them, suspension that only works on a perfectly smooth surface, and the only parts of the bike that have finish of any depth are the bits you can see. They made one good bike in the last 40 years and then sat back and phoned it in.

[nudemetalz]

.... They made one good bike in the last 40 years and then sat back and phoned it in....

The one good bike be the Z1-900 ?

[Crasherfromwayback]

The one good bike be the Z1-900 ?

Nah...The KR1Sp!! Oh that's right...we made that here in Welly!!!

[Ivan]

hey hey the 2004 zx6r is good and that kwaka they running in supersport is good

[James Deuce]

hey hey the 2004 zx6r is good and that kwaka they running in supersport is good
Show me the results, Kermit boy!

[Crasherfromwayback]

Show me the results, Kermit boy!

You need an XR1200 you do mate.

[Clivoris]

You need an XR1200 you do mate.

Sooo true. Worst case of latent Harleymania I've ever seen.

[gav]

Show me the results, Kermit boy!
The sixxer just won WSS this weekend!

[gav]

Gotta laugh though, if you read Chris V's column in AMCN it reads as if he gave Suzuki the flick as they werent up to it for him. So what does he choose instead to further his racing career? A Kawasaki WSBK bike! :Oops:
He was rumoured to have offered his services free of charge to Tech 3 though, so not too sure it was just about the money.

[James Deuce]

The sixxer just won WSS this weekend!

I was talking about HIS results.

Supersport is a bit "Meh" quite frankly. That may change when Moto2 comes on stream to compete directly with them though.

[roogazza]

You need an XR1200 you do mate.

P , I think his boat already has an anchor ? G.

ps Chris V to WSB , could be what Kawasaki has needed for some time.

[discodan]

I lost a lot of respect for Kawasaki with the way they handled wriggling out of MotoGP but they do seem to be making good strides with the ZX6R in Super Sport.

I always thought of Kawasaki as horse power first then then handling second but Lascorz was noticably better on the brakes and mid corner speed compared to Cal Crutchlows Yamaha at Magny Cours.

[James Deuce]

I lost a lot of respect for Kawasaki with the way they handled wriggling out of MotoGP but they do seem to be making good strides with the ZX6R in Super Sport.

I always thought of Kawasaki as horse power first then then handling second but Lascorz was noticably better on the brakes and mid corner speed compared to Cal Crutchlows Yamaha at Magny Cours.

BPF's. The first adopter of a technology evolution usually has an advantage for a season in something as close as Supersport. They'll be scrapping for 10th next year and it will take them a year to figure out what evolutionary leap to make and then they'll be two years behind until they make another unexpectedly beneficial change at random.

I lost a lot of respect for Kawasaki when the next model of Z750 was fatter, slower, and despite USD forks, handled and rode worse than its predecessor.

[discodan]

BPF's. The first adopter of a technology evolution usually has an advantage for a season in something as close as Supersport. They'll be scrapping for 10th next year and it will take them a year to figure out what evolutionary leap to make and then they'll be two years behind until they make another unexpectedly beneficial change at random.



Maybe, there's no doubt that it is the most competitive road bike that kawasaki have ATM. I think that Kawasaki will put more effort into SBK and SS now they have dropped motogp.

[gav]

Maybe Chris V is hoping that some good results might see the Hayate ZXR dusted off and Kawi return to MotoGP, with him aboard.

[Ivan]

I cant honestly see the point in being in the GP's theres fuckall of them out there superbikes have full grids

[James Deuce]

I cant honestly see the point in being in the GP's theres fuckall of them out there superbikes have full grids
The point is YOU could get good laptimes out of a Superbike. You probably wouldn't be able to get the tyres warm enough on a GP bike to beat your Superbike laptimes.

The Prototypes are more than just a slightly stiffer roadbike and the guys that get the best out of them are not merely good riders.

[Ivan]

yip I have rode 125s and know how they behave and the riders in the GP's I fully respect but I think something has gone wrong the numbers have dropped hugely

[James Deuce]

yip I have rode 125s and know how they behave and the riders in the GP's I fully respect but I think something has gone wrong the numbers have dropped hugely

That's just economics. Around the time you were born it was pretty dire too, with beteen 12 and 17 bikes on the grid depending on injury. The 500s were a lot harder on riders.

[sugilite]

Obviously I like Kawasakis, Though I've owned more Suzuki's. But this decision by Chris to my way of thinking is an EPIC FAIL. I assume he has been strung along by Suzuki for years saying, yes Chris san, next years bike will be the shit, only now to move across to a team that are perennial struggler's in the superbike world. Is he a glutton for punishment or what? There is no shortage of competitive bikes in Superbike..... Yamaha, Ducati, Honda, Aprillia, and even BMW and Suzuki are not far behind, so WHAT THE FUCK CHRIS?????

[Wingnut]

Obviously I like Kawasakis, Though I've owned more Suzuki's. But this decision by Chris to my way of thinking is an EPIC FAIL. I assume he has been strung along by Suzuki for years saying, yes Chris san, next years bike will be the shit, only now to move across to a team that are perennial struggler's in the superbike world. Is he a glutton for punishment or what? There is no shortage of competitive bikes in Superbike..... Yamaha, Ducati, Honda, Aprillia, and even BMW and Suzuki are not far behind, so WHAT THE FUCK CHRIS?????


Or he likes getting a pay cheque?

[James Deuce]

If I remember correctly, Chris isn't being paid by Suzuki this year.

[gav]

I think Chris V also offered his services to Tech 3 for next year free of charge!
Maybe the Kawi deal was all he could get or was offered? There arent that many good rides left in WSBK is there? Second seat at Aprilia, maybe a Stiggy Honda if they return, or a privateer Ducati ride .....