MotoGP Shanghai ***spoiler****

**Toaster** · 7th May 2007, 11:01

Last year's champion is exactly that.... so last year!

**Masterchop** · 7th May 2007, 11:46

Originally Posted by Toaster

Last year's champion is exactly that.... so last year!

Yea, he wasnt really a champion even when he became champion.

He just happened to be in the right place at the right time and on the right bike.
Alot of luck was involved.

**SimJen** · 7th May 2007, 12:39

Originally Posted by Ivan

Rossi does not seem smotth any more he seems on the edge,

True, but thats cause he CAN ride the wheels of it to keep up with obviously a superior bike with an on-form rider......you don't see Hayden doing the same.
Stoner will give Rossi a good go this year thats for certain, whoever wins good luck to them. As long as they deserve the championship and have fought hard for it (ie won some races).
Stoners missus is pretty hot

definately the highlight for me

**SimJen** · 7th May 2007, 12:40

Originally Posted by Masterchop

Yea, he wasnt really a champion even when he became champion.

He just happened to be in the right place at the right time and on the right bike.
Alot of luck was involved.

true dat.....but he got the most points. Unfortunately Hayden will be remembered as the one that won when Rossi had an unlucky year.
Just like Kenny Roberts Jr the year that Doohan crashed/retired.
An anomaly in racing history....

From crash.net:
"In the face of a 10km/h plus top speed disadvantage against the powerful Ducati, which also had the edge on acceleration, pole sitter Rossi piled the pressure on Stoner through the twisty sections of the Shanghai circuit - making several successful passes for the lead... but every time Stoner blasted effortlessly back past the Fiat Yamaha along the 1200m straight, the longest on the MotoGP calendar.
But, as Stoner and Ducati have stressed all weekend, it isn't all top speed and Stoner visibly suffered through the tighter sections compared with Rossi's M1 and the Rizla Suzuki of John Hopkins, who caught the battling leaders just before the halfway mark."

**BarryG** · 9th May 2007, 06:08

Friggin' Elias!!! That bloke needs a good talking to. Quick as hell on his day, but bloody hell, what was he thinking? (he wasn't, apparently) - no way could he have got round that corner whether there were bikes in front of him or not. And coming up with '(Hayden) braked too early'. Bollocks!! Wanker.
Cheers
Barry

**Postie** · 10th May 2007, 10:12

Originally Posted by SimJen

true dat.....but he got the most points. Unfortunately Hayden will be remembered as the one that won when Rossi had an unlucky year.
Just like Kenny Roberts Jr the year that Doohan crashed/retired.
An anomaly in racing history....

It should also be remembered that Troy Baliss rode as a wild card in the final race in 2006 at Valencia and led for more laps in that one race, then Hayden did in the entire 2006 season. Troy Baliss won half as many races ( one ) in the 2006 motoGP as Nicky Hayden, hardly the statics of a world champion.

**CM2005** · 10th May 2007, 10:16

yeah, i guess hayden's all over now... he'll become a mid pack runner for the rest of his career... hahaha. I must say, im happy to see that the pedrobot isnt anywhere this year.

**limbimtimwim** · 10th May 2007, 12:35

Hayden == John Kochinski

Where is he? Can I not spell his name properly because when I google it, I don't get many results...

**sAsLEX** · 10th May 2007, 17:01

Originally Posted by limbimtimwim

I'm not so sure, Stoner was not riding shabbily at all.

And how many mistakes did Stoner make? About half a mistake when he went on the rumble strip.

But Rossi, he laid a stinker of a mistake. Not that it mattered. He probably wouldn't have won anyway.

Did you watch the same race?

Where Rossi would lead by a considerable margin on to the back straight and the Duke would roll past like a say 750 past a 600?!

Rossi tried his best to upset Stoner like he used to do so well to gibenau but it seems Stoner was up to the challange!

**Toaster** · 10th May 2007, 18:51

Good to know... missed the coverage. Cheers.

**limbimtimwim** · 11th May 2007, 07:40

Originally Posted by Toaster

Good to know... missed the coverage. Cheers.

Sign up for motogp.com and you can watch it whenever you like as long as your internet connection is pretty good. Yes, it'll cost you 99 euros, but that is cheaper than skytv for a year.

**BigG** · 11th May 2007, 07:54

Originally Posted by Grub

Rossi just rode his ass off and Stoner just blew him off down the straights. It's probably not going to be like that in the tighter circuits.

Somebody in the helmet thread a few days ago said the Nolan helmets were a bit nerdy. I don't mind being nerdy ... along with Casey Stoner

Just goes to show that it's the rider that gets world championship not the bike, anyone can go fast in a straight line and that duke certainly has more power up top but Rossi is one of the very best on tight circuits

**steveyb** · 11th May 2007, 17:40

One word for you lot.
Ride of the race: Alex Barros.
Oops that is more than one word, but check out his lap times and remember that he was setting them on his own with no rabbit (Rossi) to chase.
Watch out when his luck hangs together.

Also, keep an eye on Pol Espargaro and Rafaele da Rosa in 125. These kids are 15 and fast as a rat up a drainpipe! Maybe also if they can sort their bikes more consistently Bradley Smith and Tito Rabat.

250? The Dovi and George Lawrence show I'm afraid, but that is funny as a fight anyway!! But also keep an eye on Willairot from Thailand. This guy should be nowhere near where he is, awesome!!!

Enjoy ;-)

Steve

**Brian d marge** · 11th May 2007, 17:49

All ive got to say is wintunnel ... possibly why yamaha and fiat have joined up and the Hondas are going backwards ,,

But rossi was riding the wheels of the thing ,,, and yeah Barros , what a ride
Stephen