I only hope VR can just steal a few wins, that should be good enough.
As for MM, he only started testing some souped up street version of his bike. I hope he recovers soon.
Confirmed my suspicion, in later interview Rossi did say he was working on his race pace. He was happy to get his fastest lap time even though the other Yamahas took top honours. I'd also like him to take a few wins too.
MM I can't really guess his fitness level right now. On 1 hand, he seems to learn his lesson and trying to recover 100% before the season but without the tests, he is at a disadvantage. On the other hand, we know how competitive and good he is, he could probably win the first race even.
Gardner & Roberts stepping up to better teams & Beaubier returning to world championship - I don't remember when was the last time I was excited for the middleweight class, maybe 250cc days with Biaggi Waldmann Harada Jacque Nakano etc.
A lot of good competition this year in Moto2. Moto3 seems to be losing ground in terms of excitement. Too many older riders stuck in the class.
1 Francesco Bagnaia ITA Ducati Team (GP21) 1'52.772s 6/7 355k 2 Fabio Quartararo FRA Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) +0.266s 3/6 351k 3 Maverick ViΓ±ales SPA Monster Yamaha (YZR-M1) +0.316s 7/7 348k 4 Valentino Rossi ITA Petronas Yamaha (YZR-M1) +0.342s 6/7 348k 5 Jack Miller AUS Ducati Team (GP21) +0.443s 3/7 358k 6 Johann Zarco FRA Pramac Ducati (GP21) +0.514s 7/7 356k 7 Franco Morbidelli ITA Petronas Yamaha (YZR-M1) +0.541s 3/6 345k 8 Aleix Espargaro SPA Aprilia Gresini (RS-GP) +0.543s 7/7 348k 9 Alex Rins SPA Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR) +0.718s 7/7 347k 10 Joan Mir SPA Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR) +0.910s 6/7 350k 11 Takaaki Nakagami JPN LCR Honda (RC213V) +0.949s 7/7 347k 12 Pol Espargaro SPA Repsol Honda (RC213V) +1.158s 5/6 353k Qualifying 1: 13 Enea Bastianini ITA Avintia Ducati (GP19)* 1'53.733s 6/7 354k 14 Jorge Martin SPA Pramac Ducati (GP21)* 1'53.84s 2/6 359k 15 Miguel Oliveira POR Red Bull KTM (RC16) 1'53.915s 6/6 346k 16 Alex Marquez SPA LCR Honda (RC213V) 1'53.958s 3/7 350k 17 Stefan Bradl GER Repsol Honda (RC213V) 1'53.995s 6/6 350k 18 Luca Marini ITA Sky VR46 Avintia Ducati (GP19)* 1'54.122s 6/7 351k 19 Brad Binder RSA Red Bull KTM (RC16) 1'54.24s 3/7 350k 20 Danilo Petrucci ITA KTM Tech3 (RC16) 1'54.443s 6/7 346k 21 Iker Lecuona SPA KTM Tech3 (RC16) 1'54.627s 6/6 351k 22 Lorenzo Savadori ITA Aprilia Gresini (RS-GP)* 1'55.183s 3/7 347k * Rookie.
Seems like it will be the Dukes against the Yams with Aprilia the dark horse. The race always is different than qualifying in Qatar as temperature and wind condition always changes.
I expected the unexpected in this race and it never disappointed. Rossi wasup there then down to 16th but lucky to finish in the points. Aprilia somewhat improved as they didn't drop like a stone but sorta maintained pace. Can't wait for the next race.
Yeah disaster Q for, I cannot remember for the longest of time when he qualified 2nd from last! He looked lost especially from FP4 onwards. They must have gone in totally wrong direction with the setup.
On the other hand great pole lap by a rookie JM but MV looks so strong through out so he should be favourite again. I do hope the the 2 Pramac to give a hard fight and maybe a win. The Suzuki boys could be dangerous too as they got decent grid and they're normally strong in the end of the race.
It's his 1st time starting that far back. Good job for JM. Was hoping he'd win, at least finish in front of Zarco.
Probably Yamaha wants to squeeze profit out of him. Even one is a big fan of Rossi, one cannot deny he lost his competitiveness edge for few years already.
He is still somewhat competitive and he finds it still fun to ride(still having good battles in the midfield). But the last 2 races could spell the end for him this season especially with so many good Moto2 riders coming up(ironically a lot from his own VR46 Academy). Still rooting for that 1 last career win for him though. I hope he can perform better at other tracks. I don't remember this track being very kind to him too.
This post has been edited by Aydee: Apr 5 2021, 09:51 AM
Aprilia, KTM, Suzuki all in front of Honda? Honda the worst bike this year? Lol
I think most probably due to lack of a good development rider, Crutchlow was a big loss to them. Sure he always crashes but that's probably just him going to the limit all the time.
FQ seems to have matured a lot in terms of race craft. Didn't push hard and not taking unnecessary chances. He knows he has the bike underneath him to win it. VR was on good pace till he crashed. Not sure what happened to MV, maybe his tyres didn't work till later coz he dropped like a stone and suddenly he was quite fast. Good ride for the Aprilia, I think Bradley Smith would have done a slightly better job in the race compared to Savadori.
Joan Mir quietly raking points, could be sleeper champ again. Rossi should try to change his riding style to suite the bike rather than get the bike to suite his style. Really not working for him. I still think he is a fast rider but just lacking a lot of confidence with the bike. Was expecting Crasher Miller to crash but good job getting to the finish line.
Finally 1st podium for Bezzechi in Moto2. Ai Ogura really quick in his rookie season.
Acosta is another alien just landed on Earth. He is to watch for. Hope he doesn't skip Moto2. Haven't has a champion of all classes in a long time.
There's really not much explanation for it coz it does not happen every time but it's a common thing among bikers. I guess it's because you grip the handles hard for a long duration and add the vibration, you will feel the arm getting weak, it's like a lot of blood pumping to your arms but the veins aren't big enough to handle the surge of blood. You struggle to twist the throttle fast enough and all the way, pressing the brake handles takes a lot of effort especially when you need to brake hard.
Yamaha is fast but mostly just in FQ hands while the rest is inconsistent or slow (VR case). It's quite painful to see VR struggling at the back in a winning bike, not even close to Morbi on the 2 year old bike! Always with the same excuse too. π
Yeah, that's why he needs to change his approach. Hope he improves soon.
Vinales always fastest in testing but never fastest when it matters the most π
Typical Yamaha riders problem π
Rossi usually not so fast during testing but always the Sunday man. Somehow the last 4 racing Sundays he forgot to show up for work lol. His bro Luca Marini seems to be going well though. He's quietly getting the miles and literally fight with his bro on the track.
Mar 19 2021, 05:26 PM
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. I hope he becomes a team principal next year if he retires.
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