Qatar SPOILER!!!!!!!

A great race, especially for Casey Stoner, first win in the premier class on
a new bike and new team, he deserved the win too, sure his bike was
blistering fast on the main straight (to say the least) but he held it
through the twisty bits too and was always close enough to blast past Rossi
on the occasions Rossi led him into the home straight. He rode a faultless
race and the last lap was his fastest, great ride!!

Rossi was great too, put pressure on Stoner trying force an error but Stoner
held firm and even Rossi's immense ability couldn't overcome the Yam's speed
deficit although he did break Pedrosa despite the Honda's speed advantage on
the straight.

Hopkins was an inspiration too, very sore left hand but he still hassled
Pedrosa all the way to the flag.

Good to see 4 different manufacturers 1st - 4th too, 2 on Michilens 2 on
Stones.

What happened to Edwards???? Bad start then he just went back back, back, I
was hoping this was going to be his race but he never even featured.

I'm looking forward to race 2, it will be interesting to see if Stoner can
maintain his pace and if a hopefully fully fit Hopkins can get that Suz on
the podium, here's hoping.

Paul

 

Yeah, Stoner and the Ducati left the rest standing like stone statues...

The top speed clearly counted for a lot given the finishing line is after a
loooong straight.

Stoner, Rossi, pedrosa dn Hopkins were the only ones truly able to keep the
pace. After a while, though, it became apparent this would be only between
Stoner and Rossi, and the way Stoner started to downright humiliate the
Yamaha on that straight it became clear that Stoner was bidding his time,
with a very significant ace up his sleeve. And so they settled.

Pedrosa a respectable third after a somewhat embarassing fall in the warmup.

Then Hopkins, it seems a podium is now just a matter of time, finally!

Capirossi, on the other side of the Ducati garage, falls off ad truly starts
the season poorly: with a younger, new teammate utterly stealing the show,
and him coming out pointless.

Edwards characeristically fades after a promising q. I know the theory is
that he's only there to help Rossi set up the bike. Not to be in the
running...

Further back, Hayden, his worst result in a while.

But heck, it's still 17 races ahead of us...

 

Hmm, Ducati once had the start finish line put back to the exit corner of
their home track to suit the mid range torque of the old Ducati's, wonder if
they will change it again to suit this new high end screamer they have

If it were that track today, Valentino would have probably won.

 

Yup, watched the race on BBC2 and they showed brake and throttle graphics
(as well as lean angles now!) and you can see Rossi was braking more
efficiently time after time, not just braking later, but getting on the
throttle quicker and getting that all important corner speed to keep up near
the front for full race distance.

 

I saw the ESPN version, sounds like it was the same footage. I don't
know how useful comparing the graphics in the broadcasts is. Stoner's
"brakes" bar kept going up to 100%, and Rossi's never got over about a
third during the time they showed the two together.

Also, the tilt sensor is a neat idea but it was out of sync with the
footage.

 

????

Stoner finished over a second ahead.

bruce

 

With the top speed advantage Stoner had Rossi's only real hope was for Casey
to wad it and given his last years record it was a 50/50 deal, the only
problem was, he didn't...

 

LOL!

Normal transmission has been returned.

Hayden IS the luckiest current rider and "champion" in the field,
though Roberts *might* give him a run for the money. The way Yamaha
lost the W/C last year says it all, WHEN will Hayden step up and race
for a win on a regular basis?

Even his ungreatful employer have no faith in him

PS - Its a pity he seems one of the nicest guys racing, but this class
is beyond him

AUS

 

Why, did Rossi choke and crash again?

No, Rossi lost it when he choked under pressure and binned it

Except he beat everyone, including rossi, last year. The others must be
pretty shit if they get beaten by a "lucky" rider like Hayden

 

No Mark, he came 2nd, please try to keep up!

Frankly the Championship should have been done by then, Yamaha engine
failures cost him 60 points, he lost by 10 or something.

Of more concern M1 has low output, a bit more stress and heat and that
exact problem may be back to spook Vale this year.

I think even Nicky wouldnt call that *beating* Rossi, compare the wins
and history head to head, esp. when they where team mates

Cheers

AUS

 

My name isn't "Mark", dingus.

Conveniently ignores Hayden's clutch problems, and getting take out by
Pedrosa

Yes he would, and has, because he beat him. That's why he's a the champion
and Rossi isn't

Compare the points for the 2006 title: Hayden wins, Rossi chokes and loses.

 

My name isn't "Mark", dingus.


Ok Mr.Hall

 

WTF are you talking about?