Who are currently your 3 favorite Moto GP bike riders and why ?

Irrespective whether anyone mentioned is currently retired, or is
still racing professionally, who are currently your 3 favorite Moto GP
bike riders and please separately say why, for each fave rider named.

 

Don't cross-post.

 

You're a school teacher, right? And when is this assignment due?

SQ

 

That goes without saying it's also why I left off my group...they are
a bunch of wankers but <shrug> what can you do they are mostly
friends.

 

Whichever three are closely contesting for the lead during any given
GP race.

Their names and which bikes they ride are unimportant.

 

I like the Simon guy with the big hair. I want to see him pack it in
a helmet sometime.

 

Hard question to answer. I prefer the against-the-odds, quixotic wins
over the best-man-with-the-best-team-on-the-best-bike humdrum.

Of the current racers I guess the one I'd most like to see get a win
would be Nicky Hayden.
My favourite win was Troy Bayliss but that was such a perfect moment it
doesn't need repeating.
Of riders past maybe Eddie Lawson's win on the Cagiva rates the highest
(closely followed by Kevin Magee winning his 6th-ever GP at Jarama '88)
or any of Garry McCoy's chaotic displays of seemingly out-of-control
mastery.
If we include SBK then Gobert at Phillip Island (pick a race!) is tops.

It's probably the heroic failures I remember the most fondly; Wayne
Gardner at Paul Ricard, Lawson on the Cagiva getting T-boned by
Schwantz, Steve Martin leading 95% of the SBK race at Phillip Island,
Simon Crafar in world supers, Jaque and Nakano taking each-other out and
denying a 500cc win against the 990s......

But to return to the original question; my favourite GP riders are Mick
Doohan, Wayne Gardner and Casey Stoner.

Sue me; I'm a one-eyed patriot.

 

Wayne Gardner. He was always like a dog with a bone. Not the greatest or
most skillful rider around but persistant beyond belief.

Mick Doohan. Possibly the greatest rider this country has ever produced.

Jaarno Saarinen. A magnificent career cut short by appalling actions (or
lack of action) of Italian marshalls.