Topic: Australia Moto GP 2008, Stoner wins!!!!!

[Terry in Australia]

Ah, what a great race, and my three favorite riders all made it to the podium:

1. Stoner
2. Rossi, and
3. Hayden.

Man, it doesn't get any better than that!

[Jerry Rxman Griffin aka MuthaF'er]

I like the avatar    I see you haven't run out of the Makers.

[oldbiker]

Yeah, good win. Must be great to have the quickest bike with valve gear your opponents can't use because of patent rights.

[Terry in Australia]

Yeah, good win. Must be great to have the quickest bike with valve gear your opponents can't use because of patent rights.

Hey grumpy, get back in bed and get out the other side!!! 

[Soos]

Yeah, good win. Must be great to have the quickest bike with valve gear your opponents can't use because of patent rights.

Hey grumpy, get back in bed and get out the other side!!! 

With things like that time is the great equalizer.

But it brings out the best in those without it at times, worth watching the 3rd and further back riders without that tech.
It's probably some of the best riding they have done in a while.

Gotta push it to keep up.


l8r

[Soos]

 

Where on earth did you get the avitar terry?
It's gotta be hard finding riding suits for you...

[Rocking-M]

Having watch several of the races this year, it's clear that Grumpy has a valid point.
Stoner isn't quite up to Rossi's level just yet and the bike makes the difference in this case.
Of course it's a Ducati so I'm liking it. 

[nickjtc]

Gee, thanks a lot Terry for spoiling it for all of us who have to wait until noon to watch the race.................

[DammitDan]

That's one of the original mutant Terry animals running around.

Where the Cheeze Whiz? 

[Rocking-M]

Gee, thanks a lot Terry for spoiling it for all of us who have to wait until noon to watch the race.................

Yea, on another forum with a bunch of Australians they started a Tool of the Month award, Terry gets it here. 

[heffay]

stoners never win.

[Terry in Australia]

Gee, thanks a lot Terry for spoiling it for all of us who have to wait until noon to watch the race.................

Yea, on another forum with a bunch of Australians they started a Tool of the Month award, Terry gets it here. 

Yeah mate, but tools are useful, whiners, on the other hand, make really good speed bumps!

[Rocking-M]

Terry, you'd fit right in over there, get yourself a duc. 
They also whine quite a bit about those cuddly little drop bears.
I told them they were a bunch of pansies. 

[upperlake04]

 You have that wrong Roberto - just did a google search on drop bears, never having heard of such a thing -  they're dangerous!

[CrisPDuk]

And a fantastic performance from JT   Rossi definitely earned his podium today

I love Phillip Island, definitely one of the best located race circuits there is

Yeah, good win. Must be great to have the quickest bike with valve gear your opponents can't use because of patent rights.

Actually the quickest bike through the traps today was the Gresini Honda beneath Shinya Nakano

[Rocking-M]

Dave, that lovely little bear wouldn't hurt a flea, ok, maybe an Australian, but a flea, no. 
Now those Australian Jackalopes on the other hand,


Hey, just watched the race, Stoner rode a good one, but Rossi's from 12th to 2nd was impressive.

[oldbiker]

Terry, I wasn't critisising Casey! I did say "a good win" but it doesn't alter my opinion that Ducati have an advantage due to their trick valve gear.
I raced for 31 years and know from experience that having even a slight advantage mechanically can make a BIG difference to results over a long period.
However I say again Casey is a good rider at a time when there a lot of good riders.

[CrisPDuk]

Terry, I wasn't critisising Casey! I did say "a good win" but it doesn't alter my opinion that Ducati have an advantage due to their trick valve gear.
I raced for 31 years and know from experience that having even a slight advantage mechanically can make a BIG difference to results over a long period.
However I say again Casey is a good rider at a time when there a lot of good riders.

Personally OB, I would say Ducati's big advantage at the moment comes more from their extremely trick engine/fuel management systems (especially through corners), than the desmo valve gear
Both the Honda and Yamaha engines are more than capable of revving to the the same insane levels as the Ducati, they just can't do it over a full race distance.

Additionally, the Yamaha is never going to match the straight line speed of either the Ducati or the Honda because it has to have an extra (power sapping) idler gear in the drivetrain thanks to it's contra-rotating crankshaft.  Conversely, that is reckoned to be the main reason the Yamahas can easily out corner everything else on the track

[oldbiker]

Thanks for that Crispy Mate.

[UnCrash]

Best becareful with Terry lest he inhabit the angry koala

[Sam Green Racing]

And a fantastic performance from JT   Rossi definitely earned his podium today

I love Phillip Island, definitely one of the best located race circuits there is

Yeah, good win. Must be great to have the quickest bike with valve gear your opponents can't use because of patent rights.

Actually the quickest bike through the traps today was the Gresini Honda beneath Shinya Nakano

Noel, at the start of the season I said somewhere on here to watch out for JT.
 He had to learn to ride a GP bike and also had to contend with tracks that he had never ridden on.
He's had the odd DNF which makes his overall points tally quite impressive considering he has 10 full factory backed machines to contend with all being ridden by riders with track and GP experience.

Sam.

[Terry in Australia]

Dave, that lovely little bear wouldn't hurt a flea, ok, maybe an Australian, but a flea, no. 
Now those Australian Jackalopes on the other hand,

Ha ha, I've seen Koala's rip the shiit out of big mouthed tourists wearing cowboy hats, they've got claws longer than your dick!

Oh, I had a Duke many years ago RM, it was a "classic" 900SS, I know the new belt driven ones are excellent, but that thing was the biggest piece of shiit, I sold it to buy my first "K" series BMW, and never regretted it a bit.......... 

[oldbiker]

Claws longer than your Dick.  You speak for yourself Terry.

[Rocking-M]

Claws longer than your Dick.  You speak for yourself Terry.

+1 Oldbiker. 

[Terry in Australia]

Ha ha, at your age John, your ball bag is probably longer than your dick! I heard a terrible (but funny) story on the radio about an old guy in the hospital toilet who managed to "press his nuts" by sitting on them, the pain was (apparently) hideous, but he didn't have the strength to get off them, and had to wait for an orderly to lift him off them! That's something else I'm not looking forward to...........

[seaweb11]

LOL your radio is funnier than mine

[heffay]

was gonna post in the "still one post american version of the australia moto gp thread" but i figured terry's was more authentic  ...

http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2008/10/the_2008_australian_motorcycle.html

[tsflstb]

I was out of town and had the race recorded - it pained me to avoid all the usual media outlets that would reveal the outcome.  I hop on here thinking it's safe and dammit it's right there in the title.  As hard as I tried I couldn't un-see it.

Terry if you were running for "world's biggest douche" you'd still be a distant second to that Alberto Puig guy.  Pedrosa's mentor/manager/diaper changer is out of his mind.  He tore into my boy Nicky pretty good in an interview - why I'm not sure.  Nicky doesn't give two #$%*s about Dani and his precious data.  I'm glad he's getting out of the HRC soap opera and off the mini bike next year.  If old man Honda were around he'd probably clean house there.

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2008/Puig+on+Pedrosa+Hayden+and+Repsol+Honda+role

Here are a few choice exerpts from Puig's little hissy...

Are you doing a better job with the garage partition in place?
`I wouldn´t say that. We work the same way as always. The wall was something that the tyre manufacturers requested; it had happened before with Yamaha and now it happens in our team; it´s not as if anybody specifically requested it. Dani never followed what his team-mate was doing, so we keep working the same way as before, when there wasn´t a wall. Dani wasn´t affected by this.´
Dani´s Repsol Honda teammate Nicky Hayden has mentioned in various interviews that he isn´t keen on the divide. Was there previously any kind of collaboration that no longer exists?
`All I can say is that Hayden may be bothered because now he can´t access information and telemetry data from Dani´s bike. With this information he was able to improve his riding, as he had all of Dani´s references and now he can´t use that any longer. He was simply copying as he never knew how to set-up a bike. A professional rider can´t be complaining because he can´t get access to the other rider´s data, because finding what works best is his job, not the other rider´s. Everybody knows that a racing team doesn´t work like a football team. It involves two riders, but each is working for himself and the factory will support the rider who has the best chance. Because when it comes to winning, only one rider wins. It has always been like this and it always will be like this - anybody who says the opposite is just lying to look good.´
Would it be true to say that the relationship between Dani and Hayden has always been quite tense, and that there's nothing new in this respect?
`That´s not the case. Everything changed with the incident in Portugal (in 2006), where Dani made a mistake during the race and apologised for it afterwards. Nicky eventually won the title and Dani did what he had to do in Valencia, which was to help him. But from that point -even if Hayden denies it- all he´s been doing has been talking about how Dani was `weird´ and bringing the people around Pedrosa into the subject. He shouldn´t act like a hypocrite and say that he doesn´t have a problem with Dani, because since that incident in Portugal I think he has talked to him about twice. He shouldn´t involve Dani´s manager in this just because he´s jealous of another rider.´

Was the rivalry between the two as strong as one might think?
`Honestly, and without trying to offend anyone, there was never a rivalry in the garage. Nicky won the title when Dani was in his first MotoGP season, and since then there was no rivalry because he (Hayden) didn´t get the results. On his own, Dani gained experience in this class and Nicky was always behind him, so Nicky has never been a serious rival.´
At the end of last season, there was a lot of talk about the need to improve communication within Honda. Was it the case this year?
`On our side we had a great season when it comes to communicating and work with the team. On the practical side of things, we made a step forward and the factory in Japan also stepped up and has been working frenetically, which gave results seeing that now the bike is performing well. The new Team Manager, (Kazuhiko) Yamano, is very determined in any decision he takes and it has been a great benefit.´
Some critics say that you´re the one who controls things in Honda. How would you reply to that?
`In my opinion, those who say that just lack respect to Honda and the work that they do. All I can do is bring my experience of racing like Honda has asked me to do, as I´ve been working for a long time with Pedrosa and Honda, forming the 125cc and 250cc teams and winning three titles with them. If you refer to Hayden saying that I´m the one who´s in charge or used to be in charge, then he has to understand that in this job and in this paddock, anyone who believes he is in charge of anything is simply wrong. Nobody has control over things or is in charge of anything -results decide everything and put the people in the place they are.´
Nicky won't be with Honda in 2009, but Dani neither reached the goals which were set for him...
`For sure we didn't get the results we expected or that Honda expected this year. It happened to Hayden this year and they eventually got rid of him, and it could also happen to Dani Pedrosa at some point if he doesn´t get the results. For a manufacturer such as Honda, all that counts is getting the title. Any professional rider is aware of this, and like in Hayden´s case, you should know that what makes the difference is not the fact that your crew is doing more or less or saying this and that, but what the rider is able to do on the track every Sunday.´
What do you think the move to a single tyre will mean for Dani, who has already been using Bridgestone tyres for the last few races?
`When we decided to change tyre manufacturer, it was to look for the material that gave the most confidence possible. From my point of view this decision is not one that can be complained about. The races will become more even and there will not be the gap between riders that we have seen in the past few years. Everyone will have the same rubber; it isn´t clear yet what the tyre will be like, but there will be variations, with each rider able to adjust their bike to the available material. On a technical level it has been interesting for us to try out these tyres in 2008, now that we know that they are what will be used next year and have some data to work with over pre-season for fine-tuning the bike.
Finally, in 2009 Dani will have a new teammate, Andrea Dovizioso. What is your view on his signing for Repsol Honda?
`It is a logical step for a rider who has ridden for Honda his entire career, through 125cc, 250cc and MotoGP. He has shown loyalty to the factory, and now he gets a perfect move for him. As for how it will affect us? It really won´t change much and won´t affect our way of working. He will be another rival on the track.´

[Terry in Australia]

Terry if you were running for "world's biggest douche" you'd still be a distant second to that Alberto Puig guy. 

Geez, thanks mate............... I think?

[heffay]

give terry a break guys... he's just not used to being first in anything...  including knowing things.   

[Terry in Australia]

Yeah, that's right! Thanks Heffy, for having my back.................... I think?