MotoGP

[GuzziMoto]

That was probably the best racing ever at COTA.

[p6x]

@GuzziMoto

Indeed!

I really thought Pedro Acosta was going to win his first MotoGP before Maverick Viñales came back out of the blue!

He has just demonstrated that he was worthy of all the anticipation.

He is now fourth in the World Championship classification, within a few points of the two in front of him. As incredible as it may seem, and I know it is too early, but I am thinking he may have a shot at winning too.

Jorge Martin had nothing on him when they fought it out.

I am not completely convinced about Maverick Viñales keeping it up but pole+sprint+race= Incredible!!!

Enea Bastianini is back, and Francesco Bagnaia is apparently experiencing the chattering that Jorge Martin dealt reported.

[PJPR01]

Marquez almost pulled it off...just got a little too hot...but what a ride, the King of COTA almost made it back to his rightful position on the throne.  The first 10 laps of the race were simply incredible.  Acosta is spectacular, and shows great promise.  Vinales rode the most amazing race of his career it seems...11th to 1st.  This race was worth watching twice...

[GuzziMoto]

3 minutes ago, p6x said:

@GuzziMoto

Indeed!

I really thought Pedro Acosta was going to win his first MotoGP before Maverick Viñales came back out of the blue!

He has just demonstrated that he was worthy of all the anticipation.

He is now fourth in the World Championship classification, within a few points of the two in front of him. As incredible as it may seem, and I know it is too early, but I am thinking he may have a shot at winning too.

Jorge Martin had nothing on him when they fought it out.

I am not completely convinced about Maverick Viñales keeping it up but pole+sprint+race= Incredible!!!

Enea Bastianini is back, and Francesco Bagnaia is apparently experiencing the chattering that Jorge Martin dealt reported.

Mav has a long history of being hot and cold. I don't think anybody thought he could never win a race on the Ape. But I think most would doubt he can be consistently fast over an entire season. I am enjoying his success while it lasts, though.

[GuzziMoto]

6 minutes ago, PJPR01 said:

Marquez almost pulled it off...just got a little too hot...but what a ride, the King of COTA almost made it back to his rightful position on the throne.  The first 10 laps of the race were simply incredible.  Acosta is spectacular, and shows great promise.  Vinales rode the most amazing race of his career it seems...11th to 1st.  This race was worth watching twice...

To be fair, even if Marc had not fallen down it seems like he wasn't going to win anyway. He may or may not have finished ahead of Acosta, but Mav was on a roll and was faster then everyone, including Marc. Marc never looked comfortable, and seemed to be looking for a place to crash. And he found one. He was running near the front, but he never looked like he was in the zone. Mav was in the zone, and even some bumping and banging on lap one wasn't going to deny him.

[Tomchri]

Yes, what a race. MM had brake problems, according to the news.

Cheers Tom.

[p6x]

8 hours ago, PJPR01 said:

Marquez almost pulled it off...just got a little too hot...but what a ride, the King of COTA almost made it back to his rightful position on the throne.  The first 10 laps of the race were simply incredible.  Acosta is spectacular, and shows great promise.  Vinales rode the most amazing race of his career it seems...11th to 1st.  This race was worth watching twice...

Actually, the issue with Marquez (and others) has to do with the brake pads, which are pushed away from the rotors. Since Michele Pirro's accident in 2018 at the Mugello due to this issue, they have installed a brake fluid metering valve, which in theory should mitigate the effect.

Marc had to pump the brakes. This issue combined with bad habits are hard to break, he returned to Honda mode while heading the GP, that explains the crash.

I am betting that Pedro Acosta will win at Jerez! he is absolutely phenomenal! I was listening to the GP review, and his nickname is "sponge Bob"; everything he is being taught, he is able to put into good use immediately, without the need for adaptation.

Also, this race should dampen the pleas for removing aerodynamic appendixes, because they impede racers to overtake. We have seen that it is not the case.

[PJPR01]

Acosta is surely showing signs of being an exceptionally fast learner...he's got guts as well for such a young racer.  I think Marquez sees himself in Acosta and enjoyed the battle out there.  Like watching Federer vs. Nadal go at each other with their best stuff.  Seeing Marquez go down all by himself, not even in a bump and grind situation was surprising indeed...I didn't really see an "error", but if mechanically something happened, he seemed to accept it.  Either way, the Ducati was performing well enough for him to battle from 5th to 1st and ride to his limits, which was great to see again.

Vinales was on another level altogether...but as said above, can be hot or cold, so very difficult to bet on him being "consistent" again at the remaining races.

Either way, Moto GP just became exciting again...it was missing this last year.

[p6x]

2 hours ago, PJPR01 said:

Acosta is surely showing signs of being an exceptionally fast learner...he's got guts as well for such a young racer.  I think Marquez sees himself in Acosta and enjoyed the battle out there.  Like watching Federer vs. Nadal go at each other with their best stuff.  Seeing Marquez go down all by himself, not even in a bump and grind situation was surprising indeed...I didn't really see an "error", but if mechanically something happened, he seemed to accept it.  Either way, the Ducati was performing well enough for him to battle from 5th to 1st and ride to his limits, which was great to see again.

Vinales was on another level altogether...but as said above, can be hot or cold, so very difficult to bet on him being "consistent" again at the remaining races.

Either way, Moto GP just became exciting again...it was missing this last year.

Marquez is said to be happy with his renewed performance. I think Pedro Acosta is on another level, given that this is only his third MotoGP... when you compare with Jack Miller and Brand Binder...

I don't want to diminish Maverick Viñales' performance, but both Portimao and COTA are tracks that Maverick loves.

[LaGrasta]

 I've been avoiding this thread, as I couldn't watch the GP until last night. OH BOY! fantastic race, so enjoyed it, and in Texas too! The USA needed a good showing, what a track. 

My man Brad Binder did not fair well, but BatMav and Pedro kept me cheering just the same. It was such a good race, so many passes, I didn't even care who won.

 

I also follow SX and my fave, Cooper Webb won so it was a great weekend of racing for me. I also follow MMA, but my fave Justin Gaethje did not fair so well. 

[GuzziMoto]

9 minutes ago, LaGrasta said:

 I've been avoiding this thread,.....

 

I also follow SX and my fave, Cooper Webb won so it was a great weekend of racing for me. I also follow MMA, but my fave Justin Gaethje did not fair so well. 

Dude, some of us haven't seen that race yet. Thanks.....

[p6x]

It seems that Joe Roberts may be riding an Aprilia next year. It is obvious that Trackhouse needs a US representant in their team, and besides Roberts, there is nobody else.

It is early to say he deserves to be uped, but like with everything else, sometimes, being at the right place at the right time is a plus.

The big question is, are we going to have a second MotoGP in the USA? Flatrock Motorsports Park is said to receive the FIM homologation with a shorter track configuration. The largest configuration is 9.5km or circa 6 miles, which makes it the longest out of all the current MotoGP tracks. The MotoGP configuration would be shorter at 4.3 km. If they do two GP in the USA, then they would probably take place back to back. It could replace the Argentinean GP which is probably never going to happen under the current government.

 

[p6x]

This weekend, we have the Spanish Grand-Prix at Jerez.

Many pundits, including the grand guru Jorge Lorenzo, have predicted that Pedro Acosta should get his first win. This would rob Marc Marquez of his title of the youngest's MogoGP winner ever. Me think that Marc is probably planning to not lose that benchmark.

It will also be interesting to see how Francesco Bagnaia is going to perform, as he is now in a pickle in regard to his principal GP24 rivals.

Last but not least, Maverick Viñales will probably need to confirm that his COTA performance was not an isolated effort.

[p6x]

MMarquez did the pole, after heavy rains during the night, the track was damp.

In any case, it will be interesting to watch the sprint race.

[p6x]

Damp patches that momentarily dry out then return to the track surface - known as weepers - were the cause of multiple crashes in the Spanish MotoGP sprint race.

Ahead of Sunday’s grand prix, the state of the track was criticized.

Several of the riders, including one who was initially on the podium was demoted because of tire/tyre pressure penalty.

Revised tire/tyre pressure rules mean riders must now stay above a lower front minimum of 1.8 bar (instead of 1.88) for 60% (instead of 50%) of a Grand Prix distance, or 30% of a Sprint. Stricter 2024 tire/tyre pressure penalties, no longer allow an official warning for a first offense. You get 8 seconds penalty.