2021 MotoGP Discussion (Spoilers)

[Paul_E_D]

I think Fabio is going through the same thing every Yamaha rider goes though - including Vinales, Zarco, Franky, Pol, Cal, and even Spies. They all jive well with the bike, have oodles of talent, but are riding a bike that can't really reward them for it. Remember, Vinales won his first two races on the Yamaha and has yet to put up a championship fight. I don't think Fabio is any different. No one has really been able to be better than Marc on a Yamaha other than Lorenzo. Either he was able to extract something special, or maybe more realistically, the recent Michelins are just wrong for the bike. The Yamaha seems to be very easy to ride very fast, but is almost impossible to extract something special out of. I think I'll say the same thing about the Suzuki, its just one step better. The V4s, on the other hand, reward the most talented riders. There is more to get out of them. Different ways of riding them. The Yamaha's are one trick pony's going up against Marc.

I am very interested in seeing Fabio or Morbidelli on the V4. My hunch is that Fabio may crush it, Morbidelli not so much. They could also both fail. But Fabio seems to ride the front end the hardest out of all the Yamaha riders.

I would say that the V4 guys need to steer with the rear. That would be a whole new world for Fabio and any long time Yamaha rider. Lorenzo basically said he hadn't really used the rear brake until he got to Ducati. It took him a yeah to learn how to actually go fast with it, and I think he is extraordinarily underrated for his achievement there. Not sure too many others could do it in twice as long. Riding the front hard will get you nowhere fast on a V4 it seems. (although I really know nothing, just an opinion)

[number9]

Wayne was 500cc champ in 87. Mick Doohan in 95.
#oldmanrememberingthings

I am ashamed

[jimmycapp]

I would say that the V4 guys need to steer with the rear. That would be a whole new world for Fabio and any long time Yamaha rider. Lorenzo basically said he hadn't really used the rear brake until he got to Ducati. It took him a yeah to learn how to actually go fast with it, and I think he is extraordinarily underrated for his achievement there. Not sure too many others could do it in twice as long. Riding the front hard will get you nowhere fast on a V4 it seems. (although I really know nothing, just an opinion)

Didn't he win the weekend he announced the end of his ducati contract? That was one hell of a ride. Can't believe I'm sad Lorentho is gone. It was great watching him give it to Marq.

[jim v]

I am ashamed

No shame, that was almost 35 years ago!

The V4 vs I4 discussion is always fascinating. Lots of confounding factors - interesting that the bigger budget teams (Aprilia excepted) run V4s. Can we read anything into that?Or just down to tradition and marketing. And the rider, if MM was on an I4 and winning would we all think the I4 is superior?

[JettaJayGLS]

I would say that the V4 guys need to steer with the rear. That would be a whole new world for Fabio and any long time Yamaha rider. Lorenzo basically said he hadn't really used the rear brake until he got to Ducati. It took him a yeah to learn how to actually go fast with it, and I think he is extraordinarily underrated for his achievement there. Not sure too many others could do it in twice as long. Riding the front hard will get you nowhere fast on a V4 it seems. (although I really know nothing, just an opinion)

Replace "riding the front hard" with "enter corners hard." My simple brain think they're one in the same and the back falls in line...but that isn't the case. But that is what I meant.

[Paul_E_D]

My statement holds. I think they struggle after leaving yamaha for a v4 because the front end no longer hook turns the bike. It's a big adjustment.

The current crop on moto2 riders coming up have an advantage because the triumph front end doesn't hook turn well either. They will adjust to V4s faster. And they are.

[BMMCBR]

Bring on the dust bowl!

[gixxer72]

El Diablo!!

Had hoped for more from Suzuki, but at least Mir finished ahead of temper-tantrum Miller in a sad 9th place. Probably pretty frustrating to get his ass handed to him by the Pramac boys!!

Awesome Moto3 race too!

[union]

All three races were good again. Moto3 as usual was by far the best action. Love watching that race. Don't know what they can do to make moto2 closer. At least the top 4 was fun to watch. MotoGP was pretty sweet again. I really do hope Marquez comes back and makes it that much better.

[Philkinson]

Moto3 - Wow. This Acosta kid seems to be the real deal so far... let's see how he does at other tracks. 16 year old rookie, won today from pit lane. Second last weekend. For those that don't watch moto3.

Moto2 - Meh. Bummer to see the two Americans crash out. Not a Lowes fan so I was hoping for anyone but Lowes. Oh well.

MotoGP- I'm surprised again by Yamaha and especially Vinales. I don't think he's a championship contender, but so far so good. What a demonstration by Martin, I hope he continues in strong form all year, I've had my eye on him for a few years now.

[Paul_E_D]

Jorge Martin was impressive. I'm not gonna lie though, I wonder about the level of the series with all of the aliens gone. When Marc comes back, we will see where things stand. THere really are no reference riders at the moment.

[Philkinson]

Jorge Martin was impressive. I'm not gonna lie though, I wonder about the level of the series with all of the aliens gone. When Marc comes back, we will see where things stand. THere really are no reference riders at the moment.

I'd say the times are there.

Qatar 2021 race time Vinales - 42:28.663
Doha 2021 race time Fabio - 42:23.997
Qatar 2019 race time Dovi - 42:36.902
Qatar 2018 race time Dovi - 42:34.654
Qatar 2017 (only 20 laps) Vinales 38:59.999
Qatar 2016 race time Lorenzo 42:28.452
Qatar 2015 race time Rossi 42:35.717

[OreoGaborio]

The GP was outstanding... but that Moto3 race was probably one of the most incredible races I have ever seen. Holy shit.

Pedro Acosta... 16 years old... did I hear correctly that was just his 2nd race??? Fuckin hell, I found a new kid to root for.

[Paul_E_D]

The GP was outstanding... but that Moto3 race was probably one of the most incredible races I have ever seen. Holy shit.

Pedro Acosta... 16 years old... did I hear correctly that was just his 2nd race??? Fuckin hell, I found a new kid to root for.

Second race in the world championship. These kids are racing out of the womb.

[OreoGaborio]

Ya. Second race in Moto3 is how I heard it and what I was implying, sorry. Fuckin impressive.

[nhbubba]

Looks like Binder beat Miller too. Cool.
I don't think I like Miller that much.

Moto3 was mind melting. I cannot fathom how fast that dude was going.

[loudbeard]

Even all the talk I’ve heard the last several days won’t get me to watch Moto3. I get that there’s lots of “action” but it’s all predicted on running small bikes at big bike tracks. Fuck the draft fest, I don’t think it helps develop useful race craft and strategy.

The Lowes and Gardener show was great. Remy gets on my damn nerves so I was glad to see him not close it out. Lowe’s is super interesting because he’s alien-level talent but has shown a lot of horrible decision making. It felt like he had some real lessons learned on that front last season so I’m looking forward to how his season pans out.

The GP race was a hoot too. I’m really pumped for Zarco, I hope he can put a whole season together.

[nhbubba]

Wild. I almost look forward to the Moto3 race most of all. 3 block passes in each corner? Yes please. The highly touted 9 second gap across the top 15 finish in the GP race is a standard affair in moto3.
I love it.
From a pit lane start to the WIN. That's just amazeballs in any class.

If anything I've had a hard time paying attention to moto2. Last year it felt like it was all break-away wins with enormous gaps. Not really interesting. I'm tuning in this year 99% to root for the two US riders.. who both crashed out on Sunday. ... Once that happened I basically tuned out.

[TheIglu]

So did the Ducati's lose the rears again like in Race 1, or did the Yamaha's just eat their lunch without an excuse this time?

(This is my first time ever watching a MotoGP season actively. Only caught two or three races ever previously and had no idea what was goin on. Be easy on me. I didn't even know what Moto3/2/etc meant for the first race. )

And wtf is it with two races in a row at the same track in the same direction? Is this a normal thing? At least run it reverse the second time around....

[Philkinson]

So did the Ducati's lose the rears again like in Race 1, or did the Yamaha's just eat their lunch without an excuse this time?

(This is my first time ever watching a MotoGP season actively. Only caught two or three races ever previously and had no idea what was goin on. Be easy on me. I didn't even know what Moto3/2/etc meant for the first race. )

And wtf is it with two races in a row at the same track in the same direction? Is this a normal thing? At least run it reverse the second time around....

Welcome to the fun!

It's not normal, due to the ol Covid, venue's are still limited so they are forced into double rounds sometimes.

Can't run reverse due to safety... these tracks are designed with runoff for one direction only, usually. That could get unsafe really quickly.

[Philkinson]

Even all the talk I’ve heard the last several days won’t get me to watch Moto3. I get that there’s lots of “action” but it’s all predicted on running small bikes at big bike tracks. Fuck the draft fest, I don’t think it helps develop useful race craft and strategy.

I love Moto3. Find a couple of riders to root for and you'll be hooked. Meeting Aron Canet and Jorge Navarro back in 2016 got me really deep into Moto3. It's cool to watch the guys move up the ranks.

[OreoGaborio]

So did the Ducati's lose the rears again like in Race 1, or did the Yamaha's just eat their lunch without an excuse this time?

So ya think the Yamahas ate Ducati's lunch?

1 Yamaha
2 Ducati
3 Ducati
5 Yamaha
6 Ducati
9 Ducati
11 Ducati

And then there's Morbidelli & Rossi... the only two other Yamahas on the grid, ridden by two incredibly talented riders in their own right and got their clocks cleaned.

Quat ran a FLAWLESS race. He had to in order to beat Zarco. That's the only way he was going to come out on top. It was probably the best race of his entire career and may very well remain that way.

Vinalez, given how damn near flawless he rode, I wouldn't blame him if he were disappointed with 5th.

A yamaha may have won the race, but it certainly wasn't eating Duc food.

[Kenn157]

Pedro Acosta starting from Pit Lane to win in Moto3 Was outstanding! Anything is possible and it's going to be impossible to call a champion in any of the World Championship races. Such an exciting season. MM93 back in two weeks time. Dovi, will he be back for Aprilia? Oh yeah, oh yeah!

[JettaJayGLS]

Finally watched them all. Amazing. Amazing that we called that moto 2 race boring - would have been the race of the weekend pre-michelins.

I see Duncan's point on moto 3. I agree that watching is pretty crazy to the point of almost being boring. I play moto3 while working and tune in for the end or if I hear something exciting. I disagree that it doesn't provide good skills. Bike awareness, handling other bikes around you, and the strategic thinking necessary to win consistently are needed just as much as turning a fast lap and also provide a safety aspect before they move up to bikes 4x as powerful and 2x as heavy.

Agree with Paul. We need Marc back. I love it without him, but I want the true test to be there. If he wipes the floor with them (like I think he will) I'll want him out again. I am undecided if Jorge Martin is an alien or if its just Qatar being Qatar. He rides the Duc like a moto2 bike (similar to Pecco). However...Dovi was still the best on the bike to date riding it like a superbike. I think it will take an ability to ride it in both styles to win the championship, which I'm not sure is possible. I.E. at some tracks/corners you ride it one way, at some another way. Not sure someone can perfect both styles. I also imagine bike set-up will play a big role in how you can ride the bike. Or Marc. Marc would win the championship on it.

Also too early to call Acosta the next Marc...but I SURE hope he is. Will be sad to see someone wipe the floor with moto3 and moto2 on their way to GP, but I want someone to get under Marc's skin with raw talent.

I still like Jack and don't like Zarco. I also love the desperation the veterans of this sport are riding with. Race 2 was better than race 1. Valentino Rossi is tarnishing his name as he continues to race. I just compared him to Mark Cavendish in cycling to some of my friends.

Golden era of motoGP. I hope it never ends.

[MUZ720]

I agree with the need to have MM back .. But do you really think he's just going to show up and be at the front again? I think it might be awhile before that happens! Be interesting to watch but he's been out of the game for over a year.. is he even riding yet? plus is the Honda even a good bike now?