2023 MotoGP Discussion (No Links - Contains Spoilers!) | Page 4 | GTAMotorcycle.com

2023 MotoGP Discussion (No Links - Contains Spoilers!)

Priller said:
They've apparently reset the standards this year, with progressive levels of punishment per infraction, starting with LLP's, then back of grid, then starting from pit lane, then total ban for a round.
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This makes sense to me, to some extent. More severe punishment for repeat offenders. There's a place for points deduction IMO - what if, for example, Marc had taken those two out, managed to stay on his bike, won the race (+25 points), deemed to be at fault for the incident, Oliveira and Martin (both 0 points)... The double LLP then becomes ridiculously lenient.

[Random thought: This gets me thinking about all the Sunday league soccer I've played over the years - you always gauge the referee early on in the game. When that rough midfielder comes in for the first nasty hack at the heels or a late slide tackle, how will the referee react? A stern warning, or let things slide? The former usually settles things down, the latter sometimes ends up in an absolute shitshow of a game and a potential trip to the hospital for someone.]
 
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Marc and Honda got what they really wanted, which was a delay long enough not to affect COTA.

The existing system with the existing stewards is a mess, and they refuse to communicate with anyone in a meaningful way. If the cost of fixing that is Marc reducing an already light penalty, many seem to think that's a worthy trade. I'd love to see them sit on a ruling, though, then smack him with the penalty just in time for Sachsenring...

The whole thing stinks and is an embarrassment to all involved, and every error along the way was avoidable, from Marc's kamikaze riding to the wording of the punishment.

Now we get to see if the chaos of Portimao was just opening round jitters and bad luck, or whether Dorna's all-in commitment to this new schedule was a colossal error. There's no test to draw from this time, so the teams are under even more pressure to find a setting with limited time and data from the wrong time of day. Dorna clearly wants this because they believe it will make the racing less predictable. But I worry that having riders winging it in races (with minimal race data because they were forced to waste most of their practice time doing time attacks to chase Q2) will cause big crashes because they are trying to go all out without knowing where the limits are. And as we've seen, big crashes in a race don't always hurt the rider at fault.

I'll just be curious at what point Dorna will pull the plug if we start getting six, seven, eight riders out with injury. Or at what point the riders have enough and finally act together to take control. They are not getting paid any more to take a lot more risk, after all...
 
Ash said:
We're probably going to see more of Bradl, Pirro, Pedrosa and Crutchlow this season than might have been expected. Maybe they'll have to pull Dovisioso and Rossi out of retirement? Some of our local race series have the Old Boys/Folks racing class...
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I really hope not. Always liked Pedrosa and would be happy to see him on the grid anytime but not those other 3.
 
Can't remember the last time Morbidelli spent a whole day ahead of Quartararo...

The Aprilia seems to work best at flowing tracks where there's lots of braking and throttle on the side of the tire. Apparently Aleix took a few laps to lead Raul around in hopes of helping him up the order. Full credit to Massimo Rivola for fostering a true team dynamic at Aprilia, where all riders seem to be working as much for the team as themselves, even across the satellite squad. Vinales and Aleix will often give each other tows in QP, which I haven't seen many other teams do.

Still, early days (day?), and plenty of time for Ducati to find some grip. I'm sure tomorrow will bring a few surprises...
 
Holy Crap.. what an amazing sprint race… a complete dark horse taking the win. Love it!
 
Lots of huge surprises in the GP race today... was wet, which really lets certain riders shine.
 
Well. With Marc still out with injury, who had a Honda down for the win?

Pecco back to being Pecco, supernaturally quick but crashing out all on his lonesome. Based on how Rins had the Honda squirming around in the sprint race, I had him pegged to be the one to throw it away. Half the field crashed, so at least Bagnaia wasn't alone.

Aside from Rins, I was most impressed by Vinales, who had his usual disaster start, but was able to work hose way through and take advantage of the attrition to pick up 4th. He and Oliviera both gave themselves lots of work to fix but came through okay in the end...

Aside from the crashes and storylines, the actual racing was pretty dull on both Saturday and Sunday. That's typical for COTA, though. Jerez next, and it should be better...
 
Pecco's biggest championship threat appears to be Pecco (and the Michelin front).
13 finishers + 9 DNF. I think all of the DNF were front-end washouts.

Moto2 was good.
 
The commentators were merciless on Bags (which is deservedly so). I enjoyed the race though and thought is was more fun to watch than the previous one.
 
BigEvilDoer said:
Khazakstan cancelled…

www.crash.net

Kazakhstan MotoGP cancelled - 2023 calendar reduced by one round

The Kazakhstan MotoGP has been cancelled and will not be replaced on the 2023 MotoGP calendar.
www.crash.net www.crash.net
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I, for one, am shocked! Who could have seen this coming?!

(I like how they clarify that it won't be replaced on the calendar, as if the Finland track is going to come back from the dead...)

In other news, Marc still out and Lecuona gets a shot on the Repsol bike. Would love to see him do well, but not expecting much at Jerez...
 
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