Wow! The MotoGP championship ended like a Hollywood script. Jorge Lorenzo won the race and the 2015 championship … his 3rd MotoGP crown and 5th world title overall. Lorenzo had to ride inch perfect to hold off the 2 Honda’s behind him, narrowly beating Marc Marquez and Dani Pedrosa to the line.
Behind the battle at the front, Valentino Rossi rode brilliantly to reach 4th position from the back of the grid, but it was not enough to win the title. Finishing well behind the front 3 riders, Rossi lost 12 points to Lorenzo today. Lorenzo thus finishes the series 5 points in front of Rossi.
| Pos. | Num. | Rider | Nation | Team | Km/h | Time/Gap |
| 1 | 99 | Jorge LORENZO | SPA | Movistar Yamaha MotoGP | 156.7 | 45’59.364 |
| 2 | 93 | Marc MARQUEZ | SPA | Repsol Honda Team | 156.7 | +0.263 |
| 3 | 26 | Dani PEDROSA | SPA | Repsol Honda Team | 156.7 | +0.654 |
| 4 | 46 | Valentino ROSSI | ITA | Movistar Yamaha MotoGP | 155.6 | +19.789 |
| 5 | 44 | Pol ESPARGARO | SPA | Monster Yamaha Tech 3 | 155.2 | +26.004 |
| 6 | 38 | Bradley SMITH | GBR | Monster Yamaha Tech 3 | 155.1 | +28.835 |
| 7 | 4 | Andrea DOVIZIOSO | ITA | Ducati Team | 155.1 | +28.886 |
| 8 | 41 | Aleix ESPARGARO | SPA | Team SUZUKI ECSTAR | 154.8 | +34.222 |
| 9 | 35 | Cal CRUTCHLOW | GBR | LCR Honda | 154.7 | +35.924 |
| 10 | 9 | Danilo PETRUCCI | ITA | Octo Pramac Racing | 154.5 | +39.579 |
| 11 | 25 | Maverick VIÑALES | SPA | Team SUZUKI ECSTAR | 154.5 | +39.746 |
| 12 | 51 | Michele PIRRO | ITA | Ducati Team | 154.1 | +47.053 |
| 13 | 68 | Yonny HERNANDEZ | COL | Octo Pramac Racing | 153.7 | +54.081 |
| 14 | 19 | Alvaro BAUTISTA | SPA | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini | 153.6 | +56.646 |
| 15 | 45 | Scott REDDING | GBR | EG 0,0 Marc VDS | 153.5 | +57.278 |
| 16 | 8 | Hector BARBERA | SPA | Avintia Racing | 153.5 | +57.363 |
| 17 | 69 | Nicky HAYDEN | USA | Aspar MotoGP Team | 153.4 | +58.742 |
| 18 | 6 | Stefan BRADL | GER | Aprilia Racing Team Gresini | 153.4 | +59.086 |
| 19 | 76 | Loris BAZ | FRA | Forward Racing | 153.1 | +1’04.339 |
| 20 | 24 | Toni ELIAS | SPA | Forward Racing | 153.1 | +1’04.413 |
| 21 | 43 | Jack MILLER | AUS | LCR Honda | 153.1 | +1’05.212 |
| 22 | 13 | Anthony WEST | AUS | AB Motoracing | 151.9 | +1’27.281 |
See more of MD’s great photography:
2015 MotoGP Championship in one word, “TAINTED”. Lorenzo can’t be proud of this one, maybe.
The outcry for a perceived slight is out of proportion.
Personally, the way that Loris Capirossi won two of his world titles still sticks in my neck, and yet there’s nothing in the rules to prevent that ever hapeening again.
Had Rossi got, say, a top six start, he’d have torpedoed JL into turn two. That’s all he could have done to win this totle, and the mob would have loved it.
I firmly believe that MM would have made a pass in the last two laps, but Pedrosa entered the screne at an inconvenient time for that, giving JL the space he needed. Check out how much pull the yamaha had out of turn 14 each lap, keeping the Honda at arm’s length.
To expect MM to stick his neck out for Rossi when there really wasn’t an opportunity is quite remarkable. It might have been an attempt at reverse psychology that backfired. Good.
BOTTOM LINE = FIM/MotoGP RULES
To see these rules scroll back to a post by Jeremy on November 9, 2015 at 11:21
>>>>>>
RULE POSSIBLE OUTCOMES
* If Rossi had been give a 1 or 2 point assessment he would not have started on the last row.
* If Rossi had been given a 3 or more penalty assessment he would had to start on the last row
(Note: Rossi already had 1 point due to a prior race issue)
>>>>>>
MY VIEW
* 3 points was appropriate….4 or 5 should have been considered based on Rossi track behavior during the incident. Rossi deserved the last row start
* Further if Marquez ended up with a Wayne Rainey injury over this…most posts here would have been different.
* Marquez should have been assessed points also
>>>>>>>>>>>>
2016 SIDEBAR: Rossi starts the season with the 4 points…..6 more points and he sits out a race
>>>>>>>>>>>>
* Did I want Rossi to win the championship…….yes
* Did I pull for him in the last race…..yes
* Did he deserve to start on the last row based on FIM/MotoGP rules…..yes
Then Rossi raised his hand over the disciples, and the DORNA opened up a path to 4th place through the track with a strong worded threat.
Looked like the whole “race” was staged. The likes of Petrucci parting like the Red Sea was beyond ridiculous.
So was Marquez riding squeaky clean. Thank you Ezpeleta for turning the series into a pathetic farce.
Sure seems that way. I might argue Rossi’s climb to 4th wasn’t quite THAT easy but easy enough. More disappointing was the Honda riders never giving Lorenzo one iota of pressure. Amazing how MM ‘races hard 100% of the time’ when it’s Rossi but never got close to Lorenzo.
Sigh…
I agree that getting to 4th wasn’t that easy. Sure, some guys just let Rossi by, but he had to fight for several positions, too. It is as much a testament to Rossi’s skill as it is to the superiority of the factory bikes to “the others”.
I disagree that MM wasn’t racing 100%. If you look at their lap times, they are consistently blistering the whole race. Lorenzo just wasn’t an easy target. Marquez was giving everything he had just to stay with Lorenzo and lost the only real opportunity he had to pass when he tangled up with Pedrosa towards the end.
My hands and feet our both up applauding Valentino Rossi.He schooled the rest of the field on “HOW TO CHARGE FROM THE REAR OF THE PACK”.
Hats off to the Doctor who pursued a very promising championship which was well within his grasp.Valentino the legend that he has become took his medicine rather graciously as a champion.
It’s not easy to swallow the bitter pill of a disappointment.
Don’t get up yet!
Applaud once again! to our new and a very cool breezen MOTO GP CHAMPION “Jorge Lorenzo” He has managed to raise the art of speed in motorcycle racing.
Has this been a great year of Moto GP Racing or what!
Later
Rico
I say do a grudge match!! Rossi and Lorenzo by themselves on the track, winner takes it all.
would have been happy for Rossi if he had taken home the 2015 championship.
i hope Rossi takes another run at it in 2016 but i hope he concentrates on riding and not on “playing head games” and such.
Knowing the fix is in and calling the boss out on it, before and after the race…
http://superbikeplanet.com/2015/Nov/151109stiffrebuke.htm
Hilarious.
Again, I think this is sad and pathetic, not hilarious in the least.
Black humor.
where does the papparrazzo find these perfect pictures to accompany every article…?
in that Soup link we get a snap with Carmine looking despondent with the “boy wonder” in the back having a Coke and a smile.
“Black humor.”
Disrespect. There is a difference.
Deserved disrespect. Simply calling a spade a spade.
We disagree on that.
I’m with you Jeremy.
Me too Jeremy…………
After reading this, I think I will take a break from MotoGP for a while.
well maybe when all the “only Rossi” fans, don’t renew and quit watching MotoGP, all we will have left are the true MotoGP fans who have been following it for years regardless of what brand motorcycle, what nationality of rider, which team or team mates on winning or losing in any given year. You know the ones who enjoy watching motorcycle racing for the pure enjoyment of it.
Gosh Mickey, are you talking about me? I can’t wait to see what the 17″ Michelin tires will be like, how Jack Miller will improve, can Crazy Joe get faster, how will the control ECU’s work and are they all limited to 16 grand rpm?
And then we have the superficial fans who stomp their feet, whine, pout and just look pathetic. I think that a season of NASCAR watching should be punishment for acting like spoiled children.
I just paid my MOTOGP for next year—YeeHaa!
Man, come to think of it, you do make 2016 sound awfully bleak.
If things start down this road again, I’ll loose interest pretty quickly.
I hope next year with all the changes make things still worth watching. Funny, if it becomes like NASCAR, it will make the Spanish mafia even more richer…
On a more positive note, Mickey, when do you collect the prize for your prediction of 5 wins for Marquez? Admit it…you got to him somehow. That’s the REAL reason he was sandbagging at Valencia 🙂
The real conspiracy surfaces. 😉
I sent him a note last week and told him I’d split my winnings with him if he somehow managed to “lose” this week.
Ahhhh… So it is Señor Mickey, now is it. Now this all makes sense.
Si
Hey he’s not alone. My prediction was as follows:
“A few more young flyers in the field this year. I actually think this will be Lorenzo’s year. I’m going to predict 8 wins and the championship for Lorenzo and only 5 wins for Marquez, 2 for Pedrosa, 1 for Rossi and a few upsets from others in the field perhaps Espargaro or Crutchlow.”
Ok I erred or Rossi, but otherwise pretty close.
We know there was more than one reader predicting 5 wins for Marquez.
Jimmi other than the Lorenzo thing you predicted pretty darn well. Good job!
Uh I meant Rossi thing obviously lol
Jimmihaffa, three words: You. Me. Vegas.
You’ve got a pretty solid crystal ball there!
re: “My prediction was as follows”
but ironically NOBODY predicted Marcus would go head to head with Ross 3 times this season…? but then lose all 3 times, TWICE getting dumped on his ass.
Did anyone guess how many times Marquez would fall this year?
I’ll be there too. Like Hot Dog, I’m dying to see if the 17-inchers will have any bearing, what Marquez and Pedrosa will look like as Honda attempts to fix some of the power delivery ailments that Marquez complained about, if Rossi can contend for #10, if Suzuki uncorks their bike some more, etc.
I’ll also be getting a WSBK video pass this year, too, as I am very interested to see how Hayden performs in “the minors” and how things will mix up with Yamaha making a serious go at the series.
And for the record, a season of NASCAR is far too stiff a punishment.
I may have to fork over some $$ for the SBK pass myself…having Hayden in it helps, but mostly I just need to feed my addiction. It cuts a whole month off the winter wait!
re: “all we will have left are the true MotoGP fans who have been following it for years”
translation: those “baby young” to grandprix and those “making the switch” from UFC.
Well said Mickey. What a bunch of cry babies. Listen to them claiming Rossi lost the championship because another rider didn’t push hard enough!!! Oh no, it wasn’t Rossi’s fault he lost. Rossi has turned into the biggest whiner too, complaining to Dorna and demanding action from it’s CEO Ezpeleta. Listen to them all…”If I can’t win, I’m taking my ball and going home, so no one can play”. Well good riddance and don’t come back. I have always liked Rossi even when he has screwed up but I get the feeling Moto GP would be better off without him and his fans now. They have become poison to the sport. Stoner got unfairly branded as a whiner in my opinion when he complained about various things, one of which was Rossi doing an absolute kamikaze move on him that took them both out of one race. All the marshals ran over to Rossi and got him going as quickly as possible and left Stoner to fend for himself. We all know how Stoner felt now. Stoner learned to bite his lip and suck it up but it got too much in the end. And now look at Rossi whining to Dorna and the public for all he’s worth that there is a conspiracy against him and Marquez didn’t try hard enough to pass Lorenzo!!! Marquez was warned before the race not to try to interfere with contenders for the championship and after all the bad-mouthing Rossi has expressed recently about Marquez and Lorenzo is he really surprised that Marquez wouldn’t risk his neck to do something that would help Rossi? That’s sport and it happens all the time. People often settle for a placing rather than risking it all and when it’s the last race and there’s no chance of you winning the series, why bother? But apparently Marquez was trying really hard despite some bad tire problems, His plan to give it a go on the last lap was ruined buy Pedrosa coming past too hot, running wide and losing them both time. The opportunity was gone. Rossi is too powerful in Motogp and he gets special treatment and has too much influence directly to the top of MotoGP. By rights he should have been disqualified in the previous race but he got more leniency than anyone else would have gotten. No wonder he has became less popular with most of the other riders. I hope all these tragic one-eyed Rossi fans either get over it or do as they threaten and abandon the sport for good.
Yep….
“Valentino Rossi fought like a lion, and comported himself with great dignity as a racer, all the way to the end. But from Sepang onwards, that dignity disappeared, and Rossi looked like an old racer searching for excuses”.
It’s impossible to carry on a conversation here, when half your comments end up in the Moderation Zone for five hours.
Dam, I reported one comment by accident, sorry but the report and reply buttons are too close to one another!!! And I could not change it…
Hey, so who got the most points in MotoGP this season? Lorenzo? Oh, that must be why they are calling HIM World Champion and not Valentine…..
Miss the point much?
Motogp lost a lot of luster yesterday. Marquez, despite being within .3 seconds of Lorenzo much of the race, never even tried to pass. Pedrosa caught them both extremely quickly, but then made one attempt at passing Marquez, and fell back into line. It was like watching a pro-wrestling match, the outcome was already decided. Rossi’s charge up from the back was the only thing worth watching.
http://www.superbikeplanet.com/2015/Nov/151109mnsxz.htm
I really wish Dorna et al all the worst after Rossi retires.
I have quite my membership and will not renew. I received an email stating I would have access to free off season from Dorna which I will not get.
For those of you not believing Rossi would have been 4th anyways – Facts are Facts guys…..
“The strangest aspect of Rossi’s attack on Márquez is that he appeared to be shifting the responsibility for winning the title from the Italian’s own shoulders onto the man he had so publicly attacked. Despite Rossi’s brilliant early laps – and they were truly things of beauty, passes executed with surgical and ruthless precision – his race pace was simply not up to that of the front three. Lorenzo and Márquez ran laps of between 1’31.5 and 1’31.9 just about all race long. Pedrosa ran laps of 1’31.7, lost ground as he slowed up with an overheating front tire to clock a string of 1’31.9s and 1’32s, before upping the pace again and hitting a 1’31.5 to catch the leaders.
Rossi, meanwhile, was running consistent 1’32.1 and 1’32.2. Fast enough for fourth, but nowhere near good enough for the win. Even if Rossi had started from the front row of the grid, and not had to fight his way forward through the pack (a battle which was over shortly after one third distance), he did not have the pace to beat Lorenzo, nor even the pace to beat the two Hondas. Rossi finished where his race pace dictated, regardless of where he had started. That race pace was roughly in line with what he had shown during practice, a couple of tenths short of the pace of the leaders.”
Sorry for the dose of reality Rossi fanboys……….. 😉
FACT
noun
1.
something that actually exists; reality; truth:
SPECULATION
noun
1.
the contemplation or consideration of some subject:se speculations are impossible to verify.
2.
a single instance or process of consideration.
3.
a conclusion or opinion reached by such contemplation:
4.
conjectural consideration of a matter; conjecture or surmise:
FACT: Rossi was .5 sec off the pace – after starting from the back of the grid, and having to immediately push hard enough to pass 20-some riders in 9 laps.
SPECULATION: This is the pace he would have run had he started from the front and been with the leaders from the get-go.
Dave, you don’t know what WOULD have happened, or what COULD have happened. You can speculate all you want, but saying he WOULD have finished 4th regardless of the circumstances is NOT FACT. It’s SPECULATION. Please learn the difference before you continue to spout off with your “facts”.
It’s certainly possible :32’s is all he had in the tank. It’s also possible that if he were allowed to qualify normally, and start from the 1st or 2nd row, he may have been able to tag along with the front 3 and save his tires for the end make a move the way Pedrosa did. The FACT is, none of us will never know what might have happened.
That was thorough an ass-kicking as we’re ever likely to see on this board.
Bwaaaa.
HAHA – ok…………….:)
That doesn’t negate Marquez’s Wussery….
haha! +1
Dave, the times, doesn’t take into the account of the wear and tear on the tires it took for VL to make it up through the field in last position. If he had a fair start, I bet his times would have different and who knows…
Joe, I had the same thought about VR’s tires. Still, it’s his fault and his alone that he had to start from the back. His idiocy in Sepang took away his chance to have a chance.
Dam, I agree with you. Too bad it’s probably the truth and he also said it again in the final press conference.
Sorry, I meant to say that VL should have never talked about it in the press conference prior the race which got MM (aka the joker) really upset. Sometimes it’s better to play dumb and keep quite. In the final press conference VR stated what I said, MM did nothing to win the race.
Oh well, next year will be more drama. Too bad there are not more competitive teams out there so we could see MM in all his true colours..
I wonder how whore-hay will do now that he will be at an equal start with his new best friend MM.
I’m no fanboy, but if I’m Rossi, and I finally work my way through 20+ riders to discover that the struggle has left me 11 or more seconds behind the leaders’ group–i.e., with no chance of fighting for the win–I know that my best shot is to make sure I finish the race, and cross my fingers that things work out favorably at the front. I’m not going to push any harder than I have to; doing so will only increase my odds of crashing.
And all that aside, just stop and think for a minute: How many times this year did you see MM and JL cruise away from VR at a consistent .5 seconds per lap or more. Zero? That’s right, because it never happened.
So “sorry” Dave, but Rossi’s lap times are pretty much irrelevant to the question of whether he’d have been able to fight at the front without the penalty. Oh, and also: unless your last name is Emmett, you should really provide attribution for that quote.
More to the point, no one knows what Rossi and his team may have found in a final set-up. He had to waste time and tires messing around at the back for a few laps at the start and by the time he made it to 4th the front 3 had built a good gap.
I was surprised to see that he chose the same tires as the guys at the front. I would have figured he would have gone with a harder tire set-up to have more toward the end of the race.
I don’t like that a penalty had so much weight in the last race of a championship bout. But it was a great season and great race regardless, and I suspect the outcome would have been the same without the penalty.
I think that a couple years from now the penalty will not be remembered so much. What will be remembered is the sand-bagging and interference on MM’s part. Although VR’s charge from the back was brilliant to watch, I tend to agree that he very likely would have finished fourth regardless where he started from and based on how the others were riding. That said, I think JL could have (and possibly should have) finished in third based on how he was riding……and everyone knows how that would have affected the outcome. I thought MM looked very smooth and controlled which leads me to believe he was riding at about 95% compared to his usual MO.
By the way, wouldn’t this all be very interesting if JL shows up riding a Honda next year?
It is my opinion that Marquez struggled to keep up with Lorenzo through most of the race. Lorenzo was railing the corners while Marquez had significantly more drift coming off of the apexes (which has been typical of Marquez this year.) Once JLo’s tires faded and Marquez closed, I think he would have attempted a pass in the last lap. Pedrosa getting into the mix gave Jorge the room he needed. I’ll probably watch the race again giving some thought to what you and others have said about Marquez holding back, but to me it looked like Marquez was having to ride at 101% just to stay on Lorenzo.
Agree. Lorenzo broke both the fastest race lap record and the race distance record (by more than 15 seconds, I believe). He was definitely hauling ass. Similar to several other races this year (roughly 4?), Marquez barely had the speed to hold onto Lorenzo … looked like Marquez almost crashed twice trying to run Jorge’s pace. I think the only possible concession granted Jorge by Marquez was Marquez didn’t try a Kamikaze pass, but I think Marquez didn’t want to crash out for the umpteenth time this year, and that was part of it.
Do you also believe Marquez would have failed to make a single attempt at a pass despite sitting on the leader’s tail for thirty laps if he needed to make the pass to win the championship? Do you think he would have been this circumspect if it had been Rossi he was chasing and not fellow Spaniard Lorenzo?
And do you think Lorenzo is simply making things up when he flatly stated that the Repsol riders would have tried to pass him had it not been a championship-clinching race?
Have you forgotten #93’s entire career in the sport, specifically his never-say-die kamikaze attempts to pass even when any sane rider would think it impossible at worst and highly inadvisable at best?
What you’re attempting to rationalize here is the notion that Marc Marquez was willing to accept defeat without a fight in the final race of a season…in Spain! This, despite every bit of evidence to the contrary, and multiple racers that know better weighing in to state the obvious: No way Marc Marquez doesn’t make at least one attempt at a pass, if not a dozen. He was clearly sandbagging to protect a fellow Spaniard fend off the Italian for the championship crown.
Marquez didn’t attempt to pass Lorenzo even though he was on Lorenzo’s rear fender in several races this year. In those races, Lorenzo rode away from Marquez (Marquez couldn’t hang). but I think Marquez was hanging on to Lorenzo by his fingernails most of this race, as well. You have a different opinion, obviously, but make sure you express it with respect when you respond to other MD readers… I notice you bordering on personal attacks (name calling, etc.). We don’t put up with that.
What I find most interesting is the silence all over the WWW from those who said, just two weeks ago, that MM works for HRC and is paid to win races regardless of circumstances. Crickets……
Dirk, you just said it: “Lorenzo rode away.”
In those instances, sure, Marquez couldn’t attempt a pass as Lorenzo had gapped him too much. That clearly wasn’t the case here, as Marquez was right on Lorenzo’s rear wheel. Moreover, Lorenzo already admitted that what our naked eyes saw and what every racer knew to be happening was, in fact, exactly as it appeared: a decision was made, and there would be no attempts to pass.
It wasn’t down to any inability on the part of the Repsol riders to attempt a pass. It was a cold, hard decision, and Marquez was clearly unhappy about it.
I respect your opinion, but I disagree. Marquez has a history of Kamikaze pass attempts that can end his race and sometimes the race of others. I think this was the only thought in play here.
I do agree that Marquez and Rossi have bad blood between them, and Marquez is not going to cut Rossi slack when they meet on the track, but I do not think there was some grand conspiracy at play. Every corner exit I saw involved the Yamaha of Lorenzo hooking up better and pulling a good gap on Marquez, which Marquez had to close by very aggressive braking on the next corner entry. These guys were riding on the edge, and their lap times reflect this.
Rossi not only insulted Marquez, he insulted Honda, as well. Wouldn’t be surprised to see a public apology from him at some point. Repsol (a Spanish company) already expressed its disgust with this whole deal … and that was before Rossi’s latest allegations.
VLJ, I am not attempting to rationalize anything. I just called it like I saw it. I could be right or wrong, but that is what I believe based on what I saw.
I have watched Marquez since before he stepped up to GP. The guy goes positively rabid sometimes if gets passed, and that is typically when the “kamikaze” comes out. But when he is lining up for a death blow, he is cool as a cucumber and very calculating. And he will wait as late as he can to give his competitor the least number of opportunities to retake that position if he expects a fight after the pass. Had Pedrosa not gotten into the fight and slowed him a bit, I believe Marquez would have gone for a pass in the last lap assuming he could have stayed at .0 from Lorenzo which was certainly no guarantee. Marquez had closed up, but he was still hanging by a thread. And a pass wasn’t going to be easy.
With regard to Lorenzo’s statement, I think he is probably saying that Marquez didn’t try anything crazy, which is true. I suspect that Marquez resigned himself to be a bit more cool-headed for this race. I also suspect that Respol/Honda probably impressed that he do so as well. However, had either Marquez and/or Pedrosa gotten into firing range of Lorenzo, I have no doubt they each would have taken the shot were the risk factor not over the limit even if that meant Rossi would win the championship.
Well said. I agree.
“What I find most interesting is the silence all over the WWW from those who said, just two weeks ago, that MM works for HRC and is paid to win races regardless of circumstances. ”
TF, I was one of those people. The reason I (and probably many others of the same opinion) make no mention of it now is because I don’t believe Marquez ever had a chance to affect Lorenzo until possibly the very end at which time he was foiled by Pedrosa.
“I don’t believe Marquez ever had a chance to affect Lorenzo until possibly the very end at which time he was foiled by Pedrosa”
I believe that MM and DP both had the goods to challenge JL and at least one of them chose not to. Imagine Rossi leading the race at the same pace and JL in a distant fourth. Do you think MM’s behavior would have been the same? If so, I think maybe we’ll just have to disagree.
TF, since I believe Marquez was on the ragged edge the whole race, I think his behavior would have been the same whether it was Rossi or Lorenzo in front because he was powerless for the most part to do anything more than keep up. So while I respect your opinion on this, yes, we’ll just have to disagree.
“It is my opinion that Marquez struggled to keep up with Lorenzo through most of the race”
I saw MM struggling to avoid rear-ending JL on at least one occasion. He clearly had the speed to maintain the gap throughout the race AND to instantly react to a charging DP. If I would have watched the race live I would have been even more dumbfounded as to why he did not attempt a pass. Unfortunately, I knew the results when I sat down to watch. I guess we’ll never know how hard he was pushing, if he was protecting JL’s flanks, and if he was doing it willingly or under orders. He just did not look like the typical hard-charging, rear tire off the ground, MM that I have been watching for the last few years in Moto 2 and MotoGP. You really have to question the sudden lack of aggression especially when MM had nothing to lose in going for a win.
Pedrosa ran wide while carrying the heat necessary to make the pass, so Marquez exploited that to take the position back. Nothing magic about that. Like I’ve already stated, my opinion is that Marquez was working much harder to keep that pace than Lorenzo was. That looked pretty obvious to me throughout the race.
There was less aggression, though I think that is due more to that fact that he never got into a tangle with Lorenzo. Had Marquez had the opportunity to make a pass and start dicing it up with Lorenzo for the win, I am sure Marquez would have shown no quarter at that point.
Kevin Schwantz used to ride the same way – Win it or Bin it……than he started to mature. Maybe thats what Marquez is doing.
Pedro foiled MM at the end of the race – that is why he was angry……
Dirk, in regards to the possibility of Rossi apologizing to Honda, or anyone else involved in this mess, well, I wouldn’t bet on it…
http://superbikeplanet.com/2015/Nov/151109stiffrebuke.htm
Doesn’t sound very contrite to me. In fact, it sounds like he called it well in advance and now feels fully vindicated.
Rossi is too smart and too experienced not to recognize what he sees on the racetrack. He saw it up close and personal at P.I., it was blatant in Sepang, and it was carved in stone in Valencia.
He told Carmen to expect it, point-blank.
I don’t know about you, but I find it very telling that Carmen took this public rebuke without a word of protest. These are professionals. They know the score. Rossi doesn’t make these accusations and he doesn’t throw the head of DORNA under the bus if he doesn’t know to a certainty that he’s right. Carmen doesn’t hang his head and simply accept this rebuke unless he knows Rossi is right.
Carmen just has to wear it, and he knows it.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Rossi starts up again with the retirement talk. Casey retired over much less. Rossi’s degree of disgust is off the charts.
Sounds to me like Rossi was just behaving as he usually does. That is, “I am this whole sport. It is nothing without me.” I agree with you VLJ, Rossi believes with all his heart that he is right. Unfortunately that belief doesn’t mean he IS right. I hate to point out the obvious but everybody knows Rossi is pretty close to retirement. It IS gonna happen….and soon. I’ll bet even Carmen, as inept and corrupt as you make him out to be, realizes this. Any threats about him retiring wouldn’t hold much water because it’s coming soon anyway. And MotoGP will either survive or not. I’m betting it will. There have been an awful lot of great sports figures retire from an awful lot of sports without their sport going under. Did anyone seriously think Rossi was gonna race forever??? As for Marquez, you and I simply disagree on his intentions in the final 3 races. It’s OK that the entire world doesn’t agree with you. Or me. At the end of the day, MotoGP is a sport. And ONLY a sport. Who wins the series from year to year doesn’t affect my life in the least. And Rossi leaving the sport (whether now or in a couple of years) isn’t going to stop me from watching it. I think you might be surprised at how many people are with me on that.
I wasn’t saying that I think Rossi might threaten retirement as some sort of bargaining chip. Not at all. Rather, I think he might retire simply out of pure disgust.
Sorry I misunderstood you. If he feels like that, he probably should retire. Being on a MotoGP bike probably isn’t the place for someone with mixed feelings about what he is doing for a living. It was probably the right move for Casey. You are correct in saying that Vale has given a lot to this sport. But that’s a two-way street….without MotoGP he may have still been racing scooters around Tavulla. I’d hate to see him go out this way but honestly he has pretty much had his way in MotoGP since he got there. I don’t recall any ruling against him that negatively affected him in any way before this one. He has always got what bike he wanted (for better or worse), what tires he wanted and even a wall in his pits when he asked for it. He has made a great deal of money from this sport to turn his back on it over this. Maybe Dorna needs to do some soul searching on how badly they actually want him around. Just my 2 cents, YMMV.
Sorry, I believe JL stated he would ride for Yamaha for ever…but who know…
I think you’re right, Jeremy. With a few exceptions, Lorenzo was the fastest rider this year. And, if not for crashing out one too many times, one could argue that Marquez was second fastest. Rossi didn’t make any critical mistakes this year, which kept him in the hunt, but I think the end result was inevitable.
All this bickering for/against MM, JL, or VR is tantamount to arguing politics. The season is over and it is what it is.
Only racing is much more fun to watch!
The racing was done only by one rider: Rossi, trying to catch up the top 3 guys, two of them escorting Lorenzo to the finish line, even if Rossi would have catch them the two Hondas were going to make sure he could not. Very clear who was helping who…
https://motomatters.com/analysis/2015/11/09/2015_valencia_sunday_motogp_round_up_how.html
A well thought out piece with many salient points. rOssi fans probably won’t like it, but I thought it quite poignant.
If you’ve ever watched MM race before you know that he was holding back. Hell he passed Rossi over 5 times in one lap but in 20 laps he doesn’t try one pass on Jorge? If Rossi was in the same place as Jorge do you think MM would have treated him the same way?
I agree that Rossi handled the last race bad but I think Rossi saw that MM had been doing this kind of crap for a couple of races after he realized he couldn’t be champion and just lost it.
MotoGP better get some new talent because after Rossi leaves they are going to lose about 1/2 their viewers if they don’t get someone that the fans like.
I see Rossi didn’t even go to the awards ceremony. I was rooting for Rossi to win, but he has no one to blame but himself.
Unfortunately true.
In all honesty, I have absolutely no idea of what to make of this whole thing. Like I have stated before I thought Rossi was just up to his old tricks after PI. But then watched the race again and thought maybe there is something to it???? Then on to Sepang and we all know how that went. None of this is to say that I 100% believe the conspiracy theory, but I have some serious concerns. Rossi is no idiot, and though the pressure had to be huge for him let’s face it. We’re talking about Valentino Rossi, a guy who is a pretty cool customer, and has lived most of his life dealing with the championship battles, other rider’s egos, the press, and the odd dust up every now and again. If he was ever going to crack and lose his mind I think it would have been during his stink with Ducati. 🙂 So that said, combined with what Jorge said post race about Spain, and the fact that Marc Marquez seemed to be LIVID on the cool down lap after the race just makes me wonder even more. The guy never once attempted to win the race??? With all the talk and accusations he never once tried to stiffle the naysayers and battle for the win like he ALWAYS does if he has a snowball’s chance in hell of winning? Not to mention that the move he pulled with Dani??? Jorge rode a stellar race, and he is World Champion again, and congrats to him and the entire Yamaha team. They dominated this year with their 2 riders. I just hate that it is a bit tainted, whether or not any of the accusations are true or not, it is tainted a bit for me.
Poor Yamaha. Their bikes are so slow, and their riders so inept, that Honda and it’s riders can play cat and mouse with them if they desire, pass them at will anytime they want, reel them in like they are 650 Hyosungs and leave them in the dust if they so desire. Not sure How Rossi and Lorenzo teamed up to take the vast majority of the races. Not sure how Lorenzo got the reputation for getting the hole shot and never being headed when running in the clear, because clearly the Hondas and Marquez as a rider, are so superior this can’t pssibly happen unless Honda WANTS it to happen. Guess Honda felt sorry for Yamaha and decided to let them have one, just to keep it interesting.
I’m guessing Yamaha fans may as well not even watch next year. Doubt Honda will be so magnanimous in the future..
LOL! Ya Mickey, did you see JLo pealing off $100 bills in the winners circle and giving the Honda boys money encrusted handshakes?
Direct from the horse’s mouth…
“While denying that any pact existed between him and Marquez he intimated that his compatriots had helped him win the title by not passing him. “They knew what I had in play” Lorenzo said. “The fact that they are Spaniards like me helped me.
“That helped me for sure because in another type of race they would have tried to overtake which they didn’t this time”.
Still think Lorenzo didn’t receive help from his fellow Spaniards? Take it up with Jorge, who, presumably, knows better. He certainly knows better than any of us ever will. Go ahead, call him a liar. Tell him he doesn’t know what he’s talking about, and any discussion of collusion is nothing but tin foil hat conspiracy theory nonsense.
By all means, go ahead. Tell the man himself he’s wrong. He’ll probably just give you a wink and an ironic nod.
It doesnt suprise me that some nationality comes into it, hell look at all the Americans that think Nicky Hayden is a racing god just because he is an American, even though he only won 3 GPs in a decade long MotoGP career. People get kind of goofy when it comes to defending their homeland.
However one must ask, what was the upside for Marquez to pass Lorenzo? Winning one race that had no bearing on the future of the season. The season was over for Marquez a weekor two ago. Now what was the downside? What it it wasn’t a clean pass and he knocked Lorenzo down and interfered with the championship in the process which he had already been accused of and reprimanded for doing? Even if it was a clean pass do you think Lorenzo would have just laid down or would he have tried a risky repass? Lorenzo was determined to win and I think would have crashed trying if he had to. There is no upide for Marquez to make that pass. i will agree after being called out by Rossi Marquez also had no incentive and maybe a disincentive to pass Lorenzo. Why would Marquez after being called out award any more points to the guy that called him out? Get real? If he followed Lorenzo around the whole race so what? So what? That’s racing. Sometimes things go your way, sometimes not. If Marquez sandbagged and I’m not saying he did, how could you blame him? If Rossi was so worried about winning, she should have won more races, he should have ridden faster. True champions persevere, they don’t whine and complain and snivel. In years past, Rossi was a true Champion. This year, not so much.
Sometimes we say things ( as Rossi did) that can come around and bite us back in the end. As it did this time. Fact of the matter is, this season is over. Will be interesting to think
your argument falls to pieces:
1. when you consider MM’s desire to win PI.
2. All of your “what if?” questions about clean passing have never been a part of MM’s racing, er’ riding style.
Jorge would have battled back, but it is unlikely he would have crashed.
“If he followed Lorenzo around the whole race so what? So what? That’s racing.” No, that’s precisely what fans do not want to see & called “racing”
mickey, it doesn’t matter what what you say or think about any of this. All your lame rationalizations are now moot. Lorenzo already admitted that his fellow Spaniards chose not to attempt any passes out of deference to his championship chances. As he correctly stated, had it been any other circumstance of course they would have tried to pass him. Instead,they sandbagged.
This, after Marquez did everything within his power to hold up Rossi in the previous two races.
Game over.
Also, did you seriously just ask, “What was the upside for Marquez to pass Lorenzo”?
Really? Was this your first weekend watching Marc Marquez race, or what?
Holy crap, dude. When you and Dave are reduced to making excuses for Marc Freaking Marquez—”He wasn’t fast enough to catch him!” “He had no reason to try to make a pass!”—you seriously need to check yourselves. And don’t give me any crap about how you’ve been pulling for Rossi so your comments are fair and unbiased. No, they’re not. You’ve completely gone off the deep end.
Also, yes, Lorenzo might actually have crashed if he’d been forced to defend his position, which is exactly what he should have been required to do and would have been required to do in any other race. That’s why it’s called ‘racing.’
Imagine that.
sorry Rossi lost VLJ.. you seem very upset over the whole matter.
and VLJ, as a matter of FACT I WAS rooting for Rossi all the way up until Sepang when he changed it from racing to a personal fight. If Pedrosa couldn’t win it and he obviously couldn’t I wanted Rossi to win it. I NEVER rooted for Lorenzo to win, I NEVER rooted for Marquez to win, always Pedrosa and then Rossi.
Look like a familiar post of mine in motegi results?
mickey says:
October 11, 2015 at 10:24 am
Perfect results for me. Dani is back winning (while coming from behind), and Rossi finished ahead of Lorenzo. Yes,Yes and YES!
mickey, it’s called being a fan. Many of us—yourself included— just invested a good part of the last nine months watching this epic season unfold, only to see it come crashing down in the lamest, most transparent manner imaginable.
And, yes, I lay the blame for this farce almost entirely at the feet of one Marc Marquez. I agree that Valentino could have taken the high road and avoided the penalty that ruined the final, would-be climactic race. That one is on Rossi, but it never should have come to that. He shouldn’t have been forced into that position, least of all by the supposed fiercest lion in the sport.
Rossi did not need help, nor was he asking for it. Up until Phillip Island, he was handling his business quite well, all on his own. It was only once Marquez chose to interject himself into the championship outcome on Lorenzo’s behalf—or, more correctly, in defiance of Rossi— that everything went sideways, and that’s all on #93.
He ruined the outcome to what would have been the best racing season in many a year.
I don’t know about you, but I wanted the storybook ending: Rossi vs Lorenzo, in a single, honest race to decide an historic championship season.
Instead, we got…this.
mickey you have it quite backwards. Marquez, not Rossi, changed it from racing to something personal. Rossi wanted nothing to do with Marquez, but Marquez made it his mission to screw with Rossi. Then, in the finale, when presented with the chance to be Marc Marquez again and race for the win in his home country, he demurred.
To his credit, he was visibly angry about it, too. I’m sure that had it been up to him he would have raced Lorenzo honestly and tried to win.
It was just all bad.
I understand. It was a disappointing finale. Been watching since the early 70’s and seen some disappointing finales before.You should have seen my disappointment when I was pulling for Rossi in 06 lol. Remember 06? we have discussed it many times. Good lord willing I will see 10 or 20 more finale’s before he calls me (just hoping it’s him that calls..can’t stand excessive heat any more). In the end for me, a fan of MotoGP it was just another season, with highs and lows, drama and an ending. Believe it or not there will be another one next year. Maybe I need to conserve some energy in case we have to discuss something else next year.. like how Abraham managed to beat Rossi for the title bwah haa haahaa
’06 was bad for Rossi fans, but it wasn’t dishonest. It was a fair race with no built-in handicaps, and Rossi crashed.
This was something very different. I’m not sure there is a precedent for what just transpired.
Well, okay, maybe in the WWE, with Vince McMahon running the show. And that’s a problem.
1983 Championship comes down to last race at Assen. Roberts was trailing Spencer and got the hole shot in the final race, he then did everything in his power to slow Spencer down so that Roberts team mate Eddie Lawson could catch up and hopefully get in front of Spencer giving Roberts the win. However it didn’t work out that way, last lap Spencer drafts Roberts as they go into the last corner Spencer comes out of the draft dives under Roberts, this pushes them both wide and they both run into the grass. Spencer gets back on the track first and crosses the finish line ahead of Roberts to win the Championship by 2 points. Roberts gives Spencer a ratio of crap for dirty riding on the podium. Controversy in MotoGP is nothing new.
You realize, of course, that the Spencer-Roberts example bears no relation to what just happened here. They were racing each other for the title. Marquez? He wasn’t in contention. He isn’t even a teammate of either Lorenzo or Rossi.
Apples and oranges.
Of course I know that is not a direct comparison, just an example of 1 rider (very well respected and multi time world champion) purposely and intentionally slowing down another rider who is in contention, for the sole purpose of teaming up on him with another rider who was not in contention, to try and effect the outcome of a championship. Not every rider just rides heads up, fair and square, best man wins. In this game all manner of tricks and gimmicks are played by those wanting to succeed. Sometimes it involves team mates, sometime countrymen, other times for entirely different reasons like anger, jealousy or revenge ……………
Nice. I love this idea that you somehow have to believe the moon landing was faked and vaccines cause autism in order to imagine that maybe, just maybe Marquez was screwing with Rossi toward the end of the season.
So we’ve got the conditions just piling up against poor VR;
• Dani Pedrosa mixing it with him in Aragon (what are you doing, Dani?)
• Iannone beating him in Philip Island (what are you doing, Andrea?)
• Marquez messing with VR in Philip Island (let’s forget that MM actually went past JL, as it doesn’t fit with the narrative)
• Marquez passing VR in Sepang. Rossi almost sliding out, thinking that MM had tagged him twice (he hadn’t) and then VR running MM off the track. The lightest possible penalty being applied to Rossi
• MM pressuring JL at Valencia, despite losing 10m coming out of corners each time, only for Dani Pedrosa to force MM wide and then run wide himself, which gives JL the space to win the race.
So, to summarise, we needed Dani, Marc and Iannone to toe the line to give Rossi a title against a clearly faster rider on the same bike. Or more rain this season. Then we’d have the true champion. Erm….
Nah, wake up. Rossi wanted the title by default, just cos he has journalists in his pocket. He’s been running scared for the last 6 races, and really wanted the chance to torpedo JL yesterday, in the style of his friend Capirossi. That’s why the grid position really hurt him.
One thing glaringly obvious in today’s accidental experiment is the massive performance gulf between the top four factory bikes and the rest. Seeing it displayed like this was a little shocking….certainly at this circuit anyway!!.
Also what rotten luck Rossi found a really dumb way to lose a championship…..yeh pretty stupid stuff really. And on top of this he is continuing to rant on about the conspiracy he alleges is being waged against him???.
Seems as though Lorenzo is feeling as though the Spanish Honda’s helped him:
“While denying that any pact existed between him and Marquez he intimated that his compatriots had helped him win the title by not passing him “They knew what I had in play” Lorenzo said. “The fact that they are Spaniards like me helped me”.
“That helped me for sure because in another type of race they would have tried to overtake which they didn’t this time”. “If Valentino had been in my position with Italians behind they would have v done exactly the same”.
“The title had to be for Spain”
“That helped me for sure because in another type of race they would have tried to overtake which they didn’t this time”.
Exactly. Anyone who thinks Marquez stayed put in a pissed-off second place merely because he wasn’t fast enough to take a run at Lorenzo is a straight-up fool.
So, Dave, do you wish to tell Jorge Lorenzo he’s wrong too, and that the only reason #93 didn’t try to pass him was because—LOL—”he wasn’t fast enough”?
The “conspiracy theory” opinions expressed here are effectively moot points.
Mr Rossi was penalised to the rear of the field due to his OWN overtly illegal race behaviour. He was unable to close to any sort of competitive distance on the race winner, Lorenzo at any time during the race however his progress through the field was a good effort.
Lorenzo’s race was near faultless and very fast – his win of this race and the Championship was deserved.
Mr Rossi gets to “throw his hat in the ring” again next season – this one has been run and won – no amount of whining changes the final result for 2015.
well put…. +1
Unfortunately what stays in the history books is that the 2015 champion is Lorenzo. A very sad day for me.
And my conspiracy theory. Is it possible that MM acted without the blessings of Honda. Me thinks not. Honda took the long awaited revenge from Rossi.
Although we’ll never know the whole truth, here I will disagree with you. There’s no way Honda was behind Marquez’s actions at Phillip Island and Sepang. He did that crap entirely on his own, purely out of spite.
Valencia was a different story. There, yes, I believe Honda gave Marquez a good talking to, letting him know in no uncertain terms that he was to avoid any confrontation with Lorenzo. I don’t believe they did so in order to exact revenge on Rossi but rather to protect their brand against any further controversy brought on by Marquez’s rash decisions. If such an unprecedented display of timid caution by Marquez might also ensure that Rossi wouldn’t win the title, well, that would just be icing on the cake.
Marquez’s anger on the cool-down lap was evident for all to see, and it doesn’t take an Einstein to connect the dots. He wanted a piece of Lorenzo, the win was there for the taking, but he wasn’t allowed to take his usual bite.
both the Honda’s in fact escorted Lorenz’s Yamaha to make him champion, Spaniard’s together
Suggestions please for a new word to replace the term ‘Team Mates’ as it applies to motorsport? The only team work I saw was from ‘Team Spain’. I don’t include Dani Pedrosa in this who seems to be one of the most ethical guys out there.
http://superbikeplanet.com/2015/Nov/15110893post.htm
Pitbulls don’t take kindly to being chained up.
So MM has been “under orders” since at least the P.I. race?
Nope. He did exactly what he wanted at P.I. and Sepang. Obviously.
Valencia was a different story. There was no Rossi to harass, and Marc was clearly not happy over being made to play wingman for JLo.
Probably has nothing to do with Pedrosa messing up his plans to attack Lorenzo at the end of the race huh……??
No “probably” about it. Pedrosa’s one attempt at a pass on Marquez had absolutely nothing to do with why Marquez never attempted a single pass on Lorenzo
And Lorenzo already admitted as such.
Under any other circumstance, Marquez makes multiple pass attempts on Lorenzo. He makes Lorenzo deviate from his line and have to defend and repass. Come hell or high water, he takes a shot at the win. He does not blithely settle for second place without putting up even the slightest fight.
Everyone in the paddock knows this. Every world-level racer knows this, and many have already commented to that effect. It’s not even in question.
So you didnt see Indy……..or Assen………??
re: “Under any other circumstance, Marquez makes multiple pass attempts on Lorenzo.”
OMG you don’t say…?
from everyone’s description, sounds like Marcus parked in Valencia like so much “aircraft carrier” off the coast of a foreign nation…? YIIIKES…!!!
cause “multiple pass attempts” on Ross with a “free pass” issued to Jay is sure as hell what THESE eyeballs(and everybody else’s eyeballs) witnessed at Sepang.
don’t look now, but slight of hand not withstanding, when so called “intelligent” human beings DENY what they see visually, it’s an indicator we might just have another textbook case of Group Delusion/Group Think in full swing…
the “sheeple” have rights.
Disgusting……just turned off auto-renewal on my Video Pass subscription.
When has MM ever been content to cruise around in second place? Anyone who has watched him ride knows he could have taken JL at any point in that race that he wanted to and with him out of the way DP would have likely passed JL too. Rossi was exactly right and it is even more evident now.
Great ride by VR by the way. The “race” at the front was nothing but a parade.
We keep hearing Honda’s take. Here’s Rossi’s…
“We build this season from the first race, and at the end it was anyway a great season. I was always competitive and never make any mistakes. I think that after Motegi I have the potential to win the championship but unfortunately from the race in Phillip Island something changed and in these last three races we saw something that we never saw before in our sport.
“I think that the situation was already bad, but today was embarrassing for everybody because it was unbelievable, the behaviour of Marquez is something very bad for everything, especially for the sport. It is something that nobody expects, because a Honda rider that made a Yamaha rider win and give the maximum just to push out his teammate is something that nobody expect and I think it is very, very bad news. Anyway, it is like this, we have to accept.
“I am happy because now everybody see what I said in Australia and I don’t understand the behaviour of Marquez but sincerely for me it is very difficult to say something to him because I hope that he will understand what he did in these last three races in the future of his career.
“For sure the Hondas were faster. We know that in the second part of the race Honda have a better potential but Marquez just protect Lorenzo like he did in Phillip Island and also Sepang. At the end I think that also Lorenzo have to not be very happy, as it is not a Championship that was won on track. But anyway is memories.”
Rossi really should have just said he was proud of his performance this year, disappointed with the result and shut up about the rest. I know he feels punked and wholeheartedly believes his version of events, but harping on it isn’t doing the sport any good either.
He’s given everything he has to the sport. I think I’ll forgive him if he now feels betrayed by that sport and chooses to speak his mind.
I’ll give Rossi a pass for letting out his frustrations. Just as all these folks let it go when Stoner, Gibernau, Biaggi, etc., did the same on a regular basis. They’re all still heroes to some, right?
That isn’t what I mean. Rossi didn’t do anything to me that warrants my animosity or forgiveness. I understand his frustration, but I’m just saying I think it would have been better for him, Yamaha and the sport to behave like the champion and icon that he is.
That… I agree with. 😉
MM fights back against Pedrosa instantly but doesn’t make one move on Lorenzo? Lorenzo is fASSthole and MM is a A jerk. Very disappointed int the sportsmanship between these two in the last few races. Lorenzo could have won a huge following by saying nothing about the accusations other than I am catching Rossi in points because I amnfaster then all of them. I am having a hard time getting around the lessons taught by this season to my six year old son. We watched every race together and he came to the conclusion that : Lorenzo is the fastest and smoothest and Rossi is his favorite but he doesn’t like Marquez. The youth are this sports future and are master judges of character. He is a Rossi fan but now roots for Pedrosa and anyone other than JL and MM. Proud of my son and Mr. Rossi.
both the Honda’s in fact escorted Lorenz’s Yamaha to make him champion, Spaniard’s together
I think everyone was secretly praying for “something” to happen at the front….
Not really.
Did anyone really watch this ‘race’? All season long Marquez pushed too hard and crashed. Or he butted heads with everyone and especially with Rossi towards the end of the season. He was having handling issues. He was having tire issues. They couldn’t get his setup right. Then with the altercation with Rossi in Sepang, he stated that he always drives aggressive and at 100% all the time. He made contact or simply chopped off Rossi’s line several times at Sepang. Only to say that “that is racing”.
Now here we go in Valencia, and he quickly comes to the back of Lorenzo and proceeds to follow him around the track for the better part of the race. Where was that aggressive racing attitude in his racing? Where was that pushing 100% all the time riding? Never once did he attack Lorenzo or even challenge him in all those laps. It was more like he had his back and if any challenge did come along, i.e. Rossi he was there to keep him at bay.
Two Spaniards that both have seen their racing this season compromised by this aging Italian. Hard to suffer that at the hands of this cheerful, hugely talented racer, and who just love to race and to compete. Yet he is somewhere around a decade and a half older that the elder of either of them.
It certainly seemed blatant to me that the title would have gone to Lorenzo regardless.
Rossi was never going to be given a real chance to win the title fairly.
You’re over thinking MM. It was clear that he was giving everything just to stay with Lorenzo. He made a mistake in coming back on Pedrosa. MM was not going to be able to challenge Lornezo but Pedrosa certainly could have. MM could’ve profited if Pedrosa disrupted Lorenzo.
If MM were riding in Lorenzo’s favor, he would not have passed for the win in Australia.
both the Honda’s in fact escorted Lorenz’s Yamaha to make him champion, Spaniard’s together
Posting that over and over doesn’t make it seem any more factual, less so, in fact..
Who else had problems with the race feed from Dorna? Lost mine a few times and then black screen at about lap 11, came back on cool down lap, had to go back to watch the race. Tested my connection speed and was getting more than I pay for from TW. Cancelled my re-up, but will no doubt subscribe when spring rolls around.
My feed stopped exactly start of race! Won’t be renewing my subscription..Marquez sandbagging will go down in racing infamy..
Exactly what happened to me. I missed the first 2-3 laps and then again sometimes mid race. too many people watching?
Mine went out as well, more than once, not the first time this has happened. Better when I switched to my chrome book. But no matter, there has often been drama between great riders, but this year has degenerated into overpriced melodrama . There are other places to find the spirit of competition, speed and heroics. When can I get a feed from IOM? Dorna and company have work to do before I end my “off” season.
re: “Who else had problems with the race feed from Dorna?”
not I says the blind man, but then my TV was tuned to Lucas Oil Drag Racing from Las Vegas. I got my motorsports fix peeping some sweet Alcohol Funny Cars. EAT IT DORNA…!!!
so lemme guess, Jay’s 2015 Worl’ Champeen…? oh boy, who would’ve thunk it.
Don’t hold the rest of us who tuned into the motoGP in collective suspension…tell us now, did the Italian ex-pat from Alabama Bubbaloni win in the funny car event or did it go to his Arkansas compatriot Skeeterini?
Happened for me as well and it seems MotoGP.com said it was OK because they were recording the race and you could watch it on demand from them later.
I had my laptop and TV going at the same time so I could at least see FS1.
One thing’s for sure. There are many facts, many interpretations, many theories, etc….
The main thing, as a VR46 fan is –
SO CLOSE! It’s so annoying that it came out like this, when he was so strong throughout the season – DESPITE the qualifying problems.
YET –
Close only counts in global thermonuclear war, and circle jerks. If VR, as amazing as this late-career effort is/possibly the limit of what he could do, could just have done a bit more (better Q, more speed when it counted, absolutely maximizing his points instead of his end of season behavior*), etc, the crap of the last races wouldn’t have mattered one way or the other.
* Note, I tried to word this very carefully, to leave any judgement pro/con out of it, but objectively he did not try every moment to maximize his points
He still managed third place and sixteen points in Sepang, and he definitely tried his best at P.I., so which race are you referring to when you say he didn’t try to maximize his points?
The one where he decided it more important to get MM to FO (perhaps rightly so) rather than just going about his business.
To finish first, first you must finish
(By this I mean implicitly, keep the eye on the prize, don’t drop your guard and bother with things that seem important but in the end could have been let go)
Ricky Bobbi – you’re either first or last….
He means that by risking pexalty (which was applied), he ruined his chances. He should’ve accepted that he wasn’t going to catch Pedrosa and Lorenzo in Sepang and finished the race right with the rules (4th or 3rd), and set himself up for the best outcome in Spain.
Instead, he risked a DQ and even a suspension in his tiff with Marquez, and ultimately cost himself the chance to fight for the title by starting on the last row in the final.
Gold star for you Dave for paying attention. If there’s a conspiracy, it’s that the only blatant rule breaking we’ve seen these last 3 races didn’t lead to a score of zero for VR at Sepang.
Didn’t watch the race, won’t watch the recording. MM used his riding skills to manipulate the championship when he couldn’t win it himself. Congrats to Rossi and Lorenzo. Won’t renew my MotoGP.com membership.
I agree completely. I also won’t be renewing for next year. Dorna are complicit in this in that they should have got Rossi and Marquez into a room BEFORE the race and warn them that on track misbehavior would have severe consequences. Instead they let it go and only Rossi suffered the consequences. A crappy end to what should have been a brilliant end to the season.
well, your description of MM’s riding style is consistent in this last race. However i have a feeling you’re going to watch this race, the two-wheel venom in your blood will not give you a choice….
The best man won today and won the championship. Super smooth and blazing fast.
Even without the penalty Rossi would have finished 4th…..
You’re a great champion Lorenzo!!
Congrats!
lol, just make it up as you go man.
“The strangest aspect of Rossi’s attack on Márquez is that he appeared to be shifting the responsibility for winning the title from the Italian’s own shoulders onto the man he had so publicly attacked. Despite Rossi’s brilliant early laps – and they were truly things of beauty, passes executed with surgical and ruthless precision – his race pace was simply not up to that of the front three. Lorenzo and Márquez ran laps of between 1’31.5 and 1’31.9 just about all race long. Pedrosa ran laps of 1’31.7, lost ground as he slowed up with an overheating front tire to clock a string of 1’31.9s and 1’32s, before upping the pace again and hitting a 1’31.5 to catch the leaders.
Rossi, meanwhile, was running consistent 1’32.1 and 1’32.2. Fast enough for fourth, but nowhere near good enough for the win. Even if Rossi had started from the front row of the grid, and not had to fight his way forward through the pack (a battle which was over shortly after one third distance), he did not have the pace to beat Lorenzo, nor even the pace to beat the two Hondas. Rossi finished where his race pace dictated, regardless of where he had started. That race pace was roughly in line with what he had shown during practice, a couple of tenths short of the pace of the leaders.”
Apparently – “Making it up” means facts are facts????
Rossi would have finished 4th (maybe) but JL would have finished 2nd and maybe 3rd if MM raced for real and if he were not watching his back even from DP.
Lorenzo’s a great rider.
He’s a crappy champion.
Correction: Lorenzo’s a great rider when he’s by himself upfront.
You’re right on the second part.
Dave, you’re a tool if you think this race was run “fair & square”
One question
Was the Rossi start from the last row aspect mandated as part of an actual MotoGP rule…… or a decision of MotoGP officials overseeing the investigation ……or both….or what?
If it was mandated, can anyone cc/paste the actual rule language?
Thanks
You must be new to the party. Don’t make me paste a “LMGTFY” link here.
Reading comprehension ….someday you might be able to recognize a legitimate question every so often, maybe being the key word
>>>
Now if you have an or the answer, provide a link
If you do not have an answer guess where I am thinking you can cut and paste it
Waiting!
A legitimate question Mike. I believe there is a precedent for this from an incident last year.
This article may clarify it or maybe just confuse further as the race director said he believed Marquez was deliberately slowing up Rossi but still didn’t penalize Marque
http://www.crash.net/motogp/news/224594/1/motogp-race-director-explains-rossi-punishment.html
Mike, it is a little of both. FIM rules allow for the officials to use judgement when issuing a penalty. They gave Rossi three penalty points, but they could have given him more, less or some other type of penalty. The reason they gave him three points probably has to do with the fact that a penalty greater than three points requires a formal hearing before the penalty can be issued.
Starting from the back of the grid when a rider acquires 4 penalty points (Rossi already had one penalty point from a previous offense) is an actual rule defined in 3.2.1 of the FIM Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix Regulations:
“Grand Prix Penalty points may be imposed by GP Race Direction on a rider in any number from 1 to 10, points are cumulative and expire after a period of 365 days from the date they were imposed. Automatic sanctions apply to a rider accumulating points as follows:
4 Points – Start the next race from last grid position.
7 Points – Start the next race from pit lane. 10 Points –
Disqualification from participation at the next event (or from
the race results if this occurs at the last event of the season).
Points re-set to 0 after a rider reaches 10 points and serves a disqualification. A penalty of up to 3 points can be imposed without a prior hearing being necessary. However, the right of protest remains as set out in Article 3.4.1.”
The Only Question = Did the FIM/MotoGP GP Race Direction assess the penalty points correctly against Rossi in the next to last race. Nothing else matters.
To see the FIM/MotoGP GP Rules scroll back to this post by Jeremy on November 9, 2015 at 11:21 am. Massive thank you Jeremy.
>>>>>>
Penalty Assessment Possible Results (Note: Rossi already had 1 point due to a prior race issue)
If Rossi had been give a 1 or 2 point assessment he would not have started on the last row.
If Rossi had been given a 3 or more penalty assessment he would had to start on the last row
>>>>>>
My view
* 3 points was appropriate….4 or 5 should have been considered based on Rossi track behavior during the incident. Rossi deserved the last row start
* Further if Marquez ended up with a Wayne Rainey injury over this…most posts here would have been different.
* Marquez should have been assessed points also….yes
>>>>>>
Did I want Rossi to win the championship…….yes
Did I pull for him in the last race…..yes
Did he deserve to start on the last row based on FIM/MotoGP rules…..yes
I apologize for the late reply to my post………thanks for your comments.
At Valencia, Rossi again demonstrated his greatness. JL blazed to victory and earned the championship. Yet, look at the comments and the riders’ behavior. Next season, it will start all over again with old heroes, new heroes, new villains etc., but for me this year, the narrative of Moto GP has overtaken the sport. It may be a long off season for this fan.
Post race, Rossi is whining again. Unbelievable!
Rossi’s mind games worked really well this time, against himself. Rossi has no one to blame but himself, contrary to all the Rossi cry babies screaming about their conspiracy stories how their golden boy was cheated out of the championship. Jorge was able to do what was necessary to win the championship. Rossi wasn’t. End of story.
That is quite the rabid diatribe there. lol
Right on Holy……..
True. Fundamentally this was all on Rossi to not lose his cool in Sepang. There’s a life lesson for all of us to apply.
It is also worth stating that MM went 180 degrees the other way from where his legacy was headed as well.
What a miserable soap opera to what could have been for Jorge, MM, Rossi, the sport, and most of all…..the fans!
Iannone provided a lot of entertainment, guts, toughness, & skill throughout the year.
Joint Companionship Marquez/Lorenzo.There is no doubt Marquez helped Lorenzo.This race proves it.I just wonder If the rolls were reversed if Lorenzo would have helped Marquez as much.I bet not.I think Marguez and maybe even Honda was played.
Just like at Phillip Island when Marquez was running second and let Lorenzo win…… Oh wait a second
Trying to recall any other instance in which Marquez trailed a rider all race long and also late in the race and didn’t make a single attempt to take the lead. We’re talking his entire MotoGP career. Hell, we can even include his Moto2 career.
I’m coming up blank. You?
It just doesn’t happen. Marquez always—repeat: always—takes a shot. He stuffs it up the inside and makes it stick, or fails. He attempts to late-brake the other guy. He tries to ride around the outside. Something. Anything. But he always takes a shot, one after another, over and over. He does not sit there for thirty laps, including literally hanging onto the leader’s rear wheel over the final few laps, without making a single attempt to pass.
#93 settling for a cautious second place, without a fight? It’s simply not in his DNA.
So, four races in Spain, including (of course) the decisive series finale. The same Spanish rider wins all four, and Spanish riders cover the podium in the all-important series decider. No aggressive passes. No risky moves. No jeopardy for the leader.
Nothing. Just a precise, polite ushering of one man to the Promised Land.
Now, does anyone believe the three Spaniards “fight” this race the same way if Rossi is (allowed to be) among the leading group? Or if Marquez needed to get past Lorenzo to defend his title? Or if Lorenzo had been made to start from the back row while leading by seven points, and the championship-trailing Rossi was at the front?
Anyone? Bueller?
Forgive me as I did not watch the race. MM never tried a pass on JL the whole race? Even a fake to at least look like he was trying? It couldn’t be that obvious.
Nope, he never even showed Lorenzo a wheel. This, despite sitting on his tail the entire race.
How quickly we forget that Lorenzo set the lap record in qualifying! MM, DP, and Cruthlow all complained about not the front tyre being too soft and not being able to go race distance. Even Bridgestone said “the Honda riders will have to manage their race as the tyre is lasting”
Its not Lorenzo made even a minor mistake and gave MM an oportunity.
Time to put your Tin foil hat on boys.
OK “Pablo”
OK I went and watched the recording. it was a parade until DP got bored and passed MM. What a sham.
I gotta agree. It looked to me like Marquez had speed in hand to pass Lorenzo, and chose not to.
I also agree that Rossi has no one to blame other than himself.
Well, and I’m not saying I disagree…I think it should be considered how much MM has come under fire for “interfering in a championship he’s not in contention for”/unwritten but rules of motorsport), and how much uproar there’d be if he went for it and took JL out.
MM is a punk but I have to imagine he grew up a little, or Honda did some growin up for/to him (Come to Jesus meeting type thing).
Oh and meant to add “as well as aggressive riding/risky ridiculous passes/barging into people/crashing etc” to the bit about what MM has come under fire for.
Agree Tim, danged if he does, danged if he doesn’t.
What happened to the
“Why are you even challenging if you are not in contention?”
It turned into ” Please interfere if it will benefit me.”
No, it remains, “Quit interfering in the championship on behalf of only one rider.”
How about just quit interfering with the championship , peroiod. Which is what he did.
Give it up, mickey. Lorenzo already admitted that Marquez and Pedrosa made the decision not to try and pass him in deference to a fellow Spaniard vying for the title.
It’s no longer open to debate. Marquez targeted Rossi at P.I. and Sepang, then he sandbagged in Valencia. He went out of his way to target Rossi, in favor of Lorenzo.
actually that was Lorenzo’s opinion, one which Marquez and Pedrosa vehemently deny. Personally I think there was maybe some of that going on, but there was something much more going on personally between Rossi and Marquez.
Yes, there was, which led to Marquez first targeting Rossi and then sandbagging against him.
Are you really doubting Lorenzo’s “opinion”? You think he doesn’t know exactly what was going on?
mickey, when both Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi—two guys who aren’t exactly prone to agreeing about much of anything lately—agree that the Repsol Hondas were never going to try to pass Jorge, you might want to take it as gospel. It’s one thing to disagree with Rossi, but how can you also disagree with Lorenzo? He’s admitting something that doesn’t help his case.
What you’re seeing here is Jorge being candid, because he can afford to be. What’s done is done. The title is his now. He no longer needs to choose his words carefully, so he has no problem admitting the obvious. For him, it’s actually a badge of Spanish honor. His countrymen came to his defense, and he’s proud of this fact.
@mickey – it’s always been about just racing your race like you are hired to do and expected to by fans; which is not the same as interfering in the race. e.g. the difference between Ianonne at PI vs. how MM at Sepang is racing vs. interfering, respectively.
@Drive the Wheels off.. well we’d like to think so and in a perfect world maybe that’s the way it would be, but if you follow ANY sport..motorcycle racing, football, little league baseball..that’s not always how the script plays out. Sometimes things are done in the course of a game/season that are done for political, profitable or purely personal reasons. These men are not perfect, not infallible,they are simply people, highly skilled people that’s all. Never have been perfect, never will be perfect, as we as fans can never expect that things will go exactly as we want them to. This season Rossi fans (myself included) got our blue sky hopes up of a perfect season for Rossi. The “old man” (same age as my son) overcoming a string of poor years battles back to defeat all the young lions. Unfortunately that was not in the cards and with Rossi leading the way we have to find a scape goat to explain why it didn’t come to pass as we expected. Surely there was something dastardly that kept our champion from victory, when in the end the fact is he wasn’t fast enough or strong enough or smart enough or controlled enough to make it through the whole season. If the seasons were 12 races long as they have been in the past before we ever got to Sepang he would have been champion again. Unfortunately they are 18 races long and in the end he wasn’t strong enough for long enough. Some will say he was robbed and they have the right to their opinion. it’s not mine. Maybe he was robbed, I can’t really say, but if he was he was part of the crew that committed the robbery.
2016 testing in in full swing today, and I am done talking about the 2015 season. It’s behind us now.
MM probably did help Lorenzo to the extent he didn’t try a pass late which would have created the possibility of a Lorenzo crash. Not a big chance perhaps, but a chance none the less.
If it hadn’t been for Rossi at the back trying to fight his way through the field the race would have seemed to be a parade, like many Moto GP races. As a casual fan the races as parades are unsatisfying but actual frequent close racing would probably result in frequent crashes and disasters. I have no cure but maybe points should be awarded for laps while in the lead.
Lorenzo deserves the championship in that he is consistently the fastest rider. Then again fastest doesn’t mean the best racer if by racing you mean jockeying for position during a race. Time trials, even the Isle of Mann, aren’t really a ‘race’.
Sure, qualifying for pole, JLo set an unbeleivable pavce, 0.5 seconds faster than anyone else… Even JLo said he wonders how that happened, and he likely couldn’t do it again.
Lap times of the race were, as usual, typically slower. It SEEMED like MM was racing for the lead, but it is a bit odd that he got right up to JLo and really didn’t do anything but shadow him. MM and DP even had a little “racing” tussel there for good measure (“SEE, we were really racing there!”).
As a Rossi fan, I am suspicious, but wahttya gonna do. He gave it everything he had with the situation. Had Rossi not tried to teach MM a lesson (futile effort, anyway), had any number of other things gone different through the season… Woulda, Shoulda, Coulda…
Helluva season. If Hollywood wrote this script, noone would have thought it beleivable!
That’s what I meant by “if not the most consistent”…
Sorry, that was supposed to go down below my other comment (at the bottom).
Jorge qualified a half second ahead of Marquez, got his usual good start and ticked off laps all with no ore than a half second difference, and there is still a conspiracy? Vale screwed himself with his talk and actions at the last race. Wasn’t that Biaggi hugging Jorge in parc ferme and isn’t he Italian? Great race by all involved.
I keep reading that Jorge was .5 seconds a lap quicker. That was only during a 1 off qualifying lap. Qualifying lap times are rarely turned during race conditions. He qualified at a 130.516. He came no where close to this in the race.
If you look at the race lap times, he was .1 seconds quicker than MM. Jo’s best race lap as 1.31.367 MM was 131.455. At no time during the race was he .5 seconds a lap faster. Go check the lap by lap charts.
Never said he was half a second faster anywhere other than in qualifying, read , said all his laps were within half a second of each other, consistent. Can anyone blame Marquez for not doing Rossi any favors after all the crap Rossi gave him?
Did it appear that only one Repsol was riding for a race win? Great season #46! Thanks for making it worth watching!
Lorenzo is fast no doubt about it.
Did Marquez “race to win” as he does with Rossi?
MM did not race against JL at all, how many times did he try to pass? When DP passed MM, he woke up and passed him back. I believe MM handed the champaign ship to whore-hay… Oh well, we will never know, with MM dumb grin he will say he did the best he could.
Yes.
No.
Lorenzo was faster than Marquez and Marquez couldnt catch him like he has been able to do with the SLOWER Rossi – Facts is Facts my friend…..
Fact: marquez did not attack, not even once although he clearly could and he always does.
Fact: HRC did not release any data of his riding in t last races.
So unless someone inside hrc decides to show or say something, nobody knows exactly.
Anyway for someone to try so hard fighting for 3rd in the 1st laps (Malaysia) has to be very stupid or there’s something else….
You’re conveniently ignoring the most obvious FACT, i.e., that Marquez was parked on Lorenzo’s back wheel for the majority of the race. Any other similar situation throughout his career, including this season, Marquez makes multiple attempts to get by, using whatever tactics necessary. Late in a race, he’s never shown the slightest reluctance to risk crashing to make a pass, if need be. That’s his M.O.
Not here, though. Why?
Multiple front end crashes this year ? Waiting for the right moment that was disrupted by DP’s attempted pass on him ? Or, here’s a good theory; JL was too freaking consistently fast, MM was doing all he could to hang in there.
The irony is that VR (and presumably his army of yellow orcs)want MM, whom he slandered in public, to win the championship for him. Suppose MM passed JL. Would VR had won the WC ? Nope. He’d have had to either pass DP or for DP to pass JL also. All on the last lap.
MM overtook JL at PI and THAT was helping JL. He didnt overtake JL at Valencia and THAT is helping JL. Make your minds up, which is it ?
Or, just maybe, you invested too much emotional energy and hard earned dosh on day-glo acid yellow apparel, kinda like people bought Lance Armstong’s “Livestrong” tat and now feel a little embarassed their idol has “feet of clay”. Oh dear……..
Bwahahahahahah. That Post is gold.
RIGHT on……….Fanboys ignore facts – thats why they are fanboys instead of fans……..
Well down tunde! My favorite post on here.
For most of the race MM was 1-2 seconds back, sliding all over trying to stay with JL.
Pedrosa was out of it, but found *huge* pace late in the race (the guy is a featherweight) to close.
JL exhausted his tires, leaving himself vulnerable late in the race. Marquez barely got back to him, presumably also on spent tires.
If only he had let Pedrosa take his shot at JL…
The Spanish riders gifted the title to Lorenzo..Rossi is still best GP rider ever!
YEP..
Roxx
Hostility towards VR is a reason to root against another rider ? That’s the yardstick ? Good grief . And why wouldn’t MM view his competition with VR in a different light ? After all VR is the GOAT, the yardstick by which, God knows, all humanity should be judged by. You’re too self important in your ungraciousness. But Guess what ? I’m sure MM couldn’t give a toss if YOU don’t support him. Just like how US fans decided to hate on DP after 2006. Now, everybody loves DP.
It’ll be a long winter for the Valedicktorians. Yep, I spelt that right.
Loved how Biaggi was in parc ferme congratulating JL. He’d have loved that.
Don’t ignore the fact that had Rossi started even on the front row, there is no guarantee he wouldn’t have finished fourth any way, Lorenzo was not to be denied and both the Honda boys posted better lap times during the race than Rossi. I think no one can feel cheated today.
Sure, because things wouldn’t possibly change if Rossi isn’t held up by twenty other riders while the Repsol Hondas have open track all to themselves, politely trailing Lorenzo. Lap times are never a function of circumstances, particularly late in a race, right?
You are correct in that there is no guarantee Rossi might not have finished fourth anyway, but you can be certain that the fight for positions would have been an actual fight and not a cautious procession. With Rossi in the mix the entire race very likely plays out quite differently.
I presume you watched the race, as did I. What I think I saw is every single rider going WFO from flag to flag, including VR’s three major protagonists on the podium. Not for one minute do I believe there was jockeying to support the eventual outcome.
It very much appears to me, even with all the MM/VR drama, JL earned this Crown, every inch of it. I celebrate with Jorge today.
I think even if we re-wound to Sepang, VR did not accuse MM of treachery in support of JL, and VR did not run MM wide, we would have the exact same outcome, and JL would be King of the paved motorcycle world, a Crown he most likely shall hoist again before he hangs up the leathers.
2.5 weeks ago VR played the part of Bullwinkel the moose: he attempted to “pull a rabbit out of my hat,” and instead he got the Spanish bull named Lorenzo.
The King (MM) Is Dead (for at least a year)! Long Live The King!
Yes, I watched the race. I saw Marquez fail to attempt a pass on the rider directly ahead of him, possibly for the first time in his MotoGP career. I saw this same rider do everything possible to fight like mad with Rossi in every other race this season. I saw this same rider attempt reckless pass after reckless pass, often successfully, throughout his entire career.
Today I saw him politely defer and play a supporting role. Instead of dicing recklessly with Lorenzo as he’s always been wont to do, which very well might have upset the entire apple cart, he sat back and dutifully played a role. The only time he fought like the normal #93 fights is when Dani tried to pass him.
You’ve watched this rider over the years, the same as I have. You’ve watched a million races in your life. You know full well that had Rossi been among the leading group of four the three Spaniards would have fought tooth and nail. You also know that if Marquez had had his own championship aspirations to fight for he would have attempted every pass in the book to get by Lorenzo, reckless or otherwise.
Yes, I watched the race. What I witnessed was a fait accompli.
You do realize he didnt attempt to pass him because Lorenzo was faster and never gave him the chance!
Cocaine is a helluva drug.
Nice I don’t need to really add a comment. VLJ said what I would have. I’ll just add that I hope the champ trophy is shaped like an asterisk. Because whithout Rossi running up front from the start of the race was handed to Lorenzo.
I hope someday this series is taken out of Spanish hands and put under the control of a multi-national ownership and control.
apparently you know VLJ??
Rossi got the “Spanish Bull” alright. Just not “bull” that your thinging about.
You are RIGHT ON Jerry – Rossi would have finished 4th regardless of where he started…….
No way anyone can make this claim. It would be a different reality – harder racing/higher chance of error. Maybe a crash. Maybe someone gets the red mist and forgets tire management just enough to fall away at the end.
Rossi, being the master tactician, would have been there to exploit any chink that didn’t actually take him down personally.
The only thing I can think to say is disappointing. Not that Valentino lost, although I am a fan, but that this last and deciding race wasn’t the competitive battle it could have and should have been between all of the top contenders. That would have put a real and conclusive end to a great season of racing. This is more like a super bowl being decided by a late fourth quarter penalty.
I disagree. It was getting boring after Rossi couldn’t get any closer than 4th place way off, until DP caught up to MM and tried to pass him. That’s when MM decided there was no way DP was going to get in front of him at that point in the race. Their Honda feud handed Lorenzo the win and championship.
Fairly won and exciting to boot. The season ended on a good note.
Not really.
Really. 😉 And yo mama too! C’mon, at least add some interest to this food fight!
Well Rossi gave it a valiant effort.
Seems like Marquez was protecting Lorenzo, especially once Pedrosa got close.
Of course the tactics he uses against Rossi are far different than the way he races Lorenzo.
If there was ever any doubt that MM is hostile towards Rossi just look at the record.
I will forever root against MM no matter who he is racing against.
He is the new villain of Moto GP.
Me to.
Me too..
me too…
You do realize that Marquez uses different tactics because he is able to catch Rossi – because Rossi is SLOWER than Lorenzo. To use tactics, first you must catch him – which Marquez was able to do do Rossi and not to Lorenzo….
Agreed. Motogp’s dick dastard.
Anyone but Maladin, is now anyone but MM….nice
I don’t think he was protecting Lorenzo. Marquez was clearly struggling to keep up with Lorenzo for most of the race. You can see Lorenzo coming off of each apex as if he is on a rail while Marquez had significantly more drift while trailing him and also more instability on the brakes. Marquez closed up on Lorenzo when Lorenzo’s tires began to fade.
Some people think he wasn’t racing hard, but Marquez only rides like a rabid dog after another rider overtakes him. Otherwise, he is a cool, patient and calculating rider when he is stalking prey, and I have no doubt that he would have made a move on Lorenzo sometime during the last two laps had Pedrosa not gotten into the mix, giving Lorenzo that extra bit of breathing room he needed.
I like VR, but in the end I think the faster (if not the more consistent) rider won. And I do think it’s important to remember that Jorge had some actual bad luck early in the season…the helmet liner in the first race; being sick in the second. Were it not for those problems, the championship race probably wouldn’t have been so close.
Whatever the truth of the MM “conspiracy” situation, it’s pretty obvious that Valentino should have kept his thoughts to himself. The public accusation was an unforced error that may well have cost him the championship. That said, I don’t think you have to be a conspiracy theorist to suspect that, had Valencia been a “normal” race, we’d have seen MM fight JL a lot harder…rather than just hang out on his tail, and only get aggressive after Pedrosa came past.
Personally, I’ll be cheering for Dani next year.
Actually Jorge was not the most consistent. Rossi was, that’s why he had the points lead going in to the last race.As far as your doubts on a conspiracy, here’s a quote for you…Lorenzo: “We are Spaniards and this title was to remain in Spain. The Italians had done the same thing with Valentino”.
Really ? I bet he said it in Portuguese ; to the Spanish king.
i hardly give Pedorase a thought. after his recent back to back wins all’s i could think about what exactly is this guys role on the Repsol team? test rider?