Rossi is back
 

Well no spoilers here but the MotoGP race is well worth watching today.... http://www.southbayriders.com/forums...es/thumbup.gif

He's not my favorite rider. And today's race proves my theory...he's not human. Some kind of android is my best guess.

I have to agree with you both, Yet He (Rossi) did honda some justice in the early 2000-04. But "WHAT THE H*##" is wrong with honda for bringing Casie Boner on board??

Gets on better with major sponsors than at least one of their present riders. Speaks English as his native tongue.

And rides bloody well, in case that's been obvious only to me.

Time the USA produced a few more truly top-level riders, huh?

Hayden won a championship and has been doing well this year.

Edwards is not terrific but does ok.

Spies will win a race before the year is over.

I think there should be more, but right now I think the MotoGP paddock is serving the USA well. Now, WSB is another story....

I'm a Nicky Haden fan first (hasn't been easy the last few years), then Edwards (harder yet), Spies and yes....I like Casey Stoner. I wish him well with Honda. He rides like hell and seems like a regular guy.

And what about the rumors of Rossi going to Ducati? Italian on Italian. Leaves room for Spies on the number one Yamaha team.

Yeah, Rossi on Ducati seems to be a bit of an Italian dream, and some say the factory would have the budget for it now, too.

Jamie, I can't recall if you took part in the discussion somewhere in this forum a couple of years ago about "A" and "B" and "the rest" riders at this top level of road racing.

When I talk about a truly top level rider, I mean an "A" rider, someone who for their period just dominates the whole deal eg Rossi (not now...), Mick Doohan, Freddie Spencer, Kenny Roberts; you know, for each race, the one to beat. Every class in every branch of the sport has one from time to time.

Hayden never was, and I suspect won't now ever be, one of those , nor Edwards. Spies: I think he's having a much harder year than he thought he would. I'd really like him to win a race this year. If he doesn't, he'll find it hard to get sufficiently motivated, given the contrast with his success in WSB.

MotoGP is full of riders with brilliant futures behind them.

The obvious "A" riders now are Lorenzo and (regrettably) Pedrosa, aka "The Chimp".

Well, not yet, for either of them, in my view - that view tends to go further than just one season.

Each of them is a bloody good rider, of course, and Lorenzo could well be (I suspect he's psyched Rossi out as Rossi used to psych others...); but Pedrosa I'm not at all sure about. He still fades badly about 2/3 through a full-length race, it seems to me, and he can sure be psyched out.

Unbeatable self-confidence is hard to beat.

If Rossi wins a championship on the Ducati, he will become immortal, rise to heaven and speak to God. Then I can die in peace. Him on the Duke is every Italian rider's dream. Me included.

It was a great race for Rossi. His level of commitment and self confidence is far superior to any rider I can remember. If he does go to Ducati I'm sure he will be just as competitive. For that matter, I think Stoner will be just as competitive on the Honda. It should make for an interesting season if the rumours pan out.

The end proves that he's human, he got played in the last corners.

Superhuman possibly... Not human... No human rides that way injured... Normal humans limp around at home on pain meds feeling sorry for themselfes...

I'd probably agree with that to some part... Modify, "having a prayer" to have done it more than once and I'm on board... Last years group of 4 "aliens" is certainly A level riders...

Yep, that's exactly my point.

Many periods throughout the history top-level GP racing, there's been but one stand-out rider ("A"), a few who're getting there or could be there ("B"), and the rest, who make up the field and provide various levels of support.

The whole lot, A, B and all the others, have skill levels that make the rest of us look like pedestrians - I know, as I'm friendly with and have raced against 3 guys who've been 2nd in the World 500s and several who competed at that level. I've only ever beaten one of any of 'em, and, great guy that he is, he never scored a podium finish.

I've also met a bunch of top guys, but whether you'd call them "A" riders in this dominating sense, I dunno - eg John Surtees and Barry Sheene. John won world titles in both 500s and Formula One, but I don't really think he was up there in my "A" sense. Doubtless he would disagree....

[Edit] just remembered: I've also been trounced by Wayne Gardner, and he was pretty close to my idea of an "A" rider.