So, who was hot and who was not?

[Corny]

Hot:
Rossi, I really thought that the fire in him was gone, but he has ridden an amazing season with an average of more than 20 pts per GP! He's again the Vale I knew in 2006

Stoner, though he misses out on the title, he and his Ducati are the fastest. The only problem is that Stoner keeps making mistakes, and cracks under pressure. Though he still got almost 300 points, which can be enough in some years to get the title.

Pedrosa, until Sachsenring.. I think that he made the absolute maximum out of the Honda till that point.

Edwards, I think he did quit well!

Dovizioso, simply deserves the Repsol Honda..

Hopkins for getting on a motoGP bike after his Assen crash.. MAN that was a horrible crash


Not:
Randy de Puniet.. Is he a rider, or a crasher? Glad I'm not a mechanic of his

Lorenzo, somehow he has not impressed me.. He's only quick when everything is at it's 100%. In rain my grandmother can be quicker than him. Next to all this, I don't like his flags

Melandri.. Mwoah don't need to say anything I think

Dorna for the single tyre rule.. BOOOHH!

Toseland. We'll see him again on Bridgestones

[Wim_Impreza]

Agree with you, but not that Hopkins was hot. The whole Kawasaki team was again very disappointing. I expected more from Chris Vermeulen.

Not: also Sylvain Guintoli and Anthony West for me, the boring races, no suspense in the championship, not much races in rain / changeable weather conditions especially in MotoGP.

[MrJan]

Hot: Mrs Stoner , Vale

Not: Stoner. I know it's controversial but if it hadn't been for 3 races where he dropped it needlessly then the Championship could have been his.

CV - Terrrible season
Hopper, Marco, Westy (seriously, I thought that this guy was the second coming by the way the Aussies banged on about him), Toseland (great start but ultimately I think that a bit of low confidence and then the tyres were his downfall.

MotoGP in general - you watch a race for maybe 8 laps before it turns dull. With aerodynamics and tyre rule changes in F1 next year and TC remaining in GPs I think that I may watch 4 wheels with more anticipation next year

[T-D]

add edwards to the 'not" list as his team manager regretted re-signing him shortly after the ink was dry. add kwack to the list, as well.

remove lorenzo: a rookie who won a race, crashed and lost some confidence, then regained it to impress at season's end. he also learned to ride in the wet as well.

[gco0307]

Hot:
Rossi - great return and answer to many critics who had written him off a little early. No doubt (IMO) helpded greatly to win this title by Bridgestone who provided the difference between 2007 and 2008 with their rubber and who again no doubt (IMO) developed a tyre for VR based on his requirements (just as they should for all riders). Special kudos here to Jeremy Burgess who I suspect pulled a number of tenths for Rossi by fine tuning on race morning. The best team in the competition and deserved top finishers.

Stoner - proved that he is the real deal and that it is not all just teh magical Ducati electronics that ride, steer and brake all by themselves. Again, totally outshone his more fancied (by many in the media) team-mate on a bike that whilst fast, appears extremely difficult to ride facst and get the results. Made a few errors throughout the year which one would expect given the perfect 2007 but IMO none of the errors were 'cracking under pressure'. Still, his points haul is high and just hope that by continuing on this year he has not irreparably damaged the wrist or added to the recuperation time.

Lorenzo - a great season for a first timer. Hand mega pressure applied when VR switched to Bridgestone as he now was the lone factory Yamaha on Michelins yet despite many incidents still managed fourth. Picked up a win and rode sensibly whilst trying to regain the confidence. Fully expect him to be a demon next year and my rookie of the year for 2008

Dovisioso - another rookie who performed magnificently on a customer bike (this time). Finally got his well deserved podium and the seat so richly deserved at HRC (now to get Puig out of the way).




Not
Edwards - yet another major flop of a year from the man who has (IMO) received far greater opportunities than many and yet has delivered less. Came good around contract time then faded. One can blame the Michelins (no problems for Lorenzo/Dovioso) but IMO has been around to long for little return or reward. Just because he may well be a nice guy should not guarantee him longevity in a sport that demands results. IMO, should never have gotten a 2009 contract but that said and done, I am not convinced that he will see out 2009 as my gut feel says Spies to Tech 3, Edwards to WSBK during 2009.

Hopkins - signed a moneybags deal and performed poorly, although somewhat mitigated by severe injuries and the poor quality of the equipment he had been supplied. IMO however, like Edwards, Hopkins is over-rated or over-hyped and has achieved little to date so really does nedd to lift his game a bit. Very capable of a brilliant ride (as seen in 2007) but major lack of consistency and I believe focus harms his progression. IMO, 2009 should be his last year unless results improve.

Vermuelen - I do like this guy but was so disappointed when he re-signed with Suzuki who I feel are the equal of Kawasaki as the worst in the paddock. Maybe he did not get any offers, but still a disapointing season from a rider who I believe is well better than his results have shown. Lacks consistency (IMO) and has a problem with qualifying. IMO, harsh here but 2009 should be his last if results do not improve although I am aware of rumours that he has a contract until 2010.

Elias - mega talented, lacks consistency and clearly not suited to the Ducati and only good at contract time.

Dorna/Ezpeleta - Consistent screwing with the formula means that we will again be unable to see consistency which allows the factories to develop their equipment based on previous years data. Sadly, whilst many say the racing has been boring/processional (a fact borne out by statistics) the blame cannot be sheeted to the rider but to the bloody mindedness of destroying a good prototype formula.
Here is hoping that 2009 goes again the grain despite the efforts of these boffins (with all respect to genuine boffins there).

Kawasaki/Suzuki - providers of inferior machinery. Get good technicians/engineers and listen to what the riders want.



Worse than Not
Melandri - a pure wasted talent throughout 2008. There can be no doubt that when Marco's head is right and all stars and planets aligned there are fewer more exhilerating riders on the planet. Sadlt, throughout 2008 we saw the other sad side. The side that shows a true talent fighting with inner demons and self doubt which combined to result in what I feel is the worst season by any rider on a factory bike for a great number of years. Is lucky that people remember his talent and he has another ride but sadly I do not think the Kawasaki will suit him and believe that Rossi had it right when he once said that only Honda will get the best from Melandri.


Apologies if I missed anyone.





Garry

[CaptainRaiden]

HOT:

Valentino Rossi: Without a shadow of doubt, the best rider this season. Broke Stoner as he did with Biaggi and Gibernau before. I am a Stoner fan, but I gotta call it as it is.

Casey Stoner: Way way better than any other rider on a Duc, way better than all his Aussie compatriots combined. A solid season, but with some very costly mistakes. Mistakes that cost him the world championship. Needs to have a much cooler head in 2009 if he wants to regain the championship.

Andrea Dovizioso: The only guy in the top 5 in a CUSTOMER bike! Beating factory riders on occasion and riding well above what the bike is capable of. Can't wait to see what he can do on a factory bike.

Jorge Lorenzo: Well, I hate the guy for his 'Lorenzo's Land' antics, but I have to admit that after his 3 straight poles and win at Estoril at the start of the year, I seriously thought he could win the championship in his rookie year.

Marco Simoncelli: I don't know if I'm supposed to include a 250cc rider or not, but this guy was absolutely sensational this season. After not scoring in the first two races, and a 40+ point deficit, he came back to win the championship! I don't remember anybody clawing that much back to win a championship. From a frequent crasher to a world champion. Like he said, "I was a nobody, and now I'm a world champion." Let's see if he is able to retain it next year.

The rest of them were pretty ordinary I thought.

NOT:

Marco Melandri: What the hell happened there? He forgot to take his fast pills.

Anthony West: So much promise, no results. When Kawasaki signed him and replaced Jacque last year, and the hype that followed in this forum, I thought wow, this guy must be even better than Rossi. Well, he turned out to be a total dud, of course the bike was also to blame, but I could do without that much whining and complaining. If he loses his passion and determination so soon, then I doubt he'll ever be champion in a world class series. Add to that, his inability to develop a bike to his liking. Right at the back of the grid with Melandri for almost every race. Sub par riding skills on sub par machinery = total failure.

John Hopkins: BIG mistake leaving Suzuki for Kawasaki. Even though my favorite team and I want to see them succeed desperately, but at the moment they are absolute crap.

Ducati: Replacing Capirossi with Melandri. BIG, BIG mistake.

[ChrisS]

Rossi
After 2 seasons he made a great comeback taking his 8th title, he had to up his game and managed to do so.

Yamaha
Probably provided the 4 most equal and rider friendly bikes on the grid

Lorenzo
Performed great for a rookie, went over the limits several times at the start of the season and that affected his confidence but managed rookie of the year.

Dovisioso/Team Scot
Performed great on a customer bike and got a factory bike for next season, credit also goes to his team than managed to turn JiR from one of the worst run teams to one of the best run teams in MotoGP

Nor Hot nor Not
Edwards, Vermeulen, Elias
Had some great results in some races and yet in other races looked less than avarage.

Toseland
Same as the above plus all the attention he was getting made him lose focus a bit with all the piano performances etc rather than concentrating on his racing.

Pedrosa, Hayden, HRC
Dani started well but then things went bad and changed to Bridgestone mid season, Hayden was nowhere until he became HRC/Michelin #1 rider. Worst thing about this was the politics taking place within the team.

Capirossi, di Angelis, Nakano, Guintoli, Hopkins, de Puniet
Alsoruns for most of the season, average performances

Suzuki
Always seems close but its never there to make the leap to a top team.


Stoner
While more that capable of winning and even dominating races when it came down to fighting for the title he wasnt able to handle it.

Kawasaki
The team seemed totally lost

Melandri
I expected great things but he just couldnt ride the bike.

West
Even with a bad bike he was overshadowed for most of the season, tried near the end but it was too late by then.

[Roby44]

HOT

Dovizioso!

[domaza]

I think that the biggest loss of this season, was the loss of Eurosport. This might have some very big issues in future ...

Dorna, do not mess with TV!!!

Hot: Rossi, Stoner

Hot even when he's not: de Puniet

Hot n Cold: Pedrosa, Hayden, Lorenzo

Getting very warm: Dovi !!!! as we expected.

Lukewarm: Edwards (no surprise there), Toseland - IMO won't be consistently on the podium in Motogp, Vermeulen,

Injuries, useless machinery etc put paid to some of the other rider's hopes as mentioned in other posts but would they have been hot? debatable.