Back marker!!! Poor Ant...But true...
Thats why he needs something to gee him up and give him some confidence..
Perhaps we should blind fold him and tell him ..Ant its bloody rainning again out there. and send him out..
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Back marker!!! Poor Ant...But true...
Thats why he needs something to gee him up and give him some confidence..
Perhaps we should blind fold him and tell him ..Ant its bloody rainning again out there. and send him out..
To be honest, I think rain for Ant this year is worse than the dry! With his massive lack of rear traction, he fears for his life in wet conditions.. Its a lose/lost situation im afraid.. Surely the egg-heads down at team green will sort something out soon...
Hopefully.. That is what they are getting paid for isn't it...
Ant sounded "happy " enough after that race...
Now for the tracks he knows well.....
He knows all the tracks well, but coming up are the tracks he may have more of a base to work with from last year. Whilst 12th is better and he was closer to his teamate, he still only beat one finisher. Still need to find that piece to click to find that chunk of speed from.
Mmm.. At least he seems up-beatish.. Joking on the grid and not swearing in his interviews :D Bring on Donny..
Always a positive. ;) I guess when you're at the bottom, things can only look up, right?Quote:
Originally Posted by tha_jackal
08 Jun 2008
INJURED HOPKINS FIGHTS FOR TOP TEN
John Hopkins demonstrated true grit and determination today at the Grand Prix of Catalunya to bring his Ninja ZX-RR home in 10th position, despite carrying a back injury sustained in Friday’s practice.
Hopkins got a steady start to the 25-lap race and pushed as hard as possible, despite being unable to move around easily on his race machine, to make up positions around the 4.727km circuit. The 25-year-old Kawasaki pilot settled into a rhythm and circulated on his own for most of the race, riding through the pain barrier, to cross the line with a very creditable top ten finish.
Teammate Anthony West, who set his fastest lap of the entire weekend in the opening stages, endured a hard, race long fight with Marco Melandri to finish in a points-scoring 12th position.
The Australian switched positions with Melandri throughout the race in a nail-biting battle, but despite his persistence the 26-year-old was just beaten to the flag. West was upbeat about the result and he can now look forward to racing at Donington Park, which was where he made his premier class debut aboard the Kawasaki last season.
Depending on his condition, Hopkins will ride during tomorrow’s valuable post-race test to further develop his 800cc Ninja ZX-RR, whilst West will fly to Japan for a two-day test aimed at improving the power delivery of his machine.
John Hopkins: #21 – 10th Position
“I’m in a lot of pain right now with my injury and that was a really hard race. I tried to pass a few people at the start, but I got boxed out and I lost some ground. I pushed as hard as I could to stay with the group ahead of me, but the pain set in and I had to really focus on settling into a rhythm. It was then a case of finding a way to ride without moving around too much on the machine to finish the race, and although tenth isn’t where I want to be, in this situation I’m pleased we managed to achieve that. We still have a lot of work to do with the bike, and hopefully we can be in a good condition for the next race in Britain.”
Anthony West: #13 - 12th Position
“I rode as hard as I possibly could today and I fought hard with Marco for the entire race. I passed him into the turns on many occasions, but his machine was a bit stronger on the straights and it just meant I had a lot of work to do each time he came by. The tyre went off a little in the last few laps, which meant I just didn’t quite have enough to re-take him before the finish. I’m happy we had a good race, but we still need to make big improvements to the set-up of the bike. I’m going to Japan for a test where I hope we can try to resolve the rear traction issues I’ve been suffering, then we’ll be back in Europe preparing for Donington Park and, hopefully, we can make another step forwards there.”
Michael Bartholemy: Kawasaki Competition Manager
“Hopefully this is a new start for us and I am happy that both riders finished the race today, as the last few rounds have been difficult. We need to concentrate on making improvements to the performance of the bike before the next race to provide the riders with the best package possible. Anthony will now spend some time testing in Japan where we have better resources to focus on improving the power delivery of his machine. John rode a hard race today with his injury and we are unsure yet if he’ll be able to complete many laps during tomorrow’s test. I hope he will be fit to ride and we can continue making steps forward, so that we can be even more competitive at Donington Park.”
Race Times:
1. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 43'02.175; 2. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha +2.806; 3. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro Team +3.343; 4. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) JIR Team Scot +10.893; 5. Colin Edwards (USA) Tech 3 Yamaha +16.426; 6. James Toseland (GBR) Tech 3 Yamaha +21.482; 7. Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP +21.548; 8. Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda Team +22.280; 9. Shinya Nakano (JPN) San Carlo Honda Gresini +22.375; 10. John Hopkins (USA) Kawasaki Racing Team +46.835; 11. Marco Melandri (ITA) Ducati Marlboro Team +57.991; 12. Anthony West (AUS) Kawasaki Racing Team +59.168; 13. Sylvain Guintoli (FRA) Alice Team +1'00.779;
Kawasaki closing in on 2009 MotoGP targets
By Matthew Birt
MotoGP
04 June 2008 13:19
will have whittled a 2009 rider shopping list down to just two riders after this weekend’s Catalunya MotoGP in Barcelona.
A short list of five riders, including struggling Aussie Anthony West, has been compiled and a final decision on who will partner John Hopkins in 2009 will be taken after the Dutch MotoGP in Assen at the end of June.
Colin Edwards is believed to be one name on Kawasaki’s hit list, with Chris Vermeulen and Andrea Dovizioso believed to be other targets.
Kawasaki team boss Michael Bartholemy refused to confirm any names in Mugello last weekend, but told MCN: “The list is finished and the final selection will be finished on Monday after Catalunya.
“We want to be down to two names by then. After Assen I will go to Japan and then we can decide.”
With Kawasaki still to commit to running a third motorbike in 2009, Bartholemy denied Edwards would be shrugged aside if the factory remained a two-rider effort.
Some Kawasaki management are believed to oppose to having two American riders, but Bartholemy added: “It is not a big advantage for the market to have two American riders but if our management says its okay for us I think he is very good to develop a bike and he has a lot of experience.
“I think that would be a benefit for us but we haven’t talked about money and signing. But he could be interested and I said to him we could be interested in having a rider with his experience.”
Edwards began tentative discussions with Kawasaki in Le Mans last month.
Pondering Points:
Interesting article recently in AMCN where JB et al at Yamaland suggested their main aim for 2008 was to initially make the M1 more like the Ducati in terms of weight dist etc. Obvious reason being that the Bridgies had been developed around the Ducati.
Ant's problems began towards the end of last season after a particularly impressive beginning to his second motogp career. I for one cannot help but think that as the Bridgies evolved around Ducati so Kwakas rear traction dramas increased. Sure de Puniet was at times quick last season however finsihing races is king. All thru testing Ant continued to struggle with the front and rear.
Clearly a solution was / is required. JB used the KISS principle and rather than re-invent the wheel went to something that was already working for the Ducs. They played with weight distribution, swing arm length etc etc. Maybe I over simplify, but it aint rocket science either. How do Kwaka then solve their dilema. They began with 2008 a bike that wanted to wheel stand on acceleration and had rear traction problems. Go figure that one out...... They now have a machine that doesn't want to shoot skyward out of turns and have consequently increased their traction problems both into and out of turns. Add to that the occasional loss of confidence in the front and I am surprised Ant has any hair left. Still 17th in MotoGP is better than 13th in 250cc (and WSS is big fish in little pond stuff).
My view on Hopper V Ant is simply riding style. Hopper is way off the bike upper body wise so clearly his resultant lean angle is going to be slightly less all other things being equal.... and he certainly aint faster than Ant as Casey is over Marco. Ant has proved over and over that he is fast. Still well remember him leading Kenny Jnr and Criville at PI in 2001 on an under powered machine. Whilst on Marco go figure his dilema. A class act on a machine that is "manageable" by Casey.... but just aint working for Marco. His confidence must also be shoy to pieces.
Wayne Gardner observed at seasons end in 2007 that the Kwaka was about 100mm taller than other MotoGP bikes he tested. So clearly this is going to effect speed at which you can change in direction amognst other things. The main drama with Kwaka at present has nothing to do with their riders. It has everything to do with design, technology and dare I say incompetence in the guys setting the thing up. As I have said countless times .... a rider can only give so much feed back.... The problems however are obvious.... I wonder how long it is going to take them to solve them