The West curse strikes again?Quote:
Originally Posted by tha_jackal
Printable View
The West curse strikes again?Quote:
Originally Posted by tha_jackal
Quote:
Originally Posted by tha_jackal
Hannspree has also cut down its Ten Kate sponsorship to 2 superbikes and 2 Supersports
Checa and Rea will have the Hannspree livery while Kiyo will have an HRC livery with HRC logos (but all 3 bikes will be the same)
Anthony (I just want to ride the bike) West - 3rd at Season Opener in Phillip Island.
"I am really happy with third position today. I started from 12th on the grid and got a pretty good start but got held up by Gary McCoy, which pushed me back to 14th. I knew I had to fight my way up to the front pack. The bike was working really well and on lap 19 I took the lead. I had a good battle with the Ten Kate Hondas which were slightly faster on the straight. I am very happy how things turned out today. I would like to thank the team for putting in such a great effort this weekend." - Dunno who had the biggest smile at Race end - Ant or Bracksy.
Being fortunate enough to witness the race first hand I am happy to report that Ant's ride was clearly the ride of the meeting. Coming from 14th at the end of lap 1 and he was up to 3rd by lap 8 whilst the others were conserving tyres. Ant was eatin' them in sector 4 and finished with the fastest time for that sector but was down on speed down the shute if he was not able to slipstream someone. ( having said that, Corser was unbelievable and putting on a great show for us punters around Siberia in race 2 - no traction and he had it seriously sideways and smokin' from about lap 3 )
I had a long chat with Ant on the Thursday before the race and he seems pretty happy with his new management group after canning the previous guy. There has already been a heap of reports about Ant's connection with Stiggy and that relationship may well bear fruit in 2009. The biggest thing he has to deal with is simply the major step down from a MotoGP bike. One thing for sure though is that his ego is not getting in the road. He also has a new leathers supplier after his previous supplier advised him at the beginning of the end of 2008 test that they would not be able to continue supporting him.
"Australian racer, Anthony West, signs agreement with MTECH and will get to wear the number 13 NKP leather suit; and Arzignano (firm in Vicenza, Italy - subsidiary of Gruppo Mastrotto) accessories for the entire Supersport 2009 season."
Ant will have Bernie Hatton with him for 6 or 7 rounds. Bernie was Ant's first race coach and has been involved with a truckload of Aussie top road racers over the years. I reckon this is a real step forward and have always found it hard to believe more riders do not travel with a "Riding Coach".
After speaking with a few others close to Ant over the weekend "rumour" has it that Yamaha wanted him for their super sport team but was rejected by his previous management without consulting Ant. Apparently Ant was furious when the Yamaha guys spoke to him at the 2008 test.
I for one am looking forward to the Go Cart tracks in Europe where top speed is not as big a deal as it is at THE ISLAND,
To be able to mix it in round 1 with the Ten Kate boys is very promising indeed. Looking forward to Losail this Saturday!
It would be awesome if Ant could be somehow involved with the Suzuka 8 Hour race with Honda for 09.. Like Josh Brookes was last year.. Then he could look to jump up to WSBK next year (2010) aboard a Honda, weather that's sticking with Stiggy or getting a 'promotion' with Ten Kate..Quote:
Originally Posted by Pantah Jack
If that rumour about the Yamaha team is true, it's well and truly a disgrace.. A team of West and Crutchlow would be an amazing sight to see, i don't think Foret is going to be up to it this year..
Hopefully Stiggy can work on their top-end, if they can sort it out, there is no reason Ant shoudn't be the main man for the title this year..
Fingers crossed, just so good to see him happy again and racing for podiums, rather than trying to avoid being lapped :D
Jake , I was being polite calling it a rumour.......
nudge nudge wink wink say no more
the guy was / is an a#@%hole just took Ant a while to realise it.
Yea Phantom but do you remember the freight train finish at the Island last year in the 600's.Quote:
Originally Posted by The Phantom
To be fair to Stiggy though they are a little better than a "privateer" team now. Haslam's results also were nothing short of sensational and he was my 2nd pick for rider of the meet.
oh..great to see a driver having such a loyal fanbase ;)
so are stiggy going to get a 09 CBR this year? mr. laverty's 09 bike is soooo fast down the straights and westy really needs a horsepower boost..
Personally i can't wait till we get to Europe, thats when the underpowered Westy will begin to shine. He's always the quickest through the twisty parts, but loses out on top speed, as was graphically evident at Round 1, Phillip Island, and again at Losail. I wonder what odds i can get for Valencia, Magny Cours, Assen....etc etc etc.... There's little doubt who'd be winning every race if they were all running on equal machinery, we saw what Westy can do on a factory bike when he had those few ride on the then underpowered Yamaha... he absolutely smashed the Ten Kate boys senseless... i believe that was a turning point in Westy's career... i wonder where he'd be if he had stayed with factory Yamaha and won them a championship - rather than jumping on the first seat offered to him.... that piece of crap Kwakka was never going to do him any favours :-(