Wsbk Tests Portimao

[CaptainRaiden]

I was just looking at this year's calendar, and if you take out Spies from all these races, Haga would have won them comfortably. These are traditionally his strongest tracks, and with that Ducati he should be very comfortable with no Spies pushing him this year. My prediction is Haga doing a double on these tracks:

Phillip Island
Valencia (Was unbeatable here in 2009)
Assen (On a Ducati, yes, maybe)
Monza (If the R1 or Fabrizio don't spoil the party)
Kyalami (Unbeatable again, did a double last year)
Nurburgring
Imola
Magny Cours

IMO going by his past records, he should win these rounds comfortably. But we'll never know how much development has gone on the other bikes during the winter. Fingers crossed for Haga-San in 2010.

[leopard]

Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing) failed to improve in the afternoon, but nevertheless ended the day in fourth, a whisker ahead of James Toseland

I think that Nori Haga would probably have won the championship last year if not for the crash at Donington but that's racing. I've seen him on TV today during a 2010 WSBK preview saying "unfortunately the Ducati is the same as last year but a lot of team staff changes". I don't understand the technical side of bikes but I'm wondering why the Ducati has had no further development, is it still the same bike that Troy Bayliss rode.

[Mach24]

I think that Nori Haga would probably have won the championship last year if not for the crash at Donington but that's racing. I've seen him on TV today during a 2010 WSBK preview saying "unfortunately the Ducati is the same as last year but a lot of team staff changes". I don't understand the technical side of bikes but I'm wondering why the Ducati has had no further development, is it still the same bike that Troy Bayliss rode.

Whilst your comment about Haga winning the championship had he not fallen at Donny may well be correct, you must also factor in that Spies had mechanical misfortune more than once and atleast one fall, on each occasion gaining no points. There are no IFS in racing!

As for the Ducati, it has reached the end of its development potential. Whilst there may be some small improvements to be made, it is more about suspension than mechanical improvement. I believe the 1198 as raced by Haga is the same spec bike as the 1098 as raced by Troy.

[The Phantom]

I think that Nori Haga would probably have won the championship last year if not for the crash at Donington but that's racing. I've seen him on TV today during a 2010 WSBK preview saying "unfortunately the Ducati is the same as last year but a lot of team staff changes". I don't understand the technical side of bikes but I'm wondering why the Ducati has had no further development, is it still the same bike that Troy Bayliss rode.

Ducati has lost David Tardozzi from the WSB squad, that's likely to have quite an impact (they also lost Livio Suppo from the MotoGP team, wonder if that will affect Stoner's campaign?).

The improvements to the bike from here on in are going to be marginal, evolutionary steps. I'm sure it's still a very strong bike, Xecutioner is right in saying that no-one else was consistently challenging Haga/Spies last year and that the R1 is not quite as good as it seemed in Spies hands. The TenKate Hondas are definitely a threat to Ducati, however.

Less than two weeks till we find out!!!!

Ducati has lost David Tardozzi from the WSB squad, that's likely to have quite an impact (they also lost Livio Suppo from the MotoGP team, wonder if that will affect Stoner's campaign?).

The improvements to the bike from here on in are going to be marginal, evolutionary steps. I'm sure it's still a very strong bike, Xecutioner is right in saying that no-one else was consistently challenging Haga/Spies last year and that the R1 is not quite as good as it seemed in Spies hands. The TenKate Hondas are definitely a threat to Ducati, however.

Less than two weeks till we find out!!!!

Thanks for adding to my knowledge guys. I wasn't sure how to interpret Nori's use of the word "unfortunately". Yes, the Ten Kate Hondas in the hands of Rea and Neukirchner are going to be right up there.


Can't wait

[NinjaMaster]

I think some of you are underrating Nori a bit here. Remember that if Ben Spies wasn't there last year, Haga would have won the championship by a country mile, a whole 76 points ahead of second best Fabrizio.

Now, I'm not saying Toseland and Crutchlow are not good riders, but let's be honest here, they're no Spies. Spies is a freak, hell, he finished 7th in the MotoGP round Valencia on the M1, a bike he had never ridden before, and beat Toseland who finished 11th. Apart from that fact, for both JT and Crutchlow, it's gonna be a new bike, new team etc. and the R1 has been rumored to be not so easy to drive (see Tom Sykes).

And unless BMW spring a Miracle, and the same for Aprilia -- or maybe Fabrizio steps his game up another notch, Neukirchner is blindingly fast out of the box in his new team, new bike, or Rea becomes more consistent on his Honda, I'm gonna bet my money on Nori finally doing it in 2010. On some tracks like Valencia and Magny Cours, he is just untouchable, at least by other "normal" riders and not freaks like Spies.

No underrating of Nori here, he's a star and a definite title contender - the deserved favourite. But the competition this year is stiff, as tough as it's been in a long time. Toseland may not be Spies, but he is a 2-time champ and knows how to win the title. Crutchlow did the same as Spies did last year, brained the competition on a new bike at foreign tracks. There's nothing to say he can't do it this year. The likes of Rea and Fabrizio got better as last year went on and I'd expect that improvement to continue this year. Aprilia doesn't need a miracle this year, just continued development. They won a race last year and Max finished 4th. They should be competitive. Suzuki will likely blow a bit hot and cold and Kawasaki and BMW will be grid fillers.

What happened last year is history, this is a new season, a clean slate. I'm expecting a battle between Haga, Fabrizio, Toseland and Rea. My money would be on Toseland given he'll be hungry for a return to success, he knows how to win the title and the Yamaha should be even better in 2010. Whatever happens, it will be a battle royale!

[Wim_Impreza]

My prediction: Toseland won't be in the top 5 overall standings at the end of the season.

For the title, my prediction is that it will be a fight between Haga and Rea. I hope Haga can finally win it because I support him, Haslam and Smrž.