Forgive me if this is in the wrong section, but this week-end MotoGp is coming to America.

This motorcycle formula comprises of the Worlds best riders, riding the most technically advanced bikes.

Colin Edwards is one to watch on the Yamaha as is Nicky Hayden on a Honda. (both Americans)

The rider to watch though will be Valentino Rossi. In sports you sometimes get a talent that is exceptional, these individuals are exceptionally talented and can do things that we mere mortals are simply not capable of copying. In the rain he lays the bike at angles that defy the laws of traction!!

Rossi has been World Champion in every Formula he has competed in, sadly a lot of critics stated he acheived this solely because of the bike he rode!!

Two years ago Rossi opted to ride for Yamaha. This manufacturer had failed to perform for a number of years and the bike simply was not good enough.

His first race with this manufacturer saw him win, and his first season saw him become World Champion AGAIN.

Out of respect to Kenny Roberts (or a publicity stunt) the Yamaha will be seen in its old racing colours of yellow and black, but you will NOT see the number '1' on Rossi's bike. He always races with the number '46'. His bike has never been the fastest so he never takes off and disappears. He will work his way to the front and the pace he rides at simply wears the oppostion down.

My hero has never raced at this circuit so he might not win, but it should be extremely entertaining.

If you get the chance to watch, then PLEASE just see what you think.

 

Legua Seca venue, especially when the GP bikes are there, is an incredible
weekend of bikes, babes, buns, and the smell of 2-stroke oil. By far one
of the greatest experiences of my life was spent working the GP pitcrew at
this great racetrack. The infield offers great views of the track and allows
you to get to the world famouns corkscrew turn to see the bikes brake hard,
bank left...then hard right.....all the while traverssing a short and steep
downhill stretch.

Having access to the pits, I had fun nosying my way to all the factory
pits. The depth of their tech support is astounding, as they threw
everything but the kitchen sink to support these $250k+ bikes.
The experience left me not only with the worst sunburn I ever, but also
seared into my photo album wonderful pictures and panoramas that
continue to elicit smiles even now. Had a chance to do the Keith
Code superbike school thang as well. Man....I get all choked up just
thinking about it. IOW, don't just watch this on the tele, go there and
experience this in the California sunshine!

 

I even envy you the sun-burn. Brilliant post and thanks for sharing those memories. No doubt you are aware that Gp bikes are now LOUD 4-stroke 1000cc machines, that are even faster than those old screaming 500cc two strokes.

Thanks again,
John

 

Wonderful track, Laguna Seca. The admins of MBWorld have raced there several times in Evosport cars. Me, well I enjoy racing Laguna in the PC virtual reality world. It's a very "rythmic" track to learn.

I've even painted several Prototype car skins for the Virtua_LM mod to F-1 Challenge (PC)... Chevy Intrepids, Toyota Eagle MKIIIs, etc., all in the corkscrew, but the last one...

 

Unfortunately if Laguna wants MotorGp to return then they are going to have to carry out numerous safety improvements.

I am certainly NOT criticising the circuit, I am of the old school that appreciates the older style circuits that encourage drivers\riders to keep their vehicle on the circuit. The Isle of Man TT used to be part of the Gp calendar and the lap there is in excess of 30 miles (thirty) going through towns, and high walled bends!

Rossi has qualified second and this is the first time he has ever ridden on this circuit; as usual he is surrounded by Honda's and fingers crossed that we will see an entertaining race.

Oh and the latest regarding the FIA saga..... Max Moseley has now been interviewed on television and stated that the constructors were told a temperorary chicane was not going to happen....... They refused to believe he was serious!!! Now fine, I accept their can only be one Captain, but at the end of the day who was punished by this childish stubborn attitude? Let them race, then punish them after they have entertained the public. Numerous options were offered, but Moseley who was in Monaco refused to listen. His latest public comment is, "If they don't like it, then they can all leave!!!" That was a mind boggling statement and Moseley is certainly insisting on upping the stakes!

My personal opinion is that Moseley is not a suitable person to head the FIA. During the interview he stated he rarely attends Formula One and simply watches most races on television!!!! That to me speaks volumes. Sir Jackie Stewart would be the ideal choice, this person bleeds engine oil, racing is his life, plus he has the respect of both drivers and constructors.

Bye again,
John
Regards

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laguna_Seca

 

Here here. Excellent choice. Stewart is all about safety and pleasing the fans. And he is still quite involved in the game even though he sold his team some years ago to jaguar. I've seen him in attendance at the last three events (on TV).

David Hobbs would also be a great choice, although I don't think he would be interested in the business side of the sport.

 

If those are the pits in the background, did the car spin out? ;-) .... or am I remembering incorrectly?

p.s. am stuck at work today and this was the closest i could get to the
racetrack earth.google.com and nav over to

36º34'52" N 121º45'12"W

 

Hayden ends Rossi run in the U.S. Grand Prix
11 July 2005
Xinhua News Agency
(c) Copyright 2005 Xinhua News Agency
WASHINGTON, July 10 (Xinhua) -- American Nicky Hayden ended world champion Valentino Rossi's run of five consecutive MotoGP wins with victory in the U.S. Grand Prix in Monterey, California on Sunday.

The Honda rider Hayden, who started on pole, led from start to finish at the Laguna Seca track which hosted the first American Grand Prix for 11 years.
Compatriot Colin Edwards, on Yamaha, took second with teammate Rossi third.

Italian Rossi, who said the track was unsuitable for motorcycle racing, remains on course for a fifth consecutive world title.

Hayden clinches first win at United States Grand Prix


10 July 2005
08:16 pm
Agence France Presse
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2005 All reproduction and presentation rights reserved.
MONTEREY, California, July 10 (AFP) -
America's Nicky Hayden, riding a Honda, clinched his first career win on Sunday in the United States Grand Prix at Laguna Seca as world champion Valentino Rossi extended his lead in the world title race.

Hayden's fellow American Colin Edwards was second on a Yamaha with six-time world champion Rossi of Italy, also on a Yamaha, finishing third.
"I'm so happy," said Hayden, whose victory in 45min 15.374sec capped a dominant build-up to the race. "The whole weekend, everything was perfect."

"During the last lap, I thought about my family who have always supported me ... The last lap was incredible," he said.

Despite his third place, Rossi stretched his lead in the world championship standings after closest rival Marco Melandri crashed out early on in a race watched by 58,000 people.

"It was a difficult race but also a good race," said Rossi. "It was a good fight with the Americans, but the track was demanding both mentally and physically.

"We have another podium and we are happy."
Hayden, with experience of this track following his career in Superbikes, led from the start having grabbed his first MotoGP pole position on Saturday.
After a moment of silence before the race in honor of the victims of the London bombings, Hayden led the field up the steep climb through turn one, and was never in serious trouble throughout the 32 lap race.

Australian Troy Bayliss, another rider with Superbike experience at Laguna Seca, got away well but was overtaken by Rossi for second before the end of the first lap.

Hayden leads 1-2 American finish in U.S. Grand Prix
10 July 2005
07:49 pm
Associated Press Newswires
(c) 2005. The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.
MONTEREY, Calif. (AP) - Nicky Hayden became the first U.S. rider to win a world MotoGP race in five years Sunday, leading from start to finish to beat fellow American Colin Edwards in the U.S. Grand Prix.

Hayden celebrated the win -- his first in 38 MotoGP starts -- before a crowd of 57,000 at Laguna Seca Raceway by taking his father, Earl, along for the victory lap on the back of his Honda holding an American flag.

"This feels so good," Hayden said. "I got a good start, I kept my head down and never let up. Thanks to the team for believing in me, thanks to my mom and dad and thanks to all the fans, waving and cheering me on. They gave me something I'll never forget."

Edwards finished second, 1.941 seconds back to give the United States its first 1-2 finish on the MotoGP circuit since the 1993 Spanish Grand Prix.
Hayden, from Kentucky, is the first U.S. winner since Kenny Roberts took the 2000 Pacific Grand Prix in Motegi, Japan.
Italian star Valentino Rossi finished third, snapping his five-race winning streak.


MotoGP-Red Bull United States Grand Prix Results
By The Associated Press
226 words
10 July 2005
07:44 pm
Associated Press Newswires
English
(c) 2005. The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.
1. Nicky Hayden, United States, Honda, 45 minutes, 15.374 seconds.
2. Colin Edwards, United States, Yamaha, 45:17.315.
3. Valentino Rossi, Italy, Yamaha, 45:17.585.
4. Max Biaggi, Italy, Honda, 45:19.590.
5. Sete Gibernau, Spain, Honda, 45:19.852.
6. Troy Bayliss, Australia, Honda, 45:37.755.
7. Makoto Tamada, Japan, Honda, 45:37.867.
8. John Hopkins, United States, Suzuki, 45:38.522.
9. Shinya Nakano, Japan, Kawasaki,45:38.999.
10. Loris Capirossi, Italy, Ducati, 45:41.497.
11. Ruben Xaus, Spain, Yamaha, 45:58.886.
12. Alex Hoffman, Germany, Kawasaki, 46:06.331.
13. Toni Elias, Spain, Yamaha, 46:06.712.
14. Kenny Roberts, United States, Suzuki, 46:29.123.
15. Shane Byrne, England, Proton, 46:39.530.
------
Race Statistics
Winner s Average Speed: 95.165 mph.
Fastest Lap: Edwards, lap 5, 1:23.915 (96.232 mph).
Race Top Speed: Hopkins, 157.08 mph.
Event Top Speed: Hayden, 161.06 mph.
Points Standings (after 8 of 17 races): 1. Rossi, 186 points. 2. Melandri, 107. 3. Biaggi, 100. 4. Gibernau, 95. 5. Edwards, 93. 6. Hayden, 85. 7. Barros, 74. 8. Capirossi, 55. 9. Nakano, 55. 10. Bayliss, 47. 11. Checa, 40. 12. Xaus, 33. 13. Tamada, 27. 14. Hopkins, 27. 15. Jacque, 25.



UPDATE 2-Motorcycling-Hayden ends Rossi run with U.S. victory
394 words
10 July 2005
06:36 pm
Reuters News
(c) 2005 Reuters Limited

MONTEREY, California, July 10 (Reuters) - American Nicky Hayden ended world champion Valentino Rossi's run of five consecutive MotoGP wins with victory in the U.S. Grand Prix on Sunday.

The Honda rider, who started on pole, claimed his first Grand Prix victory on his 38th start, finishing 1.941 seconds ahead of compatriot Colin Edwards.
Italian Rossi took third at the Laguna Seca track, hosting the first American Grand Prix for 11 years.

It was the Yamaha rider's worst finish this season but he remains on course for a fifth consecutive world title.

Rossi extended his championship lead to 79 points over compatriot Marco Melandri after eight of 17 rounds. Melandri was involved in a first lap crash with Brazilian Alex Barros and failed to finish.

The 23-year-old Hayden, whose previous best was third in Germany last year, led every lap of the 2.238-mile road course in the hills east of Monterey, California.

"My team and my bike, just everything felt good today and it just clicked," said Hayden.

"I just got out front and just kept going as hard as I could. Sometimes I would see the gap get small and I just rode my heart out and kept pushing, pushing.

"Today was my day thanks to my team. I mean these guys pushed me hard... every dog has his day."

Rossi was passed by team mate Edwards with a deft inside move into the Corkscrew, the track's signature turn, on the 16th of 28 laps.
Rossi, who had been critical of the track, saying it was unsuitable for motorcycle racing, attacked at the end of the race, closing to 0.371 seconds of Edwards, but had to settle for third on the podium.

"I'm happy because we are always been on the podium this year," said the Italian.

"But we had some problems. We are not at 100 percent."

Italian Max Biaggi was fourth and remains third in the standings, although he closed to within seven points of Melandri.
The U.S. Grand Prix is the only event on the calendar that doesn't include the 125cc and 250cc classes.


MOTOGP
297 words
10 July 2005
Sunday Mail
1 - State
68
English
Copyright 2005 News Ltd. All Rights Reserved
MOTOGP world champion Valentino Rossi criticised the Laguna Seca track for being too dangerous after he was only ninth fastest in practice on Friday for the US Grand Prix this weekend at Monterey, California.

Despite Laguna Seca meeting all the relevant safety standards set by motorcycling's international governing body and passing a safety inspection just weeks ago, Rossi blasted the track on his first visit.

"This track is pretty dangerous in many points but there are some places where it's very, very dangerous," he said in a statement. "I never saw this track before but (2000 world champion) Kenny Roberts saw it and obviously thought it was safe.

"The level of security is not very good, it's not as good as the other tracks we race at. If we don't make some changes to this track for the future we might not be able to race here again."

Rossi, who has won the last five MotoGPs and six of seven this season, was only ninth quickest after the first of two days of practice for today's race. The Italian's time from morning practice stood as his best.

Nicky Hayden was the quickest overall, setting a lap record on his Honda with a time of 1:24.228 and an average speed of 154.295 km/h. Hayden's record time was on his 21st of 24 laps in the 60-minute afternoon session. He knows the track well, having won here twice when he was competing in the US Superbike championship, which he won in 2002.

Aussie Troy Bayliss, another former winner at Laguna Seca, was second fastest after the two sessions, followed by Italy's Max Biaggi and Brazil's Alex Barros.

 

As mentioned originally, the Toyota Eagle MKIII and the 1992-93 Chevy Intrepids are all in the Laguna Corkscrew. But this 1991 Mazda 787B is posed astride the S/F line at MONZA, not Laguna Seca. They race clockwise there. (It's just one of my favorite paint schemes.) BTW, these jpgs are all sized for use on my V400 Motorola cellphone as wallpapers.