Rossi let Hayden win the race.

[Busa_05]

Just a point of info, the moto GP guys arrived at the track MONDAY!!  They did have more practice than Fri, sat and Sunday.  However, I agree, Laguna is not a track that is mastered easily.  And Hayden practicly grew up on Laguna.  I also agree with the "smart racing" comments. Rossi is after the championship, not a single race!  Nevertheless Hayden did a fantastic job!!!

No need to point it out, unless you're intention was to clarify. When I mentioned an hour or so worth of practice time on the track, I was talking specfically about the superbikes, not the Grand Prix boys.



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[shortBoarder]

Hayden was amped from the start; home turf, home crowd, he knows the track..he gave Rossi + Edwards a run for their $$.

Still, from Rossi's perspective, he didn't go all-out near the end, since he didn't have to - any competitors that could possibly vie for the championship were behind him (or DNF), so he had nothing much to lose by not fighting till the bitter end - why risk a crash (and a multimillion $$ bonus for the championship) trying to be _first_ in a race that suddenly isn't too critical?

He didn't _give_ Hayden the race, he just made a smart strategic decision as the race went on - something he's really, really good at.

If Hayden wasn't racing any better that he has all season, where was Gibernau, who needs a podium desperately?

 

[Nijinsky3]

Plus, if you were there...EVERYONE was cheering LOUD AS HELL for Nicky EVERYTIME he went by.....

Then it got real quiet when Rossi went by......

 

[thesnake]

anytime someone beats Rossi, it is a great accomplishment... regardless of the situation.

hats off.

 

[Busa_05]

anytime someone beats Rossi, it is a great accomplishment... regardless of the situation.

hats off.

yeah. this is true.

 

[Charlesbusa]

Rossi let Hayden win, what a bunch of Bullsh@t!!!

These guys are racers, they all want to win. Rossi and most of the rest are unfamaliar with Laguna and are at a disadvantage to the Americans and the guys who've run Laguna more than 10yrs ago. I was standing at Turn 2 and every lap Hayden dominated the race. You think Rossi just pulled over and let Edwards pass him!!!!? Whatever!!! Rossi is not going to let anyone go by. Was Rossi pushing his hardest, probably not since he's on an UNFAMALIAR track!! That's smart racing by Rossi, but he still got beat by Hayden and Edwards! I saw Rossi go wide and screw up a couple times on Turn 2, THAT'S MAKING MISTAKES ON AN UNFAMALIAR TRACK, not that the sport is rigged. Did a Spainaird win in Spain, NO. Many more examples there.

Rossi is the best racer overall, but not at Laguna. Why is that a surprise. Hayden was fastest is practice, qualifing, and held 1st for the entire race all 32 laps.

Now here's the real question, what are guys from the USA rooting for Rossi for??

Why aren't guys from the USA rooting for an American rider??

We all know Rossi is the best, maybe the best ever. But if you're not Italian, why are you suppoprting Rossi??

Do you guys just jump on the whoever is winning bandwagon??

 

[nitrousjunkie]

Rossi let Hayden win, what a bunch of Bullsh@t!!!

These guys are racers, they all want to win.  Rossi and most of the rest are unfamaliar with Laguna and are at a disadvantage to the Americans and the guys who've run Laguna more than 10yrs ago.  I was standing at Turn 2 and every lap Hayden dominated the race.  You think Rossi just pulled over and let Edwards pass him!!!!?  Whatever!!!  Rossi is not going to let anyone go by.  Was Rossi pushing his hardest, probably not since he's on an UNFAMALIAR track!!  That's smart racing by Rossi, but he still got beat by Hayden and Edwards!  I saw Rossi go wide and screw up a couple times on Turn 2, THAT'S MAKING MISTAKES ON AN UNFAMALIAR TRACK, not that the sport is rigged.  Did a Spainaird win in Spain, NO.  Many more examples there.

Rossi is the best racer overall, but not at Laguna.  Why is that a surprise.  Hayden was fastest is practice, qualifing, and held 1st for the entire race all 32 laps.

Now here's the real question, what are guys from the USA rooting for Rossi for??  

Why aren't guys from the USA rooting for an American rider??  

We all know Rossi is the best, maybe the best ever.  But if you're not Italian, why are you suppoprting Rossi??  

Do you guys just jump on the whoever is winning bandwagon??  

What he ^ said.

 

[Nijinsky3]

Agreed...Hayden dominated every lap. No one even got with in a 1/16 of a mile of him.....he was never pushed by rossi or anyone else. Then Rossi got passed....no suprise there as he is unfamiliar with the track. Who did he get passed by you ask?? AN AMERICAN RIDER who IS familiar with the track. Rossi displayed smart racing by NOT binning the bike and just keeping third, he is still on top right? did Hayden dethrone him with ONE win? Hell no. Rossi was smart to just stay calm and be happy with third and an undamaged bike.

Give Nicky some credit! He rode a great race, he was the best ....THAT DAY.

 

[stkr00]

I finally got to see the race video last night

I don't think the race was rigged. Hayden rode one helluva race. I do believe that Rossi held back a bit, but you gotta give Hayden the credit for his skills.

He did manage to hold off Edwards the whole time, and Edwards was flying pretty good.

 

[RandomNickname]

I never thought I'd see Conpiracy Theories in motorcycle racing.

Hayden rode well... very well... he iknew the track and he used this advantage perfectly. congratulations to him on such an excellent win.

I can't believe someone would think to try and take that away from him by saying that Rossi handed it to him to please the home croud. If that were the case he'd win in Italy only.

 

[thrasherfox]

As far as Rossi Sandbagging, and all the talk of Rossi letting Nicky win.

I talked with a guy I work with who is a racer ( http://www.acsastech.com/acsas-racing/Home.html )

And he said that the difference is that European tracks are a lot different than US tracks.
A main difference is elevation changes

He was able to watch everything on the web ( http://www.motogp.com/en/motogp/index.htm ) he said there was great coverage and interviews, he said the speed channel sucks

His comments were that Hayden was used to US tracks and elevation changes and Rossi wasn’t.

Rossi wasn’t sandbagging, Rossi didn’t "give" the race away. Hayden was on his game, on his home turf and riding a type of track he has been used to all his life.

While Rossi was in an environment he was not used to nor comfortable with.

 

[JZ1]

Rossi let Hayden win, what a bunch of Bullsh@t!!!

These guys are racers, they all want to win.  Rossi and most of the rest are unfamaliar with Laguna and are at a disadvantage to the Americans and the guys who've run Laguna more than 10yrs ago.  I was standing at Turn 2 and every lap Hayden dominated the race.  You think Rossi just pulled over and let Edwards pass him!!!!?  Whatever!!!  Rossi is not going to let anyone go by.  Was Rossi pushing his hardest, probably not since he's on an UNFAMALIAR track!!  That's smart racing by Rossi, but he still got beat by Hayden and Edwards!  I saw Rossi go wide and screw up a couple times on Turn 2, THAT'S MAKING MISTAKES ON AN UNFAMALIAR TRACK, not that the sport is rigged.  Did a Spainaird win in Spain, NO.  Many more examples there.

Rossi is the best racer overall, but not at Laguna.  Why is that a surprise.  Hayden was fastest is practice, qualifing, and held 1st for the entire race all 32 laps.

Now here's the real question, what are guys from the USA rooting for Rossi for??  

Why aren't guys from the USA rooting for an American rider??  

We all know Rossi is the best, maybe the best ever.  But if you're not Italian, why are you suppoprting Rossi??  

Do you guys just jump on the whoever is winning bandwagon??  

You did see the race, yes. OK then. Rossi never pushed for any other position. Is this the Rossi everyone expects to see, week in and week out? NO.

Rossi let the two americans battle it out for the good of Amercian MotoGPs' future.

I don't support and Italian rider over hayden other otherwise.

Rossi knew he could place 2nd or 3rd and still be unreachable in the point standings. It's simple math for those of you with simple minds.

 

[TheDude27]

I agree with the second 1/2 of the thread. I don't think there is anything a promoter is going to do to a factory team to make them sandbag at this level of racing. I think its as simple as the europeans are new to the track (and that bump before the carousel is just plain insane). Having ridden/raced the track several times before is a huge advantage.

 

[RidersNation]

I DISAGREE ON TWO FRONT PLEASE BELIEVE THIS...


1. ROSSI WON THEFIRST EVER INAUGURAL CHINESE GRAN PRIX, NOT AN ASIAN RIDER.
2. ROSSI WON CATALUNYA AND ONE THE FIRST EVER 1000 CC MOTOGP IN ANOTHER FOREIGN COUNTRY.
3. ROSSI CANNOT BE WINNING ALL THE TIME.
I SAW HIM AT THE EMBASSY SUITES AND HE LOOKED VERY TIRED AND STRESSED OUT. (BEFORE RACES)
4.NICKY HAS WON MANY TIMES BEFORE HERE AND I BELIEVE HE IS IN HIS BEST FORM AT THIS POINT COLIN HAD HIS DAY AND WILL STILL BE ONE OF THE MOST FORMIDABLE RACEERS EVER, BUT NICKY JUST IS DOING A LITTLE BETTER AT THIS POINT I WATCHED THE RACES VERY CLOSELY ALL THREE DAYS AND VALENTINO ON PRACTICE DAY FRIDAY WAS IN 11TH PLACE AND THIS WAS THOUGHT TO BE ONLY TWO THINGS
ROSSI WAS PLAYING A PSYCHOLOGICAL WAR AND WAS MAKING EVERYOTHER RACER GET TOO CONFIDENT AND WAS GOING TO DO HIS FAMOUS LAST MINUTE PASS OR HE REALLY CANNOT RIDE AS GOOD ON US TRACKS AS US RACERS.


I WAS THERE ALL WEEKEND AND SAW ALOT
ROY

 

[BigK]

Rossi let Hayden win, what a bunch of Bullsh@t!!!

These guys are racers, they all want to win.  Rossi and most of the rest are unfamaliar with Laguna and are at a disadvantage to the Americans and the guys who've run Laguna more than 10yrs ago.  I was standing at Turn 2 and every lap Hayden dominated the race.  You think Rossi just pulled over and let Edwards pass him!!!!?  Whatever!!!  Rossi is not going to let anyone go by.  Was Rossi pushing his hardest, probably not since he's on an UNFAMALIAR track!!  That's smart racing by Rossi, but he still got beat by Hayden and Edwards!  I saw Rossi go wide and screw up a couple times on Turn 2, THAT'S MAKING MISTAKES ON AN UNFAMALIAR TRACK, not that the sport is rigged.  Did a Spainaird win in Spain, NO.  Many more examples there.

Rossi is the best racer overall, but not at Laguna.  Why is that a surprise.  Hayden was fastest is practice, qualifing, and held 1st for the entire race all 32 laps.

Now here's the real question, what are guys from the USA rooting for Rossi for??  

Why aren't guys from the USA rooting for an American rider??  

We all know Rossi is the best, maybe the best ever.  But if you're not Italian, why are you suppoprting Rossi??  

Do you guys just jump on the whoever is winning bandwagon??  

You did see the race, yes.  OK then.  Rossi never pushed for any other position.  Is this the Rossi everyone expects to see, week in and week out?  NO.

Rossi let the two americans battle it out for the good of Amercian MotoGPs' future.

I don't support and Italian rider over hayden other otherwise.

Rossi knew he could place 2nd or 3rd and still be unreachable in the point standings.  It's simple math for those of you with simple minds.

I disagree! Why would Rossi care about the American MotoGP? Rossi is an awesome rider with the determination to win. He's also a smart rider, but I think Nicky was not going to be beat...at least not a July 10, 2005. Nicky rode his butt off, and I for one am not going to rain on his well deserved PARADE. CONGRATS TO Nicky Hayden!!!

 

[Busa_05]

Rossi let Hayden win, what a bunch of Bullsh@t!!!

These guys are racers, they all want to win.  Rossi and most of the rest are unfamaliar with Laguna and are at a disadvantage to the Americans and the guys who've run Laguna more than 10yrs ago.  I was standing at Turn 2 and every lap Hayden dominated the race.  You think Rossi just pulled over and let Edwards pass him!!!!?  Whatever!!!  Rossi is not going to let anyone go by.  Was Rossi pushing his hardest, probably not since he's on an UNFAMALIAR track!!  That's smart racing by Rossi, but he still got beat by Hayden and Edwards!  I saw Rossi go wide and screw up a couple times on Turn 2, THAT'S MAKING MISTAKES ON AN UNFAMALIAR TRACK, not that the sport is rigged.  Did a Spainaird win in Spain, NO.  Many more examples there.

Rossi is the best racer overall, but not at Laguna.  Why is that a surprise.  Hayden was fastest is practice, qualifing, and held 1st for the entire race all 32 laps.

Now here's the real question, what are guys from the USA rooting for Rossi for??  

Why aren't guys from the USA rooting for an American rider??  

We all know Rossi is the best, maybe the best ever.  But if you're not Italian, why are you suppoprting Rossi??  

Do you guys just jump on the whoever is winning bandwagon??  

You did see the race, yes.  OK then.  Rossi never pushed for any other position.  Is this the Rossi everyone expects to see, week in and week out?  NO.

Rossi let the two americans battle it out for the good of Amercian MotoGPs' future.

I don't support and Italian rider over hayden other otherwise.

Rossi knew he could place 2nd or 3rd and still be unreachable in the point standings.  It's simple math for those of you with simple minds.

JZ...the second half of your thread, as the dude pointed out, is what we all are agreeing with; however, you said the race was fixed. That, most all of us, I think, don't agree with. Your post here, the last half, yeah...I think it's right on. Valentino didn't push hard, and he did let "the americans" battle it out...because he was not familiar with the track and was having a difficult time negotiating it, probably had a bad set up, because as another guy here pointed out, European tracks are much different. Simple math, yes. Valentino, I think, wasn't willing to risk crashing out. So he backed off and let the other guys duel, who may have had a set up that worked for Laguna better, who may be much more familiar with the track...He is so far ahead in points, he could afford to race as he did at Laguna and not crash out his machine and risk missing races because of a serious injury; or risk losing the performance he has right now in the bike he was riding (how much time has been into testing and getting the bike just the way he has it now?), because he may have to switch to a different bike if he crashes.

 

[BusaFever]

C'mon Guys,

Every sport is rigged in way fashion or another.  Think about it..A world series going the entire 7 games.  More money for the host city, vendors and the network.

Yesterday, in Laguna Seca is no different.  Hayden a local hero, racing for the first time in a MotoGP race in 11 years in the states.

If the promoters want the best results, the most "bang for their buck", have a local rider win.  This would boost the excitement for future MotoGP races in the states, which means additional revenue for everyone involved, vendors, promoters, sponsors, riders, gov't taxes, state taxes, you name it.

But for the sake of discussion, if the race wasn't fixed, then it was boring.  I've never seen Rossi be so laid back.  It's Rossi for god sake, the Micheal Jordan of MotoGP.  He's always setting the pace.  

I realize the European riders have a difficult time adjusting to the tracks' changes in elevation, but come on.  Laguna Seca is not the most difficult track in the circuit.  Hell, the weather was perfect, no rain, no moisture.  What's really goin' on?

I think it's great for Hayden, but I'm calling shananigans!!

My 2 cents.

That is THE dumbest sh!t I have ever heard in my life.


Show me 1 ounce of evidence to support your claim.

You probably think Bush started the war just for oil money too huh?

-Bill

 

[chowan24]

I believe rossi didn't see the need in pushing hard after milandri went down.. he was ahead of biaggi, and sete...  even if he had won it was only an additional 10 pnts to his already big lead (especially since milandri DNF'ed) .. while if he had wrecked pushing hard to win he stood to lose ground to biaggi, and sete..

simple math folks.

I don't think it was fixed I just think Rossi went... .. "Faak this, der is-uh no point in riding so good and maybe, ,er.. maybe crah-shing zee bike.  uhh.. milandri is wreck, and i stay ahead of closest championship competitors, my bike run good, but hayden, and colin ride verrry-uh good."

"I win championship, faak deez-uh- race!"

hard to type an italian accent.. but hey, I tried.

Ego your right he wouldn't want to crash zee bike. aaah....Gooden Shepling....HE HE

 

[Wayneswa]

I was at Laguna this week and I have had 3 track days there, Laguna is awesome and by no means a track that you master the first time out. How much time has Rossi and the other GP riders had on that track

Hayden and Edwards on home soil and with the most expierance on that track, why be suprised that they did well. I didn't think that they would go 1-2, but give them some credit.

I totally agree.
You put Rossi in his backyard (europe and most other repeat races for GP) and he is great. Let the Americans race in their backyard and they are gonna fly.
If Rossi had been racing in America the last couple years he would have had a 3 second lead.
Congrats Hayden and Edwards you did great.
But Rossi is still DA MAN.

 

[BusaFever]

If the promoters want the best results, the most "bang for their buck", have a local rider win. This would boost the excitement for future MotoGP races in the states, which means additional revenue for everyone involved, vendors, promoters, sponsors, riders, gov't taxes, state taxes, you name it. [/QUOTE]
If the "promoters" decide the fate of the race, then why wouldn't a Red Bull Suzuki rider win? Especially since there are 2 Americans riding for them? It was the Red Bull US Grand Prix after all...

Who in the USA cares about Repsol? Do they even have a market in the USA? NO...

But for the sake of discussion, if the race wasn't fixed, then it was boring. I've never seen Rossi be so laid back. [/QUOTE]
Motorcycle races are always boring when someone "checks out" like Hayden did. Just like some races where Rossi dominates, it IS boring.

I've never seen Rossi be so laid back. It's Rossi for god sake, the Micheal Jordan of MotoGP. He's always setting the pace. [/QUOTE]
MJ didn't win every game he played in... Just like Rossi won't win every race. Many times, MJ was beaten by the "home" team just like Rossi lost to the "home" boys.

Furthermore, Notice that 4 Italians won in Italy just a month ago. A publicity stunt in Italy also??
<span style='font-size:15pt;line-height:100%'>NO... HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE BABY!!!</span>
Just like the Americans had in the USA, the Italians had it in Italy. Am I making any sense here?

I realize the European riders have a difficult time adjusting to the tracks' changes in elevation, but come on. Laguna Seca is not the most difficult track in the circuit. Hell, the weather was perfect, no rain, no moisture. What's really goin' on?[/QUOTE]

Here is what is really going on... It probably IS the most difficult track on the circuit. Its tight, narrow, short, AND has more elevation changes with more blind curves than any other track on the circuit.

These are quotes from the European riders taken from MotoGP.com after the first session. They just about all agree it is difficult.

Marco Melandri, Movistar Honda – 8th
“I felt good on the bike this morning and wanted to push a little more before the time was up, but it was a mistake. I lost the rear, the bike spat me off and then dragged me down the hill through the Corkscrew. I got stuck between the rear wheel and the tail and bashed my wrist, knee and head. I was lucky because I could have really hurt myself. I couldn’t ride much today but I hope to get a decent night’s rest and make up for it tomorrow.â€[/QUOTE]

Sounds like Marco had a blast the first day eh?

Valentino Rossi, Yamaha Factory Team – 9th
“The track is difficult, it’s a strange track, old style. The Corkscrew is good, yeah it’s not too bad. Unfortunately for me it’s too dangerous for our bike. We’ve had some problems, this morning was good but this afternoon we tried something that was quite bad for the setting – so we need to improve tomorrow.â€[/QUOTE]

If the man thinks it's too dangerous, tell me how much you think he will push himself in the race?

Carlos Checa, Ducati – 10th
"This circuit isn't so easy with all this horsepower, but it's a lot of fun. So far it doesn't seem dangerous, just quite difficult at a few points. Things are okay so far, and once I feel better on the bike, so I've got more confidence and can keep rolling into the corners faster, they'll be even better."[/QUOTE]

Carlos said it wasn't so easy...

Troy Bayliss, Honda Pons – 2nd
“I haven’t been to this track for three or four years now. The track is practically the same with just a few more bumps, more of which seem to appear every year. They’ve done a good job in improving the safety, they’ve moved several walls and the impression it gives is that overall it is much safer. It’s still a hard track though, where you have to be very aware, but it’s a track I really like, also because the last time I was here I got a good result. I’m feeling good on the bike, but it will be a long weekend and this is just a good start, my best so far this year. So concentration, determination and hard work are what we need now.â€[/QUOTE]

Keep in mind, the was doing better than anyone after the first day...

Sete Gibernau, Movistar Honda – 7th
“My first impression of Laguna Seca is that it is completely different to anything we have in Europe. The objective today was simply to complete as many laps as possible in order to gather data and get references for what is a tricky circuit. The extra hour was important to adjust the gearbox, tyres and suspension for this circuit. We worked in two different directions and by the end I felt much better. We knew we were coming to a difficult circuit and it really is, but we have to be positive because we’re working in the right direction.â€[/QUOTE]

I don't think Sete thought it was a walk in the park either...



Shananigans my A$$!!!