Bushiee46
04-03-2007, 16:11
http://www.gixerjunkies.net/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=8098&stc=1&d=1173021057
With the start of the Moto GP season just over a week away, we start our team-by-team look at all the competitors, starting with the two Yamaha squads.
Yamaha Racing
Riders: Valentino Rossi & Colin Edwards
Yamaha… where to start? 2006 was a poor year for Japan's second manufacturer. Their bike was slower than Honda's, less reliable, and more susceptible to totally changing its handling in varying track conditions.
That they managed five victories – more than any other team – was down far more to the genius of talisman Valentino Rossi (pictured) than to the speed of the bike.
Things look much better this year, and not just in terms of the livery, although the recent Qatar test was the only pre-season gathering where the dominated against relative opposition, and the unique nature of the Losail track cannot be considered an accurate barometer for the rest of the season.
As far as battling for the title, everything is in place. Both Rossi and Colin Edwards are back for what will be their third season together, and the pair are friends both on and off the track, meaning a tension-free garage, which will allow the team to keep their focus well and truly on the task in hand.
Rossi will be doubly determined to win world title number six after his crash in Valencia last year, and his testing form – especially the pace of himself and the Michelin tyres over long runs – make him even more of a hot favourite for the title than before.
Edwards is still looking for that elusive first win, but it will be a major surprise if he does not break his duck this season. He has topped more days of testing than Rossi, showing that he has great one-lap speed on Michelin's new fronts, but has been 0.3 seconds slower per lap than his team-mate after ten tours on most long runs.
After a recent test in Qatar he said he would be surprised if Rossi and himself did not finish one-two in the championship. Whilst that may be a little optimistic, don't be surprised to see him finishing top-four overall.
Prediction: Rossi to win title number six and Edwards to finally break his victory duck.
Tech-3 Yamaha Racing
Riders: Makoto Tamada & Sylvain Guintoli
http://www.gixerjunkies.net/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=8099&stc=1&d=1173021057
Herve Poncharal's French squad have been going backwards ever since they burst onto the Moto GP scene in 2001 as the reigning 250cc world champions, and 2006 was their worst season yet.
Carlos Checa – their prize asset – saw his reputation enhanced after a season of struggle, but he has jumped ship to Honda and Brit James Ellison has also hot-footed it off to the AMA Superbike Series. In have come Makoto Tamada and Sylvain Guintoli, so on the rider side at least, they are at about the same level as last year.
Machinery-wise though, they have definitely made gains, with their 800cc Yamaha being identical in base-spec to the one that Valentino Rossi will ride. That's the theory anyway. The reality is that although the bikes were the same when they were handed over by the factory, Rossi's team have already made use of numerous upgrades that will not be available to Tech-3 until the late Spring at least.
Their decision to stick with Dunlop tyres too, makes you wonder just what they are playing at. True, due to their lack of recent wins, the British manufacturer will not be bound by the limitations as Michelin and Bridgestones, but with only themselves running the rubber, there will be no other teams to gauge themselves against, and that could cause more problems than having bespoke tyres will solve.
As far as riders go, Tamada has two wins to his name, but showed absolutely nothing last season on the Konica Minolta Honda, save for a sparkling performance in Germany that ended in the gravel along with Kenny Roberts Jr's machine.
He seems to be following the trend of the Japanese riders that come to Moto GP, make an instant impact, have a bad season and then lose all confidence in their own ability and drop of the radar completely, aka Nobuatsu Aoki, Tohru Ukawa and Norick Abe.
He needs to kick the habit, and fast, if he is to stand any chance of remaining in Moto GP beyond this season, especially with the new breed of riders from Japan, led by the Aoyama brothers, coming on strongly in 250s.
Guintoli (pictured), by contrast, is a virtual newcomer. Sure, having spent the last five years in 250s, he'll have a slightly easier transition to the top-class machinery than if the 990s had still been around. And coming off the back of his most successful season in the class, where he finished ninth overall despite having a year-old privateer Aprilia, confidence will be high
But a broken collarbone, which he sustained in testing at Estoril in November, has kept him out of much of the pre-season running, and he needs to make up for that. It's hard to see him qualifying inside the top-15 on more than one or two occasions, but will have a decent future in the sport if he can match Tamada this season.
Prediction: Tail-end charlies, they must maximise their points capabilities when they can, and not get embarrassed by the likes of Ilmor and d'Antin. Much will depend on Tamada's confidence levels.
With the start of the Moto GP season just over a week away, we start our team-by-team look at all the competitors, starting with the two Yamaha squads.
Yamaha Racing
Riders: Valentino Rossi & Colin Edwards
Yamaha… where to start? 2006 was a poor year for Japan's second manufacturer. Their bike was slower than Honda's, less reliable, and more susceptible to totally changing its handling in varying track conditions.
That they managed five victories – more than any other team – was down far more to the genius of talisman Valentino Rossi (pictured) than to the speed of the bike.
Things look much better this year, and not just in terms of the livery, although the recent Qatar test was the only pre-season gathering where the dominated against relative opposition, and the unique nature of the Losail track cannot be considered an accurate barometer for the rest of the season.
As far as battling for the title, everything is in place. Both Rossi and Colin Edwards are back for what will be their third season together, and the pair are friends both on and off the track, meaning a tension-free garage, which will allow the team to keep their focus well and truly on the task in hand.
Rossi will be doubly determined to win world title number six after his crash in Valencia last year, and his testing form – especially the pace of himself and the Michelin tyres over long runs – make him even more of a hot favourite for the title than before.
Edwards is still looking for that elusive first win, but it will be a major surprise if he does not break his duck this season. He has topped more days of testing than Rossi, showing that he has great one-lap speed on Michelin's new fronts, but has been 0.3 seconds slower per lap than his team-mate after ten tours on most long runs.
After a recent test in Qatar he said he would be surprised if Rossi and himself did not finish one-two in the championship. Whilst that may be a little optimistic, don't be surprised to see him finishing top-four overall.
Prediction: Rossi to win title number six and Edwards to finally break his victory duck.
Tech-3 Yamaha Racing
Riders: Makoto Tamada & Sylvain Guintoli
http://www.gixerjunkies.net/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=8099&stc=1&d=1173021057
Herve Poncharal's French squad have been going backwards ever since they burst onto the Moto GP scene in 2001 as the reigning 250cc world champions, and 2006 was their worst season yet.
Carlos Checa – their prize asset – saw his reputation enhanced after a season of struggle, but he has jumped ship to Honda and Brit James Ellison has also hot-footed it off to the AMA Superbike Series. In have come Makoto Tamada and Sylvain Guintoli, so on the rider side at least, they are at about the same level as last year.
Machinery-wise though, they have definitely made gains, with their 800cc Yamaha being identical in base-spec to the one that Valentino Rossi will ride. That's the theory anyway. The reality is that although the bikes were the same when they were handed over by the factory, Rossi's team have already made use of numerous upgrades that will not be available to Tech-3 until the late Spring at least.
Their decision to stick with Dunlop tyres too, makes you wonder just what they are playing at. True, due to their lack of recent wins, the British manufacturer will not be bound by the limitations as Michelin and Bridgestones, but with only themselves running the rubber, there will be no other teams to gauge themselves against, and that could cause more problems than having bespoke tyres will solve.
As far as riders go, Tamada has two wins to his name, but showed absolutely nothing last season on the Konica Minolta Honda, save for a sparkling performance in Germany that ended in the gravel along with Kenny Roberts Jr's machine.
He seems to be following the trend of the Japanese riders that come to Moto GP, make an instant impact, have a bad season and then lose all confidence in their own ability and drop of the radar completely, aka Nobuatsu Aoki, Tohru Ukawa and Norick Abe.
He needs to kick the habit, and fast, if he is to stand any chance of remaining in Moto GP beyond this season, especially with the new breed of riders from Japan, led by the Aoyama brothers, coming on strongly in 250s.
Guintoli (pictured), by contrast, is a virtual newcomer. Sure, having spent the last five years in 250s, he'll have a slightly easier transition to the top-class machinery than if the 990s had still been around. And coming off the back of his most successful season in the class, where he finished ninth overall despite having a year-old privateer Aprilia, confidence will be high
But a broken collarbone, which he sustained in testing at Estoril in November, has kept him out of much of the pre-season running, and he needs to make up for that. It's hard to see him qualifying inside the top-15 on more than one or two occasions, but will have a decent future in the sport if he can match Tamada this season.
Prediction: Tail-end charlies, they must maximise their points capabilities when they can, and not get embarrassed by the likes of Ilmor and d'Antin. Much will depend on Tamada's confidence levels.