2021 MotoGP Discussion (No Links - Contains Spoilers!) | Page 15 | GTAMotorcycle.com

2021 MotoGP Discussion (No Links - Contains Spoilers!)

This from the MotoGP website does a good job of summing up the official and all-but-official rider lineups:

MotoGP™'s 2022 silly season: how is the grid shaping up?

Barring the breaking of existing contracts, it looks like the seats without obvious candidates are one at Petronas, one at Gresini, and one at Aprilia. Tech3 and VR46 aren't set, but it's a short list of candidates for the two jobs.

Monster Yamaha: Persistent rumours that Vinales may bolt are flying thick and fast, but I suspect a lot will depend on if he can start scoring consistent top fives. There have been rumours that Yamaha was testing the waters about buying out Acosta, but that would cost a fortune.

Petronas SRT: Morbidelli stays with his long-awaited new bike, unless Vinales goes and he moves to the factory team. Big hole to fill seems inevitable for the second seat.

Ducati: No change. Everyone seems mostly happy, which can't possibly last.

Pramac: No change, everyone seems happy. Well, as happy as Droopy Zarco can look...

Repsol Honda: No change, even if Pol is apparently tied with Petrucci as the most miserable man in the paddock. Unusually, I can't see any top prospect wanting anything to do with the team, so there's no escape.

LCR: No change. Nakagami doing an excellent job, Alex not so much.

KTM: Factory stays as Oliviera and Binder, though that three year deal for Binder might be a real problem as the kids clog up the system.

Tech3: Looking like possibly Fernandez to join Gardner, or Petrucci stays for one more year with Raul staying in Moto2.

Suzuki: Same same.

Gresini: Di Giannantonio is already signed, so is all but a lock for one of their two seats.

Aprilia: Aleix plus who? Dovi deal went from being reported as a formality to being unlikely. Perhaps losing Gresini signaled to him that the talk of taking things more seriously (and spending more money) were unrealistic. Maybe pick up a cast-off like Bastianini or Petrucci, or a hungry kid willing to take a shot at a promising bike and prove he can manage big hp.

VR46: Apparently Marini is all but done for the first seat at Team Blood Money (no, I'm not letting it go), and odds are that fellow VR46 grad Bezzecchi will join him there. Rumours that they might buy Acosta out of his KTM deal were killed by Rossi saying he will stick with cult members only.

My takeaway from the above is that KTM and VR46 are doing an excellent job of developing riders and keeping them in-house with creative contracts. The rest have been caught flat-footed and the lack of cohesive presence in the lower classes is starting to hurt. Gone are the days when Honda and Yamaha could cherry pick the best riders as they came through, though neither factory is run by dummies, so I can't see that lasting long. Supposedly the guy who got passed over in Japan to run the HRC effort was at Catalunya to report on the guy who got the job, so big changes may be coming there. Could see Puig being canned if that happens...
 
KTM's decision to keep their moto2 presence (albeit in money only) was a great move by them. Keeps their pipeline connected with a potential factory seat in GP as the last milestone. It's a good incentive to sign talent to Moto3.

With Raul Fernandez in the KTM pipeline, Bezzechi likely to move up to VR46, neither Aprilia nor Gresini are not likely going to have a high prospect rider in their second seat (DiGianntonio would be in the 1st). The most plausible moto2 options are Sam Lowes, Joe Roberts, Xavi Vierge, or maybe even Aron Canet, but we're going down the depth chart - frankly, i don't see any of those riders making an impact in GP (I am still holding out on Canet though - he has talent somewhere in there, but running the Boscoscura chassis in Moto2 is not doing him any favours)

I suspect Aprilia will end up with Dovi. He is likely going to be a better for that team than any possible moto2 rider available as list above (they wont lilkely even consider Lowes even if he wins every race for the rest of the year)

I will only imagine Gresini waiting as long as possible before signing a rider. I suppose they can also consider Petrucci or Lecuona if for no other reason than they may be considered more talented than any of the moto2 riders.
 
Pieces are starting to fall into place...

Gresini is now a done deal. They just announced two years with Ducati, riders are Di Giannantonio and Bastianini, sponsor is Flex-Box.

I expect VR46 to follow soon...
 
Priller said:
Pieces are starting to fall into place...

Gresini is now a done deal. They just announced two years with Ducati, riders are Di Giannantonio and Bastianini, sponsor is Flex-Box.

I expect VR46 to follow soon...
Click to expand...

yeah, i had a major brainfart in my post above. totally forgot about basteanini and his ducati contract.

The aprilia 2nd seat and the petronas 2nd seat remain unsettled.

I have to believe that this point that Rossi is going to retire. Which makes the most likely canadidate for the petronas 2nd seat to be Vierge (he's their moto2 rider now)
 
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Well, David Emmett called it. Still King of the 'Ring, and a very smart race from Marquez. With nothing to lose, he attacked when the rain started, knowing the rest would sit up a bit watching the sky and their pit boards.

Huge for Honda, but to me just highlights their problems for the year, none of which go away after this weekend. A rider who can't turn right, and a bike that only works in slow corners. Says a lot about how far they've fallen that I was cheering hard for Marquez to hold off a closing Oliveira.

Oliviera looking incredibly fast again, and since the new frame, consistently quicker than Quartararo. Assen will be very telling, with Yamaha usually going well there. If Quartararo can beat Oliveira, it'll set Yamaha up well for the remainder of the season. KTM was looking like a one rider team up until the race, but Binder picked up the pace come race time.

Ducati did reasonably well at a track that doesn't suit the bike. Zarco's pole was always a bit of a mirage as his race pace was never there, with the tires falling off rapidly. Have to wonder about Bagnaia, as he's struggling to put together entire weekends. His qualifying has been shocking, despite good race pace. He obviously has tons of talent, so hopefully some time to mature will come good.

Aside from Quartararo, a disastrous weekend for Yamaha. Vinales started okay on Friday, but just got steadily worse. Can't see Yamaha keeping the status quo on the factory squad with weekends like that. Still, Morbidelli didn't do much better and he's supposed to be the guy who would take that spot if Vinales leaves. Nothing from Rossi to convince about carrying on into next season, either.

And my Aprilia, what can I say? I was bouncing off the walls with Aleix taking the holeshot and briefly looking like a podium was within reach. As soon as the mapping warning came up, though, it was back to the usual 6-8 place finish. With no other meaningful bike on the grid, it's hard to know if it's the bike or rider that's struggling to take the next step. There's obviously something there, though, which is why their fumbling the satellite team for next year is so frustrating.
 
Vinales is complaining about rear-grip, but with Quartararo doing as well as he is with the same bike, is it the bike or the rider?

This over-reactionist in me thinks this is the beginning of the end for Vinales at Yamaha. While not as hard-arsed as Honda, I don't think Yamaha will take too kindly to his words in public.

the-race.com

Vinales sees 'lack of respect' in current situation at Yamaha - The Race

In the aftermath of a career-worst MotoGP finish, Maverick Vinales has lashed out at Yamaha's handing of his current situation.
the-race.com the-race.com
 
Much as I'd like to write Vinales off as a moaner, three Yamahas in the bottom six riders at the end of the race does tell a story - that Quatararo is an an outlier, much as Stoner was on the Ducati when he was winning races and his team mate and satellite riders were all finishing last.

Yamaha needs to listen to all their riders and take their advice under consideration. Because if and when Quatararo gets poached by another team, they'll be in the same position as Ducati was, when Stoner jumped ship: left with a motorcycle that was only rideable by the one person who isn't there anymore.
 
Counterpoint:

Rossi is slow this year - it's a constant theme.
Morbidelli is getting slower, but his bike is 2 years old while the others are getting updates it seems.

Vinales started the season with a win, but has been downhill since.

Not saying it's the bike or the rider, but if you look at how deep the talent pool is in GP, maybe it's more the rider than the bike.
 
It's also a hyper-competitive year, with top 15 regularly within a second of each other. Vinales qualified 21st at Sachsenring, and was within a second of Zarco on pole. With things that close, small differences are magnified. Rossi is nowhere this year, but faster than he's ever been.

With the mess Yamaha has created at SRT, it's hard to know whether it's Vinales or the bike. Rossi is obviously slow (by 2021 standards), and it's looking increasingly odd that Morbidelli is on such an old machine. Still, for Vinales, his first goal is to beat his teammate, and he's failing miserably. He's got the same machinery, and while it may not necessarily suit him as well as Quartararo, it's his job to make it work.

Blaming Yamaha so explicitly and publicly seems like a desperate move, especially on the heels of so many PR disasters recently. Saying he sandbagged during the race is something I've never heard a rider with ambitions of winning admit to before. It's surreal that after round one, the talk was all about a mature and composed Maverick...

Lastly, to defend Yamaha (something I have almost never done), their design philosophy has historically been to build bikes that are easy to ride for multiple riders, focusing on corner speed and control. Honda traditionally builds man-eaters, then hires the best rider to tame it, leaving their other riders to pick up the pieces. Ducati has typically built the fastest rocketship they can, then worried about making it corner later, though they've tempered that approach lately. All this to say that if I had to put money on whether Vinales or Yamaha is the biggest problem, my bet is with the rider needing fixed.

All this coming on the heels of the Yamaha-driven crew chief change might indicate a rider in PR damage control mode, looking to set himself up for a new ride next year. Vinales' problem is there isn't a sweet ride available, with KTM, Suzuki and Ducati looking crowded for next year. Honda has their own problems, and unless the equally unhappy Pol forces a swap, are set for next year as well. Unless he wants to ride for peanuts at Aprilia (who may not want another head case anyway, after the Iannonne debacle), a Biaggi-esque career revival in WSBK may be his only option. Or kissing and making up with Yamaha, and swapping seats with Morbidelli for a change of scenery and perhaps less pressure coming from the rider on the other side of his box...
 
J_F said:
contracts and egos aside
I see Mav with HRC before long

well maybe because of that
Click to expand...

I don't think MV has the intestinal fortitude to survive Honda.

That notwithstanding, I cam see Honda signing a young rider to compliment MM. Maybe Jorge Martin or Miguel Oliveira. I don't see PE on that team long term.
 
Chaos said:
I don't think MV has the intestinal fortitude to survive Honda.
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Mav has stayed relatively healthy his entire stint at Suzuki and Yamaha, I highly doubt he would risk a HRC ride. Too many downsides and not enough upsides, I think he knows Marc was unstoppable in the past year despite it being pretty much unrideable unless you took as many risks as Marc did.

With that said, his riding style is more on the aggressive side, check out his rides in the lower categories.

It's going to end badly if he doesn't renegotiate at the end of this season the way things are going, he needs to write this season off and just go for it and try to get a ride at Ducati, even if it's a satellite ride and start from there.

Or, and this also a possibility, he realizes his greatest strength is as a test rider and stays at Yamaha and does the Dad thing. The only issue is that he struggles while Fabio, the now definitive team leader at Yamaha, does well and is leading the championship despite some non-bike related issues (zipper-gate).

I hat to say this, but with the highly competitive field we've had these past years, I'm fully convinced that unless GP is your everything, and with all the new talent waiting to come up (I think Acosta will be a game changer the way Marc was), their won't be much progress to be made with GP being a thing you do on the side while you raise a child and be a husband.

This is why I kind of feel for Rossi, despite all his absurdity since he lost the title in 2015 he has been clinging to old habits in order for him to stay competitive which hasn't translated to any real discernible success, made more poignant during the Marquez domination era and saying he 'ruined the sport' when he realy meant he ruined Rossi's career and likely has/will surpass his legacy and acolades assuming he recovers.

By the sound of things Rossi sacrificed his personal life up until recently in order to focus on his GP ride at Yamaha and with managing VR46 talent which was his been his life since he was a child. Things haven't panned out for Rossi and he has to finally accept his time has passed but at the same time that a new phase in his life has begun as a team owner, on a personal level (which I don't like delving into given my past experience with professional drivers) I just wonder if Mav will let himself consider weighing this given Rossi's very obvious cautionary tale he knows very well and experienced much of it first hand alongside Rossi in this period at Yamaha?
 
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Free race coverage on NBC this Sunday at noon for those interested.

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Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
VR46 Confirmed to use Ducati:

www.motogp.com

Aramco Racing Team VR46 sign three-year deal with Ducati

The Tavullia based team have also penned a deal with Dorna Sports to participate in MotoGP™ for five years
www.motogp.com www.motogp.com

Interesting quote:

“It would be great for me that Valentino Rossi can compete in the next few years as a pilot of our Aramco Racing Team VR46 together with his brother Luca Marini who already competes this year with the sponsorship of our brands KSA New Cities, MAIC Technologies, TANAL Entertainment Sport & Media. TANAL Entertainment Sport & Media and Aramco in the next few days will announce a collaboration in the projects from Saudi Arabia of international motorsport and the details of the project with VR46 in MotoGP and Moto2 world championship with the hope of being able to further extend its presence in MotoGP, which represents a fantastic show to train in the future young Saudi champions are also imminent.”

Not a confirmation either way, but this certainly keeps the mystery alive.

If VR does continue, then I think the next logical step is to see Bezzechi sign with Aprilia.
 
Lots of chatter on the Italian sites (GPOne.com etc.) about how Rossi needs to try a year on the Ducati because the Yamaha isn't built for him so doesn't show his potential. But in the press conference today for Assen, Rossi was asked about riding for his team next year, and I *think* he said 'the prince' (assuming Saudi) is pushing him to race next year, but then said it would be "very difficult", and seemed to play down the possibility.

I think he's going to wait until the week before Austria round one, and make a statement then. There are rumours he's already agreed to a ride in endurance car racing, so that may scratch the racing itch without all the scrutiny around finishing out of the top 10...

Vinales made some interesting comments today as well, basically saying he will copy absolutely everything Quartararo does. It wasn't a conciliatory tone with Yamaha, and felt like a passive-aggressive threat. "Fine, you want me to ride more like the other guy, I will copy him exactly and when I still suck, you can't blame me!"

Historically, Assen is a good track for Yamaha, but we've seen a few of those patterns get upset this year, including a Yamaha win at Mugello, so who knows?
 
WorldSBK rider Garrett Gerloff is subbing for the injured Morbidelli: Garrett Gerloff to replace Franco Morbidelli at Dutch MotoGP

Gerloff has been fast but erratic in WorldSBK this year, punting Jonathan Rae off track at one point. He still needs to settle down.

Seems that the one-off MotoGP ride was offered to Toprak Razgatlioglu, but Toprak opted out, preferring to keep focused on Superbike for now.
 
Priller said:
Vinales made some interesting comments today as well, basically saying he will copy absolutely everything Quartararo does. It wasn't a conciliatory tone with Yamaha, and felt like a passive-aggressive threat. "Fine, you want me to ride more like the other guy, I will copy him exactly and when I still suck, you can't blame me!"
Click to expand...

Oh they will still blame him
 
Brian P said:
WorldSBK rider Garrett Gerloff is subbing for the injured Morbidelli: Garrett Gerloff to replace Franco Morbidelli at Dutch MotoGP
Click to expand...
Apparently Dorna is desperate to get some US and/or UK riders on the GP grid, so may be hoping Gerloff can pull a Ben Spies?

Beaubier is doing okay in Moto2 with a few top 10's so far, but will need another season to see his potential. It's a bigger jump from MotoAmerica to the world stage than it was in Spies' day...

Chaos said:
Oh they will still blame him
Click to expand...
Damn right they will, and as they should. Sometimes being a rider is about adapting to a bike, not fighting it.

Heard one of the moto-journos compare it to Ducati, where Dovi and Petrucci were complaining the bike wouldn't change direction mid-corner and demanded lots of changes. Miller and Bagnaia have just figured out ways to ride around the problem, which means Ducati doesn't have to make unnecessary changes to the bike and can focus on other things.
 
Brian P said:
WorldSBK rider Garrett Gerloff is subbing for the injured Morbidelli: Garrett Gerloff to replace Franco Morbidelli at Dutch MotoGP

Gerloff has been fast but erratic in WorldSBK this year, punting Jonathan Rae off track at one point. He still needs to settle down.

Seems that the one-off MotoGP ride was offered to Toprak Razgatlioglu, but Toprak opted out, preferring to keep focused on Superbike for now.
Click to expand...

I read that Toprak couldn't take it due to his personal red bull sponsorship, whereas SRT has Monster sponsorship.

There is also speculation (that I don't really believe) that Yamaha is considering signing Gerloff to race at SRT next year due to the desire of Yamaha to have an American ride their brand.
 
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