10-23-2016, 11:12 AM
(10-23-2016, 10:10 AM)The ferret_imp Wrote: There have been several riders who have done it.Freddie's career was over by 1986. Two World Titles in 1985. Too many injuries. He stated at the end of that video that he planned on getting as successful as possible as soon as possible. The more I think about that guy, the more I am in awe of his mind.
Rossi is the only one that has consistantly done it year after year. Being a traditionally horrible qualifier the last few years, he has had to work his way thru the pack many times. Which is kind of stunning when you think about the quality of riders that Rossi has done this to.
He was and is the motorcycle racing equivalent of Martin Eden. Just burn yourself to the ground if you have to in order to get there. Fame and fortune are ephemeral. He's had some rough times but his stature in the business has not faded. Behind the scenes everyone listens to Fast Freddie. And you know those bikes were unbelievably hard on the body and the mind, not like the diesels the boys are riding today (that's Eddie Lawson's term for four-strokes).
Modern equipment and sports medicine has extended the careers of many riders, but none so far as Rossi, who exploited his opportunities brilliantly.
There's no other rider out there I respect like I do VR46, other than Spencer.
(10-23-2016, 05:46 AM)redbirds_imp Wrote: Had the race recorded and just finished watching. Major congrats to Crutchlow for a fine race. Rossi always seems at his best when faced with a challenge such as starting from 15th. Rossi did set the fastest lap I believe and he wisely settled for second when he realized the futility of trying to run down Crutchlow. A shame that A, Espargaro crashed out late. Crutchlow mentioned how cautious he became in braking for turn 4 after observing Marquez's crash at same.Yes, that Turn 4 is a tough one, easy to get sucked into. I was thinking of this after reading [url=http://cb1100forum.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=9705&pid=153101#pid153101]N. Ientasch's comments about KR Jr. stating there were certain turns where he never pushed it because the chances of losing the bike were too high.
Truthfully Marquez' crash was quite surprising. He had no reason to push his pace or crash. And he did simply overcook the entry; the announcer tried to make excuses for it by suggesting the tire was cold, but the young man owned up to his mistake and said he just got in too hot, which was obvious just from watching the video.
The man is brash. When at first he didn't get up, I was concerned it might have been worse. The bike, of course, is easily replaced, but if he'd been seriously hurt, HRC's game would have been changed.
This is one area he's got to think through, is risk management. Rossi has got this down to as much of a science as anyone ever has in motorsports. I gotta watch the first few laps again, 'cause a guy over at MCN was also saying Marc crashed pushing to stay ahead of Crutchlow. Seriously?