He's on the best bike. (best Honda anyways) and he finished a full minute behind Dovi on a second tier Honda, both on Michelins. I guess he can only win when the bike that was built just for him is exactly right. If he keeps it up the way he's going, he may get bounced right out of Moto GP. Do you think he'll be on Dunlops next year??

In his defense the best Michelin guy was in 9th place. In the post-race he was saying he had no confidence due to lack of grip on both ends and that this was his worst weekend of his career. He's definitely a good rider, perhaps he doesn't have what it takes due to the tire issues.

Dovi was on the same tires. I guess he's just, what, about 2 1/2 seconds a lap better than Dani?

That's based on confidence - you aren't going to ride as hard if you feel like pushing will lead to a crash, especially the 1st race back after an injury. Based on his post race comments that's how I took it even though he doesn't mention the injury. Dovi's quote only referred to the front tire.

Here's his post race quote:
Dani, 15th, said: "This weekend has been a complete disaster - probably the worst of my career. In fact I couldn't even race today, all I could do was ride; I couldn't control the bike, I didn't feel safe. I was riding so slow I felt ashamed. I considered stopping but I stayed out there to get some points. We really need a drastic improvement from the tyres. I had no grip at the front and no grip at the rear, from the first lap to the last. It was therefore impossible for me to push any harder. I almost crashed twice, so I just tried to finish the race. At the end the tyre performance was even worse than during the early laps."


Dovi, ninth, said: "My goal for the race was to be the first Michelin rider home, which is what I have achieved, but things were too difficult to do better. I started fully motivated and wanting to give the maximum and exploit fully the material at our disposal, but today I cannot be satisfied with the result. I had difficulty with the front tyre and was forced to change my style of riding, which meant not being able to exploit my speed in the corners."

Face it peepee fans, he's another Max Biaggi. Could win on the mopeds, but couldn't do it consistently on the big bikes. Look at Max's results in WSB - flashes of speed but no consistency.

One race Dovi's in front of him and he's the better rider? Get a grip.

Did they select the same tires for the weekend? Were they on the same compound and construction? Was either rider injured?

Pedrosa is the best rider at Honda and one of the 3 best riders in the world - when he's healthy. Only Lorenzo has seriously challenged that trio this season with any consistency, and his consistency is gone.

I don't think after this little spell that Pedrosa is done. But I do think Pedrosa has some liabilities at this point in his career that could prevent him from winning a title.

*Poor racecraft
Pedrosa seems to have a very tough time passing the other front runners. He'll need to improve on that if he is to go toe to toe and pull out wins when the race is close

*Attitude
He's not as quick to blame others as Biaggi was but he has shown similar tendencies. If he makes the mistake of getting on HRC's bad side that is going to have some serious consequences for his career. Then there's the whole mental toughness thing. Rossi hasn't really messed with him too much yet but I get the feeling he wouldn't hold up well.

*Crashes
Pedrosa is not a crasher per se, but he tends to get hurt when he does. He got injured in his rookie year in a crash that potentially cost him the title at the time. His crash in testing this year kept him on the sidelines most of the preseason. His crash at Sachsenring sunk his title hopes this year. Not crashing is key to winning titles, especially with the spread of talent in the grid right now.

I think if Pedrosa addresses at least one of his major weaknesses then that'll be enough to win a championship. But any of those three things could sink him (crashes already have twice).

rexracer - 20 August 2008 09:45 AM

He's on the best bike. (best Honda anyways) and he finished a full minute behind Dovi on a second tier Honda, both on Michelins. I guess he can only win when the bike that was built just for him is exactly right. If he keeps it up the way he's going, he may get bounced right out of Moto GP. Do you think he'll be on Dunlops next year??

I guess it depends on what you are talking about as far as having what it takes.To stay in GP.of course,he is one of the top 3-4 riders in the world.To stay at Honda,again yes,he is one of the top 3-4 riders in the world and his sponsor is Repsol.Spanish rider,Spanish,sponsor.To win a title,that where it gets tricky.You would have to say there is something missing in the overall package that will more often than not keep him from winning a title.Can he win a title,of course,if things fall perfectly for him.I despise the little hobbit but i will not deny his talents.He has every right to be pi$$ed at Michelin at this time,they are pitiful.His confidence is a little low at the moment,what transpires over the next few races will tell us a lot about who and what Dani is all about.If he continues running in the back half of the field and getting beat by satellite riders,that tells me he is a quitter.He has won races this year so the Michelins have not been totally unreliable.Even when he couldnt keep pace with Rossi and Stoner,he was the class of the rest of the field.The same goes for Lorenzo,he is obviously a little spooked and needs to put it behind him and start racing again or he could get the same tag that Dani is getting.

wow Rex, double up on your instigator pills today?

you got me, zoot

If Pedrosa wants to get better, he has to get rid of Puig. I think Puig pollutes Pedrosa's head so much, he's not focusing properly (or maybe he feels insulated/comfortable with Puig around).

Now on the same topic, despite their results in the 125 and 250s, I think Dovisiozo has more potential to win the MotoGP title. He has displayed a level of maturity and professionalism needed to do so (now that said, he hasn't had the same amount of pressure as Pedrosa has had). He's fast too despite always been saddled with inferior equipment.