The Racing Thread - THIS THREAD CONTAINS RESULT INFO

Originally Posted by TimTucker

I wonder if Rossi is regretting coming second to Elias by two thousandth of a second in Estoril. If he'd had the extra five points the win would have given him he would have won the championship with today's result, I believe.

When does the 2007 season start?

Yep - they said that on Eurosport. 3/1000's at Estoril = race win = 5 more points = level with Nicky = Vale's championship due to having won more rounds. It was that close !!

Next season starts at Qatar in mid March I think.

I was rooting for Nicky but do feel sorry for Vale. After struggling with the setup early in the season it was a fantastic comeback in the second half and he must be absolutely gutted to have the championship slip through his fingers like that. Having said that Nicky's soldiered on through a heck of a lot of setup problems with the modified bike and is a worthy champion.

But let's not forget that amazing bit of luck Valentino benefitted from regarding the yellow flag incident a couple of races ago?

Before the race I didn't really mind who won, part of me wanted Valentino to win, so he would have won every championship of the 990cc era.

However as the race progressed I found myself willing Nicky to bring it home safely and win it.
Very nice congratulatory gesture from the defeated champion to.

Absolutely superb performance from the lad Bayliss (PH I was very happy to see your post, I was worried that you may have physically exploded with delight at the brilliant Ducati 1-2 )

[Biker Biggles]

Well I shall have to eat some humble pie as I have always tipped VR to do the comeback this season.Congrats to Hayden who has ridden a good all round championship,but what about Troy?Great ride.This year has been unusual in that it was so close,and there have been so many different race winners.Great to watch as well.
BTW has anyone heard an explanation for VRs crash,as I don't buy the just pushing too hard thing.His start was poor,and his bike did'nt seem to handle well,which suggests a traction control issue,or am I just looking for excuses?

Originally Posted by TimTucker

When does the 2007 season start?

March 10th Quatar

[anna]

well I dont know about you guys but I have really enjoyed this season it has certainly kept me on the edge of my seat all the way through and, who would have ever imagined the ending all I can say is......

\/

looking forward to next season already!

What a last round! How many guys have lead start to finish in a MotoGP this year? Let alone a 'ring-in'! Fantastic!

Was in shock when Vale lowsided, it's something that we rarely ever see happen. Being early in the race it may well have been that he was pushing that little too hard to make up for the start with the full fuel load, the Yamaha handling much better with less fuel.

No idea what happened to Casey, he was up there then he disappeared, no footage, no idea what happened. A wise race from Pedrosa following last week with plenty of racing room given to Hayden for the pass early on.

Hayden was obviously stoked at the win and rode a sensible race, knowing what he had to do to win. While I admire what Vale has achieved, this certainly has made things more interesting and will be a test of his character to see how he comes back next season.

[Quiff Wichard]

Originally Posted by Jelster

There is no disputing that on a 1 for 1 basis, Rossi is the better rider. However, the championship is about getting as many points as you can across 17 races, and this year the Hayden/Honda team has achieved that better than anyone else.

It's also interesting to note that this is the first year that "king of the pressure" Rossi has actually had to win it in the final race. Maybe he just isn't as good under pressure as most of us think he is. Well done Hayden, no matter what anybody says, he has earned his stripes this year. Well done son.

Bayliss was just "Bayliss" wasn't he... not giving an inch for anybody and wanting to prove that he can do it in the top class... I'd love to see him and Rossi go head to head for a season on competitive bikes, would be a great spectacle.

.

Correct !!!!!!

I have never seen such a relieved Pedrosa hahaha

Did anyone catch any post-race inteview with Rossi? I wouldn't mind hearing his take on the performance.

What a race!

Troy Bayliss did the impossible...How someone can win a race on new untried tyres and on a bike he hasn't seen for a few years is just magic.

Stoner crashed again. Taking Gibernau's place in more ways than one.

I wonder if Troy would like a few rounds in MotoGP...I bet someone is thinking about it...makes signing Stoner look like a mistake.

Rossi lost the title fair and Hayden won. Rossi has said nice things about Hayden so at least he loses with dignity. Probably a different story if Biaggi won!