MotoGP 2016 News & Chat

DaveD wrote: »

Not sure about the other two but i'm pretty sure I read somewhere before that Arai don't pay sponsorship to riders. They give a few free lids a year but the riders who choose to wear Arai do it for their safety, not for the money!

Not sure where you heard that but of course Arai pay riders for helmet sponsorship. do you think that Dani Pedrosa, Lewis Hamilton or Nicky Hayden are wearing Arai because they think that the helmet is safer? They're wearing it because the helmet manufacturers pay them a lot of money. Now in saying that some manufacturers have to pay more than others for a rider to use their product and HJC definitely fell into this category until recent years but the problems that Lorenzo has had with his helmets have also been self inflicted in some cases.

In Qatar the helmet lining problem is a clear HJC issue (and something that greatly upset Yamaha top brass and they apparently told him at the time to drop them (noone would confirm this to me however), the misting at Silverstone was Lorenzo's mistake for not fitting the demister and in addition to this oneof the helmet techs told me that Lorenzo usually has a helmet slightly on the small size (he loves a very snug helmet) and doesn't open the vents in it which causes further problems.

Shark make high quality helmets just like everyone else so there shouldn't be any major issue with them for Lorenzo...if he prepares them correctly

New Yamaha.

Gintonious wrote: »

Pramac Ducati, beautiful.

Looks well doesn't it! First test is starting in Sepang on Monday week and the bikes are starting to get shipped over so at least we'll have some real news coming soon about what to expect this year!

For anyone interested here's a link to the latest episode of my podcast. This week it's myself, David Emmett of Motomatters.com and Neil Morrison of Road Racing World and Crash.net taking a variety of listener questions.

Stoner back on a Ducati

https://twitter.com/hazrin/status/693333835673575424

https://twitter.com/adri_stoner/status/693251000770007040

Couple of new episodes of the paddock pass podcast are uploaded. There's a Yamaha launch special with an interview with Brad Smith, here, and we've also got an episode looking at the World SBK off-season and gearing up for the season opener in Phillip Island, here.

We'll have our post Sepang test roundup posted soon too!

CJhaughey wrote: »

Thanks Frostie and congratulations on your new role! Will we get to hear your dulcet tones or is it only the RoW?

Thanks CJ! I'm really looking forward to it! Obviously working with MCN last year was a great experience but this is another great opportunity and one that's hard to turn down once it's offered to you.

I'm not too sure where SBK will be aired in Ireland, if anywhere, so the only place that I know for sure to hear myself and Greg is with the the World SBK video pass. I've had the pass for the last few years (and even paid for this year before getting the job...best ask for a refund!) and it's really good. I know from talking to the guys in Dorna that they've a lot of ideas for content too so the site should be really active this year.

Apart from that Eurosport will continue to do their live coverage as they have in recent years. I know that last year Channel 4 did a highlights programme on a Saturday evening for but at the moment nothing has been confirmed for the UK highlights but I've been told that there should be some news about it soon and whether or not the world feed or Eurosport commentary will be used.

Valentino Rossi has signed a 2 year extension with Yamaha - silly season in motogp should be done and dusted by Jerez !

funkey_monkey wrote: »

Does anyone on here believe that Rossi can do much this year or is his star on the wane?
Can't see past Lorenzo.

Frostie any more updates on the winglets? Is it my imagination or has the Ducati winglets gotten bigger?

He's not so much "on the wane" but up against the strongest field ever in the premier class. The depth is more than we've seen before and Lorenzo and Marquez are scary good. Valentino is still the third or fourth best rider in the world so definitely warrants staying on until he proves that he's not as quick as before.

The winglets are now officially banned in Moto2 and in Moto3 they're allowed on the Mahindra because they homologated them prior to the start of the season for their mid-season aero upgrade. From 2017 they'll be banned in the lightweight class.

As far as the premier class is concerned though they remain legal because a change wont be made unless it's unanimously agreed upon by the manufacturers...with Yamaha, Ducati and Honda having spent so much on aero development of winglets they obviously wont agree to a ban. So the only way they'll be banned is on safety grounds which could happen at any time. It'll happened...eventually!

For anyone interested we've just finished off the latest Paddock Pass Podcast so have a listen! It'd be great if anyone that likes the show would also like the facebook page and follow us on twitter because we're trying to raise the profile so that we can organise events at races.

https://soundcloud.com/the-paddock-pass-podcast/episode-21

Colser wrote: »

Anyone here been to Jerez or going this year...just looking to ask a few questions about accomadation,do I pre book tickets ect. Ive just decided to book this as a present for someone but as usual left it very late and wondering if I get flights sorted will I be able to get accomadation nearby or would someone recommend staying further away and driving to it.Sorry if this needs to be asked on a separate thread.

Yes, you will need to pre book tickets I always get mine from the circuit website directly.
https://entradas.circuitodejerez.com/EventoZonas?opc=MDkwMDUwNDUyOUy0PI%2BErEnQgws5REfWy%2FHWJbVL%2B7s%3D

Flights, Dublin to Seville Tuesday's and Saturday's (Ryanair) otherwise Dublin to Malaga daily, Aer Lingus & Ryanair.

Accomodation, try Cadiz or Seville, that said I always stay near Estapona and drive over each day.
You'll definitely need a hire car and be prepared to be at the circuit early, especially on race day as traffic is completely crazy.

Bring a hat and plenty of sun block and be prepared to walk a fair bit from the carparks to your stand at the circuit.

Enjoy!

Colser wrote: »

Thanks a mil Pat Dunne for the info...:)

Jerez is a mega race to go, always my favourite of the year! The atmosphere is terrific and the town is crazy during the week. As Pat said you've plenty of options for where to stay and it just depends what you're looking for. For the race I usually stay in arcos de la frontera because it's only a 15 minute drive into the circuit and you're coming from the "right" side of town to get in without any real traffic. If you stay in Seville, Jerez or Cadiz you'll have to deal with a lot of traffic.

Cadiz is the nicest place to stay for the week because it's on the beach, has lovely restaurants and hotels and is a very pleasant town. I stayed there the first couple of times I was down and it's great...but it's a 40 minute drive each way which adds up when you've been in the sun all day. I actually stayed there before the WSBK test in january and it was great-me and a mate spent a few days golfing beforehand and you couldnt ask for more. However for GP it's definitely a trek!

Jerez is a mega circuit for spectating too and you can easily get around it without any real hastle and has plenty of great viewing opportunities from the GA areas. You also have a lot of food and drink options around the track. The last corner and the stadium sections are all accessible with the GA so you get great value. With no covered grandstands the advantage of the stands is debatable for me when you factor in the extra cost