Lack of motivation...

[Gerben24]

I could be wrong but I don't think he works for Ducati anymore. Did he not have a wildcard entry on a Ducati a while back (or replace Capirossi or Gibernau)?
The current testrider is Guareschi, it would be great to see him have a shot at it!

[Peno]

Originally Posted by Gerben24

I could be wrong but I don't think he works for Ducati anymore. Did he not have a wildcard entry on a Ducati a while back (or replace Capirossi or Gibernau)?
The current testrider is Guareschi, it would be great to see him have a shot at it!

Yes Itoh replaced Capirossi in Turkey in '05 and got disqualified for not serving a ride-through after a jump start. He did test for Ducati at the Brno and Barcelona tests this year, however I would prefer to see Guareschi as well.

[Mystery]

Originally Posted by agosling

"Rotten luck for Chaz" said with a strong pommy commentators accent.

I am sorry he's injured, but as I said before, there are plenty of better riders available and not just Aussie ones.

How would we know - Chaz hasn't had top line machinery before and despite lack of familiarity with the bike was getting times very comparable to his teammate.

Anyway, it's all moot for now. Chaz is a future Ducati rider now I think so keeping himself fit is a pretty good idea.

[agosling]

Quality riders will manage to show their skills even if the machinery they have is less than ideal, Anthony West is a classic example of this, performing consitantly above the standard of his equipment.

Sadly Chaz basically performed to the standard of his equipment, in all the time I have known of him racing the only reason you heard of him was because he was a pom and the commentators would tell you where he was, he never managed to make a showing in the wet or any other time that would make you sit up and take notice of him.

I would say that he is a future Ducati test rider, beyond that and maybe the odd fill in ride when no one else is available I would not put great hopes on him ever getting a full time MotoGP ride.

He's a nice bloke of average talent and no big bank account, he will test ride for a team for a year or two and then head of to the AMA and make a comfortable living in the midfield.

[Mystery]

Well you're entitled to your opinion but I can't agree. The top 5 GP finishes he achieved in 2004 on a 250 kit bike in the world championship don't agree either. Nor does finishing 4th in your debut at the Daytona 200 too and leading your rivals on similar machinery by a clear 10 seconds.

In my opinion he does have some pedigree and has dragged some uncompetetive machinery around but is unproven at the top level. I'm not saying he's necessarily the best rider available since I'm sure someone could think of someone better in theory (Hodgson?) but he's deserving of a shot - certainly no less so than the likes of Guintoli, a fading Tamada and Nakano.

Incidentally, he's already above the midfield level in AMA on a non-works bike so if you see him falling backwards in the field love to know why.......

[agosling]

As I said he is a nice bloke with average talent, whether that earns him the right to have a shot at the top level is questionable, most riders of a similar standard to him make it to that level with a big $ backer.

I would say that Guintoli has proven he's worth a ride next year, he has ridden better than the bike on a number of occasions. Equally Nakano deserves, but probably won't get another ride. In fact if I was D'Antin he is the rider I would be after.

Tamada, sadly is past his sell by date and doesn't deserve another chance.

[Gerben24]

Originally Posted by Peno

This is purely a gut feeling, but if d'Antin don't get Silva, I think they will hire Itoh for the weekend. He's Japanese and has plenty of experience with the Ducati and Bridgestones so he would seem to be a perfect fit for this weekend.

Can you do the FIM predictions for me please, cause your 'Itoh' prediction was correct!

http://www.crash.net/news_view~cid~6~id~154658.htm

[BootsOntheSide]

Itoh makes the most sense for a one-off at his home track, even if his last racfe was a disaster. He was never spectacular, but much more solid than a lot of Japanese riders, and clearly brilliant on the development side. The ride may still be open for Chaz for the last 3 rounds, although it's possible that they could buy Guintoli or Elias out for the rest of the season.

[Peno]

Originally Posted by Gerben24

Can you do the FIM predictions for me please, cause your 'Itoh' prediction was correct!

http://www.crash.net/news_view~cid~6~id~154658.htm

What can I say. I guess I just have a gift.

[Gerben24]

Here is the other side of the story, a press release from Alex Hofmann:

http://www.roadracingworld.com/news/...?article=30410

It does create some sympathy for the guy.

[bestfit]

Here is what he said after the race.

"Today was not my day," said Hofmann. "First I had a problem with the 'A' bike while I was going to the starting grid, so I had to come back to the pits and change to my 'B' bike. After the race stated and I saw that I was six seconds back from the last person, I couldn't find the motivation to continue fighting only to remain last. I'm very sorry for reacting in this way."

Here is what he is saying now.

My conduct during the race at Estoril also does not justify a dismissal. Because it was always my intention to devote all my efforts in the race to my team, I entered the race with an injury to my hand that had not properly healed. In the warm-up lap, I realised that there was a clutch problem on my number one bike. After changing to the spare bike that was not equipped with the race tyres I had chosen, I then faced a considerable time handicap through having to start from pit lane. Although the field had opened a gap of 11 second in the opening lap of the race, I made every effort to catch up. I was however forced to accept the unfortunate reality that it would be impossible to achieve this goal onboard the spare bike I was riding. Indeed my only hope of improving my position was that if other riders crashed or suffered technical difficulties.

Bearing in mind these circumstances, I felt I could not take any more risks that might endanger the healing process of my injured hand. I therefore decided to retire from the race.

Disappointed and frustrated as I was at the time, I was not really able to properly express my feelings about what had happened immediately after the conclusion of the Portuguese Grand Prix. Considering that I have always made a point of proving my unconditional dedication to Team Pramac d’Antin during 2006 and 2007, I feel that it would have been sufficient to give me a warning.

A nice example of the spin doctor's work.
Both quotes say basically the same thing.
Can you spot the difference?