It was good to see Nicky Hayden performing so much better with a 4th place finish in Jerez, especially since he was running on pace with Lorenzo and Rossi, though Pedrosa, running way out in front, seems to be a better fit on the Honda. But MotoGP has a great way of showing that a great performance one race does not make a trend. Stoner had 2 off track excursions and a bad day overall after winning the year’s first race, when you ride at the level of these racers, small performance differences mean a lot.
So who’s going to win it this year? Is Nicky Hayden going to get back to form or have some of the younger riders taken the lead. I’m sure with 2 races in the U.S. this year, he’ll want to do well for the home crowd, as will Hopkins and Edwards. It’s a tough series, it will be fun to watch.
christopher says
i don’t know how many people noticed (what with him running at the back) but Nicky was running the ’07 bike at the Qatar opener. at Jerez he was running the ’08 bike. i’m guessing that’s the main reason for the performance difference between the two races. which is a very good thing. Nicky getting 4th in his first GP with that bike is pretty impressive.
Jason says
Good to see him back in form. On another note, did you see Colin Edwards low side save? Awesome! It’s on YouTube if you can’t find it.
motoxyogi says
Ya and did you see Haydens save towards the end as well same place i think. Tough break he was sniffing out third and looked like he had the pace to have a go at it.
hoyt says
Those saves are awesome. This sport is awesome.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-jnAjn_EkwQ
and here is an incredible example of smooth riding…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abXzU1QseNQ
ROHORN says
Who said all the traction controls were ruining racing?
Progress is good!