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4/1/2008
Location
Springfield, MO
US
Edited Date/Time
4/18/2016 4:35pm
With all the speculation (some say done-deal) about Roczen heading to Honda in 2017, and with no mention of Cole Seely going anywhere...where does that leave Trey Canard? He's been a Honda guy forever, and they've been loyal to him even with the huge number of injuries he's had...but you have to believe Honda has invested a lot in Trey for the results they've gotten in return.
Does anybody but me see Canard moving to Kawasaki to maybe replace Will Hahn for 2017?
Does anybody but me see Canard moving to Kawasaki to maybe replace Will Hahn for 2017?
The Shop
Roczen to Honda, man that's a lot of moving around without really mastering the Suzuki!
Yes RC moved around but he beat up everything he got on!
KR94 and TC41.
CS14 would look good on KX450F.
Honda has lost a lot of talent from its Geico program.
Pit Row
Elite Team / Elite Rider Combos:
HRC - Roczen
Geigo Honda - Bogle (no elite but he occupies a bike capable of winning)
Factory KTM - Dungey
Factory Husky - Anderson
Factory Kawi - Tomac
Factory Yamaha - Reed (not elite anymore but he holds this spot)
JGR Yamaha - Barcia
That leaves Yosh Suzuki with what??? Stewart is fast enough still but the fact is, he cant stay healthy long enough to get any momentum & confidence with himself. I wouldnt feel comfortable going into next season with all hopes on his shoulders.
Im sure Barcia is happy where he is at but I think he & Suzuki would make a good pairing. If RCH goes blue, maybe JGR should consider going yellow?
On the bright side, I feel I always need to mention this... thats EIGHT elite teams. That's 15 championship caliber bikes. Plus a handfull of well-funded/equipped satellite/private teams like BTO/KTM & RCH/Suzuki that have good equipment. There was a time when this sport only had a couple good rides available. Now days there is far more quality rides than there is riders capable of making the most of them. You cant say that for any other motorsport. Only a couple F1 cars are capable of winning races. Only a few MotoGP bikes can consistently run at the front. If only talents like Izzi, Stroupe, and J-Law coulda lasted, there are some really good bikes available.
I stand corrected, updated Elite Team / Rider Combos:
Factory Honda - Roczen
Factory KTM - Dungey
Factory Husky - Anderson
Factory Kawi - Tomac
Factory Yamaha - Reed (not elite anymore but he holds this spot)
Yosh Suzuki - Stewart (elite in flashes still)
FC Honda - Bogle (not elite but he occupies a bike capable of winning)
JGR Kawi - Barcia
Plus Butler Bro's KTM & RCH Yamaha
Suzuki needs a capable #2 to Stewart. He's arguably the most inconsistent rider of that list and they are the only mfg w/o a really good satellite team as a fallback. Bagget has his work cut out for him but I like the kid a lot. His new training facility will help him. He has to step up and be the guy I think he's capable of being, in the outdoors at the very least.
EDIT: Heck, ever since losing the Rockstar team (absorbed by Factory Husky right?) Suzuki hasnt had even a satellite 250 effort to groom a younger talent. The strategy of 2 factory backed 450 teams was brave, but it clearly hasnt worked. Yosh Suzuki should drop down to the 250 class and Suzuki has to have a real in-house factory team for the 450 class to compete with what everyone else is bringing to the table.
I'm not saying Cole Seely is a championship-level rider (not yet at least) but that's where Roczen comes in.
Webb is very talented. Kinda out of Star Yamaha's league if you ask me. But if he's happy there and performing well and that team is being run the right way, it's a good place for him to sit until he's ready to join Reed. How long until he moves up?
Webb, Martin, and Justin Hill are all capable of filling some prime spots once they move up.
But Honda always wants a "A" & "B" rider. The A is going for the championship (Roczen) and the B has gotta stay healthy to take on the bulk of the testing duties. Cole fits that bill more than Trey does unfortunately.
Trey is landing on his feet nicely though. The #2 role at Kawi is not a bad gig at all. If he embraces it, which he's capable of doing, Kawi can win a title with Tomac.
This is a team sport despite appearances.
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