Posts
31
Joined
4/17/2013
Location
Seekonk, MA, USA
Edited Date/Time
5/8/2013 1:19am
What a waste of a Championship....There are just 20 riders on the gate. A midpack start now puts you in 10th place.
So much for having to watch a rider work his way through the pack to get to the front. I could line up and have a good chance of getting "Championship points" one DNF and I am in the Top 20. Imagine 2 or 3 DNF's I could be thinking a "World Title".
Having only 20 riders to line up at the gate for a World Championship is the only reason TC should come to America and Race because his current Championship is a waste.
There were just 26 riders in the MX2 class....Really.
So much for having to watch a rider work his way through the pack to get to the front. I could line up and have a good chance of getting "Championship points" one DNF and I am in the Top 20. Imagine 2 or 3 DNF's I could be thinking a "World Title".
Having only 20 riders to line up at the gate for a World Championship is the only reason TC should come to America and Race because his current Championship is a waste.
There were just 26 riders in the MX2 class....Really.
LOL.
Sounds to me like the premier series in Europe is the EMX 125 series, then.
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It is sad to see the GPs going this route. The world championship is such a cool series with so much history. I hope something is done before it is too late.
Since the 2013 season started he must have changed his mind over the format 5 times already and keeps suggesting increasingly outrageous solutions to problems he himself has created.
He could solve nearly all these problems by reverting back to the tried and tested structure of open qualifying and a prize money incentive.
Well Luongo, we're all in the mood for a melody, and you've got us feeling alright.
A good article from mx-pure.com - [url]http://www.mx-pure.com/archive/news-20090318095845-20130507091838.htm[/…]
"Giuseppe Luongo let the latest twist out of the bag at Agueda over the weekend when he revealed his revised masterplan for the future of motocross; the Superfinal will now NOT be introduced in Europe, but the two motos per class will get a new look ... and the Italian entrepreneur is determined to end the reign of the 450 four-banger !
"We have a natural progression from 65 to 85, then to 125 with the European MX2 the stepping stone to the MX2 GPs, but the step to 450 is too much for all but the very best," he insisted. "I don't feel good with MX1; the problem is the bike, and you see that the champion races a 350.
"I don't want to make a mistake, but we must keep MX2, take away MX3 and make changes to the main class, which we will call (surprise, surprise) MXGP. We believe we have to reduce the capacity and want to give the Japanese manufacturers two years to reduce the capacity of their bike; I don't want to say 350 or 380 or 400, that is up to them, but I want to see that a good MX2 rider can have a chance.
"In 2007 team managers like Roger De Coster and Sylvain Geboers wanted to reduce the capacity in Supercross, and they were told by their Japanese bosses to keep quiet; we do not want a war with the Japanese, but I believe they are more ready to listen now and I am optimistic that they will go for 400cc this time. The manufacturers need the world championship as they cannot run prototypes in the USA."
And, with an eye to the future of MXGP, he announced an additional European series already for next year: "Two strokes sales are growing again. I do not know the exact capacities yet, but 300cc two-strokes have save the enduro world championship; they cannot race against 450 four-strokes, but perhaps against 400cc. I will do it !"
Turning his attention to race format Luongo pulled a shock with the revelation that the Superfinals will continue to be raced only at overseas GPs in the future: "In Europe we will continue to have two motos in each class, but the first moto will only be 25 minutes long and will carry less points than the second moto, so that the finishing order of the second moto will usually reflect the podium."
The time for discussion is relatively short: "We will have a meeting between Youthstream, the FIM, the teams and the manufacturers in Geneva during the week after Maggiora in June and we have to find a solution by them !"
Whilst welcoming the turnaround on the threat to status of MX2, leading team personnel could only shake their heads in disbelief at the latest "amendments" to the master plan.
Roger Harvey of Honda was adamant: "Honda already knows what size of motorcycle they will be building in 2020 ... and it will be 450cc !"
Thomas Ramsbacher of Suzuki Europe MX2: "I don't ride as often nowadays, but I can tell you that in many ways a 450 is actually easier to ride than a 250. On a modern track with big jumps I have to get the corner before a big tabletop just right to make it on a 250, but on a 450 I just twist the throttle and I'm over. I can ride a 450 all day, but on a 250 I'm physically finished after three laps."
Another particularly poignant comment came from Harry Nolte of CLS: "The cost of competing in MX1 is only about half of that in MX2 because of the higher development costs with smaller capacity bikes."
Luongo confirmed that the GP calender will again include 18 dates next year ... with up to seven of them overseas ! India has not been signed yet, but is expected to augment Qatar and Thailand in March before the highly-successful Valkenswaard GP at Easter. "Then we want to go to Brazil and Mexico whilst it is still cold in Europe; we are close to signing a contract soon with a new experienced promoter to race in Leon. I am also optimistic that we can add a third overseas trip; we are in negotiation to run at Sugo (Japan) and Melbourne (Australia)."
Are the 450s doomed ? Hardly, because it is unthinkable that the Japanese manufacturers, for whom the 450 is the universal engine which powers in its various forms everything from motocrossers to outboard watercraft and lawnmowers, will play ball. and as one team manager, whose identity I will keep to myself, commented: "It sounds like the latest idea for this week just to get reactions !"
Author: Alex Hodgkinson
Steve Matthes @pulpmx 24m
Look up clueless n dictionary, you'll see a photo of Youthstream's HQ. Theyre wondering why they have no entries but look in mirror boys.
Steve Matthes @pulpmx 25m
It's not the bike size, it's not teams fault..it's all because of you & your fees & no rewards. But yeah, keep changing the rules around..
Anyone remember when Eastwood stood up to YS over matter/politics surrounding the MXDN. They fired him, or at least something to that effect!
Pit Row
I wonder if last weeks mad ideas from GL were designed to provoke debate in the teams and manufacturers ahead of this meeting. You know how sometimes you start high by putting something outrageous out there, but are happy to accept something much less? Maybe what he really wants their agreement on is something they'll readily accept compared to what he's now proposing?
Post a reply to: MX1 again just 20 riders on the gate.