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Energy drink sponsor or not, I'd bet Honda has deeper pockets by a long shot. They are under an umbrella with everything else Honda makes and if needed can find a way to get the money. I really feel something is going on behind the scenes that is not being brought up to the public. After the season Chase had, you don’t just let a young rider of his caliber walk away. They could easily out bid Star and KTM all day if they wanted to. Just doesn't make a bit of sense to let a young and arguably the fastest or second fastest (until Eli retires) 450 guy just walk. I get the Jett hype, he's an amazing rider and the fans love him. But there has also been plenty of guys who never had success on the big bike after moving up. Something is up.
the US HRC team have a budget, they do NOT have unlimited one like they have had back in the 80's
Towards the end of the nationals, it seemed widely accepted on Pulp that Chase doesn't want to share the attention from the team with Jett. Honda may want to keep him and throw a boatload of money his way, but he may take a different boatload of money to be the sole #1 guy somewhere else.
"Okay, I re-read through the initial post and replies and I don’t think there ever was a KTM drug test that was refused like some in here are suggesting. However, I can see where people may come to that conclusion based on what Ping’s initial comment implies."
I think you, as well as a lot of people are missing this. There were 2 tests he was supposed to take. 1 for the event, 1 for KTM as a condition of employment. The test at the event is the one Astephen is clearly talking about. There were people who witnessed his meltdown there.
Why would KTM have him tested at the event? The only thing Ping's comment said was he was to take one after the last WSX round for KTM. Would the following Tuesday be "after" the event?? In these contracts, there is language that states you will take drug tests, physicals, etc. at locations of the teams choosing. He never took the test that KTM was requesting.
The Shop
Star has by far the largest roster, they go after all of the top Ams and has Monster backing. To me, it seems like they have the most generous budget. I don't see any evidence that HRC Honda can "easily outbit" them. Plus KTM will have a clean slate for a roster in '24 and will likely be going after a No.1 guy aggressively and willing to give Chase a massive deal to convince him to come there. So just that situation alone would make it hard for HRC to match that, with the Lawrences in the picture (specifically Jett.) Not saying it can't be done, but I just don't see that Honda would be able to easily shell out $ for the top 2 young 450 riders in the field at the moment. Seems unlikely. And if Chase doesn't want to feel like he's not the top guy, sharing the spotlight with Jett, then I could see that factoring in also.
They let RC walk after he had far more success than Chase has. They more or less fired McGrath after winning multiple championships. Someone posted earlier that Honda seems to be more concerned with the future than the present. That seems accurate. They let Tomac leave too. That was arguably a bigger mistake than letting McGrath or RC go.
It also doesn't matter how much money Honda corporate has. They have budgeted a certain amount towards the MX/SX team in the US, and I doubt that budget is enough to cover the 2 riders that are likely to be the two best over the next ~5-7 years. Suzuki as a company has plenty of money to sink into MX, but they probably see other areas that money can be invested to gain a greater return. I don't think e-bikes are the future but I bet Suzuki is working on at least road versions if not off-road too. Right now investors (at least the big funds where most of the money is) want to see companies investing in "green" technologies.
There is also the possibility that Chase doesn't love the bike or may want to be the top guy on his team. It is entirely possible that Jett will get the focus of bike setup development, and Chase will be told to deal with it whereas he can be the top guy anywhere else and have things developed specifically for him. The better question is why KTM over Kawi or Yamaha?
Where are you drawing this conclusion from, just Pings first post?
From it all. There was never a mention by Steve about anything but the one at the race. He never specifically talked about a test that KTM required, just how he went off at the one post WSX final round. In Ping's post he said that KTM moved on because Roczen refused a test from them. I may have missed it so if you have something different please post it.
Politics pushed him over the deep end about 6 years ago, going on Twitter tirades and attacking then blocking anyone who didn't agree with him.
There's only a mention of a drug test after the last round of WSX meaning after the race.
In the subsequent exchanges with Astephen there is no mention of a second test besides the one they initially refused then ultimately took and passed. Ping says those are contradictory statements but they aren't, Ping must be suffering from long covid brain fog (I can speculate).
This is all so dumb it's like a SAT reading comprehension test based on a shit post by a dumbass.
Ping's been losing credibility for some time now. Nothing new, he's not big on researching his information.
The WTS post doesn’t actually say anything about a KTM specific test. It says Ken refused to submit to testing after the final WSX round. It doesn’t specify if it was to KTM or to FIM.
Are you actually aware of a test requested by KTM and refused by Roczen, or are you just misreading Ping's original post?
There is nothing in Ping's post or any of the comments or other online fallout that suggests KTM asked Roczen to submit to a test and he refused. I'm happy to be wrong if you know something I'm missing.
Can we rename this thread "ping is a weenie"
We are far beyond Sexton to KTM
"There were people who witnessed his meltdown there"
Are you one of those people? Did you hear directly from one of those people? Or is this more third and fourth party info relayed as a fact by someone who wants to be relevant?
To be clear, I'm not relevant at all and never claim to be....
There was a mention of a test after the race, unless it was horribly misread by half of the people here.
Look at the sceenshots thatswhathappens posted on page 1. There was only ever one test by WSX. The KTM test was inferred from Pings shitty initial post.
This is becoming my favorite thread behind the varner one.
Pit Row
Yes there was a test immediately following the WSX race in accordance with the FIM's testing policy and protocol.
That is completely different than KTM requiring Roczen to submit to testing as a condition of employment. I don't know where that is coming from, other than confusion created by Ping's poorly worded post.
It’s not a requirement that the KTM group trains at Aldon’s. The deal with Aldon is that ONLY the KTM group CAN train with him.
Now that they are separated from FIM in the US, do they still have to do the whereabouts program?
It's not a requirement but it's expected by KTM.
CW has mentioned how leaving aldon was a big issue with KTM.
I agree Chase seems to be a great fit for Honda, but budgets are still there regardless of the Team. KTM may be promising Chase a long term deal as the #1 rider along with other benefits, whereas Jett will be another top paid rider joining the 450 class in 2024.....with both on Honda that could get crowded. Also, this is all rumor at this point.
Jason Anderson left while he was still on Husky, Marvin Musquin left, Webb left(now returned). I think Osborne left before he retired, Barcia doesn’t train there…
Does KTM pay Aldon or each individual rider? Or both?
KTM pays Aldon to be exclusive to them. Then each rider has a separate deal with Aldon to train there.
Ando leaving Bakers is what got Bobby H pushed out
https://racerxonline.com/2022/12/01/open-mic-roczen-situation
Full breakdown with context
Weege coming through with actual journalism, good shit.
I wonder why Ping hasn’t attempted to clarify or provide further explanation for any of this since it’s blown up.
Dean Wilson gets into that whole situation on his Gypsy Tales interview.
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