MotoGP | 2023 | Silly Season

It also ain't because of results. Ducati had 8 bikes on the grid going into 2016 when they hadn't won dick for half a decade. Ducati provides those independent teams the best bang for the buck and both parties of the deal end up satisfied.

 

It might be HIS priority, but Suzuki said they are not dealing with contracts until the summer. Guess the HRC offer came in a bit light for Mir

 

Yamaha has had an in-line 4 since the MotoGP era started and has always had a satellite team.

Morbdelli was a race winner and championship runner-up (if I remember correctly) on a satellite I-4 in 2020. Quartararo won the championship on a I-4 in 2021.

 

Yes, tracking all. But is there any truth to the idea of a rider having to work harder on an under powered bike (comparatively speaking)?

I remember the riders being pretty demoralized and pissed that they had to ride the front harder, brake later, carry more corner speed everywhere, etc, (more chances of crashing) and outwork them in the tight areas, just to get walked in the straights. They seemed to keep calling for more power so they could have a lower chance of crashing and be able to ride faster, safer. Be able to point and shoot when needed, especially low speed exit corners.

If they are able to get that extra power in the inline 4 that would be great and I think the rider wouldn't care which engine platform it is. But if they cant, what then? Will they keep their riders? Or do they just keep hope alive for "a way to win"? Do they look at a new engine platform eventually?

Really interested in you guy's thoughts.

Is my memory off in regards to the the riders expressing these opinions?

Edit: great point about Morbidelli on the 2020 bike. But the consensus seemed to be that the 2020 was the better bike of all the Yamahas that year. He was not happy about being stuck on it until all the other riders struggled with the 2021 that actually got worse.

 

If I recall correctly from testing, the Suzuki’s actually were not far off from the Ducs in testing for top speed. And to listen to the professionals, starting to sound like aero is beginning to play more and more into top speed and the motor less so, at least compared to any time in the past.

 

How are they fairing with acceleration? I know I said power, but I dont think the issue was top speed per se, but was more an issue of acceleration off the slow corners which casued them to get walked by.

 

I am not questioning the fact that they have to make up for the power deficit in ways that possibly increase the chances of ending up on the ground. But do we know for a fact that the problem is the engine configuration?

Honda chose the V5/V4 because they like to make things difficult. And I'm not even joking. They might prefer to work "challenging," but it's their thing. That's what they do. Ducati is married to the "V" ("L", really) configuration by tradition. That's the link to their street products. Hell, they even tried to go with a V2 initially, if I remember correctly, before quickly realizing that it just was not going to work in MotoGP with those big-ass pistons. Could those two factories not make an I-4 that would crank out more power than what we have been seeing from Yamaha? I don't think that we have a definitive answer to that.

 

I dont think its definitive to online 4 vs V4. So maybe that's on me for framing it that way.

I also mentioned squeezing more from a inline 4. I dont think the riders care at all about the platform, just a little more power to allow them to take less risk.

In the end though, I think the differences in strengths of the brands is part of what makes the racing so intriguing.

 

Remind us all again what two manufacturers the most recent two world championship riders won their titles on…

 

https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/...togp/why-are-motogp-v4s-faster-than-inline-4s

Here's Oxley's take on the matter. (early 2020)
"V4-powered MotoGP bikes have won 44 of the last 50 MotoGP races, a victory rate of 88 per cent, and topped the speed charts at 47 of the last 50 races, a success rate of 94 per cent."

 

How many of those v4 races were Marquez?

the fast one, not the one who looks like the 80’s hamburgler?

 

I seem to remember reading fairly frequently from all of the Yamaha riders that they lacked rear grip. More power isn't going to help that.

 

Very true. I've only caught bits and pieces of the testing info but I'm super excited for Sunday. Hearing that the Ducati is turning better than even last year, that Honda's new chassis was a move in the right direction. Has yamaha fixed the rear grip? What about Aprilia, I think they're gonna make some noise. Cant wait!

 

Honder makes an I4 for WSBK (and the street). How does that stack up against the other competition I4's?
True, I don't think Honda really cares about I4's and SBK laurels ever since Mr. Honda died.

 

Acceleration is a plus on the Ducati, however it comes at a cost over race distance for most . It makes keeping a set of tires under you for race distance extremely difficult..,Ask Jack Miller . Pecco seems the best at making them last race distance

 

The CBR was the fastest bike out there (straight line) after (barely) the Ducati, as far as I know.

 

Well, the Suzuki ain't slow…

 

Where there's smoke....

 

Yeah the I-4 vs V-4 debate is retarded. Suzuki made an I-4 that can hang with or outdrag a fucking Ducati on the front straight! That’s crazy. I don’t know how Yamaha can’t find additional power when they have like 5 times the resources of Suzuki.

Yamaha’s best bet at this point is to buy some Suzukis, put Yamaha fairings on them and call them M1s. Quartararo would be please by that at least.

 

FQ20 would not got to Honder as his and MM ego's would collide... can't be 2 of #1's.

He'll be on Suzuki for 2023.