I don't ever expect to see an obese motorcycle rider at the professional level, but when anyone over 5'2" and 115lbs is considered overweight and/or cannot compete, something is out of line. The limit would have to be something within reason, say assuming a max rider weight of 170lbs or so. Smaller guys would still have an advantage in aerodynamics and ballast placement, but it wouldn't be so pronounced, and would be tempered by the larger/stronger guys' ability to wrestle more effectively with the bikes.
Bullshit. You run what you brung, in this case being you, the rider. If you're too "big" to race in MotoGP, well.... Americans are, on average, big. Same with the brits. Italians and Spaniards aren't. Peter Lenz was a small kid, and would have likely stayed that way. I could have seen him at the top, and would have hated to have a weight limit put on him for being born with those genes.. The winningest racers are all well over those sizes, but thanks for playing. -jim
So it doesn't bother you that one of the questions on the Red Bull Rookies Cup application is the height and weight of your parents? Why should a kid get the shaft because he'll probably grow up to be 6ft and 175lbs?
No, it doesn't. Their goal is to find riders that can make it to the top tier with the fewest hurdles. If you want to call motorcycle racers athletes, then they better be built like the athletes that can do the job the best with the equipment available. -jim
I understand the thinking, I just don't agree. This trend towards tiny riders just goes along with the trend towards electronic rider aids making the rider less and less important. They're becoming less of a pilot and more of a passenger, and it's killing the racing. They're removing the "athlete" portion and replacing it with a vestigial "rider".
Then your memory is failing you. In MotoGP, there have been plenty of champions that were not average by current American build. Including Americans. Adding weight penalties to "smaller" riders to penalize them over the larger ones? Electronics are non-discriminatory. -jim
Then they should allow larger engine sizes as well. At some point, being bigger would be an advantage again. Eventually, with rider aids and no ballast, the sport turns into horse racing. Who was the greatest? Secretariat, or Secretariat's Jockey... what was his name again?
DAMMIT JIM! Stop arguing with me and accept my small-people bigotry Short People got no reason Short People got no reason Short People got no reason To live They got little hands Little eyes They walk around Tellin' great big lies They got little noses And tiny little teeth They wear platform shoes On their nasty little feet Well, I don't want no Short People Don't want no Short People Don't want no Short People `Round here Short People are just the same As you and I (A Fool Such As I) All men are brothers Until the day they die (It's A Wonderful World) Short People got nobody Short People got nobody Short People got nobody To love They got little baby legs That stand so low You got to pick 'em up Just to say hello They got little cars That got beep, beep, beep They got little voices Goin' peep, peep, peep They got grubby little fingers And dirty little minds They're gonna get you every time Well, I don't want no Short People Don't want no Short People Don't want no Short People 'Round here
So should a 7' tall basketball player be given a disadvantage because of his height? Or how about a 300lb. defensive lineman?
They already are. The 7-footer is likely slow and can't handle the ball well (too far between his hands and the floor). The 300lb defensive lineman is definitely slow and easily winded.
That's why they're lineman right? Their entire world consists of a 10ft by 10ft area with one task: grab the guy with the ball if he runs into that area. If they were really quick, they'd be defensive ends or backs.
But the 7' dude and the 300 lb. lineman could likely pull an ass out of a hole. Try that with Marquez? -jim
Stats show Espargaro only 1kg heavier than Marquez, so the weight thing really isn't much to talk about. I take issue with him passing other riders mid-straight which he seems to do a lot. Out of the corner he isn't along side them and he doesn't seem to need much draft, curious....