Lorenzo / Marquez / Rossi

MM was doing what all racers do, fighting for position. Were there close calls? Yes. But look at what Cal did to Dovi (dove up the inside, caused contact and a subsequent crash). Rossi has ridden in the same manner for yrs and always said "this is the races"

There was little room left for MM and he was forced to slow and tried to turn it in tight to still make the corner. You can clearly see that MM wasn't focused on VR pushing him out, he was looking to make the corner. While they may both be to blame it was IMO mostly VR at fault and I certainly have a lil less respect for the guy.

It would be great for him to win the 10th championship but let's face it; JL has been the faster/better rider (albeit with some bad luck) and deserves it too!

 

Yes that were both at fault, but Rossi went just a little too far.

 

I will add that MM shouldn't be racing the championship leaders as much as he is. If he couldn't shake VR he should have just set up behind him and they could have closed the gap to the leaders.

MM has zero chance to win the title. Why fight with those that do?? If he can win, sure go for it but if he can't; stay out of the way.

 

^ Meh. I think Marquez is free to run his own race. If Rossi doesn't like it, then go faster. Oh wait... he couldn't. Not here or Phillip island, or anywhere really. He is no champion this season.

 

Those that didn't catch Moto3 live it's on FS1 now... Great race as usual...

 

the conspiracy theory of late suggests that MM was intentionally holding up VR to help his countryman win. surprising to me that MM would so obviously do that given the spot light on him.

if he WAS fighting, then i appreciate the drive to want to win, regardless of knowing he's out of the championship. i think guys in that league cannot just turn it off - it's always about winning. playing it safe for the sake of a c'ship is different (like in Vale's position) and settling for a non-winning position is smart.

having said that, i agree with you that it would have made for a FAR better race if MM and VR would have tucked in and cooperated to chase down the leaders with another 4 racer duel to the finish. could have been the MotoGP season of the ages!

 

actually, FS2

 

Thanks.. I already saw it this AM online and just saw it on the directory...FS2!

 

I get that but clearly MM couldn't go faster than VR today either so why continue to battle and slow each other down while taking risks rather than say "okay, lets work together to chase down the lead pack"

I wanted JL to win the championship, but not like this (with VR starting from the back and all the other BS/whining going on that is tarnishing the season)

You are correct, they can't just turn it off I suppose but riders in the past have worked together to gain an advantage to the leaders.

 

well said...my thoughts exactly.

i actually lost respect for Marquez after this race. by not being in championship contention, there's no reason for him to go balls out on Rossi like that. in all previous races he either attacks at the front or sits behind riders until the last lap. never have i seen such aggressive riding in every corner. it was obvious he was trying to force Rossi to make a mistake.

and lastly, everyone here knows that a left footed nudge while leaned over won't cause a 400lb bike and the rider to crash, lol...Marquez simply lost the edge when he initiated the contact. Rossi rode off and that upset the stability of Marquez. And Rossi didn't push him off track, there was enough room for Marquez to still hold onto. Either way, he could've stood the bike up in the worse case.

 

Regardless of what position you take or who's side you're on, this went from the most exciting season to the worst example of childish behavior on both sides and it has ruined what could have been the greatest battle for a championship in a long time. Shame on Both and shame on race direction for not black flagging Rossi for a ride through penalty. Huge disappointment from my seat!

 

you can't really black flag someone in a complicated situation like that. it took hours to get a decision as is. but yes, this season is over and the ending sucked. bad for the sport, bad for Marquez, Rossi and even Lorenzo. Jorge didn't even see the incident and was complaining and whining.

Hopefully Iannone takes out Lorenzo in Valencia. I think that'll settle the score :lmao:

 

I can't wish a crash upon anyone, but a nice mechanical breakdown wouldn't hurt my feelings!

 

The season isn't completely over. One more race and as we all know, anything can happen. Here's to maybe having something odd happen to make the last race more exciting! :cheers:

 

I just finished watching it.

Man, i'm just.......I dont even know what to say. VR has been my favorite rider since 06 when i found MotoGP, and got my first bike.
But, after this week, its really hard to like him as much as i used to. I'm not sure WHAT the problem is, but it seems a bit out of character for Rossi to be acting this way.

I dont think he wanted MM to crash, i really dont, but i DO think he let the mist get a hold of him and made a really stupid error. I'd expected better from Rossi.

I do not think he kicked the bike, however. I think MM's shoulder caught his leg and pulled it off the peg.

 

You still think he was joking?? You'd be a fool if you did. He was serious about it from that press conference...maybe the broken english didn't make it seem as obvious. And the shock that he would actually say all of that. Kinda shot himself in the foot ever since then.

 

I have to say that until I saw it from this angle in slow motion, I didn't like what I saw and was somewhat suspect of Rossi. But you can clearly see that MM does initiate contact by pushing his helmet into Rossi's knee. Rossi was already starting to look forward prior to accelerating when MM pushes his helmet against Rossi's knee and Rossi pushes back in response.

https://twitter.com/Images_F1/status/658241618676465664

Rossi lost his cool and let MM get under his skin which was a mistake.

Do I think MM was f*cking with Rossi? Yes, but I can't prove it.

Do I think Rossi intentionally tried to cause MM to crash? Absolutely not.

Did he kick the bike? Clearly he did not.

Did he screw up? Yes, slowing down to look back at MM resulted in the crash even though it wasn't intentional and caused him to lose more time on Lorenzo who he should have been chasing down.

It's just bad all around, for every one of the top 4 riders. If Lorenzo wins people will say it's because Rossi got unfairly punished, Rossi haters will say he wasn't punished severely enough, Pedrosa's excellent race takes a back seat to the drama. The race was completely anti-climactic following the crash. I wanted to turn it off.

I'm dissapointed in Rossi for losing his cool and tainting his magnificent season, I'm pissed at Marquez because I think he's a punk starting sh*t, I'm disappointed in Lorenzo for crucifying Rossi in the post race press conference (while he himself made a pass under a yellow flag).....

The only person I'm not pissed at is Pedrosa who ran a great race, and had very neutral measured responses about the incident.

Damn race...

 

^^^ Not only did MM make contact with his helmet, but Rossi also claims that MM dug his handle bar into Rossi's leg.

Did Rossi slow down and attempt to push MM out? Yes.
Did Rossi want MM to crash? Only he can say, but I doubt it.

Quite a few guys have said that you can not really "kick" a MGP bike down. I haven't tried so I can not say. However, if MM crammed his handlebar into Rossi and then lays on top of him, it is no surprise if his brake lever gets tangled up.

Also, in my opinion, it did seem like MM was intentionally holding Rossi up again. I think it was more obvious. Anytime MM was behind Rossi, he would back it in on the inside of Rossi. Anytime MM was in front of Rossi, he would brake lazy and run wide, so ridiculously wide. I think that is why Rossi gave him a "F*%k You" a lap or two prior to the incident.

Neither of these guys are innocent but I do think that Marc instigated this incident and wouldn't have hit the deck if he ran a normal race.

 

I share the same sentiments as the vast majority of the guys on the net: bitter disappointment in a racer and personality I've idolized for years. Rossi was the reason I watched MotoGP with the passion that I have. I'm one of those obsessive people who's life seems to revolve around motorcycles and racing and it was a huge kick in the balls for me.

The ONLY way for Rossi to redeem himself is by making a very public and sincere apology for his actions. I have to believe he's got the character to actually WANT to do that regardless. He must admit to the red mist getting the better of him and how frustrated he was at Marquez for screwing with him. I think we all believe Rossi never meant for MM to crash. He just wanted to settle the kid down, and/or shoo him off to the side so he can get to the business of chasing Lorenzo. Poor execution and he should man up and admit he fucked it up. Otherwise this season and Rossi's reputation is tarnished forever. And what a shame that will be.

if he did that, it COULD end up being an amazing final race in Valencia... just imagine would could be... it's raining (like when Marquez was penalized and started dead last in Moto2), and Rossi gets a good start and the riders that appreciate his act of contrition don't hold him up and let him battle for the championship as it should have been. it could happen.

 

Wouldn't you have done the same after the guy thrashed you in the media all week? I think it's arguable whether he was sand bagging or not at phillip island, but after a guy calls you out for a week, are you gonna let him by and follow him to the front and help him out? Hell no! you're going to pass him every chance you get and make him work hard to get away from you.

Also, I can't believe how many people are blaming Marc for the crash... It doesn't matter who had first contact, if Rossi hadn't been off the gas straight up and down 20 feet off the racing line while staring down marquez it never would have happened... Was his intention to make him crash? probably not... Did his actions cause marquez to crash? Absolutely... Rossi barely stayed on the track after it because his line was so wide, and his line was taking him right off the track until marquez went down