Stoner retires
Discussion
krissstephen said:
Rossi is going backwards and has imho has lost his passion to win.
I think this is it to be honest. Rossi is a fantastic rider, but he is worth millions now, plus he is getting older. I think the simple fact is that the fire has gone out of his belly. He never seems to push the bike as hard as he used to, when he rides you don't see it weaving and bucking under braking and hard acceleration like you do with the front runners. I think Rossi would do well to leave while he is still at the top and go tin top racing. He says that he loves it, I'm sure he'll be bloody good at it.
MrKipling43 said:
I'm a bit moxed about this one - I won't miss him, but I'll miss watching how great he was on a bike. The most outrageous body position on the grid.
But it always looked like a bit of a job for him. I'm sure that's not the case, but it was always the 'vibe' I got.
This for me too.But it always looked like a bit of a job for him. I'm sure that's not the case, but it was always the 'vibe' I got.
I always felt that with the baby arriving...and perhaps more importantly (for him) his missus not being with him every race, it would only be a matter of time before his performance might have been affected. Whether he's hedging his bets & jumping ship before the 'jewel' fades I don't know. If he actually is retiring then good for him, but I'm left a little empty of any feeling really.
Allyc85 said:
Such a shame to waste such a huge talent, but if your hearts not in it when your hanging onto a Moto gp bike at 200mph then its the right choice.
It's not really a waste though, is it? A waste would have been dropping out after doing British 125s. You can't really say its a waste of talent when you retire fit and healthy as a two time (very possibly three time) world champion with one of the best start to win ratios in the sport.It's a sad day for the sport i think, what with Marco's sad passing last year, Rossi seemingly a spent force, and now arguably the best rider on the current grid is retiring. It'll be interesting to see what the future holds. I feel a bit similar to others regarding Casey, i won't really miss him as such, but it'll be a massive shame not to see his talent being exploited on the race track any longer. I bet Dani has breathed a sigh of relief!
A huge disappointment but totally understandable and at least he's retired the right way. Started off on crap bikes and worked his way up to winning a championship on a Repsol Honda before just stopping, only suffering from three broken bones in the process. A bold move but I'm sure he knows what he's doing.
Fair play to him, I think he's already proved that he's been the best rider over the last 6 years or so. Nobody else has been able to ride the Duke, and he jumped straight on the Honda and handed DP and Dovi their arses.
Getting married is what seemed to settle him and triggered his elevation to a top level MotoGP rider, so it's no suprise that he's not enjoying it as much now that she is at home with the baby on race weekends.
It's going to Spanish domination in MotoGP for the next few years by the look it.
Getting married is what seemed to settle him and triggered his elevation to a top level MotoGP rider, so it's no suprise that he's not enjoying it as much now that she is at home with the baby on race weekends.
It's going to Spanish domination in MotoGP for the next few years by the look it.
Never been a huge Stoner fan but fair play to the guy. Sounds a pretty honest statement and he is one hell of a rider. I hope the sport takes notice when a guy like Stoner calls it a day at a young age. If there are things that need fixing, I hope they fix 'em.
Hats off to Stoner, methinks.
Hats off to Stoner, methinks.
Not surprising news.
Will I miss Casey the personality like we miss Marco. No. Will we miss Casey the rider. God yes! In terms of watching somebody, on a racetrack, on their own, ragging the neck off a 990 Duke and making it do things nobody else in the world, could (or still can't do!) makes him a proper legend in my books. If I need to put my life in the hands of one person to produce a one lap banzi it would still be him. He obviously is an honest individual and we have to respect his decision. It will be a shame not seeing him racing anymore. Will be interesting to see what happens now. My guess would be George and Vale on opposite factory japs. Dani at HTC and everyone else revolve around that.
em177
Will I miss Casey the personality like we miss Marco. No. Will we miss Casey the rider. God yes! In terms of watching somebody, on a racetrack, on their own, ragging the neck off a 990 Duke and making it do things nobody else in the world, could (or still can't do!) makes him a proper legend in my books. If I need to put my life in the hands of one person to produce a one lap banzi it would still be him. He obviously is an honest individual and we have to respect his decision. It will be a shame not seeing him racing anymore. Will be interesting to see what happens now. My guess would be George and Vale on opposite factory japs. Dani at HTC and everyone else revolve around that.
em177
Stoner leaving at the top of his game, as a totally dominant force in MotoGP. He has proven he is better than Rossi on the carbon Ducati, but he has never proven he is better than Rossi on a metal framed bike.
Ducati and Honda... would you want to ride for anyone else with the ever increasing presence of CRT and Suzuki out. Yamaha have an inferior machine to HRC, so why go backwards.
MotoGP must be incredibly boring for him: winning it most weeks, out of sight of the nearest competitor.
Ducati and Honda... would you want to ride for anyone else with the ever increasing presence of CRT and Suzuki out. Yamaha have an inferior machine to HRC, so why go backwards.
MotoGP must be incredibly boring for him: winning it most weeks, out of sight of the nearest competitor.
Fleegle said:
Bluequay said:
Fair play to him, I think he's already proved that he's been the best rider over the last 6 years or so.
The stats show its not that obvious in terms of championships
k all!Caparossi couldn't ride it, melandri couldn't ride it, Rossi can't ride it, Hayden can barely ride it. Stoner something like 23 wins from 61 races on it. 35 wins from the last 80 races in total. The best of the last 6 years no question.
J B L said:
Bluequay said:
It's going to Spanish domination in MotoGP for the next few years by the look it.
Might be yes. Until young Fenati rises up to the Moto GP and carries on with what he's shown so far.
Gassing Station | Biker Banter | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff