WSBK Assen - SPOILERS

[CLX]

So, what do you guys expect?

I really hope Rea can have a nice weekend and give Honda some wins, but I suspect Haslam will continue winning.

[RatsMC]

Thanks for starting this.

Haslam is looking like a freight train at this point. If Biaggi could maintain a level of performance I would say he would be the favorite over the season but I am not even seeing him taking another double. Of course, Assen might suit the Aprilia more than Valencia.

[Faster1]

I'm (again) going for the senior citizen and often underrated Carlos Checa,,, along with Biaggi.

I still think that WSBK has the formula nailed,,, Simply great racing. If the coverage were more accessible throughout the globe, It would be the most popular form of 2 wheeled racing.

[RatsMC]

Checa has been a bit of a surprise. Cool to see.


Not to start another debate over the comparative popularity but I think the stands at Valencia showed that WSBK has a long, long ways to go before even being a blip on the MotoGP radar.

[Faster1]

,, before the debate,, let me qualify

Gp is the pinnacle elete for the enthusiast (all of us here),, but take a step back, to when you were just discovering MC racing. Or even if you know someone who, while doesn't ride, "gets it".

,,, as far as a new casual fan WSBK has much more for a newbie to relate to, even if they don't ride.. First timers will be easily hooked on the constant passing (comparably better parity) ,, the "any number of up to 10 people have a legit chance of winning" factor,,, not to mention the fact that you can buy a version of the same bike at the local dealer.. Again GP is tops, but it offers none of that to the new of aspiring casual fan.

In that regard, as mentioned.. If there were quality, consistent global coverage on major "free" TV channels as well as premium HD computer or TV coverage offered,, WSBK would appeal to a much wider audience and therefore (by the numbers) be more popular than GP. And of course,,, that popularity would feed right into GP. But getting a newbie (non motorcycle owning person) to relate to GP doesn't really happen. IMO of course,,

[ales17]

So what are realistic options for watching live SBK races?

For last race I used JustinTV and now I have an interesting little program that let's you watch Eurosport in VLC player (and some other 70 channels).

So is Eurosport the only option for live SBK race?

[RatsMC]

Eurosport has Burnicle and Whitham so it is the best.

[ales17]

What are the other options with English commentary?

[RatsMC]

Jonathan Green, who drives me crazy.

As for where you'd get that, I am not sure. That would be the official commentary though.

You have a file source right? Forgot you are looking for live sources.

[Thornado]

Rea himself, after the engine of the HANNSpree Ten Kate rider's Honda CBR1000RR blew up in a very oily mess,

What's up with the Ten Kate bikes this year? Isn't this the third CBR1000 to blow this year ? Are the 2010 Fireblades just slow, because if Ten Kate is hot rodding them that much they're still not the fastest bikes on the straight. Strange stuff, Ten Kate have such a solid history of quality engineering.

[CLX]

Biaggi way back on the grid, Haslam suddenly has an open goal ahead.

[CLX]

What is happening to Neukeichner?

[sir_nj]

What is happening to Neukeichner?

not sure if Max isn't the second coming of Ben Bostrom - a fairly narrow flash of world class brilliance followed by consistent top 10 but not top 5.

Bit early to be making that call though and he really appears to be struggling to get the bike working for him.

Biaggi way back on the grid, Haslam suddenly has an open goal ahead.

Haslam only has his team and himself to thank for the open goal, just hope he doesn't have too many more punctures. Really seems to have come from outside bet/dark horse to being THE target which is no mean feat considering the talent surrounding him.

A bigger question for me CLX is what has happend to Ducati, an by that I mean Haga?

As brilliant as Biaggi is I think he has always struggled when the bike isn't perfect for him and these days it doesn't take much for a bike to change, track/temperature.

[RatsMC]

I would write off Xerox Ducati's issues to Haga having lost some of his fire but Fabrizio is failing as well.

What I don't get is why the privateer Ducatis are doing much better.

[CLX]

Fabrizio perhaps is just an average rider who had a good string of races last season.

I need to DL today's races. Missed 'em both.
:/

[Faster1]

well,,, let me nominate, in advance, Assen race 2 as one of the finalist in the "greatest race ever". It had everything that great racing needs, at any level. Compare it to any series at any time and, objectively, you would be hard pressed to find better. If you disagree, you didn't watch it or, sorry, you’re wrong
Up until 7 laps to go, had 6 brands of bikes that could have won. Plenty of passing, on the inside,, on the outside,, out breaking,, out accelerating.. IT WAS ALL THERE!! DAM!
Surprises? so far no one and I mean no one can predict the next rounds winner with any accuracy better than flipping a coin. If you haven’t seen it, regardless of the result, catch a justin TV re-broadcast and challenge anything I wrote.,, yeah,, it's THAT good.

The biggest note worthy surprise is the absolute collapse of the Xerox Ducati factory team. Personally, I am convinced that it is NOT mostly the fault of the Bike OR the riders. You have older versions of the Duc, with B parts and 1/3 of the budget and riders with less than raw talent kicking the crap out of the factory Ducati team. That leaves the management, technicians/wrench spinners as the "X" factor. IMO,, It's those members of the team who are not doing there job and once replaced, better results will happen. Haga doesn’t go from a "low-side" away from a championship,, to absolute slow crap rider..... no way.

Maybe the extra (controversial) practice and assen had some influence on the result,, but today,, it looks like Rea and Haslam as the current favs for the championship. I reluctantly give props to Toseland for finally riding Ben's bike proper. Biaggi let me down a bit. Corser is a freak,,, to bad the Bimer spins the tires to grease before every race half-way point.

,,,can't wait for the next round of WSBK,,,

[ReviveTheWhigs]

I reluctantly give props to Toseland for finally riding Ben's bike proper.

I'm beginning to think that THIS is the man that everyone needs to be looking out for. Three podiums in the last 4 races, all from mid-grid? If he can get Superpole sorted out next round, then Haslam better look out - that #52 is going to get a lot bigger in the rearview mirror.

[RatsMC]

I am seeing Toseland growing stronger as well.

That Yamaha looks like a real bitch to ride but he seems to be forcing it to behave. If the team can get the bike sorted out and Toseland continues to have the consistency that everyone else seems to be missing, he could be a real contender.

[phil]

Having only seen race highlights I'm not really qualified to comment but yes, ole JT's found his mojo.
Having been critical of him for the past two years it's great to see him riding consistantly, as Rats says as his confidence grows he could be a serious contender.
I'll still be shouting for Leon mind...

[Nelis]

I'm still hoping for leon camier to get more consistent. It was such a shame that he didn't finish in the second race.

[RatsMC]

I'll still be shouting for Leon mind...

Which one?

[phil]

I'll still be shouting for Leon mind...

Which one?

Haslam of course!!

[RatsMC]

faster1, that was a good race but I walked away from it wondering what I was seeing. I am really trying to not sound like I am being petty but I have to wonder what is going on that caused that race to be so close. The only thing I can find there is the level of riders is just not what it has been in years past. I mean we have a huge number of BSB riders out there and while they are doing well, what are they doing well compared to? I love Shakey Byrne but he was lucky to get into the top ten last year and now he is close to the front. Toseland was utterly flailing in MotoGP and is suddenly getting good results.

Good racing is good racing but I am not totally sure what I was seeing. Like I have said, you can see good racing in an Ninja EX250 cup as long as there isn't a ringer out there. Maybe WSBK just doesn't have a ringer this year.

[Faster1]

faster1, that was a good race but I walked away from it wondering what I was seeing. I am really trying to not sound like I am being petty but I have to wonder what is going on that caused that race to be so close. The only thing I can find there is the level of riders is just not what it has been in years past. I mean we have a huge number of BSB riders out there and while they are doing well, what are they doing well compared to? I love Shakey Byrne but he was lucky to get into the top ten last year and now he is close to the front. Toseland was utterly flailing in MotoGP and is suddenly getting good results.

Good racing is good racing but I am not totally sure what I was seeing. Like I have said, you can see good racing in an Ninja EX250 cup as long as there isn't a ringer out there. Maybe WSBK just doesn't have a ringer this year.

Sure,, that’s one of many valid ways to look at it. I watched/evaluated it purely as racing. One of the biggest draws for me is the parity between all of the bikes. How good is not knowing who would win between ten riders up until @ seven laps from the end. Five different brands in the top six a successful achievement GP can only wish for. It’s the kind of racing that brings in new fans.
To me, the WSBK bikes are top tier,, not too far from raw abilities of the GP800s. ,, hardly a comparison to EX250’s or Supersport or even MOTO2. These WSBK bikes rear wheels are often spinning twice as fast as the fronts. The power to weight ratio is only surpassed by the GPs. That's top shelf. One of the advantages a WSBK bike has OVER a GP bike is that they seem more accommodating to a wider variety of riding styles, hence X GP stars, old riders, young riders, doing well as well as other support category riders. They are still the cream of the crop riders as far as raw talent goes. (This next statement might offend some but, please, I’m not looking to debate this one just yet) I honestly do not believe that Rossi/Stoner would leave the WSBK pack as fast or as easy as they leave the GP pack. If that were true, you could say that they could win on Capirossi’s Suzuki…. I understand that there are special attributes and abilities that make the Aliens (especially Rossi) a cut above the rest but I’m not convinced that those attributes work equally or are as effective across the line on anything with 2 wheels. Just as Great 250 champions don’t automatically make future GP champions (Hello Simoncelli). There are probably faster, better riders than the aliens, languishing in lesser series that will never get an opportunity to compete in GP. Think outside the box for a moment,,, you can’t automatically say that Leon Camier doesn’t have the ability to beat Stoner or Rossi given the right bike. While not likely,,, not for sure either.
What I dislike the most about GP,, and I have expressed it many times before here, is that every year, the bike has more to say about a riders success than in any other series, at least more than it should,,,, yes talent has the final word. WSBK bikes on the other hand, still start out (loosely) on production machines with a much more finite level of effective modification,, than a GP bike,, thus the parity. That is the biggest contributing factor in the excellent, close, “on the edge” top shelf racing that is in WSBK today,,, and missing in today’s 800GP. I would love nothing more than the see the elite riders that make up the ENTIRE motoGP grid actually battle, or at least have a chance at a podium. After the first parade lap,, it’s down to, maybe, the same 4 riders,, if we’re lucky. Do you think that DORNA actually have a copy of the Finnish National Anthem?

[RatsMC]

While I am not prepared to say the conclusion you have reached is wrong, I am not certain the bike doesn't matter as much in WSBK. Right now, the Aprilia looks pretty good but it is being ridden by the only guy out there who has beaten Rossi. The Beemer? Ridden by a former WC. All the untested are on the bikes of known quality. Right now, only the Suzuki is surprising me but they do have titles under their belt as well. I suspect that if Toseland were on a better bike, he'd also be leading the field.

I don't think there is as much parity as it might seem.