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MotoGP
MOTOGP: The End Of The 800s
The 800cc era is nearing its end and the paddock consensus seems to be that it can't come soon enough.
(Photo: Evan Williams)
This weekend's Indy GP will be the last time the 800cc Grand Prix bikes race in America. Next season, the MotoGP World Championship is switching to 1000cc machines -- a welcome change. The change harkens back to the previous 990cc era, which was wildly successful and perhaps even saved Grand Prix racing after the two-stroke era had grown stale.
The decrease to 800cc for the 2007 saw awesome technical advances and lap records continued to tumble despite the lowered displacement limit. But the high corner speed 800s have produced generally less spectacular racing and not as much close quarters battling. Even Valentino Rossi openly admitted he felt the switch was a huge mistake. The perception is these bikes are dominated by the electronics and they can't be over-ridden by a master rider with much success. Flogging them only slows you down.
How much actually changes remains to be seen. Maybe the computers are what matters these days, although Rossi's comments on testing the '12 Ducati indicate the riding style will be different.
Most everyone is counting down the days until the thousands return. Testing for next year's bikes has been all the buzz so far.
Will Colin Edwards miss the 800s?
"No -- I will not miss them," Edwards said on Thursday. "I came from the thousands and going to the 800s, you had to back down to the 250-style and carry lots of momentum. I'm ready for the thousands to come back. The thing with the 800s is, as soon as you made a mistake, you saw it in the lap time. With 1000cc, if you make a little mistake, you can square it off and you have enough power to gain what you lost. Now, you run off-line by ten or 12 inches and you see it in the lap time."
Ben Spies concurred. He recently tested the Yamaha prototype after Brno, riding both the current bike and a candidate for next year's. "It's fun and it's got the raw power. And you cannot make (many) mistakes, but if you do make a mistake, you can get out of trouble a whole lot easier," said Spies. "Yeah, I can't wait to ride more."
Spies cautions that it's no magic fix however. "It's definitely going to change a few things. It's going to change racing a little bit. I think there are going to be more passing opportunities. With the electronics and the tires, some things are going to be similar but you have that grunt power and the bigger guys, we won't be at such a disadvantage. You have so much electronics still, and with the tires and the chassis, it is still going to be whose bike is set-up the best. There will be a little more margin to highlight the rider."
The decrease to 800cc for the 2007 saw awesome technical advances and lap records continued to tumble despite the lowered displacement limit. But the high corner speed 800s have produced generally less spectacular racing and not as much close quarters battling. Even Valentino Rossi openly admitted he felt the switch was a huge mistake. The perception is these bikes are dominated by the electronics and they can't be over-ridden by a master rider with much success. Flogging them only slows you down.
How much actually changes remains to be seen. Maybe the computers are what matters these days, although Rossi's comments on testing the '12 Ducati indicate the riding style will be different.
Most everyone is counting down the days until the thousands return. Testing for next year's bikes has been all the buzz so far.
Will Colin Edwards miss the 800s?
"No -- I will not miss them," Edwards said on Thursday. "I came from the thousands and going to the 800s, you had to back down to the 250-style and carry lots of momentum. I'm ready for the thousands to come back. The thing with the 800s is, as soon as you made a mistake, you saw it in the lap time. With 1000cc, if you make a little mistake, you can square it off and you have enough power to gain what you lost. Now, you run off-line by ten or 12 inches and you see it in the lap time."
Ben Spies concurred. He recently tested the Yamaha prototype after Brno, riding both the current bike and a candidate for next year's. "It's fun and it's got the raw power. And you cannot make (many) mistakes, but if you do make a mistake, you can get out of trouble a whole lot easier," said Spies. "Yeah, I can't wait to ride more."
Spies cautions that it's no magic fix however. "It's definitely going to change a few things. It's going to change racing a little bit. I think there are going to be more passing opportunities. With the electronics and the tires, some things are going to be similar but you have that grunt power and the bigger guys, we won't be at such a disadvantage. You have so much electronics still, and with the tires and the chassis, it is still going to be whose bike is set-up the best. There will be a little more margin to highlight the rider."
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