Yooperbikemike's 2013 MotoGP Thread

[Silver]

Ben Spies ‏@BenSpies11 Great night with the Ducati family and seeing actual emotion out of people enjoying it! pic.twitter.com/M553qkG8




Would seem that Yamaha might have been a bit stuffy?

[JNRobert]

Originally Posted by Silver

Ben Spies ‏@BenSpies11 Great night with the Ducati family and seeing actual emotion out of people enjoying it! pic.twitter.com/M553qkG8




Would seem that Yamaha might have been a bit stuffy?

He's left a team that know's how to win to join one that know's how to party!

[Drif10]

Originally Posted by JNRobert

He's left a team that know's how to win to join one that know's how to party!

Well, I can see nothing wrong with that.

[Pilbara]

Originally Posted by Bounder

Probably handles better than the Ducati.

Got more Horse Power.

[yooperbikemike]

Gobmeier: "No revolution, but evolution"

Wednesday, 16 January 2013

At this morning’s press conference at Ducati’s Wrooom, new General Director of Ducati Corse, Bernhard Gobmeier told the press that he plans to evolve from the current Ducati platform, rather than introduce radical changes.

Gobmeier, just over a week after joining the Italian outfit, highlighted that he’s “only been here a few days and it’s too early to talk about changes. We are still in the analysis phase.” This was also reflected in the bike for 2013, which, as the German pointed out, at this point is not a new bike, and that the main changes will occur during the testing period and early next season. He commented: “We will have this bike as the basis. The first steps are to explore its potential, although we have plans for the chassis, electronics and engine already.”

Part of the development plan is to also take a more structured approach to testing, with Gobmeier commenting that any new development will be thoroughly test before handing it to the official riders, as this has caused confusion in the past. When prompted whether he plans to alter the Ducati approach, ditch the Desmodromic system, and make a bike that not just Casey Stoner can win on he said: “There is no reason to change an engine that works and is part of Ducati’s history. As long as the rules allow it, we’ll remain with the same Desmodromic configuration. And the bike should be rideable for everyone. It should not just be a motorcycle that Casey Stoner can win on. We will not copy a Yamaha, and will stick with the Ducati philosophy."

Filippo Preziosi, who Gobmeier has replaced at Ducati, has moved across to the Italian company’s road bike operation, yet his ideas will not be disregarded. Gobmeier continued: “Of course we will use his experience. We are in contact and we both want Ducati to win. His new role will also provide a channel of communication between the Racing Department and Production. In addition to Filippo, I must say that there are other great engineers within Ducati that have great ideas as well. Regarding my ideas, I prefer to talk with them first, and will then tell you."

With Audi in the background, there was speculation about what the German car manufacturer will bring to the table. Gobmeier said that whilst Audi does not have motorcycle technology to share, Ducati will benefit from further testing, manufacturing and engineering facilities.

With regards to the season ahead and how soon he might be able to make an impact, he commented that there are no parts for miraculous change and there are many factors involved in success, starting from the tyres, the team (motivation), the people, the riders, the technicians, and not to mention luck. “We have to work on all aspects of our bike. There will be no revolutions, as they can destroy both the good and bad things. It will be an evolution.”

Finally, he stated: "I agree with the approach of Andrea (Dovizioso) in a medium to long term development. Races are in the DNA of Ducati, and this will be a year of development, but that doesn’t mean we do not want results. To reach the top we will need some time, and with the changes in the 2014 regulations, this represents an important opportunity for us to bridge the gap with those ahead of us."

Translation: We got nothing new, I have no idea how we're going to change it and we're going to continue to ignore Hayden's input. (Editorial Comment -- To be fair, Gobmeier, when he was at BMW, took a bike that was considered nearly unridable and turned it into a race winner. Granted, that only happened after BMW poached hired Yamaha Italia's data techs.)

[Skowinski]

Originally Posted by yooperbikemike

.....Races are in the DNA of Ducati, and this will be a year of development, but that doesn’t mean we do not want results. To reach the top we will need some time, and with the changes in the 2014 regulations, this represents an important opportunity for us to bridge the gap with those ahead of us."
.....

That says it all to me. 2013 is going to be yet another year of slow development, but results would be nice if they happen. (my rewording )

[ErikY.]

Originally Posted by kyns

Evolution... But they need a Revolution.

If this 4 man Ducati team continues to be nothing but humiliation for Ducati, i think Ducati might leave the circus alltogether when the teams deal with Dorna expires in 2016.
Sounds like Audi is not in a hurry to do nothing.

I'm now hoping that the Ducs gets even slower as the CRT's get faster. Then maybe we'll see some racing at the back, as long as the cameras are on.

[wiseblood]

Originally Posted by ErikY.

I'm now hoping that the Ducs gets even slower as the CRT's get faster. Then maybe we'll see some racing at the back, as long as the cameras are on.

[DogBoy]

These last several posts are really getting me excited for the 2013 MotoGP seasozzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

[wpbarlow]

Y'know, the Ducatis still aren't very attractive to look at compared to the Honda and Yamaha. And I'm still a believer that good looking bikes tend to be the winners. They still look like the Desmosedici from a few years ago, which I thought was kind of lumpy (and yes, it tested my good looking wins rule ). So I predict another frustrating year for our boys in red.

[Silver]

It's the same bike as last year. I don't think they've changed anything on it yet. So yeah, expecting some disappointment.

[Skowinski]

WTF, why would they just sit on what didn't work last season and use it again for this season? I hope they have a rabbit up their sleeve that we don't know about.

[mike54]

I just wonder what this means.

Part of the development plan is to also take a more structured approach to testing, with Gobmeier commenting that any new development will be thoroughly test before handing it to the official riders, as this has caused confusion in the past.

Were the previous testing procedures unstructured? Seems to me that any testing procedure must be structured to be valid. Maybe it just means they will do it the German way from now on.

[HarveyMushman]

Originally Posted by mike54

Were the previous testing procedures unstructured? Seems to me that any testing procedure must be structured to be valid. Maybe it just means they will do it the German way from now on.

It has been said that new parts were not fully or accurately tested before they found their way to the race bikes, which confused Vale and Nick and slowed development. So they've put more focus on the test team, and hired a faster test rider.

[Drif10]

Originally Posted by HarveyMushman

and hired a faster test rider.

Who?