MotoGP 2014 Season

[JBeck]

Yamaha couldn't promise him a full factory ride in 2015 that was the main reason for going it wasn't that he was forced out.
cal rightly or wrongly got into his head he had to have a factory bike

Every time during a good race for Cal the commentators (and others) were saying 'surely Cal will get a factory ride next season', I think he and pretty much everyone else was expecting it. I don't think they had Ducati in ind when they were thinking that either.

 

[ShakenNstirred]

just hope if this is true she actually knows something about motogp and is not just going off a scrip
http://www.bikesportnews.com/news-d...to-front-BTSport-MotoGP-coverage&newsid=11183

 

[this_is_gav]

Every time during a good race for Cal the commentators (and others) were saying 'surely Cal will get a factory ride next season', I think he and pretty much everyone else was expecting it. I don't think they had Ducati in ind when they were thinking that either.

Cal just isn't worth a (decent) full-works ride. You've got Lorenzo, Rossi, Marquez and Pedrosa in the decent seats. Of those four on equal machinery, I might be happy to place my money on Crutchlow possibly beating Rossi, and Rossi alone (no disrespect to Vale, but time and timing has counted against him).

Cal's good, but he's not and never will be world class. While undoubtedly quick, in a title fight, his weaknesses outweigh his strengths.

 

[JBeck]

Yes I agree, it just would have been nice to see a british get the best shot possible on a factory bike. However much I like Rossi Too, I also agree that Cal would have the edge on him if he was on a factory Yamaha, which is what myself and others were hoping for.

 

[ShakenNstirred]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Darryl_1983

Smith signed a 2 year contract with Tech 3, so already had the ride for this year. Yamaha wanted Pol, and with Cal not having a contract for this year had nowhere else to go.

My understanding of it all.

I can see Smith losing his ride next year if he can't beat Pol.

Thanks for the xplanation. Smith couldn't beat Cal, so imo he won't beat Pol.

Smiths yamaha wasn't as up to date as cals, Smiths bike was using a lot of 2012's parts.
So it's not as clear cut as it looked, people think because it looks the same it is the same and that's never the case in bike racing, if you follow the sport closely and read a lot about it, you get to find out what's going on in the background etc, if cal had wanted to stay on a satellite yamaha this year he could have yamaha said as much and we're going to give him as much help as they could , but he wasn't prepared to sign for just 1 year and still no guarantee of a full works bike in 2015, so it ended up being that he just couldn't turn down the Ducati offer.



Posted from Overclockers.co.uk App for Android

 

[ShakenNstirred]

well it was true we have Melanie Sykes
http://sport.bt.com/moresporthub/moresport/introducing-motogp-on-bt-sport-S11363875491995

 

[Darryl_1983]

Smiths yamaha wasn't as up to date as cals, Smiths bike was using a lot of 2012's parts.
So it's not as clear cut as it looked, people think because it looks the same it is the same and that's never the case in bike racing, if you follow the sport closely and read a lot about it, you get to find out what's going on in the background etc, if cal had wanted to stay on a satellite yamaha this year he could have yamaha said as much and we're going to give him as much help as they could , but he wasn't prepared to sign for just 1 year and still no guarantee of a full works bike in 2015, so it ended up being that he just couldn't turn down the Ducati offer.



Posted from Overclockers.co.uk App for Android

Was Yamaha going to run a separate bike/team just for Cal, because there was no room for him at Tech 3 or the factory team? so not sure how they could have kept him. unless they were wanting him to run on there open class bike (which in Espargaro's hands looks like it would have been a better option - based on only the first test anyway).

Smith started the season very slowly and was struggle to beat the Ducati's until mid season from memory. I know he got some decent bike upgrade packages around the time Cal got the 2013 spec tank he wanted so badly. Smith definitely showed improvement in the second half of the season. But I still think Pol will better him this year, and he'll lose his ride.

 

[ShakenNstirred]

Was Yamaha going to run a separate bike/team just for Cal, because there was no room for him at Tech 3 or the factory team? so not sure how they could have kept him. unless they were wanting him to run on there open class bike (which in Espargaro's hands looks like it would have been a better option - based on only the first test anyway).

Smith started the season very slowly and was struggle to beat the Ducati's until mid season from memory. I know he got some decent bike upgrade packages around the time Cal got the 2013 spec tank he wanted so badly. Smith definitely showed improvement in the second half of the season. But I still think Pol will better him this year, and he'll lose his ride.

they didn't go into the details other than he would have stayed at tech 3
he was going to be getting his wages payed by both tech 3 and Yamaha
so they must have decided to run a 3 man team, even dorna wanted him to stay with yamaha.
it wouldn't have been open class bike(that's last years bike and he wouldn't have even thought about doing that) it would have been another step closer to the works bikes than smiths but still not the same as Lorenzo n rossi.

cal or more than likely his manager messed up in 2012 by only signing for 1 year with tech 3 because he is now out of step with the top riders contracts renewals.
anyway its done and dusted now, unless ducati can turn it around come the end of 2016 cal will be 30-31 so who will still want him

 

[MrKnifey]

Cal chased the money and now he has a junk bike.. I liked him up until the moaning started mid season tbh.

 

[ShakenNstirred]

Cal chased the money and now he has a junk bike.. I liked him up until the moaning started mid season tbh.

when your 27 going on 28 and a team offer you a reputed 5 million for 2 years , its not easy to say no and stay at yamaha for around only a million

 

[this_is_gav]

when your 27 going on 28 and a team offer you a reputed 5 million for 2 years , its not easy to say no and stay at yamaha for around only a million

Depends on whether your motivation is money or success. Ducati are highly unlikely to win anything in the next few years, whereas if he stayed in the Yamaha family, he'd potentially have had a shot at the factory ride that might well be freed up next season. He's got no hope at that seat now.

 

[MissChief]

TBH I doubt he would have got the Yamaha Factory seat anyway and even if he did he has family to think of. A bike racer has no real guarantee of making it to retirement uninjured or even, sadly, alive.

 

[ShakenNstirred]

Depends on whether your motivation is money or success. Ducati are highly unlikely to win anything in the next few years, whereas if he stayed in the Yamaha family, he'd potentially have had a shot at the factory ride that might well be freed up next season. He's got no hope at that seat now.

come on thats in an ideal world, in the real world you cant turn down a 5mil wage when the other option wont even say you MAY get a work bike let alone you will get one.
I just didn't see Yamaha giving him a factory team ride in maybe 2015
im sure rossi will still be there and there are younger riders wanting rides

TBH I doubt he would have got the Yamaha Factory seat anyway and even if he did he has family to think of. A bike racer has no real guarantee of making it to retirement uninjured or even, sadly, alive.

yep bike careers are short and you have a lot of time in retirement.
as much as I wanted cal to stay with Yamaha you could see they just wouldn't go that extra bit to keep him, now if he was only 20 im sure they would have.
it will be interesting next year how much Yamaha are prepared to pay to keep Lorenzo off the Honda.

 

[MissChief]

Well Yamaha went to Lorenzo and signed him up to the latest contract as soon as Casey said he was retiring so they want to keep him. TBH I think they made a mistake signing Rossi again despite the press and media attention it gets them. IMO he's a spent force and won't win a race this season.

 

[this_is_gav]

come on thats in an ideal world, in the real world you cant turn down a 5mil wage when the other option wont even say you MAY get a work bike let alone you will get one.
I just didn't see Yamaha giving him a factory team ride in maybe 2015
im sure rossi will still be there and there are younger riders wanting rides

I just think his MotoGP career will finish with Ducati. It might be a tasty offer, but he'll win nothing. Not a championship, not a race, probably not even a podium.

Unless Yamaha were offering a bike with square tyres, it would have been the better offer. Let's face it, in terms of finances, he's going to be very, very well off, and secure for life, regardless of where he went.

 

[MissChief]

'A better offer' if you can find something to do after you retire that is. He could retire after Ducati and be 5 million richer and have own nothing or have got some podiums but reduced to a 9-5 office job when he's 40? Very short term, blinkered view of him. If he was 22 then yes, I would agree with you, he'd be crazy. He's not so he needs to take the works deal and works money while it's being offered. I'm sure Audi won't stand by and let them struggle through the next two or three years and will put money in and hire/fire whoever is needed. They don't do Motorsport without being successful.

 

[ShakenNstirred]

I just think his MotoGP career will finish with Ducati. It might be a tasty offer, but he'll win nothing. Not a championship, not a race, probably not even a podium.

Unless Yamaha were offering a bike with square tyres, it would have been the better offer. Let's face it, in terms of finances, he's going to be very, very well off, and secure for life, regardless of where he went.

you seem to think all bike racers are well off
if his career was over at 28 after a year at Yamaha in 2014, along time in retirement say another 35 years
a million doesn't go a long way these days.
say you buy a house 200-300k then split the rest over 35 years its not much a year, thats around just 20k a year which is less than I make a year.
at tech 3 he was on around 300k which is nothing for racer

 

[this_is_gav]

You assume he hasn't made any money up until now.

It's reckoned you can live in relative comfort on £2m, so unless Cal has been riding for nothing over the last few years, and he had zero insurance cover in the supposed Yamaha offer, then he and his family would have been fine. Not a life of luxury, but damn fine.

Anyway, I'm never going to accept the sensible approach when it comes to racers. Mansell and his family sold their house and most of their possessions to make it in F1 - the exact opposite approach to what it seems Cal has taken - if you really believe you're good enough, then performance comes first.

I'd love to cruise through life on a cool £5m a year, but I'd happily take a fifth of that to keep my dream alive.

 

[ShakenNstirred]

You assume he hasn't made any money up until now.

It's reckoned you can live in relative comfort on £2m, so unless Cal has been riding for nothing over the last few years, and he had zero insurance cover in the supposed Yamaha offer, then he and his family would have been fine. Not a life of luxury, but damn fine.

Anyway, I'm never going to accept the sensible approach when it comes to racers. Mansell and his family sold their house and most of their possessions to make it in F1 - the exact opposite approach to what it seems Cal has taken - if you really believe you're good enough, then performance comes first.

I'd love to cruise through life on a cool £5m a year, but I'd happily take a fifth of that to keep my dream alive.

the stuff about Mansell wasn't when when he was already in F1 so is nothing like what you think cal has done.

call like all british racers has come up the hard way from british racing to world supersport where he won the world title, then went to WSBK won a few races there before coming to GP's.
yeah he made some money along the way but nowhere near the amount you seem to think .
its not 5mil a year it 5 mil for the 2 years
what insurance cover are you on about. Yamaha would have helped pay his wage in 2014 and given him a little more help bike wise than in 2013 but that was it. no offer of a ride in 2015 at all, that's why he took the better offer from ducati, its a full works bike /5mil.
yes its a dog now but hopefully they can turn it around now they have audi money and the new team boss

 

[this_is_gav]

A few beers last night?

the stuff about Mansell wasn't when when he was already in F1 so is nothing like what you think cal has done.

And? I'm merely showing what determined people will do to succeed. It was just a famous example which came to mind relatively quickly. I'm sure there are countless other examples throughout motorsport and other sports.

call like all british racers has come up the hard way from british racing to world supersport where he won the world title, then went to WSBK won a few races there before coming to GP's.
yeah he made some money along the way but nowhere near the amount you seem to think .
its not 5mil a year it 5 mil for the 2 years
what insurance cover are you on about. Yamaha would have helped pay his wage in 2014 and given him a little more help bike wise than in 2013 but that was it. no offer of a ride in 2015 at all, that's why he took the better offer from ducati, its a full works bike /5mil.
yes its a dog now but hopefully they can turn it around now they have audi money and the new team boss

I know Cal isn't the highest earner in all of sport, but he will be very, very comfortable financially. Even ignoring salary, his personal sponsorship deals for the past few years will likely be enough to live off for a quarter of anyone's life.

All riders will be insured. If the worst was to happen, the families would be well supported financially. It will be a key part of any contract in professional motorsport.