p. Gold & Goose/Red Bull Content Pool
£ Jack Miller racing the Moto
3 class during the Moto Grand
Prix in Tochigi, Japan
In previous eras we had guys
stepping onto 500cc 2-stroke
machines, with wicked power
delivery and no traction control
to aid the transition. Firstly they
would have a few big crashes,
then calm down and learn
where the limits were, followed
by a period of figuring out how
to exploit those limits. This
wasn’t restricted to the 500cc
era though, it also happened
in the early days of MotoGP.
Jorge Lorenzo for example was
immediately supremely fast
on the Yamaha, grabbing pole
position at his very first MotoGP
race. He became unstuck on a
regular basis though. There came
a period of huge crashes and
some injuries, before he took a
step back to figure out the beast.
By doing so he managed to hone
his riding skills and become the
talent we see today. Pol is going
through a similar experience
at the moment and it begs the
question: perhaps it is only the
Honda chassis that allows these
260bhp monsters to be ridden like
Moto2 bikes?
Rossi dispelling that myth this
season, riding the best we have
ever seen him ride at the age of
35.
THE
EMERGENCE OF
MARC
There was a period in time when
it was believed you needed to ride
a 2-stroke to be a top level rider.
Now it’s the same story regarding
Moto2. WSBK has been a great
breeding ground in the past, with
Ben Spies and Cal Crutchlow
being the most recent examples.
One could definitely argue that
WSBK experience also has some
advantages over Moto2. The
main advantage for me would
be the technical knowledge that
can be gained on a Superbike.
This is superior to that of a bike
in Moto2, especially in regards
to electronics. A top level WSBK
machine comes equipped with
very similar electronic parameters
to that of a MotoGP bike. 2015
will see FreestyleXtreme’s own
Eugene Laverty graduate from
The downside to the recent influx
of Moto2 riders stepping up to
the blue ribbon class with ease,
is that a certain sheep mentality
has kicked in. It’s now deemed
almost a necessity for MotoGP
riders to have progressed through
Moto2 and be under the age of
25. The prejudice against SBK
riders and the elder statesmen in
the paddock is startling. Perhaps
Casey Stoner retiring at 27 also
had an effect but no matter what,
his retirement helped create the
illusion that a career at the top
level is restricted to the young.
It is interesting to see Valentino