Rossi Schools 'Em Again (Moto GP Mugello)

[G.Irish]

It was a hell of a race with a lot of slicing and dicing at the front but once again Rossi laid down the law and took the win. The way Rossi held his hand until the last couple of turns was nothing short of masterful. I hate to see him beat Honda (singlehandedly) but its awesome to see one of the greatest of all time do his thing.

The next 3 positions were all Italians which I'm sure the Italian fans appreciated. I'm just hoping team USA has their moment in the sun next month at Laguna

1. Rossi - Yamaha
2. Biaggi - Honda
3. Capirossi - Ducati
4. Melandri - Honda
5. Checa - Ducati
6. Hayden - Honda
7. Barros - Honda
8. Tamada - Honda
9. Edwards - Yamaha
10. Nakano - Kawasaki

P.S. Is that not the tightest Michelin hat ever?

[G.Irish]

Full length race video: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.motogp.com/ppv_multimedia2/352/352604_67234.wmv">http://www.motogp.com/ppv_multimedia2/3 ... _67234.wmv</a><!-- m -->
I'm not sure if the link will work, lemme know if it doesn't/

Highlights
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[Mike]

P.S. Is that not the tightest Michelin hat ever?

Would be cooler if it were a Yokohama.

[Evan]

I dont really understand the whole graduate hat thing (I forget the proper name)

I have to admit I was rooting for Biaggi. Im sick of Rossi, and ever since he punted Gibbernau I lost all respect for him.

[Ginger]

They call Rossi The Doctor... it's an expression of respect over there - if I'm not mistaken the graduate cap is supposed to be a play on it. 'Course, yeah, I could be really wrong.

I'm pretty tired of Rossi myself. Maybe he should join Proton KR next year? I thought that Mugello was pretty boring, really. I fell asleep. I agree about Biaggi, it's pretty cool to see that he's still out there trying after all the shit that people talk about him, and the lack of results. I'm not so sure I'd have that kind of drive in his position.

[G.Irish]

Yeah I was trying to remember the name of the hat too. He was wearing it because some Italian university awarded him with an honorary Ph.D.

I am still pissed at Rossi for punting Sete like that but I can't deny his talent and dominance. He's the Jordan of motorcycles.

The guy that has really been impressive thus far has been Melandri. He's been consistent and even made some ballsy moves in this race. He's second in the championship now (albeit 2 wins behind Rossi in points) but who knows, maybe he can win some races. The key to beating Rossi is going to be pressuring him into making mistakes. When Rossi is allowed to set the pace he dictates what happens.

Colin Edwards has been the biggest disappointment of the year. In a small way its good to see him struggle after he talked so much shit about Honda. I've been really disappointed in Nicky too, who knows what's been going on with him.

[Evan]

I dont consider Colin to be too much of a dissapointment considering how poorly he did last year, and his bike isnt quite up to snuff.
Nicky has flashes of brilliance, but cant seem to keep up pace for the entire race. In a season or 2 I think he will be a consistent podium finisher.
Hopkins I have been dissapointed in though. Doesnt seem to have the skills to be much more than a top 10 finisher.

[G.Irish]

Well, Colin has the same bike as Rossi and Rossi has been dominating with it so it just shows how much better Rossi is. I agree on Nicky, maybe he'll get there in a year or two. If he doesn't get the results this season he'll probably get demoted to a satelitte team I think. Gotta make room for Vermuelen and Pedrosa.

As for Hopper, I think he's being held back by the Suzuki. There have been a few signs of life from the GSV-R, namely when they led the race in China but it just seems like they're still pretty far off on the development curve. I bet if Hopper was given a Honda or even a Ducati he'd be able to make something happen. He could easily replace Bayliss or Barros on Camel Honda since Bayliss has been doing terrible and Barros is probably going to retire soon.

[G.Irish]

Sorry guys, motogp.com finally wised up and closed the loophole

[Evan]

well I should say Colin's bike isnt quite up to snuff with the hondas. Although I do think that the yamahas have gained a lot of speed this year. Colin did lead for almost half the race a few weeks ago.