Vermullen in MotoGP - Sportbike Addicts

opinion914 · 10-13-2005, 05:50 PM

i like watching WorldSuperBike because the racing is great and commentators are entertaining. Vermullen is awesome to watch and now that the WSB season has ended, it appears he was given a shot to try MOTOGP this weekend, cant wait to watch. Granted it will be an unfamiliar bike, possible on a foreign track (not sure which track is next up) but once hes in the groove...well see, Apparently its possible that he will be in MOTOGP next season.

Kevin

***carl_g*** · 10-13-2005, 09:59 PM

This weekend's race is in Phillip Island down in the land of oz. Since he is austrailian I bet he has ridden that track a couple of times! It will be interesting to watch!
Also watch ant west and casey stoner on the 250's, both aussies!.. the racing should be great!

IrocRob · 10-14-2005, 09:01 AM

He knows the track, but I'm sure the bike is going to be
an eye widening experience.
He'll be riding the Camel Honda as a substitute for the injured Troy Bayliss.
Chris was fifteenth on his first ride during free practice.

Roberts and Capirossi are both out for the weekend after
crashing in "Doohan Corner" (Separate Crashes)

Xracer264 · 10-25-2005, 08:31 AM

Vermullen will be pretty good next season. Hope he goes to Suzuki like they are reporting. Be nice to see them battling for a win or podium for a change

***carl_g*** · 10-29-2005, 11:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xracer264

Vermullen will be pretty good next season. Hope he goes to Suzuki like they are reporting. Be nice to see them battling for a win or podium for a change

Vermeulen signs on at Suzuki - News, 28/10/05

Suzuki and Chris Vermeulen have agreed terms on a two-year deal which will see the rising Australian star race the Suzuki GSV-R in the 2006 and 2007 seasons. Vermeulen joins Team Suzuki MotoGP after a successful season in the World Superbike Championship, riding for Ten Kate Honda, where he finished the season in second place overall. The 23-year-old will ride the GSV-R for the first time in the forthcoming Valencia test on Wednesday 9th and Thursday 10th November.

CBRBob · 10-29-2005, 05:54 PM

Too bad he signed a 2 year deal as he will now have to ride that POS for 2 years. Better off doing a single and then on a bike with potential.

RtypeNYC · 10-29-2005, 08:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CBRBob

Too bad he signed a 2 year deal as he will now have to ride that POS for 2 years. Better off doing a single and then on a bike with potential.

not really.

first of all, they're changing over to 800cc for '07, so it's going to be an entirely different ballgame. Suzuki might pull something out of their ass, and have a competitive bike under the new format.

second, what is "a bike with potential?" doesn't that mean HONDA, since Rossi's the only one that's making the M1 what it is? Rossi & Burgess, actually... but Rossi's the one that has to ride it to victory week after week.

if you're talking Honda, they're committed to Hayden, Pedrosa & Melandri AT LEAST, before taking care of Vermeulen. with Suzuki, he gets a factory ride off the bat, AND all they have right now is Hopkins anyway. he's automatically #2 instead of #4, and gets to spend the time learning the tracks and following around MotoGP veterans.

also, if he doesn't do well on a Suzuki, he has an excuse... he's on a Suzuki! if he does well, he's a magician, and he's going to be able to write his own ticket.

we've already seen what Vermeulen can do on a Honda. two 11th place finishes with limited setup time and VERY LIMITED time on the bike... especially compared to BIAGGI, who finished BEHIND Vermeulen last race.

CBRBob · 10-29-2005, 10:50 PM

A few things....

I never said any brands, the zooki has been crap since day one of Moto GP.

As far as going to 800ccs, if Honda replaces the 5cyl for a 4cyl, the bore/stroke should stay the same so the development should be minimal as the cylinder design should be the same and they will end up with a 792cc.

IrocRob · 11-01-2005, 01:46 PM

Apparently Vermeulen turned down a ride with the Camel Pons team for the full factory effort of Suzuki.
I think he should have taken the Camel ride for one year
and then moved up to the full factory Honda team if his results justified it. Just my $.02

From www.SpeedTV.com

UPDATE: Vermeulen Turned Down Camel Honda Pons Ride for Factory Suzuki
Written by: Dennis Noyes
Borrego Springs, CA – 10/27/2005 Chris Vermeulen heads to a factory Suzuki ride in MotoGP after turning down a satellite Honda ride.

World Superbike runner-up Chris Vermeulen played hardball with HRC and, although Honda blinked, the young Australian refused to consider the compromise of a Camel Honda Pons ride in MotoGP for 2006.

After five years in the FIM Supersport/Superbike World Championships, winning the World Supersport title in 2003 and taking second this year in World Superbike, Vermeulen demanded a full factory MotoGP ride from HRC.

His demands were backed up by credible performances in his two replacement rides on the Pons RC211V at Phillip Island and Istanbul where he was eleventh in both races, beating factory Honda rider Max Biaggi in Turkey. Honda wanted the 23-year-old to spend one more year with the Winston Ten Kate World Superbike team and then move to MotoGP in 2007, but Vermeulen had an offer from the Suzuki factory team for 2006.

Honda stepped up, then, to offer the possibility of a ride on the Camel Honda Pons team, but Vermeulen had been advised by Mick Doohan that in MotoGP he needed to be on a full factory bike if he ever wanted to win a title.

HRC could not offer this, especially for 2006. Next year Honda, although final plans have not been announced, will run American Nicky Hayden and Spanish 250 World Champion Dani Pedrosa on the full-factory Repsol Honda team and seem to be moving toward lending additional support to Italian Marco Melandri out of the Gresini Honda team where Melandri is currently riding as team mate of Spain’s Sete Gibernau.

Gibernau is very close to confirming a deal with Ducati for 2006 after refusing an offer from Honda to continue in Fausto Gresini’s team.

Vermeulen’s place was immediately snapped up by former World Superbike Champion James Toseland. Toseland was dropped by the Xerox Ducati team along with his team mate Regis Laconi and was considered by Ducati Corse for a ride alongside another Englishman and former World Superbike Champion Neil Hodgson, but preferred to stay in World Superbike and found a strong ride on the Ten Kate Honda CBR1000RR.

As he imagined would happen, Honda have cancelled Vermeulen’s ride on the Pons Honda at Valencia. The man Vermeulen was replacing, fellow Australian and former World Superbike Champion Troy Bayliss has been declared fit by doctors after breaking his wrist on a motocross bike just prior to the Japanese Grand Prix and will be back for his final ride on the yellow RC211V. Bayliss has signed with Ducati Corse to ride a factory 999F06 in the 2007 World Superbike Championship.

RtypeNYC · 11-01-2005, 03:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IrocRob

I think he should have taken the Camel ride for one year
and then moved up to the full factory Honda team if his results justified it. Just my $.02

Vermeulen had been advised by Mick Doohan that in MotoGP he needed to be on a full factory bike if he ever wanted to win a title.

I agree with you that I would rather have seen Vermeulen on a Honda... ANY HONDA than the Suzuki, but I'd also like to know the background as to why Doohan advised him as he did.

Xracer264 · 11-01-2005, 03:46 PM

Is it better to be 5th or 6th in the Honda development chain or 2nd, at worst, with Suzuki? I guess Mick told him to go factory no matter what factory!

IrocRob · 11-01-2005, 06:09 PM

We'll just have to wait and see what the rules change brings us in '07.
Hopefully by then Suzuki can step up.

RtypeNYC · 11-02-2005, 02:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xracer264

Is it better to be 5th or 6th in the Honda development chain or 2nd, at worst, with Suzuki? I guess Mick told him to go factory no matter what factory!

that's exactly the question.

getting on a Honda MotoGP bike for the first time, Vermeulen scored two consecutive 11th-place finishes. both were on Camel Honda's NON-FACTORY bike. this was with basically no knowledge of the bike's handling, suspension, brakes, electronic assistance... and getting only the warmup time for the races in Australia & Turkey. not being familiar with the bike MUST have been a problem for telling his team how to set it up for him, and STILL, in Turkey, he finished before Max Biaggi on his FACTORY ride!

as far as Hopkins, Vermeulen was ahead of him for quite a while in Australia, and Hopkins came back to beat Vermeulen's time by less than one second. in Turkey, Hopkins was 4 places and 17 seconds behind Vermeulen.

I think he would be very competitive on a non-factory Honda, but the goal isn't to be competiitive... it's to win championships.

***carl_g*** · 11-02-2005, 02:15 PM

You could look at this as a stepping stone, proving grounds if you will..
If vermeulen comes onto a team and is able to help develop the bike and make it competitive after his 2 years are up, he will be able to ride with any factory team.