Highside

A number of fairly reliable sources are reporting that World Superbike sensation Ben Spies has made up his mind for 2010: Elbows will be joining fellow Texan Colin Edwards in the Yamaha Tech 3 paddock for 2010.

The decision is set to be formally announced at the Imola World Superbike round, which should solidify yet another piece of the Silly Season puzzle. Spies’ decision to enter MotoGP means that the 2010 lineup will feature at least 4 rookies (Alvaro Bautista, Hector Barbera, Marco Simoncelli, and now Elbows), and the paddock is filling up really fast now. For the current riders who have yet to sign a contract for next year, things are looking scarier with the day, with the number of available bikes shrinking rapidly and no news yet from Honda if they’re going to provide Scot Honda and LCR one extra bike apiece.

Strangely, Spies decision has caused more speculation and excitement than any other 2010 rookie, and this might come from his 2008 wildcard success. Riding at Laguna Seca, Indianapolis and Donington, Spies captured 14th at the Great Britain circuit, and two top 10 finishes in the States. Spies has a lot of pressure on him to perform, but if his rookie year in WSBK has shown the world anything, it’s that Ben Spies is fully capable of standing up agains the toughest of competitions. 2010 will be a fascinating season, to be sure.

We speculated a few days ago that Niccolo Canepa had fewer days left in MotoGP than was expected, and today that speculation came true.  GPone.com reported today that Pramac Ducati’s manager, Paolo Campitoni, has announced that Aleix Espargaro will be riding for the satellite Ducati squad in Estoril.  With Casey Stoner slated to return at the Portugal round, Mika Kallio will be returning to Pramac, which means that for Espargaro to ride, Canepa will have to step aside.

The news has upset Canepa, and his manager is currently in talks with Pramac to ensure he gets paid for the rest of the season.  Canepa’s contract does not stipulate that he must ride, only that he must be paid, so Espargaro will most likely be filling in pro-bono.

The battle between Espargaro and Canepa is hardly finished, however; both are slated to be potential candidates for Pramac’s Moto2 project next year, and while Espargaro would certainly like to stay in the premier class, spending a year in Moto2 might be more beneficial for the surprise Spaniard.  If Espargaro continues to be successful, expect to see him riding somewhere for Pramac next year, while Canepa will most likely have to step back to World Superbike or World Superstock.

A new video surfaced yesterday of World Superbike sensation Ben Spies and the “Ben Spies method” of winning races. The video is much in the same vein of the “Day at the Office” skit Yamaha did with Rossi, Lorenzo, Edwards and Toseland shortly after Rossi’s 100th victory.

The new video from Yamaha improves even more off of the earlier one, losing the corny music and god-awful faux-acting from the Yamaha office employees in favor for Spies simply being Spies—something that makes the lanky, shy Texan adorable and lovable.  But more importantly, the video shows that Yamaha is still years ahead of the competition in PR, just as they are with their MotoGP bike.

(Video and more after the break) Read the rest of this entry »

Something is amiss in the Pramac paddock. With Mika Kallio set to return at Estoril as Casey Stoner makes his revival, the casual observer would think that all is said and done for Aleix Espargaro. And yet, his behavior after the race is a bit odd.

Espargaro flew back home to Spain to have an arm pump installed—surgery that was hardly time-sensitive for the replacement rider whose days in MotoGP this year would seem to be over. And yet, Espargaro appeared bright and early in Spain today—the day after the race—to undergo the surgery.

Then there’s Niccolo Canepa. The Italian has had a god-awful MotoGP debut, never finishing higher than 8th (in Great Britain, with all the hullabaloo that occurred there), and averaging around 13th. Silly Season rumors have the odds of Canepa leaving the series as remarkably high, and his last two performances have done nothing to change that.

Finally, there’s Pramac themselves. In a small, and quite possibly insignificant move, the satellite Ducati squad have changed the nature of their press releases; where at first they listed Canepa before the substitute rider, the entire Misano weekend has listed Espargaro before Canepa, who was riding in his home country (of sorts).

The nature of this speculation is wild observation, drawing lines between tiny, miniscule facts that could all paint a bigger picture, or could all be entirely unrelated. But the tiny pieces paint a compelling picture; why would Espargaro be so quick out of Misano unless he was worried about being fully recovered in time for Estoril? And why would the Pramac press releases give so much extra time and space to the Spaniard? Only time will tell, and with three weeks before Estoril, it could be a long time before the announcement—if there is going to be one—is made.

(hat tip to YooperBikeMike who first started pulling all these pieces together)

It had been said before in Brno, but now we can confirm it: Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso have renewed their contracts with HRC, keeping the two men on board the Repsol Honda bikes for 2010.  The news was announced by the head of HRC, Tetsuo Suzuki, during a press conference this weekend in San Marino.

The main hitch in the agreement was the role that Pedrosa’s manager and mentor Alberto Puig would play in the garage.  HRC downplayed the previous rumors that they were seeking to bar the elder Spaniard from the pits, but firmly stated that while Puig might be Pedrosa’s manager, Mike Leitner was the team manager and would stay as such.  A cordial Suzuki went on to clarify that the relationship between Honda and Puig “is not bad, but we are not friends.”

The announcement marks a shift in Silly Season; with every factory ride now accounted for, the shuffle amongst the satellite rides will begin in earnest.  A big new piece has just come into play, however, as HRC has hinted that they might run 8 bikes in MotoGP next year, up from the current six.  The two additional bikes would be split between LCR Honda and Scot Honda.  This would not only allow current 250cc points leader Hiroshi Aoyama to move up, but would bring the total number of bikes on the grid to 20—a move that would certainly please Dorna.  The additional bikes would provide a little extra air for the furiously competitive satellite riders, as Alex de Angelis, Toni Elias, James Toseland, and others furiously battle for a spot on the grid in 2010.

A post-race interview from Misano reveals what we all suspected: Tech 3 Yamaha is on the verge of renewing Colin Edwards‘ contract for the 2010 season.  Edwards, who has been dominant on board his satellite Yamaha for much of the season, said that the Texas Tornado still has to come to a final agreement with team boss Herve Poncharal, but that the two are “pretty much there.”

Edwards also admitted that his teammates bike, currently piloted by James Toseland, is up for grabs, saying, “As regards for a team-mate, I don’t know yet, we’ll see what the scenario is there.”

Edwards’ position at Tech 3 is rumored to be a  place-holder for World Superbike star and fellow American Ben Spies, whose recently renewed contract with Yamaha has the younger Texan riding in WSB for 2010 before a probable move to Tech 3 in 2011.

Edwards also weighed in on the renewed battle between Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo, saying that “They look like they are both pretty focused on beating each other, which is great for the sport.  Not just for the end of this year, but next year too.”

Edwards finished 6th during Free Practice 1 in Misano.

With just five races left in the 2009 run, Silly Season will take a serious step forward this weekend in Misano.  For all the talk and show of riders looking to make jaw-dropping changes, all the silliness this year has been just that—silly talk, with all the riders staying where they’re comfortable.

The news of Silly Season’s impending closure comes as Ducati announced that they were exercising their option to re-sign Nicky Hayden for the 2010 season.  The decision comes after Hayden’s first podium of the season in Indianapolis, where he rode his Ducati to a 3rd place finish.  Hayden’s slow-but-steady improvement on the bike shows the most promise that anyone—Casey Stoner excluded—has ever made on the Ducati.

Hayden’s signing means Repsol Honda star Dani Pedrosa is fresh out of options, leaving him with the choice of taking the Honda deal or moving to a satellite team—an unthinkable decision for one of The Untouchables.  Pedrosa’s difficulty in coming to a decision with the team stems from arguments over the involvement of his mentor, Alberto Puig, who we’ve discussed in recent posts.  With nowhere else to go, Pedrosa’s bargaining chips are out, and Catalonian radio has reported that he will announce his renewal in Misano this weekend.  The role that his mentor will play remains to be seen.

Repsol Honda #2 Andrea Dovizioso has reportedly been on the verge of signing at Indy, but most likely wanted to wait for the San Marino Grand Prix to announce anything.  Misano, while not as close to home for Dovi as it is for The Doctor, is still very close to home, and the opportunity to announce his renewal in front of so many fans would be hard to pass up.

With the signing of these three riders, all the factory bikes will have filled up, meaning that all that’s left to be decided are the factory rides.  With a wealth of talent in the 250s that is coming to the big leagues next year, and the striking disappointment of current satellite riders like Niccolo Canepa and James Toseland, team managers will be looking to grab the best of the rest.  It might just be that with the factories all signed, we now delve into the heart of Silly Season.  Stay tuned for more news as it becomes available.

Back when Tetsuo Suzuki announced that HRC were resigning Pedrosa and Dovizioso, there was an audible sigh of relief amongst the fans, as it meant that the 2010 paddock was starting to form more clearly.  Just minutes later, though, we fnd out that HRC had been a little vague: a basic agreement had been reached, but neither rider had actually signed.  This left the door open for either rider to still be courted, and it would appear that The Red Beast has come knocking for Dani Pedrosa.

The tiny Spaniard told Visordown magazine “Yes, we have had some contact, simply that.  They [Ducati] are interested.”  Specifically, it’s Livio Suppo who is interested, with the head of Ducati Corse’s MotoGP venture always looking for some way to stir up rumors and flex his Marlboro Muscle at the other riders.

We’ve seen this before, back when Lorenzo was debating between Yamaha and Ducati.  Suppo sees a rider that’s up for grabs, prepares to throw a giant sum of cash at the rider, while the rider—who has no desire to actually step onto the Desmosedici—uses this as leverage with his preferable signing team.

Much has been said about Pedrosa’s dilemna: his contract with HRC explicitly states that Alberto Puig, Pedrosa’s longtime mentor, cannot be in the garage.  And Pedrosa, who is seemingly the only human in the world that is close with Puig, doesn’t like this demand.  So now, Pedrosa is looking to Suppo to help him gain leverage over HRC, hoping to push the factory Honda squad into letting him keep the unpopular Puig.

Of course, Suppo isn’t just doing this to help Pedrosa.  Ducati’s boss seems furiously intent on replacing Nicky Hayden, who is slowly finding some pace on the Desmosedici, but hardly at the pace that Suppo would like.  Hayden’s podium at Indy means he’s now an option for 2010, but hardly an option Suppo likes.  Despite Hayden’s willingness to do extensive PR events—something their star rider, Casey Stoner, absolutely refuses to partake in—and the commercial success of the Limited Edition Nicky Hayded Desmosedici 848 bike, Suppo is looking to drop Hayden, and fast.

Why is Suppo so set on replacing Hayden?  Possibly because their star rider, Casey Stoner, has become a falling star of late.  His mystery illness continued to hurt him throughout the central part of the season, and now with the Australian sitting out three races, his future in MotoGP is the unspoken question on everyone’s lips.

Enter Pedrosa.  The current Honda star is in 4th place in the standings, just 9 points behind the absent Stoner.  Pedrosa is young, and despite his small stature, has proven his skill in controlling a MotoGP machine.  And while Pedrosa brings the bad baggage of Puig with him if he comes to Ducati, he also brings something that Hayden, Melandri, and many others haven’t been able to bring: hope that Ducati can remain competitive in the coming years.

Of course, Suppo is banking on one thing: Pedrosa taming the Desmo.  So far, only Stoner has done this, and there are many other who have tried and failed.  The most recent name to be added to this list is Mika Kallio, whose performance on the factory Ducati has been no better than his runs on his satellite GP9.  Kallio, who is filling in for the absent Stoner, has been a hit-or-miss rider, finishing consistantly around 10th position.  His best performance of the year doesn’t speak for itself, though—he was poised to take 5th place in the TT Assen when he crashed out on the final chicane.  Since stepping onto the factory Ducati, Kallio’s performances haven’t improved, crashing out of 8th place in Brno in a questionable collision with Marco Melandri, and finishing in 8th in Indianapolis—but only after Pedrosa, Rossi, and Melandri all crashed out from in front of him.  One would hope that Kallio’s performance on board the factory Ducati would improbve, but it’s famous difficulty would seem to effect even the aspiring Finn.

Pedrosa doesn’t have too long to make up his mind.  With the San Marino GP beginning in 3 days time, Silly Season is soon coming to a close, and if Pedrosa doesn’t play his hand soon, HRC might play it for him.  HRC has a lot to lose if Pedrosa leaves, after spending 2 years building the bike for Pedrosa’s specific stature, but HRC seems convinced that a Pedrosa with Puig is a Pedrosa worth leaving.  As the MotoGP circus pulls into Misano this weekend, the rumor mill will surely pick up more speed.

As it has been widely rumored and expected, Suzuki announced today that they are re-signing Loris Capirossi for the 2010 season.  The Italian, who will be 37 years old at the start of next season, is being kept on to continue helping with the development of the GSV-R, which has failed to be competitive so far.  Despite this, Capirossi has proven his skill time and time again, riding a less-than-ideal bike to three 5th place finishes.

Capirossi will be joined by Alvaro Bautista, who had already announced his 2-year contract with Suzuki.  Bautista, currently in 2nd place in the 250cc runnings, will be hoping to prove himself worthy of stepping up to a more competitive factory team in 2012.

Of course, with the second spot on the Suzuki roster filled, that means that current Suzuki rider Chris Vermeulen has to find a new place to ride for 2010.  Vermeulen, whose popularity with the Australian fan base was not enough to offset his disappointing performance on the GSV-R, will most likely be moving to the World Superbike championship for 2010.