Troy "Mr. Superpole" Corser to Beemah in '09

[CYCLE_MONKEY]

....and no, the nickname "Mr. Superpole" has nothing to do with his pre-WSB porno career.......

http://www.cyclenews.com/ShowStory.asp?HeadlineID=13019

[konichd]

Now lets see how well he and Xaus get along

Now that Yamaha seat is open for Spies

[CYCLE_MONKEY]

Now lets see how well he and Xaus get along

Now that Yamaha seat is open for Spies

Yeah, he deserves to get out of AMA, for sure. I hope he gets a good MotoGP ride instead. Or, barring that, I'd love to see him take Nieto's seat on the Suzuki, since he's so used to it. But, regardless, he's talented enough to deserve a top seat regardless of company.

[Ninja Nate]

I want to see Spies race ANYWHERE against the best in the world. It would be good to see Spies in Moto GP, though I dont see it happening for next year.

[Filo]

Moto GP isn't going to happen for Ben. WSB would be cool though. I'd like to see him adapt to a new bike too. My guess is it would be about 1/2 a season before he starts to be a real threat.

[konichd]

Well Honda is going to announce its 2009 GP lineup on Friday. JIR Scott/Alice Ducati are the only ones with open seats at the moment.

WSBK Alstare suzuki is full, the only "factory" seat available is the Yamaha.

I hope Spies doesn't race anywhere next season, maybe that would knock his attitude down a notch or two that it needs.

[Ninja Nate]

Well Honda is going to announce its 2009 GP lineup on Friday. JIR Scott/Alice Ducati are the only ones with open seats at the moment.

WSBK Alstare suzuki is full, the only "factory" seat available is the Yamaha.

Yamaha has an open seat? They didn't resign Jorge??? WTF?

[konichd]

^^^No WSBK Yamaha Italia has the open "Factory" seat.

[Ninja Nate]

Ahhh, i'm an illiterate bastard again... Somehow I didn't catch the WSBK in the sentence. I thought we were still talking Moto GP.

My apologies

[konichd]

I have a better shot at a Porno career than Spies making it to GP this year. You can bet money he'll be Sykes teammate at Yamaha Italia in SBK.

[Ninja Nate]

Yeah, I've heard he, or his mum, or his manager shot him in the foot when they said they wanted a base salary of 2 mil to ride GP...

Confidence and arrogance are totally different, though separated by a fine line...

[CYCLE_MONKEY]

Well Honda is going to announce its 2009 GP lineup on Friday. JIR Scott/Alice Ducati are the only ones with open seats at the moment.

WSBK Alstare suzuki is full, the only "factory" seat available is the Yamaha.

I hope Spies doesn't race anywhere next season, maybe that would knock his attitude down a notch or two that it needs.

He's got a GREAT attitude.....a WINNERS attitude. Not to be confused with a WHINERS attitude........

Man, there's some stupidity for sure in the FIM and WSB paddock. Make him a good enough offer, maybe not what he wants money-wise, but good, and he'll do it. I mean, what's he got left to prove in AMA? He can race against the best in the world in MotoGP or WSB. I think he'd do it. I haven't heard anything attributed to him that he declined a seat due to salary, so it's all just BS speculation, folks.

[konichd]

You make me laugh sometimes Frank,

It's Spies arrogant attitude that has left him without a seat. Poor work ethic (remember the preseason test in Japan?), Mom's a bitch, outrageous demands for someone who hasn't competed on ANY world level, and the attitude he's the next Schwantz (sounds like Hopkins eh?).

Seats were open and I'm sure deals were laid out in front of him. If he couldn't work out anything with Suzuki in GP, why would you think anyone else would?

It takes sacrifice for a person to get in GP, GP teams don't sacrifice for the person.

[CYCLE_MONKEY]

You make me laugh sometimes Frank,

It's Spies arrogant attitude that has left him without a seat. Poor work ethic (remember the preseason test in Japan?), Mom's a bitch, outrageous demands for someone who hasn't competed on ANY world level, and the attitude he's the next Schwantz (sounds like Hopkins eh?).

Seats were open and I'm sure deals were laid out in front of him. If he couldn't work out anything with Suzuki in GP, why would you think anyone else would?

It takes sacrifice for a person to get in GP, GP teams don't sacrifice for the person.

Ad all this "knowledge" is based on........?
He's accomplished things Schwantz couldn't, mainly, 3 AMA titles in a row. Much as I love the guy, Schwantz wasn't able to win 1.

I hear rumors, but no facts. His placings in his wild card rides alone should guarantee him a MotoGP ride. In every race, on a new bike and tires, he's finished ahead of a bunch of regulars. I'd have tossed Capirossi in a second for Spies.

[rybo]

I'd have tossed Capirossi in a second for Spies.

Not a chance I'd make this trade. As good of a rider as Spies is he has NEVER had to develop a bike. He came to Suzuki (obviously the best bike on the grid) and started winning. He's a great rider for sure, but there isn't anyone getting paid to ride motorcycles that isn't. Even our hometown guy Scott Jensen is a GREAT (and I mean it, qualified for a WSBK wildcard ride) rider. He deserves a seat where someone is paying him to race too, but those seats are really hard to get.

Capirossi, on the other hand, is greatly responsible for the development of the Ducati and is a big part of the reason it's as good of a bike as it is today. Spies has never proven this ability, and it's even more rare than being a great rider. If I'm Suzuki and I can't routinly get onto the podium with really good riders like John Hopkins or Chris V, then I know the bike isn't up to pace. I NEED a rider capabable of developing the bike. I'd take Loris over Ben in this role any day of the year.

[konichd]

All of those listed above are well known reported facts, either by roadracingworld or superbike planet. I know JIR Scott offered him something.

Let me ask you this Frank if Spies is so good........

At Laguna Seca Spies finished 9th, Hacking finished 11th, but was essentially Spies's shadow for the whole race until Elias got by him on the last lap. Ben is way more talented than Hacking I'll admit, but why was Hacking able to shadow Spies? Afterall, Spies has more talent, Laguna is one of his best tracks, and he had a lot more time on the Suzuki than Hacker did on the Kawi. Lets also admit the Kawi is statistically the worst bike in the GP paddock. So why, with all these advantages didn't Spies leave Hacker in the dust?

Don't even bring up Indy, that wasn't even a race. I think the only reason he did so well is that he's 30 lbs heavier and the wind didn't blow him away

[green_zx7r]

...Lets also admit the Kawi is statistically the worst bike in the GP paddock. ...

Ooooh crap! Konichd has finally crossed the line!!!

Konichd,
Any news on the plans for PSG1 Kawasaki? Talk about shitty results, 2008 was DEFINITELY a year to forget. WTF was Tamada doing all year? At least Laconi put in some kind of results. Tamada just didn't seem to be involved in racing all together. Maybe we saw his name here and there, but damn he was usually at the bottom of the results list... It seems at least last year they had some decent results, even making it into the superpole more often than this year!!! Hope they recover, cuz I want to see the greens in the top 5-8...

Regarding other folks...

As usual, Mr. Crocodile will get several pole positions on the new BMW, possibly get a podium or two, but he'll be back around 5th-10th developing the bike. We all know where Xaus will be every race (DNF).

His replacement Tom Sykes will do great on the Yamaha. The once mighty Rizla Suzuki in BSB was in the toilet the last couple of years even with Stalker on it. Sykes walks in and he's kicking serious butt. I believe he came from a Honda last year so I don't think switching bikes will affect him too much. I'm just hoping he adjusts to the bigger tracks very fast.

Haga on the factory duc (if it happens), would be shitty. It will greatly increase his chance of winning the title, but if he keeps falling, it won't be any different. I really hoped to watch him win the title on a Yamaha instead of a twin, but I understand his frustrations. I'm praying he stays at Yamaha, even though that's a pretty slim chance.

Ben on a factory R1 would be GREAT. I really hope that happens. I think he'll adjust pretty quick. We need new USA blood in WSBK anyways, and we need another fun rider on the R1, once Haga is out.

Speaking of new USA blood, I truly hope Zemke and Hayes also make the transition to WSBK. I am not a Honda fan, but I loved watching those two dice it in FX. I think Zemke is rumored for a duc ride in SBK, and Hayes is rumored (and currently riding in) to be in the Supersport class.

[konichd]

Haga has signed with Factory Ducati already......

No word on PSG-1 yet. I'm interested to hear, I know thats where Ant West will end up. Laconi is gone after this season. Tamada, who knows.....Haga's 5 year old son turned faster lap times on a pedal trike.............