My final thoughts on the 2010 MotoGP season

[L8 Braker]

Here are my worthless thoughts on the just finished 2010 MotoGP season...Let’s talk about the riders 1st…I’ll go in order of how they finished in the final points standings this season…

1. Jorge Lorenzo (also known as J-Lo, or Loren-tho by the SpeedTV moron)…1st, congrats to him…He earned this championship…Through 18 races, he didn’t crash once…Out of 18 races, he was on the podium 16 times!!...He won 9 times!!...His total points from 1st to 2nd is one of the biggest gaps ever, and his total points earned is up there, too…
His personality sucks, though…He denied Spies a handshake, left the podium, cries when he gets passed, and then shakes his head when he can’t do it himself…I did laugh a little when he accidentally shredded his home flag…I am officially a J-Lo hater…

2. Dani Pedrosa (Pedrobot)…Another bridesmaid season …He was racing on a different level when he went down and shattered his clavicle at Motegi…His bike was dialed in, and he was riding his azz off…The 4 races before he went down, he had placed 1st twice, and 2nd twice…He was in the zone, and I truly believe he would have challenge J-Lo for the championship had he not gone down…He deserves praise for coming back so soon from such an injury and subsequent surgery…
Dani has no personality, either, so I’m not really a big fan…I’m all Honda, so I have to root for him underneath my breath…

3. Valentino Rossi (the GOAT)…His last year on the Yamaha…46 wins on the Yami for #46 (how’s that for coincidence?)…Everyone that participates in these races threads regularly weighed in on how his season was over when he broke both of his lower leg bones…We all knew he would try to get back for MAYBE the last few races of the season…He proved the world wrong, and made a storybook comeback none of us could have imagined…In case no one noticed, Val podium’d 6 out of the last 7 races, and even won one of them!!...He finished 12 points behind Dani for 2nd place in the standings, something that didn’t seem even remotely possible…All these things just add to his legacy of him being as passionate and competitive as anyone ever…Now he heads to Ducati, where another chapter of his career will be written...

4. Casey Stoner (I don’t have a nickname)…His last season on the Ducati…Early in the season, he struggled…He would recently admit that his woes were the fault of rider sometimes and bike sometimes...Throughout the season, he would look less than average, then turn around and look like the best rider on the planet…About midway through the season, though, he figured it all out…He started looking like the Casey of 2007, where he would win so by margins so big, they needed their own zip code…Then, at the end of the season, he started crashing out race after race, ruining his hopes for challenging J-Lo for the points lead…Now he heads to Honda, where expectations will be very high…

5. Andrea Dovizioso (Dovi)…I didn’t pay much attention to him, but he had a great year…He got on the podium 6 times, and looked like he might win a few…For whatever reason, he didn’t…He wasn’t able to truly challenge the aliens…He now has a ride with Honda in 2011, and we’ll see what happens…

6. Ben Spies (Elbowz)…Rookie of the year…Beat out Nicky Hayden by 13 points, even though Nicky had a full factory ride, and Ben was on a satellite bike…Ben looked very good, even got on the podium a few time…But like Dovi, had nothing for the Aliens…Then he crashes on a warm up lap at Estoril, and hurts his ankle…Off season surgery is probably in his future…Next year, he has a full factory ride, so hopes will be high…

7. Nicky Hayden (Kentucky Kid)…Had a decent year…Top ten rider almost every race, got on the podium once all season…Never really looked like he was a threat to anyone in the front…He would have his moments, but for the most part, just another rider on the grid…

All the other riders were just ancillary characters in a play about Aliens, so I won’t even comment on them…

As for next year, it will be one of the most anticipated in a very long time…
--Rossi will on the Ducati, and Burgess is coming with him…Nicky should benefit from having them in the garage…We know Rossi will be up front, but if Nicky struggles, he may be looking for employment elsewhere
--Spies will be on a factory bike with teammate Lorenzo…They will have to develop the Yami on their own, so it’s going to be very interesting how that all plays out…Also, I’m not sure how much, if any, animosity Ben has after the handshake snub…We might have a little drama next year…
--Honda will have championship hopes…They have the best bike with Dani, Casey, and Dovi sitting on top of them…They will surely stand on many a podium next year…

In conclusion, I’ll say this season was crazy, and not like any we could have imagined…Not many close races, but I watched almost every one (I accidentally slept through a few)…J-Lo was consistent…There were crazy crashes and even crazier recoveries…A few legendary passes, celebrations, helmets, snubs, and countless other things I’m forgetting right now…But I can say I loved the whole ride…

I can’t wait for next season..