Kawasaki turns attention to 2009.

Insert next year number in same story from this point last year...
Why can't they concentrate on THIS year at some point this year?

Why can't they yurn their attention to making their road bikes more reliable!!?? Mine's broken again! Grr...

Sorry, I meant "turn". Doh!

I hope they pull their act together because "Kawasaki" at present is almost a synonym with "hopeless".

Couldn't agree more Buelliful. It's Groundhog day again. Bill Murray should be riding the bike for all the good it'd do!

Checa said no to Kawasaki and Aspar. He stays in SBK. That says it all.

And I suppose next year will be focussed on success in 2010?

Normally a team brings out a press statement full of positives and anticipation, however unrealistic it may be.
This time it even lacks that

Maybe they need to look at what Suzuki have done. I know they are not world beaters, but they have moved up the ladder with quite a few podiums over the past few seasons.

Maybe a change in management, some fresh engineering staff, a rider with some development skills, lets face it West could not develop a cold and there was no forward movement at Suzuki with Hopkins prior to Denning and Vermeulen and now Capirossi.

Look at the inroads Ducati have made since it came back into GP, it kinds makes the efforts of Kawasaki and even Suzuki to shame.

Mark S, On what basis can you claim "West cannot develop a cold". He has complained of a lack of front end feel all year and Kawasaki have done nothing to address it. The much more likely scenario is that Ant has been clear about a development path and Kawasaki are incapable of providing it....

Here here DFH. Totally agree.

well said DFH it seems kwaka have invested in hopkins who can't develop a bike but is a good rider and now they may have got the same in marco they should have saved their money an stuck with ant on the right bike he could do well

They DID get a new developement staff when they poached Yoda San from Yamaha a few years back! That gave them instant progress but since then the bike has gone backwards compared to everyone else.

As for Westy, you can ask for changes but if they don't give you them then you are left riding a bike you cannot ride...

DFH

What work has West done with the team to get the front end sorted out in testing and practice sessions? It seems to me that Kawasaki were making inroads over the past few seasons, and this year they have gone to crap.

IIRC correctly one of the reasons KTM gave him the flick was due to West not giving any valuable feedback on the bike, sure he can ride and has shown that in the wet, but his feedback has been poor at best. Several friends here in Australia who have worked in and around the scenes have confirmed this. I guess his punchy dad did not help the situation at KTM either.

Yeah, the knock on West is that he could never develop a bike properly, which is why he should've stayed in WSS and probably won the title!

Mark S

Being Australian, I too have "contacts".. Firstly West has done little riding in Oz since he was a junior, so local information regarding his development skills is a bit light on. Secondly in the case of the KTM 250 bike Wests feedback was clear. It went something like "I refuse to ride this bike until its stops nipping up its crankshafts every time I ride it". If you remember the KTM missed the first third of its first year cos the bike was not ready, then did Donnington & Assen. By the time of the Motegi round the team had used all its cranks in practice, Ant spit the dummy and the bike was not seen again until the next year.

spend youe next year's budget on one bike and one GOOD rider.. not on two washed up drivers and 2 mediocore bikes... u will do better in % at least.

i wouldnt exactly say they are washed up ... Both hopper and melandri were top five in the championship last year with hopper 4th and melandri 5th and multiple podiums so the boys can ride they just need the right machinery !

I was thinking have 4, or even 6 kawasaki's and supply the bikes and let the privateers get their own Sponsors/ mechanics while Dorna pays for the transportation of the teams. Maybe a privateer like "The GhostRider" from the Youtube might even kick some As s on the track. And let all the Manufacturers Have 6 bikes on the grid. That way we have 30 bikes at the start up grid and a first Lap will be awesome to watch .
Just a thought as opposed to reducing the number of riders and bike as suggested by Filipo. More Bike Feedback might improve the Development for the Manufacturers. I might Hop on as a Privateer just to get my A$S whooped as well but enjoy the Paddock girls & photo shoot.