Spies out at Yamaha - Rossi in?

MotoGP News
Date: 27/July/2012

MotoGP talk at Laguna Seca on Thursday centred around Ben Spies’ announcement that he is to leave Yamaha at the end of this year - and the possibility that Valentino Rossi will take his place.

In a world where most major rider changes get leaked long before public confirmation, Spies caught everyone - including it seems the Yamaha team - by surprise.

Spies, 28, has raced for Yamaha ever since leaving the American AMA Superbike Championship.

The Texan won the World Superbike title with Yamaha at his first attempt in 2009 and was rewarded with a Tech 3 MotoGP seat the following year, before being parachuted into the Factory team as Rossi’s 2011 replacement.

Riding alongside Jorge Lorenzo, Spies took his first MotoGP win at Assen last season and came agonisingly close to a repeat victory at the Valencia finale.

A 2012 title challenge looked realistic on the improved 1000cc M1, but instead Spies’ has suffered the worst form of his grand prix career, slipping to tenth in the championship after a string of race day problems.

But his talent has never been in doubt and, with title leader Lorenzo locked into a new two-year Yamaha deal, Spies looked to have a fighting chance of remaining alongside the Spaniard - until his Tuesday announcement.

Speaking on Thursday in California, Spies said: “I’ve known for quite a bit what my personal decision was and I thought this was the right time to do it with all the contracts happening with other riders. To be out of the ball game with that.

“That’s basically it. There’s a litany of reasons behind it - just getting back to stress-free and doing what I want to do and finish out the season strong.

“For sure, we’re going to keep giving 100 per cent. Nothing changes from that standpoint. I just made a decision, something that I’d known for quite a while and that I wanted to get it off my chest and out of the way.

“Now that we’ve done that I feel like the weight of the world is off my shoulders and I can do what I set out to do.”

Attempts to find out where Spies will be racing next year were robustly deflected.

“That’s all that’s going to be said about it at this point until I’m ready to talk about the future,” said Spies.

The most popular suggestions are that Spies will return to WSBK with BMW and then spearhead a possible German MotoGP project for 2014, or that he will headline Suzuki’s proposed MotoGP comeback.

Spies won three AMA titles and made his MotoGP debut as a wild-card for Suzuki.

While Spies has stepped out of contention for the most competitive MotoGP ride still available - Repsol Honda has already named Dani Pedrosa and Marc Marquez for 2013 - the spotlight has turned more than ever onto Rossi.

Rossi quit Honda for Yamaha in 2004, lifting the company’s first premier-class crown since 1992 during an unforgettable debut season on the M1 - a bike that took just one podium the year before.

Four of Rossi’s seven MotoGP titles were won with Yamaha, but the arrival of double 250cc champion Lorenzo in 2008 meant the Italian faced his first real challenge from within the team.

Rossi didn’t like it, commenting that his efforts to improve the bike would only be helping his nearest rival.

A wall was built to separate the two sides of the pit garage and exchange of data was limited, but Lorenzo continued to get stronger and was leading the championship when Rossi broke his leg at Mugello in 2010.

The Doctor made the decision Italy had been dreaming of, to join Ducati, during the summer break, then claimed his 79th and most recent premier-class victory at Sepang that October.

However Rossi massively underestimated the challenge ahead, unaware - like most of the paddock - just how much of Ducati’s success had been down to the talent of Casey Stoner.

Ducati has made numerous major technical changes to try and suit Rossi, not least switching its frame from carbon fibre to ‘Japanese-style’ aluminium. But Rossi has only taken two podiums in one and a half seasons and the problems of understeer and lack of front-end feel remain unsolved.

The attraction for Yamaha is commercial. The Factory has been without a title sponsor since Rossi left and there are already rumours that major companies are ready to step in and fund a Rossi return.

Lorenzo has given no public opposition and, at Laguna Seca, Rossi confessed that he must choose between continuing the work so far done at Ducati - now owned by Audi - or taking what is surely a safer competitive bet with Yamaha.

Rossi, who avoided specific mention of Yamaha, explained: “I have spoken a lot with Ducati about next year, but still waiting about some important ties and some important things on the contract. And I also have some other options for next year.

“I think the situation will be clearer in the next weeks, and I think in the summer break I will decide about next year.”

By far the richest rider in MotoGP, the 33-year-old made clear that money is no longer a priority.

Rossi said: “Sincerely from my point of view, money is not very important. If it was I would already have decided! Everything has some positive and some negatives. So I have to make a clear balance and make the decision.

“From one side [Ducati] we have a lot of work to do, but good feelings for the future. Another choice [Yamaha] is safer and more sure that it is possible to be competitive in a short period.

“It is also a particular moment in my career, so I have to decide what is more important for the future.”

Lorenzo starts this weekend’s US GP with a 19-point lead over Pedrosa. Rossi, whose team-mate Nicky Hayden looks increasingly likely to remain at Ducati, is sixth in the championship.