Change is coming to GP thick and fast

Anyone ever heard the phrase "act in haste, repent at leisure"? It seems there is no Spanish translation.

Well, here's my effort:

"si actuas o haces algo muy de prisa, tendras bastante mas tiempo para lamentarlo"

The MotoGP tabloid press is reporting that when testing starts in Sepang next week the management will be meeting behind the scenes to rush through a radical set of proposals to limit costs over the next two years.

There's nothing new in the leaked proposals - all have been discussed on this and other blogs before. What is upsetting, but not surprising, is the speed of these changes - big mistakes are going to be made. And whilst all these changes are intended to cut costs, arguably the biggest factor in escalating costs is the modern tendency for the rules to change year in year out. Adapting to new rules in a competitive way is always going to add costs.

The list of changes to be signed off in Sepang can be found here.

For non-Italian speakers Kropotkin translated them here.

The more I think about it, the more it's clear WSB is where it's at this year. Can't believe I'm saying that.

Denning hints at lack of strategic vision in MotoGP

It could be considered a landmark moment. A factory team boss pointing the finger back at Dorna, FIM and IRTA telling them to wake up and think bigger.

Ironically (or pointedly) this was in an interview for MotoGP.com:

"Some of the short term measures that have already been suggested are not going to be very effective, but they may be a minor help.

"The key point is that with the manufacturers, Dorna, IRTA, looking at things from a promoter´s perspective, an organisational perspective, a private team perspective and so on, all factors have to be considered in terms of priority and that big changes are needed, rather than small tweaks."

Funnily enough MotoGP.com didn't lead it's story with the issue, chosing to focus on Suzuki's need to be competative.

Denning might not be the most highly respected team boss in MotoGP circles, but he has come a long way from being a privateer backmarker in British championship racing.

This blog is very pleased to hear someone in his position not only talking about cutting costs - but challenging Dorna to get out there and promote the sport. Make it grow. And think things through from a teams perspective.

IRTA's mention is also interesting. Listening to the factories recently you'd think IRTA ceased to exist.

Maybe Mr Denning is a fan of Out With The Big Boys...welcome sir. And sorry about the backmarker comment.

Am I the only one happy to see Kawasaki quit?

When MotoGP gets news coverage in the FT you know something big has happened and by now Kawasakis withdrawal from MotoGP is old news.

Of all the discussion and editorial comment around the story I particularly liked Dennis Noyes comments on speedtv on "the incredible shrinking grid" which was posted before the news became official.

Like this piece the theme of the coverage is all about the financial crisis and how to get costs down to keep the manufacturers racing, but I think the holy grail of simply more bikes on the grid misses the point.

The real issue is not the costs, it's the commercial management of the sport. So little has been done to make racing in grand prix an attractive business for racing teams that no amount of cost cutting will do the trick.

Even before the credit crunch hit the paddock was pretty doom and gloom and I'm told had been for sometime. Stories of staff not being paid, teams running out of cash part way through the year and being propped up by the rights holders, teams only taking riders who pay big fees are everywhere and the general feeling is just one of imminent doom.

This is inevitable in a situation where everyone in and around the sport has no real control over their own destiny. Everything is at the whim of the manufacturers, Dorna, and Rossi - and it only takes two out of the three to really want something and they get it (the fuss over Rossi's switch to Bridgestones being just one example).

Of course each of these three are only ever going to act in their own self interest - and rightly so, Rossi wants to win races and the manufacturers in the end want to sell more motorcycles - but when the people who hold the cards for everyone else, Dorna, seem to act out of naive self interest, or totally in the interest of the manufacturers or Rossi, things are never going to be good.

Whatever the costs of racing, unless you are a manufacturer the odds are stacked against you - by design the MSMA comes first.

Sir Jackie Stewart spoke bluntly recently of the need for change at the top of F1 calling for both Ecclestone and Mosely to go, but sadly no-one seems to be calling for such big changes in MotoGP.

Until someone really gets a grip on MotoGP and tackles the big commercial issues of making GP racing a sustainable business for racing teams (and not simply motorcycle manufacturers) the slide towards watching two Honda's race two Yamaha's and possibly two Ducati's will continue.