Now that Honda is out of AMA, can the series survive?

[PhilB]

Originally Posted by binx_19

i guess i am kind of knew only been watching 2 years, but what has honda done to rig it? is it worse then buel?

No, Honda hasn't done anything to rig anything.

What Honda has done in the past a few times is find a way to interpret the existing rules to their own advantage, and used their engineering might to then do that. A good relatively recent example was in MotoGP, where a few years ago, there were different weight limits set for 2-cyl, 3-cyl, 4-cyl, and 6-cyl engines, but no one had ever made a 5-cyl for GP, so they didn't set a separate weight for that. So Honda took advantage of that and built a 5-cyl (the RC211V), with the same weight as a 4-cyl, as allowed by the rules, and kicked everyone's butt until they changed the rule. That's not "cheating" or "rigging"; that's racing.

But it does require that the rules be clear, and defined, and predictable, and not changed with short or no notice. Which are Honda's legitimate objections to the way DMG has been running things. You can't spend the money to invest in a new design, especially when money is tight, if the rules might arbitrarily make your design obsolete or uncompetitive without warning -- whether by outlawing what you've done, or by allowing someone else to do something that hadn't been legal for you to do.

PhilB

[Builtgypsy]

Sounds like the early days of Nascar.

It seems like every racing organization goes through playing favorites, from SCCA to IRL to this now.

[binx_19]

so that is like Suzuki putting "mode" selections on their bikes to have traction control.

[Hybrid]

Honda pulling out of this is pure chicken shit.

Granted, Suzuki has been a bit too successfull this last decade with the monumental train of wins they have sucked up. Im not sure what the deal is on that because before them it was Kawasaki as the most winning brand in racing.

I will tell you this.......... back in the days of privateer racing, HONDA pulled all but every dime of its contingency program out of all the racing. We all raced the F2 F3 because its all that would win a 600 race. They knew it and they said fuck it and stop the cash flow.

To me, that lines up with this move in "fuck it, if we cant have it our way we dont want to play"

Sure, Suzuki has cried wolf and been busted cheating their ass off a few times but all is fair it seems until you dont get what you want.

I loved the Zuk tactic of building monster bikes in retalliation to Buell's bullshit but this is all getting to a point where it needs to end.

We shouldnt watch this shit because its not fair, to the privateer, not just a brand. When the playing field is equal, Ill vote with my wallet.