BARF is going MotoGP Racing... Rookies Cup Style

[RaptorFA]

OK, I just got race 2 in. Budman, you are right in that we didn't get to see much of him there because the action up front was so good, but it looked to me like on the last lap Anthony saw an oppurtunity when that scrap developed in front of him that sent Perolari down and he made the most of it to finish 14th! Great job there.

Man I'll tell ya, these kids can race! Young Hanika has a lot of race smarts already and knows how to win. If he keeps on this development track we will be seeing him in the Grand Prix paddock for sure. There are others to watch out for as well such as Martin, Manzi, Ray, and countryman Joe Roberts that Anthony will be dealng with for some time to come. The front 5 are formidable riders indeed. But a few of them will be moving on soon, and others will age out so Anthony has a window to pounce!

I'm just loving watching this young man experience all this and grow as a racer and as a person. Truly wonderful stuff.

 

[budman]

And so many of these kids have so much more experience and support than Anthony. It's really amazing that he's jumping in with both feet at the deep end and hanging tough!

I want to add to this statement.

More experience really means more experience racing with lots of competition.
The good kids race against the really good kids and the really really good kids make it to Rookies Cup with so much experience going elbow to elbow. Years of it for most of them. I saw a great Youtube of Simoncelli and Dovi going at it when they were like 8 years old or so.. hell the race had tons of kids and those two were dicing it out at the front in front of a big crowd.. with a damn announcer and TV camera's.. :wow

They had years of doing this before they hit their teens and at a high level.

Anthony in comparison had years of racing mini's against some kids, some good ones and the Alonso family had to travel huge distances to do it where the Euro kids travel way less to get to the races and can do way more races at less cost and I am willing to bet get some real sponsors too. Hell Dovi had Repsol leathers in the mini bike race..:laughing

Now in Red Bull Rookies Cup Anthony gets barf as a sponsor and some members have helped by buying shirts too and not a bunch more support than he has had over the last couple years and the kid is on the world stage!

Not sure what Joe might have been able to pull in sponsorship, but he does have Keith Code as a coach. The other kids in Rookies Cup have Airlines and real companies that likely pay some real $$ to help. I am not sure of course, but just from looking at stickers on their helmets and the couple of patches they get I am assuming they are doing better than our kids :flag

I told Ivan when Anthony first got accepted.. move to Spain!! It is the only way to make this work financially. Being an American there will expose him to much more and the $$ saved by flying like they have to while living in Fremont, CA has to be an advantage as is being in the same damn time zone and not fighting jet lag every race. Shit.. I cannot imagine doing that...! :wow

So like other fast young American kids the deck seems stacked against them but they are going for it.. and deserve a hearty :applause

My hope is Anthony will out grow "barf support" quickly because frankly I just don't have the $$$ his success really deserves and with the additional $$ more racing, more experience and more success can be attained.

I just want to see the Krazy Cid make it.. hopefully in Europe in the MotoGp series one day, but just seeing how good the other kids that have gone to the RBRC series have had here in the States recently you know he stands a damn good chance to make a living racing... and hopefully if he does there will be a little on his helmet somewhere to say thanks to barf for believing in him.:teeth

 

[Lonster]

Thanks Dennis.

 

[slydrite]

This brand new article highlights some issues with US road racing non-farm system

http://cyclenews.uberflip.com/t/24308

 

[Spec-ECU]

I want to add to this statement...

You're fighting an uphill battle for a talented young kid and his family, who are also going uphill against the competition.

It's just the harsh reality of the circumstances, one that I agree will continue to be so unless the Alonsos do move to where their passion and work ethic can be equally rewarded.

 

[DaveT319]

A bit of a disappointing first race today. He got a bad start and was last entering Turn 1. Then later on, he came together with Ms. Watanabe and she crashed. Not really his fault and she wasn't hurt. Besides, as they say, "rubbin' is racin'". Ended up just out of the points in 16th.

Hoping for better in Race 2 tomorrow. Anyone have any thoughts or suggestions for how he can improve his starts? Is he heavier than most of the other kids, and that slows him down off the line? If he can improve his qualifying - which will come from experience, since he's learning all of these tracks for the first time this year - and his starts, I KNOW he can hang with the guys near the top.

I'm rooting for him so hard, I desperately want to see him succeed.

 

[firstbuell]

& the 2nd race.....?

 

[budman]

Another 16th and out of the points again.

From watching this each round I am quite certain and star is in the making.

Jorge Martin from Spain is one fast Spaniard.

Karel is fast and in the points lead, but is 17 now. Martin is 15.

Glad Joe Roberts got some points after being taken out on Saturday.

 

[RaptorFA]

Yeah, I felt bad for Joe when the 50 machine submarined him and took him out. Obviously it was unintentional, but you just hated to see his race end before it even started. So a bit of redemption to snag 11th and 5 points in race 2.

Anthony just missed the points in both races. But he ran OK and brought the bike home in both races. I Hope that little touch with Yui didn't rattle him any. That was just a racing incident and he did nothing wrong in my eyes.

Thre was some talk about some new suspension parts in the front that not everyone got to use this time out. That kinda sucked! But all the bikes should have the new stuff in Brno, so that's good.

It just seems to me like Anthony is still learning both the bike and the circuits. These things take time and once he gets that confort level going, he starts qualifying better and we will start seeing some real results. He should be proud of what he is doing out there; the competition is super tough this season. But now he has seen it and will learn how to get there. Joe, too. Both of these youngsters have a bright future as far as I can see.

 

[budman]

I would agree.. specially for Anthony being all new. At least Joe got to see the circuits last year.

I am hoping that he will find a good result to bolster some confidence soon.. not sure if he needs that.. but I think it would help.

 

[DaveT319]

How certain is it that he'll get to participate in the series again next year? I would imagine most racers have a hard time joining a new series on a new bike seeing new-to-them tracks and producing results right away. The fact that he's been in the points at all is rather impressive when you think about it, not to mention that he's only crashed out of 1 race. So how strong are the odds that he'll be able to come back next year once he has the experience and track knowledge under his belt?

 

[RaptorFA]

You know, I'm not even sure how that whole process works. That is a very good question...

 

[budman]

I believe A will get a year two. If he did not improve he would be let go potentially.
Performance is a bench mark for Red Bull as it should be.

 

[JimDoyleR6]

RBR cup

The normal procedure for the RedBull Rookies Cup is to annually drop the 10 or so lowest performers and replace them with new racers from various parts of the World. Anthony must and I am sure will, up his game as soon as he is living in Europe, where he can perform to his full potential without the travel and time changes he experiences now. Anthony has the talent and his family is showing their commitment by moving to Barcelona, to be there to help in the best way possible. He and his family are doing all they can for Anthony's success in the motorcycle racing World! I wish them success in their endeavor!

 

[Dmitriy]

The normal procedure for the RedBull Rookies Cup is to annually drop the 10 or so lowest performers and replace them with new racers from various parts of the World.

Hopefully there are some [racers] on their 2nd year who didn't improve enough that may help Anthony out in staying.

 

[slydrite]

We just witnessed, in person, Anthony's best race to date. He completed a pass on the line to finish 13th and battled hard with 4-5 kids the entire race. It was great to watch & Ivan was very proud and Anthony seemed happy.

More pics of the actual race to come, but here is a crappy cell pic of Roadstergal and a sweaty AA, right after the race!

 

[secn8ure]

Fine finish. Thanks for the update.

 

[Roadstergal]

This was a great race, especially considering the Alonso's fresh move to Spain, that Anthony still doesn't have his own bike to practice on, and his first laps on the track were yesterday!

The kids lined up, and rolling out.

Anthony started from the back, but picked up his pace quickly and started to pick other kids off.

He worked his way up to 13th, but touched the grass at one point and fell back behind these kids.

He got back on them, though

and when they got together on the last lap with two corners to go, got past one

and drafted past the second at the line, for a nice bunch of points and his best finish of the year.

 

[SuperMike]

Carrie!! :love

Thanks for posting the AWESOME pics! It great to see Anthony growing and progressing the way he is.

 

[budman]

Awesome. Going to watch the race now!!!

Thanks for the info and way to go Anthony!!