Worst kept secret in V8s now denied

[gassit320]

Many news outlets report Stoner confirmed for Dunlop series this year starting at Clipsal 500.
Other outlets deny this although he doesn't say he's not racing this year, he says "I haven't signed yet"
Either way, make no mistake, I guarantee you this will be a very different situation to Gardner.
I am tipping (after being 2 seconds off qualifying times at QUEENSLAND raceway) he will learn the tracks and the car this year whilst kicking butt, and then go to the full series next year and be very close to the front.
You heard it here first ;-)

[Micks]

will be a very different situation to Gardner.
We'll see!

[jimco]

I hope he does well,no doubt he's a talented rider but going fast on a track all by yourself is only a very small part of racing.

[VX2VESS]

Rather see him back on bike racing he was too good at that.

[VRIIClubby]

Rather see him back on bike racing he was too good at that.

Totally agree with that! He was an excitement machine on two wheels!



I am tipping (after being 2 seconds off qualifying times at QUEENSLAND raceway) he will learn the tracks and the car this year whilst kicking butt, and then go to the full series next year and be very close to the front.

and agree there aswell, very different situation between he and Gardener, Casey is still young enough to learn the dynamics and still have a long career in V8's,

I hope he does well, and I hope he continues to stir the pot in the category! Its been to boring for to long! Go hard #27!

[gassit320]

Yeah I was never a big Gardner fan, rooted for him coz he was an Aussie. Gardner no doubt had talent, but Stoner is a freak. Regarded by some who have seen a truckload of talented ridersin their time (iincluding the likes of Ago) to be the most skilled rider ever. I am sure his ability to ride around any problems will be transferred to 4 wheels. H

[IJ.]

I think his main learning curve will be figuring out how much he can now lean on other cars instead of trying to keep contact to a bare minimum, he has the racecraft covered, over the years there have been a few crossover world champions can't see why not in this case!

[gassit320]

It's official :-) starting at the Clipsal, can't wait!

[whitels1ss]

Yeah I was never a big Gardner fan, rooted for him coz he was an Aussie. Gardner no doubt had talent, but Stoner is a freak. Regarded by some who have seen a truckload of talented ridersin their time (iincluding the likes of Ago) to be the most skilled rider ever.

I think Mick Doohan was a far better bike rider than Gardner, and is a much nicer bloke as well.

[bigfoot]

I think Mick Doohan was a far better bike rider than Gardner, and is a much nicer bloke as well.
Yeah Doohan was a true champion:goodjob:

[whiteknight2211]

Rather see him back on bike racing he was too good at that.
?
Perhaps bike racing's 'Jordan' is just switching to Baseball for a while and will make a return in a year or two?

[Hos]

I think Mick Doohan was a far better bike rider than Gardner, and is a much nicer bloke as well.

Couldn't agree more. Mick is a top bloke, very approachable and good for a yarn.

I think for Stoner, he has seen and experienced the risks of racing MotoGP for many years now. I remember seeing an interview where he said your not invincible, need to think a out the future, family etx etc. I think a big part of his transfer follows from the death of Simoncelli in 2011.

Wish him the best of luck on 4 wheels.

[VRIIClubby]

I think a big part of his transfer follows from the death of Simoncelli in 2011.

Suprisingly Simoncelli had nothing to do with Stoners decision to retire, there are a few interviews floating around where Nakamoto has stated that Casey advised him and Repsol Management he was going to retire at the end of his contract, this was at Phillip Island in 2011 just after he had won his 2nd Championship, he wanted out then and there but according to those reports he said he would see out his contract and that would be that! Tragically Simo passed away at the next race.

I believe Simo would have reinforced that his decision to retire was the correct one, but definetley wasnt the catalyst for the retirement.

I think Casey summed it up at the end of the V8 Deal announcement quite well: "We became puppets in that world and it had nothing to do with racing."

[rgmast]

He also wasnt to happy when they bought in the CRT class

[awesome _vzss]

I wish Casey all the luck in the world and really hope he does well in the Dunlop series, has to be said though he has a big task ahead of him.

[gassit320]

Ok so he put it into a wall (in good company there) running tenth in race 1 after flat spotting a tyre, but to go from 30th to 14th in race two and circulate a second slower than the leader is in my humble opinion a bloody good effort.
Bring on Barbagello :)

[zorro]

Ok so he put it into a wall (in good company there) running tenth in race 1 after flat spotting a tyre, but to go from 30th to 14th in race two and circulate a second slower than the leader is in my humble opinion a bloody good effort.
Bring on Barbagello :)

I believe Rossi did similar in a Ferrari a few years back around Fiorano. Just proves that some guys just have the talent to pilot anything with wheels

[macca_779]

It's far easier to pedal a car than it is to pedal a bike in anger. The balls out fearless state of mind that often makes us quick and that a lot of us loose as we get older is far more apparent in a rider over a driver. I can ride ok. But fear of killing myself limits how far I push a bike over how far I push a car.