Quote:
Originally Posted by sqd8r
The Yamaha was not a POS. Even demi-gods can't turn sh*t into silk.  |
It was arguably the second best bike on the grid next to the Honda.
After 2003 (Ducati's first year), this is how I would rank them:
Honda
Yamaha
Ducati
Suzuki
Kawasaki
Team KR
WCM/Morowaki
So Rossi never has had the worst bike on the grid. Not by a long shot. His job in '04 was a little easier (but not to say easy) because:
1) Repsol Honda was in a state of flux (chaos?) with his crew's departure
2) He was the unquestioned #1 at Yamaha, and everyone at Yamaha was behind him.
3) Ducati screwed up the handling on the GP04, making it less competitive.
4) There really was not a rival tire. There were very few "Bridgestone" tracks (although IIRC Tamada won a couple that year on stones). Good riders on Bridgestones had basically no chance for wins at most tracks.