[nomo]

Originally Posted by Busy Little Shop

Due to the Bridgestone Spec tire... the I4s and V4s run the same perfect
weight distribution...


Quote MCN:
Arguably the biggest change for Rossi's bike, though, is a much
shorter wheelbase to help utilize the performance of Bridgestone's
tires. Rossi's bike is now 40mm shorter than the MI he raced to fifth
place on his Bridgestone debut back in March in Qatar. And he said
drastic reduction was essential to help keep Yamaha ahead of Ducati
and Honda.

"The new bike is different in the chassis," Rossi explained. "The
weight distribution is different and the feeling is not so bad. We
have a little bit more stability with the front and rear. We
discovered during the year that Bridgestone needs a completely
different setting compared to Michelin. We knew this quite early in
the season, but we realized we needed to move the weight of the bike.
"So we had to shorten the bike to use the tire in a different way,"
said Rossi, who conceded the much shorter wheelbase did mean
sacrifices in other areas.

"For sure, a shorter bike is a more difficult bike," he admitted. "You
have more wheelies and it becomes more unstable, particularly in the
faster corners, so you need a rider that is able to manage this. I
have to change my style to adapt to the bike, because it is quite
different compared to last year, but if you can use the potential of
the Bridgestone tires then it is possible to go very fast. That is why
we need to have made such big changes for the chassis next year."

Meanwhile, Rossi denied the spec-tire rule was already failing
miserably to reduce corner speeds, increase lap times and improve
safety in MotoGP.

I'm being suckered into this but ... I'll just say this . Comparing the curent M1 to the previous one doesn't reveal anything in the (silly) engine architecture debate . The I-4 guys aren't hung over the front like the V-4 guys are .