MotoGP: Valentino Rossi renews criticism of rider aids

Valentino Rossi has again slammed the growing influence of electronics in MotoGP, renewing his fears rider skill is playing less and less of a pivotal role in the premier class.

Rossi has been highly critical of rider aids and believes they are now too important and the difference a rider can make using his talent alone has been crucially reduced with a wave of new technology sweeping into MotoGP.

The Fiat Yamaha rider has called for a ban or reduction on the amount of electronics used in MotoGP, with systems like traction control becoming so sophisticated that older generation riders are finding it harder to master riding with so much non-human input.

Valentino Rossi said: “Casey (Stoner) has done an amazing job and without doubt he is a great rider. But he is the first of the traction control generation because the way he uses traction control is amazing.

“For old generation riders like me, Marco Melandri and Loris Capirossi we have a lot of problems to understand. You have to be brave to use the systems.

“It is difficult sometimes to have confidence in a system because that system is not human.

“As an old generation rider, when the engineers come to you and say you can open the throttle full when you’re knee is on the ground at 150ks in the middle of the corner, it is easy to say this from the pits.

“It is different on the bike and that is the main problem for the old generation guys. Casey believes in the system and we don’t,” added Rossi.

Read how electronics are making a difference in the World Superbike paddock in this week’s MCN, availalbe from Wednesday, December 12, 2007.