Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128355
Rider of the Year Valentino Rossi Colin Edwards What ma kes him special? If I knew that, we'd all be the same, wouldn't we? Nicky Hayden Obviously, he's got a lot of talent. That's a given . There's a lot of ride rs here with a lot of talent. The biggest thing is he 's just determined . He don't quit . And that's the same th ing that makes any real champion, mu lti-time champion, real good . Just a guy tha t w o n't lay down - no matter what. He 's got that , and he's def initely good when the pressure's o n too - better than most of these guys. Garry Taylor If we knew that, we'd all have one. He 's just amazing. He just seems to be able to lift it to a new leve l whenever required. Colin Edwards He's having fun, so it's easy when you have fun. When it's fun, it's easy. Kevin Schwantz There's so much pressure t hat you really just put on yourself. You want to be the best. Everybody deep down inside wants to be the best. Some people are better about getting t hat out of themselves than others. If you can do tha t and be having fun, it's just going to make it that much easier. You're going to be that much more cons istent at do ing it. It's just going to come nat urally. When it's more like it' s a job and , like it can be , a lifethreatening occupation - whenever you 're thinking about it like that, you're not having fun, and I promise you you're not going fast . After Wayne [Rainey) got hurt, I started seeing all the Armco barriers that were close by the track. The fun went right out the window. It wasn't there anymore. Kenny Roberts Sr. The thing t hat ma kes him really strong and is going to Kenny Roberts Sr. There's a few th ings that ma ke him t hat good . He is that good, he's got that talen t. And the oth e r th ing t hat makes him good is th at he can guide the bike to do wh at e ither he wants it to do or w hat it needs to do every t ime . Or every other time. It doesn 't matter. He has what it takes: "Hey, I don 't care if it do esn't work, I'm going to ride it." Freddie Spencer Kurtis Roberts He has absolute be lief in that it's going to turn ou t okay, and when you have that belief, w hat happens is it he lps you to be right on that edge and a little beyond it with bike control. That kind of feeds into what I was saying that even w he n the tires go off or anything, he can go to that edge a little farther than anybody else . Because anybody else at t his point , if things aren't right, they struggle, and Valentino doesn't. 30 JANUARY 5 , 2005 • CYCLE NEWS I haven't been able to see Rossi on the stuff I've been on . I don 't see anything that makes him that special on TV He is very talented. He definit ely w ants it more than most people out there . He 's in a great team situation, and he's a great ride r. You put all t hose packages together, and anyo ne misses one tooth on the sprocket, they're in trouble. be very hard to beat, for anybody - and I don't see any te am doing it in this paddock, especially Hond a - is that he enjoys it. He likes it. He has fun doing it. Just the w hole thing is w hen you look at Valentino, you look and he's having fun. Freddie Spencer I re ally respect that he's been 250cc World Champion, obviously, as well as I25cc World Champion,