F1 or Moto GP - which is more skillful?

Merlin5

Merlin5

Merlin5

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I just watched the 32 lap USA Moto GP at Laguna Seca where australian Casey Stoner won after a great overtake of Jorge Lorenzo. I don't normally watch motorbike races but it was pretty good. So I was wondering if it's possible to quantify if one sport is more skillful than the other? In Moto GP, it's shorter amounts of laps than F1's average 50 to 70 laps, but then, it seems to be much more physically challenging being on a bike with all the leaning, plus it must be uncomfortable having two legs astride the bike for long periods compared to the relative comfort of sitting in a car. There were no pitstops in the moto GP, but there's always lots of those in F1 that have to be timed perfectly.

What is your opinion? There's no way that Moto GP is, imo, as exciting to watch as F1, but still fun to watch.
 
The opinion must vary greatly from person to person!

I'm forever harping on about F1 to one of the chaps I work with/for and he immediately starts talking about the Moto GP saying how it's proper nip and tuck racing. Whereas the F1 is broken :p

For me the Formula One is more exciting, I love motorbikes... but the sound, the looks and the pure engineering that goes into making a Formula one car stick to the track gets my attention every time. I can't honestly say I've ever sat through a full Moto GP race.
 
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I cant stand bikes, but even I will admit MotoGP takes more skill than the current crop of F1 cars.

Think Button is hero in the wet? lol, spare a thought for the two wheeled guys racing in rain!
 
I by far and away prefer bike racing, but I think world super bikes is more exciting to watch than GPs, closer racing. But road racing such as what you get in ireland and isles of man TT is where it's that, there is more excitement in one race than a whole season of closed circuit racing.


As for which requires more skill, it's a different skill set isn't it, but I bet a bike racer world be more successful than a driver going the other way. Several bike races have made the switch to car racing, but I can't think of many drivers who have become successful riders at any level, although I'm sure there some. For a recent example look at rosi and schumacher who have both had a go at the opposite discipline. Finally riding a bike is more dangerous, yet riders dont bang on about safety as much as much F1 drivers do, and it's already extremely safe as it is.
 
Obviously the bikes, the rider can make far more of a difference over a lap and pushing the limit is much more a balance between talent and bravery. Plus it will hurt if you get it wrong so much more.

F1 oh look 130r and eau rouge, any driver can go flat through them these days. F1 cars grip levels have outgrown the circuits, bravery is no longer an option. Plus an F1 driver will think nothing of moving his car over to another driver to run him on the grass.

I think Motogp riders need a bit more racecraft than that to keep someone behind.
 
I wouldn't have assumed MotoGP is more physically challenging? Yeah they have to move the bikes about, but the F1 cars have way more G force, and the amount of pressure they have to apply to brakes over a longer time etc...

As for skillful I'd say they must be similar, but different mind sets. MotoGP is more dangerous and you probably need to be braver to ride a bike at that speed, but I wouldn't say F1 drivers aren't brave either! Going round 130r etc, knowing that if the wheel or wing failed you'd be going off the track at 180mph takes some bottle! Also knowing you need to go faster to make the corners (aero)... hats off to both sets of drivers!
 
Goksly said:
I wouldn't have assumed MotoGP is more physically challenging? Yeah they have to move the bikes about, but the F1 cars have way more G force, and the amount of pressure they have to apply to brakes over a longer time etc...

As for skillful I'd say they must be similar, but different mind sets. MotoGP is more dangerous and you probably need to be braver to ride a bike at that speed, but I wouldn't say F1 drivers aren't brave either! Going round 130r etc, knowing that if the wheel or wing failed you'd be going off the track at 180mph takes some bottle! Also knowing you need to go faster to make the corners (aero)... hats off to both sets of drivers!
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Good points. I wonder what the stats are over the years of fatalities of bikes v F1 drivers.
 
At a younger age i was into F1, not suprising it is more talked about and in the media a lot more than the GP. However i now race motorbikes:

There are very simlar skillz that both riders/drivers have together, speed and position being the main 2.
But if racing has taught me anything there is a lot more at risk on a bike forcing you to 'Do or Die' however now the speeds F1 goes aswell it can fall in the same boat.

So i would say they are close but GP definatly has the egde with regards to the extra needed

think a lot of F1 is more mechanical based too win, rather than the racing now a days.
plus GP riders are nuttier than F1 drivers.

Although u wanna see the nutter in MOTO2 or the SBK (including the 600 supersports) because those guys seem to have a point to prove to get to the top :P
 
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The cornering speeds of MotoGP are much slower than F1, meaning if they have an off its a slower one. However, this is offset by the reduced safety features of falling off a bike compared to crashing a car.

As for which is more skill full, I don't think you can compare. Both of them require immense skill. No ordinary Joe Blog's could do either, and its also rare to find someone good at both. Both disciplines require lots of skill.
 
Moto GP > F1 when it comes to skill/balls - just compare Stoners move on Lorenzo to what Hamilton did to Alonso and youd realise how 'mental' Stoner is - thats the norm :p. And then theres Simoncelli...

I wonder how dangerous something like a bike highside is compared to a car shunted into barriers at speed - breaking bones just seems par for the course in bike racing...
utajoker said:
are moto gp bikes as fast as f1 cars?
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Pretty sure they can hit 200mph+ - though ultimately they wont be as quick around corners, unsure how different their acceleration would be though

ps3ud0 :cool:
 
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Goksly said:
I wouldn't have assumed MotoGP is more physically challenging? Yeah they have to move the bikes about, but the F1 cars have way more G force, and the amount of pressure they have to apply to brakes over a longer time etc...
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So you're saying applying the brakes in an F1 car is harder on the driver than a MotoGP rider who isn't sitting strapped into a seat and has all his body weight x Gforce on his wrists/arms?
 
Orange Peel said:
So you're saying applying the brakes in an F1 car is harder on the driver than a MotoGP rider who isn't sitting strapped into a seat and has all his body weight x Gforce on his wrists/arms?
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He is, and I absolutely agree with him.

It looks so easy watching an onboard shot of an F1 car, but it is anything but. Having those sorts of G-forces acting on your body is immensely physical, something that is difficult to comprehend unless you have driven anything comparable.
I doubt there is anyone on this forum who could physically manage more than a handful of laps in a modern F1 car. Even those who are super fit and compete at the top levels of other physical sports would simply lack the strength you need in specific muscle groups - most notably the neck.

Although riding a Moto GP bike is undoubtably physical, with the kind of G forces you get with F1 aero it's just not comparable.
 
At the highest level I think the skill levels are evenly matched, whilst I admire the MotoGP boys for their skill and bravery , lets not forget an F1 driver has twice the race distance to contend with along with brake balances, KERS, DRS, comms, engine maps, etc , whilst doing 80 laps of the Monaco street circuit and inches away from the barriers at any given time.

Both require the ability of their occupants / riders to get the maximum possible performance and edge from their respective machines - racing on the limit of grip and endurance - saying one takes more skill than the other is daft imho.
 
So what is the difference in G forces between the 2 sports?

Id honestly be more happy to be (at a guess) sat in a cockpit at 4G than on top of a machine at 2G...

ps3ud0 :cool:
 
ps3ud0 said:
So what is the difference in G forces between the 2 sports?

Id honestly be more happy to be (at a guess) sat in a cockpit at 4G than on top of a machine at 2G...

ps3ud0 :cool:
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I would be surprised if MotoGP bikes get anywhere near 2G. They have no downforce, cornering grip is governed by just the mechanical tyre grip. The physical excertions of F1 are massively more than MotoGP. Just look at Lorenzo. He did a 32 lap race bashed to hell after a massive crash. You wouldn't be able to last 1 lap in an F1 car in that condition.

But the question wasn't 'which is physically harder', it was about skill, and seen as both are the top of their respective disciplines, I think they are equal. F1 has the 24 most skillfull single seater drivers in the world, and MotoGP has the ~20 most skillfull bike riders.
 
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