mladin the asshole is at it again!!

apparently, for some time now, mr mladin not felt compelled to stand during the playing of the national anthem at ama races. just wanted to get some feedback from you guys about how you felt. these comments are from road racing world magazine. As an Australian who's been living in the U.S. for ten years, I would like to apologize for my countryman's behaviour. I find it appalling that he would not stand for the national anthem of the country he has been living in for years. The U.S. and in particular AMA racing has afforded him a very comfortable and finacially rewarding lifestyle. To sit on his ass during the anthem shows more disrespect, on his part, towards this country than any amount of respect that he is lacking form the AMA or any of its riders. Mat Mladin puts way, WAY too much effort into creating controversies. We get it, Mat. You hate America. You hate American tracks. You hate Americans. We figured that out during your first year of racing in America. Oh wait, there IS one thing that's American that you don't hate. American money. Or is that more of a love-hate thing? But when he says that “other racers and the organization, to name a few, (have) no respect for us (the Australians) and the country we are from,” just because the AMA don’t play the Australian National Anthem when Mat wins, he is forgetting that he is racing in a NATIONAL championship which is open to riders of other nationalities. There is no National road racing championship in the whole world, as far as I know (and I have covered a lot of Nationals in a lot of counties over the last thirty years), that plays the winner’s National Anthem after races. If you want to hear your own National Anthem after races, you need to race at World Championship level where the FIM protocol applies. If you want to hear your country’s National Anthem at the beginning of the day’s racing, then you need to race in your own country.

Didn't see any clips... Maybe you forgot to post it. He's Australian anyways =/

i meant to say comments, i edited the post.

He's just mad b/c the "moto gp gang" hasn't given him a call yet. So this is his way of "telling it how it is". Does it offend me, yeah kinda, is he gonna (or anyone else) change it, I doubt it. Just his way of making a point. I agree with you though, America has provided him with quite a bit. To me it'd only be courtious to stand but hey oh well. Brian

mladin :bash

http://venus.13x.com/roadracingworld/scripts/NewsInsert.asp?insert=8143 http://venus.13x.com/roadracingworld/scripts/NewsInsert.asp?insert=8123

I never really liked his attitude. It's not the kind of thing I want to see in the Motorcycle world.

I mean I love Australians...I've dated 3 of them...And they are by far the coolest people I know. I just think Mladin needs to be a lil less uptight on the track.

fark him if he doesnt want to acknowledge the national anthem he is a damn good rider and i figure the progression of winning national titles would get him at least a world superbike ride or does he like the bread and butter he's used to? i hated Fogarty with passion because he despised American riders even naming a couple of his dogs after them but he backed his a$$ up on a WORLD FORUM

Just another Suzuki rider. In the grand scale of things, he doesn't count for shit, just like the rest of them. One thing you always do is pay respect where respect is due. Regardless.

good racer, bad attitude kinda like his temper-tantrum teammate

I agree with Wilkins' assesment of Mladin as a person and as a rider. He's unbelievably talented (as are all of the top AMA riders, but Mladin is perhaps the best among them). In a perfect world, he would be more open, approachable, and receptive to fans, but he's not. Who cares? I see plenty of people ignoring the National Anthem at races and sporting events. If they're Americans, I feel sorry for them and their ignorance of what the Anthem symbolizes for our country. But, there are ignorant people in the world and there ain't much you can do about it. I wouldn't let any of this get in the way of the enjoyment of watching Mladin race. You're watching history when you see him racing. If I were in a foreign country and their anthem was being played, I would stand up and face the flag out of respect. Mladin used to, then stopped cause he was pissed that they never played Australia's anthem, now says he'll stand again. A rather childish response, versus petitioning the AMA or taking out an ad in the race program and airing his views, but I still can't wait to watch him race again. I would have no problems hearing another country's anthem, if one their countrymen won the race. Maybe the AMA needs to open their minds up a little?

read the initials carefully its not the Australian Motorcycle Association the first A stands for America now show some respect fool

read the initials carefully The AMA lets foreign (non-US citizens) riders into their events, why not allow their country's anthem to be played if they win?

maybe if he stopped being such a prick he would get a call from MotoGP :dunno even though it's his right to not stand up during the anthem, it's disrespectful and crude behavior on his part.. besides how hard is it to stand through a song that lasts, what, like 2 mins. at the most?? What a farkin dork!! :boom

my opinion??..... fine... don't stand.... then you don't race here either. what a jerkoff!!:fact

my opinion??..... fine... don't stand.... then you don't race here either. what a jerkoff!! Yes, agreed. Everyone inside the US borders will be forced to stand for the Anthem, or bannished from the country. Flag burners will be imprisoned. Lets ban anti-government protests while we're at it. The freedoms we enjoy in the US include the freedom to NOT stand for the anthem, protest all you want, and wear a Tshirt that says the US blows. Mladin is a guest and ought to show respect, I agree. But to prevent him from racing because he doesn't show respect towards our country, would be un-American.

hey we're not all bad:makeout one bad egg dosen't mean kill the chicken.(hey i think i just made that up):lol if you U.S guys ever come here look forward to:beer and:boobies and:riding .:cool:

Originally posted by Moonlighter Flag burners will be imprisoned. I would beat the hell out of someone that burn't an American flag in front of me. :no anyways...:rant

I would beat the hell out of someone that burn't an American flag in front of me. I would be pretty pissed as well. My Dad spent 21 years in the USCG, I did 4 years in the Marine Corps and I consider myself patriotic. Hundreds of thousands of Americans have died fighting for this country, and it does seem like a slap in the face to see losers burn the flag, but think about it this way... Protesters in Tianemen Square were beaten for their anti-government actions, some were jailed, and many were killed. They were protesting the oppressive Chinese communist government and got put down brutally. America is about freedom. You should be thankful that idiots have the right to burn the flag here. The burning of an American flag only destroys the cloth that it's made from, it doesn't hurt what the flag stands for. Burn them all, we'll make more.

I for one believe that he probably has as much pride in his country as you do in yours. Would it kill them to play his national anthem? After all I think he's earnt it dont you ?

Originally posted by ari1000 I for one believe that he probably has as much pride in his country as you do in yours. Would it kill them to play his national anthem? After all I think he's earnt it dont you ? Fair enough, but if he wants to hear the Austrailian anthem either **** off back to Aus or go and win at WSB, after all it's a national championship! Fast fooker though!!!

If Mladin does not want to stand and acknoledge the anthem.. he doesn't have to. There is no law that says anyone has to do it! It's unamerican...Just becuase someone decides to protest by doing something like that or even burning the flag, guess what, that's their right... and If You don't like that, maybe U belong in a Communist coutry where everyone is forced to be patriotic. eeh? riiiiiiiiiight.

Originally posted by killershroomr6 I would beat the hell out of someone that burn't an American flag in front of me. :no anyways...:rant Being able to burn the flag of the country we live in is a freedom and luxury that most other countys dont allow. I'm not saying that I think its right to do. But its an expression of how great this country is and a tribute to the freedoms we have and that others don't.

Originally posted by yamaR1 If Mladin does not want to stand and acknoledge the anthem.. he doesn't have to. There is no law that says anyone has to do it! It's unamerican...Just becuase someone decides to protest by doing something like that or even burning the flag, guess what, that's their right... and If You don't like that, maybe U belong in a Communist coutry where everyone is forced to be patriotic. eeh? riiiiiiiiiight. this is a good point as well.

Thanks, I just think there is such a thing as being too patriotic, that's how Nazi germany started...

What a jackass....but it's his right. What a great country we live in.

I'm surprised that Suzuki doesn't step up and ask him to adjust his attitude. Sure he is entitled to his opinion, but there is no need to be a prick about everything. He's an employee and the image of the company. Duhamel is a great example. I'm sure he has his opinion and voices it to his team and other riders, but any interview I've read or seen with him, he's always got a good attitude about everything. Anyway, that's just my .02.

why would Suzuki ask him to adjust his Attitude? 1st they are a Japanese Co. not american.. Second, I don't think they want to piss him off. If anything i'm sure they probably support their star.

I'm just stating that corporate image is important. You think Nike, EA Sports, etc. are jumping up and down to have Kobe endorse them now. Heck, even the Dell dude got dropped over a little weed. As long as Mladin is winning, then he can be as much of an a$$ as he likes. Performance on the track helps sell sportbikes.

why would Suzuki ask him to adjust his Attitude? I work for a Japanese company, they're very "image conscious". Mladin is NOT a great ambassador for motorcycle road racing, but he is a great rider. I'd be willing to bet that Suzuki tolerates Mladin's attitude because he's won them 4 AMA championships. Duhamel, IMO, is both. I was with a friend at Fontana in '01, we were standing next to Miguel and Al Ludington, his crew chief. My friend waited until they were done and asked Miguel if I could take a photo of them together. Miguel put his arm around my friend and smiled for the camera, a real nice guy. It's what I think we'd like to see from all the riders, but I'd still rather watch the fastest guys competing versus the friendliest.

Originally posted by yamaR1 If Mladin does not want to stand and acknoledge the anthem.. he doesn't have to. There is no law that says anyone has to do it! It's unamerican...Just becuase someone decides to protest by doing something like that or even burning the flag, guess what, that's their right... and If You don't like that, maybe U belong in a Communist coutry where everyone is forced to be patriotic. eeh? riiiiiiiiiight. it just shows Mladin has no respect, no clue and no class.

hmmmmm... I don't know... He's just patriotic as you all are, and he wants a little credit where credit is due. I don't see anything wrong with it... He hasn't abused anyone or spoken ill of any U.S. racer in particular has he?

Nicely put yamaR1....everyone has the right to voice an opinion or if they feel aggrieved the right to protest . He also has one of suzuki's biggest dealerships here in aus i'm pretty sure.