Does Matt have what it takes to beat Timmy?

[originalQA]

Now that Matt has graduated from college, and likely will be able to train harder/more consistantly, does he have what it takes to beat a clean Timmy?
I seriously doubt that he does.
While Matt reminds me of a smoother Todd, and Timmy is more like Surya artistically, those 3 quads will be realllllly hard to overcome.....

[i:8e848c8385]Moderator note: Topic moved from 'Skating News and Discussions' forum[/i:8e848c8385]

[CzarinaAnnie]

I don't know how Matt is doing in the Quad department right now,
but I do know that Matt has Tim beat out artistically.
Whether or not he gets a gold at the next olympics or not,
I don't know, but I do think he can get a medal, and medal in other
things in the next year even. I've seen him practice, and boy can he
do a camel spin like no other guy skater I've ever seen. :mrgreen:

[Orable]

I've heard that Matt is working on a quad, but quite frankly, I'd rather watch Matt stroke the ice for 4 minutes, than watch Timothy do three quads adn not much else in teh same amount of time...That said, I do believe that Timothy has definitely improved his presentation in the past few years, but if Matt gets consistent, gets his quads, I think he'll give Timothy a run for his money.

Cheers, Orable

[Ice Queen]

Matt definetely has what it takes. And hopefully he'll get that quad down & consistant. IMO I especially enjoy the way he "feels" the music when he skates. There are so many skaters that are missing that part of skating.

Tim's quads are great, and he's becoming more artistic with time. But, I just don't see the emotion in his skating. I'd prefer to see that then just jump skate jump.

[ChicaTica]

You know, that is a great question!

I think that even without a quad, Matt may be able to beat out Timmy domestically. But, as we all know (even with judging scandals aside) domestic judging is not the same as international judging. Domestic judges tend to judge the whole package to evaluate who is the better skater. International judges are very quad focused and take quality of edge into consideration after technical content. For example, in the Olympics we saw that if you didn't have a quad, you didn't make it into the final warm-up. Thus, if 2001 Nationals played out at an international competition, Timmy would have beaten Todd--hands down--because of Timmy's technical content. I think that Timmy's basic skating (by that I mean the manner in which he gets from one end of the rink to the other) is "weak" enough to cancel out his technical prowess domestically and but certainly [b:39d44d7bbd]not [/b:39d44d7bbd]internationally.

With college behind him, Matt is definitely in the position to make major improvements and powermoves on the ice that would enable him to overtake Timmy. I guess we will see!

8) ChicaTica 8)

[Debbie S]

Artistically, yes. Athletically, no. But if Matt gets a consistent quad, in a combo.....

Of course, I'm sure Frank and Lori will keep Tim working hard on his presentation. He has improved quite a bit over the past two years (although you wouldn't have known it at Nats this year) and I expect he'll keep moving in that direction. And I'm sure Matt will be working hard in that area, too. The men's comp. at Nats next year should be very interesting. Does anyone know if Michael's staying eligible?

[ChicaTica]

[quote:db842f1a6a="Debbie S"]=Does anyone know if Michael's staying eligible?[/quote:db842f1a6a]

Yes MIke Weiss is staying eligible. He would like to compete at Worlds in his home town in 2003.

--CT

[Corey]

No he doesn't right now. Maybe he will someday. I do like to see him skate.

[Scott]

I am afraid that Matt will have a long way to go if he is to beat Tim. Matt needs work in the presentation department, even more so than Tim needs it. In addition his technical qaulities are not as good as Tim's, especially when it comes to jumps. Matt lands low and dosen't have the best extentions on the jumps. I think Matt's biggest concern will be holdong off Johnny Weir!

[sk8rzmom]

Johnny Weir is too young to be considered a threat, if you are looking at the long run. The next year or 2 will tell. Matt and Tim have the maturity level and experience on their side, as well as some longevity. Johnny's aterrific skater, but let's see where he is 3 years from now.

[loveskating]

It would be hard to guess....Tim is very consistent on his jumps, but they are high risk...and what happened to Plushenko can happen to our Timmy...and Tim does not yet have quite the incredible presence or presentation on the ice that Plushenko does to make up for it like Plushy did at SLC in the SP (I did read somewhere that Tim is working with Tarasova, however, and she is IMHO just incredible at pulling the best out of her skaters).

Matt is a really fine, consistent skater who does everything well, and he improved qualitatively as to ease of movement this season...and I suspect that the quad will not be that hard for him once he trains it, but it will likely be one quad, not the arsenal of quads Tim has.

I love them both, for different reasons, both do very difficult entries to jumps, and it would be fine with me if they kind of went back and forth, one beating the other...but neither can beat Plushenko in a clean skate all around, IMHO...nor Abt and Honda in a truly clean performance with quads.

[olivia]

Not based on how each skated last season. I believe both Tim and Matt are capable of improvement in their respective areas of weakness, but I firmly believe the quad has more to do with natural gifts plus hard work than just hard work alone. Does Matt have the gift? I'm sure I don't know, but we'll probably find out next season. From what I understand, Matt is now healthy and, of course, we know that he graduated from college. Now's the time, if ever, to get that quad. If we don't see it next season, we probably won't ever see it. But remember, Matt really did some incredibly consistent skating in the 2000-2001 season. He's capable of a podium finish for sure. Who knows who he could beat with a solid quad.

As for Tim, right now, with the quads and Tim's adequate presentation, I still think he can beat Matt pretty handily unless he has a melt down.

O-

[duane]

i dont think matt has "what it takes" to beat timmy...in presentation or technical merit.

timmy is not only very consistent in the jumps, but he lands very difficult ones and has great technique. he also has good (not awesome or great, but very good) presentation (which IMO has improved season after season), as well as the respect of both the national and international judges. at the moment, timmy is the official American king of eligible skating.

[cienicsk8]

Interesting question!
I love both of them. Matt is so wonderfully expressive and artistic, and Timmy so athletic and charming. If Matt can get a consistent quad, we could see some great matchups in the future.

[Scott]

I don't think that either Tim or Matt can be considered artistic skaters. They really need more development in this area. Ballroom dance and a couple of ballet lessons are in order. This is not to say that I do not enjoy their skating because I do. But there is always room for improvement!