From worldsbk.com
Three days of Superbike testing at Motorland Aragon, where a round of next year's championship will be held for the first time, concluded in Spain on Friday.
At the end of the test the overall top rider was 2010 champion Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia), who clocked an impressive time of 1 minute 58.0 seconds, three tenths quicker than the benchmark set by Althea Racing's Carlos Checa on day one.
Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) made more progress, the British rider recording a 1:58.6 second lap as the 2011-spec ZX-10R gets closer and closer to the top runners.
A good testing job was also done by BMW Motorrad and Leon Haslam was finally able to get under the two-minute mark with a time of 1:59 dead, three-tenths ahead of team-mate Troy Corser.
Michel Fabrizio continued to acclimatize with his new Suzuki Alstare GSX-R1000, and despite suffering from flu he was able to set the same sub-two minute time of 1:59.2 as Leon Camier (Aprilia Alitalia).
No improvement on Thursday was recorded by Noriyuki Haga (Aprilia Pata Racing), while Katsuaki Fuijwara (Kawasaki Racing Team) continued to carry out sterling testing work for the team, under the watchful eyes of Chris Vermeulen, in the pit garage but still on crutches.
The quickest of the three Supersport riders out on the track on Friday was again Luca Scassa (Triumph ParkinGO) in 2:00.9, ahead of Chaz Davies (Triumph ParkinGO) and Broc Parkes (Kawasaki Motocard.com).
Unofficial times
1. Max Biaggi (Aprilia) 1:58.0
2. Tom Sykes (Kawasaki) 1:58.6
3. Leon Haslam (BMW) 1:59.0
4. Michele Fabrizio (Suzuki) 1:59.2
5. Leon Camier (Aprilia) 1:59.2
6. Troy Corser (BMW) 1:59.3
7. Noriyuki Haga (Aprilia) 1:59.6
8. Katsuaki Fuijwara (Kawasaki) 2:00.2
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Lorenzo leads Portuguese practice
From motogp.com
After a morning session that was effectively written off by heavy rain and storms the MotoGP class was able to make progress at Estoril on Friday afternoon in the second practice at the bwin Grande Premio de Portugal.
World Champion and race winner at Estoril for the past two seasons Jorge Lorenzo was the fastest rider round the track in the 45-minute run, as he posted a best lap of 1:48.522 on his factory M1 to get his weekend off to a solid start.
"I love this track! I have won here both times in MotoGP so I am very happy to be here,” said Lorenzo, whose two wins in the premier class have come from pole position. “Unfortunately the weather was terrible this morning and there was no point in riding, then this afternoon it was still very difficult, with a lot of water on the track and you had to be very careful.
“I felt good despite the conditions and step-by-step we improved so that at the end, when it was slightly drier, I was able to set a good time and we are on top. Tomorrow we will have two longer sessions so we will be able to recover some of the lost time, let's hope for no more rain."
Ducati rider Nicky Hayden was also on form as he finished just 0.135 secs. behind the Spaniard, with Valentino Rossi (Fiat Yamaha) completing the top three and the final rider to get under the 1:49 barrier on day one.
“This morning there was too much water on track to be able to ride, it was like a river, so we had to wait until the afternoon to check a few things," Hayden said. "This track doesn't have a lot of grip, especially on the rear. It's not a very abrasive surface but I had a really good feeling on the front - we just need to make some improvements on the rear.
"We know the Ducati works well in the rain because the engine management system is good and that gives us a lot of control. Lately I've been quite fast in wet conditions but it takes me too long to get there. If it's a wet race on Sunday and I'm going to be competitive then we need to be fast from the start so that's an area we need to work on if it rains again tomorrow.”
"This afternoon was a normal wet practice and I'm happy about my performance," Rossi said. "I am close to the top, was fast from the beginning of the session and had a good feeling with the bike. Unfortunately we were losing a little bit in some sections of the track, especially the last one because the bike was moving a little too much.
“Tomorrow we will try to improve the settings. It's important that we made a good start this afternoon as this morning's session was cancelled and it looks like the weather may not be very good over the weekend, so we will not have a lot of time to set up the bike."
Casey Stoner, who is going for a fourth win in five races this weekend, was fourth with an effort of 1:49.061, which made the Ducati man the last to get within a second of Lorenzo.
Monster Yamaha Tech 3’s Ben Spies and San Carlo Honda Gresini’s Marco Melandri were separated by just six-hundredths of a second as they rounded out the session and day one as the fifth and sixth fastest riders respectively.
LCR Honda rider Randy de Puniet had led the session early on and his final time of 1:50.043 placed him seventh in the order, with Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini), Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) and Loris Capirossi (Rizla Suzuki) setting top-10 times.
Despite the appearance of the sun late in the session the track remained wet due to the constant earlier rain, and as such there were four crashers in the session. Héctor Barberá (Paginas Amarillas Aspar), Dovizioso, Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) and Álvaro Bautista (Rizla Suzuki) all had falls on a surface that continued to cause some problems.
Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) was on track as he continues his recovery from injury and he placed 13th, with Carlos Checa 17th as he started his two-race stint with the Pramac Racing Team.
Aleix Espargaró (Pramac Racing) and Hiroshi Aoyama (Interwetten Honda MotoGP) – who along with Checa was the only rider to complete a lap in the morning – completed the session 14th and 15th fastest respectively.
The entire Moto2 field was able to take to the track at Estoril on Friday afternoon as vastly improved conditions in comparison to the morning greeted them for FP2 at the bwin Grande Premio de Portugal.
Fimmco Speed Up rider Gabor Talmacsi was the rider who led the way on the first day as he set a best time of 1:50.916 to top the timesheet across both sessions, and the Hungarian was the only rider under 1:51.
Julián Simón (Mapfre Aspar), who did not ride in the morning, was second at 0.388 secs. off Talmacsi, with World Champion Toni Elías (Gresini Racing) showing no signs of any hangover from a fall in the morning session to set the third best time as the track provided a much better surface than the rain-drenched one encountered only hours before.
Alberto Moncayo set the quickest lap in the second 125cc practice session at Estoril on Friday afternoon, as the weather continued to make it difficult for the riders to gain a foothold in their preparations for Sunday’s race. The Andalucia Cajasol rider’s time of 2:05.490 was just over five seconds off Bradley Smith’s effort from the morning session, as he led Johann Zarco (WTR San Marino Team) by a little over a full second in the FP2 timings.
With the track still wet there were again a number of falls during the 40-minute session, with title chasers Marc Márquez (Red Bull Ajo Motorsport) and Pol Espargaró (Tuenti Racing) both going down – the former having completed just two laps and not returning to the track for the remainder. Both escaped injury as their bikes took the impacts.
MotoGP Practice Results
1. Jorge LORENZO (SPA) Fiat Yamaha 1:48.522
2. Nicky HAYDEN (USA) Ducati 1:48.657
3. Valentino ROSSI (ITA) Fiat Yamaha 1:48.883
4. Casey STONER (AUS) Ducati 1:49.061
5. Ben SPIES (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha 1:49.721
6. Marco MELANDRI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda 1:49.784
7. Randy DE PUNIET (FRA) LCR Honda 1:50.043
8. Marco SIMONCELLI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda 1:51.283
9. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (ITA) Repsol Honda 1:52.294
10. Loris CAPIROSSI (ITA) Rizla Suzuki 1:52.575
11. Hector BARBERA (SPA) Paginas Amarillas Aspar Ducati 1:53.131
12. Colin EDWARDS (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha 1:53.510
13. Dani PEDROSA (SPA) Repsol Honda 1:53.592
14. Aleix ESPARGARO (SPA) Pramac Ducati 1:53.769
15. Hiroshi AOYAMA (JPN) Interwetten Honda 1:54.389
16. Alvaro BAUTISTA (SPA) Rizla Suzuki 1:54.410
17. Carlos CHECA (SPA) Pramac Ducati 1:54.444
After a morning session that was effectively written off by heavy rain and storms the MotoGP class was able to make progress at Estoril on Friday afternoon in the second practice at the bwin Grande Premio de Portugal.
World Champion and race winner at Estoril for the past two seasons Jorge Lorenzo was the fastest rider round the track in the 45-minute run, as he posted a best lap of 1:48.522 on his factory M1 to get his weekend off to a solid start.
"I love this track! I have won here both times in MotoGP so I am very happy to be here,” said Lorenzo, whose two wins in the premier class have come from pole position. “Unfortunately the weather was terrible this morning and there was no point in riding, then this afternoon it was still very difficult, with a lot of water on the track and you had to be very careful.
“I felt good despite the conditions and step-by-step we improved so that at the end, when it was slightly drier, I was able to set a good time and we are on top. Tomorrow we will have two longer sessions so we will be able to recover some of the lost time, let's hope for no more rain."
Ducati rider Nicky Hayden was also on form as he finished just 0.135 secs. behind the Spaniard, with Valentino Rossi (Fiat Yamaha) completing the top three and the final rider to get under the 1:49 barrier on day one.
“This morning there was too much water on track to be able to ride, it was like a river, so we had to wait until the afternoon to check a few things," Hayden said. "This track doesn't have a lot of grip, especially on the rear. It's not a very abrasive surface but I had a really good feeling on the front - we just need to make some improvements on the rear.
"We know the Ducati works well in the rain because the engine management system is good and that gives us a lot of control. Lately I've been quite fast in wet conditions but it takes me too long to get there. If it's a wet race on Sunday and I'm going to be competitive then we need to be fast from the start so that's an area we need to work on if it rains again tomorrow.”
"This afternoon was a normal wet practice and I'm happy about my performance," Rossi said. "I am close to the top, was fast from the beginning of the session and had a good feeling with the bike. Unfortunately we were losing a little bit in some sections of the track, especially the last one because the bike was moving a little too much.
“Tomorrow we will try to improve the settings. It's important that we made a good start this afternoon as this morning's session was cancelled and it looks like the weather may not be very good over the weekend, so we will not have a lot of time to set up the bike."
Casey Stoner, who is going for a fourth win in five races this weekend, was fourth with an effort of 1:49.061, which made the Ducati man the last to get within a second of Lorenzo.
Monster Yamaha Tech 3’s Ben Spies and San Carlo Honda Gresini’s Marco Melandri were separated by just six-hundredths of a second as they rounded out the session and day one as the fifth and sixth fastest riders respectively.
LCR Honda rider Randy de Puniet had led the session early on and his final time of 1:50.043 placed him seventh in the order, with Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini), Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) and Loris Capirossi (Rizla Suzuki) setting top-10 times.
Despite the appearance of the sun late in the session the track remained wet due to the constant earlier rain, and as such there were four crashers in the session. Héctor Barberá (Paginas Amarillas Aspar), Dovizioso, Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) and Álvaro Bautista (Rizla Suzuki) all had falls on a surface that continued to cause some problems.
Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) was on track as he continues his recovery from injury and he placed 13th, with Carlos Checa 17th as he started his two-race stint with the Pramac Racing Team.
Aleix Espargaró (Pramac Racing) and Hiroshi Aoyama (Interwetten Honda MotoGP) – who along with Checa was the only rider to complete a lap in the morning – completed the session 14th and 15th fastest respectively.
The entire Moto2 field was able to take to the track at Estoril on Friday afternoon as vastly improved conditions in comparison to the morning greeted them for FP2 at the bwin Grande Premio de Portugal.
Fimmco Speed Up rider Gabor Talmacsi was the rider who led the way on the first day as he set a best time of 1:50.916 to top the timesheet across both sessions, and the Hungarian was the only rider under 1:51.
Julián Simón (Mapfre Aspar), who did not ride in the morning, was second at 0.388 secs. off Talmacsi, with World Champion Toni Elías (Gresini Racing) showing no signs of any hangover from a fall in the morning session to set the third best time as the track provided a much better surface than the rain-drenched one encountered only hours before.
Alberto Moncayo set the quickest lap in the second 125cc practice session at Estoril on Friday afternoon, as the weather continued to make it difficult for the riders to gain a foothold in their preparations for Sunday’s race. The Andalucia Cajasol rider’s time of 2:05.490 was just over five seconds off Bradley Smith’s effort from the morning session, as he led Johann Zarco (WTR San Marino Team) by a little over a full second in the FP2 timings.
With the track still wet there were again a number of falls during the 40-minute session, with title chasers Marc Márquez (Red Bull Ajo Motorsport) and Pol Espargaró (Tuenti Racing) both going down – the former having completed just two laps and not returning to the track for the remainder. Both escaped injury as their bikes took the impacts.
MotoGP Practice Results
1. Jorge LORENZO (SPA) Fiat Yamaha 1:48.522
2. Nicky HAYDEN (USA) Ducati 1:48.657
3. Valentino ROSSI (ITA) Fiat Yamaha 1:48.883
4. Casey STONER (AUS) Ducati 1:49.061
5. Ben SPIES (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha 1:49.721
6. Marco MELANDRI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda 1:49.784
7. Randy DE PUNIET (FRA) LCR Honda 1:50.043
8. Marco SIMONCELLI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda 1:51.283
9. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (ITA) Repsol Honda 1:52.294
10. Loris CAPIROSSI (ITA) Rizla Suzuki 1:52.575
11. Hector BARBERA (SPA) Paginas Amarillas Aspar Ducati 1:53.131
12. Colin EDWARDS (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha 1:53.510
13. Dani PEDROSA (SPA) Repsol Honda 1:53.592
14. Aleix ESPARGARO (SPA) Pramac Ducati 1:53.769
15. Hiroshi AOYAMA (JPN) Interwetten Honda 1:54.389
16. Alvaro BAUTISTA (SPA) Rizla Suzuki 1:54.410
17. Carlos CHECA (SPA) Pramac Ducati 1:54.444
Friday, October 29, 2010
BMW Italia joins Superbike ranks
From worldsbk.com
Team BMW Motorrad Italia Superbike has now stepped up to join the 2011 FIM Superbike World Championship, and the team will field the current Superstock 1000 FIM Cup Champion Ayrton Badovini and double World WSBK champion James Toseland.
The team, the current champions in Superstock with Badovini, will have technical support from the BMW Motorrad Motorsport factory team, which is providing engines and electronics for the BMW S1000RR.
Andrea Buzzoni, the Director of BMW Motorrad Italia and the manager of the new Superbike project will lead the team. Serafino Foti will serve as Sporting Director and Gerardo Acocella will be the Technical Director. Exciting prospect Lorenzo Zanetti (ITA) will run for the team in the Superstock 1000 class.
Hendrik von Kuenheim, General Director BMW Motorrad stated, "From next season, our BMW Motorrad Motorsport factory team will be joined in the FIM Superbike World Championship by a factory-supported BMW line-up in the shape of the BMW Motorrad Italia SBK team. The team has experience in motor racing, and in this championship specifically.
"Last year in the FIM Superstock 1000 Cup, BMW Motorrad Italia demonstrated their ability to achieve success with the BMW S1000RR, and in impressive fashion. Although the challenge in the Superbike World Championship is that much tougher, I'm convinced that BMW Motorrad will benefit from this new addition to the field. After all, competition is the lifeblood of business. We would like to wish the team every success."
Team BMW Motorrad Italia Superbike has now stepped up to join the 2011 FIM Superbike World Championship, and the team will field the current Superstock 1000 FIM Cup Champion Ayrton Badovini and double World WSBK champion James Toseland.
The team, the current champions in Superstock with Badovini, will have technical support from the BMW Motorrad Motorsport factory team, which is providing engines and electronics for the BMW S1000RR.
Andrea Buzzoni, the Director of BMW Motorrad Italia and the manager of the new Superbike project will lead the team. Serafino Foti will serve as Sporting Director and Gerardo Acocella will be the Technical Director. Exciting prospect Lorenzo Zanetti (ITA) will run for the team in the Superstock 1000 class.
Hendrik von Kuenheim, General Director BMW Motorrad stated, "From next season, our BMW Motorrad Motorsport factory team will be joined in the FIM Superbike World Championship by a factory-supported BMW line-up in the shape of the BMW Motorrad Italia SBK team. The team has experience in motor racing, and in this championship specifically.
"Last year in the FIM Superstock 1000 Cup, BMW Motorrad Italia demonstrated their ability to achieve success with the BMW S1000RR, and in impressive fashion. Although the challenge in the Superbike World Championship is that much tougher, I'm convinced that BMW Motorrad will benefit from this new addition to the field. After all, competition is the lifeblood of business. We would like to wish the team every success."
BMW to start selling in India
From BMW Motorrad
MUNICH, GERMANY -- BMW Motorrad starts its sales activities on the Indian motorcycle market with two official importers as of December.
With 'Deutsche Motoren' in Delhi in the north of India and 'Navnit Motors' in Mumbai on the west coast and Bangalore in the southern part of the country, BMW Motorrad is relying on two experienced BMW Group partners. With these three sales outlets the German motorcycle manufacturer is represented in the strategically important regions.
"The BMW Group has already established itself very successfully in India with a local BMW automobile production and a sales network for BMW Group automobiles," said Hendrik von Kuenheim, General Director BMW Motorrad. "Now the market for premium motorcycles is beginning to develop, too.
"The sales activities now commencing with our two experienced BMW Group partners are of long-term significance to BMW Motorrad. We are confident our motorcycles will swiftly become established in timely preparation for the growing market."
The motorcycles will be produced at the BMW Motorrad plant in Berlin and supplied to India as CBU (completely built up) units.
BMW Motorrad will initially offer the current models of the R and K series as well as the superbike S1000RR.
MUNICH, GERMANY -- BMW Motorrad starts its sales activities on the Indian motorcycle market with two official importers as of December.
With 'Deutsche Motoren' in Delhi in the north of India and 'Navnit Motors' in Mumbai on the west coast and Bangalore in the southern part of the country, BMW Motorrad is relying on two experienced BMW Group partners. With these three sales outlets the German motorcycle manufacturer is represented in the strategically important regions.
"The BMW Group has already established itself very successfully in India with a local BMW automobile production and a sales network for BMW Group automobiles," said Hendrik von Kuenheim, General Director BMW Motorrad. "Now the market for premium motorcycles is beginning to develop, too.
"The sales activities now commencing with our two experienced BMW Group partners are of long-term significance to BMW Motorrad. We are confident our motorcycles will swiftly become established in timely preparation for the growing market."
The motorcycles will be produced at the BMW Motorrad plant in Berlin and supplied to India as CBU (completely built up) units.
BMW Motorrad will initially offer the current models of the R and K series as well as the superbike S1000RR.
Capirossi to join Pramac Ducati
From motogp.com
The Pramac Racing team has announced that it has reached an agreement with Loris Capirossi to join forces in MotoGP for 2011.
Next season will be the 10th year of the Italian team’s involvement in the World Championship, and it will mark the milestone with an Italian rider on board its satellite Desmosedici.
Capirossi last rode the 800cc Ducati machine in 2007 and his experience in the World Championship of 313 Grand Prix starts, 29 wins, 99 podiums and three titles (two in the 125cc class and one in the 250cc category) was welcomed excitedly by Pramac Racing Team Principal, Paolo Campinoti.
"We are very pleased to have signed an agreement with one of the most experienced and titled riders currently riding in the MotoGP World Championship,” said Campinoti. “The deal between us was very simple because Pramac Racing Team and Loris always try to fight for important results. We do not need to talk about Loris, we all know him, we know his value and we are sure that thanks to his quality we'll have fun next year on all the tracks, taking some satisfaction too.”
Capirossi expressed his anticipation at the next step in his illustrious career by saying, "This return on a Ducati bike makes me feel like a child! I do not feel 37-years-old! I have a great desire to start this new adventure, I’m enormously pleased about this new agreement with the Pramac Racing Team which will allow me to ride and be part of an Italian team."
The Italian also expressed his gratitude to his current Rizla Suzuki team, who he explained had granted him permission to Test at Valencia in November.
“I thank Suzuki for the years we have spent together and also the excellent relationship with them. They have given me permission to ride with my new team starting at the Valencia Test next month."
The Pramac Racing team has announced that it has reached an agreement with Loris Capirossi to join forces in MotoGP for 2011.
Next season will be the 10th year of the Italian team’s involvement in the World Championship, and it will mark the milestone with an Italian rider on board its satellite Desmosedici.
Capirossi last rode the 800cc Ducati machine in 2007 and his experience in the World Championship of 313 Grand Prix starts, 29 wins, 99 podiums and three titles (two in the 125cc class and one in the 250cc category) was welcomed excitedly by Pramac Racing Team Principal, Paolo Campinoti.
"We are very pleased to have signed an agreement with one of the most experienced and titled riders currently riding in the MotoGP World Championship,” said Campinoti. “The deal between us was very simple because Pramac Racing Team and Loris always try to fight for important results. We do not need to talk about Loris, we all know him, we know his value and we are sure that thanks to his quality we'll have fun next year on all the tracks, taking some satisfaction too.”
Capirossi expressed his anticipation at the next step in his illustrious career by saying, "This return on a Ducati bike makes me feel like a child! I do not feel 37-years-old! I have a great desire to start this new adventure, I’m enormously pleased about this new agreement with the Pramac Racing Team which will allow me to ride and be part of an Italian team."
The Italian also expressed his gratitude to his current Rizla Suzuki team, who he explained had granted him permission to Test at Valencia in November.
“I thank Suzuki for the years we have spent together and also the excellent relationship with them. They have given me permission to ride with my new team starting at the Valencia Test next month."
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Ill Lajoie battles to top 10s
By John Hopkins
Despite battling a severe cold and competing without the help of any crew Montreal's Nadine Lajoie picked up a trio of top 10 finishes in road racing action at the Streets of Willow race track in southern California Oct. 17.
Lajoie took eighth in the Formula 2 race, ninth in Formula 40 Lightweight and 10th in 600 Modified Production. In the latter event she improved on her practice times by three seconds. This was only her second visit to the Streets of Willow track.
“I wasn’t feeling good and wanted to go home, but didn’t want to give up before starting," Lajoie said about preparing for the races. “It was a good weekend overall. I had no crashes and I went at it despite not feeling good going into the weekend.”
Jervis clinches two titles
By John Hopkins
Victoria's Oliver Jervis ended the 2010 Oregon Motorcycle Road Racing Association season with a pair of championships last weekend, although a crash denied him a shot at a third crown.
At a damp Portland International Raceway the Zlock Racing Kawasaki rider took his ZX-6R to victory in both the 600 Supersport and 600 Superbike races.
Saturday's 600 Supersport race started on a dry track but rain later on turned the event into a fight for survival. Jervis was able to hang onto his Kawasaki ZX-6R and the lead to pick up the race win and the class title.
Torrential rain greeted the racers on Sunday and Jervis again managed to take a race win and the title in the 600 Superbike class despite the daunting conditions.
Jervis opted to ride the ZX-6R rather than the Zlock ZX-10R in the soggy Formula Ultra event. He had worked his way into the lead when he lost the front end in turn eight on lap six and crashed out of the race.
"To be honest, the next few moments were hard for me to deal with as I watched our championship hopes literally slide away," Jervis said. "As they say, that's racing. I've had my share of fortune in racing and this just wasn't my day. This time I wasn't able to deliver the goods for the team, but I have to accept what happened, learn from it, move on and come back stronger."
Fellow BC rider Alan Schmidt claimed the Formula Ultra title and the overall OMRRA crown, his seventh.
Victoria's Oliver Jervis ended the 2010 Oregon Motorcycle Road Racing Association season with a pair of championships last weekend, although a crash denied him a shot at a third crown.
At a damp Portland International Raceway the Zlock Racing Kawasaki rider took his ZX-6R to victory in both the 600 Supersport and 600 Superbike races.
Saturday's 600 Supersport race started on a dry track but rain later on turned the event into a fight for survival. Jervis was able to hang onto his Kawasaki ZX-6R and the lead to pick up the race win and the class title.
Torrential rain greeted the racers on Sunday and Jervis again managed to take a race win and the title in the 600 Superbike class despite the daunting conditions.
Jervis opted to ride the ZX-6R rather than the Zlock ZX-10R in the soggy Formula Ultra event. He had worked his way into the lead when he lost the front end in turn eight on lap six and crashed out of the race.
"To be honest, the next few moments were hard for me to deal with as I watched our championship hopes literally slide away," Jervis said. "As they say, that's racing. I've had my share of fortune in racing and this just wasn't my day. This time I wasn't able to deliver the goods for the team, but I have to accept what happened, learn from it, move on and come back stronger."
Fellow BC rider Alan Schmidt claimed the Formula Ultra title and the overall OMRRA crown, his seventh.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Lorenzo aims for Portuguese perfection
From motogp.com
Round 17 of 18 at Estoril this weekend marks the beginning of the final stint of the 2010 MotoGP World Championship, with the bwin Grande Premio de Portugal the first in the last two races of the campaign, which are back-to-back affairs.
With Jorge Lorenzo already proclaimed 2010 World Champion it still remains to be seen in which order Dani Pedrosa, Casey Stoner, Valentino Rossi and Andrea Dovizioso will close the season.
With the pressure well and truly off Lorenzo is going for wins to cap off his momentous year, and at Estoril the Fiat Yamaha man only has winning form in the premier class. In his two previous MotoGP visits in 2008 and 2009 the Spaniard has taken victory from pole, so will be ever confident of adding an eighth win in this his title-winning third season.
Hoping for a more successful return to action than in the previous round at Australia, Repsol Honda rider Pedrosa will have had an extra 12 days in which to allow his injured collarbone to further recover. The 25-year-old heads up the group of four who all still have a chance of a second-placed finish in the standings, and he has stood on the podium at Estoril for the past three years.
Ducati man Stoner, who moved up to eighth in the list of all-time winners in the premier class with his 23rd career victory in the last round, has twice finished on the podium at Estoril in the premier class and in his current form will be aiming to deliver Ducati its first MotoGP win at the Portuguese track.
Just eight points behind him is Rossi, who has the most victories at the track with five. The Fiat Yamaha man has nine podiums in total there and has only failed to step onto the rostrum once in his last 10 visits, which was last year when he placed fourth.
Dovizioso sits a further 18 points behind his fellow Italian and the Repsol Honda rider will be determined to step back on the podium after his run of two straight rostrum finishes was halted by a mechanical fault in Australia.
Ben Spies (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) has already secured the Rookie of the Year award and top satellite rider for 2010 and in Estoril faces a track on which he has never previously raced, a fact which appears to have done little to hinder his progress in similar situations this season.
Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team) will be another highly focused rider as he seeks to overcome the disappointment of just missing out on a podium in the last round.
Marco Simoncelli’s 250cc form at Estoril – second in 2008 and victory in 2009 – will give the San Carlo Honda Gresini rider added confidence as he continues his impressive progress, with Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda) another rider looking for a strong finish to the season.
The last two rounds of the season also see a return to the three-practice session format which was successfully trialled at Aragón, with the opening session in the MotoGP class at Estoril scheduled to get underway at 10:05am local time on Friday.
Toni Elías’ crowning as inaugural Moto2 World Champion in Malaysia may have ended the chase for the 2010 title, but the battle for runner-up spot is still very much alive with two rounds remaining.
This weekend both Julián Simón and Andrea Iannone will be aiming to improve their individual chances of taking the honour with strong results. Just two points separate Mapfre Aspar’s Simón and his Fimmco Speed Up rival Iannone in second and third position, with Swiss rider Thomas Lüthi of the Interwetten Moriwaki team also still holding a mathematical chance of ending the campaign in second as he sits 36 points off Iannone and in fourth.
Simone Corsi (JiR Moto2) is currently fifth in the Championship while his team-mate Alex de Angelis is fresh off the back of his first win in the Moto2 campaign, having tasted success in Australia.
Thanks to his ninth win of the season in Australia last time out Marc Márquez has placed himself in a position to be able to claim the 2010 125cc World Championship at this weekend’s bwin Grande Premio de Portugal, and if he were to do so the 17-year-old would become the second-youngest World Champion in the 62-year history of GP racing behind Loris Capirossi.
Márquez is 12 points clear of Nico Terol (Bancaja Aspar) and 17 ahead of Pol Espargaró (Tuenti Racing) at the top of the standings with two rounds remaining, and there are a number of scenarios which would hand him the title at Round 16. One such outcome would be a victory at Estoril for Márquez with Espargaró failing to place second and Terol no higher than fifth, but with his rivals still holding their own title hopes it is a delicate situation.
Round 17 of 18 at Estoril this weekend marks the beginning of the final stint of the 2010 MotoGP World Championship, with the bwin Grande Premio de Portugal the first in the last two races of the campaign, which are back-to-back affairs.
With Jorge Lorenzo already proclaimed 2010 World Champion it still remains to be seen in which order Dani Pedrosa, Casey Stoner, Valentino Rossi and Andrea Dovizioso will close the season.
With the pressure well and truly off Lorenzo is going for wins to cap off his momentous year, and at Estoril the Fiat Yamaha man only has winning form in the premier class. In his two previous MotoGP visits in 2008 and 2009 the Spaniard has taken victory from pole, so will be ever confident of adding an eighth win in this his title-winning third season.
Hoping for a more successful return to action than in the previous round at Australia, Repsol Honda rider Pedrosa will have had an extra 12 days in which to allow his injured collarbone to further recover. The 25-year-old heads up the group of four who all still have a chance of a second-placed finish in the standings, and he has stood on the podium at Estoril for the past three years.
Ducati man Stoner, who moved up to eighth in the list of all-time winners in the premier class with his 23rd career victory in the last round, has twice finished on the podium at Estoril in the premier class and in his current form will be aiming to deliver Ducati its first MotoGP win at the Portuguese track.
Just eight points behind him is Rossi, who has the most victories at the track with five. The Fiat Yamaha man has nine podiums in total there and has only failed to step onto the rostrum once in his last 10 visits, which was last year when he placed fourth.
Dovizioso sits a further 18 points behind his fellow Italian and the Repsol Honda rider will be determined to step back on the podium after his run of two straight rostrum finishes was halted by a mechanical fault in Australia.
Ben Spies (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) has already secured the Rookie of the Year award and top satellite rider for 2010 and in Estoril faces a track on which he has never previously raced, a fact which appears to have done little to hinder his progress in similar situations this season.
Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team) will be another highly focused rider as he seeks to overcome the disappointment of just missing out on a podium in the last round.
Marco Simoncelli’s 250cc form at Estoril – second in 2008 and victory in 2009 – will give the San Carlo Honda Gresini rider added confidence as he continues his impressive progress, with Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda) another rider looking for a strong finish to the season.
The last two rounds of the season also see a return to the three-practice session format which was successfully trialled at Aragón, with the opening session in the MotoGP class at Estoril scheduled to get underway at 10:05am local time on Friday.
Toni Elías’ crowning as inaugural Moto2 World Champion in Malaysia may have ended the chase for the 2010 title, but the battle for runner-up spot is still very much alive with two rounds remaining.
This weekend both Julián Simón and Andrea Iannone will be aiming to improve their individual chances of taking the honour with strong results. Just two points separate Mapfre Aspar’s Simón and his Fimmco Speed Up rival Iannone in second and third position, with Swiss rider Thomas Lüthi of the Interwetten Moriwaki team also still holding a mathematical chance of ending the campaign in second as he sits 36 points off Iannone and in fourth.
Simone Corsi (JiR Moto2) is currently fifth in the Championship while his team-mate Alex de Angelis is fresh off the back of his first win in the Moto2 campaign, having tasted success in Australia.
Thanks to his ninth win of the season in Australia last time out Marc Márquez has placed himself in a position to be able to claim the 2010 125cc World Championship at this weekend’s bwin Grande Premio de Portugal, and if he were to do so the 17-year-old would become the second-youngest World Champion in the 62-year history of GP racing behind Loris Capirossi.
Márquez is 12 points clear of Nico Terol (Bancaja Aspar) and 17 ahead of Pol Espargaró (Tuenti Racing) at the top of the standings with two rounds remaining, and there are a number of scenarios which would hand him the title at Round 16. One such outcome would be a victory at Estoril for Márquez with Espargaró failing to place second and Terol no higher than fifth, but with his rivals still holding their own title hopes it is a delicate situation.
Honda introduces CBR250R
From Honda Canada
The CBR250R represents the newest addition to Honda’s line-up.
The CBR250R will be built at the Honda Manufacturing facility in Thailand and will be exported to a wide range of countries including Japan, Europe, Canada, the US and Australia. Thai Honda began motorcycle production in 1967 and has produced over 18 million motorcycles to date (as of the end of June 2010) including the CBR125R, which has enjoyed such success in Canada.
In designing the CBR250R Honda R&D targeted a wider audience, appealing to riders from beginners to experts. The CBR250R comes with a newly-developed liquid-cooled, 250cc, four-stroke, DOHC, four-valve, single-cylinder engine. This engine offers strong "off the line" performance due to its generous low end output and its broad, flexible powerband makes it a snap to ride.
Honda continues to demonstrate its environmental commitment by ensuring that the CBR250R’s engine meets both EPA 49 state and Euro 3 emission standards. This is due in part to its O2 sensor that works in conjunction with its electronically controlled fuel injection system (PGM-FI) and exhaust catalyzer to reduce harmful emissions.
In the area of safety technology, the CBR250R’s specifications include optional Combined ABS. Combined ABS improves vehicle stability during braking by connecting front and rear braking systems and incorporating technology that prevents wheel lock during sudden braking or under unfavourable conditions. Honda is particularly pleased to bring this advanced level of technology to a model in the entry category.
The styling is reminiscent of the VFR1200 introduced last year and offers a modern advanced look. Like the VFR, the fairing is not only stylish but contributes to handling, the exceptional aerodynamics and rider protection. Housed within the fairing is a comprehensive instrument package including a digital speedometer, tachometer, temperature gauge, odometer, clock and fuel gauge.
The light and compact frame has a rigid, diamond shape and when combined with the well sorted suspension it offers the agile handling and steady maneuverability expected from a sport motorcycle.
Honda Canada will launch the CBR250R in the spring of 2011 and will sell it alongside the CBR125R.
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Yamaha Congratulates 2010 Five Star Dealers!
From Yamaha Motor Canada
Yamaha Motor Canada is proud to announce their qualifying 2010 Five Star Dealers! The Yamaha Five Star Dealer Program is a progressive dealership improvement plan used to increase the professionalism of our dealer network and heighten the value received by Yamaha customers.
To qualify for Five Star, a Yamaha dealer must undergo a detailed and rigorous testing process that sees the dealer excel above the national average in the following areas:
• Customer Satisfaction
• Brand Support
• Customer Service Excellence
• Parts & Accessories Stocking and Display
• Technician Education and Ability
In order to attain or retain their Five Star standing, each year a dealer must apply and successfully complete the Five Star measurement criteria as determined by Yamaha Motor Canada. Criteria is updated and adjusted accordingly to reflect market conditions. Retail sales results are not a component of the measurement process.
Yamaha Motor Canada boasts the finest recreational vehicle dealership group in Canada. Through hard work, dedication and a commitment to excellence, 77 Yamaha dealers have been awarded the prestigious 5 Star designation for 2010. This is up from the 61 who were awarded Five Star status in 2009. Rest assured, when a customer visits one of the following Yamaha Five Star dealers, they can expect to receive the best end to end customer care in the recreational vehicle industry. Congratulations to new and existing Five Star dealers!
Alberta
Seitzco Motorsports, Okotoks
E&S Motorcycles, Fort Saskatchewan
Riverside Yamaha, St-Albert
Scanalta Power Sales, Hines Creek
P.G. Auto Marine Specialties Ltd., Calgary
Maximum Powersports, Peace River
Slave Lake Yamaha, Slave Lake
Mountain’s Edge Cycle & Sled Ltd., Sundre
British Columbia
Port Boat House, Port Alberni
Galleon Marine, Richmond
Jones Boys Boats, Ainsworth
Parker Marine Nanaimo, Nanaimo
Peak Performance Motorsports, Cranbrook
Alpine Motorsport, Salmon Arm
Parker Marine Campbell River, Campbell River
Capstan Marine, Richmond
G.A. Checkpoint, Port Moody
Kelowna Yamaha (Downtown), Kelowna
Kelowna Yamaha (West Side), Kelowna
Vernon Motorsports, Vernon
Manitoba
Winnipeg Sport and Leisure, Winnipeg
Powerhouse Sports, Lac Du Bonnet
New Brunswick
Rae’s Trailer and Sports Centre, Miramichi
West End Sports, Beresford
Newfoundland & Labrador
M and F Motors Limited, Stephenville
Wiseman’s Sales and Service, Clarenville
Atlantic Recreation, Mount Pearl
Nova Scotia
Seamasters Services, Dartmouth
Ontario
Go Power Sports, Portland
CO2 Inflatable Boats, Oakville
Desmasdons Boat Works, Pointe Au Baril
Powersport Junction, Guelph
Ottawa Yamaha, Ottawa
Hastings Marine, Hastings
The Performance Shed, Harrowsmith
Bracebridge Yamaha, Bracebridge
Monto-Reno Marina Ltd., Lefroy
Haliburton Outdoor Equipment Ltd., Haliburton
Tomkins Hardware, Emo
Brian’s Service Centre, Hensall
Vincent Payne Marine, Pointe Au Baril
R.L. Equipment Sales and Services, Verner
Kelly’s Cycle Centre, Hamilton
Gordon Bay Marine, Mactier
Walsten Marine, Kinmount
Arnprior Sportland and Marine, Arnprior
Irwin Supply, Cornwall
Quebec
P. Labonte et Fils, Mont Joli
Eugene Fortier & Fils, Princeville
Chambord Sport Yamaha, Chambord Lac St. Jean
Desjardins Ste-Adele Marine Inc., Ste. Adele
Moto Sport Newman Inc., Pierrefonds
Gagne-Lessard Sports Inc., Coaticook
Moto JMF Inc., Thetford Mines
Motos Thibault Mauricie Inc., Trois-Rivieres
Motos Thibault, Sherbrooke
Mini Mecanique Gaspe, Gaspe
Aventures Sport Max, Pointe a la Croix
Evasion Sport D.R., Laterriere
Aqua Services Enr., Repentigny
Xtreme Miller Sport, Mont Tremblant
Harricanna Aventures Val-D’or, Val-D’or
Nadon Sport Saint-Eustache, St. Eustache
Dimension Sport, La Sarre
Centre Du Sport Alary, St-Jerome
Gerald Collin Sport, St. Lin
Gregoire Sport, St. Ambroise de Kildaire
Gregoire Sport, Notre-Dame De Lourdes
Varin Yamaha, Napierville
J. Sicard Sport, Louiseville
Le Docteur de la Moto, Ste. Perpetue
S.M. Sport, Loretteville
Saguenay Marine, Jonquière
Saskatchewan
Schrader’s Holdings, Yorkton
Tru-North RV, Auto & Marine, Prince Albert
Robertson Yamaha, Swift Current
Yukon
Yukon Yamaha, Whitehorse
Capirossi to ride in Portugal
From Rizla Suzuki
Loris Capirossi will compete at the Portuguese Grand Prix this weekend even though he has been diagnosed with fractures to the right foot he injured in Malaysia, on top of the groin injury he sustained in Australia.
Rizla Suzuki’s Italian racer returned early from the Australian event after crashing heavily and injuring his Adductor muscle. Capirossi visited the clinic on his return home to have the injury checked and also had a scan on his foot to fully understand the cause of his pain. This revealed a compound fracture of the Cuboid bone, two micro-fractures of the fourth Metatarsal and severe bruising to the Calcaneus and lateral Cuneiform bones. Although Capirossi is still in some discomfort from the injuries, he is determined to compete this weekend at Estoril.
“It was disappointing to find out I had got some small fractures in my foot, but it won’t stop me riding, because I was OK in Australia and it didn’t cause me too many problems there – in fact it is easier to ride the bike than it is to walk," Capirossi said. "I have had some intensive treatment on the thigh muscle and that is also a lot better.
"I can’t wait to get back on my bike and give the guys something back for all their patience and hard-work over the season, especially after the tough three-week tour we had on the other side of the world which gave us nothing but pain and bike damage. Suzuki and the team have always been good to me and I want to show them that I am here to do my best and compete with the best riders.”
Rizla Suzuki takes to the track on Friday morning for the first practice session, as MotoGP again returns to four practice sessions in a weekend - instead of the usual three. The second and third sessions will take place on Friday afternoon and Saturday morning respectively, with qualifying taking place on Saturday afternoon. Sunday’s 26-lap race is the penultimate Grand Prix of the 2010 season with the riders taking to the grid at the earlier time of 1:00pm local time.
Checa to finish season with Pramac
From motogp.com
Pramac Racing confirmed on Monday that Carlos Checa will ride for them in the final two rounds of the 2010 MotoGP World Championship at Estoril and Valencia.
The 38-year-old Spaniard replaces Finnish rider Mika Kallio, who decided following the previous round in Australia to end his partnership with the team early as he continues to recover from a shoulder injury.
Checa, who last rode in the World Championship in the 2007 Valencia GP and who finished third in this year’s WSBK championship on a Ducati 1098R, told motogp.com of his excitement at his participation in the upcoming two races.
“I’ll take it as an opportunity. I want to use this to gain experience and enjoy it too. My sole aim is to adapt as quickly as I can,” said Checa, who tested the Desmosedici GP10 at Mugello a fortnight ago. “It’s a great challenge. I’ve only been able to do a small test at Mugello and the people I will be up against in these two races will have had 16 races this season. They’ll know the tires, which I won’t, and obviously the bikes they’re riding.”
Comparing his previous experience in MotoGP to the development of the current 800cc machines, Checa said of the GP10: “The bike has great power, the tires have improved greatly, especially the rear ones. And of course the electronics now play a bigger role. It’s very rewarding to be able to ride one of the best bikes in the World Championship after riding one of the best in superbikes this season.
“I don’t know what level I’ll be at or what I’ll find. I just want to feel like I’ve given my maximum whatever happens. But we will take as much as possible from it and I’m sure we’ll take something good.”
Team Manager Paolo Campinoti added: “After Mika Kallio’s decision to not take part in the last two races we decided to call on a rider with experience and talent that could give us a good end to the season. Thanks also to consultations with Ducati, we decided on Carlos Checa. Of course it will be important for him to get as much time as possible on the Estoril track during the free practice sessions so that he can improve his feeling with the bike. We know about his undoubted talent and potential, and this is why we expect a good result in both races.”
Checa will ride with the number 71 on his livery for the remaining rounds of the campaign.
Pramac Racing confirmed on Monday that Carlos Checa will ride for them in the final two rounds of the 2010 MotoGP World Championship at Estoril and Valencia.
The 38-year-old Spaniard replaces Finnish rider Mika Kallio, who decided following the previous round in Australia to end his partnership with the team early as he continues to recover from a shoulder injury.
Checa, who last rode in the World Championship in the 2007 Valencia GP and who finished third in this year’s WSBK championship on a Ducati 1098R, told motogp.com of his excitement at his participation in the upcoming two races.
“I’ll take it as an opportunity. I want to use this to gain experience and enjoy it too. My sole aim is to adapt as quickly as I can,” said Checa, who tested the Desmosedici GP10 at Mugello a fortnight ago. “It’s a great challenge. I’ve only been able to do a small test at Mugello and the people I will be up against in these two races will have had 16 races this season. They’ll know the tires, which I won’t, and obviously the bikes they’re riding.”
Comparing his previous experience in MotoGP to the development of the current 800cc machines, Checa said of the GP10: “The bike has great power, the tires have improved greatly, especially the rear ones. And of course the electronics now play a bigger role. It’s very rewarding to be able to ride one of the best bikes in the World Championship after riding one of the best in superbikes this season.
“I don’t know what level I’ll be at or what I’ll find. I just want to feel like I’ve given my maximum whatever happens. But we will take as much as possible from it and I’m sure we’ll take something good.”
Team Manager Paolo Campinoti added: “After Mika Kallio’s decision to not take part in the last two races we decided to call on a rider with experience and talent that could give us a good end to the season. Thanks also to consultations with Ducati, we decided on Carlos Checa. Of course it will be important for him to get as much time as possible on the Estoril track during the free practice sessions so that he can improve his feeling with the bike. We know about his undoubted talent and potential, and this is why we expect a good result in both races.”
Checa will ride with the number 71 on his livery for the remaining rounds of the campaign.
Monday, October 25, 2010
BMW Superbike series set to debut
From BMW Motorrad Canada
After a successful first season in the Parts Canada Superbike Championship, the documentary series about the radX / BMW Motorrad Canada Superbike Team will make its world premiere on Friday, Nov. 5 at 8:00pm. This will be the first episode of the six part series titled 'Fast Company.'
The entire series will showcase the creation of a Superbike team in its first year of competition from building the bikes, to team chemistry, to rider competition, along with the emotional highs and lows of racing.
Episode one will introduce the team and showcase the preparations that were taken to get ready for the first round of the Canadian Superbike Championship held at Circuit ICAR in Quebec. The film crew follows the radX / BMW Team from Canada to JenningsGP in Florida for some pre-season testing and then through the challenges of setting up a new bike for ICAR along with the team's first ever Pirelli SuperPole qualifying.
Click on the link to view the 30 second series trailer: http://www.radx.ca/index.php?option=com_content.
Episodes two through six will debut each Friday until Dec. 10.
For information on subscribing to radX go to http://www.radx.ca/index.php?option=com_content.
Despres wins Morocco rally
From KTM Racing
KTM factory rider Cyril Despres has emerged the conqueror of the Rally of Morocco while Marc Coma finished third overall despite time penalties of 36 minutes to register a huge success for what was the first real test for the new KTM 450 Rally Replica, the bike that the KTM factory riders will take to the Dakar 2011.
Despres went out as leader on the final day with a mass start and where riders completed 4x40km loops with plenty of overtaking possibilities on off track, large expanses of sand and some dunes. He successfully held off his two main rivals Coma and Portuguese Yamaha rider Helder Rodrigues to snatch the overall lead.
The two KTM factory riders opened their bid in Stage One, making short work of the mountainous, winding and rocky tracks and the dunes. They hit the front and that is where they stayed. At the end of the first day, which he described as "a beautiful warm-up", it was a triumph for Despres, racing his first rally in six months after taking a break from the action for the arrival of his new daughter.
Organizers had introduced some special navigational challenges for the 2010 edition where competitors had to locate certain points on the course with a margin of error of 400 meters. It was this that cost Coma a 30-minute penalty on Stage Two when after he finished ahead of Despres for another 1-2 KTM stage victory, he was handed down a late time penalty by the jury that knocked him down to fourth overall, giving Cyril the clear edge on the overall lead.
Wednesday vaulted Coma back into the limelight with another stage victory and he was able to put the disappointment behind him on a day where Despres experienced some difficulties, even if he was able to hang on to the overall lead.
"I lost the track 100m out of the start," Despres said. He said there was also a problem with visibility because of rain. "I decided to follow Helder Rodrigues. After the heat of the first day, the dunes yesterday, we had mud today. Great testing grounds for our new KTM 450," he said.
Thursday was another triumph for Coma, who won the stage and charged on to move up to third in the overalls after carving valuable time off his deficit to trail by just seven minutes. Meanwhile a navigational error at the beginning of the second loop cost Despres valuable time and left him back at sixth in the Stage Four results, even if he did still have a narrow hold on the overall rankings.
Despres grasped the challenge at the start of the penultimate stage on Friday and went out to increase his overall lead to almost 10 minutes on second placed Rodrigues. He also managed to put more than 15 minutes between himself and Coma, which put him in good shape for the final charge on Saturday.
"I wasn't too happy with myself for letting my guard drop yesterday and so started this morning determined to make amends," Despres explained. "I left the line in sixth place, but behind five riders who were attacking hard. At about kilometer 40 I came across Olivier Pain who was having trouble with his bike, so that was one rider whose dust I didn't have to worry about. Then at the refueling point I saw that I had taken back about one minute 30 seconds and that allowed me to back off a little. By the end of the special I had managed to pull back a small but significant amount of time on Rodrigues and Coma."
Crutchlow samples MotoGP Yamaha
From Yamaha Racing
Having wrapped up the 2010 World Superbike Championship on a high in Magny Cours with a race win and a second place finish on his YZF-R1 two weeks ago, Cal Crutchlow ended his season with the Yamaha Sterilgarda World Superbike Team by clinching fifth in the standings and claiming the ‘rookie of the year’ title.
With just a few days rest under his belt he has started his move up from World Superbike to MotoGP with Yamaha by getting straight to business, completing a one and a half day test of the Yamaha YZR-M1 race bike at Yamaha’s test track in Fukuroi, Japan on Friday.
Despite mixed weather conditions with a damp or wet track Crutchlow had the opportunity to try the M1 on both full wet and slick Bridgestone tires, impressing everybody with his speed on the wet test track. The rising Yamaha star also took some time to practice with the M1’s launch control to test starts.
“The M1 felt a lot smaller than my Yamaha R1 superbike,” said Crutchlow. “I actually found the positioning more comfortable than the WSB machine. There is a lot of power but it feels very useable, it felt very different to a production based machine in terms of its delivery.
"In the wet we used the normal steel brakes but when it started to dry I had a chance to try the carbon ones which were cool, I managed to get quite comfortable with them. I found the chassis very stiff, it was really easy to change direction and the electronics were really different, even more advanced than the high level I’m used to in Superbike.
"It was a shame the weather wasn’t great so I wasn’t able to push to the bike’s full potential, I’m really looking forward to the Valencia test so I can get back on it and give it a proper work out.”
The Valencia test will be on Nov. 9-10. For 2011 Crutchlow will be entering the MotoGP World Championship in the Yamaha Monster Tech3 team, alongside Colin Edwards.
Erzbergrodeo XVII set for June
From the Erzbergrodeo
Ambitious off road motorcycle riders and action sports fans from all over the world can mark the last weekend of June, 2011 in their calenders. The 17th edition of the notorious Erzbergrodeo will be held from June 23-26 at the tiny city of Eisenerz, right in the very heart of Austria.
The preparations for the world's biggest motorcycle off road event are running at full throttle. Race promotor Karl Katoch and his crew are getting ready to welcome more than 5.000 riders and their entourage from 35 nations and five continents once again at the 'Iron Giant'. The world's top riders from enduro, motocross, trials and rally sports will challenge the breathtaking race.
“We do not only want to secure the status quo of this year's very successful event; we will further improve all services for our riders and guests from all over the world," said Erzbergrodeo mastermind Katoch. A record-breaking 45,000 spectators visited the Erzbergrodeo in 2010, making it the most successful edition ever.
Both KTM and Red Bull, who have supported the Erzbergrodeo from day one, have already declared their unbroken commitment for the unique event, and the very positive cooperation between the race promoters, the local community of Eisenerz and the VA Erzberg - the host of the event - will as well continue for 2011.
Katoch will start the first part of the race by putting the race registration online from Monday, Oct. 25, 10:00 CET at erzbergrodeo.at. An online countdown clock at www.erzbergrodeo.at will inform the Erzbergrodeo's impatient community about the exact start of the registration. An astounding 130kg of starting numbers are available for the limited 1.500 entry spots, and the 2011 registration will be once again handled in "first come, first serve" mode. In 2010 the race was sold out only a few weeks after registration had begun.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Team Canada heads to Dominican
By Frank Wood
While their counterparts are getting ready for winter a group of Canadian motorcycle road racers are preparing for their final races of 2010 in the Latin American Championships to be held in The Dominican Republic Nov. 13-14.
The Canadian team is taking part by way of invitation from the ULM (Union Latino-Americano Motovelocidad) which represents the Latin-American motorcyclists to the FIM and by Multemedia Acelerando (acelerandotv.com).
“We are very excited to have representation from Canada," said event organizer Diego Campos, who was in Canada for the Parts Canada Superbike Championship race in 2009 at Calabogie Motorsport Park. "Canadian riders have proven to be great competition for our local riders, including Andrew Nelson who took home first place in the 600 class at round one.”
Canada’s team is comprised of Nelson (second in the 2010 Parts Canada Superbike Championship) and Jean Francois Cyr. While Parts Canada Superbike competitor Franklyn Dominguez spearheaded this program, he will be racing alongside his Canadian counterparts under the Dominican flag. In addition to his team representation Dominguez will also ride in the D-R National championships, where he is leading the Superbike championship chase.
Team Canada is sponsored in this endeavour by Seamont Brokerage of Montreal and Pirelli Tires.
In addition to the Canadian Superbike team Sylvain Dery, Brian Kamp, Joey McRae and Raymond Gauthier will compete in the Pre-Expert class of the D-R championships, and Paul Hollister, Samantha Goyer and Vanessa Gareau-Dominguez will race in the Amateur division. Gareau-Dominguez is in second place, just five points behind the leader.
Other countries that will field teams include the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Guatemala, Mexico, Venezuela, Columbia, Panama, Costa Rica and Honduras. Pre-entered riders include AMA Pro competitors Fernando Amantini and Marco Martinez.
The championship will be decided by a four-race format, two rounds running on the Saturday and two on Sunday (World Superbike format) and the champion determined by aggregate points. All four races will be held at the Mobil Oils-sponsored Autodromo Mobil 1 track in Santo Domingo.
The event, officially billed as Campeonato Latinoamericano de Motovelocidad and hosted by Multemedia Acelerando TV, will have a large delegation of ULM and FIM representatives in attendance. Canadian riders will ride under license from the Canadian FIM affiliate the Canadian Motorcycle Association.
Media coverage for the team will be provided by Inside Motorcycles and there will be daily updates and photos from the Dominican races on insidemotorcycles.com as well as a complete write up in an upcoming issue of Inside Motorcycles magazine.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Ippolito re-elected FIM President
From motogp.com
A historical number of 98 Federations out of 101 attended the FIM General Assembly on Tuesday at the Venetian Hotel in Macau, China.
The members of the FIM General Assembly elected Vito Ippolito (Venezuela) for a second term of four years by 55 votes versus 41 votes cast for his opponent, Mr Jean-Pierre Mougin.
The FIM General Assembly also elected Nasser Khalifa Al Atya (Qatar), Jorge Viegas (Portugal) and David White (Australia) as FIM Vice-Presidents. David Francis (United Kingdom) and Stig Klemetz (Sweden) were elected as Internal Auditors. All the mandates are for four years.
“I am very pleased with this victory," Ippolito said, "which is more a collective victory of the Federations and the people who have worked hard on the elaboration of the strategic plan and the new governance for the last four years. It is a collective work conducted with transparency and high motivation. We will continue to build altogether the FIM destiny.”
A historical number of 98 Federations out of 101 attended the FIM General Assembly on Tuesday at the Venetian Hotel in Macau, China.
The members of the FIM General Assembly elected Vito Ippolito (Venezuela) for a second term of four years by 55 votes versus 41 votes cast for his opponent, Mr Jean-Pierre Mougin.
The FIM General Assembly also elected Nasser Khalifa Al Atya (Qatar), Jorge Viegas (Portugal) and David White (Australia) as FIM Vice-Presidents. David Francis (United Kingdom) and Stig Klemetz (Sweden) were elected as Internal Auditors. All the mandates are for four years.
“I am very pleased with this victory," Ippolito said, "which is more a collective victory of the Federations and the people who have worked hard on the elaboration of the strategic plan and the new governance for the last four years. It is a collective work conducted with transparency and high motivation. We will continue to build altogether the FIM destiny.”
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Kallio steps down for final races
From motogp.com
Mika Kallio will not ride in the final two rounds of the 2010 MotoGP World Championship for the Pramac Racing team after both parties opted to end their partnership early.
Kallio has continued to struggle with a shoulder injury sustained at Le Mans towards the start of the season and will now return to his native Finland to continue his recovery in preparation for next season. The team will announce his replacement for the Estoril and Valencia rounds in the coming days.
“We were already thinking about what we could do with this problem with the shoulder when we were in Japan, and these three races in a row have not been so good for the pain,” explained Kallio. “Throughout the race and especially in the last part there is a pain, and in Japan we decided we would do these two races in Malaysia and Australia and then see what the situation was. Now, after this race, we've decided it's better to stop and try to be ready for next season and let it repair physically.
“I need to say thanks to the team. Even if the season was not very good for us we have had a lot of good times and thanks to Paolo (Campinoti, Team Principal) because he gave me this opportunity to stop after this race and recover for next season. Of course it's sad to stop like this but I think this was the best way for everyone at the moment.”
Campinoti said: “I never like to find myself in these situations, but when a rider asks you to not run because he cannot give 100 percent for the team you must accept his sincere gesture and go through with that. On behalf of the Pramac Racing team and our partners I would like thank Mika and wish him a wonderful future full of success and happiness. Mika has always demonstrated great honesty and given the best he can in these two years, and we'll always consider him one of our family because of this.”
On his future plans, Kallio added: “At the moment I don't know exactly what will happen. As I have said before the main priority was to remain in this class, but as everybody knows there are not so many places and it's difficult to find an opening there. So I need to look in Moto2 as well, and also superbikes.
"But at the moment I think Moto2 will be the best option for me. There are two, three, four teams that are possibilities for me and at the moment I don't know what will happen. I think maybe in a few days or one week even we will know more, and for sure after the Valencia race when there is the first test I will be there.”
Mika Kallio will not ride in the final two rounds of the 2010 MotoGP World Championship for the Pramac Racing team after both parties opted to end their partnership early.
Kallio has continued to struggle with a shoulder injury sustained at Le Mans towards the start of the season and will now return to his native Finland to continue his recovery in preparation for next season. The team will announce his replacement for the Estoril and Valencia rounds in the coming days.
“We were already thinking about what we could do with this problem with the shoulder when we were in Japan, and these three races in a row have not been so good for the pain,” explained Kallio. “Throughout the race and especially in the last part there is a pain, and in Japan we decided we would do these two races in Malaysia and Australia and then see what the situation was. Now, after this race, we've decided it's better to stop and try to be ready for next season and let it repair physically.
“I need to say thanks to the team. Even if the season was not very good for us we have had a lot of good times and thanks to Paolo (Campinoti, Team Principal) because he gave me this opportunity to stop after this race and recover for next season. Of course it's sad to stop like this but I think this was the best way for everyone at the moment.”
Campinoti said: “I never like to find myself in these situations, but when a rider asks you to not run because he cannot give 100 percent for the team you must accept his sincere gesture and go through with that. On behalf of the Pramac Racing team and our partners I would like thank Mika and wish him a wonderful future full of success and happiness. Mika has always demonstrated great honesty and given the best he can in these two years, and we'll always consider him one of our family because of this.”
On his future plans, Kallio added: “At the moment I don't know exactly what will happen. As I have said before the main priority was to remain in this class, but as everybody knows there are not so many places and it's difficult to find an opening there. So I need to look in Moto2 as well, and also superbikes.
"But at the moment I think Moto2 will be the best option for me. There are two, three, four teams that are possibilities for me and at the moment I don't know what will happen. I think maybe in a few days or one week even we will know more, and for sure after the Valencia race when there is the first test I will be there.”
Monday, October 18, 2010
Rossi cleared for Ducati testing
From motogp.com
Valentino Rossi had indicated that he has been given permission by Yamaha’s Executive Officer for Engineering Operations, Masao Furusawa, to test with Ducati in Valencia next month.
The question of whether the 31-year-old would be allowed by Yamaha to ride the Desmosedici for the team with which he has signed for the 2011 season remained a matter of great interest amongst the media, and in an interview with Italian MotoGP broadcaster Italia 1 Rossi said he had finally received clearance from Furusawa after speaking with him on Saturday evening.
“Furusawa called me and told me it was a way of saying thanks for what I have done for Yamaha,” Rossi told Italia 1. “I think it’s a nice gesture and it shows that Yamaha has valued the things done over these years.”
Upon hearing the news MotoGP Project Manager for Ducati Alessandro Cicognani told motogp.com in an interview: “I haven’t heard what Rossi or Yamaha have said exactly, but I was told about this so I am really happy. I think in a way it’s like a present from Yamaha to Valentino after what he has done for them.
“We can be happy with this and I would like to thank, in a way, Yamaha. I have good relations with Lin Jarvis and I take this chance to thank him because he has always been fair and open to discussion. It’s not easy and it’s great. So we will work now and finish the season, and then start again for 2011 just after the Valencia race.
“I think for everybody that this test is important because, due to the testing restrictions, I think it’s fair that every rider has the chance to test the bike he is going to ride the following year. So for everybody it would be important. He will test the 2011 bike for sure, and we will see. We are working on it.”
Valentino Rossi had indicated that he has been given permission by Yamaha’s Executive Officer for Engineering Operations, Masao Furusawa, to test with Ducati in Valencia next month.
The question of whether the 31-year-old would be allowed by Yamaha to ride the Desmosedici for the team with which he has signed for the 2011 season remained a matter of great interest amongst the media, and in an interview with Italian MotoGP broadcaster Italia 1 Rossi said he had finally received clearance from Furusawa after speaking with him on Saturday evening.
“Furusawa called me and told me it was a way of saying thanks for what I have done for Yamaha,” Rossi told Italia 1. “I think it’s a nice gesture and it shows that Yamaha has valued the things done over these years.”
Upon hearing the news MotoGP Project Manager for Ducati Alessandro Cicognani told motogp.com in an interview: “I haven’t heard what Rossi or Yamaha have said exactly, but I was told about this so I am really happy. I think in a way it’s like a present from Yamaha to Valentino after what he has done for them.
“We can be happy with this and I would like to thank, in a way, Yamaha. I have good relations with Lin Jarvis and I take this chance to thank him because he has always been fair and open to discussion. It’s not easy and it’s great. So we will work now and finish the season, and then start again for 2011 just after the Valencia race.
“I think for everybody that this test is important because, due to the testing restrictions, I think it’s fair that every rider has the chance to test the bike he is going to ride the following year. So for everybody it would be important. He will test the 2011 bike for sure, and we will see. We are working on it.”
Stoner continues home dominance
From motogp.com
Casey Stoner’s authority on his home Phillip Island track continued in style on Sunday as the Ducati rider won the MotoGP World Championship round at the circuit for the fourth year in a row.
Starting from pole position – his third of the season – the 25 year-old led the Iveco Australian Grand Prix from start to finish as he made it a third win of 2010 in front of a partisan crowd.
Eventually crossing the finish line 8.598 secs. ahead of 2010 World Champion Jorge Lorenzo it was the perfect end to a strong weekend from Stoner, who had demonstrated his pace throughout the practice and qualifying sessions.
“This feels really nice. I think when I won two in a row here nobody expected me to make it three but having done that I felt there was a lot of expectation on me today,” said Stoner. “To be fair we have been going for the win at the last four races - unfortunately I slipped off on the first lap at Sepang but we've made up for that this weekend. Everything has gone well for us, we have been happy with the bike from the first practice and the support from the fans has been fantastic.”
Stoner confessed to having felt slightly more tense than normal before the race due to the expectation, but he immediately settled into his rhythm and led for the entire 27 laps.
“I have to admit that before the race I was feeling the pressure, I was more nervous than I normally am but maybe I should be like that more often because I didn't make mistakes,” he said. “I am really happy with the way I rode today but every single person in the team has done a great job this weekend so my thanks go to them and I hope we can keep it going to the end of the season.”
Lorenzo (Fiat Yamaha) rode a lonely race in second position as he finished almost 10 seconds ahead of third-placed Valentino Rossi. For the Spaniard it was a 14th podium finish in his title-winning campaign – his 32nd top-three result in the MotoGP category in what was his 50th premier class start.
"We knew Casey would be hard to beat today. I tried my best, riding as hard as I could at the start and occasionally it seemed like I was closing a little bit, but then on the next lap Casey would extend his lead again by a few tenths,” said Lorenzo. “I kept trying but I didn't have much hope and half way through I decided it was better not to take risks.”
The fight for third place went right down to the final lap and Fiat Yamaha man Rossi edged out Nicky Hayden in what was a fantastically close battle. The Ducati rider appeared to have got one over on his Italian rival with three laps to go when he overtook at Honda Corner, but Rossi returned the move at the same place on the final lap to beat the American to the final podium spot by a margin of just 0.038 secs.
Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider Ben Spies achieved his eighth top-five finish of his maiden MotoGP campaign and with it secured Rookie of the Year, with fellow premier class debutant Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini) just under three seconds further back in sixth position.
There were top-10 finishes also for Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3), Aleix Espargaró (Pramac Racing), Marco Melandri (San Carlo Honda Gresini) and Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda).
Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) was the only rider who failed to finish the race after he experienced technical problems early on.
Absent due to injuries were Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) – who rode in qualifying but opted not to race as he continues his recovery from a broken collarbone – and Loris Capirossi (Rizla Suzuki), who sustained a groin injury in a qualifying session crash. The pair both expect to be fit to return at Estoril in a fortnight.
The result lifted Stoner into third in the Championship standings ahead of Rossi, and with the Italian and his Spanish team-mate’s podium finishes Fiat Yamaha also secured the Team Championship for 2010 with two rounds remaining.
Alex de Angelis took his first victory in the Moto2 class at the Iveco Australian Grand Prix on Sunday, leading his JiR Moto2 team bike across the finish line ahead of Scott Redding (Marc VDS Racing Team) and Andrea Iannone (Fimmco Speed Up).
The San Marinese rider started from pole position and recovered from a start which saw him drop to fourth position to slowly enter the battle for the lead. A strong finish to the race saw De Angelis win by a margin of 2.172 secs. as he followed up his first podium of the year last time out in Malaysia with a first victory of 2010.
Redding rounded off an impressive weekend with his second podium of the year as he rode to second – his best Moto2 result to date.
In third position Iannone came in a fraction over eight-tenths of a second behind Redding, as he suffered from tire issues towards the end. It was his seventh podium of the campaign as he moved to within two points of Julián Simón in the fight for second position in the overall standings.
World Champion Toni Elías (Gresini Racing) came out on top in an engrossing contest for seventh position.
Marc Márquez’s ninth win of the season stretched the Red Bull Ajo Motorsport rider’s lead at the top of the 125cc World Championship standings to 12 points on Sunday, as he triumphed from pole position at the Iveco Australian Grand Prix.
Márquez finished well ahead of title rivals Pol Espargaró and Nico Terol (Bancaja Aspar), who had competed closely for the remaining two podium positions during the race. Espargaró eventually finished just over five seconds clear of Terol however as the Tuenti Racing rider put in a strong final stage of the race.
The result leaves Márquez on 272 points at the top of the standings, with Terol now on 260 and Espargaró on 255 with the Estoril and Valencia rounds to go.
MotoGP Race Results
1. Casey STONER (AUS) Ducati 41:09.128
2. Jorge LORENZO (SPA) Fiat Yamaha +8.598
3. Valentino ROSSI (ITA) Fiat Yamaha +17.997
4. Nicky HAYDEN (USA) Ducati +18.035
5. Ben SPIES (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha +22.211
6. Marco SIMONCELLI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda +25.017
7. Colin EDWARDS (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha +35.168
8. Aleix ESPARGARO (SPA) Pramac Ducati +46.194
9. Marco MELANDRI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda +46.294
10. Randy DE PUNIET (FRA) LCR Honda +59.635
11. Mika KALLIO (FIN) Pramac Ducati +59.664
12. Alvaro BAUTISTA (SPA) Rizla Suzuki +59.732
13. Hiroshi AOYAMA (JPN) Interwetten Honda +1:05.029
14. Hector BARBERA (SPA) Paginas Amarillas Aspar Ducati +1:05.053
Not Classified
Andrea DOVIZIOSO (ITA) Repsol Honda
MotoGP Point Standings
1. Jorge LORENZO (Yamaha) 333
2. Dani PEDROSA (Honda) 228
3. Casey STONER (Ducati) 205
4. Valentino ROSSI (Yamaha) 197
5. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (Honda) 179
6. Ben SPIES (Yamaha) 163
7. Nicky HAYDEN (Ducati) 152
8. Marco SIMONCELLI (Honda) 102
9. Randy DE PUNIET (Honda) 100
10. Marco MELANDRI (Honda) 93
11. Colin EDWARDS (Yamaha) 90
12. Hector BARBERA (Ducati) 76
13. Alvaro BAUTISTA (Suzuki) 73
14. Aleix ESPARGARO (Ducati) 60
15. Hiroshi AOYAMA (Honda) 47
16. Mika KALLIO (Ducati) 43
17. Loris CAPIROSSI (Suzuki) 41
18. Alex DE ANGELIS (Honda) 11
19. Roger Lee HAYDEN (Honda) 5
20. Kousuke AKIYOSHI (Honda) 4
21. Wataru YOSHIKAWA (Yamaha) 1
Casey Stoner’s authority on his home Phillip Island track continued in style on Sunday as the Ducati rider won the MotoGP World Championship round at the circuit for the fourth year in a row.
Starting from pole position – his third of the season – the 25 year-old led the Iveco Australian Grand Prix from start to finish as he made it a third win of 2010 in front of a partisan crowd.
Eventually crossing the finish line 8.598 secs. ahead of 2010 World Champion Jorge Lorenzo it was the perfect end to a strong weekend from Stoner, who had demonstrated his pace throughout the practice and qualifying sessions.
“This feels really nice. I think when I won two in a row here nobody expected me to make it three but having done that I felt there was a lot of expectation on me today,” said Stoner. “To be fair we have been going for the win at the last four races - unfortunately I slipped off on the first lap at Sepang but we've made up for that this weekend. Everything has gone well for us, we have been happy with the bike from the first practice and the support from the fans has been fantastic.”
Stoner confessed to having felt slightly more tense than normal before the race due to the expectation, but he immediately settled into his rhythm and led for the entire 27 laps.
“I have to admit that before the race I was feeling the pressure, I was more nervous than I normally am but maybe I should be like that more often because I didn't make mistakes,” he said. “I am really happy with the way I rode today but every single person in the team has done a great job this weekend so my thanks go to them and I hope we can keep it going to the end of the season.”
Lorenzo (Fiat Yamaha) rode a lonely race in second position as he finished almost 10 seconds ahead of third-placed Valentino Rossi. For the Spaniard it was a 14th podium finish in his title-winning campaign – his 32nd top-three result in the MotoGP category in what was his 50th premier class start.
"We knew Casey would be hard to beat today. I tried my best, riding as hard as I could at the start and occasionally it seemed like I was closing a little bit, but then on the next lap Casey would extend his lead again by a few tenths,” said Lorenzo. “I kept trying but I didn't have much hope and half way through I decided it was better not to take risks.”
The fight for third place went right down to the final lap and Fiat Yamaha man Rossi edged out Nicky Hayden in what was a fantastically close battle. The Ducati rider appeared to have got one over on his Italian rival with three laps to go when he overtook at Honda Corner, but Rossi returned the move at the same place on the final lap to beat the American to the final podium spot by a margin of just 0.038 secs.
Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider Ben Spies achieved his eighth top-five finish of his maiden MotoGP campaign and with it secured Rookie of the Year, with fellow premier class debutant Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini) just under three seconds further back in sixth position.
There were top-10 finishes also for Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3), Aleix Espargaró (Pramac Racing), Marco Melandri (San Carlo Honda Gresini) and Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda).
Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) was the only rider who failed to finish the race after he experienced technical problems early on.
Absent due to injuries were Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) – who rode in qualifying but opted not to race as he continues his recovery from a broken collarbone – and Loris Capirossi (Rizla Suzuki), who sustained a groin injury in a qualifying session crash. The pair both expect to be fit to return at Estoril in a fortnight.
The result lifted Stoner into third in the Championship standings ahead of Rossi, and with the Italian and his Spanish team-mate’s podium finishes Fiat Yamaha also secured the Team Championship for 2010 with two rounds remaining.
Alex de Angelis took his first victory in the Moto2 class at the Iveco Australian Grand Prix on Sunday, leading his JiR Moto2 team bike across the finish line ahead of Scott Redding (Marc VDS Racing Team) and Andrea Iannone (Fimmco Speed Up).
The San Marinese rider started from pole position and recovered from a start which saw him drop to fourth position to slowly enter the battle for the lead. A strong finish to the race saw De Angelis win by a margin of 2.172 secs. as he followed up his first podium of the year last time out in Malaysia with a first victory of 2010.
Redding rounded off an impressive weekend with his second podium of the year as he rode to second – his best Moto2 result to date.
In third position Iannone came in a fraction over eight-tenths of a second behind Redding, as he suffered from tire issues towards the end. It was his seventh podium of the campaign as he moved to within two points of Julián Simón in the fight for second position in the overall standings.
World Champion Toni Elías (Gresini Racing) came out on top in an engrossing contest for seventh position.
Marc Márquez’s ninth win of the season stretched the Red Bull Ajo Motorsport rider’s lead at the top of the 125cc World Championship standings to 12 points on Sunday, as he triumphed from pole position at the Iveco Australian Grand Prix.
Márquez finished well ahead of title rivals Pol Espargaró and Nico Terol (Bancaja Aspar), who had competed closely for the remaining two podium positions during the race. Espargaró eventually finished just over five seconds clear of Terol however as the Tuenti Racing rider put in a strong final stage of the race.
The result leaves Márquez on 272 points at the top of the standings, with Terol now on 260 and Espargaró on 255 with the Estoril and Valencia rounds to go.
MotoGP Race Results
1. Casey STONER (AUS) Ducati 41:09.128
2. Jorge LORENZO (SPA) Fiat Yamaha +8.598
3. Valentino ROSSI (ITA) Fiat Yamaha +17.997
4. Nicky HAYDEN (USA) Ducati +18.035
5. Ben SPIES (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha +22.211
6. Marco SIMONCELLI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda +25.017
7. Colin EDWARDS (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha +35.168
8. Aleix ESPARGARO (SPA) Pramac Ducati +46.194
9. Marco MELANDRI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda +46.294
10. Randy DE PUNIET (FRA) LCR Honda +59.635
11. Mika KALLIO (FIN) Pramac Ducati +59.664
12. Alvaro BAUTISTA (SPA) Rizla Suzuki +59.732
13. Hiroshi AOYAMA (JPN) Interwetten Honda +1:05.029
14. Hector BARBERA (SPA) Paginas Amarillas Aspar Ducati +1:05.053
Not Classified
Andrea DOVIZIOSO (ITA) Repsol Honda
MotoGP Point Standings
1. Jorge LORENZO (Yamaha) 333
2. Dani PEDROSA (Honda) 228
3. Casey STONER (Ducati) 205
4. Valentino ROSSI (Yamaha) 197
5. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (Honda) 179
6. Ben SPIES (Yamaha) 163
7. Nicky HAYDEN (Ducati) 152
8. Marco SIMONCELLI (Honda) 102
9. Randy DE PUNIET (Honda) 100
10. Marco MELANDRI (Honda) 93
11. Colin EDWARDS (Yamaha) 90
12. Hector BARBERA (Ducati) 76
13. Alvaro BAUTISTA (Suzuki) 73
14. Aleix ESPARGARO (Ducati) 60
15. Hiroshi AOYAMA (Honda) 47
16. Mika KALLIO (Ducati) 43
17. Loris CAPIROSSI (Suzuki) 41
18. Alex DE ANGELIS (Honda) 11
19. Roger Lee HAYDEN (Honda) 5
20. Kousuke AKIYOSHI (Honda) 4
21. Wataru YOSHIKAWA (Yamaha) 1
Pedrosa sidelined in Australia
From motogp.com
Strong winds throughout qualifying for the Iveco Australian Grand Prix made for a challenging afternoon's riding for the MotoGP class at Phillip Island, and after riding in both the morning practice and QP sessions on Saturday Dani Pedrosa reluctantly decided that he had not recovered sufficiently from the injuries he sustained two weeks ago to take part in Sunday's race.
Making his return to riding this weekend after fracturing his collarbone in Japan a fortnight ago Pedrosa completed 42 laps of the Phillip Island track in Saturday’s two sessions, bringing his lap time down to a creditable 1:33.383, which qualified him in 15th position on the grid.
However, the considerable discomfort still being felt due to his injuries and having found that he lacked sufficient strength and endurance to handle his RC212V at the challenging Phillip Island circuit Pedrosa and HRC took a joint decision that he would not race on Sunday, and will aim to come back stronger at Estoril in two weeks’ time.
“After the operation in Spain my target was to come back in Australia. But having ridden in the three practice sessions here it’s clear that it is really impossible for me to maintain a high pace because I lose strength in my arm lap-by-lap and controlling the bike gets increasingly difficult – even more so with the strong winds here,” said Pedrosa.
“Phillip Island is a very fast circuit, I have to grip the handlebars very tightly, and this makes me very tired and gives me a lot of pain. To ride around three seconds off the pace in the race tomorrow and maybe collect just a few points wouldn’t make much sense. But I think it has been worth it to at least try to ride here because we really didn’t know how I would be on the bike until we tried.
“Now, though, I don’t want to take more risks so that I can recover in time for Estoril. I discussed the situation with HRC Team Director Kazuhiko Yamano and we have the same opinion.”
Strong winds throughout qualifying for the Iveco Australian Grand Prix made for a challenging afternoon's riding for the MotoGP class at Phillip Island, and after riding in both the morning practice and QP sessions on Saturday Dani Pedrosa reluctantly decided that he had not recovered sufficiently from the injuries he sustained two weeks ago to take part in Sunday's race.
Making his return to riding this weekend after fracturing his collarbone in Japan a fortnight ago Pedrosa completed 42 laps of the Phillip Island track in Saturday’s two sessions, bringing his lap time down to a creditable 1:33.383, which qualified him in 15th position on the grid.
However, the considerable discomfort still being felt due to his injuries and having found that he lacked sufficient strength and endurance to handle his RC212V at the challenging Phillip Island circuit Pedrosa and HRC took a joint decision that he would not race on Sunday, and will aim to come back stronger at Estoril in two weeks’ time.
“After the operation in Spain my target was to come back in Australia. But having ridden in the three practice sessions here it’s clear that it is really impossible for me to maintain a high pace because I lose strength in my arm lap-by-lap and controlling the bike gets increasingly difficult – even more so with the strong winds here,” said Pedrosa.
“Phillip Island is a very fast circuit, I have to grip the handlebars very tightly, and this makes me very tired and gives me a lot of pain. To ride around three seconds off the pace in the race tomorrow and maybe collect just a few points wouldn’t make much sense. But I think it has been worth it to at least try to ride here because we really didn’t know how I would be on the bike until we tried.
“Now, though, I don’t want to take more risks so that I can recover in time for Estoril. I discussed the situation with HRC Team Director Kazuhiko Yamano and we have the same opinion.”
Stoner on pole for home GP
From motogp.com
Casey Stoner took his third pole position of the season with the best time in qualification for the Iveco Australian Grand Prix of 1:30.107 on Saturday, as he secured top spot on the starting grid at Phillip Island for the third consecutive season.
The Ducati Team rider, who celebrated his 25th birthday on Saturday, put in a strong display in qualifying to finish over six-tenths of a second clear of closest rival Jorge Lorenzo.
It was the Australian rider’s 25th pole position of his Grand Prix career and continued his impressive form on his home circuit, at which he has won for the past three seasons having started from pole for the previous two years.
“I always seem to celebrate my birthday here at Phillip Island but I guess there are worse places to be,” said Stoner. “We have had virtually every single condition you could imagine thrown at us this weekend so we'll have to wait and see what happens tomorrow before we make any decisions on set-up but so far I think we have done the best possible job in every condition.”
World Champion Lorenzo (Fiat Yamaha) was the only rider able to get within a second of Stoner, as the Spaniard joined his rival under the 1:31 barrier. Lorenzo briefly led the session with his time of 1:30.775 but eventually had to settle for second on the grid.
"These conditions were really risky because it was so cold and also incredibly windy. It was hard to stay on the bike sometimes,” said Lorenzo after securing his 15th front-row start of the campaign. “I'm happy with my race pace which is unusual for me here because I've never been so strong in MotoGP at this track, but I think we've done a good job. I wanted pole today but the weather and Casey stopped me – he is so quick here. We have the second best time so it is okay and I am feeling very calm after last weekend."
Achieving his third front-row starting position of the season Ben Spies set the third best time of the session, the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider closing out the 60-minute run at 1.279 secs. off the pole time of Stoner.
“I'm really happy to be on the front row again but a little bit surprised," Spies said. "I was really happy with my pace and the lap times earlier in the session but each time I tried to go quicker in the last part I'd have spots of rain on my visor. I'd warm up the tires and see nothing but as soon as I'd push going into the first corner to start a fast lap, I was getting a lot of rain on my visor. I didn't want to take a big risk when I knew I was already pretty close to the front row."
Hot on the heels of the American and registering a best qualification of the season to date was rookie Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini), at just 16-thousandths of a second behind in fourth.
Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) was a similar distance (0.013 secs.) further back in fifth, with Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team) taking sixth position in the session and crashing at turn four towards the end.
Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda) will head up the third row after setting the seventh fastest time, with Valentino Rossi (Fiat Yamaha) failing to overcome the issues he experienced in both practice sessions and qualifying in eighth, which is his worst starting grid position of the season to date.
Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) and Marco Melandri (San Carlo Honda Gresini) completed the top 10.
The recovering Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) qualified in 15th position as he prepares for his first race back after missing the last two rounds, while Héctor Barberá (Páginas Amarillas Aspar) and Loris Capirossi (Rizla Suzuki) both crashed during the session and qualified in 16th and 17th positions respectively.
Capirossi sustained a pulled adductor of the left leg in his fall which has placed his participation in the race in doubt.
Inside the final five minutes spots of rain were significant enough to effectively mark the end of the session, as the riders abandoned any further attempts at improving their times.
Alex de Angelis’ first pole position of the 2010 season came at Phillip Island on Saturday as the JiR Moto2 rider topped qualifying with a final lap of 1:35.148. That saw him finish the session 0.230 secs. ahead of Scott Redding, who had led until the final moments.
The Marc VDS Racing Team rider came close once more to securing his first-ever pole but eventually ended in second position, with his best effort of 1:35.378 ensuring a fifth front-row start in six races.
Stefan Bradl (Viessmann Kiefer Racing) equalled his best qualification of the season by setting the third-best time, with Mike di Meglio (Mapfre Aspar) getting onto the front row for the first time in 2010.
Marc Márquez’s 11th pole position of the 125cc World Championship season came at Phillip Island on Saturday as the Red Bull Ajo Motorsport rider secured top spot on the starting grid for Sunday’s race for the fourth consecutive round.
The 17-year-old, who leads the Championship by three points ahead of Nico Terol going into this round, topped the timesheet by an impressive 0.616 secs. with a best lap of 1:38.236 and became the first rider to achieve 11 poles in a single season in the 125cc class.
Following him onto the front row was team-mate Sandro Cortese, with the Avant Mitsubishi Ajo rider slotting in ahead of Pol Espargaró (Tuenti Racing), who was the final rider under the 1:39 barrier with a time of 1:38.991. Bancaja Aspar rider Terol secured the fourth and final position on the front line and was also the final rider to get within a second of Márquez’s time.
MotoGP Qualifying Results
1. Casey STONER (AUS) Ducati 1:30.107
2. Jorge LORENZO (SPA) Fiat Yamaha 1:30.775
3. Ben SPIES (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha 1:31.386
4. Marco SIMONCELLI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda 1:31.402
5. Colin EDWARDS (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha 1:31.415
6. Nicky HAYDEN (USA) Ducati 1:31.530
7. Randy DE PUNIET (FRA) LCR Honda 1:31.554
8. Valentino ROSSI (ITA) Fiat Yamaha 1:31.627
9. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (ITA) Repsol Honda 1:32.018
10. Marco MELANDRI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda 1:32.367
11. Aleix ESPARGARO (SPA) Pramac Ducati 1:32.542
12. Mika KALLIO (FIN) Pramac Ducati 1:32.816
13. Hiroshi AOYAMA (JPN) Interwetten Honda 1:33.190
14. Alvaro BAUTISTA (SPA) Rizla Suzuki 1:33.224
15. Dani PEDROSA (SPA) Repsol Honda 1:33.384
16. Hector BARBERA (SPA) Paginas Amarillas Aspar Ducati 1:33.390
17. Loris CAPIROSSI (ITA) Rizla Suzuki 1:34.269
Casey Stoner took his third pole position of the season with the best time in qualification for the Iveco Australian Grand Prix of 1:30.107 on Saturday, as he secured top spot on the starting grid at Phillip Island for the third consecutive season.
The Ducati Team rider, who celebrated his 25th birthday on Saturday, put in a strong display in qualifying to finish over six-tenths of a second clear of closest rival Jorge Lorenzo.
It was the Australian rider’s 25th pole position of his Grand Prix career and continued his impressive form on his home circuit, at which he has won for the past three seasons having started from pole for the previous two years.
“I always seem to celebrate my birthday here at Phillip Island but I guess there are worse places to be,” said Stoner. “We have had virtually every single condition you could imagine thrown at us this weekend so we'll have to wait and see what happens tomorrow before we make any decisions on set-up but so far I think we have done the best possible job in every condition.”
World Champion Lorenzo (Fiat Yamaha) was the only rider able to get within a second of Stoner, as the Spaniard joined his rival under the 1:31 barrier. Lorenzo briefly led the session with his time of 1:30.775 but eventually had to settle for second on the grid.
"These conditions were really risky because it was so cold and also incredibly windy. It was hard to stay on the bike sometimes,” said Lorenzo after securing his 15th front-row start of the campaign. “I'm happy with my race pace which is unusual for me here because I've never been so strong in MotoGP at this track, but I think we've done a good job. I wanted pole today but the weather and Casey stopped me – he is so quick here. We have the second best time so it is okay and I am feeling very calm after last weekend."
Achieving his third front-row starting position of the season Ben Spies set the third best time of the session, the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider closing out the 60-minute run at 1.279 secs. off the pole time of Stoner.
“I'm really happy to be on the front row again but a little bit surprised," Spies said. "I was really happy with my pace and the lap times earlier in the session but each time I tried to go quicker in the last part I'd have spots of rain on my visor. I'd warm up the tires and see nothing but as soon as I'd push going into the first corner to start a fast lap, I was getting a lot of rain on my visor. I didn't want to take a big risk when I knew I was already pretty close to the front row."
Hot on the heels of the American and registering a best qualification of the season to date was rookie Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini), at just 16-thousandths of a second behind in fourth.
Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) was a similar distance (0.013 secs.) further back in fifth, with Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team) taking sixth position in the session and crashing at turn four towards the end.
Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda) will head up the third row after setting the seventh fastest time, with Valentino Rossi (Fiat Yamaha) failing to overcome the issues he experienced in both practice sessions and qualifying in eighth, which is his worst starting grid position of the season to date.
Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) and Marco Melandri (San Carlo Honda Gresini) completed the top 10.
The recovering Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) qualified in 15th position as he prepares for his first race back after missing the last two rounds, while Héctor Barberá (Páginas Amarillas Aspar) and Loris Capirossi (Rizla Suzuki) both crashed during the session and qualified in 16th and 17th positions respectively.
Capirossi sustained a pulled adductor of the left leg in his fall which has placed his participation in the race in doubt.
Inside the final five minutes spots of rain were significant enough to effectively mark the end of the session, as the riders abandoned any further attempts at improving their times.
Alex de Angelis’ first pole position of the 2010 season came at Phillip Island on Saturday as the JiR Moto2 rider topped qualifying with a final lap of 1:35.148. That saw him finish the session 0.230 secs. ahead of Scott Redding, who had led until the final moments.
The Marc VDS Racing Team rider came close once more to securing his first-ever pole but eventually ended in second position, with his best effort of 1:35.378 ensuring a fifth front-row start in six races.
Stefan Bradl (Viessmann Kiefer Racing) equalled his best qualification of the season by setting the third-best time, with Mike di Meglio (Mapfre Aspar) getting onto the front row for the first time in 2010.
Marc Márquez’s 11th pole position of the 125cc World Championship season came at Phillip Island on Saturday as the Red Bull Ajo Motorsport rider secured top spot on the starting grid for Sunday’s race for the fourth consecutive round.
The 17-year-old, who leads the Championship by three points ahead of Nico Terol going into this round, topped the timesheet by an impressive 0.616 secs. with a best lap of 1:38.236 and became the first rider to achieve 11 poles in a single season in the 125cc class.
Following him onto the front row was team-mate Sandro Cortese, with the Avant Mitsubishi Ajo rider slotting in ahead of Pol Espargaró (Tuenti Racing), who was the final rider under the 1:39 barrier with a time of 1:38.991. Bancaja Aspar rider Terol secured the fourth and final position on the front line and was also the final rider to get within a second of Márquez’s time.
MotoGP Qualifying Results
1. Casey STONER (AUS) Ducati 1:30.107
2. Jorge LORENZO (SPA) Fiat Yamaha 1:30.775
3. Ben SPIES (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha 1:31.386
4. Marco SIMONCELLI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda 1:31.402
5. Colin EDWARDS (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha 1:31.415
6. Nicky HAYDEN (USA) Ducati 1:31.530
7. Randy DE PUNIET (FRA) LCR Honda 1:31.554
8. Valentino ROSSI (ITA) Fiat Yamaha 1:31.627
9. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (ITA) Repsol Honda 1:32.018
10. Marco MELANDRI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda 1:32.367
11. Aleix ESPARGARO (SPA) Pramac Ducati 1:32.542
12. Mika KALLIO (FIN) Pramac Ducati 1:32.816
13. Hiroshi AOYAMA (JPN) Interwetten Honda 1:33.190
14. Alvaro BAUTISTA (SPA) Rizla Suzuki 1:33.224
15. Dani PEDROSA (SPA) Repsol Honda 1:33.384
16. Hector BARBERA (SPA) Paginas Amarillas Aspar Ducati 1:33.390
17. Loris CAPIROSSI (ITA) Rizla Suzuki 1:34.269
AMA concerned about ethanol increase
From the American Motorcyclist Association
PICKERINGTON, OH -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has agreed to allow the ethanol portion of blended gasoline to be increased from the current 10 percent to 15 percent for certain vehicles, which could pose a danger for motorcycles, the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) reports.
On Oct. 13, the EPA announced approval of a waiver for E15. Under the decision, E15 is now approved for use in model year 2007 and newer cars and light trucks. It isn't approved for use in any other gasoline-fueled engines.
"The AMA supports the use of cleaner-burning fuels, but we are concerned that gasoline containing more than 10 percent ethanol could result in premature engine damage or failure while a motorcycle is being ridden," said Imre Szauter, AMA government affairs manager. "We're also concerned about any degradation in performance, fuel economy and rideability that may result from the long-term use of blended fuels with greater than 10 percent ethanol."
The EPA, in allowing more ethanol in gas, specifically said that its decision covers model year 2007 and newer cars and light trucks, and no other vehicles at this time, including motorcycles.
"Motorcycle manufacturers only certify their machines to run on gasoline or a blend with up to 10 percent ethanol, which is known as E10," Szauter said. "So using the 15 percent blend in a motorcycle could void the bike's warranty."
Growth Energy, an ethanol lobbying group, asked the EPA in March 2009 to allow gasoline to contain up to 15 percent ethanol. It's part of an effort to meet a congressional mandate to increase to 36 billion gallons the amount of renewable fuel available in the United States by 2022. Ethanol, made from corn and other crops, is considered a renewable fuel.
For more than three years the AMA has been on the record opposing increases in the ethanol level allowed in gasoline until studies show that an increase won't damage motorcycle or all-terrain vehicle (ATV) engines, and won't make motorcycles emit more nitrogen oxides than are allowed by the EPA.
"The message we want to deliver today is that once E15 gas is offered for sale, there are a variety of reasons not to put it in your motorcycle or ATV gas tank," Szauter said. "In fact, the EPA even says you aren't allowed to put E15 in your bike."
The EPA said a decision on the use of E15 in model year 2001 to 2006 vehicles will be made after new test results are received. The EPA is also proposing E15 pump labeling requirements so that consumers don't mistakenly put E15 in the wrong vehicles.
Bob Greco, spokesman for the American Petroleum Institute, told The Wall Street Journal that by approving E15 without full testing, the EPA is putting "politics before science."
"You're going to have fuels in the marketplace that could damage engines and void warranties," Greco told the newspaper.
Friday, October 15, 2010
New champ Lorenzo leads in Australia
From motogp.com
After a delayed start due to wet weather conditions the MotoGP class completed the opening practice of the Iveco Australian Grand Prix at Phillip Island on Friday, and newly-crowned World Champion Jorge Lorenzo was the quickest rider around the circuit.
Setting the standard with a time of 1:41.146 the Fiat Yamaha rider underlined his pre-stated determination to round off his title-winning 2010 campaign in winning style.
"Today was the first day on the bike after we won the title and I am still very happy. We can't stop now, we have to keep going and finish this season in the best way possible, working for the future,” said Lorenzo, who is keen to register his eighth win of the season this weekend.
“The conditions today were really hard – wet, cold and windy. I am very happy to be so fast in rain, because it didn't use to be this way, but we need to be prepared because it could be a hard weekend. I would like to ride in the dry, of course, but we will have to wait and see what happens. It seems the conditions will be more or less the same as now. For sure it will be a cold weekend and we have to be very careful not to make any mistakes.”
The 23-year-old last won in Brno and could still register the most podiums in a single season in the MotoGP class, score the highest number of points in a single season in the MotoGP class, and record the highest number of points-scoring finishes in a single season before the end of the campaign.
Casey Stoner was next up at 0.334 secs. down on Lorenzo’s time as the Australian, who has won at his home circuit for the past three seasons, brought his factory Desmosedici GP10 home ahead of Ducati team-mate Nicky Hayden.
“The conditions were difficult today and obviously we had the big delay too, which is not the ideal way to prepare," Stoner said. "Also we would prefer a fully wet session but it started to dry towards the end and that denied us the opportunity to confirm the settings or get a full understanding of the conditions.
"Other than the wind, which made things very difficult, it was quite a successful day. We made a couple of changes and I feel we made a little improvement with the bike but again because of the conditions we weren't able to get much of a direction. Hopefully tomorrow we get consistent weather, whatever it may be, so that we can get a proper idea of our set-up in either the wet or the dry.”
The American was 0.151 secs. off Stoner as the riders began to see a dry line forming towards the end of the hour-long session.
“Those were nasty conditions... I mean nasty," Hayden said. "It wasn't so much the wet but the wind. It was really strong and for me it took a little while to get comfortable with being blown around so much.
"Other than that the bike worked well in the wet. We made a little bit of a change to help the bike turn, keeping some weight on the front, for the second run and I was able to go okay. My pace wasn't too bad. Obviously it could be all for nothing if the forecast is right and the conditions are dry from here on but at this track you have to be prepared for anything and take advantage of every situation.”
Marco Simoncelli was fourth in the order as the San Carlo Honda Gresini rookie battled rear grip to set a best time of 1:41.881, with his team-mate Marco Melandri fifth and the final rider to get within a second of Lorenzo.
Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) completed the top six.
Coming in seventh fastest was Valentino Rossi on his Fiat Yamaha M1, with Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3), Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda) and Loris Capirossi (Rizla Suzuki) all in the top 10.
Back on track for the first time since he fractured his collarbone in Japan exactly two weeks ago Dani Pedrosa completed seven laps, before concluding his session just before the half-hour mark having posted a best time of 1:51.210.
Completing just three laps in the session and opting to avoid any unnecessary risks on a track on which he won a WSBK race last season was Ben Spies (Monster Yamaha Tech 3).
MotoGP Practice Results
1. Jorge LORENZO (SPA) Fiat Yamaha 1:41.146
2. Casey STONER (AUS) Ducati 1:41.480
3. Nicky HAYDEN (USA) Ducati 1:41.631
4. Marco SIMONCELLI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda 1:41.881
5. Marco MELANDRI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda 1:41.982
6. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (ITA) Repsol Honda 1:42.271
7. Valentino ROSSI (ITA) Fiat Yamaha 1:42.626
8. Colin EDWARDS (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha 1:43.013
9. Randy DE PUNIET (FRA) LCR Honda 1:43.476
10. Loris CAPIROSSI (ITA) Rizla Suzuki 1:43.984
11. Mika KALLIO (FIN) Pramac Ducati 1:44.179
12. Hiroshi AOYAMA (JPN) Interwetten Honda 1:44.704
13. Hector BARBERA (SPA) Paginas Amarillas Aspar Ducati 1:45.695
14. Alvaro BAUTISTA (SPA) Rizla Suzuki 1:46.160
15. Aleix ESPARGARO (SPA) Pramac Ducati 1:48.127
Dani PEDROSA (SPA) Repsol Honda 1:51.210
Ben SPIES (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha 1:58.613
After a delayed start due to wet weather conditions the MotoGP class completed the opening practice of the Iveco Australian Grand Prix at Phillip Island on Friday, and newly-crowned World Champion Jorge Lorenzo was the quickest rider around the circuit.
Setting the standard with a time of 1:41.146 the Fiat Yamaha rider underlined his pre-stated determination to round off his title-winning 2010 campaign in winning style.
"Today was the first day on the bike after we won the title and I am still very happy. We can't stop now, we have to keep going and finish this season in the best way possible, working for the future,” said Lorenzo, who is keen to register his eighth win of the season this weekend.
“The conditions today were really hard – wet, cold and windy. I am very happy to be so fast in rain, because it didn't use to be this way, but we need to be prepared because it could be a hard weekend. I would like to ride in the dry, of course, but we will have to wait and see what happens. It seems the conditions will be more or less the same as now. For sure it will be a cold weekend and we have to be very careful not to make any mistakes.”
The 23-year-old last won in Brno and could still register the most podiums in a single season in the MotoGP class, score the highest number of points in a single season in the MotoGP class, and record the highest number of points-scoring finishes in a single season before the end of the campaign.
Casey Stoner was next up at 0.334 secs. down on Lorenzo’s time as the Australian, who has won at his home circuit for the past three seasons, brought his factory Desmosedici GP10 home ahead of Ducati team-mate Nicky Hayden.
“The conditions were difficult today and obviously we had the big delay too, which is not the ideal way to prepare," Stoner said. "Also we would prefer a fully wet session but it started to dry towards the end and that denied us the opportunity to confirm the settings or get a full understanding of the conditions.
"Other than the wind, which made things very difficult, it was quite a successful day. We made a couple of changes and I feel we made a little improvement with the bike but again because of the conditions we weren't able to get much of a direction. Hopefully tomorrow we get consistent weather, whatever it may be, so that we can get a proper idea of our set-up in either the wet or the dry.”
The American was 0.151 secs. off Stoner as the riders began to see a dry line forming towards the end of the hour-long session.
“Those were nasty conditions... I mean nasty," Hayden said. "It wasn't so much the wet but the wind. It was really strong and for me it took a little while to get comfortable with being blown around so much.
"Other than that the bike worked well in the wet. We made a little bit of a change to help the bike turn, keeping some weight on the front, for the second run and I was able to go okay. My pace wasn't too bad. Obviously it could be all for nothing if the forecast is right and the conditions are dry from here on but at this track you have to be prepared for anything and take advantage of every situation.”
Marco Simoncelli was fourth in the order as the San Carlo Honda Gresini rookie battled rear grip to set a best time of 1:41.881, with his team-mate Marco Melandri fifth and the final rider to get within a second of Lorenzo.
Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) completed the top six.
Coming in seventh fastest was Valentino Rossi on his Fiat Yamaha M1, with Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3), Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda) and Loris Capirossi (Rizla Suzuki) all in the top 10.
Back on track for the first time since he fractured his collarbone in Japan exactly two weeks ago Dani Pedrosa completed seven laps, before concluding his session just before the half-hour mark having posted a best time of 1:51.210.
Completing just three laps in the session and opting to avoid any unnecessary risks on a track on which he won a WSBK race last season was Ben Spies (Monster Yamaha Tech 3).
MotoGP Practice Results
1. Jorge LORENZO (SPA) Fiat Yamaha 1:41.146
2. Casey STONER (AUS) Ducati 1:41.480
3. Nicky HAYDEN (USA) Ducati 1:41.631
4. Marco SIMONCELLI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda 1:41.881
5. Marco MELANDRI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda 1:41.982
6. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (ITA) Repsol Honda 1:42.271
7. Valentino ROSSI (ITA) Fiat Yamaha 1:42.626
8. Colin EDWARDS (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha 1:43.013
9. Randy DE PUNIET (FRA) LCR Honda 1:43.476
10. Loris CAPIROSSI (ITA) Rizla Suzuki 1:43.984
11. Mika KALLIO (FIN) Pramac Ducati 1:44.179
12. Hiroshi AOYAMA (JPN) Interwetten Honda 1:44.704
13. Hector BARBERA (SPA) Paginas Amarillas Aspar Ducati 1:45.695
14. Alvaro BAUTISTA (SPA) Rizla Suzuki 1:46.160
15. Aleix ESPARGARO (SPA) Pramac Ducati 1:48.127
Dani PEDROSA (SPA) Repsol Honda 1:51.210
Ben SPIES (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha 1:58.613
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Fabrizio returns to Alstare Suzuki
From worldsbk.com
Alstare Suzuki is going back to the future in 2011, as Michel Fabrizio rejoins the team that helped take him to the 2003 European Superstock Championship.
Fabrizio will spearhead the official Suzuki entry next year, and is a proven race winner, having taken one win at Kyalami this year, and four career WSBK races in total. The former Xerox Ducati rider has already tested for the team, and declared himself satisfied with progress in his return to four-cylinder action.
"I am very happy with how the tests went at Magny-Cours last week," he said, "even though the weather was not so good on the first day. I am a bit surprised how easily I got used to the Suzuki Alstare bike after three years of riding a twin. A twin requires a completely different style to a four, so to jump onto a four and get comfortable so soon is a very good sign. Having known the team from before obviously helped and soon I felt as if I had never been away.
"My first impressions of the bike are that it feels strong and can be a title contender. Leon [Haslam] showed that this year, so I am looking forward to more tests and then racing it. This championship is very hard and competitive and you have to be on your game all the time. But, I know I have a good team behind me and I think we can have a very good season next year."
Alstare Suzuki is going back to the future in 2011, as Michel Fabrizio rejoins the team that helped take him to the 2003 European Superstock Championship.
Fabrizio will spearhead the official Suzuki entry next year, and is a proven race winner, having taken one win at Kyalami this year, and four career WSBK races in total. The former Xerox Ducati rider has already tested for the team, and declared himself satisfied with progress in his return to four-cylinder action.
"I am very happy with how the tests went at Magny-Cours last week," he said, "even though the weather was not so good on the first day. I am a bit surprised how easily I got used to the Suzuki Alstare bike after three years of riding a twin. A twin requires a completely different style to a four, so to jump onto a four and get comfortable so soon is a very good sign. Having known the team from before obviously helped and soon I felt as if I had never been away.
"My first impressions of the bike are that it feels strong and can be a title contender. Leon [Haslam] showed that this year, so I am looking forward to more tests and then racing it. This championship is very hard and competitive and you have to be on your game all the time. But, I know I have a good team behind me and I think we can have a very good season next year."
Kiyonari secures British Superbike crown
From britishsuperbike.com
Ryuichi Kiyonari won the final race of the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship season last Sunday to secure his third title for the HM Plant Honda team after fending off team-mate Josh Brookes on the final lap at Oulton Park.
Stuart Easton fired the Swan Honda off the line to lead into Old Hall for the first time but Michael Laverty snatched the lead on the inside into Lodge, while Kiyonari then took the lead from third place on the run over Deer Leap for the first time.
On the second lap Easton went wide into Shell Oils corners and James Ellison was through to third, but a crash from MSS Colchester Kawasaki's Gary Mason on the second lap bought out the Nissan GTR safety car at the end of the third lap. Michael Rutter made a lunge on the Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati into Old Hall when the race resumed and forced Easton wide on the run down to Island Bend and that gave his rivals the chance to get ahead and drop Easton to fourth.
Ellison moved up to second at Lodge on the fifth lap, as Rutter's season ended with disappointment when he was forced to retire and then it was the same for Easton as he suffered a technical problem on the second Swan Honda.
Brookes was on a charge and he was up to third by the eighth lap. He was piling the pressure on Michael Laverty for the position, before striking with a move up the inside at Lodge.
The battle was then between the two HM Plant Hondas as Brookes closed in but it wasn't enough to stop his team-mate and the pair took first and second respectively. Ellison had an immense battle with Michael Laverty to take his second podium finish of the weekend in third, with the Relentless Suzuki rider ending the race in fourth.
Tommy Hill ended fifth after the hard-working Worx Crescent Suzuki team got him back out on the grid for the final race, but he lost a place in the standings to end the year in third.
Motorpoint Yamaha's Loris Baz took his best result for the Motorpoint Yamaha team in sixth ahead of Alastair Seeley and John Laverty, who was the top of the Kawasaki riders in the final race of the season. Chris Walker and Dan Linfoot rounded out the top 10.
Race Results
1. Ryuichi Kiyonari (HM Plant Honda)
2. Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda) +0.639s
3. James Ellison (Swan Honda) +4.531s
4. Michael Laverty (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +7.794s
5. Tommy Hill (Worx Crescent Suzuki) +9.355s
6. Loris Baz (Motorpoint Yamaha) +10.721s
7. Alastair Seeley (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +12.856s
8. John Laverty (Buildbase Kawasaki) +17.220s
9. Chris Walker (Sorrymate.com SMT Honda) +17.331s
10. Dan Linfoot (Motorpoint Yamaha) +22.881s
Final Standings
1. Ryuichi Kiyonari (HM Plant Honda) 649
2. Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda) 625
3. Tommy Hill (Worx Crescent Suzuki) 610
4. Michael Laverty (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) 604
5. Michael Rutter (Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati) 559
6. Alastair Seeley (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) 550
Ryuichi Kiyonari won the final race of the MCE Insurance British Superbike Championship season last Sunday to secure his third title for the HM Plant Honda team after fending off team-mate Josh Brookes on the final lap at Oulton Park.
Stuart Easton fired the Swan Honda off the line to lead into Old Hall for the first time but Michael Laverty snatched the lead on the inside into Lodge, while Kiyonari then took the lead from third place on the run over Deer Leap for the first time.
On the second lap Easton went wide into Shell Oils corners and James Ellison was through to third, but a crash from MSS Colchester Kawasaki's Gary Mason on the second lap bought out the Nissan GTR safety car at the end of the third lap. Michael Rutter made a lunge on the Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati into Old Hall when the race resumed and forced Easton wide on the run down to Island Bend and that gave his rivals the chance to get ahead and drop Easton to fourth.
Ellison moved up to second at Lodge on the fifth lap, as Rutter's season ended with disappointment when he was forced to retire and then it was the same for Easton as he suffered a technical problem on the second Swan Honda.
Brookes was on a charge and he was up to third by the eighth lap. He was piling the pressure on Michael Laverty for the position, before striking with a move up the inside at Lodge.
The battle was then between the two HM Plant Hondas as Brookes closed in but it wasn't enough to stop his team-mate and the pair took first and second respectively. Ellison had an immense battle with Michael Laverty to take his second podium finish of the weekend in third, with the Relentless Suzuki rider ending the race in fourth.
Tommy Hill ended fifth after the hard-working Worx Crescent Suzuki team got him back out on the grid for the final race, but he lost a place in the standings to end the year in third.
Motorpoint Yamaha's Loris Baz took his best result for the Motorpoint Yamaha team in sixth ahead of Alastair Seeley and John Laverty, who was the top of the Kawasaki riders in the final race of the season. Chris Walker and Dan Linfoot rounded out the top 10.
Race Results
1. Ryuichi Kiyonari (HM Plant Honda)
2. Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda) +0.639s
3. James Ellison (Swan Honda) +4.531s
4. Michael Laverty (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +7.794s
5. Tommy Hill (Worx Crescent Suzuki) +9.355s
6. Loris Baz (Motorpoint Yamaha) +10.721s
7. Alastair Seeley (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +12.856s
8. John Laverty (Buildbase Kawasaki) +17.220s
9. Chris Walker (Sorrymate.com SMT Honda) +17.331s
10. Dan Linfoot (Motorpoint Yamaha) +22.881s
Final Standings
1. Ryuichi Kiyonari (HM Plant Honda) 649
2. Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda) 625
3. Tommy Hill (Worx Crescent Suzuki) 610
4. Michael Laverty (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) 604
5. Michael Rutter (Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati) 559
6. Alastair Seeley (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) 550
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Ducati Diavel set for first appearance
From Ducati North America
BOLOGNA, ITALY - Ducati has announced that the new Diavel will make its first public appearance at the EICMA International Motorcycle Show in November.
Announcing the new model's name ahead of the official presentation, the famous Italian manufacturer is about to turn another dream into reality. This dream comes true via using the local Bolognese dialect for "devil" in naming the new model the Diavel – pronounced Dee-ah-vel.
The idea for the Diavel name was born early in the development process of the bike, when the prototype was assembled and wheeled out in front of a group of Ducati engineers and technicians for the first time. One person looking from the rear of the bike saw its silhouette and exclaimed in Bolognese dialect: "Ignurànt comm' al diavel!" Meaning: "Evil, like the devil!"
From that moment on, Diavel became the nickname for the project. Ducati now makes the name official as it approaches the unveiling in Milan. Reminiscent of how the "Monster" was named 20 years ago, the Diavel is now destined to follow the same Bolognese tradition.
Built to have a commanding presence, though lightweight and agile, the Diavel will take the man-motorcycle relationship to the next level in absolute comfort. For fans of technology ABS, Ducati Traction Control and Ducati Riding Modes will deliver a confidence-inspiring sophistication. Stunning looks, the Superbike-derived Testastretta engine and 456lb of authentic Ducati performance will drive a comfortable sport lifestyle that could only be dreamt of until now.
For more information visit www.ducatiusa.com.
Eslick back with RMR Suzukis in 2011
From RMR
Danny Eslick will again race the GEICO Powersports RMR Suzuki GSX-R600 in 2011.
The 24-year-old has become one of the brightest stars in the AMA series the past two seasons. Joining forces with Richie Morris Racing and GEICO Powersports for 2009, the grouping instantly showed results, immediately winning races and taking the Daytona SportBike series title.
Eslick finished a close second during his impressive 2010 title defense in which he finished in the top five in 17 of 18 races on his GEICO and Lucas Oil-sponsored machine. In a class with widely varied machinery and as many as 10 riders battling at the front in some races, the Broken Arrow, OK native finished no worse than seventh in any 2010 race in a remarkably consistent season.
"I'm excited to be working with my same team and crew again next year," said Eslick. "Richie has been great and I really want to ride the new 2011 GSX-R600, too. It sounds and looks like a great bike and certainly has a lot of potential. We’ve had a super run so far and hopefully we'll be able to continue our momentum and do well again next year.
"This season we had a fantastic year defending the championship but came up just short against some great riders and teams. It was a blast with a lot of good battles on the track, but we're looking to get the job done and win back the number one plate again.
"My career really took off when I joined the team and that was a big part of my decision to stay. It's been a big step forward for me and we'll continue to work together and build on the experience we've gained. One thing I know is that when I show up at the track, my guys have taken care of everything and that it's up to me to go for it."
To go along with the stellar results, Eslick’s aggressive, flat-track inspired style has been a hit with fans all over the country. The young, charismatic racer has been a popular paddock personality and become one of the marquee riders of the series.
“I think we’ve got a good thing going for next season with the same sponsor, team, and rider, along with a new and improved bike,” said team owner Morris. “Danny has always had the talent and I think we just have a package that works. There are a lot of good riders and teams returning next year so it should be a dogfight up front in AMA Pro Daytona SportBike.”
GEICO Powersports RMR Suzuki is sponsored by GEICO Powersports, Lucas Oil, Suzuki, Millennium Technologies, Vortex Sprockets, EBC Brakes and Pilot.
Lorenzo clinches title as Rossi wins
From motogp.com
Jorge Lorenzo was confirmed as the 2010 MotoGP World Champion on Sunday at Sepang, as the 23-year-old Fiat Yamaha rider rode to a third place finish in the Shell Advance Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix.
It was a thrilling race which Valentino Rossi won as the Italian took his first victory since the season opener in Qatar, on a day on which his great rival and current team-mate celebrated his first premier class title.
Pole holder Lorenzo got off to a fantastic start and led into turn one as the race got underway, but Rossi’s getaway from the starting grid was not so swift and he had dropped as low as 11th on the opening lap.
Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) stuck with Lorenzo and the pair established a slight gap at the front, but by only the third lap Rossi had recovered to fourth position as he set his sights on the leaders. Soon he was into third and closing in further on Dovizioso.
Rossi was repeatedly laying down fast laps as he homed in and just past the midway point of the race the Italian took the lead, having first passed Lorenzo and then Dovizioso. The two Italians swapped first position again in what was a thrilling fight to the end.
Rossi was not to be denied his second win of the season however and crossed the line 0.224 secs. ahead of Dovizioso, with Lorenzo in third and cementing the 2010 title with his 13th podium of the season as the celebrations started.
"This is my first title in the premier category and my dream has come true," Lorenzo said. "This is really the maximum a motorcycle rider can achieve in his career so we have to celebrate and enjoy these hours, minutes and seconds like it's the end of the world.
"You imagine this moment in your head your whole life but when it comes you don't know how to act or what to say. I am trying to be relaxed, to speak clearly and not say anything crazy. I'm so tired right now; I just need to be alone in a room for a few minutes, just thinking about what I've done.
“The perfect situation today would have been to win, but it wasn't to be this time. I made a good start and was riding well and I thought I could go away from Andrea at one point, but then he overtook me and then Valentino as well, and I thought there were too many risks today to fight for the victory; it was better to wait until the end of the race."
Rossi’s second victory of the season came on a track at which the Italian has enjoyed great success in the past and the result will go down as one of the 31-year-old’s great displays.
“I want to say congratulations to Yamaha and to Jorge; he has been fast all season, at all tracks and in all conditions and he deserves to be the World Champion,” said Rossi. "This is a wonderful moment for me, I am so happy to win like this and take my 46th win with Yamaha on ‘my' M1.
“It was one of my worst starts and for a moment I was really worried, but within a few corners I understood that I could go for it, because my bike felt great today thanks to a small change we made in warm-up. Jeremy's (Burgess, chief mechanic) idea really worked. I rode so well and it was a fantastic race, one of the best of my career I think. To win like this, from 11th at the first corner, is a great feeling.”
With the result Rossi moved into third in the Championship standings, where he now lies 47 points off second-placed Dani Pedrosa with three rounds remaining.
For Dovizioso this was the second race in succession that the Repsol Honda rider took second spot, and he was extremely satisfied with the manner in which he achieved the result.
“I’m very happy with this second place today and it was a great race. We have been fighting for the victory at the last two races at two very different tracks, and also in different conditions, so this is really positive,” said the 24-year-old, who took his first MotoGP podium at Sepang in 2008.
“I tried to stay close to Valentino on the last lap but in the final braking area I wasn’t close enough to take him in the middle of the corner, even though he was too late on the brakes and went wide. Anyway, this result for Honda, Repsol and my team is really important. Last year we were 40 seconds behind the winner in the race here, so to be just 0.2 secs. behind means we’ve moved forward a lot.”
Ben Spies (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) took fourth position with rookie Álvaro Bautista (Rizla Suzuki) equalling his season’s best result in fifth.
Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team) and Hiroshi Aoyama (Interwetten Honda MotoGP) followed, with Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini) eighth having battled closely with former 250cc rival Aoyama.
Marco Melandri (San Carlo Honda Gresini) and Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda) completed the top 10.
A candidate for the race victory, Casey Stoner (Ducati Team) suffered a huge disappointment when he crashed out on the opening lap, bringing to an end his race.
Loris Capirossi (Rizla Suzuki) and Aleix Espargaró (Pramac Racing) were both unfortunate crashers, while Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) also experienced difficulties that meant he failed to finish.
Toni Elías was crowned the first-ever Moto2 World Champion at Sepang on Sunday after the Spaniard took fourth place in the 14th round of the 2010 campaign.
Roberto Rolfo was also celebrating as he took his first World Championship victory since triumphing in the 250cc class at Jerez in 2004 after a fantastic race that saw both Rolfo and Elías involved in separate battles.
Stepping onto the podium for the first time this season was Alex de Angelis (JiR Moto2), who challenged Rolfo for the win late on, with Andrea Iannone (Fimmco Speed Up) completing the rostrum after a marvellous duel with Gresini Racing’s Elías.
Marc Márquez won from pole position at Sepang on Sunday to take over the leadership of the 125cc Championship by three points. The Red Bull Ajo Motorsport rider led home a podium which was completed by Pol Espargaró (Tuenti Racing) and Nico Terol (Bancaja Aspar), the latter of whom he deposed from top spot in the fight for the 2010 World Championship.
Márquez now tops the standings on 247 points, with Terol second on 244 and Espargaró third on 235 with three rounds remaining.
MotoGP Race Results
1. Valentino ROSSI (ITA) Fiat Yamaha 41:03.448
2. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (ITA) Repsol Honda +0.224
3. Jorge LORENZO (SPA) Fiat Yamaha +6.035
4. Ben SPIES (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha +13.676
5. Alvaro BAUTISTA (SPA) Rizla Suzuki +15.402
6. Nicky HAYDEN (USA) Ducati +18.826
7. Hiroshi AOYAMA (JPN) Interwetten Honda +20.218
8. Marco SIMONCELLI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda +23.574
9. Marco MELANDRI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda +23.964
10. Randy DE PUNIET (FRA) LCR Honda +31.850
11. Hector BARBERA (SPA) Paginas Amarillas Aspar Ducati +38.579
12. Mika KALLIO (FIN) Pramac Ducati +38.849
Colin EDWARDS (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha +6 Laps
Not Classified
Aleix ESPARGARO (SPA) Pramac Ducati
Loris CAPIROSSI (ITA) Rizla Suzuki
Casey STONER (AUS) Ducati
MotoGP Point Standings
1. Jorge LORENZO (Yamaha) 313
2. Dani PEDROSA (Honda) 228
3. Valentino ROSSI (Yamaha) 181
4. Casey STONER (Ducati) 180
5. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (Honda) 179
6. Ben SPIES (Yamaha) 152
7. Nicky HAYDEN (Ducati) 139
8. Randy DE PUNIET (Honda) 94
9. Marco SIMONCELLI (Honda) 92
10. Marco MELANDRI (Honda) 86
11. Colin EDWARDS (Yamaha) 81
12. Hector BARBERA (Ducati) 74
13. Alvaro BAUTISTA (Suzuki) 69
14. Aleix ESPARGARO (Ducati) 52
15. Hiroshi AOYAMA (Honda) 44
16. Loris CAPIROSSI (Suzuki) 41
17. Mika KALLIO (Ducati) 38
18. Alex DE ANGELIS (Honda) 11
19. Roger Lee HAYDEN (Honda) 5
20. Kousuke AKIYOSHI (Honda) 4
21. Wataru YOSHIKAWA (Yamaha) 1
Jorge Lorenzo was confirmed as the 2010 MotoGP World Champion on Sunday at Sepang, as the 23-year-old Fiat Yamaha rider rode to a third place finish in the Shell Advance Malaysian Motorcycle Grand Prix.
It was a thrilling race which Valentino Rossi won as the Italian took his first victory since the season opener in Qatar, on a day on which his great rival and current team-mate celebrated his first premier class title.
Pole holder Lorenzo got off to a fantastic start and led into turn one as the race got underway, but Rossi’s getaway from the starting grid was not so swift and he had dropped as low as 11th on the opening lap.
Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) stuck with Lorenzo and the pair established a slight gap at the front, but by only the third lap Rossi had recovered to fourth position as he set his sights on the leaders. Soon he was into third and closing in further on Dovizioso.
Rossi was repeatedly laying down fast laps as he homed in and just past the midway point of the race the Italian took the lead, having first passed Lorenzo and then Dovizioso. The two Italians swapped first position again in what was a thrilling fight to the end.
Rossi was not to be denied his second win of the season however and crossed the line 0.224 secs. ahead of Dovizioso, with Lorenzo in third and cementing the 2010 title with his 13th podium of the season as the celebrations started.
"This is my first title in the premier category and my dream has come true," Lorenzo said. "This is really the maximum a motorcycle rider can achieve in his career so we have to celebrate and enjoy these hours, minutes and seconds like it's the end of the world.
"You imagine this moment in your head your whole life but when it comes you don't know how to act or what to say. I am trying to be relaxed, to speak clearly and not say anything crazy. I'm so tired right now; I just need to be alone in a room for a few minutes, just thinking about what I've done.
“The perfect situation today would have been to win, but it wasn't to be this time. I made a good start and was riding well and I thought I could go away from Andrea at one point, but then he overtook me and then Valentino as well, and I thought there were too many risks today to fight for the victory; it was better to wait until the end of the race."
Rossi’s second victory of the season came on a track at which the Italian has enjoyed great success in the past and the result will go down as one of the 31-year-old’s great displays.
“I want to say congratulations to Yamaha and to Jorge; he has been fast all season, at all tracks and in all conditions and he deserves to be the World Champion,” said Rossi. "This is a wonderful moment for me, I am so happy to win like this and take my 46th win with Yamaha on ‘my' M1.
“It was one of my worst starts and for a moment I was really worried, but within a few corners I understood that I could go for it, because my bike felt great today thanks to a small change we made in warm-up. Jeremy's (Burgess, chief mechanic) idea really worked. I rode so well and it was a fantastic race, one of the best of my career I think. To win like this, from 11th at the first corner, is a great feeling.”
With the result Rossi moved into third in the Championship standings, where he now lies 47 points off second-placed Dani Pedrosa with three rounds remaining.
For Dovizioso this was the second race in succession that the Repsol Honda rider took second spot, and he was extremely satisfied with the manner in which he achieved the result.
“I’m very happy with this second place today and it was a great race. We have been fighting for the victory at the last two races at two very different tracks, and also in different conditions, so this is really positive,” said the 24-year-old, who took his first MotoGP podium at Sepang in 2008.
“I tried to stay close to Valentino on the last lap but in the final braking area I wasn’t close enough to take him in the middle of the corner, even though he was too late on the brakes and went wide. Anyway, this result for Honda, Repsol and my team is really important. Last year we were 40 seconds behind the winner in the race here, so to be just 0.2 secs. behind means we’ve moved forward a lot.”
Ben Spies (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) took fourth position with rookie Álvaro Bautista (Rizla Suzuki) equalling his season’s best result in fifth.
Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team) and Hiroshi Aoyama (Interwetten Honda MotoGP) followed, with Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini) eighth having battled closely with former 250cc rival Aoyama.
Marco Melandri (San Carlo Honda Gresini) and Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda) completed the top 10.
A candidate for the race victory, Casey Stoner (Ducati Team) suffered a huge disappointment when he crashed out on the opening lap, bringing to an end his race.
Loris Capirossi (Rizla Suzuki) and Aleix Espargaró (Pramac Racing) were both unfortunate crashers, while Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) also experienced difficulties that meant he failed to finish.
Toni Elías was crowned the first-ever Moto2 World Champion at Sepang on Sunday after the Spaniard took fourth place in the 14th round of the 2010 campaign.
Roberto Rolfo was also celebrating as he took his first World Championship victory since triumphing in the 250cc class at Jerez in 2004 after a fantastic race that saw both Rolfo and Elías involved in separate battles.
Stepping onto the podium for the first time this season was Alex de Angelis (JiR Moto2), who challenged Rolfo for the win late on, with Andrea Iannone (Fimmco Speed Up) completing the rostrum after a marvellous duel with Gresini Racing’s Elías.
Marc Márquez won from pole position at Sepang on Sunday to take over the leadership of the 125cc Championship by three points. The Red Bull Ajo Motorsport rider led home a podium which was completed by Pol Espargaró (Tuenti Racing) and Nico Terol (Bancaja Aspar), the latter of whom he deposed from top spot in the fight for the 2010 World Championship.
Márquez now tops the standings on 247 points, with Terol second on 244 and Espargaró third on 235 with three rounds remaining.
MotoGP Race Results
1. Valentino ROSSI (ITA) Fiat Yamaha 41:03.448
2. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (ITA) Repsol Honda +0.224
3. Jorge LORENZO (SPA) Fiat Yamaha +6.035
4. Ben SPIES (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha +13.676
5. Alvaro BAUTISTA (SPA) Rizla Suzuki +15.402
6. Nicky HAYDEN (USA) Ducati +18.826
7. Hiroshi AOYAMA (JPN) Interwetten Honda +20.218
8. Marco SIMONCELLI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda +23.574
9. Marco MELANDRI (ITA) San Carlo Gresini Honda +23.964
10. Randy DE PUNIET (FRA) LCR Honda +31.850
11. Hector BARBERA (SPA) Paginas Amarillas Aspar Ducati +38.579
12. Mika KALLIO (FIN) Pramac Ducati +38.849
Colin EDWARDS (USA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha +6 Laps
Not Classified
Aleix ESPARGARO (SPA) Pramac Ducati
Loris CAPIROSSI (ITA) Rizla Suzuki
Casey STONER (AUS) Ducati
MotoGP Point Standings
1. Jorge LORENZO (Yamaha) 313
2. Dani PEDROSA (Honda) 228
3. Valentino ROSSI (Yamaha) 181
4. Casey STONER (Ducati) 180
5. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (Honda) 179
6. Ben SPIES (Yamaha) 152
7. Nicky HAYDEN (Ducati) 139
8. Randy DE PUNIET (Honda) 94
9. Marco SIMONCELLI (Honda) 92
10. Marco MELANDRI (Honda) 86
11. Colin EDWARDS (Yamaha) 81
12. Hector BARBERA (Ducati) 74
13. Alvaro BAUTISTA (Suzuki) 69
14. Aleix ESPARGARO (Ducati) 52
15. Hiroshi AOYAMA (Honda) 44
16. Loris CAPIROSSI (Suzuki) 41
17. Mika KALLIO (Ducati) 38
18. Alex DE ANGELIS (Honda) 11
19. Roger Lee HAYDEN (Honda) 5
20. Kousuke AKIYOSHI (Honda) 4
21. Wataru YOSHIKAWA (Yamaha) 1
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