Showing posts with label motogp race. Show all posts
Showing posts with label motogp race. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Pedrosa: I want to take pleasure in the bike

Dani Pedrosa heads into the second-half of the 2011 MotoGP World Championship looking to make the best of his condition following his inspiring ride to victory at the Sachsenring over the weekend.

In only his second race back from injury, one that ruled him out of three races to all but scupper his title ambitions, Pedrosa was champion in Germany, boosting his confidence heading to Laguna Seca for the United States Grand Prix this weekend.

Indeed, the Spaniard feels the pressure is off for him now, enabling him to enjoy his racing, not least at Laguna Seca where he was a winner in 2009 and was in argument for victory last season when he crashed out.

Even so, the Repsol Honda rider feels the circuit's characteristics will mean he struggles extra than he did in Germany

"It was nice to stop, even for if only for couple of days at home to enjoy the win in Germany with my family and friends, who also deserved to celebrate.

“The United States Grand Prix will be another challenge for me. I know that I will suffer more in Laguna Seca because there are many hard braking areas and very fast direction changes. Anyway, it will be another race and I'll try to get ready well and enjoy it as I did in Sachsenring.

“The track is very different to the European circuits and the atmosphere there is special. With the exemption of last year, when I crashed, and in 2008 when I couldn't race due to injury, I've forever had fun racing in Laguna and the victory in 2009 was very exciting.

“In the second half of the season I want to enjoy the bike and gain the best results probable and would like to close the first part of the season with a good feeling.”

Stoner caught out by Lorenzo at final turn

MotoGP World Championship leader Casey Stoner looked on course to for his fifth win of the season, as he stimulated from fourth to first in the opening laps of Sunday's German Grand Prix.

The Repsol Honda star remained in front for nine laps, but wasn't able to break Jorge Lorenzo and Dani Pedrosa, both of whom passed the Australian just after the halfway stage.

Pedrosa then broke clear, leaving Stoner and Lorenzo fighting for second.

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Stoner looked to have done sufficient to hold off his nearest title rival, but left a Yamaha-sized gap at the final corner of the final lap - which the reigning world champion dived into.

"We took it easy in the early part of the race and thought we'd try to conserve the tyre and warm it up slower than we did in Mugello," explained Stoner.

"After a few laps I determined to make a move to the front to see what we could do and we were able to pull a small advantage, but too small compared to the effort we were putting in so I backed off on my pace a little and tried to stay as smooth as probable and see what happens.

"They came past me and Dani was riding so strong and was capable to get past Jorge before I got there, he built a small advantage and by the time I got past Jorge and I struggled to chase him down. I made a few small mistakes and that left just Jorge and I for the last few laps.

"I tried everything I could, riding the cleanest lap possible and trying to block my line, but Jorge came up on the dirty part of the track and I thought it would be too high a risk but he made it stick and I have to resolve for third place.

"I'm still leading the championship and I'm grateful for the points here today".

Losing second to Lorenzo means Stoner's title lead has been cut to 15 points caption into this weekend's Laguna Seca round.

Sunday, July 17, 2011

Distress Rossi ready to ditch new Ducati

Valentino Rossi's fight back to turn around his Ducati fortunes hit a new low on Saturday at Sachsenring, when the MotoGP superstar capable just 16th out of the 17 riders.

Rossi's best lap time, of 1min 23.320sec came on only his sixth of 30 laps and was 1.639sec at the back pole sitter Casey Stoner.

The Italian - without crew chief Jerry Burgess for the second event in a row - also lapped 0.925sec slower than he had managed on his return from a broken leg at last year's event, when he skilled fifth on a Factory Yamaha.

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Rossi, the only Ducati rider using the newest GP11.1 motorcycle - which features an 800cc engine attached to next year's (1000cc) chassis and a new seamless transmission gearbox - was almost one-second at the back the 'standard' Desmosedici of his team-mate Nicky Hayden (eighth).

As such, Rossi has now exposed that he could ditch the GP11.1 and go back to the previous version.

"We are very upset, because we are stressed very much this weekend. I am very slow and close to last," Rossi told the official MotoGP website.

"For three races now we've used the new [GP11.1] bike to try to get better on the performance of the old one.

"I tried this bike with the 1000 engine and it was not so bad, but with the 800 engine the bike became very hard to ride and I cannot load the front of the bike.

"So our show at the last three races has been very, very bad. Especially in practice. And here it has been worse.

"So now we think maybe to come back to the normal, standard, bike. I don't know when. Maybe after Brno [mid-August]. We will decide after tomorrow.

"We've tried changing more or less everything on the bike [here] and, at the end, the lap time and our act does not improve.

"So I don't know what we can do for tomorrow's race, but we won't give up and will keep annoying to improve."

Saturday marked Rossi's worst qualifying performance since he was 17th, out of 19 riders, for the 2007 Valencia Grand Prix - when he only finished five qualifying laps due to a massive accident.

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Edwards and Crutchlow focused for German round

Experienced American Colin Edwards is looking to merge his place inside the top 10 in the overall rankings having scored points in six of the seven races he has started in 2011. Edwards is also resolute to leave Europe full of confidence ahead of his crucial home round at the spectacular and challenging Laguna Seca track in California on July 24th. His best result at Sachsenring was fourth position in 2007 and he is confident in improving and handling the performance from the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 YZR-M1 this season will be a vital advantage in dealing with the demands of the 2.281 mile track.

This weekend presents an additional big challenge for British rookie Cal Crutchlow, who will be making his Sachsenring debut. The 25 year-old is concentrating all his efforts on lively back from difficult races in Assen and Mugello recently and is aiming for a welcome come back to the top 10. Sachsenring is the shortest track on the World Championship schedule but surely one of the most challenging, the undulating layout made up of predominantly left-hand corners.

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Colin Edwards:

“The last two races haven't been that fantastic but we can point to a bad tyre choice in both for that. We've got to take some liability for that but sometimes you roll the dice and gamble but the result doesn't go your way. That's all after me now and I'm just concentrating 100 per cent on getting a good result in Germany this weekend. This track is pretty extraordinary with so many left-hand turns but our chassis is much better than last year, so I'm sure the bike will be easier to ride in the tight and twisty sections. The break after Mugello has really helped my corporal condition. I've been able to get some good rest and the muscle damage about the ribs on the right side of my body isn't as painful as it was. I'll only understand how much of an improvement there's been on Friday when I get on the bike, but I'm expecting a lot less uneasiness than in Mugello where it was quite tough. Aside from 2003 when I had the fireball at the bottom of the hill, I've really enjoyed my time at Sachsenring. The German fans are really well-informed and they love MotoGP, so hopefully we can put on a good show for them. I'll be looking for a good result to take some energy into my home race at Laguna Seca, which is a huge weekend for me and one I'm already thrilled about.”

Cal Crutchlow:

"Like a lot of tracks so far in 2011, I haven't seen this one before but it looks in fact good on TV and I can't wait to get started on Friday. The track is obviously conquered by left-hand turns but I'm not worried that is going to be a big problem for me. The left collarbone I broke at Silverstone last month is fine and I'm happy with the development it is making. After all the weather disruptions of the last few weeks, I'm just hoping for a dry weekend so I can learn the track faster. And I'm also hoping for hot conditions because that will give me an opportunity to resolve some of the front-end issues I've been experiencing lately. When the temperature is hot I've had some issues with front-end feeling, so hopefully some hot weather will give us the ideal opportunity to find a solution. I'm confident I can be running back inside the top ten and receiving the results I know that the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team is capable of.”

Friday, July 8, 2011

Elias receives three-race ultimatum?

Toni Elias is reportedly under pressure to turn his MotoGP season around over the next three races or face the axe from his LCR Honda team.

The Spaniard, a former winner at MotoGP level, has endured a troublesome time since being rewarded with a return to the top flight as a result of his dominant Moto2 title victory in 2010.

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Beginning the year significantly off the pace, though Elias has begun to set up some constancy in recent races, his results remain a far cry from the usual top ten finishes being achieved by Randy de Puniet last season.

Elias's position in the team is supported by Dorna as a way of promoting the reliability of Moto2, while Honda even complete a new chassis from the Catalunya Grand Prix.

However, sponsors are allegedly unhappy with the current results, which top out with an eighth place at Silverstone, and Elias is now under force to deliver over the next three rounds.

Furthermore, Elias is unspoken to have been experiencing a conflict of opinion with the LCR team over the set-up of his bike, a rumour apparently confirmed by LCR press officer Oscar Haro.

"Mugello was a disaster,” Haro is quoted by Catalunya Radio. “Toni has realized that it didn't go well. From Germany, [we go] back to the settings that HRC and our crew chief will make a decision and Toni to presume his role as pilot and technician. The RC212V has more than proven to be super competitive.”

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Ducati's Mugello test tops with Rossi back on the GP12

Ducati’s Mugello test ruined with a beautiful, sunny day and ideal conditions. On Wednesday was Valentino Rossi’s turn back on the Ducati GP12, as he finished his third day of testing with the bike by turning 80 laps between 11:00 a.m. and 6:30 p.m., when the Tuscan circuit closed.

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Franco Battaini finished a series of tests with both the GP11 and the G12, while Vittoriano Guareschi followed Valentino’s progress from the box, along with Filippo Preziosi.

“It was another positive test,” said Rossi. “We had a number of things to try, counting a new step with the frame that I liked. The all-purpose feeling was good. I was already happy with the engine the first time I tried it, and now we’re also manufacture progress with the rest of the bike. Naturally, we’ll have to see when the others try their 2012 bikes, but as far as we’re worried, for the moment we’re pleased; our bike is previously good. Riding at Mugello is always a enjoyment. On top of everything else, the conditions today were ideal, so in addition to the good work we carried out—because I did 80 laps—I enjoyed my time riding. Compliments to the circuit for the new trappings; the main grandstand is actually nice, and of course I hope to see Mugello overflowing with fans for the race.”

“For this test we brought an efficient frame for Valentino to try,” echoed Filippo Preziosi, “along with several other interesting things, and I’m satisfied to report that we received positive feedback. The lap times were better than at the last test, which is added confirmation that we’re working in the right direction. A big thank-you to Valentino and Nicky, to all the guys on the Team, and Ducati, where they’re tremendously committed and are working really hard.”

Monday, June 13, 2011

Hayden fourth, difficult sixth for Rossi

Nicky Hayden and Valentino Rossi ended the Air Asia British Grand Prix race fourth and sixth, correspondingly, with the Italian restrictive damage in a challenging weekend, while the American posted the fastest lap of the race and ended just off the podium.

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With the help of his team, Nicky Hayden found a good setup for the wet race, the only restriction causing him to lose contact with the battle for the podium were the particularly unfaithful conditions of the early laps, when he came close to crashing his GP11 on a couple of occasions.

Despite starting from the last row and not being completely contented with his bike’s setup, Valentino Rossi made up several positions and rode a proscribed race, collecting ten valuable points to retain fourth place in the series standings.

Nicky Hayden:

“To be honest, I really liked my chances for a podium in the rain today; if you’d have told me before the race that I could have fourth, I’d have said, ‘No thanks, I can do better,’ but I’m not dissatisfied with my ride. I didn’t get a great start because the clutch was jumpy, and for the first few laps, it was hard to see and to get heat in the tyres. I had a big instant on the exit of Turn 1 and actually jarred my shoulder pretty good, but I tried to hang in there. I saw Colin in front of me for the podium, and I really pushed. I think that’s the first time I’ve ever had the fastest lap on a Ducati, which is kind of cool even if you don’t get points for it. Full respect to Colin a week after breaking his collarbone, but I still don’t like him beating me for the podium! Thanks to the team. It hasn’t been an easy weekend for us, but we reserved trying and got a pretty good chunk of points. We’ll take it and move on.”

Valentino Rossi:

“Without a doubt, this weekend was the most hard so far this season, but we at least managed to do a good job of limiting the damage. Considering how we came into the race, sixth place is a fairly positive result that helps us to stay not too far from the top of the standings in fourth, which isn’t bad. We knew that my lack of experience here compared to the others would hurt us, but it’s also true that we haven’t managed to get better our setup as well as we should have. In fact, today Nicky managed to have a nice race and ride well, even setting the fastest lap, which demonstrates that the Ducati is spirited in the wet. We didn’t get better enough though, and that made it hard for me, as the bike was difficult to ride and I couldn’t push hard. We’re all in charge - me, the bike, and the team - so together we’ll try to improve and return to the level we were at in Le Mans and Catalunya as soon as probable, and then take another step forward.”

Thursday, June 9, 2011

Silverstone press meeting previews Round 6 action

Jorge Lorenzo, Casey Stoner, Valentino Rossi, Andrea Dovizioso and Cal Crutchlow were there at Thursday’s Silverstone press conference to preview the sixth round of the 2011 MotoGP World Championship – the AirAsia British Grand Prix.

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The official AirAsia British Grand Prix press meeting took place at the Silverstone circuit on Thursday, with the most frenetic part of the MotoGP season happening with the first back-to-back race weekends of 2011. The race is the second visit to Silverstone since the British circuit was reinstated on the calendar in 2010.

Last year’s race winner and defending World Champion Jorge Lorenzo is eager to regain some of the pace he knowledgeable here when he landed a stunning victory from pole position in his first outing at the circuit in his title-winning campaign.

“I raced aggressively; technically it was the best race of last year. I think this year we are lost some tenths, so maybe at this track I can recover (them).”

Casey Stoner, winner of the last GP race in Catalunya, described his presentation at Silverstone last year.

“Last year I really enjoyed this circuit, I had a pretty good pace but unhappily I had a clutch problem at the start and I didn’t know if I would be able to finish the race at the start, so I was a little too cautious,” said Stoner. “ultimately by the end of the race I was able to catch up, but I had I had some arm pump issue at the end which exaggerated me. But we showed that other than Jorge, we were the fastest out there.”


Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Lorenzo holds slight advantage as Silverstone beckons

Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha Factory Racing) leads the standings in the MotoGP Championship as the premier class heads to Round 6 of the 2011 season, the AirAsia British Grand Prix.

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The battle for the title ensues as the season moves on to the next round at Silverstone, with Lorenzo caption up the Championship and the top contenders changing after the fifth round in Catalunya saw Casey Stoner (Repsol Honda) move up to just seven points behind the Mallorcan in second. But Lorenzo is ready: he likes the Silverstone circuit and conquered the proceedings last year with pole position, race win and fastest lap, calling the 2010 race at Silverstone one of his best.

Stoner has been on form, winning the last two races of this season. If Stoner wins at Silverstone he will be the first Honda rider to win three succeeding MotoGP races since Valentino Rossi in 2003. The Australian will also be making his 150th Grand Prix start at the British GP.

Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) finished second on the podium last year at Silverstone and is equipped to shoot for another podium finish at the British circuit, one he enjoys and is certain on. The Italian sits third in the Championship standings.

Valentino Rossi (Ducati Team) missed the British GP last year due to the injuries suffered in his crash at Mugello. He has finished in the top seven in all sixteen races since recurring from injury at the German GP last year. Rossi’s team mate Nicky Hayden crossed the line fourth last year at Silverstone, after qualifying and concluding one place higher on the grid than his then team mate Casey Stoner.

Sunday, June 5, 2011

Stoner races to glory in Spain

Casey Stoner sustained to hunt down defending champion Jorge Lorenzo, claiming his third win from five starts in the MotoGP series in Barcelona on Sunday.
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The Australian passed the Spaniard on the opening lap of the Catalunya GP to take the lead from Lorenzo, tapering the gap at the top of the championship standings to just seven points.

The victory adds to Stoner's wins in Qatar and France previously this year.

And it seems the power of Stoner's Honda is starting to anxiety Yamaha rider Lorenzo, who admitted post-race he didn't feel he could have beaten the Australian.

"The key was the start - I made a superior start," Lorenzo said.

"But I knew Casey could pass me in a few laps. He made it, and when he made it I tried to hang about with him for the maximum laps possible.

"This race was very vital for me to finish and keep leading the championship.

"So I think we have done our goal."

Stoner was more disturbed by forecast wet weather than his rivals, relieved that light rain on the track didn't turn into an all-out downpour before the race finish.

"I was starting to get very tense," the 25-year-old said.

"There was more rain falling in some parts, and each lap you came by there was a little bit more or a little bit less and you didn't actually know which corner it was going to be raining heavily on.

"I didn't really know what pace to run, I didn't know how bad the conditions were.

"So I pretty much coordinated myself to the people behind, and it seemed to work. But it was a high pressure race and to stay at the front was a little bit nerve-wracking.

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Rossi and Hayden inspired for Catalunya

The Ducati Team riders are keenly anticipating this weekend’s Gran Premi Aperol de Catalunya, at a circuit they both enjoy.

Both Ducati Team riders like the Catalan Grand Prix, citing both the track’s layout and the large crowds that forever heat up the Spanish races. Valentino Rossi, who did not take part in the 2010 round due to injury, has scored wins at the track in every class, collecting an inspiring nine victories and a further four podiums. Nicky Hayden also made the podium in 2006, on his way to the MotoGP title.
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Valentino Rossi:

“The Catalan Grand Prix is one of the nicest of the season, for a number of reasons: Barcelona is a beautiful city, the track is really nice – almost certainly my second-favourite after Mugello – and finally, as is always the case at Spanish races, the grandstands are packed with enthusiastic fans. I’m really happy to return to the track, since I had to watch the race from my house last year. I’ve always been quite strong at the track, so I have many nice memories, the most recent of which is the 2009 win after a great clash with Lorenzo. We’re very aggravated and we’re working really hard on the bike; step-by-step, we can see that we’re making progress. We know there’s still a lot of work to be done, but we need to keep annoying to get closer to the front.”

Nicky Hayden:

“Any race in Spain is huge, and Catalunya is no exemption. It’s a good track. I made the podium there in 2006, although I haven’t gotten the results I’d like there in recent years, particularly last season. I’m looking forward to it. The two weeks off have been okay, but I like this part of the season, with back-to-back races. The next month and a half is leaving to be busy, because this is when the season really gets going. Even though our end result wasn’t a lot better in Le Mans, I absolutely think we were closer to the front. Ducati hasn’t stopped functioning over the last couple of weeks, and we’ll see at Barcelona if we can keep going on the right path.”

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Roberts, Lawson to ride with fans at Laguna

Former 500cc World Champions Kenny Roberts and Eddie Lawson will contribute in a special fan-lap promotion flanked by practice and qualifying for the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix on Friday, July 22.
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Up to 200 lucky fans will have the chance to ride with the multiple world champions for several laps around the world-renowned racetrack.

Roberts and Lawson will ride special YZF-R1's for the event in party of Yamaha's 50th Anniversary of grand prix road racing.

“This special fan opportunity is part of a weekend of partying that Yamaha has planned in honour of our 50th Anniversary Celebration of World GP Racing,” said Bob Starr, communication manager for Yamaha's motorsports group.

“This occurrence is just part of the surprises we have for MotoGP fans for the entire weekend!”

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Sunday, May 15, 2011

MOTOGP: Rossi Scores First Ducati Podium

Valentino Rossi was satisfied as he not only put the Ducati on the box for the first time, but also beat former teammate/rival Jorge Lorenzo for the position.
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The French Grand Prix saw Valentino Rossi score his first podium finish aboard a Ducati, following a race that was noticeable by excitement and surprises. Nicky Hayden started from the fourth row, but higher to seventh place by the finish.

The Italian renowned his third-place finish after a weekend of hard work and constant improvement, during which he and his crew increasingly improved the bike’s setup until finding a good compromise for the race. Sixth at the end of the first lap, Rossi stayed just a few tenths from Jorge Lorenzo and Andrea Dovizioso, who fought over fourth place until an event between Pedrosa and Simoncelli with ten laps remaining. At that point, the trio began battling over second place, and in the end, Valentino finished third, behind Dovizioso and winner Casey Stoner.

Nicky Hayden fought over sixth place with Ben Spies, and although he had to grant the position to his compatriot in the end, he was pleased with the development made over the course of the weekend.

In two days, on May 17, Valentino Rossi will be in action at Silverstone Circuit aboard a Ducati 1198, as the English track inaugurates a new paddock wing.

Valentino Rossi (Ducati Marlboro Team) 3rd

“We’re very satisfied with this podium because we’re on the right path, and especially because I had fun today. I rode the Desmosedici well, I was fast in the technical parts of the track, I felt good from start to finish and I had good lap times. This morning we made a last change to the surroundings together with Jeremy and the guys from Ducati, and it helped cut another couple of tenths. I knew I could beat Lorenzo, so that was my goal. I also passed Dovi at one point, but I got a little puzzled and made a move on the penultimate lap instead of the last one. I lost my concentration momentarily, but in short, he got me again. Anyway, it’s fine like this; I’m happy for myself, for my team, for Filippo (Preziosi), and for all the boys at Ducati. This result boosts our morale. We still have to keep working and civilizing though, because there’s more to be done. I also have to get better and keep adapting my style to the Ducati, because I’m still not riding it as I should, but in the meanwhile, we’ll enjoy today’s nice race and podium.”

Nicky Hayden (Ducati Marlboro Team) 7th

“We didn’t do ourselves any favors by starting 10th, but actually, we made a little step forward with the bike today. I got a polite start but was just really tight and lost some time. As the race got going, I was able to move up a bit and slowly bring back Spies and Colin. Colin edwards crashed, but once I got in front of Ben, I wasn’t really able to get down in the 34s and get away like I needed to. Seventh isn’t a great result for us, but I would say that overall, it’s almost certainly been our best weekend yet. When the track was cold, I was able to go quite fast—always in the top five in those conditions. I hoped for better in the race, but I’m looking onward to the next stretch; we’re about to really get into the season.”

Vittoriano Guareschi (Team Manager)

“We’re pleased with this weekend because we’ve already benefited from the first changes that we’ve made according to Vale’s requests. We had a nice race, maintained a good pace and took part in a nice battle. The team worked very well on the setup, which we changed every sitting and took a step forward each time—including one in the morning warm-up. We still have work to do, because this is only the start; there’s still a gap to make up, but anyway, we’re going in a promising direction. Nicky also confirmed that his feeling with the motorcycle has enhanced, and he made good progress on the bike over the course of the weekend.”

Monday, May 2, 2011

Lorenzo fastest in morning test session at Estoril

Championship leader Jorge Lorenzo (Yahama Factory Racing) led at the midway point of the MotoGP official test session held at the Portuguese circuit, subsequent yesterday’s race. The test is split into two parts: 10.00 -13.00 and 14.00-18.00 local time. Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) and Casey Stoner (Repsol Honda) were second and third quickest correspondingly.
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On a gloriously warm day in Estoril, Lorenzo was the first rider to emerge on track in the morning session. The reigning MotoGP World Champion’s quickest lap of the morning sitting was 1’37.170 which was 0.240s ahead of Edwards. The Spaniard was absorbed on new electronic components and working on the suspension of his factory M1 machine. The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider worked on the race setting from yesterday, as did Stoner. Edwards and his team were also trying to find more grip from modifications on the chassis.

Estoril race winner Dani Pedrosa called an early halt to his test session after only carrying out a few laps. The Spaniard tried a new clutch and worked on the race setting of his factory RC212V, but was in too much pain to carry on and will now rest in the lead up to the next MotoGP race in Le Mans. Pedrosa was fifth fastest, just over half a second slower than Lorenzo’s fastest lap.

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Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Ducati Team duo hopeful for sunshine in Portugal

MotoGP series proceeds to action at a track that is very demanding and full of contrasts. Despite it having the lowly average speed of the tracks on the calendar, the Estoril circuit also includes very fast sections, counting one of the longest straight aways of the year.
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Valentino Rossi has won five times in his eleven premier-class visits to the track, and he has ended on the podium on five other occasions, whilst the best result of his team-mate Nicky Hayden is a fourth place in 2007. The American will be looking to erect on his rostrum finish last time out in Jerez.

Valentino Rossi, Ducati Team

“We’ve had three weekends without a race so I was clever to unwind for a while following the GP12 test at Jerez, although I sustained training to help my physical recovery. Now we go to Estoril, a track I quite like, where we’ll carry on working on the GP11’s setup, particularly during the test on Monday. The conditions are often changeable at Estoril because the area is very windy and close to the ocean, making for variable weather. We saw at Jerez that we’re already spirited in the wet, however we’re hoping for sun in Portugal, so that we can make the most of our time on the track. We still have to understand the bike better and to work on the setup, with the goal of being faster in the dry in time for the mainly intense phase of the season, when we’ll have six races in eight weeks initial in June.”

Monday, April 25, 2011

MotoGP action back on at Estoril

After an comprehensive break in the MotoGP calendar the premier class returns to action at the bwin Grande Prémio de Portugal this weekend, and there is bounty to watch out for at Estoril in Round 3.

Almost four weeks after the Jerez round – the extensive break being due to the postponement of the Japanese GP until October – the MotoGP World Championship returns to action at Estoril this weekend, where the bwin Grande Prémio de Portugal hosts Round 3 of the 2011 season. This will be the 14th time that there has been a Portuguese GP.

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There was no lack of talking points following Round 2 in southern Spain, where defensive World Champion Jorge Lorenzo took his first win of 2011 in the wet, and was followed onto the podium by a Dani Pedrosa struggling with his recovering left arm and Nicky Hayden. Casey Stoner’s incapability to finish the race after being taken down in an incident involving Valentino Rossi, the latter of whom managed to remount his bike and finish fifth, merely added to what was a extremely eventful race at Jerez.

Yamaha Factory Racing rider Lorenzo has a frightening recent record at the Estoril track, having won for the past three consecutive seasons from pole position. The Spaniard has now finished within the top four for 22 straight races, and leads the early Championship standings by nine points in front of rival Dani Pedrosa. The Repsol Honda man arrives in Portugal hopeful that surgery right away after Jerez will have eased the discomfort caused in his left arm, and in spite of that he secured a 90th GP podium in the last round making him only the tenth rider to arrive at the milestone in the World Championship’s 63-year history. .

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Successful operation for Pedrosa

The Repsol Honda rider had the titanium plate and screws set to his collarbone removed during surgery in Barcelona.

Dani Pedrosa has undergone victorious surgery at Teknon Medical Centre, in Barcelona, to decompress his left subclavian artery and is expected to recover satisfactorily. The involvement was performed by the Dr. César García-Madrid, vascular surgeon, and Dr. Joaquim Casañas, trauma and orthopaedic surgeon, both specialists at Teknon.

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In order to release the arterial density, the titanium plate and the screws fixed to the collarbone have been detached. The subclavian artery has also been estranged from the fibrotic tissues that surrounded costoclavicular space. At the same time, intraoperative angiography by plainly invasive transfemoral approach confirmed the return of the subclavian flow.

The medical checks performed last week at Institut Vascular Sala Planell, counting several physical tests and four dimensional CT with contrast in specific positions, established that the symptoms of pain, numbness and lack of strength in Dani’s left arm were due to compression of the subclavian artery secondary to the collarbone fracture.

Dani Pedrosa will remain in hospital for a further 48 hours to carry on treatment with analgesia and anti-inflammatories. Next week he will visit the doctors again to decide his rehabilitation, in order to contribute in the Grand Prix of Portugal, to be held in Estoril on May 1st.

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Edwards and Crutchlow make optimistic start in Qatar

The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team made a bright start to the 2011 MotoGP World Championship in Qatar, Colin Edwards and Cal Crutchlow both concluding with points in the season opening night race.

Edwards made a sweltering start from the 10th position on the grid and was looking to force his way into the fight for the top six when he lost time by organization slightly off line at the second corner. Dropping back into 10th behind team-mate Crutchlow, he rapidly moved up to ninth to launch a pursuit of 2010 team-mate Ben Spies.

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He closely followed his compatriot for the opening five laps, the 37 year-old setting a time and again fast pace in the mid-1'56" bracket. He shadowed the fast starting Hector Barbera until lap nine when he moved into eighth position. But he had lost too much time trying to pass the Spaniard to maintain the pressure on Spies and he finished eighth.

Crutchlow made an imposing MotoGP debut at the Losail International Circuit having started in front of Valentino Rossi and Edwards on the grid. Hampered again by the nasty left little finger wound he suffered during the pre-race test in Qatar less than a week ago, Crutchlow rose to the occasion brilliantly, fighting for the top ten for most of the 22-lap race.

He was right on the back of a group battling for ninth that was headed by Nicky Hayden, Hiroshi Aoyama and Barbera. But like Edwards previous in the race, Barbera proved tough to overtake and Crutchlow lost contact with Hayden and Aoyama with three laps remaining. He was satisfied for his determined performance when he swept by Barbera on the final lap to finish a enormously encouraging debut in 11th.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Pedrosa: "This year will be very spirited"

The Repsol Honda rider, satisfied with the official Tests held at Sepang, faces the last meeting in Qatar before the start of the Championship.

The start of the Championship is future and Dani Pedrosa as well as his team-mates of the Repsol Honda Team, Casey Stoner and Andrea Dovizioso, have shown that they are the MotoGP competitors in shape during the pre-season. The Repsol Honda rider is certain of his and his bike’s chances, after winter Tests in which he has suffered none of the bodily or technical problems he had had in previous years.

From the first test in Valencia in November 2010 until the last tests held at Sepang, where have you enhanced the most with your bike?

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“Basically, the bike has not changed so much, so what we have tried to do is to get better it in the most critical areas, such as the braking or the electronics.”

What is your assessment of the last tests in Sepang?

“The best thing is that this year we have better foundations, opposing to what happened in the previous years, when we had to develop and improve the bike during the Championship. This season we start with a very positive training that will allow us to face the first race of the Championship with a good level of presentation.”

Is there something still to be done in the next Qatar test or will it just be used to get ready the first race of the Championship?

“There are always things to be done, but the main aim of the Qatar test will be to learn to make the most of the set-up we will use in the race. If the track situation are good, we will be able to take advantage of it.”