Simoncelli and Aoyama aiming for strong Spain round

The San Carlo Honda Gresini riders are both confident after the progress they made in Qatar, as they prepare for the Gran Premio bwin de España at Jerez this weekend.

After an excellent performance in Qatar Marco Simoncelli wants to close that ever-decreasing gap to the podium positions. The Team San Carlo Honda Gresini rider struggled with his size at Losail, which led to fuel consumption problems, but the team found a good solution for the race and he was able to put up a strong challenge at the front. The Italian described his performance in Qatar as his best as a MotoGP rider and it was confirmation he is now a serious contender in the world's elite category.
Aoyama, on the other hand, was disappointed with his showing in Qatar but satisfied with his weekend as a whole and confident he can use the experience to put up a stronger challenge at Jerez.
Marco Simoncelli:
“I was happy and satisfied with the race in Qatar. It was my best performance in MotoGP but more than that I was able to run with the best in the category and finish close to the podium positions. We have started out on the right foot and that should mean we can do even better at Jerez. We have put the little problems we had in Qatar behind us and we have all improved together as a team since last year but we can't think we have made it yet because it's a long season. We know what we have to do to be even more competitive and that is key to the results. Jerez is one of my favourite tracks and I took my first win there in the 125cc class in 2004 so I am confident we can have a good race this weekend.”
Hiroshi Aoyama:
“Tenth place in Qatar was not the result we were looking for but I was pleased with the work we did over the course of the weekend together with the team. We have gathered a lot of data that will be useful to us in the future, starting at Jerez. My feeling with the team is really good and that is the most positive thing we took from Qatar. I am sure that things will go much better in Spain this weekend. At Losail I didn't get a good start and I only found my pace in the second half of the race. Jerez will be another story because we have the potential now. Jerez is a difficult circuit but I like it a lot. My favourite memory there is my win in 2009, in 250, after a hard battle with Bautista and my current team-mate Simoncelli. That was really nice!”
San Carlo Honda Gresini press release
www.motogp.com

MotoGP returns to Europe for Spanish GP 2011

The Ducati Marlboro Team is preparing for battle at the Spanish Grand Prix, theseason’s first European race and one of the most characteristic and popular rounds of the entire championship, for fans and riders alike.

In addition to Troy Bayliss’ third place at Jerez in 2003, Ducati’s debut season in MotoGP, the team won at the circuit in 2006 with Loris Capirossi, while the squad’s sole Jerez podium of the 800cc era was with Casey Stoner, in 2009.

Valentino Rossi has won on seven occasions at the circuit, five in MotoGP, and has climbed its podium a further three times, including last year. Nicky Hayden, meanwhile, made the podium in 2006 and finished in a solid fourth place last season.

VALENTINO ROSSI:
“Qatar, with its many hard corner entries and areas where we brake to the right, was difficult for my shoulder. We’ll see if Jerez is a little easier from that point of view, although I think I’ll still have to grit my teeth for a while. Since Qatar, I’ve continued working out in the gym to try and increase my strength and especially my endurance, but after Spain I’ll have almost a month to recuperate more fully, following the postponement of the Japanese Grand Prix. From a technical point of view, Jerez doesn’t seem to have been the most favorable track for Ducati, but I’ve always liked it a lot and we’ll definitely have to try and do better than we have until now. For the moment, we’ll continue working on the setup, using everything we learned in Qatar, where we found some good solutions for the race.”

NICKY HAYDEN:
“Jerez is a really unique race with a great track. It’s one of the highlights of the whole season, and because it’s the first European race, in some ways it almost feels like it’s the first race of the year all over again. It’s a track I’ve enjoyed in the past, and I definitely enjoy racing there. Round 1 in Qatar obviously didn’t go how we’d hoped, pretty much from the start of the weekend, so we need to just try and learn from that and go into Jerez and hopefully come out a lot stronger on Friday. We’ll just go back at ’em—that’s all I really know how to do. Hopefully we can get up closer to the sharp end and have a bit of fun. Jerez can be a really fund weekend if you’re in the mix. We don’t really have any miracle game plan or anything crazy. We’ll just go in there and try and get a good result.”

JEREZ CIRCUIT RECORDS

Lap Record: Dani Pedrosa (Honda - 2010), 1’39.731 – 159.657 km/h
Best Pole: Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha - 2008), 1’38.189 – 162.164 km/h
Circuit Length: 4.423 km
MotoGP 2011 Race: 27 laps (119.421 km)
Time of 2011 MotoGP race: 14:00 Local Time

2010 Podium: 1st Jorge Lorenzo, 2nd Dani Pedrosa, 3rd Valentino Rossi
2010 POLE: Dani Pedrosa (Honda – 2010), 1’39.202 – 160.508 km/h

DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM JEREZ RESULTS (TOP-FINISHING RIDER)
2010: 4th (Hayden)
2009: 3rd (Stoner)
2008: 11th (Stoner)
2007: 5th (Stoner)
2006: 1st (Capirossi)
2005: 10th (Checa)
2004: 12th (Capirossi)
2003: 3rd (Bayliss)

www.fim-live.com
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Melandri and Checa share the biggest spoils at Donington WSBK 2011

The two riders who won races at Donington today, Carlos Checa and Marco Melandri, are the two who leave at the head of the championship chase, with Checa now on 91 points and Melandri on 72.

Superpole winner Checa (Althea Racing Ducati) used his experience to change his rear tyre choice for race two and improve from a third place to be a clear winner, while Melandri (Yamaha World Superbike Team) made two great recoveries from a third row start to post a win and a second place. Jakub Smrz (Effenbert Liberty Racing Ducati) nearly won the first race, with the local fans having something to cheer about as Leon Camier (Aprilia Alitalia) went third in race two, to make up for a hard first round in Australia that was badly affected by illness.

2010 World Champion Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia) had his drama-laden weekend turn into a mini-crisis as he finished only seventh in race one, and was excluded from race two after jump starting and failing to come in for a ride-through penalty. In the overall championship third place belongs to Leon Haslam (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) on 53 points after two fourths today, while Biaggi has 49 points in fourth overall.

Race 1New rider to WSBK racing Melandri took only three races to record his first win, finally overhauling long time leader Smrz to win by 2.455 seconds. The last podium place went to Checa after he passed local hero Haslam with two corners to go. Jonathan Rea (Castrol Honda) scored fifth and Noriyuki Haga (Pata Racing Aprilia) was sixth, one place up on the factory bike of Biaggi. A potentially great finish for Tom Sykes and his Kawasaki Racing Team Superbike machine ended in a crash at the redesigned Esses section, but the home crowd were to have a podium star to cheer for in race two.

Marco Melandri: “It has been an awesome race for me, very tough and at the start many guys were very aggressive. I kept my rhythm and when I got on my own I caught Camier and some others then it took some time to get to Haslam. After that it was only a few laps to go and Kuba was pretty far ahead. I just kept the best pace I could and in the end Smrz’s pace was gone and I passed him. We missed a little bit of top speed but the package was very balanced, we won and I had a lot of fun.”

Jakub Smrz: “Of course I am disappointed to not win the race but it was really nice and I am back on the podium, which is important. The feeling all the race was very good and the bike was perfect, in the end my rear tyre was gone and I could not push any more. Marco passed me and I did not want to risk anything in the end.”

Carlos Checa: “I had some issues with the rear tyre grip at the beginning of the race, and I lost some positions, touched with other riders and it ended up as one of my most exciting races from the back to the front. Finally I arrived to Haslam after I had pushed to my maximum and I passed him when I had the opportunity. It was the last lap and I got third position.”

Results: 1. Melandri M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R1 34'33.189 (160,673 kph); 2. Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 2.455; 3. Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 5.839; 4. Haslam L. (GBR) BMW S1000 RR 6.176; 5. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 9.039; 6. Haga N. (JPN) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 9.215; 7. Biaggi M. (ITA) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 9.960; 8. Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 14.860; 9. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 14.877; 10. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 16.182; 11. Guintoli S. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 25.820; 12. Xaus R. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR 28.378; 13. Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 31.869; 14. Rolfo R. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX-10R 40.015; 15. Aitchison M. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1'00.128; etc.

Race 2Checa controlled race two from the early laps and won by 3.397 seconds from race one victor Melandri. Camier was a contender for second for long periods, before Melandri upped the pace and left him behind. Another Leon, this time Haslam went fourth for the second time today, despite running off track at one point. Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki Racing Team) was a great fifth on the new ZX-10R machine, despite not yet being at full fitness. With Rea sixth for Honda and race one retiree Michel Fabrizio (Suzuki Alstare) seventh in race two there were seven different manufacturers represented in the top seven places, proving how competitive the 2011 season is after only two rounds.

Carlos Checa: “It is a fantastic beginning to the season, especially this victory in Donington, which is something special. Basically we decided to put on a different tyre with better grip at the beginning, so now I was stable and had good grip. At the end the tyre dropped down a little but it was good enough. Everybody knows what happened here to me many years ago, when I lost something so now I’m quite satisfied to win at Donington!”

Marco Melandri: “It was a pretty good race for me. Leon was very fast, about 50% of the race I was coughing in my helmet and finding it hard to breathe so I lost my concentration. After that I recovered, I did my best and passed Leon again but Carlos was just too fast for me.”

Leon Camier: “I can’t believe it’s happened. I started the year with glandular fever, which got me down a bit after all the hard work over the winter and to come here and get a podium at my home race is absolutely awesome. In the first race we had a few problems with the settings, so we changed it for the second one and it seemed to work well. It was a good battle with Marco, he was very strong, but to get third place is great.”

Results: 1. Checa C. (ESP) Ducati 1098R 34'21.537 (161,581 kph); 2. Melandri M. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R1 3.397; 3. Camier L. (GBR) Aprilia RSV4 Factory 5.902; 4. Haslam L. (GBR) BMW S1000 RR 13.842; 5. Lascorz J. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-10R 14.253; 6. Rea J. (GBR) Honda CBR1000RR 19.413; 7. Fabrizio M. (ITA) Suzuki GSX-R1000 20.278; 8. Smrz J. (CZE) Ducati 1098R 21.160; 9. Badovini A. (ITA) BMW S1000 RR 24.298; 10. Xaus R. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR 24.907; 11. Guintoli S. (FRA) Ducati 1098R 32.440; 12. Sykes T. (GBR) Kawasaki ZX-10R 32.679; 13. Corser T. (AUS) BMW S1000 RR 34.070; 14. Laverty E. (IRL) Yamaha YZF R1 36.418; 15. Rolfo R. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX-10R 44.037; 16. Aitchison M. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-10R 52.412; etc.

Points (after 2 rounds of 13): 1. Checa 91; 2. Melandri 72; 3. Haslam 53; 4. Biaggi 49; 5. Smrz 42; 6. Rea 38; 7. Camier 37; 8. Fabrizio 27; 9. Haga 26; 10. Sykes 19; etc. Manufacturers: 1. Ducati 95; 2. Yamaha 74; 3. Aprilia 66; 4. BMW 53; 5. Honda 38; 6. Kawasaki 32; 7. Suzuki 27.

World SupersportYamaha ParkinGO riders Luca Scassa and Chaz Davies contested the win in the 22-lap Supersport race, with Davies 0.270 seconds down at the flag. Behind, Gino Rea took the final podium place for his Step Racing Honda team, as Robbin Harms (Harms Benjan Racing Honda) went fourth and Kawasaki Motocard.com rider Broc Parkes secured fifth place. Broc’s team-mate David Salom went sixth and the leading Kawasaki interest in the championship extended to a trio when Massimo Roccoli (Lorenzini by Leoni) went seventh. Rookie Florian Mario (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda) was eighth, one place up on Roccoli’s team-mate Vittorio Iannuzzo. The top ten was rounded out by Swedish rider Alex Lundh (Cresto Guide Racing Team Honda).

Results: 1. Scassa L. (ITA) Yamaha YZF R6 33'40.762 (157,674 kph); 2. Davies C. (GBR) Yamaha YZF R6 0.270; 3. Rea G. (GBR) Honda CBR600RR 20.374; 4. Harms R. (DEN) Honda CBR600RR 23.469; 5. Parkes B. (AUS) Kawasaki ZX-6R 24.872; 6. Salom D. (ESP) Kawasaki ZX-6R 32.001; 7. Roccoli M. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX-6R 42.128; 8. Marino F. (FRA) Honda CBR600RR 43.826; etc.

Points (after 2 rounds of 13): 1. Scassa 50; 2. Parkes 31; 3. Harms 24; 4. Salom 23; 5. Davies 20; 6. Marino 17; 7. Rea 16; 8. Lowes 16; etc. Manufacturers: 1. Yamaha 50; 2. Honda 32; 3. Kawasaki 31; 4. Triumph 7.

www.fim-live.com

WSBK 2011 Superpole qualifying times - Donington Park

1. Carlos Checa ESP Althea Ducati 1098R 1min 28.099s

2. Leon Haslam GBR BMW Motorrad S1000RR 1min 28.365s

3. Tom Sykes GBR Kawasaki RTS ZX-10R 1min 28.556s

4. Jakub Smrz CZE Effenbert Liberty Ducati 1098R 1min 28.561s

5. Noriyuki Haga JPN PATA Aprilia RSV-4 1min 28.673s

6. Max Biaggi ITA Aprilia Alitalia Racing RSV-4 1min 28.702s

7. Leon Camier GBR Aprilia Alitalia Racing RSV-4 1min 28.737s

8. Jonathan Rea GBR Castrol Honda CBR1000RR 1min 39.514s

9. Marco Melandri ITA Yamaha WSBK YZF R1 1min 28.803s

10. Troy Corser AUS BMW Motorrad S1000RR 1min 28.836s

11. Michel Fabrizio ITA Suzuki Alstare GSX-R1000 1min 29.135s

12. Joan Lascorz ESP Kawasaki Racing ZX-10R 1min 29.422s

13. Eugene Laverty IRL Yamaha WSBK YZF R1 1min 29.312s

14. Sylvain Guintoli FRA Effenbert Liberty Ducati 1098R 1min 29.879s

15. Maxime Berger FRA Supersonic Ducati 1098R 1min 30.002s

16. Ruben Xaus ESP Castrol Honda CBR1000RR 1min 30.076s

Did not progress to Superpole, times det

17. Ayrton Badovini ITA BMW Italia S1000RR 1min 30.169s

18. Roberto Rolfo ITA Pedercini Kawasaki ZX-10R 1min 30.680s

19. Mark Aitchison AUS Pedercini Kawasaki ZX-10R 1min 31.117s

20. Chris Vermeulen AUS Kawasaki RTS ZX-10R 1min 31.485s

Biaggi and Melandri wrap up Q1 at the front

Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia) scorched round the new-look Donington Park circuit in a blistering time of 1 minute 28.794 seconds to head off a challenge from Marco Melandri (Yamaha World Superbike) as the Superbike riders concluded their first qualifying session. Biaggi's final advantage over Melandri was just a fraction, with the two Italians the only riders into the 1'28 bracket.

Carlos Checa was also on the pace, grabbing the lead in the middle of the session, but the Althea Racing man eventually ended up third, while Eugene Laverty (Yamaha World Superbike) completed the overnight front row.


The hard-fought session saw a series of surprises as both Leon Haslam and Troy Corser were up amongst the frontrunners for a while on their BMW S 1000RR machines, together with Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki Racing Team), while two fallers today were Ayrton Badovini (BMW Motorrad Italia) and Michel Fabrizio (Suzuki Alstare).
www.worldsbk.com

Vermeulen returns at Donington WSBK 2011

Kawasaki Superbike Racing Team rider Chris Vermeulen is planning on returning to action this weekend in round two of the World Superbike Championship at Donington Park. It will be the first time the 28-year-old former World Supersport Champion will have raced since last season's Czech Republic Round at Brno.

The Australian had an operation to rebuild his knee last July and is now in the final phase of rehabilitation after such complex surgery but was forced out of his home race last month due to still not being 100% fit. However this weekend, he aims to be back in action aboard the Paul Bird Motorsport-prepared Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R at the team's home round and at the circuit he knows well due to his British Championship experience.


Paul Bird, Team Owner, declared: "It's great to welcome Chris back into the team and hopefully he can give a good account of himself now he's back to somewhere near full fitness. This is an important race for the team and I'm expecting all three riders to be strong this weekend, there should be no excuses. We all have good memories of Donington Park over the years and this is our best shot in ages so we're looking to be at the cutting edge as we know this bike is good enough."
www.worldsbk.com

World Superbikes return to Donington ２０１１

The FIM Superbike World Championship returns to Donington Park after an absence of just one year, this time for the European Round, the second event on the 2011 championship calendar. Once again Donington becomes a ‘blast from the past' as the Leicestershire circuit was the scene for the first-ever World Superbike round, which was held back on April 3rd 1988. It is also worth mentioning that Donington Park was also the first permanent park circuit in England, and the first motor cycle race took place there on Whit Monday in 1931, which is exactly 80 years ago.


Recent history however shows that the slightly revised circuit that lies under the flight path of the nearby East Midlands airport, will be the venue for another fast-paced battle between the protagonists of this year's championship, starting with Carlos Checa and Max Biaggi.


On his Althea Racing Ducati 1098R, the 38-year-old Spaniard won both races in the opening round at Phillip Island (Australia) and is all ready to go for the second round of the season. Checa has not obtained any outstanding results in his Superbike years at Donington, but he has never really had a bike as competitive as the one he has been riding since the start of the season.


Max Biaggi (Aprilia Alitalia) on the other hand has always had a good feeling with Donington, winning there both in 250cc and in MotoGP. In Superbike, between 2007 and 2009, he was on the podium four times in six races but so far has missed out on the win. This year the reigning world champion intends to make amends for that, especially in the wake of his two second places in the opening round of the season.


Another Italian rider, Marco Melandri, also has a good feeling with Donington. Following his podium in Australia the Yamaha World Superbike Team rider is now aiming even higher on a track where he won in 250 cc in 2002. Michel Fabrizio (Suzuki Alstare) on the other hand has only a best result of third to his name at Donington and is focusing on getting his GSX-R1000 machine closer to the front.


But the men to watch at Donington will undoubtedly be the ‘Brit-Pack' who have always been able to find that little ‘extra' at their home event. There is always a special atmosphere at the British rounds and this will certainly help to spur on the likes of Rea, Haslam, Sykes et al. Unfortunately the number has been reduced by one as James Toseland (BMW Motorrad Italia), who crashed during testing at Motorland Aragón, has a fractured right wrist and will now have to miss the European Round.


Jonathan Rea (Castrol Honda) wants to make up for the misfortune that befell him in Australia, with a nasty crash in testing forcing him to reign in his natural talents in the race. Leon Haslam (BMW Motorrad Motorsport) took a hard-earned podium at Phillip Island, and the 2010 championship runner-up picked up a couple of useful results at Donington the year before, a third and a fourth. After leading for a couple of laps and going close to the podium in the opening round, Ireland's Eugene Laverty (Yamaha World Superbike Team) aims to demonstrate that his place on the factory R1 machine that twice won here with Ben Spies in 2009 is fully-deserved, while the other two Brits to follow closely will be Tom Sykes, who was on the Donington podium in 2008 as a wild-card, and Biaggi's Aprilia team-mate Leon Camier, hopefully fully recovered from a recent debilitating illness.


World Supersport


Luca Scassa's last-gasp win on the Yamaha ParkinGO machine over Broc Parkes (Kawasaki Motocard.com) and Sam Lowes (Parkalgar Honda) has added extra flavour to the Supersport World Championship, which is now booming in quality - following the arrival of several talented youngsters - and quantity. A return in grand style for Yamaha has also fleshed out the Honda-Kawasaki duopoly and now there are three manufacturers fighting for the win.


Donington will surely see the riders who finished on the podium at Phillip Island again up at the front, with the addition of Fabien Foret (Hannspree Ten Kate Honda), who raced injured in Australia, while all eyes will also be on Gino Rea (Step Racing Honda), who hopes to be fully-fit and the promising Italian Roberto Tamburini from the Yamaha Bike Service Racing Team.

www.worldsbk.com

SBK 2011: BMW heads to Donington

Following a successful start to the season on Phillip Island (AUS), the BMW Motorrad Motorsport team now heads to Britain for the second round of the 2011 FIM Superbike World Championship. Donington is the venue for the first European races of the season from 25th to 27th March. The iconic "Donington Park Circuit" is located about 60 kilometres north of Birmingham in the county of Leicestershire.

The BMW Motorrad Motorsport team was able to celebrate its first podium finish of the season at the curtain-raiser in Australia, in the form of works rider Leon Haslam (GBR). The new member of the team finished third in his first race on the BMW S 1000 RR. The team in Stephanskirchen and Munich have used the break since the first race weekend to perform an intense analysis of the data acquired in Australia, in order to further optimise the bikes of Leon and his team-mate Troy Corser (AUS). Leon is currently lying in fourth place on 27 points in this season's Riders' Championship, while Troy is in 14th place with six points. In the Manufacturers' Championship, BMW lies in fourth place on 27 points.

Both BMW Motorrad Motorsport riders have a close personal connection to Donington. This is Leon's home track. He lives nearby and his father Ron Haslam runs a racing school at the circuit. Troy met his wife Sam in Donington.

Leon Haslam:
“Racing in England any time of the year is a great occasion for both the British fans and myself, so for sure I can’t wait to be back at Donington. The weather conditions in the UK are not always in our favour but the track is only 20 minutes from my house and I have a lot of support in that area.

This track requires extremely hard braking. Actually, when it comes to braking, Donington is one of a kind. I have completed countless laps there in the past – including on production bikes. I know this circuit like the back of my hand so I really am looking forward it and I hope we can make that next step forward with the bike and continue to push at the front.”

Troy Corser:
“I am really looking forward to Donington Park. Like Phillip Island, it’s another track which I enjoy racing at and normally perform well at so we’ll have to wait and see what happens. We’ve identified a few issues from Phillip Island that we need to address before Donington, but otherwise I am confident we can make that next step further and be competitive.

The layout of the circuit is great – really fast and flowing – especially through Craner Curves. I am just looking forward to racing there again and seeing how we perform.”

Background:
The "Donington Park Circuit" is a permanent fixture on the race calendar for the FIM Superbike World Championship. The series has been coming to the iconic circuit in the heart of England since 1988. The racetrack was opened in 1931 and has been modified on numerous occasions since. The diggers also moved into Donington in 2010, which is why it did not host the Superbike World Championship for a change. This year, however, the World Championship returns to Leicestershire, with races 37 and 38 of the series scheduled for "Donington Park Circuit".

Few riders are as familiar with the track as BMW works rider Leon Haslam, who grew up there and still lives close to the circuit. Team-mate Troy Corser also feels at home in Donington. The Australian already has already picked up two victories there.

Donington is actually a flowing circuit, but it does have some "stop-and-go" sections that require the riders to brake hard. This plays an important role in the set-up of the bikes. One particularly tricky left-hander is the fast "Craner Curves" section, in which the bike must remain stable. In general, the riders can expect a technically demanding mixture of fast corners alternating with slower sectors. These include the "Melbourne Hairpin", a tight chicane taken in first gear, and the left-hander "Goddards".

Another important factor to take into consideration is the weather. As this year's Superbike World Championship arrives in Donington at the end of March, cool temperatures and possible rain could provide an additional challenge.

www.fim-live.com
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Rossi issues instructions after first Ducati Moto GP

“We've already given very specific instructions about what must be done in the long term, in order to improve for the second half of the season” – Valentino Rossi.

Valentino Rossi's Ducati MotoGP race debut ended with a less than spectacular seventh place in Sunday's Qatar Grand Prix.

The result reflected a difficult winter adapting to the Desmosedici and a lack of strength from his healing shoulder.

But the seven time MotoGP champion did show flashes of his usual form as he dived for second place into turn one - before spending much of the race battling with Yamaha replacement Ben Spies for sixth.

Rossi, who was the top Ducati rider, set the seventh fastest race lap, 0.687sec behind Honda race winner Casey Stoner's best.

“For sure we're not here to get seventh-place finishes, but there are also positive things from this race, starting with the times, because we were lapping pretty quickly,” said Rossi. “I had a great start, and that was a nice feeling because the horsepower that this bike has really helps it to launch.

“Then I made a small error in the first turn, which is a shame because I got stuck behind Barbera for a few laps. Otherwise I would have been closer to Simoncelli and Dovizioso [4th and 5th], since anyway there was a period when I lapped with them.

“I wouldn't have beaten them though, because at the end of the race, I'm no longer able to ride like I have to.

“I'm not referring to the Ducati because even last year, after I hurt my shoulder, I had the same problems in the latter parts of the races, and since the two bikes are so different, it means that it's really a matter of me not being physically right.

“It's not just that. We also have to improve the bike because the others have clearly made a step forward since last year.

“Still, I learned a lot in this test and in this race, and we've already given very specific instructions about what must be done in the long term, in order to improve for the second half of the season for example.

“In the near term, on the other hand, we'll work on the setup, we'll keep gathering experience, and I'll continue exercising and doing everything I can to recuperate physically.”

Rossi's best lap was half-a-second slower than Stoner had been on an GP10 in last year's race.

Team-mate Nicky Hayden was ninth after almost running over Randy de Puniet on the first lap.

“I got a bad start in the race, and then when de Puniet crashed, I just about ran over him and had to come to a complete stop. I'm happy I didn't run into him, but that was a bad break, because I was dead last with a gap to the next person,” said Hayden.

“I started picking my way through, and once I got into ninth, I got into a decent rhythm and started doing my pace. I was trying to catch Edwards because I thought it would've been nice to have a last-lap race with him, but I didn't quite get to him.

“It's been a tough weekend for me on and off the track, but everybody around here is working to the maximum. They're the first ones in and the last ones out. I can't be happy with the ride, but I came from dead last, and my fastest lap was my last one.

“We've got a lot of work to do, but it's just one race, and no one can say we weren't trying.”
www.crash.ne

Repsol Honda dominate with 1-2-3 in Qatar 2011 Moto GP

Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa maintained the top two spots of the timing sheets in both Free Practice sessions today at the Commericalbank Grand Prix of Qatar.

The pair were the only riders to break into the 1'55” band in FP2, closely followed by Andrea Dovizioso in fourth place with a time of 1'56.116. In the later FP3, all three Repsol Honda riders achieved times in the 1'55”s and occupied the top three positions on the time sheets. Stoner ran his fastest time on lap 15 of 16 with a 1'55.035 - breaking his own circuit record of 1'55.153, Pedrosa was just 0.158s behind with a lap time of 1'55.193 and third fastest Dovizioso found his quickest time on his final lap with a 1'55.740.

Stoner used both sessions to understand his bike’s performance better with used tyres and finished the session confident that he is able to achieve what he expects, from both front and rear Bridgestones. Pedrosa also spent a lot of time working on tyres for qualifying and Sunday's race. Dovizioso rectified the issue he had yesterday with vibration in the front of the bike and worked on set-up in preparation for qualifying.

Casey Stoner, Repsol Honda
"We spent most of the second session tonight on used tyres to get a better understanding of where we are with them. We did a quick lap on race distance with these tyres, so we're really happy with this. In addition we completed around 30 laps on the front tyre which also worked well. We played around with the tyre pressure a little, but in general they seem to be very consistent from start to end. Today we had a few more things to try, in the first session we didn't make many improvements from yesterday and then in the second session we made a big step forward. I'm really happy at the pace we're running, the way I'm riding and the bike set-up".

Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda
"We did a good job today, especially in FP3. We concentrated on doing a good lap at the beginning and then we were focused on the pace. I'm happy about how is everything going - even if there are still some places where we know we can do better and improve some tenths. We need to keep our concentration to do that tomorrow. For the qualifying session, our target is to be on the front row. Here in Qatar, my best position on the grid has been a sixth place and I would really like to be on the front row tomorrow. This afternoon we tried both tyres, hard and medium and both worked well. My feeling is that the hard compound is better for the race distance, even if the race is one hour later than practice today and the softer compound is the best option for the qualifying session".

Andrea Dovizioso, Repsol Honda
"I’m happy with the work done during today’s two practices and of course with the third position. It’s not enough because Casey and Dani are faster, so we will keep working hard to gain some tenths. Today the team did a great job to solve the vibration in the middle of the corner that we had yesterday. We also modified the set up of the fork, a middle step between 2010 and 2011. Doing this, I had a better feeling, but we also lost the good points of the 2011 fork, such as the stability in braking and corner entry. Tomorrow we will continue working on the fork set up and the target is to do a good qualifying session for a good position on the grid. The race will be a bit different, long and hard for the body. I’m confident that we can improve".

http://www.motogp.com

Takahashi tops Moto2 FP2 timesheet

The final session of the day took place under the spotlights in Qatar and it was Japanese rider Yuki Takahashi (Gresini Racing) was set the fastest time of the second Moto2 session.

Takahashi grabbed the quickest time of the session in the dying moments of FP2, beating Scott Redding (Marc VDS Racing) by just 0.053 of a second. Redding looked set to claim top spot in the session, however a fall on his last lap cost him the chance of attempting to improve his time.

Takahashi’s lap of 2’01.695 was faster than the best time of FP1 set by Stefan Bradl (Viessmann Kiefer Racing). Bradl was still consistently quick though, recording the third fastest time of FP2.

Andrea Iannone (Speed Master) and Thomas Lüthi (Interwetten Paddock Moto2) swapped positions from FP1 and this time were fourth and fifth respectively. Second quickest man from FP1 was newcomer Marc Márquez (Team CatalunyaCaixa Repsol), who this time was sixth place.

Michele Pirro (Gresini Racing Moto2), a rookie in Moto2, again set the seventh fastest lap of the session, showing a good start to his 2011 campaign. He was ahead of more experienced riders, Aleix Espargaró (Pons Racing), Julián Simón (Mapfre Aspar) and Claudio Corti (Italtrans Racing) who were eighth, ninth and tenth.

Pol Espargaró slid off into the gravel early on and had to return to the pits without his bike, missing a large portion of the session. His brother Aleix also had a minor off late on.

Bradley Smith (Tech 3) performed better in FP2 and was 16th quickest, whilst Kev Coghlan (Team Aeroport de Castelló) was 31st.

http://www.motogp.com

Simoncelli shines in Qatar FP1 2011

The San Carlo Honda Gresini rider was fourth fastest in FP1 at Losail on Thursday, with team-mate Hiroshi Aoyama 12th.

Marco Simoncelli carried his preseason form into the first official session of the MotoGP World Championship this afternoon in the surreal surroundings of the Losail circuit. The Team San Carlo Honda Gresini rider was fast and consistent and worked intensely throughout a satisfactory 45 minutes to find an improved set-up for his machine. It was a positive evening for Hiroshi Aoyama even though he was further down the time sheets, the Japanese rider clearly working on the right lines with his team and set-up, which will hopefully lead them to a better position tomorrow.
Marco Simoncelli (4th 1’ 56” 441):
“I am really happy because it is always difficult during testing to know exactly where you are but that changes when things get serious and we are able to make more a concrete analysis. I am satisfied because we struggled to get the hard tyre working during the tests but we found something tonight. It may be that the conditions are slightly different but it is an important step towards making our choice for the race. We managed to make two changes to the set-up that improved things further and now it is just a case of confirming what we already know and getting ready for Sunday. In general I am feeling confident.”
Hiroshi Aoyama (12th 1’’ 56” 987):
”This was the first session of the season s o I was keen to do well. We started work on finding the best set-up for Sunday and the best feeling with the bike, working from what we learned in testing. We also tried to get closer to a decision on what tyre to use for the race. The conditions are better than they were in testing and tomorrow we will try to improve on today's position, which is actually not that important because our focus for the day was not specifically on the lap time.”
San Carlo Honda Gresini press release
http://www.motogp.com

SBK 2011 Haga comments on Japanese disasters

WorldSBK.com has just received the following message from Pata Aprilia Racing's Noriyuki Haga, currently in Japan, which we willingly publish:


After the first round of the World Superbike championship at Phillip Island, I went back to my hometown Nagoya in Japan to visit my relatives. Of course now I am trying to get back to Europe for Round 2 of World Superbike championship at Donington Park in the UK next weekend.


First of all I would like to say thank you so much to everyone that has texted me and called me, concerned about my family and friends in Japan. I just wanted everyone to know how much it meant to me and I appreciate it very much! Thank you so much for all the kindness you show me. All my family (Yurie, Akito, Ryota and Kanon) are OK and our relatives who live in the suffering area are safe too.


We are very shocked about what is happening in Japan. Earthquake, tsunami and now trouble for Nuclear power plant. It's just like a nightmare! It is very bad and ugly, especially the Sendai area. I used to race there and I have good memories of it too but now it's unbelievable... sad! sad! sad!


My home is OK, it just has small damage and the aftershocks are still continuing but at the moment they are not as bad as the others.


I am very sad for all those who have lost friends and family in the tragedy and I am going to try my best at Donington Park to show you the spirit of "Don't give up Japan, Don't give up Tohoku!


I also have the good news that our friends Yukio Kagayama and family, Katsuaki Fujiwara and family are all OK!


Ciao and see you soon!
Nitro-Nori

www.worldsbk.com

2011 MotoGP race in Japan postponed in wake of earthquake

The Japanese MotoGP race in Motegi set for 24 April has been moved back to 2 October following the earthquake and tsunami on Friday.

Although Motegi did not suffer major devastation, roads between Tokyo and Mito - the closest city to the race circuit - have been damaged.
The MotoGP season gets under way in Losail in Qatar on 20 March.
It is the second year in succession that the Japanese round of the world championship has been rescheduled.
The race in 2010 was postponed from April to October following the volcanic ash crisis in Iceland that prevented most of the paddock from flying from Europe to the Far East.
International Motorcycling Federation spokeswoman Isabelle Larivier confirmed on Tuesday that the event had been postponed and rescheduled Sunday 2 October.
The revised date means the Japanese event will slot into the MotoGP calendar between the Aragon and Australian races.
The 8.9-magnitude earthquake on Friday caused cracks on the track and damaged spectator seats at the Twin Ring Motegi circuit, north of Tokyo.
The 18-race MotoGP season begins on Sunday with the opening race in Qatar and the final race on 6 November in Valencia, Spain.
Spaniard Jorge Lorenzo is the reigning MotoGP world champion.




news.bbc.co.uk

MotoGP 2011 won't rush Japan decision

MotoGP says it will leave the Japanese Grand Prix organisers to decide whether the Motegi race can go ahead in the wake of the earthquake and tsunami that hit the country last week.
The championship is due to race in Japan on 24 April, but the event is in doubt in the wake of the terrible natural disaster that the nation is currently coping with.
Dorna chief Carmelo Ezpeleta said MotoGP's thoughts were with everyone in Japan.
"Japan is a very important country to this championship and we are with them during these very painful moments," he told the official MotoGP website.
Ezpeleta said it was too early to make any decisions regarding the race and that he would accept whatever the Japanese authorities requested.
"No decision will be made until it is seen how events evolve during this week, putting the interests of Japan above what was to be the third round of the season," said Ezpeleta.
"I have had the opportunity to speak with those at the Motegi circuit, where fortunately none of those who work there were injured. It remains to be seen how those involved deal with this terrible event.
"For our part we are there for whatever they need. MotoGP will do what Japan asks us."
Last year's Japanese GP was postponed from April to October following the volcanic ash crisis that hampered the teams' travel from Europe on the original date.
Team and riders throughout the MotoGP paddock have been expressing their sympathy for those affected by events in Japan, with the factory Honda riders wearing black armbands during the Qatar test, which resumes today.
Japan's only current MotoGP rider Hiroshi Aoyama was an impressive third-fastest on the Gresini Honda in last night's test, but said he took little joy from the performance amid the suffering in his homeland.
"My family and friends were okay, but they were really shocked - and me too," Aoyama told the official MotoGP website. "I cannot be really happy in this moment."
Sunday pacesetter Dani Pedrosa added: "I'd also like to say I'm very sorry about what happened in Japan. My Japanese mechanics and engineers were explaining the situation there and it's very moving."


www.autosport.com

2011 Repsol Honda Team in good form as Qatar Test starts

The three Repsol Honda riders returned to the track today in Qatar for the first day of the final winter test before the start of the 2011 Championship.

The team arrived at the Losail circuit on Friday, with Japanese members narrowly missing the devastating earthquake that struck Japan the same day. As a mark of respect, all three riders wore a black armband in mourning to show compassion for the terrible disaster that has affected so many people.
Dani Pedrosa, Andrea Dovizioso and Casey Stoner all continued development work on the RC212V, each focusing on specific attributes to their machine. Pedrosa finished the session with the fastest time of 1'56.271 which he set on lap 28 of 41, during the course of the evening he tested the 2011 suspension and worked on engine mapping settings.
Stoner, having made a decision on his final chassis in Sepang, tested different rider positions and worked on race set-up, his fastest time set early in the session on lap 13 was 0.143 off Pedrosa. Dovizioso spent the evening working on set-up and electronics.
Dani Pedrosa, 1st, 1'56.271:
“It was a positive first day of practice. We didn't test anything in special, because our priority today was checking that the bike was also working well here in Qatar, a very different circuit than Sepang, where we did the main winter testing. We basically worked on the set-up of the bike, to adapt it for this layout and conditions, and tomorrow we will continue working on mappings and a front fork. It seems like the laptimes are closer here than in Sepang, and I'm sure that the times will improve for all because at this track the surface is quite dirty at the beginning, so we will see tomorrow and I hope to make another step forward and close the winter test in a good shape. I'd also like to say I'm very sorry about what happened in Japan. My Japanese mechanics and engineers were explaining the situation there and it's very moving.”
Casey Stoner, 2nd, 1'56.414:
“Everything has gone well with the bike and in general we don't have a whole lot to test here, we're just trying to get more out of the balance of the bike - both bikes have the same chassis but we tried very different riding positions. It seems to be more difficult to get a decent lap time on the harder tyres, having made my fastest time on an older soft tyre, but our consistency seems to be very good also with the hardest compound. We've been trying to get a little bit more grip and turning out of the bike and work on set-up for this circuit, focusing on race set-up. It's nice to be so close to the season and at the final test, I'm just pleased the team reached here safely and there were no casualties back in the HRC Headquarters in Saitama, my thoughts are with all the people in Japan.”
Andrea Dovizioso, 7th, 1'56.780:
“Today we tested mainly electronics settings, in particular the engine brake and traction control. We also focused on the set-up for this circuit because it’s different from all the other tracks as the angle of the curve is so wide and the critical point is the control of the rear. Considering that it’s the first day of testing I’m quite happy but it’s not enough. Everybody lapped slower than last year, I think this is due to the track condition. As a start it’s not bad, we are close to the fastest riders but we need to improve. I’d like to dedicate a thought to Japan, hit by a tremendous disaster. I hope they can recover soon in this very difficult moment.”
Repsol Honda Team press release

2011 Indoor Trial Victory in Madrid earns Bou the title

Toni Bou - Repsol Montesa is the 2011 SPEA FIM X-Trial World Champion, after he won the fifth and penultimate round of the series in Madrid, Spain. Whilst Bou eventually carved out a clear margin to take the victory, in reality the event was a tense affair as Adam Raga - Gas Gas pushed him hard throughout the competition. With Albert Cabestany - Sherco finishing third on the night, Raga now sits just six points behind his compatriot with one round remaining.

Wild card entrant Alfredo Gomez - Montesa joined the eight fixed riders in qualification, which was split into two parts. The initial four sections being ridden behind closed doors, then with the deciding two hazards being used to open the show in front of a packed arena. Gomez was immediately locked in a battle for survival as he fought with Michael Brown - Gas Gas and James Dabill - Beta, who was off form once again, as the young trio tried to remain in the competition. In the end Takahisa Fujinami's - Repsol Montesa experience shone through as he became the last of the qualifiers.

Early in the semi final the pattern of the evening began to emerge with Raga almost matching Bou mark for mark through the four observed hazards, after having lost out to him in the dual lane section. These two riders had already moved clear of their rivals, as Cabestany was left to duel with Jeroni Fajardo - Ossa for the final podium place, whilst Fujinami managed to just defeat Jack Challoner - Beta for fifth spot by a single mark as the rookie transferred to the main event for the third round in a row.

The final was an all Spanish affair, with the last three sections being played out in an electric atmosphere, as the expectant crowd waited to see if Bou could wrap up the title on home soil. Raga had obviously not read the script and threatened to spoil Toni's party. Adam really threw down the gauntlet in the last but one section, his one dab ride applying extra pressure at the critical moment.

Bou could sense the importance of the moment and looked slightly nervous as he approached the final step. His attack lacked technique for once, and as his bike rocked back and forth on the sump-guard, his title literally hung in the balance for a split second. Thankfully for him gravity was on his side and the crowd erupted as he made a final burst for the end cards, whilst remaining feet-up.

All the riders fived the massive undercut step in the last hazard, so the victory was Bou's, as was the title as he remains undefeated in this year's series, with just the closing round in Italy next Saturday to go. With Bou already crowned champion, he will look to maintain his 100% record in Milan, as Cabestany and Raga continue to fight it out to become the 2011 vice World champion.
www.fim-live.com

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2011 Moto GP Pre-season finale under Qatar floodlights

The Losail International Circuit will host the final MotoGP Test of the 2011 pre-season on Sunday and Monday evening, ahead of the opening race of the campaign at the same venue.

The MotoGP class will complete its 2011 pre-season preparations in Qatar this Sunday and Monday, as the final Test before the opening race of the campaign takes place.
Riding under the floodlights of the Losail International Circuit the premier class will define and perfect their 800cc machines in readiness for the race at the same venue, which kicks off the 2011 season six days later.
Attention in pre-season so far has been largely drawn to the performance of the Honda, notably the two factory machines of Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa, whose team-mate Andrea Dovizioso has also been at the sharp end of the timesheets. The dominance of the RC212V at the two previous Sepang meetings will now be put to the test at Qatar, including the progress of the San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Marco Simoncelli whose groundwork for his second premier class season has been nothing short of impressive.
Yamaha Factory racing pair Jorge Lorenzo and Ben Spies will be eager to take their respective M1 prototypes on a level, the current World Champion keen to be in the best possible shape to start the defence of his title and his American team-mate eyeing a strong start to his tenure in the factory set-up.
Of course a great deal of intrigue and interest will once again centre around Valentino Rossi too. The Italian lost a valuable day of riding at the previous Test in Malaysia due to illness, and combined with his adaptation to the Ducati Desmosedici thus far and recovering shoulder will be desperate to take a significant step forward having been almost two seconds off the pace at Sepang just over two weeks ago.
Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3), Álvaro Bautista (Rizla Suzuki) and Hiroshi Aoyama (San Carlo Honda Gresini) all had encouraging outings at Sepang and will seek to continue their progress in Qatar, whilst Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team), Héctor Barberá (Mapfre Aspar Team) and Pramac Racing pair Loris Capirossi and Randy de Puniet will all be determinedly focused as they set up their individual GP11 machines for the first round.
Toni Elías and his LCR Honda team will push hard to take advantage of the final opportunity to fine-tune the Spaniard’s RC212V, whilst for rookies Cal Crutchlow (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) and Karel Abraham (Cardion AB Motoracing) the Test previews each rider’s first race in the premier class of the World Championship.
The schedule of the night Test is 6pm-11pm local time on both Sunday and Monday, with live timing, news and reaction on motogp.com keeping you up to date with all the developments.
www.motogp.com

How Much Does it Cost to Host a MotoGP Race?

Dorna keeps pretty tight controls on what information gets out about its business; but when dealing with public entities, some of those figures are bound to come forth. Such is the case with Motorland Aragon, the Spanish track that recently locked in MotoGP through the 2016 season. The cost of hosting MotoGP for the next six years? €41 million. That figure breaks down into €6 million for the 2011 round, €7 million for the 2012 season and subsequent years as well.
Bear in mind that Motorland Aragon is paying Dorna €7 million a year, not the other way around, so that figure sounds like a pretty rotten deal for the Spanish track. But don’t start the pitty party yet though, as estimates from last year place the total economic value of Aragon hosting the 2010 MotoGP World Championship at around €40 million.
While local business suggest that figure is more like €30 million, it’s a lot of coin for hosting a single race. Despite which figure you choose to believe, the Spanish community’s decision to build a track in the middle of Spanish nowhere is proving to be a prudent business decision, as the hosting cost for one year nearly makes the contract break even for the whole term (meaning the following five years will be pure gravy train profits).
According to Motorland Aragon, the newest Spanish track is also benefiting quite well compared to its three other fellow Spanish MotoGP venues, who are having to pay a bit more to Dorna to host the MotoGP World Championship. Both Jerez and Valencia are reported as paying €8 million a year to Dorna to host MotoGP, although admittedly those venues hold more race fans, and have more established metropolitan areas for people to spend money in once the race is over.
How Much Does it Cost to Host a MotoGP Race? (Asphalt & Rubber)

#46 Rossi changing riding style for Ducati

Valentino Rossi has admitted that he is having to change his riding style to suit the Ducati as there will not be time to adapt the bike to his liking.

The seven-time MotoGP champion has not yet been on the pace in testing since moving from Yamaha to Ducati at the end of last year.

Although his form has also been hampered by a shoulder injury and resultant surgery, Rossi conceded that the Ducati was taking time to master.

"This bike must be ridden mostly through oversteer, in the sense that, in order to make it turn, you need to get the rear to slide a lot," he told Motosprint.

"In this respect the Ducati is very different from the Yamaha. But this is a manoeuvre I do to try to solve the problems we have now: in my opinion, with time, we'll be able to improve the situation a lot.

"[Turning is] the thing we lack the most. But at the moment the only way to handle this bike is to adapt to that way of riding, it's the bike's DNA."

The Italian believes some progress can be made with set-up changes.

"There are some areas where we have pinpointed the problems, so we can solve them quickly," said Rossi. "I'm talking about the bike's behaviour when accelerating, the engine's power curve, traction control, and all the electronic controls.

"I'm confident we'll soon see improvements on these issues because the Ducati technicians are very good and I think I've given them precise indications.

"As for the rest, the problem is that we lack handling. We need to try to make this bike turn better: at the moment the Desmosedici has a lot of understeer."

But he admitted that for now he would just have to change his style.

"It's up to me to adapt to the bike - also because we have little time at our disposal to do major changes," he said. But while I adapt, we'll carry on working to improve the bike."

Rossi remains confident that he can get up to speed with Ducati given time, despite being unhappy at the end of the last test at Sepang.

"That doesn't mean that I don't think we can make it," he said. "I won't ever give up, and neither will my team and certainly neither will Ducati.

"We have many ideas, we just need time to work. I'm curious to see what this bike feels like on other tracks, starting from Qatar, and with other temperatures."

Rossi acknowledged that there would be some, particularly in Italy, who would be pleased to see him struggle on the Ducati.

"I'd split this group in two factions: one part is made of those who have always been against me, people who don't like me, people who supported [Max] Biaggi first, then [Sete] Gibernau, and then [Casey] Stoner," said Rossi.

"The excuse was that Casey rode for Ducati, but the truth is these people don't like me. There's not much I can do about it, I must accept this situation.

"As for the other part, it's a group of Ducati fans who have always seen me as a rival, so they now struggle to accept me atop a Ducati. Overall, it's people who haven't looked at this union with favour. These are fans I would like to convince and win over with results and with the races."  asia.eurosport.com

Tech3 Yamaha Crutchlow impressed by “spectacular” Silverstone Wing

The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider visited the British circuit on Wednesday to take a tour of its new Pit and Paddock complex.

British MotoGP rider Cal Crutchlow was at Silverstone today (Wednesday) for a tour of the ‘Silverstone Wing’, the circuit’s spectacular new Pit and Paddock Complex. The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider, Britain’s representative in the premier MotoGP class in 2011, was “blown away” by the new facility, which the riders and teams will operate from for the first time at this year’s AirAsia British Grand Prix (June 10th-12th).
Crutchlow was taken on a tour of the new building, which will be officially opened on May 17th, by Silverstone Managing Director Richard Phillips.
The striking new structure, measuring 360 metres in length and 30 metres at its highest point, will provide a world-class facility for teams, officials and spectators alike, including 41 new garages, a race control building, a new podium, media centre, hospitality and VIP spectator zones.
Speaking after his tour of The Silverstone Wing, Crutchlow said: “It’s a spectacular complex, very impressive! I’d seen artist’s impressions, but I was blown away by the sheer size of the building. I’ve raced at most bike circuits around the world and very few, if any, offer facilities to rival these.”
“It’s amazing what they’re doing here at Silverstone. They launched the new Grand Prix Circuit last year, which was awesome – very fast and technical, with plenty of opportunities to overtake – but I would say that having won both World Superbike races! Now they’re launching the new Pit and Paddock complex in May, in time for my home MotoGP race on June 12th. It just can’t come quickly enough; the atmosphere here will be incredible – I can’t wait.”
Richard Phillips, Managing Director of Silverstone Circuits Limited, commented: “We promised bike fans a better experience at Silverstone, and that’s what we’re delivering. The facilities, track, entertainment, having a British rider racing at the highest level – they all contribute to the overall experience. We have got all the ingredients for this year’s British Grand Prix to be a cracker.”
“The Silverstone Wing signifies an exciting new era for Silverstone. It’s a pioneering development and one of the best bike facilities in the world. We’re delighted that Cal has taken the time to come and see it for himself, especially as MotoGP will be one of the first events to run out of it on June 12th.”  

HRC Stoner: "It’ll be interesting to see who goes for victory in Qatar"

The Repsol Honda rider is looking forward to starting his first official competition with his 2011 RC212V.

Casey Stoner returned home satisfied with the results obtained in the Sepang Test. After some days of rest, and already thinking about the approaching start of the Grand Prix season, the Australian rider is optimistic about the final pre-season Test in Qatar before the start of the MotoGP World Championship.

Casey, what you did in Malaysia – the last day of the Test – was simply amazing…
“Well, the day before, when we finished the job, we were aware that the next day in the morning we would be able to set a time under two minutes. In Sepang the track is usually at its best in the morning, but I do not usually feel at 100% in the first laps, I prefer to set my fastest time at the end of the day. We decided to use the soft tyres and try to be the first in setting a time under two minutes. To be honest I did not think that only one other rider would set a time like this, as the track was in optimal conditions. We must be happy about the job we did there, it was very good.”

Qatar is a special race for you and you have won it on several occasions. How do you feel about the start of this new season?
“I am very excited, because we spent many days training, but that is not the ideal situation, as during the pre-season we don’t have a wide variety of circuits. Nevertheless, the races are finally approaching and I am looking forward to seeing how we perform with this team, how I work with the bike on the circuit and, above all, what the general level for everyone is. I am sure there will be riders more confident than others, so it will be interesting to see who goes for victory in the first race.”

Your team-mate Dani and you showed great strength during this pre-season. Do you think this year everyone will be faster than ever?
“I think so, I have seen many riders that are taking more risks and they are pushing a lot more. There is more competitiveness because they think victory is possible, they feel they are closer to the podium and that motivates them to take more risks than before. I think we will see very exciting races this year.”

Do you think the Honda is a step ahead of its rivals?
“It is difficult to say. Naturally, we are happy with the path Honda has taken and everything they have done for us from our first Test in Valencia to now, because they have made good progress. Both Dani [Pedrosa] and I are pushing a little more than the others, but until we get to the race it is difficult to know where we really are. At this moment we are happy with what Honda is giving us, we just need to be sure that everything will work at the races.”

Where are you with the clutch, the engine braking and the rebound problems you talked about during the Tests?
“It is difficult to know if the problem comes from the clutch or the electronic control. The bike rebounds a lot when entering the corners and it is difficult to brake late, because the bike is a bit unstable. It is something on which we have worked a lot, especially during the two last sessions. We have improved a bit on that, but it is not enough yet, we have to dedicate more time to it to be at 100%. About the suspension, at the moment we are using last year’s standard. We also have a modified 2011 fork that we tested once, but we had some problems and we did not feel fully comfortable. We decided to wait until we are sure about what we want from the bike before asking about the forks; we need more time to decide what we want.”

Do you think we will see the same four riders on top this year or are there going to be changes?
“I expect some surprises, although I did the same last year and there were the same four riders winning races and getting on the podiums. I am certain Dani [Pedrosa] and Jorge [Lorenzo] will be in front, but Andrea [Dovizioso] is quickly improving and also Simoncelli and Ben Spies can increase the list. Valentino might be ready for the first race, but we might have to wait a little. But I am sure that there might be some unexpected riders that will make an effort to be in front.”
Repsol Media Service press release  www.motogp.com