De Puniet feeling good on Spanish visit

Saturday, 02 May 2009

Randy de Puniet is happy to be fifth on the grid at Jerez and will be happy with a top ten result at round three.

Following his frustrating 2008 season, which resulted in several crashes for the LCR Honda team, Randy de Puniet wants to ride steadily at the Gran Premio bwin.com de España and register another top ten result - after his solid start to the year so far.

Recording his best qualifying result since Australia last season, De Puniet as put himself fifth on the grid at Jerez, as the only satellite rider on the front two rows.

Having lapped 0.873s behind poleman Jorge Lorenzo on his Playboy sponsored RC212V in the Spanish sunshine, he commented, “The practices started very well for us yesterday. Immediately I had a good feeling with the bike and we have been improving things during the weekend so far. I know our set-up is almost perfect because I’m just behind the factory riders on the grid.”

“I have also been fast on race tyres so I am very confident for tomorrow. I expect a very good race and to start on the second row at this track is very important.”

Stating his straightforward hopes for Sunday’s MotoGP contest, he added, “If I can finish around seventh, eighth or ninth I will be happy because my target from the beginning of the year has been to consistently finish in the top ten in the first three or four races.”

De Puniet has thus far finished 10th and 11th respectively in Qatar and Japan and will go in search of more points tomorrow as he aims to move up the general standings from his current 11th place overall.

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2009/De+Puniet+feeling+good+on+Spanish+visit

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Rossi uncomfortable with windy Jerez conditions

Saturday, 02 May 2009

Valentino Rossi believes gusts of wind were slowing him down at the Gran Premio bwin.com de España on Saturday.

Valentino Rossi looked like the man to beat on Friday at Jerez but he was unable to replicate a similar pace on Saturday, struggling to find the same feeling in windy conditions.

The reigning World Champion put in his best lap at the end of the QP session but was unable to knock Casey Stoner off the outside of the front row and had to settle for starting at the head of the second row for Sunday’s third race of the season.

Valentino Rossi - fourth

“I’m a bit unhappy because we had a few problems and it actually hasn’t been such a good day, it was also very windy which made it more difficult. Yesterday we were very fast from the start and we hoped to keep going like this today but we have lost some feeling and now I can’t ride and push how I want to. At the moment I am not happy with the setting for the race and we need to work hard to understand the situation and try to improve it because we must be stronger tomorrow. Now we will make a long meeting and try to find some solution to try for the warm-up tomorrow.”

Team Manager Davide Brivio

“Missing out on the first row means that tomorrow’s race will be a bit more difficult in the early stages. Our race pace and rhythm are not so bad but we still need to make some adjustments because our potential is a lot better than this. We have to make Valentino more comfortable so that he can ride how he wants to, so now our engineers will study the data and look to come up with something to improve the setting.”

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A second chance and Fagerhaug wins thriller

Saturday, 02 May 2009

A rather too sensational start to the 2009 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup season saw Sturla Fagerhaug claim victory even though he crashed heavily and was half a lap behind the leading pack.

The 17 year old Norwegian benefited from a restart following a 2 rider crash and pulled through to win an incredible 6 lap race 2 ahead of Mathew Scholtz and Danny Kent.

It was 16 year old South African Scholtz who rocketed away from the initial start into a 5 second lead only to run off the track when the extremely blustery wind took his front wheel away. He regained the track to cross the line 8th as the race was stopped. Featuring strongly in the first race and thus lining up for the restart in 2nd place the 15 year old Briton Kent was in the hunt for the win again after the restart.

Fagerhaug lined up at the back of the grid but with Scholtz unable to make the break-away that he did first time the battle that the South African had with 16 year old Frenchman Nelson Major and the rest of a 10 man lead pack slowed the race pace. That was all the help that Fagerhaug needed and he charged through.

Outbraking 2 or 3 riders a time into some corners Fagerhaug was unstoppable and finally stole the lead on the last lap. "When I crashed in the first day I thought it was going to be the worst day of my life. I couldn't believe it when the race was restarted but you never want to see anyone get hurt so none of us were happy about it."

"I'd made such a mess of the first start when I let out the clutch and the rear tyre slid sideways I just made sure I didn't do it again. I was determined to get some good points and I saw the pack was not getting away. I started to realise that I really could get a good result but I never thought of winning it until the last lap when I saw I could do it," concluded Fagerhaug.

It was the nasty fall of 15 year old Briton Harry Stafford that stopped the first race. He was right in the battle for the lead when the bike slid suddenly and highsided him right in front of the following pack, the front wheel of Florian Marino's bike clipped the fallen rider and the 15 year old Frenchman also went down. Marino walked away but Stafford was taken by ambulance to hospital with a broken collarbone and severe concussion.

Scholtz had good reason not to try and repeat his attempted run-away in the restarted race. "The wind got under my bike and pushed the front wheel away in the first race. It was even worse after the restart and I had to make sure it didn't happen again. I couldn't believe it when Sturla caught us. One minute I looked behind and Danny was there then suddenly on the last lap... it was Sturla."

Scholtz actually thought that the board said it was the second to last lap as did Kent. "I thought there was another lap to go," said the Briton. "Still it was a great race and I'll just have to see if I can go and win the race tomorrow."

Fourth man home and strongly featuring throughout the two races was 14 year old Swede Alex Kristiansson. "I enjoyed myself so much, I really had fun. I wanted to get on the podium but it didn't work out on the last lap, I'll have to do it tomorrow."

Similarly hoping for a better result in Sunday's race, pole man Daijiro Hiura ended Saturday with no points as he crashed after pulling through to second following a mediocre start in the first race. "The wind was so hard, it just took my front wheel away," explained the 14 year old Japanese who was unable to restart because of the damage to his KTM RC125.

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2009/Sturla+Fagerhaug+takes+victory+in+round+1+of+the+Red+Bull+MotoGP+Rookies+Cup+in+Jerez

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Pramac pair on disappointing QP result

Saturday, 02 May 2009

Mika Kallio and Niccolò Canepa start Sunday’s Jerez race at the back of the grid.

It was not the best qualifying practice ever for the Pramac Racing team at the Gran Premio bwin.com de España on Saturday, as Mika Kallio and Niccolò Canepa respectively concluded 17th and 18th at Jerez.

Mika Kallio – 17th

“Several things didn’t go in the right direction today. We modified the bike many times without any luck. The only thing to do at the moment is analyze the data to understand in which direction we have to go. The track conditions were different compared to March, but we didn’t expect to be so far behind. Tomorrow it will need to be another comeback race for us.”

Niccolò Canepa -18th

“It went a bit better today even if with the race tyres I still need some more confidence. We have got closer to the other riders and this gives us a morale boost for the race. My learning period is going well and with patience we improve practice after practice. I want to thank my team for the great work they are doing for me.”

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2009/Pramac+pair+on+disappointing+QP+result

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Lorenzo on top form in Jerez qualifying run

Saturday, 02 May 2009

An exciting MotoGP qualifying session at the Gran Premio bwin.com de España concluded with Motegi racewinner and series leader Jorge Lorenzo on pole in Jerez.

An exciting MotoGP qualifying session at the Gran Premio bwin.com de España concluded with Motegi racewinner and series leader Jorge Lorenzo on pole in Jerez.

The man of the moment in MotoGP Jorge Lorenzo delighted the home crowd at the Jerez de la Frontera circuit in beautiful conditions on Saturday afternoon, as he repeated his 2008 pole for the Gran Premio bwin.com de España.

In stark contrast to the appalling weather at Motegi a week ago which saw qualifying cancelled, the growing Spanish crowd at the Andalusian track were bathed in some typical Iberian sunshine as the MotoGP riders put on a great show on their 800cc prototypes.

Lorenzo and his big Spanish rival Dani Pedrosa did battle for pole position during the 45 minute session, with the Fiat Yamaha rider eventually emerging on top with a 1’38.933 hot lap on the 18th of his 21 turns of the track.

Saturday morning’s fastest rider Pedrosa again demonstrated his improving form and fitness on his Repsol Honda RC212V machine, lapping just 0.051s behind his young compatriot.

Ducati Marlboro’s Casey Stoner, who won the BMW M Award at Jerez in March’s Official MotoGP Test, was around half a second behind Lorenzo with his best effort putting him third on the grid at one of his least favoured tracks.

Friday’s top man, World Champion Valentino Rossi could not match his championship rivals and after a modest Saturday morning free practice outing the Italian qualified off the front row for the first time this year in fourth place.

A good effort from Randy de Puniet saw him as the top satellite equipped qualifier in fifth place for the LCR Honda team, whilst the second line of the grid was rounded off by Rizla Suzuki’s Loris Capirossi - who made sure four different manufacturers are represented on the front two rows.

The third row, meanwhile, features Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3), Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda) and Toni Elias (San Carlo Honda Gresini), who will all be in the hunt for good points on Sunday.

Chris Vermeulen (Rizla Suzuki) was tenth fastest, with Sete Gibernau (Grupo Francisco Hernando) twelfth and 2006 World Champion Nicky Hayden (Ducati Marlboro) down in 16th.

San Carlo Honda Gresini’s Alex de Angelis crashed at the end of the session and qualified in 15th place, but was not reported to be injured.

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2010 Moto2 class to be powered by Honda

Saturday, 02 May 2009

Japanese factory chosen as single engine supplier for new class, whilst practice sessions for 2009 also undergo modification.

The initial engine supplier for the Moto2 class, the 600cc prototype World Championship series which will run for the first time in 2010, has been confirmed as Japanese manufacturer Honda. After receiving offers from various potential suppliers, the Permanent Bureau of FIM President Mr Vito Ippolito and Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta made the unanimous decision to give the tender to the company.

The first Moto2 engine will run at over 150hp, housed inside chassis of the teams’ choosing. The prototype bikes will make their entrance to the World Championship against the current crop of 250cc machinery, which will run alongside the class in an arrangement similar to that made for the 500cc/MotoGP switch in 2002.

Rules changes regarding the 2009 season were also announced on Saturday at Jerez, with the duration of all MotoGP Free Practice and Qualifying sessions to be extended from 45 minutes to 1 hour as of the upcoming Grand Prix de France. The new standard event schedule will now be as follows:

FRIDAY
125cc FP1 12.40-13.40
MotoGP FP1 13.55-14.55
250cc FP1 15.10-16.10

SATURDAY
125cc FP2 09.00-09.40 - QP 13.00-13.40
MotoGP FP2 09.55-10.55 - QP 13.55-14.55
250cc FP2 11.10-12.10 - QP 15.10-15.55

SUNDAY
125cc: WUP 08.40-09.00 Race 11.00
250cc: WUP 09.10-09.30 Race 12.15
MotoGP: WUP 09.40-10.00 Race 14.00

http://www.motogp.com/en/news/2009/2010+Moto2+class+to+be+powered+by+Honda

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wap.motogp.com, the race is in your phone!

Saturday, 02 May 2009

Sign up for wap.motogp.com and carry around MotoGP in your pocket. Follow the races, find all the latest information and news, check out what is going on with your favourite rider and familiarise yourself with the latest standings.

Every week you will have videos with race action clips, winners interviews and access to what's going on in the paddock. Buy cool ringtones with the sounds of your favourite bikes, hear how they start or get the MotoGP jingles as ringtones.

Find out where and when the next race is and stay tuned to the latest results from the qualifying rounds and races.

Submit your phone number on this page to get a free link to download the application, or visit the mobile portal by typing wap.motogp.com in your phone browser.

www.motogp.com

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Forcada shows details of Lorenzo’s M1

Saturday, 02 May 2009

Jorge Lorenzo’s Chief Mechanic describes technical details of 800cc bike.

Chief Mechanic for countless stars over the years, Rámon Forcada has seen all manner of premier class machinery used by the likes of Alex Barros, John Kocinski, Carlos Checa and Casey Stoner, amongst others. His latest venture has been preparing the Yamaha M1 used by Jorge Lorenzo in the 2009 season, a bike for which he gave a rough guide at the Circuito de Jerez.

Hear Forcada’s insights in the following video.

www.motogp.com

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Lorenzo’s guided lap of Jerez

Saturday, 02 May 2009

Spaniard drives MotoGP Safety Car round Jerez circuit.

Jorge Lorenzo knows the Circuito de Jerez like the back of his hand from his time racing at the track in all three categories. The Spaniard won twice at his home circuit in 250cc and was last year’s poleman in his first MotoGP visit.

Fiat Yamaha’s World Championship leader showed the motogp.com cameras around in a guided tour this weekend, behind the wheel of the MotoGP Safety Car. Along the way Lorenzo stopped to give his insight into the key corners.

www.motogp.co

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Pedrosa steps up a level in early run

Saturday, 02 May 2009

Spaniards Dani Pedrosa and Jorge Lorenzo were the fastest two MotoGP riders on Saturday morning at the Gran Premio bwin.com de España.

Following his modest start to the Jerez weekend on Friday, when he lapped down in tenth position and was more than 1.5s off the pace, Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa stepped up his rhythm at the southern Spanish track on Saturday morning - to lap fastest in the MotoGP free practice 2 run.

The surprise Motegi podium finisher demonstrated his competitiveness and his improving fitness with a best time of 1’39.422, which was almost two seconds better than his Friday pace.

Fractionally behind his compatriot and rival on the timesheet, Fiat Yamaha’s championship leading youngster Jorge Lorenzo trailed Pedrosa by just 0.054s, with things shaping up nicely for the home fans ahead of afternoon qualifying at 2.05pm – which should take place in similarly good weather conditions to the morning outing.

Also in the Saturday morning top five were Casey Stoner (Ducati Marlboro), Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda) and Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda).

Behind former team-mate Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3), Whorld Champion Valentino Rossi (Fiat Yamaha) lapped discreetly in seventh place, unable to match his own best time from Friday.

Eighth fastest participant Loris Capirossi (Rizla Suzuki) was also unable to repeat his Friday pace, whilst compatriot Marco Melandri (Hayate Racing) and a much improved Nicky Hayden (Ducati Marlboro) rounded out the top ten.

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Follow the paddock with MotoGP Paddock Webcam

Saturday, 02 May 2009

Webcam debuts at Jerez circuit to provide inside look at paddock.

The MotoGP paddock receives full coverage on motogp.com during practice, qualifying and races, but what if you want to follow the weather and atmosphere in-between sessions? The new MotoGP Paddock Webcam lets you take a peek at the scene of each World Championship round from an ideal vantage point.

Set up on a crane provided by Cavicchioli, the webcam takes snapshots of the scenery, circuit and skies of a MotoGP round, enabling you to get the inside track.

The MotoGP Paddock Webcam is available here, with a free video demonstrating its capabilities.

www.motogp.com

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