Sunday, August 31, 2008

Hayden to miss San Marino GP

Hayden to miss San Marino GP

Nicky Hayden will not race in today's San Marino Grand Prix at Misano due to the foot injury that also kept him out of the last race at Brno.

The Repsol Honda rider injured his right heel landing from a jump in the X Games in Los Angeles during the six-week summer and had to sit out the Czech Grand Prix two weeks ago.

He rode in the practice and qualifying sessions on Friday and Saturday of this weekend, but missed the warm-up this morning and will not start the race.

Hayden had qualified just 16th, two seconds off the pace of polesitter Casey Stoner, and also crashed at the end of the second practice session.

He admitted that the injury was affecting his riding and that he was barely able to use the rear brake. He decided this morning to sit out today's race and rest the injury ahead of his home round at Indianapolis in a fortnight.

"After the first session, I thought it would be alright, but as weekend has gone on I've lost strength in foot," he said. "This morning was by far the worst it's been so we decided not to risk more damage and the medical team advised me to rest up for Indy."



  • Hayden: Tyre issues a learning experience
  • Oakes to miss Monza race
  • Meyrick forced to miss Spa race
  • Hopkins feeling stronger for Misano race
  • Stoner also leads Misano warm-up

    Casey Stoner has topped this morning's warm-up at Misano, making it a clean sweep in every session this weekend ahead of today's San Marino MotoGP.

    The Ducati Marlboro rider, who was over half a second quicker than the rest on his way to pole yesterday, set a time of 1:34.644 in today's sunny 25-minute session, despite having run only nine laps.

    Almost every other rider did at least 13 laps, yet best-of-the-rest Chris Vermeulen could not bring his Rizla Suzuki within seven tenths of the reigning champion's time.

    Fiat Yamaha's championship leader Valentino Rossi was just a whisker behind Vermeulen, while Toni Elias (Alice Ducati), Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) and Colin Edwards (Tech 3 Yamaha) just managed to stay within one second of Stoner's time.

    Rizla Suzuki's Loris Capirossi, Fiat Yamaha's Jorge Lorenzo and Honda Gresini's Shinya Nakano complete the top ten.

    Alice Ducati's Sylvain Guintoli crashed with five minutes left in the session, while Repsol Honda's Nicky Hayden did not take part at all in this morning's running after injuring his foot during the summer break.

    It is as yet unknown whether the former world champion will be able to take part in the race.

    Pos Rider Bike Time Laps 1. Casey Stoner Ducati 1:34.644 9 2. Chris Vermeulen Suzuki 1:35.388 + 0.744 14 3. Valentino Rossi Yamaha 1:35.395 + 0.751 13 4. Toni Elias Ducati 1:35.563 + 0.919 13 5. Daniel Pedrosa Honda 1:35.600 + 0.956 14 6. Colin Edwards Yamaha 1:35.604 + 0.960 14 7. Alex de Angelis Honda 1:35.658 + 1.014 14 8. Loris Capirossi Suzuki 1:35.681 + 1.037 14 9. Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha 1:35.755 + 1.111 14 10. Shinya Nakano Honda 1:35.823 + 1.179 14 11. Randy de Puniet Honda 1:35.825 + 1.181 13 12. Marco Melandri Ducati 1:35.902 + 1.258 12 13. Andrea Dovizioso Honda 1:36.089 + 1.445 14 14. John Hopkins Kawasaki 1:36.200 + 1.556 14 15. James Toseland Yamaha 1:36.331 + 1.687 13 16. Sylvain Guintoli Ducati 1:36.656 + 2.012 7 17. Anthony West Kawasaki 1:37.685 + 3.041 13

  • Chinosi grabs pole on guest outing
  • Stoner beats Rossi in Brno warm-up
  • Hartley leads second Carlin front row
  • Stoner still on top in final practice

    Reigning champion Casey Stoner, after topping yesterday's sessions, also topped the third and final practice outing ahead today's qualifying for the San Marino MotoGP at Misano.

    The Ducati Malboro rider further improved on yesterday's time with a 1:34.365, putting him 0.711 seconds ahead of championship leader Valentino Rossi on Fiat Yamaha.

    Rossi's teammate Jorge Lorenzo ended up third fastest, eight hundrendths further back, followed by Chris Vermeulen's Rizla Suzuki, almost one second behind fellow Australian Stoner.

    Tech 3 Yamaha's Colin Edwards was fifth fastest, ahead of Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa and Suzuki's Loris Capirossi.

    A host of customer Hondas then followed, with the Gresini entries of Shinya Nakano and Alex de Angelis separated by Randy de Puniet (LCR) in ninth, with Andrea Dovizioso (JiR Team Scot) in eleventh.

    John Hopkins, who did not take part in practice yesterday after his Brno injury worsened on Thursday, was back this morning. He set the slowest time of the day, ending up almost four tenths behind his Kawasaki teammate Anthony West and three seconds behind Stoner.

    Pos Rider Bike Time 1. Casey Stoner Ducati 1:34.365 2. Valentino Rossi Yamaha 1:35.076 + 0.711 3. Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha 1:35.160 + 0.795 4. Chris Vermeulen Suzuki 1:35.362 + 0.997 5. Colin Edwards Yamaha 1:35.425 + 1.060 6. Daniel Pedrosa Honda 1:35.520 + 1.155 7. Loris Capirossi Suzuki 1:35.534 + 1.169 8. Shinya Nakano Honda 1:35.549 + 1.184 9. Randy de Puniet Honda 1:35.628 + 1.263 10. Alex de Angelis Honda 1:35.739 + 1.374 11. Andrea Dovizioso Honda 1:35.802 + 1.437 12. Toni Elias Ducati 1:35.853 + 1.488 13. James Toseland Yamaha 1:36.047 + 1.682 14. Sylvain Guintoli Ducati 1:36.089 + 1.724 15. Nicky Hayden Honda 1:36.203 + 1.838 16. Marco Melandri Ducati 1:36.273 + 1.908 17. Anthony West Kawasaki 1:36.957 + 2.592 18. John Hopkins Kawasaki 1:37.346 + 2.981

  • Abay dominates second Croft practice
  • Alguersuari quickest in Monza practice
  • Stoner beats Rossi in Brno warm-up
  • Perez quickest in practice at Croft
  • Dovizioso tops wet Donington practice
  • MotoGP: Edwards tops Le Mans warm-up
  • Saturday, August 30, 2008

    Dovizioso says bike lacking stability

    Dovizioso says bike lacking stability

    Andrea Dovizioso says he needs to find more stability in fast corners if he is to improve on his 13th position in free practice at Misano today.

    The Italian was the slowest of the six Honda bikes in the field, and was also the slowest Michelin-shod rider, but says a handling issue with his JiR Team Scot bike is preventing him from getting the best out of it.

    "Today's position does not reflect our value or potential," said Dovizioso. "The bike wasn't very stable in the fast curves with the gas open.

    "This makes my trajectory through the corner different and has forced me to adapt my riding style so I cannot ride as I want and cannot be consistent.

    But he says he has some ideas on how to improve the set-up for tomorrow.

    "I did one fast lap and that gave me some ideas about how to improve the package for tomorrow," he added. "We will give the maximum as always and use the material at our disposal to the maximum."

    Dovizioso was encouraged by the performance of the Michelin tyres, though. After an awful showing at Brno last time out, the French company's riders have fared much better so far at Misano.

    Colin Edwards topped the first practice session and Randy de Puniet was fourth in the afternoon session, while Jorge Lorenzo has also been running at the front all day.

    "A positive sign has come from Michelin that, after some difficult times, they have returned to their previous level of performance," said Dovizioso.



  • Dovizioso downplays slow start
  • Turvey leads Bucharest practice day
  • Fire expect Revs to target revenge
  • Osorio fumes after rout in Colorado
  • Capirossi says no plans to quit

    Capirossi says no plans to quit

    Loris Capirossi says he is not thinking of stopping riding in MotoGP yet, as he arrives in Misano to make history as the most experienced rider ever.

    The Rizla Suzuki rider will complete his 277 grand prix this weekend at Misano, thus becoming the man with the most appearances in the history of the sport.

    The 35-year-old from Bologna says he is not thinking about the record, and admits he is not planning to stop yet.

    "For sure when I complete this race I'll have the record but I don't really care about records," Capirossi told a news conference on Thursday.

    "For sure I'm not stopping at the moment, so maybe I can increase it a lot.

    "Maybe I want to ride for nine or ten years more," joked the Italian.

    "I still enjoy riding the bike and I get good adrenaline. I really like it."

    Capirossi returned to the podium at the last race in Brno, his first top three finish since the 2007 Australian Grand Prix.

    And the Suzuki rider says he has been happy with the Japanese manufacturer's effort to move to the top.

    "We were happy to be back on the podium at Brno after a long time," he added. "I think the whole Suzuki staff is working really hard and we had a good test. We tested a new chassis and new parts on the bike and we improved a little bit.

    "We have to continue to work, but we decided to try to use the new bike here in Misano. I see a big effort from Suzuki to try to develop the bike."

    The Italian veteran said he was close to a new deal with Suzuki, although he admitted nothing had been signed yet.



  • Hartley to join Euro Series race
  • Fire, TFC complete deal for McBride
  • MotoGP: Capirossi adamant Suzuki will win soon
  • Nicol hails ‘complete performance’
  • Simoncelli grabs provisional pole

    Championship leader Marco Simoncelli dominated the first qualifying session for this weekend's 250cc Grand Prix at Misano.

    The Italian, who lives nearby the circuit, did to the 250 class what Casey Stoner earlier did to the MotoGP class and pulled well clear of the rest of the field.

    It was a close battle for pole until six minutes to go, when Simoncelli posted an incredible 1:38.400 to go seven tenths clear at the top.

    Thomas Luthi was first to close the gap, with a 1:39.1, but Hector Barbera pinched second place from him just seconds later, breaking into the 1:38s.

    Hiroshi Aoyama was fourth on the first of the KTMs, ahead of Yuki Takahashi and Julian Simon.

    Simoncelli's nearest title rival, Mika Kallio, could only manage seventh fastest and even that took a last-gasp effort after he was outside the top ten for most of the session.

    But the third and fourth placed riders in the championship had an even worse time. Alex Debon and Alvaro Bautista, who finished first and second last time out at Brno, were 15th and 12th quickest respectively.

    Pos Rider Team Time Laps 1. Marco Simoncelli Metis Gilera 1:38.400 21 2. Hector Barbera Team Toth Aprilia 1:38.912 + 0.512 21 3. Thomas Luthi Emmi - Caffe Latte 1:39.109 + 0.709 23 4. Hiroshi Aoyama Red Bull KTM 250 1:39.233 + 0.833 22 5. Yuki Takahashi JiR Team Scot 250 1:39.420 + 1.020 20 6. Julian Simon Repsol KTM 250cc 1:39.476 + 1.076 21 7. Mika Kallio Red Bull KTM 250 1:39.504 + 1.104 22 8. Mattia Pasini Polaris World 1:39.546 + 1.146 22 9. Hector Faubel Mapfre Aspar Team 1:39.551 + 1.151 21 10. Aleix Espargaro Lotus Aprilia 1:39.677 + 1.277 20 11. Roberto Locatelli Metis Gilera 1:39.828 + 1.428 19 12. Alvaro Bautista Mapfre Aspar Team 1:39.853 + 1.453 22 13. Lukas Pesek Auto Kelly - CP 1:39.956 + 1.556 19 14. Fabrizio Lai Campetella Racing 1:40.176 + 1.776 19 15. Alex Debon Lotus Aprilia 1:40.186 + 1.786 21 16. Eugene Laverty Blusens Aprilia 1:40.317 + 1.917 19 17. Karel Abraham Cardion AB Motoracing 1:40.360 + 1.960 21 18. Ratthapark Wilairot Thai Honda PTT SAG 1:40.407 + 2.007 20 19. Alex Baldolini Matteoni Racing 1:40.732 + 2.332 20 20. Federico Sandi Matteoni Racing 1:42.099 + 3.699 20 21. Manuel Hernandez Blusens Aprilia 1:43.150 + 4.750 21 22. Doni Tata Pradita Yamaha Pertamina Indonesia 1:43.372 + 4.972 21 23. Simone Grotzkyj Campetella Racing 1:43.386 + 4.986 19 24. Toni Wirsing Racing Team Germany 1:43.421 + 5.021 18 25. Imre Toth Team Toth Aprilia 1:44.447 + 6.047 18

  • Chinosi grabs pole on guest outing
  • Second Spa pole for dominant Turvey
  • Ericsson stripped of pole at Brands
  • Bautista secures provisional pole
  • Friday, August 29, 2008

    Stoner reveals recurrent wrist injury

    Stoner reveals recurrent wrist injury

    Casey Stoner fractured his right wrist during the first day of practice for the San Marino Grand Prix today.

    The reigning world champion set the quickest time in each of the two sessions, but afterwards revealed that a broken bone in his hand - a recurrence of an old injury - had been causing him some distress throughout the day.

    "It's a really strange one because there has been no impact on it," said Stoner.

    "I was just adjusting my back protector before going out for one of my runs this afternoon and I felt some pain. It got worse as the session went on so we decided to check it out.

    "I've basically fractured my scaphoid, which is an old injury from 2003. I've just been to the doctors and they said that it could have come from a shake of the bike.

    "I've fractured it at exactly the same place and it's causing quite lot of pain in some places. It's not going to be easy and I'll have to take care not to cause any further damage, but my plan is to brace it and compete in tomorrow's sessions."

    But the 22-year-old Australian is still confident that he can score his seventh consecutive MotoGP pole position, and says there's more speed to come yet from the Ducati.

    "We can still go quite a lot faster," he added. "The things that we tried out at the Brno test seem to be working quite well at this circuit, which is really good for us."



  • Vaughn bides time before return
  • Pedrosa withdraws from Laguna
  • Stoner delighted with fifth pole in a row
  • Revs embrace return to normalcy
  • Red Bulls draw inspiration from Angel
  • Hopkins feeling stronger for Misano race

    Hopkins feeling stronger for Misano race

    John Hopkins is adamant he will be in a stronger position at this weekend's San Marino Grand Prix after his return to action in the last race at Brno.

    The Kawasaki rider had missed three races due to injury, but returned to work at the Czech Grand Prix, where he qualified in the front row.

    The Anglo-American rider was unable to match the result in the race, however, as his injury was not still completely healed. He dropped to 11th place.

    But after two weeks of rest, Hopkins is confident he will be stronger this weekend at Misano.

    "We had a positive weekend in Brno following my return to the track after a long absence through injury and we managed to put the Kawasaki on the front row," said Hopkins.

    "Although I didn't quite achieve the result we were hoping for, Anthony got into the top five, which just shows that the Kawasaki is improving all of the time and is capable of gaining good results.

    "I really enjoy the Misano circuit, I managed to get on the podium there last year so it's certainly a track I like. I've spent the last week in Miami resting and training just to give the injuries that I am still carrying the best possible time to recuperate, so I'm feeling stronger and ready to achieve the results we are more than capable of."

    Teammate Anthony West, meanwhile, is hoping to keep his momentum going after scoring a career best fifth place at Brno.

    "I am looking forward to going to Misano following my best ever result in MotoGP last time out at Brno," he said. "We had a positive post-race test there, and we managed to make further improvements to the bike, which has certainly made it easier to ride.

    "I hope that we can continue with our development this weekend because I am determined for us to be fighting for more strong results in the dry."



  • Hopkins out until at least Brno
  • Hartley to join Euro Series race
  • Revs embrace return to normalcy
  • Kawasaki won’t replace Hopkins for Germany
  • Revs searching for consistency
  • Talmacsi dominates first qualifying

    Gabor Talmacsi is close to clinching his third consecutive 125cc pole position after setting the best time in first qualifying at Misano today.

    The reigning champion unleashed a stunning 1:44.171 with just two minutes remaining in the session - half a second quicker than the next fastest lap at that point.

    Briton Bradley Smith held the top spot until Talmacsi's lap, but he was pushed down to fourth in the end when he couldn't improve with his final laps.

    But another Briton, Scott Redding, set the second best time, just two tenths of a second away from Talmacsi's benchmark.

    Championship leader Mike di Meglio was third fastest and looks likely to increase his margin at the top of the standings with his nearest challenge, Simone Corsi, only 10th fastest.

    Nicolas Terol and Sandro Cortese were fifth and sixth quickest, ahead of Brno winner Stefan Bradl, Dominique Aegerter, and Sergio Gadea.

    Pos Rider Team Time Laps 1. Gabor Talmacsi Bancaja Aspar Team 1:44.172 14 2. Scott Redding Blusens Aprilia Junior 1:44.339 + 0.167 15 3. Mike Di Meglio Ajo Motorsport 1:44.613 + 0.441 13 4. Bradley Smith Polaris World 1:44.646 + 0.474 15 5. Nicolas Terol Jack & Jones WRB 1:44.706 + 0.534 14 6. Sandro Cortese Emmi - Caffe Latte 1:44.792 + 0.620 13 7. Stefan Bradl Grizzly Gas Kiefer Racing 1:45.056 + 0.884 15 8. Dominique Aegerter Ajo Motorsport 1:45.139 + 0.967 12 9. Sergio Gadea Bancaja Aspar Team 1:45.150 + 0.978 15 10. Simone Corsi Jack & Jones WRB 1:45.337 + 1.165 15 11. Stevie Bonsey Degraaf Grand Prix 1:45.394 + 1.222 15 12. Efren Vazquez Blusens Aprilia Junior 1:45.489 + 1.317 14 13. Andrea Iannone I.C. Team 1:45.559 + 1.387 13 14. Tomoyoshi Koyama ISPA KTM Aran 1:45.796 + 1.624 15 15. Joan Olive Belson Derbi 1:45.917 + 1.745 15 16. Esteve Rabat Repsol KTM 125cc 1:45.924 + 1.752 14 17. Danny Webb Degraaf Grand Prix 1:46.073 + 1.901 14 18. Jules Cluzel Loncin Racing 1:46.099 + 1.927 14 19. Raffaele De Rosa Onde 2000 KTM 1:46.226 + 2.054 13 20. Michael Ranseder I.C. Team 1:46.297 + 2.125 14 21. Riccardo Moretti CRP Racing 1:46.303 + 2.131 13 22. Pol Espargaro Belson Derbi 1:46.340 + 2.168 12 23. Marc Marquez Repsol KTM 125cc 1:46.451 + 2.279 14 24. Takaaki Nakagami I.C. Team 1:46.532 + 2.360 13 25. Pablo Nieto Onde 2000 KTM 1:46.801 + 2.629 14 26. Gabriele Ferro Metasystem RS 1:46.826 + 2.654 12 27. Alexis Masbou Loncin Racing 1:46.991 + 2.819 14 28. Robin Lasser Grizzly Gas Kiefer Racing 1:47.252 + 3.080 14 29. Lorenzo Zanetti ISPA KTM Aran 1:47.297 + 3.125 13 30. Jonas Folger Red Bull MotoGP Academy 1:47.346 + 3.174 16 31. Marco Ravaioli Matteoni Racing 1:47.379 + 3.207 15 32. Randy Krummenacher Red Bull KTM 125 1:47.561 + 3.389 15 33. Luca Vitali Grizzly Gas Kiefer Racing 1:47.783 + 3.611 13 34. Gennaro Sabatino Junior GP Racing Dream 1:47.841 + 3.669 14 35. Bastien Chesaux WTR San Marino Team 1:47.863 + 3.691 14 36. Adrian Martin Bancaja Aspar Team 1:47.998 + 3.826 15 37. Louis Rossi FFM Honda GP 125 1:48.114 + 3.942 15 38. Hugo Van Den Berg Degraaf Grand Prix 1:48.794 + 4.622 14 39. Lorenzo Savadori RCGM 1:49.089 + 4.917 9

  • Talmacsi dominates first qualifying
  • Alguersuari dominates at Brands Hatch
  • Hulkenberg dominates at Nurburgring
  • Corsi grabs provisional pole
  • Abay dominates second Croft practice
  • Iannone claims maiden win
  • Wednesday, August 27, 2008

    Q and A with Sete Gibernau

    More than two years after his retirement from MotoGP, Sete Gibernau returned to the spotlight this year after testing for the Ducati team.

    After the test, the Spaniard admitted he is looking for a way to return to racing, possibly even this year.

    Autosport.com talked to Gibernau at Valencia, where the Catalan was a guest of the Ferrari Formula One team.

    Q. What do you think of the Valencia circuit?

    Sete Gibernau: It is nice, it is impressive. I think they did a great job for Spain it is great to have another GP and it looks like maybe this is going to become one of the big ones in F1. So for us I am very proud.

    Q. Where is the Spanish heart - MotoGP or F1?

    SG: I don't know. Right now F1 is very big because of Fernando, he did great, but the motorcycle tradition in Spain is very big as well. I think we need Dani or Lorenzo to push hard again, or maybe if I come back, who knows. At the end of the day all motorsport will grow in Spain and it will become bigger.

    Q. What is going on with you?

    SG: We have been testing, and I have been enjoying it – which is my main goal right now. I wanted to enjoy racing again and riding a bike – and after that when I started to go fast I impressed myself! I am open to whatever, but first of all I want to have fun. But after having fun and getting competitive, I have to have my way to come back. It doesn't mean it is the correct way, but it has to be my way. And if it does happen my way then maybe I will come back.

    Q. This year?

    SG: There is still a chance, maybe, but you never know. Like I said, I want to enjoy every day, whatever happens is great and I am open to whatever happens.

    Q. Only Ducati or other people too?

    SG: There are some other options, so we will just have to see what happens right now. Many things can happen and hopefully it will come right for me.

    Q. You miss it?

    SG: Yeah.

    Q. Did you only realise that when you were back on the bike?

    SG: Yeah I realised when I jumped on the bike and I really started to go fast again, and feel the bike again, it is a feeling that you can compare to nothing. It is something that is impressive, and you really take yourself to the limit. I respect so much, being outside and then coming back, the riders that are right now in MotoGP.

    They are the best in the world and when you jump back on the bike you realise how fast they go and how demanding physically and mentally it is, so big respect to all of them. If I come back, it is a serious thing, I have to take it seriously. I am ready for it, but will it happen? Maybe yes, maybe no.

    Q. Do you feel ready to jump on the bike and race now, or do you need more preparation?

    SG: Maybe. For a long run I still don't know, a whole race is long. We will have to see. If it happens I will try to be ready.

    Q. Is it your decision?

    SG: Right now, it is a little bit on my side. But it is a matter of having things together, so whatever Ducati needs from me I have to be able to give them. And if what I need they can give me, then we can get together and that will be great.



  • Gibernau still in frame at Ducati
  • Herron looks to make mark with Fire
  • Donovan fit, ready for milestone
  • Melee mars excellent win for Revs
  • Gibernau to test for Ducati
  • Stoner baffled by Czech error

    Stoner baffled by Czech error

    Casey Stoner admitted that he was at a loss to explain the crash that took him out of the lead of the Czech Grand Prix.

    The reigning champion was holding off Valentino Rossi at the head of the field when he fell on lap six, and with his title rival Rossi going on to take a dominant victory, Stoner is now 50 points adrift in the standings.

    "Things were going according to plan until the crash," Stoner said. "I was doing the same lap time over and over and I was quite happy with the pace I was running.

    "The crash came out of the blue, that corner was an easy one but I lost the front and it happened very quickly, very suddenly and I didn't manage to save it. It's a hard one to explain and we will look at the data but sometimes this kind of crash happens at this level of racing and it was my mistake."

    He conceded that the accident was a major blow to his title aspirations.

    "We knew that we needed to win this race - and more - in order to close down Valentino's advantage so this makes the championship very difficult for us," Stoner said.

    "Anything can happen in racing but fifty points is a big gap against such a strong and consistent competitor. Anyway I never throw in the towel, nor does anybody at Ducati, and we will keep fighting until the end."

    Team boss Livio Suppo agreed that Stoner's error could have cost Ducati this year's title, but pointed out that the Australian has been virtually error-free since joining the squad.

    "I'm obviously disappointed for Casey because after another incredible weekend it's a small mistake - his first in a race since he's been riding for us - has cost us very dearly," said Suppo.

    "Anyway, we have to think positive and continue to work hard to put him in the right conditions to ride as hard as that in the six races that are left."



  • Rossi expecting Stoner charge at Brno
  • Alguersuari dominates at Brands Hatch
  • Hulkenberg dominates race one
  • D.C.’s snake-bitten ride continues
  • Stoner quickest again in Brno test

    Casey Stoner was the fastest rider on the last of two day's testing at Brno this week.

    The Ducati rider lapped the Czech Grand Prix circuit consistently in the 1:56s before setting times in the 1:55s on both qualifying a race tyres in the afternoon.

    He declared himself happy with the work and believes he is in a strong position for the rest of the season even though he trails Valentino Rossi by 50 points in the championship.

    "I'm really happy with how these two days have gone," said Stoner. "The changes we made have proven to be very positive and allowed me to take a couple of tenths of my time from yesterday on a new, experimental tyre.

    "Bridgestone are doing a great job, but more than anything I'm pleased with the new set-up, which has improved all areas of performance and will be useful for the next race.

    "I tried two new qualifiers as well, but to honest I wasn't pushing them that hard because at the moment I'm not concerned by our qualifying performances. I just want to concentrate on how to improve in the races."

    Valentino Rossi was second quickest again, reducing the gap to Stoner from more than a second yesterday to eight tenths today. He says he and his Yamaha team improved the performance of their electronics during the test.

    "It's been a long day but we've found some important improvements so it's been worthwhile," he said. "I'm leaving here very happy because we've worked on the electronics and it seems we've found some improvements under acceleration."

    Rossi's teammate, Jorge Lorenzo, continued testing different varieties of Michelin tyres as the manufacturer attempts to recover from an awful weekend where they were well beaten by their Bridgestone rivals.

    Lorenzo improved his best time from Sunday's race by more than a second and is hoping to carry the improvement into the next race at Misano in ten days time.

    "We've improved our performance a lot in comparison to the race," he said. "But we cannot forget that we are far from where we want to be, so we cannot give up.

    "We've been able to find some time, now we have to work with San Marino in mind because we really need to change our situation there and finally have a good race."

    Pos Rider Bike Tyre Gap 1. Casey Stoner Ducati (B) 1:55.855 2. Valentino Rossi Yamaha (B) 1:56.613 3. Loris Capirossi Suzuki (B) 1:57.132 4. Chris Vermeulen Suzuki (B) 1:57.483 5. Shinya Nakano Honda (B) 1:57.559 6. Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha (M) 1:57.600 7. Niccolo Canepa Ducati (B) 1:57.639 8. James Toseland Yamaha (M) 1:58.007 9. Olivier Jacque Kawasaki (B) 1:58.483 10. Marco Melandri Ducati (B) 1:58.927 11. Anthony West Kawasaki (B) 1:59.010

  • Rossi: Yamaha have closed gap to Ducati
  • Ericsson tops Rockingham test
  • Abay tops Thruxton test
  • Nicol hails ‘complete performance’
  • Tuesday, August 26, 2008

    Lorenzo says 10th was his maximum

    Jorge Lorenzo said 10th place was the maximum he could achieve in the Czech Grand Prix given Michelin's lack of pace during the Brno weekend.

    The French tyre manufacturer has lagged behind rival Bridgestone in both wet and dry conditions, with Lorenzo qualifying at the back of the field and only managing to make progress up the order in the closing stages of the race.

    "This race is a bit sad for me because we have the potential to do a lot better," Lorenzo said. "However considering what has happened this weekend and, above all, the problems with the front tyre, I think we have done almost as much as we could.

    "At the start I didn't want to take too many risks and I could feel that the front tyre was getting worse on each lap, but on the other hand the rear tyre was getting better each lap."

    Lorenzo now hopes that Michelin can make a breakthrough in the post-race test.

    "I know that we have had had problems this weekend but I know that Michelin are working very hard, so now we will try to use the test to make some improvements," he said.

    Team manager Daniele Romagnoli praised Lorenzo's pace in the circumstances.

    "Today we couldn't have done any better than this, but we can't be satisfied to finish tenth," he said. "But overall Jorge did a great job and a good race, and he was able to find a good rhythm in the middle part of the race, continue until to the end and pass many riders, plus he was able to score some valuable points.

    "Motivation in our team is still high because we have many more races to do and tomorrow at the test we will start again to work very hard with Michelin, look at the problems we have had here and try to find a way to improve things for the remaining races."



  • Dovizioso happy to be top Michelin man
  • Michelin ‘upset’ by poor performance
  • Hartley relieved to be back on track
  • Hartley to join Euro Series race
  • Lorenzo happy with fourth, worried for race
  • Elias keen on MotoGP future after podium

    Toni Elias was delighted with his second place in today's Czech Grand Prix and says he wants to stay in MotoGP for a long time yet.

    The Spaniard, whose Alice Ducati contract expires at the end of this season, has been linked with a move to Superbikes but revealed his determination to stay put after scoring his team's best ever result at Brno today.

    Elias showed good pace in the practice and warm-up sessions this weekend but only qualified 13th. He made a poor start to the race but charged through the field and passed both works Kawasaki and Suzuki riders to claim second spot behind Valentino Rossi.

    "I'm very happy with this result," he said. "We started the weekend really good but yesterday was difficult so I started at the back, then I made a bad start so I was at the back. I passed many riders, I was overtaking riders every lap, and finally I was second. Then I was comfortable with my rhythm and I'm happy, also for my team and everyone around me.

    "Everyone is talking a lot about 2009 and Superbikes but I don't know where it comes from. I haven't talked about Superbikes, my mind is in MotoGP, it has always been here, and I want to be in MotoGP for a long time - but in the best conditions possible. I am happy now and we have to work with the team and then we will see for the future."

    Although Bridegstone-shod Elias benefited from Michelin's terrible form this weekend, he has been encouraged by the progress the Alice team have made with the Ducati.

    "We've suffered a lot this year," he added. "The situation was difficult until we received new parts at the Sachsenring, then things improved a lot. I could have had a podium at Laguna but I made a mistake so we had to wait longer.

    "We have been trying to become fast, my feeling has improved a lot and I could start pushing. Now what I want is to continue like this, to be always in the top ten, in the top five if possible, and to fight for a podium if the opportunity comes."



  • Stoner targeting Le Mans fightback
  • Lancaster takes maiden F3 victory
  • Hartley to join Euro Series race
  • Melee mars excellent win for Revs
  • Stoner tops Brno test day

    Casey Stoner bounced back from his disappointment at crashing out of the lead of Sunday's Czech Grand Prix to top the post-race test at Brno by over a second today.

    The Ducati rider's best lap of the day was nearly a second quicker than the best lap of the race weekend. But he says the didn't try many new parts on the bike and is confident of his pace for the rest of the season.

    "It's been a really positive day," said Stoner. "We didn't have too much to test, a couple of new tyres and that's about it, but we managed to find a new setting to improve and I dropped by lap times by almost a second, and that's really positive.

    "Unfortunately my physical condition on Friday and the rain on Saturday meant we didn't head into the race in the best possible shape, but I'm happy because the things we've improved today will be useful for the upcoming races."

    Rossi was second fastest but wasn't concerned with the gap to Stoner because he was concentrating on testing a wide variety of front and rear Bridgestone tyres in the morning, before moving on to testing his Yamaha's electronics in the afternoon.

    "It was a good day of testing today after a great day of racing yesterday," said Rossi. "We have collected a lot of information which will help us for the rest of the season.

    "We will continue with the electronics and mapping tomorrow because we haven't finished the whole programme, and we also have some general set-up work to do, then we will leave here in good shape for the final push."

    Fellow Bridgestone riders Toni Elias, Shinya Nakano, and Chris Vermeulen finished the day's running third, fourth, and fifth fastest respectively for Ducati, Honda, and Suzuki, ahead of Colin Edwards, who was first of the Michelin runners on his Tech 3 Yamaha in sixth.

    Race winners from earlier this season, Jorge Lorenzo and Dani Pedrosa, sampled a range of Michelin tyres in the hope of closing the gap to Bridgestone and regaining their early season form.

    Lorenzo was encouraged by some of the work, saying: "Today we concentrated on front tyres and we found some improvement with regards to the wear of the tyre, which was one of the biggest problems during the weekend, but there is still a lot of work to do."

    But Pedrosa was less enthusiastic about the test, which followed what he called the worst race of his career, and he did not ride in the afternoon session.

    "We tried some different front tyres but we finished after some laps because we couldn't find any improvement," he said. "We tested the tyres with my current race bike because there was no point using the machine with the pneumatic-valve engine because the tyres weren't working well enough."

    Honda test rider Tadayuki Okada did use the pneumatic-valve engine, though, and says the development of the bike is is progressing nicely.

    "Today we tested some new steps in development concerning both engine and electronics," he said. "In Japan we are working on the development of both the spring-valve engine and the pneumatic-valve engine, and since my last appearance at the Italian GP I can say that the bike with pneumatic-valve engine has improved a lot.

    "I think that the bike has reached a satisfactory level of development and I hope that Dani will be able to test it soon."

    Pos Rider Bike Time 1. Casey Stoner Ducati 1:56.261 2. Valentino Rossi Yamaha 1:57.332 3. Toni Elias Ducati 1:57.457 4. Shinya Nakano Honda 1:57.652 5. Chris Vermeulen Suzuki 1:57.742 6. Colin Edwards Yamaha 1:57.756 7. Alex de Angelis Honda 1:57.826 8. Sylvain Guintoli Ducati 1:57.859 9. Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha 1:57.979 10. Loris Capirossi Suzuki 1:58.177 11. Niccolo Canepa Ducati 1:58.204 12. Marco Melandri Ducati 1:58.325 13. Randy De Puniet Honda 1:58.568 14. Dani Pedrosa Honda 1:59.067 15. Olivier Jacque Kawasaki 1:59.130 16. Andrea Dovizioso Honda 1:59.130 17. James Toseland Yamaha 1:59.228 18. John Hopkins Kawasaki 2:00.414 19. Tadyuki Okada Honda 2:00.735

  • Ericsson tops Rockingham test
  • Stoner tops testing with new Ducati
  • Abay tops Thruxton test
  • Sunday, August 24, 2008

    Rossi: I could have beaten Stoner

    Czech Grand Prix winner Valentino Rossi believes that he would have been capable of fighting for victory at Brno even if his title rival Casey Stoner had not crashed out of the lead.

    The Yamaha rider scored his second consecutive victory off the back of a mistake from the world champion, but the Italian claims he had the pace to beat the Ducati in Brno, despite being a second behind him at the time of the accident.

    "Casey pushed very hard on the first lap, a lot more than Laguna Seca, because he expected me to attack, and I ended the first lap with a one second disadvantage already," explained Rossi. "But after one lap I understood that today it was possible.

    "I had a great pace and my tyre choice was the right one. After the warm-up we found some improvements in the bike and on the last lap before the Stoner crashed I gained 1.3s on him and I was very confident I could take him.

    "But the race is very long. So I was thinking: 'I can, I can, I can,' and then I saw the red bike sliding away and I thought: 'Ah, easier'."

    Rossi now enjoys a massive 50-point lead over Stoner with just six races left to go in the championship.

    But the seven-time world champion says that despite this, it is too early to relax and race conservatively.

    "It is an important advantage, but it is too early, there are still six races to go," he said. "So I have to continue like this, I try to beat him, but if it is not possible then I will finish behind no worse than second.

    "It is a great advantage because we are back the way it was after Barcelona, the point when Stoner started to go very fast. But you know, six races with a rider like Stoner, who is great, has fantastic speed everywhere in every condition, (50 points) is not enough."



  • Perez eyeing title after first win
  • Rossi satisfied with second on the grid
  • Meyrick targets Donington return
  • Turvey fights back to win race one
  • Michelin 'upset' by poor performance

    Michelin's MotoGP project boss Jean-Philippe Weber says the company is determined to get to the bottom of its poor performance at Brno, having admitted that today's lowly results were 'upsetting'.

    After also struggling in the previous round at Laguna Seca, Michelin's tyres proved uncompetitive in both wet and dry conditions in the Czech Republic, with eighth placed Andrea Dovizioso the highest finisher on the French rubber.

    "First of all, we must say thank you to our riders and also to the teams for the work they have done over the weekend trying to help us as much as they could," Weber said.

    "Obviously we are very upset with the performance of our tyres and the results we achieved today. We knew it was going to be extremely difficult for our riders because we have struggled with front tyre performance since Friday. We therefore knew that our riders would really struggle with the front tyre during the race."

    He admitted that Michelin had not managed to recover from the problems it endured in last year's Brno race.

    "Now we need to understand the problems we faced here, where we also struggled last year," Weber said. "We have to make a big improvement to our performance at tracks like Brno. Now we will do our maximum to prepare in the best way possible for the next race at Misano, which is a different track and a different challenge."

    Tech 3 riders James Toseland and Colin Edwards blamed poor performance from the Michelin fronts after struggling to 13th and 14th places.

    "I don't want to be fighting at the back of the top 15, and neither does my team or Yamaha and it is disappointing," said Toseland. "All I can do is go out there with whatever I have got underneath me and give it my maximum and I did that. But this team and Yamaha deserve to be higher up and today wasn't good enough.

    "I was reasonably happy with my start but I had a few moments with the front tyre on the first couple of laps and I soon realised that I was at my maximum and that I wasn't going to be able to do much more.

    "We have got to keep working hard as a team and hope that Michelin can quickly turn it around for the rest of the season so we can try and get back into that top ten and keep the morale up of the team."

    Edwards fears that his previously promising season will go rapidly downhill unless Michelin can raise its game.

    "We need big improvements from Michelin," he said. "The good start we had to the season seems like a long way away now, and we have to work with Michelin to try and solve some of the issues because I didn't enjoy today at all."



  • Hartley to join Euro Series race
  • Michelin concerned about race
  • Michelin to ramp up testing efforts
  • Turvey fights back to win race one
  • Perez takes maiden F3 win at Croft
  • Hopkins delighted with pace on return

    John Hopkins was delighted to qualify on the front row for his MotoGP return at Brno today.

    The Kawasaki rider has missed the last three races while recovering from the leg injuries he sustained in a qualifying crash at Assen, but timed his lap perfectly in the tricky conditions today to set the third fastest time.

    Hopkins chose a softer compound Bridgestone wet tyre and did his lap early in the session while the rain was at its lightest.

    "This is a track I enjoy and Kawasaki have made some big improvements from when I last rode it in Assen," he said. "And the Bridgestone tyres are unbelieveable, they are an advantage.

    "I just went out and tried to stick a lap together at the beginning, and fortunately we were able to get a good one in before the standing water appeared."

    The American admitted that he was still affected by his knee injury and that he is hoping for a dry race tomorrow, despite his pace in the wet today.

    "We just basically sat out the rest of the session because my knee has been pretty sore," he added. "When you are out on the bike you don't really think about it, but when I was in the garage I realised I should wait it out and get ready for tomorrow.

    "Even though we did a good position today, I'm still hoping for a dry race because we made some improvements on Friday that I think will be beneficial for us."



  • Guintoli delighted with top ten slot
  • Turvey leads Bucharest practice day
  • Abay tops Thruxton test
  • Saturday, August 23, 2008

    Honda happy with conservative Pedrosa

    Repsol Honda team manager Kazuhiko Yamano said he was pleased that Dani Pedrosa took a conservative approach to the very wet qualifying session at Brno today.

    Pedrosa will start only 12th in tomorrow's Czech Grand Prix, but managed to stay out of trouble in the torrential rain. The Spaniard is not yet back to full fitness after sustaining arm injuries when he crashed out of the lead at the Sachsenring in similar wet conditions last month.

    "Dani rode very sensibly today, the big thing is that he didn't fall," said Yamano.

    "It is always easy to fall in the rain, so he was riding a little more conservatively than usual because he didn't want to risk further damage to his left hand and wrist."

    Pedrosa admitted that the injury had continued to trouble him during qualifying, but felt the deteroriating conditions were a bigger problem.

    "I wore a heavier strapping on my left hand today, for better support, but anyway the cold weather gave me more pain," he said.

    "The track was very wet this afternoon. I tried to improve my lap time, even though the rain got heavier, but I couldn't improve, so I will start the race from the fourth row.

    "Of course, I'm not happy about starting from there, because it won't help us in the race. If the race is run in the dry I hope we will have a dry warm-up so that we can work on our suspension set-up and tyre choice. If it is dry in the morning we will work hard to make improvements so we can have the best-possible race."

    Yamano addded that Honda had brought several upgrades to Brno so could expect to be more competitive should race day dawn dry, despite Friday's tyre problems.

    "We made some small improvements to the machine today but it was a shame that we didn't get any dry track time", he said. "We expect better tomorrow. For the race, we have already adjusted the machine to get him more front-end confidence from the front tyre."



  • Lorenzo happy with fourth, worried for race
  • Rossi prepared for wet race
  • Hohenthal triumphs in wet race two
  • Hayden: Tyre issues a learning experience
  • Bradl takes first victory at Brno

    Stefan Bradl scored the first 125cc win of his career in this morning's Brno race.

    The 19-year-old German rider managed to break away from the pack and establish a comfortable advantage by 125cc standards, and although championship leader Mike di Meglio closed in towards the end, Bradl was able to hang on and clinch the win by 0.8 seconds.

    Joan Olive emerged on top of a tense battle for third place, edging out reigning champion Gabor Talmacsi by 0.038 seconds as they crossed the line.

    Nicolas Terol and Bradley Smith completed the top six, ahead of di Meglio's main title rival Sandro Cortese.

    Pos Rider Bike Time 1. Stefan Bradl Aprilia 41:05.176 2. Mike Di Meglio Derbi + 0.881 3. Joan Olive Derbi + 4.070 4. Gabor Talmacsi Aprilia + 4.118 5. Nicolas Terol Aprilia + 7.048 6. Bradley Smith Aprilia + 9.334 7. Sandro Cortese Aprilia + 12.813 8. Pol Espargaro Derbi + 16.491 9. Andrea Iannone Aprilia + 17.637 10. Simone Corsi Aprilia + 17.855 11. Scott Redding Aprilia + 18.964 12. Sergio Gadea Aprilia + 29.920 13. Esteve Rabat KTM + 38.445 14. Dominique Aegerter Derbi + 54.637 15. Robin Lasser Aprilia + 54.797 16. Pablo Nieto KTM + 55.723 17. Lukas Sembera Aprilia + 56.786 18. Efren Vazquez Aprilia + 59.166 19. Lorenzo Zanetti KTM + 59.330 20. Pere Tutusaus Aprilia + 59.340 21. Michael Ranseder Aprilia +1:00.307 22. Marco Ravaioli Aprilia +1:07.401 23. Randy Krummenacher KTM +1:11.701 24. Jules Cluzel Loncin +1:19.343 25. Hugo Van Den Berg Aprilia +1:30.988 26. Alexis Masbou Loncin +1:31.018 27. Robert Muresan Aprilia +1:31.149 28. Bastien Chesaux Aprilia +1:33.222 29. Louis Rossi Honda +1:33.600 30. Michal Prasek Aprilia + 1 lap 31. Andrea Touskova Honda + 1 lap Retirements:Rider Bike Laps Karel Pesek Aprilia 17 Stevie Bonsey Aprilia 15 Marc Marquez KTM 6 Jonas Folger KTM 1

  • Ericsson takes maiden pole at Croft
  • Di Meglio wins at Sachsenring
  • Iannone claims maiden win
  • Mustonen takes Rockingham victory
  • Talmacsi dominates first qualifying
  • Debon wins breathless race at Brno

    Aprilia's official test rider Alex Debon took his second career victory in a breathless 250cc Czech Grand Prix, following a three-way battle that raged for much of the 20 lap race at Brno.

    The 32-year-old Spaniard scored a dominant maiden win at a wet/dry Le Mans earlier this season, but this must have surely have been a more satisfying experience, having battled it out with championship leader Marco Simoncelli and Aspar Aprilia rider Alvaro Bautista throughout to come out on top.

    Simoncelli took the lead from pole, but Swiss rider Thomas Luthi made a fabulous start from fifth to rocket into second, ahead of Debon, and immediately began to apply pressure.

    That's how it stayed in the opening laps, with Luthi almost taking the lead a couple of times as all the while Bautista methodically began to work his way through the field from tenth on the grid.

    Luthi crashed his Aprilia entering the stadium section on lap four and this immediately changed the complexion of the race as his absence gave Debon a clear target to focus on - the back of Simoncelli's Gilera.

    Behind them, erstwhile championship leader Mika Kallio was already having to defend third position from the flying Bautista, with Hector Barbera keeping a watching brief further back in fifth.

    Debon moved into the lead for the first time on lap seven but it lasted just three laps before Simoncelli forced his way back through, as seconds later Bautista elbowed his way ahead of Kallio.

    Very quickly the leading duo became a leading trio and the race lit up. Debon continued to lead at the front, while arch rivals Simoncelli and Bautista began trading second place in aggressive fashion.

    This continued until three laps from the end when Debon left a small gap coming into the stadium section and Simoncelli pounced into the lead.

    Debon reacted immediately, leaving Simoncelli no space to breath, all the while Bautista raged behind them. Meanwhile Barbera had passed Kallio and closed on this battle to make it a two-lap, four-way dice.

    But the order remained the same until the final two corners, despite Bautista's best efforts, when Debon dove for the inside of Simoncelli on the final left-right before the finishline. His move forced the Italian to sit up slightly, and as Debon moved ahead so Bautista also sneaked through to take second.

    In the space of 400 metres the world championship leader had gone from first to third.

    Barbera eventually took fourth with Kallio a damage-limiting, and distant, fifth. Yuki Takahashi took sixth place after a long battle with Mattia Pasini, while Hector Faubel came home a lonely eighth.

    Veteran rider Roberto Locatelli finished ninth and Alex Espargaro completed the top ten.

    Results to follow



  • Bautista takes commanding Assen win
  • Mortara wins for VW at Pau
  • Kallio leads KTM 1-2 at Shanghai
  • Simoncelli snatches win from Bautista
  • Thursday, August 21, 2008

    Melandri to join Kawasaki next year

    Melandri to join Kawasaki next year

    Marco Melandri will join Kawasaki when he parts company with Ducati at the end of this season.

    The Italian has had a miserable year on the factory Ducati and confirmed last month that he would be leaving the Italian manufacturer at the end of the season.

    The former 250cc champion, who still hopes to contest the remaining six races of this year with Ducati, says he picked Kawasaki as the best of the options he had available to him.

    "I hope to get good results in the last six races of 2008, and after that I am moving to another team," he told MotoGP.com. "I will ride for Kawasaki next year, so it's a big change for me.

    "(John) Hopkins is a very good rider and maybe he needs a stronger teammate to be a little bit more motivated. Maybe I also need this kind of company to be motivated a little bit more, because I really want to work closely together with a teammate. It will be a good experience and I am quite confident."

    Melandri had been linked with a possible return to the Gresini Honda team who he left for Ducati at the end of 2007.

    "It would have been a nice option to go back to Fausto (Gresini), I had a very good time with him and he has always helped me a lot," Melandri added.

    "This year we've been talking together, but for me, I've been looking at Kawasaki and they seem very good. The engineers and people there give me a good feeling just to talk to them, so that's what I want to do."



  • MotoGP: Kawasaki express Melandri interest
  • MotoGP: Ducati rule out Melandri exit before Brno
  • Coletti replaces Kimball at Prema
  • Hartley to join Euro Series race
  • Pedrosa laments 'worst race of career'

    Dani Pedrosa called today's Czech Grand Prix the worst race of his career after struggling to 15th place with uncompetitive Michelin tyres and a wrist injury.

    The Spaniard has not yet fully recovered from the fractured wrist he sustained when he crashed out of the lead at the Sachsenring last month. But he, and all the other Michelin riders, were unable to get anywhere near the pace all weekend at Brno.

    "This weekend has been a complete disaster," said Pedrosa. "Today's race was probably the worst of my career, in fact, I couldn't even race, all I could do was ride.

    "I couldn't control the bike, I didn't feel safe. I was riding so slow I felt impotent and ashamed. I considered stopping but I stayed out there to get some points. I almost crashed twice, so I just tried to finish the race. I did my best in very difficult circumstances."

    Pedrosa called for a a big improvement from Michelin if his already slim title hopes aren't to vanish entirely with six races to go.

    "We really need a drastic improvement from the tyres, I had no grip at the front and no grip at the rear, from the first lap to the last," he said.

    "It was impossible for me to push any harder, even though I was going very slow, three or four seconds slower than the leader. At the end, the tyre performance was even worse than it had been during the early laps."



  • Pedrosa will attempt to race at Laguna
  • Meyrick forced to miss Spa race
  • Pedrosa withdraws from Laguna
  • Pedrosa blames tyres for race slump
  • Mortara wins for VW at Pau
  • Rossi: Yamaha have closed gap to Ducati

    Rossi: Yamaha have closed gap to Ducati

    MotoGP world championship leader Valentino Rossi believes his works Yamaha team has now closed the performance gap to Ducati in dry conditions, and that he can fight for race wins through to the end of the season.

    Rossi, who won the Czech Grand Prix after Casey Stoner crashed for the second consecutive race, believes the world champion made a mistake under his pressure.

    "Looking back to the race in Laguna, sometimes Casey (Stoner) leans down a lot more than me, so maybe that is something," said Rossi. "In fact sometimes he makes sparks, maybe the gear lever, I don't know.

    "For me, the problem (at Brno) is that he made a 1:57.2 lap and he saw that it was not possible to pull away, so he tried to make 1:56.0, and in the human world that is not possible."

    Rossi added that his win at Laguna Seca, following a classic fairing-to-fairing battle with Stoner, proved a crucial turning point in his season and was the moment when he realised that he now has a bike to take on the world champion on equal terms.

    "For me, the race in Laguna was not too bad for his mind, but it was very good for my mind," said Rossi. "After Barcelona, Stoner and Ducati made a great step. They had three races where, f**k, they were very strong.

    "But in Laguna I demonstrated to me and my team that if all is okay then it is possible to beat him. So this weekend we worked very well, the difference is less than it was at Laguna and just for that reason I think he made the mistake."

    Rossi was cautious not to dismiss the Ducati threat, however, and pointed to Stoner's superior pace during Brno's wet qualifying as evidence that Yamaha must keep pushing development to the end of the season.

    "In the rain we have to improve because Stoner is faster than us," he said. "But anyway we are getting stronger and like at the Sachsenring, and like yesterday, we are in second position, so we are at least competitive.

    "Race-by-race we're understanding better about the Bridgestone tyres and how they work.

    "At Laguna Seca we made an important step on how to improve the rear grip and this weekend we followed the same setting, and I think the race in Laguna was very important for me and my team.

    "We know now it is possible to beat him, even if he is very fast."



  • Turvey fights back to win race one
  • Revs start SuperLiga with win
  • Stoner beats Rossi in Brno warm-up
  • Top of SuperLiga table clash on tap
  • Yamaha boss defends Rossi’s riding
  • Wednesday, August 20, 2008

    Lorenzo will race despite missing cut

    Yamaha factory rider Jorge Lorenzo had to rely on the discretion of the race director for the Czech Grand Prix after failing to set a time inside 107% of pole during a very wet qualifying session at Brno.

    The Spaniard, who has been plagued by injuries sustained in accidents since winning the Portuguese Grand Prix at the start of the season, was caught off guard when the weather conditions worsened and missed his window of opportunity to qualify for the race.

    "It's been a bad day!" he said. "At the start of the qualifying it was drier and this is when I was in the garage trying to improve the bike with my team; I missed my chance and this is when the others set their fastest laps.

    "I have had days almost as bad as this before, but I have to say that the fault is not all mine."

    Lorenzo's time of 2:23.701 was more than 12s slower than poleman Casey Stoner managed, but the 21-year-old has been cleared to start the race from 17th, and last, on the grid.

    The reigning 250cc double-world champion was also critical of Michelin.

    "I think that it is evident at the moment that our tyres are not working as they should," he said. "I am a professional however and I have to wait and have confidence in Michelin to find the right way forward.

    "For tomorrow it's going to be important to get a good start and try to get in the top ten. The surface is very good but we don’t have the grip we need, so whatever happens with the weather, it will be very hard."



  • Hulkenberg, Maki top first qualifying
  • Michelin concerned about race
  • Lorenzo happy with fourth, worried for race
  • Qualifying rained off at Monza
  • Dovizioso happy to be top Michelin man
  • Maki wins second Mugello race
  • Capirossi and Rossi back safety push

    Leading riders Valentino Rossi and Loris Capirossi have backed Dorna's efforts to improve MotoGP safety by reducing cornering speeds.

    All the riders participated in a meeting with the rights-holder at Brno last night, prompted by the spate of injuries in the first part of this season, and the amount that circuit owners have had to spend to keep their tracks safe enough for the increasingly rapid MotoGP bikes.

    Both Rossi and Capirossi agreed that the latter factor was becoming a major issue.

    "We talked about safety because this is the most important thing," Capirossi said. "Always the bikes get quicker. It's really difficult to work on safety at the tracks. Every year we ask for more space (run-off) and when we start to do that, the tracks spent more than 80 million euro on safety.

    "This year we asked Jerez for more space and a new surface, and Jerez did everything and spent 1.7 million. But it's impossible to do that every year because the tracks do not have enough money to rebuild everything every year.

    "This is why we have to try and find good solutions, not to go slowly, but for safety. We have some ideas but I can't say now."

    Rossi concurred with Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta's suggestion that reducing corner speeds was a better option than continually demanding circuit changes.

    "Carmelo said that the safety has start to be a problem, because we work very much on the circuits, and they spend a lot of money which is very good, but now every year we need to improve the run-off area," said Rossi.

    "So that means even more money for the circuits, so some say: 'Hey, every year it is more money'. So we need to think of something to go a little bit slower in the corners.

    "Carmelo said (this) to us on Friday in the Safety Commission, to me, Chris (Vermeulen), Loris and Marco (Melandri). But we say it is better we speak with all the riders so yesterday we speak with everybody and we have some ideas in general to go slower.

    "But now I don't know what has happened, they have to speak with the other manufacturers."



  • MotoGP calls for new safety measures
  • Simoncelli warned over Mugello move
  • Hayden happy with Assen safety
  • Series confirms new deal with Ratel
  • Stoner hopes to put sickness aside

    Casey Stoner says he had a lot more energy in qualifying today, despite still feeling the effects of the stomach bug that limited his running yesterday.

    The reigning champion took pole position with a lap early in the session and is hoping he will maintain his level of fitness for tomorrow's race.

    "Yesterday I was running out of energy very quickly and had to keep coming in to sit for a few minutes, but this morning I woke up and felt completely different," he said.

    "My head cold feels worse but in general my fitness and energy feel a lot better, so I don't really know what was going on yesterday but hopefully for tomorrow it's gone."

    The Ducati rider reported that the recently resurfaced Brno circuit handled the water quite well, but the downpour during the session made conditions significantly tougher.

    "In the dry it's quite slippery and hard on the front tyres, so we didn't know what to expect in the wet," he added. "But it faired quite well and there wasn't too much water.

    "Unfortunately, half way through, when it started to rain heavier, the track became very difficult and there were a few patches that were catching a lot of riders out. It was quite hairy and I'm just thankful that we all got away with it.

    "We were able to get pole again, which has been a fantastic run for us, but this afternoon was so wet that the set-ups don't count. We're just going to have to wait and see if ours is worth the cut in the dry."



  • Vermeulen laments lack of dry running
  • Chilton takes wet pole at Rockingham
  • Ericsson completes double pole
  • Hartley takes Snetterton pole
  • Stoner surprised to take pole
  • Stoner continues pole run at wet Brno

    Casey Stoner defied torrential rain and a heavy head cold to take his sixth consecutive pole position of the season in qualifying for the Czech Grand Prix at Brno.

    The world champion, like several runners, went out on track early when the rain was at its lightest, and recorded a 2:11.657 on his third flying lap. The Australian then promptly returned to the pits and sat most of the rest of the session out.

    Valentino Rossi got closest to Stoner, and again set his time early in the session. But the Yamaha man's best attempt, set just five minutes later, was a massive 1.189s slower than pole, such was the rate of grip deterioration as qualifying progressed.

    Kawasaki's returning ace John Hopkins crowned a strong weekend by going third fastest, his first front row start for the green team, eclipsing recognised rain master Chris Vermuelen on the Suzuki.

    Alex de Angelis was fifth fastest ahead of Anthony West, the Australian setting an extraordinary time in very wet conditions at the end of the session to go just 2.4s away from pole.

    Randy de Puniet recorded the seventh best time, and his third crash of the weekend, to put his LCR Honda ahead of Shinya Nakano's Gresini-run factory version.

    Loris Capirossi was another faller, ending up ninth after just six laps of running.

    As the session went on the track became saturated with several riders commenting on the amount of standing water.

    While some decided to preserve equipment, and appendages, for Sunday, others that were more comfortable with the conditions came out to play.

    Sylvain Guintoli, who starred in the rain at Le Mans last year, engaged in a massive battle with West and Marco Melandri, when the track resembled a swimming pool at the end of the hour. The Frenchman eventually lined up tenth, Melandri 11th.

    Dani Pedrosa was the fastest Michelin runnner in 11th ahead of Toni Elias and Andrea Dovizioso.

    Tech 3 Yamaha riders Colin Edwards and James Toseland struggled massively on the Michelin wets, while Estoril winner Jorge Lorenzo was last.

    Pos Rider Bike Time 1. Casey Stoner Ducati (B) 2:11.657 2. Valentino Rossi Yamaha (B) 2:12.846 + 1.189 3. John Hopkins Kawasaki (B) 2:12.959 + 1.302 4. Chris Vermeulen Suzuki (B) 2:13.002 + 1.345 5. Alex de Angelis Honda (B) 2:13.352 + 1.695 6. Anthony West Kawasaki (B) 2:14.064 + 2.407 7. Randy de Puniet Honda (M) 2:14.535 + 2.878 8. Shinya Nakano Honda (B) 2:14.718 + 3.061 9. Loris Capirossi Suzuki (B) 2:14.805 + 3.148 10. Sylvain Guintoli Ducati (B) 2:14.861 + 3.204 11. Marco Melandri Ducati (B) 2:15.880 + 4.223 12. Dani Pedrosa Honda (M) 2:16.032 + 4.375 13. Toni Elias Ducati (B) 2:16.510 + 4.853 14. Andrea Dovizioso Honda (M) 2:17.632 + 5.975 15. Colin Edwards Yamaha (M) 2:20.074 + 8.417 16. James Toseland Yamaha (M) 2:23.303 + 11.646 17. Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha (M) 2:23.701 + 12.044

  • MotoGP: Edwards tops Le Mans warm-up
  • Stoner tops wet warm-up
  • Hartley takes Snetterton pole
  • Capirossi thrilled with Suzuki's progress

    Loris Capirossi is confident that Suzuki are heading back towards the front of the MotoGP pack after taking his first podium for the team.

    The veteran Italian's third place in the Czech Republic was Suzuki's third consecutive top three finish following Chris Vermeulen's podiums in Germany and America.

    The team will test a new chassis at Brno tomorrow in the hope of making a major step forward in 2009, and Capirossi believes they now have all the ingredients in place to become regular victory contenders again.

    "Now we start to really follow what we need to go quicker," he said. "Like I said yesterday, our bike is really not too bad, but we lose a couple of tenths, and this couple of tenths is not so easy to find. That's why we're going to test a different chassis.

    "I know Suzuki are still working really hard on the engine side, and on the dyno in Japan. I don't really know when we can test the engine, but maybe after Motegi. We have a lot of new things. But Suzuki are pretty open. I can see them working really hard to make many different products."

    He also paid tribute to the support he had received from the team in the wake of his injury at Catalunya, and confirmed that he is on the verge of completing a deal to stay on at Suzuki for 2009.

    "For me this is like a victory, because I've really enjoyed working for Suzuki all season," said Capirossi.

    "I'm talking about the future, but at this moment I'm not signed with Suzuki. I'd say our agreement is nearly done, but I'm not signed yet.

    "For sure I really love working with Suzuki, and I'm saying that not because I finished on the podium today, but because a couple of races ago - when I was not in good condition - Suzuki stayed really close to me and supported me.

    "This is really good. It's really nice to have people believe me. This is why I'm ready to do everything (for Suzuki) because my dream is to fight for victory again and I know we can."

    Capirossi felt that Suzuki could have been even more competitive at Brno had the weather not disrupted their preparations.

    "We know we made a little step on the settings but the problem was on Saturday we had shit conditions and rain and we could do nothing," he said.

    "This morning in the warm-up we tried to change a lot on the bike but unfortunately the weather was so cold that the tyres didn't work in the right way and we also lost time this morning. This was why we decided to go back to the settings we used on Friday.

    "For sure we lost time, because this year we've never fought well all weekend. This is a problem for us. We need time to work and set up the bike. But for sure Suzuki is not bad at this moment because we've been on the podium in the last three races.

    "But our target is always the top. I am here after 19 seasons not to finish sixth, seventh or eighth - we want to win. This is our target, and we can work 24 hours to find that."



  • Capirossi disappointed by race slump
  • Capirossi pledges future to Suzuki
  • Abay tops Thruxton test
  • Mygale drivers eye Monza victory
  • Q and A with Casey Stoner

    Q and A with Casey Stoner

    World champion Casey Stoner has set the pace all weekend at Brno, and despite feeling distinctly under the weather, took pole position in torrentially wet conditions. Autosport.com caught up with him to take his temperature and get his feelings ahead of a pivotal race in his championship battle with Valentino Rossi.

    Q. You weren't feeling very well on Friday, at that point in the weekend would a race distance have been impossible?

    Casey Stoner: "No, no. People always pull it out of the bag, but I didn't want to waste any energy that I had. We didn't really get the option of doing a long run anyway, I don't think anybody did. We were basically trying to find a front tyre that would last long enough, because this track is really abrasive on the front. That was about it.

    "We found a reasonable setting and we knew roughly that if we could do one lap, then we can do it consistently. We are already running the hardest tyre that we have and you can't ask much more from that."

    Q. You said that you feel a lot better today, but this cold weather can't be making things much fun can it?

    CS: "Today I'm finding it a lot more fun than yesterday. Yesterday was warm, but I was feeling as if I had about five percent of my health. I felt absolutely terrible. In the morning I felt like it was just still a head cold, I didn't feel as if I had any energy depleted. But like I said, I tried to put my glove on and I just started getting tired. My muscles just sort of immediately wore out from just trying to put my glove on.

    "Then I realised it was more than just a cold, but I sweated it out a lot last night and I seem to have got rid of the worst part of it."

    Q. Will you test here on Monday and Tuesday if you feel the way you do now?

    CS: "I would say so. There are a few things that I have to test and few things that I want to test so no matter how I'm feeling I will get out there."

    Q: With the new surface, is your tyre choice any wider than usual?

    CS: "It's not any wider. Normally when you have such an abrasive surface, you narrow the choice down. Plus everybody has already tested here previously so we knew roughly what to expect. We knew that the front tyres were going to cop a pounding so we just went with the hardest selection that we could. I have actually got more of each tyre and less of a selection than I have had all season I think."

    Q: What is it about Turn 3 that seems to make people crash so much?

    CS: "For some reason, no matter what the circuit, whenever they resurface it you still find the same old issues. They have got rid of a few bumps that used to be on this circuit that have been here for a lot of years, but at the same time the same patches are still in the same places as before. So it's quite strange, especially when they take up all of the asphalt, get rid of it all and then resurface it completely. You expect them to get rid of these areas, but there is something coming out of the ground that causes it.

    "It was the same at Donington and it is the some in other places, I don't really know why but there are a couple of points around here in the wet, that when there is a lot of standing water, it becomes very hairy."

    Q. You always say you go better in the second half of the season, but you have said recently that you still need to recharge you batteries. Is that a worry?

    CS: "It's never going to affect my racing. I would just like to have a bit more time to myself and a bit more time away from racing to think about it, then come back into it. I'm still going to perform the same, I'm still going to give it everything, I would just like to have slightly more time. Just a couple of days and I'll be fine."



  • Abay tops Thruxton test
  • Stoner surprised to take pole
  • Ericsson tops Rockingham test
  • Stoner delighted with fifth pole in a row
  • Monday, August 18, 2008

    West boosted by career best result

    Anthony West was encouraged by his best ever result in MotoGP with fifth position at Brno today.

    The Kawasaki rider started the race from sixth and ran as high as fourth after passing his teammate, John Hopkins, before being passed by Toni Elias, Loris Capirossi and Shinya Nakano. But West made a place back when Casey Stoner crashed out of the lead and also passed Chris Vermeulen's Suzuki to record his best finish to date.

    The Australian believes the result reflects his true potential and was pleased with his performance.

    "It's a really great feeling and it shows what we are capable of achieving," said West. "When I dropped down to sixth I was worried that I wouldn't be able to fight back, but my confidence grew and I was able to catch up with John and pass him.

    "The grip levels dropped off towards the end so there was nothing I could do about Shinya, but I felt so much more comfortable on the bike than I have previously and the Bridgestone tyres definitely had an advantage over some of the other riders."

    Hopkins matched his teammate's pace in the top six for the first half of the race, but slipped backwards in the closing stages in his first outing since returning from a leg injury.

    "It's obviously disappointing to finish 11th, especially after feeling so strong early on," he said. "I got a great start and sat behind the Suzuki riders while they battled things out for third.

    "Unfortunately the tyre began to drop off at the end and usually I can ride around a problem like this, but with the knee injury I'm carrying, I couldn't prop the bike up to compensate for the lack of traction."



  • Alguersuari dominates at Brands Hatch
  • Hartley takes first Thruxton victory
  • Rossi takes victory in China
  • Stoner beats Rossi in Brno warm-up
  • Dovizioso happy to be top Michelin man

    Dovizioso happy to be top Michelin man

    Andrea Dovizioso consoled himself by finishing top Michelin rider after ending the Czech Grand Prix in a lowly ninth position.

    The Italian, like all the Michelin-shod runners at Brno, could not match the pace of their Bridgestone rivals, and Dovizioso was the only one to be able to mix it in the top ten through the race.

    In the end however even the JiR Scot Honda rider faded and finished just ahead of Jorge Lorenzo, on a Michelin-shod Yamaha.

    "My goal for the race was to be the first Michelin rider home, which is what I have achieved, but things were too difficult to do better," he said. "I started fully motivated and wanting to give the maximum and exploit fully the material at our disposal, but today I cannot be satisfied with the result.

    "I had difficulty with the front tyre and was forced to change my style of riding, which meant not being able to exploit my speed in the corners.

    "I had to stop hard and fire the bike out of the corners, rather than have a smoother style. This difficulty penalised us in the race."

    JiR Scot directior Gianluca Montiron paid tribute to Dovizioso afterwards, saying: "After this weekend we must give merit and praise for Andrea and the team's efforts for their hard work. Andrea has demonstrated once again his technical skills, and his ability to interpret, and adapt his style of riding to the package at his disposal."



  • Mortara, Volkswagen savour first win
  • Dovizioso thrilled to be top Honda
  • Dovizioso downplays slow start
  • Dovizioso blames Toseland for collision
  • New additions give United jolt
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