LOSAIL 2011

[KUCIAR666]

PRAMAC RACING TEAM PREVIEW - LOSAIL 2011

Loris and Randy are ready for the first official session of the MotoGP on the Losail circuit. Concluded on the last day of 2011 winter testing, for Ducati Racing Team is time to get serious.

Randy De Puniet, Pramac Racing Team Rider

"There was much anticipation for this season. The test in Malaysia had not gone as we all hoped. In Qatar we worked differently. The Ducati is responding well. We tried many different solutions changing tires to understand the various reactions. We are on track. Losail takes me well, I hope to get good results. My personal goal is to vacation to be able to do better than they did last season".

Loris Capirossi, Pramac Racing Team Rider

"Unfortunately, these last days of testing did not go as hoped, but I think that we can improve and get good results. We know we can be competitive, I can't wait to be able to show on the track. My goal is simple: get number 100 on the podium. I'm at 99th, the goal is not so far away".

Fabiano Sterlacchini, Pramac Racing Team Director.

"The budget of the latter-day test is positive, we did tests that have yielded good results, unfortunately the type of track is not easy to deal with. We had two crashes, we have some compromise but we believe for the race. For half turn we had the best time of all the Ducati's, after the fall it was difficult to trace. We tried experimental tires, some drivers have found a benefit, others less so. With Loris we are not in trouble, we are confident".

 

[KUCIAR666]

Bautista ready for the season opener

Rizla Suzuki MotoGP rider ?lvaro Bautista is ready for the Qatar GP after completing a positive test, and escaping uninjured from a 250km/h crash, earlier this week.

Bautista is eager to get back into the racing groove following some encouraging pre-season tests that have seen him and his crew work on many new settings and components for the Suzuki GSV-R, to make the machine more competitive in all conditions.

The first round of the season is the only night race on the calendar and the hot desert sun will be replaced by thousands of watts of man-made light that will illuminate the 5,380m Losail International Circuit, giving this Grand Prix a very singular and atmospheric feeling.

The Qatar race will also mark the 300th Grand Prix since the FIM, IRTA and Dorna joined forces in 1992 to manage the MotoGP World Championship. This will be celebrated at the event with the whole paddock being invited to take part in a special presentation.

Bautista will take to the track for a unique three nights of practice and qualifying at this year?s Qatar Grand Prix. The first practice session will be at 19.55hrs local time (16.55 GMT) on Thursday, followed by two further practice sessions on Friday evening, before an hour of qualifying takes place on Saturday at 19.55 local time (16.55 GMT). Sunday?s 22-lap race will get underway at 22.00hrs local time (19.00hrs GMT).

?lvaro Bautista:

?This is where the action really starts and I?m looking forward to this weekend. I like to ride the bike and we?ve had some good tests, but I like to fight with other riders more and be out there racing. We?ve done a lot of good work throughout the winter and that should help us in different conditions and the cooler night temperatures at Qatar will give us a good chance to see how far we?ve come. I?m really focused on the new season and the whole crew and Suzuki are right behind me, which is a good feeling, we now need to get out there and get into the action.?

 

[KUCIAR666]

First session blues for Rizla Suzuki

Rizla Suzuki?s first practice session of the 2011 MotoGP season did not go to plan in Qatar tonight.

?lvaro Bautista (P16, 1?58.528, 15 laps) returned to the pit-box shortly after taking to the Losail track, suffering with arm-pump caused by a combination of a new brake system and brand new gloves ? both required after his huge 250km/h crash in Monday?s test. The situation did not improve during the remainder of the short 45-minute session and Bautista?s best time was over 1.5 seconds behind his best test lap.

Bautista will have two sessions tomorrow to rectify the situation and get back on course as he continues his preparations for Sunday?s race. Today?s quickest time was set by Casey Stoner on a Honda.

Rizla Suzuki will be in race action on Sunday 20th March, when the MotoGP season kicks off with the first round of the year under the impressive floodlights at Qatar.

?lvaro Bautista:

?The words I want to say cannot be used in a press release! It was an impossible practice because we wanted to try a different setting, but I had a problem with the front brake feeling right from the beginning and after that I also had some pain in my right arm ? which was probably because I had new gloves on and they were too tight ? so I wasn?t able to ride like I can. At the end I used the other bike, but the problem hadn?t gone away. I think we need to forget today and concentrate on tomorrow because we have two more practices to improve things.?

Paul Denning ? Team Manager:

?Unfortunately we wasted 45 minutes of good track time tonight and got absolutely nothing done. We had an issue that didn?t come up all through the test, which meant ?lvaro wasn?t able to ride the bike properly. We will have to find our rhythm quickly in FP2 tomorrow and pretend that our Grand Prix weekend starts on a Friday as normal!?

Commercialbank Grand Prix of Qatar Free Practice One Classification:

1. Casey Stoner (Honda) 1?55.752: 2. Dani Pedrosa (Honda) +0.610: 3. Hector Barbera (Ducati) +0.669: 4. Marco Simoncelli (Honda) +0.689: 5. Valentino Rossi (Ducati) +0.727: 16. ?LVARO BAUTISTA (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +2.776:

 

[KUCIAR666]

Ben Spies and Jorge Lorenzo Start the Season in Qatar

Yamaha Factory Racing riders Ben Spies and Jorge Lorenzo finally made a start to the 2011 MotoGP season tonight under the floodlights of the International Losail Circuit in Qatar. Tackling his first official race weekend practice as a factory rider, Spies spent his session on just one set of tyres which were not the best for the track. Despite this the American rider was consistently quick throughout the free practice, ending in confident mood ahead of tomorrow's second session in sixth place, just 0.131 seconds from second.

On the other side of the garage reigning World Champion Lorenzo had a more fruitful evening session, making big progress from his test here a few days ago. The crew went back to a tried and tested set up from 2010 which delivered more confidence for the young Mallorcan. The data from the free practice give him a clear direction to improve towards qualifying on Saturday night. Lorenzo ended the session in seventh place, just 0.093 seconds behind his team mate.

As a mark of support for those suffering following the disaster in Japan both Ben Spies and Jorge Lorenzo will carry the message "With You, Japan" in both English and Japanese on their M1's for the weekend.

Ben Spies, Yamaha Factory Racing Rider, 6th, 1'56.493 (17 laps)
"Everything went really smooth, we made two major changes to the bike, one was better, one wasn't. We spent the whole time on tyres we hope are the worst for the track, a front I don't like and a harder rear and we matched our time from the test. I'm happy that we've made the bike a bit better, if we go to what we think is better with the tyres we should have a few tenths."

Jorge Lorenzo, Yamaha Factory Racing Rider, 7th, 1'56.586 (18 laps)
"Today we used a set up from last year here, I feel much more used to it so I am a lot more happy. I think if we improve the setting some more tomorrow we can really step forward. With the new chassis I can make faster corner speed here so the 2011 chassis is working well. I think we will all be closer to the front on Sunday night."

Wilco Zeelenberg, Yamaha Factory Racing Team Manager
"A very good practice for us, even when the position is not so good. The last test we did a long run and Jorge was not so happy with the set up and was a bit disappointed. Finally the improvement and changes we made today have resulted in a good test and a better feeling for him. This means he can now be consistent, that is his strong point. From now on we will be moving forwards."

Massimo Meregalli, Yamaha Factory Racing Team Director
"We had a good response on Ben's side, we used only one set of tyres during the session and it wasn't the optimum tyre so this gives us confidence. After two previous tests Jorge has now found a better set up which is promising for the weekend. All in all the team has made a good start and we are looking forward to making the next step tomorrow to get closer to our set up for the race."



Free Practice One Results:

1. Casey Stoner AUS Repsol Honda Team 1m 55.752s
2. Dani Pedrosa ESP Repsol Honda Team 1m 56.362s
3. Hector Barbera ESP Mapfre Aspar Team 1m 56.421s
4. Marco Simoncelli ITA San Carlo Honda Gresini 1m 56.441s
5. Valentino Rossi ITA Ducati Marlboro Team 1m 56.479s
6. Ben Spies USA Yamaha Factory Racing 1m 56.493s
7. Jorge Lorenzo ESP Yamaha Factory Racing 1m 56.586s
8. Andrea Dovizioso ITA Repsol Honda Team 1m 56.592s
9. Randy de Puniet FRA Pramac Racing Team 1m 56.790s
10. Colin Edwards USA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1m 56.879s
11. Nicky Hayden USA Ducati Marlboro Team 1m 56.910s
12. Hiroshi Aoyama JPN San Carlo Honda Gresini 1m 56.987s
13. Loris Capirossi ITA Pramac Racing Team 1m 57.366s
14. Cal Crutchlow GBR Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1m 57.429s
15. Karel Abraham CZE Cardion AB Motoracing 1m 57.821s
16. Alvaro Bautista ESP Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1m 58.528s
17. Toni Elias ESP LCR Honda MotoGP 1m 59.087s

 

[KUCIAR666]

THE 2011 MOTOGP SEASON HAS OFFICIALY STARTED. AFTER THE FIRST SESSION DE PUNIET NINTH AND CAPIROSSI THIRTEENTH

The 2011 MotoGP season has officially started this evening in Doha, where the riders of the Pramac Racing Team have completed the first laps of the Grand Prix of Qatar. The duo white green had access to a session of 50 minutes to improve their bikes for Sundays race. Randy De Puniet has kept the good lap times recorded in the last tests finishing today in ninth place, just one second away from todays fastest, Casey Stoner. His teammate, Loris Capirossi, tried different technical solutions to find the right feeling with the bike after the crash on the last day of testing. Loris finished in thirteenth position. Tomorrow, MotoGP riders will have two practice sessions before the only session on Saturday valid for the starting grid of the Grand Prix of Qatar.

Marco Rigamonti Randy De Puniet Track Engineer

"At first we had a small problem: Randy could not change gear properly due to new boots and this has made us change our initial plans because we lost some time. He has tried the new electronics and was very happy with the response of the bike. We can be confident on the work done by our new rider, he has been experiencing the best lap time with hard tires after about 20 laps. If the track conditions are the same, he can do even better tomorrow."

Randy De Puniet - Pramac Racing rider 9th best lap time in 156.790

"I started today's session with some complications with the right boot that gave me some problems when changing gears down specially in the first corner. Solved this problem, we had three good outings with lap times very close to the best and this allows me to maintain a good position. The feelings that I had riding today are similar to the one I had during the last test and maintain this rate we will have a good race weekend. I am happy with how we are working, I dont have a specific goal, but be the first satellite rider and fight with some official rider would be a good start."

Loris Capirossi Pramac Racing rider 13th best lap time in 157.366

"I found the pace of the first day of testing, because Monday due of my slip, I was not able to make good lap times. We tried different tires, but the harder compound solution is the one that, in these climates conditions, it gives us more confidence. I do not feel satisfied, thirteenth place is definitely not our goal, but I am optimistic for the next rounds."

 

[KUCIAR666]

THE 2011 MOTOGP SEASON HAS OFFICIALY STARTED. AFTER THE FIRST SESSION DE PUNIET NINTH AND CAPIROSSI THIRTEENTH

The 2011 MotoGP season has officially started this evening in Doha, where the riders of the Pramac Racing Team have completed the first laps of the Grand Prix of Qatar. The duo white green had access to a session of 50 minutes to improve their bikes for Sundays race. Randy De Puniet has kept the good lap times recorded in the last tests finishing today in ninth place, just one second away from todays fastest, Casey Stoner. His teammate, Loris Capirossi, tried different technical solutions to find the right feeling with the bike after the crash on the last day of testing. Loris finished in thirteenth position. Tomorrow, MotoGP riders will have two practice sessions before the only session on Saturday valid for the starting grid of the Grand Prix of Qatar.

Marco Rigamonti Randy De Puniet Track Engineer

"At first we had a small problem: Randy could not change gear properly due to new boots and this has made us change our initial plans because we lost some time. He has tried the new electronics and was very happy with the response of the bike. We can be confident on the work done by our new rider, he has been experiencing the best lap time with hard tires after about 20 laps. If the track conditions are the same, he can do even better tomorrow."

Randy De Puniet - Pramac Racing rider 9th best lap time in 156.790

"I started today's session with some complications with the right boot that gave me some problems when changing gears down specially in the first corner. Solved this problem, we had three good outings with lap times very close to the best and this allows me to maintain a good position. The feelings that I had riding today are similar to the one I had during the last test and maintain this rate we will have a good race weekend. I am happy with how we are working, I dont have a specific goal, but be the first satellite rider and fight with some official rider would be a good start."

Loris Capirossi Pramac Racing rider 13th best lap time in 157.366

"I found the pace of the first day of testing, because Monday due of my slip, I was not able to make good lap times. We tried different tires, but the harder compound solution is the one that, in these climates conditions, it gives us more confidence. I do not feel satisfied, thirteenth place is definitely not our goal, but I am optimistic for the next rounds."

 

[KUCIAR666]

GOOD START IN QATAR FOR THE DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM

The 2011 MotoGP World Championship officially kicked off tonight at Losail International Circuit with the first Free Practice session of the Grand Prix of Qatar.

It was a positive first day for the Ducati Marlboro Team, with Valentino Rossi fifth at the end of the 45 minute session, and more importantly, pleased with the work carried out on the Desmosedici?s setup.

Nicky Hayden started quite well, immediately matching his best time from the test, and although in the end he didn?t achieve the pace that he wanted, he has a variety of solutions to try in the coming days.

Valentino Rossi (Ducati Marlboro Team) 5th, 1:56.479
?We?re all pretty satisfied with this first free practice because we worked well throughout the entire session, progressively improving with each outing. We modified the setup a little compared to the test, and we immediately found it to be better, to the point that within just a few laps, I improved on my time from Monday. The last run was particularly positive and my final lap time, done with a hard tyre that had 19 laps on it, was my best, a bit more than a tenth off of second place. We know that if we want to have a good race on Sunday, we have to cut another five tenths, and we?ll try to do that tomorrow. Anyway, although we still have to improve some more things on the bike, now I don't have to push so hard and it is turning better. The shoulder is holding up well. It was only at the end that it started to lose a little strength, and tomorrow we?ll see how it reacts with two practice sessions. In any case, we?re happy today.?

Nicky Hayden (Ducati Marlboro Team) 11th, 1:56.910
?It was certainly nice to be back in action that counted a bit more. We had a bit of wind, and the temperature wasn?t really high, but for as much sand as we?ve seen blowing around the last couple of days, the track was in great condition. The session started out pretty well. I immediately went out with a hard rear tyre and a soft front, which isn?t my favorite setup, and I was able to match my lap time from the test by the fourth lap. I felt quite good, but from there, I never really was able to improve much. Obviously everybody else got quicker, so I?m not thrilled with that time. The bike was similar to how it was in the test. We?ve got some more opportunities before Sunday night, so we?ll keep trying to improve.?

Record: Casey Stoner (Ducati - 2008), 1?55.153, 168.193 Km/h
Best Pole: Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha - 2008), 1?53.927, 170.003 Km/h

 

[KUCIAR666]

Strong first session for Repsol Honda Team in Qatar

At 19h55 local time, the first session of the 2011 season started at the Losail International Circuit in Qatar. This seemed a continuation from the test that took place earlier this week, with conditions almost identical.

Repsol Honda rider Casey Stoner retained his position at the top of the timing sheets with a time of 1'55.752 and completed a total of 16 laps spending the evening fine tuning set-up for the weekend. His team mate Dani Pedrosa followed closely behind and completed 18 laps in the forty-five minute session. He experienced a rare issue with the rear tyre, a medium compound already used during winter testing with no problem, which his team and Bridgestone need to properly understand. Andrea Dovizioso had some vibration on the front end and he and his team will continue to work on this when Free Practice continues tomorrow at 18h00 local time.

Earlier in the afternoon, pre-season photos were taken for the world's media outlets. The Repsol Honda Team also took this opportunity to show their support for Japan in this difficult time, with a Japanese flag on their bikes accompanied by a supporting message of hope, to not give up fighting: "Ganbare Japan!".

CASEY STONER ? 1st - 1'55.752
"We started of where we left on Monday and used more or less the same set-up - the wind is a little stronger than we had in the test but the track condition feels pretty good. We need to improve rear edge grip, this is an area we've struggled with a little so we need to improve that which will give us better turn in and exit from the corner. I'd say we're about 80% complete on the bike package, we have a few main areas we can improve, but this is always the case - you can always improve something, and if we do in these areas it will makes us a lot more confident. I did the whole session with the same rear hard tyre and I was happy with it from the beginning to the end, and this is good for the race. Finally the season has started, everything has gone fantastic so far but we need to be realistic and keep focused".

DANI PEDROSA ? 2nd - 1'56.362
"I had a problem with the rear tyre that we need to understand. It's the first issue we've had this winter with the tyres, so I hope it's an exception to the rule. We started the practice very well, we were fast in the first exit and then we stayed with the same tyre, the softer compound, for the whole session. Even if I used the same compound during the winter test without any problem for several laps, today already in the second round I felt it dropped down a lot, and in the third and last one it was even worse. With only 45 minutes practice, the rounds are very short and you don't have much time to make changes. Maybe the tyre had a problem, maybe it dropped down a lot because with 125cc and Moto2 bikes on track the conditions were very different comparing with the test of few days ago, we don't know exactly. Anyway, the Grand Prix weekend just started and we will try with another tyre tomorrow to understand more. I hope we can take the best profit of both practices sessions to prepare for the race in a good way".

ANDREA DOVIZIOSO ? 8th - 1'56.592
?With four days of practice it is important to manage the tyres so today we used only the hard compound to save the soft tyres for tomorrow and the coming days as I expect it will only be possible to use the soft rear tyre for the race. The biggest problem today was a vibration on the front when I released the brake and this limited me a lot because I was not able to push and lean as I wanted. We need to understand this problem and solve it as soon as possible. Tonight my engineers will analyse the data and we will see how to improve this issue. I am not happy about my lap time, but I am confident that we can improve because I feel that we have margin. Today, I'm very proud as Italy celebrates it's 150th anniversary of unity as a Country, so I have a special sticker on my helmet to commemorate this".

1 - Casey Stoner - 1?55.752 - AUS - HONDA - Repsol Honda Team
2 - Dani Pedrosa - 1?56.362 - SPA - HONDA - Repsol Honda Team
3 - Hector Barbera - 1?56.421 - SPA - DUCATI - Paginas Amarillas Aspar
4 - Marco Simoncelli - 1?56.441 - ITA - HONDA - San Carlo Honda Gresini
5 - Valentino Rossi - 1?56.479 - ITA - DUCATI - Ducati Marlboro Team
6 - Ben Spies - 1?56.493 - USA - YAMAHA - Yamaha Factory Racing Team
7 - Jorge Lorenzo - 1?56.586 - SPA - YAMAHA - Yamaha Factory Racing Team
8 - Andrea Dovizioso - 1?56.592 - ITA - HONDA - Repsol Honda Team
9 - Randy De Puniet - 1?56.790 - FRA - DUCATI - Pramac Racing
10 - Colin Edwards - 1?56.879 - USA - YAMAHA - Monster Yamaha Tech 3
11 - Nicky Hayden - 1?56.910 - USA - DUCATI - Ducati Marlboro Team
12 - Hiroshi Aoyama - 1?56.987 - JPN - HONDA - San Carlo Honda Gresini
13 - Loris Capirossi - 1?57.366 - ITA - DUCATI - Pramac Racing
14 - Cal Crutchlow - 1?57.429 - GBR - YAMAHA - Monster Yamaha Tech 3
15 - Karel Abraham - 1?57.821 - CZE - DUCATI - Cardion AB Motoracing
16 - Alvaro Bautista - 1?58.528 - SPA - SUZUKI - Rizla Suzuki MotoGP
17 - Toni Eias - 1?59.087 - SPA - HONDA - LCR Honda MotoGP

 

[KUCIAR666]

Simoncelli shines in Qatar

Marco Simoncelli carried his preseason form into the first official session of the MotoGP World Championship this afternoon in the surreal surroundings of the Losail circuit. The Team San Carlo Honda Gresini rider was fast and consistent and worked intensely throughout a satisfactory 45 minutes to find an improved set-up for his machine. It was a positive evening for Hiroshi Aoyama even though he was further down the time sheets, the Japanese rider clearly working on the right lines with his team and set-up, which will hopefully lead them to a better position tomorrow.

Marco Simoncelli (4th 1? 56? 441 )
?I am really happy because it is always difficult during testing to know exactly where you are but that changes when things get serious and we are able to make more a concrete analysis. I am satisfied because we struggled to get the hard tyre working during the tests but we found something tonight. It may be that the conditions are slightly different but it is an important step towards making our choice for the race. We managed to make two changes to the set-up that improved things further and now it is just a case of confirming what we already know and getting ready for Sunday. In general I am feeling confident.?

Hiroshi Aoyama (12th 1?? 56? 987)
?This was the first session of the season so I was keen to do well. We started work on finding the best set-up for Sunday and the best feeling with the bike, working from what we learned in testing. We also tried to get closer to a decision on what tyre to use for the race. The conditions are better than they were in testing and tomorrow we will try to improve on today's position, which is actually not that important because our focus for the day was not specifically on the lap time.?

Fausto Gresini
?Overall it has been a positive first session with Marco Simoncelli running really well, so I am happy. The lap times are good and apart from Stoner everybody is separated by just a few tenths. He tried two different settings and was strong on both but he has a preference so with a few more little modifications we will be ready for the race. Hiroshi Aoyama didn't have a bad session either ? definitely better than his position suggests ? so I am sure he can also have a good start to the season. We are confident and over the next two days we will be working to improve further but for now we are happy and that is very important.?

 

[KUCIAR666]

Bautista out of Qatar Grand Prix

Rizla Suzuki?s ?lvaro Bautista suffered a broken left femur from a fast crash in the closing stages of today?s third practice session in Qatar, which immediately ended his participation in this weekend?s first race.

Bautista landed heavily after high-siding at turn 15 and immediately looked in some serious discomfort. He was instantly taken to the circuit?s superb medical facilities and examined by members of the Clinica Mobile. After a thorough examination, and some x-rays, he was diagnosed with a break to his left femur which will need to be pinned.

Bautista was immediately taken to the Hamad Medical Corporation in Doha for further tests, before a decision will be taken whether to operate in Qatar or for him to return to Spain.

Further information on Bautista?s condition will be updated as soon as more information is available.

 

[KUCIAR666]

DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM WORKS HARD ON THE GP11 SETUP

The final two MotoGP free-practice sessions for the Qatar Grand Prix took place this evening at Losail International Circuit, with qualifying scheduled to happen tomorrow night ahead of the opening race of the season on March 20. Ducati Marlboro Team riders Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden both bettered their lap times from last night, but they haven?t improved their pace and positions as much as they?d hoped.

Nonetheless, the Italian rider chose the direction to work in to refine his GP11?s setup for Sunday?s race, and tomorrow he?ll try to make another step forward. Hayden started the evening?s second session relatively well, only to find progress difficult, but both riders and their crews will look for solutions tomorrow morning.

Valentino Rossi (Ducati Marlboro Team) 8th, 1:56.306
?Today was a bit difficult, because we had hoped to make a bigger improvement, but in the end we didn?t? lower our time enough. First of all, my shoulder bothered me a little. I wasn?t as strong as I was yesterday, and in the end of the session, I could feel it. Also, we still don?t know this bike perfectly and, as happened to us in the test, we get to a point where it?s difficult to make a step forward with the setup. It?s partly a matter of experience. We?re trying to work with the weight distribution, especially on the rear, but we still haven?t found the right balance. We?re missing half a second with our pace to be in the group where we hope to be Sunday. Anyway, today we tried two setup solutions that were quite different, and we chose one that we?ll try to refine tomorrow.?

Nicky Hayden (Ducati Marlboro Team) 14th, 1:56.586
?Things didn?t really go a lot better today. My position is worse than yesterday, and my lap time is hardly any better. I?m still having trouble with the bike in the long corners, but honestly, a rider should be able to find a bit more time than I have. After two days of testing and the practice sessions, my time isn?t that much better than it was in the test. It?s a bit frustrating to be so far back for the first race, but the team and I will try to figure it out. My guys are working hard and everybody?s pitching in. Qualifying could be difficult because the soft tyre doesn?t really seem to help my lap time a lot. Hopefully we can find a setup change or something that will help.?

 

[KUCIAR666]

Lorenzo and Spies Pick Up the Pace in Qatar

The second night of free practice under the floodlights of the Losail International circuit was split into two 45 minute sessions ahead of tomorrow's first qualifying heat of the 2011 MotoGP Championship. The two heats formed the last opportunity for riders Jorge Lorenzo and Ben Spies to fine tune their YZR-M1 set ups before the fight for pole position gets underway in qualifying tomorrow night.

Lorenzo continued to make steps forward with set up, the young Mallorcan World Champion finding his form and improving on yesterday's final free practice lap time of 1'56.586 by 0.366 seconds in the first of today's heats. The second session saw improvements again, the refined set up allowing Lorenzo to show a glimpse of his talent for fast consistent laps, splitting his final session into a shorter and a longer run and bringing his time down to be just one of four riders breaking into the 1.55s.

Spies was again on flying form in both of the two practice sessions, the Texan moving swiftly up to the top three and holding there to complete the first session in third just 0.262 seconds from second. The second session saw the new Factory rider again laying down lap after lap of consistent fast race pace, wrapping up the final free practice in fifth behind his team mate, just .003 seconds from breaking into the 1.55 second group.

Jorge Lorenzo, Yamaha Factory Racing Rider, FP2 - 5th, 1'56.220 (18 laps) FP3 - 4th, 1'55.814 (21 laps)
"Today went pretty well; I'm happy with the progress we've made during the last sessions. I like the bike a lot more and we've improved a lot from the test. We are struggling to fight with some of our competitors but we won't give up, we will continue to work on it and see if we can find another half a second tomorrow. I will try to make a good qualifying session to start on the front row. It will be a long race and we have a good race pace so I think we have a chance to finish on the podium."

Ben Spies, Yamaha Factory Racing Rider, FP2 - 3rd, 1'56.116 (18 laps) FP3 - 5th, 1'56.003 (21 laps)
"We didn't do anything crazy today but we were consistent and close to the front, it looks good for tomorrow and I think we can have a good qualifying session. We've made some good changes and we're confident with the bike set up, maybe not for winning the race but definitely good enough for top five and maybe a podium. We know we need a little work but we'll keep on at it and see where we can get to."

Wilco Zeelenberg, Yamaha Factory Racing Team Manager
"Yesterday in my quote I said I had the feeling that we would move forward, we found a way and today we improved so Jorge is getting better and better. The bike is delivering better handling so the lap times are improving. Both riders are very close again, we still have a little step to do but so far we are pleased with what we have achieved today."

Massimo Meregalli, Yamaha Factory Racing Team Director
"Both Jorge and Ben are quite satisfied with their bike set ups, we tried to run the soft tyre with both of them to see how many laps we could do so now we know which tyre will be better for the race. I think we are ready for the time attack tomorrow, let's see what we can do."






Free Practice 2 Results:

1. Casey Stoner AUS Repsol Honda Team 1m 55.457s
2. Dani Pedrosa ESP Repsol Honda Team 1m 55.854s
3. Ben Spies USA Yamaha Factory Racing 1m 56.116s
4. Andrea Dovizioso ITA Repsol Honda Team 1m 56.172s
5. Jorge Lorenzo ESP Yamaha Factory Racing 1m 56.220s
6. Colin Edwards USA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1m 56.259s
7. Marco Simoncelli ITA San Carlo Honda Gresini 1m 56.378s
8. Cal Crutchlow GBR Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1m 56.518s
9. Valentino Rossi ITA Ducati Marlboro Team 1m 56.532s
10. Nicky Hayden USA Ducati Marlboro Team 1m 56.626s
11. Randy de Puniet FRA Pramac Racing Team 1m 56.688s
12. Hector Barbera ESP Mapfre Aspar Team 1m 56.735s
13. Hiroshi Aoyama JPN San Carlo Honda Gresini 1m 56.790s
14. Alvaro Bautista ESP Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1m 56.833s
15. Loris Capirossi ITA Pramac Racing Team 1m 57.304s
16. Karel Abraham CZE Cardion AB Motoracing 1m 57.683s
17. Toni Elias ESP LCR Honda MotoGP 1m 58.801s

Free Practice 3 Results:

1. Casey Stoner AUS Repsol Honda Team 1m 55.035s
2. Dani Pedrosa ESP Repsol Honda Team 1m 55.193s
3. Andrea Dovizioso ITA Repsol Honda Team 1m 55.740s
4. Jorge Lorenzo ESP Yamaha Factory Racing 1m 55.814s
5. Ben Spies USA Yamaha Factory Racing 1m 56.003s
6. Hector Barbera ESP Mapfre Aspar Team 1m 56.266s
7. Colin Edwards USA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1m 56.302s
8. Valentino Rossi ITA Ducati Marlboro Team 1m 56.306s
9. Randy de Puniet FRA Pramac Racing Team 1m 56.362s
10. Loris Capirossi ITA Pramac Racing Team 1m 56.434s
11. Cal Crutchlow GBR Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1m 56.437s
12. Hiroshi Aoyama JPN San Carlo Honda Gresini 1m 56.517s
13. Marco Simoncelli ITA San Carlo Honda Gresini 1m 56.540s
14. Nicky Hayden USA Ducati Marlboro Team 1m 56.586s
15. Karel Abraham CZE Cardion AB Motoracing 1m 57.275s
16. Alvaro Bautista ESP Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1m 57.601s
17. Toni Elias ESP LCR Honda MotoGP 1m 58.123s

 

[KUCIAR666]

POSITIVE DAY IN DOHA FOR THE PRAMAC RACING TEAM. DE PUNIET NINTH, CAPIROSSI ELEVENTH

Satisfying day for the Green Team of the MotoGP World Championship. The lap times of Randy De Puniet and Loris Capirossi have improved significantly in the three free sessions between yesterday and today. The green and white duo has ended in ninth, Randy, and eleventh place, Loris. The track temperature was slightly higher compared to yesterday and the riders have had the opportunity to test different tire compounds without complications. Randy is only six tenths of a second from the virtual front row while his companion, Loris, is right behind him just over a tenth of a second. Tomorrow at 7.55pm local time, 5.55pm in Italy, the qualifying session valid for the starting grid of the first 2011 MotoGP Grand Prix will start.

Fabiano Sterlacchini Pramac Racing Technical Director

Randy went well on the last winter tests and in this two-day with free practice session mantaining a good rhythm finishing always in the top ten. On the other hand with Loris we had ups and downs, but today we have improved significantly. We were able to give him more confidence in some parts of the track where he could not make the best use of the bike. It will be very important to arrange the final details better tomorrow because a good start on this track is very important.

Randy De Puniet - Pramac Racing rider 9th best lap time in 156.362

"Today was a good day, we tried some electronic solutions and some traction control modification for the race and we have found interesting possibilities. I made it to try for the first time the soft tires and I noticed a big difference compared to hard ones. I do not know what tires will I use to conquer the fastest lap time tomorrow, I have three soft and two hard still available, but for the race most likely I will use the hard one. We are all very close, except for the first two which seem unapprochable at this moment, and this time every thousandth of a second will be decisive tomorrow."

Loris Capirossi Pramac Racing rider 11th best lap time in 156.434

"I must say that in general the first day of practice was difficult, but after a major change between todays two sessions, the situation is considerably improved. I am pleased with the lap time that I did in qualifying and I think tomorrow we can still gain a few tenths. The race rythym is good and this reassures me even more to this first race of the MotoGP World Championship.

 

[KUCIAR666]

Doha, Thursday, March 17, 2011 FP1
Pos. Num. Rider Nation Team Bike Km/h Time Gap 1st/Prev.
1 27 Casey STONER AUS Repsol Honda Team Honda 323.5 1'55.752
2 26 Dani PEDROSA SPA Repsol Honda Team Honda 320.4 1'56.362 0.610 / 0.610
3 8 Hector BARBERA SPA Mapfre Aspar Team MotoGP Ducati 326.6 1'56.421 0.669 / 0.059
4 58 Marco SIMONCELLI ITA San Carlo Honda Gresini Honda 320.2 1'56.441 0.689 / 0.020
5 46 Valentino ROSSI ITA Ducati Team Ducati 319.8 1'56.479 0.727 / 0.038
6 11 Ben SPIES USA Yamaha Factory Racing Yamaha 317.9 1'56.493 0.741 / 0.014
7 1 Jorge LORENZO SPA Yamaha Factory Racing Yamaha 316.7 1'56.586 0.834 / 0.093
8 4 Andrea DOVIZIOSO ITA Repsol Honda Team Honda 321.3 1'56.592 0.840 / 0.006
9 14 Randy DE PUNIET FRA Pramac Racing Team Ducati 316.4 1'56.790 1.038 / 0.198
10 5 Colin EDWARDS USA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Yamaha 321.7 1'56.879 1.127 / 0.089
11 69 Nicky HAYDEN USA Ducati Team Ducati 321.6 1'56.910 1.158 / 0.031
12 7 Hiroshi AOYAMA JPN San Carlo Honda Gresini Honda 320.8 1'56.987 1.235 / 0.077
13 65 Loris CAPIROSSI ITA Pramac Racing Team Ducati 317.3 1'57.366 1.614 / 0.379
14 35 Cal CRUTCHLOW GBR Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Yamaha 317.2 1'57.429 1.677 / 0.063
15 17 Karel ABRAHAM CZE Cardion AB Motoracing Ducati 322.5 1'57.821 2.069 / 0.392
16 19 Alvaro BAUTISTA SPA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP Suzuki 316.7 1'58.528 2.776 / 0.707
17 24 Toni ELIAS SPA LCR Honda MotoGP Honda 317.9 1'59.087 3.335 / 0.559

Doha, Friday, March 18, 2011 FP2
Pos. Num. Rider Nation Team Bike Km/h Time Gap 1st/Prev.
1 27 Casey STONER AUS Repsol Honda Team Honda 320.4 1'55.457
2 26 Dani PEDROSA SPA Repsol Honda Team Honda 321.8 1'55.854 0.397 / 0.397
3 11 Ben SPIES USA Yamaha Factory Racing Yamaha 316.3 1'56.116 0.659 / 0.262
4 4 Andrea DOVIZIOSO ITA Repsol Honda Team Honda 323.3 1'56.172 0.715 / 0.056
5 1 Jorge LORENZO SPA Yamaha Factory Racing Yamaha 317.8 1'56.220 0.763 / 0.048
6 5 Colin EDWARDS USA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Yamaha 316.4 1'56.259 0.802 / 0.039
7 58 Marco SIMONCELLI ITA San Carlo Honda Gresini Honda 318.7 1'56.378 0.921 / 0.119
8 35 Cal CRUTCHLOW GBR Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Yamaha 319.2 1'56.518 1.061 / 0.140
9 46 Valentino ROSSI ITA Ducati Team Ducati 320.1 1'56.532 1.075 / 0.014
10 69 Nicky HAYDEN USA Ducati Team Ducati 320.0 1'56.626 1.169 / 0.094
11 14 Randy DE PUNIET FRA Pramac Racing Team Ducati 316.3 1'56.668 1.211 / 0.042
12 8 Hector BARBERA SPA Mapfre Aspar Team MotoGP Ducati 327.7 1'56.735 1.278 / 0.067
13 7 Hiroshi AOYAMA JPN San Carlo Honda Gresini Honda 319.7 1'56.790 1.333 / 0.055
14 19 Alvaro BAUTISTA SPA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP Suzuki 316.3 1'56.833 1.376 / 0.043
15 65 Loris CAPIROSSI ITA Pramac Racing Team Ducati 317.6 1'57.304 1.847 / 0.471
16 17 Karel ABRAHAM CZE Cardion AB Motoracing Ducati 322.5 1'57.683 2.226 / 0.379
17 24 Toni ELIAS SPA LCR Honda MotoGP Honda 316.5 1'58.801 3.344 / 1.118

Doha, Friday, March 18, 2011 FP3
Pos. Num. Rider Nation Team Bike Km/h Time Gap 1st/Prev.
1 27 Casey STONER AUS Repsol Honda Team Honda 321.1 1'55.035
2 26 Dani PEDROSA SPA Repsol Honda Team Honda 322.8 1'55.193 0.158 / 0.158
3 4 Andrea DOVIZIOSO ITA Repsol Honda Team Honda 322.7 1'55.740 0.705 / 0.547
4 1 Jorge LORENZO SPA Yamaha Factory Racing Yamaha 317.6 1'55.814 0.779 / 0.074
5 11 Ben SPIES USA Yamaha Factory Racing Yamaha 317.4 1'56.003 0.968 / 0.189
6 8 Hector BARBERA SPA Mapfre Aspar Team MotoGP Ducati 327.5 1'56.266 1.231 / 0.263
7 5 Colin EDWARDS USA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Yamaha 319.6 1'56.302 1.267 / 0.036
8 46 Valentino ROSSI ITA Ducati Team Ducati 317.9 1'56.306 1.271 / 0.004
9 14 Randy DE PUNIET FRA Pramac Racing Team Ducati 319.2 1'56.362 1.327 / 0.056
10 65 Loris CAPIROSSI ITA Pramac Racing Team Ducati 318.2 1'56.434 1.399 / 0.072
11 35 Cal CRUTCHLOW GBR Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Yamaha 319.3 1'56.437 1.402 / 0.003
12 7 Hiroshi AOYAMA JPN San Carlo Honda Gresini Honda 320.0 1'56.517 1.482 / 0.080
13 58 Marco SIMONCELLI ITA San Carlo Honda Gresini Honda 315.5 1'56.540 1.505 / 0.023
14 69 Nicky HAYDEN USA Ducati Team Ducati 319.1 1'56.586 1.551 / 0.046
15 17 Karel ABRAHAM CZE Cardion AB Motoracing Ducati 321.1 1'57.275 2.240 / 0.689
16 19 Alvaro BAUTISTA SPA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP Suzuki 316.0 1'57.601 2.566 / 0.326
17 24 Toni ELIAS SPA LCR Honda MotoGP Honda 321.3 1'58.123 3.088 / 0.522

 

[KUCIAR666]

Hondas take top two spots in Qatar Qualifying

The 2011 MotoGP World Championship will begin with Honda riders on the first two spots of the grid following a dominant performance in final qualifying under the desert lights of the Losail International Circuit in Qatar.

Casey Stoner (Repsol Honda RC212V) continued the strong form he?s shown throughout winter testing and this inaugural race weekend by taking the season?s first MotoGP pole in the one hour session, held late on Saturday evening. Stoner, who was fastest in all three free practice sessions, lapped the 5.380k circuit in 1m, 54.137s.. The lap was fastest of all by a comfortable .205s as Stoner continues to showcase his ability to adapt the machine which he first rode at the end of last season.

Though the lap wasn?t the fastest qualifying mark ever, it was the fastest of the control tyre era and not far from the outright mark set in the last year of qualifying tyres.

The pole was the 23rd of Stoner?s MotoGP career, his 27th overall, and his second in the MotoGP class aboard a Honda. His first came at this track in 2006 in only his second MotoGP race.

Second on the grid is Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V), the Spaniard who?s been the only rider to keep Stoner honest this week. Pedrosa was second to Stoner in all three practice sessions and led Friday?s final 45-minute practice until Stoner went faster in the closing stages. Still, the two Repsol Honda riders have been so consistently fast that many of their rivals have admitted that beating them in Sunday?s curtain-raiser will be difficult.

Stoner and Pedrosa had a thrilling back and forth battle in the closing stages of the session that went to Stoner, though Pedrosa is quite strong and the speed of the two riders has them in a class by themselves.

Second year MotoGP rider Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V) will start his second season from the fourth spot on the grid after coming within .041s of his first front row start. The Italian, who has full factory machinery, wasn?t confident ahead of qualifying based on Friday?s practice, but after adjustments by the team to the race set-up, he was able to pick up the pace. His only concern was fuel consumption on a track with a very long straightaway and a number of hard accelerating corner exits.

The third member of the Repsol Honda team, Andrea Dovizioso, wanted to join his team-mates on the front row before ultimately qualifying on the row three pole. The problem was with his qualifying tyre, which he didn?t make the most of, though on race rubber he was confident of being able to challenge for a podium. The one area that needed improvement was stability under braking, which he planned to address in tomorrow night?s ?morning? warm-up.

Hiroshi Aoyama (San Carlo Honda Gresini) made his MotoGP debut here last year by qualifying tenth fastest, two spots higher than today?s mark. He wasn?t happy with that position, but believes his race set-up will suit the nighttime race. Aoyama was on his way to improving his grid spot before hitting traffic that denied him the chance.

Toni Elias (LCR Honda MotoGP) had a difficult evening in his first MotoGP qualifying session in more than a year. The 2010 Moto2 World Champion has struggled to find rear tyre grip throughout the pre-season and those struggles continued here this weekend. Complicating matters is that the Losail circuit is set in the desert, with gusting winds often blowing fine sand onto the racing surface, which was uncommonly cool this evening.

MotoGP Rider Quotes:

Casey Stoner, Repsol Honda: 1st ? 1m, 54.137s:
?We can't ask for a much better weekend, everything has gone well and the team have made all the right steps and gradually improved the bike as the weekend progressed. Tonight I was able to achieve good, consistent lap times again on the hard tyre and this is important for the race tomorrow. As ever, we will keep our feet on the ground as we've had good starts to seasons in the past and then they haven't played out as expected, we just need to keep working and ensure that we continue to progress. We've done all our homework and the best job possible, now I just want to get the season started.?

Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda: 2nd ? 1m, 54.342s
?The weekend has been very good for us so far, I've been running at the top in every session and I'm very happy to be on the front row in Losail for the first time; this is a big improvement for me. Nevertheless, we have to focus on the race, Casey is running very fast, also Lorenzo is improving very quickly, so we have to focus making no mistakes tomorrow. I don't know yet if the race will be a fight between Casey and myself. We've never run at 10:00 pm, so I hope the bike works well after 125 cc and Moto2 races. I want to prepare as best as possible for tomorrow and be ready to be consistent for 22 laps. The race will be fast, I guess, so we will need to maintain a high pace. I hope I will be able to do it and fight for the victory.?

Marco Simoncelli, San Carlo Honda Gresini: 4th - 1m, 54.988s
?Today went well and I'm happy because after practice yesterday I never thought about the fourth time. In this round we have made some small changes and we went a lot better in race trim. Then on the ?dry? lap I have been strong and I came within .041s of the front row. I'm still a bit concerned about fuel consumption, but we will still talk about it before the race. In any case, starting from the front is already quite an advantage and that will allow me to consume less fuel. Of course the two who have gone ahead are very strong and will dispute the race between themselves, but I will fight for a position of prestige.?

Andrea Dovizioso, Repsol Honda:, 7th ? 1m, 55.229s
?I?m disappointed with the third row, I need to improve the use of the soft tyre for a better qualifying. The positive point is that we have a good pace to fight for a podium spot, this is our target tomorrow. We will work during the warm up to improve the set up to get more stability at the beginning of the braking and I hope to gain more confidence and find a good stability in the front. For the race it will be very important to have a good start and arrive at turn 1 close to the first riders. It is impossible to catch Casey, I will try to maintain contact with Dani, Lorenzo and Spies. It?s important to start the season with a good result and I will give everything in the race.?

Hiroshi Aoyama, San Carlo Honda Gresini: 12th - 1m, 55.724s
?The position that I have won on the grid is not fantastic, but in race trim I feel OK. Of course I would favor starting further ahead, but I'm still pretty confident. Unfortunately in the last minute the track was very busy and I could not improve. In any case we are confident for the race and I feel prepared to make a good result.?

Toni Elias, LCR Honda MotoGP: 16th - 1m, 57.992s:
?Basically we have tried different chassis geometries and different suspension but whatever we tried we get stuck on the same lap time and this is very frustrating for me. We are struggling a lot, more than I was expecting, but we still have 20 minutes tomorrow to adjust the bike. I want to thank the team for their good job and I will continue to do my best.?

Pole position : 1m54.137s (169.69Km/h) Casey Stoner, Honda
Circuit record lap : 1m54.137s (169.69Km/h) Casey Stoner (Honda, 2011)
Circuit Best Lap : 1m53.927s (170.003Km/h) Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha, 2008)
Qualifying position
1 Casey Stoner 1m54.137s AUS HONDA Repsol Honda Team
2 Dani Pedrosa +0.205s SPA HONDA Repsol Honda Team
3 Jorge Lorenzo +0.810s SPA YAMAHA Yamaha Factory Racing
4 Marco Simoncelli +0.851s ITA HONDA Honda Gresini
5 Ben Spies +0.958s USA YAMAHA Yamaha Factory Racing
6 Hector Barbera +1.086s SPA DUCATI Aspar Ducati
7 Andrea Dovizioso +1.092s ITA HONDA Repsol Honda Team
8 Cal Crutchlow +1.441s GBR YAMAHA Monster Yamaha Tech 3
9 Valentino Rossi +1.500s ITA DUCATI Ducati Team
10 Colin Edwards +1.510s USA YAMAHA Monster Yamaha Tech 3
11 Randy De Puniet +1.519s FRA DUCATI Pramac Racing Team
12 Hiroshi Aoyama +1.587s JPN HONDA Honda Gresini
13 Nicky Hayden +1.744s USA DUCATI Ducati Team
14 Loris Capirossi +2.186s ITA DUCATI Pramac Racing Team
15 Karel Abraham +2.528s CZE DUCATI Cardion AB Ducati
16 Toni Elias +3.855s SPA HONDA LCR Honda MotoGP
17 Alvaro Bautista -- SPA SUZUKI Suzuki MotoGP

 

[KUCIAR666]

THIRD ROW FOR ROSSI IN QATAR, HAYDEN THIRTEENTH

Valentino Rossi will start on the third row of the grid tomorrow in the Grand Prix of Qatar, while his teammate, Nicky Hayden, will have to try and work his way forward from the fifth row, with an error in the final split of what would have been his best lap preventing him from improving his time.

Nonetheless, the Italian rider said he is satisfied with the progress made with the setup of his GP11, and he hopes that his still-healing shoulder will permit him to maintain a good pace until the end of tomorrow?s 22-lap race, a distance that he still hasn?t completed in one run since his operation in November.

Valentino Rossi (Ducati Marlboro Team) 9th, 1:55.637
?I think that without my shoulder problem, which is causing us to lose five or six tenths, we could have been on the second row today, because we were able to improve the setup by making changes that will also be important in the foreseeable future. Today I was able to ride the GP11 better, but by the time we used the soft tyre at the end of the session, my strength was gone. When I tried to do my lap time, there were some parts of the track where I just couldn?t push. Anyway, we got an okay time and we still have some things we can try in the warm-up. As for the race I think that as long as my shoulder lasts, we?ll be able to have a pace that?s relatively competitive, apart from the two Hondas. We?ll see how it goes from a physical point of view in the second half of the race, after eleven or twelve laps in a row riding on the limit.?

Nicky Hayden (Ducati Marlboro Team) 13th, 1:55.881
?It was pretty much the same way that it has been all weekend. I just clearly wasn?t fast enough. We tried something toward the start of the session that was very similar to last year?s setup, but it didn?t work. I got back on my other bike and had one decent lap going, but I made a mistake in the last corner. Most of the weekend I?ve been able to go just as fast on used hard tyres, but that wasn?t the case tonight, even though the temperature is warmer. I thought my best lap might get me out of trouble a little bit, because it was the first time since we got rid of qualifying tyres that I got into the 55s around here, but it wasn?t nearly good enough this year. We?ve known since the tests in Malaysia that everybody has made a big step. It?s been a frustrating weekend, and it won?t be easy tomorrow starting from way back, but we?re not ready to go home yet.?

 

[KUCIAR666]

Lorenzo Steals the Front Row for Qatar

Yamaha Factory Racing rider Jorge Lorenzo reminded everyone why he's the reigning World Champion this evening in the first qualifying session of the 2011 MotoGP World Championship. The blisteringly quick session saw the fastest riders breaking further and further into the 1'54s as the clock counted down. With just a handful of minutes to go the Mallorcan put the hammer down, delivering a 1'54.947 on his 23rd lap to secure a front row start with third place on the grid.

Lorenzo's team mate Spies was also sending out a clear message on the time sheets. The Texan gradually worked his way down the 1.55s and was threatening to follow his team mate into the 1.54s until a small mistake costing a tenth of a second resulted in a best time of 1'55.095, just 0.148 of a second off the front row. As a result he will start mid second row in fifth for the opening race of the season under the floodlights tomorrow night.

Jorge Lorenzo Position : 3rd Time: 1'54.947 Laps: 26

There were some really impressive lap times out there tonight in the session. We are still quite far behind the front but our goal is to finish on the podium and that is in my mind for tomorrow. My race pace is pretty good; I think I can keep running 1'55.7s or maybe 1'55.8s. We will finalise our set up in warm up and try to achieve that tomorrow.


Ben Spies Position : 5th Time: 1'55.095 Laps: 26

It was actually better to be fifth than fourth for grid position although I'd have liked to be on the front row! It wasn't a perfect session, I didn't nail a perfect lap time but you rarely do. I don't think we were too far off the maximum, maybe there were two tenths left in the bike and that's it. It's not so bad though, we have a good package to battle for the podium tomorrow. I did the best I could so not a bad start to the year.

Wilco Zeelenberg Team Manager
A very hot qualifying session, we're happy to be near the front with both riders. Jorge is top three but very close in the times with fourth, fifth and sixth so it will be a tough race tomorrow. He feels ok with the bike and lap times were good. We're going to focus on tomorrow now, it's going to be a long hard race!


Massimo Meregalli Team Director
We will start the race in good positions with both riders, the race pace of both of them was very good so we are ready to go out there. Ben is quite satisfied with his bike set up, he made a small mistake and lost at least one tenth on his fast lap but he said the bike was working well with a used tyre so we have confidence for tomorrow. We will confirm the last details in warm up to be as good as possible for the race.

Qualifying Times

FRONT ROW
1. Casey Stoner (AUS) Repsol Honda Team 1'54.137
2. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 1'54.342
3. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Yamaha Factory Racing 1'54.947
SECOND ROW
4. Marco Simoncelli (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini 1'54.988
5. Ben Spies (USA) Yamaha Factory Racing 1'55.095
6. Hector Barbera (SPA) Aspar Team 1'55.223
THIRD ROW
7. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Repsol Honda Team 1'55.229
8. Cal Crutchlow (GBR) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1'55.578
9. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Ducati Team 1'55.637
FOURTH ROW
10. Colin Edwards (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1'55.647
11. Randy De Puniet (FRA) Pramac Racing Team 1'55.656
12. Hiroshi Aoyama (JPN) San Carlo Honda Gresini 1'55.724
FIFTH ROW
13. Nicky Hayden (USA) Ducati Team 1'55.881
14. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Pramac Racing Team 1'56.323
15. Karel Abraham (CZE) Cardion AB Motoracing 1'56.665
SIXTH ROW
16. Toni Elias (SPA) LCR Honda MotoGP 1'57.992

 

[KUCIAR666]

FOURTH AND FIFTH ROW FOR RANDY DE PUNIET AND LORIS CAPIROSSI IN THE GRAND PRIX OF QATAR

After the promising results of yesterday there is a bit of disappointment inside the box of the Pramac Racing Team. Randy De Puniet, who had finished in ninth place yesterday, had to settle for eleventh place, which earned him the fourth row in the Qatar Grand Prix scheduled for tomorrow evening at 10pm local time. The Frenchman, however, has reported a good race pace and remains confident. His teammate was not able to regain the confidence of yesterday fighting with gritted teeth and managed to locate in fifth row three positions behind the French rider.

Marco Rigamonti Randy De Puniet Track Engineer

"We'll see how the track conditions will be tomorrow because even today, with the track temperature a few degrees higher, the bike had more grip and all the riders have improved significantly. The pace is certainly very good, too bad only in the last three rounds where Randy has had some complications with the front tire. However we remain very confident for tomorrows race."


Randy De Puniet - Pramac Racing rider 11th best lap time in 155.656

"I am a bit 'disappointed with qualifying today. We had a good strategy in mind having three sets of soft tires available, but at the end of the session when it was time to make the fast lap time something went wrong. During the session we have made some changes on the front to have more confidence in corners and this will allow me to be consistent in the race tomorrow. Unfortunately the last time out the front tire was not performing as in previous trials and I was limited. A minimum target point for me was the third row, but unfortunately we did not make it. Tomorrow will be very important to start well so we can stick to the leading group from the firsts laps."

Loris Capirossi Pramac Racing rider 14th best lap time in 156.323

"With todays higher temperatures we have lost the feeling found yesterday. We had some complications with the tires and the front of the bike. When I come out of the corners I can not open the throttle as I want because the bike slides a bit. We will work hard to improve. Tomorrow will be important to start in the clean side of the track because where we do not usually pass there is a little bit of sand and the bike slide a bit. Anyway as always I will give my best."

 

[KUCIAR666]

Crutchlow dazzles in Qatar qualifying

Cal CrutchlowMotoGP Rookie Cal Crutchlow lit up the Losail International Circuit in Qatar tonight with a stunning debut qualifying performance.

The British rider lapped faster than nine-times world champion Valentino Rossi and a host of more experienced riders to produce the performance of the night on board the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 YZR-M1 machine.

Crutchlow built up his confidence and speed throughout tonight's session, the big progress he's made in mastering the braking technique in MotoGP evident with fast and consistent pace.

He made major steps in improving front-end feel in the fast sections of the 5.38km Doha circuit and finished less than 0.5s away from the top six, despite still riding in constant pain from the nasty left finger injury he suffered in a testing crash on Monday night. He was a massive 2.2s faster than his best pace at the two-night test earlier this week and he's confident he can fight for a top ten finish in his MotoGP debut tomorrow night.

Colin Edwards will kick off his ninth premier class campaign from 10th position, the experienced American finishing just over 0.060s behind Crutchlow.

Edwards was happy with his performance on the hard compound Bridgestone rear tyre he will use in the 22-lap race tomorrow night. But he was unable to significantly improve his pace on the soft tyre on his way to clocking a best time of 1.55.647

Cal Crutchlow 8th 1.55.578 ? 23 laps:

?It feels great to have qualified eighth when you look at the calibre and record of some of the guys behind me, but I'm not going to be getting ahead of myself. It is just a shame it is not the four-rider per row formation because that would be a second row! But to be on the third row, I'm happy enough with that. A qualifying session like that is not like Superpole in World Superbikes at all. I'm normally used to the intense pressure and being hyped up for one lap, so to have an hour where you build up pace a bit slower felt a bit strange. But I'm really happy and my fastest lap wasn't a perfect one. I made a couple of mistakes but I think that's because I'm having a small issue with the front-end in the fast corners. But I still managed a 55.5 and I never would have imagined doing that pace a few days ago at the test when I was doing high 57s. I'm not going to make a prediction for the race. I'd be happy to get a few points and have a strong race. It will be tough to finish where I've qualified but with the help of my Monster Yamaha Tech 3 crew, it has been a really positive weekend so far."

Colin Edwards 10th 1.55.647 ? 24 laps:

?I definitely feel like I'm riding a lot better than tenth position, but that shows how competitive MotoGP is this year. As good as I'm riding, I feel like I should have been on the second row because all week I've been around sixth and seventh position. I just wasn't able to lap as fast as I needed to be on the soft tyre. It looks a bit like last year in that when the Honda has a soft tyre in they can drop the lap time by a big chunk. We improve but not by a big margin and that's something we need to work on in the future. But I'm really confident with the hard rear tyre and we've got the bike working great in race trim. I'm fast and consistent but I couldn't do anything more, I'm definitely getting the most of the bike.?

 

[KUCIAR666]

Lorenzo Goes All Out For a Sensational Losail Podium

Reigning World Champion Jorge Lorenzo delivered a perfect performance for the opening round of the 2011 MotoGP Championship under the floodlights of the Losail Circuit in Qatar tonight. The young Mallorcan started well off the line, leading the front pack briefly before settling into third behind Stoner and Pedrosa as they battled for the lead. With eight laps to go he hunted down Pedrosa and moved up into second. He surrendered the spot briefly for two laps then retook with a decisive pass, leaving the Spanish rider behind with an astounding burst of speed and posting 1.55.8 second lap times for the 20th and 21st laps. Lorenzo crossed the line in second for the hard won podium having closed the gap to lead rider Stoner to just 3.440 seconds.

Fellow Yamaha Factory Racing rider Ben Spies had a less successful start, getting caught up into the first corner and dropping to eighth as the pack settled. The Texan quickly closed in on Hector Barbera in front, dispatching him after three laps to begin the hunt for Valentino Rossi in sixth. After several laps maintaining a distance of just 0.1 to 0.2 seconds Spies made a pass at the end of the start finish straight but carried too much speed into the corner, running wide and tucking back in behind Rossi. He built up again and in a mirror of the first pass took Rossi at the end of the straight, making it stick through the first corner sequence and then echoed his team mate with a startling turn of speed, dropping to a 1?55.812 on the 18th lap. By the time he crossed the line in sixth the gap to Rossi had built to 5.96 seconds.

The Yamaha Factory Racing riders head to round two in Jerez in two weeks time with Lorenzo second in the MotoGP Championship standings on 20 points, team mate Spies sits in sixth with ten points.

Jorge Lorenzo
Position : 2nd Time: +3.440 Laps:



I think maybe I am more proud of that podium than a race victory, that?s how I feel tonight. I feel very proud of myself and my team who never gave up and worked to give me the best bike that they can. I put everything I have inside into my riding on the track for the race from the start to the end and was on the limit every lap. I almost crashed on one corner but I managed to stay on the bike and finished in second position which is the best that I could do.


Ben Spies
Position : 6th Time: +10.468 Laps:



That?s the first race of the year done and dusted, it wasn?t picture perfect and I got pushed out a bit in turn one, getting trapped behind Barbera and Rossi the first few laps. They were fighting together which meant I lost touch with the guys in front. Other than that it was a good race, I struggled to get by Valentino for a while, he was riding really well and he?s not an easy guy to get around! Once we were able to get past we set fast lap times and the bike was feeling good. It was just the first part of the race that didn?t pan out, I didn?t get a lucky break on the start. We race in two weeks so I?m happy to get back on it at Jerez. It?s the first race of the year, I didn?t make top five but we got some points so I?m happy.


Wilco Zeelenberg
Team Manager


A fantastic result! I?m very pleased for Jorge finishing second, a shame Ben struggled a little bit in the beginning with the start and got stuck behind Valentino too long. Jorge raced with a big heart, it was amazing to see him mix it with the competition and lead briefly in the early laps. We can see it will be a tough season, but we can see that Jorge can cut it at the front. I?m very proud of him, it was a fantastic race.


Massimo Meregalli
Team Director


A great start for my first MotoGP, Jorge proved he can deliver a fantastic race. We saw in warm up that the competition wasn?t so far away and he pushed really hard throughout to achieve his podium. Ben unfortunately had a not so good start and lost some time behind Barbera and Rossi. When he finally passed them and had a clear track his lap times were really good, scoring the fourth best lap of the race. We are satisfied and can now look to Jerez with a confident eye.






Results

1. Casey Stoner (AUS) Repsol Honda Team 42'38.569
2. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Yamaha Factory Racing + 3.440
3. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team + 5.051
4. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Repsol Honda Team + 5.942
5. Marco Simoncelli (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini + 7.358
6. Ben Spies (USA) Yamaha Factory Racing + 10.468
7. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Ducati Team + 16.431
8. Colin Edwards (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 + 26.293
9. Nicky Hayden (USA) Ducati Team + 27.416
10. Hiroshi Aoyama (JPN) San Carlo Honda Gresini + 28.920
11. Cal Crutchlow (GBR) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 + 34.539
12. Hector Barbera (SPA) Aspar Team + 34.829
13. Karel Abraham (CZE) Cardion AB Motoracing + 37.957
14. Toni Elias (SPA) LCR Honda MotoGP Not classified (4 laps)
15. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Pramac Racing Team Not classified (21 laps)
16. Randy De Puniet (FRA) Pramac Racing Team Not classified (22 laps)


Championship Standings

1 Casey Stoner (AUS) Repsol Honda Team 25
2 Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Yamaha Factory Racing 20
3 Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 16
4 Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Repsol Honda Team 13
5 Marco Simoncelli (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini 11
6 Ben Spies (USA) Yamaha Factory Racing 10
7 Valentino Rossi (ITA) Ducati Team 9
8 Colin Edwards (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 8
9 Nicky Hayden (USA) Ducati Team 7
10 Hiroshi Aoyama (JPN) San Carlo Honda Gresini 6
11 Cal Crutchlow (GBR) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 5
12 Hector Barbera (SPA) Aspar Team 4
13 Karel Abraham (CZE) Cardion AB Motoracing 3