MotoGP Misano

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DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM TARGET PODIUM RETURN AT MISANO

The Ducati Marlboro Team return home this weekend looking to put on a good show for the local crowd at Misano and make up for a disappointing race last year, which Casey Stoner missed through illness whilst Nicky Hayden was taken out by another rider in the first turn.

Both riders have shown their pace around the Italian circuit previously, however, Stoner having won in 2007 and leading the 2008 race before crashing, and Hayden finding a good set-up and pace for his Ducati in practice last year.

As always the Ducatisti will be out in force to support them from the Ducati grandstand, which is located in the ?Variante Parco?, the first turn after the start-finish straight.

CASEY STONER, Ducati Marlboro Team
?Indy was obviously a big disappointment for us but we're looking ahead. I am happy to be going to one of Ducati's home circuits and a place where we have gone fast in the past. It is the third of the races I missed in 2009 so we'll see what we can do this weekend. We'll have to work hard on the front again because we don't want to take a backward step on the progress we've made recently. The whole team is working really hard, the guys are giving everything like always so hopefully we can have a good result to celebrate on Sunday."

NICKY HAYDEN, Ducati Marlboro Team
?We have travelled straight from Indianapolis to Italy so it feels like a short week! We had a really good pace in race trim during practice and warm-up at Misano last year but I got hit from behind in the race on the Sunday. It is always special to race a Ducati in Italy and I can't wait for it. Last year went like I said and in 2008 I didn't race because of a foot injury so we'll try to make up for it on Sunday, when I'm sure we'll have the support of a lot of fans and a lot of people from Ducati.?

VITTORIANO GUARESCHI, Team Manager
?The race definitely didn't go to plan at Indianapolis but both Casey and Nicky had the pace to be on the podium. Now we head to Misano, a place where both riders have proved in the past that they can be on the pace so we hope that's the case again this weekend. As always the team is doing an incredible job to put them in the best possible shape."

THE TRACK
The Misano Adriatico circuit was built at the start of the seventies and has since undergone a series of modifications that have altered both the length, which has been extended from 3.488km to 4.226km, and the layout as well as updates to the pit facilities and paddock. The current layout, which was switched from anti-clockwise to clockwise in 2007 when MotoGP returned after a 16-year absence, looks straightforward but is far from it. It is actually a technical, slow circuit with tight corners other than the famously fast ?Curvone? right-hander.

MISANO CIRCUIT RECORDS

Circuir Record: Valentino Rossi (Yamaha - 2009), 1?34.746 ? 160.572 Km/h
Best Pole: Casey Stoner (Ducati ? 2008), 1?33.378 ? 162.924 km/h
Circuit Length: 4,226 km
MotoGP Race 2010: 28 giri (118.328 km)
MotoGP Schedule 2010: 14:00 Local Time
Number of laps: 28
Race distance: 118.328km

PODIUM 2009 : 1st Valentino Rossi, 2nd Jorge Lorenzo, 3rd Dani Pedrosa
POLE 2009: Valentino Rossi (Yamaha ? 2009), 1?34.338 - 161.266 km/h

DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM'S BEST RESULTS AT MISANO

2009: DNF
2008: 9th (Melandri)
2007: 1st (Stoner)

DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM - RIDER INFO

CASEY STONER
Age: 24 (born 16th October 1985 in Southport, Queensland, Australia )
Residency: Switzerland
Bike: Ducati Team Desmosedici GP10
Number: 27
GP Appearances: 137 (76xMotoGP, 31x250, 30x125)
GP victories: 27 (20xMotoGP, 5x250, 2x125)
First GP win: Valencia, 2003 (125)
GP debut: Great Britain, 2001 (125)
Pole positions: 22 (18xMotoGP, 2x250, 2x125)
First pole position: Italy, 2003 (125)
World Titles: 1 (MotoGP, 2007)

Stoner's MotoGP track record at Misano:
2009: Qualified: - Race: - DNS
2008: Qualified: 1st. Race: DNF
2007: Qualified: 1st. Race: 1st

NICKY HAYDEN
Age: 29 (born 30th July 1981 in Owensboro, Kentucky, USA)
Residency: Owensboro, USA
Bike: Ducati Team Desmosedici GP10
Number: 69
GP Appearances: 127 (127xMotoGP)
First GP: Japan, 2003 (MotoGP)
GP wins: 3 (3xMotoGP)
First GP win: USA, 2005 (MotoGP)
Pole positions: 5 (5xMotoGP)
First pole: USA, 2005 (MotoGP)
World titles: 1 (MotoGP, 2006)

Hayden's MotoGP track record at Misano:
2009: Qualificed: 6th. Race: DNF
2008. Qualifica: 16th. Race: DNS
2007: Qualifica: 3rd. Race: 13th

 

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INTERWETTEN HONDA MotoGP TEAM: Gran Premio Aperol di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini

After the successful return of Hiroshi Aoyama at the U.S. Grand Prix in Indianapolis the next race take place on European sole again. The Gran Premio Aperol di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini is the twelfth Grand Prix of the Season 2010.

The racetrack in Misano suits the 28-year-old Japanese. He was fighting for a podium finish last year in 250cc and only missed out on it with a fourth place. The race itself Aoyama started from Pole Position in 2009. Also this year Aoyama hopes that he can have a good performance, but he is still recovering from his crash in the Warm up of the British Grand Prix in Silverstone and is not 100% fit yet. In Indianapolis he showed that he is on the right way and will also try to proof this once again in Misano.

Hiroshi Aoyama:
"It is only one week until we race in Misano. For sure I will not make big steps forward in recovery from my injury in just 5 days, but step by step I am feeling better and better and I hope my condition will be better also in Misano. Last year in 250cc I was fighting for the podium there and I also had pole position, so I am looking forward to this circuit."

Daniel M. Epp, Team Manager:
"Hiro proofed in Indianapolis that he is on the right way and showed a good performance there. Also in Misano he will try to give it all again, but we don't push him. He will need some more races to gain back his physical confidence. The target also this weekend will be that he finds his way back step by step and gets back into his old form that he had earlier this year."

 

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Pedrosa aims to maintain momentum at Misano

Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V) goes into this weekend?s San Marino Grand Prix aiming to maintain his momentum following a brilliant victory in Sunday?s Indianapolis GP. The Spaniard?s impressively dominant ride underlined ongoing improvements with the Repsol Honda Team?s factory RC212V machines.

The victory also strengthened Pedrosa?s second place in the 2010 MotoGP World Championship and moved him nine points closer to series leader Jorge Lorenzo who finished the race in third place behind fellow Yamaha rider Ben Spies. Of course, the title is still a very long shot for Pedrosa, who now sits 68 points behind Lorenzo with seven races remaining.

Nonetheless, Pedrosa?s third victory of the season makes this his most successful campaign since he graduated to the premier class back in 2006. Over the past four years the 24-year-old has always scored two wins per season.

Pedrosa, who finished last year?s San Marino Grand Prix in third place, has high hopes of another good result at Misano and will be working closely with his crew to continue improving his RC212V.

Team-mate Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda RC212V) regained third place in the World Championship at Indy despite an altogether tougher race day. The Italian was confident of a strong ride after qualifying a close fourth fastest, but in the race he struggled to maintain his pace and finished in fifth place. Dovizioso will be doing everything he can to regroup and score his fifth podium of the year at his home GP track. The Italian ? who was 125 World Champion in 2004 ? made his debut on a real race bike at Misano almost exactly ten years ago.

Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda RC212V) also had a gruelling time at Indianapolis. The Indy race was only his second race since his comeback from a broken left leg, which kept him out of action for just four weeks. The Frenchman, who had impressed the paddock with some remarkable performances earlier in the season, suffered the injury when he fell and was run over by another rider at the German GP on July 18. De Puniet therefore knows that he is still building both strength and speed. He also knows that Misano will be another challenging weekend.

Team-mates Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V) and Marco Melandri (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V) will be hoping to score their squad?s best result of the year at their local track, less than an hour?s drive away from the team headquarters in Faenza. Simoncelli comes to Misano on the back of a strong ride to seventh place at Indy, following an entertaining duel with former 250 rival Alvaro Bautista (Suzuki). The Italian is one of many GP riders from the Misano area, but few are as local as Simoncelli, who was born in Cattolica, just six kilometres from the track!

Melandri will also be anxious to show his speed this weekend in what will be his 201st Grand Prix after his hopes of a great result at Indy were dashed by a fall in the race ? the former 250 World Champion was one of many riders who were brought to ground by the track?s treacherous surface. Melandri had been riding well until the fall and is determined to bounce back with a good result at Misano, even though he is still struggling to get the very best out of his machinery.

Hiroshi Aoyama (Interwetten Honda MotoGP RC212V) made his return to racing at Indianapolis, ten weeks after crashing and breaking a vertebra at Silverstone. The Japanese rode a hero?s race to 12th place at Indy, wearing a special back brace inside his leathers. Aware that he will still be in recovery mode at Misano, Aoyama will be working to further improve his feeling with his RC212V and bring home another good points haul.

Misano hosted its first Grand Prix event in 1980 and staged the Italian world round (then called the Grand Prix of Nations) on and off throughout the decade. In 2008 the circuit returned to the World Championship calendar after an absence of 14 years, having undergone major changes, most importantly a change of direction that transformed the circuit from anti-clockwise to clockwise. Misano, situated just inland from Italy?s Adriatic holiday coast, is mostly dominated by tight, slow-speed turns that give MotoGP riders a tough time on their 220 horsepower machines. User-friendly power delivery and excellent braking stability are important at a circuit which features four hairpin bends. Honda has won three premier-class GP victories at the seaside venue, with Mick Doohan in 1991, Pier-Francesco Chili in 1989 and Freddie Spencer in 1984.

HONDA MotoGP RIDER QUOTES

Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa says:
?We are at a very competitive moment right now and three wins so far this year has taken me past my total my the previous MotoGP seasons. It?s a nice milestone to pass and so I?m feeling very confident for the next races. Indianapolis was great and it was very satisfying to win such a physically demanding race, however, we don?t have so much time to recover before Misano this weekend. Having said that, we?ll be ready. The team is in a good mood and we have proved that we can be competitive for many races in a row, so we want to continue this form. Misano has been a difficult circuit for Honda in the last few years but this time we will try to do the best possible job and be right at the front once again. It?s a track with many linked slow corners where you need a very agile bike and also a smooth power delivery, whereas our engine is very strong but can also be quite aggressive which causes the bike to slide. So we?ll have to do a very good job to find the right setting and get good traction ? as we did in Indianapolis. It?s not so much a power circuit as one which requires good driveability from the engine. The gap in the championship to Lorenzo is still very big and he has been very consistent, so our goal for the rest of the season is simply to continue being competitive at every GP and give ourselves the chance to win races, starting with another one this weekend.?

Repsol Honda rider Andrea Dovizioso says:
?We arrive in Misano in very determined mood; our target is the podium. In Indianapolis we were fast during the race weekend but we couldn?t maintain consistent speed for the whole race distance and this is something we must work on and improve. Now we need to score some strong results. The Misano track is short and twisty and there are a lot of bumps, but after Indianapolis we are certainly used to bumps and I?m look forward to race there. I?m confident. Misano is a special track for me, not only because it?s my home GP ? in fact I live only 70kms away ? but because I raced my first ?real? race bike there in 2000. It was my debut on a proper race machine ? it was 125cc ? after having raced pocket bikes up to that point. I remember that it was an incredible experience, and at that moment I had the feeling that something big and special was happening. In last year?s MotoGP weekend here I raced for the first time with ?hlins suspension and I came home fourth, which was a respectable result. So I?m feeling very positive about this GP because compared to last year we have progressed a lot.?

LCR Honda rider Randy de Puniet says:
?Last weekend?s race at Indy was really tough, even tougher than Brno where I made my comeback a couple of weeks earlier. The layout of the Indianapolis track made things very difficult for me, so I hope that Misano will be a little bit less punishing for me. Of course, we?ve only had a few days since Indy, so no real time for rest or physio, so I don?t expect my injury to be much better, but I like the track and I will be doing everything I can to get some good points and keep my position in the points standings.?

San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Marco Simoncelli says:
?I was satisfied at the end of the race at Indianapolis but to be honest I would have preferred a top five finish. We?ll try for it at Misano! To be honest the Misano circuit itself isn?t one of my favourites but the support from the fans makes up for that and should be a big help this weekend. I have never had great results at my home race so hopefully we can turn that record around this weekend. Since Brno we have taken another step forward and I hope things can improve still further this weekend. I have had a lot of support from Honda and the team and that is crucial to my progress.?

San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Marco Melandri says:
?The crash at Indianapolis wasn?t what we needed. I am disappointed with the way the season is going ? I?m struggling and can?t find a way to improve my feeling with the bike and adapt it to my style of riding. Hopefully the fact this is a home race for us can help. I want to make up for time lost over the last couple of races and find a way to ride the RC212V to the limit. I really want to show my true potential again and we?ll be working hard with the team at Misano on this very objective.?

Interwetten Honda MotoGP rider Hiroshi Aoyama says:
?It is only one week until we race in Misano. For sure I will not make big steps forward in recovery from my injury in just five days, but step by step I am feeling better and better and I hope my condition will be better also in Misano. Last year in the 250cc race at Misano I was fighting for the podium there and I also had pole position, so I am looking forward to this circuit.?

 

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No rest for Fiat Yamaha as they return to Europe and marvellous Misano

Despite having just finished a punishing weekend's racing in the searing heat of Indianapolis, the MotoGP riders will be back on board in four days time for the twelfth round of the season at Misano Adriatico on Italy's eastern seaboard. It is another 'home' race for the Fiat Yamaha team, as it lies just a few hundred kilometres away their Italian base, and both championship leader Jorge Lorenzo and his team-mate Valentino Rossi will be planning on a big weekend at the Italian party town.

Lorenzo finished third in Indianapolis, the first time he has been out of the top two all season, and although it was another great result for the 23-year-old he was disappointed not to have been able to mount a stronger challenge after winning there the year before. He still leads the championship by a mighty 68-points however and none can argue that he is in the form of his life, with seven wins to his name this season. After finishing second at Misano for the past two sasons he will be one of the favourites to top the podium on Sunday and will be going all-out to take a first premier class win on Italian soil.

Misano lies just 13km away from Rossi's hometown of Tavullia, where the 31-year-old legend grew up and where he still lives today. The race always brings out the Rossi tifosi in their thousands and this year will be no different as they will their idol on to take a first win since the opening race of the year. Indianapolis was tough for Rossi, who is still suffering the effects of his injury earlier in the season, but the fact that he has won in Misano for the previous two years will give him confidence and he will be aiming for the top come Sunday.

This will be the fourth year of racing at Misano since Grand Prix racing returned there after a 16-year gap, when the circuit was altered to run in the opposite direction to previous years. The tracks sits a kilometre inland, just back from the string of small towns and villages that make up Italy's 'East Coast Riviera' and that turn into a huge party zone for the thousands of fans that pack into them during race weekend. Misano is another completely flat track, like Indianapolis last weekend, but the similarities end there as the Italian track is tight and twisty, with no long straights and a fairly equal balance of right and left corners meaning an agile bike is a must.

Jorge Lorenzo - "Straight to Misano"
"We are going straight to Misano and I want to continue in the same way and get on the podium again. I've been second there for the last two years and I am feeling very motivated and looking forward to another good race. I hope the temperature is a bit cooler than in Indy because it was really too hot there. Last Sunday was my worst result this year, but I am still happy because it was still third and because it was very important for our goal, which is the Championship."

Valentino Rossi - "Hoping to give the fans a good show"
"In Indianapolis we made some progress with our race setting but the conditions made me realise that I'm still not 100% fit. It's hard going straight to Misano with no break but hopefully it will be a little bit cooler than Indy! Of course it's my home race and it's near my house so it's always very special to race there, in front of all of my fans. I have won there the last two years but this year we come in slightly different circumstances. Still, we will be trying our hardest and I really hope I can give the fans a good show!"

Wilco Zeelenberg - "A track that he loves"
"Misano is straight away so it will be important that Jorge gets a couple of days of good rest before we get there. It's a track that he loves and it will be a lot less bumpy than Indy so hopefully a bit easier on everyone. He's been second there the last two years and our bike works very well there so we will be trying for the podium once again."

Davide Brivio - "Going in the right direction"
"We were happy after Indy because despite the difficulties of the weekend it ended on a good note and Valentino was able to ride how he wanted in the race, even if it wasn't for the whole race because of the heat and his physical condition. It shows that we're going in the right direction towards our goal of a strong end to the season. Now we go to our 'home' track, close to our workshop and even closer to Vale's house! We've had two great years there and we will be doing the best we can do put on another good show for all Valentino's fans at Misano."

Valentino Rossi : Information
Age: 31
Lives: Tavullia, Italy
Bike: Yamaha
GP victories: 104 (78 x MotoGP/500cc, 14 x 250cc, 12 x 125cc)
First GP victory: Czech Republic, 1996 (125cc)
First GP: Malaysia, 1996 (125cc)
GP starts: 234 (174 x MotoGP/500cc, 30 x 250cc, 30 x 125cc)
Pole positions: 59 (49 x MotoGP/500cc, 5 x 250cc, 5 x 125cc)
World Championships: 9 Grand Prix (1 x 125cc, 1 x 250cc, 1 x 500cc, 6 x MotoGP)

Jorge Lorenzo: Information
Age: 23
Lives: Barcelona, Spain
Bike: Yamaha
GP victories: 33 (13 x MotoGP, 17 x 250cc, 4 x 125cc)
First GP victory: Brazil, 2003 (125cc)
First GP: Jerez, Spain, 2002 (125cc)
GP starts: 139 (45 x MotoGP, 48 x 250cc, 46 x 125cc)
Pole positions: 40 (14 x MotoGP, 23 x 250cc, 3 x 125cc)
World Championships: 2 (250cc, 2006/7)

Misano: Record Lap
V. Rossi (Yamaha) 2009, 1'34.746

Misano: Best Lap
C.Stoner (Ducati) 2008, 1'33.378

Grand Prix Results: Misano 2009
1. V. Rossi (Yamaha) 44'32.882
2. J. Lorenzo (Yamaha) +2.416
3. D.Pedrosa (Honda) +12.400

 

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MOTOGP BACK IN EUROPE FOR THE LAST SUMMER GRAND PRIX OF THE SEASON

After Indianapolis Grand Prix that ended with ups and downs for the Pramac Racing Team riders, the bike world is back in Europe for the appointment that is considered by all the last summer event of the season. Sunday will be the fifteenth race on this track for the premier class, which has included from four year the San Marino Gran Prix in its schedule. It is on this track that Elias has conquest in 2008 the last Pramac Racing Team podium of his history. A third place that had made become the Pramac Racing Team the only satellite Team to have won two podium in that season. Last year both Pramac riders had a good weekend with the eleventh place of Aleix Espargar? that was attending his second Grand Prix ever riding a MotoGP bike. Mika has instead conquer on this track his best last year result, a seventh position riding the Ducati factory, this bodes well for Sunday's race. The two consecutive falls had give a huge charge to the Finn rider that will fight to regain a leading position in Sunday's race. Aleix after he had end Indianapolis's race in the top ten, will try to get in Misano, one of his favorite track, a good result that can finally give him the label of good rider. On this track he was able to achieved in the past, his best starting grid position, the third place in 2008, but he was not able to realize a good race as he has felt in the race just seven laps from the end. With a good combination of factors, the Team will try to finish the race for the first time of this season with both riders in the top ten.


Paolo Campinoti - Team Principal Pramac Racing Team

"We are continuing to have not so much luck and Indianapolis race is the proof. Mika had a bad start of the weekend because of the flu he had during Friday's free practice. The riders are not robots, and even if Mika have tried to push his bike to the limits, he failed to get a good lap time. Fortunately, his physical condition where better and in Saturday's session he tried the bike in the best way, but he had to recover the time lost Friday, there were some problems that was not possible to solve before and during qualifying session. He had started the race from the fifteenth position but he was soon able to recover positions on positions taking the eighth place. An asphalt disconnection, dealt with the speeds that these bikes can reach, was fatal for him. Fortunately, despite the dangerous fall, he haven't got injuries. I'm happy for Aleix return in the top ten. I'm sure that if there was not this king of heat that has conditioned his final laps, Aleix would try to fight with the other riders ahead of him for the seventh and eighth place. Now we'll all go back in Italy, we will race Sunday on one of both riders favorite tracks. Here we have got our last podium in the 2008, a third place with Elias. The hope is that both riders will be able to give their best to conquer an important position that gives to the whole Team good feelings for the remaining seven races that are going to be very competitive."

Aleix Espargar? - Pramac Racing Team

"The last laps in Indianapolis were very difficult for me, between the air heat and the heat produced by my bike was difficult to keep on pushing. Too bad because I could have fought with Simoncelli and Bautista for the seventh and eighth position, however the important thing is to have finished the race in the better way as possible. I'm in perfect shape now and is good for me to get in these physical conditions to the Misano's appointment that is one of my favorite tracks. Here I have got my best starting position on the starting grid, the third position in 2008 when I was racing in the 250cc. Last year was not so bad despite the fifteenth starting position, it was my second Grand Prix in the MotoGP category and I was aiming to conquer a good position. The eleventh final position has partially repaid the work done by my technicians throughout the weekend. This year's goal is to significantly improve my starting position and then my final race position."

Mika Kallio - Pramac Racing Team

"I hope that the bad luck that has conditioned some of my races of this season is over with the fall of Indianapolis Grand Prix. I was trying to maintain the contact with the riders ahead of me but I could not avoid the hole in the asphalt. Too bad because I could finish the race among the top ten of the ranking. My attention is now moving to Misano, which is one of my favorite tracks. Here I have got a good seventh place last year as Stoner substitute. I started the race in eleventh position and lap after lap I managed to overtake my rivals and obtain the seventh position that was for me the best result of my rookie year of MotoGP races. With a little bit of luck this year I'll point to improve my last year position."

 

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Capirossi is homeward bound for next Grand Prix
Publish Date: Thursday, September 02, 2010

Rizla Suzuki?s Loris Capirossi will be going home for the next round of the MotoGP World Championship as the team heads to the Misano World Circuit in Italy for the San Marino and Riviera di Rimini Grand Prix.

Capirossi originates from Castel San Pietro Terme, near Bologna, about 100kms from the Misano circuit. He will be looking to continue with the good run of form at the 4,226m Italian track that has seen him score two top-five finishes in the past three seasons. Capirossi is still in search of his 100th podium and would like nothing better than to secure that in front of his home crowd.

?lvaro Bautista will be heading to the Misano circuit for the first time in the MotoGP class. The Spaniard is going there on the back of an impressive ride last time out at Indianapolis that saw him secure eighth place. Bautista is in a confident mood as he travels to a circuit that he has enjoyed success at in recent seasons. The 25-year-old won at the Misano circuit in 2008 onboard a 250cc machine and followed that with a third place last year in the quarter litre class.

The Misano World Circuit was designed in 1969, with racing starting there three years later. The Italian venue has held 11 motorcycle Grands Prix since 1980, with MotoGP visiting there for the first time in 2007, when Rizla Suzuki riders took second and third places on the podium.

Rizla Suzuki takes to the track for the first free practice session on Friday afternoon, with the second free practice the following morning. Saturday afternoon will have an hour of qualifying to decide grid positions for Sunday's 28-lap race that is scheduled to get underway at 14.00hrs local time (12.00hrs GMT).

Loris Capirossi:

?It is always good to race at home and Misano is the closest track to where I am from. I am determined to put on a good performance there, because we have been working very hard all season and not getting the rewards that I think we deserve ? so Misano will be the ideal place to start that happening and turn our season around. We still need to find the right solution to give us the best feeling from the GSV-R so will be trying to be as competitive as possible from the first day. We have to keep a strong mentality, we have seven more races to go this year and we have to keep fighting to get to the top.?

?lvaro Bautista:

?I have more confidence in myself and the bike after last weekend, so I will be trying as hard as I can right from the beginning at Misano to improve my performance on the bike. It was really important for me to finish the race at Indianapolis - as it seemed like a long time since that had happened. I still believe that we can fight with the top guys, so we need to make that the next target and keep improving for the rest of the season.?

 

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THIRD AND FOURTH FOR LORENZO AND ROSSI AS PRACTICE GETS UNDERWAY AT MISANO

Just a few days after the energy-sapping race in Indianapolis, the Fiat Yamaha Team riders were back in action at the team's ?home' track of Misano today in slightly more comfortable temperatures around the mid-twenties. Championship leader Jorge Lorenzo finished third in the standings whilst local hero Valentino Rossi was just under a tenth of a second behind him in fourth.

Despite making it into the top three Lorenzo was less than satisfied with his day's work, unable as he was to find a comfortable balance for his M1 and lacking grip with his Bridgestone tyres, especially in the rear. The 23-year-old and his crew have some ideas to improve the situation however and will be working hard this evening to ensure they are in better shape for tomorrow's qualifying session.

Rossi on the other hand, who lives just a few kilometres away from the track in Tavullia, was pleased with his first session on track and is confident of being able to competitively challenge tomorrow. He tried several different settings today and tomorrow his crew will put all the elements together to give him the right package for this track.

Jorge Lorenzo Position: 3rd Time: 1'35.444 Laps: 29


"Today was quite difficult for us, more so than we expected. It's not my physical condition, I feel completely recovered from the hard weekend in Indianapolis, but we really struggled today and I didn't have enough confidence in my bike or in the tyres. We have some small problems in braking, corner speed and acceleration so I don't feel like I can ride how I want to at the moment. We are still third so it's not too bad but we have some time to make up if we are to match Pedrosa. I have great confidence that my team will find the right way to improve and I hope we will be in better shape tomorrow."

Valentino Rossi Position: 4th Time: 1'35.539 Laps: 30



"I'm quite happy because we did a good job during today's practice, especially towards the end when we made a big improvement to the setting of the bike and I was able to make some faster lap times. We have some more things to try, some electronics and some tyre settings, but I already feel confident so this has been a good way to start. We're quite far from Pedrosa, who was very impressive today, but we're close to Dovizioso and Lorenzo. Tomorrow we will try to find some tenths and improve our time a bit. My physical condition is okay, I don't have too much pain but this track has two or three hard braking sections to the right and I suffer a bit with my shoulder at those points."

Wilco Zeelenberg Team Manager



"This first practice hasn't been so positive for us. We couldn't find a good feeling or the right balance and we didn't have enough grip. There was a small problem at most corners, either the front was too deep or we didn't have enough rear grip, so we need to make a big improvement tomorrow. We've got some good ideas to find the right solutions but of course we need to take care at the same time not to create problems in other areas by making too many changes. Anyway, it's only the first day and we will work hard now to give Jorge the right package tomorrow."

Davide Brvio Team Manager



"We have made a strong start and we've found a good base setting to work from. We worked through all of the tyre options and we have a clear idea about the right direction. We tried some different set-ups today and tomorrow we will keep working, put it all together and make some fine adjustments to hopefully enable Valentino to be fast in qualifying."




Combined Free Practice Times


1. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 1'34.772
2. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Repsol Honda Team 1'35.384
3. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Fiat Yamaha Team 1'35.444
4. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha Team1'35.539
5. Colin Edwards (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1'35.834
6. Ben Spies (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1'35.892
7. Nicky Hayden (USA) Ducati Marlboro Team 1'36.028
8. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro Team1'36.072
9. Marco Melandri (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini1'36.126
10. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1'36.277
11. Hector Barbera (SPA) Aspar Team 1'36.293
12. Randy de Puniet (FRA) LCR Honda MotoGP 1'36.454
13. Marco Simoncelli (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini 1'36.533
14. Aleix Espargaro (SPA) Pramac Green Team 1'36.716
15. Hiroshi Aoyama (JPN) Interwetten-Honda MotoGP 1'37.001
16. Mika Kallio (FIN) Pramac Green Team 1'37.697
17. Alvaro Bautista (SPA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1'37.900

 

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Positive first day for Capirossi at home Grand Prix

Rizla Suzuki racer Loris Capirossi had a constructive first practice session at the San Marino and Riviera di Rimini Grand Prix today.

Capirossi (P10, 1?36.277, 29 laps) was able to complete a lot of work with his crew as they compared his two Suzuki GSV-Rs and evaluated both compounds of Bridgestone rear tyres around the 4,226m Misano circuit. Capirossi was pleased with the day?s work as he prepares for Sunday?s race which will see him compete in his 200th premier class motorcycle race, on either a 500cc two-stroke bike or a modern day four-stroke MotoGP machine.

?lvaro Bautista (P17, 1?37.900, 27 laps) had quite a contrasting day compared to his team-mate. He struggled to generate the rear grip from his GSV-R as he tried to come to terms with the Misano circuit. He made small steps with the set-up of his bike through the session, but will be looking to make marked improvements tomorrow as he continues to prepare for Sunday?s race.

Today?s practice was held in warm and sunny conditions with air temperatures reaching 25?C and track temperatures getting up to 37?C. Spaniard Dani Pedrosa on his factory Honda recorded the fastest time of the day.

Rizla Suzuki has one more practice session tomorrow morning to prepare for the qualifying session in the afternoon and Sunday?s 28-lap race. The 12th round of the season gets underway at 14.00hrs local time (12.00hrs GMT) on Sunday 5th September.

Loris Capirossi:

?It has been a long time since we have had a Friday like that. I am not happy about the position, but I am very happy with the bike today. We did a really good job with the bike and didn?t have to make too many changes from the original setting, but what we did change also seemed to work well. The base settings for the electronics was also better today, it?s not perfect and we still need to do a bit more work on it, but for now it is fine. I am happy for the whole team because it has been a much better day and we hope that we can keep this up for the whole weekend. We need decent weather on Saturday and Sunday and if we get that I am sure we can have a good weekend.?

?lvaro Bautista:

?It has not been a good practice for me because I have had a problem entering the corner as I didn?t have a lot of rear grip and I cannot enter as quickly as I want to. I started with the harder compound rear tyre, but on the second run I used the softer option, because with the harder one it was almost impossible to get any grip. We tried to do some changes in practice, but the improvements were not that big, so we will need to work on the data for the rest of the day to find a solution to that and hope we can work it out for tomorrow.?

Stuart Shenton ? Loris Capirossi?s Crew Chief:

?That was a good session for us today and we have got a lot of work done. Loris got off to a good start and that set the tone for the rest of the session. We were able to compare both bikes, and assess the two rear tyre options, and from that it looks like we have a good direction for the rest of the weekend. All-in-all it has not been a bad start to the weekend here at Misano.?

GP Aperol di San Marino e Riviera di Rimini Free Practice Classification:

1. Dani Pedrosa (Honda) 1?34.772: 2. Andrea Dovizioso (Honda) +0.612: 3. Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) +0.672: 4. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) +0.767:5. Colin Edwards (Yamaha) +1.062: 10. LORIS CAPIROSSI (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +1.505: 17. ?LVARO BAUTISTA (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +3.128:

 

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DIFFICULT START FOR THE PRAMAC RACING TEAM ON MISANO'S TRACK: ESPARGARO' FOURTEENTH, KALLIO SIXTEENTH.

A difficult start for the Pramac Racing Team riders today in Misano Adriatico in first free practice of the Grand Prix of San Marino and Riviera of Rimini that will take place Sunday. The free practice have seen both riders finish the session in the rear position with a gap of almost two seconds from the first of ranking for Espargar? while Kallio had made is best lap with three seconds of gap from the first of the ranking. A significant gap that is also given from the not perfect tyre grip as the runway was a bit dirty. Both riders had tried different solutions starting from the setting adopted in Indianapolis's race last week. Unfortunately, even though the Italian track is very similar to the U.S. one, the fastest time they had, was not the best. For tomorrow's free practice, engineers have already identified many settings that will be tested during the second practice session and subsequent in qualifying session. A difficult start but that might hold great surprises for the Pramac Racing Team.


Fabiano Sterlacchini - Pramac Racing Team Technical Director

"A very difficult start for us. The track was very dirty and although we had an advantage in all those circuits that tend to warm up the tyres, on this track we didn't have it. The ranking is clear, we have different bike brands in the top positions, that are not the one we use. We had think of many solutions that we will try tomorrow during the second free practice and that will bring us to find the setting that we will use during qualifying session. The gap we have is considerable, but with the right changing, we can significantly reduce the gap tomorrow. "

Aleix Espargar? - Pramac Racing Team - 14th fastest time in 1'36.716

"The first few laps were really difficult for me, I could not ride the bike in the best way. We adopted the same set-up we had use in Indianapolis but the thinks were not so positive as we thought. I than changed the bike and managed to reduce my lap. We then have still have to do some modifications to my bike and try to be fast at all the sectors of the track. I can be very fast in the third sector, while I still have difficulties in the second sector where I had the best second last time. Tomorrow I'm sure that with the changes made on my bike, I will certainly obtain a better lap time. "

Mika Kallio - Pramac Racing Team - 16th fastest time in 1'37.697

"Three seconds of gap from the first are really too much for me, I do not know what happened today, but I was not able to push hard. We started the practice with the same setting of Indianapolis race because that is a track very similar to Italian one, with many slow corners alternating with quick sectors. Indianapolis's track setting that allowed me to go very fast during that race, was unfortunately not good for this track. During the tests we changed the bike trying to increase the weight on the front tyre, because we didn't have enough grip on that tyre. The result was not the best. We have than taken the first solution modifying some settings to make it more easy to ride. The result was not remarkable but it was good for me to contain the gap I had from the first rider. Tomorrow we will try new solutions that should allow me to reduce my gap."

 

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Pedrosa and Dovizioso first and second in Misano

Repsol Honda riders Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso finished in first and second places at Misano today as the first MotoGP practice session for the San Marino Grand Prix took place in warm sunshine. Fresh from his victory in Indianapolis only five days ago, Pedrosa picked up where he left off and topped the timesheets for most of the session this afternoon.



Improving with every exit from the pits, the 24-year-old Spaniard?s fastest lap time was an impressive 0.612s quicker than the rest of the field - a hefty margin which sent an ominous sign to his rivals for victory this weekend. Looking fully committed from the outset, Pedrosa was the only rider to go under 1m 35s today and set four laps that were quicker than any of his rivals. Pedrosa?s fastest lap of 1m 34.772s was only fractions behind the race lap record from last year of 1m 34.746s, set by Valentino Rossi.



Dovizioso was also on fast form today at the circuit where he made his motorcycle racing debut back in 2000. The 24-year-old Italian was born and lives just 70kms from the Misano track and took inspiration from his home support to get his weekend off to a strong start. Near the top of the timing screens throughout, his best time came on his final lap of the session, Dovizioso stopping the clock at 1m 35.384s to edge ahead of Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi in third and fourth.



The track action continues tomorrow with a further practice session in the morning followed by qualifying in the afternoon to decide grid slots for Sunday?s 28-lap race.



DANI PEDROSA ? 1st ? 1m 34.772s

?It?s been really a good start here in Misano compared to last year and I'm very happy about that. We are coming from a strong result at the last race and it's important to keep the momentum going, which we have done so far. But we need to remain very concentrated and focused because we still have some areas to improve, and I'm sure our rivals will also go quicker tomorrow. Our pace has been quite fast today and Andrea is close to the front as well, so this is a good sign for the team. Here the grid positions are very important again because the first corner is close to the start and it?s a tight bend. Because of this we need to make sure we have a good pace tomorrow so that we can qualify well, and also so that we are ready for another long and tough race. I can say this was one of my best Friday practices, but I'm not going to relax at all.?



ANDREA DOVIZIOSO ? 2nd ? 1m 35.384s +0.612s

?I?m happy with the work done during this session and I?m satisfied to be second. Six tenths from Dani is quite a big gap but I think we have the opportunity to close this. At the end I was able to improve my lap times with the tyres I used for the whole session, so I?m confident we can move forward tomorrow. I think everyone was struggling for grip today and it was easy to lose the front, but we found a set-up solution that was effective to help with this so we?ll continue working in that direction tomorrow. Tyre selection for the race will be very important, and both the harder and softer option Bridgestones look like possible choices at the moment. I think there are many riders who can be strong this weekend so we have to work hard tomorrow and do a good job in qualifying.?



TOSHIYUKI YAMAJI - REPSOL HONDA TEAM MANAGER

?It?s good to see both Repsol Hondas at the top of the times today and we?ve made a good start to the weekend. Of course the work has only just begun and today?s session is just the beginning, so we won?t relax in any way. Dani is clearly looking very confident and also consistent after his win in Indianapolis and his target is to continue in the same vein. Andrea and his crew have also done a good job and I think he can have a strong weekend at his home circuit. We?ll be working towards replicating this result tomorrow afternoon.?

 

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DUCATI MARLBORO RIDERS BEGIN SET-UP SEARCH AT MISANO

The Ducati Marlboro Team returned from their exertions on the other side of the Atlantic and went straight back to work today as the twelfth round of the MotoGP World Championship got underway at Misano, just five days after packing up at Indianapolis.

The challenge for the teams and riders lies as much in adapting their machine set-up to the demands of the Italian circuit as it does to dealing with jetlag and physical tirednes, Nicky Hayden and Casey Stoner clocking up 45 laps between them in today's opening free practice session as they searched for a suitable base setting. The Ducati Marlboro pair ended up seventh and eighth fastest respectively, separated by just 0.044 seconds.

NICKY HAYDEN ? (Ducati Marlboro Team) 7th (1?36.028)
?That wasn?t the smoothest session we ever had and I?m losing a lot on T3. I hoped to start out a bit closer to the top than that. We need to look for some tenths, maybe by finding some better turning in the front and also adjusting the gearbox a bit better. To be honest it's not one big area we have to improve very much but small improvements in a few different areas. We also had a little issue with the fairing, which came a bit loose and my leathers got caught on it so I had to get back to the pit. We were trying something and after that I had basically one chance to make a good lap so we are not sure it is the right direction, which was a bit of a bummer. We are going to try it again tomorrow morning but this is a big weekend for us and we will try to move up the order.?

CASEY STONER (Ducati Marlboro Team) 8th (1?36.072)
?That was a difficult session for us, basically because we didn't have any information from last year because I didn't race here. The characteristics of the current engine are very different to the one we used in 2008 so it requires a completely different gearbox set-up and obviously that affects a lot of different things. We took a bit of a shot in the dark with what we thought would work but unfortunately it wasn't quite right and we had to spend a lot of time today making adjustments. Hopefully the data we gathered can give us a much better idea of where to start from tomorrow and I'm sure we can quickly close the gap to the guys at the top. It is too early to worry but we need to make a lot of progress in the sessions that remain before what is a very important race for everybody at Ducati.?

Circuit Record: Valentino Rossi (Yamaha - 2009), 1?34.746 ? 160.572 Km/h
Best Pole: Casey Stoner (Ducati ? 2008), 1?33.378 ? 162.924 km/h

 

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Positive start for Edwards and Spies in Misano

Colin Edwards and Ben Spies made an encouraging start to the Misano MotoGP weekend today, the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team pairing able to secure top six places in the opening free practice session.

Edwards spent the entire session evaluating the endurance potential of Bridgestone's soft compound rear tyre option in warm but breezy conditions.

The experienced American was delighted with the consistent performance of the softer option, Edwards posting his best time of 1.35.834 on his 26th lap as he ran a full race distance of 28-laps on the same set of soft tyres.

Edwards finished top non-factory rider today and is now confident he can sustain his early form to fight for a first top six finish of the campaign in Sunday's race.

Fresh from the best weekend of his MotoGP career in Indianapolis, Spies was in impressive form again this afternoon.

Spies arrived in Italy brimming with confidence after he claimed a stunning career first pole position in Indianapolis, which he followed with a best ever second place behind Dani Pedrosa in the race.

And he maintained the momentum gained on home soil with another classy performance today, the 26-year-old finishing in sixth position just 0.058s behind Edwards.

Spies is confident that overnight changes to improve rear stability and front-end feeling with his YZR-M1 machine will help him challenge for a third successive front row start in tomorrow's qualifying session.

Colin Edwards 5th 1.35.834 ? 28 laps

?That was a good start to the weekend and I'm really happy with the bike. We had a bit too much weight on the front at the start of the session and a little adjustment to get more weight on the rear really helped my confidence. I kept the same rear tyre for the whole session and it felt really good. It was the softer option but it already looks like that's going to be the race tyre. It performed really well over a long distance and my fastest lap was on lap 26, so we've got no worries about it being good for the whole race. And I didn't really have any spinning issues and I told my guys it felt like the best grip I've had all year, so a big thanks to Bridgestone. I think we can only make the bike better and I feel like my first top six of the season is definitely attainable on Sunday.?

Ben Spies 6th 1.35.892 ? 30 laps

?I'm happy with today and it's another decent start. Like Colin, I stayed on the soft tyre for the whole session and while I'm happy with the lap times, I know we can find some more time. We can make the rear better because I was just missing a bit of grip and stability that would allow me to go that little bit faster. And we can definitely make the front-end better. It wasn't a big problem but I wasn't as comfortable as I can be in the session. We've had a look at that already and know what we've got to try to make that better for tomorrow. So with a couple of minor issues I'm happy it was a solid session. There's definitely not one second we can find in the bike but there's definitely a few tenths we can find with some different settings we'll try tomorrow.?

 

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Capirossi and Bautista frustrated at the end of Misano qualifying

Rizla Suzuki team-mates Loris Capirossi and ?lvaro Bautista were both left to think what might have been as they were held-up on their final lap in qualifying at Misano this afternoon.

Capirossi (P11, 1?35.096, 30 laps) was on a flying final lap and looked certain to break into at least the second row of the grid, but a slower moving train of riders got in his way and forced the Italian to lose vital tenths-of-a-second. He was disappointed with the position, but realistic enough to know that he has a good set-up and a strong pace ahead of tomorrow?s 28-lap race.

Bautista (P16. 1?35.629, 29 laps) was extremely annoyed that he had been baulked on his final fast lap, which would almost certainly have given him a much improved time and seen him move up the grid. He had made huge steps today with his Suzuki GSV-R as he shaved almost two-and-a-half-seconds of his lap-time from yesterday. Bautista was extremely unlucky not to be rewarded with a much better qualifying position after his impressive efforts today.

Today?s qualifying was held in very warm conditions as air temperatures got up to 26?C and the track heated up to 42?C. Spaniard Dani Pedrosa took his fourth pole position of the season on his factory Honda, with World Championship leader Jorge Lorenzo in second.

Tomorrow?s race is the 12th round of the season and will see Capirossi, Bautista and the rest of the field head off for 28 laps of action at 14.00hrs local time (12.00hrs GMT).

Loris Capirossi:

?Today has been a good day, but again the position is not what we want or deserve. On my best lap I caught up with a group of three or four riders in the last section and I lost three or four tenths-of-a-second. If that hadn?t have happened I think I could easily have been on the second row. I am really positive for tomorrow?s race because the bike is working very well here at Misano. I need to make a good start and do my best because the setting of the bike is good. We are still losing a bit on the exit of the corners and we need to do something about that - as it makes it difficult to overtake. Our potential is much more than this qualifying position and we will be trying as hard as we can tomorrow to prove it.?

?lvaro Bautista:

?This morning we improved the bike a lot from yesterday and I was able to get a good pace. In the qualifying it was a bit difficult at the start because I used the hard front tyre and I didn?t get the feel from it under braking. At the end of the session we put in the softer compound and that was much better. Unfortunately on the last lap some riders slowed me up and I couldn?t improve my lap-time ? which I am sure I would have done. I feel good with the bike here and if I can get a decent start tomorrow I have a strong enough rhythm to be able to battle my way into the top 10.?

Stuart Shenton ? Loris Capirossi?s Crew Chief:

?We?re disappointed with the grid position, but it has been a good effort so far this weekend from Loris and the whole team. It would have been nice to be well inside the top 10 for the start of the race, but it was not to be. I think it was getting quite competitive out there at the end of qualifying ? not just between other riders, but also between team-mates. It looks like Loris has a good race pace and his times are consistently in the 35s, so let?s just see what we can do tomorrow.?

GP Aperol di San Marino e Riviera di Rimini Qualifying Practice Classification:

1. Dani Pedrosa (Honda) 1?33.948: 2. Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) +0.308: 3. Casey Stoner (Ducati) +0.449: 4. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) +0.552: 5. Ben Spies (Yamaha) +0.524: 11. LORIS CAPIROSSI (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +1.148: 16. ?LVARO BAUTISTA (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +1.681:

 

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INTERWETTEN HONDA MotoGP TEAM ? 13th position on grid for Aoyama

Also the qualifying for the San Marino Grand Prix in Misano went as well as it already did when Hiroshi Aoyama returned to racing in Indianapolis and the MotoGP Rookie will start tomorrow?s race from 13th position on the grid. With a gap of 1,338 seconds to the Pole Setter and just about 0,5 seconds to 6th position the improvement was better than expected for the 18 year old Japanese and impressed him as much as the rest of the team.

Hiroshi Aoyama, 13 ? 1?35.286:
?The qualifying was interesting as we stayed with the old set up and we still were able to improve. Also the lap times improved more than I expected. The gap to the others in front of me got smaller and that is very positive for us. I don?t know how the conditions will be tomorrow, but I hope similar to today and that I can improve in the race. I am looking forward to the race tomorrow.?

Daniel M. Epp, Team Manager:
?I am very satisfied with the qualifying today. 1,3 seconds to first position and just 0,5 seconds to 6th is regarding Hiro?s physical condition a top result. The whole performance of Hiro helps with our set up work.?

 

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FRONT ROW FOR LORENZO BUT ROSSI JUST MISSES OUT AT MISANO

Fiat Yamaha Team rider Jorge Lorenzo once again parked his M1 on the front row of the grid at Misano this afternoon, keeping his 100% record for qualifying this season. His team-mate Valentino Rossi missed out by just seven hundredths of a second and will start his home race from fourth.

After struggling yesterday Lorenzo had significant improvements to make to his setting but it was clear from this morning's practice that he was back on form when he finished on top of the standings. A close-fought qualifying session saw the Mallorcan take the lead with eight minutes to go but in the closing minutes Dani Pedrosa took the top spot and Lorenzo was relegated to second. The championship leader is confident that he has the race pace to run at the front tomorrow and he will be looking to make it onto the podium once again.

Rossi has won here for the last two years and as usual thousands of his passionate yellow-clad fans were packed in to watch their local favourite in action this afternoon. He, too looked in fine fettle this afternoon and was consistently in the top four, moving to third with ten minutes to go. In the closing stages he seemed to have a shot at pole position but he was slowed by traffic and unable to capitalise on his softer Bridgestone tyre, just missing out as Casey Stoner held on to third. Rossi and his crew still need to make a final decision about their race tyre but are confident that they can put up a fight for home honours in tomorrow's 2pm race.

Jorge Lorenzo Position: 2nd Time: 1'34.256 Laps: 30


"We have improved in every practice here and after the troubles of yesterday I'm happy about this session. I have a good pace now and I'm feeling confident about a good race. Unfortunately we couldn't profit as much as we might have with the softer tyre at the end of the session and our bike isn't the fastest here, but we have good corner speed so I hope we will be able to stay with the leaders. I am feeling excited and motivated for tomorrow's race."

Valentino Rossi Position: 4th Time: 1'34.470 Laps: 31



"The front row would have been good for the race of tomorrow but I just missed out today. I think I had the potential today but unfortunately with the last tyre I found some traffic at the end. The rear tyre is going to be very important for tomorrow's race and we still have a decision to make; at the moment we are thinking more of the hard one but we need to wait and see the weather. I am feeling better here than in Indy because it's much cooler; I am still suffering a bit with my shoulder in the hard right braking zones but it's not too bad. Anyway it's fantastic to be here in Italy with all of these fans and I'm excited about tomorrow. The helmet is a joke about my timekeeping - we have put a big clock on the top of it with a different helmet showing the right time for each session so I make sure that I arrive on time!"

Wilco Zeelenberg Team Manager


"We're very pleased with this result today. Second place is only one better than yesterday but in terms of bike feeling and behaviour it's a huge jump for us. Dani did a great lap, we were consistent but Jorge couldn't use the soft tyre like he wanted to so we couldn't get any closer to him. But tomorrow is 28 laps not just one and we feel that we are in form for another strong challenge."

Davide Brivio Team Manager


"We are very close to the first row and it was a possibility for us today. Unfortunately Valentino found some traffic, as usual many riders tried to get in his draft and he couldn't use the full potential of the softer tyre, but fourth is not so bad. We worked really well in practice but we still need to make the final choice for our race tyre because at the moment both tyres are a possibility for the race. We need to analyse the data closely and choose our final package."




Qualifying Times



FRONT ROW

1. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 1'33.948
2. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Fiat Yamaha Team 1'34.256
3. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro Team 1'34.397

SECOND ROW

4. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha Team 1'34.470
5. Ben Spies (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1'34.472
6. Randy de Puniet (FRA) LCR Honda MotoGP 1'34.751

THIRD ROW

7. Colin Edwards (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1'34.782
8. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Repsol Honda Team 1'34.826
9. Marco Simoncelli (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini 1'34.934

FOURTH ROW

10. Marco Melandri (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini 1'35.018
11. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1'35.096
12. Hector Barbera (SPA) Aspar Team 1'35.259

FIFTH ROW

13. Hiroshi Aoyama (JPN) Interwetten-Honda MotoGP 1'35.286
14. Nicky Hayden (USA) Ducati Marlboro Team 1'35.303
15. Aleix Espargaro (SPA) Pramac Green Team 1'35.438

SIXTH ROW

16. Alvaro Bautista (SPA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1'35.629
17. Mika Kallio (FIN) Pramac Green Team 1'35.724

 

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Spies close to front row, Edwards seventh in Misano

Ben SpiesMonster Yamaha Tech 3 Team rider Ben Spies produced another inspired qualifying performance in Misano today, the American just missing out on a third successive front row start by the narrowest of margins.

The Texan was able to capitalise on numerous set-up tweaks made from practice to finish just 0.075s from the front row in a closely contested qualifying session that saw less than one second cover the top nine riders.

Spies was once again leading non-factory team rider in fifth position, his quickest lap of 1.34.472 just 0.002s behind reigning world champion and Misano crowd favourite Valentino Rossi.

Spies made big progress in his quest to find a more comfortable front-end setting with his YZR-M1 machine this afternoon and the 26-year-old is confident he can mount a strong challenge for his third podium finish of the season in tomorrow's race.

Colin Edwards further boosted his confidence that he can claim a first top six finish of the 2010 campaign after storming to seventh place on the grid.

Edwards' growing confidence in a front-end setting he first used in Brno last month was evident again after he finished fourth overall in free practice.

Edwards missed claiming a place on the second row of the grid for only the second time in 12 races by just 0.031s, his best time of 1.34.782 leaving him to start from the front of the third row.

The 36-year-old plans to make more overnight front-end tweaks ahead of the 28-lap race as he looks to strengthen his bid for a top ten world championship position.

Ben Spies 5th 1.34.472 ? 32 laps

"We made some changes to the bike overnight that didn't really help this morning and then made more changes before qualifying and they made a big improvement. Everything went smooth and it was a good qualifying session. The first goal is to be on the second row at least and I've done that, but I think I should have had another front row. I got caught up with Capirossi and that was a little annoying. I wasn't too upset at the time because I didn't think it would be a front row lap, but looking back I was on my best lap and I'm pretty sure I would be sitting on the outside of the front row. But I'm a lot happier and more confident with the bike than I was this morning and I know we can make some more changes to make us stronger for the race. We can make the bike easier to ride towards the end of the race and I'm looking forward to it. My confidence is really high after the last couple of races and there's no reason why I can't be challenging for a top position again tomorrow.?

Colin Edwards 7th 1.34.783 - 29 laps

?I've felt good on the bike all weekend and that showed with fourth position overall in practice. I really felt I had the speed to get on the second row, but de Puniet just got sixth from me by less than a tenth. But I'm happy with the way things have been going this weekend. As the temperature came up today it felt like I was pushing the front a bit but I know we can make a minor adjustment to fix that and my race pace has been pretty strong all weekend. I doubt I can do mid-34s the whole race but I think a top six is definitely within my grasp. After what happened last year I just want to make it through the first corner and at least get the chance to put up a fight. But there's no reason why the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team shouldn't have a double top six finish tomorrow and that would be a great result.?

 

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DISAPPOINTING QUALIFYING FOR THE PRAMAC RACING TEAM IN MISANO

Bad day for the Pramac Racing Team. The riders, Aleix Espargar? and Mika Kallio, have in fact completed the qualifying session valid for the starting grid of the Grand Prix of San Marino and Riviera di Rimini, respectively, in the fifteenth and seventeenth position. The Spaniard had finished this morning free practice in fourteenth position complaining grip problems, but still having a good lap pace. Mika Kallio was able to improve by almost two seconds his fastest time recorded during yesterday's morning free practice, but this was not enough to climb the ranking, so he will start the race from the sixth row. Unfortunately the track conditions did not allow Pramac Racing Team riders to obtain a better lap time than the one achieved this afternoon. Both will have to considerably improve their position tomorrow to get a positive result in the race that will begin at 14 local time.


Fabiano Sterlacchini - Pramac Racing Technical Director

"Unfortunately we have not fully resolved the problems we had yesterday during the first free practice. Both riders have significantly reduced their lap time but they were not able to get the final speed lap necessary to allow them to climb the rankings. During qualifying we were able to identify a couple of changes that we will try during tomorrow warm up. Qualifying session have been difficult for several riders who usually occupy important positions, while many others usually in the rear, are now occupying positions in front of us. Tomorrow we will start the race from the back, but I'm sure that they will both work hard to recover important positions."

Aleix Espargar? - Pramac Racing Team - the 15th best time in 1'35 .438

"I feel very good and I still like this track very much, unfortunately I have not been able to use in the best way the wake of other riders as many of my colleagues have done, that did not allow me to make a good lap time. However I have a great confidence in tomorrow's race where, thanks to changes that the Team will make on my bike, I will try to recover good positions right away. I want to get a good result on this track which is one of my favorites."

Mika Kallio - Pramac Racing Team - the 17th best time in 1'35 .724

"Although I have reduced my yesterday's best lap time by almost two seconds, I did not get a good position on the starting grid. Starting in last position is not the best for me, but I hope to gain some positions from the start so that I can be able to retake positions after positions since the first laps. With my Team we have identified some changes to make on my bike to make it more powerful in all sectors of the track. I will try to give my best tomorrow to conquer a significant position in the race. "

 

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STONER ON FRONT ROW FOR DUCATI'S HOME RACE, TOUGH DAY FOR HAYDEN

Casey Stoner will start from the front row of the grid in the San Marino Grand Prix after qualifying third fastest at Misano, the Ducati home circuit.

Stoner felt comfortable on his GP10 since the beginning of the session ad set immediately a fast lap which was his best for long even if he suffered a front end crash at the midway stage. He then was able to improve it again with the bike he felt les comfortable with and to secure his front row start for the tomorrow race. Nicky Hayden, after a positive second free practice session in the morning, encountered several little problems in the qualifying session and faces an uphill battle from fourteenth on the grid.

CASEY STONER (Ducati Marlboro Team) 3rd (1?34.397)
?We definitely found something for the bike today. This morning we went back to the old fork and immediately we knocked a second off the lap time and then we worked even better this afternoon. We tried something different in bike one, which I didn?t feel comfortable with, but bike two in general felt better and I immediately made a fast lap. When I wanted to try to improve my lap time a little bit I was trying to carry a bit more corner speed and lost the front in a small corner. Anyway, I?m not worried - we just have to improve the front feeling, especially with the number one bike because I had a better feeling with the second one today even though I crashed it. In general the bike is working a lot better here than it was at faster tracks so we are more comfortable for the race tomorrow and we will see what we can do. We don?t know how the weather is going to be but we are looking for a podium.?

NICKY HAYDEN ? (Ducati Marlboro Team) 14th (1?35.303)
?Qualifying didn?t go well from the start - we had a few problems we couldn?t fix and the lap time didn?t just come this afternoon. This morning we gained a second from yesterday and reduced the gap to the front quite a lot and I was quite confident for the afternoon. Unfortunately from the beginning it wasn't good, we had a couple of problems here and there. But regardless the bike is much better than fourteenth - Casey is on front row. I apologize to the team because the bike was better than me and at Ducati's home race it's terrible to start so far back and I take responsibility for that. I was on the front row a week ago and even here in some parts of the track I?m really okay, like in the second section I?m third fastest but then I lose a lot. Starting at the back is never good but the race is long so we'll give it our best shot.?

Circuit Record: Valentino Rossi (Yamaha - 2009), 1?34.746 ? 160.572 Km/h
Best Pole: Casey Stoner (Ducati ? 2008), 1?33.378 ? 162.924 km/h

 

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Brilliant Pedrosa adds Misano pole to Indy win

Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V) kept the momentum rolling at Misano today, adding a brilliant San Marino Grand Prix pole position to the dominant race win he took at Indianapolis last Sunday. The Spaniard got the better of a thrilling end-of-session battle with World Championship leader Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha), Casey Stoner (Ducati), reigning MotoGP king Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) and Ben Spies (Yamaha).

At the end of the hour the top five were separated by just 0.524 seconds, Pedrosa?s final lap moving him ahead of Lorenzo by a solid three tenths of a second. The performance completes an impressive two days of practice and qualifying for the Repsol Honda Team, which made a brilliant start to the weekend, running one and two in yesterday?s opening practice session with Pedrosa leading the way ahead of Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda RC212V).

Currently second in the 2010 World Championship, Pedrosa is making superb use of recent improvements to the RC212V. His aim tomorrow is a fast, clean getaway (the first esses here are a notorious black spot for lap one accidents) and then a mistake-free race which will hopefully lead to his first back-to-back victories in MotoGP. Pedrosa is still a lot of points behind series leader Lorenzo, but every success will bring him closer to his compatriot.

Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda RC212V) produced a heroic performance in scoring a second-row start in only his third MotoGP event since he broke a leg at July?s German GP. The Frenchman ? who made his comeback at last month?s Czech GP, a miraculous four weeks after the accident ? posted sixth quickest time in qualifying, just two tenths behind Spies. De Puniet and his crew worked carefully on machine balance to give him a great bike for this tricky Italian circuit, which is one of his favourites.

Dovizioso was hoping for better than a third-row start for his home race. The 24-year-old local made some big changes to his RCV?s weight distribution with the aim of improving front-end feel, but as can often be the case with set-up changes, the adjustment made things worse instead of better. Dovizioso will sit down with his engineers this evening to decide the best way forward for tomorrow?s warm-up and race. He will be very focused on making the fastest possible start without getting into trouble in the first few corners.

Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V) is even more local than Dovizioso ? he hails from Cattolica, just a few kilometres from the track ? so the fast-improving MotoGP rookie is happy to be starting from the third row in ninth place, after taking a wrong turn and then a right turn on his settings. This is the former 250 World Champion?s seventh top-nine qualifying performance from the last eight races.

Team-mate Marco Melandri (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V) scored his first top-ten qualifying slot in four races by going tenth fastest, just 0.084 seconds behind Simoncelli. The Italian started the session well and was looking good for a better starting position, but then struggled after going the wrong way with front fork settings.

Hiroshi Aoyama (Interwetten Honda MotoGP RC212V) was an impressive 13th quickest in his second Grand Prix since breaking a vertebra at June?s British GP. The Japanese ace, who returned to action at Indianapolis, is wearing a special back brace to support and protect his back while he is riding.


HONDA MotoGP RIDER QUOTES

Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda RC212V: pole position, 1m 33.948s
?I?m happy to be on pole position because we were strong throughout practice and things have gone according to plan so far this weekend. We are doing a very good job at the moment, improving at every round and now we have the chance to have another good race. I?ve never won two MotoGP races in a row and this is a good challenge for me ? I really want to go for it. Today went well especially because this was a very tight qualifying session and, as I said yesterday, it was crucial to be on the first row of the grid to have the best chance of getting through the first corners cleanly, because they are very tight. It?s a quite a tricky circuit and tomorrow it will be important not to make any mistakes ? particularly on the brakes ? in order to keep a high pace for the whole race distance. I think it will be very difficult to make a gap, but we?ll wait and see what the strategy is for the race. Hopefully we can get through the first corners cleanly, and then we will simply need to push very hard to win. We have a good opportunity.?

Randy de Puniet, LCR Honda RC212V: 6th, 1m 34.751s
?It is good to be back up there with the guys! After the bad weekend in Indy, I knew that I could bounce back here in Misano because I like this track very much and my leg is getting better day by day. This morning we struggled with the front end in the entry of some corners but we reduced the problem quite a lot. Honestly we are not at 100% yet but I am delighted with this performance. Hopefully if we can take a good start tomorrow we will be able to fight for another positive result.?

Andrea Dovizioso, Repsol Honda RC212V: 8th, 1m 34.826s
?We made a big change to the set-up of the bike in terms of weight distribution to get a better feeling with the front end, but it didn?t work for us. I was struggling a lot with the front and at the end of the session I almost crashed ? like in Brno. It is very difficult to improve your lap time when you don?t have the confidence with the front. Now we have to decide whether to keep going in this set-up direction with something more radical or go back to what we had before. I?m disappointed to have qualified this far back for my home race, so we have some work to do tonight to find a setting that can improve things for warm-up and in the race. We?ve made it quite tough for ourselves, but we?ll aim to get a good start and make up as many positions as possible early on.?

Marco Simoncelli, San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V: 9th, 1m 34.934s
?We were having problems yesterday and they continued for the first 20 minutes of qualifying this afternoon. Then we went back to an old set-up because we had made some changes to the bike to suit Indianapolis. It was a step backwards in one way, but with a few modifications we were able to set a good lap time. I am fairly happy right now because up until this morning we were not in good shape but now we have seen the light.?

Marco Melandri, San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V: 10th, 1m 35.018s
?That was actually a positive session. Unfortunately we made some changes to the forks and that had a negative effect, which meant I couldn?t improve my lap time. However, my pace is pretty good and the target for tomorrow is to get a good start and set a strong pace. I am in better shape than in recent weeks and I hope I can have a decent race tomorrow.?

Hiroshi Aoyama, Interwetten Honda MotoGP RC212V: 13th, 1m 35.286s
?The qualifying was interesting because we stayed with the old set-up and we were still able to improve. Also the lap times improved more than I expected. Also, the gap to the others in front of me got smaller and that is very positive for us. I don?t know how the conditions will be tomorrow, but I hope they will be similar to today and that I can improve in the race. I am looking forward to the race.?

Pole position : 1m33.948s (161.936Km/h) Dani Pedrosa, Honda
Circuit record lap : 1m34.746s (160.572Km/h) Valentino Rossi (Yamaha, 2009)
Circuit Best Lap : 1m33.378s (162.924Km/h) Casey Stoner (Ducati, 2008)
Qualifying position
1 Dani Pedrosa 1m33.948s SPA HONDA Repsol Honda Team
2 Jorge Lorenzo +0.308s SPA YAMAHA Fiat Yamaha Team
3 Casey Stoner +0.449s AUS DUCATI Ducati Marlboro Team
4 Valentino Rossi +0.522s ITA YAMAHA Fiat Yamaha Team
5 Ben Spies +0.524s USA YAMAHA Tech 3 Yamaha
6 Randy De Puniet +0.803s FRA HONDA LCR Honda MotoGP
7 Colin Edwards +0.834s USA YAMAHA Tech 3 Yamaha
8 Andrea Dovizioso +0.878s ITA HONDA Repsol Honda Team
9 Marco Simoncelli +0.986s ITA HONDA San Carlo Honda Gresini
10 Marco Melandri +1.070s ITA HONDA San Carlo Honda Gresini
11 Loris Capirossi +1.148s ITA SUZUKI Rizla Suzuki MotoGP
12 Hector Barbera +1.311s SPA DUCATI Aspar Ducati
13 Hiroshi Aoyama +1.338s JPN HONDA Interwetten Honda MotoGP
14 Nicky Hayden +1.355s USA DUCATI Ducati Marlboro Team
15 Aleix Espargaro +1.490s SPA DUCATI Pramac Racing
16 Alvaro Bautista +1.681s SPA SUZUKI Rizla Suzuki MotoGP
17 Mika Kallio +1.776s FIN DUCATI Pramac Racing
Championship standings
1 Jorge Lorenzo 251 pts SPA YAMAHA Fiat Yamaha Team
2 Dani Pedrosa 183 pts SPA HONDA Repsol Honda Team
3 Andrea Dovizioso 126 pts ITA HONDA Repsol Honda Team
4 Casey Stoner 119 pts AUS DUCATI Ducati Marlboro Team
5 Valentino Rossi 114 pts ITA YAMAHA Fiat Yamaha Team
6 Ben Spies 110 pts USA YAMAHA Tech 3 Yamaha
7 Nicky Hayden 109 pts USA DUCATI Ducati Marlboro Team
8 Randy De Puniet 78 pts FRA HONDA LCR Honda MotoGP
9 Marco Simoncelli 63 pts ITA HONDA San Carlo Honda Gresini
10 Marco Melandri 61 pts ITA HONDA San Carlo Honda Gresini
11 Colin Edwards 57 pts USA YAMAHA Tech 3 Yamaha
12 Hector Barbera 54 pts SPA DUCATI Aspar Ducati
13 Loris Capirossi 42 pts ITA SUZUKI Rizla Suzuki MotoGP
14 Aleix Espargaro 39 pts SPA DUCATI Pramac Racing
15 Alvaro Bautista 33 pts SPA SUZUKI Rizla Suzuki MotoGP
16 Mika Kallio 30 pts FIN DUCATI Pramac Racing
17 Hiroshi Aoyama 22 pts JPN HONDA Interwetten Honda MotoGP
18 Alex De Angelis 11 pts ITA HONDA Interwetten Honda MotoGP
19 Roger Lee Hayden 5 pts USA HONDA LCR Honda MotoGP
20 Kousuke Akiyoshi 4 pts JPN HONDA Interwetten Honda MotoGP
21 Wataru Yoshikawa 1 pts JPN YAMAHA Fiat Yamaha Team

 

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DOUBLE PODIUM FOR FIAT YAMAHA ON TRAGIC DAY IN MISANO

The Fiat Yamaha Team gained their first double podium since Laguna Seca today, when Jorge Lorenzo finished second and Valentino Rossi third behind Dani Pedrosa at Misano. The day was overshadowed however by the tragic news that Japanese rider Shoya Tomizawa had passed away following an accident in the Moto2 race. Yamaha would like to express its deepest condolences to his family, friends and team.

Lorenzo lost one place at the start and dropped to third but before the first lap was over he had got back past Casey Stoner to retake second position. Despite pushing hard in the early stages, it was soon clear that the championship leader was not able to run the same pace as Pedrosa today and he was forced to settle for an uneventful ride to second, importantly taking another 20 points for his title challenge and continuing his flawless record of a podium in every race this season.

Italian hero Rossi was hopeful of a return to the podium and he made a good start, keeping his fourth position and holding on to the leaders over the first few laps. He gradually began to close down Casey Stoner and made the pass stick on his second try, on lap eleven of 28. In the latter part of the race he came under pressure from fellow countryman Andrea Dovizioso but he was able to hold him off, putting in his fastest lap of the race three laps from the end and coming home just over a second behind his team-mate.

Lorenzo leads the championship by 63 points after today's race and Rossi has moved to fourth in the standings; on identical points to Stoner but ahead on race wins. The next round comes at the new track of Motorland Aragon in two week's time.

Jorge Lorenzo Position: 2nd Time: +1.900


"I don't have many words for the race on such a sad say. I made a good start but I couldn't keep close to Pedrosa. Second is good, we weren't fast enough but for the championship it's another very important result and that is our target. The podium is our goal in all races, although we hope we can still improve our M1 a bit more. As for Shoya, it's a huge pity because he was a good guy and a strong rider. I am so sad and I just want to say how sorry I am for his family and his friends. When this happens nothing else matters."

Valentino Rossi Position: 3rd Time: +3.183


"This was a great result for us, more than just for the podium but for the way that the result arrived. I was very fast at the end of the race and this shows how much we're improving because I was able to keep pushing right to the end. I think we did a good job this weekend. But when something so sad like this happens everything else goes to zero and the result doesn't matter. I'm so sorry for Shoya because he was a strong rider but above all he was very ?sympatico.' He was very funny, always smiling and he always had nice things to say to everyone. He was also very young with a great career ahead of him so we are all very sad."

Wilco Zeelenberg Team Manager

"Today was frustrating for Jorge because he is a winner but he knows he can't afford to take risks, thinking about the championship. Pedrosa was very strong and we couldn't catch him, so we will be working hard to try to find a way to get back to fighting with him at the next race. As usual Jorge kept his head and rode a sensible race to get as many points as he could and we are still on target for our goal. We would like to say how sorry we are about Tomizawa, he was clearly a huge talent who was destined to be here in MotoGP one day. This is the nature of our sport but today has reminded us all what can happen."

Davide Brivio Team Manager


"It's a very sad day for our sport, our thoughts go out to Tomi and to his friends, his family and his team. He was a very good guy. The race was very positive because Valentino was able to increase the pace and he was very fast and very consistent at the end of the race. The bike was working well, we did a good job and Valentino was happy which gives us good confidence for the next races. His pace was very close to the top and his physical condition seems to have improved. We're looking forward to him being back to his very best. This was an important step for the bike and for the rider on our way to being back in contention for victories.


Results



1. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 44'22.059
2. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Fiat Yamaha Team + 1.900
3. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha Team + 3.183
4. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Repsol Honda Team + 6.454
5. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro Team + 18.479
6. Ben Spies (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 + 28.385
7. Colin Edwards (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 + 34.934
8. Alvaro Bautista (SPA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP + 38.157
9. Hector Barbera (SPA) Aspar Team + 40.943
10. Marco Melandri (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini + 42.377
11. Aleix Espargaro (SPA) Pramac Green Team + 45.906
12. Hiroshi Aoyama (JPN) Interwetten-Honda MotoGP + 46.394
13. Randy de Puniet (FRA) LCR Honda MotoGP + 50.481
14. Marco Simoncelli (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini + 1'23.143

NOT CLASSIFIED

Mika Kallio (FIN) Pramac Green Team 11 Lap
Nicky Hayden (USA) Ducati Marlboro Team 25 Lap
Loris Capirossi (ITA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 28 Lap


Championship Standings



1. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Fiat Yamaha Team 271
2. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 208
3. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Repsol Honda Team 139
4. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha Team 130
5. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro Team 130
6. Ben Spies (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 120
7. Nicky Hayden (USA) Ducati Marlboro Team 109
8. Randy de Puniet (FRA) LCR Honda MotoGP 81
9. Marco Melandri (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini 67
10. Colin Edwards (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 66
11. Marco Simoncelli (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini 65
12. Hector Barbera (SPA) Aspar Team 61
13. Aleix Espargaro (SPA) Pramac Green Team 44
14. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 41
15. Alvaro Bautista (SPA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 41
16. Mika Kallio (FIN) Pramac Green Team 31
17. Hiroshi Aoyama (JPN) Interwetten-Honda MotoGP 26
18. Alex de Angelis (ITA) Interwetten Honda MotoGP 11
19. Kousuke Akiyoshi (JPN) Interwetten Honda MotoGP 4
20. Wataru Yoshikawa (JPN) Fiat Yamaha Team 1