MotoGP Misano

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Bautista battles to eighth as Capirossi is knocked out of the race

Rizla Suzuki?s ?lvaro Bautista rode a fantastic race at Misano in Italy today to bring his GSV-R home in eighth place after a hard-fought race.

Bautista started from 16th on the grip and was lucky to avoid a first corner incident that caused him to lose time on the pack of riders in front of him. He quickly regained his composure and set about chasing the field. Bautista caught and passed a number of riders as he made his way up to eighth on lap 18, he then tried to catch Colin Edwards who had a large gap between himself and Bautista, but the Rizla Suzuki man was unable to bridge the distance - even though he made huge in-roads into the American?s lead.

Loris Capirossi 200th race in the premier class of motorcycle racing was over almost as soon as it had begun, when he was knocked off on the second corner of the first lap. Capirossi got a good start and had made up a number of places from 11th on the grid, before Nicky Hayden ran into him and knocked him off his machine. Capirossi suffered an injury to his right-hand little finger that will require surgery in San Marino tomorrow, but he is hopeful that he will make the next round of the MotoGP championship.

Today?s race was won by Spaniard Dani Pedrosa with World Championship leader Jorge Lorenzo in second. Sadly today?s race was overshadowed by tragic events in the Moto2 race earlier in the day. Japanese rider Shoya Tomizawa was fatally injured in an accident that involved two other riders. The 19-year-old was taken to hospital, but was pronounced dead upon arrival. The thoughts and prayers of the whole Rizla Suzuki team are extended to Tomizawa?s family, friends and team during this traumatic period.

Rizla Suzuki will next be in action at a brand new racetrack to the MotoGP calendar, as it travels to the Aragon circuit in Spain for the round of the season on Sunday 19th September.

?lvaro Bautista:

?It has now become a very difficult day and I don?t really know what to say. I had a good race, even though I had to avoid Loris and Nicky after they crashed and I lost my position. I tried to get in my rhythm as quick as I could because I knew I had a good pace. When I was catching the group in front of me I made a mistake and put the bike into neutral ? so I lost some more distance on them. I concentrated hard and pushed to the limit and I managed to go faster than I had in practice and I caught the group up. Once I was with them I knew I was faster so I got past them and pulled away. Today nobody crashed in front of me during the race so it was a true eighth position and I was very pleased with that. I was happy at the end of the race because the position was good and I was happy with the race-pace, but when we had finished the race I heard the news about Tomizawa and I am just so sorry for him and all his family. It is a hard day for all riders, I am sure he will stay with us always and I hope he is now in a better place.?

Loris Capirossi:

?I am very angry at what happened today because I was feeling very confident and the bike was good, so I thought we could have a competitive race. Now I have to have an operation and I hope I can be back for Aragon, but this is nothing compared to what happened in the other race. I want to send my condolences to Tomizawa?s family, this is a great tragedy and something that you never like to hear about.?

Tom O?Kane ? ?lvaro Bautista?s Crew Chief:

?Firstly I want to say to Tomizawa?s family and friends that we all send our deepest sympathies ? it?s a terrible thing that has happened and ?lvaro was very upset when he heard the news at the end of the race. With regards to the race, he got a very good start off the line, but took a few laps to find his rhythm. Then it looked like he had a really fun race, he was chasing guys down and passing them with what looked like ease. His fastest lap in the race is the fastest one he has done all weekend and we as a team will be doing all we can to move him up in qualifying to see what he can do from the second or third row.?

GP Aperol di San Marino e Riviera di Rimini Race Classification:

1. Dani Pedrosa (Honda) 44?22.059: 2. Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) +1.900: 3. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) +3.183: 4. Andrea Dovizioso (Honda) +6.454: 5. Casey Stoner (Ducati) +18.479: 8. ?LVARO BAUTISTA (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +38.157: DNF. LORIS CAPIROSSI (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP):

World Championship Classification:

1. Lorenzo 271: 2. Pedrosa 208: 3. Dovizioso 139: 4. Rossi 130: 5. Stoner 130: 14. ?LVARO BAUTISTA (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) 41: 15. LORIS CAPIROSSI (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) 41:

 

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Spies and Edwards finish strong at sombre Misano

Ben Spies continued his excellent form in the MotoGP world championship in Misano this afternoon, the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider ending with a richly deserved sixth position.

The 26-year-old recovered superbly having lost four places in a frantic jostle for track position at the tight second corner on the opening lap.

Dropped down to 10th place, the Texan showcased his overtaking prowess once again, passing both Marco Melandri and Randy de Puniet on lap six to take seventh place.

That put Spies firmly on the trail of Monster Yamaha Tech 3 team-mate Colin Edwards, who had made a blistering start to end the first lap fifth.

Spies quickly closed down on Edwards and made his attack on lap 12 and then expertly moved clear of his fellow Texan to finish top non-factory rider again.

Today's result was the eighth time in 12 races that Spies has finished inside the top six and he remains firmly in contention for third place in the overall rankings with six races on the calendar left.

Edwards rode another strong race to finish in seventh position for the third time in the last four outings. The 36-year-old is confident he could have given Spies more of a challenge for sixth had he not encountered some small front-end issues.

Edwards though moved into the top ten in the standings with his latest positive result and is just one-point behind Marco Melandri heading to round 13 at the new Motorland Aragon track in Spain.

Today's race was overshadowed by the passing of Japanese Moto2 rider Shoya Tomizawa following a tragic accident earlier in the afternoon. The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 would like to express its deepest condolences to family, friends and team.

Ben Spies 6th ? 120 points

?It was a tough race after I got shuffled back at the second corner. I struggled a little bit with front-end feeling but I had a good pace and by the time I got through everybody into sixth everybody else was ten seconds ahead. There was no sense in doing anything stupid but looking at the lap times I'm sure I had the pace to fight closer with Casey. My goal was top six and that's what I achieved so I can't be too disappointed. I had top five pace and that's better than being in the top six but not fast enough to be any higher. I want to express my sadness at the passing of Shoya Tomizawa. My thoughts are with his family and friends. It's another sad loss for our sport."

Colin Edwards 7th ? 66 points

?It was a good race and another seventh has put me back in the top ten in the championship. I made a good start and managed to avoid any trouble at the first corner and I had a good early battle with Simoncelli. But I had the same problem I had all weekend and I was losing the front a bit on the brakes. I was trying to ride aggressively and I was happy with my lap times but honestly, I thought the outcome was going to be a little better than seventh. When Ben came by he was able to just pull away from a little bit every lap. I tried my hardest to stay with him but once he'd gone I just settled for seventh. The race doesn't count for much though when you hear the news about Tomizawa. My thoughts go out to his family and friends at this difficult time.?

Herve Poncharal ? Team Manager

?Firstly, on behalf of everyone at Tech 3 Yamaha, I'd like to send our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Shoya Tomizawa. He was a great talent and a really good guy who will be missed by all of us in the racing community. Looking at the race, what happened to Ben early on the first lap was crucial. Unfortunately he lost some places but once again he showed fantastic determination to recover even though this track is difficult to pass on. He got back to sixth but unfortunately he had no chance to catch Casey and that it is shame because without what happened on the first lap, I think Ben could have had a good race with him. But he scored another top six and again he was the best non-factory by a long way. I'm also really happy with Colin because he has been making a lot of progress recently and riding back to his best."

 

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Pedrosa wins on sad day at Misano

Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V) achieved victory in today?s San Marino MotoGP race but the event was dominated by the tragic death of Japanese rider Shoya Tomizawa (Technomag-CIP, Suter), who passed away after an accident during the Moto2 race.

Tomizawa crashed on the 12th lap of the 26 lap race. The 19-year-old Japanese rider was immediately treated at trackside, then at the circuit medical centre and then at Riccione hospital. Numerous attempts were made to resuscitate him but at 14.20hrs, during the MotoGP race, he succumbed to cranial, thoracic and abdominal trauma. Both Honda Motor Co. Ltd and Honda Racing Corporation would like to extend their deepest condolences to Tomizawa?s family and friends.

Tomizawa?s death cast a great shadow over proceedings. All MotoGP riders reacted with shock and sadness when they were told of Tomizawa?s passing after they had finished their race.

Pedrosa led from start to finish, steadily increasing his advantage until he was more than five second ahead of his nearest pursuer and fellow Spaniard, Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha). In the late stages, Pedrosa eased his pace, finally finishing 1.9 seconds ahead of Lorenzo. The victory gave the former 125 and 250 World Champion his first back-to-back success in the premier class, following his win at Indianapolis last Sunday. It also strengthened his second place in the points chase ? with five races remaining he is now 63 points behind series leader Lorenzo. However, Pedrosa was informed of Tomizawa?s fate as soon as he returned to pit lane, so he took no joy from his success.

Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda RC212V) tried his best to score a podium finish at his home race, but the man from Forli couldn?t quite get the better of Valentino Rossi (Yamaha), another local rider and winner of the last two Misano MotoGP races. Nonetheless Dovizioso showed great determination in coming through from a third-row start.

This was also the home race for Fausto Gresini?s Honda squad, but riders Marco Melandri (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V) and Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V) ended the day in tenth and 14th positions. Hiroshi Aoyama (Interwetten Honda MotoGP RC212V) and Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda RC212V) completed the race in 12th and 13th positions.

The accident that claimed Tomizawa also involved British rider Scott Redding (Marc VDS Racing Team, Suter) and San Marino rider Alex De Angelis (JIR Moto2, Motobi). Redding was badly bruised and grazed; receiving ten stitches to a laceration in his back. De Angelis was able to walk away from the incident.

SHOYA TOMIZAWA
Tomizawa, from Chiba, was a very popular rider in the MotoGP paddock, known for his sunny smile and determination on the racetrack. He made his Grand Prix debut at Motegi in the 125 class in 2006. In 2008 he took the runner-up spot in the 250 All-Japan Championship. He became a full-time GP rider last season, taking 17th place in the 250 World Championship. This year he moved into the new Moto2 series and made history by winning the opening round in Qatar.


HONDA MotoGP RIDER QUOTES

Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V): race winner
?There are no words to say how it feels after this victory ? it feels like nothing. I arrived at parc ferm? very happy with the win and I immediately felt that the atmosphere among my mechanics was really strange, everybody was serious. Still with my helmet on they told me about Tomizawa and I couldn?t react. It was a big shock, a big contrast for me. I asked three times if it was true because I couldn?t believe it. It?s so sad, terrible, and these things should never happen. As a person I can only say that he was a very funny boy, always happy and making jokes, and as a rider he earned respect from everybody in a very short time, he was fast and brave. To lose two riders in a week is terrible [American Peter Lenz died at Indianapolis last weekend]. I believe everybody in the World Championship is feeling the same now and I want to send my condolences to the family. When you are born, life gives you the chance to choose what you want to do. Tomi chose to be a rider and in fact he was doing great. I just want to think that he?s been happy making his dream come true. Concerning the race, I want to say thank you again to my team for doing a great job. The whole weekend has been perfect: good practices, a very high pace during the race, and the second win in a row and the fourth of the season. I want to keep my feet on the ground though and just concentrate on one race at a time. The feeling on the bike is very good now and my goal is to continue in this way. But to be honest I?m not really thinking about that at this moment.?

Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda RC212V): 4th
?My thoughts are with Shoya Tomizawa. I was informed after the race and the news is like a slap in the face. Two tragic accidents in two races is so terrible and it reminds us how dangerous our job is. The safety commission has improved safety levels so much that we often forget this aspect. I?m so sorry for Tomizawa?s family. Having become a father I can understand that this is the worst thing that can happen for a family. Unfortunately we couldn?t do anything: these were two casualties, two accidents with a similar dynamic where the track-side barriers were not touched. This can happen and this is why our job is so risky. Concerning the race, we did the maximum. The race weekend was so complicated but we succeeded in turning the bad results from qualifying into a good race. I?m not happy with the fourth position though because our target was the podium. Today the bike was working better and I also improved my riding ? I rode differently from qualifying. We could race with a high pace and this is the important point. I was pushing so hard and, especially in the middle of the race, me and Valentino were putting in really fast lap times. I tried to catch Rossi but in the end I couldn?t make it. We will start for the next race from here: we were fast and now we need concrete results.?

Marco Melandri (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V): 10th
?There is nothing I have to say about today?s race. It is a tragic day.?

Hiroshi Aoyama (Interwetten Honda MotoGP RC212V): 12th
?All I can say is I?m very sad. Tomizawa was a great friend.?

Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda RC212V): 13th
?I do not want to speak about me and my race. This weekend ended in the most horrible way. My thoughts go to Shoya and his family.?

Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V): 14th
?Today is a very sad and tough day, when racing doesn?t feel like it should. I know just how hard it is to lose a rider in these circumstances and I know the pain that his family and all the guys on the team who worked with him are feeling right now. There is little more to say. This is an extremely sad day. We knew immediately that the race was serious, but you always hope at times like this that there will be a miracle and the rider will get to his feet. Unfortunately that wasn?t the case today.?

Pole position : 1m33.948s (161.936Km/h) Dani Pedrosa, Honda
Fastest lap : Lap 7 - 1m34.340s (161.263Km/h) Dani Pedrosa, Honda
Circuit record lap : 1m34.340s (161.263Km/h) Dani Pedrosa, Honda, 2010
Circuit Best Lap : 1m33.378s (162.924Km/h) Casey Stoner (Ducati, 2008)