MotoGP Legend Agostini honoured in Jerez

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Former 500cc World Champion Giacomo Agostini has been honoured in the Jerez Walk of Fame.

The Italian MotoGP™ Legend was inducted into the city’s new Walk of Fame as part of Jerez’s celebrations as the World Motorcycling Capital. Fellow MotoGP Legend Angel Nieto was the first rider to be inducted into the walk in January.

Officials from the city of Jerez and Agostini’s wife were alongside him as he unveiled his star, the second to have been created on the Walk of Fame.

Agostini is the most successful rider in the World Championship history with a total of 122 Grand Prix victories and 15 titles to his name, eight in the premier class and seven in the former 350cc category.

source: MotoGP.com

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Avintia Blusens ends pre-season closer to top

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Three days of intense work (the second of which was almost completely lost to rain) from the entire Avintia Blusens team at the Jerez Test wrapped up on Sunday, and the crew worked tirelessly to be able to head to Qatar in good shape for the first Grand Prix of the season.

Both Iván Silva and Yonny Hernández put in solid shifts as the team looked to sort out the problems the pair had been having with their FTR machines in turns since pre-season, with slow corners especially problematic. Both riders and their crews dedicated a lot of time to this area, also focusing heavily on electronics.

The results were positive and Avintia Blusens cut the gap to the MotoGP™ machines in terms of time, when compared to previous Tests. Iván Silva ended the Test 3.666s off Casey Stoner's time, and just eight-tenths off the second CRT. Aside from De Puniet, the remainder of the CRT bikes are within a second of one another, which pre-empts an exciting season in which the Avintia Blusens riders can battle with their fellow CRT rivals.

Raúl Romero (Team Manager):

"I'm delighted with this result. We've taken another step forward and have also shown we're at a good level in relation to the other CRT bikes. There's room to improve and that motivates us. We also have to take into account that some of the others have been working for a long time while we are just starting out. Every time we go out on track we're improving lots. On Sunday Iván lowered his times and Yonny worked a lot on the electronics and with the second bike in order to have it ready for Qatar. We haven't had any major problems or crashes. I'm proud of the whole team and what they have achieved in order to be able to get the job done."

Iván Silva:

"We've done a great job here. The result is positive and, with a couple of little things left which we still haven't had time to try out, I'm sure we could have gotten below 1'42". We'll get there though. Right now I'm learning the bike and every alteration is one which will benefit us going forwards. I've worked a lot with the issues we were having with the front and we've improved, but we've also lost a little bit of rear grip. We have to take into consideration that we are building a bike from scratch, and that involves a lot of work. We have a good rhythm and, with the level playing field that is CRT, that could be very telling in the races."

Yonny Hernández:

"I got under 1'43" even though there's still a lot left to improve on. We've been working with the second bike a lot which took up plenty of time, but we have a solid direction for Qatar. A great job has been done with the electronics and bit by bit we are getting more competitive. I'm excited because there is a great equality amongst the CRT machines, and we still have a lot left to improve on. De Puniet got away a little bit, but we'll get there!"

source: MotoGP Official

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'Pleased' Valentino Rossi bins 'bad setup'

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After struggling to make meaningful progress throughout the second Sepang test, then opening two days at Jerez, Valentino Rossi concluded his 2012 MotoGP pre-season preparations on a positive note on Sunday.

The seven time MotoGP champion, who claimed a solitary podium during his debut Ducati season, had spoken enthusiastically of the new aluminium-frame GP12 during its Sepang I debut.

But the Italian was left 'worried' when his progress stalled during the second Malaysian test and the infamous front-end cornering problems then continued in Spain.

Speaking on Sunday evening, Rossi explained that pursuit of a 'bad set-up' had led them astray.

“Today went much better than Friday, and I'm pleased... we're pleased,” he began. “Unfortunately, we made some mistakes at Sepang II chasing a bad setup, and we paid for that a bit on Friday because we started from that base.”

Ninth and 1.8sec off the pace on Friday, Rossi was then robbed of value track time by poor weather on day two, but the set-up changes allowed him to cut the gap to Honda's Casey Stoner to 0.953sec and claim sixth place on the final day.

“Saturday's rain cost us an entire day, but today we finally worked well all day long,” he said. “Step by step, we arrived at our current potential: I'm sixth, and I did a 1m 39.7s, which is a good time considering that we've only really ridden this bike for six or seven days. 

“We changed the setup, first the rear and then the front, and now I enter the corners pretty well again. I'm able to lean and I can 'risk' a bit more. Although we know very well that we still have a long road ahead, if we look at the gap to the front we can say we're ready for the first race.”

Rossi will go into the new season having finished each of the pre-season tests 1.217sec (fifth), 1.077sec (tenth) and now 0.953sec (sixth) from the top.

During 2011 pre-season testing Rossi had been 1.085s (tenth), 1.804s (eleventh) and Rossi 1.307s (thirteenth) behind.

Team-mate Nicky Hayden, the fastest Ducati rider on the opening two days at Jerez - and quickest of all in the rain interrupted Saturday session - finished the test in eighth place, 1.1sec from former team-mate Stoner.

source: crash.net

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Positive outcome for Barbera

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Héctor Barberá put in a tiring 91 laps on the final day at Jerez on Sunday, as he and his Pramac Racing crew worked on a variety of aspects on the GP12. The Spaniard rode on the new Bridgestone front tyre which was rolled out at the Test, and was 11th fastest overall.

Héctor Barberá:

"To be honest these three days were a little bit strange, mainly due to the wind and weather. We made numerous adjustments to our Ducati and we worked specifically on the set-up of the electronics. After Saturday we lost a lot of time due to bad weather conditions, but on Sunday we worked tirelessly to take a step forward. I rode for 91 laps. We found a good set-up and now I’m able to ride in a better way, in particular with the tyres. When I tried to improve my best lap time there were a lot of riders on track, and I lost my chance. But I’m satisfied with how the Test went. We also tested the new Bridgestone tyres, which worked very well with our Ducati."

Marco Rigamonti, Crew Chief:

"These three days were very difficult for us, due to the weather conditions, but fortunately we worked in a positive way on the final day. We found a nice feeling with the bike and we also found some good solutions with tyres, compared to the Malaysian Test, during which we had some problems with tyre wear. Now we have a good set-up, which allows us to maintain our lap time, also with worn tyres. We tested the new Bridgestone tyres too, but only for few laps, because we preferred to work on the materials that we will definitely have."

source: MotoGP Official

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picture: Casey Stoner Face Expression at Jerez

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Casey Stoner's expression during the interview at Jerez.

source: crash.net

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Randy de Puniet ready to lead MotoGP’s CRT revolution

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Randy de Puniet was confirmed as the clear standard-bearer for the new 'Claiming Rule Team' privateer MotoGP class during the final pre-season test at Jerez. 

The new Power Electronics Aspar rider had been expected to head the CRT challenge after previously posting unofficial lap times comparable to satellite MotoGP machines on his Superbike-based Aprilia ART machine. 

But the Jerez test marked the first time all 21 MotoGP race riders - including the nine CRTs - had been on track together, and with official timing. 

de Puniet promptly indicated that the previous reports were correct by outpacing the satellite Ducatis of Hector Barbera and Karel Abraham on his way to eleventh place on day one. 

Day two was effectively a washout, and de Puniet then finished the pre-season in 13th place on Sunday, as the satellite GP12s just edged back ahead of him. de Puniet's best lap was 1.8sec from Honda's Casey Stoner, but both Barbera and Abraham were within 0.31sec. 

The Frenchman, a MotoGP podium finisher for Kawasaki and LCR Honda, thus looks capable of fighting with some of the much more expensive satellite manufacturer machines in the Qatar season opener on April 8. 

"I am satisfied with the test, we have been fast and at the front of the CRT field, not that far off the factory guys,” said de Puniet. “Our pace is good and I think we're ready for the start of the season. 

“I am really happy with the potential of the bike and I think we can perform to a high level on it this season. It is consistent and ready to run race distance.” 

CRT bikes are allowed 3 litres more fuel (race) and six more engine changes (season) relative to the manufacturer machines, but can have their engines and gearbox 'claimed' for 20,000 euros and must not be 'entered' by or 'represent' an MSMA manufacturer. 

Some of the MotoGP manufacturers feel the Aprilia is not within the spirit of the CRT rules, being created by a major factory, but there is little they can now do about it since retracting CRT status mid-season would require majority agreement from the GP Commission. 

While de Puniet looks set to blur the distinction between the MotoGP categories, he may be something of a lone challenger in the early rounds at least. The next best CRT at Jerez, team-mate Aleix Espargaro, being over one-second slower. 

"The good thing is that I am amongst the fastest CRT riders, but we only have to look at my team-mate Randy to see that I can still go faster,” admitted the Spaniard. 

Colin Edwards, the most highly qualified of the CRT riders with twelve MotoGP podiums, was only 17th fastest and nearly 1.5sec from de Puniet. 

source: crash.net

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Pasini prepared for CRT debut

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The Speed Master rider concluded the Jerez Test with a positive evaluation of how the Aprilia CRT machine had developed in the lead-up to the start of the 2012 MotoGP™ season.

Mattia Pasini and his Speed Master team began the Jerez Test focusing on electronics on the ART machine it will race in 2012, and after getting in some wet set-up work on Saturday it concluded the three days on Sunday with overall set-up and tyre work.

Mattia Pasini:

"In general these three days went quite well. Friday started off with a shakedown of the second machine, which was new for us. We made a few minor modifications but mainly tried to complete as many laps as possible without worrying too much about the time we set or the final position on the timesheet. On Saturday we had a positive run on the wet track, we did a good job and now we have some important information for whenever it does rain. On Sunday we worked on the bike and its general setting, trying to improve it step-by-step. We put together a lot of data. It was a shame to crash at the end of the test, we could have done without that. We had started working in a new direction for the chassis which I believe could have helped us to improve. We'll now keep working in this direction, and on the whole I'm happy with our preparations for Qatar."

source: MotoGP Official

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Bridgestone completes pre-season development

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Pre-season testing for the 2012 MotoGP season wrapped up after the conclusion of the Jerez test and a late dash by Repsol Honda’s Casey Stoner in the final hour of play saw the Australian stand supreme at the top of the timesheets once again.

Jerez was the first time all 21 riders campaigning the upcoming MotoGP season shared the same circuit , but it made little difference to the reigning champion as his time of 1'38.780 ensured he was the fastest man at each of the IRTA pre-season tests. Stoner’s late burst of speed saw him depose Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo into second place, though the 2010 champion’s best time of 1'38.953 showed the potency of the 2012 M1 and the promise of some exciting duels throughout the upcoming season.

The factory Honda and Yamaha teams locked out the top four positions in the standings with Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa third quickest ahead of Ben Spies, while Monster Yamaha Tech 3’s Cal Crutchlow continued his excellent pre-season form to finish the final day fifth ahead of Ducati’s Valentino Rossi.

Following data analysis from the second Sepang test, Bridgestone developed a new specification front tyre for Jerez and evaluation of this new front tyre took place alongside continued testing of the 2012 specification front tyre. The data and rider feedback acquired from the experimental front tyre will now be analysed at Bridgestone’s Technical Centre in Japan in support of its ongoing development programme.

Shinji Aoki - Manager, Bridgestone Motorsport Tyre Development Department:

"I am very pleased to have completed our pre-season development programme and we leave Spain having achieved all our technical objectives. At the Sepang tests we met our target of delivering improved warm-up performance, enhanced rider feel and a wide operating temperature range in hot conditions, and at Jerez we wanted to achieve the same performance criteria in cooler conditions. In this regard, the outcome was very positive with riders giving excellent feedback on how the 2012 specification tyres performed in the cooler temperatures and so we approach the season full of optimism.

"As part of our fundamental tyre development programme, we also brought an experimental front tyre for all riders to test at Jerez and we gathered valuable data on this new development. On behalf of Bridgestone I would like to thank all the teams and riders for their efforts in helping us achieve our goals and I look forward to what I am sure will be an exciting season for MotoGP."

Bridgestone press release

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Stoner: We can still improve the bike quite a bit

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Defending double world champion Casey Stoner will head into the first race of the new 1000cc MotoGP era having been fastest in all three 2012 pre-season tests.

Quickest at the two Sepang visits, the Repsol Honda rider completed the sweep by deposing Yamaha's Jorge Lorenzo from the head of the Sunday Jerez test timesheets by 0.173sec on his 61st and final lap.

“Today we were really pleased with the lap times we're running but I think we can still improve the bike quite a bit before the race here. Anyway we feel like we've made some progress on a track like this for us,” said Stoner.

Whilst the late run grabbed the limelight, Stoner's pace during a long (for him) ten flying-lap run was equally formidable. The most successful rider of the previous 800cc MotoGP era recording nine laps under 1m 40s (see below).

The Jerez race distance is a much longer 27 laps, which Lorenzo and Stoner's team-mate Dani Pedrosa chose to complete (see separate stories), but in the past Stoner has been able to effectively replicate full distances by starting his 'mini' simulations with well-worn tyres and high fuel loads.

“We did a lot of laps and a longer run to get a little more understanding of fuel consumption and things like this and in general we're satisfied with how the whole test has gone for us. Now we can go racing which is what we really enjoy.”

The only real negative of the Australian's pre-season has been a stubborn chatter problem at the Malaysian tests, related to the latest Bridgestone tyres. Stoner revealed he felt some vibration again on Sunday, but doesn't think it's related.

“Towards the end of the day we had some chattering but we have an idea what caused this and it's not the same as in Sepang,” he said.

Pedrosa was third fastest, 0.204sec behind Stoner.

Stoner and his #1 RC213V will next be on track for opening practice in Qatar, on the evening of Thursday April 5. The Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez will take place at the end of April.

source: crash.net

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Aspar duo make headway at Jerez

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Pre-season for the 2012 MotoGP World Championship officially concluded on Sunday, with the last of hundreds of laps in Malaysia, Aragón, Valencia and Jerez taking place at the Andalucian circuit.

The Power Electronics Aspar Team showed their capacity to react, with both riders starting out Sunday morning with front-end grip problems. Randy de Puniet and Aleix Espargaró worked against the clock throughout the day to improve their suspension and chassis set-up but with particular focus on tyres as they tried to improve corner speed. Short runs of five to seven laps gave them the opportunity to try a variety of combinations and they began to find a breakthrough early in the afternoon. The pair were again the quickest riders amongst the new MotoGP CRT field, giving them confidence for a historic first race with their ART bikes in Qatar.

Randy de Puniet:

"We struggled a lot this morning for front end grip and had to work hard to resolve the issue, it took almost three hours. In the end we went with a tyre that we had tested on Friday and it made a big difference. Apart from the setback this morning I am satisfied with the test, we have been fast and at the front of the CRT field, not that far off the factory guys. Our pace is good and I think we're ready for the start of the season. I am really happy with the potential of the bike and I think we can perform to a high level on it this season. It is consistent and ready to run race distance. I crashed late in the day, probably pushing too hard on a worn front tyre, but luckily it was really slow."

Aleix Espargaró:

"We have had a lot of chattering today, I don't know why, but I struggled to get on the pace this morning. We improved a lot with the new Bridgestone but not enough so we have to keep working. I need more confidence in corner entry. Little by little we managed to set a good pace on a new tyre but we need to find a better solution to improve our mid-corner speed. We have done a lot of work on the chassis and suspension and improved my overall feeling so we'll have to keep working along the same lines in Qatar. The good thing is that I am amongst the fastest CRT riders but we only have to look at my team-mate Randy to see that I can still go faster."

Team Aspar press release

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Petrucci happy with Ioda progress

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Danilo Petrucci and the Came Iodaracing Project continued the development of the TR003 CRT machine at the Official MotoGP™ Test at Jerez over the weekend, and the Italian rider left the Spanish circuit pleased with what had been achieved.

Danilo Petrucci:

"We've had three very hard days, but in the end I am satisfied with the results we have achieved. I am the third Italian in the timings and the third CRT bike, even though I fell short of my target lap time by 0.1s – we wanted to be less than three seconds from the MotoGP bikes. Today (Sunday) I tested different tyres and we worked on the electronics a lot. We had two small problems that stopped us right at the moment when the track conditions were ideal for putting in our target lap time, but in the end I improved my lap time at the very end of the day. I must thank the team because they did a fantastic job. The TR003 continues to develop and today it proved it is reliable considering the 87 laps I completed. Now we go to Qatar knowing there is still a lot of work to do."

source: MotoGP Official

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Bautista confident despite tough Test

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The final day of pre-season at Jerez could have gone better for Álvaro Bautista, with two crashes denying him the opportunity to complete his testing programme. His race pace is good but the Spaniard perhaps struggled a little for the confidence to push for a faster time because of his two tumbles. Michele Pirro paid the price for his bike's youthfulness on Sunday, setting some decent lap times in the morning but struggling to improve his pace in the afternoon due to technical problems.

Álvaro Bautista:

"It hasn't been a great day for us. We started out well and tried some interesting electronic solutions this morning, as well as two different Bridgestone tyres, to try and work out which gave me the most confidence. Then in the afternoon we were doing a race simulation when I crashed not once but twice, when the front let go without warning. I still don't know exactly what happened and naturally that damaged my confidence in the front and I couldn't push to the limit as I would have liked. Anyway, we are not losing faith because we found some good things and now we just have to prepare for the first race in the best way we can. Racing at night in Qatar is not easy but I still feel confident even after the worst afternoon of pre-season testing. My feeling with the team is perfect and I am sure they will help me to recover the confidence I lost today."

Michele Pirro:

"All I can say is that we have a lot to work on! Lap by lap I am building my confidence with the bike but I couldn't really make the most of it because we had a problem with the bike and I had to come back into the pit box. They are teething problems but it is frustrating for me because I want to squeeze out everything I feel inside. It is a shame but I know that the guys are working hard, I have complete faith in them and I am sure that we will soon be reaping the rewards of all their effort. We just need to be patient."

San Carlo Honda Gresini press release

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Smiles all round in Tech 3 garage

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Cal Crutchlow and Andrea Dovizioso enjoyed a successful ending to the winter testing schedule in Jerez today (Sunday), the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 riders heading to the first race of the 2012 MotoGP World Championship in confident mood.

British rider Crutchlow once again excelled with and he set the fifth quickest time after completing an incredible 83 laps. After yesterday's schedule was disrupted by rain and strong winds, Crutchlow was able to assess updated Yamaha electronics and two new Bridgestone front tyres in much more favourable conditions today, and he was able to clock a fastest time of 1'39.613.

The former World Supersport Champion was again the leading non-factory rider and encouragingly his fast and consistent pace was less than 0.1s behind Ben Spies in the Yamaha Factory Racing Team.

The sunny but breezy conditions today enabled Dovizioso to carry out an extensive testing schedule and helped him continue adapting his riding style to suit the Yamaha machine. The Italian concentrated on improving stability under acceleration and he finished in seventh position, his fastest pace of 1'39.860 putting him just over 0.2s away from the top six.

Cal Crutchlow:

"I'm really happy to finish this test in the top five with a very fast pace because we worked through a lot. Today I only used three sets of tyres in 83 laps, yet I was fast and consistent all day, so it shows we are getting good endurance from the soft and the hard options. The different electronic set-up also helped in acceleration, so it was a very positive and productive day after the rain washed out yesterday. The good thing is we know the bike works very well on a completely different track. The tests in Sepang were crucial but we needed to come to a completely different circuit like Jerez to understand if the bike has a good base level for a tighter and shorter track. Yamaha has done a great job because the YZR-M1 works very well. Finishing behind Stoner, Lorenzo, Pedrosa and Spies is obviously good for my confidence and now I'm looking forward to going to Qatar and racing. I feel ready and much better prepared than last year."

Andrea Dovizioso:

"I'm really happy about the work we did today and thanks to my Tech 3 crew because they worked incredibly hard. After the stomach illness I had on the first day and the rain yesterday, I really needed to get in as many laps as possible to understand the potential of the Yamaha on a completely different track to Sepang. We did some very good work in improving the stability of the bike on the exit of the corner and this is so important at a slower track like Jerez. You can have a lot of sliding and wheelie on the exit but we have improved a lot in this area. I think I could have gone faster but I only used the soft rear tyre in the final 30 minutes, so with more time I'm sure I could have been inside the top six. Now I am looking forward to going to Qatar and racing the Yamaha for the first time. I'm convinced we will be fast and competitive but the four at the top of the timesheets are really strong. They are consistently fast, so it will not be easy to stay with them. But I will be giving it my maximum to start the new season in the best possible way."

Monster Yamaha Tech 3 press release

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Good base set-up established for rookie Bradl

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Wasting no time after Saturday's poor conditions, all MotoGP™ riders were out on track by shortly after 11am local time on Sunday to begin their working plan on the final day of the last pre-season Test in Jerez, gathering as much data as possible ahead the first race.

Race simulations were the order of the day for a number of teams in the afternoon including the LCR Team and its rookie Stefan Bradl, who has concluded his Spanish Test session in 10th position overall (1’40.098), quickly adapting to the RCV213V.

Stefan Bradl:

"After yesterday’s adverse weather, we had a lot of things to test today. So we tried several lengths of swingarm, several front fork adjustments and some things to get more braking stability. At the end we achieved a good base set-up which I am very happy with. At the end of the day I did a long run with a consistent pace and on soft tyres I could even have improved my lap time, but I got stopped by some riders. However, we were not here for the fastest lap time and I think we made our best in the last three days."

LCR Honda press release

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Solid progress leaves Stoner and Pedrosa in top shape

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The three days of testing at Jerez circuit have been very productive for the factory Repsol Honda riders, with Casey Stoner finishing on top again today (Sunday) with a best lap time of 1'38.780 and Dani Pedrosa, in third position with 1'39.157.

Both riders spent this morning preparing their bikes for a longer run. Dani made a race simulation, with 27 laps in low 1'40"s, finishing reasonably happy with his performance and the bike behaviour. Casey also took positive information from a long run of 12 laps, of which eight were in the 1'39"s.

The next time that Repsol Honda riders will go on track will be April 5th at Losail circuit, for the first practice of the Grand Prix of Qatar, the first race of the 2012 season.

Casey Stoner:

"Today we were really pleased with the lap times we're running but I think we can still improve the bike quite a bit before the race here. Anyway we feel like we've made some progress on a track like this for us. Towards the end of the day we had some chattering but we have an idea what caused this and it's not the same as in Sepang. We did a lot of laps and a longer run to get a little more understanding of fuel consumption and things like this and in general we're satisfied with how the whole Test has gone for us. Now we can go racing which is what we really enjoy."

Dani Pedrosa:

"We've been working a lot with the chassis in the morning to prepare the race simulation. But by the time we were ready, we had to stop twice in the box for an issue with the rear brake. Finally, on my third exit, I could make it. I did the full race distance, 27 laps, and I'm quite satisfied with the result, the lap times were pretty good even though it was very windy in the afternoon, it's also been also good physical training for me. In general, I think we've done a good pre-season, we only need to improve a little more on braking and corner entry… It would help us for the first race of the season."

Repsol Honda press release

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Lorenzo and Spies leave Jerez happy

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Yamaha Factory Racing rider Jorge Lorenzo wrapped up the final pre-season Test of 2012 today (Sunday) in Jerez with an impressive 84 laps covered. Lorenzo spent almost the entire day as the only rider to drop under the 1’39” mark, with rival Casey Stoner joining him to lead by 0.173 seconds in the last moments of the session. The Mallorcan delivered an impressive race simulation, showing his trademark lap time consistency over the distance.

Team-mate Ben Spies also covered some distance, putting in 61 laps as he worked on final set-up solutions for his 1000cc YZR-M1. The Texan ends the Test as the fourth fastest rider, 0.715 seconds from the front. Spies also worked on a race simulation earlier in the Test and was satisfied with a competitive pace.

The MotoGP paddock now moves to Qatar where the first race will be played out under the floodlights in the desert on April 8th. With the gap to their rivals much closer than last year in testing, both Yamaha riders are keen to line up on the grid and get the season started.

Jorge Lorenzo:

“I’m really happy because we tried to make some good lap times so we put new tyres on the rear this morning to make the 1’38.9 which is a good time. This afternoon we improved the bike for a race simulation which went really well. In general we are very happy, it’s not just me, Ben is also very close to the competition as are Cal and Andrea. We need to improve our braking a little, if we can do that we could gain some more tenths of a second.”

Ben Spies:

“I’m happy with how the Test went. Both Jorge and I worked really methodically on getting through a number of different things, I think we’re quite happy with the bike going to Qatar, it’s been good here and good in Sepang. A couple of the areas where we had problems last year seem to be a lot better. We can’t say if they are completely fixed until we go to more tracks but we are happy with the balance of the bike and I think we have a very competitive bike for 2012.”

Yamaha Factory Racing press release

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Better final day for Rossi as Hayden looks to Qatar

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The final day of the three-day Test at the Spanish Jerez de la Frontera circuit officially closed out the pre-season, and the next stop for the MotoGP riders is the Qatar Grand Prix on April 8th.

The Ducati Team saw its riders, Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden, finish the day in sixth and eighth positions, respectively. It was a result with which both could be satisfied in the context of the Desmosedici GP12’s development path, as the bike has now undergone seven days of testing, taking into account the days ‘lost’ to bad weather.

Valentino Rossi:

“Today went much better than Friday, and I’m pleased… we’re pleased. Unfortunately, we made some mistakes at Sepang 2 chasing a bad set-up, and we paid for that a bit on Friday because we started from that base. Then Saturday’s rain cost us an entire day, but today we finally worked well all day long. Step by step, we arrived at our current potential: I’m sixth, and I did a 1'39.7, which is a good time considering that we’ve only really ridden this bike for six or seven days. We changed the set-up, first the rear and then the front, and now I enter the corners pretty well again. I’m able to lean and I can ‘risk’ a bit more. Although we know very well that we still have a long road ahead, if we look at the gap to the front we can say we’re ready for the first race.”

Nicky Hayden:

“It’s been a very, very busy day. With my injury affecting the last Tests, we needed to squeeze a winter’s worth of testing into this weekend, and yesterday was basically a wash. Today we got to try some stuff on the bike and learned a few things. I’m not thrilled with my lap time because I thought I could go a bit quicker but I struggled a little with the fast corners. We’ve clearly got some work to do, but now it’s time to get ready for Qatar, and I look forward to starting the season. I definitely feel better after coming here and getting to ride at close to 100 per cent and getting to understand the bike a bit more. Now it’s time to see what we’ve got when we put the cards on the table.”

Ducati Team press release

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Casey Stoner Lead Day 3 Jerez Test

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Casey Stoner back to top on the last 10 minutes, day 3 MotoGP test at Jerez with 1.38.780 (61 laps). Jorge Lorenzo sets 1.38.953 (0.173 behind) and Dani Pedrosa on 3rd, 1.39.157. While Randy DePuniet still fastest among the CRT bikes with 1.40.601, about 1.8 seconds behind Stoner's.

Here's the full result from day 3 at Jerez

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Frenetic final day at Jerez as teams make up lost time

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Wasting no time after Saturday's frustrations at Jerez, all 21 MotoGP™ riders were out on track by shortly after 11am local time, as a busy workload began on the final day of the Official Test. With the sun shining and the track measuring a cool but not inhospitable 22ºC, conditions were much closer to ideal than they had been the previous day.

By the time proceedings had reached the midway point at 2pm local time, Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha Factory Racing) had gone fastest, breaking the 1'39” barrier for the first time during the Test with a fast lap of 1'38.953. The Spaniard was the only rider to have dipped into the 1'38”s by halfway, with Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) the closest to him in a time of 1'39.157 (+0.204s).

Casey Stoner (Repsol Honda) was the only other rider to get within a full second of Lorenzo (+0.332s) as the majority of the teams and riders focused on working their way through the checklists they had originally intended to make headway with on Saturday.

Official MotoGP™ tyre supplier Bridgestone also took advantage of the greatly improved conditions to roll out a new specification front compound for evaluation by a selection of riders.

Race simulations will be the order of the day for a number of teams in the afternoon as they attempt to gather as much information as possible for their return to the track and the second round of the season in late April.

source: MotoGP Official

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MotoGP: A tire that may be worth a title

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One of the major workhorses are the tires in MotoGP, we all remember the wars Michelin-Bridgestone and even the most veteran of Michelin-Dunlop in the 500cc World.

This escalation of competition had its peak in the last stage of Michelin in MotoGP, when the French factory was capable of producing special tires tailored to riders and bikes from one day to another and transfer by plane to the circuit touched. All this ended with the single tire rule and the entry of Bridgestone as sole supplier.

But after numerous complaints from drivers last season, mostly due to tires which cost them to take temperature and produced numerous falls, Dorna not take sides willing to tolerate the tires could jeopardize the integrity of the pilots and between other measures, he joined the newly retired Loris Capirossi, to do a bridge between manufacturers and drivers to improve the situation.

Now Capirossi, who've been very active in Jerez, with his trusty folder always asking the pilots about the behavior of the tires, has a difficult ballot, in Sepang Bridgestone brought two new front tires to evaluate, marked with code 21 and 22 that the pilots tested in Malaysia and now in Jerez, and here begins the problem ... Casey Stoner, now exulting in his best time and happy with the performance of his Honda, was delighted with the tire type 22, which says "It's great when braking and cornering stick, "adding" the other I do not like, is very unstable ", making clear that more expensive does not want to hear about it.

On the other hand, Jorge Lorenzo commented, "In Sepang Bridgestone brought two types of front tires, the 21 is better than the standard and I hope that's the we use the rest of the season." But when he said that was precisely 22 and not the preferred resounding Stoner said: "If Casey does not like the 21 I like 21 and I think most pilots as well."

Stoner and his peculiar way of flying, something that was unceremoniously squeezed when the Ducati, which only he knew how to take their potential, rather something that most pilots do not convince, the dilemma is served, he is the World Champion Will your favorite tire or else will have to submit to the demands of the majority? Recall that the range of tires manufactured by Bridgestone is limited and will not produce them on demand. The answer will in Qatar.

source: motocuatro

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