Valentino Rossi will race a Ferrari

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Valentino Rossi just can't stay away from four wheeled racing. His participation in the Monza Rally is now a fixed event every winter, where he drives his VR46 liveried car, but that won't be his only automobile race this year.  The Doctor will be participating in the first round of the Blancpain Endurance Series, on April 15, at Monza, in the Pro-Am Cup category.  And of course he couldn't pass up the opportunity to drive an Italian legend, a Ferrari, even if it isn't a Formula 1 car.

Vale will share the Ferrari 458 Italia, prepared by the Kessel Racing Team, with his trusted friend Uccio Salucci. The race number has already been chosen, obviously the 46, and the colors will be those of his merchandising company and Monster.  "We decided at the last minute to take part in this round, and doing it together with my friend Uccio will certainly be a lot of fun," Rossi said.

source: GP One

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Valentino Rossi seeks smoother Ducati power

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Understeer is not the only issue that Valentino Rossi believes is preventing him from moving the Ducati GP12 closer to challenging Casey Stoner and Jorge Lorenzo’s recent domination of the MotoGP world championship.

After he ended practice with the eighth fastest time in Qatar tonight, the 33-year-old said taming Ducati’s aggressive power delivery would help him reduce the gap to the front in the new 1000cc premier class.

The Italian finished with a best lap time of 1.56.535 but he was still 1.233s behind Lorenzo, who topped the timesheets.

Since he first rode the radical new GP12 in Sepang at the end of January, Rossi has spoken frequently of the understeer issue remaining that hampered him so much in a disastrous debut season with Ducati in 2011.

But at the Losail International Circuit in Doha tonight, Rossi told MCN: “The front of the bike gives more feedback and feels more like a normal bike. I understand in a better way what’s happening on the front so I can push more on the front, and this is so important.

"But the understeer remains and with this bike you have always the feeling to ride with the rear tyre and it is a strange feeling. The second target is to try and have a better drivability of the engine.

"It needs to be softer and smoother because we have a lion in the cowling and we always fight quite a lot and this creates some problem for us to put the horsepower on the ground and don’t wheelie and slide.

"But now we have a place where it works because at the end of the straight we are very fast. The Ducatis are first, second, third and fourth on top speed, so maybe we can take out some power from the top and put on the bottom.”

source: MCN

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Valentino Rossi: "Getting the second row of the grid would be a great result"

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Valentino Rossi was not jump for joy after the third free practice Qatar Grand Prix yesterday , but the Italian seemed happier than on Thursday after the first session. Rossi is working hard on the bike, looking for a good set up more than a good lap to make up the time table and warns that "this is not over, the result is given on Sunday night," referring it is not the first Ducati ...

"I've done quite well in the sense that we have improved the pace, we were more consistent, we have not made a big step, but I can ride the bike better. Then we tested with a soft rubber and I turned quickly, I hope tomorrow ... would be nice to leave on Sunday from the second row of the grid, I do not see an impossible goal, I think we could qualify in the second row, "said the Italian star.

"We've been better than in previous workouts. In my opinion we have improved, we made some changes for this final session. We are still a bit far but now I can fly a little better and that makes me more optimistic, "he maintains Vale.

On what still do not like about this bike says that "we are noticing much understeer, but what this bike is very positive about the past year is that we can push much more than before, because the front of the bike now tells us more, there is a better feedback and this is an important thing. Now we have to seek to improve because we have always had to drive with the rear wheel. "

Despite improvement has not been the best Ducati. "Yes, I've gone a little better but Barbera and Hayden are in front, but hey, this is not over yet, wait and see on Sunday night. But the truth is that Barbera and Hayden are going very strong, but we are close and hopefully tomorrow we can improve a bit more. "

The difference with Barbera, however, was four-tenths ... "yes, four tenths because Barbera has taken the wheel of someone (Lorenzo) and has the time, but if you got it right. Nicky is working well too and that means that we too can improve. "

You are experiencing a lot, a role that formerly were not comfortable doing in the Grands Prix. "We are working on the bike, this bike can fly a little better, the front now gives us feeling better but still the problem of understeer that we are trying to solve."

"We have to stay focused at work and keep improving. I think tomorrow we can do better and we need two or three tenths to have a good rhythm and can fight with those who want to do and also to drive more consistently, that's a good goal. "

On race tires, Valentino commented, "I think it will be hard, Bridgestone has done a good job with the soft rubber on the security issue, but in my opinion will not be adequate."

source: motocuatro

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Improvements felt by Hayden and Rossi

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The opening round of the 2012 MotoGP season continued this evening (Friday), with the second and third free practice sessions taking place at Qatar’s Losail International Circuit. Although the area was buffeted by fairly strong winds for much of the day, the surface grip improved compared to Thursday night’s dusty conditions, forcing the riders and their teams to adapt their set-ups accordingly.

Both Nicky Hayden, seventh at the end, and Valentino Rossi improved their performances, with the Italian in particular working with the hard tyre, consistently lowering his times with the race set-up. Only in the final exit did he mount a softer tyre, with which he posted the eighth-best time of the day.

Nicky Hayden:

"As the track is cleaning up, we’re getting more grip, but in a way that’s hurting us since I’m also getting more chatter. When that happens, I can’t keep my lean angle, and I run wide, especially in the flat corners. We tried some different springs but haven’t found the right solution yet. Chatter is so strange and inconsistent sometimes, but we’ll have a look at the data and do our best to sort it out. My pace isn’t great, but although I’m not thrilled with how the day went, the bike is certainly doing well on top speed, which is going to be important in the race."

Valentino Rossi:

"Today went pretty well, and I’d say that the last session was the best. The position is nothing fantastic, but on the positive side, I’m very consistent with the hard tyre. The front of the bike is giving more feedback, so I can push more, which is very important, and the bike is very fast at the end of the straight. The understeer is still there, but now I think we have a place from which to work. We hope to improve two or three small things with the setting for tomorrow, and we’ll try to qualify on the second row."

Ducati Team press release

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Rossi: "We have the same problems as last year before"

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Although Valentino Rossi has not completed the first free practice Qatar Grand Prix totally annoyed, she has done little satisfied, because when it appears to reproduce some problems with the Ducati GP12 that were anticipated and overcome.

"We have the mime problems with the front of the bike we had last year," advance the great Italian, who did not just find a way to end their battle with train personnel front the Desmosedici.

"I rode all training hard tires," he explained when asked by the enormous differences with boxing mate, Nicky Hayden, who with the same bike over a second faster. "Nicky has done time with soft tires, maybe if I had put would have been closer, but here the soft for the race, do not work, so it's not worth trying," has ruled the Italian.

Whether the difference is too great to run with the same bike, has clarified that "Nicky and I are complete opposites riding styles, and each has the bike set up very differently, hence they can give these results."

source: motocuatro

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Hayden happy with FP1 as Rossi targets improvement

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The 2012 MotoGP™ World Championship kicked off this evening (Thursday) at Qatar’s Losail International Circuit, where the first free practice session of the new season took place under the lights.

On a dirty track surface, Ducati Team riders Nicky Hayden and Valentino Rossi spent the single 45 minute session working on finding a race set-up, as well as continuing to familiarise themselves with the still-new Desmosedici GP12. Toward the end, the American managed to post the third-fastest time of the session, while Rossi, who used just a single hard tyre, finished the night tenth quickest.

Tomorrow evening (Friday) will find the MotoGP riders participating in two more free practice sessions, with qualifying to take place on Saturday night and the first race of the year on Sunday evening.

Nicky Hayden:

"The first session went well. This track is a lot different than what we experienced in Jerez, more open and a lot wider. It was quite dirty and not very grippy, which helped us a bit. We started off on the hard tyre and then switched to the soft for the last exit, and I was able to do a nice lap. In general we were pretty fast and consistent, and I’ve certainly had worse sessions here, but we’ll just stay calm, keep trying to improve and try to get a good grid spot on Saturday night. It’s just one session, and there’s a long way to go. Sunday night is what counts, and it would be nice to get this team a result it deserves."

Valentino Rossi:

"It’s the first practice and I used the hard tyre the whole session, trying to do a lot of laps in order to understand it. The new tyre is much better for warming up, so good for safety, but it started to slide a lot after some laps and made some of the understeer worse. We have to work with the setting and also the electronics. The soft will be important for Saturday, but the hard will be the tyre for the race. Tomorrow we’ll try to do better."

Ducati Team press release

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Ducati boss: Valentino Rossi highly motivated for 2012

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Valentino Rossi remains motivated and determined to transform Ducati’s fortunes in MotoGP, despite conceding he’s little chance to start the new 1000cc era in Qatar on Sunday night with a rostrum.

Ducati boss Vittoriano Guareschi says Rossi’s motivation remains high, despite a tough pre-season testing campaign for the nine-times world champion.

A radical new GP12 with twin spar aluminium frame aimed at curing a persistent understeer issue has not yet delivered the vast improvement the 33-year-old had hoped.

And he finished the last pre-season test in Jerez in sixth position, but he was still almost a second adrift of the fastest pace set by reigning world champion Casey Stoner.

But Guareschi said Rossi’s motivation remains strong. “He is not young like when arrived in Yamaha in 2004 but the motivation is very high and I think Valentino with good support can fight for victories. It is important to have a good start and stay close to the top,“ said Guareschi.

Despite a disastrous 2011 that saw Rossi score just one podium finish all year and lose his record of winning at least one race each year in his Grand Prix career, the Italian never publicly blasted Ducati.

Previously at Honda and Yamaha, Rossi wasn’t afraid to voice concerns about the performance of his machinery.

But in public at least so far, he has refused to condemn Ducati for a lack of results.

Guareschi added: “Valentino understood immediately that we worked to improve the bike and not stay in the same situation. We understand what he wanted and we started immediately to change the bike.

"It was not possible to immediately change the bike and we needed time to develop. But we knew we had to make a completely different bike. I think because of this Valentino stayed very calm.”

Rossi’s former factory Yamaha boss Davide Brivio agrees and he told MCN: “I think because he can see just how hard they are working it is very difficult to criticise or complain.

"The engineers really want to make this bike a success. They built three bikes last year and it is very hard to say bad things.”

Brivio also has no doubts about Rossi’s motivation heading to the first race in Doha on Sunday night. But he said it was imperative that the GP12 improves in the early part of the season to keep Rossi's motivation up.

Brivio added: “I still see Valentino strongly motivated but honestly I don’t know how long he can keep his motivation without seeing some results. He needs to see some encouragement to keep his motivation.

"I’m not sure how long it can last at this level if the results don’t come. He really wants to get back to the top and to taste again the enjoyment of being at the front.”

source: MCN

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Ducati podium drought, Stoner podium run

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Ducati has now gone 13 races without a podium finish, ever since Valentino Rossi finished third at last year's French MotoGP at Le Mans. 

That is the longest sequence of successive races for Ducati without a podium since they entered the MotoGP class at the start of 2003.

Experiencing contrasting podium fortunes is the factory's former rider Casey Stoner, who has finished on the last 15 MotoGP rostrums for Honda, ever since Jerez last year where he crashed after being collected by a falling Rossi. 

Stoner's run is one of the longest of all-time - only Mick Doohan (17), Giacomo Agostini (22) and Rossi (23) have had longer podium sequences in the 63-year history of the premier-class.

source: crash.net

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'Realist' Rossi 'a long way off' heading into Qatar

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A lot has changed in the year since Valentino Rossi made his Ducati debut at Qatar in 2011.

But despite multiple frame incarnations - leading up to the full twin-spar chassis on the final version of this year's GP12 - and MotoGP's switch from 800 to 1000cc engines, the Italian finds himself in a similar position to last year heading into Sunday's season-opening night race.

A strong debut test at Sepang with the GP12 was followed by a wrong turn with set-up at the second Malaysian visit, which took until the final day of the Jerez test to correct. 

Rossi, seventh in the championship with one podium last year, concluded the pre-season with the sixth fastest lap time, 0.953sec behind Casey Stoner (Honda) in Spain.

At Qatar 2011, Rossi took the chequered flag in seventh place, 16 seconds from winner Stoner after 22 laps. 

Although optimistic that he and Ducati are back on track in terms of set-up, The Doctor doesn't expect any miracles when it comes to taking on the pace-setting factory Hondas and Yamahas this weekend.

“We worked hard over the winter, and although we went the wrong direction at one point, we once again managed to find the good feeling with the GP12 that we'd had in the first test,” said Rossi.

“With those settings, which we'll start with in Qatar, I was able to get good feedback from the bike. 

“At Losail it will be very important to work well during the sessions leading up to qualifying so that we can increase our confidence step by step as we approach Saturday, always trying to maximize our potential. 

“I'm a realist, and I know well that our times are still a long way off and that there are still some things to fix. 

“We won't be able to address some of them right away, but it's also true that both we at the track and the guys back home now have a direction to work in, and we must try to do as well as we can. 

“We won't completely redo the bike during the season, but we'll try to progress little by little,” concluded the 79-time 500cc/MotoGP race winner.

Upgrades for the GP12 are already in the pipeline, but are not expected to be race ready for at least several rounds.

“We know that other steps await and we've planned for them, and as always, the races will give us more accurate answers than the tests,” said team manager Vittoriano Guareschi. 

“Although our priority will be to work toward putting Vale and Nicky [Hayden] in the best conditions possible for Sunday, I'm sure that we'll also gather important information to help us continue improving our bike.”

Opening practice at Losail takes place on Thursday evening.

source: crash.net

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Rossi and Hayden eager to get going

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The 2012 MotoGP™ World Championship starts on Thursday at Losail International Circuit, where it will be a long weekend. Riders will take to the track a day early and the race is held at night, as has been the custom at this venue, but those are not the only unique characteristics of the season-opening Grand Prix. This year is also marked by MotoGP’s return to the 1,000cc maximum-displacement limit and the debut of the CRT bikes.

During the three winter tests, Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden started their work on the Ducati GP12, which debuted two months ago. While their focus during the Qatar practice sessions will be on preparing for the race, the two riders and their respective teams will also continue to work on finding their harmony with the new bike.

Valentino Rossi:

“We worked hard over the winter, and although we went the wrong direction at one point, we once again managed to find the good feeling with the GP12 that we’d had in the first test. With those settings, which we’ll start with in Qatar, I was able to get good feedback from the bike. At Losail it will be very important to work well during the sessions leading up to qualifying so that we can increase our confidence step by step as we approach Saturday, always trying to maximise our potential. I’m a realist, and I know well that our times are still a long way off and that there are still some things to fix. We won’t be able to address some of them right away, but it’s also true that both we at the track and the guys back home now have a direction to work in, and we must try to do as well as we can. We won’t completely re-do the bike during the season, but we’ll try to progress little by little.”

Nicky Hayden:

“This is my tenth season in MotoGP, and I’m looking forward to it. I have a really solid team and I think we have a good bike this year. With all the injuries from Valencia and my training incident, preparation obviously hasn’t gone exactly how you’d like it to, but Jerez was a good test for me to do a lot of laps at very close to 100 per cent. Qatar is pretty unique because we’re racing at night, but the truth is, after you get rolling, you don’t notice it by about the third of fourth corner. It really doesn’t change too much with things like lines and bike set-up, but as it gets later, you have to be careful with the condensation on the track, especially in Turn 2. I’d like to be going into the first race closer to the front, but hopefully we can do some steps. I’ve basically only ridden around by myself on this bike, so it will be nice to get in the race and really see how it stacks up against the others.”

Ducati Team press release

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Loris Capirossi: Ducati need time they don’t have

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Loris Capirossi reckons Valentino Rossi and Ducati need to be given more time to prove the new factory GP12 machine is the bike to put the Italian in a position to challenge Casey Stoner and Jorge Lorenzo’s domination of MotoGP.

A radical new GP12 was scheduled to have only nine days on track ahead of this weekend’s first race in Qatar having been rolled out for its track debut in late January in Sepang. But rain disruptions in Sepang and Jerez have reduced development time Rossi and team-mate Nicky Hayden have been able to put in on the new Desmosedici.

The bike features a revised engine position and conventional aluminium twin spar frame to cure a vague front-end feel and understeer issue with the GP11 bike.

But Rossi has continued to complain about a persistent understeer problem during testing and at the final test in Jerez last month he was sixth quickest and almost a second off Casey Stoner’s best pace.

The 33-year-old has cast doubt on his ability to battle for a podium when the new 1000cc era gets underway under the Losail International Circuit floodlights in Qatar on Sunday night.

But Capirossi, who retired at the end of 2011 after a nightmare final season with Pramac Ducati, says a lack of time to develop the new bike is hurting Rossi and Ducati.

The Italian veteran also believes Ducati lacks vital experience with the twin spar chassis concept compared to Japanese counterparts Honda and Yamaha.

Capirossi told MCN: “Ducati has done an amazing job since the end of 2011. They have built from November to January a completely new bike and I rode a long time for Ducati and I know they will be putting in a lot of effort.

"The problem is they don’t have time and they don’t have so much experience with the new type of chassis. It is a completely different concept and it is impossible to make one or two chassis and immediately find one that works how you want.

"Everybody has been working for ten to twenty years on this system but the problem in this world is you don’t have time to improve. You need a bike that is immediately fast. But they are still in trouble and it doesn’t look like the bike is ready to be at the front.”

Capirossi also believes that Ducati technical staff now must look at changing the engine characteristic of the Desmosedici. The triple world champion added: “The chassis is really important but the engine is also. Ducati has put in a lot of effort on the chassis and they need to look at the engine.

"It has enough power but maybe they have to consider changing something. Maybe it is not really friendly and too aggressive and this gives a problem to the chassis.”

source: MCN

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Valentino Rossi goes to court against former accountancy firm

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2007 was an annus horribilis for Valentino Rossi, not only did the former World Champion get his butt kicked by Casey Stoner, but the Italian tax man was after him and smeared his name across the news for days for tax evasion (last year it was Rocco Siffredi’s turn) that was calculated in the amount of €200 million (including fines and interest rates).

In 2008 Rossi made peace with the tax office and paid up €35 million and was to pay an astronomical €1.8 million to the Mainardi-Tasini accountancy firm that handled the transaction, but refused to pony up the money believing that they didn’t do all the work that they billed him for and decided to take them to court.

Apparently he is contesting the fact that his previous accounting firm Uckmar did all the preliminary and consultancy work for which he payed €1 million for (they had asked for 2) and that Mainardi-Tasini can’t bill for the same work and has asked the court to decided what amount he should actually pay for. And at the same time is also suing them for abandoning him in 2008 while they were working on his 2007 tax bill that was turned over at the last minute to another firm and that his [Rossi] public image is being further damaged over this question. Rossi will be called to court on May 24th (the Judge and lawyers checked the MotoGP calendar to see if there were any races that weekend) but the Judge Nitri who is ruling over the case said that even if Rossi was busy racing he would have to be present and not even the President of Italy could be excused from his court.

Tax evasion is pandemic in Italy and calculated to be around €350 billion and 18% of the GNP and where Italians are second lowest paid workers in Europe (only Portugal is worse) and the average paycheck is around 19.000 euros a year (that’s before taxes) and only 1% of tax payers declare more than 100,000 euros and only 0.07% more than 300.000 euros.

source : ilrestodelcarlino.it

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Lapo Elkann expresses interest in buying Ducati

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Lapo Elkann, one of the heirs of the Agnelli fortune and manager of brand promotion at Fiat Automobiles (he was behind Fiat sponsoring Yamaha in MotoGP due to his friendship with Valentino Rossi) has expressed interest in buying Ducati to try to keep the marque 100% Italian.

“I consider myself a great patriot and I would hate if the Ducati was sold abroad and end up in wrong hands,” said Elkann in an interview with ‘Panorama Icon’. “The managers however are asking an unreasonable price. What would I do if they lowered their price a little? In that case, yes, I’d really think of putting in an offer.”

According to the latest rumors Volkswagen (Audi) has offered €750million for Ducati.

Source: eurosport

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Burgess: 360km/h 1000cc MotoGP bikes 'folly'

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Valentino Rossi's crew chief, Jeremy Burgess, believes that MotoGP's switch to 1000cc engines for the 2012 season is 'folly'.

The premier-class has increased its engine capacity back to 1-litre after five seasons of dull 800cc racing, but Australian Burgess - the most successful crew chief in the history of MotoGP - believes it is a mistake in terms of top speed and manufacturer relevance.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with The Adelaide Advertiser, Burgess said: "It was a folly to return to the 1000cc limit... On the fastest circuits, a rider slip-streaming another with just a breath of a tail wind will top 360km/h."

Those top speed concerns echo similar comments from Yamaha's former world champion Jorge Lorenzo. The present MotoGP top speed record is 349.3km/h (217.1mph) set by Honda's Dani Pedrosa at Mugello in 2009.

In terms of the technical challenge, Burgess added: "They [the manufacturers] have already developed 1000cc bikes.

"Rules that require them to make more power out of a smaller engine give manufacturers a reason to be there."

Burgess, who would prefer a MotoGP engine limit of 600cc and had some harsh words for Dorna's involvement in rule making, believes that Rossi should be able to challenge Pedrosa (Honda) and Andrea Dovizioso (Yamaha) for the podium during his second season at Ducati.

Burgess presumably expects Honda's reigning champion Casey Stoner and 2011 runner-up Lorenzo to fill the top two places.

source: Crash.net

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Casey Stoner: Hard to judge Ducati potential

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Reigning MotoGP world champion Casey Stoner says it is difficult to gauge the potential of Ducati’s new factory GP12 ahead of the start of the new 1000cc era in Qatar next week.

Ducati has rolled out a radically revised concept this season including a new engine position and conventional aluminium twin spar chassis to try and improve front-end performance with the GP12 model.

But an understeer issue that hampered Rossi in 2011 remains and the Italian finished almost a second adrift of Stoner at the end of the final test in Jerez last weekend.

That followed Rossi being beaten by Hector Barbera at the second test in Sepang earlier this month. The Spaniard isn’t riding the latest spec GP12 and he is currently competing on the Desmosedici Rossi rode at a test session in Valencia last November.

Aussie Stoner, who has dominated winter testing for Repsol Honda and topped the leaderboard in all three sessions, told MCN: “It is impossible to see what is going on and where is the level when there is different rider in the top position at every test and the gap is different from the front.

"Everything is still a little new and they are trying find their limits, so we will see at the first race."

source: MCN

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Qatar podium unlikely admits Valentino Rossi

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Valentino Rossi has conceded his chances of starting the new 1000cc MotoGP era with a rostrum in Qatar next month are remote after he ended pre-season testing in sixth place on the timesheets in Jerez.

The nine-times world champion clocked a best time of 1.39.733 but he was almost 0.6s behind Dani Pedrosa in third place and 0.953s adrift of reigning world champion Casey Stoner.

The new Ducati GP12 has not yet delivered Rossi the confident feeling he needs from the front-end and in Jerez he once again blamed an understeer issue for his failure to break into the top five.

Rossi wasn’t even in the top 10 until the latter stages of the Jerez test and for the majority of the final day he was well over a second off the best pace.

When the 33-yerar-old first rode the radical new GP12 in Sepang at the end of January, he was optimistic that a new engine position and conventional aluminium frame would put him in a position to fight for a podium from the first race.

But heading to Qatar for the season opener on April 8, Rossi told MCN: “For the podium for me will be difficult.

"Stoner and (Jorge) Lorenzo and Pedrosa are a lot faster than us and maybe one step down are (Ben) Spies and (Cal) Crutchlow, but they remain a little bit faster than us. It depends track by track what is our real potential."

The understeer though remains Rossi’s biggest speed limiter and he said: “It looks like this bike is better in the front and gives some information. But the bigger problem remains the understeer, so we have to try to work.

"It seems it is maybe something in the DNA of this bike. Our target is try to fix and maybe it is possible to do with the setting, but I don’t know.”

source: MCN

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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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AGV's new PistaGP helmet - Taking it to the next level

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During the first Sepang test Valentino Rossi debuted this new AGV helmet dubbed PistaGP (pista in Italian means track) that sparked a lot of interest after the Italian said “it feels like I am not wearing a helmet. Its aerodynamics have increased, with excellent ventilation and exaggerated visibility, like switching from the TV to the cinema.”

Rossi was the leading rider involved in this three year project (it also helps that he was named the honorary president of AGV back in 2008) that was officially presented to the press during this past weekend final pre-season test at Jerez.

According to the blurb, which doesn’t say when it will be released to the the bike riding world of Joe public and more importantly if someone who doesn’t make six digit paychecks will have to sell his first born (which some days I feel like doing) or a kidney (well we do have two) to afford to buy this innovative helmet that is based on laser scans of the rider’s head and then the measurements are converted into a digital format. These measurements are then used to design the helmet, from the inside to the outside, adopting state-of-the-art digital design technologies based on CAE/CAD methods.

The structural components of the helmet are designed to obtain the required performances, minimizing measurements and weights. minimizing measurements and weights. The helmet is The helmet is therefore lighter and more compact therefore lighter and more compact than previous ones while offering better protection, ergonomics and comfort.

That is this PistaGP technically speaking offers:

- The residual impact force residual impact force transmitted to the head is reduced by 36% compared to the limit established by ECE regulations.

- The HIC (Head Injury Criterion) index is 48% below the limit established by ECE regulations.

- The basic visor movement area has been reduced by 71% compared to the GP-Tech helmet. This allows use of the space saved to increase the thickness of the absorption material, benefitting safety.

- The visor is Class 1 optical standard approved approved for excellent vision.

- The field of vision field of vision is 15° wider and the overall visor window area has increased by 9% compared to the previous helmet, without compromising its level of protection.

- The ZZ -Lift index (force of helmet lifting because of aerodynamic forces) has been reduced by 44% after wind tunnel tests.

- The air intakes air intakes have almost tripled in size, whereas the entire ventilation system of the PistaGP helmet removes heat and moisture very efficiently. The padding has a 3D concave structure, which is pre- shaped according to the morphological characteristics of the head, while the surfaces in direct contact with the head are free from stitching for guaranteed comfort.

-The fit of the PistaGP helmet, covered by three patents, provides an extraordinary high level of comfort and adaptability to different shapes unknown up to now.

“I consider the PistaGP helmet a tribute to Gino Amisano, an entrepreneur I admired for his ability to innovate, the records he achieved, and the competitive spirit with which he faced every challenge. The new helmet is part of the AGV Standards project, which, in line with the qualities established by Amisano, revolutionises the way helmets are designed, setting new records for protection and ergonomics that are clearly evident. The next generation helmets arising from this project are intended to place AGV, once again, in a leading market position with its technology”, said Lino Dainese President of Dainese and AGV.

source: twowheelsblog

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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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Mixed second-day findings for Ducati

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Nicky Hayden was satisfied to have tried out the Desmosedici GP12 in the wet at Jerez on Saturday, but Valentino Rossi was left disappointed at what he viewed as a lost day.

The second of three days at the Jerez MotoGP™ Test was significantly affected by changing weather conditions, with a light but steady rain falling on the Andalusian circuit all morning. Both riders took to the track at approximately 2:30 p.m. for a few exits with rain settings.

Only toward the end of the day did the asphalt dry enough to allow the use of slick tyres, with which Nicky Hayden, on his third-from-last lap, came very close to his best showing from yesterday, posting the fastest time of the day.

Valentino Rossi was among the riders who did not take a final run with dry tyres, and as a result, he did not improve upon the time that he had set in the rain in the early afternoon.

Nicky Hayden:

"It’s a shame about the weather because I’d like to take advantage of as much time as possible to work on the bike, since I lost so much time in the past few months. That’s how it was today though, and it does no good to complain, especially since I had the chance to try the GP12 in the rain for the first time, improving my feeling little by little. We took a long break when the track started to dry out, and we put on the slicks at the end, even though there were still some wet patches out there. I was able to do a couple exits to try the two little changes that we’d planned yesterday. Considering that the conditions weren’t perfect, it’s positive that we quickly come close to my best time from yesterday. Now we hope the weather will let us work well tomorrow, because we’d like to improve some details before Qatar, especially with traction in the fast corners."

Valentino Rossi:

"I’m sorry to have lost practically the entire day of testing, even if we still did three exits with wet tyres and a wet set-up, to confirm the feelings we had in similar conditions at the last test. Otherwise, there’s not much to say. We couldn’t work well today, but the forecast for tomorrow is better, so we hope to be able to continue working on the set-up that we identified at the end of the day yesterday."

Ducati Team press release

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