MotoGP 2009 – Brno Test – 17th August 2009
Ambient temperature: 25 degrees / Track temperature: 32 degrees / Humidity: 55%
— Team Yamaha
The Fiat Yamaha team were hard at work in Brno today and topped the standings in a one-day test, the final chance they will have to test outside of a race weekend before the end of the season. Jorge Lorenzo shrugged off any effects of yesterday’s crash to put in some brilliantly quick times and finish the day fastest, whilst yesterday’s race winner Valentino Rossi was close behind him in second.
A few hours were lost to rain during the afternoon but Lorenzo made the most of the time available, working to improve the setting of his M1 with an eye to getting back onto the podium in the remaining six races. He worked on a new clutch setting, different engine maps and also had the chance to try some new chassis parts for 2010. The 22-year-old was consistently fast all morning and set his best lap of 1’56.171 just before the lunch break, a time that was only a few tenths of Rossi’s pole time from Saturday.
Championship leader Rossi also had a first chance to test some prototype developments for 2010, trying out a new chassis and a new engine specification. He set his best time of the day just before the end of play with a lap of 1’56.622, under the new lap record set by Lorenzo in yesterday’s race.
The team now has a ten-day break before the next round at Indianapolis in the USA.
Lorenzo – Position: 1st Time: 1’56.171 Laps: 52
“Today was a profitable day and we worked on a lot of different things, especially electronics. I felt comfortable and I could ride in the 56.1’s, which was good after yesterday. In the last hour I worked on my starts because this is something I need to improve. After lunch it began to rain and so I didn’t go back on track until 1630, but I hope that everything we’ve done today will help us in Indianapolis. I’m not thinking about the championship now because it’s very difficult unless something strange happens, but I want to try to be back at the front and I’m looking forward to the next race.”
Rossi – Position: 2nd Time: 1’56.622 Laps: 38
“It’s always hard to go back to work after a great win like yesterday but it was an important chance to try some things for the future. Before lunch we did a run with the new chassis, it has some good points and some bad ones and we were able to collect some data. Unfortunately it rained in the lunch break and so we couldn’t ride for a lot of the afternoon because of the wet rack, but it dried enough for us to do some more work at the end. This time we could really concentrate on doing a proper job testing the chassis and the new engine specification, and I was quite fast. Now we have a short break and then it’s on to Indianapolis!”
Lorenzo’s Team Manager – “Today was quite a useful test for us despite an early afternoon rain shower that meant we had to change our plans a bit. We tested some chassis parts for 2010, a different clutch setting in order to find an improvement for the race start and various engine maps. We are satisfied about today’s job and right from the beginning of the test Jorge was able to ride fast and lap in the low 1’56s, showing that he was feeling okay after yesterday’s race crash. Thanks to all the team for a good job and now we’re looking forward to Indianapolis.”
Rossi’s Team Manager – “It was a pity it rained today but nonetheless we got a lot done and we were able to collect a lot of data about the new chassis and engine spec, which will help the engineers back in Japan with their development for the future and next year’s bike. We also tried some electronic mapping and it was a very useful day for us. We’re now approaching the final stage of the championship and we can’t relax because our rivals are strong, so now everyone can have a well-deserved rest and then we’ll be ready for anything in Indianapolis!”
1. Lorenzo (Yamaha) 1’56.171 (52 laps)
2. Rossi (Yamaha) 1’56.622 (38)
3. Pedrosa (Honda) 1’56.747 (53)
4. Capirossi (Suzuki) 1’57.543 (43)
5. Dovizioso (Honda)1’57.764 (53)
6. Elias (Honda) 1’57.841(39)
7. Vermeulen (Suzuki) 1’57.891 (61)
8. Hayden (Ducati) 1’57.928 (64)
9. Melandri (Kawasaki) 1’58.045 (56)
10. Kallio (Ducati) 1’58.051 (65)
11. Canepa (Ducati) 1’58.120 (69)
12. Talmacsi (Honda)1’59.120 (58)
13. Pasini (Ducati) 1’59.614 (66)
— Honda Report
The final one-day test of the season for MotoGP teams and riders was held at the 5.403km Brno Circuit, venue for yesterday’s Czech Republic Grand Prix, round 11 of the 17 round 2009 World Championship. With the possibility of rain at some point during the day the riders took to the track as soon as the gate opened in an effort to assess the development parts they hope will improve performance and results over the remaining six grands prix.
Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda, was the fastest of the Honda RC212V riders taking part in the test ending the day with third fastest time overall. He and his crew concentrated on overall machine set up options based upon feed-back from the yesterday’s 22 lap race. The changes enabled the Spaniard to better his best lap in the race by half a second.
When the first rain showers finally arrived at 14.00. Pedrosa, and his fellow MotoGP riders, stayed in their pit boxes for three hours before returning to the track for the final hour of the test. The hour was spent evaluating completely new suspension parts but he did not have sufficient time to assess the full potential of the new package.
Pedrosa’s Repsol Honda team mate, Andrea Dovizioso, was also faster today than he had been in the race but by just one tenth of a second.
Dovi also tested the new suspension components today his comments on performance reflecting those of his team mate. The Italian contested the grand prix with a newly designed and developed swing-arm on his factory spec RC212V and today further refined overall machine set up with swing-arm and new suspension to improve upon his race pace and set the fifth fastest lap time of the test..
San Carlo Gresini Honda rider Toni Elias is a man riding at his very best. Following a fine third place finish in the GP Elias is highly motivated and was eager to get to work today determined to make improvements to his RCV to enable him to maintain the momentum he has built up in the last four races. Elias tried a different riding position and general set up options during the morning dry session.
The final hour of the test was dedicated to testing new front forks brought to Brno by Showa, suspension supplier to Gresini Honda.
Elias’ team mate, San Marinese Alex De Angelis, did not test today due to an acute pain in his back.
Hungarian Gabor Talmacsi, Scot Honda RC212V, a MotoGP Rookie with just six races under his belt, continued to test the myriad of suspension and chassis combinations available to him as he slowly but surely masters the 300km/h plus 800cc four-cylinder Honda. The Hungarian ran virtually identical lap times to those he set in yesterday’s 22 lap race that saw him take 13th place.
Randy De Puniet, Playboy LCR Honda, did not take part in the one-day test preferring to rest the ankle he broke in a pre-Brno MX training session. The tough Frenchman raced in yesterday’s 22-lap Czech GP despite suffering acute pain and no little discomfort. De Puniet put in a typically gritty performance to finish a heroic 10th at the flag.
Honda MotoGP rider lap times and quotes.
Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda: 3rd – 1m 56.747s “It was a useful test session today, even though the rain tried to mess with our plans, and I hope that what we’ve learnt can help us for the next races. In the morning we worked on some set-up improvements from the race weekend and we were able to find some more speed. After lunch we were set to try some new suspension components which we managed to do when the track dried after the rain. Of course it takes time to perfect the set-up when you try new things, but our pace was quite good and the feeling was promising. Overall, this was a worthwhile test.”
Andrea Dovizioso, Repsol Honda: 5th – 1m 57.764s “It was good to get some testing time today because the new rules mean any extra track time is very valuable. It was an interesting day because we tried quite a few set-up options including some different suspension parts, and this was a first for me. Because of the limited time, we couldn’t evaluate their full potential, but the initial feedback was positive. We also continued to work with the set-up for the new swing-arm we used this weekend and managed to improve our speed. Honda is working very hard for the remaining races and also for next year, and the team is fully committed.”
Toni Elias, San Carlo Honda Gresini: 6th – 1m 57.841s “The show of affection I was given by so many people after the race last night was really nice and I appreciated it a lot. It is a result that gives me a lot of pleasure although at the same time it kind of makes me angry because even though I am scoring top results year after year I still don’t have a solution for next season. Anyway, I want to stay optimistic and I will be giving my absolute best until the end of the season and show everybody my true worth over these last six races. This morning we tried a new footrest position, which I liked, but then the rain came and set back our plans. Once it dried out again we were able to get back out and try a new modified fork that Showa brought here. Unfortunately we didn’t do enough laps with it to make a proper evaluation and we might need to do some more tests during free practice at Indianapolis.”
Alex De Angelis, San Carlo Honda Gresini: Alex is still suffering from back pains that started immediately after yesterday’s race, Alex reluctantly withdrew from the test.
Randy de Puniet, LCR Honda: Randy did not test preferring to rest and protect his broken ankle before jetting off to the U.S. for the Indianapolis GP on August 30.