— MotoGP 2013 – Round 18 – Valencia – Day Two
— Title within reach as Marquez starts ‘The Decider’ from pole
Repsol Honda Team’s title chaser Marc Marquez registered a superb new pole record of 1’30.237 in the final stages of Q2 at Valencia at the GP Generali de la Comunitat Valenciana, putting himself ahead of Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jorge Lorenzo and Repsol’s Dani Pedrosa on the grid for Sunday’s title deciding race.
World Champion Lorenzo broke Pedrosa’s pole record of 1’30.844s from 2012 with a 1’30.645 lap on his first attempt, but was troubled by engine problems with his number one bike, as well as an issue with the rear brake, and eventually finished 0.34s behind Marquez in second. Completing the front row is Pedrosa, and like Yamaha’s Valentino Rossi – who qualified fourth, 0.7s off pole – he could have a big say in the title battle on Sunday if he can get in front of Lorenzo or Marquez in the race.
The likes of Cal Crutchlow, on his last weekend with the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 team, and colleague Bradley Smith, are unlikely to fight for victory at the final round, but they will try to challenge for top five or even podium positions. They both qualified within a second of Marquez on row two.
Heading the third row is GO&FUN Honda Gresini’s Alvaro Bautista, who crashed out but walked away unhurt. He starts just ahead of LCR Honda’s Stefan Bradl and Ducati Team’s Andrea Dovizioso. For his final appearance on a Ducati, Nicky Hayden qualified tenth. Meanwhile, Energy T.I. Pramac Racing’s Andrea Iannone and Came IodaRacing Project’s Danilo Petrucci were the two riders to make it through from Q1, but could not challenge the top 10. The best of the rest from Q1 were Hector Barbera, Aleix Espargaro and Claudio Corti who will therefore line up on the fifth row.
If Marquez finishes tomorrow’s race in fourth place or higher, he will be crowned World Champion regardless of where Lorenzo finishes. He has shown that his pace is certainly high enough for such a finish, and will hope for a good get-away off the line. The main permutations for riders tomorrow will be the rear slick tyres, with both the softer and harder options useable. The majority of the grid will use tomorrow morning’s Warm-up to decide.
MotoGP™ Qualifying Practice Classification
1 Marc Marquez 1’30.237 SPA HONDA Repsol Honda Team
2 Jorge Lorenzo 1’30.577 SPA YAMAHA Yamaha Factory Racing
3 Dani Pedrosa 1’30.663 SPA HONDA Repsol Honda Team
4 Valentino Rossi 1’30.920 ITA YAMAHA Yamaha Factory Racing
5 Cal Crutchlow 1’31.113 GBR YAMAHA Monster Yamaha Tech 3
6 Bradley Smith 1’31.201 GBR YAMAHA Monster Yamaha Tech 3
7 Alvaro Bautista 1’31.594 SPA HONDA Go & Fun Honda Gresini
8 Stefan Bradl 1’31.638 GER HONDA LCR Honda MotoGP
9 Andrea Dovizioso 1’31.718 ITA DUCATI Ducati Team
10 Nicky Hayden 1’31.870 USA DUCATI Ducati Team
11 Andrea Iannone 1’31.963 ITA DUCATI Energy T.I. Pramac Racing Team
12 Danilo Petrucci 1’33.116 ITA IODA-SUTER Came IodaRacing Project
13 Hector Barbera 1’32.773 SPA FTR Avintia Blusens
14 Aleix Espargaro 1’32.807 SPA ART Power Electronics Aspar
15 Claudio Corti 1’32.961 ITA FTR-KAWASAKI NGM Mobile Forward Racing
16 Yonny Hernandez 1’32.966 COL DUCATI Ignite Pramac Racing Team
17 Michele Pirro 1’32.966 ITA DUCATI Ducati Test Team
18 Colin Edwards 1’33.203 USA FTR-KAWASAKI NGM Mobile Forward Racing
19 Hiroshi Aoyama 1’33.328 JAP FTR Avintia Blusens
20 Randy De Puniet 1’33.869 FRA ART Power Electronics Aspar
21 Michael Laverty 1’34.018 GBR PBM Paul Bird Motorsport
22 Luca Scassa 1’34.113 ITA ART Cardion AB Motoracing
23 Bryan Staring 1’34.805 AUS FTR-HONDA Go & Fun Honda Gresini
24 Damian Cudlin 1’34.903 AUS PBM Paul Bird Motorsport
25 Lukas Pesek 1’34.993 CZE IODA-SUTER Came IodaRacing Project
26 Martin Bauer 1’35.277 AUT S&B SUTER Remus Racing Team
— Moto2™
World Champion Pol Espargaro is in great form at the GP Generali de la Comunitat Valenciana, setting a new pole position record of 1’34.957 to head the grid for his final race in the class, ahead of Simone Corsi and Jordi Torres.
Espargaro was in scintillating form as he became the only rider to dive underneath the 1’35.000 barrier, a comfortable three tenths of a second ahead as his Tuenti HP 40 machine sailed to a seventh pole position of the campaign. Italy’s Corsi prevented an all-Spanish front row for NGM Mobile Racing, while Torres picked up a second third-place qualifying result in three race meetings.
Espargaro’s teammate Tito Rabat missed out on a front row starting position by seven thousandths of a second, with only a further four thousandths back to Interwetten Paddock Moto2 Racing’s Tom Luthi promising an exciting fight on Sunday. The top six was rounded out by Nico Terol, Torres’ teammate at Aspar, as the team prepares for its home race. Alex de Angelis will head Row 3 for NGM Mobile Forward Racing, with Came IodaRacing Project’s Johann Zarco and Maptaq SAG Zelos Team’s Xavier Simeon eighth and ninth.
A tough weekend for Marc VDS Racing Team ended in 12th and 17th places for Mika Kallio and the injured Scott Redding, while there were star performances from Gino Rea (Gino Rea Montaze Broz Racing) and Franco Morbidelli to achieve respective 13th and 23rd spots. Blusens Avintia’s Alex Mariñelarena has been declared unfit and was therefore unable to take part in the qualifying session, leaving a 33-rider field ahead of Sunday afternoon’s 27-lap encounter.
Moto2™ Qualifying Practice Classification
1- Pol Espargaro SPA Kalex 1:34.957
2- Simone Corsi ITA Speed Up +0.318
3- Jordi Torres SPA Suter +0.395
— Moto3™
Alex Rins will start from pole position for Sunday’s three-way Moto3™ title shootout in Valencia. The Estrella Galicia 0,0 rider was just 16 thousandths of a second quicker than championship leader Luis Salom, with final contender Maverick Viñales third. A race victory would seal the title for either one of the trio.
Heading into the 17th and final round of the Moto3™ campaign, just five points cover Salom (Red Bull KTM Ajo), Viñales (Team Calvo) and Rins (Estrella Galicia 0,0) atop the championship standings, meaning a race win for any of the front-row starters will seal the 2013 title regardless of their rivals’ positions. On Saturday, despite Salom having topped two of the three practice sessions, Rins topped the qualifying timesheets with his best effort of 1’39.459.
‘Best of the rest’ behind the championship top three was Jonas Folger for Mapfre Aspar Team Moto3, while Jack Miller (Caretta Technology – RTG) and Niccolo Antonelli (GO&FUN Honda Gresini) completed the second row. Rins’ teammate Alex Marquez will line up seventh and could play a role in the championship fight should he run at the front of the race, while the top ten on the grid will be rounded out by Ongetta-Rivacold’s Alexis Masbou, Salom’s teammate Zulfahmi Khairuddin and Efren Vazquez on the first of the Mahindra Racing machines.
There was a crash for Vazquez’s teammate Miguel Oliveira with four minutes remaining in the session, while Hyuga Watanabe also hit trouble when he lost control of his La Fonte Tascaracing bike at the final corner. Qualifying was not without misfortune for Florian Alt (Kiefer Racing) either; he will start at the back of the grid following a crash.
Moto3™ Qualifying Practice Classification
1- Alex Rins SPA KTM 1:39.459
2- Luis Salom SPA KTM +0.016
3- Maverick Viñales SPA KTM +0.285
— HRC Report
Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda RC213V) scored his ninth pole position of the year at sunny Valencia today, putting himself in the perfect position for tomorrow’s all-important title decider. Team-mate Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC213V) was a close third fastest in this afternoon’s 15 minute qualifying session which was watched by a capacity crowd, here to watch MotoGP’s first final-race showdown since 2006.
If Marquez’s only championship rival Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) wins tomorrow’s race, the 20-year-old has to be fourth or higher to secure the title and become the youngest premier-class champion in the 65 year history of the sport. Although he knows that riding a calculating race for the required amount of points will make him champion, Marquez was in full attack mode today, getting his RC213V shaking and bucking as he fought his way round this tight but demanding circuit. The approach of the former 125 and Moto3 World Champion is straightforward and sensible: if he continues to ride as he always does – with the bike loose beneath him – he feels more comfortable and can maintain better concentration.
Marquez’s best lap – the fastest-ever motorcycle lap at Valencia – put him an impressive 0.340 seconds ahead of Lorenzo, with Pedrosa just 0.086 seconds further adrift. Pedrosa – who won the Valencia MotoGP race in 2007, 2009 and 2012 – was delighted to be back on the front row for the first time Aragon. Because Honda prefer not to issue team orders to its riders, Pedrosa is free to aim for another Valencia victory tomorrow, which will only help his team-mate in his quest for the 2013 MotoGP title.
The progress of Marquez and Pedrosa in the race will also affect the outcome of the highly prized constructors’ World Championship, which Honda won last season and currently lead this year. The manufacturer is now going for a record 20th constructors’ title. Honda scored its first constructors’ title in 1966, with the mighty RC181 four-cylinder four-stroke. Following a long absence from GP racing, it wasn’t until 1983 that Honda won its second constructors’ title, with the NS500 three-cylinder two-stroke. Honda has also won more premier-class race victories than anyone – victory tomorrow would take the company to 250 wins in the class of kings.
Alvaro Bautista (Team GO&FUN Honda Gresini RC213V) will head the third row after tumbling during qualifying. The Spaniard had been aiming for much better but was forced to slow down in traffic, which allowed his tyres to cool down, which caused him to slide off without injury.
Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda RC213V) ended the session just 0.044 seconds slower than Bautista. The German – who had his right ankle pinned after an unlucky injury sustained during last month’s Malaysian GP – struggled to find full confidence in the front end, which is so crucial around this tight track.
This is the last chance for Australian MotoGP rookie Bryan Staring (GO&FUN Honda Gresini FTR Honda) last chance to score more points in his apprenticeship MotoGP season. The Aussie ended qualifying in 23rd position.
Recently crowned Moto2 World Champion Pol Espargaro (Tuenti HP40 Pons Kalex) proved he wants to finish his title-winning season in the best possible style by dominating Moto2 qualifying. The Spaniard – who wrapped up the crown at Motegi two weeks ago – took pole by 0.318 seconds ahead of Simone Corsi (NGM Mobile Racing Speed Up), with German GP winner Jordi Torres (Mapfre Aspar Team Moto2 Suter) completing the front row, a further 0.077 seconds down.
Lap times were even tighter on the second row in this ultra-close, Honda-powered series. Esteve Rabat (Tuenti HP 40 Pons Kalex) led the way, just 0.007 seconds behind Torres and 0.004 seconds ahead of Thomas Luthi (Interwetten Paddock Suter) and Nicolas Terol (Mapfre Aspar Team Moto2 Suter) who recorded exactly the same time. In other words, the entire second row was separated by just 0.004 seconds!
Alex De Angelis ((NGM Mobile Forward Racing Speed Up) leads row three ahead of Johann Zarco (Came Ioda Racing Project Suter) and Xavier Simeon (Desguaces La Torre Maptaq Kalex). Just 1.083 seconds separate the fastest 16 riders.
Once again Jack Miller (Caretta Technology – RTG FTR Honda) was Honda’s strongest performer in the Moto3 class, the hard-riding Aussie teenager qualifying in an excellent fifth place, just half a second off pole position.
Italian teenager Niccolo Antonelli (GO&FUN Gresini FTR Honda) was only one place behind Miller to secure the final spot on the second row. Just one tenth of a second behind Antonelli was Alexis Masbou (Ongetta-Rivacold FTR Honda) who will start from the middle of the third row of the grid after qualifying in eighth.
Romano Fenati (San Carlo Team Italia FTR Honda) was 11th, with Miller’s team-mate John McPhee (Caretta Technology-RTG FTR Honda) 16th fastest.
While the duel for the MotoGP crown will surely grab tomorrow’s headlines, the three-way battle for the Moto3 title may produce a more tense and entertaining race. The three KTM riders at the top of the championship – Luis Salom, Maverick Vinales and Alex Rins – are covered by just five points, so whichever one of the trio wins tomorrow’s race will be World Champion. The trio have already dominated qualifying: Rins, Salom and Vinales at the top and separated by just 0.285 seconds.
Tomorrow’s three races signal the end of the 2013 season, but preseason testing for the 2015 campaign starts less than 24 hours later, with MotoGP riders returning to the track on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Moto2 and Moto3 riders begin their winter preparations at Jerez later in the week.
Marc Marquez, Repsol Honda: pole position – 1m 30.237s
“We are happy, because we have achieved the goal that we had set for today: to be on the front row. In addition, taking pole position in the process is something that is very important to us. Tomorrow’s race is the most important one of the year and we will be trying to approach it like any other Grand Prix, although it will be difficult because Jorge has a great pace. We will try to pick the best tyres for the race, from two options which are both good, and give 100 per cent tomorrow.”
Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda: 3rd – 1m 30.663s
“I am very happy with how qualifying went today, despite not having taken pole. It was an interesting session for me, because I was able to find my pace again after various races in which I was off the front row. On the final two laps I was able to get a spot on the front row for tomorrow, and this is very important. It still wasn’t quite enough to take pole position, but I’m happy with the work that we carried out and the step forward that we made. I hope to improve a little more tomorrow and have a good race.”
Alvaro Bautista, Team GO&FUN Honda Gresini: 7th – 1m 31.594s
“Unfortunately qualifying wasn’t as much fun today as it has been recently but to be honest we were already struggling this morning. We at least managed to make our tyre choice for the race and it looks like we’ll go for the soft because it drops off less than the hard. This afternoon I improved my lap time on the first run but then on my second exit I ran into traffic, had to slow down and then on the next lap the tyre temperature had dropped and I lost the front. We start from seventh on the grid so hopefully we feel confident with the bike tomorrow so that we can make up some positions and finish the season with a good result.”
Stefan Bradl, LCR Honda MotoGP: 8th – 1m 31.638s
“Honestly we expected a better position in the last qualifying of the season but I could not qualify better than eighth because we still miss confidence with the front. We improved a little bit from yesterday’s sessions but we are still struggling and I was not confident enough to do a faster lap time. Of course we are disappointed but we are strong in some points as we demonstrated in the free sessions so we gathered important data to analyze ahead of tomorrow.”
Bryan Staring, GO&FUN Honda Gresini: 23rd – 1m 34.805s
“The feeling with the bike and the track improved today but not enough to make up any positions. Anyway, hopefully we can make some more progress in the warm-up and finish the season off with a positive race.”
Moto2 rider quotes
Pol Espargaro, Tuenti HP40 Pons: pole position, 1m 34.957s
“Everyone wants to win the last race of the year. For me, this is a great weekend and I want to enjoy every minute of my last rides in Moto2. I also want to win the race to thank my team for the incredible job they’ve done this year. We had some critical moments in the season and they always gave me fantastic support. I have a good rhythm here and today I got the circuit record, so everything is perfect.”
Simone Corsi, NGM Mobile Racing: 2nd, 1m 35.275s
“That session was so tight – there is such a small gap between all the top guys – so I know the race will be a big battle. We have had a good two days of practice and this is my first front row of the year, so I am really looking forward to being in the fight at the front.”
Jordi Torres, Mapfre Aspar Team Moto2: 3rd, 1m 35.352s
“I am still a bit injured from Japan – I have a small hole in my foot – but it isn’t important and doesn’t affect me too badly on the bike. I know it will be a very difficult race because the lap times are so close. This track is my home track and I can feel the fans pushing me along, so I am very much looking forward to the race.”
Honda Moto3 Rider quotes
Jack Miller, Caretta Technology-RTG: 5th, 1m 40.043s
“Qualifying wasn’t too bad – it was the same story as always – lots of traffic. We struggled a bit with the wind, which meant we couldn’t get the back of the track right. But it’s a back wind on the straight, so that should help us in the race. The times are so close that it’ll be interesting tomorrow. Hopefully I’ll be in the front group who are fighting for the championship – creating a little confusion, but not too much confusion!”
Niccolo Antonelli, GO&FUN Gresini: 6th, 1m 40.365s
“I really enjoyed qualifying and I was strong out there. Maybe if I had not found some slower riders in my way during the final stages I could have done better, but I’m happy anyway. Tomorrow will be a good race and if we can make a few useful technical changes before the start, then I will be able to push really hard.”
Alexis Masbou, Ongetta-Rivacold: 8th, 1m 40.581s
“I rode a lot of the session alone – when the bike feels good I prefer to work on my own. I always find things a little difficult here at Valencia and the start of the weekend wasn’t easy but a top ten in qualifying isn’t bad, so now I am quite happy. We made some changes for qualifying and now I can brake later, so I hope we can make something good for the race. It will be difficult to go with the front group, but we will see what happens. It would be nice to be in a position to see what happens at the last corner between the guys fighting for the championship!”
— Yamaha Report
Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jorge Lorenzo kept the pressure on today ahead of this weekend’s upcoming MotoGP title showdown, taking second on the grid in qualifying for tomorrow’s Gran Premio Generali de la Comunitat Valenciana.
The defending world champion tackled the last qualifying session of the year in his usual style, first out onto the track and immediately on the pace. His first flying lap was a scorching 1’30.645, enough to drop under the current lap record and take provisional pole position. Lorenzo then returned immediately to the pits as he developed a technical issue with his number one bike.
He returned to the track with just over six minutes remaining however the problem remained so he was forced to return to the pits again to switch to bike two. He was back out for the final moments and despite a less than perfect set up was able to drop his time further to a 1’30.577 to secure second position on the front row.
Valentino Rossi took a moment at the start of the session to allow the pack to exit, offering clear track for his first hot lap attempt. The nine time world champion then got down to a 1’32.295 before returning to the pits for a fresh rear tyre.
Back on track and the last minutes saw him pick up the pace, dropping under the 1’31 mark with a 1’30.920. The time was good enough to hold provisional third on the front row until a flurry of last minute hot laps from his rivals moved him to fourth.
Jorge Lorenzo – 2nd / 1’30.577 / 7 laps
“One thing is qualifying, the other is the race. We tried our best for pole position but unfortunately bike number one had an issue when we had our second attempt at a fast lap. We went to the second bike but it was an older engine with a different character and it didn’t feel the same. If we make a good start tomorrow we can overtake Marquez and see what we can do in the race.”
Valentino Rossi – 4th / 1’30.920 / 9 laps
“I wanted to try for the front row but in the end I wasn’t able to which was a pity. Starting from the fourth position is not so bad. My lap time is quite good, I can go under the 31″ mark so I am quite happy. Now we have to work hard and we have to decide the rear tyre for tomorrow so we can stay with the top three. With the soft tyre I was faster but everyone is now worried about it lasting for 30 laps. The hard is safer but we also have to go fast.”
Wilco Zeelenberg – Yamaha Factory Racing Team Manager
“A very hot qualifying as usual. I think qualifying on the front row is again great. We expected to be faster but our best bike had a technical issue. We need to investigate this. For me the pace is very important, the pace Jorge had in free practice four was very impressive. If he can do that tomorrow in the race he can fight for victory.”
Massimo Meregalli – Yamaha Factory Racing Team Director
“So far we have done a good job. We have speed and consistency so we are ready for tomorrow. We know that it is not going to be an easy race and there is a lot of pressure on everybody. What we have done so far makes us confident and having both riders on the first two rows is important here. We will finalize the settings of the bikes tomorrow morning in warm up and make a decision on tyre choice. We are looking forward to the finale!”
Crutchlow and Smith qualify inside top six for final showdown
Cal Crutchlow will start his farewell MotoGP race for the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team from fifth position on the grid in Valencia tomorrow after an exciting qualifying session at a packed Ricardo Tormo track.
Also teammate Bradley Smith delivered another sensational qualifying performance and he will start the last round of an immensely impressive rookie campaign just one position behind Crutchlow in sixth on the grid.
Crutchlow and Smith both challenged for a front row start throughout the 15-minute session, which took place in front of packed grandstands ahead of what is anticipated to be a sell-out crowd for tomorrow’s tense title shootout between Jorge Lorenzo and Marc Marquez.
For the first half of the session, British rider Crutchlow was a constant presence inside the top three and under clear blue skies the 28-year-old posted a fastest time of 1.31.113. That was just over 0.4s away from the top three, but keeping up his incredible qualifying record in 2013, Crutchlow’s pace secured him a top six place on the grid for the 16th time in 18 races.
Smith showed yet another outstanding Saturday afternoon display on his Monster Yamaha Tech 3 YZR-M1 machine and a fantastic lap of 1.31.201 rocketed him into the top three with just over two minutes of the session remaining. The 22-year-old remained on the front row until right at the end of the session when a late flurry of fast lap times dropped him back to the second row ahead of tomorrow’s 30-lap race. His best lap was only 0.088s behind Crutchlow and he will start from the second row of the grid for the third time this season, aiming to secure a richly deserved top 10 finish in the final World Championship rankings.
Cal Crutchlow – 5th 1.31.113 – 9 laps
“I can’t be too happy with today’s result but I am still optimistic for the race. I need to make some big changes in the warm-up tomorrow morning trying to improve my feeling with the bike. I was happy to qualify in front of Bradley again because he did another great job and hopefully we can have another good battle like at the last race in Japan. It feels strange to think that tomorrow is going to be my last race for the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team but I believe I can fight for the podium and that would be a fairytale way to sign off and begin a new adventure.”
Bradley Smith – 6th 1.31.201 – 9 laps
“Today has been a bit of a struggle to be honest. We tried a lot of things to improve the bike without any positive results, so for this afternoon we opted for a mix of today’s set-up and yesterday’s when I knew I was strong. As soon as I put the soft rear tyre in I felt really good and I put in a terrific lap. When I saw I was third fastest so close to the end of the session I thought I might get my best qualifying position. But I am really happy to be in the top six again and that equals my best grid position of the season. Hopefully I can get another good start like in the past races because tomorrow will be certainly tough with the hard tyre. I’m confident I will be more competitive and for sure i will give it my all and try to finish as close as possible to the front.”
— Ducati Report
Just as had been the case following yesterday’s first two free-practice sessions, Andrea Dovizioso and Nicky Hayden ended day 2 at the GP de la Comunitat Valenciana in ninth and tenth places, respectively, and the Ducati Team riders will start from those positions in the last MotoGP race of the season tomorrow.
Dovizioso was able to set a decent pace on both the hard and the soft rear tyre, and he was relatively pleased with his qualifying time. Hayden had a decent performance in the morning free-practice session, but after switching bikes for the afternoon, the American ended up one spot behind his teammate and will start his final race with the Ducati Team from row 4.
Ducati Test Team rider Michele Pirro suffered a particularly untimely fall in the first qualifying session and wasn’t able to advance into Q2. The Italian will start the Grand Prix from the seventeenth spot on the grid.
Andrea Dovizioso – Ducati Team, 9th (1:31.718)
“This is the first time we’ve been able to use the hard tyre, and we managed to do good times; I’m pleased with the lap I did, as 1:31.7 is pretty fast. I was focused and I did it alone, which is always very important. As for the race, we’ll decide tomorrow morning, but we can use either the soft or the hard. If it’s like today or even warmer, we can use the hard with no problems.”
Nicky Hayden – Ducati Team, 10th (1:31.870)
“It hasn’t been the smoothest day. For the afternoon, we switched to the second bike, which had a fresher engine in it, and although it ran a bit better, it was also different enough to affect my feeling in some places. Still, the team did a good job today. My GP13 is more comfortable than yesterday, and we fixed some problems. I thought I could go a bit faster than that, and I think I should have. I didn’t do a good fourth split on my best lap, or I would’ve been a bit better for sure. Starting tenth is certainly not easy here, but we’ll try to get a good start and do the best we can.”
Michele Pirro – Ducati Test Team, 17th (1:32.966)
“I’m disappointed because in all the sessions including FP4, I had been close to the other Ducati riders, apart from this morning when I wasn’t confident in the cool conditions. Then I fell on the second lap of Q1 when I lost the front on the uphill before the long corner. It affected my qualifying because I ruined the bike and lost a tyre, and I wasn’t able to make it into Q2. It’s a shame because I could’ve done better and maybe been with the other Ducatis. I’ll start a way back tomorrow, but I’ll try to reduce the gap a bit.”
— Aspar Team Report
The end of the season is here and there are titles to be won, along with some farewells to be said. On the second day of the Valencia GP the tension increased and a tight qualifying battle was fought. Tight that was from pole position downwards as Marc Marquez ran away with top spot, whilst his competitors fought for scraps. Lorenzo gave it his best shot but his Spanish rival stepped up the pace at the end of Q2, Marquez taking 0.4s off his best lap and setting a new pole record at the death. The two title rivals will start the race together at the front, so it’s time for everyone else to sit back and enjoy the race.
The two POWER ELECTRONICS Aspar riders did their best, but did not get the luck or rewards they wished for, even though they had a special guest in attendance today – Valencia CF footballer Míchel. Trying a new chassis and comparing it with the existing frame, Aleix Espargaro missed out on Q2 by a fine margin and finished 14th, the second best CRT rider, but is confident of a good race. His teammate Randy De Puniet had continual problems with set-up and finished 20th. He will look for improvements in Warm Up in order to be competitive in Sunday’s final race of the year.
14th Aleix Espargaró 1’32.807: “It’s been strange that this has been the only track of the year so far where we have not matched our 2012 pace. It’s been a tough weekend so far, testing the new bike and struggling to get a competitive set-up on our usual machine. I’m not too concerned because the work ethic of the team is superb and tomorrow I know we’ll be ready to fight as top CRT. We don’t know which bike we’ll use in the race yet, but the objective will be just the same, top CRT and highest position overall as possible.”
20th Randy De Puniet 1’33.869: “This weekend we’re having more problems than usual with the set up of the bike. Yesterday we had some engine brake issues and we’ve tried several solutions without much luck. So tomorrow we need to keep working and fix this situation. I remember that we had similar issues in Aragon and we found the way forward in Warm Up so I hope we can do the same this time. I’m starting 20th, but if we work on some technical improvements I know we’ll still enjoy the race.”
— LCR Honda
In sunny and warm conditions LCR Honda racer Stefan Bradl warmed up for the final Q2 at Valencia placing his RCV on the 8th spot of the grid (1’31.638) head of tomorrow 30-lap race. The German was troubled with front-end issues and could not produce a faster lap time but he is determined to find a solution together with his crew to ensure a positive last race. Today the 23-year-old could count on the special support of Felix Baumgartner (Austrian skydiver) who joined the LCR Team for the ultimate round of the calendar.
Stefan: “Honestly we expected a better position in the last qualifying of the season but I could not qualify better than 8th position because we still miss confidence with the front. We improved a little bit from yesterday’s sessions but we are still struggling and I was not enough confident to do a faster lap time. Of course we are disappointed but we are strong in some points as we demonstrated in the free sessions so we gathered important data to analyze ahead Tomorrow”.
— Bridgestone Report
Bridgestone slick compounds available: Front: Extra-soft & Soft. Rear: Soft, Medium & Hard (Asymmetric)
Bridgestone wet tyre compounds available: Soft (Main) & Hard (Alternative)
Weather: FP3 – Dry. Ambient 17-17°C; Track 19-21°C (Bridgestone measurement)
FP4/QP – Dry. Ambient 20-21°C; Track 28-30°C (Bridgestone measurement)
Marc Marquez will start on pole position for the championship decider at Valencia’s Circuito Ricardo Tormo after the Repsol Honda star set a scorching qualifying lap time of 1’30.237 to beat the existing circuit record by six-tenths of a second.
Marquez took the top spot on the grid for tomorrow’s race from the only other rider who can claim the MotoGP™ championship title on Sunday, Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jorge Lorenzo by just 0.340 seconds. Third quickest in qualifying was last year’s race winner at Valencia, Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa whose best time was 1’30.663. Top CRT qualifier at Valencia was CAME IodaRacing Project’s Danilo Petrucci who rode brilliantly to qualify for QP2. The Italian rider will line up on the grid in twelfth position.
After a cool start to the morning, temperatures rose in the afternoon and the peak track temperature of 30°C was slightly warmer than yesterday. The similar weather conditions resulted in tyre choice in today’s practice sessions being a copy of yesterday, with a strong preference among the riders for the harder front slick, while rear tyre choice was split evenly between the softer and harder asymmetric rear slicks. Once again, the new specification hard compound rear slick offered to works riders was popular in the practice sessions and will most likely be used by many of the riders on prototype machines tomorrow. The exception was in qualifying, when the desire for maximum rear grip saw almost every rider use the softer rear slicks while attempting to set fast lap times.
The final morning Warm Up session of the year takes place at 0940 local time (GMT +1) tomorrow, before the lights will go out for the championship-deciding race at Valencia at 1400.
Shinji Aoki – Manager, Bridgestone Motorsport Tyre Development Department
“The good track conditions today allowed teams to build on the work they did yesterday, so the pace today was very quick and riders were able to try out both rear slick options in the practice sessions. The performance of both the softer and harder rear slicks was excellent, so it will be interesting to see what the weather is tomorrow, and what affect this will have on tyre choice for the race. Front tyre choice again saw a clear preference for the harder front slick, so this will be the prominent choice for the race. Using the softer rear slicks in qualifying, we saw the qualifying lap record beaten by a large margin and I am confident that a new race lap record will also be set tomorrow. The build-up to the final race of the season has been positive and everyone at Bridgestone is looking forward to supporting the riders in what should be an exciting season finale.”
— MotoGP 2013 – Round 18 – Valencia – Day One
— Marquez begins Valencia title-charge ahead of Lorenzo
As the MotoGP™ action on the first day of Free Practice at the GP Generali de la Comunitat Valenciana concluded it was Marc Marquez who set the pace with his teammate Dani Pedrosa only 0.066s behind him, and title rival Jorge Lorenzo 0.158s off the pace in third.
Despite the windy conditions in the afternoon’s FP2 at the Valencia track, Marquez stepped up the pace in the second half of the session, with his best time of 1’31.220 not far off Pedrosa’s pole record of 1’30.844 from last year. Pedrosa was very close to his Repsol Honda colleague, with both of them still looking for more grip – using both the softer and harder option rear tyres.
Lorenzo improved late on in the session on his regular number-one machine, having spent time before on his number-two bike with holes in the front bubble to cope with the windy conditions. Monster Yamaha Tech 3’s Cal Crutchlow had a great day as he ended up fourth overall despite a late low-side crash, from which he escaped unhurt. The Englishman rides in his last GP for the team this weekend before departing for Ducati.
Yamaha Factory Racing’s Valentino Rossi, who is working with Crew Chief Jeremy Burgess for the last time this weekend, was fifth fastest on Friday, 0.4s off the pace. After his statements that he needs to get quicker for next year, he will hope for a strong push in tomorrow’s practice.
The top ten was rounded out by Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda), Alvaro Bautista (GO&FUN Honda Gresini), Bradley Smith (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) and Ducati Team pair Andrea Dovizioso and Nicky Hayden. Bradl is keen to resolve front-end grip issues, whilst Batista is working with a new Showa rear shock provided for this weekend.
Power Electronics Aspar’s Aleix Espargaro was unhurt after he crashed his ART machine, which was the new bike him and his team are testing this weekend for the Italian outfit. Despite switching bikes on Monday, Team Manager Gino Borsoi said that the team is pleased to help Aprilia until that day, hence why Espargaro is giving feedback on the new bike featuring a different frame, swingarm and engine. He ended the day 13th on the timesheet.
Practice Results
1 Marc Marquez 1’31.220 SPA HONDA Repsol Honda Team
2 Dani Pedrosa 1’31.286 SPA HONDA Repsol Honda Team
3 Jorge Lorenzo 1’31.378 SPA YAMAHA Yamaha Factory Racing
4 Cal Crutchlow 1’31.502 GBR YAMAHA Monster Yamaha Tech 3
5 Valentino Rossi 1’31.639 ITA YAMAHA Yamaha Factory Racing
6 Stefan Bradl 1’31.858 GER HONDA LCR Honda MotoGP
7 Alvaro Bautista 1’31.873 SPA HONDA Go & Fun Honda Gresini
8 Bradley Smith 1’31.984 GBR YAMAHA Monster Yamaha Tech 3
9 Andrea Dovizioso 1’32.363 ITA DUCATI Ducati Team
10 Nicky Hayden 1’32.395 USA DUCATI Ducati Team
11 Andrea Iannone 1’32.596 ITA DUCATI Energy T.I. Pramac Racing Team
12 Michele Pirro 1’32.756 ITA DUCATI Ducati Test Team
13 Aleix Espargaro 1’32.809 SPA ART Power Electronics Aspar
14 Claudio Corti 1’33.172 ITA FTR-KAWASAKI NGM Mobile Forward Racing
15 Colin Edwards 1’33.252 USA FTR-KAWASAKI NGM Mobile Forward Racing
16 Hector Barbera 1’33.270 SPA FTR Avintia Blusens
17 Danilo Petrucci 1’33.304 ITA IODA-SUTER Came IodaRacing Project
18 Yonny Hernandez 1’33.487 COL DUCATI Ignite Pramac Racing Team
19 Randy De Puniet 1’33.570 FRA SUZUKI Suzuki Test Team
20 Luca Scassa 1’34.049 ITA ART Cardion AB Motoracing
21 Hiroshi Aoyama 1’34.077 JAP FTR Avintia Blusens
22 Michael Laverty 1’34.132 GBR PBM Paul Bird Motorsport
23 Bryan Staring 1’35.478 AUS FTR-HONDA Go & Fun Honda Gresini
24 Damian Cudlin 1’35.644 AUS PBM Paul Bird Motorsport
25 Martin Bauer 1’35.832 AUT S&B SUTER Remus Racing Team
26 Lukas Pesek 1’36.353 CZE IODA-SUTER Came IodaRacing Project
— Moto2™
Having topped the FP1 timesheet, new Moto2™ World Champion Pol Espargaro was fastest again on Friday afternoon at the GP Generali de la Comunitat Valenciana, with his 1’35.548 lap keeping him 0.142s ahead of Tuenti HP 40 teammate Tito Rabat, and 0.426s in front of Interwetten Paddock Moto2 Racing’s Thomas Luthi.
Espargaro will ride a Monster Yamaha Tech3 MotoGP™ bike in testing next week and the pressure is off in many ways, having already clinched the title, but he now intends to end the season on a high. The Spaniard dominated both sessions at the Ricardo Tormo circuit on Friday but almost had a clash with wildcard rider Gino Rea during the afternoon, with both riders just managing to avoid going down.
Behind Espargaro, teammate Rabat aims for a strong finish to the season in his last race for Sito Pons’ outfit, and that pair could do battle for the win on Sunday if today’s pace is anything to judge by. Switzerland’s Tom Luthi would also be a good bet for a podium finish, though having also lapped in the top five Alex de Angelis (NGM Mobile Forward Racing) and Simone Corsi (NGM Mobile Racing) will aim to run at the front as the weekend progresses.
The top ten was completed by Jordi Torres, Mika Kallio, Nico Terol, Xavier Simeon and Julian Simon, all lapping within tenth tenths of a second of the leading time.
— Moto3™
The Friday Moto3™ Free Practice sessions at the GP Generali de la Comunitat Valenciana were topped by the trio fighting for the title, with Luis Salom leading Alex Rins and Maverick Viñales.
Salom’s best time of 1’40.403 from FP1 was the best of the day and the Red Bull KTM Ajo man’s best FP2 time was just a tenth of a second slower, as Rins (Estrella Galicia 0,0) topped the timesheet in the latter session with a 1’40.489 fastest lap.
Team Calvo’s Viñales was third best in both sessions and his FP2 time of 1’40.580 was his best time of the day, as the three Spanish title candidates flexed their muscles in front of the home fans.
German rider Jonas Folger (Mapfre Aspar Team Moto3) and Australian competitor Jack Miller (Caretta Technology – RTG) were fourth and fifth overall respectively, but both were unable to improve on their morning best times in FP2.
The overall top ten was completed by Efren Vazquez (Mahindra Racing), Zulfahmi Khairuddin (Red Bull KTM Ajo), Niccolo Antonelli (GO&FUN Gresini Moto3), Miguel Oliveira (Mahindra Racing) and Alexis Masbou (Ongetta-Rivacold).
Khairuddin has had some costly crashes in recent weeks and he walked away from a big highside at the conclusion of the session, whilst Lorenzo Baldassarri was also unhurt in a light crash towards the end of the outing.
Brad Binder was taken to the Medical Centre with a suspected collarbone injury, as was Alan Techer, after both had FP2 crashes. Whilst Binder was cleared with shoulder contusion, Techer has suffered a left wrist fracture.
— Repsol HRC Report
It’s been a positive first day for the Repsol Honda team in Valencia, with Marc Marquez and Dani Pedrosa finishing on the top of the time sheets.
Championship leader Marc, winner in Valencia last year in Moto2, had a good start to the day finishing first in FP1 with just 0.024 separating the top three riders – Marc 1’31.557 (lap 20 of 21), Lorenzo 1’31.575 (lap 12 of 19) and Dani 1’31.581 (lap 10 of 18) – with all three lapping under the Circuit Record Lap set by Casey Stoner in 2008 (1’32.582).
In the afternoon’s FP2 session, times improved on the new asphalt and both Marc and Dani (who is the only rider to have won here in all three classes) bettered this morning’s times, using the hard rear tyre. Marc recorded a time of 1’31.220 on lap 16 of 20, and Dani was second fastest with 1’31.286 on lap 16 of 22.
Marc Marquez 1st 1’31.220
“It was good to start the most important week of the season and with a good feeling. We still need to improve our setup but we were fastest today – which is the key thing ahead of Sunday’s race. Tomorrow we will continue in the same way but try to improve and take another step forward because I am sure that the rest of the riders will do so”
Dani Pedrosa 2nd 1’31.286
“Today we were able to work with the soft and hard compound tyres, but the track conditions weren’t ideal and the bike was sliding a lot. We will have to be very focused, because the level of the other riders is high at the moment and everyone is riding fast. For tomorrow we shall concentrate on improving certain aspects of the bike and continue with the working method that we have been using”
— Yamaha Report
Action got underway today at the Ricardo Tormo circuit in Valencia ahead of this Sunday’s championship showdown, the Gran Premio Generali de la Comunitat Valenciana.
As one of the two protagonists for the title, Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jorge Lorenzo came out fighting in the two free practice sessions. With a blistering pace from the outset, Lorenzo wrapped up the morning run in second position, 0.018 seconds from Marc Marquez on top.
The defending champion carried his speed straight into the afternoon session, leading from the start. As rivals Marquez and Pedrosa increased the pace, Lorenzo made some set up changes and moved to second position behind Pedrosa. The last ten minutes then became a flurry of activity as the three Spaniards turned in hot laps, Lorenzo delivering a 1’31.378 to finish third in the combined times, 0.158 seconds from the top.
Teammate Valentino Rossi started the weekend’s action strongly in the morning practice. The nine-time world champion led early on before dropping to sixth, just 0.68 seconds from the top as the frontrunners increased the pace.
Rossi got straight down to business in the second practice, holding second on the timesheets from the beginning behind his teammate in first. By mid session the Italian was sitting in third place, having reduced the gap to the top to just over 0.3 of a second. As the later lap times tumbled Rossi was able to close the time gap from the morning session, finishing in fifth in the combined times with a 1’31.639, 0.419 seconds from first.
Jorge Lorenzo – 3rd / 1’31.378 / 27 laps
“This afternoon was very windy so it was very difficult to make the same lap time of the morning but we managed to improve it a little bit. We adjusted the bike a little electronically and also the suspension. We are quite close to everyone and ready to keep working tomorrow.”
Valentino Rossi – 5th / 1’31.639 / 27 laps
“Today was not so bad, especially this afternoon. I am quite satisfied with the practice. The level is very high and the top seven or eight riders are very close. This afternoon we were able to close the gap, I am now just 0.4 from pole position and I have quite a good pace. I’m quite happy with the work on the bike. I’m quite fast in the middle of the track but I lose some time on T1 and T4 so we have to work a bit. We have to try to do a good result for the last race of the season, stay close to the top three and see what we can do.”
Wilco Zeelenberg – Yamaha Factory Racing Team Manager
“The first day of practice is done. The boys are very tight at the top. We have space to improve but it looks like the weekend will be nice weather so different from the last couple of years here. Lap times are already quite fast but I guess tomorrow we will break lap records because the tarmac is good and the grip is very good. The boys are very close together so I think it will be tight tomorrow. So far we are happy with the result but of course we need to work and try to improve.”
Massimo Meregalli – Yamaha Factory Racing Team Director
“We are not leading but we are satisfied. For the first day we were able to get a lot of information. Both riders are quite happy. We are for sure going to work and improve the areas where we are suffering. We were also able to test both tyre compounds and we know we can make a step tomorrow.”
Crutchlow makes fast start ahead of final Tech 3 appearance
Cal Crutchlow warmed up for his final appearance in the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team in Valencia with an incredibly strong performance in today’s two practice sessions at the tight and twisty Ricardo Tormo track.
In gloriously sunny and warm conditions this morning, Crutchlow was an encouraging seventh fastest with a quickest pace of 1.32.434 that left him just 0.052s outside of the top six.
A strong breeze had picked up in advance of this afternoon’s second 45-minute session, but Crutchlow impressively slashed almost a second off his pace to surge up the rankings into fourth position, courtesy of a lap of 1.31.503.
Only dominant Spanish trio Marc Marquez, Dani Pedrosa and Jorge Lorenzo lapped faster than the 28-year-old today, who is hoping to mount a podium challenge in his last appearance for the French-based Monster Yamaha Tech 3 squad in front of a sell-out crowd on Sunday.
Crutchlow walked away unhurt from a crash on his last lap at Turn 11 to finish just 0.124s outside of the top three and 0.282s away from the best lap posted by Marquez, as he once again led the non-factory challenge in Valencia.
Teammate Bradley Smith also enjoyed a magnificent start to the final round of 2013, the British rider storming to the fourth best time this morning. Smith took full advantage of the surprisingly pleasant conditions to clock a best time of 1.32.086 that saw him eclipse the pace of Valentino Rossi and Crutchlow on the Yamaha YZR-M1 machine.
Smith was able to lap slightly faster in FP2 and he was eventually eighth on the combined rankings, but encouragingly he was just a fraction over 0.5s away from the top six, as he concentrated on assessing both soft and hard rear Bridgestone options ahead of the 30-lap race.
Cal Crutchlow – 4th 1.31.502 – 42 laps
“I am happy with my start to the weekend because this afternoon I made a big improvement and I felt fast and strong in FP2. I am disappointed that I crashed right at the end of this afternoon’s session. I didn’t have a bad feeling with the bike but I was trying to improve the bike in the corners and I lost the front. I was trying to roll through the corner faster but obviously I have found the limit. But it was a very positive session and I am in the top four and being so close to that Spanish trio gives us a lot of confidence for the rest of the last weekend. My crew did a great job again today and this is a difficult weekend knowing I am leaving after this race. But that makes me even more determined to ensure the last race is a positive one and we can end a brilliant time together on a high.”
Bradley Smith – 8th 1.31.985 – 45 laps
“The great thing about today is that I felt immediately comfortable on the bike. This morning’s fourth position though made the situation look a bit better than it probably was because I put in a brand new tyre right at the end of the session to set my fastest time. This afternoon I was able to improve again and it was good because we got time on the soft and hard Bridgestone options to assess both for the race. We still have a little bit to find with the setting on the hard tyre and we will try and use it again tomorrow to get as much information as possible before deciding what will be the choice for the race. But it has been a positive first day and I am quite close to the front so I am looking forward to the rest of the weekend.”
— LCR Honda Report
Sunny and dry conditions welcomed the MotoGP riders for the first day of practices of the ultimate round of the season at the Ricardo Tormo circuit in Valencia. Following an intense three-week schedule over sea, LCR racer Stefan Bradl took the 4.005Km race track today with the intention to chase the best set-up of his RCV ahead Sunday’s race as the German had an unfortunate history at the Spanish track: since his first appearance here in 2007, Bradl never completed a race. Now, after the fracture occur in Malaysia and the intense recovery programme, Bradl aims to put the word END to this unlucky record.
Stefan: “Well… I think we achieved an acceptable position today and we gradually improved our pace from the morning to the afternoon. We struggled a bit with a lack of front feeling in the morning and it was difficult for me to turn the bike. But we adjusted the setting lap by lap getting a better feeling in the afternoon thus it was easier for me to go faster. There’s still something to improve about the bike balance but we are working on it. I am very happy about my conditions because the ankle is responding well and I had no painkillers so far”.
— Ducati Report
The Ducati Team experienced an uphill start to the final race weekend of the year, with Andrea Dovizioso and Nicky Hayden finishing the first two free-practice sessions for the GP de la Comunitat Valenciana ninth and tenth, respectively, in the combined times.
In the perfect weather conditions of the morning session, Hayden and Dovizioso were ninth and tenth, and although they occupied the same positions in the afternoon session, they were in the opposite order. In preparation for tomorrow afternoon’s qualifying sessions, both riders will work with their teams in an effort to improve the turning of their Desmosedici GP13 race machines, particularly in the first and last sectors.
After having sat out the last few rounds to focus on his Ducati Test Team duties, Michele Pirro is back in the MotoGP paddock this weekend, this time in another appearance as a wildcard rider. The Italian was twelfth best aboard the test team’s Desmosedici.
Andrea Dovizioso – Ducati Team, 9th (1:32.363)
“The track surface is still really nice, but our normal limits remain. Unfortunately, it’s difficult for us to make our bike turn like the others can, so we’re limited and aren’t able to get close to the other factory riders. We’re still too slow mid-corner. Regarding the tyres, the soft is too soft on the right, and although there aren’t many turns in that direction, it still wears too quickly. With this temperature, I think we’ll have to go with the hard, although it doesn’t have much grip and is a bit difficult to manage.”
Nicky Hayden – Ducati Team, 10th (1:32.395)
“The track surface has held up really well from last year and is in great shape, and although the wind made things a bit difficult in the afternoon, that’s the same for everyone. Our first couple of exits this morning were decent, but we haven’t improved enough since then, with either the bike or myself. I’m okay in splits 2 and 3, but the first and last ones are giving me some problems. We need to get the bike to brake and turn better, and we’ll keep trying tomorrow to put ourselves in a better position for Sunday.”
Michele Pirro – Ducati Test Team, 12th (1:32.756)
“It’s nice to be back at a race after two months, so thanks to Ducati for the opportunity to do this again. It took me a few laps to get used to it again this morning, as we haven’t had any tests here. My bike doesn’t have any major updates, so it’s more or less the base for what we used in my last race. Now we’ll try to understand what to do for tomorrow to make further improvements, but anyway, I’m pleased that my gap to the other Ducati riders is around two tenths, which means my level is still good.”
— Power Electronics Aspar Report
The MotoGP World Championship began an important weekend at Valencia on Friday. Not only is the Moto3 title up for grabs, but this year the premier class title is also still to be won. It is a situation which has not occurred since 2006, and as a result the grandstands at the Valencia track are expected to be packed for the occasion. Marc Márquez and Jorge Lorenzo are the title contenders, and it was Márquez who drew first blood with the top spot in practice today. He was just 0.066 quicker than teammate Dani Pedrosa, with Lorenzo in third.
Aleix Espargaró is known for his fun-loving nature and, after he clinched the CRT title in Australia and brother Pol became Moto2 World Champion in Japan, he has reason to be cheerful at the season closer. He was the quickest of the CRT competitors on Friday, once again. The POWER ELECTRONICS Aspar was the standout of that particular field in both morning and afternoon, and not even a crash –from which he escaped unharmed- could stop him from completing a positive day.
Teammate Randy De Puniet was not feeling comfortable on track, due to an engine braking issue. He nevertheless put in 39 laps of the Valencia track. He will continue searching for the way forward in tomorrow’s practice sessions at a circuit he loves.
13th Aleix Espargaró 1.32.809 (26 laps): “Today we debuted a new chassis. It is the new development for next season and it felt very good. This morning we had to set it up, and we were 1.3 seconds off the fastest time. Thus, we were very motivated after the morning session and were focusing on the afternoon. In the second session we improved, but before the end of the run I crashed. I feel really bad about it, because we had a lot of work to do with the new chassis and the crash affected our plans. I apologized to the team afterwards, because it was a silly crash. Tomorrow we shall see the potential that this bike has. I am very relaxed this weekend, because both Pol and I have completed our objectives. It is a special race for me and I want to enjoy every moment. Despite the crash today, things are going well.”
19th Randy De Puniet 1.33.570 (39 laps): “This morning we felt good right from the start of the practice, but we had some engine braking problems which lost us a lot of time. Without knowing the reason why, the bike was locking up under braking. The issues continued in the afternoon, and we eventually had to go to the second bike. This afternoon my mechanics will make sure that everything is under control, so that tomorrow we can use the sessions to the maximum and not miss a minute. I love this track and I want to get a good result here, so tomorrow we will look for solutions.”
– MotoGP 2013 – Round 18 – Valencia
— Marquez and Lorenzo commence tense Championship decider
Repsol Honda Team’s Marc Marquez and Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jorge Lorenzo are set for the big decider this weekend at the Gran Premio Generali de la Comunitat Valenciana, where one of the two will walk away as World Champion. They spoke to the assembled press at the Thursday pre-race press conference joined by Repsol’s Dani Pedrosa, Yamaha’s Valentino Rossi, Ducati Team’s Nicky Hayden as well as Monster Yamaha Tech3’s Bradley Smith.
In a slight change to the norm, that press conference was preceded by one featuring the Moto3™ title protagonists in the form of Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Luis Salom, Team Calvo’s Maverick Viñales and Estrella Galicia 0,0’s Alex Rins – all of who could also be crowned World Champion on Sunday.
Back in the premier-class however it was Marquez who commenced proceedings: “We need to finish in the top four and that is not easy with all of those guys in MotoGP. The mentality is the same as on other weekends: try to do my best Friday, Saturday in the Warm-Up and the race. We will see whether we can fight for the win, fight for the podium or just fight for some points.”
Lorenzo, who has a 13-point deficit over Marquez, knows he has a tough task at hand: “I am sure that, if he can, Valentino will help me, just as I would help him if he found himself in the same situation as me. The important thing is to be fast from Friday onwards and of course especially in the race. I think Marc and myself should be very proud as two Spaniards fighting for the MotoGP world title. I think the best strategy is try to win the race. That’s it. That’s the only thing I can do. We are fighting with a lot of Honda riders and that’s the only thing we can do. Let’s see if it rains on Sunday, but in normal circumstances I think it is very difficult.”
Pedrosa, who won in Valencia last year, had to respond to journalists on the topic of “Team Orders”: “HRC has no team orders as far as I know and I think he is still 13 points ahead and always on the podium, so I think he’s capable of doing it anyway, but sure I’ll try to do my best in the race. And winning it would be the best way of helping the team.”
Rossi, veering off topic slightly, announced the split from his long-term crew chief Jeremy Burgess: “The target is to fight with the top three each weekend. This season it has happened, but not so often. We have had some very good races, with some podiums, and especially one victory. For me, the best way to help Jorge is to try and be in front of Marc. I know it’s very difficult, but for sure I will try. The rumours are true. Not that I am not happy with Jeremy, but I think next year Jeremy will not be my chief mechanic. It was a very difficult decision for me because I have a great history with him. He is not just my chief mechanic but part of my family and my father of racing. But I have decided that next year I need to change something to try and find new motivation to have a new boost to improve my level and my speed.”
Hayden, who clinched the title here in 2006, does not see a great similarity between his race here and what the two Spaniards are about to commence: “Not really. Obviously it’s a lot better to be eight points down [as he was in 2006]. He has a bigger margin, so he needs more to happen. You have to think Marc is in a much better spot – I would much rather be in his spot than Jorge…actually, I would rather be in any of their spots! Marc is not exactly your typical rookie and you would think without any problems he should get it done, but you never know until the flag flies on Sunday.”
Smith, coming to the end of his rookie season, is pleased with how things have gone, yet also believes that next year’s newbies will maybe have more of an instant impact: “We seem to have been ahead of our own personal targets and also what Yamaha expected of me, so that is really nice. I am pleased with the final outcome and also looking forward to the winter before coming back and having another go next year. I didn’t really have the best end to my Moto2 championship and didn’t come into this season with the highest confidence, so I think my jump was a bit more from what we’ll see from Scott and Pol.”
The Moto3™ contenders are tightly bunched at the top of the table, with Salom holding only a two-point lead over Viñales. The Red Bull rider commented: “I want to say thanks to Maverick and Alex for making this championship so nice. I have enjoyed this year a lot and the position on Sunday won’t matter. Of course I want to win if I can, but I won’t mind about the position. But I will remember this season forever and have always remembered fighting with them. We have won seven races this year, which is a lot and we need to continue as we have been doing across the other races.”
Viñales, who knows he has to win, will be giving all he can to take the title: “I don’t believe it! Japan was incredible. This is an opportunity and we will try to make the best result and find the best setting for the race. We have worked really hard all season but this weekend we’ll try to work even harder than usual. Winning is the only result we can do to win the championship. We’ll try to do our best and do the best possible in the race.”
Rins added: “My team and I will try to work in the same line as we have at other circuits – and that’s it. Maybe in the race we need to do a better strategy, like Salom’s strategy, which with he has won seven races, so maybe I can do that strategy but in the end we will see.”
Earlier in the day, Tech3’s Cal Crutchlow, Tuenti HP 40’s Pol Espargaro and Mapfre Aspar’s Nico Terol took part in a popular Spanish sport called Padel at the Agora Tennis Court in Valencia. They received the best tuition possible with the stars of the World Padel Tour, Pablo Lima, Juani Mieres, Miguel Lamperti and Maxi Grabiel at hand to show them the ropes.
