MotoGP Rnd 11
Valentino Rossi got the best of his Fiat Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo again at the Cardion ab Czech Republic Grand Prix on Sunday with the young Spaniard crashing out with five laps to go, as the pair battled for the race lead, handing Rossi a 50-point title advantage with six races to go.
In front of a crowd of nearly 140,000 fans the Fiat Yamaha duo had built up a ten second lead over the rest of the field but with Lorenzo desperate for points after his Donington DNF the 22 year-old from Mallorca pushed too hard again and slid out, with Rossi eventually finishing more than 11 seconds ahead of second placed Dani Pedrosa.
Behind Pedrosa, two more Honda riders, Toni Elías and Andrea Dovizioso, dueled for the final podium slot, with San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Elías just outdoing Repsol Honda’s Dovizioso. Repeating his 2008 Brno podium was a perfect reaction from Elías as he learned this weekend that he has lost his current MotoGP ride for next year.
Just over a tenth of a second behind his compatriot Dovizioso there was a morale-boosting result for Loris Capirossi in fifth place for the Rizla Suzuki team. Nicky Hayden, meanwhile, bolstered his confidence in sixth, from eighth on the grid.
Hayden’s countryman Colin Edwards (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) will be disappointed to have ended up seventh after qualifying fifth and both Americans will be looking for top five results at the next round in Indianapolis.
The Brno top ten was completed by Alex de Angelis (San Carlo Honda Gresini), James Toseland (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) and Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda).
Mika Kallio and Marco Melandri were left bickering in the gravel after the pair crashed out when vying for the same piece of asphalt on the penultimate lap and both riders hit the deck.
MotoGP-bound Marco Simoncelli was in great form in the 250cc race as he took a third 2009 win. The Italian produced a World Champion’s performance from pole position, leading for most of the race and eventually crossing the finishing line just over half a second ahead of his compatriot Mattia Pasini (Team Toth Aprilia), who had tried to chase him down from seventh on the grid.
Metis Gilera rider Simoncelli managed his tyre durability intelligently as track temperatures reached 51°C, whilst things tightened up in the standings as Álvaro Bautista (Mapfre Aspar Team) and leader Hiroshi Aoyama (Scot Racing Team) finished third and fourth respectively. Simoncelli now trails Aoyama by just 32 points and Bautista by 20 points, with six races remaining.
In a strange incident on the warm down lap Bautista crashed his Aprilia prototype, causing considerable damage, as he lost control whilst pulling a celebratory wheelie in front of the fans.
The top ten also featured Roberto Locatelli (Metis Gilera), Raffaele de Rosa (Scot Racing), Héctor Barberá (Pepe World Team), Jules Cluzel (Matteoni Racing), Mike di Meglio (Mapfre Aspar) and Héctor Faubel (Valencia CF – Honda SAG).
In the 125cc class Nico Terol (Jack & Jones Team) continued his excellent recent form to secure his first 2009 victory ahead of World Championship leader Julián Simón (Bancaja Aspar).
Having finished in the top five at the previous five consecutive rounds, Terol deserved the win as he rode brilliantly at the front, from second on the grid. Holding off Simón on the last lap, he crossed the line 0.168s ahead of his Spanish compatriot. The result extended Simón’s championship advantage to 54.5 points, with Terol moving into second place in the standings.
Pole man Andrea Iannone (Ongetta Team I.S.P.A.) was not quite able to match the pace of the front two as he rode a lonely race in third place to complete the podium, eight seconds behind Terol. It was a similar case for Bradley Smith (Bancaja Aspar) who survived an early scare to ride a solitary race and pick up fourth place, thus conceding further points to Simón in the title fight.
Pol Espargaró (Derbi Racing Team) and Sandro Cortese (Ajo Interwetten) battled for fifth place right at the death with the Spanish rider getting the better of the German by just 0.06s.
The FIM MotoGP World Championship’s next event is an exciting visit to the U.S. for the second ever Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix in a fortnight’s time (28th-30th August).
| MotoGP Rnd 11 – Race Result | MotoGP Rnd 11 – Championship Standings |
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— MotoGP Quotes
Valentino Rossi, 1st – “This is a very important victory for us! Jorge had shown all weekend that he was very strong and, when we still weren’t feeling perfect after the warm-up, we decided to make one more small modification to improve the feeling with the front and the result was brilliant; my Yamaha really flew today. I got a good start and I was able to ride exactly how I wanted, using all of the track to get the best lines. At the end, when Jorge passed me, I thought that the fight was starting and I was really ready for it, but then he made a mistake and crashed. Of course I’m sorry; it’s really bad for him but I have to say that it’s great for us because now we have an advantage of 50 points with six races to go. However it would be very stupid to relax now because Jorge is very strong and for sure we expect another hard fight with him in Indianapolis. Today I arrived at the top of the all-time podium list and I’m very proud of this, especially here at Brno where I took my first victory 13 years ago! Thanks to Yamaha and my team for today, it was a great win.”
Dani Pedrosa, 2nd – “At the start of the race I pushed really hard to stay with the leaders and for the first few laps I was with them. Then they kept getting faster on every lap and, though I was pushing to the maximum, I couldn’t maintain that sort of pace today. So for the rest of the race I just had to concentrate on not making a mistake because there was a big gap in front of me and also behind me. Second place is a good result for me and the team, though obviously we would have wanted to be closer to front-running pace. It’s great to finish a race on the podium and feel in good physical condition after the problems I had in the first part of the season – especially because it was very hot out there today and this is a demanding track. We have a test tomorrow and it is going to be really important for us to work on the areas we still have to improve so that we can challenge for wins again.”
Toni Elias, 3rd – “This is a fantastic result for me. The team have done a great job all weekend – from the first session on Friday right up to the end of qualifying yesterday we have been improving the bike and we were able to put ourselves in the position to capitalise on Jorge’s crash. It was like a present to me because we never expected to be able to break up the top three riders today – they have been at a different level all weekend – but we know anything can happen in racing. Everybody knows my future is unclear at the moment but I hope this sends out the right message. I am a rider who finishes on the podium year in year out and I will keep pushing to show my worth at Indianapolis. I know my team will back me up because they have worked so hard for me so far and I want to thank them for that. We want to keep this going until the end of the season.”
Andrea Dovizioso, 4th – “I was riding really hard out there and I had a tough battle for third place in the last few laps. From the start I tried to stay with Dani and the leaders but it wasn’t possible. The gap to Elias was always small and my pace was very similar to his which made it very difficult to overtake him. I tried really hard in the middle of the race without any success and then in the last few laps the grip dropped off a little and to overtake Toni I had to take some risks. I really wanted that podium finish so I was pushing very hard, and also I had Capirossi behind who was putting a lot of pressure on too. Fourth is not a bad result but I can’t say that I’m satisfied with the result today. Still, there is a day of testing tomorrow and this will give us a chance to make improvements to our machine package and prepare for the next races.”
Loris Capirossi, 5th – “Overall it has been a good day for us, because we have been able to fight the whole weekend and were nearly rewarded with a podium. We had a big problem with chatter and we managed to resolve that for the race. We made the right choice of tyre today, but a couple of times I nearly lost the front which meant I didn’t quite have the right feeling and that caused me to lose a bit of time. I managed to clean off the tyre by riding a bit less aggressive and then I was able to push again right till the end of the race. I lost out a bit to the other guys in front of me on acceleration and it was then difficult to overtake on the brakes because I was never quite close enough – even though I was faster through the corners. I really want to say a huge thank-you to the whole team because their effort this weekend was fantastic. I also want to thank Suzuki for giving us the chance to comeback with a better package; this is a really good thing and will help us for the rest of the season.”
Nicky Hayden, 6th – “We have higher goals than this but sixth place is my second best result of the season so I have to be satisfied for today. After the disaster at Donington this has been a respectable weekend for us. The team did a great job all weekend getting the front working better for me so we’ve made progress and that is the most important thing. The race certainly wasn’t easy – I lost a couple of positions off the line but had a good first lap and was able to get into that second group. To be honest from that point I was holding on, going as fast as I had all weekend and when we got up behind Colin I was able to make another pass. I could see the group ahead of me and as they made a couple of mistakes I could have maybe got there. I just pushed too hard and ran wide in a couple of places and had to do my best to hold my position. They were breathing all over me during those last couple of laps but I hung on and got sixth. We were only less than four seconds off the podium so we’re obviously making some headway. I want to thank the team because it’s not been an easy time recently but today we have something to be proud of.”
Colin Edwards, 7th – “That was a pretty tough race. Right from the start of the weekend I said I thought my engine felt a bit flat and today I couldn’t do anything. I was getting passed easily and I couldn’t stay in the slipstream at all. I could do the lap time but I couldn’t race them. I couldn’t get within ten bike lengths at the end of the straight but then I’d nearly be running into the back of them at the exit of the corner because I was trying to make up all the time on the brakes and on corner speed. I lost the group with Toni, Andrea and Loris for a bit early on but I only came back at them for a while because I was pushing the front so hard. I got the right side of the front tyre way too hot and after that I kept losing the front. I was nearly running into them in the middle of the corner but I couldn’t get close enough to pass them on the brakes going in. At the end I was locked in a battle with Nicky but I think I could have been behind him all day and not be able to pass him. I got another load of points and I was close to the top six, but I’ve been beating those guys in front of me consistently all year and that’s a pity because maybe I could have got another podium today. I’m back home again for Indianapolis next time out and I’ll be looking for a much better weekend.”
Alex De Angelis, 8th – “I set a target of a top eight today so I am satisfied to achieve that but it could have been so much better. I was comfortable running with Edwards, Hayden and the others until I suddenly got a butterfly trapped in my helmet. It was flapping around in front of my eyes and I couldn’t see a thing! When it finally settled down I was able to focus again but my chance had gone. At the moment I’m not feeling too well and I have some pain in my back so I am heading straight to the Clinica Mobile but I’m sure I’ll be fine for the next race, where I hope we can continue to show our potential.”
James Toseland, 9th – “It has been a tough weekend and I’ll be the first to admit that I was a bit fortunate to get into the top ten. I rode as hard as I could every lap and never gave up but at the moment I’m struggling with a problem with the front for the first half of the race. I get a hopping sensation on the front and it really hurts my corner speed. We’ve been struggling with it for a while now but after half distance, how the feeling comes better is unbelievable. It’s almost like somebody is tweaking my bike while I’m riding because it improves so much. On lap 20 I did a 58.4, which is only one tenth off my qualifying time, so it shows how good the bike eventually feels. But I lose so much in the first half of the race that it really costs me. My pace in the second half of the race should be getting me in the top six. If we can solve this front-end issue then I know I can be running much higher up the field, which is where the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team deserves to be.”
Randy De Puniet, 10th – “It’s a like a miracle! Fourteen days ago I was in hospital having surgery and now I am seventh in the championship! This has been the hardest race of my life and I want to thank the doctor who made the surgery in my left ankle, the Clinical Mobile Staff and my squad. Honestly, I think nobody could do better than this with six screws in the ankle. At the end of the race I could not breathe anymore and was not able to come back to the garage but I battled with my injury throughout the weekend and we all deserve this unbelievable result. Obviously I won’t stay for the test tomorrow as I will proceed with my rehabilitation programme in readiness for the Indy GP.”
Chris Vermeulen, 11th – “I got quite a good start, but on turn one I got blocked and was then passed by a few people – that’s what you get I suppose when you start from the fourth row of the grid! I then got pushed very wide on the first lap and lost a few more places. Everybody was going very quickly and it took me quite a few laps to get past the guys in front that I had more speed than and by then the main pack was well away in front. I am a bit disappointed with my own performance, I couldn’t get down to the lap-times I expected to do. I kept pushing till the end and gave it 100% and caught up to De Puniet and Toseland near the end, but there was not enough laps left to get past. We got some points from today, but it hasn’t been a great weekend again for us. We have made a significant step with the bike and I am looking forward to the test tomorrow and then getting to some good tracks for me and Suzuki.”
Niccolo Canepa, 12th – TBC
Gabor Talmacsi, 13th – “The first laps were not bad – I was able to overtake three riders and I enjoyed a good fight. But when the bike began to slide I decided to keep the best possible rhythm to the end. It is still the same problem: we do not possess good rear grip, so that keeping the line out of the corners is not easy. I’m certain we can find a solution – we all are working hard to get that target.”
Jorge Lorenzo, DNF – “I got a bad start and had to get by some people, and then I just didn’t have the same pace that I’d had all weekend. I was slower than in the practices and it really wasn’t what I was expecting. Unfortunately for me Valentino was just as strong as he’d been all weekend and I had to push very, very hard to stay with him. Towards the end I began to close the gap and after I passed him I was doing everything to stay in front, but then I made a mistake and crashed. There’s nothing more I can say except that I’m so sorry to the team and to Yamaha and I will do everything I can to make it up in America.”
Mika Kallio, DNF – “My start was typical of this year – not good but not bad – and I pretty much held my grid position into the first turn. After that the bike was similar to how it’s been all weekend – there is still something missing with the front feeling and even though I could stay with the second group I couldn’t pass anybody because I don’t have that front-end confidence you need to brake late or take a more risky line. The proof of that was when De Angelis had his problem and slowed down, I was able to pass him and improve my lap times by half a second to catch Nicky and Edwards. Then came the crash with Melandri, who tried to pass me where it was impossible to, so that finally our lines crossed! Anyway, it has been an interesting weekend and I think if we can find something that gives me more feel with the front we can make a big step forward.”
— Bridgestone Report –
Bridgestone slick compounds available: Front – Hard, Extra hard. Rear – Medium, Hard
Valentino Rossi made the best use of his extra hard front and hard rear Bridgestone slicks to score his fifth victory of the season in convincing fashion.
Before his teammate Jorge Lorenzo crashed out five laps from the flag, the Fiat Yamaha duo had recorded a combined total of 29 laps each faster than the previous lap record set in 2008. On Bridgestone’s slicks, the pace was very fast all weekend.
In qualifying Rossi set a new pole position best, and using the harder of Bridgestone’s compound options during the race the Italian’s pace was sufficient to set a total race time 20 seconds faster than that of last year. On lap 16, amid the fierce battle for the lead, Jorge Lorenzo claimed a new lap record.
Next to cross the line was Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa in second place, collecting 20 all-important points as he closes the championship gap to the absent Casey Stoner who is currently in third position overall.
Brno did bring another battle to the flag, but this time it was for third position as three riders, all using Bridgestone’s harder option slicks, fought for the final podium spot. San Carlo Honda Gresini’s Toni Elias led the pack for most of the race to clinch third and his best result of the season. The Spaniard finished just over half a second ahead of Honda stable-mate Andrea Dovizioso, who in turn was just 0.12 seconds clear of a resurgent Loris Capirossi of the Rizla Suzuki Team.
Hiroshi Yamada – Bridgestone Motorsport – Manager Motorcycle Sport Unit
“Again we saw some great battles today, particularly for the lead and also for third. The fight between Valentino and Jorge was very exciting to see as it was at such a high level and the pair both broke the previous circuit lap record many times in the process. There was also a good fight for third between Toni, Andrea and Loris. I must congratulate Toni and the San Carlo team for their best result of this season, and it is great to see Loris and the Suzuki Team fighting for a podium again.”
Tohru Ubukata – Bridgestone Motorsport – Manager, Motorcycle Race Tyre Development
“I am pleased with the performance of our slick tyres this weekend because we have seen one new record set using each compound. Valentino set the pole position best on Bridgestone tyres using the softer compound rear, and today in the race Jorge set the lap record using the harder compound slicks. Valentino’s overall race time also shows the good consistency and durability of our harder tyres this weekend so I am happy. The times show that our selected tyre compounds worked well this weekend.”
Valentino Rossi – Fiat Yamaha Team – Race Winner “Together with my team we changed something on the bike to provide me a better feeling with the front tyre, so I started a little bit blind. I have to use the fantastic lap of yesterday with the soft tyre and try to start in front. I saw the bike was like I wanted so I say “now I push to the maximum”.Unfortunately for him Jorge made a mistake and from that moment it was a lot more relaxed. It is very good for us because 50 points of advantage is an important advantage.”
