MotoGP 2013 – Round Five – Mugello
— Yamaha dominate opening day at Mugello
Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jorge Lorenzo went fastest in a dramatic day of free practices at the Gran Premio d’Italia TIM in Mugello ahead of teammate Valentino Rossi and Monster Yamaha Tech 3’s Cal Crutchlow, as Repsol Honda Team’s Marc Marquez escaped serious injury in a high-speed accident at the end of the fast start/finish straight.
Marquez had led a topsy-turvy opening practice in the morning, but lost control of his bike in the afternoon session on one of the fastest parts of any racetrack in the world. Having slid down the grass verge on the left-hand side of the track towards Turn 1, the 20-year-old was treated in the circuit Medical Centre, where he was confirmed to have escaped serious injury. He did however end up with a very swollen chin. Monster Yamaha Tech 3’s Bradley Smith also crashed, landing on his left arm at Turn 7, suffering a left wrist scaphoid fracture and a wound to the 5th finger on his left hand. He has however been declared fit for tomorrow.
Back on track Lorenzo set the pace with a lap time of 1’48.375, beating teammate and multiple Mugello winner Rossi by just 34 thousandths of a second. Both Yamaha men were relieved to be back on the pace following difficult weekends for both last time out in Le Mans. Tech 3’s Cal Crutchlow was third, continuing his good run of form, whilst Ducati Team’s Nicky Hayden finished a credible fourth, despite not being completely happy with the bike. Repsol Honda’s championship-leading Dani Pedrosa, who is aiming for a hat-trick of 2013 victories this weekend, came fifth, citing a lack of grip.
Energy T.I. Pramac Racing’s Andrea Iannone did well to finish in sixth position, whilst Ducati’s Andrea Dovizioso was suffering with a neck issue following a crash in the morning. He stated that he cannot bend his head backwards, making it very tough on the straights, and even in the bends. He will assess his condition in the morning and will then decide if he is fit to ride.
LCR Honda MotoGP’s Stefan Bradl will be looking for an improvement from eighth on his satellite Honda, whilst Power Electronics Aspar’s Randy de Puniet was the leading CRT runner in ninth, beating Ducati Test Team’s wildcard entry Michele Pirro riding the GP13 ‘lab bike’.
Practice Results
1 Jorge Lorenzo 1’48.375 SPA YAMAHA Yamaha Factory Racing
2 Valentino Rossi 1’48.409 ITA YAMAHA Yamaha Factory Racing
3 Cal Crutchlow 1’48.672 GBR YAMAHA Monster Yamaha Tech 3
4 Nicky Hayden 1’49.377 USA DUCATI Ducati Team
5 Dani Pedrosa 1’49.383 SPA HONDA Repsol Honda Team
6 Andrea Iannone 1’49.467 ITA DUCATI Energy T.I. Pramac Racing Team
7 Andrea Dovizioso 1’49.543 ITA DUCATI Ducati Team
8 Stefan Bradl 1’49.595 GER HONDA LCR Honda MotoGP
9 Randy De Puniet 1’49.599 FRA ART Power Electronics Aspar
10 Michele Pirro 1’49.649 ITA DUCATI Ducati Test Team
11 Alvaro Bautista 1’49.733 SPA HONDA Go & Fun Honda Gresini
12 Aleix Espargaro 1’49.769 SPA ART Power Electronics Aspar
13 Bradley Smith 1’50.103 GBR YAMAHA Monster Yamaha Tech 3
14 Marc Marquez 1’50.210 SPA HONDA Repsol Honda Team
15 Hector Barbera 1’50.400 SPA FTR Avintia Blusens
16 Ben Spies 1’51.105 USA DUCATI Ignite Pramac Racing Team
17 Colin Edwards 1’51.433 USA FTR-KAWASAKI NGM Mobile Forward Racing
18 Karel Abraham 1’51.528 CZE ART Cardion AB Motoracing
19 Yonny Hernandez 1’51.644 COL PBM Paul Bird Motorsport
20 Danilo Petrucci 1’51.937 ITA IODA-SUTER Came IodaRacing Project
21 Hiroshi Aoyama 1’52.182 JAP FTR Avintia Blusens
22 Claudio Corti 1’53.314 ITA FTR-KAWASAKI NGM Mobile Forward Racing
23 Michael Laverty 1’53.480 GBR PBM Paul Bird Motorsport
24 Bryan Staring 1’54.231 AUS FTR Go & Fun Honda Gresini
25 Lukas Pesek 1’54.829 CZE IODA-SUTER Came IodaRacing Project
Jerez race winner Tito Rabat jumped in front of Simone Corsi to lead the first day of Moto2™ free practice at the Gran Premio d’Italia TIM in Mugello on Friday, as the Tuenti HP 40 and NGM Mobile Racing riders were joined in the top three by Italtrans Racing Team’s Takaaki Nakagami.
Rabat posted the weekend’s best time of 1’53.583, with the Spaniard stating afterwards he was still looking for an improvement in change-in-direction with the bike. With Corsi the leading Italian rider and Nakagami dropping to third from the top spot in the morning, Johann Zarco and Xavier Simeon completed the top five for Came IodaRacing Project and Desguaces La Torre Maptaq, respectively.
Alex de Angelis was sixth on the NGM Mobile Forward Racing machine, edging Marc VDS Racing Team’s championship leader Scott Redding into seventh spot. Redding cited a lack of grip on the track as well as chatter, and will be working through numerous bike variations to counter that tomorrow. Mapfre Aspar Team Moto2’s Nico Terol, Tuenti HP 40’s Pol Espargaro and Interwetten Paddock’s Tom Luthi filled positions eight through ten.
Correntaio corner was the scene of the only crash of the afternoon session, which occurred for NGM Mobile Forward Racing’s Ricky Cardus, who fell into the gravel trap.
Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Luis Salom set the pace at the Gran Premio d’Italia TIM at Mugello in the Friday afternoon free practice. The Spaniard and championship-leading compatriot, Team Calvo’s Maverick Viñales, were the only riders to duck inside the two-minute lap time barrier, as morning pace-setter Jonas Folger completed the top three at Mugello with his Mapfre Aspar Team Moto3 machine.
The heavy rain of Thursday had been replaced by bright sunshine by the time Friday afternoon arrived, allowing Salom to pip Viñales by 25 thousandths of a second, thanks to his best effort of 1’59.606. As Folger dropped to third from the top spot in the opening session, Ambrogio Racing’s Danny Webb was highly encouraged to finish fourth after suffering concussion and a broken foot in France.
Jack Miller rounded out the first five for Caretta Technology – RTG, ahead of Mahindra Racing’s Miguel Oliveira, San Carlo Team Italia’s Romano Fenati, GO&FUN Gresini Moto3’s Niccolo Antonelli, RTG’s John McPhee and Estrella Galicia 0,0’s Alex Rins.
Arthur Sissis – “It wasn’t our best day, but I am happy because my feeling with the bike is good. The first session of the Grand Prix was rather difficult, because it took place in the wet but some sections had started to dry out. These mixed conditions are the worst. In the second session we were able to ride in the dry, and found a good feeling. Our best time was not what we were expecting, but we know that we have to change things. If we are fortunate and ride in the dry tomorrow, then we will be faster.”
The session was not all good news for eighth-placed Antonelli, who fell at Correntaio curve and thus ended proceedings ten minutes early. Also in the wars was fellow countryman Lorenzo Baldassarri, who slid off track on his Gresini bike at Borgo San Lorenzo.
— Yamaha Report
The Gran Premio d’Italia got off to a damp start this morning at the Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello with difficult track conditions keeping the MotoGP riders on wet tyres with just a few exceptions in the final moments. The second practice in the afternoon proved to be a different story with Yamaha Factory Racing riders Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi dominating on slick tyres to the delight of the Mugello crowd.
Local hero Rossi led almost the entire session, consistently shaving time from each lap as he dropped to become the first rider into the 1’48s with 22 minutes to go. Teammate Lorenzo was not far behind and the only rider within a second of the seven-time Mugello winner. The last five minutes of the practice became a battle between the two Factory Yamahas as they swapped positions at the top of the timesheets, Lorenzo eventually taking the top spot at the chequered flag as the clock hit zero with a 1’48.375. Rossi wrapped up just 0.034 seconds behind. Fellow Yamaha rider Cal Crutchlow made it a Yamaha top three, the next riders a full second behind.
Jorge Lorenzo 1st, Time – 1’48.375, 26 laps
“In the morning it was wet and bad conditions so we preferred to not exit at the end of FP1 with the slick tyres as we thought the track was dangerous. We had to wait for the afternoon and dry conditions. From the beginning the Yamaha riders were very strong and competitive which means the track is working well for us this year. We have to wait for the improvement of our rivals and the possible change in weather that can change our performance but for the moment we are very competitive and happy.”
Valentino Rossi 2nd, Time – 1’48.409, 32 laps
“I’m happy because it’s a very good practice today, starting from the beginning, staying at the top. It’s very good for the team as we are in first and second and for Yamaha because we have three Yamahas on the first three positions. Already the lap time is not so bad but we have to stay focused and concentrate for tomorrow because for sure our opponents will improve a lot. We have to make another step to improve and go faster to fight for a good position in the race.”
Wilco Zeelenberg – Yamaha Factory Racing Team Manager
“Finally a good day. We are not as fast as last year but this morning was a rain session. This afternoon we were not just fastest, but also with a good rhythm. We will keep working as we have some things to solve for tomorrow but for now Jorge has a good rhythm and a good feeling with the bike. Let’s work and see what we can improve on the bike and the package for tomorrow.”
Massimo Meregalli – Yamaha Factory Racing Team Director
“Even if we lost the morning due to the less than perfect track conditions, this afternoon we did a great job. The base set up we started with worked very well with both riders. The consistency and the speed of both of them was superb, to see three Yamahas in the top three positions is really promising. I think we will for sure try to improve the bike as we are only on the first day but it seems very promising so far.”
British rider Cal Crutchlow played a starring role on an opening day of practice for the Gran Premio d’Italia TIM that was dominated by Yamaha at the fast and technical Mugello track. Full of confidence after storming to a career best second position last time out in Le Mans, the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team rider set a personal best time of 1.48.672 in cool and overcast conditions to help Yamaha claim a fantastic clean sweep of the top three places. After this morning’s FP1 took place in far from ideal conditions on a track littered with tricky damp patches, Crutchlow was over eight seconds faster on a full dry surface this afternoon to rocket up from ninth into the top three behind Factory Yamaha pair Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi. Crutchlow was less than 0.3s behind reigning World Champion Lorenzo and Mugello specialist Rossi and no other rider was able to lap within 0.7s of the former World Supersport Champion’s impressive pace.
A hugely promising day’s work by Bradley Smith unfortunately ended in painful fashion when the rookie fell heavily while trying to consolidate an excellent eighth position on the timesheets. Smith had superbly negotiated the tricky track conditions this morning to set the sixth fastest time, and relishing the challenge of powering his YZR-M1 machine round the undulating and high-speed Mugello track, he was lapping inside the top 10 again in FP2. Confident he could improve on his eighth position he was pushing hard when he fell exiting Turn 15. The 22-year-old fell heavily on his left side and he needed lengthy treatment in the Medical Centre to assess a suspected left arm injury, though no bones were broken in the nasty spill. Smith did though suffer an open wound to his left little finger after his hand was momentarily trapped under his machine. The injury will not prevent him from participating in Sunday’s race but he will require a skin graft on Monday to repair the damage.
Cal Crutchlow, 3rd, Time – 1.48.672, 33 laps
“That was a very positive start to the weekend and I am happy to be in the top three and close to the best pace. This morning was quite tricky with the damp patches but I was fast on the wet tyres and happy with the feeling of the bike. This afternoon I was able to be in the top three in the dry and that is also very positive, but it is going to be very difficult to beat Jorge and Valentino. Jorge is looking for a third straight win here, so he is very fast on this track, and Valentino obviously has some special motivation for his home race. But I am the best of the rest again, which is a good sign and we’ve still got some things to try to improve the bike. I’m not completely confident in some corners but I know my Monster Yamaha Tech 3 crew has some good ideas to help me improve. It could be tricky conditions tomorrow though if we get some rain that’s been forecast, but after my second place in Le Mans and the good feeling I had in FP1 on the wet tyres, I am still very optimistic.”
— Repsol HRC Report
The first day of free practice for the Italian GP was both productive and dramatic for the Repsol Honda Team.
The track was still wet in the morning session and with just 14ºc track temperature both Dani Pedrosa and Marc Marquez began the session on wet option tyres. However, towards the end of the session a dry line began to appear and both riders went out on the soft option slick tyres for the final 10 minutes with Marc taking the fastest time of the session (1’54.797) and Dani in 8th (1’56.534).
In the afternoon’s FP2 session, track temperatures had doubled to 28ºC and the team began their proper setup programme for Sunday’s race. Unfortunately, Marc suffered a big crash midway through the session. On lap 10 as he came over the hill on the straight, he lost the front under braking. Medical staff were quick to reach him and after 45 minutes in the medical centre he was taken for treatment in clinica mobile with a heavily swollen chin – caused by the impact of his head hitting the ground, and some contusions to his shoulder, elbow and forearm. He finished the session 14th with a time of 1’50.210 taken on lap 5 of 9, completed before the accident.
Dani, who struggled with grip throughout the session, finished in 5th with a fastest time of 1’49.383 set on his final lap of 18.
Dani Pedrosa 5th 1’49.383
“Today’s practice wasn’t that good for us. We had problem with grip and lacked rear traction and the bike wasn’t at its best because of that. We also didn’t have a great feeling with the tyres. In the morning session the track was half wet, half dry, so we couldn’t take any solid data from that but we hope to improve all-round for tomorrow”
Marc Marquez 14th 1’50.210
“Just after the hill on the straight I grabbed for the brakes but I closed the front. I tried to save it but the bike was pulling me towards the wall so I jumped from the bike to avoid hitting it. I hit my chin hard and strained my neck quite badly, I also have some contusions to my right shoulder, arm and leg but other than that I’m ok. Thanks to all the medical team that were quickly on the scene to assist me. Now I need to rest and see how I feel later tonight and in the morning”
— Ducati Report
This action-packed first day of the TIM Italian Grand Prix at Mugello was marked by challenging riding conditions, with the morning free-practice session taking place on a damp track and the surface still lacking grip in the afternoon.
Ducati Team rider Nicky Hayden finished the day in a respectable fourth position after improving upon his seventh place from the morning session, making him the top Ducati rider after the three Yamahas at the front. Meanwhile, his teammate Andrea Dovizioso fell in San Donato corner three minutes from the end of FP1, and the resultant sore neck put his participation in the afternoon session in doubt. With the help of the circuit’s medical staff and the Clinica Mobile, Dovizioso was able to ride in FP2. Though far from fully fit, the Italian managed to do fifteen laps, finishing in seventh place.
Ducati Test Team rider Michele Pirro had a strong showing aboard his Desmosedici GP13 laboratory bike. Taking part in his third race in a row, the wildcard entrant was second in the morning session and consistently near the top before concluding the day tenth in the combined times.
Nicky Hayden – Ducati Team, 4th (1:49.377)
“Today wasn’t easy at all—very difficult conditions, especially in FP1. At the time, it looked like it could rain at any moment and end maybe our only semi-dry track time of the weekend, so we had to make sure we were in the top ten to not miss out on tomorrow’s Q2 session. In the end, the position isn’t bad, but the gap to the front is large. I expected to have a better feeling with the bike, especially with grip in the middle of the corner; both ends were moving a bit, so I couldn’t really turn well at the apex. Maybe some of it’s down to the track being ‘green’ but that’s the same for everybody. We’ll see what the weather does tomorrow. Every bit of track time is valuable.”
Andrea Dovizioso – Ducati Team, 7th (1:49.543)
“I’m really happy that I was able to do the second session because I really didn’t think I’d be able to ride. It’s not that what happened to me was so terrible, but it’s problematic for the riding position. I can’t tilt my head back, so I’m not able to look ahead when I’m tucked on the straightaway or turn my head in the middle of the corners. I must thank Dr Costa and the Medical Centre for doing what they could to help me to ride, because otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to do it. My physiotherapist, Francesco Chionne, helped a lot as well. Let’s hope the situation doesn’t get worse, because I’m at the limit with being able to ride. Despite that, I’m pleased with the time. As for my fall, I made a mistake in turn one, which was the wettest corner. I came in a bit wide, but I wanted to try to stay on the asphalt. I was going pretty fast and lost the front, and I started to tumble in the gravel; I twisted my neck, and it definitely had an effect on my micro-hernia.”
Michele Pirro – Ducati Test Team, 10th (1:49.649)
“It was a pretty positive day. We were very competitive on the rain tyres this morning, when I was second. In the dry this afternoon, I did almost the entire session in the top six. When we put on new tyres, I had a bit of trouble with the front brakes and wasn’t able to do the time I was capable of in order to be a bit further up. Anyway, we’re gathering data and tomorrow we hope to improve the pace and make another step forward. We’re ready for any condition, so we’ll see what happens.”
— Bridgestone Report
Bridgestone slick compounds available: Front: Soft & Medium Rear: Soft, Medium & Hard (Asymmetric)
Bridgestone wet tyre compounds available: Hard (Main), Soft (Alternative)
Weather: FP1 – Wet. Ambient 15-16°C; Track 15-16°C (Bridgestone measurement)
FP2 – Dry. Ambient 18-19°C; Track 28-29°C (Bridgestone measurement)
Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jorge Lorenzo led a Yamaha triumvirate at the top of the timesheets today at Mugello, the reigning MotoGP™ World Champion setting a time of 1’48.375 on his last lap of the day.
Lorenzo set his best time on the combination of the softer front and rear slicks after trading fastest laps with teammate Valentino Rossi throughout FP2. Rossi eventually finished second overall with a personal best time that was just 0.034 seconds behind Lorenzo. Third quickest today and the only other rider to get within one second of Lorenzo was Monster Yamaha Tech3’s Cal Crutchlow who stopped the clocks with a 1’48.672. Randy de Puniet put in an impressive performance on the Power Electronics Aspar ART machine to finish as the top CRT entry, the Frenchman among the top five riders through sectors two and three and finishing in P9 overall and a mere 1.224 seconds off Lorenzo.
After the morning FP1 session was declared wet due to widespread wet patches on the tarmac, the track for FP2 was dry with a peak track temperature of 29°C recorded. However, a strong breeze and lower than normal grip levels from the tarmac due to the overnight rain still made conditions less than ideal. With the riders wanting to extract every ounce of grip available from the tarmac at the start of the afternoon session, every rider took to the track in FP2 with softer rear slicks to get a feel for the track, with the majority of riders also opting for the softer front slick option as well. Towards the end of the session many riders switched to the harder front slick as the harder rubber in this option gives greater cornering and braking stability – a very important factor at a circuit with many high speed corners and an extreme braking zone into turn one at San Donato. The cool track temperatures meant no MotoGP riders evaluated the harder rear slick options in today’s sessions.
The twenty-five riders taking part in this weekend’s Italian Grand Prix will next be on track for the final ranked practice session – FP3 – at 0955 local time tomorrow (GMT +2).
Masao Azuma – Chief Engineer, Bridgestone Motorsport Tyre Development Department
“Cool weather and overnight rain made for tricky track conditions for the first practice session at Mugello and although conditions were better for FP2, it seems the grip level of the circuit still has room to improve. In FP2 many riders commented that the tarmac wasn’t very grippy but on a positive note it seems they were happy with the warm-up performance of the tyres which is always a priority for us, and the lap times were quite good as well. Although it was dry for FP2 no riders were able to assess the harder rear slick options due to the cool temperatures and with the possibility of cool weather and rain tomorrow, it may be that this option remains unused tomorrow also. Both front slick options were used today, and we could see that many riders improved their lap time when they switched to the harder front.”