South
Carolina Motorsports Racing News
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Contents www.SCMSRN.com
SpeedWeekly
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Some of the stories in this week's issue:
Jack Roush: Mechanical Mastermind
Who'll be the Third Driver for Stewart-Haas in 2011
2011 Sprint Cup Schedule Could Have Some Changes
Former Cup Champions Find it Hard to Stay on Top
Kevin Harvick is Ready for a Championship
Black Number 3 on Top Again
Misfortune follows Kyle Busch
The Legends $Millions
Jeff Gordon Becomes Mr. 600
The Ultimate NASCAR Clutch Play
Driver Profile Robert Johnson
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Yahoo! Sports - NASCAR News
Bayne
takes pole in Nationwide event (AP)
Trevor Bayne won the pole position for the Nationwide Missouri-Dodge
Dealers 250.
Justin
Wilson takes Toronto pole (PA SportsTicker)
By JOHN NICHOLSON AP Sports Writer
No.
17 woes strike personal chord with Kenseth (NASCAR.com)
No. 17 woes strike personal chord with Kenseth
Harvick
ready for fun in Truck race at Gateway (NASCAR.com)
Harvick ready for fun in Truck race at Gateway
Former
Indy champ Villeneuve to make NASCAR bid (AP)
Former Indianapolis 500 champion and Formula One star Jacques
Villeneuve is heading back to the Brickyard.
St.
James' love for cars continues after racing (NASCAR.com)
St. James' love for cars continues after racing
Edwards,
Sorenson share affection for Gateway (NASCAR.com)
Edwards, Sorenson share affection for Gateway
Kahne
to drive in NASCAR Truck Series at Pocono (AP)
NASCAR star Kasey Kahne will make his first start in the Truck Series
in six years when he drives the No. 18 Toyota for Kyle Busch Motorsports at
Pocono on July 31.
For
Reutimann, Dillon, wins notable if not defining (NASCAR.com)
For Reutimann, Dillon, wins notable if not defining
Legendary
Old Dominion back in the spotlight (NASCAR.com)
Legendary Old Dominion back in the spotlight
Dillon
looks to continue hot streak at Gateway (NASCAR.com)
Dillon looks to continue hot streak at Gateway
Webber
makes peace with Red Bull after feud (PA SportsTicker)
Mark Webber says he has made peace with Red Bull's bosses after his
outburst following Sunday's victory in Formula One's British Grand Prix.
Edwards,
Allgaier look to close the gap on Keselowski (NASCAR.com)
Edwards, Allgaier look to close the gap on Keselowski
Dillon
reviving the legacy of No. 3 (Yahoo! Sports)
Richard Childress' grandson is making a name for himself in the Truck
Series.
Rory's First Sleeping Bag
He climbed in the pillow case and went to
sleep!
Dirty pirate
ThatsRacin.com: Top Stories
Edwards
on Keselowski: 'He'll eventually learn'
Carl Edwards meant no harm to Brad Keselowski. He just wanted to take
the checkered flag he felt that he deserved.
Leader's
error opens Legends vault
Pole-winner Doug Stevens led the first 90 laps of Saturday night's
Legends Million race at Charlotte Motor Speedway and appeared headed toward the
win.
Age
isn't an issue on Legends track
Crazy things can happen when an unprecedented amount of money is mixed
with bare-knuckle racing and a quarter-mile track.
Road Racer X
Privateer
Profile: Stephen Clark
Name: Stephen Clark
Race Number: 727
Hometown: Aberdeen, Idaho
Team: Clark Brothers Racing
Privateer Stephen Clark • Photo courtesy Briain
Whipple/Latebreaker.com
How did you
get introduced to motorcycles?
Since I was a child I’ve been obsessed with motorcycles. My interest in bikes
came from my older brother, who had a bike. After years of nagging, I finally
convinced my parents to get me a dirt bike when I was 10 years old.
What made
you want to start racing?
When I was younger I raced a little bit of motocross but my ultimate goal was
always to road race. When Miller Motorsports Park opened in Salt Lake, we
couldn’t believe our luck that such an amazing track was so close to our Idaho
home. My brother and I started doing trackdays at Miller pretty much as soon as
the track opened, and after a year or so of trackdays, we decided to start
racing with the UtahSBA. I went through the USBA race school and did a couple
of races in 2008, and our first full season of racing was in 2009.
How do you
finance your racing habit?
We are really lucky to have a few sponsors who help us out, and we also get
some contingency money from Michelin. I also work as a freelance
photojournalist and shoot all the Apex trackdays at Miller. The money from
photos really helps to finance the racing.
What do you
find most difficult about balancing your racing with other responsibilities?
Racing is very demanding in many ways; it consumes a ton of money and time. I
am a self-employed photojournalist so I have a flexible schedule, and I don’t
have a wife or kids, so I’m able to devote more time to racing than I probably
should.
What series
and region do you race, and who are your toughest competitors?
My brother and I race the Endurance series with the UtahSBA—a seven-race series
that’s run on the four different tracks at Miller. Our toughest competitors
this season in Endurance are the team of Gary Pooele and Tommy Richardson, who
are both really quick and consistent.
Describe a
typical race weekend.
Typically we arrive at the track on Friday afternoon. The evening is spent
helping out the club with technical inspection until about 9, and after that we
usually do some last-minute preparation to the bike and figure out tires for
the next day. Then we usually eat and have a couple of beers with some of our
racing friends before setting up a sleeping bag in the garage and getting some
shut eye. In the morning, we’re up early to get ready for morning practice. We
usually get about three practice sessions in the morning, and after lunch the
racing begins. Our main focus is Endurance, but sometimes I race some of the
Saturday-afternoon sprints.
Photo courtesy Briain Whipple/Latebreaker.com
The
late afternoon is usually pretty stressful as we set up our pit for the race
and decide on a strategy. One of us will start and then pit between 45 minutes
and an hour, and during the pit stop we’ll fill the bike with fuel and switch
riders. Some of our fellow racers who don’t run Endurance usually help out with
the pitstop.
We only
race on Saturday as we’re Christian and go to church on Sunday, so we travel
home to Idaho on Saturday night.
How would
you describe yourself as a racer?
I’d say I’m a recreational racer; I put quite a bit into racing but ultimately
it’s just for fun. The day I stop having fun racing, I’ll quit. It’s a great
hobby, though, with a lot of amazing people. Plus, it’s a great workout, and
racing gives me a good reason to workout.
What
activities do you do outside of road racing, either for fun or for training?
In the wintertime I spend a lot of time snowmobiling as I have a
freelance-editor contract with a snowmobile magazine. During the summer, I try
to do some cardio exercise to keep in shape for racing, so I either run or
cycle several times a week. I also ride dirt bikes quite a bit.
What do you
love about road racing?
That feeling when your knee is on the ground in a corner and you’re really
pushing it, with bikes all around you in a race. When everything is working
perfectly, road racing is the most amazing feeling in the world. Unfortunately,
this feeling can be very quickly replaced by pain and suffering in a crash, but
I guess if it weren’t for the risks, it wouldn’t have the same rush.
What other
road race series do you follow?
I follow MotoGP and World Superbike, but mostly I follow whatever series the
American riders are doing well in.
Your road
racing hero/heroes?
Valentino Rossi for sure because he’s so mentally strong and always seems to be
really enjoying what he’s doing, and Ben Spies because he has amazing talent
and it’s great to see another American doing well on the world scene.
Your own
personal favorite race or best finish thus far?
This year we did the WERA 6-hour Endurance race at Miller with my brother and
freestyle rider Aaron Colton. All our competition in the USBA class had issues
and we were leading the race in the closing stages, but our lead was shrinking.
My brother pitted and I took the bike out for the last twenty minutes on a
mission to preserve our lead. I was pushing it really hard on a six-hour-old
tire and ended up highsiding on the last lap. I got really lucky and was able
to get back on and take the checkered in second place. It was brutal to throw
away what would have been our first win, but it was exciting and still a great
experience. It was a race full of ups and downs, and that’s what makes it a
special race for me—definitely one I’ll never forget.
Your career
goals (if any) in racing?
To have fun every time I get on the bike, and to not get hurt and hopefully win
a race.
Photo courtesy Briain Whipple/Latebreaker.com
Where can
people learn more about you or follow your on-track progress?
Following every race, we put a blog on sportbikeclub.com,
also on Facebook
and my photo website, www.stephenwclark.com.
People
you’d like to thank?
My brother Raymond for being a great racing partner and always being
supportive, and his great wife, Heather, for being so cool about us racing.
Also, Machine Dynamics, Rexburg Motorsports, MotorFist, and Sportbikeclub for
their sponsorship; Fastline Race Tire and Michelin tires, Woodcraft, Leo Vince,
HotBodies, AXO, and Pilot Leathers for the great equipment they help us with;
and lastly, the late Larry Miller and the Miller family for giving us an
amazing racetrack in Utah.
Are
you an active privateer racer who’d like to be featured on roadracerx.com?
Start by clicking here
to fill out an online interview.
RRX
RACE REPORT: Mid-Ohio AMA Pro American Superbike, Race 1 (SPOILER ALERT)
Graves Motorsports’ Josh Hayes took the early
lead in American Superbike Race 1 with a move that impressed—or
“impressed”—wife Melissa Paris, watching from the pressroom (“I’ll have to get
him to teach me that one,” she said), pulling Pat Clark rider Ben Bostrom and
Pegram Racing’s Larry Pegram behind him, though the front pair shook off the
third-place Ducati rider fairly quickly.
The American Superbike Race 1 podium, Saturday at AMA
Pro's Mid-Ohio round.
Behind
them, National Guard Jordan Suzuki’s Jake Zemke focused on Pegram while feeling
the heat from Rockstar/Makita Suzuki’s Tommy Hayden, who’d started the race in
second but slipped back in the field. A couple seconds behind Hayden was a pair
of substitute riders—Jake Holden aboard John Hopkin’s M4 Monster Energy Suzuki;
Brett McCormick piloting the Jordan Suzuki of injured Aaron Yates—followed by
M4’s Chris Ulrich and Cycle World Attack Performance Yoshimura Suzuki rider
Eric Bostrom, in his first race since the end of the 2008 season.
As
Hayden got by Zemke, Holden also began to put the slow creep on the now-fifth-place
Jordan rider, and Kurtis Roberts—who’d been circulating in fourteenth—crashed
with six laps to go. In what was a comparatively staid race when held to the
standards of the preceding Daytona SportBike event, most of the intensity came
from watching the gap between Hayes and Bostrom tighten to within a tenth—a
contest that reached its peak on the last lap—and Hayden catch up to and then
pass Pegram with just two laps remaining.
Hayes,
Ben Bostrom, and Hayden took the top three positions, respectively, followed by
Pegram, Holden, Zemke, McCorkmick, Eric Bostrom, Ulrich, and Canadian Jordan
Szoke.
Josh Hayes: “The start, I
think it’s always hard to start from the inside at this racetrack; you’ve got a
little bit of an uphill start and you can get pinched up in there pretty quick.
I think Ben might have had a wheel on me on the way in there and I knew I
couldn’t really get in there safely, and you can’t win a race on the first lap
but you can sure lose it. So I had to kind of concede, and Larry kind of rolled
around there with him. I was kind of looking at picking one of them to kind of
look at going off the back straightaway on the first lap, and then Larry, I saw
him brake and I saw him let go of the brake lever just to make sure he got
position on Ben. It kind of swung Ben wide but I thought, ‘Well, Ben’s not
going to give up that easy.’
“I
didn’t try to put blistering laps together—I knew it was going to be a long
race, and conditions were hot—but it was by no means a slow pace at all. I was
focusing mostly on making sure I was consistent and deep on the brakes every
lap. About halfway I felt like the grip started to be a bit of an issue, and
somewhere in there Ben had made his mistake and I got a plus-one on my board,
but before I came back and got the board again, I heard Ben close to me and I
said, ‘Oh boy, he ran me down awful fast.’ And my lap wasn’t too bad, so I knew
it was going to be a long race. But I wanted to have some confidence in myself;
I wasn’t going to play the game I played with Tommy at Road America and let Ben
to the front if I didn’t have to.”
Ben
Bostrom:
“The track’s quite fun and it got cooler as the race went; I don’t know if the
patches got hotter or what but it was real cool because the front started
sliding more and more … and I thought, ‘Wow, I must have the most balanced
bike,’ because both ends slipped together and it was pretty exciting. I saw
Josh up riding the front wheel and he did a very, very good job.”
Tommy
Hayden:
“The race kind of went by quick. I got a not-very-good start, and then the
first two laps were terrible. We all kind of, on the back straightaway,
everyone kind of went for it down into there. I tried to make a move on the
outside, cut back up the inside, I thought I had Larry and maybe Ben every I think,
got a little wide and Larry came over on me, lost the momentum and fell back.
From there it was just catch-up really. The bike wasn’t too bad; as the race
went on it kind of came to me a little bit and I worked my way through those
guys. Definitely not what I expected … but it didn’t work out today. We’ll go
to work tonight and try to be faster tomorrow.”
RRX
RACE REPORT: Mid-Ohio AMA Pro Daytona SportBike Race 1 (SPOILER ALERT)
At AMA Pro’s Mid-Ohio round, M4 Monster Energy
Suzuki’s Martin Cardenas ran the kind of smooth, smart Daytona SportBike race
he’s become known for, but it wasn’t a match—on paper, at least—for a
last-minute bonsai assault from Graves Motorsports’ Josh Herrin. The race
itself was actually a pretty good display of the range of passes this class
regularly sees, from the elegant to the hairball.
The Race 1 Daytona SportBike podium.
RMR
Racing’s Danny Eslick looked like the man to beat from the start of the race,
grabbing the holeshot and extending it several bike lengths by the end of the
first lap. He was followed by Cardenas, Lotus Racing’s Rapp, and Herrin, who
quickly advanced to attach himself to Eslick’s rear wheel while Bobby Fong made
efforts to hold on to the back of the front pack.
It was
soon clear that Fong was capable of more than just holding on; he was shortly
all Cardenas could see behind him. That was short-lived, however, as Cardenas
swept into the lead, shuffling Herrin and Eslick into second and third,
respectively. Fong began a series of challenges to Eslick, who was meanwhile
looking hard for a way around Herrin.
With
twelve laps remaining, Fong was finally able to make a pass on Eslick that
stuck, then immediately set his sights on Herrin. As they began to encounter
lapped traffic, Fong soared inside Herrin on the Carousel and took up residence
behind Cardenas, immediately trying the M4 rider’s inside as the pair came off
the front straight.
Fong
was rebuffed and then returned to third by Herrin; back in third, Fong was
reeled in by the ever-relentless Eslick, who’d kept his head down and refused
to fall off the back pack. With about five laps to go, Herrin took the lead
from Cardenas but soon found Eslick beside him, who took the lead briefly
before again being shuffled back by Cardenas. Eslick was once again left in
third and forced to contend with Fong, leaving the front pack set up for a
final lap in which all four riders swapped positions, several more than once.
Eslick’s change in position unfortunately took him right off the track; Herrin,
Fong, and Cardenas finished in that order. For Fong, it marked the first AMA
Pro podium of his career.
Josh
Herrin:
“Once everybody started mixing it up, it got pretty hairy and everybody was
using their tires a lot, which wasn’t really how I wanted to race. But it ended
up going that way, so it was pretty slick toward the end. I was trying to
follow Martin because I knew that he’d be there at the end, because he’s
usually really strong at the end of the race, so I was trying to find out where
I was a little bit stronger than him, and I found it. The pass on the last lap
on the back was a little closer than I wanted to, but I knew he was really
strong coming over that hill.”
Bobby Fong:
“Pretty
much my plan was just to stay behind the leaders and follow them and see where
I’m faster, and pretty much watch what they were doing the whole race. They
were beating me down the back straight a little bit, and by the end I was
planning on making a pass in 13 on the last lap, and that worked in my favor.
There was a lot of close passes out there and everything. Hopefully we can do
the same thing tomorrow.”
Martin
Cardenas: “I
made a good start; I start second and then I got the lead, and I set a good
pace—not on my limit but a good pace. Then Herrin came and passed me and led
for a couple laps, and I was trying to think what I was going to do. I made a
move on him two laps from the end and I was thinking that he was going to pass
me on the back straight, but he came a little bit early and passed me on
hard-braking on the back straight. I didn’t shut the door like I should, and he
put the bike on the inside and there was nothing I could do. Then on the next
corner I made a small mistake and opened the door again, and Bobby was there
and passed me also. My bike was working really good, but unfortunately it
wasn’t the result that we need. We’ll try tomorrow and see what happens.”
RRX
RACE REPORT: Mid-Ohio AMA Pro SuperSport, Race 1 (SPOILER ALERT)
Rockwall Performance Yamaha’s JD Beach was
on fire today, building on the pole he earned yesterday by piling more than a
second-per-lap atop what started as a commanding holeshot. By the time he
crossed the finish seventeen laps later, Beach had earned the victory by more
than 20 seconds, routinely turning in laps that were nearly a second faster
than his best qualifying time.
The extremely sweaty Race 1 AMA Pro SuperSport podium
at Mid-O.
LTD
Racing’s Huntley Nash claimed second position off the line at the start of the
race, chased by Rockwall’s Cameron Beaubier and Dustin Dominguez, who won the
2009 Fontana SuperSport race but hadn’t contend any AMA Pro events this year.
Dominquez was soon into second while Nash and Beaubier battled for third—with
Miles Thorton watching carefully, and closely—but Beaubier quickly broke away,
leaving Nash, Thorton, Tomas Puerta, and James Ripsoli to fight it out for
fourth.
Beaubier
charged the then-distant of Dominguez, catching up to and then passing him on
the front straight in remarkably short order. Dominguez tried to fight back,
but it was a brief skirmish that ultimately left him to ride alone for the
duration of the race and finish about six seconds behind Beaubier.
Puerta
was fourth, followed by Ripsoli and LTD teammates Nash and Joey Pascarella; the
Nash-Pascarella battle made for some of the best action late in the race once
Nash slipped back in the pack. Elena Myers, Travis Wyman, and Eric Stump
rounded out the top ten.
JD Beach: “My goal next year
is to race in SportBike, so when I go up to the line I’m racing the SuperSport
guys but I think I’m out with the SportBike guys. So from the first lap I just
tried to push, try to get to the fast lap times. I didn’t know how fast I was
going because my laptimer was broken, but I knew I needed to go fast because I
qualified with a 30.6 and Hayden Gillim was here earlier this week and he did a
29.6, so I’ve still got a little more to go before I beat him. It’s kind of a
competition with us ’cause we live together…. I just gotta see if I can pull
through and do it again tomorrow.”
Cameron
Beaubier:
“The first part of the race I got a decent start but I wasn’t very aggressive.
I felt fast, I just couldn’t get by anyone and was struggling a little bit. I
finally got a clear track and just got in a rhythm because I knew there wasn’t
any catching JD ’cause he was already, like, really far ahead.”
Dustin
Dominguez:
“I didn’t have a really great qualifying time, so I knew I had to work my way
up to the front at the beginning. I was able to get up there pretty quick and
just rode as hard as I could. This year I’ve just been doing regional stuff
down in Texas and Oklahoma, and doing pretty good there but haven’t had the
chance to come and race AMA much. I was sitting in the shop one day and one of
my friends asked me, ‘Why aren’t you doing any AMAs?’ And I was like, ‘I don’t
know, why not?’ So I came, and it’s been pretty good.”
TEAM-SPEAK:
Mid-Ohio AMA Pro, Saturday
AMA Pro
LEXINGTON, Ohio (July 17, 2010) – The final
grids were set this morning in the three AMA Pro Road Racing classes at the
Honda Super Cycle Weekend Presented by Dunlop Tire at Mid-Ohio Sports Car
Course.
–
Live Timing Available Here –
In
National Guard SuperBike, Josh Hayes set a fast time early, then backed it up
and held on to the
precious point awarded for the pole position as he jumped over his championship
rival and Friday’s provisional pole sitter Tommy Hayden. Hayes, riding
his Team Graves Yamaha, posted a lap of 1:25.619/100.913 MPH which was good
enough to take him to his third pole position of the 2010 season and also into the
lead for the $10,000 MotoConnect Pole Position Award that is presented at the
end of the season.
Second
fastest was Hayden, who’s time from Friday (1:25.637/100.891 MPH) was only
bettered by Hayes. Hayden was riding his second Rockstar Makita Suzuki as
he and the team worked on some different setup packages in preparation for this
afternoon’s race.
Jumping
up to third overall was Pat Clark Motorsports Yamaha rider Ben Bostrom who
joined Hayes and Hayden in the 1:25 range with his time of 1:25.743/100.766
MPH. Local rider Larry Pegram completed the front row with his Foremost
Insurance Ducati. Pegram ran a 1:25.838/100.655 MPH lap and went faster than he
did on Friday, slipping one spot on the grid, but was pleased to be on the
front row for his home race.
Two
other riders showed impressive speed in the final qualifying session, National
Guard Jordan Suzuki rider Jake Zemke lines up fifth with his lap of
1:25.901/100.581 MPH and he was followed by M4 Monster Energy Suzuki rider Jake
Holden who was the last rider to post a lap in the 1:25 second range, Jake’s
time of 1:25.973/100.497 MPH puts him sixth on the grid for the double header
National Guard Mid-Ohio race weekend.
In
Daytona SportBike presented by AMSOIL, points leader Josh Herrin and his Team
Graves Yamaha were confirmed on the pole position. Even though two
riders bettered their Friday times, the first four remained the same following
the early morning final qualifying session. Herrin will start first with
his Friday lap time of 1:28.732/97.372 MPH.
Second
will be Danny Eslick who improved on his Friday time on his GEICO Powersports
Suzuki. Eslick felt good about his 1:29.065/97.008 MPH lap and after
winning twice here in 2009, he is ready to go. Third is Team Latus Motors
Ducati rider Steve Rapp who just was just slightly slower than he was Friday
but still lines up on the front row. Rapp’s Friday lap was a
1:29.256/96.801 MPH and he is looking forward to the race as he likes the
Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course track and has won here before. The final front
row spot was taken by M4 Monster Energy Suzuki rider and five time 2010 race
winner Martin Cardenas. Martin also went quicker today with his lap of
1:29.260/96.796.
AMA Pro
SuperSport will also remain the same as after Friday with J.D. Beach and
Cameron Beaubier on their Rockwall Yamaha’s starting one-two. This is
Beach’s first pole position of the season. Lining up third is LTD Yamaha
rider Huntley Nash and fourth is Joey Pascarella on his DNA Energy Drink CNR
Motorsports Yamaha. All four riders have posted wins in the
ultra-competitive SuperSport series this year.
Please
visit www.amaproracing.com for results from today’s races and all the weekend
action from the Honda Super Cycle Weekend Presented by Dunlop Tire at the
beautiful Mid-Ohio Sport Car Course.
SPEED
have flag-to-flag coverage of all National Guard SuperBike and Daytona
SportBike races from Mid-Ohio in same weekend broadcasts. Tonight’s
broadcast begins at 11:00 p.m. ET. A full TV schedule can be found at
http://www.speedtv.com/schedule/filter/program/948061.
TEAM-SPEAK:
Sachsenring MotoGP, Saturday (Pics)
Red Bull
MotoGP Rookies Cup
Jake Gagne raced from pole position to a
perfect win in the German Grand Prix round of the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup.
It was anything but an easy win for he 16 year old Californian though who
headed 14 year old South African Brad Binder and 16 year old Briton Danny Kent
across the line.
The win
could have come from anyone of 10 teenagers who traded places at every corner
in what has become the accepted Rookies Cup style.
Towards
the front of the lead pack from the start Gagne did have that important little
something up his sleeve at the end of the 19 laps. “I was just in the group for
most of the race and watching what the other guys were doing. With about 3 laps
to go I got to the front and tried to get away. I knew that Brad (Binder) had
gone with me but over the last few corners I knew I was pretty strong and I
braked pretty deep so I didn’t think he’d be able to get by.”
It was
a fine ride from Binder who had made up a lot of ground coming from the third
row of the grid. “My start was pretty good but then I bumped early on and was
well back in about 13th. So I had to ride hard to catch up. When I did that I
really wanted to get on the podium and I got up the front when Jake took the
lead. I went with him and I was looking for a way past to win but he was
braking at the very last millisecond and there was no way past…. this time.”
Kent
was another who had to work hard for his place on the rostrum coming from 10th
on the grid but he made a great start. “I knew I could do better than
qualifying because I had oil on the rear tyre towards the end of the session.
We also made a few adjustments to the bike so it was working better. It all
came down to the last lap and I’d got passed by Calia and Kristiansson with 2
corners to go but I managed to get them both at the last corner,” concluded
Kent with his usual broad grin.
Alex
Kristiansson, the 16 year old Swede lost a podium place by just 7 thousandths
of a second but still managed to smile and had the consolation of a new lap
record. “It was a great race, a little crazy at times but a lot of fun. I
thought I’d managed to get on the podium but Danny just came past at the line.”
Similarly
15 year old Italian Kevin Calia enjoyed running at the front and his 5th place
finish. “It was good to lead but not easy. I tried to break away but it was
impossible and as soon as the other guys overtake it slows you down again.”
Another
with moments of glory at the head of the pack was Alessio Cappella who managed
to pass 2 or 3 men several times on the brakes at the and of the 6th gear
downhill straight. Unfortunately he caught himself out there on lap 10 and
crashed. “I used a different part of the track and there were more bumps so I
lost the front,” explained the Italian 15 year old.
Others
out of luck included Harry Stafford who crashed out of the lead group on lap
seven, the 16 year old Briton falling at the same fast left hander that caught
him out in practice. Daijiro Hiura, the 15 year old Japanese who had led the
Cup points battle until his technical DNF in the second race at Assen only
scored a single point after rejoining the race following a high speed off track
excursion. “I was trying to go round the outside of Arthur (Sissis) he used all
the track and we touched.”
All
were unhurt as was Alejandro Pardo who was knocked off at the first corner
going on to lap 9 when Kristiansson came up the inside to find the door closed
by Calia and clipped Italian 16 year old Pardo as he stood the bike up.
Ride of
the day could arguably go to Josh Hook who took a superb 6th having fought
through from a 15th place start on the 4th row of the grid. “I just don’t seem
to be able to qualify, once the race starts I am OK,” explained the 17 year old
Australian. “With 10 laps to go I thought the gap to the lead group was too big
but I managed to catch them. I thought I might be able to get on the podium but
on the last lap it all got a bit too much of a mess. I’m happy though, at last
I’ve got a half decent result.”
He
finished just ahead of 18 year old Spaniard Daniel Ruiz who had the Cup lead
going into the race. “I made a mess of the start and even when I got into the
group I just could not ride the way I wanted. I get so frustrated with such
races. I know I can go quicker but with the other guys passing everywhere it is
just impossible.”
Kent
has seized the Cup lead with a 6 point advantage over Ruiz with Gagne a single
point behind him. Hiura is now 4th, 26 points adrift of the lead after a
disastrous 2 races. There remain 4 races in the season with 100 points on
offer, the first 25 of those up for grabs tomorrow at 15.35 CET, live on TV in
many countries or www.redbull.com everywhere.
MotoGP
Jorge Lorenzo took his fourth consecutive
pole of the 2010 MotoGP campaign with the top time in qualifying for the eni
Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland. The Championship leader had a dramatic
session, in which an oil spill from his Yamaha M1 resulted in the session being
halted after crashes for Ben Spies and Randy de Puniet, but he went on to
ensure he will go for a fourth straight win from top spot on the grid on
Sunday, with a fastest lap of 1’21.817.
Jorge Lorenzo • Courtesy MotoGP
Casey
Stoner (Ducati Team) will launch his challenge for a first victory of the
season from second place with Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) will also be on the
front row as he was the third and final rider under the 1’22” mark.
Stoner
was looking on course to steal pole from Lorenzo until he found Colin Edwards
in his path going into the final corner and as he hesitated deciding whether to
pass or not he lost crucial time and eventually finished just 0.024s behind
Lorenzo.
Pedrosa’s
Repsol Honda team-mate Andrea Dovizioso heads up the second row as he followed
three-tenths behind the Spaniard, whilst Valentino Rossi will start his first
race back from his enforced break from racing in fifth spot. Having made a
miraculous recovery from a broken leg at his home round in Mugello, the
reigning World Champion ended up 0.578s off the pace of his Fiat Yamaha
collegue Lorenzo. Héctor Barberá (Páginas Amarillas Aspar) will be alongside
after he achieved his best premier class qualification to date with sixth.
The
session was red-flagged with 25 minutes remaining as Lorenzo’s M1 started to
spill oil, and flames then began to pour out of the side of the Spaniard’s bike
as he approached turn one before he managed to pull off the track. Following
behind, Spies (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) fell in the split oil, as did De Puniet
(LCR Honda) and the Frenchman collided with Spies’ stationary bike as he slid
off.
De
Puniet went for X-rays on his right leg in the medical centre, which confirmed
no breaks, and he will be hopeful of taking his seventh spot on the grid having
started 189 consecutive races since 1999.
Riding
as a replacement for Hiroshi Aoyama, Alex de Angelis (Interwetten Honda MotoGP)
had a crash towards the end of the session and was uninjured. He will start
from last place on the grid in seventeenth, whilst compatriot Loris Capirossi
(Rizla Suzuki) had a run-off late on but will start fourteenth.
250cc
Andrea Iannone • Courtesy MotoGP
Andrea
Iannone’s fourth pole of the season – his third in succession – was confirmed
in Moto2 as the Fimmco Speed Up rider qualified fastest with a lap of 1’24.982,
making him the only sub-1’25” rider and placing him 0.673s clear at the top of
the timesheet.
The
Italian, who will tomorrow go for his third win of the season, will be joined
on the front row by Arne Tode (Racing Team Germany), who delighted the home
crowd by qualifying in second position. Just nine-thousandths of a second
behind him was Championship leader Toni Elías (Gresini Racing), who had a crash
late on in the session from which he walked away uninjured. Completing the
front row will be Julián Simón (Mapfre Aspar), with a gap of 0.776s separating
him from the pole position holder.
The
second row will be comprised of Iannone’s team-mate Gabor Talmacsi, Simone
Corsi (JiR Moto2), another German rider in Stefan Bradl (Viessmann Kiefer
Racing) on his return from injury, and Shoya Tomizawa (Technomag-CIP).
Ricky Cardús had a crash in his first qualifying session as a new addition to
the Maquinza-SAG Team, with Jules Cluzel (Forward Racing) also experiencing a
fall.
Switzerland’s
Thomas Lüthi (Interwetten Moriwaki Racing), currently second in the
Championship, qualified in a disappointing 21st having had a difficult session
in which he ran off track.
125cc
Marc Márquez • Courtesy Marc Marquez
Marc
Márquez will start Sunday’s race from pole position thanks to a fantastic
qualifying display. The 17 year-old Red Bull Ajo Motorsport rider’s blistering
time of 1’26.053 was 0.786s faster than Gabor Talmacsi’s absolute circuit
record, which had stood at the track since 2007.
On a
surface which had dried out well since the morning’s wet practice session,
Márquez and Pol Espargaró battled for pole position in the closing stages of
qualifying, with the lead time swapping hands on a number of occasions as the
pair pushed one another to increasingly faster times. Márquez then pulled out
an unmatchable lap towards the end to leave him 0.543s clear of his Tuenti
Derbi rival, whom he leads in the Championship standings by a single point
going into tomorrow’s race.
Bradley
Smith (Bancaja Aspar) in third was 1.325s off the pace of Márquez, and Sandro
Cortese (Avant Mitsubishi Ajo) will start his home GP from the front row after
taking fourth spot on the grid, just nine-thousandths off Smith.
The
second row will be comprised of Randy Krummenacher (Stipa-Molenaar Racing),
Efrén Vázquez (Tuenti Racing), Tomoyoshi Koyama (Racing Team Germany) and
Johann Zarco (WTR San Marino Team). Esteve Rabat (Blusens-STX) and Danny Webb
(Andalucia Cajasol) completed the top ten.
Injured
Nico Terol meanwhile returned to Spain today after deciding his was not fit
enough to race after having cracked the L1 and L2 vertebrae in his back during
the last round in Barcelona. With the 125s not racing at MotoGP’s next stop in
the USA, Terol has until the Czech round at Brno on August 15th to recover from
his injuries.
Marlboro
Ducati
Ducati Marlboro Team rider Casey Stoner
came within a few metres of his first pole position since the opening race of
the season today when he ran into traffic in the final two turns of a flying
lap that was still only 0.024 seconds shy of top spot. Second place on the grid
is an excellent result for Stoner, however, on a day that saw him make
significant progress with his race set-up around the tight and twisty
Sachsenring circuit.
A damp
track for the first part of this morning’s second free practice had made the
task all the more tricky for the riders and it wasn’t such a productive day for
Stoner’s team-mate Nicky Hayden, who was unable to make progress on an
impressive start yesterday and could only qualify fifteenth.
Both
riders today used a new fairing on their Desmosedici GP10 machines, which
featured small lateral ‘wings’ designed to help prevent wheelies around the
dramatic undulations of this circuit.
CASEY
STONER (Ducati Marlboro Team) 2nd (1’21.841)
“We’ve gradually
progressed over the whole weekend – we started off pretty competitive
yesterday, the bike was going well and step by step we’ve made it better. The
track conditions were also a little better today with the lower temperatures
and of course more rubber having been laid down on it so that certainly helped.
We managed to put a good lap together there at the end but I got caught up
behind Colin Edwards in the penultimate corner and lost some vital time. I was
a little bit disappointed not to get pole by such a small margin but maybe I
should have attempted to pass him earlier and things might have been different.
Having said that we have to be happy today – we’re starting from the front row
and I’m feeling good about tomorrow so we’ll just have to wait and see what
happens.”
NICKY
HAYDEN (Ducati Marlboro Team) 15th (1’23.090)
“Yesterday we started out
well and I did a 1’22.9, which would have been good enough for ninth on the
grid today, but we lost our way a little and maybe went in the wrong direction
with the setting. Not to make excuses I did encounter a little traffic on some
good laps and my ideal time has me tenth with a 1’22.7 but the bottom line is I
wasn’t fast enough anyway. This is probably the last place where you want to
qualify at the back so starting fifteenth is going to make it a long, tough
race but a lot can happen in 30 laps. I need to get into a good early rhythm
and just try to go forward. Yesterday we felt so positive and the feeling with
the bike was so good, we were near the front, but this afternoon wasn’t a good
session and I know I have to do better. I apologise to the team because they
deserve better than fifteenth and we’ll look to put it right tomorrow.”
Tech 3
Yamaha
Monster Yamaha Tech 3 riders Colin Edwards
and Ben Spies are determined to bounce back from a tough qualifying session
with strong results in tomorrow’s Sachsenring MotoGP race.
Edwards
and Spies will start tomorrow’s 30-lap race from 12th and 13th on the grid
respectively as both were unlucky to see their hard work and effort go
unrewarded at the tight and twisty German venue.
Edwards
posted a best time of 1.23.026 to start 12th on the grid, the 36-year-old
working tirelessly to improve the set-up of his YZR-M1 machine in conditions
that could not have been more wildly contrasting compared to the searing
temperatures experienced during yesterd ay’s opening practice session.
Hot and
humid weather was replaced by much cooler conditions and qualifying took place
under grey and gloomy skies but with no repeat of the torrential rain and
thunderstorms that hit the track earlier.
Edwards
was just over 0.5s away from the top six at the end of the session having
experimented once again with different weight distribution settings on his
YZR-M1 machine.
Circumstances
conspired against luckless Spies this afternoon and his final position
certainly didn’t reflect his true potential after he’d been fastest Yamaha on
track yesterday on his first visit to the Sachsenring.
Spies
had just climbed to the brink of the top ten and was poised to begin his
challenge on Bridgestone’s soft compound tyre when he fell heavily at the first
corner with just over 25 minutes remaining.
Spies
crashed out having been unable to avoid oil dropped by Jorge Lorenzo after the
Spaniard experienced a technical problem. The session was immediately red
flagged as Randy de Puniet quickly followed Spies into the gravel.
Spies was
able to walk away from the incident unscathed and he quickly regained his
composure to try and claim a third successive top six grid position.
But the
26-year-old was unable to restart the session on his number one YZR-M1 machine
that was badly damaged in the crash. Spies put in his maximum effort to try and
improve his grid position on his spare bike, but a rousing late charge from the
reigning World Superbike champion couldn’t move him higher than 13th on the
timesheets with a best time of 1.23.028.
He was
just over a tenth-a-of-second away from the top ten and 0.002s behind Edwards.
Both
Edwards and Spies are aiming for a strong finish to boost confidence ahead of
their crucial home race at Laguna Seca in California next Sunday (July 25).
Colin
Edwards 12th 1.23.026 – 32 laps
“That was not an easy
session at all and I feel like I rode much better than 12th. The amount of
effort I’m putting in is not being reflected in the results and that is
frustrating. It is not through a lack of trying and I’ve got to thank my guys
at Monster Yamaha Tech 3 because they have worked incredibly hard as always on
the bike. We’ve tried pretty much everything. We put weight on the front and we
took it off, we put weight on the rear and we changed the springs and pre-load and
we did everything you could imagine and nothing was a big difference.
Tomorrow’s race is going to be tough because this track is so tight that
overtaking is not easy. At best I’d say I’m going to be fi ghting for seventh
but I’ll be riding as hard as I can to give myself some confidence ahead of
Laguna Seca next weekend. That is a huge weekend for Ben and I and I want to
arrive home in a positive frame of mind and ready for a good weekend.”
Ben Spies
13th 1.23.028 – 35 laps
“It obviously wasn’t a
good session when you look where I ended up and everything that could go wrong
pretty much went wrong. I really believe we have a good pace but now we’re
starting way back and we’ve got to try and get a good start and come through
the field. But where we qualified today doesn’t reflect where we should be. I’d
only been riding one bike this weekend and that got tore up in the crash. The
lap times on my number one bike I definitely had something in the bag for
qualifying to go faster than I did. But the best I could do on the spare bike
was match the times I managed on the number one bike. The one decent lap I was
on at the end that would have put me a row ahead, de Angelis crashed in front
of me at the top of the hill and that just upset my lap. Before that though the
incident at the first corner was crucial. I’d just finished my stint and was
pulling in at the end of the lap to start going for a qualifying time. All of a
sudden I was on the ground and I hadn’t really tipped in. I saw de Puniet’s
bike fly right past me and. I walked over to his bike and looked at the front
tyre and saw it had oil all over it so I knew there was nothing I could do.
Luckily I’m fine and will give it my best shot tomorrow.”
Fiat
Yamaha
Jorge Lorenzo extended his pole position
run to four consecutive races as he put his M1 at the front of the grid once
again today at the Sachsenring. His Fiat Yamaha team-mate Valentino Rossi
continued to impress on his return from injury by qualifying fifth, just 0.578
seconds off Lorenzo.
Having
struggled for front grip yesterday championship-leader Lorenzo looked much more
comfortable today and finished the morning session in first place. Mid-way
through qualifying however he suffered an engine problem on the start/finish
straight and was forced to pull over. The session was then red-flagged when two
riders crashed after hitting the oil that had leaked from his bike, although
both have luckily been declared fit to ride tomorrow. On the resumption of
action Lorenzo put in a string of fast laps in the high 1’21s, eventually
taking pole with four minutes to go before improving again to hold off
challenges from Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa, with whom he will share the
front row tomorrow.
Rossi
continued to look surprisingly strong throughout today’s action, his recently
broken leg causing little detriment to his performance on the bike. The
31-year-old World Champion was third this morning and then spent most of this
afternoon’s session tweaking the set-up of his M1 to make sure he was as
comfortable as possible around the 3.671km track. Post red-flag Rossi jumped up
the order to fourth, before Andrea Dovizioso edged him down one place into the
middle of the second row. Rossi’s physical condition is positive so far, with
not too much pain from either his shoulder or his leg and he is hopeful of
being able to complete the race distance tomorrow.
Jorge
Lorenzo, Position: 1st Time: 1′21.817 Laps: 36
“Since the new engine rule
everyone has been starting to feel like these engines never have problems and
it was honestly a surprise for me today when I came onto the straight and felt
it stop! It was so hot and there was oil on my feet so I had to go into the
wall. I’m really sorry that Ben and Randy crashed and especially that Randy was
slightly injured, it is good news that he will be able to race tomorrow. This
pole position was very hard because Casey and Dani were so fast; I had to push
at the maximum and ride really well. Well done to my team because we have
improved so much since yesterday and now I’m looking forward to the race
tomorrow.”
Valentino
Rossi, Position: 5th Time: 1′22.395 Laps: 33
“I am really happy after this second day because I feel confident on the bike.
I have suffered more today because we’ve had two sessions instead of one and I
have some pain and I’m more tired than yesterday, but I feel good and my
movement is okay. Also the shoulder feels fine so it’s definitely a positive
return for me. Unfortunately today at the end we tried a small modification to
improve the setting but it made it worse, so I think we lost one position for
this. I don’t think the front row was possible because Lorenzo, Stoner and
Pedrosa went under 1′22 and I don’t think I could have done that today.
For tomorrow of course there is a question mark but I hope to be able to
finish; I think the podium will be difficult for me but top five would be a
very good result.
Wilco
Zeelenberg, Team Manager
“Compared to yesterday we
have improved the setting a lot and this morning Jorge was already able to improve
by a few tenths in every section. This afternoon he felt good on the bike again
and both types of Bridgestone tyre are working very well. It was another strong
performance from him at the end, as we’ve become used to lately, but it was
quite close and it will be a tough race tomorrow. As for the engine, we now
have one less from our allocation of six and we need time to understand what
happened; luckily it wasn’t a new engine, it’s been in use a long time but it’s
never nice when something like this happens. We’re very sorry for the riders
that fell and especially for Randy because he has some pain, things happening
at that speed are always dangerous and we wish him our best and very much hope
it won’t affect him in the race tomorrow.”
Davide
Brivio, Team Manager
“A very good session; if
we’d known two days ago we would be qualifying in fifth we would have been very
happy. Things are going well with Valentino’s condition and so as a result
we’re feeling more and more competitive as time goes on! We’re working hard on
the bike setting and his leg and shoulder seem to be reacting well to the
pressure. He is already quite fast and the second row is good for us. We have
to wait and see how he gets on in the race tomorrow because 30 laps is a lot
but we have a good starting position and I expect that his racing attitude will
prevail! We are very happy to be here, to have got through the practice and
whatever happens tomorrow it is all a bonus.”
San Carlo
Honda Gresini Racing
After a positive first day yesterday hopes
were high of better grid positions for Team San Carlo Honda Gresini´s two
riders today but it wasn´t to be, with Marco Simoncelli unable to repeat his
fifth place and Marco Melandri still struggling to rediscover form and fitness
on the Honda RC212V. Eighth place for Simoncelli is still a positive result and
it equals his best grid, set in the last race at Barcelona, but he is not
completely satisfied. His race pace is good, however, and further improvements
in tomorrow´s warm-up should see him mount a strong challenge in the race.
Melandri starts from the fourth row and is hoping to be
Courtesy San Carlo Honda Gresini
in
better shape by the time the afternoon race comes around. The Italian is still
feeling the effects of his injuries from Assen and has not been helped by the
notorious physical demands of Sachsenring.
Marco
Simoncelli (8th 1´ 22″ 624): “Eighth place isn´t bad and I´m
happy even though to be honest I was hoping to improve at the end of the
session and qualifying on the second row. It wasn´t to be and if we want to
achieve our objective of running with the top five tomorrow we have to take
another step forward. I´m half pleased and half disappointed. Like yesterday we
had difficulty finding rear traction when I open the throttle and I couldn´t
find a good feeling. Tomorrow in the warm-up we´ll try and find a solution to
improve our race pace. The crash this morning obviously didn´t help but these
things happen and we´ll see what we can do tomorrow. “
Marco
Melandri (10th 1´ 22″ 917): “it was a really
difficult session for us and we struggled to find the right way forward. We
went back to our setting from yesterday and things improved but I´m still not
happy with how I´m riding the bike and we we´ll try and make a change to the
bike that gives us a bit more feeling in corner entry, which is where I am
slow. Physically I feel quite good although the race will be a different story
– it will be long and tough. I haven´t really had any problems doing short runs
in practice though.”
Fausto
Gresini: “Simoncelli
followed up his excellent pace from Barcelona in practice and that is a big
positive, although to be honest after yesterday´s performance I was hoping for
a little more. Hopefully the result we were hoping for today will happen
tomorrow instead. His pace is good even though he is still a little off the
front guys but race by race he is getting closer. Clearly the crash didn´t help
but this happens in racing. If he gets a good start he can be fighting at the
front at a difficult circuit, where you never get a rest. Melandri is
struggling but he´s doing well to bring home the results despite still not
having recovered 100% from his crash at Assen.”
LCR Honda
Sachsenring, 17 July: As predicted by the
weather forecast, cloudy skies and lower temperatures welcomed the 800cc riders
this morning at the 3.671 km German track which hosts the eight round of the
season. This morning second free session at Sachsenring was conducted in the
dry but the asphalt temperature reached 26 degrees only and the LCR Honda
MotoGP racer Randy de Puniet set the 5th fastest time continuing his set up
work aboard the RC212V equipped with a new electronic software.
The
Frenchman once again displayed his affinity with the technical and tight German
track and was ready to take the best from his machine in today’s 60-minute
qualifying session. Unfortunately at 25 minutes to go Lorenzo’s bike engine
blew up spraying oil onto the track at turn one. Spies crashed and Randy braked
to 150km/h before crashing on the oil. The session was red-flagged and the
29-year-old reached the Medical Centre to check his painful right ankle and
after a double X-ray Randy was decided fit for the race as he suffered a small
scratch of the tibia only. De Puniet set a best lap time of 1’22.610 and will
start from tomorrow’s 30-lap race from the third row.
De Puniet
- 7th 1’22.610
De Puniet: “What can I say? I
am lucky because all my bones are whole! We have been working good with the new
software and I was up there for the whole session. I was on my last lap on hard
tyre and was ready to come in to swap on soft ones but suddenly Jorge’s engine
blew up on the straight and after few seconds the surface was full of oil. It
happened too quick and nobody had the time to react or to display the board.
Spies crashed in front of me and I did the same onto his bike hurting myself
heavily. After last year left ankle fracture I was seriously worried about my
conditions but it’s just a scratch of the right tibia. But it aches very much!
Of course I won’t be at 100% for tomorrow but my race pace is quite good and
will do my best to take as many points as possible”.
Pramac
Ducati
Good
qualification session for Pramac Racing Team riders with the ninth and eleventh
position conquered respectively by Aleix Espargarò and Mika Kallio. Good
session for both riders that have stop the chronometer with just over a second
of gap from the pole position registered by Jorge Lorenzo. The riders have
complained about some small problems and if they will be able to solve them during
tomorrow morning warm up, they should be both even faster than today and gain a
significant result in the race. In
Espargaro • Courtesy Pramac
particular
Aleix had some grip problems on the front tyre, which didn’t allowed him to be
fast in the first and last sector. Mika has partially solved the problems he
had yesterday during the first free practice session. He finished very close to
the riders ahead of him and will certainly battle tomorrow to gain an important
position. The appointment is at 2 pm local time for the eni Grand Prix of
Germany race.
Marco
Rigamonti – Aleix Espargarò Track Engineer
“Aleix has confirmed his
value in the last few races: this ninth position gives us good hopes for
tomorrow’s race. We still have some grip problems with the front tyre in the
first sector of the track. Tomorrow, during the warm up, we’ll change the
height of the saddle to allow him to have a smoother ride. With these track
conditions, we can make a good race. We are also very happy with the excellent pace
that Aleix had during several laps, he has consistently turned in 1′23
low. We will work hard to ensure him a perfectly balanced bike.”
Aleix
Espargarò – Pramac Racing Team – 9th fastest time in 1′22 .910
“Compared to yesterday’s
morning first practice session we have improved a little the front tyre grip
even though my bike is not perfect yet. Tomorrow during the warm up we’ll make
some other changes. With my engineers we have also decided to slightly change
the saddle height, this should help me to have a better ride style in the first
and last sector where we are slower than the others. I am still very happy to
start the race in third row.”
Mika Kallio
– Pramac Racing Team – 11th best time in 1′22 .961
“Finally a positive result
in qualifying. I am very happy to have significantly reduced the gap from the
first rider and the other riders ahead of me. We have worked hard yesterday
after the first free practice to make sure that my bike was fast in the first
sector where I had the biggest gap. Tomorrow morning during the warm up we will
try other changes to be even faster in that sector. I have great confidence for
the tomorrow race: it’s the time to gain a good result.”
Rizla
Suzuki
Rizla Suzuki will have more than the
Sachsenring hills to climb tomorrow after a tough qualifying left them with
plenty to do in tomorrow’s race.
Courtesy Rizla
Loris
Capirossi (P14, 1’23.040, 32 laps) will start from the middle of the fifth row
with team-mate Álvaro Bautista (P16, 1’23.193, 34 laps) just behind him on the
front of the sixth row. Both riders pushed hard today and made many changes to
their Suzuki GSV-Rs in an attempt to unlock the potential around this demanding
3,671m German circuit. Just a few tenths-of-a-second by either rider would have
seen them significantly jump up the grid, but neither was able to find that
breakthrough as the session wore on. Capirossi and Bautista will both be aiming
for a good start in tomorrow’s race, as passing opportunities around the
Sachsenring track are few and far between.
Today’s
qualifying was held in much cooler conditions than yesterday, as the
temperature only reached 24ºC and overcast skies kept the track at 31ºC. Pole
position was taken by current championship leader Jorge Lorenzo for the fourth
race in succession.
Tomorrow’s
race is the eighth race of the season and the action begins for the 30-lap race
at 14.00hrs local time (12.00hrs GMT).
Loris
Capirossi:
“Today we worked a lot on
setting and everybody tried their best, but we are still struggling to get it
right. The front feeling is still not right even though the bike has improved a
bit since yesterday. We also had to work with the electronic settings today as
we struggled a bit there as well, we improved the traction control, but we
still need to take a couple more steps. In the warm-up we have a clear idea of
something we want to try and we will have a meeting later to try and decide on
what route we are going to take tomorrow.”
Álvaro
Bautista:
“We improved from
yesterday, but the problem is so did all the other riders! We have stayed in
about the same position as yesterday and the same difference between first and
me. The good thing is that I have good feeling with the used tyre and I was
able to run at a consistent pace. The problem is that I am starting from a long
way back and it will be difficult because in this category the first few laps
are very important. I will try to get a good start and keep a good position in
the first part of the race. The good rhythm I have means I can possibly fight
in the top-10, but it will be important to get a good start to be able to do
that and I will try to get my best one of the season. I feel I can go faster
when the tyre is used so we are pleased with the setting and I will give it
100% tomorrow to do well.”
Paul
Denning – Team Manager:
“We found a decent step in
speed today and undoubtedly improved the bike, but the result is as it is and
the team is bitterly disappointed. Sachsenring is one of the hardest places to
pass and starting that far back – even though the guys have both got a decent
race rhythm – is going to make life extremely difficult. The positions are made
more disappointing by the fact that two tenths-of-a-second would’ve seen Loris
on the third row and he would then have had a much better opportunity for
tomorrow’s race, but it’s that kind of track and apart from the very front guys
everyone is very close and anything can happen over 30 laps tomorrow.”
eni
Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland Qualifying Practice Classification:
1.
Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) 1’21.817: 2. Casey Stoner (Honda) +0.024: 3. Dani
Pedrosa (Honda) +0.131: 4. Andrea Dovizioso (Honda) +0.446: 5. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha)
+0.578: 14. LORIS CAPIROSSI (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +1.223: 16. ÁLVARO BAUTISTA
(RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +1.376:
Repsol
Honda
Repsol Honda riders Dani Pedrosa and Andrea
Dovizioso will start from third and fourth places in tomorrow’s German Grand
Prix after a promising display at the Sachsenring today. Pedrosa will start
from the first row for the fifth time this season, giving him a valuable clear
run into the Sachsenring’s tight first corner. The 24-year-old Spaniard looked
in with a good chance of pole position as he went to the top of the timesheets
early in the session and stayed there until an incident at turn one halted
proceedings for 20 minutes as oil was cleared from the track. In the closing 10
minutes he was edged into third place by today’s pole setter Jorge Lorenzo and
Casey Stoner in second, but lap times today were typically tight at the
Sachsenring and, with Pedrosa’s time just 0.131s back from pole, he is
confident of his chances in the race.
Dovizioso
was a further 0.315s behind his team-mate and will head the second row tomorro
w after he and his crew made useful progress through today’s two sessions.
Fourth place on the grid equals Dovizioso’s best qualifying performance in 2010
and with a few further adjustments to his race set-up the 24-year-old Italian
is confident of repeating his front-running pace from the last race in
Catalunya. The Repsol Honda Team enjoyed more dry practice time than was
predicted today with the morning session starting wet, before the track dried
quickly in the warm temperatures. By the afternoon the skies had cleared and
qualifying was held in warm dry conditions, which are expected to continue for
tomorrow’s 30-lap race – starting at 14.00.
DANI
PEDROSA – 3rd – 1m 21.948s +0.131s
“The main target today was
to get onto the first row and we’ve achieved this so I’m happy. It’s important
to start from the front row because the first corner is close to the starting
grid and also the first few corners are very tight, so it’s better to be up
front and try to stay out of trouble. Always at this track the lap times are
very close and we often see a really hard fight in the race – and it looks like
this could be the case again tomorrow. We were lucky with the weather today and
we got more dry practice time than expected. Generally we did a good job in the
two practice sessions and our race pace looks pretty reasonable. I didn’t see
the crash at turn one but I saw the smoke and I thought maybe there’s some oil
on the track. I think I was lucky not to be the first one through after
Lorenzo’s problem. We’ll have to be very concentrated during all 30 laps
tomorrow because it’s a short lap and there’s no time to relax. We’ll try to
find a little something extra with the set-up in warm-up tomorrow but I’m
confident we can have a strong race.”
ANDREA
DOVIZIOSO – 4th – 1m 22.263s +0.446s
“I’m pretty satisfied to
have qualified in fourth and to be only four tenths from pole position. We made
constant improvements in both of today’s sessions and we’re in much better
shape than we were yesterday. Being fast on this track is really important for
me because previously I’ve struggled here a little bit in all the categories,
but today we could go quickly and qualified pretty well. Fourth position equals
my best qualifying position so far this season and I’m happy about this. We
have a good race pace too. We are not as fast as the first three riders but I
think we can improve in a few areas, close the gap, and fight for the top step
of the podium. One of the areas where we are still losing out is in the middle
of the turn with the bike wanting to go straight, so we’ll continue to try to
improve this particular part of our set-up. I’m confident for tomorrow’s race.”
TOSHIYUKI
YAMAJI – REPSOL HONDA TEAM MANAGER
“This was a solid
performance from both riders today and I think we can be reasonably satisfied
with how we’re shaping up for tomorrow’s race. Dani is on the front row which
was mission number one for him, and his race pace looks good too, so I think he
can have another strong race here. Andrea and his crew made good progress today
and recovered well after losing some time yesterday. He is close to the front
of the grid and a fast start will give him a chance of competing at the front
again tomorrow. The lap times are close and our rivals are looking strong, but
we can put up a real fight. Randy de Puniet was unlucky to have a high-speed
crash today that wasn’t his fault, so Honda hopes he’s able to ride in the
race.”
Repsol
125cc
Marc Márquez is still not letting up on his
rivals in the lowest of the Motorcycling World Championship categories. His
achievements are getting more impressive as the season advances and after
today’s practices, where he was again the fastest in his class in both the
morning and afternoon, the Repsol rider makes it six poles – fourth in a row –
out of the 8 possible to date.
Courtesy Repsol
Despite
a minor fall mid-session this morning, the incident did not prevent Márquez
from finishing the qualifying at the top of the timesheets. The rain that fell
last night left the track wet and caused the Repsol rider to fall under braking
on the turn running up to the finish line. A minor slip that did not stop him
from going back to the garage, resting for a few minutes while his team
repaired some slight damage and going back out on the track to finish the
practice at the top of the timesheets. A warning from the Repsol rider that he
was not going to settle for anything less than leading the 125cc category.
In the
definitive qualifying session this afternoon, Márquez again dominated the
category with a firm hand. On a dry track, but with a constant threat of rain,
Emilio Alzamora’s protégé topped the timesheets almost from the very start and
stayed there until the end, when he took part in an interesting head to head
with Pol Espargaró.
The
Repsol rider reached the final phase of the qualifying in first place, being
the only rider to come in at under one minute and twenty-seven seconds, but his
compatriot overtook him with just five minutes to go. Márquez responded immediately,
setting a new circuit record, but Espargaró lowered his time again. In the next
lap, traffic on the track prevented both of them from improving, but with an
open road, Marc Márquez did a stratospheric lap, setting a time of 1 minute, 26
seconds and 53 milliseconds, almost one second faster than the previous circuit
record.
Marc
MÁRQUEZ >> 1´26.053 sec, 37 laps, 136 KM
“It’s been quite an
extreme qualifying because we had a good pace to ride at under one minute
twenty-seven although there was quite a lot of traffic. When I was able to ride
alone I noticed that they put “P2″ on the board, which meant that Pol
[Espargaró] had lowered the time a bit, so I decided to push a little harder
and was able to ride at 1’26”0, which was very good. I think that we can have a
good race tomorrow and we’ll try and score some points for the championship.
Our
target is to finish on the podium and if we have the chance, battle for the
win. Despite the water, I felt quite comfortable this morning. Around
mid-session, I skidded a bit in a turn and fell. We were testing some
adjustments that had not gone too well but towards the end, I felt much better,
even with the track wet. Tomorrow, whether it rains or not, the target is to
finish the race to start the holidays on a high note”.
Marc VDS
A last lap charge from Scott Redding saw
the British youngster qualify 15th for tomorrow’s German Grand Prix at
Sachsenring, while his Marc VDS teammate, Hector Faubel, will start from the
seventh row of the grid after finishing today’s timed session 27th fastest.
Redding
struggled with traction problems through free practice and qualifying, almost
crashing on more than one occasion through turns nine and ten when the rear of
his Suter MMX machine lost grip. The Gloucestershire teenager also lost time
through sector four – the two left-hand turns at the bottom of the hill – for
the same reason. Redding will sit down with his crew tonight to try and
identify set-up changes to improve the handling of the bike in these two
specific areas, which he’ll then test during warm-up tomorrow morning.
Faubel
was disappointed to only qualify on the seventh row of the grid for tomorrow’s
race, after making big steps forward with the set-up of his Suter MMX Moto2
machine during practice and qualifying today. The 26-year-old Spaniard also
lost time through the last section of the track and, like his teammate, will
focus his efforts on finding an improvement through turns 12 and 13 during
tomorrow’s 20-minute warm-up session.
Redding
and Faubel are confident that it will be possible to improve on their
qualifying positions during tomorrow’s 29-lap Moto2 race. Both riders are
determined to push for points scoring finishes in front of the Marc VDS Racing
Team’s President, Marc van der Straten, who will be watching the race from pit wall.
Scott
Redding #45: 15th – 1′26.246
“The fourth row of the
grid isn’t where we wanted to be this weekend, even if it is my second best
qualifying position of the season so far. We’ve really struggled here at
Sachsenring; first with the front and then with the rear of the bike. I’ve had
a few scares through turns nine and ten – where I crashed yesterday – as the
rear just comes round on me with no warning. I’m also losing time through the
fourth sector and we need to find out why this is, so that we can make the
necessary set-up changes before warm-up tomorrow. The race will be tough,
that’s for sure, but I’ll be pushing as hard as I can to secure a good result
in front of the boss!”
Hector
Faubel #55: 27th – 1′26.736
“The bike felt good today,
probably the best it’s been since the start of the season. My first two runs in
qualifying were good, but then we switched to the harder option front tyre for
the third run and this didn’t work as well as the medium option. I was able to
lap consistently in the 1’26s bracket though, so we have a pretty good pace for
the race, but I’m losing time through the last section of the track and this is
something we need to address with the team overnight. I think the problem is
that I’m braking too early for these two corners, but this we will be able to
confirm with the data. The race will be hard, and this track is not easy to
overtake on, but I will be pushing to try and get into the points tomorrow, as
always.”
Michael
Bartholemy: Team Manager
“Scott qualified higher
than he has done for the last few races, so I’m satisfied with that, although
it’s not really where we expected to be at this point in the season. The
biggest problem is that he is losing almost half a second through T4 and that’s
something we definitely need to sort out ahead of tomorrow’s race. Today Hector
was really happy with the bike for the first time this season and most of his
laps were done on used tyres. The lap times are still not coming easily for
him, but this is mainly because he’s having similar issues to Scott in T4.
Apart from Andrea Iannone, who was in a class of his own today, Scott and
Hector are not far off in terms of lap times and I’m confident that they’ll be
able to fight for points in tomorrow’s race.”
STIPA-Molenaar
Racing
The Eni Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland
qualification brought the STIPA-Molenaar Racing GP team a fantastic result for
rider Randy Krummenacher. The Swiss knew from the beginning to the end of the
session to ride very good lap times and came was less than 0,1 second short to
park his Aprilia RSA on the front row. Luis Salom had during qualifying several
electronic problems, which couldn’t be solved during the session, and the
Spaniard has to be satisfied with a 21 starting spot.
Courtesy STIPA
The
free practice began in the morning on a wet track. During the session the track
dried, but the rain tire was still the right choice. Both STIPA-Molenaar Racing
GP riders were able to establish top 5 positions and with less than two minutes
on the clock, Randy Krummenacher and Luis Salom decided not to take any risks
and parked them Aprilia’s into the pitbox. Eventually the Swiss rode to a tenth
place and the Spaniard ended the session when a seventeenth position.
From
the first minute until the last minute Randy Krummenacher rode very competitive
lap times and was even halfway through the session on P1. The Swiss showed that
the Sachsenring track is really one of his favourite tracks and will start the
race from the fifth position. Krummenacher was only 0.093 seconds short of the
front row and had the give in only 0.102 seconds for the third position.
So it
went very good for the Swiss STIPA-Molenaar Racing GP rider but Luis Salom had
a disappointed session. The Spaniard struggled with electronic problems that
could not be solved in the qualifying session. The engine couldn’t use its
maximum power and stops at a certain level of RPM’s in. Salom tried his best to
get everything out of the bike but had to be satisfied with a 21st starting
position.
Randy
Krummenacher (5th, 1:27.480):
“This is a great result!
In the morning session it went well in the rain but this afternoon’s qualifying
session was almost perfect. I could find already in the beginning of the
qualification session a good rhythm and was able to ride lap times of 1:28. In
the last twenty minutes I could even ride 1:27 laps. It’s a shame I just missed
the front row but I have a good race pace. I like the track very much and I
believe I can ride tomorrow with the front-runners. A good start and 27 laps of
full throttle is the only thing I can do tomorrow! “
Luis Salom
(21st, 1:29.577):
“I’m very disappointed.
Yesterday and this morning we got a problem in the sixth gear. We thought we
solved this problem but this afternoon it was even worse! In several gears the
engine couldn’t give maximum power. We knew what the problem was during the
session but there was no time to fix it. A disappointment 21st starting
position is not really my goal but today there wasn’t more possible. The
electronic problems will be solved for tomorrow. It’s going to be a tough
race tomorrow but I will try to get the maximum out of it.”
Bridgestone
Overnight rain and overcast skies
left the ambient and track temperatures lower for today’s qualifying session
than during yesterday’s practice, but the rain that was forecast during the day
held off and made the conditions more favourable and the laptimes faster. By
the midway point, it was the closest qualifying of the season with all riders
within 1.59 seconds.
Jorge
Lorenzo took his fourth consecutive pole position for the
Fiat Yamaha Team using the harder option front Bridgestone slick and the
softer rear, which was the favoured combination amongst the frontrunners. Of
the top ten, all riders set their best times on the softer rear and only
Valentino Rossi, Randy de Puniet and Marco Melandri did so using the softer
option front Bridgestone slick.
Casey
Stoner was second fastest for the
Ducati Team, his third successive front
row start, and Dani Pedrosa continued his good form to
finish third fastest. The top three, whose times were separated by just
0.13seconds, were all faster than the existing lap record, set by Pedrosa last
season on Bridgestone slicks.
The
track temperature peaked at just 38 degrees Celsius, as opposed 52 degrees
during yesterday’s free practice, but by the end of qualifying it had dropped
to 34 degrees, giving a good illustration of the wide temperature range in
which each of Bridgestone’s available tyre compounds can operate.The session
was interrupted by a red flag after 34 minutes of running when Lorenzo’s bike
dropped fluid onto the circuit on the approach to the first corner and both Ben
Spies and Randy de Puniet crashed as a result.
Tohru
Ubukata – Manager, Bridgestone Motorcycle Tyre Development Department: “Track conditions
have improved since yesterday as the overnight rain reduced the track and
ambient temperaturewhich makes it slightly easier for our tyres. The track was
also cleaner and there has been more rubber laid down since yesterday, all of
which contributed to the laptimes being just over half a second faster today.“I
am happy with the performance of both our tyre options today as Valentino
showed that he is fast on the softer front, and Randy almost matched his best
time on the harder rear tyre. During this morning’s free practice many riders
also completed more than race distance on a single set of tyres, so I am
confident about durability. I expect front tyre choices to be mixed for
tomorrow’s race, but if conditions are similar to today the softer rear will be
favoured.”
TEAM-SPEAK:
Snetterton British Superbike, Saturday
British
Superbike
Josh Brookes came close to matching
the Snetterton lap record as he claimed his second pole start in as many races
ahead of Sunday’s seventh round of the MCE Insurance British Superbike
Championship at the Norfolk circuit.
The HM
Plant Honda rider who heads the title chase by four points from Tommy Hill ran
almost half a second faster than the Worx Crescent Suzuki rider in a hectic
finale to the Swan Combi Roll for Pole.
Brookes,
who had set the pace in the first two elements of grid deciding session, put in
a best lap of 1m 04.803secs but Hill who had suffered electronic problems to
his bike throughout thanked his team for rectifying them when it mattered most
as he secured the all important front row start, albeit in the third slot.
Michael
Rutter, the Knockhill race winner, separated them aboard his
RidersMotorcycles.com Ducati while former two times British Champion, and twice
a Snetterton double race winner, Ryuichi Kiyonari ran fourth fastest.
James
Ellison, underlining his returning to full fitness after breaking his thigh in
practice for the second round at Thruxton back in April, headed the second row
on the Swan Honda with a lap in 1m 05.337secs to be ahead of Relentless Suzuki
riders Michael Laverty and Alastair Seeley and Gary Mason aboard the MSS
Colchester Kawasaki.
Dan
Linfoot, riding the Motorpoint Yamaha, and Buildbase Kawasaki’s John Laverty
completed the top ten qualifiers while Steve Brogan, riding the Jentin Yamaha,
was the fastest of the Mirror.co.uk BSB-EVO class riders, starting from the
fifth row of the grid.
NOTE TO
EDITORS – FIRST RACE OF THE WEEKEND, HELD OVER FROM KNOCKHILL STARTS AT 15.15
SATURDAY AFTERNOON – STARTING GRID FOR THAT WAS DECIDED AHEAD OF THE POSTPONEMENT
OF THE SCOTTISH ROUND DUE TO ADVERSE WEATHER CONDITIONS.
For the
record
Superbike
– top ten qualifying times for Sunday’s opening race
Josh Brookes (HM Plant Honda) 1m:04.803s
Michael Rutter (Ridersmotorcycles.com Ducati) +0.333s
Tommy Hill (Worx Crescent Suzuki) +0.473s
Ryuichi Kiyonari (HM Plant Honda) +0.524s
James Ellison (Swan Honda) +0.534s
Michael Laverty (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +0.574s
Alastair Seeley (Relentless Suzuki by TAS) +0.676s
Gary Mason (MSS Colchester Kawasaki) +0.708s
Dan Linfoot (Motorpoint Yamaha) +0.744s
John Laverty (Buildbase Kawasaki) +0.833s
Superbike
lap record:
Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) 1m 04.688s, 108.63mph (2006)
Superbikes
on track
Sunday 18 July
09.15-09.30 warm up practice
12.30 Race two – 22 laps
16.30 Race three – 22 laps
Superbikes
on television
Sunday 18 July
12.25-13.45 and 15.45-18.00 live raceday
22.15-23.45 highlights
(full tv listings www.britishsuperbike.com)
Ó SCMSRN.com/Paul J Miller 3rd, 2000-2009