Milestone weekend for Edwards as Crutchlow aims to continue progress

The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team makes its third visit of the season to Spain this weekend for the 14th round of the 2011 MotoGP World Championship at the magnificent Motorland Aragón circuit.

Sunday's race will provide another milestone in the distinguished career of Colin Edwards, who is poised to make his 150th MotoGP start. The 37 year-old has been one of the most consistent performers in the Championship since he arrived in the paddock back in 2003 and this season has been no exception, the popular American chasing an 11th consecutive point-scoring finish of the season this weekend.

Edwards currently sits ninth in the overall standings on 87 points and he is hoping for a strong result this weekend to bounce back quickly from a difficult race at Misano. Edwards was battling for a place inside the top seven before he was struck by a severe arm pump problem. Edwards has been able to rest and recover for more than a week at his Texas home and he is confident the issue will not be a problem at Motorland Aragón.

British rider Cal Crutchlow heads into the weekend with his confidence boosted by a hard fought 10th place in Misano. Crutchlow has worked tremendously hard in the last races to find a more confident front-end set-up with his Monster Yamaha Tech 3 machine and he is looking forward to continuing that progress this weekend.

The Motorland Aragón track throws up another new challenge for Crutchlow, who has never raced on the technical 3.155-mile layout before. The 2009 World Supersport champion though has demonstrated his ability to quickly learn new tracks in his rookie campaign and he's targeting another top 10 assault in Sunday's 23-lap race.

Colin Edwards:

“I can't believe I'm going to be making my 150th MotoGP appearance this weekend. It feels like only yesterday since I moved from World Superbikes but I've had an awesome time in MotoGP and long may it continue. Although it is a landmark race in my MotoGP career I'll just try and treat it like every other race and do the best possible job I can for the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team. The Aragón track has a really cool layout and I can't wait to get back there, even though my result wasn't the best last season. And I'm definitely keen to bounce back from Misano, which didn't end how I expected at all. I had a great weekend up until the race but the arm pump was the worst I've ever had. I've had a few days to rest and relax at home so I'm sure I'm going to be 100 per cent this weekend.”

Cal Crutchlow:

“I'm raring to start this weekend having spent a few days with the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team in France. It has been great spending some quality time with the crew while also training hard after a couple of really physically demanding races in Indianapolis and Misano. We've managed to pick up a couple of respectable results recently to restore my confidence, but as a rider you always want more, so the goal this weekend will be to qualify and finish the race inside the top 10. Aragón is another track I've only ever seen on TV and I can't wait to ride it. It looks like a lot of fun with some undulation and some fast, sweeping corners. I think it might suit my style because it doesn't look like a circuit with a lot of strong braking points. It is never easy trying to learn a new track, but the confidence gained in the last couple of races means we can start the weekend in a positive frame of mind.”

Monster Yamaha Tech 3 press release

Barberá targets top Ducati spot for weekend

Mapfre Aspar rider Héctor Barberá scored his best result of the season so far with sixth place at Jerez and he also put in a strong showing with eleventh at Catalunya. Little wonder that he is looking forward to his third home race of the season at Aragón, especially as he looks to continue an excellent run of recent form. Ever since the Italian Grand Prix back in June Héctor has stepped up his work rate and his pace, and thanks to a good base setting the results have been impressive. Ninth place at Misano has given him the confidence and motivation to be fighting for another top result in front of his home fans at Motorland.

Héctor Barberá:

"I had a good weekend in practice at Motorland last year and a good race too. I am confident that we can achieve a top result this weekend. We are in incredible form at the moment, the team are helping me a lot and I am enjoying every session on the bike. We have found a good base set-up and we are getting the most out of the bike at the moment. This is also another home race for us and after qualifying as the best Ducati and finishing the race as the second one I am highly motivated. I love the track - it is very complete and it suits my riding style perfectly. The set-up we have should work well here at Motorland and the objective is to continue in the same way we've been working recently because if we do that the results will come. I would love to be the top Ducati again."

Mapfre Aspar press release

Repsol Honda trio refreshed and ready

After a one-week break following two very demanding races in Indianapolis and Misano, the Repsol Honda riders are ready to enjoy one of the most impressive facilities on the MotoGP calendar. In 2010, Motorland was rewarded with the IRTA Best Grand Prix of the Year Award - the first time a circuit has received the prize in its debut year.

Dani Pedrosa, Andrea Dovizioso and Casey Stoner head into the decisive stage of the Championship very determined and Aragón is a place to shine. Stoner, who is currently leading the Championship, won there last season and will look to repeat his outstanding performances to further increase his gap over Jorge Lorenzo.

Dani Pedrosa, who missed his home race in Catalunya due to injury, wants to enjoy this third race of the year in Spain together with his fans and will also be chasing victory after his second place in 2010. With five races to go the Spaniard currently lies in fourth position, 35 points behind team-mate Andrea Dovizioso who will be looking to return on the podium after two fifth places in the last two races.

The records set in 2010 by Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa will be the reference in Motorland. Stoner set the pole position with a lap time of 1'48.942 and Pedrosa established the fastest lap in the race with 1'49.521.

Casey Stoner:

"I've managed to rest since the hard race in Misano, where I was totally worn out. The hectic schedule we follow had drained me completely and I had no energy, nothing left to give, so I've enjoyed relaxing this past week and getting back to some training. The Aragón track is ok, it's not one of my favourite circuits, I feel it could be a little faster. We ran well there last year, mainly due to the fact we took a big step in the set up on the bike. This year we arrive there with a totally different bike so we have a lot of things to learn in FP1, getting the gearbox set up right and a few other things in general. It will be interesting to go there on the Honda, Dani was competitive there last year and I think we can work well there also, and expect a good result. We'll get there and see what we can do.”

Andrea Dovizioso:

“We arrive in Aragón third in the Championship looking to close the gap to Lorenzo in second, but also needing to defend from Dani in fourth. I like Motorland Aragón, the circuit is very nice and it’s fun to ride. The key characteristic is the downhill braking areas and it has some similarities to the Istanbul circuit with interesting corners and changes of direction. It’s not so fast but all in all I like to race there. Last year it was a new track so I think that with one year of experience we can be even more competitive. Last year I crashed on the very last lap while I was fighting with Ben Spies for fifth position, this year we arrive confident that we can have a strong race.”

Dani Pedrosa:

"I have very good memories of the Grand Prix of Aragón, last year we started well and we had a good race. I'm satisfied with our performance in the past few weeks and I feel better every day. This week I've been able to rest and recover some energy and now I'm really looking forward to this race. People from all around Spain attend the Aragón GP and the atmosphere there is incredible. The circuit is spectacular and very technical, it combines fast and slow corners, some of them complicated and blind where you need to find points of reference outside the track. We need to set up the bike very well for this track and make the most of all the practice sessions. The data we have from last year can help us on this and it will be important to start in a good direction but we cannot relax. I'm excited to see the Spanish fans again after missing the Catalunya race and I hope the home support will give me an extra boost so that we can enjoy this race together.”

Repsol Honda press release

Bridgestone previews Aragón round

Motorland Aragón's surface is relatively smooth and slippery, so softer rear tyre compound options have been selected: the soft and medium rear symmetric slicks. Front slick options are more unusual however as the available compounds are medium and extra hard, the same as were offered in Qatar. This is because the location of the circuit means that sand can be blown onto the tarmac overnight, leading to a higher rate of abrasion particularly to the front tyre as it tends to push more into corners on the slippery sand, just like in Qatar, and the extra hard compound has far greater wear and graining resistance. There are also a number of fast downhill braking zones which demand good front-end stability, and some riders may favour the extra hard compound for the benefit it offers in this area. Additionally this year, as per the new regulations, a third option of soft compound front slicks will be provided for cold conditions.

Motorland Aragón has a balanced nature in terms of the demands placed on the right and the left shoulders of the tyres, so for this reason asymmetric rear slicks have not been selected, making the GP one of only four this season where the popular asymmetric rears won’t be used.

Looking closely at last year’s data and rider comments, it has not been necessary to revise tyre compound options for the Aragón GP this year. Based on the circuit analysis and scientific approach to tyre selection last year, Bridgestone are confident that the choices made then are still the best suited to the circuit now. The only difference is the addition of the third soft compound front slick tyre for the cooler conditions, and this could feature more heavily in the morning sessions this weekend than it has done in the past three GPs.

Current championship leader Casey Stoner won the inaugural Aragón GP for Ducati ahead of Dani Pedrosa and Nicky Hayden, with Jorge Lorenzo fourth. After Lorenzo’s victory in Misano last time out closing the gap in the overall standings, the championship race will intensify as MotoGP embarks upon the last five rounds of the season.

Hiroshi Yamada - Manager, Bridgestone Motorsport Department

“Of course last year Aragón was a totally new circuit to MotoGP but I was very impressed with it and certainly there was a lot of good feedback from everybody in the paddock. I am pleased that we are going back this year as it is an exciting and quite dramatic circuit, and with the benefit of last year’s experience not only is our job easier as we do not need to conduct more scientific analysis of the circuit and its tarmac, but we can also be very confident of our tyre compound choices. As the championship fight gathers pace entering the last period of the season, I hope that we will see more good battles not just for the entertainment of the fans but us inside the paddock too!”

Hirohide Hamashima – Assistant to Director, Motorsport Tyre Development Division

“Run for the first time in 2010, we now have the benefit of last year’s data to draw upon for this season which has allowed us to verify that last year’s compound choices were well suited and don’t need revising. The Aragón track surface is relatively smooth and slippery, similar to Misano, so we need good grip which suggests softer compounds, but there are also some long corners and some downhill braking points which require greater stability and thus harder compounds. Last year, although we chose tyre compounds based on exhaustive and accurate scientific study of the circuit, including taking latex moulds to take back to Japan for closer inspection, it was still a totally new challenge for us but I am pleased that we can look back and say that we did a good job.”

Bridgestone slick compounds available at Aragón: Front: Soft, Medium, Ex Hard. Rear: Soft, Medium.

source: motogp official website

MotoGP to return to Argentina in 2013

An agreement was today (Tuesday) signed in Paris between the Argentinean government, the Governor of the Santiago del Estero province, OSD and Dorna Sports which secured a round of the MotoGP World Championship in Argentina from 2013.

Present for the signing of the deal was Argentinean President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, who was accompanied by Minister for Tourism Enrique Meyer, Governor of the Santiago del Estero province Gerardo Zamora and Dorna CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta.

The Grand Prix of Argentina will be held at the Autódromo Termas de Río Hondo in the Santiago del Estero province, after a deal for three seasons between its promoter and Dorna was agree upon.

The agreement is subject to the necessary renovations being carried out to bring the circuit within the required MotoGP safety standards.

source: MotoGP Official Website

Gresini to enter Honda CBR1000RR in MotoGP?

Marco Simoncelli’s 2012 MotoGP team-mate could be riding a tuned Honda CBR1000RR-powered bike.

Fausto Gresini is struggling to raise the budget required to lease a pair of RC213V 1000cc bikes for next season, so he is looking to develop his own private entry with a FireBlade engine, most likely using a Moriwaki frame.

Gresini is considering the Honda option after HRC blocked his plans to use an Aprilia RSV4 motor for his second entry.

HRC boss Shuhei Nakamoto said: "Honda sells the CBR1000RR and we also sell kit parts for superbike so he can buy. But I don’t think performance is enough."

Nakamoto said Gresini’s Aprilia plan was an ill-conceived concept and he said: "This is a crazy idea."

He also questioned the wisdom of the Italian’s desire to run a second rider on a privately developed machine. He added: "The engine is not so expensive but he needs a chassis and at this moment nobody is making a prototype chassis for the CBR engine. It means he has to make everything and this is not so cheap."

Simoncelli's new Honda contract is expected to be announced this weekend during the Motorland Aragon round in Spain having agreed new terms in Misano.

source: MCN

No pressure to race in Japan, says Dorna boss

MotoGP bosses have denied putting Valentino Rossi and a host of other top MotoGP riders under immense pressure to travel to the forthcoming Twin Ring Motegi race in Japan.

Dorna chief Carmelo Ezpeleta denied insisting that Rossi, Jorge Lorenzo and Casey Stoner attend the October 2 race, despite the trio expressing grave reservations about travelling.

Rossi is worried about the safety of the Fukushima nuclear plant, which was badly damaged during a devastating earthquake that hit Japan back in March.

An independent report commissioned by Dorna showed the risk of radiation contamination in the area around the Motegi circuit was negligible.

But nothing has convinced Rossi, who has yet to commit 100 per cent to racing in Japan next month.

Despite a disastrous debut season with Ducati, the nine-times world champion is still the major box office draw for MotoGP and if he does boycott the race, it would be a PR disaster for Dorna.

But Ezpeleta told MCN: "I have never tried to convince Valentino or anybody else to go where they don’t want to go. The only thing I did was give to them the information we have and as I said from the beginning of this history, everybody is free to take his own decision."

The threat of a rider boycott disrupting the race is diminishing rapidly though. Yamaha issued a statement yesterday stating that Lorenzo and factory team-mate Ben Spies will attend the race, even though it was only a few weeks ago that the Spaniard was adamant he wouldn't travel.

source: MCN