Casey Stoner - Ducati Marlboro 2010

The Ducati rider Casey Stoner took his first win of the season yesterday when he crossed the line at the Aragon MotoGP.

Starting from pole position, the Australian dominated the race from the off, finishing the race 5.148 seconds ahead of second placed man Dani Pedrosa.

Pedrosa dropped back to fifth place after getting shuffled out of the pack in the opening corner but had soon fought his way back to slot in behind Stoner.

The battle for the final step of the podium went down to the line between the second Ducati of Nicky Hayden and the current leader of the championship Jorge Lorenzo.  After several attempts, Hayden managed to make his move on the Yamaha rider stick finally passing him on the final lap to take his first podium finish this season.

The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider Ben Spies crossed the line in fifth place after and exciting race for fifth place against the second Repsol Honda of Andrea Dovizioso.  The Honda rider unfortunately crashed out on the final lap after pushing for the place.

Valentino Rossi finished in sixth place on the second Fiat Yamaha ahead of Marco Simoncelli and Alvaro Bautista with Marco Melandri in ninth position followed by the Pramac Racing rider Alex Espargaro.

The LCR Honda rider Randy de Puniet, was lucky to have escaped injury after spectacularly crashing out on lap 16 of the race.

The teams and riders of MotoGP assembled on the circuit on Sunday morning to pay their respect to Shoya Tomizawa who died two-weeks ago at the Misano circuit.  The popular Japanese riders bike was placed on the starting grid and it was announced that his number 48 would be retired from the Mot02 World Championship.

Here are the results;

1.  Casey Stoner  AUS Ducati Marlboro Team  42m 16.53s
2. Dani Pedrosa ESP Repsol Honda Team 42m 21.678s
3. Nicky Hayden USA Ducati Marlboro Team 42m 26.026s
4. Jorge Lorenzo ESP Fiat Yamaha Team 42m 26.11s
5. Ben Spies USA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 42m 30.301s
6. Valentino Rossi ITA Fiat Yamaha Team 42m 43.86s
7. Marco Simoncelli ITA San Carlo Honda Gresini 42m 45.041s
8. Alvaro Bautista ESP Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 42m 51.784s
9. Marco Melandri ITA San Carlo Honda Gresini 42m 51.923s
10. Aleix Espargaro ESP Pramac Racing 42m 51.997s
11. Hector Barbera ESP Paginas Amarillas Aspar 42m 52.052s
12. Colin Edwards USA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 43m 1.89s
13. Hiroshi Aoyama JPN Interwetten Honda MotoGP 43m 4.849s
14. Mika Kallio FIN Pramac Racing 43m 14.577s

DNF:
Andrea Dovizioso ITA Repsol Honda Team
Randy de Puniet FRA LCR Honda MotoGP

World Superbike Championship 2010

The Interwetten Honda MotoGP injured rider Hiroshi Aoyama is to be replaced by the Honda test rider Kousuke Akiyoshi at the Assen round of the championship and the following Catalunya round.

Aoyama was injured during the warm up session at Silverstone last weekend and suffered a fractured vertebrae.  The Japanese rider was hospitalised and kept in to be monitored following the crash which is expected to keep him out of the series for at least the next couple of months.

Akiyoshi will now take to the track on the RC212V at Assen next weekend and again in Spain for July 2-4th where he will race under the number 64, the test rider will replace Aoyama until a longer term replacement can be found.

Jorge Lorenzo - Silverstone 2010

The Fiat Yamaha rider Jorge Lorenzo won the British MotoGP yesterday after dominating the race from pole position at the Silverstone circuit.

The Spaniard crossed the finish line 6.743 seconds ahead of second place man Andrea Dovizioso on the Repsol Honda and Ben Spies taking his first podium this season in third for the Monster Yamaha Tech3 team.

As the race got underway, Lorenzo had a fight on his hands as he battled with his fellow countryman Dani Pedrosa for the lead.

The Ducati Marlboro rider Casey Stoner had a terrible start seeing him drift towards the back of the grid from sixth position by the first turn while the San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Marco Melandri crashed out on the opening lap.

By lap 7, Lorenzo had managed to create a 5 second gap while Dovizioso and the LCR Honda rider Randy de Puniet fought for second place with the second Marlboro Ducati of Nicky Hayden hot on their tails.

Stoner struggled to make his way back up the grid finally making it past Pedrosa who was sitting in eighth place on lap 13 of the race.  Meanwhile Loris Capirossi crashed his Rizla Suzuki whilst trying to pass the Páginas Amarillas Aspar machine of Héctor Barbera, running off circuit and landing in a heap in the gravel trap ending his chances of any points in the race.

As Dovizioso, De Puniet and Hayden continued their own race for the two remaining podium places the gap between the three riders was less than half a second with Spies still tracking them down for his share of the points.

While Lorenzo rode a lonely race way out in front and with only three laps of the race remaining, Hayden and Spies both managed to make it past De Puniet followed by Stoner who had now moved into fifth place.

On the final lap of the race, Spies made his move on Hayden and slotted into third place where he remained until the chequered flag behind the second place man Dovizioso.

Hayden finished in fourth place ahead of Stoner in fifth and De Puniet in sixth. Marco Simoncelli claimed his best result so far this season with seventh place followed by Pedrosa in eighth, Colin Edwards in ninth and Aleix Espargaro in tenth.

Hiroshi Aoyama did not take place in the race after suffering injuries when he crashed during the morning warm-up session.  The Interwetten Honda rider received heavy contusions to his back and was sent to hospital for a CT scan.

Here are the results;

1.  Jorge Lorenzo  ESP Fiat Yamaha Team  41m 34.083s
2. Andrea Dovizioso ITA Repsol Honda Team 41m 40.826s
3. Ben Spies USA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 41m 41.180s
4. Nicky Hayden USA Ducati Marlboro Team 41m 41.397s
5. Casey Stoner AUS Ducati Marlboro Team 41m 41.577s
6. Randy de Puniet FRA LCR Honda MotoGP 41m 43.138s
7. Marco Simoncelli ITA San Carlo Honda Gresini 41m 48.508s
8. Dani Pedrosa ESP Repsol Honda Team 41m 49.396s
9. Colin Edwards USA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 42m 2.0370s
10. Aleix Espargaro ESP Pramac Racing 42m 16.477s
11. Hector Barbera ESP Paginas Amarillas Aspar 42m 17.448s
12. Alvaro Bautista ESP Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 42m 17.491s
13. Mika Kallio FIN Pramac Racing 42m 17.663s

DNF:
Loris Capirossi ITA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP
Marco Melandri ITA San Carlo Honda Gresini

Dani Pedrosa - Repsol Honda

The Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa claimed his first victory of the season in this weekends MotoGP round at Mugello after Valentino Rossi was ruled out of the race following his crash in practice.

The Fiat Yamaha rider missed his first home race since 2000 after fracturing the tibia in his right leg on Saturday and underwent surgery to align and stabilised with a pin.  Rossi will have the wound stitched over the next few days and is expected to leave the hospital within the next ten days.  Rossi appeared in high spirits while being interviewed from his hospital bed and said;

“Now I can say my morale is reasonably high because I’ve discovered I have a great rapport with morphine!”

Pedrosa led from the first corner at the Gran Premio d’Italia and crossed the line 4.014 seconds ahead of his nearest rival Jorge Lorenzo on the Fiat Yamaha, who is still leading the championship after his second place finish.  The Spaniard held up a message for his ailing team-mate before the start of the race which read;

“Everyone can feel pain, but not everyone can be a legend”

The second Repsol Honda rider Andrea Dovizioso finished in third place ahead of the Marlboro Ducati rider Casey Stoner.  Stoner had been trading places with Marco Melandri and Randy de Puniet for much of the race before securing his fourth place finish, after passing Melandri on the final lap while de Puniet had to settle for sixth place.

Ben Spies crossed the line in seventh place ahead of the Pramac Racing rider Aleix Espargaro in eighth, Marco Simoncelli in ninth and Loris Capirossi in tenth.

Nicky Hayden failed to finish on the second Marlboro Ducati after the bike folded on him on lap 5 of the race as he rode through the downhill Turn 12 while Mika Kallio also failed to finish for the Pramac Racing team after crashing out.

Here are the results;

1.  Dani Pedrosa  ESP Repsol Honda Team  42m 28.066s
2. Jorge Lorenzo ESP Fiat Yamaha Team 42m 32.080s
3. Andrea Dovizioso ITA Repsol Honda Team 42m 34.262s
4. Casey Stoner AUS Ducati Marlboro Team 42m 53.789s
5. Marco Melandri ITA San Carlo Honda Gresini 42m 53.801s
6. Randy de Puniet FRA LCR Honda MotoGP 42m 54.031s
7. Ben Spies USA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 42m 56.872s
8. Aleix Espargaro ESP Pramac Racing 43m 8.238s
9. Marco Simoncelli ITA San Carlo Honda Gresini 43m 9.460s
10. Loris Capirossi ITA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 43m 10.173s
11. Hiroshi Aoyama JPN Interwetten Honda MotoGP 43m 11.161s
12. Hector Barbera ESP Paginas Amarillas Aspar 43m 11.429s
13. Colin Edwards USA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 43m 42.459s
14. Alvaro Bautista ESP Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 43m 52.455s

DNF:
Mika Kallio FIN Pramac Racing
Nicky Hayden USA Ducati Marlboro Team

Jorge Lorenzo - Fiat Yamaha 2010

The Fiat Yamaha rider Jorge Lorenzo is now leading the championship following his win at the Le Mans MotoGP at the weekend.

Valentino Rossi led the pack for the first eleven laps of the race after getting ahead of the Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa while Lorenzo slotted into third place and the two Marlboro Ducati’s of Nicky Hayden and Casey Stoner were running in fourth and fifth.

Lorenzo soon passed Pedrosa as Stoner put his foot down to get past his team-mate and move into fourth and chase down the Honda.  Stoner was on the tail of Pedrosa when he crashed out for the second time in the last three races.

The two Fiat Yamaha’s led the field ahead of Pedrosa as Lorenzo attempted a pass on his team-mate on lap 7.  Rossi immediately retook his position but only for another four laps when the Spaniard made his move stick and shot off into the distance.

Pedrosa was then left to fight off his challenging team-mate Andrea Dovizioso and Nicky Hayden for his third spot on the podium.  With only 5 laps of the race to go the pair were on the Spaniard and looking for a way past which Dovizioso managed and the chance for Hayden came on the final lap as Pedrosa ran wide as his tyres wore down gifting Hayden took his opportunity to grab that fourth place.

Here are the results;

Jorge Lorenzo

This weekend saw the MotoGP teams and riders head to Jerez for the Spanish Grand Prix with Jorge Lorenzo crossing the line to win at his home circuit.

Dani Pedrosa qualified in pole position for the Repsol Honda team and led the race as the lights went out followed by the Fiat Yamaha of Valentino Rossi who slipped into second from fourth on the grid, ahead of the Marlboro Ducati of Nicky Hayden.

The Rizla Suzuki rider Loris Capirossi crashed out on lap three and was out of the race followed shortly afterwards by the Pramac Racing machine of Aleix Espargaro, who managed to rejoin the runners.  Ben Spies on the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 machine was seen returning to his pit garage and retire after developing a problem with his front tyre.

Pedrosa was leading the race and creating a gap between himself and second place man Rossi with a fast approaching Lorenzo while the battle further back was between San Carlo Honda Gresini team-mates Marco Melandri and Marco Simoncelli who were challenging for seventh place.

Lorenzo slipped past his team mate Rossi on lap 21 of the race before attempting a pass on his fellow countryman Pedrosa two laps later.  However, the Honda rider wasn’t giving up his slot easily and the two almost made contact as Pedrosa fought to hold his line.

On the final lap, Pedrosa ran wide allowing Lorenzo the chance to get past and finish 0.543 seconds ahead with Rossi in third place.

Nicky Hayden finished in fourth spot followed by Casey Stoner in fifth, Andrea Dovizioso in sixth, MikaKallio in seventh, Marco Melandri in eighth, Randy de Puniet in ninth and Alvaro Bautista in tenth.

Here are the results;

1   Jorge Lorenzo SPA Fiat Yamaha Team 45m 17.538s
2.  Dani Pedrosa SPA Repsol Honda Team 45m 18.081s
3. Valentino Rossi ITA Fiat Yamaha Team 45m 18.428s
4.  Nicky Hayden USA Ducati Marlboro Team 45m 26.553s
5. Casey Stoner AUS Ducati Marlboro Team 45m 27.572s
6.  Andrea Dovizioso ITA Repsol Honda Team 45m 40.682s
7.   Mika Kallio FIN Pramac Racing 45m 52.027s
8. Marco Melandri ITA San Carlo Honda Gresini 45m 52.225s
9. Randy de Puniet FRA LCR Honda MotoGP 45m 53.698s
10. Alvaro Bautista SPA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 45m 54.329s
11. Marco Simoncelli ITA San Carlo Honda Gresini 45m 54.693s
12. Colin Edwards USA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 45m 55.798s
13. Hector Barbera SPA Paginas Amarillas Aspar 45m 55.909s
14. Hiroshi Aoyama JPN Interwetten Honda MotoGP 46m 19.59s
15. Aleix Espargaro SPA Pramac Racing +3laps

DNF:
Ben Spies USA Monster Yamaha Tech 3
Loris CapirossiITA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP

The first race of the MotoGP season got underway last night with Valentino Rossi doing what he does best, taking the chequered flag. The Commercialbank Grand Prix of Qatar got underway with Dani Pedrosa on the Repsol Honda taking the lead as the lights went out, from seventh on the grid. Casey Stoner on the Marlboro Ducati slipped back to fourth place after starting in pole position but was in the lead by the fourth lap after picking off his Ducati team-mate Nicky Hayden, Rossi and Dani Pedrosa. Rossi was soon chasing down Stoner but the Ducati rider had managed to make a gap of two-seconds by the time the Italian had made his move on Pedrosa. However, Stoner lost the front end of his Ducati going into turn 4 and was out of the race leaving Rossi at the front of the pack. Hayden stuck with Rossi after an impressive ride from ninth on the grid as the second Repsol Honda of Andrea Dovizioso replaced his team-mate Pedrosa at the front. Dovizioso got past Hayden before challenging Rossi for the lead, briefly making the pass stick on lap 16 before Rossi snatched it back. Jorge Lorenzo was then on the move as Rossi created a gap at the front, first picking off third place man Hayden before muscling his way through on Dovizioso two laps later. Hayden once again fought his way past Dovizioso but not for long as the Honda rider retook the lead on the final run down to the line for third place. Ben Spies came in to finish in fifth place on the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 followed by the LCR Honda of Randy de Puniet in sixth and Pedrosa in seventh. The second Monster Yamaha Tech 3 of Colin Edwards finished in eighth place ahead of Loris Capirossi on the Rizla Suzuki, riding in his 300 grand prix finished in ninth followed by Hiroshi Aoyama in tenth for the Interwetten Honda team. The Pramac Racing riders Mika Kallio and Aleix Espargaro, both failed to finish the race after crashes along with rookie rider Alvaro Bautista, who slid off track on the final lap of the race. Here are the results;

Moto2 The first ever replacement series for the 250cc series, Moto2 took place with a surprising victory for newcomer Shoya Tomizawa. Every machine on the grid follows the new rules of using Honda-built 600cc four-stroke engines and all are fitted with Dunlop tyres, with the race coming down to riding skills and nerve. As Toni Elias took the lead in the early stages of the race, his back wheel was clipped by his team-mate Alex deAngelis , causing de Angelis and Stefan Bradl out of contention. Tomizawa had moved to the front of the pack as second place man Elias, was moved back to third when Jules Cluzel made his move with 5 laps left to run. Tomizawa took his first ever podium step for the Technomag Seuter team ahead of Alex Debon on the Aeroport de Castelló-Ajo bike in second and Jules Cluzel for the Forward Racing team in third. Elias finished the race in fourth place followed by Roberto Rolfo in fifth, Mattai Pasini in sixth, Thomas Lüthi in seventh, Simone Corsi in eighth, Gabor Talmacsi in ninth and Sergio Gadea completing the top ten riders. Here are the results;

125CC Nico Terol claimed the top step of the podium in the first 125cc race of the MotoGP season for the BancajaAspar team last night. It was Efrén Vázquez who led as the race got underway but the lead spot was soon swapped as Marc Márquez, Terol and Pol Espargaro all took a turn at the front. Terol was however the man of the day followed by Vázquez for second place and Márquez in third. Espargaro finished in fourth place ahead of Sandro Cortese, Randy Krummenacher, Esteve Rabat, Bradley Smith, Tomoyoshi Koyama and Alexis Masbou rounding up the top ten. Here are the results;

Niccolo Canepa riding the Ducati 1098

It has been announced that the Italian rider Niccolo Canepa has signed with the Scot Racing Team for 2010 to ride in the Moto2 series.

After a rookie year in the MotoGP series on a satellite Ducati, Canepa said;

“I’m absolutely delighted with the agreement we have signed.  I’m also really happy at the opportunity of playing a creative role in a working group that has displayed great potential and results – this season and in the past. A new class and a new bike: it will be a tough job, but with a rewarding outcome.  The target is to do well.”

The 21-year-old rider took the Superstock 1000 championship title in 2007 on a Ducati, followed by a year testing for their MotoGP and World Superbike machines.  In 2009, he rode for the Pramac Racing team but struggled throughout the season, finishing in fifteenth place overall and losing his seat.

The Scot Racing team were also out of the MotoGP series for next season after suffering financial difficulties but excelled in the 250cc class, winning the championship with their Japanese rider Hiroshi Aoyama and the rookie of the year award with Raffaele de Rosa.