Who's going to bet against MM93? Fastest in both free practice sessions today he's making it look easy. Aleix Epargaro in 5th ahead of lots of prototypes. Times FP2: [TABLE] [TR] [TH="class: resultTitle, bgcolor: #000000"]Pos.[/TH] [TH="class: resultTitle, bgcolor: #000000"]Rider[/TH] [TH="class: resultTitle, bgcolor: #000000"]Team[/TH] [TH="class: resultTitle, bgcolor: #000000"]Bike[/TH] [TH="class: resultTitle, bgcolor: #000000"]Time[/TH] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Marc Marquez[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Repsol Honda Team[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Honda[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:34.200[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]2[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Dani Pedrosa[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Repsol Honda Team[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Honda[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:34.233[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]3[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Valentino Rossi[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Yamaha Factory Racing[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Yamaha[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:34.458[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]4[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Jorge Lorenzo[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Yamaha Factory Racing[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Yamaha[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:34.495[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]5[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Aleix Espargaro[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Power Electronics Aspar[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]ART[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:34.732[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]6[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Alvaro Bautista[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Go&Fun Honda Gresini[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Honda[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:34.858[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]7[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Michele Pirro[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Ignite Pramac Racing[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Ducati[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:34.889[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]8[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Andrea Dovizioso[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Ducati Team[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Ducati[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:34.901[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]9[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Stefan Bradl[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]LCR Honda[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Honda[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:35.107[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]10[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Cal Crutchlow[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Monster Yamaha Tech 3[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Yamaha[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:35.208[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]11[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Andrea Iannone[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Energy T.I. Pramac Racing[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Ducati[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:35.218[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]12[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Nicky Hayden[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Ducati Team[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Ducati[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:35.431[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]13[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Danilo Petrucci[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Came IodaracingProject[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Ioda-Suter[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:35.933[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]14[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Bradley Smith[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Monster Yamaha Tech 3[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Yamaha[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:36.004[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]15[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Claudio Corti[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]NGM Mobile Forward Racing[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]FTR Kawasaki[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:36.122[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]16[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Colin Edwards[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]NGM Mobile Forward Racing[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]FTR Kawasaki[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:36.181[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]17[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Hector Barbera[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Avintia Blusens[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]FTR[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:36.253[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]18[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Randy De Puniet[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Power ElectronicsAspar[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]ART[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:36.283[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]19[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Hiroshi Aoyama[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Avintia Blusens[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]FTR[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:36.646[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]20[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Karel Abraham[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Cardion AB Motoracing[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]ART[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:37.319[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] [SIZE=-1][/SIZE]
...he's not going to get many 'new parts' is he. Alegedly he's still suffering form the injury to his right arm suffered at Silverstone.
Italian media are reporting this afternoon that discussions are underway between Ducati Corse--Ducati's race arm--and American Ben Spies which may see the former WSBK champion and GP winner not return to MotoGP in 2013. It is said that Spies' doctors have recommended that he not race again in 2013 because of shoulder injuries and also injuries to his hand/wrist suffered in his Indy crash. Reportedly Ducati is evaluating this information with their own doctors. Ducati MotoGP race boss Paolo Ciabatti told GPone.com "Obviously there is still no decision on this matter but yes we are talking about it. From the general point of view (that) it would be pointless to run a (rider) in (that) condition." Ciabatti says a more pressing concern is who can ride in place of Spies, that Michele Pirro has a chiseled in stone schedule to be Ducati's test rider and he is unavailable to race many of the remaining MotoGP races. Spies has a two year contract with Ducati. Italian reports suggest that Ducati may be considering running just three factory bikes in 2014, a trio of Italian machines ridden by Cal Crutchlow, Andrea Dovizioso and Andrea Iannone. Meaning that Spies would be racing a different series, or a non-factory bike, presumably translated from gpone.com
Ducati have a new exhaust this weekend designed and built by Akrapovic it's said to make a lot of noise on closed throttle, entering corners. Dovi says the noise is so loud it makes it hard to concentrate and makes it physically more difficult to ride the bike purely because of the vicious and deafening rasp from behind!.....:biggrin:
Final qualifying - MM93 on pole by half a second, Rossi on front row [TABLE] [TR] [TH="class: resultTitle, bgcolor: #000000"]Pos.[/TH] [TH="class: resultTitle, bgcolor: #000000"]Rider[/TH] [TH="class: resultTitle, bgcolor: #000000"]Team[/TH] [TH="class: resultTitle, bgcolor: #000000"]Bike[/TH] [TH="class: resultTitle, bgcolor: #000000"]Time[/TH] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Marc Marquez[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Repsol Honda Team[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Honda[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:32.915[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]2[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Jorge Lorenzo[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Yamaha Factory Racing[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Yamaha[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:33.428[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]3[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Valentino Rossi[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Yamaha Factory Racing[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Yamaha[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:33.573[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]4[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Dani Pedrosa[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Repsol Honda Team[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Honda[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:33.726[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]5[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Cal Crutchlow[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Monster Yamaha Tech 3[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Yamaha[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:34.014[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]6[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Aleix Espargaro[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Power ElectronicsAspar[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]ART[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:34.028[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]7[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Stefan Bradl[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]LCR Honda[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Honda[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:34.098[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]8[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Alvaro Bautista[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Go&Fun Honda Gresini[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Honda[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:34.230[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]9[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Andrea Dovizioso[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Ducati Team[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Ducati[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:34.338[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]10[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Nicky Hayden[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Ducati Team[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Ducati[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:34.362[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]11[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Michele Pirro[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Ignite Pramac Racing[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Ducati[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:34.467[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]12[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Andrea Iannone[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Energy T.I. Pramac Racing[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Ducati[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:34.519[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]13[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Bradley Smith[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Monster Yamaha Tech 3[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Yamaha[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:34.694[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]14[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Colin Edwards[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]NGM Mobile Forward Racing[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]FTR Kawasaki[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:35.174[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]15[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Hiroshi Aoyama[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]Avintia Blusens[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]FTR[/TD] [TD="class: resultElement, bgcolor: #CCCCCC"]1:35.534[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE]
Didn't manage to see this, was out riding my own bike ;-) but waiting for the WSBK one on delayed Eurosport so hush on that one...but be great to see of Vale can convert a front row start and get in amongst MM
getting on a GP bike and smashing track record after track record the first time you ride there... and putting the likes of JL and DP at over half a second.... GP is going to get boring till 2030 .. MM first, and then? how far behind? i think he's also making sure that CS will not return...
Still reckon Redding will give him a run in 2 years, maybe 3. Esp, either brother, on good machinery would be interesting too
Good gossip here from motomatters. Nicky Hayden on an Aprillia in MotoGP maybe. Though the factory seats in MotoGP are all filled, the prime seats on the non-factory entries are still open. Top favorites among the riders are the NGM Forward team, with the leased and FTR-kitted Yamaha M1s, and the Aspar team, which will be running factory-backed Aprilias, though not as an official factory team. These four are the most competitive of the non-factory bikes, and any rider dreaming at a shot of a return to a factory ride, with Suzuki in 2015 perhaps, will want to be on board one of these bikes. At the moment, there are two lynchpins around which all of the rest of the choices revolve. Aleix Esparagaro is the rider garnering the most interest from teams, unsurprisingly given just how competitive the Spaniard has been on the Aspar ART machine. Espargaro's problem is that he already has a contract for 2014, guaranteed by Aspar if he ends the season as the best CRT finisher. Given that he is 41 points of the next CRT rider - Colin Edwards of NGM Forward - not succeeding in that goal looks increasingly unlikely. And so Espargaro is tied to Aspar. But Espargaro is being tempted by the Yamahas of NGM Forward, and is keen to make the switch. Speaking yesterday, Gino Borsoi said he felt that the Yamahas were 'turning the head of some riders', admitting that Espargaro is keen to leave. Leaving, though, will be expensive: the Spaniard will have to buy out his contract, at a cost of 600,000 euros. His new manager, Albert Valera, who also manages world champion Jorge Lorenzo, is working to find a way out of the contract, and Aspar may be willing to let Espargaro go. There was no point in trying to keep a rider who does not want to be in your team, Borsoi told MotoMatters.com, but Aspar had invested two years in him, and with a new bike due for 2014, they felt they could offer him a competitive package. It looks unlikely now that Espargaro will stay, however. The Spaniard looks like being on a Yamaha at NGM Forward. That, in turn, opens the way for the second silly season lynchpin, Nicky Hayden. Hayden was caught out by the social media aspect of histraining app, as it posted up a run he had taken around Noale, Aprilia's home. This weekend, he admitted to journalists he had visited Aprilia's racing department, saying he had been impressed by the set up. Hayden looks to be very close to signing with Aprilia, and racing for the Aspar team next year. Speaking to GPOne.com, Gino Borsoi said that he expected Hayden would make an announcement about his future 'between today and tomorrow.' GPOne.com believes that Hayden is all but signed for Aprilia, and that his contract will be directly with the factory, racing for the Aspar team in MotoGP. Whether the Aprilia will be entered as a 'factory option' machine, and use Aprilia's own software and 20 liters of fuel, is still unknown. 'That decision is up to Aprilia,' Borsoi told MotoMatters.com. 'We hope to know at Aragon, but maybe later, at the flyaways.' Filling in the other two seats at both Aspar and NGM Forward is more difficult. If, as seems likely, Espargaro leaves and Hayden arrives, Randy de Puniet has a good chance of keeping his seat at Aspar. If Espargaro stays at Aspar, it will be De Puniet who has to make way for Hayden. The second seat at NGM Forward is up for grabs. Colin Edwards is very keen to remain, having put in so much work on the FTR Kawasaki, knowing that such a strong package is coming. Edwards recently improved form may help him keep the ride. While Aspar and NGM are looking to 2014, Ducati are worrying about 2013, and especially about Ben Spies. The shoulder injury Spies sustained at Indianapolis is serious, and looks set to keep him out of MotoGP for the rest of 2013, according to reports onboth GPOne and MCN. Rehab on his shoulder is proceeding well, but Spies is unwilling to risk coming back early again, viewing 2013 as a lost season. Under normal circumstances, Spies would be back with the Pramac Ducati team in 2014, but the past two years have been anything but normal circumstances for Ben Spies. Spies has a contract directly with Ducati to race in MotoGP for 2014, but there are rumors that Ducati are looking at finding a way out of the contract. Pramac boss Francesco Guidotti denied those rumors to MCN, but the rumors persist. Whether there is any truth in the rumors will emerge soon enough
It's just bland as far as spectacle goes, in fact its formula 1 bland nowadays and i can happily watch the start and snooze until the finish. Marquez is always 'juz soo happy' all the time and it frankly gets on my nerves , there's just nothing there in regards to charisma, he's just a polished pr boy which is fine if that's what you like but I just can't like the guy I'm afraid. He's like a fucking children's TV presenter who can just so happen to ride a bike extremely well. Honestly all were missing is Andy fucking Peters doing pit walks and the bloke from art attack making some weird floor Murial on the star finish line. Until they start seating some of his old moto2 chums on EQUAL machinery where they can actually start rubbing him up the wrong way then it'll continue to be a processional bore fest, but they won't. Lorenzo is actually the rider I admire most from the top crop, he's just precision personified but that in itself gets boring. somebody sack that fucking Spanish knob carmelo ezpeleta.
