MotoGP – Czech Republic Motorcycle Grand Prix: statements, rankings and analyzes –

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Czech Republic Motorcycle Grand Prix: statements, rankings and analyzes

MotoGP - Czech Republic Motorcycle Grand Prix: statements, rankings and analyzes -

After each Moto GP race, find the statements and results of the main protagonists of the premier category, with the analysis of their successes (and their failures) by Site. Debriefing of the 2011 Czech Republic Motorcycle Grand Prix.

Sunday in Brno (read our race summaries, and), Casey Stoner, Andrea Dovizioso and Marco Simoncelli gave Honda the first "100% Honda" podium since … the US Grand Prix in 2006 (read)! Despite the fall of Pedrosa, the Czech stage of the 2011 Moto GP world championship therefore takes on a form of correction that is difficult to swallow for the opponents of the world’s leading manufacturer…

Casey Stoner, Honda-Repsol (3rd in qualifying and 1st in race) : "We knew we could fight for the podium today but we didn’t expect to win. At the start I had a fight with Andrea and I lost a little time and I was especially worried that Dani and Jorge would escape. The bike was very good, I passed Jorge and then Dani unfortunately fell. So I pushed to widen the gap and I managed to do it quite quickly then after I just had to manage my race".

1000 cc tests: Stoner in front !

Casey Stoner dominated the official post-GP test session on Monday in Brno. With the 1000 cc RC213V, the Aussie even came close to the track record (1’56.168 against 1’56.145) and said he was delighted with the behavior of the Honda. Jorge Lorenzo and Ben Spies, who were new to the 2012 YZR-M1, finished in the wake of n ° 27 (1’56.253 and 1’56.306) and both praised the power of the new prototype. Sixth at 1.096 sec behind his teammate, Dani Pedrosa discovered the RC213V which he considers as powerful but more agile than his 990 cc RC211V with which he competed in the 2006 season. The last team to try a 1000 cc, the Marc VDS team. Racing has again tested its "Moto1" powered by a BMW S1000RR engine. Despite significant progress since the last confrontation with the MotoGP "100% prototype" at Mugello, test rider Mika Kallio only finished 3.976 sec behind Stoner.

"I’m sorry for Dani, he would have been very hard to beat today. After such a complicated weekend, we are really happy to come away with a victory, thank you to the whole team who never gave up and who always support me. Tomorrow we will have another day of testing on the 1000cc and so I hope we will have good weather (see box opposite) !"

Site analysis : Winner with 6.5 seconds in advance, Casey Stoner could boast or take the big head with this sixth success acquired with the strength of the right wrist. But no: while he has derailed everyone with the same application as in Laguna Seca, the Australian has the intellectual honesty to admit that the game would surely not have been the same without the fall of his teammate. Dani Pedrosa !

Author of the fastest lap in the race (1’57.191, or nearly 0.3 seconds faster than his first pursuer), the 2007 world champion did not however detail and continues to strengthen his enviable record: since 2006, Stoner has already signed 29 victories, 53 podiums and 28 poles in MotoGP! An ideal, even idyllic, first half of the season for the HRC official who also clearly dominated the post-GP tests and whose wife will soon give birth to the first child (read).

Andrea Dovizioso, Honda-Repsol (7th in qualifying and 2nd in race) : "I’m really happy to be back on the podium, it’s a good result after a difficult weekend and this second place is very important for the Championship. During the warm-up we made some small changes and I found a better feeling. I was determined for the race and got off to a very good start. I was careful at first to save my tires".

"I had a good pace and when Dani fell I tried to stay with Casey and then I made a mistake on turn 13. After that I couldn’t catch up with Casey. I’m happy with the way I managed my race with Lorenzo and then with Simoncelli. I attacked on the last laps because I didn’t want to have to fight with Marco"

Site analysis : Uncomfortable with his Honda in practice, relegated to 7th place only in qualifying: Andrea Dovizioso thought he was suffering during this eleventh meeting of the season. In the end, the Italian signs one of his best races at the HRC, climbing with authority on the second step of the podium for the third time of the season after the GP of France and Italy..

Obviously, the fall of Pedrosa and the difficulties of Lorenzo helped to bring this golden opportunity within reach … but it was still necessary to be able to seize it! Aware of the opportunity, "Dovi" indeed stripped himself to achieve the second fastest lap in the race (1’57.468) and maintain the necessary tempo to keep his "old friend" Simoncelli at bay. A profitable strategy that allows him to sit his provisional third place in the world championship. It remains that it seems to be missing one (or more) victory (s) in the course of Andrea Dovizioso to convince the HRC to keep him within the official structure in 2012…

Marco Simoncelli, Honda-Gresini (5th in qualifying and 3rd in race) : "I am very happy. I have been very strong this year but it has been hard because we had to deal with a lot of difficult situations. With the team we have never lost faith and the result we were waiting for is finally coming so I would like to thank the whole team but also Honda and all those who continued to believe in me".

"Today, on the last lap, I was hoping the race would end and nothing bad happened and it ended well. I didn’t have a very good start and had to pass Valentino, who struggled for a while and I have tire marks on my suit to prove it! It was a good battle, even if it was short. At the end I tried to get back on Dovizioso but he was pushing very hard and I decided to settle for my position because I knew that Lorenzo was coming back behind me".

Site analysis : For a moment, when the three drivers arrived on the podium in the parc ferme, one would have thought that it was Marco Simoncelli himself who had just won the race, so much the Italian was jubilant with the impressive number of people came to congratulate him !

Happy to get on his first podium in MotoGP, the n ° 58 seemed especially relieved to finally transform what his tests had promised since the start of the season. Ultra-fast, the Honda-Gresini rider finally achieves a race at the height of his talent, after having tested the asphalt four times already with his semi-official RC212V.

Hopefully this good performance will bring the friendly transalpine out of this negative spiral which seems to stick to the leather of his suit, because with 76 points scored in eleven races (only 6 more than his teammate Aoyama), "Sic" is only pointing 8th in the provisional rank already 142 lengths behind the leader.

Results below the expectations placed on him: as for Dovizioso, the HRC informed Brno that the renewal of an official handlebar in 2012 was far from being achieved for the long-haired transalpine…

Jorge Lorenzo, Fiat-Yamaha (2nd in qualifying and 4th in race) : "Today we did not choose the right option for the front tire. We tried it in qualifying and yesterday morning and I had a good feeling and a steady pace. Today the conditions and temperatures were not the same and it did not work. I was starting to lose the front from the start of the second round and struggled to stay fourth".

"Now the championship is going to be even more difficult for us but that does not mean that everything is over. There are still a lot of points at stake so we have to concentrate on winning as many races as possible. Now we have to forget this race which is probably one of the worst of the season and maybe even of my MotoGP career, I can’t wait to try the 1000 and the new things we will have for the 800 engine tomorrow.".

Site analysis : After the humiliation of Laguna Seca, Jorge Lorenzo had to react for this resumption of the championship: alas, a bad choice of front tire – which almost caused him to fall at the start of the race – will ultimately decide otherwise.

Fourth behind an untouchable trio of Honda, the reigning champion could console himself by saying that he "saved the furniture", insofar as his choice of tire could have relegated him to the back of the pack … or even a gravel trap like his unfortunate compatriot Pedrosa! But in reality, this new underperformance risks costing him dearly against an opponent of metronomic regularity….

With already six victories and ten podiums in eleven GP, ​​Stoner indeed displays a form and a success which must begin to worry Lorenzo: out of the podium already three times (4th at Le Mans, fall at Silverstone, 6th at Assen), the Mallorcan counts "only" two victories (Jerez and Italy) and was dominated at the same time on slow circuits, like fast tracks.

Aware of the turn of events, "Jorgueuil" and his team have also decided to work for a long time on the M1 800 cc (58 laps) during the official tests on Monday, while this session was originally scheduled to discover the 2012 1000 cc prototype with which Lorenzo completed only 28 laps…

Ben Spies, Fiat-Yamaha (4th in qualifying and 5th in race) : ""The race was tough, from the ninth lap I really wanted to give up! I did my best and didn’t make too many mistakes. I fought with Valentino who was behind me. and in the end I got a good result. My right arm is completely dead now because it is the only one I could really use in the race".

"I really have to thank my team because the bike was very good, it has the potential to be on the podium. I would also like to thank the Clinica Mobile team, with whom I had never spent so much time over an entire weekend. Physically it was the hardest race of my career. We finished, put it all behind us and scored some points".

Site analysis : Victim of a tenacious neck pain which will spread gradually to his left arm, Ben Spies has frankly "assured" in the race: sixth fastest driver (1’57.726), the American has found the energy necessary to more or less follow the pace of its leader and contain Rossi’s ascent.

Cautious, the Yamaha official will also choose to complete only 24 laps with the 1000 cc M1 during the post-GP test, which did not prevent him from signing Jorge Lorenzo’s third time at 0.053 seconds! Fortunately for the n ° 11, the next race – scheduled for August 28 – will be held in his country (Indianapolis GP), which should promote his return to form.

Valentino Rossi, Ducati (6th in qualifying and 6th in race) : "I must say that Filippo Preziosi and Ducati did a good job because, with a few small modifications, we managed to get a good result, progressing both in the wet and in the dry, in qualifying as well as in the race.".

"Now, when braking and entering a corner, I can handle the bike better and use the front tire better. We started with the goal of fighting with the group ahead of us, unfortunately we made a mistake to warm up the tires in the start procedure and the first two laps were difficult because I lacked grip. This is a lesson that will serve us for the next time".

"It’s a sixth place, but it is much more important than the other results. Our delay has greatly diminished. Besides, I lifted my attack in the last two laps because there was nothing more to do, otherwise I would have been less than ten seconds behind Stoner and a lot less on the podium.".

Site analysis : Rarely will Valentino Rossi be so satisfied with a sixth to more than ten seconds (12.632 sec) from the winner! In the dry, however, this is one of the best performances of the Doctor who has made ergonomic changes to his GP11.1 to feel more at ease..

The result seems convincing since the Italian is the last driver to have turned below 1’58 during the Czech test (1’57.844), accusing for example only two tenths behind the lap on the best time of Jorge Lorenzo ( 1’57.636). A Lorenzo however slowed down by pneumatic problems…

Moreover, if the n ° 46 is delighted with the progress recorded, the latter are nevertheless far from completely closing the gap with the leaders: 0.653 seconds separated the best lap performance of the Ducati from that of the Honda of Stoner! On Monday, the Reds therefore decided to take advantage of the tests to work on the Desmosedici 800 cc while their rivals worked on the 2012 prototypes..

Only tenth (1’58.266) during these tests, Valentino Rossi completed 74 laps and mainly worked on electronic settings, riding position and saddle height, while his teammate Nicky Hayden turned significantly faster (1 ’57 .533) and finished seventh.

The American, who had used the Ducati GP11 until now, said he was much more convinced by the potential of the GP11.1 after these tests and decided to compete in the Indianapolis GP on his handlebars. Meanwhile, the "Kentucky Kid" to attend his sister’s wedding next weekend..

Dani Pedrosa, Honda-Repsol (1st in qualifying and retirement in the race) : “

  • Too bad. I lost the front and I fell! I wasn’t really pushing, I just took a bit of an angle, maybe a little too much, or maybe the tires weren’t hot enough, I don’t know. The problem is that I ruined an important race that we had prepared very well ".

    "I thank the team for the bike they gave me this weekend, everything was working really well and I’m really sorry I made this mistake. It hurts because we were so well prepared and in the end the race was quite slow compared to the pace we had for practice".

    "There isn’t much that we can do now, just think about the next race. I hope that tomorrow we will have a few hours of dry track to test the 1000 cc. I can’t wait to try out the new machine after missing the Jerez test"

    Site analysis : Undoubtedly the big favorite of this Grand Prix of the Czech Republic, Dani Pedrosa confused speed and haste: the Catalan recognizes it himself, a victory was "easily" conceivable given the pace of his rivals.

    Unfortunately, as at the 2008 German GP, ​​the HRC official may have tried too quickly to impose his higher velocity, imposing on a still cold tire constraints that it was probably not yet able to withstand…

    With this fourth white result, the n ° 26 can definitely put an end to these last title hopes, since he is now 118 points behind his teammate and championship leader Casey Stoner. However, if by chance this same Stoner wins the "timpani" for his first season in an HRC which has staked everything on Alberto Puig’s protege since 2006, the cohabitation between the two men promises to be tense in 2012 !

    Randy de Puniet, Ducati-Pramac (15th in qualifying and 12th in race) : "It was a complicated race. The back pain has increased since yesterday, I was limited in my movements and had too little energy to run. I got off to a bad start, behind everyone".

    "Then I started to gain ground from the others, but I was running out of time to recover other positions. I tried to fit in with Elias and Barbera’s group, but the pain was too much for me to fight. I only thought about finishing the race".

    Site analysis : Decreased by his lumbar and pelvic injuries resulting from his fall at Laguna Seca, Randy de Puniet was not already having many illusions when he arrived in Brno … Dropped out in practice, the French seemed to be able to recover the bar in qualifying, before a fall due to a maneuver by Loris Capirossi ruined his efforts in his last lap !

    Bitter, the Frenchman said to himself "angry and disappointed"towards his teammate he will be some eleven seconds ahead the next day. Sorry for the incident," Capi-T-Rex "elegantly refrained from recalling that during the first GP of the season, Randy’s fall caused the abandonment of the two Ducati Pramacs, without the Italian not holding it as much against him…

    Absent from official tests on Monday, Randy de Puniet will rest to tackle Indianapolis in better conditions, while Loris Capirossi worked on the GP11 with which he finished antepenultimate in front of Edwards and Kallio, with 2.219 seconds behind Stoner’s best time..

    Next meeting in the United States on August 28 for the twelfth round of the 2011 Moto GP season on the Indianapolis circuit.

    Provisional general classification Moto GP 2011 after Brno

    Position-Rider-Motorcycle-Nationality-Points

  • 1 Casey STONER Honda AUS 218

  • 2 Jorge LORENZO Yamaha SPA 186

  • 3 Andrea DOVIZIOSO Honda ITA 163

  • 4 Valentino ROSSI Ducati ITA 118

  • 5 Dani PEDROSA Honda SPA 110

  • 6 Ben SPIES Yamaha USA 109

  • 7 Nicky HAYDEN Ducati USA 103

  • 8 Marco SIMONCELLI Honda ITA 76

  • 9 Colin EDWARDS Yamaha USA 75

  • 10 Hiroshi AOYAMA Honda JPN 70

  • 11 Hector BARBERA Ducati SPA 62

  • 12 Karel ABRAHAM Ducati CZE 46

  • 13 Toni ELIAS Honda SPA 43

  • 14 Alvaro BAUTISTA Suzuki SPA 39

  • 15 Cal CRUTCHLOW Yamaha GBR 34

  • 16 Loris CAPIROSSI Ducati ITA 29

  • 17 Randy DE PUNIET Ducati FRA 19

  • 18 John HOPKINS Suzuki USA 6

  • 19 Kousuke AKIYOSHI Honda JPN 3

    • Alexandre BARDIN – Photos DR

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