FIM MotoGP World Championship Mugello, Italy July 13, 2012 Free Practice Two Results (all on Bridgestone tires): 1. Jorge LORENZO, Spain (YAMAHA), 1:48.076 2. Dani PEDROSA, Spain (HONDA), 1:48.107 3. Nicky HAYDEN, USA (DUCATI), 1:48.157 4. Hector BARBERA, Spain (DUCATI), 1:48.254 5. Andrea DOVIZIOSO, Italy (YAMAHA), 1:48.308 6. Casey STONER, Australia (HONDA), 1:48.527 7. Ben SPIES, USA (YAMAHA), 1:48.540 8. Cal CRUTCHLOW, UK (YAMAHA), 1:48.650 9. Valentino ROSSI, Italy (DUCATI), 1:49.017 10. Stefan BRADL, Germany (HONDA), 1:49.022 11. Alvaro BAUTISTA, Spain (HONDA), 1:49.208 12. Aleix ESPARGARO, Spain (Aprilia-ART), 1:50.015 13. Randy DE PUNIET, France (Aprilia-ART), 1:50.269 14. Michele PIRRO, Italy (Honda-FTR), 1:51.130 15. Yonny HERNANDEZ, Colombia (Kawasaki-BQR/FTR), 1:51.322 16. Mattia PASINI, Italy (Aprilia-Speed Master/ART), 1:51.384 17. Colin EDWARDS, USA (SUTER), 1:51.857 18. James ELLISON, UK (Aprilia-PBM/ART), 1:51.966 19. Danilo PETRUCCI, Italy (Aprilia-IODA), 1:52.109 20. Ivan SILVA, Spain (Kawasaki-BQR/FTR), 1:52.558 More, from a press release issued by Monster Yamaha Tech 3: Dovizioso and Crutchlow make solid start in Mugello Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team riders Andrea Dovizioso and Cal Crutchlow made a positive start to the Gran Premio d’Italia TIM at the fast and technical Mugello circuit in Italy today. Dovizioso was happy with the set-up work he carried out on his YZR-M1 machine, the Italian capitalising on hot conditions to show the speed that has seen him claim three stunning podium finishes in the last four races. Dovizioso made a positive start in front of his home crowd this morning and a lap of 1.49 .038 put him in sixth position on the timesheets. Modifications to improve front-end feeling for the second session helped Dovizioso lower his lap time by 0.7s in hot and sunny conditions this afternoon. Temperatures reached 26 degrees, giving Dovizioso the perfect opportunity to evaluate Bridgestone’s hard rear tyre option, and he finished fifth on the combined timesheets with a best lap of 1.48.308. Dovizioso’s best time was only 0.232s behind pacesetter Jorge Lorenzo and having not yet opted to use Bridgestone’s soft compound rear tyre, he is confident he can be much faster in qualifying tomorrow to challenge for a front row grid position. British rider Crutchlow was satisfied with the progress he made today and a lap of 1.49.023 put him fifth this morning. That was less than 0.2s outside of the top three. He needed just four laps in hot but windy conditions this afternoon to better his pace from the first practice session and a lap of 1.48.650 put the 26-year-old in an encouraging eighth position. Crutchlow was less than 0.2s behind reigning World Champion Casey Stoner in sixth and he is optimistic that he has plenty of margin to improve ahead of Sunday’s 23-lap race, which marks the halfway point of the 2012 MotoGP series. Andrea Dovizioso 5th 1.48.038 41 laps: “I am really happy with the way my home race has started. I arrive in Mugello in front of my home supporters full of confidence after the podiums in Assen and Sachsenring and we have made a positive start. We made a big improvement to the set-up of the bike this afternoon. I have more feeling with the front-end and I was much faster than in the morning, even though the conditions were worse. The temperature was hotter but the wind was much stronger this afternoon, so I’m happy to have improved by so much. The gap to Lorenzo is only 0.2s and I only used the hard tyres to focus on the race set-up for Sunday. We need to improve the bike to help the lap times comes a little bit easier but I am confident that we can find another big step like we did today.” Cal Crutchlow 8th 1.48.650 41 laps: “It was a decent day and my final position in eighth is probably not a true indication of my speed at the moment. I am sure I could be much faster but I didn’t really push for a fast time and concentrated a lot on work ing on the set-up for the race. There are a couple of areas we can improve the bike but I am confident we can do that and I will be fighting for a good grid position tomorrow. I lost a bit of time this morning with a small technical problem but I was still able to set a fast and consistent pace all day. My potential is definitely higher than eighth, so I am looking forward to tomorrow and carrying on the good work we have completed today.” More, from a press release issued by Yamaha MotoGP Team: Yamaha Factory Racing rider Jorge Lorenzo proved to be the man to beat today, setting the fastest times in both morning and afternoon practice for this weekend’s Grand Prix of Italy at the Mugello circuit. Last year’s race winner was clearly comfortable from the off, setting an impressive record beating 1’48.076 lap and remaining unchallenged at the top of the timesheets. Fellow Yamaha Factory rider Ben Spies spent the day working through several set up options in the hunt for the perfect Mugello solution. A small crash in the morning session reduced his time on track but he was unhurt and back out for the afternoon session. Spies wrapped up day one in seventh but just 0.464 seconds from Lorenzo in first. Jorge Lorenzo Position : 1st Time: 1’48.076 Laps: 22 “I’m really happy because from the beginning we’ve been quite fast. We haven’t had to make many changes to the bike, the feeling is great with the track and it’s working well. I feel good with the suspension, throttle and braking. Everything seems quite clear, we have to work on some small details but we’ve made an excellent beginning.” Ben Spies Position : 7th Time: 1’48.540 Laps: 24 “It wasn’t a bad day, nice and hot. The first session was ok, then the second session we tried a couple of different bike settings and wasted a bit of the time finding something that didn’t work. We went back to the setting we know that works and had it going pretty well by the time the tyres were pretty used. I’m happy we were doing the times we were with race distance on the tyres and we know we can make the bike better for tomorrow. We need to be a bit closer to the front but the bike’s working well so we just need to make some fine adjustments.” Wilco Zeelenberg Team Manager “A very fast practice day. We made the requested long run for the Bridgestone tyre and it seems to be under control. I think so far we are the only one who did it so we have space to work tomorrow. Maybe not to get faster but definitely keep a rhythm and push a little more in qualifying.” Massimo Meregalli Team Director “It’s been a good start today. Unfortunately this morning we had a little crash which compromised the second part of the first practice. Ben’s base set up is good, we tried a long run to check tyre life and I think everything is on the same page. All in all a positive first day.” More, from a press release issued by Pramac Racing: EXCELLENT START TO MUGELLO GRAND PRIX FOR BARBERAÂ’ The 9th round of the 2012 MotoGP World Championship kicked off today in Italy at the Mugello circuit. After the tricky weather conditions in Germany, sunny Tuscany is a welcome change for the riders and the White and Green rider looked in fine fettle around the 5.245km track today. The Grand Premio DÂ’Italia began very well for the Pramac Racing Team rider Hèctor Barberà, with two promising free practice sessions, despite a spectacular crash in the afternoonÂ’s session. The 25-year-old rider was able to finish the day with a great fourth place, after a big crash at the Casanova Savelli turn, while he was making a long run to try BridgestoneÂ’s new tyres. Hèctor had a consistent pace, setting a best lap time of 1Â’48.254, just 0.178 seconds off leading man Jorge Lorenzo and he also claimed the highest speed of the session with 346.7 km/h. The Spaniard is planning to try a few changes tomorrow to try to maximise the potential of his Ducati around this high-speed track, but he is feeling relaxed after the flying start of the weekend. Hèctor Barberà – Pramac Racing Team Rider – 4th place in 1Â’48.254 “IÂ’m happy about these sessions and IÂ’m feeling quite good, even if I crashed out. We were making a long run to test the new tyre compound, when I crashed. I didn’t have a great feeling while I was trying the new tyre, but I decided to finish the long heat to understand the new Bridgestone’s potential. Unfortunately, after a few laps, I crashed in the gravel at high speed but I escaped relatively unscathed. In the last minutes of the afternoon session I used a new soft tyre and this allowed me to regain the confidence with my Ducati, storming into the top four.” Francesco Guidotti – Pramac Racing Team Manager – “Hèctor had some issues during the long run, as he had a lack of confidence and feeling with his Ducati. But he decided to continue the run, until he crashed. After this glitch, we started again with another short run to restore HèctorÂ’s confidence both with the track and the bike. We used a soft tyre and this marked a positive step forward for us, also for tomorrowÂ’s qualifying session, during which we will look to achieve the best grid position possible.” More, from a press release issued by Repsol Honda: Repsol Honda Team take to the track in Mugello The Repsol Honda Team had a good start on the first day of free practice sessions at the Grand Prix of Italy, with Dani Pedrosa finishing the day in second position, just 0.031 off Lorenzo, and Casey Stoner in sixth, 0.4 off the best lap time. Dani and Casey made the most of the perfect weather conditions to test the performance of the Bridgestone tyres in the fast and flowing Mugello circuit to start setting up their RC213V machines. Both riders worked with the standard hard rear tyre, the most likely choice for the race distance of 23 laps. Dani, who won at Sachsenring last week and here in Mugello in 2010, made a big step forward in the afternoon session and with a best time of 1’48.107, lapping three tenths under the circuit record (set by Lorenzo last year with 1’48.402), while Casey, a winner here in 2009, finished close behind with a best lap time of 1’48.527. DANI PEDROSA 2nd 1’48.107 “We had some troubles with the tyres in the morning, but in the afternoon we made a step forward that I’m happy with in order to keep improving tomorrow. We struggled to get up to the pace a little in FP1, but during the day we were getting closer to Lorenzo, who seems to have the set up quite clear from the beginning. In the afternoon we wanted complete the 12 laps Bridgestone requested on the standard hard option tyre. I went out planning to make this long run on my first exit but I couldn’t complete it due to the red flag. Anyway, we finished the day quite well and we have some ideas for tomorrow; we need to find some more grip and better braking to gain three or four more tenths”. CASEY STONER 6th 1’48.527 “We haven’t had a great day and aren’t too impressed with our pace on the bike. This morning we began very far off the pace and slowly made our way forward. This afternoon we were trying to get the hard tyre to work, but every time we went out it didn’t work so we came back in to try something different and then go back out but it was still the same. We can’t seem to get the same tyre temperatures that the others are getting at the moment, we’re trying to find it through different set ups, but we haven’t found it just yet. We have some thinking to do tonight and will try to come back tomorrow with something different”. More, from a press release issued by Ducati: Ducati Team starts setup work at Mugello On a sunny but breezy day, Nicky Hayden posted a respectable third-best time in the second free practice session for the Italian Grand Prix. Valentino Rossi, who followed a different line of work, preferring to not sample the soft tyre yet, finished the day ninth. Tomorrow both riders will continue working on the Desmosedici’s setup, with Valentino also planning to try a long run in order to check tyre endurance, although the fact that his best time today came on tyre with 20 laps on it is promising in that regard. Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team) 3rd (1:48.157) “Things started out pretty well this morning. I did a 14-lap run with times that were steadily pretty good. From there, we haven’t really made a big step with the hard tyre. My best time was with the soft, which we tried for a couple laps just to make sure there are no surprises when we put it in for qualifying. We’re struggling a bit with grip on rear entry, which hasn’t been the case lately, but we have some ideas to try. This track is tough, but I like it, and there’s still time to improve before Sunday.” Valentino Rossi (Ducati Team) 9th (1:49.017) “We wanted to do a long run this afternoon to check the tyres, but I had to interrupt it due to a problem with chatter. We had made a change to the fork setting compared to the morning and maybe that was what caused it because after returning to the previous setting and making some other small changes to the setup, it immediately worked a bit better. Anyway, I kept using the same tyre for the entire session, about 20 laps, and I did my best time at the end. Tomorrow we’ll try again to do a long exit, although there shouldn’t be any big problems with temperature or endurance here. We didn’t try the soft tyre today, so tomorrow we’ll also see how we go with that. There are still a few things to adjust, especially on the second half of the track, because I’m quite fast on the first part. We have some ideas, and we’ll see tomorrow.” More, from a press release issued by Bridgestone: Lorenzo tops both sessions in Mugello Friday practice Round 9: Italian Grand Prix Free Practice One and Two Mugello, Friday 13 July 2012 Bridgestone slick compounds available: Front: Soft, Medium, Hard. Rear: Medium, Hard* (Asymmetric) Bridgestone wet tyre compounds available: Hard (Main), Soft (Alternative) * The hard compound rear slick tyre is available in both regular and special constructions at Mugello this weekend. Weather: Dry. Ambient 24-28°C; Track 36-47°C (Bridgestone measurement) Last year’s Italian Grand Prix winner Jorge Lorenzo took over from where he left off at Mugello after the Yamaha Factory Racing rider topped both Friday practice sessions. Lorenzo’s best time of 1:48.076 fell just short of last year’s pole position time yet was enough to edge Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa into second place by three hundredths of a second, while Nicky Hayden gave cause for the Ducatisti to cheer by finishing third fastest on Friday and just eight hundredths of a second off the pace. Both practice sessions today took place in warm and dry conditions with a peak track temperature of 47°C in FP2 and riders took advantage of the dry track time to test both the regular and special construction rear tyres available at Mugello this weekend. Some riders were undertaking race simulations on the hard compound rear tyre in FP2 before a red flag halfway through the session brought a halt to proceedings, and further testing of both the regular and special construction rear slicks is planned for tomorrow. As Mugello features the hardest braking zone on the calendar at the entry to San Donato, most riders opted for the greater stability of the harder front slick for today’s practice sessions. MotoGP action returns to Mugello from 1010 local time (GMT +2) for Free Practice 3 with qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix kicking off at 1355. Shinji Aoki – Manager, Bridgestone Motorsport Tyre Development Department “We had typical Mugello conditions today with hot and dry weather causing track temperatures to reach almost 50°C though as is usual for Friday, grip levels for FP1 were not the best but improved throughout the day as more rubber was laid down on the circuit. Some riders tested the special construction rear tyre we brought to Mugello and the feedback was encouraging, with a negligible difference in feel compared to the regular construction rear slick and some of the riders also managed to set their fastest lap of the day on this special construction rear tyre. Testing of both the regular and special construction will continue tomorrow in what should be very similar track conditions and for the front tyre, the harder front slick was widely used today and I expect this option to be the popular choice both for qualifying and the race. With the extra power of the 1000cc machines down Mugello’s long straight, it is looking very likely that both the top speed and pole position records for this circuit will be surpassed tomorrow during qualifying.” More, from a press release issued by LCR Honda: BRADL SEEKS IMPROVEMENTS ON DAY ONE AT MUGELLO SURFACE Mugello, 13th July: under sunny yet windy conditions the MotoGP contingent hit the famous Mugello circuit today for the first day of practices. The circuit that twists through the Tuscan hills north of Florence is one of Stefan Bradl’s favourites who set the 10th fastest lap time of the day. Bradl’s goal is to continue making the progress he has shown in recent weeks, which culminated with a fifth place last Sunday, and capitalise on the confidence he has found with the Honda RC213V. Bradl: “Actually it has not been the perfect day for us because I can not get the bike breaking in the proper way so we need to fix this. We made some adjustments getting some improvements but it’s still not good enough. Basically we are struggling too much with edge grip and we are losing consistence in every section but we are not completely lost. We will work hard to reduce the gap because I love this circuit and I aim to stay up in the pack”. More, from a press release issued by Power Electronics Aspar Team: POWER ELECTRONICS ASPAR’S ESPARGARÓ STRIKES FIRST IN CRT BATTLE AT MUGELLO Spaniard sets fastest CRT time in twelfth place, with team-mate De Puniet just two tenths behind After watching his compatriot Dani Pedrosa establish his victory credentials from first practice in Germany a week ago, today Jorge Lorenzo fired the first shot at Mugello, setting the pace in both of the opening two free practice sessions. A crash strewn day that saw Lorenzo hit the deck along with the likes of Bautista and Barberá highlighted the technical difficulties of riding at Mugello although lap times are already on par with the best from last year – the new 1000cc engines making hay down the longest straight in the championship. The POWER ELECTRONICS Aspar riders encountered their own difficulties with the track, Aleix Espargaró running into the gravel this morning and Randy De Puniet doing the same this afternoon. However, the Spaniard and the Frenchman continued to set the pace amongst the CRT machines with a second advantage over their rivals. Aleix struck first in the private battle with his team-mate, clocking a 1’50.015 on his fourteenth lap at the end of a long, hot day. De Puniet finished just two tenths behind his team-mate after suffering a gearbox problem that forced him to run off track twice, fortunately without consequences. 12th Aleix Espargaró 1.50.015 (33 laps): “I am really happy with the work we have done today and surprised by our pace this afternoon. We didn’t expect to set these lap times already on day one and thought we would be losing out a lot more to the factory bikes down the straights. The bike is working well and we have to keep going like this. I am looking forward to getting back out there in the morning and making sure we are totally ready for qualifying. I would like to have a good race here in front of the company that made this bike. We have found a good base to work from and have a new engine to put in tomorrow that should help.” 13th Randy De Puniet 1.50.269 (33 laps): “We have started well and the feeling with the bike is great. The afternoon session was going well until we ran into a gearbox problem that we have suffered before. It sent me straight on a couple of times but thankfully I managed not to crash. Something was broken so we switched to the second bike but only got two laps in. Anyway, I want to be positive and the good thing is we have the pace so I’m sure will work on the problem tonight and fix it for tomorrow.” More, from a press release issued by Dorna Communications: Sunny yet windy conditions greeted the MotoGP™ classes as they embarked on their first day of practice for this weekend’s Gran Premio d’Italia TIM at Mugello, and it was Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jorge Lorenzo who laid down the marker for the premier-class as he set the fastest time of the day in the afternoon session ahead of Dani Pedrosa and Nicky Hayden. Despite an early excursion into the gravel, a lap in low 1.48s by Lorenzo relegated Repsol Honda Team’s Pedrosa into second place, who yesterday announced he had signed a two-year extension with the Japanese factory. In third, Ducati Team’s Nicky Hayden put in a tremendous performance to finish third, posting a time within one hundredth of Lorenzo. Pramac Racing Team’s Héctor Barberá did tremendously well to recover from a big crash half way through the session, which briefly saw the practice red-flagged, to set the fourth fastest time of the day. Fifth spot went to Monster Yamaha Tech 3’s Andrea Dovizioso, who is looking for his fourth podium finish this season at his home race. Repsol Honda’s Casey Stoner had a subdued session for his standards, ending the day in sixth, yet did encounter some traffic on his final hot laps in the afternoon. He sighted problems with getting his harder option tyres up to temperature as the main problem. Seventh place was occupied by Lorenzo’s teammate Ben Spies, who will be aiming to put in a good showing this weekend, after narrowly missing out on the podium in Germany. Spies himself had a slight run-off into the gravel in the morning where he dropped his bike, but suffered no damage. In eighth, Dovizioso’s teammate Cal Crutchlow, who encountered a technical glitch in the morning, was just over half a second off the front, showing just how tightly the group was bunched at the Italian track. Ninth spot went to Ducati’s Valentino Rossi, who will be disappointed he could not match the pace of Hayden or Barberá in front of his home fans. Completing the top ten was LCR Honda MotoGP’s Stefan Bradl, while top CRT spot went to Power Electronics Aspar’s Aleix Espargaró. San Carlo Honda Gresini’s Álvaro Bautista had a day to forget as he crashed out at turn one in both practice sessions, while Avintia Blusens’ Yonny Hernandez also crashed out of the afternoon session with just over 20 minutes remaining. None of the riders were hurt in the incidents. One of the significant changes this weekend is that Bridgestone has provided the MotoGP grid with a special construction hard rear slick tyre for the Mugello circuit, which can cause exceptionally high tyre temperatures. Yet with an allocation of only four per rider, they will be used sparingly throughout the weekend, and only should track temperatures rise significantly. Today, the majority of riders tested the regular hard compound tyre for use in the race on Sunday. Moto2 On the first day of free practice for the Moto2™ class at the Gran Premio d’Italia TIM at Mugello it was Pons 40 HP Tuenti’s Pol Espargaró who posted the quickest time of the day in front of Bradley Smith and Tom Lüthi. A time of 1.52’745 in the afternoon session was enough to head the Moto2™ field in front of Tech 3 Racing’s Bradley Smith, who had been on the pace all day. He put his Mistral 610 just over two-tenths behind Espargaró at the track where he has won in 125cc and come second in Moto2 the previous years. Interwetten-Paddock’s Tom Lüthi cemented his good run of form for the day by ending up third, as he looks to claw back points in the championship. Speed Master’s Andrea Iannone went fourth fastest in front of his home fans, and was the only rider in the top ten not to improve his time in the afternoon. Team CatalunyaCaixa Repsol’s Marc Márquez, who was yesterday confirmed as a MotoGP™ rider in the Repsol Honda Team for the next two seasons, posted the fifth quickest time of the afternoon session. He finished just ahead of Came IodaRacing Project’s Simone Corsi, who looked comfortable on his FTR machine throughout the day. Marc VDS Racing Team’s Scott Redding looks to have recovered from his crash in Germany last time out as he went seventh fastest, ahead of NGM Mobile Forward Racing’s Alex de Angelis in eighth. Sachsenring podium-sitter Mika Kallio posted the ninth fastest time of the afternoon, while Italtrans Racing Team’s Takaaki Nakagami put in a good performance to round out the top ten. GP Team Switzerland’s Randy Krummenacher crashed out of the afternoon session early on as he lost the front of his machine, while QMMF Racing Team’s Elena Rosell also suffered a crash. Krummenacher walked away unscathed, yet Rosell suffered a contusion to her hand and a swollen right foot. Before the afternoon practice began, it was confirmed that Cresto Guide MZ Racing and Alexander Lundh, who has been replaced with Mike Di Meglio this weekend, have parted company. Mike Di Meglio crashed in the opening stages of the morning session, but fortunately walked away unscathed. Moto3 Blusens Avintia’s Maverick Viñales finished day one at the Gran Premio d’Italia TIM at Mugello at the top of the combined Moto3™ timesheets after posting the fastest time in the second free practice ahead of Romano Fenati and Danny Kent. Riders were greeted with sunshine yet strong winds for the second session of the day, and it was Viñales, who has firmly put his disappointing weekend in Germany behind him, that set the fastest time of the day with a 1.59’676. He was closely followed by Team Italia FMI’s Romano Fenati, just over one tenth of a second adrift. The young Italian, who had dropped off the radar a touch after his grand entry into the championship, seemed to be relishing riding at his home track, and could well be challenging for a podium once more. Red Bull KTM Ajo’s Danny Kent showed consistent form all day and cemented this with finishing just over five hundredths behind Fenati in third. San Carlo Gresini Moto3’s Niccolò Antonelli came in fourth, as the youngster also looks to impress at both his and his team’s home race. Fifth place went to last race’s podium sitter Alexis Masbou on board his Caretta Technology machine. Masbou, who has now broken his podium duck, will no doubt look to continue in this vain at the Italian track. Red Bull KTM Ajo’s championship leader Sandro Cortese was seventh fastest, ahead of Estrella Galicia 0,0 duo Miguel Oliveira and Alex Rins. Oliveira, who has also been subdued recently after a great season start, will hope to challenge the front-runners once again this time out. Racing Team Germany’s Louis Rossi completed the top ten. The day also saw to wildcards make their first appearance in the form of Elle 2 Ciati’s Kevin Calia and Racing Team Gabrielli’s Michael Ruben Rinaldi. As riders were pushing for ever-quicker times, numerous crashes occurred towards the end of the afternoon session. With 16 minutes left, RW racing GP’s Luis Salom crashed out heavily, but was uninjured, while with 12 minutes left Mahindra Racing’s Danny Webb suffered the same fate. Masbou’s teammate Jack Miller fell in the gravel with ten minutes remaining, while JHK Laglisse’s Efrén Vázquez followed suit on the final few minutes. Technomag-CIP-TSR’s Kenta Fuji did not take part in either session, as he was taken ill with a stomach upset.