FIM MotoGP World Championship Indianapolis Motor Speedway Indianapolis, Indiana September 13, 2008 Final Qualifying Results: 1. Valentino ROSSI (Yamaha), Bridgestone, 1:40.776 2. Casey STONER (Ducati), Bridgestone, 1:40.860 3. Jorge LORENZO (Yamaha), Michelin, 1:41.177 4. Nicky HAYDEN (Honda), Michelin, 1:41.271 5. Ben SPIES (Suzuki), Bridgestone, 1:41.464 6. Randy DE PUNIET (Honda), Michelin, 1:41.492 7. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (Honda), Michelin, 1:41.744 8. Dani PEDROSA (Honda), Bridgestone, 1:41.754 9. Toni ELIAS (Ducati), Bridgestone, 1:41.886 10. James TOSELAND (Yamaha), Michelin, 1:41.897 11. Colin EDWARDS (Yamaha), Michelin, 1:41.934 12. Alex DE ANGELIS (Honda), Bridgestone, 1:41.969 13. Loris CAPIROSSI (Suzuki), Bridgestone, 1:42.305 14. Sylvain GUINTOLI (Ducati), Bridgestone, 1:42.405 15. Chris VERMEULEN (Suzuki), Bridgestone, 1:42.551 16. John HOPKINS (Kawasaki), Bridgestone, 1:42.673 17. Shinya NAKANO (Honda), Bridgestone, 1:42.732 18. Marco MELANDRI (Ducati), Bridgestone, 1:43.807 19. Anthony WEST (Kawasaki), Bridgestone, 1:43.931 More, from a press release issued by Dorna Communications: The thousands of racefans getting their first taste of MotoGP action in Indianapolis will be treated to a star studded front row on Sunday, with World Championship leader Valentino Rossi lining up alongside reigning titlist Casey Stoner. Rossi ended Stoner´s attempts at an eighth consecutive pole position with a stunning 1´40.776 lap of the IMS circuit, less than a tenth of a second faster than his title rival. It is the Fiat Yamaha man´s second top spot of the season, and a perfect placing from which to try and extend his own streak that of three successive race victories. All eyes will be on the MotoGP World Championship´s top two as they do battle from the front row for the seventh time this year, although there is not much separating the duo from the rest of the field at the newest circuit on the calendar. Rossi´s teammate Jorge Lorenzo qualified on the first line with his own late lap. As a result of Lorenzo´s last minute heroics, local hero Nicky Hayden was relegated to fourth place on the grid, at the head of the second row and in a position to put himself in the fight for a homecoming victory. The Repsol Honda rider is accompanied by fellow American and Rizla Suzuki wildcard Ben Spies, with the newly crowned three-time AMA Superbike champion making his presence felt at his home track with some speedy qualifying laps. Randy de Puniet rounds off row two, the highest placing Honda satellite rider onboard the LCR RC212V. Both the Frenchman and JiR Team Scot´s Andrea Dovizioso took their customer bikes round in times only slightly faster than factory rider Dani Pedrosa, in the Spaniard´s first extensive encounter with Bridgestone qualifying tyres. Despite a crash on his own Bridgestone qualifying rubber, Toni Elias was still able to place at the tail end of row three, whilst there was a lowside tumble for Rizla Suzuki´s Chris Vermeulen at turn six midway through the session. Weather at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway was sunny and the track dry, in sharp contrast to Friday but perhaps not exactly what the riders will experience when they hear the famous command of `Gentlemen, start your engines.´ Marco Simoncelli further built on his sterling record of front row starts in the 250cc class with pole position at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, his fourth top spot of the 2008 season. The Italian was made to fight for the place during a dry quarter-litre qualifying session, waiting until the final moments to put in his unmatched 1´46.168. The man with whom Simoncelli has had his fair share of on-track duels, Team Toth´s Hector Barbera, will be alongside the Metis Gilera rider on the front row for Sunday´s race. The Spaniard headed a practically inseparable remainder of the front line, with the split between himself, Mika Kallio and Alex Debon covered by less than a tenth of a second. The first two rows feature some of the big names of the 250cc class, with Red Bull KTM´s Hiroshi Aoyama, Misano racewinner Alvaro Bautista and rookie stars Mattia Pasini & Hector Faubel set to feature in the battle for the holeshot from just behind the front four. Bautista and Pasini both suffered light crashes when trying to better their times. Bigger falls were suffered by Emmi-Caffe Latte´s Thomas Luthi and Blusens Aprilia rider Eugene Laverty on Saturday, with both ruled out of the Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix. Former 125cc World Champion Luthi suffered a concussion and thumb injury in a cringe-inducing morning crash, whilst Laverty picked up fractures to a small bones on either foot in his own hit. Pol Espargaro will be the rider leading off the first ever World Championship race held in Indianapolis, after taking pole position in the 125cc class on Saturday afternoon. As the American track became completely dry, the lower cylinder category riders were effectively starting from scratch in the session, and Espargaro brought his A-Game to the table to move up a massive sixteen places. The Spaniard took his Belson Derbi machine round in a time of 1´50.475, the quickest lap to date with a 125cc machine at The Brickyard. With MotoGP riders having had streets changed in their honour earlier this week, Espargaro will be attempting to make the IMS track `Indiana-Pol-is´ with a first 125cc victory on Sunday. Series leader Mike di Meglio consolidated a spot on the front row of the grid with a time just over three-tenths of a second slower than Espargaro´s marker and, having gone well in the wet on Friday, should go well whatever the weather on raceday. Stefan Bradl equalled his best ever qualifying place with third on the grid, and put in a late contender for `save of the season´ with a miraculous avoidance of the Indiana asphalt. Having placed his hand on the ground, the Grizzly Gas Kiefer Racing man somehow escaped with only a ride along the grass to show for the scare. Danny Webb also matched his previous best, and completes the front row onboard the DeGraaf Grand Prix Aprilia. Andrea Iannone, Nicolas Terol, Simone Corsi and Dominique Aegerter make up the second line, all under eight-tenths of a second off Espargaro´s marker. Riding with a fractured scaphoid in his left arm, Gabor Talmacsi was finding things difficult in the qualifying session. He could only qualify fourteenth, and suffered a last lap breakdown to add to his woes. More, from a press release issued by Fiat Yamaha: ROSSI CLAIMS HISTORIC POLE FOR MOTOGP’S INDIANAPOLIS DEBUT Valentino Rossi took a historic pole position today for the inaugural MotoGP race at Indianapolis today; tomorrow will see him become the first rider in 99 years to head a motorcycle race at the famous ‘Brickyard’. The Fiat Yamaha rider hung onto the front grid spot by just 0.084 seconds ahead of Casey Stoner to take his second pole of the season, with team-mate Jorge Lorenzo rounding out the front row for the second race running. After the torrential downpours of yesterday, the rain abated today and this morning’s practice was run on a drying track. Rossi was quick to find an effective dry set-up and was second fastest, finding the agile nature of his M1 well suited to the demands of the 4.218 km track. Qualifying this afternoon was run in bright sunshine and Rossi had an enjoyable hour, fine-tuning his setting before putting in several fast laps with a Bridgestone qualifying tyre, his final one good enough to hold off Stoner and Lorenzo’s last-minute challenges. The riders’ now have one wet and one dry day of set-up under their belts at this new track but, with rain forecast tomorrow, it seems that the wet one could be the one they need. Tomorrow’s 28-lap race is scheduled to get underway at 1500 local time (GMT -4). Valentino Rossi Position: 1 Time: 1’40.776 Laps: 26 “I’m very happy to get the chance to ride on this circuit in the dry, it’s a great track and I had a lot of fun today. It’s technical and difficult, which I like, and it seems to suit our bike and tyres well. There are places to pass, especially turn one and turn ten, and the grip of the new asphalt is much better in the dry. If it’s like this tomorrow, then we can have a great race! Unfortunately this seems unlikely so we will have to wait and see what the situation is tomorrow at race time. If it’s ‘normal’ rain then we will be okay, if it’s like yesterday then we have to take a decision all together about racing. I am really happy with the work we did today, we found a great setting for the qualifying tyres this afternoon and I made some good laps, especially the last two. I knew I could try for 1’40 and I was able to do 40.7. Whatever the weather tomorrow, this pole position will be very important.” Davide Brivio Team Manager “Valentino did a great lap on his last qualifying tyre and it’s fantastic to be on pole position for the first MotoGP race here. We’re really happy! Now we have to wait and see for tomorrow, we’re all hoping for weather like this but there is a big question mark. We did a great job to find a good setting today so we know that we’re in good shape in the dry, but we were also fast yesterday afternoon so I think that we can be competitive in both types of conditions. Thanks to all the team for a great job today, this is an important pole position.” More, from another press release issued by Fiat Yamaha: LORENZO TAKES SECOND CONSECUTIVE FRONT ROW FOR INDY DEBUT Jorge Lorenzo put his Fiat Yamaha Team M1 on the front row of the grid for the second race in a row today, qualifying third for the first ever MotoGP race at the historic Indianpolis Motor Speedway. As in Misano, Lorenzo will share the front row with team-mate Valentino Rossi and Casey Stoner, albeit with their positions reversed after Rossi took a stunning pole position this afternoon. Today’s two sessions were run in very different conditions to yesterday’s washout, with this afternoon’s qualifying taking place under sunny skies with ambient temperatures in the mid thirties. Lorenzo made steady progress with his dry set-up over the hour and moved into provisional pole position with 12 minutes to go. He was then relegated down the grid in the last ten minutes but his last effort with a Michelin qualifying tyre was good enough to put him back on the front row, 0.317 seconds off Rossi. Unfortunately more bad weather is expected tomorrow so yesterday’s wet set-up looks like it will come in useful. The race will be run over 28 laps and the lights will go out at 1500 East Coast time (GMT-4). Jorge Lorenzo Position: 3 Time: 1’41.177 Laps: 27 “I am so happy that this track is different to how I expected, because I really enjoyed myself this afternoon! I thought it would be quite dangerous but in fact I feel really safe on my M1 here, which is allowing me to be fast. Some of the corners are really close together which I enjoy because it means I can ride very smoothly in the style that I like. It’s a good track for me. We are on the front row for the second race in a row and this shows that we are truly getting back to our best, so I want to thank my team for their work, both here and in Misano. We are still not perfect in the wet or the dry so we need to make some improvements in warm-up, but we don’t know what the weather will do tomorrow so we will have to wait and see.” Daniele Romagnoli Team Manager “This was a good qualifying session for us today and Jorge rode very well with the qualifying tyre. For the race in the dry it looks like we have quite a good pace but we still need to improve in section one, where we need more front grip. We have some things to try in warm-up so we hope it will be dry, but we have to be ready for a wet day as well. If that’s the case then we will have to try to confirm what we found yesterday. Anyway, it’s good to be on the front row so we hope that we can make the most of it once again.” More, from a press release issued by Tech 3 Yamaha: Tech 3 Yamaha duo ready for historic Indianapolis race James Toseland and Colin Edwards will start alongside each other on the fourth row of the grid for tomorrow’s MotoGP debut at the iconic Indianapolis circuit. In contrast to the torrential rain that dominated the opening day of practice, today’s qualifying session was run in sunny and humid conditions, giving Toseland and Edwards their first opportunity to familiarise themselves with a fully dry track. Prime focus was on evaluating slick tyre performance on the different sections of asphalt at the Indy circuit, which had proved problematic in yesterday’s wet conditions as grip levels varied on the old and new surface. Quickly getting to grips with the circuit in dry conditions, Toseland looked on course to claim an impressive second row start when he climbed to fifth place with just eight minutes of the session remaining. But he had to settle for 10th with a best time of 1.41.897, which was one place and just 0.037s faster than Edwards. Edwards delighted a large home crowd with 24 minutes remaining when he surged to the top of the timesheets on his first Michelin qualifying tyre. Briefly relegated off the front row, Edwards elevated himself back into the top three with 16 minutes remaining. He eventually ended the session in 11th. Weather forecasts for tomorrow’s 28-lap race aren’t for more of today’s dry conditions, with Friday’s heavy rain anticipated to return. Race bosses will constantly monitor weather forecasts tomorrow, with the possibility of the race being run earlier than the scheduled 3pm slot to avoid the most severe weather. James Toseland 10th 1.41.897 23 laps “It was a tough session and I’m disappointed not to be on the second row. We’d been working in a good direction with the bike for the qualifiers and on my penultimate tyre I must have gone over a second faster than the previous one. On the last one we tried another modification to the setting and unfortunately I lost all side grip. I had a bit of chatter at maximum lean angle, and that’s where you need to be pushing on the qualifying tyres. It is a shame because I had been building up speed nicely and was confident of being on the second row. That one change at the end could have been the second row but it was the fourth and that is frustrating because we should have performed better. I’ve heard the weather is going to be bad tomorrow so I think it will be a battle of survival. It totally depends on how much it rains. If it is like yesterday morning then we can race, but if it is like it was at the end of the second session then it will be impossible unfortunately. That would be a great shame because even in torrential rain, three-quarters of the track is great for grip. On the old tarmac the water drains better than I’ve ever seen. Hopefully we won’t have to worry about that and we can do what we came here for and what we want to do, and that’s put on a good race for the American fans. They have been brilliant.” Colin Edwards 11th 1.41.934 22 laps “I always do my fastest laps and my fastest riding when it looks like I’m just taking a Sunday cruise. I have always been really smooth but at the moment I’m having too climb all over the bike to stop it from chattering and that is strange because I haven’t had any chatter all year. With a new track we tried a few big changes with the setting but with the lack of dry track time it hasn’t been easy to get comfortable. It is not through a lack of effort that I’m not as high up the grid as I wanted to be. We have changed everything to try and make it better without much success. This morning’s session wasn’t terrible and I felt reasonably happy, but the more I pushed this afternoon the worse the problems became. I was struggling to hold a line. If I was going slow I could hold the line, but trying telling a racer you’ve got to go slow. It is disappointing to have my second home race and not be where I want to be again. On the qualifiers the grip was brilliant, but with the extra grip the more the chatter increased. We’ve got to see what happens tomorrow with the forecasts being pretty grim. Hopefully we can race tomorrow whether it is wet or dry. We want to race for the fans who have travelled hundreds of miles to come and see us.” More, from a press release issued by Marlboro Ducati: FRONT ROW FOR STONER AT INDY, MELANDRI FACING A STRUGGLE Adverse weather conditions finally relented over Indianapolis today, rewarding the thousands of fans who have made the trip to the state capital of Indiana despite the tricky forecasts and the MotoGP riders, who were finally able to get some dry track time around the legendary circuit following yesterday’s washout. Stoner lost ten minutes of the morning session due to a technical problem but worked hard alongside his crew to find a good setting for his Desmosedici this afternoon. With his final qualifying tyre he produced a stunning lap that gathered in pace, eventually falling just short of the pole position mark set by Valentino Rossi – the only other rider to lap in 1’40. Marco Melandri was unable to find a satisfactory set-up, however, and will start from 18th position. CASEY STONER (Ducati MotoGP Team) 2nd: 1’40.860 “The breakdown this morning cost us some valuable time during the best part of the session in terms of track condition, so we paid the price for that this afternoon. I was struggling to find grip on the front end and we spent so much time working it out that we didn’t have much time to put in a qualifying lap at the end. To be honest I thought we’d be lucky to get on the front two rows. As it happened we got a surprisingly decent lap together and to end up second fastest is much better than we expected so finally it was not so bad. It means my pole run has come to end but that had to happen eventually and the important thing is we have a good position for tomorrow. Now we have to wait and see what the weather does but we have work still to do on the bike in warm-up whatever the conditions.” MARCO MELANDRI (Ducati MotoGP Team) 18th: 1’43.807 “I’m really disappointed with this second day because we haven’t managed to find a good set-up for the race tomorrow. I haven’t got grip on the front or the rear and I can’t afford to take any risks by pushing too hard. I don’t know if we’ll have time to do anything about it in the 20-minute warm-up tomorrow so I expect it will be a very tough race.” More, from a press release issued by Nick Harris Media, on behalf of Dorna Communications: FRONT ROW WEBB OVERCOMES BRITISH INDY BLUES Seventeen year old Danny Webb grabbed his second ever front row start to overcome a disappointing day for British riders at the Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix. Kent – based Webb qualified fourth in the second 125 cc session riding the DeGraff Aprilia. He has been often overshadowed by Scott Redding and Bradley Smith but this afternoon he led the British challenge in great style. Fifteen year old Donington winner Redding and Smith, who was second at Misano two weeks ago, will start from the third row for the 23 lap race after qualifying ninth and eleventh respectively. Twenty -seven year old James Toseland will start from the fourth row of the MotoGP grid. Riding the Tech 3 Yamaha he qualified tenth fastest after being up to fifth place at one stage. Ulsterman Eugene Laverty will miss the 250 cc race tomorrow after crashing the in the second 250 cc qualifying session. He broke a bone in his left foot and the big toe in his right foot. ROSSI – FIRST ON THE INDY ROLL OF FAME At last the rain stopped and even the sun came out to signal the very first MotoGP qualifying session at the World famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway. In many ways it was fitting that Valentino Rossi, who has re-written the MotoGP history books on so many occasions, should take the very first pole position at the 2.62 mile circuit in a superb one hour session that had the American car racing orientated crowd purring in anticipation. Championship leader Rossi is joined on the front row of the grid by World Champion Casey Stoner, who’d been on pole at the last seven grands prix, and Rossi’s Fiat Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo who finished second at Misano two weeks ago. So the stage is set for the first Motorcycle race at Indianapolis since 1909 and the only black cloud on the horizon is the weather forecast. The remnants of hurricane Ike could bring rain and even a tornado warning to spoil the party – Let’s hope it’s wrong. More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki Racing Team: HOPKINS REMAINS CONFIDENT AFTER LATE IMPROVEMENT Kawasaki’s John Hopkins remains confident of a strong result in tomorrow’s inaugural Indianapolis Grand Prix, but admits that qualifying only 16th fastest during this afternoon’s hour-long timed session has left him with a lot of ground to make up from the start. Conditions at the Indianapolis circuit today couldn’t have been more different to the rain soaked practice sessions the MotoGP riders had to endure yesterday. Warm and sunny weather greeted the riders on arrival at the circuit this morning, with only a strong headwind on the main straight detracting from the almost perfect conditions. For Hopkins and West it meant learning the 4.216km circuit all over again, but this time on slicks and with a dry set-up on their Ninja ZX-RR machines. Hopkins struggled to find a workable set-up during this morning’s hour-long practice session, but a change to a different compound front tyre for the qualifying period, after discussions with his crew, allowed the Anglo-American to slash his time by over half a second in just one lap. With only 20-minutes of the hour-long session remaining, Hopkins was forced to focus his attentions on using qualifying rubber, and ended the day in 16th position on the grid. Anthony West was bitterly disappointed after topping the time sheets in yesterday’s practice, to finish qualifying today in just 19th position on the grid. The 27-year-old Australian has found it difficult to change direction smoothly around the tight and twisty Indiana circuit in the dry, which was compounded by a lack of rear-traction aboard his Ninja ZX-RR. West will certainly be reviewing the data from his machine with his crew to try and find improvements to his dry set-up overnight, although the fact that tomorrow’s weather forecast promises rain – and lots of it – may well play into the wet weather wizard’s hands. John Hopkins #21 – 16th – 1’42.673 “It was like starting all over again today, as the conditions were very different to the rain we had yesterday. I was struggling a lot this morning, as well as most of the afternoon, and our lap time was not anywhere near where we needed it to be. Then with 20-minutes of the afternoon session to go, we tried a front tyre that we don’t tend to use that often on our bike and in just one outing we reduced our lap time by half a second. Unfortunately we had to switch our focus then to our qualifying runs, and this left us just 16th on the grid. We have a few ideas for warm-up and it will be very important for us to get a good start to the race tomorrow. I’m actually pretty confident, as well as incredibly motivated, because this is my home round and there are a lot of American fans here. I just hope that the weather situation is consistent throughout the entire day, as this will be important while we’re trying to improve our setting.” Anthony West #13 – 19th – 1’43.931 “To go from first to last in one day is very frustrating for us and it’s certainly not where we hoped to be. The track here is quite difficult to master, as the grip levels at different parts of the circuit are inconsistent and this makes setting up the bike quite difficult. I was struggling to get the machine to change direction and this track requires a lot of momentum through the tight turns, which we just couldn’t achieve today. We also suffered with a lack of rear traction, a problem that haunted us earlier in the season. We have a lot of work to do overnight on our dry set-up, but if it rains tomorrow then we know from yesterday’s times that a good result could well be on the cards.” Naoya Kaneko Kawasaki Technical Manager “In wet conditions our machine worked exceptionally well here, but in the dry we certainly have more work to do in order to find a more competitive package. John found a big improvement with a different tyre option during qualifying this afternoon and Anthony also reduced his lap time throughout the two sessions today, so the situation is improving, but it wasn’t enough to put us in better positions on the grid. We need to analyse the data from today and we’ll make a plan for tomorrow’s warm-up, although it’s not yet clear what the weather might bring during the race.” More, from a press release issued by Rizla Suzuki: Rizla Suzuki MotoGP wildcard rider Ben Spies recorded the fifth fastest time during this afternoon’s qualifying practice for tomorrow’s Indianapolis Grand Prix, to give him a second row start in only his third MotoGP race. Spies (1’41.464, 25 laps) worked closely with the same team that attended this year’s earlier test at Indianapolis, to continually improve on his lap-times throughout both the dry practice session this morning and this afternoon’s qualifying. Spies’s time was only 0.287 seconds from a front row start and gives the AMA Superbike Champion a great chance to capitalise during tomorrow’s 28-lap race. Loris Capirossi (P13, 1’42.305, 25 laps) and Chris Vermeulen (P15, 1’42.551, 25 laps) will both start from the fifth row of the grid after the pair had a difficult qualifying session for various reasons. Capirossi is still looking for the best setting on his Suzuki GSV-R, and although he believes he is making headway he still hasn’t quite found the set-up he is looking for to be as competitive as he would like around the 4,216m circuit. Vermeulen looked likely to qualify much higher up the grid following impressive lap times on race tyres in both sessions, but the Australian crashed on his second qualifying tyre. Vermeulen was uninjured in the fall and although he was able to get back to the pit-box in time to complete the session he just couldn’t find the rhythm on his other bike to improve on the earlier time. Today’s qualifying session was held in dry and sunny conditions with track temperatures reaching 46ºC. Pole position was taken by current championship leader Valentino Rossi. Tomorrow’s race is the inaugural Indianapolis Grand Prix and the bikes will take to the track to start the race at 15.00hrs local time (19.00hrs GMT). Heavy rain and storms are forecast for race day and it is hoped that the proposed path of Hurricane Ike can turn a corner and the weather will be good for a competitive and exciting race. Ben Spies: “It was a good session this afternoon and we tried various things on both bikes. I went back to the primary bike that we had done most work on and looked at the race set-up until we were happy with that and then put on the qualifiers. I just went faster and faster every time I went out, those Bridgestone qualifiers are just unbelievable and it took me a time to find the limit of them, so I am sure I could go quicker with a bit more time using them! Fifth place is a good spot and the second row will be a good place to start – if the weather is going to be as bad as they say – so that I can be ahead of any of the drama that might happen. I am now really looking forward to the race because everything has gone well so far this weekend.” Loris Capirossi: “Today was a little better compared to yesterday, but we still struggled a bit. We changed a lot of the settings today and then the bike started to work much better. During qualifying I made a good couple of runs on the first two tyres, but then I made mistakes on the last two and lost the laps. I feel a lot more positive now though compared to yesterday and the settings we now have will work if it is wet or dry tomorrow but obviously we hope it is the same as today.” Chris Vermeulen: “With such limited dry set-up time it has been quite difficult to get everything done, we had to test tyres, get the bike working as well as we can and then go quick on the qualifiers. We made some steps with the bike on race tyres and things felt quite comfortable. My lap-times were good and when we put in the first qualifier we made another big-step with that. Unfortunately on the second qualifier I made a mistake and crashed, that caused me to lose time coming back to the pits and my other bike was set-up differently so I couldn’t improve on my time. I have to say sorry to the guys for messing up the bike because they have done such a great job again this weekend. In truth we should be further up the grid, but we’ll give it 100% in the race tomorrow and see what happens!” Paul Denning Team Manager: “Congratulations to Ben, he’ll be starting on the second row tomorrow and that should give him a great chance in only his third Grand Prix. He’s done a great job so far this weekend and let’s hope the potential he has shown can continue into tomorrow. Chris and Loris’s qualifying was less successful for different reasons. Chris showed good pace on race tyres, but a decent sized crash on his second qualifying run meant he had to swap to the spare bike and he just couldn’t improve as it was difficult for him to get the feel immediately. Loris has had a difficult weekend so far for a number of technical reasons and although it got quite a bit better today there is still a lot of work to do to get things improved for the race tomorrow” More, from a press release issued by Bridgestone: Rossi continues Bridgestone’s pole run, Stoner strong second Round 14: Indianapolis Qualifying Indianapolis Motor Speedway Saturday 13 September 2008 Fiat Yamaha rider Valentino Rossi has taken his second pole position of the season at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway this afternoon to extend Bridgestone’s run of pole positions this season to an unbroken nine. Rossi’s lap of 1m40.776 secured him the top spot on the grid for the first time since Mugello, while Ducati’s Casey Stoner finished the session in a closely-run second place just 0.084s behind the Italian. It will be Stoner’s tenth front row start of the season and retains his lead at the head of the ‘Qualifier of the Year’ award classification with four qualifying sessions remaining this season. Three additional Bridgestone-shod riders claimed top ten results in hot weather conditions at the Speedway. Rizla Suzuki wildcard Ben Spies set an impressive fifth fastest time in just his third ever MotoGP event. Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa finished his first ever qualifying session on Bridgestone tyres in eighth place ahead of his Spanish compatriot Toni Elias who took ninth place. After Friday’s unwelcome wet conditions, there was finally an opportunity for MotoGP riders to carry out their first laps on a dry Indianapolis track today. Bridgestone carried out its slick tyre evaluation during the afternoon session with some promising initial results, but longevity over the 28 lap race distance will be crucial with the demanding characteristics of the various types of asphalt around the Speedway’s MotoGP course. Tyre Talk with Tohru Ubukata – Bridgestone Motorsport Manager, Motorcycle Race Tyre Development How were Bridgestone’s first dry practice sessions of the weekend? “This morning the track was still quite wet from overnight rain so we were not able to conduct any meaningful running, as the circuit’s conditions gradually improved during the session. Tyre evaluation in such conditions is not particularly useful, but thankfully the conditions for this afternoon’s qualifying were ideal. We looked at medium and hard specification race tyres and could see some initially pleasing results. Even though we have been limited on time, many of our riders already have a good idea of which tyre spec they will use if the conditions are the same on Sunday afternoon.” How was qualifying tyre performance? “We brought a new qualifying spec for this weekend’s race based on valuable data that we gathered in the post-Misano test, and I think we can be satisfied with the performance. Valentino put in a great lap to take pole and it was good to see Casey so competitive as well. These two guys were significantly ahead of the next quickest rider and have allowed us to take our fourth consecutive 1-2 in qualifying. A special mention must also go to Ben Spies for a great result, especially with such limited experience using our qualifying tyres. Dani Pedrosa, in his first qualifying session on Bridgestone tyres, also did a good job to take eighth.” Bridgestone-shod Riders’ Qualifying Session Results Pos. Rider Team Qualifying Time (pos) Gap to Pole P1 Valentino Rossi Fiat Yamaha Team 1m40.776s Pole P2 Casey Stoner Ducati Corse 1m40.860s +0.084s P5 Ben Spies Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1m41.464s +0.688s P8 Dani Pedrosa Repsol Honda Team 1m41.754s +0.978s P9 Toni Elias Alice Team 1m41.886s +1.110s P12 Alex de Angelis San Carlo Honda Gresini 1m41.969s +1.193s P13 Loris Capirossi Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1m42.305s +1.529s P14 Sylvain Guintoli Alice Team 1m42.405s +1.629s P15 Chris Vermeulen Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1m42.581s +1.775s P16 John Hopkins Kawasaki Racing Team 1m42.673s +1.897s P17 Shinya Nakano San Carlo Honda Gresini 1m42.732s +1.956s P18 Marco Melandri Ducati Corse 1m43.807s +3.031s P19 Anthony West Kawasaki Racing Team 1m43.931s +3.155s Weather: Dry Air 32°C, Track 42°C (Bridgestone measurement) More, from a press release issued by JiR Team Scot Honda: Andrea Dovizioso takes the 7th-best time in qualifying at Indianapolis The qualifying session of the Grand Prix of Indianapolis took place under the best weather conditions of the weekend so far and these conditions meant that the largest audience so far visited the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The result of the session is that Andrea Dovizioso will start from seventh position on the grid and is confident he can make a good race, battling with the best riders in the world. A good start will be crucial to tackle the varying qualities of the track surfaces, while not losing contact with the leaders. The race promises to be competitive with the first three rows on the grid as this morning being covered by just over a second. Andrea Dovizioso – Pilot JiR Team Scot MotoGP HONDA RC212V 7th-best time: 1’41 “744 “I’m glad of the proof of what’s happened today, because I was strong but I still have a good margin of performance and I can approach the race tomorrow in a very positive way. With only one day of sunshine available, maybe our set-up isn’t perfect, but that also means we could expect surprises from our opponents. If the weather remains like today I believe the race will be very intense but the forecasts announce intense rain. I feel ready for both conditions and fast in both, as I’m at the front of the third row and was close to the second row. A good start here in Indianapolis is important to tackle the new stretch of asphalt as there’s one good, clean line available through it.” More, from a press release issued by Indianapolis Motor Speedway: RED BULL INDIANAPOLIS GP MotoGP POST-QUALIFYING QUOTES Saturday, Sept. 13 CHRIS VERMEULEN (Rizla Suzuki MotoGP): “It’s the first dry of running in the Indianapolis circuit. It was good. It was exciting to ride on the new circuit. There are different surfaces here. It was surprisingly good. The track layout is great to ride. We had limited time to set up the bike. Qualifying was difficult. I made a little mistake and had a small crash. But the bike’s working well, and I am looking well. I’m looking forward to the race tomorrow. I think it’s great to come up to a new circuit like this and to put it up to World Championship level for MotoGP. I think they’ve done a really good job. I can’t wait to race here.” JAMES TOSELAND (Tech 3 Yamaha): “It’s just a lack of time, really. With yesterday, to get a draft setup on a brand-new track. We were going in the right direction with it. We just left it a little bit too late. But, top 10, and I’ve heard the weather is going to be pretty bad tomorrow, so it’s a decent grid position tomorrow, and we’ve just got to hang in there.” NICKY HAYDEN (Repsol Honda Team): “We were pretty good in the dry. I really hope that we can be competitive tomorrow. I know it’s going to be tough, but the team’s doing a good job. Man, I got amazing support here from friends and family. I’ll just try real hard tomorrow to see what happens.” (On whether the heel injury will affect his race tomorrow): “Uh, nah, I’m sure it’ll be all right. I’m sure it’ll be talking to me a little bit in parts of the track, but luckily this track goes a lot more left and I’ve got a lot more strength in my foot than I had, so I’ll be all right.” (On comparing this course with other courses): “We’ve raced inside a few ovals. I mean, it’s certainly got an American feel, because you race inside an oval. But, also, Rio used to be in an oval, and South Africa used to be in an oval. It’s got a little bit of a feel. The hardest thing is probably the different surface, a lot of different surface out there. But I quite like the track. It’s really fun. T here’s a few safety things I think we’ll talk about for the future, but for the first year I think everybody here did an amazing job; Mel (Harder) and Indy and Red Bull. Everybody worked hard to bring MotoGP to this part of the world, and I think they did a good job.” (As an American, what would it mean to win at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway?): “We got a long way to go before we start talking about winning, but I hope it’s dry tomorrow. I feel a lot more confident in the dry. Come tomorrow, just ride hard and see what happens” (On his relationship with teammate Dani Pedrosa): “You know, everybody makes a big deal about it. We really got no problem, me and him. I mean, sure, we’re not teammates. We don’t work together at all. He does his thing, and I do mine. Now ain’t the time to go into that. My guys, I’d love to give them a good result before the season’s over, because they’ve never given up on me and worked really hard. They deserve a good result before we finish off. They did a lot for me in my career, and I’m really grateful.” COLIN EDWARDS (Tech 3 Yamaha): “It’s like riding a jackhammer out there. We have a bit of a chatter problem that we’re trying to fix, but we couldn’t get it worked out. It was a hell of a lot better, I can tell you that. Yesterday was a little bit scary at times, and today was pretty normal. Just go out there and push and get your bike set up and go as fast as you can. Tomorrow, we’re going to have to give these fans something to root for. I’ll just drop the hammer. It wasn’t bad (today), you know. I mean, I’ve got a lot of fans here and I should. I’m American.” ANDREA DOVIZIOSO (JiR Team Scot MotoGP): “I’m really happy about today because the track under dry conditions is much better. Still we have a problem. On the new asphalt, it is so dirty. There is a small line that is really difficult. Still I am confident for tomorrow because our pace on the race tire is so fast. I can go faster. I am confident to get a good race tomorrow.” (Does it help that we had a rainy day yesterday, and a dry day today, so that way you are prepared for tomorrow in either condition?) “Our problem is if we have a lot of rain. If it is wet, it is not a problem. We are fast under both conditions.” (Would you consider driving four wheels around this place instead of just two?) “I like driving four wheels! I am interested in trying four wheels, especially at Indianapolis.” BEN SPIES (Rizla Suzuki MotoGP): “It was a good day. It was the best qualifying position we’ve had. That’s what my goal was, to get on one of the first two rows in case it rains tomorrow. (We want) to be in front of all the stuff that goes on and then be up in the front. It was a good qualifying for us. The bike’s working great. We’re still trying to get some more out of it, and me, too. Everything was going along, and we made some changes before qualifying. We made it better. It’s moving right along.” (Does it help that we had a rainy day yesterday, and a dry day today, so that way you are prepared for tomorrow in either condition?): “I’m sure it helped, but these guys, they pick up tracks fast. They know where they’re going right now. I think we are even playing ground now. I just appreciate everybody that’s rooting me on. I see all the fans, and every time I come around they are giving me the thumbs up and yelling. I appreciate it, and I’m giving it all to represent the wh ole U.S.” JOHN HOPKINS (Kawasaki Racing Team): “Yeah, completely different day, just super, super hot, and really humid conditions today, but you know, the track was a lot drier today. Unfortunately, we did run into some issues today with the front end of the bike.” (That can’t be very comforting): “No, not at all, when especially you go into the first turn at 160 or 170 mile per hour. There was light at the end of the tunnel because we did find a setting that was much improved before we went out on the qualifier, so we really didn’t get time to find the limit of the setting because I had to go straight into the qualifier. So I think our spirits are definitely high for tomorrow even if it is dry, and if it’s wet we can get a good result tomorrow.” (You said yesterday that the setup challenges were more difficult when it was dry): “Yeah, yeah, in the dry you have front end chatter, it pushes, and the rear end starts stepping out and sliding, so it is a lot harder to get a good lap time in the dry right now with the machine than in the wet. But we definitely found a lot at the end, which really improved our situation, and we did get well within the competition. Another half-second we would have climbed up the charts quite a bit farther.” (Does this circuit compare with any other that you run?): “No, completely different, different styles of asphalt, really tight, some fast corners, some switchbacks, no it is one of a kind.” (Do you like it?): “Actually, I don’t mind it. When your laps are quicker and you are running at the front of the field, you like a track a lot more, so I am determined to get up there and get the lap times a lot better so that we can enjoy the circuit and enjoy the riding a little bit more.” (What has been the reaction to MotoGP here?): “Yeah, it seems really good, there are a lot of people out here today, and I am glad that they got a dry day. It’s a good situation. I just hope we are able to put on a really, really good show for them so that the sport just grows, and grows and grows in the Uni! ted Stat es.” (Jeff Ward is here today. He finished second in the Indy 500. Did you have any thoughts of racing cars?): “Yes, I definitely want to do some car racing in the future and stuff like that. Right now, I am 100-percent focused on MotoGP.” (So you wouldn’t rule this out?): “No, not at all. I love racing cars, I test drove an F1 car a couple of years and rode a really competitive time in it, and it was fun. I plan on racing cars in the future.” (How do you deal with the unpredictability about tomorrow?): “If it is wet, we have lot more of a chance to have a good position, so we are hoping for wet, but if it dry I think it will be a better show for the fans.” (Do you think you are better in the wet than some of your competitors?): “I don’t know. It just seems that our bike reacts a bit better in the wet condition than in the dry.” (When a driver is on the oval they know when they have got the most out of a car. How is it for a rider on this circuit? Do you know this, given the new track, the conditions and all?): “There are places and times when you get that, but we are still learning this place, and we are still far from getting there.” (Are you comfortable on the bike?): “We still have to dial it in, and we are nowhere near comfortable yet.” (When you are here in the U.S., are there more distractions?): “Definitely. I have more press obligations during the day, but we have to do more stuff for the fans. Lot more family and friends, for sure.” (So is this a race where you will be glad that it is over?): “No I’m really, really enjoying it.” (When you are in a position where you start from the back, do you have to try to make up a lot of positions right away?): “You try to get through the first laps and try to gain as many positions as possible, get off the line as good as possible, and don’t get behind and try to catch that lead group and try to get stuck in with them.” TONI ELIAS (Alice Team): “It was bad. We’ve ridden in a place higher, but in qualifying we made a mistake and we crashed. But finally I am in position and qualified for that. I hope tomorrow is better. It’s another day, and I hope it’s not raining. If there’s no rain, it will be a good race for me.” SYLVAIN GUINTOLI (Alice Team): “Well, we’ve had a really good day, really. The qualifying was not so great, but we’ve got a good race ridden, so if the race is dry tomorrow, it is quite good. I think it’s going to be raining anyway, so. The track is very tricky with the wet conditions, so I think it’s going to be a lot of fun tomorrow.” SHINYA NAKANO (San Carlo Honda Gresini): “That’s very good qualifying for us. The pace is not too bad. I’m looking forward to the race tomorrow. When the track is dry, it’s a bit easier to ride because of better grip. With rain, some parts of the racetrack are very good. For us, it’s very difficult because we have to change our style, but when it’s dry, it’s good. I hope to have dry conditions tomorrow for me and for the spectators. This is one of the fastest tracks. Italy is another fast one, but here it is quite fast. I’m impressed.” LORIS CAPIROSSI (Rizla Suzuki MotoGP): “I think the track is not too bad. The layout is nice, but we struggled a lot yesterday with the rain conditions. The bike is a little better compared to this morning, but we have to work for more tomorrow. We hope to have the same weather (sunshine).” (What if we don’t have the same weather?): “The problem is that it depends on what kind of rain we have. If we have really hard rain, there may be no race because it is dangerous.” More, from a press release issued by LCR Honda: DE PUNIET MANAGED 6th PLACE AT INDIANAPPOLIS QUALIFYING Indianapolis, 13 September 2008: The sun shined at Indianapolis Speedway race track today for final qualifying and the LCR Honda MotoGP Team racer Randy De Puniet qualified in 6th position for tomorrow’s 28-lap race. After yesterday’s torrential rain, blue skies and ambience temperature of 34°C welcomed the premier class riders today at the spectacular American circuit which hosts the 14th round of the calendar. Yesterday, in full rain conditions, the Frenchman aboard the Michelin-shod Honda RC212V set the 12th quickest time of the day but today’s conditions were totally different and Randy had to start again his set-up work testing the bike in the dry. The 27-year-old was again a strong performer clocking his quickest lap time of 1’41.492 gaining the second row for the 8th time this season. Today’s poleman Rossi set his fastest lap time of 1’40.776 followed by Stoner and Lorenzo. De Puniet 6th: “I am very happy about my result because it’s not easy to find the right set-up on a new track. Yesterday we had both sessions in the wet and this morning the track surface was still damp. For the final qualifying the track was completely dry but I could easily ride as I would like. When I came out on race tyres my pace was consistently fast and I made a good job on qualifiers as well. This is a very positive result if we consider that I miss some power in the straight but thanks to the adjustments we did this morning I will start from the second row once again. Want to thank my crew and Michelin for their efforts. Starting from the 6th position will help me in case of heavy rain but I do not feel worried about the bad weather because we have got a good pace in both conditions”. More, from another press release issued by Indianapolis Motor Speedway: RED BULL INDIANAPOLIS GP PRESS CONFERENCE Valentino Rossi, Casey Stoner, Jorge Lorenzo, Marco Simoncelli, Pol Espargaro Saturday, Sept. 13, 2008 MODERATOR: Well, it’s the very first pole position press conference here at Indianapolis, the Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix, is round 14 of the MotoGP World Championship and Round 13 of the 250s and the 125s. In pole position in the MotoGP class, Valentino Rossi. Of course, Valentino is leading the World Championship, only second pole position of the season riding the Fiat Yamaha. Alongside him on the front row of the grid, Casey Stoner. Casey has been in pole position for the last seven Grand Prixs, but I suspect you’re happy to be on that front row. Completing the front row is Jorge Lorenzo. You finished second at Misano just a couple weeks ago. In the 250 cc class, Marco Simoncelli in pole position. Marco’s fourth pole of the season. Marco leads the World Championship by 26 points with five rounds remaining in the 250 cc class. And in the 125 cc, Pol Espargaro, 17 years old now. We remember when he was 15 years old, don’t we, riding in Grand Prixs on pole. It’s his second pole position of the season. The BMW Award, of course, awarded at the end of the season after qualifying, Casey Stoner still leads the way on 269. In second place, Valentino Rossi on 231. There will be what, four remaining won’t there, because there will just be four qualifying sessions left. OK, as always, we’re delighted that Tissot are the official timekeepers for MotoGP. We’re delighted here today, Francois [?] Tebel, of course, who is the president of Tissot. And a very special lady who’s going to make the presentations, Danica Patrick. She is the first lady to win an IndyCar race. She’s a very special lady. She won that race at Motegi in Japan. (Applause) So she just may pass on a few tips about riding or driving a car at Motegi where we arrive in two weeks’ time. We start the 125 cc class. Pol Espargaro, if you would like to come forward, please, to receive your watch and certificate from Francois and Danica. You come this way and we’ll make the presentation. Thank you, Pol. Danica is not used to making presentations, she’s used to receiving them. OK, thank you, Pol. We’ll speak to you in a minute. We come on to the 250 cc class, ladies and gentlemen, his fourth pole position of the season, he’s leading the World Championship in the 250 cc class, Marco Simoncelli. (Applause) Just one over here. Marco one more. Sorry. Thank you. The MotoGP class, ladies and gentlemen, he’s leading the World Championship, not so many pole positions this season. That doesn’t matter. He leads the championship by 75 points. The first ever pole position for MotoGP at Indianapolis, it’s Valentino Rossi. (Applause) OK, Francois, thank you. Danica, thank you very much indeed for the presentations. As always, thank you very much to Tissot, thank you both very much indeed. (Applause) We will probably do a picture with Danica at the end with all the riders when we do the end-of-conference picture. We start with MotoGP. Valentino Rossi, Valentino, you could not imagine two more different days than yesterday and today, could you? VALENTINO ROSSI: Yes, it’s incredible. It’s like we change season compared to yesterday. And for sure the condition I prefer a lot today. Now the bigger issue waiting for the forecast of tomorrow morning, because for sure the weather is so important. So we have to wait to understand what we expect. But I’m happy because I’m quite fast in all the conditions and this afternoon and also today we work well with all the team. I did some good lap with the race tires, also if we need to improve a bit some small problem, especially with the qualifier I push hard. After the second qualify, I make some mistake during the lap but I did anyway quite good lap time, so I know I have a good potential. I know it’s possible to make (1:) 40, and I try with the last one and the lap time was fantastic. You know, the pole position is just a small advantage, just 2 meters for the race. But for me it’s important. I’m happy because it’s just a second pole position of the year. MODERATOR: We spoke on Thursday, you hadn’t been around the circuit, and I think I heard you say you’ve been pleasantly surprised by the circuit. ROSSI: Yes, I like the circuit. The layout is good. A lot of difficult corners in a row. You have to understand the right line to keep the speed, and I remember a little bit Rio with this track and I love Rio. So I’m good. And you know, I have a big question mark for the Turn 5, like we speak yesterday with the other riders for sure. Today also in the dry, the situation is more danger, and we have to do something for next year. But except for Turn 5, I think the rest is safe and good to ride. MODERATOR: And Indianapolis as a place, a complex, it’s been unbelievable, isn’t it? ROSSI: Yes, it is, and we wait for good weather also for the crowd. Already today for Saturday, we have a lot of people around the track. This is so important for our sport. So if tomorrow doesn’t rain, for sure, we wait for more people and is good. MODERATOR: Valentino, thank you very much. Casey Stoner, ladies and gentlemen, riding the Marlboro Ducati. Casey, it’s been quite a tough weekend, but you’re on the front row of the grid, and that’s what’s important, isn’t it? CASEY STONER: Yes, it definitely hasn’t gone to plan the last five or six weekends. But we’ve been happy enough with the position that we ended up. We’re struggling a little bit with the front end today. There’s a few parts of the track that we seem to get quite a lot of chatter, and it’s hard to understand why. We changed a few things but we just couldn’t seem to fix those problems. But, I mean, to be second on the grid, I wasn’t really expecting great things this afternoon. We missed out in the last 10, 15 minutes of the morning session when the track started to dry out a little bit. I struggled to get the right setting and good feeling. So I’m pleasantly surprised with a front row because I wasn’t expecting it today. MODERATOR: And the circuit obviously in the rain it was very, very difficult. A different proposition today. STONER: The only real drama with the circuit in the wet was just the new parts, the new surface holding a lot of water. It wasn’t dispersing it anywhere, and when it started to dry out the old part of the track was completely bone dry, and the new track was still quite holding a lot of water. So that’s the only issue, I’d say. Especially if it’s going to be a 50/50 race if it starts to dry out, which tire to go on because the wet tires are just going to destroy themselves on the last part of the track, but on the first part there’s going to be a lot of water still. So it could be interesting tomorrow, depending on the weather. At the moment it’s been a 50/50 weekend, so it will be interesting to see how we wake up in the morning. MODERATOR: I think everybody is going to wake up quite early in the morning, and that first glimpse of the weather is going to be very important, isn’t it? STONER: Yes, but this morning I woke up, and it didn’t look that great and it definitely cleared up a lot. The way the track dried out in the end was very nice. It would be nice if we can have a dry race. But the forecast has been sort of all over the shot at the moment, and it’s very, very hard to pick. So we’ve done the best job we can in both conditions, and we can only do what we can in the race. MODERATOR: Casey, thanks very much. We go on to the third place, front row of the grid for Jorge Lorenzo. Jorge is the double 250cc World Champion, MotoGP debut season. Jorge, you’re back on the front row of the grid, it’s been a good weekend. JORGE LORENZO: It seems like it’s going to be so funny tomorrow. I like the circuit. The track is not so dangerous that I expected, so I could drive like I know. We have some problems in T1, for example. I was riding following Valentino and I didn’t know how he race in the T1, but, for sure, tomorrow if we want to be in front, we have to solve this problem because we lost half a second. If we get it, we can fight for finish on the podium or better. MODERATOR: And Indianapolis as the whole place, it’s an amazing place, the complex, the history and everything. LORENZO: Yeah, for sure. I am happy to be here in this country and to know that the sport here is also important because the crowd here know about bikes and the riders, no? So they so much love. So it’s important that this sport can grow up in this country. MODERATOR: Jorge, thanks very much indeed. We all hope for dry weather for MotoGP tomorrow. Go on to the 250 cc class, Marco Simoncelli. Marco, in your fourth pole position, that’s where you want to be, especially after the little problems in Misano. Or big problems perhaps. MARCO SIMONCELLI: Yeah, yeah. For me, of course Misano there was many, many problem. But anyway here I try to stay concentrate in the practice, and I had success in this thing. For tomorrow I think that I again will be quite fast because the setup of my bike is not so bad. And I believe that I can make a good race tomorrow. MODERATOR: You lead the World Championship with 26 points; there’s still five races. But you were battling so hard in Misano and sometimes you think perhaps just accept the points. SIMONCELLI: Yeah, I have to pay attention because now I lead the championship. It’s very important to take home many, many points. And, also, for this tomorrow I have to stay concentrate and think only do my race, not do the other riders. MODERATOR: Marco, thank you very much. Good luck tomorrow. SIMONCELLI: Thank you. MODERATOR: We go on to the 125cc class, and Pol Espargaro was a superb qualifying situation in the dry. POL ESPARGARO: (Through translator ) So, Pol, just explaining that, yeah, it was quite a good session for him today. Said really he hasn’t going so well and didn’t really get on with the circuit in wet conditions. But woke up this morning and saw it cleared a little bit and felt so much better in the dry conditions. When he came out to qualify, he let a few riders go first and see how the conditions were and put in a fast lap at the end and then he managed to repeat it. He says that’s quite good where he’s in a situation where you can do those fast laps consistently. MODERATOR: Just for 125 cc rider, we heard MotoGP, they like the circuit. I think Marco likes the circuit. What is it like for a 125 rider? ESPARGARO: (Through translator ) So, yeah, he’s just explaining that it’s quite hard, especially because of a long straight, you need a good engine to be working. It’s quite complicated, quite technical for him. The main problem he was having was the change of surface and trying to get used to that. He says if it doesn’t rain, he expects to have a good race. MODERATOR: Thank you, Pol. Just a reminder, it’s the first time 125s and 250s in America for 14 years since Laguna Seca, 1994. So it will be interesting for the American public to see 125s and 250s. OK, questions from the floor, ladies and gentlemen. Q: Valentino, what would it mean to add your name to the legends of the Brickyard, A.J. Foyt, Rick Mears, Jeff Gordon, the greats who have won here? ROSSI: So I think the important is tomorrow to add my name because pole position is important, but tomorrow is quite different. Q: Valentino, I’m curious about what you can talk about the rivalry between you and Casey and how that has kind of perpetuated through qualifying on the front row, both of you, in the last recent events. ROSSI: Yes. So, is from Laguna that me and Casey start always first and second. This year Casey qualify from Barcelona was very, very strong. We try all the time try to make pole position; we work very well but we arrive behind. So, you know, the important is start on the front row for me. But when you make the pole position, it’s always better for you and for all the team. So this time is like we work a little bit better, and we are able to start in front. But, for sure, the battle will be tomorrow. Q: Valentino, at Laguna Seca you got off your bike and kissed the pavement in the Corkscrew. If you win tomorrow, are you going to kiss the bricks? ROSSI: Yes, I know that happen, but the NASCAR go in clean — the NASCAR guys win, they climb the fence, right? And for Indy, kiss the brick or what? Before I think we have to concentrate on the 28 laps. (Laughter) And after, the rest is a lot more easy. Q: Question for Casey. Casey, you had a pretty nasty crash yesterday morning, it seemed like you fell on your head. Are you all right? (Laughter) STONER: I’m second on the grid, so I’m not doing too bad. Q: What about your wrist, it’s your left wrist that was injured a couple of weeks ago. It’s a left-handed racetrack. Is that more of a problem, the fact that it’s left-handed and you’ve got to put more extra weight on the left? STONER: We’ve been trying to tape it so it takes the pressure off the brakes because it’s a left-hand corner and you’re always sitting off to the left-hand side a little bit. It’s been a little difficult, and this afternoon we didn’t have the taping perfect; there wasn’t enough strength to keep it over. So we’ll try and do a better job tomorrow. But, I mean, it’s a pain in the butt, but it’s not a reason I’ve run second. I’ve had a bit of a rough weekend, knocked my confidence a bit yesterday, didn’t understand why we went down again. It’s been nice to just get some decent laps today and try to get confidence back in the bike. Q: Valentino, the last time you guys were in the United States, you and Casey put on a great show at Laguna Seca. Can you do that again tomorrow? And what kind of racing do you think this circuit allows or lends itself to? ROSSI: Yes, I think this is a new track for everybody, so is more possible for the race, have more riders together, I think. After, you know, is difficult to say now when every race is a story, is different story. But looks like also the Michelin guy this time are not very far from me and Stoner. Also we have to have a good pace but have to start from behind. So in U.S. you are lucky because you see the best race of the year, the best battle. So if tomorrow come another time, is good. MODERATOR: Anybody else, ladies and gentlemen? Q: Jorge, what can you say about the Michelin tire on the dry situation? And the problem you had on the first part of the track was because the slippery asphalt or for setting up your bike? LORENZO: I think Michelin is a good tire. (Laughter) It’s a good tire, and we can try to beat these guys. But we have to do a excellent race to do it. So I have to concentrate, at least to follow they. If we can beat them, we will try. In the first sector, as you said, we had some difficulty because I don’t feel enough feeling in the front wheel to brake later and harder. So I think this is — Q: Or the asphalt? LORENZO: Yes, for sure, we don’t have enough grip in this corner, but they can brake much later than us. For sure it’s a question I don’t know, because Colin and James also brake the same as me. So maybe Michelin and Yamaha for the front tire is difficult to brake hard. Q: This is for Valentino or Casey. I heard you talk about how dangerous or how hard the new portion of the track is. The Corkscrew is not known for passing, and we saw a good pass at Laguna. Do you think there’s any chance of aggressive passing on the new course when you’re just trying to survive? ROSSI: I think in this track have two or three point during the lap what is possible to overtake. Have some long straight where it’s possible to use the slipstream, have the braking after the back straight. Have some point where is possible to try to overtake in some change of direction and try to use another line for try to go in front. Yes, I think the track is wide, so is possible. MODERATOR: Anybody else? No? One at the back here, yeah. Q: Valentino, what do you think of Nicky Hayden and his effort to ride here with the cast and the broken leg — broken foot? ROSSI: Yes, Nicky, for sure, is not at the maximum. I see his foot is very black, you know. (Laughter) So, for sure, Nicky always give a lot in U.S. Grand Prix, have extra motivation. I don’t speak with him; I don’t know if he feel a lot of pain. But today he make a good run and make some very good lap time after six or seven laps. So maybe it’s good for tomorrow. He have also the extra motivation to try to arrive in front of Pedrosa with different tire, so he for sure try a lot. (Laughter) MODERATOR: I didn’t think we were going to talk about tires today. (Laughter) Any more questions, ladies and gentlemen? No? I think we are fine. If we can stand for the photograph, please, just for the riders. And then we’ll ask Danica to stand with the riders for the final picture. That will be grand. Thanks. Gentlemen, thank you. And Danica, thank you very much indeed. (Applause) More, from a press release issued by Honda: HAYDEN HEADS SECOND ROW, DE PUNIET GOES TOP SIX After a Friday deluge, today’s qualifying was held in sunshine and it was Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) who qualified fastest denying second quickest Casey Stoner (Ducati) an eighth pole in a row. Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) joins them on the front row for tomorrow’s inaugural Indianapolis Grand Prix. Yesterday’s atrocious conditions effectively rendered Friday a track learning exercise at best. Today was when the real business began and it was Stoner who topped the sheets as the hour-long MotoGP qualifying session got underway. His early 1m 44.998s time would have more than four seconds shaved from it when the stint ended. Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda RC212V) demonstrated his abilities as a fast learner when he went third fastest within the first ten minutes as class rookie and class act Andrea Dovizioso (JiR Scot Honda RC212V) sped into the top three with a 1m 44.130s time. Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC212V) then posted a 1m 43.568s lap time to top the standings on his home soil. Things didn’t go so well however for Shinya Nakano (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V) who fell just after ten minutes of the hour had passed. The recent ‘form’ riders soon showed they had lost none of their impetus as Toni Elias, fresh from rostrum finishes, went top with 1m 43.380s lap with De Puniet hanging onto second and Lorenzo and Hayden holding fast, third and fourth fastest. Just before the halfway stage Rossi made his presence felt with a 1m 42.967s time. He then improved this to 1m 42.945s as Nicky moved to second quickest ahead of Stoner, Elias and the resilient De Puniet. These were the riders who adapted quickest to the singular demands of this virgin track. But with the destructive Hurricane Ike in full effect in the locale there is a question mark hanging over whether this race will take place at all with torrential rain or perhaps worse forecast for tomorrow. Hayden, however, was in no mood to be swayed by these serious doubts about the weather. He went top with 22 minutes to go with a 1m 42.206s lap, rear tyre smokin’ all the way around an anti-clockwise track that not only suits his dirt-track oval derived riding style but also favours his ‘good’ left foot over the right heel he broke on 1 August riding in the LA X Games. Neither was De Puniet finished here yet. The flying Frenchman put a 1m 42.027s lap on the board within the final 20 minutes as Toni Elias tried perhaps a bit too hard to stay in the hunt, parting company with his Ducati without injury to return to the pits and emerge on his number two machine. De Puniet again made the running with a 1m 41.570s lap to go top as Suzuki rider Chris Vermeulen bit the dust with 14 minutes of the hour remaining. Then it was Lorenzo’s turn to hit the front with a 1m 41.488s time. But the final ten minutes was where the pattern would be set. Nicky looked good with seven minutes left before Rossi put in a 1m 41.031s time. Rossi then set a 1m 40.776s time that could not be bettered despite Hayden electrifying the crowd with tyre smoking efforts on the ragged edge of effort and adhesion. Less spectacular but no less impressive was Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V) riding the pneumatic-valve engine and on Bridgestone tyres for the first time in qualifying. He notched eighth place on the grid. Nicky, fourth fastest, and just under half a second off the pole time, said: “That was nearly the front row but outside on the second row ain’t a bad spot. I feel this is the best race pace I’ve had in a while. I had a lot more fun today, the bike was working a lot better, we made some geometry tweaks to make it feel better and I was more consistent. The bike certainly felt good and the Michelin tyres too. For the race it’s surely looking wet. It would be awesome to catch a break and get in a dry race, because I feel this is the best race package I’ve had in a while. We’ll see what happens tomorrow, try to have a bit of fun, see how it goes.” De Puniet, sixth quickest on row two, said: “I’m very happy about my result because it’s not easy to find the right set-up on a new track. When I came out on race tyres my pace was consistently fast and I made a good job on qualifiers as well. This is a very positive result if we consider that I miss some power in the straight but thanks to the adjustments we did this morning I will start from the second row once again. I do not feel worried about the bad weather because we have got a good pace in both conditions.” Dovizioso qualified seventh and said: “I still have a good margin of performance and I can approach the race tomorrow in a very positive way. With only one day of sunshine available, maybe our set-up isn’t perfect, but that also means we could expect surprises from our opponents. If the weather remains like today I believe the race will be very intense but the forecast is rain. A good start here is important to tackle the new stretch of asphalt as there’s one good, clean line available through it.” Dani Pedrosa qualified eighth on row three and said: “Today was the first time I used Bridgestone qualifying tyres. It was quite difficult because I was trying to study the tyres while at the same time trying to push for the best possible grid position. As for race tyres, I wasn’t able to do too many consecutive laps because we had so little dry-track time. All in all, I’m confident, we’re gaining important experience and improving every time I go out. I hope we have a dry race tomorrow. If it’s going to rain like it did yesterday afternoon then we’ll discuss with Race Direction the best course of action.” Alex de Angelis (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V) will start from 12th. He said: “On my last fast lap I was slowed by another rider going to the pits. It was a pity. I’m satisfied with the tyres and I’m also happy with my improvement on qualifying tyres. My pace is very good on race tyres and I was very fast in the third section of the track. I’m not worried about the weather because I was fast in both the wet and dry. But starting from the fourth row of the grid will be difficult I will need to make a very good start.” Shinya Nakano qualified 17th and said: “My race pace was not so bad, but I didn’t have a good feeling with grip on the first part of the circuit. Qualifying was very bad for me, I was only 0.6s faster than with my race set-up. I ran straight on at one corner in the qualifying session but only fell off at very low speed. The problem is that I have to start from the sixth row of the grid and that will not be easy. For me the weather is not a big problem wet or dry, only my grid position.” 250cc Series points leader Marco Simoncelli (Aprilia) took pole for the fourth time this season with a 1m 45.168s lap ahead of Hector Barbera (both Aprilia), with Mika Kallio (KTM) third quickest and Alex Debon (Aprilia) completing the front row. Honda representatives Yuki Takahashi (JiR Scot Honda RS250RW) qualified 11th for a third row start and Ratthapark Wilairot (Thai Honda PTT SAG RS250RW) made 13th on the grid. Takahashi, just over one and a half seconds off the pole time, said: “I wanted to get a better result because I could do better. The bike set-up is not too bad, but I can do more, so we need to develop the setting of the suspension because the bike still feels a little unstable at the rear. Tomorrow during warm-up we’ll exploit to the maximum the time available before the race and will need to make a good start, being careful in the first corner with the new asphalt, and with the possible slippery conditions.” Wilairot said: “It’s a new circuit for all of us and a little difficult to learn in one dry day of practice. But we are not so bad. The only problem I have is with the rear end of the bike sliding a lot. We’ve worked on the suspension and it’s a little better. The front-end, my gearbox and the tyres are good. Also my back is not hurting as much as yesterday so I feel a lot better on the bike.” 125cc Pol Espargaro (Derbi) recorded his second pole position of the season so far when he posted a 1m 50.475s lap with five minutes of the half hour session left to run. Championship points leader Mike Di Meglio (Derbi) qualified second fastest despite falling with only 13 minutes left on the clock. Rookie Scott Redding (Aprilia) who was strong in yesterday’s soaking wet conditions headed the session with 20 minutes to go but had to be content with a second row start from eighth at the flag. Stefan Bradl and British rider Danny Webb (both Aprilia) fill the other front row berths. In terms of the World Championship run-in, challenger Gabor Talmacsi (Aprilia) fell in Friday’s swamped session and fractured the scaphoid bone in his left wrist. He could only manage 16th on the grid. Second-placed overall contender Simone Corsi (Aprilia) qualified sixth. Cyril Carrillo (FFM Racing Honda RS125R) managed 35th on the grid and said: “At a new track and being back with the team after a long while it took me some time to get up to speed. And I still have much to do. It will be good to get back to racing and to pick up the pace again.” Honda rider quotes. GP Indy qualifying September 13, 2008. MotoGP: Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda: 4th 1m 41.271s. “That was nearly the front row but outside on the second row ain’t a bad spot. I feel this is the best race pace I’ve had in a while; a few times when I’ve qualified good this year it’s just been one lap with a qualifier. I enjoyed today, even this morning in the damp. Yesterday in the heavy rain, man, I was hydroplaning everywhere, it wasn’t any fun. I had a lot more fun today, the bike was working a lot better, we made some geometry tweaks to make it feel better and I was able to be more consistent. The bike certainly felt pretty good and the Michelin tyres felt pretty good. For the race it’s surely looking wet. It would be awesome to catch a break and get in a dry race, because I feel this is the best race package I’ve had in a while. If it’s dry we’ve got an idea on tyres. If it’s wet, my set-up yesterday wasn’t working real good. If it’s heavy, heavy rain we need to do something different. It would’ve been nice to be on the front row, we could certainly use a bit of a boost because my guys are working real hard and I’ve got a lot of support here: friends, family and fans. We’ll see what happens tomorrow, try to have a bit of fun, see how it goes. The special helmet paint is for the Indianapolis Colts. When I was a kid I played Pop Warner football and I was a Colt, that was my team. It was me, my little brother and one of my best friends. Colts have always been my favourite team. And the horseshoe, maybe I could do with a bit of good luck!” Randy De Puniet, LCR Honda: 6th 1m 41.492s. “I am very happy about my result because it’s not easy to find the right set-up on a new track. Yesterday we had both sessions in the wet and this morning the track surface was still damp. For the final qualifying the track was completely dry but I could easily ride as I would like. When I came out on race tyres my pace was consistently fast and I made a good job on qualifiers as well. This is a very positive result if we consider that I miss some power in the straight but thanks to the adjustments we did this morning I will start from the second row once again. Starting from the 6th position will help me in case of heavy rain but I do not feel worried about the bad weather because we have got a good pace in both conditions”. Andrea Dovizioso, JiR Scot Honda: 7th 1m 41.744s. “I’m glad of the proof of what’s happened today, because I was strong but I still have a good margin of performance and I can approach the race tomorrow in a very positive way. With only one day of sunshine available, maybe our set-up isn’t perfect, but that also means we could expect surprises from our opponents. If the weather remains like today I believe the race will be very intense – but the forecasts announce intense rain. I feel ready for both conditions and fast in both, as I’m at the front of the third row and was close to the second row. A good start here in Indianapolis is important to tackle the new stretch of asphalt as there’s one good, clean line available through it.” Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda: 8th- 1m 41.754s. “Today was the first time that I have used Bridgestone qualifying tyres, so it was quite difficult because I was trying to study the tyres while at the same time trying to push for the best possible-grid position. The fact with qualifying tyres is that you can only be really fast once you know them very well. I was able improve my times with my third qualifier, so I think the third row is not such a bad result, considering the circumstances. As for race tyres, I wasn’t able to do too many consecutive laps because we had so little dry-track time. Therefore we still need to define some details for race-tyre choice but overall I feel quite fine. We also need to work to better understand my new machine, which is very different from the machine I had been using, especially considering the electronics. All in all, I’m confident, we are gaining important experience and improving every time I go out. I hope we will have a dry race tomorrow. If it’s going to rain like it did yesterday afternoon then we will discuss with Race Direction the best course of action.” Alex De Angelis, San Carlo Gresini Honda: 12th – 1m 41.969s. “On my last fast lap I was slowed by another rider going to the pit box, it was a pity. I’m satisfied with the tyres Bridgestone helped me improve in each session today. I am also happy with my improvement on qualifying tyres. My pace is very good on race tyres, I was very fast in FP3. I’m not worried about the weather because I was have been fast in both the wet and dry. But starting from the fourth row of the grid will be difficult I will need to make a very good start.” Shinya Nakano, San Carlo Gresini Honda: 17th – 1m 42.732s. “In the completely dry qualification my race pace was not so bad, everywhere. But I didn’t have a good feeling with grip on the first part of the circuit. Qualifying was very bad for me, I was only 0.6s faster than with my race set up. I ran straight on at one corner in the qualifying session but only fell off at very low speed. The problem is that I have to start from the sixth row of the grid and that will not be easy. For me the weather is not a big problem wet or dry, only my grid position.” 250cc: Yukio Takahashi, JiR Scot Honda: 11th -1m 46.739s. “I wanted to get a better result because I think I could do better. The bike set-up is not too bad, but I can do more, so we need to develop the setting of the suspension because the bike still feels a little unstable at the rear. Tomorrow during the warm-up we will exploit to the maximum the time available before the race and will need to make a good start, being careful in the first corner with the new asphalt, and with the possible slippery conditions. Either way, I think we could do a good race tomorrow.” Ratthapark Wilairot, Thai Honda PTT SAG: 1m 46.847s. “It is a new circuit for all of us and a little difficult to learn in one dry day of practice. But we are not so bad the only problem I have is with the rear end of the bike it’s sliding a lot. We have worked on the suspension and it is a little better. The front end, my gearbox and the tyres are good. Also my back is not hurting as much as yesterday so I feel a lot better on the bike.” 125cc: Cyril Carrillo, FFM Honda: 35th 1m 55.697s. “The track requires good rhythm which is very difficult. It’s very technical and I lack experience on this type of course. The rain did not help and we also had some problems setting up our Honda¹s chassis. Fortunately I feel very comfortable within the team but I must ride faster to show them they made the right choice by choosing me as a rider.” More, from a press release issued by Repsol Honda: HOMEBOY HAYDEN MISSES FRONT ROW BY 0.094s Indianapolis Grand Prix, Indianapolis Motor Speedway Qualifying, Saturday September 13 2008 Repsol Honda rider Nicky Hayden was in storming form during this afternoon’s sun-blessed Indianapolis qualifying session, battling for pole position and finally ending up fourth fastest to lead the second row, just 0.094 seconds off the front row. Following yesterday’s all-day downpour, the sun shone at Indy today, though the wind got up as the day went on, heralding the arrival of Hurricane Ike, which is due to reach Indy tomorrow. Heavy rain and thunderstorms are predicted for much of the day. This morning’s session starting out on a damp track, but this afternoon’s outing was all dry. Hayden set the pace in the early stages, entertaining the crowd with some smokin’ exits from turn 13. Working with his crew he got his RC212V handling well around the brand-new Indy MotoGP track. Hayden is still riding in some pain from the broken right heel he suffered six weeks ago. The Kentucky Kid is wearing a special home-race helmet here, celebrating his lifelong support for the Indianapolis Colts football team. Nicky Hayden, 4th fastest, 1m 41.271s “That was nearly the front row but outside on the second row ain’t a bad spot. I feel this is the best race pace I’ve had in a while; a few times when I’ve qualified good this year it’s just been one lap with a qualifier. I enjoyed today, even this morning in the damp. Yesterday in the heavy rain, man, I was hydroplaning everywhere, it wasn’t any fun. I had a lot more fun today, the bike was working a lot better, we made some geometry tweaks to make it feel better and I was able to be more consistent. The bike certainly felt pretty good and the Michelin tyres felt pretty good. For the race it’s surely looking wet. It would be awesome to catch a break and get in a dry race, because I feel this is the best race package I’ve had in a while. If it’s dry we’ve got an idea on tyres. If it’s wet, my set-up yesterday wasn’t working real good. If it’s heavy, heavy rain we need to do something different. It would’ve been nice to be on the front row, we could certainly use a bit of a boost because my guys are working real hard and I’ve got a lot of support here: friends, family and fans. We’ll see what happens tomorrow, try to have a bit of fun, see how it goes. The special helmet paint is for the Indianapolis Colts. When I was a kid I played Pop Warner football and I was a Colt, that was my team. It was me, my little brother and one of my best friends. Colts have always been my favourite team. And the horseshoe, maybe I could do with a bit of good luck!” Kazuhiko Yamano – Team Manager “Nicky has done a great job today, so close to the front row. Also he has a good race pace, though I know it’s not easy for him because he still feels pain in the right foot. This is his home GP, so I know he will be doing everything to score a podium result for his fans, for sure he deserves it. His machine and his tyres seem okay, Michelin have done a good job here. Now we must wait and see what happens with the weather.” More, from another press release issued by Repsol Honda: PEDROSA ON THIRD ROW WITH NEW BIKE & TYRES Indianapolis Grand Prix, Indianapolis Motor Speedway Qualifying, Saturday September 13 2008 Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa scored a third-row start at Indianapolis today, an impressive performance considering that this is his first race weekend with a new machine and new tyres. Tomorrow the Spaniard will race his Bridgestone-equipped pneumatic-valve RC212V for the very first time. Pedrosa was fourth fastest in this morning’s final free practice session. During this afternoon’s qualifying session he used the Japanese company’s qualifying tyres for the very first time, managing to achieve eighth-quickest time of the day, less than a second off pole, despite minimal track time with the tyres. Following yesterday’s all-day deluge, conditions improved dramatically today, with this morning’s session starting out on a damp track and this afternoon’s outing conducted on a fully dry circuit in 34 degree sunshine. However, latest weather forecasts predict heavy rain for much of tomorrow as the remnants of Hurricane Ike move northwards into Indiana. Dani Pedrosa, 8th fastest, 1m 41.754s “Today was the first time that I have used Bridgestone qualifying tyres, so it was quite difficult because I was trying to study the tyres while at the same time trying to push for the best possible-grid position. The fact with qualifying tyres is that you can only be really fast once you know them very well. I was able improve my times with my third qualifier, so I think the third row is not such a bad result, considering the circumstances. As for race tyres, I wasn’t able to do too many consecutive laps because we had so little dry-track time. Therefore we still need to define some details for race-tyre choice but overall I feel quite fine. We also need to work to better understand my new machine, which is very different from the machine I had been using, especially considering the electronics. All in all, I’m confident, we are gaining important experience and improving every time I go out. I hope we will have a dry race tomorrow. If it’s going to rain like it did yesterday afternoon then we will discuss with Race Direction the best course of action.” Kazuhiko Yamano – Team Manager “This has been a very difficult two days for Dani because track conditions have been different in all four sessions. He has many new items here: new machine and new tyres, so he has a lot to learn. He has made a good job so far, working step by step, especially this afternoon when he was getting to know new qualifying tyres. Now we have to wait and see what the weather will do.”