NeroGiardini Motorrad Grand Prix Von Osterreich

FIM MotoGP World Championship

Red Bull Ring, Austria

August 12, 2016

Free Practice Two Results (all on Michelin tires):

1. Andrea DOVIZIOSO, Italy (DUCATI), 1:23.617

2. Andrea IANNONE, Italy (DUCATI), 1:23.855

3. Maverick VIÑALES, Spain (SUZUKI), 1:24.471

4. Valentino ROSSI, Italy (YAMAHA), 1:24.483

5. Cal CRUTCHLOW, UK (HONDA), 1:24.688

6. Danilo PETRUCCI, Italy (DUCATI), 1:24.866

7. Hector BARBERA, Spain (DUCATI), 1:24.956

8. Jorge LORENZO, Spain (YAMAHA), 1:24.988

9. Michele PIRRO, Italy (DUCATI), 1:24.988

10. Marc MARQUEZ, Spain (HONDA), 1:25.039

11. Yonny HERNANDEZ, Colombia (DUCATI), 1:25.042

12. Scott REDDING, UK (DUCATI), 1:25.140

13. Pol ESPARGARO, Spain (YAMAHA), 1:25.221

14. Jack MILLER, Australia (HONDA), 1:25.321

15. Tito RABAT, Spain (HONDA), 1:25.770

16. Alvaro BAUTISTA, Spain (APRILIA), 1:25.882

17. Bradley SMITH, UK (YAMAHA), 1:25.941

18. Aleix ESPARGARO, Spain (SUZUKI), 1:25.945, crash

19. Dani PEDROSA, Spain (HONDA), 1:26.130

20. Stefan BRADL, Germany (APRILIA), 1:26.149

21. Eugene LAVERTY, Ireland (DUCATI), 1:26.469

22. Loris BAZ, France (DUCATI), 1:26.491

More, from a press release issued by Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS:

Miller and Rabat set hot pace in Arctic Austria

Team Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS riders Jack Miller and Tito Rabat enjoyed an encouraging start to the Austrian MotoGP round today, despite unseasonably cold conditions at Spielberg.

Ambient temperature for this morning’s FP1 didn’t even reach double figures, while track temperature was an incredibly cool 14 degrees for the opening 45-minute session.

Despite the chilly conditions, Miller and Rabat were able to put in vital laps on two brand new Michelin rear tyres that were available today. The new tyres were designed based on information given to Michelin at the conclusion of a successful two-day test session at the super-fast and technical Spielberg track last month.

Conditions were significantly hotter for the test, but Miller and Rabat were still positive about the performance of the new rubber in today’s two practice sessions, which saw them finish 14th and 15th respectively on combined times.

A fully fit and confident Miller was an impressive eighth fastest this morning and he impressed again in slightly warmer temperatures this afternoon to improve his pace by over a second.

Miller finished 14th overall but found himself just 0.5s outside of the top six and he starred in the fast third sector of the 2.684 miles Spielberg track when he set the second fastest T3 split time this afternoon.

The Australian is now confident with hotter weather predicted for tomorrow that he can challenge for a place in Q2.

Rabat was just one place behind his teammate and he was delighted that the sharp drop in temperature did not alter his increased confidence in the front-end of his Honda RC213V package, which he improved after extensive work during the recent Spielberg test.

Jack Miller: 14th – 1’25.321

“I got off to a decent start this morning but the gap has increased slightly to the front in FP2. I am not worried because I know I can do a better lap time but we are still experimenting with the set-up of our package to suit the new tyres that Michelin have here. They are different to the spec we used at the test, so it is just a matter of me refining the set-up to make them work better for me. It was really hot at the test and Michelin made these new tyres based on that. They went hard for better tyre life but now we’ve got cold conditions. But it will be fine once the weather improves. I’m pretty happy with how today went and I am really satisfied with my pace in the last two sectors. I’m really fast in the third sector but we need to improve out of the slow corners in the first part of the lap.”

Tito Rabat: 15th – 1’25.770

“The track is very different compared to the test we did here last month and it is much, much colder. I am still happy because I have a good feeling with the front-end and this is the first time this has happened in the entire season in cold conditions. I think the biggest improvement I need to find is managing the wheelie coming out of the first corner. It is a very aggressive acceleration point and I can improve in that area. Today was one of the best opening days I’ve had this season, so hopefully in warmer conditions I can build on this performance tomorrow.”

Cristian Gabarrini: Jack Miller Chief Engineer

“The weather conditions are completely different to what we had at the test here last month and as soon as we knew it was going to be very cool today we expected it would take time to work on the set-up to get the best out of the new Michelin tyres. The main problem is managing the rear grip because we have a lot of sliding on entry and exit. The bike is moving a lot, so it makes acceleration more difficult and we are working to improve in that area without straying too far away from our test setting. In some parts of the track Jack feels really good but we need to try and give him more grip coming out of the slower corners. Hopefully this will become less challenging as the weather improves because it was very cold today and difficult to keep temperature in the tyres.”

More, from a press release issued by Monster Yamaha Tech 3:

Espargaro positively gets up to speed on the opening day at Spielberg

Monster Yamaha Tech3 Team rider Pol Espargaro bolted into action during the first day of the Austrian GP and finished in 13th as he battled the rapid Spielberg circuit for the first time. The young Spaniard wasted no time in getting up to speed, despite having to learn the new venue on the 2016 MotoGP calendar. Nevertheless, he completed 25 laps in FP1, the joint highest number in the session, and ended the practice with a personal best that was only a second from the front. His progression continued in the afternoon as he carried on taking steps forward in preparation for Sunday. The 25-year-old upped his pace and eventually powered to a time that was just over half a second from 5th, marking a solid close to the opening day. The current leading satellite rider in the championship standings will seek to maintain his momentum tomorrow and clinch a top tier grid position for the 28-lap shootout.

On the other side of the Monster Yamaha Tech3 pit box, Bradley Smith began his round 10 campaign with a determined effort aboard the Yamaha YZR-M1 as he prepares for the first race on Austrian soil since 2007. The 25-year-old started his day by concluding the opening practice behind his teammate by only 0.115, as he grew accustomed to the undulating circuit on a MotoGP bike. In the afternoon, Smith relentlessly completed 27 laps as he focused on setting up his Yamaha for the GP and he finished with a lap time that was just one second from Word Champion, Jorge Lorenzo. The young Briton eyes up tomorrow with optimism as he confidently intends to undertake a positive qualifying performance.

Pol Espargaro

Position: 13th Time: 1’25.221 Laps: 47

“It’s nice to be back on my M1 after the summer break and personally, I like the layout of the circuit a lot. It’s fun to ride, flowing and the grip level is really high. There are a few critical points on the track and it’s very fast, but it’s definitely different to the places where we usually go racing and that makes it special. Having said that, I’m convinced that we didn’t show our true potential today, as I still don’t know the layout enough and I’m lacking some references. Therefore, I occasionally missed my braking points, especially after having put on new tyres. I felt a bit nervous on the bike and for sure my fastest lap time is quite far from where we could have been, yet the gap to the factory guys isn’t too big and we have a lot of margin of improvement to make. It was very helpful to follow some other riders today and this was mainly what I tried to do in order to quickly obtain as much information as possible. After two sessions we now have a good base for the weekend and I’m looking forward to getting more laps under my belt tomorrow, plus I’m sure we will climb up in the rankings.”

Bradley Smith

Position: 17th Time: 1’25.941 Laps: 50

“I am happy to be working with the guys again and back racing after the summer break. With regards to our performance today, it’s clear to see that we have a bit more work to do and I’m a bit disappointed. I have to admit that we also didn’t make a big enough change in between the practice sessions which meant that it wasn’t possible to lower the lap time as much as the other guys. I think tyre life is going to be one of the main issues here this weekend. A lot of riders did short sprints today, but this afternoon I put in two fairly decent long runs and the endurance of the tyres seems to be a continuing issue. I’m a bit worried, and even more so if the temperature keeps on rising for the rest of the weekend, however, let’s see what happens. It goes without saying that we want to improve our one lap pace, yet right now the sensible option is to try and work on something for the race distance. That is what we tried to do today, and we have some more work to do but I’m sure we can get closer to where we want to be tomorrow.”

More, from a press release issued by Aspar Team:

Yonny Hernández places just outside Top 10 in Austria

Pull&Bear Aspar Team riders Yonny Hernández and Eugene Laverty begin Austrian GP action on Friday, with the Colombian three thousandths of a second outside the top 10 a Laverty crashing in the first free practice session

The Austrian GP weekend got underway on Friday with the opening practice sessions, dominated by Ducati riders. As had been expected after the two days of testing before the summer break, the Italian bike was well suited to the Spielberg circuit, and five of the Top 10 riders on day one were onboard a Desmosedici. The fastest rider was Andrea Dovizioso, with teammate Andrea Iannone hot on his heels just over two tenths behind. World Championship leader Marc Márquez rounds off the top ten in the combined timesheet for the day, two positions behind title rival Jorge Lorenzo.

The Pull&Bear Aspar Team riders completed day one with mixed feelings. The positive came fromYonny Hernández, who was fifth in the first free practice session and even led the way for a few minutes. In FP2, with improved track conditions, the Colombian finished in eleventh place -three thousandths of a second behind Marc Marquez in tenth. Hernandez worked throughout the day on his preparation for the race, without thinking about setting a fast lap and concentrating on longer runs. He saved a crash with his knee late on, having lost the front on a quick lap. Eugene Laverty struggled after a crash in FP1, affecting his confidence for the rest of the day and preventing him from putting in more than five laps. The Northern Irishman managed to lower his times in FP2, racking up twenty laps.

11th Yonny Hernández 1.25.042 (35 laps): “We worked on our race pace during the day, although at the end we tried to enter the top ten. We only just missed out on it. I was using a front tyre that had ten laps in it, and was following Rossi, but I lost the front end. I used my elbow and knee to stay up when I had almost lost control. We concluded the day with a good feeling, and we have been going in a positive direction since the test. I hope to stay in this position tomorrow to achieve the goal of entering Q2. It would be great to do it directly, because going through Q1 to get there is crazy. Based on today, I think we can achieve this and we are close.”

21st Eugene Laverty 1.26.469 (25 laps): “The morning was a bit of a disaster, culminating in a crash. Prior to that we had a technical problem and the bike stopped, so I had to come back on the sliproad and the tyres cooled. When I got back on track they were still cold and I crashed coming into Turn 8. That damaged my confidence. In the second session I struggled a bit to feel that confidence again, but in the end I managed to lower my time. In the final moments Iannone complained about me, telling me to use my head. If I was on a slow lap I would have accepted the blame, but I was on my fast lap and I don’t think that his complaint was correct.”

More, from a press release issued by Pramac Racing:

 Petrux 6th, Scott 12th: Octo Pramac Yakhnich starts Red Bull Ring weekend well

In a day dominated by Ducati Team as Andrea Dovizioso and Andrea Iannone managed to create a vacuum in terms of gap (more than 6 tenths of a second between Vinales’s third and Iannone’s second place), Octo Pramac Yakhnich ended up well gaining a valuable sixth place with Danilo Petrucci and putting Scott Redding very close to the Top 10.

The summer break was abruptly ended today at Red Bull Ring (Austria) due to a very low temperature which created many difficulties to the riders, especially to push the tires in the optimum temperature.

Petrux still managed to go fast in the morning and after closing the FP1 ninth, in the last run of the FP2 he set the sixth fastest time (1’24.886) three tenths of a second from the front row.

After struggling early in the FP1 and working a lot on the set up in FP2, Scott has found a good feeling with his Ducati Desmosedici GP finishing in 12th position, only 101 milliseconds from the tenth place of the championship leader Marc Marquez.

12th – Scott Redding

1’25.140

I do not say that it was a difficult day. It’s just the test conditions were completely different. At first I could not find feeling especially with the rear and I was a bit nervous. We tried to change bikes, twice, but we could not find particular advantages. I must say that the gap is not much from the Top 10 and if we can fix some details I think we can do well tomorrow, eventually even through Q1.

6th – Danilo Petrucci

1’24.886

A good day. We were always competitive although it was very cold and we were never able to warm the tires. We are fast and although we tried some things that did not go well, for sure we understand what is the way to go. We are in the top 10 but the gap is still so much and we want to improve tomorrow. I hope that the temperature will be a bit higher tomorrow because is not easy to run in these conditions.

More, from a press release issued by Movistar Yamaha:

MOVISTAR YAMAHA MOTOGP BEGIN AUSTRIAN ADVENTURE

The NeroGiardini Motorrad Grand Prix von Österreich got underway today as Movistar Yamaha MotoGP took to the Red Bull Ring – Spielberg circuit for the first official practice sessions.

Spielberg (Austria), 12th August 2016

Movistar Yamaha MotoGP teammates Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo made a solid start this morning in tricky conditions. Cold weather again proved to be the biggest challenge, with temperatures around only nine degrees Celsius as both Factory Yamaha riders focused on finding the perfect set-up for Sunday‘s race. They improved their times in the afternoon session and took fourth and eighth place respectively in the combined practice times.

Rossi secured his first World Championship podium of his career at the Spielberg circuit in 1996, with a third place in the 125cc class, and he clearly enjoyed returning to the venue twenty years later. The Doctor delivered a strong morning practice session, which saw him top the provisional results list for the majority of the time. After the session was briefly stopped due to a damaged air fence, he spent the remaining 12 minutes fine-tuning his bike‘s setting and secured fourth place with a 1’26.232s, 0.366s from the front.

The afternoon saw further improvements from the nine-time World Champion. He was riding consistently fast lap times as he tried to find the best lines on the track and a perfect balance for his YZR-M1 to go with it. He wrapped up the day in fourth with a personal best lap of 1’24.483, 0.866s from the fastest time of the day.

Teammate Lorenzo had a cautious start to the weekend. With chilly weather conditions and the tyres brought by Michelin being very different from the test three weeks ago, the Mallorcan used the first 45-minute free practice session to get a feel for the track. A late charge saw him end FP1 in seventh place with a 1’26.375s, 0.509s from first.

He was quick to resume his work during FP2. Consistently improving his pace, he bettered his morning time by over a second as he continued to perfect the set-up of his YZR-M1. With the temperature rising and the times dropping, he saved his best for the last stint when he breached into the 1’24’s with a 1’24.988s, to end the day in eighth place, 1.371s from the front.

MASSIMO MEREGALLI

TEAM DIRECTOR

We started FP1 with the setup we prepared three weeks ago during the test, but the conditions were very cold and the new tyres that Michelin brought are quite hard considering the temperatures. Due to this we had to almost start from zero again regarding our settings. For tomorrow it will be fundamental to reduce the gap, which is quite significant. To do so we‘ll study the data we collected today, especially as Jorge is not comfortable with his bike. Contrarily, Vale is more comfortable with it, though there are still opportunities to improve and I‘m confident that we can make another step forward for tomorrow and I hope the weather will do so as well.

VALENTINO ROSSI

There was a big difference compared to the test, with a lot lower temperatures out on the track. The bike was more difficult to ride and it was especially challenging to put in the tyre with the right grip. The first day was not so bad, it was actually quite positive because my pace was good. The biggest problem is that two factory rivals are very strong so we need to work and give the maximum to try to reduce the gap tomorrow. The tyres that Michelin brought here are better than the ones at the test, the allocation is OK. The problem is that we don‘t have summery weather anymore, it‘s another season, so we have to wait and hope for good weather tomorrow and especially on Sunday.

JORGE LORENZO

There‘s a difference between us and our rivals, but you know you have to work on your own bike and your own pace to try to improve it and that‘s what we did. We tried to modify the bike and improve by some tenths and we got a good pace. We didn‘t put the softer tyre on the rear like some other riders, so we have some margin to be even closer. Especially in the morning it was very cold and it‘s only been on a few occasions that it was colder than today. It was tricky because we had to be careful in some corners to avoid crashing. In the afternoon it was a little bit better, with the temperature a few degrees higher, so we had a better feeling but we hope tomorrow the sun will shine a bit more and we‘ll have more confidence.

More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

Positive start to Austrian GP weekend for Ducati Team at Zeltweg: Dovizioso first, Iannone second after first day of free practice, with Pirro ninth inside the Top 10

The Ducati Team riders have put in a great performance on the first day of free practice for the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring in Zeltweg.

Andrea Dovizioso was the quickest rider of the day, with a best time of 1’23.617, finishing ahead of his team-mate Andrea Iannone, second in 1’23.855. The two factory Ducati men were the only riders to get under the 1 minute 24 second mark today and they inflicted quite a gap on their closest rivals in the timesheets. Wild-card rider Michele Pirro on the Desmosedici GP of the Ducati Test Team, also had a good run, finishing the day in ninth place with exactly the same time (1’24.988) as Jorge Lorenzo.

All the riders improved their times during the afternoon’s FP2 session, which as in the morning was held on a dry track, but air (15°) and track (18°) temperatures remained rather cold throughout the day.

Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team #04) – 1’23.617 (1st)

“I am very pleased with the way my weekend has begun, even though we found the tyres, and above all the weather conditions, completely different to those during the test in July. Despite this we were able to confirm our good form and everything is going well, but it’s not enough because we still have to improve some aspects in view of the race. What is certain however is that, with the speed we have, we can use tomorrow’s two sessions to search for the best race pace.”

Andrea Iannone (Ducati Team #29) – 1’23.855 (2nd)

“It was quite a positive day for me, even though I had a big pain in my ribs because of a training crash I had a few days ago on a motocross bike. We have the speed and this is very important in view of the race, but we have to try and reduce the sliding with the rear tyre in the long fast corners, because this could become a problem over the distance. In any case we are working well and we must continue on this path. I have to thank Dr. Zasa of the Clinica Mobile, who helped me a lot today and thanks to painkillers I was able to do the first part of the session without suffering too much: luckily at this circuit there aren’t too many changes in direction, so I’m not suffering that much.”

Michele Pirro (Ducati Team #51) – 1’24.988 (9th)

“Today I tried to improve my feeling with the track, seeing as I didn’t do many laps in the tests, and the fact that this morning it was really cold didn’t help things at all. In the afternoon however we went better, even though I still have to find a perfect feeling with my bike, because there are a couple of points where I’m losing too much time under braking. But apart from this I am feeling confident because the Desmosedici GP is working really well and I think we can make a further step forward tomorrow.”

More, from a press release issued by Repsol Honda:

Austrian GP gets underway for Repsol Honda Team at cold Red Bull Ring

It was a busy first day at the Austrian GP for Marc Marquez and Dani Pedrosa, as they rode the RC213V at the Red Bull Ring for the first time, in ambient temperatures that only reached a chilly 15° C and a track temperature of 18° C.

Marc was sixth fastest this morning, while Dani struggled to find a good pace in the even cooler temperatures and suffered a turn 9 crash from which he thankfully escaped uninjured. This afternoon the Repsol Honda pair focused their work on the setup, choosing to ride the whole session without changing their Michelin tyres, a soft-front, hard-rear combination for Marc and a soft-soft pairing for Dani.

Tomorrow will see the second day of action at the Red Bull Ring, with weather forecasts showing much higher temperatures, and both Marc and Dani are confident they’ll improve their pace and speed as they get completely familiar with the new track.

Marc Marquez

10TH 1’25.039

“It has basically been a day to gather data for the race and to find the reference points with a MotoGP bike for this track, which is new. It’s short but it has many braking points, and we haven’t ridden here with carbon brakes before. All in all, I’m generally happy with how it went today; we’re tenth but it’s not our real position, as we didn’t use a new and softer rear spec tyre. We’ll continue working in the same direction tomorrow, as I think it’s the right one, with the aim to be at least in the top five and to fight for the podium on Sunday.”

Dani Pedrosa

19TH 1’26.130

“It has been a demanding day with such low temperatures. I particularly struggled this morning and I had quite a fast crash, losing time and honestly also some confidence. Things went a bit better this afternoon, with a little warmer temperature, even if it was still difficult to put heat in the tyres. The fact that we didn’t know the track so well didn’t help either, but we’ll continue working and we look to improve tomorrow.”

More, from a press release issued by Aprilia:

FALL TEMPERATURES WELCOME APRILIA TO THE RED BULL RING

GOOD IMPROVEMENT FOR BAUTISTA, BRADL HINDERED BY A CRASH

The brand new Austrian Red Bull Ring hosted the first two MotoGP practice sessions under a dark grey sky. These are very different conditions than those during the tests two weeks ago with very cold asphalt, a situation that demands an added effort from the riders and teams as they look for the best setup.

Alvaro Bautista rode a cautious first session, whereas in FP2 in the afternoon he demonstrated encouraging improvement, especially in terms of a consistent pace. Fast even with very worn tyres, the Spanish rider rode his Aprilia RS-GP to sixteenth place in the combined standings with a time of 1’25.882: an improvement of more than two seconds compared to his performance in FP1.

His Aprilia Racing Team Gresini teammate, Stefan Bradl, had to reckon with a track that is completely new to him, since he missed the tests three weeks ago because he was recovering from a fall in the warmup at the Sachsenring. His day was further conditioned by a crash in the first session, without any physical consequences, but a hindrance nonetheless for finding the right confidence on the Austrian asphalt.

ALVARO BAUTISTA

“Today we found completely different conditions than we had during the tests. Between the morning and the afternoon there was an improvement, but the temperatures still stayed rather low. I tackled FP1 cautiously, whereas in FP2 we were able to get in some good practice. In particular, the harder rear tyre gave me good sensations, especially in terms of pace and consistency. I feel satisfied especially because, without considering the top two, we are not far from the riders ahead of us and tomorrow we will definitely be able to improve. We will also be using a new engine which, on this track, could help us shave of a few tenths”.?

STEFAN BRADL

“Today was definitely not a simple day. The very low temperatures did not help me to gain confidence on this new track, where I have never ridden a MotoGP bike, and the crash this morning did not make things any easier. The front wheel came off the asphalt and as soon as it came down it locked up. Fortunately I was not injured. In FP2 I gradually found my pace. Tomorrow the weather might improve and that will help us”.?

More, from a press release issued by LCR Honda:

CRUTCHLOW FIFTH AFTER FIRST DAY IN AUSTRIA

It was a positive start to the weekend for Cal Crutchlow and his LCR Honda Team as MotoGP returned to action at Austria’s Red Bull Ring for the first time since 1997. The British rider set the fifth fastest lap on the first day of practice, despite low track temperatures.

With the track surface at just 14°C in the morning session, and not too much better in the afternoon, it was not a day for risk-taking, and Crutchlow instead focused his efforts on getting the best set-up for his Honda RC213V ahead of Saturday’s qualifying.

He ended the day as the top Honda rider in the field after posting a best time of 1’24.688, and is upbeat about his chances of securing a good grid spot for Sunday’s race.

#35 Cal Crutchlow – 5th (1’24.688)

“Honestly speaking we are pleased with today, the conditions were difficult for all the riders today with it being so cold and how that affected the tyres. It’s a tough first day after the summer break, but this is what we do, it’s our job and we need to give the best feedback we can.”

“I don’t think it means too much to be top Honda at the moment. I’m not sure Marc (Marquez) is pushing to the limit just yet, and Dani (Pedrosa) is still to get to grips with it a little. We know we can be competitive, it’s just we are struggling a bit with the speed of the bike, and actually we are picking up time everywhere else on the other manufacturers.”

More, from a press release issued by Avintia Racing:

Seventh place for Barbera on the openning day at Spielberg

Positive start for the Avintia Racing riders on the opening day for the Austrian Grand Prix. After finishing the first 45-minute-session quite far from the pace due to the cold track temperatures, Hector Barbera was able to improve his lap times in slightly higher conditions during FP2 to finish seventh in the combined time sheets. The conditions were very different from the test that was held at Spielberg last month and the new harder tyre compounds that Michelin brought for this race caused the Avintia Racing rider to start with a cautious step-by-step approach.

After his return to racing at Germany last month following his right leg injury, Loris Baz worked with his team to improve the set up of his Ducati. Slowly but surely, he is getting the feeling back that he had during the winter test, even though the lap times don’t reflect it yet. Temperatures are expected to increase tomorrow, so both riders aim to improve and get a better position on the grid for Sunday’s 25 lap-race.

Hector Barbera | 1’24.956 | P7

“I’m happy, because seventh is a good way to start after the summer break. But the best thing today was the feeling in the afternoon. In the morning I felt really bad, but I worked together with my crew to try to adapt ourselves to the track conditions that were completely different from the test. One month ago we had 50 degrees temperature on the track and today, we hardly reached 20, but we did a good job and we got a positive result. Top 10 is always good, and if we are close to the fifth place, it’s even better. The target for tomorrow will be to get a place in Q2. I think we can improve the lap times and with more temperature, for sure we can do it. To be honest, I could go slightly faster in some areas, but the track temperature was very cold and I prefer not to take big risks”.

Loris Baz | 1’26.491 | P22

“This morning was really cold and it was hard to get the pace and get the tyres on the right temperature. But anyway, it was positive because we didn’t crash. In the afternoon we tried two different bikes; one bike was identical to the one we used at the Phillip Island test, trying to recover the good feeling we had, and the other bike had a different setting. It was not so bad, we made a step forward and we found some areas were can clearly improve tomorrow and where we didn’t have the problems we had during the last few races. This is very positive and tomorrow we expect to see the result. I still have pain in my foot when I’m off the bike, but when I’m riding it’s fine”.

More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki Press Office:

VIÑALES & SUZUKI ECSTAR ON THE PACE IN AUSTRIA

Maverick Viñales put in a strong and consistent day of practice today ahead of Sunday’s Red Bull Ring MotoGP™ 10th round in Austria to post third position aboard his GSX-RR, as team-mate Aleix Espargaró was unlucky to crash-out of FP2 early-on and couldn’t complete the session, as the injuries he suffered required a medical investigation.

Viñales topped FP1 with a time of 1’25.866 with Espargaró in 15th (1’27.067), as both riders tested some new-design ‘Winglets’ on their machines. These are bigger than the standard ones, and this is meant to help the rider counterbalance the wheeling of the machine. In the afternoon’s final FP2, Viñales posted a much faster 1’24.471 on his final lap of 21, but Espargaró, who was in fifth position early on, only completed four laps and sits in 18th with a time of 1’25.945.

Following the crash, Espargaró needed further checks at the Medical Centre. The RX to his left hand highlighted a small fracture to the proximal phalanx of the third finger, which has been treated by fixing the third finger to the second finger with an elastic bandage. His right hand presents a sprain of the metacarpophalanx articulation of the right thumb; and this will be treated with physiotherapy. He will now undergo some medical treatment this evening and his situation will be evaluated further tomorrow morning.

Davide Brivio – Team Manager:

“Unfortunately Aleix incurred a crash at a time he was feeling good and was making solid improvements with faster-and-faster lap-times. The crash generated a small fracture and he will need some physiotherapy this evening, so let’s wait to see how he will feel in the night and then tomorrow morning and together we will decide what to do. This was a pity because the day could have been fully positive because Maverick had a very positive first day. He’d been fast in both sessions, topping the sheets in the morning and being in the top-three in the afternoon; also his pace is positive. Maverick’s weekend has had a good start, but we need to continue improving and also keep an eye on the weather conditions; like temperature and rain. For the moment he feels comfortable, so let’s hope tomorrow we can recover Aleix and try to do a good weekend with the whole team.”

Maverick Viñales:

“This morning was pretty hard with the tyres, the grip started to drop after one run and we tried to work on the set-up according to this. In the afternoon I wanted to test the hard tyre and finally the best lap came with that one, so my feeling is positive. Here, the machine works well with the grip, the new track helps in this, but we still need to work to finalise a compromise between pure performance and consistency in order not to stress too much ‘tyre-thinking’ in the race. Tomorrow we will probably better understand. We also tried new winglets today, they are meant to help me keep the front-end on the ground and give a better acceleration; my feelings on this are positive and we made a step forward.” 

More, from a press release issued by Dorna:

Dovizioso tops Day 1 at the Red Bull Ring

After a morning session that saw Team Suzuki Ecstar rider Maverick Viñales take the top spot from the Ducati Team pairing, both riders Andrea Dovizioso and Andrea Iannone hit back in the afternoon to lead the pack into Saturday as MotoGP™ rolls into the Red Bull Ring for the first time in nearly two decades. After Ducati machinery dominated the recent private test at the venue, initial prophecies seem correct as the Desmosedici took the top honours with a last dash in the final minutes of FP2, leaving Maverick Viñales’ Suzuki eight tenths back in P3.

Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) was fourth quickest as the veteran Italian worked on refining his set up further to the earlier private test, with Sachsenring podium sitter Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda) closing out the top 5.

Danilo Petrucci (Octo Pramac Yakhnich) and Hector Barbera (Avintia Racing) continued the Ducati presence in the top ten in P6 and P7 respectively, with wildcard entry Michele Pirro in P9 completing the Borgo Panigale factory’s impressive showing at the Red Bull Ring.

Reigning Champion Jorge Lorenzo (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) ended the first day in Austria in P8 as he built on work done in the test to try and move up the timesheets, with Championship leader Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) closing out the top ten in P10 – but neither Spaniard put in fresh rubber at the end of the day to join the last minute time attack. Marquez’ teammate Dani Pedrosa suffered a difficult Friday after a crash with no consequence in the morning session – but had no warning ahead of the incident either and will be looking to recover some confidence in FP3 ahead of qualifying later on Saturday.

Aleix Espargaro (Team Suzuki Ecstar) suffered a crash in the afternoon that saw the Granollers native pull back into pitlane to visit the medical center, with a small fracture to his left ring finger discovered and his race fitness to be reviewed ahead of FP3 on Saturday.

The third practice session on Saturday morning will now decide direct entry into Q2, before the final FP4 session gives one more chance to adjust setups ahead of qualifying – the first at the Red Bull Ring in nearly two decades.

Lüthi leads as action opens in Austria

Garage Plus Interwetten rider Tom Luthi topped the timesheets on Friday in Austria, as the veteran former world champion dueled it out with key rival Alex Rins (Paginas Amarillas HP 40) and championship leader Johann Zarco (Ajo Motorsport) at the front. Rins improved throughout the second session to join the leaders in a time attack near the end of FP2, and was second quickest ahead of title rival Zarco – but it was Luthi who beat the two to the top.

Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS rider Franco Morbidelli had a good first Friday in Austria to close out the day in P4, with Dynavolt Intact GP’s Jonas Folger completing the top 5 behind the Italian. CarXpert Interwetten’s Dominique Aegerter was P6, ahead of Morbidelli’s teammate – 2014 Moto3™ World Champion Alex Marquez – as times tumbled in the afternoon.

Marcel Shrotter (AGR Team) headed Assen winner Takaaki Nakagami (Idemitsu Honda Team Asia) and Dynavolt Intact GP’s Sandro Cortese at the tail end of the top ten, with the 2012 Moto3™ world champion only 0.004 behind Nakagami’s time as Moto2™ proved as competitive as ever.

Championship contender Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) had a difficult day 1 at the Red Bull Ring with crashes in the morning and afternoon, and ended Friday in P13 – looking for more on Saturday to keep his title campaign on the right track.

Saturday starts for Moto2™ with FP3 in the morning, before the grid prepare their final adjustments ahead of qualifying in the afternoon.

Binder decimates the field on Friday

Red Bull KTM Ajo rider Brad Binder kept his FP1 dominance rolling on Friday afternoon at the Red Bull Ring, as the South African took control of the second practice session to end Day 1 at Spielberg in P1. Gresini Racing Moto3 rider Enea Bastianini put in a final dash over the line to set the second fastest time of the day, ahead of Leopard Racing’s Fabio Quartararo as the Frenchman showed good Friday pace.

Binder, who has a 47 point lead in the championship as the second half of the season gets underway, was the first rider down in the 1 minute 38s and then again the first to drop into the 1:37s with only a few minutes of FP1 remaining, and the South African’s stunning form at the new venue continued into the afternoon as he cut that laptime by almost a second.

Bastianini and Quartararo both had good Fridays as Austria comes back onto the calendar, with the Italian and Frenchman looking to get back some of their frontrunning form that has been interrupted through injury in 2016. Rookie Bo Bendsneyder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) was the next fastest, as the Dutchman put in an impressive day’s work to end Friday in P4. Sky Racing Team VR46 rider Romano Fenati completed the top 5 on Day 1, with fellow title contender Jorge Navarro (Estrella Galicia 0,0) suffering a more difficult day to end up P11.

Juanfran Guevara (RBA Racing Team) ended Friday in an impressive P6, ahead of 2015 race winner Livio Loi (RW Racing GP BV) and Schedl GP Racing’s Phillip Oettl.

Francesco Bagnaia (PULL&BEAR Aspar Mahindra) was the quickest Mahindra machine in P9, in front of Leopard Racing’s Joan Mir – who completed a top ten largely dominated by KTM machinery.

There were a number of laptimes cancelled throughout the day – including some of Binder’s faster efforts – after riders exceeded track limits: something that could prove more pivotal on Saturday when qualifying gets underway.