Rizla Suzuki MotoGP will next be in action in the team’s home country of England as MotoGP makes its racing debut at Silverstone. The newest circuit on the MotoGP calendar already has a proud motorcycle World Championship heritage, with many great battles taking place on track over the years, including the famous one between Suzuki’s Barry Sheene and Yamaha’s Kenny Roberts in 1979. The Northamptonshire circuit set in the heart of England last staged a motorcycle Grand Prix in 1986 and a brand new layout will greet the modern day MotoGP machines when they arrive later this week, but world famous corners such as Luffield, Woodcote and Maggotts still feature in the circuit design along with a new ‘Complex’ section to add to the excitement. The new design of the track makes it the longest circuit on the calendar and with a total of 18 corners most of them flowing and fast this should allow for very fast lap-times and competitive racing. Capirossi and Bautista will take to the track on Friday afternoon for the first free practice session at the new venue, followed by another practice hour on Saturday morning. The afternoon will see the pair going for the best grid positions in the qualifying session, with Sunday’s 20-lap race getting underway at 13.00hrs local time (12.00hrs GMT). Loris Capirossi: “I am really excited about going to Silverstone to race, because it is such a famous track and I have never raced there before. I like going to new circuits as it is always good to learn something new. It will be very fast and we expect it to be one of the quickest lap speeds of the season. We are going in a confident mood, because we think the bike will suit the circuit, so we will hopefully have a good weekend.” Álvaro Bautista: “I am feeling healthier and stronger now after a few days back in Spain and I am looking forward to being more competitive in England than I was in Italy. This is a very important race because it is the team’s home Grand Prix so we want to do well there. We went to the track last month and I was really impressed with the whole facility. There will be places to overtake and it will also be very fast so it should be fun. I just hope we can put on a good show for the home fans and have a good race.” More, from a press release issued by JiR Moto2 Team: Team JiR Moto2 is getting ready to transfer to the legendary Silverstone for the British GP, the first of three-in-a-row MotoGP races that will provide a stern challenge for the World Championship circus. Silverstone’s track is new and takes the place of the glorious Donington Park, but with the many modifications undertaken this will be a brand new experience for all Moto2 riders. Simone Corsi is ready for the new challenge, excited by his Mugello podium and content with his third place in World Championship only 4 points far from Japanese ace Shoya Tomizawa. For this fifth race of 2010 the priority will be to study the track’s characteristics and find the best lines possible, aware that this will be necessary to improve qualifying performance so Simone can start as near to the front of the grid as possible The track is all-new for all Moto2 participants and this will be a further motivation for riders, making things a ‘level playing field’. Meanwhile the motivation for Mattia Pasini is no less urgent. He has so far suffered difficulties in finding the right feeling with his MotoBi and gained no points in the last three races. Gianluca Montiron JiR Ceo “After the first four races we saw a levelling-off in performances between the different machines and our MotoBi performed well, thanks also to the work done by the Team. It will be interesting to see what will happen in the next three GPs in a row. Simone has been hell-bent on understanding that after the winter tests he has had to modify his riding style if he wanted to achieve good results in such a competitive category as Moto2 is, so now he needs to improve once more to get to the top of the podium! On the other hand I cannot hide my regret for not seeing Mattia competitive as well. In Moto2 competitors are very strong and we can’t expect to see the gaps we were used to in 250cc. In 250s, a rider who lost more than a second was still in the top 15, but here in Moto2 one second means being 30th. However, I’m convinced that once he will understand the correct riding style to apply to this kind of machine he will also succeed at this level.” Simone Corsi “Usually the British climate is variable, so I’m expecting that weather will play its normal role. I’m concentrating in improving my performance, I still don’t know where the limit is for both me and for the bike but I feel I can be competitive in any conditions. My objective is to ride and enjoying the event, just like I did in recent races. For the moment I’m not looking at the World Championship, until now I’ve been riding using my head and I will continue to do so as the Championship is long and the category is very new. I’m looking forward with the feeling that I’m riding for a top Team that is making me feel good. I’m not feeling any pressure and I still consider myself as an outsider for the title.” Mattia Pasini “I’m looking at the English race from a new perspective: the track will be new for everybody and I hope I’ll be able to find once more the trust in riding this bike that has gone away from me in these recent GPs. I can’t hide that it is a particularly hard moment for me and this is why I trust in the Team’s support to get back home from Silverstone with better feelings and results.” More, from a press release issued by FTR MOTO: FTR READY FOR HOME GP AND WILD CARD DEBUT FTR MOTO and FOGI Racing of Canada have combined to provide a first FTR machine wild card in the Moto2 World Championship for this weekend’s British Grand Prix at Silverstone and for Scottish rider Kev Coghlan. FTR and FOGI will field Coghlan who will also benefit from his regular Spanish Championship Monlau Competicion Team providing the infrastructure for the wild card effort. “We’ve been working with Angus Borland of FOGI Racing for some time and to be able to combine and give Kev a shot at his home Grand Prix is really exciting for everyone,” said FTR’s Steve Bones. Coghlan arrives at Silverstone having finished second in the third round of the Spanish Championship last Sunday at Jerez only to be excluded from the results for a minor technical infringement. “It’s a shame that such a small issue should be brought to light and dealt with in such a severe manner but it’s done now,” said Coghlan. “At least we showed the pace at Jerez and we’re straight into Silverstone and able to put the Jerez event behind us immediately. Coghlan joins four other FTR riders for Sunday’s fifth round at Silverstone; FIMMCO Speed Up Team riders Andrea Iannone and Gabor Talmacsi, Cardion AB Motoracing’s Karel Abraham and the Aeroport de Castello-Ajo Team’s Alex Debon. “We’ve had four top five finishes from the opening four rounds, including Iannone’s win in Mugello and Debon’s runner-up finish in Qatar,” added Bones. “The FTR machine is constantly improving and we’re hoping it will suit the new, high-speed Silverstone circuit. FTR is based just 10 miles south of Silverstone in Buckingham and Bones is looking to the home race for more podium finishes: “In a class where 27 riders and 14 constructors have already scored points it’s never going to be easy but I think that is all part of the attraction of Moto2 and the competitive edge it offers.” More, from a press release issued by Pramac Racing Team: MOTOGP BACK TO SILVERSTONE AFTER 24 YEARS Great expectations for the return after 24 years of the World MotoGP Championship on Silverstone’s track. It is since 1986 that MotoGP World Championship does not run on this track, which has become fixed stage of the Formula One Championship. On the English circuit it will take place on Sunday the twelfth race of the highest category, the other races have been held between the 1975 and the 1986 when on the track was possible to see the great duels between Mamola, Sheene, Lawson and Roberts. The circuit will present almost completely renovated with many fast sections and groped many places where the riders can overtake. A particular attention will be placed in the weather condition that will be found on the track: usually the Grand Prix of Great Britain is famous for being rainy. Even if it will be run on a completely different circuit, the Pramac Racing has always had a good performance in the British Grand Prix, which has since they entered the World Championship in 2001, always played in Donington circuit. The Pramac Racing Team has scored as best finish the fourth place in 2005 with Barros. Good results for Kallio on Donington track where he had earned a victory in the 2008 when he was riding in the 250cc category. Being a new track where most all the riders have never ride before, there will be a learning process for all of them to understand how far they can push their bikes. Paolo Campinoti – Pramac Racing Team Principal “After the good result of Espargarò and the unfortunate race of Kallio, we are waiting now to see how both riders react to the new English track that is unknown to all the riders. They all will start from the same level because no riders were able to try the track. I hope that this allows both our riders to become protagonists of a wonderful weekend and that they can both get a great result. ” Aleix Espargarò – Pramac Racing Team “After the last two races I have greatly improved the feeling with my bike, I also got to contend with very experienced riders. This allowed me to increase the confidence in my abilities and in myself. Now I cannot wait to try the new track and be able to be fast right away. This will be one of the few tracks that put me almost on a par condition with my colleagues, in fact no one have tried the new track before, so it will be a study weekend for all of us to understand how far we can push our bikes. I know that is difficult, but I will try to continue to always have positive results so that I can repay the confidence that all my technicians have always placed in me. ” Mika Kallio – Pramac Racing Team “I cannot wait to Sunday’s race in the British Grand Prix. My shoulder does not give me many more problems, now I have recovered a bit the rhythm I had before the accident. I hope to have since the beginning a good feeling with this track and that this can let me get a good result on the starting grid and gain a good race position.”