The Avintia Blusens team optimistic before the GP of France Although the results in Estoril were not the ones expected the Avintia Blusens team members are really optimistic before the GP of Le Mans as they are convinced that they can do a good job and obtain a good result. Sometimes the true potential of a rider and a team is not reflected in the final ranking of a race and this is precisely what happened to Avintia Blusens in Estoril. On the one hand Iván did a great job with the development of the Inmotec which did not eventually pay off due to a severe crash on the Sunday morning that left the rider in a weak physical condition. On the other hand Yonny managed to ride among the best riders whether in the practices or in the race but he crashed in the final stage of the race which deprived him and the team from the result they deserved. So the team’s optimism before the fourth race of the world championship is no wonder as they are aware of the true potential of their riders as well as the quality of their technicians’s work. They just need to be lucky now. Yonny Hernández: “I was disgusted with my crashing at Estoril and we would have achieved a good result without it, that’s why I want to try and go for it at Le Mans. I am feeling physically fine and I like the track a lot. I think we have been doing a good job we just need to make our efforts come true. I want to cross the finish in France and I want to do so among the best riders.” Iván Silva: “I have recovered from my crashes in Estoril. It hurts a little but I think the job the physiotherapist did will be really helpful. I have been working with both motorbikes so far especially the one with the carbon chassis and I don’t know which way to choose from now on. My team will make the appropriate decision and I’ll do as they say. It is not my favourite track but it is not too difficult either. I hope this spell of bad luck will end in Le Mans and that we will start to straighten up the season.” More, from a press release issued by Pramac Racing: THE GREEN TEAM GETS READY TO KICK OFF HIS GRAND PRIX OF FRANCE The MotoGP World Championship stops off in France this week as the Le Mans circuit prepares to host the fourth round of the 2012 season. The French track is one of the least technical circuits on the calendar, with the first part being the most complicated where the high speed turn one, is one of the fastest in MotoGP, and it is followed by a number of tight chicanes. The rest of the track is made up of short straights and hairpins, calling not just for balance and control under hard and repeated braking, but also for a neat and swift transfer from full braking to full acceleration on the exit of the corners. After the top ten finish in Estoril, where Hector had struggled with a shoulder pain, the White and Green team, arrive to Le Mans for the French round in confident mood but also with a redeem feeling. It’s important to mention that the Spanish rider and his crew have been able to markedly improve the setup of the bike from the beginning of the MotoGP 2012 season, collected a raft of valuable data about their Ducati GP12, even if the weather condition didn’t help. The Pramac Ducati rider is ready to kick off this new weekend of race and with his crew, is hopeful that they can mount a challenge for a top ten finish on a circuit where he always did well, also in the smaller classes. The first in-season MotoGP test that was scheduled for the day after Estoril race, was cancelled due to a downpour, resulting in poor visibility and unfavourable track conditions. After a meeting with the teams, it was decided to reschedule the test for Wednesday 6th of June at Motorland Aragón, following a post-race Monday test at the Catalunya circuit near Barcelona. Hèctor Barberà – Rider Pramac Racing Team “Le Mans is the circuit I like a lot and I tend to do well there. The people in Le Mans love motorbikes, they love the smell of fuel. This track has a lot of chicanes and it is fun for me. I had one of my best results of last season here and if I were able to do that in 2011 then I should do much better this year. Our main goal is fighting to stay in the top-ten position, we know we will be able to catch good results, around the 7th place, and we are working tirelessly to achieve our goal. It usually rains in France at this time of the year so let’s hope we get lucky and have a sunny weekend.” Francesco Guidotti Team Manager Pramac Racing “We left Estoril with some good points and some valuable information picked up from the weekend, but it’s a shame that the test was cancelled due to the rain. Anyway, we will move on together and as a team we’re coming to France determined to continue to work on our bike and with our rider to achieve even more consistent results. We really hope to do well there in order to put us on a good foot for the busy period of June and July, when the Championship will really start to take shape.” More, from a press release issued by LCR Honda: Le Mans, 17thof May: Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda MotoGP RC213V) finished second in Le Mans during his strong early season run that led to the 2011 Moto2 World Championship. At this week’s event LCR Honda MotoGP Team is pleased to announce that ELF will act as Title Sponsor branding the German talent motorbikes ahead the fourth round of the season. Bradl has three finishes in the top nine in his rookie MotoGP campaign, having finished seventh in Jerez, a track similar to Estoril. Still, he arrives in France having to learn how to tame the track on the much more powerful Honda RC213V. The emphasis here is on braking, specifically braking into the corners where the front tyre is put under great stress, a technique which Bradl is quickly learning. Stefan: “Le Mans is another good circuit which I like and last year I gained the second position in the Moto2 race. However, as I said for the previous rounds every track is different from the past because the MotoGP bike is another story. I am quite confident we can proceed with our good results: on this surface you must find the right setup in braking and you use the front tyre more than the rear one. It’s important to pick up the bike faster. We shouldn’t struggle with rear grip issues here. Estoril was a different layout and the asphalt was not excellent. I had a look at the weather forecast, probably we will have another rainy weekend so I must remain focused”.