FIM MotoGP World Championship
Le Mans, France
May 18, 2014
Race Results (all using Bridgestone tires):
1. Marc MARQUEZ, Spain (HONDA), 28 laps, 44:03.925
2. Valentino ROSSI, Italy (YAMAHA), -1.486 seconds
3. Alvaro BAUTISTA, Spain (HONDA), -3.144
4. Pol ESPARGARO, Spain (YAMAHA), -3.717
5. Dani PEDROSA, Spain (HONDA), -4.077
6. Jorge LORENZO, Spain (YAMAHA), -7.088
7. Stefan BRADL, Germany (HONDA), -11.527
8. Andrea DOVIZIOSO, Italy (DUCATI), -22.103
9. Aleix ESPARGARO, Spain (FORWARD YAMAHA), -22.626
10. Bradley SMITH, UK (YAMAHA), -23.108
11. Cal CRUTCHLOW, UK (DUCATI), -25.780
12. Scott REDDING, UK (HONDA), -39.523
13. Yonny HERNANDEZ, Colombia (DUCATI), -42.544
14. Hiroshi AOYAMA, Japan (HONDA), -42.736
15. Karel ABRAHAM, Czech Republic (HONDA), -56.644
16. Michael LAVERTY, UK (PBM-APRILIA), -74.123
17. Colin EDWARDS, USA (FORWARD YAMAHA), -79.723
18. Broc PARKES, Australia (PBM-APRILIA), -90.934
19. Mike DI MEGLIO, France (FTR-KAWASAKI), -94.521
20. Andrea IANNONE, Italy (DUCATI), -27 laps, DNF, crash
21. Hector BARBERA, Spain (FTR-KAWASAKI), -27 laps, DNF, crash
22. Nicky HAYDEN, USA (HONDA), -28 laps, DNF, crash
World Championship Point Standings (after 5 of 18 races):
1. Marquez, 125 points
2. Pedrosa, 83
3. Rossi, 81
4. Dovizioso, 53
5. Lorenzo, 45
6. Bradl, 39
7. Pol Espargaro, 38
8. Aleix Espargaro, 37
9. Smith, 34
10. Bautista, 26
11. Iannone, 25
12. Hayden, 23
13. Aoyama, 21
14. Redding, 18
15. Hernandez, 16
16. Crutchlow, 15
17. Abraham, 9
18. Edwards, 7
19. TIE, Petrucci/Barbera, 2
21. Parkes, 1
More, from a press release issued by Movistar Yamaha:
Movistar Yamaha MotoGP rider Valentino Rossi has taken his second consecutive second place finish in the 2014 MotoGP Championship at the Le Mans circuit in France for the Monster Energy Grand Prix de France.
The Doctor enjoyed one of the most exciting races of the season so far having fought from his fifth place grid position start to lead the race in the early laps. Quickly into third position, Rossi was then able to hunt down and out-manoeuvre rivals Stefan Bradl and then race leader Andrea Dovizioso to take the lead with 25 laps remaining. The nine-time world champion rode to the limit and had increased the lead to nearly a second before chasing rider Marc Marquez began to close in. With 16 laps to go Rossi ran wide into the last chicane, allowing Marquez past. He tucked in behind and was able to keep a gap to third place to the line, taking his third podium finish of the year with second place.
Teammate Jorge Lorenzo endured a tough Le Mans race. Starting from sixth on the grid, he was firmly placed in the hectic mid-pack for the opening lap in seventh position. The double premier class world champion was able to make passes on first Alvaro Bautista and then fellow Yamaha rider Bradley Smith to secure fifth position with 24 laps to run. He then spent some laps switching between fifth and sixth as he was first passed by Marquez, then recovered ground by Dovizioso before allowing Bautista back past again. A fifth place looked possible as he passed Bradl with 13 laps remaining but it was not to be as Dani Pedrosa was able to make a move four laps later, relegating him to sixth at the line.
Rossi’s third podium of the year adds 20 points to his score, putting him on 81 points, now just two behind Pedrosa in second. Lorenzo takes ten points, keeping him in fifth on 45 points, eight behind Dovizioso in third.
MotoGP now moves to Italy for Rossi’s home race in Mugello in two weeks time.
Valentino Rossi
2nd / +1.486 / 28 laps
“For sure I’m very happy about the race and the result. I made a very good start and when I saw Dovi and Bradl in front I knew I could go faster than them so I overtook. I got in front and tried as hard as possible but it was more difficult with the front today, maybe because the asphalt was hot. Anyway I tried the maximum and my pace was not so bad. I was waiting for Marc or Jorge and Dani to arrive, when Marc arrived I tried to push a lot to stay on the 1’34.0 to make the work difficult for him but in the crucial moment of the race I made a mistake in braking. I braked a little bit too deep and went wide. It’s a great pity as it was too easy for Marc. If not we could have fought a little bit because today I was not so bad, difficult to beat but for sure more fun. I hoped he would wait for me but… he didn’t! We’ll have to try again next week in Mugello, I want to do a good weekend and try to fight with him another time. I’m happy because my target is to be competitive, to stay with the front and fight with them. At this moment I’m not able to win a race but I am always there and I’m enjoying it very much.”
Jorge Lorenzo
6th / +7.088 / 28 laps
“Well, I expected much more of both qualifying and the race because the pace I had shown throughout the different sessions was good. The start was not so bad but I could not overtake any rider in the early laps and it left me riding with not such a good pace, I tried but no luck. I am convinced that our opportunity will arrive soon because we are working well and more and more times we are ahead during the grand prix. Now I’m just thinking about preparing the next race in Mugello.”
Massimo Meregalli
“That was a really impressive race for Vale even though Marquez won. He made a really good start, worked hard for the lead and just made a little mistake when Marquez was on him. This podium is the result of good work all weekend; the mechanics, engineers and of course Vale put together a good package to achieve it. It is unfortunate that Jorge was unable to finish higher than he did, he also worked hard with his team in all practices and the package looked good for the race following the final warm up this morning. Now we look to Mugello, our first “home” race of the year. It’s a big race for Vale in front of his home crowd and also a big race for Jorge as he has won there for the last few years.”
More, from a press release issued by Cardion AB Motorcing:
Abraham scored a point in the very end of Le Mans race
Karel Abraham finished 15th in the French Grand Prix in Le Mans. Czech MotoGP rider stayed on 16th position for almost whole race and got on 15th in the last corner by overtaking Colin Edwards who ran out of fuel.
Karel Abraham
“I took one point but certainly it wasn´t good race for me. I must express my thanks to the team, because the bike works perfectly. I tried to push on hundred percent, but simply it wasn´t enough to get better standing. In the very end of the race I climb on fifteenth position only because Colin Edwards was out of fuel and passed the finish line with engine off. It should be more fun beating him regularly in the race.“
Marco Grana, Cardion AB Chief Mechanic
“Taking a point is a good result for us after problems we suffered on Friday. Except Jerez we have scored points in every race and this is our goal. We learn more about the bike this weekend and I´m sure we found our basic setup for next races. We must be happy and I expect that we can fight for more points in Mugello.”
More, from a press release issued by Bridgestone:
French victory makes it five in a row for Marquez
Round 5: French MotoGP™ – Race
Le Mans, Sunday May 18 2014
Bridgestone slick compounds available: Front: Extra-Soft, Soft & Medium; Rear: Extra-soft, Soft & Medium (Asymmetric)
Bridgestone wet tyre compounds available: Soft (Main) & Hard (Alternative)
Weather: Dry. Ambient 24-25°C; Track 43-46°C (Bridgestone measurement)
Repsol Honda’s Marc Marquez continued his relentless push for a second MotoGP™ World Championship as the Spaniard won his fifth race in a row with victory at the French Grand Prix at Le Mans.
Starting from pole position, Marquez had a poor start and as the riders completed their first lap, found himself in tenth position. The reigning champion then increased his pace and made his way through the field, setting a new Circuit Record Lap time of 1’33.548 on lap eight, and then taking the race lead on lap twelve. Marquez’s constant pace led him to victory over Movistar Yamaha MotoGP’s Valentino Rossi, who claimed his third second-place finish of the year. Taking third place was GO&FUN Honda Gresini’s Alvaro Bautista, who rode brilliantly to claim his first podium since the 2012 Japanese Grand Prix.
The track temperature today reached its highest level of the race weekend, with a figure of 46°C recorded in the final stages of the race. Race tyre choice amongst the riders was similar to that from yesterday’s Free Practice 4 session, with the soft compound front and rear slicks proving to be most popular. Only one rider selected the medium compound front slick for the race, the other twenty-one riders selected the soft compound front. Fourteen of the twenty-two starters opted for the soft compound rear slick, while eight riders selected the extra-soft rear that was available only to the Ducati and Open-class entrants. Despite the warmer than usual temperatures at Le Mans, tyre performance during race was excellent, with today’s French Grand Prix having the highest average speed ever recorded at this circuit.
Marquez’s latest victory sees his lead in the championship over his teammate Dani Pedrosa increase to forty-three points. Rossi remains in third place in the rider standings, but now sits just two points behind Pedrosa after five rounds.
Shinji Aoki – Manager, Bridgestone Motorsport Tyre Development Department
“It’s been a while since we had a completely dry race weekend at Le Mans, and the constant fine weather gave riders plenty of time to find a setup to get the best performance out of the tyres. The pace this year was a big step forward from last year, but the riders also commented that the warm-up performance and safety of our tyres at Le Mans has also improved, so I am pleased with this result. New Circuit Best Lap, Race Lap and overall race time records were set this weekend at Le Mans. This is a very positive outcome for Bridgestone and shows that our revised tyre allocation for this circuit worked well for the riders.”
Marc Marquez – Repsol Honda – Race Winner
“I enjoyed today quite a lot, particularly the early part of the race. Maybe I was too calm in the early laps, I knew my rhythm was good so maybe I had too much confidence. Then when Lorenzo overtook me, I started to go quick and overtaking many riders which I enjoyed. When I was in second place I saw Rossi in front so I pushed 100% and when I reached Valentino I thought it would be a fight to pass him, but he made a mistake which allowed me to get through. I’m really happy for my fifth victory in a row, and I want to enjoy this moment as even though it looked easy, it was difficult go get the win.”
More, from a press release issued by Repsol Honda:
Unstoppable Marquez makes it five-in-a-row with another perfect weekend
Repsol Honda sensation, Marc Marquez, has enjoyed a perfect weekend in Le Mans taking pole position (with a new record), setting a new fastest race lap (1’33.548 on lap 8) and crowning it with the victory (in a record time) in front of 88,222 spectators. He also became the youngest ever rider (21 years and 90 days) to win five successive races in the premier class, taking the record from Mike Hailwood (22 years and 160 days old). Teammate Dani Pedrosa struggled to find his rhythm in the 28 lap race, slowly progressing through the field from ninth on the grid to fifth by the chequered flag.
It was a chaotic start to the race with Marc slipping back from pole to ninth – after being pushed wide by Lorenzo – and Dani dropping a position to tenth by the end of lap one. As things began to settle down, and the race found it’s tempo, Marc started to pluck off the riders in front of him and by lap seven he was already up to fourth, with Dani also passing Smith and Dovizioso into seventh by lap nine. Marc then set the fastest lap of the race en route to passing Stefan Bradl and Pol Espargaro, and by lap thirteen he was on the tail of race leader Valentino Rossi. A slight error from the Italian gifted Marc first position and from this point he didn’t look back.
Dani found some rhythm on lap sixteen, passing Bradl and then on lap eighteen traded places twice with Lorenzo. On lap twenty he made the pass stick and took fifth place but despite a late challenge he was unable to close in on Pol Espargaro and finished 0.3s behind the fellow Spaniard, less then one second off the podium.
With his fifth win of 2014, Marc is the first rider since Giacomo Agostini in 1972, to win the opening five races of the year in the premier class, the first rider since Valentino Rossi in 2008 to win five successive MotoGP races and the first to win them all from pole since Mick Doohan in 1997, also on a Honda. He now extends his lead over Dani in the riders’ Championship to 42 points, Honda lead the constructors’ Championship by 38 points and the Repsol Honda Team lead the teams’ Championship by 82 points after five rounds.
Team Quotes
Marc Marquez
1st – Championship Standing: 1st – 125 points
“I am really happy with this win, which was different to the other victories. I made a mistake at the start; maybe I was too relaxed off the line, then when Jorge passed me I had to take a wide line otherwise we would have touched and as a result, many riders overtook me. However, from that moment on I began a really good comeback it was a lot of fun, ending in my fifth consecutive victory. Although it might look easy to people, we are working extremely hard and this is the reward for the whole team!”
Dani Pedrosa
5th – Championship Standing: 2nd – 83 points
“It was a very difficult race to manage, because I didn’t get a bad start but had Iannone and Smith coming through very strong on the opening corner; they split the group and even pushed a rider off-track. However, this wasn’t the main problem, I had an issue with the front tyre preventing me from making my way up the order. Every time that I tried to be more aggressive I had a lack of grip and it took many laps for me to move forward. It’s a shame, because I didn’t find a setup that allowed me to ride comfortably and we didn’t have a good race. I think I can go a lot faster here than what we saw today”
More, from a press release issued by Scott Redding’s publicist:
Scott adds to his points tally at Le Mans
Le Mans, France – 18 May 2014: Scott Redding picked up more championship points in Le Mans today, after fighting his way through from 16th on the grid to finish the French Grand Prix in 12th place.
Scott also achieved his aim of being the first production Honda home in today’s race, which was run over 28 laps of the renowned Bugatti Circuit in almost perfect conditions. The result means that the 21-year-old Briton has closed to within five points of former MotoGP World Champion, and fellow Honda RCV1000R rider, Nicky Hayden, in the championship standings.
Scott Redding // 12th
“Overall I’m pretty pleased with the result today. On Friday I was struggling with the bike and the crash when I lost the front knocked my confidence a little. But the team and our suspension guys worked hard to improve the bike and, in FP4 on Saturday, the feeling was much better. This gave me the confidence in the front end I’d been missing and I was able to push harder as a result. My aim was to finish in the points and as the first Honda RCV1000R home today, and we achieved that, so I’m pretty happy. We started on a low on Friday, but we ended on a high today and you can’t ask for much more than that.”
More, from a press release issued by LCR Honda:
BRADL ENDS IN 7TH HIS COMPLEX FRANCE GRAND PRIX
Le Mans, 18 May: the LCR Honda MotoGP rider Stefan Bradl rode his Honda RC213V to the seventh place in today’s 28-lap France GP scoring further important points which saw him holding the 6th place in the world classification. The German rider took an incredible start from the second row imposing his pace for several laps up in the pack, but he failed to keep fighting for the podium reporting some rear-end issues.
Stefan: “Honestly I am not so happy today because the 7th position is not what we expected. Maybe the problem is the change we made from the warm up to the race on the rear suspension trying to find more edge grip. Definitively we went in the wrong direction because at the beginning on a new tyre I was pretty fast, but after 6/7 laps I was not able to use my rear tyre out of the corners. I have tried to regain something on breaking but then I found my limit on the front, so Espargaro and Bautista passed me. For the rest of the race I could not find my pace and I managed to finish 7th. I am looking forward to Mugello GP because that’s one of my favourite tracks and we can go for more there”.
More, from a press release issued by Drive M7 Aspar Team:
MIXED FEELINGS FOR DRIVE M7 ASPAR TEAM AT LE MANS
Hiroshi Aoyama picks up points but Nicky Hayden knocked out of the race after contact with another rider
The fifth round of the MotoGP World Championship saw a mix of riders at the front in the early laps as Andrea Dovizioso took early control and pole man Marc Marquez dropped back into the pack. Rossi, Bradl and Pol Espargaró joined Dovizioso at the front, with Rossi eventually able to take the lead and open a gap, but series leader Márquez clearly had the pace as he came through from tenth place, reeled the Italian in and made his escape. Rossi was comfortable in second place as Alvaro Bautista completed the podium in third. A fifth straight win of the season for Márquez means that he equals Spanish legend Jorge Martínez Aspar’s career tally of 37 career GP wins.
There were contrasting fortunes for the DRIVE M7 Aspar Team riders, Hiroshi Aoyama making up two positions on the first lap and another on the second lap before completing a lonely ride to take two points in fourteenth place. His team-mate Nicky Hayden was less fortunate, however, the American missing out on the points for the first time this season after being torpedoed by another rider in the second corner. Luckily Nicky was unhurt in the crash and he will be ready to fight again at Mugello, one of his favourite circuits, in a couple of weeks’ time.
14th Hiroshi Aoyama: “Today was a tough race but luckily after starting from seventeenth on the grid we have come through to take a couple of points in fourteenth. The plan for the race was to put together a fast and consistent pace, especially on the first laps, and we have improved in comparison to recent races so I am happy about that. Unfortunately the higher temperatures today compared to yesterday worked against us and with the soft tyre the feeling wasn’t the same as the rest of the weekend. My pace wasn’t as fast as I wanted at the end of the race but we will try to improve again at Mugello in two weeks.”
Nicky Hayden (DNF): “The team have worked really hard all weekend and we have made some progress as a result, even in the warm-up this morning. So it is a shame that the weekend ended like this, with a crash that wasn’t my fault. Look at the data it was probably my best start of the season so far but as we went through the chicane I could feel another rider touch my handlebar and I couldn’t do anything to avoid the crash. It is a shame for the team and for me but sometimes these things happen in racing. Luckily I am okay and we just have to look ahead to the next round.”
More, from a press release issued by Dorna:
MotoGP™: Brilliant Marquez makes it five in a row
MotoGP™ World Champion Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) produced another masterclass at Le Mans to win from pole again, with Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) and Alvaro Bautista (GO&FUN Honda Gresini) also on the podium.
Marquez produced a fantastic fightback after an early mistake to lead by a second on lap 16 having been 10th on lap one. Rossi demonstrated his competitiveness again to lead for several laps in the first half of the race but ultimately could not hold off the rampant Marquez.
Whilst Rossi achieved his tenth premier class podium at Le Mans and his 150th in the top category, Marquez became the first rider to win five successive premier class races from pole since Mick Doohan in 1997.
Meanwhile, it was Bautista’s first podium since 2012 and a great reward for the determination he has shown since his three DNFs at the start of the season.
An excellent ride from rookie Pol Espargaro (Monster Yamaha Tech3) saw him hold off Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team) for fourth. Pedrosa appeared to be riding in significant discomfort after recent arm pump surgery.
Jorge Lorenzo (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) finished three seconds behind Pedrosa in the unfamiliar territory of sixth for the 2010 and 2012 MotoGP World Champion.
Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda MotoGP) recovered from his recent arm operation for seventh, with Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team), Aleix Espargaro (NGM Forward Racing) and Bradley Smith (Monster Yamaha Tech3) also in the top ten.
Nicky Hayden (Drive M7 Aspar) crashed on the first lap after contact with Andrea Iannone (Pramac Racing), only for the Italian to go down shortly afterwards. Hector Barbera (Avintia Racing) was also an early crasher, though none of those three were seriously affected by the incidents.
Moto2™: Second successive win for in form Kallio
Victory in the Moto2™ Monster Energy Grand Prix de France race was clinched by Mika Kallio (Marc VDS Racing Team) at Le Mans, with Simone Corsi (NGM Forward Racing) and Esteve Rabat (Marc VDS Racing Team) following the Finn across the finish line.
Kallio rode calmly from fourth on the grid, hunting down provisional race leader Corsi for the victory and taking over at the front with eight laps to go. Corsi eventually finished a second behind the winner, holding off a late challenge from championship leader Rabat – who had to settle for third.
Young Spanish rookies Maverick Viñales (Pons HP 40) and Luis Salom (Pons HP 40) were both in the podium chase as they gathered more Moto2 experience, eventually finishing fourth and fifth respectively. Another 2014 intermediate class debutant Jonas Folger (AGR Team) was sixth, having started on pole.
Dominique Aegerter (Technomag carXpert), Thomas Luthi (Interwetten Paddock Moto2), Sam Lowes (Speed Up) and Franco Morbidelli (Italtrans Racing Team) were top ten finishers.
Axel Pons (AGR Team), Alex De Angelis (Tasca Racing Moto2), Tetsuta Nagashima (Teluru Team JiR Webike), Julian Simon (Italtrans Racing Team) and Xavier Simeon (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) were all crashers, whilst home riders Louis Rossi (SAG Team) and Johann Zarco (AirAsia Caterham Moto Racing) also crashed in front of the home fans.
Ricard Cardus (Tech 3) and Mattia Pasini (NGM Forward Racing) crashed out together early on, with Pasini unhappy with Cardus’ role in the accident.
Moto3™: Miller strikes back with classy victory
In perfect conditions at the Monster Energy Grand Prix de France Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM Ajo) took victory in another exciting Moto3™ contest, with Alex Rins (Estrella Galicia 0,0) and Isaac Viñales (Calvo Team) joining him on the Le Mans podium.
Another brilliant race saw eight riders in podium contention on the last lap with Miller holding off a challenge from pole man Efren Vazquez (SAXOPRINT RTG) in the final stages to secure his third win of the year.
Rins led by almost two seconds at one point but was eventually pulled back for second, with Viñales riding bravely to achieve his first ever Grand Prix podium result.
Francesco Bagnaia (SKY Racing Team VR46) and Alex Marquez (Estrella Galicia 0,0) were both in the top five, both within 0.5s of the podium.
Vazquez had also led the race at various points and was unhappy to finish sixth when a first ever victory looked possible.
Enea Bastianini (Junior Team Go&FUN Moto3), John McPhee (SAXOPRINT RTG), Alexis Masbou (Ongetta-Rivacold) and Jakub Kornfeil (Calvo Team) completed the top ten.
Juanfran Guevara (Mapfre Aspar Team Moto3), Karel Hanika (Red Bull KTM Ajo), Jules Danilo (Ambrogio Racing) and Niccolo Antonelli (Junior Team GO&FUN) all crashed out in the early laps, whilst there were also DNFs for Alessandro Tonucci (CIP Mahindra) and Niklas Ajo (Avant Tecno Husqvarna Ajo).
The winner of the last two rounds Romano Fenati (SKY Racing Team VR46) retired with electronics issues towards the end of the race.
More, from a press release issued by NGM Mobile Forward Racing:
Espargaro first Open at Le Mans
The French GP saw the Spanish rider of the NGM Forward Racing as first open on the historic track of Le Mans.
Aleix Espargaro, who starting from the 8th spot on the grip, lost some positions and he finally finished 9th. The Spaniard struggled during the whole weekend for some electronics issue and today it was important for him to get as many points as possible. With today’s result Espargaro is now 8th in the Championship.
It was an unlucky race for Colin Edwards, who suffered for the third time in a row because of a fuel issue and was obliged to slow down dramatically and finally finished 17th . The team takes the responsibility for what happened and renews the commitment to develop some new parts that will be available already from the next race at Mugello.
Colin Edwards:
“It was a difficult weekend: I’m still struggling to make this bike turn. Today I had reduced the gap and caught Aoyama and Hernandez when I start having problems with the electronics. In the last laps I realized that I had problems with the fuel and at the last lap I was almost obliged to stop due to a fuel issue and let the riders behind me pass. We need to keep on working and I look forward to the Italian GP where we will test new parts”.
Aleix Espargaro:
“I’m quite satisfied but I expected to a better result on this track. We struggled a lot during the whole weekend and today the priority was to get as many points as possible. We will keep on working for the next two races that are very important for us: Mugello and Catalunya, where we want to be competitive and get a good result”.
More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse:
Eighth for Dovizioso, eleventh for Crutchlow in French GP at Le Mans
The two Ducati Team riders – Andrea Dovizioso and Cal Crutchlow – finished the French Grand Prix, round 5 of the 2014 MotoGP World Championship, in eighth and eleventh place respectively.
Dovizioso, who started from the front row of the grid in third place, provided some early excitement by leading the first three laps, before losing out during lap 4. Over the next few laps, he then lost a few more places and slipped down to ninth, but six laps from the end regained one position when he won the scrap for eighth with Aleix Espargarò. After the Le Mans race, the Italian rider still lies fourth in the overall championship standings.
Cal Crutchlow finally managed to make it to the chequered flag for the second time this season. After qualifying in twelfth place, the British rider lost some positions in the initial stages and was unable to make much progress during the race, eventually finishing eleventh.
Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team #04) – 8th
“At least I tried! I made a great start and tried to pull away as much as possible, but after a few laps I could see that I would never have a chance to fight with the frontrunners. It’s a pity, but for the moment our gap is still too big, and even if we grit our teeth, we can’t make any strategies or push hard in certain moments of the race. Even after my third quickest time in qualifying yesterday I knew that today was going to be difficult. Now we have to think of our home race at Mugello, where we’ll try and get a good result.”
Cal Crutchlow (Ducati Team #35) – 11th
“Today it was important first and foremost to finish a race, and for me that’s good seeing as how my 2014 season has been so far. I got a great start and felt really good on the bike, but there was a crash on the first lap and I got hit really hard by Hernandez by accident, which gave me a dead leg, and I lost a few places. I also made a few mistakes in the race but it’s clear that for the moment it’s difficult for Ducati to aim for anything higher in the results. A big thanks to my team, who are working really hard for us to become competitive, even though the result is not what we hoped for.”
Luigi Dall’Igna (Ducati Corse General Manager)
“Both qualifying yesterday with Dovizioso on the front row in third, and his great start and the early laps in the lead today are clearly positive aspects. For sure however the middle part of the race was the most critical for us, and it confirms that we still have a lot of work to do. Now we are going to Mugello, which is Ducati’s home race, and we’ll try our hardest to give all of our fans a good result.”
More, from a press release issued by Paul Bird Motorsport:
Consistent Laverty 16th Yet Again For PBM
If consistency counted for anything, PBM MotoGP rider Michael Laverty would be a major contender after recording his fourth 16th place out of five races following this weekend’s Monster Energy Grand Prix de France which comprised round five of the 2014 MotoGP World Championship at Le Mans.
Following a fraught free practice and qualifying, both Ulsterman Laverty and Australian team mate Broc Parkes struggled aboard the Rapid Solicitors and Silkolene-backed PBM machines to end up on row seven of the grid with ex British Supersport champion Laverty in 20th place and team mate and double World Supersport runner-up Parkes one place further back in 21st for the Cumbrian based team.
In the race, Laverty, aboard the Rapid Solicitors and Silkolene-backed Aprilia ART-powered PBM, made a brilliant start to run as high as 17th in the early stages as Parkes struggled a bit further down the order.
As the race progressed, Laverty was embroiled in a battle for 17th place as Parkes climbed the order to run in 18th where he was to remain for the remainder of the race. Laverty, meanwhile, battled with a number of other Open class machines before climbing to 16th place on the final lap to miss out on a vital point once more.
It was the fourth time in five races this season that Laverty had finished in 16th place and apart from a technical problem in Austin; Parkes has finished every race also.
With nine finishes out of the ten races completed so far and knocking on the door of the points at all four meetings, the PBM team is making significant development progress which will continue into the next round of the season at Mugello in Italy in two weeks time.
The results mean that Parkes holds 21st overall in the 2014 MotoGP World Championship table following his ride into the points in Qatar, ninth in the Open class standings and third in Rookie of the Year. With a hat-trick of 16th place finishes and an 18th also, Laverty has yet to register on the scoreboard but importantly for the PBM team, they occupy seventh place in the manufacturer’s table and 13th in the team’s standings going into the next race at Jerez.
Michael Laverty: “I can’t believe I’ve finished in 16th place again! For the fourth time in five races we have finished just one position back from scoring points. They will come for sure, the team are doing a good job and I feel I am riding well at the moment. We need to find some speed to try and bridge the gap to Aoyama and Abraham but hopefully we can do that as the PBM machine has taken some good steps forward this year we just need to find another step now.”
Broc Parkes: “I had a lot of problems this weekend with just a lot of silly things so lost a lot of valuable track time. At the end of warm up my number one bike which I had ridden all weekend had a problem with the engine so I had to start on the second bike and it just didn’t feel as good from the start. I felt I had good pace in practice and an overall better understanding of the bike a lot more. I again struggled a lot with rear grip so lost some time in the last part of the race.”
Phil Borley, Technical Director: “We are reasonably satisfied with the results at Le Mans, as we believe we have improved our performance, although it is difficult to be sure as it is the first dry race PBM have had here. Michael had a good and consistent pace but was not rewarded with any points due to his fourth 16th position finish this year, whilst Broc had a good pace early in the race but could not maintain it. We are confident that we can improve both the performance and setting of our bikes with new parts planned for the next races and hope to further reduce the gap to our competitors.”
For more information, please visit the team’s brand new website www.pbmuk.net and www.pbmuk.net
More, from a press release issued by Monster Yamaha Tech 3:
Espargaro blazes to 4th at Le Mans
Rookie Pol Espargaro completed an exceptional weekend at the Monster Yamaha Tech3 Team’s home Grand Prix in Le Mans by finishing in 4th position and clinching his most competitive points scoring finish in his first ever MotoGP season. The highly attended premier class competed in front of a crowd of over 88,000 enthusiastic supporters today with brilliantly sunny weather providing perfect conditions.
The reigning Moto2 World Champion qualified on the front row of the grid in 2nd and as the lights turned to green, he took a phenomenal start to cross the line inside the leading pack for the first lap. The 22-year-old Catalan set into a formidable and consistent race pace to match the experienced leading riders before brilliantly surging through to 2nd, joining the battle at the front. He then became embroiled in a fierce fight with Stefan Bradl but saw off the Honda rider to expertly maintain the third position during the latter stages of the 28-lap sprint. Eventually the Spanish rookie who is only in his fifth MotoGP race aboard the Yamaha YZR-M1 crossed the line in a well-deserved 4th.
Espargaro’s superb performance was tantalisingly close to Alvaro Bautista in third who was only half a second in front. The competitive result has seen Espargaro elevated to 7th in the world championship standings and improving the Monster Yamaha Tech3 team’s best finish of the season so far.
Bradley Smith hoped to battle for the accolade of the leading satellite bike at the tight and twisting French circuit today yet struggled with some slight grip issues again and met the chequered flag in 10th position. Having qualified at the front of the fourth row, Smith undertook a storming start to impressively climb up to 5th by the second lap. He ran a steady rhythm and attempted to make further advances up the field to the top four riders but unfortunately got shuffled back to 8th. At the latter stages of the race, Smith became involved in a battle with Dovizioso and Espargaro, with the outcome being 10th at the finish line. The 23-year-old Britain’s hard work permitted him to collect six valuable championship points, which aided the Monster Yamaha Tech3 Team to reach 3rd place in the team standings with 72 points.
Pol Espargaro
Race : 4th Championship : 7th Points : 38
“This weekend has actually been like a small dream. I was sure we improved after the test in Jerez but I would have never expected to be that competitive. Already after the qualifying I thought things couldn’t get better but luckily I was also able to perform well over the whole race distance. Nevertheless it was hard to believe that I found myself in third position halfway through the race, but at this stage I started to be more confident about a top5 finish and when I heard the noise of Dani’s engine as he was catching up during the last laps, I just kept my head down aiming to take the fourth position over the line. I want to say a big thank you to the team because they did an amazing job guiding me without pressure to adapt as quickly as possible to this incredible category, but of course we have still so many things to learn and I’m already excited to get back on the bike in Mugello. However, this result is a huge boost for our confidence and I’m happy and proud to give the team’s French fans something to cheer for.”
Bradley Smith
Race : 10th Championship : 9th Points : 34
“I made a great start and managed to go around the outside of the first corner and recover several positions. But already by turn three I knew that my lack of side grip would probably affect my race. I have been struggling all weekend with grip issues so we decided to take a gamble for the setup of the rear tyre. Unfortunately, we still weren’t able to completely get rid of it. Also having modified the bike massively it took me quite a while to adjust myself to the changes. However, I still gave it my all during qualifying and the race, but all weekend we have not been as strong as we hoped to be. I am still pleased that I finished the race, collecting valuable points and look forward to Mugello, which is one of my favourite tracks where I hope to get higher up the field.”
Hervé Poncharal
“Today was super end to the weekend in France. The good weather we have had was a real bonus, and we enjoyed having every practice session dry and uninterrupted by the weather. After the Jerez test, both riders, especially rookie Pol, now understand a lot more. During the week he called me and said I can’t wait for Le Mans because he knew it would be better than the previous races. The test was very important to him and the knowledge he has gained has helped him to qualify really well and ahead of everyone but Marquez, which is a huge achievement. We were a bit unsure about how the race would go but Pol got a beautiful start and unfortunately couldn’t catch Bautista at the end but 2nd in the qualifying and 4th in the race is very good and ahead of both Lorenzo and Pedrosa. It’s was a tough race, but we can be really proud of the how Pol did and all the team’s work. Other side it was a bit more difficult, but as usual Brad showed determination and never gave up. The Friday morning crash didn’t help him, as he didn’t have the whole weekend. In the end, both riders finished in the top ten, so we will take the positive’s from this week, and go to Mugello where I am sure both Brad and Pol will be strong.”