FIM Moto2 World Championship Assen, Netherlands June 25, 2010 Final Qualifying Results (all using Honda engines and Dunlop tires): 1. Andrea IANNONE, Italy (SPEED UP), 1:39.092 2. Ratthapark WILAIROT, Thailand (BIMOTA), 1:39.307 3. Alex DEBON, Spain (FTR), 1:39.584 4. Shoya TOMIZAWA, Japan (SUTER), 1:39.664 5. Thomas LUTHI, Switzerland (MORIWAKI), 1:39.671 6. Toni ELIAS, Spain (MORIWAKI), 1:39.711 7. Julian SIMON, Spain (SUTER), 1:39.755 8. Fonsi NIETO, Spain (MORIWAKI), 1:39.777 9. Claudio CORTI, Italy (SUTER), 1:39.798 10. Jules CLUZEL, France (SUTER), 1:39.829 11. Lukas PESEK, Czech Republic (MORIWAKI), 1:39.856 12. Karel ABRAHAM, Czech Republic (FTR), 1:39.990 13. Yuki TAKAHASHI, Japan (TECH 3), 1:40.025 14. Roberto ROLFO, Italy (SUTER), 1:40.043 15. Mattia PASINI, Italy (MOTOBI), 1:40.085 16. Stefan BRADL, Germany (SUTER), 1:40.225 17. Mike DI MEGLIO, France (SUTER), 1:40.232 18. Anthony WEST, Australia (MZ-RE HONDA), 1:40.246 19. Simone CORSI, Italy (MOTOBI), 1:40.262 20. Scott REDDING, Great Britain (SUTER), 1:40.313 21. Arne TODE, Germany (SUTER), 1:40.413 22. Yonny HERNANDEZ, Colombia (BQR-MOTO2), 1:40.427 23. Gabor TALMACSI, Hungary (SPEED UP), 1:40.475 24. Valentin DEBISE, France (ADV), 1:40.578 25. Sergio GADEA, Spain (PONS KALEX), 1:40.659 26. Alex DE ANGELIS, San Marino (FORCE GP210), 1:40.660 27. Raffaele DE ROSA, Italy (TECH 3), 1:40.676 28. Alex BALDOLINI, Italy (I.C.P.), 1:40.708 29. Vladimir IVANOV, Ukraine (MORIWAKI), 1:40.716 30. Xavier SIMEON, Belgium (MORIWAKI), 1:40.762 31. Niccolo CANEPA, Italy (FORCE GP210), 1:40.888 32. Axel PONS, Spain (PONS KALEX), 1:40.968 33. Dominique AEGERTER, Switzerland (SUTER), 1:41.006 34. Kenny NOYES, USA (PROMOHARRIS), 1:41.218 35. Hector FAUBEL, Spain (SUTER), 1:41.316 36. Robertino PIETRI, Venezuela (SUTER), 1:41.368 37. Joan OLIVE, Spain (PROMOHARRIS), 1:41.953 38. Vladimir LEONOV, Russia (SUTER), 1:41.967 39. Bernat MARTINEZ, Spain (BIMOTA), 1:42.643 40. Mashel AL NAIMI, Qatar (BQR-MOTO2), 1:43.072 More, from a press release issued by Tech 3: Tech 3 Racing aim for strong result at iconic Assen The Tech 3 Racing Moto2 squad is confident Yuki Takahashi can mount a top six challenge at Assen tomorrow after another incredibly close qualifying session ahead of the historic 80th Dutch TT. Takahashi claimed his best qualifying result since the Tech 3 Racing Team’s home race at Le Mans last month in yet another closely contested session in Moto2. A best time of 1.40.025 on his last flying lap put Takahashi in contention for a top result in tomorrow’s 24-lap race, the Japanese rider ending in 13th position having made big strides in solving front-end issues. Takahashi was less than a second off pole position and less than three-tenths away from a morale-boosting second row start as he looks to improve on his 11th place in the overall standings tomorrow. Raffaele de Rosa will start from 27th position on the grid having worked with his usual determination to improve corner entry speed with his Tech 3 Racing machine. He was only 0.6s away from Takahashi but found himself a further 14 places down the rankings, the Italian facing a tough task to claim his first point-scoring finish in the exciting Moto2 series. Yuki Takahashi 13th 1.40.025 20-laps “Right from the start of the weekend I’ve had a problem with the front-end feeling and that has not let me push as hard as I would like or know I can. We’ve made a big improvement over the weekend but we still need to work more to gain some more confidence. In the fifth and tenth corner I’m losing half-a-second in e ach and this is a lot of time compared to the other guys. We have an idea for tomorrow and we’ll make quite a big change for the warm-up and see how it goes. Even if I could find half-a-second back in those two corners I’d have been much more competitive and fighting for the front row. The target now is to get a good start and try and make sure I get away with the leading group.” Raffaele de Rosa 27th 1.40.676 19-laps “It was a difficult session and the improvement to the bike we hoped would work from a positive session this morning didn’t materialise. I am more confident than I was at the last race in Silverstone because I feel more comfortable on the bike. But we still need to improve the corner entry because that is where I have the majority of my problems. There is a bit of chatter from the front and that doesn’t help with the turning, so we need to try and find some solu tion for the race.” More, from a press release issued by Blusens STX: Assen, 25th June 2010. The qualifying practice of the Grand Prix of the Netherlands, sixth round of the MotoGP World Championship, has been complicated for the riders of the team Blusens-STX. Yonny Hernández could not go as fast as he wanted because he has had problems with his motorbike. His adaptation to this new circuit has been great, but the BQR-Moto2 was not fully ready and he has finished in the 22nd place. However, this is his third best position for a race this season. His team mate Mashel Al Naimi, who did not have troubles with his forearms, has been busy trying to get back the good feelings with the bike in a completely new circuit for him. The Qatari rider has noticed the consequences of a month out of the circuits, plus he has had chattering problems. He has finished in the last place, being 40th, and four seconds away from pole. Yonny has the aim of scoring some points and Mashel wants to finish the race. Tito Rabat is again in the third row, after being 7th in Mugello and 6th in Silverstone. His time was the eight best time of the 125cc category and he is a second and a half behind pole. This is his best classification in Assen so far in his career. The rider of the team Blusens-STX has been working to get a good rhythm and get used to the modifications the Dutch circuit has suffered. Tito has done 66 laps this weekend, trying to find the perfect setting for his Aprilia bike. It has been difficult for him and the mechanics and technicians. 68 YONNY HERNÁNDEZ (22º. 1′.40,427 +1.335): “This was an unknown circuit for me, I had no references, but after the free practices I thought the qualifying session would go better and I would do a better time. But the bike was not working correctly. Also we could not find the better gear relation. Tomorrow I hope I will do a good start and fight for the points, which is my goal for this race (which I expect it to be as exciting as the one at Silverstone). 95 MASHEL AL NAIMI (40º. 1′.43,072 +3.980): “The most positive thing is that my forearms feel perfectly fine. So I think the problems I had are solved after surgery and the rehabilitation we did. In my opinion, it was a good decision not to come back to the championship too soon. Nevertheless, I have felt this month away in my performance. I have used the free practices to try to make the good feelings come back. In the qualifyings we have had chattering problems and in the warm up we had to fix a couple of things in order to help me feel better in the BQR-Moto2. The goal for this race, after two GGPP off, is to complete the 24 laps of the competition.” 12 TITO RABAT (8º. 1’43.934, +1.743): “To be honest I expected more. I am disappointed with my times, so we must work hard to prepare the bike. My rhythm today was 1’44, but I believe that in the 20 minutes that we have before the race I can be 1’43. If we get this and I can start well enough, I think we can be in the first group, which is obviously my objective. During the qualifying session we have had problems with the setting of the bike; the back suspensions were slippery and the perfect gear relation was difficult to find. However, I still think the final time does not reflect the good practices we have done. About the changes in the circuit, I like them and I think they are very appropriate. Finally, I would like to send my best to Jaime Olivares who is living a difficult moment and tell him that we miss him. I would love to get a good result tomorrow and dedicate it to him.” More, from a press release issued by Marc VDS Racing Team: TOUGH TASK AHEAD FOR MARC VDS RIDERS The two Marc VDS Racing Team riders face a tough task in tomorrow’s Dutch TT at Assen, after problems for both during qualifying left them further down the grid than expected. Scott Redding struggled to find a clear space on track during the 45-minute session and will start the race from 20th position, while Hector Faubel will start from 35th on the grid following a crash during qualifying. Redding improved his lap time significantly during free practice this morning, but was unable to make further progress during this afternoon’s qualifying session. The 17-year-old Briton struggled to find the last few tenths of a second around the 4.542km Assen circuit and was baulked on more than one occasion by slower riders cruising around the circuit looking for a tow. Redding also survived a scare in the final chicane when a rider shut off and pulled across in front of him to enter the pits while the Marc VDS rider was on a fast lap. Hector Faubel only managed to complete three flying laps during the whole 45-minute qualifying session. The 26-year-old Spaniard had to push his Suter MMX machine back to the pits during the early stages, after an electrical problem caused the bike to cut out at the Meeuwenmeer turn. Faubel returned to the track once the problem had been rectified but then crashed out of the session just two laps later at Stekkenwal. The Marc VDS rider managed to return to the pits but the bike was too damaged to continue. The Marc VDS riders are determined to fight their way through the field tomorrow, but neither has any illusions about how difficult this will be at Assen, where passing places are limited. Scott Redding #45: 20th – 1’40.313 “I was able to run consistent laps today, but they weren’t quite good enough. I really struggled to find those last few tenths during qualifying because the traffic on track made it almost impossible to string more than a couple of laps together. I had a bit of a scare when Olive pulled across in front of me unexpectedly to enter the pits, but then the number of people cruising around looking for a tow made almost every lap a bit scary. I’ll just have to give it all I’ve got tomorrow to make up for qualifying, but it’s not going to be easy. Sometimes the only place to pass is on the outside of the fast corners and that’s what I’ll have to do tomorrow if I want to finish higher than 20th.” Hector Faubel #55: 35th – 1’41.316 “What a disaster! On my first run the bike just cut out at the furthest part of the circuit from the pits and I had to push it back more than a kilometre, which was hard work without any help. Then, when the bike was fixed I managed to do just an out lap before crashing at Stekkenwal. Again, I got the bike back, but the damage was too much to fix before the end of the session, so I ended up doing just three laps. It’s going to be tough to fight through the field here, certainly more difficult than it was at Silverstone, but I’m determined to at least get inside the top twenty tomorrow. Most important though is that I finish the race.” Michael Bartholemy: Team Manager “Good morning, bad afternoon: That just about sums up our day. Scott was up there this morning and everything looked good, but then qualifying didn’t go quite as well as we were expecting. Actually, qualifying was a little dangerous today, as there were so many riders just cruising around looking for someone to follow. This causes problems for those riders, like Scott, who come across these riders on a fast lap. Hector had more bad luck today. The first problem was electrical, which was easily fixed, but crashing in qualifying when you only have one bike is always going to cost you, as Hector discovered today. Tomorrow it should be possible for Scott to finish inside the points and Hector inside the top twenty, so that’s their target for the race.” More, from a press release issued by FTR MOTO: FTR ON MOTO2 POLE POSITION WITH IANNONE AND SPEED UP FTR MOTO and the FIMMCO Speed Up Team rider Andrea Iannone are celebrating a second pole position in three rounds as the talented Italian recorded the fastest time in qualifying for Saturday’s sixth round of the Moto2 World Championship at the Assen circuit in the north of Holland. Iannone started from pole position then won the fourth round at Mugello in Italy three weeks ago and will be looking to do the same tomorrow after being fastest throughout practice and qualifying. His fellow FTR rider Alex Debon was leading the qualifying session when he became involved in an incident with a slower rider. Debon fell from the Aeroport de Castello-Ajo Team M210 and the luckless Spaniard suffered a broken right collarbone. The crash rules Debon out of tomorrow’s Assen race even though he qualified in third place on the front row. Cardion AB Motoracing’s Karel Abraham continues to adapt to the FTR M210 after switching to the Buckingham, England-built chassis for the Le Mans, France third round last month. Abraham was constantly in the top 10 throughout practice and qualifying but a crash-ridden finish to qualifying left the Czech Republic rider in 12th place, completing the third row of the grid. Iannone’s team-mate Gabor Talmacsi again a front-runner throughout practice will start from 23rd place after crashing out of qualifying, escaping injury. FTR’s Steve Bones commented: “We’re working hard with Andrea Iannone as he still has some set-up issues but his time in qualifying was impressive and I’m sure he’ll believe he can win tomorrow. It was a real shame for Alex Debon as he’d made some changes prior to the qualifying session and on his third lap out set the time that was eventually to be good enough for third place on the grid. “Karel Abraham is impressing every week as he gets used to the FTR M210 and we’re hoping he can push for a top 10 finish tomorrow. After the injury to Alex Debon I’m pleased that Gabor Talmacsi is OK to race following his crash. His machine needs some attention but that can be easily fixed.” More, from a press release issued by JiR Moto2: A sunny day in Assen for the official qualifying practice session for Moto2. The poleman today is Andrea Iannone, while the riders of JiR Moto2 Team, Mattia Pasini finished in 15th position and Simone Corsi 19th after he crashed when he was improving his lap time. Tomorrow it shoud be another competitive race for this new category. Both of MotoBi riders will have to start fast and push hard from the beginning to be able to catch up with the leading group. Following the final classification: 1. Iannone – 1’39″092 2. Wilairot – 1’39″307 3. Debon – 1’39″584 4. Tomizawa – 1’39″664 15. Pasini – 1’40″085 19. Corsi – 1’40″262