BIRCHALL BROTHERS WIN WORLD TITLE Mansfield brothers Ben and Tom Birchall won the 2009 FIM Sidecar World Championship after finishing in second place to outgoing champion Pekka Paivarinta and passenger Adolf Hanni at Le Mans on Sunday. Ben’s younger sibling Tom has rewritten the history books by becoming the youngest ever passenger at 22 years and 257 days to win a World Sidecar championship making it a double celebration for the Mitchells of Mansfield sponsored team. Going into the final round at Le Mans, Ben and Tom held a 14-point advantage over Paivarinta and Hanni and with no one else in striking distance, the final encounter was to be between the two teams. Paivarinta could only do his best and take the win in the final race but he knew that if Birchall completed the 18 laps in second or third place then he would see his title slip away from him. Qualifying was a close run affair with Paivarinta sealing pole position just 700ths of a second ahead of the Mansfield duo who took their places on the front row of the grid ahead of a very tense and thrilling finale. Paivarinta got the hole shot and held the lead throughout the 18 laps while Birchall was content to remain in second place through the opening few laps before being overhauled by former champion Tim Reeves. By lap 10 Birchall decided it was time to make a move and powered back up into second place and, with a clear track ahead of him, began to reduce the gap between himself and the flying Finn who had stretched his lead to over 10 seconds. Although he repeatedly bettered his lap times Birchall was unable to catch the race leader and crossed the finish line 8.9 seconds in arrears. But he had done sufficient to secure the world championship title with an advantage of seven points ahead of Paivarinta and Hanni to bring the trophy and world title back to the UK. “It is a fantastic feeling to be the World Champion,” said an ecstatic Ben Birchall. “And for Tom to become the youngest ever passenger is the icing on the cake. Neither of us can find the words right now to say how happy we are. “I would like to say a huge thank you to all our sponsors, family and friends that have supported us through thick and thin. We couldn’t have done it without you! “We will celebrate tonight before making our way home and then the hard work will start to prepare for next year. The World championship winning LCR Suzuki is now up for sale as we already have the new F1 and F2 outfits on order. “We intend to begin a series of tests early in the New Year as preparation for the defence of our World title and also to have another crack at the Isle of Man TT races.” The Birchall brothers are now looking for some additional sponsorship to help them retain their newly won world title and anyone interested in supporting the Mansfield brothers can contact Ben on 07843 286295 when he will be only too pleased to discuss further details. More, from a press release issued by Pirelli: ROUND 11 NÃœRBURGRING, GERMANY SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 6, 2009 RACE REVIEW September 6th, 2009 Nürburg, GER (Germany) Pirelli Tyres crushed the lap record in every race held over the weekend, memorable results for the historic yet newly renovated Nürburgring, a true first-class facility. Lap records were set by the following riders (all on Pirelli Tyres): Noriyuki Haga on a Ducati in Superbike Race 1, Jonathan Rea on a Honda in Superbike Race 2, Cal Crutchlow on a Yamaha in World Supersport, Xavier Simeon on a Ducati in the Superstock 1000 FIM Cup, and finally Vincent Lonbois on a Yamaha in the European Superstock 600. Friday’s practices and Saturday afternoon qualifying left riders with only a few dry sessions to take advantage of, considering the tighter schedule of activities which begin on Friday. Due to a crash in the wet and an unexpected 5th in Superpole, the new championship points-leader Ben Spies (Yamaha WSB) knows that every race of this championship is going to matter, since Haga showed with a pole position that he is back to 100%. Crutchlow (Yamaha World SSP) was naturally on the Supersport pole, and remains undefeated for the last nine races. Pirelli brought to Germany over 5,500 tyres which consisted of five front solutions and four rear solutions for the Superbike class; along with three fronts, three rear solutions for the Supersport. This increased The yellow-striped Qualifying tyres continue to be a visual aid to allow spectators on television and in the paddock have an insight to the strategies and teams who participate in the Superpole. Race 1: The way race winner Ben Spies of Yamaha WSB continues to stun the paddock is equally impressive as the race-distance performances which riders are finding out of their Pirelli DIABLO SUPERBIKE tyres. Noriyuki Haga of Ducati Xerox was credited with a new lap record around Nürburgring on the 15th of the race with a 1’56.539, and even Texan Spies’ fastest lap of 1’56.558 was made as he crossed the finish line, a lap time just 0.2 seconds short of Haga. Despite the 2nd row starting position of Spies, he still managed to methodically pick his way through the grid until he was left with his twelfth win of the season. The BMW S1000RR of Troy Corser found a great setup for the first race with a “D” front and “A” rear tyre, holding only 4th position for ten laps, until Carlos Checa (HANNspree Ten Kate Honda) made a late break and fought his way from his 9th position to the podium, edging out his teammate Jonathan Rea by just under 0.12 seconds. The new softer “A” compound DIABLO SUPERCORSA tyres for this race were developed with a temperature range offering quick warm-up time while maintaining a performance level proven to allow the riders to push until the very last lap. In the end, the first five positions consisted of four different manufacturers, and left the Race Standings – Superbike Race 1 Pos. Rider Bike Team Race time 1 B. Spies Yamaha YZF-R1 Yamaha WSB 39’04.818 2 N. Haga Ducati 1098R Ducati Xerox Team +3.850 3 C. Checa Honda CBR1000RR HANNspree Ten Kate Honda 6.990 4 J. Rea Honda CBR1000RR HANNspree Ten Kate Honda 7.109 5 M. Biaggi Aprilia RSV4 Factory Aprilia Racing 12.825 Race 2: All riders were again on the “A” DIABLO SUPERBIKE rear solution for Race 2, since the performance of this solution proved strong and lasting in the previous Race. The first row of the grid was again on the “A” front tyre as well, while Spies (Yamaha) and Corser (BMW) opted for the harder “D” solution, a sister solution to the winning solution from 2008. Tom Sykes of Yamaha WSB opted to completely change his setup, switching from a “D” front, “A” rear in the first race to a “C” front and “B” rear for a second race, a choice which helped to place 8th, one position higher than the previous race. The real surprise in Race 2 was first time winner Jonathan Rea (HANNspree Ten Kate Honda), who earned the lead on lap four with a frighteningly fast pace, with fifteen out of twenty laps registered in the 1’56s, finally breaking the Lap Record for the final time of the day as he crossed the finish line with a 1’56.234. Rea’s lead came at a loss to Haga, as the collided in the corner and left Haga out of the race and precious points in the championship. Rea thus took the win ahead of Ben Spies (Yamaha), Carlos Checa (Honda), Max Biaggi (Aprilia), and Leon Haslam (Honda), who had all posted times faster than last year’s race double-winner Noriyuki Haga. Pirelli goes home from this Superbike race weekend with excitement, as strong results have come from teams from Honda, Aprilia and BMW who worked on developing their setups in the first part of the season and are beginning to see the fruits of their labour. Pirelli looks forward to the third and final Italian round of the 2009 calendar, to take place at the Autodromo di Imola in two weeks. Race Standings Superbike Race 2 Pos. Rider Bike Team Race Time 1 J. Rea Honda CBR1000RR HANNspree Ten Kate Honda 39’01.561 2 B. Spies Yamaha YZF-R1 Yamaha WSB +0.786 3 C. Checa Honda CBR1000RR HANNspree Ten Kate Honda 4.993 4 M. Biaggi Aprilia RSV4 Factory Aprilia Racing 8.191 5 L. Haslam Honda CBR1000RR Stiggy Racing Honda 10.907 Championship Standings (YTD) – Superbike Pos. Rider Bike Team Points 1 Ben Spies Yamaha YZF-R1 Yamaha WSB 364 2 Noriyuki Haga Ducati 1098R Ducati Xerox Team 346 3 Michel Fabrizio Ducati 1098R Ducati Xerox Team 289 4 Jonathan Rea Honda CBR1000RR HANNspree Ten Kate Honda 244 5 Max Biaggi Aprilia RSV4 Factory Aprilia Racing 224 6 Leon Haslam Honda CBR1000RR Stiggy Racing Honda 201 7 Carlos Checa Honda CBR1000RR HANNspree Ten Kate Honda 177 8 Tom Sykes Yamaha YZF-R1 Yamaha WSB 165 9 Shane Byrne Ducati 1098R Sterilgarda 140 10 Jakub Smrz Ducati 1098R Guandalini Racing 140 There seems something that is just working with Cal Crutchlow (Yamaha Supersport) at the moment, who has been undefeated since he first won at Valencia. The Englishman not only took his Yamaha R6 to the top of the podium, but in qualifying destroyed the Best Lap by 2.15 seconds, leaving on the boards the new time of 1’57.866. In the race, Crutchlow took the lead from the start and maintained a sufficient winning pace, crushing the Lap Record by 1.7 seconds on the fourth lap, leaving a time of 1’58.726 to be challenged next year. Eugene Laverty (Parkalgar Honda) and Joan Lascorz (Kawasaki Motocard.com) fought the toughest battle for the second and third positions, after front-row contender Kenan Sofuoglu suffered a crash on lap five and rejoined in the back of the grid. Lascorz’s consistent lap times in the 1’59’s were pushing Laverty to reach the absolute edge of grip of his DIABLO SUPERCORSA tyres, who was able to hold off the Kawasaki and they crossed the line just 0.14 seconds apart. Most of the Supersport riders chose the “B” solution front tyre along with the “C” rear solution, the latter of which comes from development help from IDM races here at Nürburgring in May. The Supersport race quickened its overall pace from 2008 by over 30 seconds, and even though this venue is in its second year since Pirelli has been servicing the paddock as the single-tyre supplier, the quicker pace of competition is important for teams to develop riders for a possible seat in the Superbike paddock. Race Standings – Supersport Pos. Rider Bike Team Race time 1 C. Crutchlow Yamaha YZF-R6 Yamaha World Supersport 37’56.481 2 E. Laverty Honda CBR600RR Parkalgar Honda +10.109 3 J. Lascorz Kawasaki ZX-6R Kawasaki Motocard.com 10.250 4 M. Roccoli Honda CBR600RR Intermoto Czech 31.980 5 F. Foret Yamaha YZF-R6 Yamaha World Supersport 34.575 Championship Standings (YTD) – Supersport Pos. Rider Bike Team Points 1 Cal Crutchlow Yamaha YZF-R6 Yamaha World Supersport 210 2 Eugene Laverty Honda CBR600RR Parkalgar Honda 188 3 Joan Lascorz Kawasaki ZX-6R Kawasaki Motocard.com 138 4 Kenan Sofuoglu Honda CBR600RR HANNspree Ten Kate Honda 128 5 Fabien Foret Yamaha YZF-R6 Yamaha World Supersport 99 6 Andrew West Honda CBR600RR Stiggy Racing Honda 96 7 Andrew Pitt Honda CBR600RR HANNspree Ten Kate Honda 94 8 Mark Aitchison Honda CBR600RR Honda Althea Racing 71 9 Garry McCoy Triumph Daytona 675 ParkinGO Triumph BE1 71 10 Massimo Roccoli Honda CBR600RR Intermoto Czech 62 The Belgian points leader Simeon has again raced his Ducati Xerox Junior bike to the finish-line first, with just over a 2.5 second lead. Simeon made excellent use of the Pirelli DIABLO SUPERCORSA SC2’s quick warm up time, getting on the gas early and holding a competitive throughout the race. Simeon, who has been undefeated for four races, was also able to break the lap record set by last year’s Superstock 1000 champion Brendan Roberts, registering a new time just under the 2-minute mark of 1’59.933. The Ducati of Simeon was followed by Assen race winner Maxime Berger on the Honda, and Javier Fores of Spain on his Kawasaki ZX10-R who completed the podium. Disappointing results from Italian Claudio Corti of Suzuki Alstare BRUX, although he had not qualified well on Saturday and was grided 13th, he managed to fight through the field and maintain a strong pace long enough to finish up eight places to 5th. With the Superstock class having participation from eight manufacturers, the Pirelli DIABLO SUPERCORSA SC2 is confirmed again as a highly diverse solution for stock-production motorcycle racing. Pirelli technicials Race Standings Superstock 1000 Pos. Rider Bike Team Race time 1 X. Simeon Ducati 1098R Ducati Xerox Junior Team 22’13.426 2 M. Berger Honda CBR1000RR Ten Kate Honda Racing +2.763 3 J. Fores Kawasaki ZX-10R Team Pedercini 5.649 4 D. Giugliano Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 Celani Race 6.620 5 C. Corti Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 Suzuki Alstare BRUX 7.085 Championship Standings (YTD) Superstock 1000 Pos. Rider Bike Team Points 1 Xavier Simeon Ducati 1098R Ducati Xerox Junior Team 155 2 Claudio Corti Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K9 Suzuki Alstare BRUX 115 3 Maxime Berger Honda CBR1000RR Ten Kate Honda Racing 102 4 Javier Fores Kawasaki ZX-10R Team Pedercini 100 5 Sylvain Barrier Yamaha YZF-R1 Garnier Junior Racing Team 67 The Superstock 600 riders kept the action heavy as the five different race leaders took their DIABLO SUPERCORSA SC2 tyres to the limits as they covered the German track’s 5.137 km length for nine laps, a distance of just over 46 km. All five race leaders registered a time below Loris Baz’s 2008 lap record, with race winner Vincent Lonbois the only racer to drop into the 2’03 mark with a new lap time of 2’03.96. With this win, the Belgian Lonbois captured highly valuable points in the championship by charging back from fifth on the grid to win the race. Behind Lonbois were the two Italian riders, championship-points leader Danilo Petrucci and his teammate Bussolotti of Yamaha Italia Jr. Trasimeno. Absent from the podium was Gino Rea, who was unable to keep pace with the Yamahas and was left with a sixth place finish and took home just 10 points. Petrucci still holds the lead over race-winner by 8 points, but three races remain in the championship, with the next race at Imola having a home advantage for the Italians. Race Standings Superstock 600 Pos. Rider Bike Team Race time 1 V. Lonbois Yamaha YZF-R6 MTM Racing Team 18’53.030 2 D. Petrucci Yamaha YZF-R6 Yamaha Italia Jr. Trasimeno +1.096 3 M. Bussolotti Yamaha YZF-R6 Yamaha Italia Jr. Trasimeno 1.383 4 E. La Marra Honda CBR600RR Team Lorini 1.512 5 F. Karlsen Yamaha YZF-R6 VD Heyden Motors Yamaha 1.794 Championship Standings (YTD) Pos. Rider Bike Team Points 1 Danilo Petrucci Yamaha YZF-R6 Yamaha Italia Jr. Trasimeno 122 2 Vincent Lonbois Yamaha YZF-R6 MTM Racing Team 114 3 Gino Rea Honda CBR600RR HANNspree Ten Kate Honda 98 4 Marco Bussolotti Yamaha YZF-R6 Yamaha Italia Jr. Trasimeno 96 5 Jeremy Guarnoni Yamaha YZF-R6 MRS Racing 83 More, from a press release issued by Indianapolis Motor Speedway: MotoGP RACE REPORT: GRAND PRIX OF SAN MARINO Rossi strikes back with win, pads lead to 30 points; Early crash takes out Edwards, Hayden INDIANAPOLIS, Sunday, Sept. 6, 2009 Valentino Rossi can remove the donkey from his helmet after galloping to victory from pole in the San Marino Grand Prix on Sept. 6 at Misano Adriatico, Italy. Six-time MotoGP World Champion Rossi beat Fiat Yamaha teammate Jorge Lorenzo, winner of the Red Bull Indianapolis GP on Aug. 30 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, by 2.416 seconds. Dani Pedrosa finished third on his Repsol Honda Team machine. Rossi expanded his lead to 30 points over Lorenzo with four races remaining. “Since Indianapolis, when I made that mistake, we have been so focused and concentrated, and everyone deserves this result,” Rossi said. “I was the ‘flying donkey’ today!” Rossi traditionally picks a special helmet design for the two Italian rounds in MotoGP, and he placed a large donkey face from the movie “Shrek” on his helmet for this event because he was embarrassed about crashing out of the Red Bull Indianapolis GP on Aug. 30 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. “I have the donkey on it because in Italy, if you make a stupid mistake we say that you are a donkey,” Rossi said. “As soon as I hit the ground at Indianapolis, I thought what a donkey I was.” Rossi was perfect at his home event, as he grew up about 5 miles from the Misano circuit. He dropped from pole to third on the first lap, which included a pileup triggered by San Marino native Alex de Angelis that took out Americans Colin Edwards and Nicky Hayden. Pedrosa and Toni Elias dueled for the lead in the early laps, but Rossi passed Lorenzo and Elias for second on Lap 5. On the next lap, he passed Pedrosa and began to pull away, creating too large of a gap for Lorenzo to bridge once he passed Pedrosa for second. Edwards and Hayden qualified fifth and sixth, respectively. But neither could fulfill that promising qualifying pace into a strong race result due to an over-optimistic late-braking maneuver on the first lap by de Angelis, who finished second Aug. 30 at Indianapolis. De Angelis’ San Carlo Honda Gresini machine pile-drove into the left side of Edwards’ Monster Yamaha Tech 3 machine in the left-handed Turn 2, sending both tumbling into the gravel. Edwards’ sprawling machine then clipped the rear wheel of Hayden’s Ducati, also dropping Hayden into the gravel. “We are in Italy, and occasionally you have to deal with an Italian rider who wants to be a hero, and today that was de Angelis,” Edwards said. “Turn 1 at the start with 17 bikes is not the place to be going at race pace, and he was never going to make through there. Today de Angelis is the guy who needed to be wearing Valentino’s donkey helmet.” The next event is the Grand Prix of Portugal on Oct. 4 at Estoril. *** RESULTS MISANO ADRIATICO, Italy Results of the 28-lap Grand Prix of San Marino MotoGP race, with position, rider, country, motorcycle, time behind winner. All riders on Bridgestone tires: 1. Valentino Rossi Italy Yamaha 2. Jorge Lorenzo Spain Yamaha +2.416 seconds 3. Dani Pedrosa Spain Honda +12.400 4. Andrea Dovizioso Italy Honda +26.330 5. Loris Capirossi Italy Suzuki +26.539 6. Toni Elias Spain Honda +28.286 7. Mika Kallio Finland Ducati +30.184 8. Marco Melandri Italy Kawasaki +31.757 9. Chris Vermeulen Australia Suzuki +31.909 10. James Toseland Great Britain Yamaha +38.347 11. Aleix Espargaro Spain Ducati +46.673 12. Randy de Puniet France Honda +52.041 13. Niccolo Canepa Italy Ducati +1:03.198 14. Gabor Talmacsi Hungary Honda +1:22.347 NC Alex de Angelis San Marino Honda NC Colin Edwards United States Yamaha NC Nicky Hayden United States Ducati NC Not classified Fastest lap: Rossi, 1:34.746, Lap 16; Pole lap: Rossi, 1:34.338 *** POINTS Riders: Rossi 237, Lorenzo 207, Pedrosa 157, Casey Stoner 150, Dovizioso 133, Edwards 123, Capirossi 97, de Angelis 88, de Puniet 88, Melandri 87, Vermeulen 84, Elias 80, Toseland 78, Hayden 73, Kallio 51, Canepa 35, Sete Gibernau 12, Talmacsi 12, Yuki Takahashi 9, Aleix Espargaro 8. Manufacturers: Yamaha 305, Honda 220, Ducati 191, Suzuki 120, Kawasaki 87. *** PODIUM QUOTES VALENTINO ROSSI (Fiat Yamaha Team Yamaha/Bridgestone, winner): “This is a great feeling. It’s taken me some time to get used to Misano and view it as a ‘home’ race because Mugello is so special to me, but I can honestly say that winning here today, in front of everyone dressed in yellow and with 46s everywhere, is a great emotion and I want to thank everyone for making it so special. Today I had to go quite carefully with the full tank at the start and I took some time to get to the front, but once I was there, it was great, and my bike felt fantastic. We didn’t expect to be this competitive here, but it’s been a perfect weekend. Since Indianapolis, when I made that mistake, we have been so focused and concentrated, and everyone deserves this result. I was the ‘flying donkey’ today!” JORGE LORENZO (Fiat Yamaha Team Yamaha/Bridgestone, second): “I did what I had to do today and took as many points as I could, which is the most important thing when you’re not perfect. Unfortunately, we struggled a bit all weekend to find the right setting, and so I thought it was better to take care and ensure the second place today. I took some time to get past Dani and Toni, and then it was too far to Valentino. After I was nearly brought down on the second corner, I wanted to make sure I got the points in order to keep the championship alive. We have some work to do, but we will make sure we’re back to our best in Estoril, where I have great memories from last year and my first win.” DANI PEDROSA (Repsol Honda Team Honda/Bridgestone, third): “A podium finish is a good result for us, and I think it fulfilled our potential here this weekend. I made a good start and pushed to the maximum in the opening laps to stay ahead of the others. I was riding really hard and getting quicker every lap, which allowed me to keep in front for quite a long time. First Valentino and then Jorge came past though, and they were able to brake harder and get through the corners a little better that me, which meant I just couldn’t stay with them. I was actually quite lucky at the end because I ran out of fuel on the slowing-down lap and had to hitch a ride back to the pits with Toni Elias. Third is OK here, and there was no way I could follow the leaders’ rhythm, so I’m reasonably satisfied. I’ve moved into third in the championship, but with Casey not riding here, it’s not an even situation, so I’m not too concerned about that. This weekend I also re-signed with Honda, and I’m very happy about this. They know my potential very well, and I know their potential, too, and I’m sure we can work well together into the future.” *** AMERICAN RIDER QUOTES NICKY HAYDEN (Ducati Team Ducati/Bridgestone, not classified): “It’s easy to say it now, but I just know I was set for a good race today, so I’m extremely disappointed. Maybe I wasn’t going to win the race, but I at least could have run with the front guys for a while and given all the Ducatisti to cheer for, as well as picking up some vital experience and data for this machine and having some fun myself. To be honest, I had a feeling de Angelis might create some drama here. He’s at home and fighting for his job, and when I saw him in the corner of my eye, I just tried to gas it and get out of his way. Unfortunately, he slightly clipped my rear wheel, and that was the last I knew about it. I know in racing people can make mistakes and I have done plenty in my life, but I’m not happy with Alex because this wasn’t racing – it was just stupid to try and pull a move like that on cold tires, in the second corner on the first lap. Anyway, we’re all OK and looking forward to Portugal.” COLIN EDWARDS (Yamaha Tech 3 Yamaha/Bridgestone, not classified): “I thought I had the pace to easily be fourth and maybe fight with Pedrosa for a podium, but we are in Italy and occasionally you have to deal with an Italian rider who wants to be a hero, and today that was de Angelis. Turn 1 at the start with 17 bikes is not the place to be going at race pace, and he was never going to make through there. Today de Angelis is the guy who needed to be wearing Valentino’s donkey helmet. I didn’t know what happened until I was sliding through the gravel. Turn 1 is the most dangerous time to crash with so many bikes around you; it is unacceptable. I’ve been fighting with Dovizioso in the championship most of the season, and now he has 10 points on me with four races to go. That’s racing.” *** MotoGP SUPPORT CLASS WINNERS 250cc: Hector Barbera, Spain, Pepe World Team Aprilia. 125cc: Julian Simon, Spain, Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc Aprilia. American Cameron Beaubier finished 22nd and is tied for 27th in the World Championship standings. *** NEXT RACE Grand Prix of Portugal, Estoril, Oct. 2-4. Round 14 of 17. *** IMS tickets: Established in 1909, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway has long prevailed as an icon of motorsports excellence. Beginning in 2009, the Speedway celebrates its Centennial Era, commemorating the 100th anniversary of the facility in 2009 and the 100th anniversary of the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race in 2011. Tickets can be purchased online at www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com at any time. Tickets for groups of 20 or more also are on sale. Contact the IMS Group Sales Department at (866) 221-8775 for more information.