2011 FIM ROAD RACING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP GRAND PRIX ROUND 08 JUNE 15/16/17, 2011 SACHSENRING, GERMANY PREVIEW MOTOGP AND MOTO2 HONDA ROLLS INTO GERMANY ON TOP The German Grand Prix at the Sachsenring marks the halfway point in the 18-round MotoGP World Championship with Honda riders first and third in the championship. The challenge to earn the final world championship of the 800cc era will be more difficult in the second half, with five of the final nine races being held outside the comfort zone of the teams’ European bases. Repsol Honda team-mates Casey Stoner and Andrea Dovizioso are first and third respectively, in the MotoGP World Championship after the first eight races. Both have ridden their consistency to the top of the order, with Stoner winning four of the first eight races, with three other podiums and five pole positions. Dovizioso has been on the podium in four of the past five races, including a fine second in his home round in the previous race in Mugello. Whilst Dani Pedrosa, the third member of the Repsol Honda team, made a successful return to racing in Mugello following surgery on his right collarbone. Stoner has a win a third and a fourth over the past four years at the Sachsenring, which has a layout that is a departure from the previous two races in Mugello and Assen. Coming from two of the three fastest race tracks on the calendar, the Sachsenring has one of the slowest average speeds and the second shortest lap time of any grand prix venue. Dovizioso arrives for the final European round of the first half coming off the best result of the season in his home grand prix at Mugello. Following his second place finish, Dovizioso and the rest of the Repsol Honda team stayed on at Mugello for a one-day test to refine the RC212V for the second half of its final season. The team fine-tuned the RC212V’s set-up and tested a new swingarm, which they expect to put into use in Germany. Following the German GP is the U.S.GP, which has the slowest average lap speed and bears some resemblance to Sachsenring, with a preponderance of left hand corners and very little time to rest. Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa clearly knows his way around the 3671m track. The Spaniard won two of the last four races, including last year’s running and the race in 2007. In addition, he was on the podium in 2009. Following surgery on his right collarbone, there were concerns about Pedrosa’s physical fitness in Mugello, but he put them to rest with an encouraging result. Though his result doesn’t show it, the Spaniard proved to himself and others that he still had the speed to be among the sport’s elite. With a two week break since Mugello, Pedrosa’s endurance should be greatly improved. That the Sachsenring is heavily biased to the left hand corners should benefit Pedrosa. San Carlo Honda Gresini’s Marco Simoncelli had an important finish in his home grand prix after two difficult races. Simoncelli came close to finishing fourth before coming fifth under the searing summer Italian sun. Simoncelli has often qualified well, with two poles and four other front row starting spots, but hasn’t been able to continue his proficiency in the races and is still seeking his first MotoGP podium. That could change in Germany. “Super Sic” will be making his ninth visit to the Sachsenring, where he finished on the podium in the 125cc class and won the 250cc race in 2008 and 2009. Simoncelli and the San Carlo Honda Gresini team also took part in the post-Mugello test and found a solution to his late-race traction issues caused by the hottest conditions of the year. Team-mate Hiroshi Aoyama will be racing his San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V for the first time in Germany, having missed last year’s race through injury. Aoyama came off a difficult race in Italy, where he struggled with injuries suffered in the previous round in Assen. The Japanese star finished outside the top ten for the first time this season, other than a DNF in Catalunya. But he has had some success in Germany, winning the 250cc race in 2007 and finished on the podium in 2005. And in 2009 he was fourth to Simoncelli and less than a second behind. Toni Elias (LCR Honda MotoGP) was never comfortable in Mugello and struggled with the front end, preventing him from taking full advantage of the RC212V. Elias is hopeful that a change of scenery brings a change of fortune. The veteran from Manresa, Spain won last year’s race at the Sachsenring, one of seven victories he earned en route to the inaugural Moto2 World Championship. The German round marks the final race before the summer break for the Moto2 class, which doesn’t race in the U.S., and no one is looking forward to the race more than rising German star Stefan Bradl (Viessmann Kiefer, Kalex). The 21-year-old son of 250cc vice-champion Helmut Bradl heads to his home race, where he made his race debut in 2003, with a 52 point lead. Bradl has had a remarkable season, with four wins, a second, third, and fifth. The only blemish on his otherwise sterling record was a spill in Assen, but he quickly recovered by finishing second to reigning 125cc champion Marc Marquez (Team CatalunyaCaixa Repsol, Suter) in Italy. Marquez, 18, scored no points in his three Moto2 races, but has had a near vertical rise since. The Spaniard’s maiden Moto2 win came in Le Mans, after which he finished second in Catalunya, fell in Great Britain, then won in Assen and Italy, becoming the youngest rider to win back to back races in the intermediate class. Mugello was the springboard for Marquez’s 125cc World Championship, with his victory in Italy the first of five in a row, culminating with a win in the German Grand Prix. With nine races remaining after Germany, Marquez will be looking to cut into Bradl’s lead before the summer break. Like Marquez, Bradley Smith (Tech 3 Racing, Tech 3) also had a slow start to the season before catching fire in the past three races. At his home race at Silverstone, the 20-year-old broke through with his first podium, a second place, which he followed up with thirds in both Assen and Mugello. The string of podiums launched him up the order to third in the championship behind Bradl and Marquez. Sachsenring replaced Hockenheim as the site of the German Grand Prix starting in 1998. Five-time Honda world champion Mick Doohan christened the track with a victory, his third success in Germany on three different tracks. A year earlier he’d won the German GP at the Nurburgring (1997) and he also won the German GP at Hockenheim (1992). In the 15-year grand prix history of the Sachsenring, Honda has more premier class wins than any other brand. Six different winners have won on three different Hondas, the NSR5000, the RC211V, and the RC212V. The winning riders include Doohan, Alex Barros (2000), Valentino Rossi (2002), Sete Gibernau (2003), Max Biaggi (2004), and Dani Pedrosa in 2007 and 2010. The history of racing in Saxony dates back to the 1920s on public roads near the town of Chemnitz. In 1996, the Sachsenring was built as a purpose-built track in the years after the former West and East Germanys reunified. Originally 2.9k, the track underwent revisions in 2000, 2001, and 2003 all of which increased the length to its current 3.671k, and average speed. The circuit is no longer the shortest venue on the calendar; Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, which follows the German race, is shorter by 60 meters. The anti-clockwise track has ten left-hand corners and only three rights, with a longest straightaway of 700m. The first corners are the slowest before the riders encounter a series of increasingly faster lefts heading to the right hand turn 11, a blind, off-camber kink that sends riders descending precipitously to the last two lefts, where much of the passing takes place. From turn 12 the track heads uphill to the final 60 degree turn 13, which feeds onto the front straightaway. The Sachsenring is one of the most popular races of the year, with crowds approaching 100,000 lining the hills of Hohenstein-Ernstthal near Chemnitz in Saxony. HONDA MotoGP RIDER QUOTES Repsol Honda rider Casey Stoner says: “I’m looking forward to going to Sachsenring, it’s a circuit where we’ve enjoyed good results in the past few years. The track is very tight and technical so it demands a different style of riding and we also need to set the bike up in a different way. It’s pretty tough on tyres as the majority of corners are long left-handers so the wear on the left hand side of the tyre is quite significant. It takes a lot of work to get a good set up in order to have a good pace for the race distance. I really enjoy this race, the atmosphere is amazing and the countryside is beautiful. We’ve always been pretty fast there and I’m sure with the Honda we can be competitive.” Repsol Honda rider Andrea Dovizioso says: “We arrive in Germany strong and competitive. The second place in front of the Italian crowd at Mugello gave us an extra boost to continue working and improving race after race. The post GP test at Mugello was an important occasion to fine tune the set up of the bike and try a new swing arm. We had good feedback so we arrive in Germany with a good base and I think we will use the new swing arm as the feeling was positive and lap times came easier. I enjoy going to Sachsenring, it has a good atmosphere and there are always a lot of spectators. However, as a circuit it is very different from Mugello, it’s a quite short racetrack, with a very slow first section followed by a very fast second half. We will work hard from the first practice session, as we did in Mugello, this is very important to prepare the machine for the race. I’m very motivated, we are third in the championship and we want to continue gaining important points for the season.” Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa says: “The last race in Mugello was good because after a long time without racing, I saw that I haven’t lost the ability to go fast. I have to regain fitness and this week I have worked hard. I’ve always had very good races at Sachsenring and it’s good to get to a track where you know you can do well. Contrary to Mugello, Germany is all almost left hand corners and this must help me. Last year, we had a great race there and hopefully we can do a good job again during practices, hope nothing goes wrong and come out with a good chance for the race.” San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Marco Simoncelli says: “Mugello was definitely a positive weekend with a positive end result although I wasn’t completely satisfied. It was important to get to the end of the race without any dramas and put the misadventures of Silverstone and Assen behind me. The test on Monday was also positive we tried some solutions that could help us overcome the problems we had in the race at Mugello, where I seemed to struggle more than the others with a loss of grip due to the increased track temperature. Overall the visit to Mugello has given me confidence and motivation for the next round in Germany. Sachsenring is a circuit I like a lot, I have always been fast there in 125 and in 250, in fact I won the 250 races there in 2008 and 2009. Last year I had a good race in MotoGP, battling for fifth place. My objective is to do my best along with the team and try to improve on the result from Mugello.” San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Hiroshi Aoyama says: “After the experience at Assen on the factory Repsol Honda Team RC212V I struggled a little bit to get a feel for my team San Carlo Honda Gresini machine at Mugello. To complicate matters I was still in a lot of discomfort from my crash in Holland but I gradually got back on the pace and with the help and dedication of all the guys on the team we came out with a satisfactory result. The test on the following day was much more positive with a view to Sachsenring. I actually missed the race there last year through injury so I have to go back to my 250 days for my last experience there. I was on the podium in 2005 and won the race in 2007 but the difference between 250 and MotoGP is too big to predict what kind of feeling I will have for the track with this bike.” Moto2 RIDER QUOTES Viessmann Kiefer Racing, Kalex rider Stefan Bradl says: “I think at the moment our bike is working everywhere. I think also there’s something special about Sachsenring, but I think it’s working everywhere, especially when I remember it works in Qatar, in Le Mans, Catalunya, so those are already different tracks. I think we’re having a great package at the moment, which we can use at any track. The past few months I felt a lot of support from the German market and TV, PR, everything is growing and interest is coming more and more. It’s very nice to have that and especially in Sachsenring, there will be a lot, but really a lot of interest there. If I win, to listen to the national anthem, this will be something really, really special. Nobody will forget it. My dad (Helmut) won the 250cc race in Hockenheim, he won the home grand prix. It must be fantastic.” Team CaixaCatalunya Repsol, Suter rider Marc Marquez says: “After two consecutive victories, we arrive in Germany with maximum motivation, but we know that we need to keep the same frame of mind we had until now. We have to focus on our job and do it well, taking full advantage of our time on track. Sachsenring is a special track, one of the shortest of the championship, if not the shortest, with a very slow first part where it is very difficult to set the difference. This will be specially obvious in Moto2, where there are a lot of riders and the level is very close. The second half of the track is faster and I like it more. We will try to keep the concentration during the whole weekend, prepare the race well and get a good result to start the summer break on a high.” Tech 3 Racing, Tech 3 rider Bradley Smith says: “The Sachsenring should be really interesting on a Moto2 bike. It’s narrow and a bit like a go-kart track in some parts. Qualifying on Saturday is going to be crucial because overtaking will not be easy. Using the old football cliché we will take each race at a time.” More, from a press release issued by Marc VDS Racing Team: MARC VDS LOOKING FOR CHANGE OF FORTUNE IN GERMANY The Marc VDS Racing Team head for the Sachsenring in Germany and round nine of the Moto2 World Championship determined to erase the disappointment of finishing outside the points at Mugello with strong performances from both Scott Redding and Mika Kallio this weekend. The Sachsenring has been a successful track for Kallio in the past. The Finnish rider made his first Grand Prix appearance as a wild card rider back in 2001 in Germany, where he has also won in the 125cc class and finished on the podium aboard a 250cc machine previously. The Marc VDS rider struggled to make the transition to Moto2 in the early part of the season, but has improved both his confidence in the bike and his speed in recent weeks. Redding was fighting in the top seven in last year’s Moto2 race at the Sachsenring, until a mechanical problem with his Suter MMX machine forced his retirement after ten laps. The 18-year-old British youngster his hoping for better luck this time around, at a circuit that suits well his aggressive riding style. Motorcycle racing has been taking place on closed public roads around the Sachsenring since the 1920s and a five-mile road course was still in use as recently as 1990. The current Sachsenring circuit was built in 1996 on the outskirts of Hohenstein-Ernstthal, five miles west of Chemnitz. The circuit hosted its first Grand Prix in 1998, since which many further improvements have been made to the track layout. At just 3.671 kilometres in length the Sachsenring is one of the shortest tracks on the Moto2 calendar, while its technical nature also makes it one of the slowest. The anti-clockwise track features ten left-hand turns and only three right-hand corners, making tyre choice for the race critical as the left side of the tyre, especially the rear, is subjected to far higher forces than the right. The Moto2 riders will run dual compound rear tyres at Sachsenring, with a soft-medium compound used on the right side of the tyre to maintain grip as the tyre cools between the right-hand turns. Mika Kallio #36: “The Sachsenring is a special circuit for me. I made my Grand Prix debut here as a wild card rider in 2001 and I also had some good results on the 125 and 250 in the past. Many riders don’t like this track, as it’s fairly short and slow, but it is definitely one of my favourites and I’m looking forward to the weekend ahead. When we’ve had problems in the first practice in the past then the whole weekend has been difficult, so we need to focus on this and make sure we can run near the top of the timesheet from the start. If we can do this then I’m confident we can come away from Sachsenring on Sunday.” Scott Redding #45: “The Sachsenring circuit is tight, technical and very demanding, with corners following in quick succession and only a short straight on which to try and recover. The up and down nature of the track also seems to make you push a little bit harder than you would on the flat, I don’t know why. I like it! At such a tight track qualifying well up the grid will be critical. The first right-hander is notoriously tight, especially with 40 bikes tying to squeeze through there, so you need to be heading into it in the top ten from the start if you’re to avoid the inevitable collisions. We had a disappointing race in Mugello, so I’m looking to make amends this weekend in Germany.” Michael Bartholemy: Team Manager “The Sachsenring, with its tight and technical layout, means you have to fight hard for a good result and that’s what I expect from Scott and Mika this weekend. The fighting spirit that is so important in racing, especially in a series as closely contested as Moto2, was missing in Mugello and I want to see it back this weekend. We need to score points on Sunday, that is our goal and I expect Scott and Mika to deliver.” More, from a press release issued by JiR Moto2 Team: We are at the halfway point, the 9th Moto2 race at the Sachsenring circuit in Germany which represents the middle of the season, with eight races already disputed and eight others yet to come. The JiR Team has so far demonstrated the validity of the project’s technical base and highlighted a solid and well blended team, yet they have still missed the podium that looks increasingly within reach at every race. The performance of De Angelis in the last GP at Mugello, with 2nd place in qualifying and 4th in the race are the latest evidence of a competitiveness that is improving continuously, so rewarding consistent performance and producing much improved results. This is a GP that is a “turning point” and full of symbolic values, as team and rider will take it as an opportunity to raise the bar still further and capitalize on the work done so far and aim for a second half of the season full of increased achievements. Gianluca Montiron Sachsenring is a narrow circuit with the majority of left-handers that requires a different style of riding and machine set-up compared to Mugello. It will be important to be fast as usual and finalize the machine to allow the rider to have a good pace and make a difference during the race. We are always confident to aim for a good result, seeing the weather forecast seems that we will suffer some uncertain conditions. Alex DeAngelis We come from a good weekend in Mugello, where we were in the lead group and very close to the podium, so we go to Sachsenring with renewed enthusiasm. I am confident for a good race weekend for two reasons: firstly because it is a very tight circuit with short straights, so we feel less the difference in performance compared to others. In addition, the German track is one of those that has given me more satisfaction. In all classes I have always been very fast and I was very close to the podium in MotoGP there. It is a riders’ circuit so I am comfortable, I hope we have a good summer climate as in these conditions we’ve made a step forward in the management of tyre wear, so it may be a factor in our favour. Obviously, we rely on our experience to find the perfect set-up of my MotoBI in relation to this circuit, which is very different from Mugello and also others that will follow, which are more fluent and fast, but we have already shown great adaptive capacity that will also apply at the Sachsenring.