TUSCAN HILLS TO PROVIDE PICTURESQUE BACKDROP FOR ROUND NINE De Puniet and Espargaró continue CRT battle in Italy with just a point between them Two of the most iconic corners, Arrabbiata 1 & 2, await the MotoGP riders this weekend as the Mugello circuit prepares to play host to the ninth round of the 2012 season. The picturesque Tuscan track is not as friendly as it looks and is one of the most challenging venues in the world for the riders and their engineers to try and master. At 5.245km in length and with a main straight of 1.141km – the longest in the championship – it requires a perfect set-up and no shortage of skill to uncover its many secrets. Jorge Lorenzo, Dani Pedrosa and Casey Stoner continue an intense battle at the top of the standings after a dramatic final lap at Sachsenring saw the trio swap positions. Lorenzo now leads by sixteen points from Pedrosa, with Stoner a further four back. Whilst leadership of the MotoGP World Championship may be a three-way battle it is turning into a two horse race for the honour of top CRT. The two men sharing victory amongst the new breed of bikes on a weekly basis at the moment are the POWER ELECTRONICS Aspar Team pairing of Randy De Puniet and Aleix Espargaró. After a strong start from the Spaniard the experienced Frenchman has caught and passed him in recent weeks, although his advantage is but a single championship point. Both riders and their respective crews are doing a perfect job to make the ART machine as competitive as it possibly can be and their goal is to continue this dominance this weekend. Randy De Puniet: “I got to Mugello with a lot of confidence after two great results in the last two races.We have found a really good base set-up for the bike since Assen and I’m able to ride comfortably and confidently. We’ll start out with the same set-up on Friday and I just hope it is as effective as it was at Assen and Sachsenring. Mugello is one of my favourite circuits. It is fast and has a lot of elevation changes and fast corners. You have to ride well to set fast lap times there and I always enjoy it. Our objective are the same here as anywhere else: to be the best CRT and to continue our positive progression over the last few races.” Aleix Espargaró: “Having so many races so close together is draining but now we go to Italy and we are ready for it. It promises to be a tough race out there because of the heat but I like the circuit and we have an extra day there on Monday for testing so it will be an important weekend. After that we get to rest a little before heading to the USA. The circuit is technical and demanding, one of the longest in the championship and in my opinion one of the most challenging. We’ll be working hard from Friday morning to find a good set-up, which is fundamental to a quick lap time at Mugello.” More, from a press release issued by Avintia Blusens MotoGP Team: Avintia Blusens MotoGP half-way through the championship and motivated to make proress. In Mugello they want to score We are now half-way through the MotoGP world championship and Avintia Blusens MotoGP consolidated into a solid structure for which hard work and constancy has become a standard. Both the technical team and the riders keep on making progress Sunday after Sunday which has taken them up to be ranked among the top riders in their class. Of course it is not always the case but progress are made at each and every round. The G.P. of Mugello could be very positive for the team as both riders have the capabilities to get a good result even though their circumstances prove to be very different. Yonny really likes the track and managed to be very fast there in the past. For his part Iván needs to get familiar with the track but everything points out that he will get the chance to be working on the setting-up of his bike without being annoyed by the weather conditions. On Friday both riders will take to the track to attempt to complete what could be a positive wekend. Yonny Hernández: “This track is wild and I really like it. Last year I crashed in Moto2 but I was in the top five before I did and I completed the fast lap on various laps so I have great expectations before this G.P. of Italy. I am happy with my performance in Germany and also our progression. We have been doing a great job and day after day we work together better and better. The bike too is getting better and better and I feel strong. We just need to avoid the tyre to wear down less quickly in races. If we can make it I believe we can reach the podium of the CRT’s. Iván Silva: “This track is brand new for me. I know it’s a difficult one but it’s also very exciting. I have been told by everyone that I would love it but it’s really difficult to “hack” it. I must confess that I have sort of cheated as I have already trained on the PlayStation and I hope it will help !..The weather forecasts for the weekend are good so I hope I will be able to work on the setting-up without experiencing any issues and take big steps ahead. I’d like to score and finish in the top five. I hav to make it.” More, from a press release issued by Bridgestone: Bridgestone MotoGP™ Race Preview – Round 9: Mugello, Italy Bridgestone slick compounds available: Front: Soft, Medium, Hard. Rear: Medium, Hard (Asymmetric) Bridgestone wet tyre compounds available: Hard (Main), Soft (Alternative) This weekend’s Italian Grand Prix at the fast and flowing Mugello circuit marks the end of an intense three weeks for the MotoGP™ World Championship as well as the halfway point of the 2012 season. The sinuous layout of Mugello is particularly demanding because of its high speeds, heavy braking and large elevation changes that require tyres with good edge grip, braking and cornering stability, as well as high levels of durability. With nine right-handed corners and six lefts, the left shoulders of the asymmetric rear tyres are slightly softer than the right side to offer riders improved warm-up performance and grip on the lesser-used side of the tyres. In similar fashion to other circuits with high straight-line speeds such as Catalunya and Sepang, the Mugello circuit places significant loads on the centre section of the tyres under both acceleration and braking. With this requirement for cornering and braking stability, the front tyre allocation for Mugello includes the medium and hard compounds, while the asymmetric rear slicks will be available in the medium and hard configuration to provide the necessary levels of grip and durability. To ensure maximum rider safety at Mugello, in addition to their regular allocation of ten rear slick tyres, each rider will be supplied with four special construction rear tyres which are specifically developed to withstand exceptionally high tyre temperatures. These extra four rear slick tyres will be supplied in the hard compound. Hiroshi Yamada – Manager, Bridgestone Motorsport Department “As it is the home race for Ducati and the many Italian riders in the championship, the Italian Grand Prix is one of the most anticipated races of the year. The Mugello circuit itself is truly iconic and features sections like Casanova-Savelli and Arrabbiata 1 and 2 that are a thrill to behold for racers and spectators alike. “The Italian Grand Prix also marks the halfway mark of the season and after Dani’s win at Sachsenring last weekend, the championship is very open and with three different winners at the last three races, this weekend’s result is difficult to predict. There will be a post-race test at Mugello on Monday and as always, our engineers will be on hand to support the teams and riders at this event.” Shinji Aoki – Manager, Bridgestone Motorsport Tyre Development Department “Mugello is one of the fastest circuits on the calendar and is tough on tyres because of the high speeds, elevated track temperatures, and its technical layout that features many sweeping corners. The tarmac at Mugello is quite grippy and abrasive though and requires very good levels of edge grip and as well as the fast corners, the changes in elevation and bumps in some braking zones add to the challenge. “Our tyre compounds for Mugello remain unchanged from last year, with our front tyre selection being the soft, medium and hard compounds which will give riders a choice for every kind of track condition and provide good stability in corners and under hard braking. The two asymmetric rear slick choices for Mugello, the medium and hard options, feature slightly softer rubber on the left shoulder compared to the right to give more desirable grip characteristics in the lesser used left-hand corners, in particular Bucine where getting good drive onto the main straight is very important.” More, from a press release issued by Pramac Racing: MUGELLO WELCOMES A CONFIDENT PRAMAC RACING TEAM The Pramac Ducati Team heads to both Ducati and Pramac’s home track, around the Tuscan hills, this week for the last of a pushing triple-header of European races in Italy, Germany and Holland. The spectacular Mugello circuit is one of the fastest in the world. The main straight is over a kilometer long and the Premier Class riders could do up over 320km/hr before dropping into the downhill right hand corner at the end. The track is also one of the widest on the calendar and boasts some high-speed chicanes and frequent changes of gradient. It generally brings some superb racing, all played out in the unrivalled atmosphere created by the fanatical Italian fans who throng the hillsides to cheer for their heroes. The white and green rider, Hèctor Barberà, approaches the Italian Grand Prix with a positive and optimistic mood after the great battle at Sachsenring. He knows it won’t be easy because Mugello is a long and technical circuit but the challenge of ride at the Pramac’s home is an extra motivation for him to do a great race. Hèctor also has strong memories at the Italian track, achieving important podium in the past years, like in 2007 aboard on his Aprilia 250cc or in 2004 in the smallest class. Hèctor Barberà Pramac Racing Team Rider “We are going to Mugello, thinking about what happened last Sunday. And, after the great battle, in Germany, I’m very confident and motivated to also do a good race here, in Italy. I like Mugello, it is one of the most beautiful tracks in the world and I hope that the weather will be nice. The Pramac Racing crew always does a fantastic job and I believe that we can make another step ahead. We have to be positive after all” Francesco Guidotti Pramac Racing Team Manager “As always, we will work tirelessly on our bike to give Hèctor the most suitable bike possible, therefore he should achieve a brilliant result at the Mugello circuit, which is one of the most spectacular tracks.” More, from a press release issued by LCR Honda: BRADL LOOKING FOR MORE IMPROVEMENTS AT MAGNIFICENT MUGELLO Mugello, 12th July: the 2012 MotoGP World Championship resumes this weekend with one of the most popular races of the calendar as the stunning Mugello circuit in Tuscany hosts the Grand Prix of Italy the third race weekend in a row after Assen and Sachsenring. Stefan Bradl is coming off his best dry track finish in his home grand prix at the Sachsenring. The finish matched the MotoGP rookie’s first season best-he was fifth in the wet in Le Mans-and now his ambition is to move further up the order. Stefan: “I am very excited about the coming weekend in Mugello. That’s a better circuit than Sachsenring for me. I like the layout and the fast corners and I hope that we can be a bit closer to the front group, because in Sachsenring the final result was pretty good, but we struggled too much with edge grip. I know that the temperature will be very high and the race will be very tough, physically speaking, but I am not worried. Even in Sachsenring it was not easy with a 30-lap race. I am looking forward to sunny Mugello because it’s one of my favourite tracks and I know that it’s a very important race for my team. Most of our supporters will come to see me and this makes more motivated.”