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Tag: Circuito de Jerez-Angel Nieto
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High drama in Jerez: Marc Marquez wins in a canter as contenders collide
Marc Marquez on way to winning the Spanish GP. Photo: Honda Racing Jerez, 6 May 2018: Reigning champion Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) took a stunning second win of the season – and his second win at Jerez – in the Gran Premio Red Bull de España, fighting to the front and just able to pull away into clear air, away from some huge drama that then hit the race behind.
Johann Zarco Photo: Yamaha Racing In a pivotal day in the Championship, an unbelievable racing incident saw Jorge Lorenzo (Ducati Team), teammate Andrea Dovizioso and Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team) all crash out in one go at Turn 6 – with Johann Zarco (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) and Andrea Iannone (Team Suzuki Ecstar) then coming through to complete the podium.
Lorenzo got the holeshot after an unbelievable launch from the second row, taking the lead ahead of Pedrosa in second and Zarco in third as polesitter Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda Castrol) lost out off the line. Marquez remained where he’d qualified in fifth, with Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) in sixth.
Andrea Iannone. Photo: Suzuki Racing Lorenzo pushed early from the front to set the pace, with Pedrosa holding station in second as Marquez, Crutchlow and Zarco squabbled for third. A moment for Zarco soon after then saw the Frenchman out wide and dropping back. Then Crutchlow crashed out, before another name went missing from the front group as Rins followed suit not so long after. Meanwhile, Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team) had made his way through to the front group leaving a Repsol Honda vs Ducati Team duel of duos fighting it out.
With 16 laps to go, however, Marquez made his move, slicing past Lorenzo to take over in the lead as ‘DesmoDovi’ and Pedrosa looked for a way past the number 99. After some chopping and changing as Marquez pulled away, it was then time for the overwhelming headline of the race: the three-rider crash that saw Lorenzo, Dovizioso and Pedrosa all collide and tumble into the gravel.
Dovizioso had attacked Lorenzo into Turn 6 but headed too deep, with the number 99 then cutting back towards the apex, but Pedrosa was already there. The two collided with each other and then Dovizioso; the gravel trap waiting for the three men and the shockwaves of the moment ricocheting around the circuit as the dust settled. Costly in the Championship, but the three all walked away unharmed despite the incident.
That left Zarco with the unbelievable sight of a Repsol Honda and both Ducatis in the gravel as he came past, inheriting second and then facing seven laps to keep calm and take yet another impressive podium. The battle to complete that after the drama up ahead was hotting up, meanwhile, as Danilo Petrucci (Alma Pramac Racing) and Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) were closing in on the Suzuki of Andrea Iannone in third.
Valentino Ross. Photo: Yamaha Racing As the last lap dawned, Iannone was just able to make a gap and stay clear of the chasing Italians, despite Rossi having pulled back an awesome amount of distance on the penultimate lap to get himself in contention. So the ‘Maniac’ crossed the line in third for the third Suzuki podium in a row, Petrucci took fourth and Rossi a top five finish in the race in which he completed a lap of the World – now having raced the equivalent distance of the circumference of the Earth upon finishing Lap 15.
Jack Miller (Alma Pramac Racing) just dropped off that battle to cross the line in sixth, with Maverick Viñales (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) making some progress from outside the top 10 in the initial stages to take P7. Eighth was the best result of 2018 so far for Alvaro Bautista (Angel Nieto Team) after he fought with Viñales for much of the race, with top rookie Franco Morbidelli (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) taking ninth and his first top ten result in the premier class.
Mika Kallio (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), wildcarding on a prototype of the 2019 RC16, completed the top ten in another stunning ride, and teammate Pol Espargaro took P11 as he won a battle against Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) by mere hundredths at the line. Bradley Smith (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) was incredibly close, too, taking P13 to make it three Austrian machines in the points. Those points were completed by Tito Rabat (Reale Avintia Racing) and Scott Redding (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini).
Source: motogp.com
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Showtime in Jerez: Cal Crutchlow sets hot pace for pole, Marc Marquez fifth
Cal Crutchlow…blowing hot in Jerez. Photo: calcrutchlow.com Jerez, 5 May 2018: Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda Castrol) smashed the previous pole lap record at the newly-resurfaced Circuito de Jerez-Angel Nieto, taking pole position for the first time since the 2016 British GP at Silverstone in some style as he topped the session and then went even faster at the Gran Premio Red Bull de España, here on Saturday.
Fellow Honda rider Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team), the winner at Jerez in 2017, put in another stunner to take second despite his ongoing recovery from a broken wrist sustained in Argentina, with Johann Zarco (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) in third to make it eight times in a row the Frenchman will be starting the race from the front row. Reigning champion Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) will line up fifth.
It was a tense final shootout at the end of the session and many eyes were on Marquez as the number 93 pushed and consistently lit up the first sectors red – and then just lost out before the line.
Unable to improve on his initial fast lap, the six-time World champion was pushed off the front row and then down to fifth as Jorge Lorenzo (Ducati Team), the previous pole lap record holder, lit it up to take fourth and head up Row 2 at the venue at which he took his first podium for Ducati. It’s a big leap forward after a tough start to the season, with the five-time World champion consistently the quickest Borgo Panigale machine for much of the weekend and only 0.013s off the front row.
Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) and teammate Andrea Iannone, after topping FP4 in reverse order, line up sixth and seventh respectively with the Hamamatsu factory a threat for the front throughout. Rins, who is racing in his first Spanish GP in the premier class after missing the event in 2017 due to injury, was only 0.007 off Marquez and just 0.003 ahead of Iannone.
Championship leader Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team) lines up eighth after he was left heading through – and going fastest in – Q1, but the gap was small once again, with the Italian only 0.042 off his compatriot ahead of him. Fellow-Italian on Borgo Panigale machinery Danilo Petrucci (Alma Pramac Racing) completes the third row.
It was a more difficult day for Movistar Yamaha MotoGP, however. Valentino Rossi will line up tenth after just edging out his teammate by 0.014, with Maverick Viñales therefore lining up P11. Viñales, along with Dovizioso, was a graduate of Q1.
Jack Miller (Alma Pramac Racing) lines up twelfth ahead of Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini), who was just left behind in Q1 by 0.040 seconds, with some solid rookie performances from Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) and Franco Morbidelli (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) completing the top fifteen.
With Crutchlow on pole, master-of-Jerez Pedrosa in the middle of the front row and no-holds-barred Zarco just alongside, it will be a stunning start, not even counting lightning-fast starter Lorenzo in fourth, and the reigning Champion with a point to prove shooting through from fifth. The top 12 are covered by eight tenths.
Martin storms to pole in Moto 3 with Canet P15
Jorge Martin (Del Conca Gresini Moto3) grabbed his 11th career pole position in Moto2 with Philipp Oettl (Südmetall Schedl GP Racing) in second – earning his first front row since Qatar last year. Martin’s fellow-Del Conca Gresini rider Fabio Di Giannantonio jumped to third on his final run after some last-minute front-end changes; his first front row start of the season.
One of the biggest headlines was Aron Canet (Estrella Galicia 0,0) qualifying in 15th, the Spaniard with a huge task ahead of him on Sunday.
The session started with a huge crash for Darryn Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) at Turn 4 after colliding with the back of Livio Loi (Reale Avintia Academy) on the exit of the corner. Unfortunately, the South African dislocated his left shoulder and will miss tomorrow’s 22 lap race, declared unfit.
There was plenty of cat and mouse action going on throughout the session with Martin initially coming back into the pits to escape the melee of riders. The Spaniard didn’t have it all his own way during the session though, with Oettl setting a scorching pace to go 0.531 seconds clear of the rest with 20 minutes left on the clock. However, with just over 10 minutes to go, Martin pounced – setting a 1:46.193 to go 0.153 seconds clear of the German.
Niccolo Antonelli (SIC58 Squadra Corse), meanwhile, was up at the sharp end again in qualifying and he will spearhead the second row in P4. His compatriot Marco Bezzecchi (Redox PruestelGP) continues his great start to 2018 in fifth, with Angel Nieto Team Moto3 rider Andrea Migno making it an all-Italian second row in P6.
The fastest rookie in Jerez qualifying was Alonso Lopez (Estrella Galicia 0,0), with P7 his best grid position so far this year and his previous form at the venue in the Moto3™ Junior World Championship coming to the fore. Enea Bastianini (Leopard Racing) lines up eighth for Sunday’s race, with teammate Lorenzo Dalla Porta rounding out the third row.
Tatsuki Suzuki (SIC58 Squadra Corse) was the leading Japanese rider in P10, with fellow countryman Kaito Toba (Honda Team Asia) a solid 11th and SKY Racing Team VR46 rookie Dennis Foggia in 12th.
Makar Yurchenko (CIP – Green Power), despite a late crash, was able to qualify P13 after a good afternoon’s work for the rookie and some much improved form this weekend, with reigning Red Bull Rookies MotoGP Cup Champion Kazuki Masaki (RBA BOE Skull Rider) a slender 0.002 back in P14.
Pole for Lorenzo Baldassarri in Moto2
Lorenzo Baldassarri (Pons HP 40) took the pole position in Moto2 ahead of Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) and Francesco Bagnaia (SKY Racing Team VR46).
In second row were Jorge Navarro (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2), Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Joan Mir (EG 0,0 Marc VDS).
Source: motogp.com
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Cal Crutchlow and Dani Pedrosa on top; 15 riders within a second of each other!
Cal Cturchlow…..setting a hot pace. Photo: calcrutchlow.com Jerez, 4 May 2018: Independent Team rider Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda Castrol) ruled the roost in the Gran Premio Red Bull de España as action ended on Friday at the Circuito de Jerez Angel Nieto as the Gran Premio Red Bull de España got underway, with the Argentina GP winner taking to the top in FP2 and leader on the combined timesheets on Friday.
Dani Pedrosa. Photo: Honda Racing What does that mean? On a Friday as close as this, it means he was 0.028 clear of Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team) in P2, 0.091 ahead of Johann Zarco (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) and still not even a tenth in front of Andrea Iannone (Team Suzuki Ecstar) in fourth.
As well as the incredible equality of the top four within a tenth, the top 15 ended Day 1 within a second and the whole grid was covered by two seconds – a tantalising prospect for race day if it remains the same.
The headlines didn’t stop there. The 2017 Jerez winner Pedrosa, who is still recovering from a broken wrist, put in a stunning performance once again to not only threaten the top but also show some key consistency with Zarco just behind him and top Yamaha.
Iannone kept his solid form rolling after his rostrum finish in Texas, just ahead of what was another key moment of the day: reigning Champion Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team), despite having shown awesome pace throughout both sessions, crashing out towards the end of FP2 – rider ok.
Marc Marquez shrugs off FP2 crash
Marc Marquez. Photo: Honda Racing It was 27 crashes in 2017 for Marquez, and the reigning Champion says that FP2 is the time to push and try and find the limit – something that also rang a little true on Day 1 in Jerez this season. Fast all day but not fastest, the rider from Cervera took a tumble in the afternoon.
“I was on very used tyres,” explained Marquez, quickly finding the silver lining, “But even with a lot of laps on the front and rear, I had a good rhythm low 39s, which is more important. Then I braked too late and I crashed, but now I know for Sunday!”
That’s another recurring theme in ‘Marquez style’ – finding the limit before the lights go out for the race. So crash aside, how does the number 93 debrief their first day on track?
“On Day 1, the general feeling was very, very positive,” he smiled. “I enjoyed it on the track and this is the most important thing. I’m happy with how I feel on with bike, and we’ll see if we can improve or make another step tomorrow.”
That includes some more tyre combinations to try, as the Repsol Honda rider explained the program so far: “This morning, I tried soft front, soft rear, then in the afternoon I tried medium front, medium rear so tomorrow will be the time to try hard front, heard rear. I want to check everything, it will be important to choose the right tyre and to do that, you need to try everything!”
Andrea Dovizioso sixth quickest
Andrea Dovizioso. Photo: Ducati The man right behind Marquez after Day 1 was Championship leader Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team), who went fastest in FP1, with his teammate Jorge Lorenzo taking seventh on Friday at the track at which he took his first podium in red in 2017.
Jack Miller (Alma Pramac Racing) was the top Independent Team Ducati rider in P8 overall after more solid top ten pace, with Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) taking ninth overall after a late move up from outside provisional Q2 entry.
The man completing the top ten was Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), after the Spaniard put in an incredible charge in FP1 to end that session in third and the day in tenth overall.
Maverick Viñales (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) was P12 and will have his sights set significantly further up the timesheets on Saturday, as will Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar), who was P14 but missed the Spanish GP in 2017 due to injury, turning a wheel in anger at the venue for the first time this year. Wildcard Mika Kallio, riding a first version of the 2019 machine for Red Bull KTM Factory racing, was P16 on Day 1.
Everything’s open, everything’s close and everything’s set up for a Saturday to remember.
Rossi searching for better balance on Saturday
Rossi. Photo: Movistar Yamaha MotoGP Rossi lamented the increase in track temperatures on Day 1 with the ‘Doctor’ ending Friday P9 on the timesheets. The Movistar Yamaha team struggled more with lower grip at the Circuito de Jerez Angel Nieto last year, and it seems Rossi’s difficulties in hotter temperatures could still be haunting him in 2018 – despite him going quicker in FP2.
“It was a difficult day, especially in the afternoon because in the morning I was not so bad with the cold, but unfortunately with the higher temperature we suffer more,” explained the 39-year-old. “I’m not happy with the balance of the bike, we need to improve, but also, we are in trouble with the tyres. After some laps, we lose grip and it looks like we slow down more than our opponents, so I think it will be difficult, but it’s still Friday, we need to work and improve and try to understand better tomorrow.”
Source: Motogp.com
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‘Fight until the final corner’ is the mantra; engines on at the #SpanishGP!
Andrea Dovizioso….all set for the European leg of the season. Photo: Ducati Jerez, 04 May 2018: MotoGP™ is back on European soil for the Gran Premio Red Bull de España and the grid is very much ready to get down to business at Round Four, with only eight points separating the top five riders in the Championship.
As always, it was time to talk on Thursday, with Championship leader Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team) joined in the Press Conference by reigning Champion Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team), Movistar Yamaha MotoGP’s Maverick Viñales, Team Suzuki Ecstar’s Andrea Iannone, Ducati Team’s Jorge Lorenzo, Reale Avintia Racing’s Tito Rabat and late addition Johann Zarco (Monster Yamaha Tech 3) after the Frenchman announced earlier in the day that he will be racing for Red Bull KTM Factory Racing from 2019.
Talk centered on the rider market, flashed back to Austin and looked forward to Jerez, with many taking stock as the European leg of the season gets in gear.
Dovizioso was the first to speak, and he was focused on the title fight. “I’m a bit surprised, with the results in the last two races, to be leading the Championship! But not too much because we finished the season in a good way last year and we started this year in a good way. We were focused on trying to get the maximum in the last two races because we knew it wasn’t the best for our bike. The results were ok but not the speed if we want to fight for the Championship, because there are so many fast riders. But we got more points than last year so I’m happy about that.”
The goal this weekend? The same as always – the consistency that has become ‘DesmoDovi’’s calling card: “We have to fight for the podium if we really want to fight for the Championship.”
Last year that fight for the title was against Marc Marquez and he, after a dramatic race in Argentina but a dominant bounce back in Texas, says it’s something of a reset in Jerez.
Marc Marquez. Photo: Honda Racing “The feeling was really good in Argentina and Austin, but now we’re in Europe it’s completely different – everything is more narrow, tight, everything is slower – so we need to understand the base setup and understand our level, and that of our rivals,” says Marquez. “And we’ll see with the new track surface – I think everyone will be very close. But we did a test here a month ago and it was good.”
One key topic for Marquez was the track and his record at the Spanish GP, where he’s only ever won once – in 2014. “I only have one victory but on the other hand, I’ve finished on the podium every year and that’s important. But I like this track. Normally we arrive here in the first part of the season without the bike being quite perfect, but this year I feel better. The first target is the podium but if I have a small chance, I will try to win.”
On domination and the style of win at the Americas GP, Marquez added it’s natural to try and win like that. But if it comes to it? “Normally, you don’t have the chance for a race like that because everything is so tight. We’ll see here in Jerez, but if we can win like that I will try, Johann will try, Andrea will try…but if not, I’ll fight until the final corner.”
Vinales. Photo: Movistar Yamaha MotoGP Compatriot Maverick Viñales is another who arrives fresh from a good result, finishing second in Texas after some more difficult races. With the Movistar Yamaha MotoGP team having had a more difficult race at the venue in 2017, a lot of eyes are on the Iwata marque and their progress.
“I’m curious to see how the bike is working because for sure we’ve improved a lot when there’s low grip,” says Viñales, referring to the unknown quantity of how the new asphalt will have changed the track. But first, he was very sure about something – progress. “In the second part of Qatar and Argentina, I was feeling good. We needed to improve the first part. But race by race we’re making steps and we can improve our level much more. From Qatar and in the next races we’re going to go up and up, I think we understand the way to go. I feel good on the bike and the team is really motivated.”
Andrea Iannone. Photo: Twitter Andrea Iannone was another who returned to the podium last time out. Taking his first rostrum finish at Suzuki, the ‘Maniac’ is back – and says they’re still close. “For us, it’s a positive moment,” says the Italian. “We needed the result for sure, and it’s good for us and everyone because we spent a lot of time and did a lot of work to arrive at this level. I think it’s important to stay focused, but it’s important we’ve remained more or less close to the top riders.”
Podium form is something Jorge Lorenzo had last season at Jerez. The five-time World Champion took his first
rostrum in red at the 2017 Spanish GP, and it’s a venue at which the number 99 has had much success. “Jerez has always been magic for me in the past few years,” smiles the ‘Spartan’.
Jorge Lorenzo. Photo: Ducati “I’ve had victories and last year I got my first podium at Ducati. It’s been a tough start to the year, but those tracks aren’t so good for our bike, so hopefully now we’re arriving at a good track for me and, now, for Ducati, where we had good winter tests and were fast, we can change the situation and I can demonstrate my value.”
The start of the season has been a different story for Tito Rabat, however, and the Spaniard began with a smile. “In these three races I think I enjoyed it more than the last two years! We’ve had a very good start to the season. I didn’t really expect to almost take three top-10s in a row…this year I feel good with the bike and with the team, learning and learning…now at a home GP we’ll see. It’s where I took my first win in 2013, so I’ll try to push to get a good result but as always thinking race by race and about improving.”
Zarco. Photo: Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Finally, it was time for some words from Zarco after the Frenchman’s move to Red Bull KTM Factory Racing was announced earlier in the day. The key word for the 2017 Rookie of the Year? Challenge.
“I’m happy we announced it this weekend,” smiled the two-time Moto2™ World Champion. “It’ll be a great challenge for the future. European constructor with a European rider, I think if we get a great result and we develop the bike well, we can have a fantastic future. The way they were developing the bike last year makes me think something is possible. I went there because I want the challenge. I’m on a great wave and I’m enjoying it so much, the performance is good too and I hope we can stay on this level in the next two years.”
The performance is good, the racing is close and it’s now time for the first European carnival of the season at the Circuito de Jerez-Angel Nieto. The riders taste the new asphalt in FP1 on Friday for the first time, with the lights going out for the race on Sunday.
Source: Motogp.com
