Car Modern 2011

MotoGP 2007 season had been end with Stoner as the winner followed by Pedrosa and Rossi. For you, Rossi's fans, the last race might be very disappointing. Rossi should lose his second position only in the 3 last laps. Well,.. just forget it. Next year Rossi will perform much better, don't worry! I fan him so much! :D. Want to know more about his bike? Here is YamahaYZR-M1!

MotoGP 2007 season had been end with Stoner as the winner followed by Pedrosa and Rossi. For you, Rossi's fans, the last race might be very disappointing. Rossi should lose his second position only in the 3 last laps. Well,.. just forget it. Next year Rossi will perform much better, don't worry! I fan him so much! :D. Want to know more about his bike? Here is YamahaYZR-M1!

Valentino Rossi took the runner-up spot in the German Grand Prix at the Sachsenring today and moved back to the top of the championship, after Dani Pedrosa crashed out of the lead on lap five. Rossi’s Fiat Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo was another victim of the first fully wet race of the season, sliding out of the race on the third lap.

This morning’s practice was run on a damp track but the weather worsened through the middle part of the day and the MotoGP race began in heavy rain. Rossi, starting from seventh on the grid, was caught up in the first lap confusion and lost some time but then made up two places on the second lap, before being elevated to fourth when Pedrosa went down. In the next few laps the Italian passed first fellow Yamaha rider Colin Edwards and then Andrea Dovizioso, which left him in second behind Casey Stoner. Rossi did his best to close the gap to the Australian but with the pair clocking similar lap times he was unable to make any headway into a deficit of more than three seconds, settling for second place and 20 points. Chris Vermeulen loomed behind him at mid-race distance but Rossi’s M1 and his Bridgestone tyres were working well in the wet and he was able to step up the pace somewhat, eventually crossed the line 3.708 seconds behind Stoner and more than 14 ahead of third-placed Vermeulen.

Today’s result sees Rossi back at the top of the standings, 16 points clear of Pedrosa and 20 ahead of Stoner, whilst Lorenzo holds on to fourth despite taking no points today. The MotoGP paddock now packs up and makes the transatlantic trip to California for the US Grand Prix at Laguna Seca in a week’s time.

Valentino Rossi - Position: 2nd Time: +3.708
“I’m really happy with this result, even if racing in the rain today wasn’t quite as much fun as I’ve had in some of my past races here! For the championship this is very, very important; I made a mistake last week in Assen and today Dani did the same. It’s unlucky but this is racing and now we are back in front and this is a very good feeling. Dani is tough and we know he will be back fighting at the front, but sincerely at the moment we need to think about how to catch Casey because he has been very fast now for a few races. Once again here we lost some time during the practice trying to find the right setting and we can’t afford to keep doing this. Today we started from the third row and this meant that I had to deal with some confusion at the start and lost some time on the front riders. By the time I got behind Casey my M1 was working very well and I had very good grip with my Bridgestone rain tyres; I felt very confident and I tried hard to push but there was no way to catch him at that stage, so our aim must be to start at the front from now on. Thanks to all my team and engineers; now we have to try to extend this lead in Laguna.”

Davide Brivio - Team Manager
“This was a very positive race for us because this result takes us back to the top of the championship standings. I hope that Pedrosa’s condition is not too serious and that he will be back at Laguna to fight as he has been doing so far. Today we have seen that we have a good set-up for the wet conditions and this is good news for us, as this was the very first full wet race since the beginning of the championship. Valentino pushed hard till the end of the race and the second place today was the maximum we could do, starting from the third row. Now we go to Laguna Seca, where we will launch another attack!”


Unlucky Lorenzo slides off in rainy Germany

Fiat Yamaha Team rider Jorge Lorenzo was one of four riders who failed to finish the German Grand Prix today, falling victim to a soaking track on the third lap of a rainy race at Sachsenring. His team-mate Valentino Rossi meanwhile regained his championship lead by way of an important second place, after series-leader Dani Pedrosa crashed out of the lead early on.

Lorenzo had lacked rear grip all weekend but was hopeful that the rain might improve the situation today. Unfortunately however the reverse was true and he was thrown from his M1 when his rear tyre spun up on the exit from turn four, on lap three of 30. The Mallorcan was luckily completely unhurt this time and will not have to wait long to get over his disappointment, as his first competitive visit to Laguna Seca beckons in just a few day’s time.

The Michelin-shod rider holds onto fourth in the championship despite taking no points today.

Jorge Lorenzo Jorge Lorenzo - DNF “I felt good this morning because I though that I would have a chance to do a good race in the rain. On the warm-up lap however I felt that something wasn’t quite right; I didn’t have enough grip and I lost some confidence then. I made a good start and passed two riders in the first corner, but then I ran too deep and lost the places so I had to push to try to make them up again. The crash happened when I opened the gas coming out of turn four and I lost the rear. It was a pity but I didn’t hurt myself this time and I am not feeling sad for myself tonight, I just feel very bad for the team because they worked too hard all weekend for a result like this. The positive thing about today is that at each race I am feeling better in myself, even though we’re having some problems getting our package work correctly, and now I am just looking forward to racing for the very first time at Laguna.’ Daniele Romagnoli - Team Manager “Today it was very difficult to find enough grip on the rear, in fact it seems like our problems became bigger in the wet. The rear tyre was spinning a lot under acceleration and Jorge was not able to control the rear grip. We did not have the chance to test in full wet conditions during the weekend and this played an important role for us, because it meant that it was impossible to be completely prepared for a wet race like this. We hope for better weather next week in Laguna Seca so that we can sort out all of our problems, because we absolutely want to come back to the level we know Jorge is capable of.” Toseland 11th, Edwards crashes at soaked Sachsenring Today’s 30-lap German MotoGP race ended below pre-race expectations for Tech 3 Yamaha duo Colin Edwards and James Toseland at a rain-soaked Sachsenring. Making his wet race debut on board the Yamaha YZR-M1, Toseland gained valuable experience in full rain conditions on his way to a battling 11th place. Edwards’ bid though to extend the best run of form in his MotoGP career ended with a crash out of fifth place on lap 21. Toseland made a stunning start from the fourth row to claim fifth by the first corner, but he was unable to match the fast pace of the leaders as he faced the tough task of mastering the conditions, while also adapting to his YZR-M1 machine in the wet. Edwards’ crash ended his valiant attempt to claim a sixth successive top five finish in front of a 98,000-strong crowd. Having started from the front row for the fifth time in 2008, he seemed certain to be Michelin’s best finisher when he slipped off at the seventh corner while holding off Andrea Dovizioso. Fortunately, Edwards escaped injury and is looking forward to a return to form in his home race at Laguna Seca next weekend.

James Toseland James Toseland 11th - 65 points “That was my first wet MotoGP race and I’ve got to admit that while I feel I’ve learned a lot, it was a difficult afternoon. I got an unbelievable start and at the first corner I was fifth and nearly took fourth. I thought I was in business but pretty much straightaway I knew it was going to be difficult to try and go away with the leading group. I had a couple of moments on the opening lap and I started losing places quite quickly. The frustrating thing was I couldn’t do anything to respond. I didn’t want to push too hard because I’d seen Jorge Lorenzo crash in front of me, so I knew I wasn’t the only one struggling for rear grip. I think that coupled with a lack of experience of riding this bike in the rain made it tough. I kind of just got stuck at the pace I was running and couldn’t really go any faster. I’m not going to blame anybody because I’m having a bit of a bad period but a positive from the weekend is I feel we have taken some big strides with the set-up of the bike. I was only halfa- second off the front row and I was fourth in the warm-up, so it has not been a bad weekend. We have eliminated a lot of problems and the team has done a great job, so I am looking forward to getting back closer to where I know I am capable of being and the team is capable of being at Laguna Seca. It is a track I know well, and I go there in a positive frame of mind as always despite having this tough run."

	Colin Edwards

Valentino Rossi took the runner-up spot in the German Grand Prix at the Sachsenring today and moved back to the top of the championship, after Dani Pedrosa crashed out of the lead on lap five. Rossi’s Fiat Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo was another victim of the first fully wet race of the season, sliding out of the race on the third lap.

This morning’s practice was run on a damp track but the weather worsened through the middle part of the day and the MotoGP race began in heavy rain. Rossi, starting from seventh on the grid, was caught up in the first lap confusion and lost some time but then made up two places on the second lap, before being elevated to fourth when Pedrosa went down. In the next few laps the Italian passed first fellow Yamaha rider Colin Edwards and then Andrea Dovizioso, which left him in second behind Casey Stoner. Rossi did his best to close the gap to the Australian but with the pair clocking similar lap times he was unable to make any headway into a deficit of more than three seconds, settling for second place and 20 points. Chris Vermeulen loomed behind him at mid-race distance but Rossi’s M1 and his Bridgestone tyres were working well in the wet and he was able to step up the pace somewhat, eventually crossed the line 3.708 seconds behind Stoner and more than 14 ahead of third-placed Vermeulen.

Today’s result sees Rossi back at the top of the standings, 16 points clear of Pedrosa and 20 ahead of Stoner, whilst Lorenzo holds on to fourth despite taking no points today. The MotoGP paddock now packs up and makes the transatlantic trip to California for the US Grand Prix at Laguna Seca in a week’s time.

Valentino Rossi - Position: 2nd Time: +3.708
“I’m really happy with this result, even if racing in the rain today wasn’t quite as much fun as I’ve had in some of my past races here! For the championship this is very, very important; I made a mistake last week in Assen and today Dani did the same. It’s unlucky but this is racing and now we are back in front and this is a very good feeling. Dani is tough and we know he will be back fighting at the front, but sincerely at the moment we need to think about how to catch Casey because he has been very fast now for a few races. Once again here we lost some time during the practice trying to find the right setting and we can’t afford to keep doing this. Today we started from the third row and this meant that I had to deal with some confusion at the start and lost some time on the front riders. By the time I got behind Casey my M1 was working very well and I had very good grip with my Bridgestone rain tyres; I felt very confident and I tried hard to push but there was no way to catch him at that stage, so our aim must be to start at the front from now on. Thanks to all my team and engineers; now we have to try to extend this lead in Laguna.”

Davide Brivio - Team Manager
“This was a very positive race for us because this result takes us back to the top of the championship standings. I hope that Pedrosa’s condition is not too serious and that he will be back at Laguna to fight as he has been doing so far. Today we have seen that we have a good set-up for the wet conditions and this is good news for us, as this was the very first full wet race since the beginning of the championship. Valentino pushed hard till the end of the race and the second place today was the maximum we could do, starting from the third row. Now we go to Laguna Seca, where we will launch another attack!”


Unlucky Lorenzo slides off in rainy Germany

Fiat Yamaha Team rider Jorge Lorenzo was one of four riders who failed to finish the German Grand Prix today, falling victim to a soaking track on the third lap of a rainy race at Sachsenring. His team-mate Valentino Rossi meanwhile regained his championship lead by way of an important second place, after series-leader Dani Pedrosa crashed out of the lead early on.

Lorenzo had lacked rear grip all weekend but was hopeful that the rain might improve the situation today. Unfortunately however the reverse was true and he was thrown from his M1 when his rear tyre spun up on the exit from turn four, on lap three of 30. The Mallorcan was luckily completely unhurt this time and will not have to wait long to get over his disappointment, as his first competitive visit to Laguna Seca beckons in just a few day’s time.

The Michelin-shod rider holds onto fourth in the championship despite taking no points today.

Jorge Lorenzo Jorge Lorenzo - DNF “I felt good this morning because I though that I would have a chance to do a good race in the rain. On the warm-up lap however I felt that something wasn’t quite right; I didn’t have enough grip and I lost some confidence then. I made a good start and passed two riders in the first corner, but then I ran too deep and lost the places so I had to push to try to make them up again. The crash happened when I opened the gas coming out of turn four and I lost the rear. It was a pity but I didn’t hurt myself this time and I am not feeling sad for myself tonight, I just feel very bad for the team because they worked too hard all weekend for a result like this. The positive thing about today is that at each race I am feeling better in myself, even though we’re having some problems getting our package work correctly, and now I am just looking forward to racing for the very first time at Laguna.’ Daniele Romagnoli - Team Manager “Today it was very difficult to find enough grip on the rear, in fact it seems like our problems became bigger in the wet. The rear tyre was spinning a lot under acceleration and Jorge was not able to control the rear grip. We did not have the chance to test in full wet conditions during the weekend and this played an important role for us, because it meant that it was impossible to be completely prepared for a wet race like this. We hope for better weather next week in Laguna Seca so that we can sort out all of our problems, because we absolutely want to come back to the level we know Jorge is capable of.” Toseland 11th, Edwards crashes at soaked Sachsenring Today’s 30-lap German MotoGP race ended below pre-race expectations for Tech 3 Yamaha duo Colin Edwards and James Toseland at a rain-soaked Sachsenring. Making his wet race debut on board the Yamaha YZR-M1, Toseland gained valuable experience in full rain conditions on his way to a battling 11th place. Edwards’ bid though to extend the best run of form in his MotoGP career ended with a crash out of fifth place on lap 21. Toseland made a stunning start from the fourth row to claim fifth by the first corner, but he was unable to match the fast pace of the leaders as he faced the tough task of mastering the conditions, while also adapting to his YZR-M1 machine in the wet. Edwards’ crash ended his valiant attempt to claim a sixth successive top five finish in front of a 98,000-strong crowd. Having started from the front row for the fifth time in 2008, he seemed certain to be Michelin’s best finisher when he slipped off at the seventh corner while holding off Andrea Dovizioso. Fortunately, Edwards escaped injury and is looking forward to a return to form in his home race at Laguna Seca next weekend.

James Toseland James Toseland 11th - 65 points “That was my first wet MotoGP race and I’ve got to admit that while I feel I’ve learned a lot, it was a difficult afternoon. I got an unbelievable start and at the first corner I was fifth and nearly took fourth. I thought I was in business but pretty much straightaway I knew it was going to be difficult to try and go away with the leading group. I had a couple of moments on the opening lap and I started losing places quite quickly. The frustrating thing was I couldn’t do anything to respond. I didn’t want to push too hard because I’d seen Jorge Lorenzo crash in front of me, so I knew I wasn’t the only one struggling for rear grip. I think that coupled with a lack of experience of riding this bike in the rain made it tough. I kind of just got stuck at the pace I was running and couldn’t really go any faster. I’m not going to blame anybody because I’m having a bit of a bad period but a positive from the weekend is I feel we have taken some big strides with the set-up of the bike. I was only halfa- second off the front row and I was fourth in the warm-up, so it has not been a bad weekend. We have eliminated a lot of problems and the team has done a great job, so I am looking forward to getting back closer to where I know I am capable of being and the team is capable of being at Laguna Seca. It is a track I know well, and I go there in a positive frame of mind as always despite having this tough run."

	Colin Edwards

TAGS

• United States
• Dani Pedrosa
• Repsol Honda Team

TAGS

• United States
• Dani Pedrosa
• Repsol Honda Team

TAGS

• United States
• Dani Pedrosa
• Repsol Honda Team

Valentino Rossi made a good start to his US Grand Prix weekend today, finishing the day third fastest in the overall standings at Laguna Seca. His best time of 1’22.679 was set this morning and is just over a tenth of a second off last year’s lap record.

This morning’s first free practice was run in unexpectedly cool temperatures but the Italian’s M1 worked well out of the box and he was second fastest, 0.764 seconds of Casey Stoner. Rossi was confident of being able to improve his times this afternoon as the track heated up but the temperature increased by only a few degrees and he was unable to better his time from this morning. He is nonetheless confident that he has not yet reached his full potential here and will be able to make further improvements tomorrow.

Rossi’s team-mate Jorge Lorenzo was 13th fastest on what is his first ever ride at this track, whilst the time sheets were topped by Casey Stoner, with Nicky Hayden in second.

Valentino Rossi - Position: 3 Time: 1'22.679 Laps: 65
“We started quite well this morning and we were quite fast from the start. We used our standard base setting and it seemed to work quite well here, and I think that in fact I could have gone faster this morning but in my last run my grip wasn’t perfect so I slowed down. This morning I was quite happy but this afternoon we tried to modify something in the set-up of the bike, because we’re still looking for the ideal configuration for this track, and it wasn’t as good as we had hoped. Now we must put the best things of each session together and then I believe we will be able to be some tenths faster tomorrow. We have a good potential here and I know we haven’t reached it yet; we need to do some work on the suspension but the Bridgestones are good which is encouraging. I am looking forward to making more progress tomorrow and closing the gap to Stoner.”

Davide Brivio - Team Manager
“Overall this has been a good day. We are quite pleased with how we started this morning and now we’re working hard to fine-tune our set-up, especially the suspension, chassis and electronic mapping, in order to optimise our potential here. It was cooler than we expected today but our Bridgestone tyres are working very well at this track. We didn’t improve this afternoon as much as we’d hoped but we will look at the data tonight and continue with our work in the morning.”


Lorenzo takes it easy as he finds his way at Laguna Seca
Fiat Yamaha Team rider Jorge Lorenzo made his competitive debut at Laguna Seca today on the first day of practice for the US Grand Prix, finishing 13th in the combined standings. The 21-year-old visited the track as a commentator for last year’s race but this was his first time on a bike around the famous California circuit.

Lorenzo has been looking forward to riding here all season and he spent this morning’s session familiarising himself with the nuances of the 3.610 km track, especially the famous corkscrew at turn eight. This afternoon he felt confident enough to begin working on bike set-up and he improved his time by nearly a second. He is still lacking some rear grip however and will be looking to make significant strides with this tomorrow. Lorenzo’s team-mate Valentino Rossi was third fastest today, behind Casey Stoner and Nicky Hayden.

Jorge Lorenzo Jorge Lorenzo - Position: 13th Time: 1'23.415 Laps: 63 “The first laps here in Laguna Seca this morning were incredible for me and I had great fun learning the track. On my first lap I was very lucky at the Corkscrew because Nicky Hayden was in front and he knows this track very well, so I followed him and I came out alive! It’s very different to anywhere else we go and very complicated, so I am trying to take it gently until I am sure of my lines. For me the hardest part is the first corner, but I felt better about it this afternoon. I had some problems with my rear tyre, we don’t have enough grip, and I also need more confidence in the front of the bike. I think I need to do some more laps here in order to have more feeling and knowledge about the track and the right lines. I’ve been looking at the Superbike times and they’re doing almost the same times as me, so I know I have some work to do. We have some issues but we’re working hard towards being faster tomorrow. I’ve enjoyed my first day here.” Daniele Romagnoli - Team Manager “The number one priority of today was for Jorge to learn the track, so we did quite long runs in order to improve his understanding of the lines and the braking points. In general he understood quite quickly and it seems he’s enjoying riding here at Laguna Seca. We still have some rear grip issues to address, especially on the entry into turns, and we will concentrate on this tomorrow and try out some different solutions for our bike.” Tech 3 Yamaha duo looking for improvements Colin Edwards ended the first day of his home race at Laguna Seca with the seventh fastest time, while James Toseland was 16th quickest as the Tech 3 Yamaha team experienced a tough start to the American GP. Struggling to get the best performance out of his Michelin tyres, Edwards was also hampered by a neck injury that he suffered when crashing out of a rain-lashed German GP just five days ago. Edwards was due to have further medical examinations with Dr Art Ting tonight to assess the neck injury. Less than 24 hours after confirming he had signed a new contract with Tech 3 for the 2009 world championship, Edwards clocked a best time of 1.23.077 in the closing stages of this afternoon’s session, which was run under blue skies but in cooler than normal air temperatures of 22 degrees. Conditions though were significantly better than this morning when heavy cloud and mist covered the spectacular California circuit. British rider Toseland had a difficult first day too, which culminated in him crashing unhurt at the end of the second session.

Colin Edwards Colin Edwards - Position: 7th 1.23.077 - 58 lapsM “That certainly didn’t go as well as I expected and right now it looks like it is going to be a tough weekend. Firstly, something is wrong with my neck. I’m trying to be the tough guy but I can’t even turn my head to look around. There is something clicking and grinding in there so I am going to get an X-ray on my neck with Dr Ting just to make sure everything is okay. The issue is with the down force and in particular with the weight of my helmet pushing down on my head. It is like somebody is ramming a red hit poker or a knife in my neck. It happened in the crash in Germany and it is certainly not helping me. But I have got a few issues that are making it tough. I’m having problems with getting heat into the tyres at the moment, and to do the lap time I did right at the end, I’m giving myself a pat on the back for that. I did my best time on my 18th lap on that tyre, so obviously it gets better the more you use it. But early on with the temperature issue it is tough to run the pace of where we need to be. I guess we just got to hope it gets a bit warmer to try and help the grip.”

	James Toseland

Valentino Rossi made a good start to his US Grand Prix weekend today, finishing the day third fastest in the overall standings at Laguna Seca. His best time of 1’22.679 was set this morning and is just over a tenth of a second off last year’s lap record.

This morning’s first free practice was run in unexpectedly cool temperatures but the Italian’s M1 worked well out of the box and he was second fastest, 0.764 seconds of Casey Stoner. Rossi was confident of being able to improve his times this afternoon as the track heated up but the temperature increased by only a few degrees and he was unable to better his time from this morning. He is nonetheless confident that he has not yet reached his full potential here and will be able to make further improvements tomorrow.

Rossi’s team-mate Jorge Lorenzo was 13th fastest on what is his first ever ride at this track, whilst the time sheets were topped by Casey Stoner, with Nicky Hayden in second.

Valentino Rossi - Position: 3 Time: 1'22.679 Laps: 65
“We started quite well this morning and we were quite fast from the start. We used our standard base setting and it seemed to work quite well here, and I think that in fact I could have gone faster this morning but in my last run my grip wasn’t perfect so I slowed down. This morning I was quite happy but this afternoon we tried to modify something in the set-up of the bike, because we’re still looking for the ideal configuration for this track, and it wasn’t as good as we had hoped. Now we must put the best things of each session together and then I believe we will be able to be some tenths faster tomorrow. We have a good potential here and I know we haven’t reached it yet; we need to do some work on the suspension but the Bridgestones are good which is encouraging. I am looking forward to making more progress tomorrow and closing the gap to Stoner.”

Davide Brivio - Team Manager
“Overall this has been a good day. We are quite pleased with how we started this morning and now we’re working hard to fine-tune our set-up, especially the suspension, chassis and electronic mapping, in order to optimise our potential here. It was cooler than we expected today but our Bridgestone tyres are working very well at this track. We didn’t improve this afternoon as much as we’d hoped but we will look at the data tonight and continue with our work in the morning.”


Lorenzo takes it easy as he finds his way at Laguna Seca
Fiat Yamaha Team rider Jorge Lorenzo made his competitive debut at Laguna Seca today on the first day of practice for the US Grand Prix, finishing 13th in the combined standings. The 21-year-old visited the track as a commentator for last year’s race but this was his first time on a bike around the famous California circuit.

Lorenzo has been looking forward to riding here all season and he spent this morning’s session familiarising himself with the nuances of the 3.610 km track, especially the famous corkscrew at turn eight. This afternoon he felt confident enough to begin working on bike set-up and he improved his time by nearly a second. He is still lacking some rear grip however and will be looking to make significant strides with this tomorrow. Lorenzo’s team-mate Valentino Rossi was third fastest today, behind Casey Stoner and Nicky Hayden.

Jorge Lorenzo Jorge Lorenzo - Position: 13th Time: 1'23.415 Laps: 63 “The first laps here in Laguna Seca this morning were incredible for me and I had great fun learning the track. On my first lap I was very lucky at the Corkscrew because Nicky Hayden was in front and he knows this track very well, so I followed him and I came out alive! It’s very different to anywhere else we go and very complicated, so I am trying to take it gently until I am sure of my lines. For me the hardest part is the first corner, but I felt better about it this afternoon. I had some problems with my rear tyre, we don’t have enough grip, and I also need more confidence in the front of the bike. I think I need to do some more laps here in order to have more feeling and knowledge about the track and the right lines. I’ve been looking at the Superbike times and they’re doing almost the same times as me, so I know I have some work to do. We have some issues but we’re working hard towards being faster tomorrow. I’ve enjoyed my first day here.” Daniele Romagnoli - Team Manager “The number one priority of today was for Jorge to learn the track, so we did quite long runs in order to improve his understanding of the lines and the braking points. In general he understood quite quickly and it seems he’s enjoying riding here at Laguna Seca. We still have some rear grip issues to address, especially on the entry into turns, and we will concentrate on this tomorrow and try out some different solutions for our bike.” Tech 3 Yamaha duo looking for improvements Colin Edwards ended the first day of his home race at Laguna Seca with the seventh fastest time, while James Toseland was 16th quickest as the Tech 3 Yamaha team experienced a tough start to the American GP. Struggling to get the best performance out of his Michelin tyres, Edwards was also hampered by a neck injury that he suffered when crashing out of a rain-lashed German GP just five days ago. Edwards was due to have further medical examinations with Dr Art Ting tonight to assess the neck injury. Less than 24 hours after confirming he had signed a new contract with Tech 3 for the 2009 world championship, Edwards clocked a best time of 1.23.077 in the closing stages of this afternoon’s session, which was run under blue skies but in cooler than normal air temperatures of 22 degrees. Conditions though were significantly better than this morning when heavy cloud and mist covered the spectacular California circuit. British rider Toseland had a difficult first day too, which culminated in him crashing unhurt at the end of the second session.

Colin Edwards Colin Edwards - Position: 7th 1.23.077 - 58 lapsM “That certainly didn’t go as well as I expected and right now it looks like it is going to be a tough weekend. Firstly, something is wrong with my neck. I’m trying to be the tough guy but I can’t even turn my head to look around. There is something clicking and grinding in there so I am going to get an X-ray on my neck with Dr Ting just to make sure everything is okay. The issue is with the down force and in particular with the weight of my helmet pushing down on my head. It is like somebody is ramming a red hit poker or a knife in my neck. It happened in the crash in Germany and it is certainly not helping me. But I have got a few issues that are making it tough. I’m having problems with getting heat into the tyres at the moment, and to do the lap time I did right at the end, I’m giving myself a pat on the back for that. I did my best time on my 18th lap on that tyre, so obviously it gets better the more you use it. But early on with the temperature issue it is tough to run the pace of where we need to be. I guess we just got to hope it gets a bit warmer to try and help the grip.”

	James Toseland

A rider challenging for the World Championship, in fifteenth place on the opening day of practice. The timesheets alone show that Dani Pedrosa is far from 100% at the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix.

The finger, wrist and ankle injuries picked up in Sachsenring are undoubtedly proving problematic for the Repsol Honda rider, and mentor Alberto Puig has revealed that the title contender could yet withdraw from the Sunday race.

`The truth is that Dani is in a lot of pain and is having a lot of problems with his hand. He had an operation on Monday and it´s praiseworthy for him to have come here at all,´ said Puig of his protégé.

`It´s his -and only his- decision as to whether he rides or not, and I really don´t know what he is will choose to do,´ he continued.

`The track is demanding, and the amount of left corners further complicates matters; Dani received injections before the afternoon session and managed to improve his time by two seconds, and the doctors are treating him as best they can to reduce the inflammation.´

The matter is further complicated by the strong position of Casey Stoner and Valentino Rossi –Pedrosa´s title rivals- after the opening day of practice, meaning that there is added pressure on the young Spaniard to pick up points for the World Championship hunt.

TAGS

• United States
• Dani Pedrosa
• Repsol Honda Team

A rider challenging for the World Championship, in fifteenth place on the opening day of practice. The timesheets alone show that Dani Pedrosa is far from 100% at the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix.

The finger, wrist and ankle injuries picked up in Sachsenring are undoubtedly proving problematic for the Repsol Honda rider, and mentor Alberto Puig has revealed that the title contender could yet withdraw from the Sunday race.

`The truth is that Dani is in a lot of pain and is having a lot of problems with his hand. He had an operation on Monday and it´s praiseworthy for him to have come here at all,´ said Puig of his protégé.

`It´s his -and only his- decision as to whether he rides or not, and I really don´t know what he is will choose to do,´ he continued.

`The track is demanding, and the amount of left corners further complicates matters; Dani received injections before the afternoon session and managed to improve his time by two seconds, and the doctors are treating him as best they can to reduce the inflammation.´

The matter is further complicated by the strong position of Casey Stoner and Valentino Rossi –Pedrosa´s title rivals- after the opening day of practice, meaning that there is added pressure on the young Spaniard to pick up points for the World Championship hunt.

TAGS

• United States
• Dani Pedrosa
• Repsol Honda Team

Waaddduuuuh … (Bajuri mode on), waktu ngeliat hasilnya dari 6 urutan teratas pole position… semuanya diduduki oleh Yamaha dan Honda…!!! Stoner (Ducati) terlempar diposisi ke 7…!!! Secara statistic udah tercatat… bahwa kans terbesar menjuarai suatu race tersebut ada pada 5 besar pole position (baca artikel sebelumnya..!!!). Dan gilanya lagi .. 2 spaniard yaitu Lorenzo dan Pedrosa bakalan bersaing seru…!!! Konon Lorenzo paling empeettt banget ama Pedrosa… ntah laaagh apa yang terjadi diantara mereka berdua…!!!

Lorenzo bisa membukukan waktu tercepat yaitu 1′38.189 detik…!!! Memecahkan record circuit best lap sebelumnya atas nama Loris Capirossi 1′39.064 detik…!!! Dan’the young spaniard’ ini bisa meninggalkan pesaing terdekatnya yaitu Pedrosa nyaris 0.6 detik… eeuudaaan….!!! Power di track Jerez… kagak ada gunanya…!!! Capirossi yang menggunakan Suzuki paling kuenceng … nyampai 282 km/h.. namun di urutan ke 10…!!!

Circuit Jerez… memang membutuhkan lebih membutuhkan handling yang mantap dibandingkan power…!!! Dan jika dilihat dari catatan waktunya… semuanya dilahap oleh Yamaha…!!! Pada titik T1,… setiap rider kudu ngelibaz tikungan 100-110 derajat sangat patah banget…!!! Kemudian ada lagi ‘hairpin’… nikung lagi.. dan ketemu tikungan patah lagi…!!! Jadi pendek-pendek tracknya… !!! Catatan terbaik pada T1 diperoleh oleh Lorenzo yaitu 24.57 detik…!!!

Pada titik T2, relatif cuma ada 1 ‘hair pin’ yang agak panjang dan straight…!!! Disini power lumayan berperan.. tapi lagi-lagi Yamaha menyabet catatan waktu teratas… dengan Valentino Rossi yaitu 15.182 detik…!!! T3 juga sami mawon… tikugnan patah dan hair pin siap menanti.. dan kembali Lorenzo membukukan waktu terbaik yaitu 28.445 detik…!!! Demikian pula T4 yang ada 3 tikungan ke kanan, dan 1 hair pin ke kiri juga tercatat atas nama Lorenzo.. yaitu 30.005a detik…!!!!

So.. race hari Minggu ini bakalan seru… dan kelihatan Lorenzo mau membuktikan kepada khalayak bahwa Jerez… ini circuit gue… !!! Demikian juga Pedrosa yang juga ‘young spaniard’ ingin membuktikan bahwa ia pantas telah menjadi runner up MotoGP 2007… dan nggak bisa dikalahkan oleh rider kemaren sore…!!! Yaagh kita nantikan saza siapa yang menang antara Yamaha vs Honda, sebagaimana disini juga ada pertarungan market share antara Yamaha vs hond

Waaddduuuuh … (Bajuri mode on), waktu ngeliat hasilnya dari 6 urutan teratas pole position… semuanya diduduki oleh Yamaha dan Honda…!!! Stoner (Ducati) terlempar diposisi ke 7…!!! Secara statistic udah tercatat… bahwa kans terbesar menjuarai suatu race tersebut ada pada 5 besar pole position (baca artikel sebelumnya..!!!). Dan gilanya lagi .. 2 spaniard yaitu Lorenzo dan Pedrosa bakalan bersaing seru…!!! Konon Lorenzo paling empeettt banget ama Pedrosa… ntah laaagh apa yang terjadi diantara mereka berdua…!!!

Lorenzo bisa membukukan waktu tercepat yaitu 1′38.189 detik…!!! Memecahkan record circuit best lap sebelumnya atas nama Loris Capirossi 1′39.064 detik…!!! Dan’the young spaniard’ ini bisa meninggalkan pesaing terdekatnya yaitu Pedrosa nyaris 0.6 detik… eeuudaaan….!!! Power di track Jerez… kagak ada gunanya…!!! Capirossi yang menggunakan Suzuki paling kuenceng … nyampai 282 km/h.. namun di urutan ke 10…!!!

Circuit Jerez… memang membutuhkan lebih membutuhkan handling yang mantap dibandingkan power…!!! Dan jika dilihat dari catatan waktunya… semuanya dilahap oleh Yamaha…!!! Pada titik T1,… setiap rider kudu ngelibaz tikungan 100-110 derajat sangat patah banget…!!! Kemudian ada lagi ‘hairpin’… nikung lagi.. dan ketemu tikungan patah lagi…!!! Jadi pendek-pendek tracknya… !!! Catatan terbaik pada T1 diperoleh oleh Lorenzo yaitu 24.57 detik…!!!

Pada titik T2, relatif cuma ada 1 ‘hair pin’ yang agak panjang dan straight…!!! Disini power lumayan berperan.. tapi lagi-lagi Yamaha menyabet catatan waktu teratas… dengan Valentino Rossi yaitu 15.182 detik…!!! T3 juga sami mawon… tikugnan patah dan hair pin siap menanti.. dan kembali Lorenzo membukukan waktu terbaik yaitu 28.445 detik…!!! Demikian pula T4 yang ada 3 tikungan ke kanan, dan 1 hair pin ke kiri juga tercatat atas nama Lorenzo.. yaitu 30.005a detik…!!!!

So.. race hari Minggu ini bakalan seru… dan kelihatan Lorenzo mau membuktikan kepada khalayak bahwa Jerez… ini circuit gue… !!! Demikian juga Pedrosa yang juga ‘young spaniard’ ingin membuktikan bahwa ia pantas telah menjadi runner up MotoGP 2007… dan nggak bisa dikalahkan oleh rider kemaren sore…!!! Yaagh kita nantikan saza siapa yang menang antara Yamaha vs Honda, sebagaimana disini juga ada pertarungan market share antara Yamaha vs hond