IndyCar Series 2012 – Round 03: Long Beach – April 15, 2012

Pagenaud Chases Power to the Finish at Long Beach
In an IZOD IndyCar Series battle of opposing race strategies, Simon Pagenaud and his Honda-powered Schmidt Hamilton Motorsports team came up just eight-tenths of a second short in their charge during the final laps of Sunday’s Grand Prix of Long Beach, finishing second to the Team Penske machine of Will Power after 85 laps around the Southern California street circuit.

On a “two-stop” race strategy, Power was able to stretch his fuel to run the last 31 laps to score his first victory of 2012. Pagenaud, running a three-stop race, left the pits after his final stop on Lap 70 in fourth place, but rapidly caught and passed Rubens Barrichello and fellow Honda driver Takuma Sato. He then set off after Power, who was 10 seconds ahead with 10 laps remaining. Pagenaud closed the gap by a second each lap, but came up just short at the checkers.

For a large portion of today’s race, Takuma Sato looked like a contender for the victory, as his Rahal Letterman Lanigan team adopted a similar strategy to Power’s. Sato ran in the top three for much of the race, and led 16 laps, but was knocked out of third place on the final lap by contact from Ryan Hunter-Reay. The incident dropped Sato to an eighth-place finish, and earned Hunter-Reay a post-race time penalty that dropped him from third to sixth in the official results.

Justin Wilson was another Honda driver to run at the front today, leading 15 laps for Dale Coyne Racing. But the team’s attempt to also pull off a “two-stop” race fell short, as Wilson was forced to pit for fuel in the final laps and fell to a 10-place finish.

Wilson’s teammate, James Jakes, had one of his best IndyCar runs to date, racing as high as fourth, until he briefly slid off course on Lap 66. He recovered to finish 11th.

Front-row starters Dario Franchitti and Josef Newgarden made light contact in the first turn at the start, leaving rookie Newgarden in the wall and out of the race. Although he led the first four laps, Franchitti struggled on the restarts and eventually dropped out with just three laps remaining. Scott Dixon and Mike Conway also were early retirements today, while Charlie Kimball’s race ended with an apparent transmission problem on Lap 80. Graham Rahal crashed without injury on Lap 23, when his Honda Dallara was struck by Marco Andretti’s car as the pair battled for position.

After the first three races of the 2012 season, the IZOD IndyCar Series now travels to Brazil for its first international event of the season, the April 29 Sao Paulo Indy 300.

IndyCar Series

Round 03: Long Beach

Rank	Driver (Team)
1	Will Power (Team Penske)
2	Simon Pagenaud-R (Schmidt Hamilton)
3	James Hinchcliffe (Andretti Autosport)
4	Tony KanaanKV (Racing Technology)
5	JR Hildebrand (Panther Racing)
6	Ryan Hunter-Reay (Andretti Autosport)
7	Ryan Briscoe (Team Penske)
8	Takuma Sato (Rahal Letterman Lanigan)
9	Rubens Barrichello (KV Racing Technology)
10	Justin Wilson (Dale Coyne Racing)
11	James Jakes (Dale Coyne Racing)
15	Dario Franchitti (Target Chip Ganassi)
18	Charlie Kimball (Chip Ganassi Racing)
22	ike Conway (A.J. Foyt Racing)
23	Scott Dixon (Target Chip Ganassi)
24	Graham Rahal (Chip Ganassi Racing)
26	Josef Newgarden-R (Sarah Fisher Hartman)

 

 

World Superbike and World Supersport 2012 – Round 03: Assen Circuit – Netherlands - April 22, 2012

Rea Wins First of The Year After Race One Trauma

Jonathan Rea (Honda World Superbike Team) won his first FIM Superbike World Championship race of the year, taking victory after a tenacious 22-lap ride in race two after making a wise tyre choice.

He was in the lead for the last three laps, having been fifth on the first lap, dropping back from his superpole qualifying position of second. In race one, started in dry conditions, Rea battled hard and saved an almost certain highside crash at one stage. When the rains that had affected much of practice reappeared halfway through the contest, and some leading riders fell, the first race was cancelled, with a new nine lap race started, in wet conditions. Rea was in the vanguard from the off, but fell on lap one and hurt his right hand, requiring painkilling injections before race two.

Rea chose a hard rear tyre to try and deal with the cold, but basically dry track conditions in race two and although he had to wait for his chance to lead, he won by an eventual margin of 2.819 seconds from Sylvain Guintoli (Ducati), the first race victor. Rea has now won four of the last six SBK races at Assen, the home track of his Dutch-based ten Kate team.

Rea remains sixth in the championship rankings after a no score and his first win, now on 65 points, while Max Biaggi (Aprilia) leads on 92 points.

Hiroshi Aoyama (Honda World Superbike Team) found his previous experience of Assen, even that gathered in a recent Assen test alongside Rea, negated by the changeable weather in practice and he qualified only 21st. He rode sure-footedly in the wet race one to record 12th place, and then followed that up with 13th. These were two good results for a new SBK rider, considering how much trouble some top names got into as track conditions changed and tyre gambles often failed. Aoyama is 13th in the rankings after three rounds and six races.

WORLD SUPERSPORT – Lanzi Takes First Honda Win in Atrocious Conditions
Lorenzo Lanzi (PRORACE Honda) won a rain-affected 21-lap Supersport World Championship race at Assen in his first race for Honda in this class; from a lowly start position of 21st. This was the first win for a CBR600RR rider in 2012.

Lanzi, a former SBK race winner and Ducati Supersport rider, was only drafted into the PRORACE team shortly before the start of race weekend, but made his CBR600RR debut in peerless style, splashing his way through changeable, but constantly wet track conditions to pick off the top riders one by one. He won by a remarkable 12.054 seconds in the end, and is now sixth overall with his 25 points for the win. Lanzi’s pace in the wet was such that he lapped everybody up to 12th place.

Pole man Sam Lowes (Bogdanka PTR Honda) had led the race for a while, but fell while well clear of the chasing pack, finding a slippery patch of tarmac under braking which caused the rear end of his bike to come round on him. He restarted, but with bent control levers and handlebars he was to fall again and then retire.

Such was the unpredictable nature of the Assen race weekend for many other top competitors that Lowes is still third overall and only 14 points from the lead, which is shared between Kawasaki riders Kenan Sofuoglu and Fabien Foret.

Broc Parkes (Ten Kate Racing Products Honda) also led the race on the opening lap, but had to drop back as the conditions changed through the race. He was to finish fourth, having started second on the grid, and was happy in the end result to score points after missing out at the previous round. He is now fourth, only two points behind Lowes.

Third in qualifying for Jules Cluzel (PTR Honda) was converted to sixth in the race, as he lost touch with the original leading group of four, and then had Alex Baldolini pass him for fifth.

Another good day for Team Lorini Honda riders Andrea Antonelli and Roberto Tamburini saw them seventh and ninth respectively, and inside the top ten in points. Thomas Caiani (Kuja Racing Honda) was 12th and not lapped by Lanzi, but in his debut ride PJ Jacobsen (Bogdanka Honda PTR) was 13th, and in the points, despite being passed by Lanzi. Imre Toth (Racing Team Toth Honda) was 16th.

Ronan Quarmby (PTR Honda) and Balazs Nemeth (Racing Team Toth Honda) did not finish, nor did Martin Jessopp (Riders PTR Honda). Valentine Debise (SMS Racing Honda) was another non-finisher, just like Mathew Scholtz (Bogdanka PTR Honda).

World Superbike and World Supersport 2012 
Round 03: Assen Circuit – Netherlands

Superbike Race 1

Rank	Rider (Team)
1	S. GUINTOLI (Team Effenbert Liberty Racing)
2	D. GIUGLIANO (Althea Racing)
3	C. CHECA (Althea Racing)
4	M. BIAGGI (Aprilia Racing Team)
5	E. LAVERTY (Aprilia Racing Team)
6	M. FABRIZIO (BMW Motorrad Italia GoldBet)
7	J. SMRZ (Liberty Racing Team Effenbert)
8	N. CANEPA (Red Devils Roma)
9	M. MELANDRI (BMW Motorrad Motorsport)
10	L. MERCADO (Team Pedercini)
11	M. BERGER (Team Effenbert Liberty Racing)
12	H. AOYAMA (Honda World Superbike Team)
13	D. SALOM (Team Pedercini)
14	L. ZANETTI (PATA Racing Team)
15	M. AITCHISON (Grillini Progea Superbike Team)

Superbike Race 2

Rank	Rider (Team)
1	J. REA (Honda World Superbike Team)
2	S. GUINTOLI (Team Effenbert Liberty Racing)
3	E. LAVERTY (Aprilia Racing Team)
4	M. MELANDRI (BMW Motorrad Motorsport)
5	L. HASLAM (BMW Motorrad Motorsport)
6	T. SYKES (Kawasaki Racing Team)
7	A. BADOVINI (BMW Motorrad Italia GoldBet)
8	M. BIAGGI (Aprilia Racing Team)
9	D. GIUGLIANO (Althea Racing)
10	M. FABRIZIO (BMW Motorrad Italia GoldBet)
11	J. HOPKINS (Crescent Fixi Suzuki)
12	D. SALOM (Team Pedercini)
13	H. AOYAMA (Honda World Superbike Team)
14	L. CAMIER (Crescent Fixi Suzuki)
15	L. MERCADO (Team Pedercini)

Supersport

Rank	Rider (Team)
1	L. LANZI (PRORACE)
2	K. SOFUOGLU (Kawasaki DeltaFin Lorenzini)
3	V. LEONOV (Yakhnich Motorsport)
4	B. PARKES (Ten Kate Racing Products)
5	A. BALDOLINI (Power Team by Suriano)
6	J. CLUZEL (PTR Honda)
7	A. ANTONELLI (Team Lorini)
8	T. VAN POPPEL (TRG Motorsport)
9	R. TAMBURINI (Team Lorini)
10	S. VOSKAMP (Konvi Racing Team)
11	R. LANUSSE (Kawasaki Intermoto Step)
12	T. CAIANI (KUJA Racing)
13	P. JACOBSEN (Bogdanka Honda PTR)
14	L. MARCONI (VFT Racing)
15	S. MORAIS (Kawasaki DeltaFin Lorenzini)

 

 

MotoGP World Championship Grand Prix 2012 – Round 02: Spain – April 29, 2012

Honda Finishes One-Three in Difficult Spanish Grand Prix

Repsol Honda riders Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa finished first and third, respectively, in the tensely fought Spanish Grand Prix on the partially wet and treacherous Jerez Circuit in southern Spain. For Stoner, the win was his first at the Andalucian circuit and well deserved.

After a hectic first few laps that saw serial manoeuvres, not always gentlemanly, Stoner made his way to the front on a track littered with patches of wet tarmac. Once there, he was joined by Yamaha rider Jorge Lorenzo, the winner of the past two races in Jerez, who was eager to make it three in a row.

Lorenzo closed the gap by half a second on the 18th of 27 laps when Stoner made a mistake, running wide as a result of a return of his arm pump issues, and the battle was truly joined. But on the final lap, Stoner went to the whip and pulled out his first victory of the season, and 41st grand prix win of his career, by a deceptive 0.947s.

Pedrosa had led early in the race, then fell back before mounting a charge. Fifth on the sixth lap, he jumped two places to third on lap seven and was never off the podium. But it was also never easy. To keep alive his record of never finishing off the podium in the MotoGP class in Jerez, Pedrosa had to hold off the advances of Yamaha rider Cal Crutchlow, who was never far from the Spaniard’s shadow.

But just as Stoner had done to win the race, Pedrosa never relented in his quest to take third and significantly cut the gap to Lorenzo in second. Had the race been a few more laps the order could have changed, but Pedrosa was happy to give Honda a one-three finish.

Stoner now sits second in the championship to Lorenzo by four points, 41 to 45. Pedrosa is a close third with 36.

Alvaro Bautista (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC213V) improved on his finish in Qatar by riding to a mostly lonely sixth place. The Spaniard had an early battle before establishing a comfort level that allowed him to move swiftly forward, after which he found himself alone for most of the race.

In his second MotoGP race, Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda MotoGP RC213V) battled veteran Nicky Hayden (Ducati) to the flag. The race was educational for the young German, whose learning curve shot up this weekend with practice, qualifying, and the race all held in less than ideal conditions. Yet in the race, he was not intimidated by mixing it up with a former world champion and passed Hayden on the final lap to finish seventh, one spot better than he had done in Qatar.

Michele Pirro (San Carlo Honda Gresini FTR-Honda) had an electrical problem on his still developing FTR-Honda CRT machine that forced an early retirement while he was in a points-paying position. The fact that he was more competitive than he had been in Qatar was taken as a positive and the electrical issue is easily resolved. Pirro is looking forward to getting back on track in less than a week’s time to continue the crucial development of the CRT machine.

Moto2 – (Moto2 was established in 2011 to replace the GP250 Class and all teams exclusively use Honda 600cc engines)
Pol Espargaro (Pons 40 HP Tuenti-Kalex ) won his first Moto2 race by being in the lead the lap before the race was stopped by rain on the 18th of 26 laps. Marc Marquez (Team CatalunyaCaixa Repsol-Suter) was second at the stoppage and Thomas Luthi (Interwetten-Paddock-Suter) was third.

The race began under threatening skies on a not entirely dry track. From the start the battle was fearsome, with the leader in peril from one corner to the next and multiple lead changes.

The lead combatants were Espargaro, Luthi, and Marquez, with Scott Redding (Marc VDS Racing Team-Kalex) also in the mix.

Luthi took the lead from Marquez ending lap 14, then it went back to Marquez a lap later as rain began to fall on different parts of the track. By now the riders were aware that the race might be stopped as they approached the two-thirds mark needed to make it official.

Espargaro bowled his way into second on the 16th lap to take Luthi for second and on the 17th lap the Spaniard would make what was the decisive move on Marquez in turn six. That set the order for the end of lap 17 at Espargaro, Marquez, Luthi, with a gap to Redding who was hounded by Takaaki Nakagami (Italtrans Racing Team-Kalex) in a career best fifth place.

Marquez took the lead in the Dry Sack curve on the 18th lap and was in the lead when the red flag came out shortly after he had crossed the line. With scoring reverting a lap, Espargaro, 20, had his first Moto2 win and first win since taking the 125cc race at Aragon in 2010.

Marquez continues to lead the world championship with 45 points to 41 for Espargaro. Luthi takes over third with 27 points.

Marquez takes the championship lead with 25 points to 20 for Iannone and 16 for Espargaro.

Moto3 – (Moto3 was established in 2012 to replace the GP125 Class and teams currently use either Honda or KTM 250cc engines)

Romano Fenati (Team Italian FMI, Honda-FTR) made history by becoming the third youngest grand prix winner in only his second grand prix in a hectic and incident-filled Moto3 race on a mostly dry track with wet patches.

From tenth on the grid, Fenati flew into contention right from the start, finishing the first of 23 laps in fourth place. By then three riders had crashed and many more would fall victim to the irregular wet spots.

Alex Rins (Estrella Galicia 0.0, Suter-Honda) took the lead on the fourth lap after teammate Miguel Oliveira crashed, with Fenati taking over second. The 2012 Spanish 125cc champion controlled the race and built up a lead of over 3.5s before running off the track on lap eight, allowing Luis Rossi and Fenati to close up, with Rossi passing through the stadium section.

Rossi was the first of the leaders to drop out, falling in turn one on the tenth lap, leaving the battle to Rins and Fenati. Then Fenati went through in the Dry Sack corner at the end of the back straight.

Rins battled until crashing on the 14th lap. That put Fenati into the lead by 18.281 secs. With such a big lead the Italian could have backed off, but he didn’t. Instead he set one fast lap after another, stretching his lead to an impressive 36.139s at the end of the 23-lap race.

The 16-year-old becomes the third youngest winner after Brit Scott Redding and fellow Italian Marco Melandri. The win was the first for an Italian in the smallest category since Andrea Iannone won in Catalunya in 2009 and many believe signals the beginning of the Italian resurgence from the ground up.

The win put Fenati in the championship lead with 45 to 35 for Maverick Vinales (Blusens Avintia, FTR-Honda) and 33 for second place finisher Luis Salom. A miscue on the second lap dropped Vinales to 28th, from where he’d charge back to a sixth place finish.

Salom took second from Rins on the penultimate lap, with Rins falling to a close fourth behind Sandro Cortese at the flag.

Alexis Masbou (Caretta Technology, Honda) was alone in fifth after a physically demanding race. The Frenchman was on crutches as the result of a broken bone in his foot in Qatar and found the pain to be increasingly distracting. Still, fifth place was a worthy finish in such difficult conditions.

MotoGP World Championship Grand Prix – 
Round 02: Spain

MotoGP

Rank	Rider (Team)
1	Casey Stoner (Repsol Honda Team)
2	Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha Factory Racing)
3	Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team)
4	Cal Crutchlow (Monster Yamaha Tech 3)
5	Andrea Dovizioso (Monster Yamaha Tech 3)
6	Alvaro Bautista (San Carlo Honda Gresini)
7	Stefan Bradl (Lcr Honda MotoGP)
8	Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team)
9	Valentino Rossi (Ducati Team)
10	Hector Barbera (Pramac Racing Team)
11	Ben Spies (Yamaha Factory Racing)
12	Aleix Espargaro (Power Electronics Aspar)
13	Danilo Petrucci (Came Iodaracing Project)
14	Mattia Pasini (Speed Master)
15	Ivan Silva (Avintia Blusens)

Moto2

Rank	Rider (Team)
1	Pol Espargaro (Pons 40 Hp Tuenti)
2	Marc Marquez (Team Catalunyacaixa Repsol)
3	Thomas Luthi (Interwetten-Paddock)
4	Scott Redding (Marc VDS Racing Team)
5	Takaaki Nakagami (Italtrans Racing Team)
6	Claudio Corti (Italtrans Racing Team)
7	Mika Kallio (Marc VDS Racing Team)
8	Dominique Aegerter (Technomag-CIP)
9	Toni Elias (Mapfre Aspar Team)
10	Johann Zarco (JIR Moto2)
11	Bradley Smith (Tech 3 Racing)
12	Alex DE Angelis (NGM Mobile Forward Racing)
13	Xavier Simeon (Tech 3 Racing)
14	Andrea Iannone (Speed Master)
15	Gino Rea (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2)

Moto3

Rank	Rider (Team)
1	Romano Fenati (Team Italia FMI)
2	Luis Salom (RW Racing GP)
3	Sandro Cortese (Red Bull KTM Ajo)
4	Alex Rins (Estrella Galicia 0,0)
5	Alexis Masbou (Caretta Technology)
6	Maverick Vinales (Blusens Avintia)
7	Alberto Moncayo (Bankia Aspar Team)
8	Niccolo Antonelli (San Carlo Gresini Moto3)
9	Hector Faubel (Bankia Aspar Team)
10	Zulfahmi Khairuddin / Mal / Airasia-Sic-Ajo)
11	Alessandro Tonucci (Team Italia FMI)
12	Alex Marquez (Estrella Galicia 0,0)
13	Ivan Moreno (Andalucia JHK Laglisse)
14	Alan Techer (Technomag-Cip-TSR)
15	Giulian Pedone (Ambrogio Next Racing)

 

 

IndyCar Series 2012 – Round 04: Sao Paulo – April 29, 2012

Sato Finishes Third in Sao Paulo

After running near the front of the IZOD IndyCar Series field throughout the early season – but with scant reward – Takuma Sato led the Honda-powered field Sunday with a third-place finish at the Itaipava Sao Paulo Indy 300 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Starting on the back row of the grid after missing qualifying Saturday due to an engine change, Sato also received a drive-through penalty for exceeding the pit lane speed limit during his first stop. As a result, he was still only in 20th place after 25 of the scheduled 75 race laps.

But excellent strategy by his Rahal Letterman Lanigan team and several opportunistic passes moved Sato up the order to eighth place on Lap 56, and fifth with just 10 laps to go. On the final Lap 71 restart, Sato got the jump on both third-place Dario Franchitti and fourth-running Helio Castroneves, passing them both with a single move that netted the Japanese driver his best finish of 2012.

For his part, Franchitti survived a hit from behind that spun the defending series champion out of second place on a Lap 26 restart. Falling to the rear of the field, Franchitti and his Target Chip Ganassi Racing team also used a mix of strategy and speed to move into third place before the final restart, and a fifth-place finish at the checkers.

Teammate Scott Dixon ran near the front of the field throughout the first 50 laps, and then led eight laps before a late-race stop for fuel dropped him down the order. Along with several other Honda-powered drivers, he was caught up in a multi-car crash on Lap 67 that dropped him a lap off the lead pace and resulted in an unrepresentative 17th-place finish.

Charlie Kimball had his best result of 2012, and second top-ten result of the season, with an eighth-place run in his Novo Nordisk Chip Ganassi Racing Honda-Dallara. Josef Newgarden had the consolation of running up front early and setting fastest race lap, before being one of several Honda-powered drivers caught up in collisions today. Simon Pagenaud, Mike Conway, Graham Rahal and James Jakes all had potential top-10 finishes spoiled by contact.

After four road races to start the 2012 season, the IZOD IndyCar Series now returns home to the U.S. for the season’s signature event: the Indianapolis 500.

IndyCar Series

Round 04: Sao Paulo

Rank	Driver (Team)
1	Will Power (Team Penske)
2	Ryan Hunter-Reay (Andretti Autosport)
3	Takuma Sato (Rahal Letterman Lanigan)
4	Helio Castroneves (Team Penske)
5	Dario Franchitti (Target Chip Ganassi)
6	James Hinchcliffe (Andretti Autosport)
7	JR Hildebrand (Panther Racing)
8	Charlie Kimball (Chip Ganassi Racing)
9	E.J. Viso (KV Racing Technology)
10	Rubens Barrichello (KV Racing Technology)
12	Simon Pagenaud-R (Sam Schmidt Motorsports)
15	James Jakes (Dale Coyne Racing)
16	Graham Rahal (Chip Ganassi Racing)
17	Scott Dixon (Target Chip Ganassi)
19	Mike Conway (A.J. Foyt Racing)
22	Justin Wilson (Dale Coyne Racing)
23	Josef Newgarden-R (Sarah Fisher Hartman)

 

 

 

World Superbike and World Supersport 2012 – Round 04: Monza, Italy - May 6, 2012

Top Six For Rea After First Monza Race is Cancelled

Jonathan Rea (Honda World Superbike Team) took sixth place in the only FIM Superbike World Championship race that took place in Monza, after the return of rain at an inopportune moment caused the first race to be cancelled after an earlier attempt to run it.

The first sector was stopped after two laps and therefore negated, and as the riders lined up on the grid for the second attempt the back section of the track was still virtually flooded. Concerns about aquaplaning caused the organisers and the top riders to make an inspection lap in the pace cars, and for reasons of rider safety the race was cancelled.

In the second race the start was also delayed as the Parabolica section was still wet, despite the race being called dry by race direction. The race was supposed to be over 18-laps, then it was dropped to 17, then a final 16, but after the rains reappeared yet again the race was stopped after only eight laps. Eventual winner Tom Sykes (Kawasaki) was well clear on his own by that stage, with Rea fighting in a pack. Half points were awarded, meaning that Rea got only five points. He is fifth in the championship, with 70 points. Max Biaggi (Aprilia) leads on 97.5 points, with four rounds and seven races gone.

Rea was less than a second from a podium finish as he was involved in a six-rider fight for the two remaining podium places behind Sykes. He had qualified fifth in Superpole, which was once more run under wet rules.

Hiroshi Aoyama (Honda World Superbike Team) had a tough time in qualifying at Monza, finishing up 20th on the grid, but he rode with pace and perseverance to finish 11th in a race with 17 finishers. He is an unchanged 13th in the championship standings, with 24.5 points after the half-point rules were invoked.

WORLD SUPERSPORT – Cluzel wins at a wet Monza as Honda Riders take a 1-2
French rider Jules Cluzel (PTR Honda) won a battle of the CBR600RRs at a wet and wild Monza in the Supersport World Championship class, holding off a late challenge from pole man Sam Lowes (Bogdanka PTR Honda) by only 0.3 seconds. It was Jules’ first win in this class of racing and came after he had qualified only tenth on the grid, at yet another track he had never seen before race weekend. Lowes had made it three poles in a row in qualifying.

With a mixture of wet and dry conditions appearing, particularly from Saturday onwards, finding a good wet set-up was a challenge for all. On race day the Supersport race had to be delayed after the first Superbike race was cancelled, and rains fell with even greater intensity before the start of the 600cc race.

Lowes and Cluzel made a clean break at the front of the field early in the race and until Lowes made a mistake under braking into the Ascari chicane on lap seven he was happy to do the front running, with Cluzel his shadow. Lowes battled back as the last laps of the 16-lap race timed down and got one final chance to re-pass his PTR team-mate into the Parabolica. He made the pass, but ran slightly wide, just wide enough to let Cluzel drive to the finish line and win.

Kenan Sofuoglu (Kawasaki) was third and that gave him a clear championship lead of ten points over Lowes, 61 to 51, with Cluzel the next best Honda rider, in fourth with 48 points.

Imre Toth (Racing Team Toth Honda) used all his racing experience to push for a podium, but he could not resist the late challenge of Sofuoglu. Fourth place, after starting 11th on the grid was his best performance of the year by some distance, as he has missed out on scoring any points until now.

Broc Parkes (Ten Kate Racing Products Honda) led the race from the start, but crashed under braking into Ascari on the first lap when conditions were fully wet. He restarted but eventually retired with three laps remaining. Parkes had been seventh on the grid and is now sixth in the rankings, on 29 points.

Andrea Antonelli (Lorini Honda) was a top ten man yet again, finishing eighth at Monza, he is 11th in the rankings, one place ahead of his team-mate Roberto Tamburini who missed out on a point by one place today. Raffaele De Rosa joined Lorini Honda at this race and scored a very positive tenth place first time out. Kieran Clarke (Bogdanka Honda PTR) joined the WSS class at Monza and scored 14th, one place up on Martin Jessopp (Riders PTR Honda) as he took his own first point today.

Regular riders Ronan Quarmby (PTR Honda) and Balazs Nemeth (Racing Team Toth Honda) each fell from strong position on track, as did Mathew Scholtz (Bogdanka PTR Honda).

World Superbike and World Supersport 2012 – 
Round 04: Monza – Italy

Superbike Race 1
Race1 Cancelled Due To Weather Conditions

Superbike Race 2

Rank	Rider (Team)
1	T. SYKES (Kawasaki Racing Team)
2	L. HASLAM (BMW Motorrad Motorsport)
3	E. LAVERTY (Aprilia Racing Team)
4	M. MELANDRI (BMW Motorrad Motorsport)
5	M. BIAGGI (Aprilia Racing Team)
6	J. REA (Honda World Superbike Team
7	C. CHECA (Althea Racing)
8	D. GIUGLIANO (Althea Racing)
9	J. SMRZ (Liberty Racing Team Effenbert)
10	A. BADOVINI (BMW Motorrad Italia GoldBet)
11	H. AOYAMA (Honda World Superbike Team)
12	C. DAVIES (ParkinGO MTC Racing)
13	M. BERGER (Team Effenbert Liberty Racing)
14	L. ZANETTI (PATA Racing Team)
15	L. CAMIER (Crescent Fixi Suzuki)

Supersport

Rank	Rider (Team)
1	J. CLUZEL (PTR Honda)
2	S. LOWES (Bogdanka PTR Honda)
3	K. SOFUOGLU (Kawasaki DeltaFin Lorenzini)
4	I. TOTH (Racing Team Toth)
5	S. CRUCIANI (Puccetti Racing Kawasaki ItaliI)
6	A. BALDOLINI (Power Team By Suriano)
7	M. ROCCOLI (Bike Service – Wtr Ten 10)
8	A. ANTONELLI (Team Lorini)
9	V. IANNUZZO (Power Team By Suriano)
10	R. DE ROSA (Team Lorini)
11	J. METCHER (Rivamoto Junior Team)
12	F. FORET (Kawasaki Intermoto Step)
13	L. MARCONI (VFT Racing)
14	K. CLARKE (Bogdanka Honda PTR)
15	M. JESSOPP (Riders PTR Honda)

 

 

MotoGP World Championship Grand Prix 2012 – Round 03: Portugal – May 6, 2012

Stoner Dominates Estoril To Take Championship Lead

Casey Stoner (Repsol Honda RC213V) moved into the MotoGP World Championship lead with a brilliant victory in today’s Portuguese Grand Prix at Estoril. Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC213V) also rode a superb race to finish in third place, just 2.2s behind his team-mate.

Starting from pole position for the first time this year, Stoner resisted relentless pressure from Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) throughout the 28 laps to score his second MotoGP victory in eight days. It was a thrilling encounter with Stoner leading from the first corner of the first lap to the chequered flag, but only just.

The reigning World Champion struggled with tyre chatter in the early laps and had to back off a little, which allowed Lorenzo to close right up on him. The Australian dug deeper, experimenting with different mapping settings and then adjusting his riding technique to deny the Spaniard a chance to attack. At the end he crossed the finish line 1.421s ahead of his great rival. This win was Stoner’s 35th success in the elite class and moved him into the series lead, a single point ahead of Lorenzo.

Pedrosa led into the first corner, but encountered some wheelspin on the exit, which had him fighting for control and allowed both Stoner and Lorenzo past. From there Pedrosa stay in touch with the leaders, but he too had his issues. He was not as fast as he would have liked through the corners and he too suffered some chatter, so he never quite got close enough to challenge his compatriot for second place. However, his third podium result from the first three races of the year keeps him very much in the title hunt. It was also Pedrosa’s 100th podium finish across the MotoGP, 250 and 125 classes.

Alvaro Bautista (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC213V) had another strong ride to sixth place, though he was hoping for more. The Spaniard could not stop or turn his bike as well as he wanted to and will aim to fix those issues in tomorrow’s tests here, which will be attended by all the top teams.

Rookie Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda MotoGP RC213V) once again impressed the MotoGP paddock with a ride that belied his lack of experience in the premier class. The reigning Moto2 World Champion enjoyed himself, starting from the fourth row to chase Valentino Rossi (Ducati) during the early stages and then settling into a lengthy duel with former World Superbike Champion Ben Spies. The pair swapped positions on several occasions, the more experienced Spies eventually winning the contest aboard his factory Yamaha, putting Bradl ninth at the finish.

Michele Pirro (San Carlo Honda Gresini FTR-Honda) made something of a breakthrough at Estoril today, scoring his first MotoGP points aboard his Fireblade-powered CRT bike. The Italian was the third CRT machine to get to the chequered flag, in 14th place.

Moto2 - Marc Marquez (Team CatalunyaCaixa Repsol-Suter) scored his second Moto2 victory of the season following an intense race that climaxed with a breathtaking final-lap encounter with Pol Espargaro (Pons 40 HP Tuenti-Kalex), winner of last weekend’s Jerez round.

Marquez and Espargaro spent much of the race following the impressive Thomas Luthi (Interwetten-Paddock-Suter). This was all part of Marquez’s plan – to let one of his rivals do the hard work while he tried to preserve his rear tyre for the all-important final few laps. With seven laps to go the two Spaniards moved ahead of the Swiss and the race became a straightforward duel.

Espargaro could match Marquez for outright speed and decided to stay just behind his compatriot, preparing himself for an all-out effort on the last lap. The 20-year-old made his first attack at turn one, passing Marquez on the inside, only to run wide, allowing the series leader to retake the lead. Turn four was exactly the same – Espargaro squeezed ahead through on the entry, only to run wide again. Espargaro tried once again at the very next turn, this time making contact with his teenage rival. Again Marquez held on.

Undaunted, Espargaro tried once more at the ultra-tight chicane, but lost control on the brakes and ran wide, leaving Marquez a clear run to the finish line. Espargaro’s mistake nearly lost him second place to Luthi at the flag, the pair separated by just 0.084s.

Moto2 rookie Johann Zarco (JIR Moto2 – Motobi) scored a brilliant fourth-place finish in only his third race in the Honda-powered series. The Frenchman ran with the leaders during the early stages, eventually slipping back to finish just ahead of former Moto2 race winner Andrea Iannone (Speed Master – Speed Up).

Iannone finished well clear of a frantic four-way skirmish for sixth between Alex De Angelis (NGM Mobile Forward Racing – Suter), former Moto2 Word Champion Toni Elias (Mapfre Aspar Team – Suter), Julian Simon (Blusens Avintia – Suter) and Mika Kallio (Marc VDS Racing Team – Kalex). Positions changed constantly as the group fought their way round this complex racetrack. At the chequered flag De Angelis beat Elias by less than two tenths.

Moto3 – Maverick Vinales (Blusens Avintia – FTR Honda) came within 0.055s of scoring his second Moto3 victory of the year at Estoril today. The Spaniard was thwarted in his efforts by Sandro Cortese (KTM), the pair spending the entire race jostling back and forth at the front of the pack. Vinales had the speed through the corners while Cortese enjoyed the advantage on the Portuguese track’s long main straight. On the final lap Cortese retook the lead on the straight and Vinales was unable to find a way past the German as they sped towards the finish line.

Efren Vazquez (JHK T-Shirt Laglisse – FTR Honda) was Honda’s next best finisher, taking fifth place after a long battle with fellow Honda rider Niccolo Antonelli (San Carlo Gresini – FTR Honda). Honda’s other top-ten finishers were Alex Rins (Estrella Galicia 0.0 – Suter Honda), Alexis Masbou (Caretta Technology – Honda) and Jakub Kornfeil (Thomas Sabo GP Team – Honda) who finished seventh, ninth and tenth.

Last weekend’s runaway Jerez winner Romano Fenati (Team Italian FMI – FTR- Honda) did not finish the race. The sensational teenage rookie was contesting fifth place when he was hit by another rider coming back onto the track after an off-track excursion. He was not hurt in the incident. Local favourite Miguel Oliveira (Estrella Galicia 0.0 – Suter Honda) had a home Grand Prix to forget, withdrawing in the early stages after starting the race from the front row of the grid.

After two events on consecutive weekends the MotoGP circus now takes a week break before returning for the French Grand Prix at Le Mans on May 20.

MotoGP World Championship Grand Prix
 – Round 03: Portugal

MotoGP

Rank	Rider (Team)
1	Casey Stoner (Repsol Honda Team)
2	Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha Factory Racing)
3	Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team)
4	Andrea Dovizioso (Monster Yamaha Tech 3)
5	Cal Crutchlow (Monster Yamaha Tech 3)
6	Alvaro Bautista (San Carlo Honda Gresini)
7	Valentino Rossi (Ducati Team)
8	Ben Spies (Yamaha Factory Racing)
9	Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda Motogp)
10	Hector Barbera (Pramac Racing Team)
11	Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team)
12	Aleix Espargaro (Power Electronics Aspar)
13	Randy DE Puniet (Power Electronics Aspar)
14	Michele Pirro (San Carlo Honda Gresini)
15	Danilo Petrucci (Came Iodaracing Project)

Moto2

Rank	Rider (Team)
1	Marc Marquez (Team Catalunyacaixa Repsol)
2	Pol Espargaro (Pons 40 HP Tuenti)
3	Thomas Luthi (Interwetten-Paddock)
4	Johann Zarco (JIR Moto2)
5	Andrea Iannone (Speed Master)
6	Alex De Angelis (NGM Mobile Forward Racing)
7	Toni Elias (Mapfre Aspar Team)
8	Julian Simon (Blusens Avintia)
9	Mika Kallio (Marc Vds Racing Team)
10	Bradley Smith (Tech 3 Racing)
11	Scott Redding (Marc Vds Racing Team)
12	Dominique Aegerter (Technomag-CIP)
13	Xavier Simeon (Tech 3 Racing)
14	Claudio Corti (Italtrans Racing Team)
15	Ricard Cardus (Arguinano Racing Team)

Moto3

Rank	Rider (Team)
1	Sandro Cortese (Red Bull Ktm Ajo)
2	Maverick Vinales (Blusens Avintia)
3	Luis Salom (Rw Racing GP)
4	Zulfahmi Khairuddin (Airasia-Sic-Ajo)
5	Efren Vazquez (JHK T-Shirt Laglisse)
6	Niccolo` Antonelli (San Carlo Gresini Moto3)
7	Alex Rins (Estrella Galicia 0,0)
8	Danny Kent (Red Bull KTM Ajo)
9	Alexis Masbou (Caretta Technology)
10	Jakub Kornfeil (Redox-Ongetta-Centro Seta)
11	Brad Binder (Rw Racing GP)
12	Hector Faubel (Bankia Aspar Team)
13	Arthur Sissis (Red Bull Ktm Ajo)
14	Alberto Moncayo (Bankia Aspar Team)
15	Alex Marquez (Estrella Galicia 0,0)