DUCATI MOTOGP TEAM COMPLETES QATAR TEST AHEAD OF OPENING ROUND

The final pre-season MotoGP test session was completed tonight in chilly, windy conditions at Qatar’s Losail International Circuit, where Ducati MotoGP Team riders Nicky Hayden and Valentino Rossi lowered their lap times from last night. The team will still be working hard to make up ground when practice for the first round of the world championship starts in two days, with the race scheduled for March 20.

Nicky Hayden (Ducati MotoGP Team) 9th, 1:56.726 (68 laps)
“When we got here this afternoon, I wasn’t sure how much riding we were going to get to do, because the wind was really gusting. It started dying down about the time we started, though, and they did a good job of cleaning the track. We tried some different options and got a little bit better, but not like we really wanted to. I did two longer runs and was able to string together some laps at a decent pace, on both hard and soft tyres. I ended the day with a crash in Turn 2, where a lot of guys have gone down this week. I just lost the front end. Anyway, that’s enough testing, because this weekend it will really mean something. We know it’s going to be a tough one, because everyone is pushing so hard, but we’ll do our best to come in here and make a good showing.”

Valentino Rossi (Ducati MotoGP Team) 13th, 1:56.988 (50 laps)
“I’d say that today was pretty challenging: the weather conditions were much tougher than yesterday, and I had another crash when I slipped on a white line. Fortunately, I just fell over on the ground—it was nothing serious. The real problem was that at about an hour and a half from the finish, I started to lose strength in my shoulder, and I just couldn’t push anymore. It’s a shame, because I had just done my best time, and I may have been able to drop it a little more from there. Instead, we didn’t even mount the two soft tyres that we had. I started on a long run, but I stopped because I was losing tenths lap after lap. Let’s say that we’re not as far back as it looks, although we still have a lot of work to do, regarding both the bike and myself, because the shoulder is evidently not yet able to bear two such intense days of testing. Between now and Thursday, I’ll do some light exercise and have it massaged, and then we’ll see.”

Schumacher: We will fight for the top places

Michael Schumacher and Mercedes GP eyeing podiums in 2011

Mar.16 (PVM) Shortly before midday, on the final day of collective Formula 1 testing in Barcelona, Michael Schumacher blasted around Circuit de Catalunya to set the fastest time of all at the Spanish venue and thus ended the last test session top of the timing screens, the seven times world champion – intentionally or not – made his rivals sit up and take note.

Michael during recent testing in Barcelona

The German told SID agency, “With the car [Mercedes MGP W02] we will be able to fight for the top places, and that is good news. The team did a great job.”
He added, “We are going in the right direction. Definitely. We should be in a good position this year. But as to whether we already have a winning car – for this assessment I would like to first wait a few races.”
This will be a relief to the entire Mercedes GP organisation as the 2010 car was hardly a winning piece of kit and little to enhance Schumacher’s legendary reputation. It was his worst full season in his long, record smashing, career.
Nevertheless,  Fernando Alonso earlier this year put Schumcher top of his list of most “dangerous” challengers for the 2011 Formula 1 crown.

Michael and Fernando Alonso have a long running rivalry

After the final Barcelona test the Spaniard warned, “I think Mercedes has shown it has made a good step forward compared to the start of the tests and can be one of the favourites for Melbourne. It’s normal that, with a quick car, Michael should immediately be competitive.”
Perhaps the biggest revelation of Schumacher’s comeback is that the arrogance that characterised his Ferrari years has made way for a much more humble character, at least for now.
He admits candidly, “I never thought that I would come back after three years and everything would be as before. I am a realist in this respect…it is true that the re-acclimatisation has taken longer than I hoped, but I was always clear that it would be difficult and that there would be no guarantee of success. I am the type who is encouraged by challenges.”

Michael driving the MGPW02 in Barcelona

“We are talking about a highly complex, highly competitive and ever-changing sport – so you cannot expect that things will always run as desired. It is important to stay strong and keep concentrated on the work. We did that and I am convinced that Mercedes will become a championship contender,” said Schumacher who will be lining up on the Albert Park grid, in Melbourne on 27 March, for the 269th time.
Although confident going into the new season Schumacher is also realistic, predicting, “Red Bull looks very strong, and therefore, Sebastian is a favourite going into the season.”

« « Previous: Sam Michael: Strange not to be racing yet

Next: F1 hopes slim as Bahrain crisis worsens » »

MotoGP: Japanese Grand Prix Date Rescheduled After Quake-Tsunami Disaster

Mar 15, 2011
Read more: international motorcycling federation, isabelle larivier, japanese grand prix, motegi twin ring circuit, motogp, qatar grand prix

Show your support.
Buzz this article up. Buzz up!vote now

The MotoGP race due to be held in Japan next month has been postponed until later in the year in the aftermath of Friday’s earthquake and tsunami.
The 9.0-magnitude quake caused cracks on the track and damaged spectator seats at the circuit in Motegi, to the north of Tokyo.
It is the latest in a list of sporting fixtures to be affected by the recent disaster in the Asian country, where there are also fears of a radiation leak from several explosions at a nuclear plant.
Japan is continuing to experience aftershocks from the quake which has already claimed the lives of thousands of people and left many more homeless.

The 18-race MotoGP season will now begin in Losail, Qatar on March 20. CNN International
It is the second year in succession that the Japanese round of the world championship has been rescheduled.
The race in 2010 was postponed from April to October following the volcanic ash crisis in Iceland that prevented most of the paddock from flying from Europe to the Far East.
International Motorcycling Federation spokeswoman Isabelle Larivier confirmed on Tuesday that the event had been postponed and rescheduled Sunday 2 October.
The revised date means the Japanese event will slot into the MotoGP calendar between the Aragon and Australian races. BBC Sport