Casey Stoner may have left Jorge Lorenzo adrift by almost six tenths of second, but the Mallorcan rider admitted that at this stage of testing chasing lap times is not that important, even though the Yamaha rider admitted was satisfied that he improved on his best record at this track and the fact that the new Bridgestone tires give a lot more confidence.

Jorge Lorenzo:

“I’m really, really satisfied, I have improved on my best record here in Sepang. We tried a lot of things; some have been a lot better, especially one major improvement. We also know where we have to improve in the future. The electronics are not perfect yet, we still need to make it smoother but the bike has so much potential we are very optimistic. The Yamaha engineers have worked really hard so they have done a good job. I made my best time today at midday which is the hardest time with the conditions so it was pretty good. Let’s see what we can do when we come back.”

Ben Spies completed only sixteen laps today, but they were more than enough for the “lean and mean” American to leave Sepang in a happy mood.

“It’s been a good test, we’ve got a lot of things accomplished, we’re definitely moving in the right direction with my bike. I tried the Yamaha test rider’s bike today which had a slightly different set up to make a fair comparison with mine. I made a small mistake, losing the front but that’s testing; it can happen when you’re working out the good and bad! All in all it’s been great and I’m really happy and looking forward to coming back and seeing what’s new,” said Spies.

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Yamaha Factory riders Jorge Lorenzo and Ben Spies continued to show promising form today in the second day of the Sepang test, the first official 1000cc MotoGP test of 2012. Having spent yesterday getting back into the rhythm of riding, today was spent focusing on comparative testing in a number of areas.

The team worked to gather data to optimise the balance of the 2012 YZR-M1 chassis whilst also working to refine the power delivery of the increased engine capacity through electronics and power delivery. Spies led the field for the majority of the day with team mate Lorenzo just behind, the Texan eventually knocked from the top spot by just 0.157 seconds by Casey Stoner. Tomorrow’s final day of testing will see a further shakedown by the Yamaha riders before they return in one month’s time for the second test of the season.

Ben Spies:

“We got going pretty well in the morning, then even when the track started to slow down the pace was still really good. We started to mess with the balance of the bike a little today and played with the electronics to find a good foundation with the bike. At Valencia we compared some stuff and got in the right direction. Now we’re here and taking the next step, trying some things to see how it affects the set up. There’s definitely some room for improvement and some areas we’re not struggling with at all.”

Jorge Lorenzo:

“Today I was much more tired than yesterday so it was tough to finish with a good pace but we managed it. We didn’t find any big improvements but some small details. Tomorrow we hope to make one big step. We improved our lap times a lot in the morning but in the afternoon when it was even hotter we managed to go faster which is very positive.”

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The first day of official testing a Sepang finished with Yamaha rider Jorge Lorenzo leading the top of the charts for the entire day, the Spaniard who missed the last three races of the season and the post Valencia test after losing the top of his finger during warm-up practice at Phillip Island, laid down the best lap of the day with 2:01.657. He was followed by Dani Pedrosa on the Honda RC213V who was 0.346s adrift.

As everyone knowns by now, Repsol Honda team mate Casey Stoner did not take part in the test today. The reigning World Champion pulled a back muscle while he was warming up and donning his leathers and was sent back to his hotel after physiotherapy and stocking up on anti-inflammatory pills. Stoner’s four laps are credited to Honda test rider Kousuke Akiyoshi.

Cal Crutchlow in his second year with Yamaha Tech3 finished up in third, followed by Yamaha factory rider Ben Spies. Valentino Rossi debuting the GP12 dubbed Phoenix did 43 laps on the 90% new bike and finished in fifth and 0.735s from Lorenzo. It looks like the bike has actually improved as last season Rossi was losing constantly 1.5s, but it could also be that the GP12 likes the new tires that Bridgestone brought in.

Continue reading: MotoGP Sepang Day 1: Jorge Lorenzo leads the way

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Yamaha’s head honcho Lin Jarvis will probably be jumping with joy when he learns that Jorge Lorenzo has said that he wouldn’t mine finishing his career in Yamaha. Jarvis has already stated that keeping Lorenzo is his key priority beyond this season when the majority of the top riders contracts expire.

Asked what his plans are for the end of 2012, the former World champion stated, “My first choice is to stay with Yamaha. They have treated me well, I would like to finish my career here and I want to win. In 2012 we’ll fighting for the championship so why change? “

Jorge also talked about the finger injury that he sustained during warm-up practice at Phillip Island which prevented him from contesting the last three races of the season, “The first couple ofweeks were tough on the mind. It’s not like breaking a bone, and you recover in a few weeks and all is well again. I lost a part of my body that I will not have again, it was hard.”

Lorenzo has worked hard during the winter break to recover from the injury and says he is curious to see the development on his M1, but admitted “It won’t be easy to regain the rhythm and speed,” when he starts testing at Sepang later this month. And talking about his 2011 season said “I managed to be more complete. I gave it 110%, I made a few mistakes but I managed to get on the podium a lot of times. I think I rode better than the year I won the title.”

Lorenzo talking about finishing his career with one manufacturer sort of reminds us of certain past statements by Valentino Rossi and Casey Stoner, and we know how that went.

Source | gazzetta.it

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The Far East doesn’t seem to agree with Ben Spies’ stomach. The Yamaha rider is currently in Indonesia with team mate Jorge Lorenzo for a Yamaha PR tour and fell sick with a bout of food poisoning. This is the second time that the American rider has suffered the same problem, as it already happened when he was travelling to the Motegi GP last September and it kept him from completeing the second free practice.

Before falling ill, Spies and Lorenzo visited Indonesian Yamaha R Series Cup racers that are part of a unique Yamaha Coaching Clinic. The MotoGP stars gave tips on rider positioning, cornering and overtaking to the delighted local riders.

Later Lorenzo went on to help Yamaha Motor Indonesia launch the new Yamaha Byson motorcycle to an audience of over 3000 Indonesian Yamaha Dealers at a special event just outside Jakarta. The 150cc Byson street bike is Yamaha’s star new machine for 2012 in Indonesia. Spies was due to co-host alongside his team mate however a bout of food poisoning unfortunately meant he was unable to participate.

Continue reading: Ben Spies gets sick during Yamaha Indonesia tour

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All the top riders in MotoGP contracts expire at the end of this season and while Valentino Rossi has said that he’d like to race for another couple of years and maybe negotiate another two year contract with Ducati, if things go better this season, Yamaha’s Lin Jarvis has shut the door on the eventuality of the Italian returning to his old team.

Jarvis has already said that keeping Jorge Lorenzo is a key priority for them, with a nod also towards negotiations with Casey Stoner, but Rossi is “not an option.”

Jarvis commenting on silly season rumors of having Rossi back as a team mate with Lorenzo said, “It’s an interesting question, but right now I have no idea what projects Valentino has for the future, if he’ll continue motorcycle racing or turn to car racing like he talked about when he was with us. In any case, Valentino and Jorge together again Yamaha is not an option we are considering for the future.

Continue reading: Lin Jarvis: "Valentino Rossi back in Yamaha is not an option"

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You know that Jorge Lorenzo is on a tour in the Far East for Yamaha and one of his PR duties was to take the updated YZF-R15 version 2.0 with its 150cc liquid-cooled 4-stroke engine which also includes an ECU unit, around India’s Noida track.

India is hoping to host a MotoGP event in the near future and with Dorna’s CEO Carmelo Ezpeleta publically going on record saying that there will be fewer races in Spain, Indian organizers are already rubbing their hands in delight.

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Jorge Lorenzo left Barcelona yesterday and today visited the Auto Expo to meet both racing fans and the national Indian media and then took a lap around the Buddh International Circuit with a Yamaha R15.

The former World Champion was duly impressed by the new facility which is interested in hosting a MotoGP event in the future and Lorenzo believes that the circuit is ready for MotoGP racing

“It’s been great to visit the Buddh circuit today,” said Lorenzo in Yamaha’s press release “the track is very modern and wide. I think it is quite prepared and ready to be on the calendar. I believe it will be exciting to ride with many overtaking opportunities, while via Twitter said, “Hello friends! This afternoon at the Buddh circuit (India). Great reception from the press of the country. The circuit is very modern type Shanghai or Turkey, and wide, with many options for overtaking.”

Lorenzo also added, “The Indian people I have met have been very kind and gentle, I would like to see more of India in the future with more time; we didn’t get to see so much in just two days here. Now I’m very excited to go to Jakarta to see all my Indonesian fans there.”

Lorenzo will be flying to Indonesia and will be joined by team-mate Ben Spies for two days of PR activities on the 14th and 15th January for Yamaha Motor Kenkana Indonesia, who is a main sponsor of the Yamaha’s Factory Racing MotoGP Team (Semakin di Depan).

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Before heading to India for a six day whirlwind promotional tour for Yamaha, Jorge Lorenzo took the time to take pass the theory test to get his motorcycle license as he posted on his Facebook page, “Hey guys! Although it sounds like a joke, i just pass the motorcycle theory test!! ;) “

Actually we think that the three time World Champion already has the the A1 permit as we’ve seen him driving around Barcelona on a vintage scooter. and the pratical test should be a breeze for Lorenzo as he was involved in promoting motorcycle safety for Motoescuela.

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At the beginning of 2010 Yamaha had Valentino Rossi do a little promotion in India and he gave his stamp of approval on racing in India and this year it will be Jorge Lorenzo who will be doing the PR work and ahead of his visit to the enormous country he too also thinks that it will soon be on the MotoGP calendar.

The former 2010 World Champion will be in India on Wednesday to promote Yamaha products and will be the first MotoGP rider ever to do some laps at the new Buddh International Circuit track, albeit it will be on a Yamaha R-15 and not his new 1000cc M1.

“I am extremely excited at the prospect of coming to India,” said Lorenzo talking to the Times of India. “This will be my first visit to the country and I have been told that the biking culture has evolved tremendously there over the years. With India getting equipped with one of the world’s best race tracks and having already hosted F1, we can expect India to be the next destination for Moto GP.”

Lorenzo has already started MX training for the upcoming season after spending a long time recovering from his warm-up crash last October at Phillip Island where he lost the tip of his fingertip.

Source | crash.net

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Since Yamaha’s MotoGP team is sponsored by Yamaha Motor Kenkana Indonesia (YMKI) who manufactures and distributes Yamaha motorcycles in Indonesia (in 2009 they sold 2.6 million units) under the slogan Semakin di Depan (one step ahead), occasionally they need the factory riders to do some advertising and Jorge Lorenzo, who took some acting classes when he was younger seems the logical choice to star in them.

Check out these different commercials with Lorenzo speaking the lingo and can you imagine a more taciturn Ben Spies doing this?

Continue reading: Jorge Lorenzo stars in Yamaha Indonesian commercials

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Catalunya 2009 Motogp ‘Rossi teaches Lorenzo a lesson!’ from Tim Fowden on Vimeo.

Every MotoGP season there’s one race that is absolutely unforgettable, that stirs the blood, that keeps you unblinkingly glued to your armchair because of the intensity and the closeness of the racing and in 2009 it had to be the Catalunya GP - Valentino Rossi vs Jorge Lorenzo- two alpha males in the same team, old dog vs young dog, the master and the magnificant rising apprentice.

Our French collegues at Motosblog.fr found this video clip produced and directed by Tim Fowden for British Eurosport on the Facebook page of “The Fastest “ the lastest MotoGP movie by director Mark Neale which will be released in internationally in 2012.

A walk down memory lane which also includes the enthusiastic comments of paddock professionals. Enjoy.

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