All posts tagged motogp laguna seca
Jorge Lorenzo okay after highside crash
Jorge Lorenzo scared the hell out of everyone in this morning’s FP3 at Laguna Seca, after a horrific highside left the reigning World Champion limping.
Taken to the medical center, the Spaniard has now been declared fit to continue his race weekend, sustaining just some bruising.
Lorenzo crashed at turn 5 at the end of the session, after a practice start and while making his way slowly back to the pits. The highside was probably due to his rear tire cooling down too fast, and very similar to what happened to Valentino Rossi at the Mugello last year. However Yamaha tweeted half an hour ago it wasn’t the tire, “but Jorge’s traction control was disengaged for a practice start, this meant he lost control going into the corner… “
Lorenzo was third fastest in final practice behind Honda’s Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa, and the three were separated by just 0.049 seconds.
MotoGP Laguna Seca: Casey Stoner takes a very tight FP3, Lorenzo highsides
It was pretty overcast and cool this morning at the Mazda Speedway for FP3, air temperature was a chilly 15°C and the track temperature barely reached 20°C, so out came the softer tires for everyone and lap times dropped almost immediately for everyone.
The fastest rider of the session was Casey Stoner, but team mate Dani Pedrosa was just 0.017s adrift, while Jorge Lorenzo was third and 0.049s. However Lorenzo after practicing a race start and while returning to the pitlane, at turn 5 had a tremendous highside, his M1 clipping him as he slid across the track into the gravel pit hurting his legs. The Yamaha rider was taken to the Medical Center and we should have an update about his conditions late. Both Pedrosa and Lorenzo have a much better race pace then Stoner, Lorenzo did 9 laps under 1’22, Pedrosa stopped at 6.
In fourth with a big gap from the front three was Marco Simoncelli who was 0.416s slower. Ben Spies was fifth unable to shave those five tenths of second off, while Nicky Hayden on his usual GP11 (you can tell the difference between the GP11 and GP11.1 by the number of gills on the fairing) was 6th and he improved his lap times as did Valentino Rossi who took eighth and was 0.841s off the top of the chart and the last rider within a second from Stoner.
Continue reading: MotoGP Laguna Seca: Casey Stoner takes a very tight FP3, Lorenzo highsides
MotoGP riders review Friday at Laguna Seca
Laguna Seca is a tight and twisty track and finding the proper set-up is essential to avoid excessive tire wear. The softer tire that Bridgestone brought in works well in the morning, but the MotoGP riders have already decided that the harder option is the one that they’ll use for the race when afternoon temperatures are much higher.
As usual all eyes were on the struggling Ducati factory team, especially on Nicky Hayden, who got his first chance to ride the GP11.1 and the American seemed pretty positive about the gearbox, and even had the luxury of finishing ahead of his team mate Valentino Rossi on the same bike, but still has to decide on which GP11 he’ll use come Sunday. Rossi is continuing his downward spiral and declared that the Ducati has some problems that his team can’t fix, because they are inherent to the character of the bike.
Jorge Lorenzo - 1st
“I am very happy to be back riding here at Laguna, a track I love. Today went pretty well, the bike felt ok. P1 I’m happy with but we need to try to improve corner entry for the bike because there are some tenths in that and it will give me more confidence turning in. It’s not so bad to begin and we will try to go faster tomorrow!”
Continue reading: MotoGP riders review Friday at Laguna Seca
MotoGP Laguna Seca: Jorge Lorenzo quickest in FP2
The second free practice at Laguna Seca was much more warmer and sunny and track temperatures were decidely higher this afternoon and lap times didn’t drop as much as expected, but it was Jorge Lorenzo who took over the lead, hammering out fast lap after fast lap and posted a 1.22.056 which put him on the top of the chart early in the session and leaving all three Repsol Honda’s behind him.
Dani Pedrosa was again very fast and he finished in 2nd and just 0.141s from his Yamaha rival. Casey Stoner suffered a big moment at turn 3 when he almost lost the front of his Honda, but the Australian saved it and he finished the session in third and managed to improve his lap time only on his final run and was adrift by only 0.175s.
Andrea Dovizioso finished in fourth, bettering his postion from this morning and moved up the chart by one spot. Ben Spies was fifth and half a second slower than his team mate. Marco Simoncelli was sixth. Apparently those front end problems that he had in the earlier session haven’t been completely solved.
Continue reading: MotoGP Laguna Seca: Jorge Lorenzo quickest in FP2
MotoGP Laguna Seca: Casey Stoner leads in FP1
A cloudy morning and a slightly cold track (it was foggy earlier) met the MotoGP riders for the first free practice at Laguna Seca and it was Casey Stoner on his sixth lap out who set the lap to beat on the time charts with a 1.22.300.
Dani Pedrosa ran off track at turn 2 and then tipped over and had some difficulty in getting back on his bike early in the practice, but that didn’t stop him from setting the 2nd best time of the session and he was just 0.1o2s from his team mate after pipping the spot from Jorge Lorenzo on his final lap. Lorenzo was just 0.120s from the Honda Repsol rider.
Fourth went to Ben Spies on his home track with the 50th Anniversary livery colors on his M1, and he was followed by Andrea Dovizioso in 5th.
Much slower than he usually is off the blocks was Marco Simoncelli in 6th and 0.910s off pace. Nicky Hayden’s used the his regular GP11 step2 for the first part of the session posting a lap time of 1.23.297 that let him finish in 7th and then switched to the new GP11.1 for the first time and one of his laps was 1.23.718, but seemed that he signaled to his crewchief had troubles with the balance of the bike and had corner entry issues.
Continue reading: MotoGP Laguna Seca: Casey Stoner leads in FP1
Yamaha's past and present champions at Laguna Seca
Yamaha’s 50th anniversary in road racing hit the top of the PR at Laguna Seca, with Jorge Lorenzo’s and Ben Spies’ M1’s dressed again in the ’70’s classic red and white livery and the appearances of the Japanese manufacturer’s legendary riders as Kenny ‘King’ Roberts, Wayne Rainey, Eddie Lawson and Kel Carruthers.
King Kenny will be riding a specially prepared factory YZR-M1 with the 50th Anniversary livery for several laps every day of the weekend, dressed in his Yamaha bumble bee leathers and on Sunday, just before the start of the MotoGP race, the American, who could probably still kick several asses on track, will ride the iconic circuit on his 1980 World Championship winning YZR500, to the delight of old and young fans.
Yamaha has also prepared another of their very funny promotional videos for the event. After A Day at the Office, Team Texas Road Trip, The Ben Spies Method and Colin Edward’s trains YES agents, they’ve come up with Blast to the Past, which you can see a teaser here.
Continue reading: Yamaha's past and present champions at Laguna Seca
MotoGP Riders preview Laguna Seca GP
Laguna Seca and the Corkscrew, that’s where the MotoGP circus (no 125cc and Moto2) is heading to this weekend and hopefully the race will be as exciting and close as the Sachsenring round was. This is the last race before the much deserved summer break after six tough races in eight weeks
The Ducati factory squad will be testing (experimenting really should be the term) both the GP11.1 and GP11’s and Jeremy Burgess will be back with his Rider, who sorely missed him. Yamaha is showing up with that lovely 50th anniversay livery that we saw at Assen and that Ben Spies won. Ben Bostrom is going to be this year’s LCR Honda’s wildcard, Loris Capirossi is going to try ride again. Bridgestone is bring in a softer rear tyre choice for the cooler morning temperatures and that’s about it for the moment.
Check out some what the riders think about the iconic Mazda Speedway:
Ben Bostrom confirmed for wildcard ride with LCR Honda at Laguna Seca
We mentioned the other day that there was a rumor that Ben Bostrom received an offer from LCR Honda to wildcard during the MotoGP race at the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix at Laguna Seca this weekend, well that rumor has now been confirmed.
Fans will be able to see Bostrom in action not only during the AMA Superbike round with his Michael Jordan Motorsports Suzuki GSX-R1000, but also on a Honda RC212V 800cc prototype (with Bridgestone tires and carbon brakes) for the first time.
This is the second year in a row that the LCR team has enlisted an American racer to ride the team’s bike in MotoGP competition. Last season, Bostrom’s MJM teammate Roger Lee Hayden substituted for LCR’s injured Randy De Puniet at Laguna Seca (he finished 11th).
Continue reading: Ben Bostrom confirmed for wildcard ride with LCR Honda at Laguna Seca
Yamaha M1 50th Anniversary Special Edition for Assen and Laguna Seca (w/video)
Yamaha is celebrating its 50th Anniversary of World Championship Grand Prix racing this year and has decided to run this very special livery called the YZR-M1 WGP 50th Anniversary Edition for the upcoming Assen TT (June 25th) and Laguna Seca (July 24th) rounds.
Reigning MotoGP World Champion Jorge Lorenzo and 2010 Rookie of the Year Ben Spies will unveil this livery during at a special event on Wednesday 22nd June close to the Assen circuit.
The unique red and white livery design pays homage to the iconic Yamaha Factory Racing liveries of the past with a modern twist. The red and white livery will be used by Yamaha Factory Racing team riders Jorge Lorenzo and Ben Spies. The colours will also appear on all Yamaha staff and team crew as well as the Yamaha Factory Racing team’s pit box.
Continue reading: Yamaha M1 50th Anniversary Special Edition for Assen and Laguna Seca (w/video)
Gallery of Pics from Red Bull U.S. GP Laguna Seca
After the rider quotes, the paddock girls we now have a big batch of pics from the weekend’s U.S. Grand Prix racing from Laguna Seca that you can enjoy.
Continue reading: Gallery of Pics from Red Bull U.S. GP Laguna Seca
Rossi and Lorenzo relations "not good" according to Jorge
It’s no news that Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo don’t really get along but to hear Lorenzo openly acknowledge this, saying that relations between them are ‘not good’ is probably just part of the PR fallout we’ll see if/when Rossi moves to Ducati. The acknowledgement in so many words comes from a quick chat that Lorenzo had with the Autoblog.com crew at this weekend’s Laguna Seca MotoGP, and to proves to us many of the underlying feelings that surround the Spanish rider which we first looked at in our end of Rossi era post.
So where to from here? We imagine that Lorenzo will be quite relieved when Rossi moves to Ducati, and although he’ll still have the world champion as a rival on track, at least that rivalry won’t be extended to his own box (with in-team competition separated by a wall). Lorenzo also confirmed that Ben Spies is the most likely replacement for Valentino in the Fiat Yamaha squad, which itself will probably have a different sponsor starting from next year if Rossi goes.
During the said PR fallout, Lorenzo should be able to prove his real character and we’re hoping to see elegance and grace in accepting a new teammate and hopefully not continuing the arrogance towards a teammate we have sometimes seen from Rossi. Most sports stars have delicate egos but just how well they mask that or manage it is often a mark of their superiority. Apart from winning this year’s championship, Lorenzo will be required to step up to the plate and become Yamaha’s new benchmark.
The team will also have to capitalise on the talent of its new rider Ben Spies, which should prove an easier task if favourite Rossi is no longer on the scene. We’re all eyes and ears and can’t wait to see how Lorenzo conducts himself, how competitive Ben Spies will be and just what next season will bring. And that’s not mentioning what Rossi’s achievements, beyond PR world domination, will be in red over at Ducati.
Rider Quotes from the Laguna Seca MotoGP Race
Here’s what the MotoGP riders had to say after round nine of the 2010 world championship at Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix that saw Jorge Lorenzo plant his Lorenzo’s Land flag at Laguna Seca extending his title lead. Lorenzo now has 210 points, with Pedrosa second in the standings with 138 points and Dovizioso third with 115.
What you won’t read in the quotes is that Ben Spies suffered visor problems on his HJC helmet with the visor constantly flipping up and hampering his race, this according to an Italian website.
Jorge Lorenzo - 1st
“I am so happy to win here at Laguna Seca, it’s something I’ve always dreamed of. I rode so well today, right on the limit and I had to push very hard to stay in touch with Dani. He is always so strong on race day but I knew if I kept the pressure on him then there was a chance he would make a mistake and I would be able to catch him. I’m sorry he crashed but from then on it was very easy for me because I had a big gap from Casey. I really enjoyed riding my M1! I have a big lead in the championship but there is half of the season left and it wouldn’t be the first time a rider has lost the title with such a big lead, so we can’t take anything for granted. I am really looking forward to some time to relax now after two very busy months. Thanks to everyone in my team for doing a brilliant job.”
Continue reading: Rider Quotes from the Laguna Seca MotoGP Race
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