This weekend’s MotoGP starting grid at the Mugello GP will see only sixteen riders on track, as Loris Capirossi will be forced to miss this eighth race of the season due to the injuries he picked up in last week’s high side crash during the qualifying session at Assen.

A further medical check-up has confirmed that the veteran MotoGP rider who was initially reported as having sustained a dislocated right shoulder and injured rib cartilage, has now been diagnosed with fractures to his ninth and tenth ribs, which will rule him out of his home race for the first time in his career.

“I’m obviously very disappointed and angry. I was hoping I could do to get on track for this race, but the double fracture of the ninth and tenth ribs and distorting the AC joint injury forced me to raise the white flag for the first time in my career for Mugello,” stated a disappointed Capirossi. “I’m sorry for the many fans who will be at Mugello, the track to which they are emotionally closest. I have many fond memories of this track, I wanted to turn my season in this circuit. Now I will have to rest, sit still for at least two weeks and try to get back on track as soon as possible”.

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Between Paris Hilton escorted aound the paddock and pitlane and her Tweets with “I love MotoGP”, Marco Simoncelli’s body guards in mufti (who had their ‘15 minutes of fame’ when they were shown to world on TV), the riders not wanting to go to Japan, the rumors why Dani Pedrosa didn’t race, why Colin Edwards wanted to, and other tidbits from the weekend’s races at Catalunya another rumor surfaced at Montmelò, but this was strictly more racing oriented.

Apparently Pramac Racing who has been running Ducati Desmosedici’s since 2005, is thinking of dropping the Italian manufacturer at the end of season and lease Honda’s new 2012 prototype, and the Tuscany based team is also thinking of down sizing the team to a sole rider, which won’t make Carmelo Ezpeleta jump for joy.

Both Randy de Puniet and Loris Capirossi have struggled so far this season with GP11 (as have the factory riders). But with Capirex seriously thinking of hanging up his lid at the end of the year (we should hear about his decision during the Mugello GP) putting de Puniet back on a Honda and concentrating all their efforts on just one rider, could be a step in the right direction towards improving their situation.

And Ducati? They probably won’t be wringing their hands over the loss, Aspar Martinez wants a second Ducati to field and it seems that the Cardion AB Motoracing team also wants another Ducati, because they too are thinking of expanding their team to a two rider effort.

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Much to the disappointment of MotoGP brolly girl watchers, eveyone’s super favourite paddock miss Lauren Vickers is no longer donning her bunny ensemble for LCR Honda, but is now wearing a much more sobre outfit for Pramac Ducati Green Energy Team (guy’s don’t lose hope, maybe it was because the first race was in Qatar which is a Muslim country) and her boyfriend Randy de Puniet.

But this photo from Pramac shows off a smokin’ Vickers potraying Mother Nature for the team’s 2011 eco-friendly campaign. Pramac was the first MotoGP team to use clean energy to power their hospitality and garage, followed by Cecchinello’s LCR team EcoStyle Project.

Source | pramacracing.com and sportmediaset.it

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While most teams do their yearly presentations at hotels or discos, except for the Ducati MotoGP team who does it from the mountains of the Dolomites, bringing in the bikes with helicopters or displaying them inside giant ice cubes, the Pramac team used one of the biggest cruise ships in Europe, the MSC Fantasia as their presentation venue.

Pramac officially presented Loris Capirossi and Randy de Puniet and their liveried GP11 Ducati with the two riders arriving at the port of Genoa on a Hypermotard and Monster with Pramac colors to start the team’s 10th season in MotoGP.

“I spent five seasons with Ducati, to return three years later to it’s for me like coming back to my family. For me to run with the Pramac Racing Team means the certainty of being able to get good results,” said the ever optimistic Loris Capirossi. “I have not reflected a moment when I was asked to return to Ducati. In a few days we will be back on track in better shape for the second session of testing at Sepang. We surely need to improve in some aspects but we were happy after the first winter test. For example, I found some difficulty in braking and the riding during corners, but the simple fact that we have improved our lap times constantly it means that we are on the right direction. Then with Randy on the team will be much easier. Between us there is great harmony. It ’s the perfect companion to this adventure in Ducati. My story in MotoGP is not over yet. I think I can give so much more to this category, regardless of the new rules.”

Continue reading: 2011 Pramac Racing team presentation, Love Boat style

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When you don’t have an orange media vest to guarantee you access to all the secrets of the MotoGP paddock, you have to keep your eyes and ears open for news coming from the sources closest to the sources who are stirring the pot, particularly on the Valentino Rossi and Ducati rumours. And that’s how we can now share with you some juicy information, purely from the rumourmill so take it or leave it as pure gossip or rock solid news.

Firstly, the less curious news. It’s said that Marco Melandri, will move from the San Carlo Honda Gresini team to the superbike series to ride with BMW. Another Italian rider, Loris Capirossi, instead of retiring, looks to be making a move to the Pramac Racing team instead. The cynical or smart comment on that is that Capirossi will make some money before he does decide to retire and heck - wouldn’t we all in his position?

According to the paddock gossip, Aprilia could enter the MotoGP in 2012, in the context of the move back to 1000cc bikes. In what has so far been an exciting and successful year for the Italian motorcycle company in superbike, this could be a shake-up for other teams and would introduce a new element into the MotoGP. We’re not overly surpised by this possible fact, but it is certainly a tantalising prospect. Finally to Rossi and the Ducati rumour:

Continue reading: MotoGP gossip from the paddock: Rossi to Ducati with F1 gig, Aprilia in MotoGP

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Mika Kallio’s seventh place at Jerez GP was an excellent result for the Pramac team, but the Green Energy Team true to their word to be the first team in Grand Prix paddock to be eco friendly, debuted their new energy saving trucks.

Each Pramac truck mounts 12 solar panels and another two on the pit canopy, made by Pramac’s Solar division, and the panels are capable of generating 2,8 kW of electric energy, with an estimated annual saving of 3,36 MWh of energy, but the most important data is that 2,3 tons of CO2 will be saved by the use of the solar panels that will not be released into atmosphere.

Both trucks attracted the attention of all the paddock guests as did the two wind turbines RevolutionAir designed for Pramac by Philippe Starck. Even if the wind was relatively weak and inconsistent at Jerez, the wind turbines generated almost enough electricity to keep the screens and to the equipment inside the garage going. The wind turbines are capable of generating 0.8 kW with an annual savings of 650 kg of CO2 emissions.

Continue reading: Pramac Racing Team First for Energy Savings

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Pramac Racing and riders Mika Kallio and Aleix Espargaró unveiled today in Qatar their brand new 2010 livery at ahead of the final pre-season MotoGP test that starts tomorrow and the team has gone “green.”

Besides adding The Green Energy Team to it’s name and changing the colour of the livery on their Ducati Desmosedici’s, Pramac Racing has decided to become the first MotoGP team to become eco-friendly. The Italian team will be be using solar panels and wind turbines to supply energy in their hospitality and garage, Quantya electric scooters to move around the paddock and they will also use recycled and recyclable materials where possible.

After the jump you can read why team owner Paolo Campinoti decided on this new approach and you can also see the The Green Energy teaser video.

Continue reading: MotoGP: Pramac Racing Goes "Green"

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SC Project Advanced Exhaust Systems is one of Pramac’s Racing official sponsors in MotoGP and at the Brno round two weeks ago presented this one off Ducati Hypermotard 1000S with Ducati Pramac GP9 livery colours by Bargy Design.

Xerox Ducati’s Michel Fabrizio who filled in for Mika Kallio in Pramac at Brno, took the honours in presenting this special Hypermotard.

Source | motocaradisiac

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During last weekend’s Laguna Seca race more than a MotoGP wag was talking about the fact that rookie Niccolò Canepa was riding on borrowed time and that Ducati and Pramac Racing were going to give the young Genoan rider till Donington to shape up. Word even had it that Ducati already had 250cc Team Toth’s Mattia Pasini lined up ready to fill in for him.

Instead both Ducati and Paolo Campinoti of Pramac Racing have confirmed their faith in Canepa for the future in their team structure.

Canepa’s brief career so far includes being Ducati’s Bridgestone tire test rider last year and in the past has always rode a Ducati. First in Superstock 600, then in Ducati’s Xerox Junior Team in Superstock 1000 where he won the Championship with the new 1098s. He was a wild card twice in WSBK in 2008 and has a two year option with Pramac to ride in MotoGP till 2010 and currently is 16th with 26 points in the riders standings.

Source | bikeracing.it

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Pramac Racing has a new one off livery for this weekend’s Laguna Seca race, their title sponsor is Powermate, a leading consumer brand in the USA whose products include portable generators, pressure washers, air compressor and air tools.

Paolo Campinoti - Pramac Racing Team Principal

“There couldn’t be any better occasion to place Powermate brand on the Pramac Racing bikes. We have found an important agreement for this one event partnership and we are really happy about it. I think that one event partnership can be a really good investment for many companies that aren’t present on all of the nations where the MotoGP world championship competes. The prestigious brand, which is Powermate, is present in the United States of America from more than forty years and it is leader of the production and selling of portable generators. Our bike will have the new colors since Friday’s first free practice and we confide that our only rider here due to Mika Kallio’s injury, Niccolò Canepa, will be able to obtain a good result.”

Source | pramacracing

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Mika Kallio will miss this weekend’s U.S. GP at Laguna Seca following a serious finger injury he suffered after crashing during the final lap at Assen.

The Finnish rider elected not to ride the spectacular American circuit in these conditions:

“I was so excited to race in Laguna Seca, but I guess destiny wanted to be this way and I will have to renounce. It’s a pity. We have taken this decision together with Pramac Racing Managers and I think this is probably the best solution. Laguna would have been a new circuit to learn for me and with precarious physical conditions we thought it would have been too risky. I will look after myself in the best way possible to be in good form at the Sachsenring, which is by the way one of my favorites circuits of the world championship. I wish all the best to Niccolò who will have to do well for the Pramac Team this weekend.”

Source | pramac racing

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Mika Kallio, rookie rider for Pramac Racing may be in doubt for the upcoming Laguna Seca race this weekend.

Kallio who crashed out just a few corners from the finish line battling for 6th place at the Assen TT, badly injured his left ring finger when his hand when his hand got caught under his sliding Ducati D16.

According to the Clinica Mobile website, Kallio has lost half of his finger.

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