Dani Pedrosa has operation in Barcelona

Thursday, 24 December 2009

The Spanish rider has had a screw removed from his left hand during surgery at the USP Institut Universitari Dexeus of Barcelona.

Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa had an operation on Wednesday to remove a screw from his left hand, which was inserted to aid his recovery from a fracture. The procedure has also freed Pedrosa’s extensor tendons, allowing him to improve the mobility of his left wrist.

Head of the Hand Surgery Unit of the Orthopaedics Department of the USP Institut Universitari Dexeus, Doctor Xavier Mir, performed the operation.

Pedrosa was discharged from the hospital on Thursday, and should be able to start his full recovery in two weeks, according to Doctor Mir.

Aoyama and Simoncelli conclude Sepang test

Wednesday, 23 December 2009

Hiroshi Aoyama rounds off three days of testing in Malaysia having completed close to 150 laps, and with a faster lap time than fellow rookie Marco Simoncelli.

Interrupted only by a downpour of rain on Tuesday afternoon, Hiroshi Aoyama and the Interwetten Honda MotoGP Team concluded their three-day test at the Sepang International Circuit on Wednesday having registered very positive results.

Timing his fastest lap at just two tenths of a second slower than the circuit record with a fastest turn of 2’02.30, and close to half a second faster than test companion Marco Simoncelli, Aoyama was delighted to have had the opportunity to enjoy more time aboard a premier class bike.

“It was very important that we had the test in Sepang at this time of the year,” said the 2009 250cc World Champion. “The circumstances were ideal; apart from the rain on Tuesday afternoon. I have to learn a lot, because the MotoGP bike is so much different from the 125cc and 250cc machines. I have to get used to the traction control and to the fact that all works electronically. I am satisfied with the work of these days, but I want to do more.”

He added: “Now I will travel back to Japan and spend some time with my family and friends, and when I come back to Barcelona in January I will spend more time analysing the data from this test in order to be prepared for the next test in February, when we come back to Sepang.”

Aoyama tested the 2009 Honda machine at this test, and for the next scheduled MotoGP test in February is set to have the 2010 prototype, Technical Director Tim Jojic confirmed.

Head of the team Daniel M. Epp said: “I am very satisfied with this entire test. It was definitely the right decision to run it. The team has been working perfectly and rider and team could get used to one another. Hiroshi was very concentrated and was riding constant lap times, one second faster each day. This is the perfect conclusion for 2009.”

Simoncelli, whose fastest time was a 2’03.20, undertook a 21-lap race simulation on the final day, and was pleased to have also been able to gain further valuable experience.

The San Carlo Honda Gresini rider said: “I’ve ridden around 900 kilometres (160 laps) over the past three days, which was a nice early Christmas present! I’m happy; I had hoped to go a little faster but the lap times were not our principal target here and I am extremely satisfied with what we have achieved. Fortunately today the rain held off and we were able to do a race simulation. I did 21 laps at a consistent pace in the 2’04” region – even over the last few laps when the tyres were almost completely spent. Before the race simulation I did a 2’03.20 but I felt like I could have gone a good bit faster if the track was in better shape.”

Elías closer to knowing Moto2 future

Monday, 14 December 2009

The Spanish rider is waiting to find out how his 2010 season will shape up, with a Moto2 deal with Gresini a possibility.

Toni Elías expects to discover more about his future next week, as he weighs up offers from Moto2 teams for the 2010 season.

Having spent five seasons in MotoGP, the 26 year-old has now decided to pursue the next chapter of his career in the new Moto2 category which debuts next year. Although his destination is still not confirmed, Elías looked ahead to the new campaign with motogp.com.

“I am very excited and eager,” Elías explained. “At the moment I have various offers that I am evaluating, and I expect to hear soon from Fausto Gresini, who is looking for a main sponsor for his Moto2 project. Next week things will be clearer, and since we’re in December I’d like to settle the issue and know which team I will be racing for in 2010.”

The prospect of a new challenge in a debuting class is one which inspires Elías. He continued: “In the Moto2 category everything will be new to me, and I will be able to develop a chassis along with the team. This was not possible in MotoGP and it motivates me a lot. I want to do well and enjoy riding the bike, but this won’t be easy given the number and quality of riders and teams who will be competing. I promise there will be a fight!”

Next up for Elías is a minor operation to remove a piece of bone from his right elbow, the result of an injury sustained in a crash at Donington this year. A short recovery period will be followed by the start of pre-season fitness training on January 2.

MotoGp Umbrella Girls

MotoGP will never be the same without these hot babes and umbrella girls...

The MotoGP Girls Will Bring Your Jaw To The Ground

Total Pro Sports - The high speeds and numerous thrills experienced at any motor racing track are enough to bring in the fans, but if extra incentive was ever needed, we found it. Please allow me to introduce to you all, the MotoGP Girls.

These women you can often find strutting around the pit area in their tight shirts and short skirts, straining the necks of every man that walks by. The best part of it all is that these gorgeous women are not afraid to show off their assets, and that makes for a lovely clip that is eye candy to any man who enjoys those types of things.

It is a great sight to take in, but we must be left to wonder whether it is too great. While our lives are not in danger for taking a harmless glance (unless your wife/girlfriend is present), just think about the actual racers. With the speeds they travel at, any distraction can be a deadly one. Maybe looks really can kill.

Caschi d’Oro awards recognise riders of the year

Wednesday, 09 December 2009

Valentino Rossi was the guest of honour at Caschi d’Oro award ceremony in Bologna on Monday, organised by Italian publication Motosprint.

MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi received two awards at the Caschi d’Oro awards in Bologna this week.

The 30 year-old was given the Casco d’Oro (Golden Helmet) for his 2009 World title, and Top Rider, which was voted for by readers of Motosprint.

The ceremony also rewarded several others, with World Championship riders Andrea Dovizioso, Marco Simoncelli and Mattia Pasini all receiving awards, along with MX1 World Champion Antonio Cairoli.

Giampiero Sacchi, Piaggio’s Head of Sport, picked up the Italian group’s awards for the 250cc and 125cc constructors’ titles.

Poncharal happy with Moto2 shakedown test

Tech3 boss delighted with initial response after first test of new Moto2 machine in France.

Hervé Poncharal was extremely satisfied with the on-track debut of the Moto2 prototype his Monster Tech3 team will race in next season’s inaugural World Championship, after a shakedown test in Ledenon earlier this week.

With French rider Florian Marino testing the bike in France, the Tech3 team had the opportunity to smooth any minor problems ahead of official rider Raffaele de Rosa’s first ride at the Valencia test next week.

“I’m very happy with this shakedown test,” Poncharal told motogp.com. “The rider has been pushing a bit and we could get his feedback, and he was really pleased. Florian says it is much closer to a Grand Prix 125cc bike than a 600cc production race bike because everything is much stiffer, the chassis is more rigid, but it’s a proper race bike and prototype.”

“We did the running in of the engine, but we couldn’t do too many laps because we had a faulty earth connection. We found out quite quickly, and we decided to do another day at a circuit nearby and that went really well. The weather was cold and dry so we could do quite a few laps without a single problem and try and work to understand how the chassis, suspension and everything else is working.”

The next step for the Tech3 team is the test at Valencia from December 9-10, where Poncharal is hoping to gain a clearer idea of the development of the bike.

“The purpose of the shakedown test was fulfilled; the bike is running perfectly well,” he continued. “Of course things will be very different at Valencia. We’ll have had one and a half days of testing when we arrive in Valencia and some of the other teams will have had a lot more track time. So for the first time we’ll compare with one another. However, not everyone will use the same engine so there could be quite a big difference in the engine department.”

“We want to compare ourselves to the other Moto2 teams and hear what Raffaele de Rosa is thinking about the bike after his first time on it. Hopefully he won’t need too much and the bike will be well prepared, but he could point out some weak points that we’ll need to modify for the next test. We almost have the second bike ready so the next test will be with both De Rosa and (Yuki) Takahashi.”

Poncharal is waiting to see what the results from Valencia show before making solid plans for further testing, adding, “There are a lot of dates that have been submitted to us at Albacete and other tracks, so the next test will be with both official riders. We just want to wait and see what happens in Valencia to decide if we need to test again very soon after that, or if we have time to prepare something with less stress and pressure for the next test. It won’t be before January 10.”