French GP - Alvaro Bautista Post-Race Quotes

"That was a really difficult race because the track was so slippery. I tried to gradually get a feel for the track because the bike was moving around a lot and wouldn't hold the line. At the start I was trying to weigh up the race but the guys at the front pushed really hard and escaped. I gradually got into my rhythm and got faster and more comfortable. There were a lot of guys falling off in front of me so I decided the best option was to take it steady, finish the race and get some solid points on the board. Fourth place isn't the result I was hoping for but under the circumstances scoring points was the most important thing here at Le Mans. If we keep going like this then I'm sure we can maintain our consistently good form over the next races."

French GP - 250cc Report & Results

Well, in the end I suppose it wasn't too bad a race.
The way Alvaro shrugged when he got back to the pits pretty much mirrored my feelings about how it had all gone.
It could certainly have gone better (especially with the end result being a top points haul for Sideshow Bob) but, to be fair, it could also have gone a lot worse.
It started out a lot worse of course, with Bati dropping places left right and centre throughout the first lap, crossing the line into lap 2 way down in 11th place.
And it was a happy mix of some top dicing in mixed conditions, coupled with a degree of attrition, that saw Alvaro back up in 4th spot by the end of the race.

And although Sideshow gets 25 points, it's nonetheless kind of nice to see that Hiro Aoyama was way down and that the 4th spot actually sees Alvaro slip into the lead of the overall Championship table ahead of Aoyama.

Alvaro never seems to have really got it together at Le Mans - and certainly not in the wet; so let's chalk it up as a decent if not brilliant day.
Here's the results in full...


Pos | Rider | Bike | Time
1. Marco Simoncelli Gilera 49m07.591s
2. Hector Faubel Honda + 18.128s
3. Roberto Locatelli Gilera + 21.642s
4. Alvaro Bautista Aprilia + 31.087s
5. Ratthapark Wilairot Honda + 50.497s
6. Raffaele de Rosa Honda + 56.366s
7. Lukas Pesek Aprilia +1m16.025s
8. Hiroshi Aoyama Honda +1m22.882s
9. Imre Toth Aprilia +1m35.556s
10. Vladimir Leonov Aprilia +1m47.990s
11. Hector Barbera Aprilia + 1 lap
12. Karel Abraham Aprilia + 1 lap
13. Valentin Debise Honda + 1 lap
14. Toby Markham Honda + 1 lap


Retirements:
Alex Debon Aprilia 21 laps
Alex Baldolini Aprilia 18 laps
Thomas Luthi Aprilia 18 laps
Mike di Meglio Aprilia 10 laps
Mattia Pasini Aprilia 4 laps
Axel Pons Aprilia 3 laps
Aitor Rodriguez Aprilia 3 laps
Angel Rodriguez Aprilia 2 laps
Shoya Tomizawa Honda 1 lap
Bastien Chesaux Honda 0 laps

French GP - Alvaro Post-Qualifying Quotes

"It was quite windy during qualifying but the track conditions were good. If it doesn't rain or something strange then I guess the race will be between the same guys that were fighting for pole today. This is quite a short circuit so I can't see anybody escaping and I'd expect a group race. Hopefully it can be as much fun as Jerez but with a win at the end of it!
The important thing will be to get a good start because it is more difficult to pass here than at a lot of other tracks and it will be crucial to be on the pace over the early laps so as not to lose touch with the lead group.
This circuit is more favourable to the Hondas but we'll try and fight for victory. It is obviously important to be consistent but if I see an opportunity to go for the win then I will do so, I won't be holding back. My pole time today was better than last year which shows that we have a good package."

French GP - Alvaro Takes 250cc Pole

Pos | Rider | Bike | Time | Gap

1. Alvaro Bautista Aprilia 1m38.270s
2. Marco Simoncelli Gilera 1m38.652s + 0.382s
3. Hiroshi Aoyama Honda 1m38.682s + 0.412s
4. Thomas Luthi Aprilia 1m38.796s + 0.526s
5. Mike di Meglio Aprilia 1m39.003s + 0.733s
6. Alex Debon Aprilia 1m39.365s + 1.095s
7. Raffaele de Rosa Honda 1m39.367s + 1.097s
8. Lukas Pesek Aprilia 1m39.381s + 1.111s
9. Roberto Locatelli Gilera 1m39.511s + 1.241s
10. Hector Faubel Honda 1m39.517s + 1.247s
11. Hector Barbera Aprilia 1m39.596s + 1.326s
12. Ratthapark Wilairot Honda 1m39.667s + 1.397s
13. Mattia Pasini Aprilia 1m39.896s + 1.626s
14. Alex Baldolini Aprilia 1m40.066s + 1.796s
15. Karel Abraham Aprilia 1m40.462s + 2.192s
16. Angel Rodriguez Aprilia 1m40.620s + 2.350s
17. Shoya Tomizawa Honda 1m40.661s + 2.391s
18. Jules Cluzel Aprilia 1m40.852s + 2.582s
19. Imre Toth Aprilia 1m41.444s + 3.174s
20. Valentin Debise Honda 1m42.391s + 4.121s
21. Axel Pons Aprilia 1m42.654s + 4.384s
22. Vladimir Leonov Aprilia 1m42.812s + 4.542s
23. Bastien Chesaux Honda 1m43.342s + 5.072s
24. Aitor Rodriguez Aprilia 1m44.132s + 5.862s
25. Toby Markham Honda 1m45.322s + 7.052s

Pics Of The Day: French GP, Le Mans, Friday

French GP - Alvaro Friday Quotes

"It has been a good first day and even though it rained a little during MotoGP the weather has been good to us and we were able to work for the whole session. We had a few small problems with changing direction but we've worked well on that aspect and I was able to keep up a good pace. We can still improve corner entry and I'm not completely comfortable under hard braking.
The track temperature tends to be low here so we didn't want to take any risks but if the weather stays decent tomorrow we'll try a harder tyre. The key is to get the bike as stable as possible, which is what we'll aim for tomorrow. It is important to have this result in the first session but we have to stay focused because everybody will improve tomorrow."

Friday Practice Times - Alvaro On Top

1. Bautista (Aprilia) 1min 39.302sec
2. Aoyama (Honda) +0.113sec
3. di Meglio (Aprilia) +0.199sec
4. Barbera (Aprilia) +0.592sec
5. Simoncelli (Gilera) +0.633sec
6. Luthi (Aprilia) +0.744sec
7. Locatelli (Gilera) +0.966sec
8. Pasini (Aprilia) +1.013sec
9. Debon (Aprilia) +1.191sec
10. Pesek (Aprilia) +1.367sec

French Grand Prix Weekend - TV Schedules

Basically a Eurosport listing, with the exception of the *live* MotoGP race on BBC2...

Friday May 15th

12:00 - *LIVE* - Eurosport2
The practice session for the 125cc French Grand Prix

12:45 - *LIVE* - Eurosport2
The French Grand Prix MotoGP practice session

14:00 - *LIVE* - Eurosport2
The 250cc French Grand Prix practice session

18:30 - Eurosport
The French Grand Prix MotoGP practice session

22:00 - Eurosport2
The French Grand Prix MotoGP practice session

......................................................................

Saturday May 16th

12:00 - *LIVE* - Eurosport2
The qualifying session for the 125cc French Grand Prix

12:45 - *LIVE* - Eurosport2
The MotoGP French Grand Prix qualifying session

14:00 - *LIVE* - Eurosport2
The 250cc French Grand Prix qualifying session

16:30 - Eurosport2
The MotoGP qualifying session for the French Grand Prix

......................................................................

Sunday May 17th

09:30 - Eurosport2
The French Grand Prix warm-up session

09:45 - *LIVE* - Eurosport2
The 125cc French Grand Prix

11:00 - *LIVE* - Eurosport2
The 250cc French Grand Prix

12:30 - *LIVE* - BBC2
The French Grand Prix at Le Mans

15:30 - Eurosport2
The MotoGP French Grand Prix

......................................................................



Source: MindTheZap

Post-race Quote From Alvaro

"I prefer to think about the fact that our pace was good all weekend, and that our team are competitive. The race didn't go how we wanted, and we are obviously having some bad luck this year.
The start wasn't good for me, and I stalled on the first corner, so I started to ride more carefully so as not to make any mistakes. I was suddenly far down the field and it was too late for a comeback when the conditions changed."

A Bad Day For Alvaro: 14th!!!

Well, it was a monumentally depressing race for us Bati fans today, as Alvaro was swallowed up off the start line (from his 2nd place grid position) to wind up spending most of the race way down in the teens (17th at one point!), eventually crossing the line in 14th place to take a meagre 2 points - these leave him 8th in the overall Championship standings on 41.
Sadly now there's quite a gulf between him and the riders at the top of the table... Not the way the season was meant to be going :(

Ah well, nothing more can be done about today so we need to look ahead to Mugello, scene of Bati's awesome maiden 250cc win last year. Perhaps he can get things turned around there...
Go Bati!

Here, for the record, are the results...
(and we'll see what information comes out about explanations for today's poor run...)

Pos | Rider | Bike | Time
1. Alex Debon Aprilia 47:27.406
2. Marco Simoncelli Gilera + 4.816
3. Mattia Pasini Aprilia + 4.998
4. Yuki Takahashi Honda + 5.770
5. Mika Kallio KTM + 6.197
6. Manuel Poggiali Gilera + 6.474
7. Hiroshi Aoyama KTM + 14.909
8. Julian Simon KTM + 17.526
9. Aleix Espargaro Aprilia + 32.925
10. Hector Faubel Aprilia + 36.719
11. Thomas Luthi Aprilia + 48.968
12. Hector Barbera Aprilia + 56.837
13. R.Locatelli Gilera + 57.827
14. Alvaro Bautista Aprilia +1:05.407
15. R.Wilairot Honda +1:24.336
16. Alex Baldolini Aprilia +1:24.577
17. Federico Sandi Aprilia + 1 lap
18. Imre Toth Aprilia + 1 lap
19. Russell Gomez Aprilia + 1 lap

Random Pic: Alvaro In The Box - Le Mans, Friday

Alvaro - Friday Quotes...

1st Álvaro Bautista:
1.38.479 (22 laps):
"We were fast from the start of the session with a full fuel tank and did a great job throughout. At the end on new tyres the other riders improved and we had to fight hard to the end to make sure of provisional pole. It was my best ever lap at this track - last year I did a 38.8 but I managed a 38.4 today. My feeling with the bike is good, everything is under control and I'm happy. I've never been on the podium at this track so lets see if, after such a strange start to the season, Le Mans can be the place that the luck returns for good. I'm really fast in T4 so I'm looking to the other sections to make up time."

French GP: Quali 1, 250cc - Alvaro Takes Provisional Pole

Okay it's abuject to Qualy 2 tomorrow, but if the ugly rumours of rain turn out to be true then there's a decent chance Alvaro will retain the pole he provisionally took this afternoon...

Pos | Rider | Bike | Time
1. Alvaro Bautista Aprilia 1:38.479
2. Alex Debon Aprilia 1:38.585 + 0.106
3. Marco Simoncelli Gilera 1:38.679 + 0.200
4. Mattia Pasini Aprilia 1:38.788 + 0.309
5. Thomas Luthi Aprilia 1:38.942 + 0.463
6. Julian Simon KTM 1:39.051 + 0.572
7. Manuel Poggiali Gilera 1:39.064 + 0.585
8. Alex Espargaro Aprilia 1:39.184 + 0.705
9. Hiroshi Aoyama KTM 1:39.197 + 0.718
10. Mika Kallio KTM 1:39.360 + 0.881
11. Yuki Takahashi Honda 1:39.446 + 0.967
12. Hector Barbera Aprilia 1:39.544 + 1.065
13. Lukas Pesek Aprilia 1:39.798 + 1.319
14. R.Wilairot Honda 1:39.965 + 1.486
15. R.Locatelli Gilera 1:40.171 + 1.692
16. Hector Faubel Aprilia 1:40.182 + 1.703
17. Fabrizio Lai Gilera 1:40.293 + 1.814
18. Karel Abraham Aprilia 1:40.455 + 1.976
19. Eugene Laverty Aprilia 1:41.056 + 2.577
20. Federico Sandi Aprilia 1:41.200 + 2.721
21. Imre Toth Aprilia 1:41.365 + 2.886
22. Alex Baldolini Aprilia 1:41.626 + 3.147
23. D.T.Pradita Yamaha 1:42.847 + 4.368
24. Russell Gomez Aprilia 1:44.040 + 5.561
25. Chow Ho Wan Aprilia 1:45.918 + 7.439

French Grand Prix - Prac 1 - 250cc

1 Hector Barbera Aprilia 1'39.284
2 Mattia Pasini Aprilia 1'39.376 0.092
3 Alvaro Bautista Aprilia 1'39.491 0.207
4 Alex Debon Aprilia 1'39.677 0.393
5 Marco Simoncelli Gilera 1'39.809 0.525
6 Julian Simon KTM 1'39.835 0.551
7 Hiroshi Aoyama KTM 1'39.898 0.614
8 Thomas Luthi Aprilia 1'39.999 0.715
9 R.Wilairot Honda 1'40.011 0.727
10 R.Locatelli Gilera 1'40.012 0.728
11 Karel Abraham Aprilia 1'40.178 0.894
12 Manuel Poggiali Gilera 1'40.332 1.048
13 Mika Kallio KTM 1'40.619 1.335
14 Lukas Pesek Aprilia 1'40.652 1.368
15 Hector Faubel Aprilia 1'40.729 1.445
16 Aleix Espargaró Aprilia 1'40.909 1.625
17 Yuki Takahashi Honda 1'40.982 1.698
18 Fabrizio Lai Gilera 1'41.156 1.872
19 Imre Toth Aprilia 1'41.457 2.173
20 Federico Sandi Aprilia 1'41.997 2.713
21 Eugene Laverty Aprilia 1'42.543 3.259
22 Alex Baldolini Aprilia 1'43.146 3.862
23 D.T.Pradita Yamaha 1'43.343 4.059
24 Russell Gómez Aprilia 1'44.889 5.605
25 Chow Ho Wan Aprilia 1'47.447 8.163

French Grand Prix - Le Mans - Event Schedule

Friday May 16
125cc :: Free Practice 1 :: 09:00-09:45
MotoGP :: Free Practice 1 :: 10:00-11:00
250cc :: Free Practice 1 :: 11:15-12:15
125cc :: Qualifying 1 :: 13:10-13:40
MotoGP :: Free Practice 2 :: 13:55-14:55
250cc :: Qualifying 1 :: 15:10-15:55

Saturday May 17
125cc :: Free Practice 2 :: 09:00-09:45
MotoGP :: Free Practice 3 :: 10:00-11:00
250cc :: Free Practice 2 :: 11:15-12:15
125cc :: Qualifying 2 :: 13:10-13:40
MotoGP :: Qualifying 1 :: 13:55-14:55
250cc :: Qualifying 2 :: 15:10-15:55

Sunday May 18
125cc :: Warm-Up :: 08:40-09:00
250cc :: Warm-Up :: 09:10-09:30
MotoGP :: Warm-Up :: 09:40-10:05
125cc :: Race :: 11:00-11:45
250cc :: Race :: 12:15-13:00
MotoGP :: Race :: 14:00-15:00


(*All times local)