A Wheelie Bad End To The Race!

Okay - not *that* bad; it at least happened after the chequered flag, but - unlike Assen - the last time when Alvaro disappeared under the arse of his own bike, when I was able to justly blame Hiro - this time I can't really point the finger anywhere but at the Batster himself. Embarrassed giggles in the post-race press conference, but possibly not exactly the same reaction from Mr Aspar himself...?

"The only good session this weekend was the race. Fortunately everything worked out okay for us when it came to the crucial moment. It took just two laps for the tyres to degenerate, and that was a warning for me not to push things and look out for points. The weekend was a tough one for us, because we never had the right setup. I could have tried to follow Simoncelli and Pasini, but it looked to be too risky and I concentrated on Aoyama instead. I've closed the gap on him in the standings, and if we continue like this we can catch him. I left it until the warmup to choose my setting in the suspension, and I didn't have as much chance in this race, so I'm happy with third."

Czech GP, Brno - Results, 250cc

Pos. Rider Team Total time Gap

1 Marco SIMONCELLI Metis Gilera 41'06.490
2 Mattia PASINI Team Toth Aprilia 41'07.174 0.684
3 Alvaro BAUTISTA Mapfre Aspar Team 41'10.871 4.381
4 Hiroshi AOYAMA Scot Racing Team 250cc 41'15.236 8.746
5 Roberto LOCATELLI Metis Gilera 41'16.211 9.721
6 Raffaele DE ROSA Scot Racing Team 250cc 41'17.360 10.870
7 Hector BARBERA Pepe World Team 41'22.129 15.639
8 Jules CLUZEL Matteoni Racing 41'24.901 18.411
9 Mike DI MEGLIO Mapfre Aspar Team 250cc 41'25.053 18.563
10 Hector FAUBEL Honda SAG 41'26.448 19.958
11 Ratthapark WILAIROT Thai Honda PTT SAG 41'26.574 20.084
12 Lukas PESEK Auto Kelly - CP 41'37.122 30.632
13 Shoya TOMIZAWA CIP Moto - GP250 41'43.608 37.118
14 Balazs NEMETH Balatonring Team 42'23.974 1'17.484
15 Valentin DEBISE CIP Moto - GP250 42'31.174 1'24.684
16 Axel PONS Pepe World Team 42'31.622 1'25.132
17 Imre TOTH Team Toth Aprilia 42'53.415 1'46.925
18 Aitor RODRIGUEZ Matteoni Racing 42'58.955 1'52.465
19 Vladimir LEONOV Viessmann Kiefer Racing 43'06.284 1'59.794

Not classified
8 Bastien CHESAUX SWI Racing Team Germany Honda 25'36.289 8 Lap
6 Alex DEBON SPA Aeropuerto-Castello-Blusens Aprilia 19'02.327 11 Lap
25 Alex BALDOLINI ITA WTR San Marino Team Aprilia 13'54.614 14 Lap
54 Toby MARKHAM GBR C&L Racing Aprilia 2'19.072 19 Lap

Not finished 1st lap
12 Thomas LUTHI SWI Emmi - Caffe Latte Aprilia
17 Karel ABRAHAM CZE Cardion AB Motoracing Aprilia

Alvaro - Czech GP - Saturday Quotes

Alvaro starts 8th on the grid... He found his best setting ten minutes before the end of the free practice - but also had a difficult afternoon, losing the front end of his Aprilia on turn five just minutes before the end of the session, leaving him on the asphalt and unable to get the bike back out in time for a final attempt at pole position. Luckily he suffered no injuries in the lowside crash, and will aim to challenge for the lead from eight on the grid. He predicts a tough battle on Sunday, in which he will be going all-out for points as the title race heats up and after losing ground to Aoyama in the standings.

"The crash was totally unexpected, as I had already put two laps on the new tyres. I got into turn five and everything seized up, causing me to fall. This morning we did various tests on the front suspension and found some things that worked, then we continued with the front end in the afternoon but lost our way.
The changes in place at the end of the practice are the ones that I would favour for the race and I am sure that if we had done more laps with this setting then we would have done better today. We will go back to it tomorrow in the warmup and try again. In the race I wil have to start well in order to be at the front and fight like I have done this season. I will have to take risks if necessary, because I can't afford to lose more points."

Czech GP - Qualifying 250cc

Pos | Rider | Team | Lap time | Gap
1 Marco SIMONCELLI Metis Gilera 2′01.611
2 Hiroshi AOYAMA Scot Racing Team 250cc 2′01.961 0.350
3 Hector BARBERA Pepe World Team 2′02.064 0.453
4 Alex DEBON Aeropuerto-Castello-Blusens 2′02.386 0.775
5 Mike DI MEGLIO Mapfre Aspar Team 250cc 2′02.426 0.815
6 Roberto LOCATELLI Metis Gilera 2′02.543 0.932
7 Mattia PASINI Team Toth Aprilia 2′02.561 0.950
8 Alvaro BAUTISTA Mapfre Aspar Team 2′02.748 1.137
9 Raffaele DE ROSA Scot Racing Team 250cc 2′02.768 1.157
10 Karel ABRAHAM Cardion AB Motoracing 2′02.811 1.200
11 Hector FAUBEL Honda SAG 2′02.899 1.288
12 Ratthapark WILAIROT Thai Honda PTT SAG 2′02.921 1.310
13 Thomas LUTHI Emmi – Caffe Latte 2′02.932 1.321
14 Jules CLUZEL Matteoni Racing 2′02.997 1.386
15 Lukas PESEK Auto Kelly – CP 2′03.596 1.985
16 Shoya TOMIZAWA CIP Moto – GP250 2′03.951 2.340
17 Alex BALDOLINI WTR San Marino Team 2′04.100 2.489
18 Balazs NEMETH Balatonring Team 2′05.493 3.882
19 Axel PONS Pepe World Team 2′06.350 4.739
20 Valentin DEBISE CIP Moto – GP250 2′06.571 4.960
21 Bastien CHESAUX Racing Team Germany 2′07.088 5.477
22 Imre TOTH Team Toth Aprilia 2′07.130 5.519
23 Vladimir LEONOV Viessmann Kiefer Racing 2′08.362 6.751
24 Aitor RODRIGUEZ Matteoni Racing 2′08.600 6.989

Alvaro - Czech GP - Friday Quotes

“After two weeks off my Aprilia this session was useful for checking that everything was in its right place. I am not worried, because we are up front despite some problems with front end chattering. The suspension wasn’t absorbing the bumps like it should have, so we worked on that. If things go well then that will be resolved tomorrow. We don’t have a setting that I like above all the others, but I’m sure that we will find one. We are more than half a second off the top, but I am confident that tomorrow we will catch up. My elbow is fine and I can work at 100%.”

Czech GP - Friday Practice Results

Pos | Rider | Team | Lap time | Gap
1 Hector BARBERA Pepe World Team 2′02.371
2 Hiroshi AOYAMA Scot Racing Team 250cc 2′02.511 0.140
3 Alex DEBON Aeropuerto-Castello-Blusens 2′03.125 0.754
4 Alvaro BAUTISTA Mapfre Aspar Team 2′03.130 0.759
5 Roberto LOCATELLI Metis Gilera 2′03.427 1.056
6 Marco SIMONCELLI Metis Gilera 2′03.486 1.115
7 Mattia PASINI Team Toth Aprilia 2′03.528 1.157
8 Thomas LUTHI Emmi – Caffe Latte 2′03.588 1.217
9 Karel ABRAHAM Cardion AB Motoracing 2′03.911 1.540
10 Mike DI MEGLIO Mapfre Aspar Team 250cc 2′03.923 1.552
11 Hector FAUBEL Honda SAG 2′04.094 1.723
12 Ratthapark WILAIROT Thai Honda PTT SAG 2′04.164 1.793
13 Raffaele DE ROSA Scot Racing Team 250cc 2′04.385 2.014
14 Alex BALDOLINI WTR San Marino Team 2′04.851 2.480
15 Jules CLUZEL Matteoni Racing 2′05.076 2.705
16 Lukas PESEK Auto Kelly – CP 2′05.090 2.719
17 Shoya TOMIZAWA CIP Moto – GP250 2′05.707 3.336
18 Bastien CHESAUX Racing Team Germany 2′07.539 5.168
19 Valentin DEBISE CIP Moto – GP250 2′07.665 5.294
20 Balazs NEMETH Balatonring Team 2′07.998 5.627
21 Vladimir LEONOV Viessmann Kiefer Racing 2′08.236 5.865
22 Axel PONS Pepe World Team 2′08.385 6.014
23 Toby MARKHAM C&L Racing 2′08.478 6.107
24 Imre TOTH Team Toth Aprilia 2′08.478 6.107
25 Aitor RODRIGUEZ Matteoni Racing 2′08.952 6.581

Alvaro Previews Brno

"Brno isn't one of my favourite tracks, but I think it's a good opportunity to get a good result because it's a fast track which should in theory suit my Aprilia. I am keen to get back on track because I wasn't at 100% physically last time out, and I think I could have fought for victory if I had have been. I want to be at the front from the off this weekend, I need to take as many points as possible off Aoyama. My elbow is much better, although still a bit swollen the wound is healing well and I think by Friday it should be all back to normal. I spent these two weeks relaxing and spending time with my family as we had two very important events. They were two busy family weeks, but I continued training hard. I was also at the race in La Bañeza which I really enjoyed and I got to feel the support of the fans."

Pic Of The Day: The Wheelie

Elation? Relief? Who knows - but Bati's slow-down lap wheelie was a sight for sore eyes... Let's hope there's good reason for a few more before the season's out... :)

Alvaro - Brno; Post-Race Quote...

“It was a special race. I started very badly and had a difficult first lap; I had to push harder than the others to keep closing the distance. I pushed as hard as I could to get to that first group.
Once there I tried to stop the pace and conserve the front tyre, which I had problems with when braking and passing riders.
It was a nice fight and I took second. I’m happy, but with 2 laps to go I touched Debon and lost distance that I wasn’t able to make up. I thought that we could have fought for the victory without that.”

Czech GP, Brno - 250cc - Bautista Snatches Excellent 2nd Place

What an excellent race from Alvaro today; a superb run from a lowly 10th on the grid to finish second, snatching the position in a nail-biting final lap move that dropped Simoncelli from 1st to 3rd.
Debon and Simoncelli spent most of the race swapping the lead, and there's no doubt that towards the end Debon was clearly trying to hold Bati off from Simoncelli ("team" orders of sorts I guess...)
Still - given the unpredictability of the weekend, it was a great result - a superb balls-out ride and one that was a heart-thumping pleasure to watch.
(*Although the result now puts Alvaro back to 4th from 3rd in the championship overall, it DOES actually simultaneously reduce his gap to Kallio and Simoncelli.)
Brilliant work Bati! :)

Hre's the results in full...

Pos | Rider | Nation | Team | Total time
1 A. DEBON SPA Lotus Aprilia 41'08.168
2 A. BAUTISTA SPA Mapfre Aspar Team + 0.280
3 M. SIMONCELLI ITA Metis Gilera + 0.325
4 H. BARBERA SPA Team Toth Aprilia + 0.827
5 M. KALLIO FIN Red Bull KTM 250 + 1.249
6 Y. TAKAHASHI JPN JiR Team Scot 250 + 13.713
7 M. PASINI ITA Polaris World + 13.826
8 H. FAUBEL SPA Mapfre Aspar Team + 16.026
9 R. LOCATELLI ITA Metis Gilera + 19.084
10 A. ESPARGARO SPA Lotus Aprilia + 20.692
11 R. WILAIROT THA Thai Honda PTT SAG + 29.495
12 J. SIMON SPA Repsol KTM 250cc + 29.772
13 H. AOYAMA JPN Red Bull KTM 250 + 31.944
14 L. PESEK CZE Auto Kelly - CP + 36.314
15 A. BALDOLINI ITA Matteoni Racing + 43.751
16 E. LAVERTY IRL Blusens Aprilia + 46.564
17 F. LAI ITA Campetella Racing + 55.591
18 F. SANDI ITA MAtteoni Racing + 55.704
19 D. PRADITA INA Yamaha Pertamina Indonesia + 1'24.324
20 T. WIRSING GER Racing Team Germany + 1'39.423
21 R. GOMEZ SPA Blusens Aprilia + 1'59.990

Not classified
T. LUTHI SWI Emmi - Caffe Latte 17 Lap
K. ABRAHAM CZE Cardion AB Motoracing 18 Lap

Not starting
M. POGGIALI RSM Campetella Racing

Czech GP - 250cc - Qualifying 1

Pos | Rider | Bike | Time
1. Hector Barbera Aprilia 2:16.210
2. Mika Kallio KTM 2:16.896 + 0.686
3. Marco Simoncelli Gilera 2:17.306 + 1.096
4. Alex Debon Aprilia 2:17.759 + 1.549
5. Hiroshi Aoyama KTM 2:18.948 + 2.738
6. Mattia Pasini Aprilia 2:19.086 + 2.876
7. Eugene Laverty Aprilia 2:19.796 + 3.586
8. Julian Simon KTM 2:19.988 + 3.778
9. Lukas Pesek Aprilia 2:20.155 + 3.945
10. Alvaro Bautista Aprilia 2:20.270 + 4.060
11. Yuki Takahashi Honda 2:20.469 + 4.259
12. Thomas Luthi Aprilia 2:21.162 + 4.952
13. Fabrizio Lai Gilera 2:21.697 + 5.487
14. Doni Tata Pradita Yamaha 2:22.563 + 6.353
15. Toni Wirsing Honda 2:22.804 + 6.594
16. Alex Baldolini Aprilia 2:23.106 + 6.896
17. Karel Abraham Aprilia 2:23.688 + 7.478
18. Hector Faubel Aprilia 2:26.173 + 9.963
19. Ratthapark Wilairot Honda 2:26.189 + 9.979
20. Aleix Espargaro Aprilia 2:26.200 + 9.990
21. Roberto Locatelli Gilera 2:26.739 + 10.529
22. Federico Sandi Aprilia 2:27.294 + 11.084
23. Russel Gomez Aprilia 2:29.688 + 13.478
24. Manuel Poggiali Gilera

Czech GP - 250cc - Free Practice 1

Pos | Rider | Nation | Team | Lap time
1 M. SIMONCELLI ITA Metis Gilera 2'03.149
2 M. KALLIO FIN Red Bull KTM 250 + 0.048
3 A. BAUTISTA SPA Mapfre Aspar Team + 0.315
4 A. DEBON SPA Lotus Aprilia + 0.578
5 H. BARBERA SPA Team Toth Aprilia + 0.729
6 R. LOCATELLI ITA Metis Gilera + 0.935
7 T. LUTHI SWI Emmi - Caffe Latte + 1.090
8 H. AOYAMA JPN Red Bull KTM 250 + 1.117
9 M. PASINI ITA Polaris World + 1.230
10 J. SIMON SPA Repsol KTM 250cc + 1.475
11 H. FAUBEL SPA Mapfre Aspar Team + 1.608
12 Y. TAKAHASHI JPN JiR Team Scot 250 + 1.833
13 A. ESPARGARO SPA Lotus Aprilia + 2.218
14 L. PESEK CZE Auto Kelly - CP + 2.410
15 K. ABRAHAM CZE Cardion AB Motoracing + 2.981
16 A. BALDOLINI ITA Matteoni Racing + 3.207
17 R. WILAIROT THA Thai Honda PTT SAG + 3.285
18 E. LAVERTY IRL Blusens Aprilia + 3.408
19 F. SANDI ITA MAtteoni Racing + 3.779
20 F. LAI ITA Campetella Racing + 3.945
21 M. POGGIALI RSM Campetella Racing + 4.357
22 D. PRADITA INA Yamaha Pertamina Indonesia + 4.432
23 R. GOMEZ SPA Blusens Aprilia + 5.794
24 T. WIRSING GER Racing Team Germany + 6.013

Alvaro - Quotes Ahead Of Brno

Alvaro Bautista:
“This break was very much needed to relieve the stress of so many races in such a short time. Especially considering that in some cases the result was not the one we wanted. But I focus on the fact that I finished the first part of the championship and can return with full force to be at the front again, with 100% power.
We have to go on with the same mindset, thinking from race to race, knowing that we still have seven races and many points to play for. At the moment anything can happen - the first part (of the season) wasn't very good to us, but considering the last races before the break that will surely change. We always have to continue being in the fight for the top positions.”

(*Source: Aspar Media)

MotoGP, Czech Grand Prix, Brno - Schedule

Friday August 15th

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 :: 13:05-13:35
MotoGP :: Free Practice 2 :: 13:55-14:55
250cc :: Qualifying 1 :: 15:05-15:50


Saturday August 16th

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 :: 13:05-13:35
MotoGP :: Qualifying 1 :: 13:55-14:55
250cc :: Qualifying 2 :: 15:05-15:50


Sunday August 17th

125cc :: Warm-Up :: 08:30-08:55
250cc :: Warm-Up :: 09:05-09:30
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 - CEDT, GMT+2)

Alvaro 5th In 250cc Czech Grand Prix At Brno

Ah well, nobody was really going to touch Lorenzo today (though Dovizioso put up a spirited fight some of the way).
Bati came through from 11th on the grid to get to 8th within a couple of corners, and then wound up in 5th, after a good set of battles with Hector Barbera.
Here's the results...

(Pos Rider Bike Time)
1. Jorge Lorenzo Aprilia 41:04.954
2. Andrea Dovizioso Honda + 7.708
3. Mika Kallio KTM + 11.107
4. Hector Barbera Aprilia + 13.422
5. Alvaro Bautista Aprilia + 13.944
6. Hiroshi Aoyama KTM + 13.989
7. Thomas Luthi Aprilia + 22.817
8. Julian Simon Honda + 36.339
9. Shuhei Aoyama Honda + 36.367
10. R.Locatelli Gilera + 37.552
11. Alex de Angelis Aprilia +1:02.616
12. Fabrizio Lai Aprilia +1:13.529
13. Aleix Espargaro Aprilia +1:14.063
14. Karel Abraham Aprilia +1:14.575
15. Efren Vazquez Aprilia +1:14.643
16. R.Wilairot Honda +1:15.165
17. Dirk Heidolf Aprilia +1:15.474
18. Jules Cluzel Aprilia +1:40.064
19. Imre Toth Aprilia +1:53.798
20. Dan Linfoot Aprilia +1:57.103

This leaves Bati 4th overall in the Championship standings, which is great.
Couple of weeks till the next race - the San Marino Grand Prix at Misano.


Oh - and congrats to Casey Stoner on yet another awesome win in the top class :)
Very happy about that!

Grid line-up for Czech GP @ Brno - 250cc

Here's the grid for tomorrow's Czech GP; sadly Alvaro only got to 11th - so we'll have to count on one of his great charges through the pack to pull in a good result...
Good luck Bati ;)

1 - J Lorenzo (ESP) - Spain's No1 - 2:01.368
2 - A Debon (ESP) - Aprilia - 2:02.026
3 - A Dovizioso (ITA) - Humangest Racing Team 125cc - 2:02.036
4 - A De Angelis (SMR) - Master MVA Aspar Team - 2:02.148
5 - H Barberá (ESP) - Team Toth - 2:02.568
6 - Y Takahashi (JPN) - Humangest Racing Team 125cc - 2:02.690
7 - J Simon (ESP) - Honda - 2:02.907
8 - S Aoyama (JPN) - Honda - 2:02.945
9 - M Kallio (FIN) - KTM Red BUll - 2:02.956
10 - H Aoyama (JPN) - KTM Red BUll - 2:03.009
11 - A Bautista (ESP) - Master MVA Aspar Team - 2:03.026
12 - T Luthi (CHE) - Emmi Caffè Latte - 2:03.372
13 - A Espargaro (ESP) - Blusens Aprilia - 2:03.788
14 - M Simoncelli (ITA) - Gilera - 2:03.890
15 - T Sekiguchi (JPN) - Campetella Racing Aprilia - 2:04.049
16 - R Locatelli (ITA) - Gilera - 2:04.057
17 - D Heidolf (DEU) - Kiefer Castrol Honda - 2:04.535
18 - F Lai (ITA) - Campetella Racing Aprilia - 2:04.797
19 - R Wilairot (THA) - Thai Honda PTT - 2:04.853
20 - E Vazquez (ESP) - Blusens Aprilia - 2:05.157
21 - K Abraham (CZE) - AB Cardion Blauer - 2:05.258
22 - J Cluzel (FRA) - Angaia Racing - 2:06.005
23 - A Baldolini (ITA) - Kiefer Castrol Honda - 2:06.210
24 - I Toth (HUN) - Team Toth - 2:06.372
25 - E Laverty (IRL) - Honda LCR - 2:06.543
26 - D Linfoot (GBR) - Team Sicilia - 2:07.120

Alvaro Bautista Back on MotoGP 250cc Trail at Brno

(*Above: Brno circuit - ups, downs, esses... a great track...)

Ah well, after the big break, here we are back again and ready to kick off in Brno in the Czech Republic.
Hopefully our guy has had a decent rest and is totally ready to get back on the case and continue his great maiden 250cc season.
Just a quick reminder on the championship standings thus far:

1  - J.LORENZO  - 191  
2  - A.DE ANGELIS  - 171  
3  - A.DOVIZIOSO  - 166  
4  - A.BAUTISTA  - 116  
5  - H.BARBERA  - 90  
6  - H.AOYAMA  - 78  
7  - M.KALLIO  - 78  
8  - T.LUTHI  - 63  
9  - J.SIMON  - 61  
10  - M.SIMONCELLI  - 57  

Let's hope Bati can take another victory or two - and at least give "His Smugnificence" a good whupping during the rest of the season...
Good luck Alvaro! :)