Alvaro Looks Ahead To Assen

"I think we're strong right now and we go to Holland with plenty of confidence and motivation after the victory in Barcelona. Assen is a circuit I really like, with a mixture of fast and twisty sections, and in general it's a nice place. Last year we won from pole and we have good references, so hopefully the weather can be on our side like it was at the last round so that we can set the pace again. Our objective will be to work hard from Friday and find the best set-up possible so that we have every chance of fighting for the win on Saturday.
Being the series leader is a source of great motivation but you have to remember that there is still a long way to go in the championship and it is important we stay consistent. If I have a chance to go for the win I won't think twice about it, but if it's not on then I'll take as many points as I can."

Catalunya GP - 250cc Race Result

A superb win by Alvaro who took charge in the opening couple of laps, and slowly edged away once Sideshow Bob thankfully went and binned himself on lap 2 and left everybody that teensy bit safer for the remainder...
Sensible, swift, measured and mature - a great ride from Alvaro - and judging by the noise form the crowds drowning out the engines, a very very popular one too.

Estupendo Alvarito! Estupendo!


Pos | Rider | Bike | Time

1. Alvaro Bautista Aprilia 41m09.018s
2. Hiroshi Aoyama Honda + 7.185s
3. Hector Barbera Aprilia + 7.282s
4. Mattia Pasini Aprilia + 10.784s
5. Alex Debon Aprilia + 15.740s
6. Thomas Luthi Aprilia + 15.780s
7. R.Wilairot Honda + 28.654s
8. Karel Abraham Aprilia + 31.600s
9. Raffaele De Rosa Honda + 33.760s
10. Hector Faubel Honda + 33.843s
11. Jules Cluzel Aprilia + 34.871s
12. Lukas Pesek Aprilia + 35.117s
13. Alex Baldolini Aprilia + 39.840s
14. Mike Di Meglio Aprilia + 42.821s
15. Steve Bonsey Aprilia +1m16.524s
16. Axel Pons Aprilia +1m16.689s
17. Valentin Debise Honda +1m28.826s
18. Balazs Nemeth Aprilia +1m39.488s
19. Bastien Chesaux Honda +1m47.958s
20. Vladimir Leonov Aprilia +1 Lap
21. Toby Markham Honda +1 Lap

NOT CLASSIFIED/RETIREMENTS:

Rider Bike Laps
Imre Toth Aprilia 21
R.Locatelli Gilera 14
Shoya Tomizawa Honda 13
Marco Simoncelli Gilera 6

FASTEST LAP: Bautista, 1m46.656s on lap 9

More Goodies! A New "Dale Gas" Episode...

Not only is there that icon set from stv21 to share with you today, but also the latest episode of Mapfre's "Dale Gas" cartoon series from Mapfre - featuring our guy in his ongoing, and fantastically cheeky, animated series that follows the MotoGP season, as shared on Youtube by Motodiez.

Alvaro Looks Ahead To Catalunya

"Racing in Spain is always special because you can feel the energy and the support of the fans and it gives you an extra boost compared to other circuits. Arriving here as the series leader gives me a lot of confidence and determination to put on a good show. I'd like to win because we haven't done so since Japan and I think the team and myself are all willing ourselves to victory again. We'll do a good job during practice to make sure that we can be fighting for victory come Sunday.
Last year we came here after a disastrous start to the season and we needed a good result so I was really careful in the race. I wanted to win but I was trying so hard to close the doors in the corners I ran wide and conceded victory. Montmeló is a fast circuit, similar to Mugello although with a few more slow sections. It is not one of my favourites but it's a nice place and the fans always contribute to make for a special atmosphere."

Alvaro - First Season Interview

Translation of the first season interview with Álvaro Bautista...
Source: Aspar Media
Translation: stv21


1) Three podium finishes in five races, including one victory, how do you see the beginning of the season?
In general I feel that we’ve been very regular and we tried to adapt to the circumstances of each race, giving the maximum in each of them. It’s been three podium positions which just as well could have been three victories. We didn’t precipitate at any moment and that is something very positive. In the last GP we did a good race since we’ve never been fighting for the lead in a wet race before. It was a very nice round and if it wasn’t for the incident we had we certainly would have fought for the victory. There we demonstrated that we can be fast in any type of condition.

2) In France you seemed very prudent in the wet conditions, but in Italy you went for the win, what was different?
In France, after the infinity of falls happening in 125, we saw that the track conditions were very delicate and the smartest option was to just finish the race. Even though both were rain races, Le Mans has much less has grip than Mugello and the asphalt was much colder, therefore it was much easier to crash after the slightest error. In Italy despite the rain the track gave us much confidence, because there’s a good grip and it was possible to still go very fast. I knew that I could take the risk and that is what I did. In Le Mans I figured that if I took the risk I could lose more than I could win.

3) What championship analysis can you do after this crazy start with all the rain?
Each race was won by a different rider, therefore I believe that it is a very open championship with a very high level. And of course rare weather conditions shook things up in the beginning of the season, but I believe that it will be a hard fought season where in the end consistency will be the key to become champion. It is important to be ahead in all the races and not to lose the spirit.

4) Do you think that it’s easier to get confidence after a good season start?
Absolutely, to begin well gives you a lot of confidence and at the same time you have less pressure. To have a little point cushion allows you to take risks even when the track conditions are not the best, as we could see in Italy. You go on the circuit more confident and when you are leading the championship you feel a bit stronger than the rest of the riders, even when this is just a psychological perception.

5) Somehow you seem to have regained the aggressiveness of 2006, when you became world champion, and 2007, when you moved up to 250cc.
It is all a question of confidence. When you improve your riding and see that everything goes as you want, then in the end you are able to do anything. At the moment we are on a good way and I believe that we made a very important step when we showed in Mugello that we can be competitive in the wet as well. We did a very good job, in the training sessions we rode really fast and we finished almost always on top of the classification. I believe that this will progressively let us continue gaining confidence, the team as well as me. That is the security/confidence necessary to improve and be fast.


The rest of the translated interview can be found here at BatiFans.com - your source for all things Alvaro.

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

One Man And His Fans

Just a reminder of that very special bond between Alvaro and his fans - and let's be honest, most of the crowd in general!

Great to see the new Fan's Club already very visible too :-)

Jerez GP - Qualifying: Alvaro 4th

Alvaro Bautista lines up on the front row of the gird in 4th position for tomorrow's Spanish 250cc Grand Prix at Jerez.
Ahead of him are Alex Debon on pole, and "Dumb & Dumber" as they are known in some parts - Hector Barbera and Marco Simoncelli.
Alvaro's starts haven't been great this season, and for once you almost hope he does drop back a bit to allow any craziness up front to sort itself out. (Ideally in the gravel somewhere...)
Preferably though, all will be well following some possible engine issues today and he can just get straight on with the job.

Here's the top ten from Qualy...

1. Debon (Aprilia) 1min 43.028sec
2. Barbera (Aprilia) +0.289sec
3. Simoncelli (Gilera) +0.348sec
4. Bautista (Aprilia) +0.423sec
5. Cluzel (Aprilia) +0.493sec
6. Aoyama (Honda) +0.563sec
7. di Meglio (Aprilia) +0.764sec
8. Luthi (Aprilia) +0.836sec
9. Faubel (Honda) +0.863sec
10. Talmacsi (Aprilia) +1.030sec

Suerte Alvarito!!! :-)

Alvaro Looks Ahead To Jerez

"After the win in Japan I'm feeling happy, strong and confident about going to Jerez this weekend and picking up another good result. I hope that there can be a group of Spanish riders running at the front and putting on a good show for the home supporters. Discounting Qatar, where our performance was severely affected by the conditions, I think we've started the championship well and I'm convinced that all the set-up work we did in the winter will help us be competitive from Friday. Whatever happens, racing at Jerez is always special, I don't know why but feeling the support from the fans in every corner somehow brings out the best in a rider and helps you to win."

And don't forget there's thousands and thousands and thousands of us elsewhere too, cheering you on Bati!!!
Buena suerte!
:-)

Alvaro Bautista: Post-Race Quote, Moetgi, Japan

Here's Alvaro's post-race quotes...

"It was a rather difficult race for us, because we had nearly no practice time on Friday and Saturday. I started quite badly and had some riders on top of me on the opening corners, but soon I managed to get past and knew that I couldn't let Simoncelli escape. When I got up to third myself, Simoncelli and Aoyama were all together, and it was then that the wind picked up. Marco had a problem and that left myself and Aoyama, and I gave it my all to pass him. I am very satisfied with this result, and I think that it is an important victory that allows us to arrive at Jerez with our heads high. We have some good data for the race from preseason, and I hope to continue this way to give a win to the home fans."

An excellent race, despite another shaky "swallowed-up" start, but totally on the case and in control thereafter, relentlessly chasing everyone down and reaping some sweet benefit from Sideshow Bob's self-inflicted puncture and going on to take a splendid and utterly deserved win.
Triffick!

Alvaro Takes Victory In Japan

More words, pics and stats to come - but for now here's how it all panned out...

Pos | Rider | Bike | Time
1. Alvaro Bautista Aprilia 44:06.488
2. Hiroshi Aoyama Honda + 5.889
3. Mattia Pasini Aprilia + 21.832
4. Gabor Talmacsi Aprilia + 25.906
5. Alex Debon Aprilia + 30.785
6. Shuhei Aoyama Honda + 33.788
7. Lukas Pesek Aprilia + 36.972
8. Thomas Luthi Aprilia + 41.018
9. Karel Abraham Aprilia + 41.649
10. Shoya Tomizawa Honda + 52.863
11. Hector Barbera Aprilia +1:00.888
12. Raffaele de Rosa Honda +1:06.347
13. Imre Toth Aprilia +1:53.149
14. Kazuki Watanabe Yamaha + 1 lap
15. Vladimir Leonov Aprilia + 1 lap
16. Bastien Chesaux Honda + 1 lap
17. Marco Simoncelli Gilera + 1 lap
18. Aitor Rodriguez Aprilia + 1 lap

Retirements:

Rider | Bike | Laps
Ratthapark Wilairot Honda 18
Alex Baldolini Aprilia 17
Hector Faubel Honda 6
Mike di Meglio Aprilia 5
Axel Pons Aprilia 3
Jules Cluzel Aprilia 2
Roberto Locatelli Gilera 2

Qatar GP - Alvaro 7th After Difficult Race

Well, a pretty dismal race for Alvaro really; and a result that will probably give great comfort to the missing Marco Simoncelli.
A dreadful start off the line (in a shortened 13 lap race delayed by damp conditions), back in about 6th or so at the first corner then 11th by the end of lap one - Alvaro then started a charge back (which appears to have shredded his tyres) that had him challenging for 3rd before a mugging from teammate Mike di Meglio which sent him stumbling back to 7th.
Not a good start to the season - not what any of us fans either expected or wanted.

RESULT:
1 Hector BARBERA SPA Pepe World Team APRILIA 26'50.940
2 Jules CLUZEL FRA Matteoni Racing APRILIA 26'51.766 + 0.826
3 Mike DI MEGLIO FRA Mapfre Aspar Team 250cc APRILIA 26'57.121 + 6.181
4 Hiroshi AOYAMA JPN Scot Racing Team 250cc HONDA 26'57.549 + 6.609
5 Raffaele DE ROSA ITA Scot Racing Team 250cc HONDA 26'57.596 + 6.656
6 Thomas LUTHI SWI Emmi - Caffe Latte APRILIA 26'57.612 + 6.672
7 Alvaro BAUTISTA SPA Mapfre Aspar Team APRILIA 26'58.548 + 7.608
8 Ratthapark WILAIROT THA Thai Honda PTT SAG HONDA 26'59.289 + 8.349
9 Roberto LOCATELLI ITA Metis Gilera GILERA 27'05.972 +15.032
10 Gabor TALMACSI HUN Balaton Racing Team 250cc APRILIA 27'11.+ 20.348
11 Hector FAUBEL SPA Valencia CF - Honda SAG HONDA 27'11.405 + 20.465
12 Shoya TOMIZAWA JPN CIP Moto - GP250 HONDA 27'19.342 + 28.402
13 Lukas PESEK CZE Auto Kelly - CP APRILIA 27'19.846 + 28.906
14 Alex DEBON SPA Aeropuerto-Castello-Blusens APRILIA 27'24.719 + 33.779
15 Alex BALDOLINI ITA WTR San Marino Team APRILIA 27'27.928 + 36.988
16 Bastien CHESAUX SWI Racing Team Germany HONDA 27'52.670 + 1'01.730
17 Imre TOTH HUN Team Toth Aprilia APRILIA 27'54.452 + 1'03.512
18 Vladimir LEONOV RUS Viessmann Kiefer Racing APRILIA 28'23.325 + 1'32.385
19 Aitor RODRIGUEZ SPA Milar - Juegos Lucky APRILIA 28'29.692 + 1'38.752

Alvaro Bautista - Quote After Quali, Qatar

1st Alvaro Bautista 2.00.677 (19 laps):
"I am happy to have got pole position despite the difficulties posed by the wind. At the start of the session it started to rain, and we didn't know if we'd have qualifying at all. We had a good pace but at the start I had to work a little bit. We tried a new tyre that didn't work out and then returned to what we had before. I was going round in a pace below 01.
Tomorrow's race will be complicated, as Aoyama will be up at the front and Barberá and Di Meglio will also have something to say. I expect a difficult race, but I want to have fun with it, and the important thing is that we have everything ready. In any case, we'll have the warmup for some final adjustments."

Qatar GP - Alvaro Takes Pole

1. Bautista (Aprilia) 2min 0.677sec
2. Aoyama (Honda) +0.100sec
3. di Meglio (Aprilia) +0.436sec
4. Barbera (Aprilia) +0.497sec
5. Faubel (Honda) +0.959sec
6. Talmacsi (Aprilia) +1.016sec
7. Pasini (Aprilia) +1.022sec
8. Debon (Aprilia) +1.036sec
9. Luthi (Aprilia) +1.061sec
10. Locatelli (Gilera) +1.162sec

Qatar Test - Day Two - Tuesday

1. Alvaro BAUTISTA APRILIA 2:00.496
2. Hiroshi AOYAMA HONDA 2:00.873
3. Mike DI MEGLIO APRILIA 2:00.946
4. Hector BARBERA APRILIA 2:01.061
5. Karel ABRAHAM APRILIA 2:01.094
6. Raffaele DE ROSA HONDA 2:01.129
7. Thomas LUTHI APRILIA 2:01.152
8. Roberto LOCATELLI GILERA 2:01.203
9. Mattia PASINI APRILIA 2:01.391
10. Ratthapark WILAIROT HONDA 2:01.479
11. Lukas PESEK APRILIA 2:02.026
12. Gabor TALMACSI APRILIA 2:02.207
13. Alex BALDOLINI APRILIA 2:02.249
14. Hector FAUBEL HONDA 2:02.293
15. Shoya TOMIZAWA HONDA 2:02.781
16. Imre TOTH APRILIA 2:03.733
17. Alex DEBON APRILIA 2:03.788
18. Axel PONS APRILIA 2:05.293
19. Vladimir LEONOV APRILIA 2:07.115
20. Aitor RODRIGUEZ APRILIA 2:08.559

Qatar Test - Day One - Monday

250cc
1.H.Barberá 2.00.545
2.A.Bautista 2.01.121
3.K.Abraham 2.01.406
4.H.Aoyama 2.01.685
5.T.Luthi 2.02.805
6.R.Locatelli 2.02.252
7.G.Talmacsi 2.02.279
8.A.Debon 2.02.442
9.M.di Meglio 2.02.469
10.L.Pesek 2.02.575
11.R.Wilairot 2.02.580
12.R.de Rosa 2.03.522
13.M.Pasini 2.03.708
14.H.Faubel 2.03.959
15.A.Baldolini 2.04.410
16.I.Toth 2.04.889
17.S.Tomizawa 2.05.051
18.A.Pons 2.06.151
19.A.Rodríguez 2.12.536

Some Pics From Jerez Day One