Hero MotoCorp is working on a new electric motorcycle platform called the e.US. That stands for Electric Ultra Sport and will be the basis of the company’s new line of electric motorcycles (please note that it’s not the bike in the lead image, that’s just a previous concept bike from the company).
The e.US platform will have a variety of drivetrains and range options to suit various applications. However, much of the platform will be shared across the lineup. The bikes will be performance-oriented in most cases.
The motorcycles will be manufactured in India but will feature components from Hero’s European suppliers. The company’s goal is to position itself as one of the major companies in the EV space around the world, according to GaadiWaadi.
This will also be a move away from the company’s current image, which is primarily a manufacturer of budget motorcycles. Hero will do its best to keep prices competitive, but it also wants to change its image a bit with its EV lineup.
At this time, there isn’t much known. GaadiWaadi reported on a report that emerged that pointed to a concept being developed in Munich, Germany, along with other EV vehicles, but beyond the report saying it was happening, there isn’t much.
It will be interesting to see how this materializes and where the story goes from here. Hero isn’t the only company from India that is putting a lot of research and development into EVs, but the company does have a lot of clout in the industry, and if it could create something special, it could get a leg up on the competition.
At 18:20, you can watch After the Flag LIVE for free to get the complete lowdown from the test, with commentators Matt Birt, Steve Day and Crafar bringing you all the insight, interviews and reactions you’ll need as the riders finish their day’s work in San Marino. Highlights and interviews with the top riders will be available to watch at the end of the day on motogp.com too, with comprehensive reports and reactions also being published.
We recently showcased the recent announcement of the pending arrival of a 100th Anniversary limited edition GSX-R1000 but Suzuki Australia have now also confirmed that, unlike most other markets who no longer sell GSX-R600 and GSX-R750 models due to tightened emissions legislation, Australia will get the 100th Anniversary treatment across the entire GSX-R range of models, which for us means GSX-R1000, GSX-R750 and GSX-R600.
The flagship superbike sports the same retro-inspired livery as the GSX-RR MotoGP machine, with the traditional blue and slate silver colour scheme paying homage to Suzuki’s early Grand Prix machines of the 1960s.
Just 30 of the 100th Anniversary Limited Edition Suzuki GSX-R1000 will be available in Australia
The 100th Anniversary Limited Edition GSX-R1000R will be strictly limited to 30 units and will be available from January 2021 for a manufacturer’s recommended retail price of $26,990 Ride Away.
The GSX-R1000R shares more than just paint with the GP racer, and utilises the same variable valve timing system to boost both torque and peak power. It also gets a comprehensive suite of electronics, which includes 10 traction control modes, a quickshifter and auto-blipper, launch control, and lean angle-sensitive ABS.
The 100th Anniversary Limited Edition Suzuki GSX-R1000 will be available for $26,990 Ride Away
The 100th Anniversary Limited Edition GSX-R750 will be strictly limited to 50 units and will be available from January 2021 for a manufacturer’s recommended retail price of $17,490 Ride Away.
The 2021 GSX-R750 runs a 750cc in-line four-cylinder liquid-cooled powerplant, with fully adjustable 41 mm Showa BPF forks fully adjustable Showa shock, Brembo four piston calipers and a generous increase in power over the 600, with only a small weight increase.
The 100th Anniversary Limited Edition GSX-R750 will be available for $17,490 Ride Away
The 100th Anniversary Limited Edition GSX-R600 will be strictly limited to 10 units and will be available from January 2021 for a manufacturer’s recommended retail price of $16,490 Ride Away.
The traditional Suzuki supersport offering, the GSX-R600 runs a 599 cc in-line four-cylinder engine, sharing features with the larger GSX-R750 like Suzuki’s Drive Mode Selector system, dual throttle valves, an exhaust tuning valve, ram-air system and immobiliser for security.
A 100th Anniversary Limited Edition GSX-R600 will also be coming to Australia
Riders unable to complete the online order themselves should visit their nearest Suzuki motorcycle dealership, who will be able to help guide them through the online ordering process onsite at the dealership.
Sixth in Faenza a further sign of Evans improvement
Section: Competition
Team HRC rookie back toward the front at Emilia Romagna MXGP.
Image: Supplied.
Mitch Evans continued his upwards trend of form by claiming sixth overall in the third-straight MXGP World Championship round at Faenza, the Team HRC newcomer showing significant signs of progress over the past week.
Following a mid-season shoulder operation, premier class rookie Evans has been impressive on return and went 4-8 for sixth overall at round eight of the season.
Coming into this triple-header, Evans had the goal of improving at each round and that is exactly what the Australian achieved by finishing sixth, which followed on from his eighth on Sunday and his seventh on Wednesday.
“I had another good day again and we’re still improving with sixth overall today,” Evans said. “It’s been better each time, so I’m happy with that. The first moto I didn’t get that great of a start and pushed really hard to come back to fourth, so it was a good moto, but I pretty much used all of my energy in that one.
“In the second moto I had a really good start, almost grabbing the holeshot, but I had nothing left in the tank, so it was just survival mode after that with me holding on as best I could. I’m happy that I was still able to keep improving and stay healthy and be moving onto the next GP in a couple of weeks at a track I really like.”
With a couple more weeks of training under his belt, and with the series heading to Mantova, a track where he won the Internazionali d’Italia in pre-season, he’ll be expecting to keep this momentum going for what is another triple-header of racing, beginning on 27 September.
Cameron Beaubier leaves New Jersey Motorsports Park and heads to Barber Motorsports Park this week with a massive 84-point lead in the 2020 MotoAmerica Superbike Championship after what was another walk-in-the-park victory for the four-time series champion. While it’s too early to hand him the number-one plate with three rounds and eight races remaining the series, it’s about time to fire up the engraver.
After six rounds, Beaubier leads Gagne by 84 points, 275-191, with Scholtz third on 185 points. Fong is fourth with 138, 22 clear of Elias and 26 ahead of Wyman.
The Supersport class saw Richie Escalante take the Race 1 victory from Brandon Paasch and Sean Dylan Kelly, while Kelly claimed the Race 2 win ahead of Paasch and Escalante in an inversion of the first race’s placings.
Escalante now holds the championship lead by 30-points on 261, to Kelly on 231, while Paasch is a more distant third on 172-points.
The single Stock 1000 race saw Cameron Petersen take a clear win from Corey Alexander and Michael Gilbert, mirroring the current standings. Petersen leads on 165, to Alexander’s 148, while Gilbert is third on 96-points.
Cameron Petersen won the single Stock 1000 race from Corey Alexander and Michael Gilbert
In the Twins Cup it was Rocco Landers continuing his domination, winning the first race from Teagg Hobbs and Hayden Schultz, while in the second race Schultz moved up to second, with Dominic Doyle completing the podium.
Landers leads the standings on 177-points to Kaleb De Keyrel on 158, while Hayden Schultz is a distant third on 98-points.
Landers also dominated the Liqui Moly Junior Cup, winning from Samuel Lochoff in Race 1 and Joseph LiMandri Jr in Race 2. Benjamin Gloddy completed the podium in both races.
Rocco Landers now leads the Junior Cup standings by 90-points, to Lochoff on 195, while Dominic Doyle is only a single point behind in third.
Superbike Race 1
On a sunny Saturday in New Jersey, Beaubier won his 10th race of the 2020 season to extend his championship lead to a yawning 79 points over teammate Jake Gagne. The win was also the 48th of the four-time MotoAmerica Superbike Champion’s AMA Superbike career and is closing in on his former teammate Josh Hayes (61 Superbike victories) for second on the all-time win list. The victory, however, didn’t come without a bit of pre-race stress.
As has been the norm so far in 2020, Beaubier’s win was dominant with the Californian taking victory by 9.599 seconds over Mathew Scholtz, who took full advantage of Gagne’s first-lap crash to close in on the Californian for second in the championship point standings. Third place went to a revitalised Toni Elias, the M4 ECSTAR Suzuki rider ending a podium-less drought that dated back 11 races.
Cameron Beaubier
Kyle Wyman bounced back from a disastrous round in the Pacific Northwest two weeks ago to finish fourth on his Ducati Panigale V4 R. Wyman was challenged early on by Bobby Fong but was able to pull clear of the rider to beat him to the flag by almost seven seconds.
Sixth place went to Corey Alexander, the New Yorker matching his previous best HONOS Superbike class result after barely holding off Cameron Petersen in the final laps. Petersen ended up seventh. David Anthony and teammate Bradley Ward finished eighth and ninth with Josh Herrin rounding out the top 10.
Superbike Race 2
Sunday’s win at NJMP came in a shortened race after a red flag was thrown on the second lap when Bradley Ward crashed his FLY Racing ADR Motorsports Kawasaki, putting debris on the racetrack. As he did on the first start, Beaubier grabbed the holeshot and never looked back, opening up a lead and maintaining it to the finish. At the completion of the 14 laps, Beaubier was 2.884 seconds ahead of his pursuers.
Cameron Beaubier
Two of those pursuing Beaubier raced to the bitter end with his teammate Jake Gagne drafting past Mathew Scholtz at the finish line by .014 of a second with the two fighting it out for the duration. In addition to the battle on track, that pairing is also fighting it out for second in the title chase. Gagne now leads Scholtz by just six points.
Soon after Scholtz took over second in the final laps, both he and Gagne were baulked by lapped traffic but Scholtz may have gotten the worst of it which allowed Gagne to claw his way back for his last-lap attack.
Bobby Fong was next, the M4 ECSTAR Suzuki rider finishing some four seconds ahead of his teammate Toni Elias, the Spaniard failing to match the pace that earned him his first podium of the season on Sunday.
Cameron Beaubier
Kyle Wyman was sixth after finishing fourth on Saturday, the New Yorker getting the better of Altus Motorsports’ Cameron Petersen on Sunday. FLY Racing’s David Anthony rode his Suzuki GSX-R1000 to ninth with Travis Wyman rounding out the top 10 on his BMW.
First podium of the season ‘a long time coming’ for Beaton
Section: Competition
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna rider delivers on potential at Faenza 3.
Image: Supplied.
Australian Jed Beaton captured his first MX2 World Championship podium of the 2020 season at Faenza in the Grand Prix of Emilia Romagna, saying the result was ‘a long time coming’ post-race.
Beaton has been knocking on the door of a top three all year with Rockstar Energy Husqvarna and finally managed to do it via 4-3 finishes in Italy on Sunday.
It was a deserved result for the 22-year-old, overcoming a bad start in the afternoon’s second encounter to take his first top three result overall since the 2018 season.
“It’s been a long time coming and it’s great to finally get the monkey off my back and have a great first moto,” said an elated Beaton. “My starts weren’t the best today, but I made it work, especially in the second moto.
“I’m really happy to finally get onto the podium this season for myself and the team. It’s extra special because it’s my first podium result for Husqvarna.
“I’ve had a few second-place finishes, but the first moto has let me down, so it’s great to turn it around and get on the podium with two good results. My riding was good today, my bike was great so thanks to the team and we’ll build on this ahead of Mantova.”
With eight rounds now completed in the world championship during 2020, Beaton currently sits fourth in the MX2 point-standings ahead of the Mantova triple-header due to begin from 27 September.
Consistent Cairoli takes charge with Emilia Romagna MXGP overall
Section: Competition
Vialle makes it another perfect weekend for KTM as Beaton scores podium.
Image: Supplied.
Nine-time world champion Antonio Cairoli is back atop the MXGP standings after a consistent 2-2 score earned him the overall at the Grand Prix of Emilia Romagna.
The third round in a row at Faenza, Red Bull KTM’s Cairoli stood on top of the podium alongside Tim Gajser (Team HRC) and Jorge Prado (Red Bull KTM).
It was rookie standout Prado who won the opening moto from Cairoli and Jeremy Seewer (Monster Energy Yamaha), before defending champion Gajser topped moto two over Cairoli and Romain Febvre (Monster Energy Kawasaki). Gajser’s 5-1 score placed him second for the round, ahead of Prado’s 1-6 results.
Australian Mitch Evans (Team HRC) also continued to show signs of improvement over the weekend, qualifying fourth and then finishing fourth in the first moto, followed by eighth in moto two for sixth overall.
With former red plate-holder Jeffrey Herlings (Red Bull KTM) sidelined, Cairoli is the new points-leader, now seven points ahead of Gajser as the fight for the 2020 championship intensifies mid-season.
Image: Supplied.
MX2 championship leader Tom Vialle made it another sweep for Red Bull KTM in Italy after being tied on points with title rival Jago Geerts (Monster Energy Yamaha).
Geerts won the first moto of the day ahead of Vialle and Thomas Kjer-Olsen (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna), before Vialle turned the tables on Geerts in moto two, with Jed Beaton (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) third.
A 4-3 for Beaton saw him stand on the podium alongside Vialle and Geerts in third overall, with Vialle still leading the standings by 21 points over Geerts.
Of the remaining Australians in the field, Team Honda 114 Motorsports riders Nathan Crawford and Bailey Malkiewicz were ranked 11th and 17th overall.
The 2020 MXGP World Championship will now take one weekend off before resuming at Mantova, Italy, on 27 September for the first of three-straight events in another triple-header schedule.
The FIM Motocross World Championship completed its triple header and Round 8 in Faenza with the MXGP of Emilia Romagna, with Antonio Cairoli riding two consistent races to take his 91st Grand Prix victory in front of a cheering crowd of Italian fans, while claiming the MXGP Red Plate. In MX2 Tom Vialle secured his second consecutive GP win.
2020 MXGP of Emilia Romagna – MXGP Podium 1. Tony Cairoli 2. Tim Gajser 3. Jorge Prado
Mitchell Evans was the lone Australian rider competing in the MXGP class, fighting his way to fourth in Race 1, but having to settle for eighth in Race 2 after expending so much energy in the first moto. The result sees Evans 11th in the standings, although there’s a 41-point gap to reach the top 10 to overcome at this stage.
Mitch Evans
“I had another good day again and we’re still improving with sixth overall today. It’s been better each time so I’m happy with that. The first moto I didn’t get that great of a start and pushed really hard to come back to fourth so it was a good moto but I pretty much used all of my energy in that one. In the second moto I had a really good start, almost grabbing the holeshot but I had nothing left in the tank so it was just survival mode after that, with me holding on as best I could. I’m happy that I was still able to keep improving and stay healthy and be moving onto the next GP in a couple of weeks at a track I really like.”
Mitch Evans
Leading the Aussie riders in MX2 was Jed Beaton, taking fourth in Race 1, just 0.7s off the final podium position, while Race 2 saw Beaton improve to third, for third overall for the MXGP of Emilia Romagna. He now sits fourth overall in the MX2 standings, 12-points off third placed Maxime Renaux.
Jed Beaton
“It feels great. It’s been a long time coming and it’s great to finally get the monkey off my back and have a great first moto. My starts weren’t the best today but I made it work, especially in the second moto. I’m really happy to finally get onto the podium this season for myself and the team. It’s extra special because it’s my first podium result for Husqvarna. I’ve had a few second-place finishes, but the first moto has let me down so it’s great to turn it around and get on the podium with two good results. My riding was good today. My bike was great so thanks to the team and we’ll build on this ahead of Mantova.”
Jed Beaton
Fellow Aussie Nathan Crawford had a strong weekend, claiming 11th in Race 1, with a challenging Race 2 seeing him settle for 14th, for 11th overall for the round. He now sits 14th in the MX2 standings as a result of the 17-points collected at Round 8.
Bailey Malkiewicz was just off Crawford in Race 1, coming home in 12th, while in Race 2 he claimed 21st, bringing home nine championship points and sitting 17th overall for the GP. Malkiewicz now sits 24th in the MX2 standings.
MXGP
In MXGP race one, it was Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jorge Prado with another FOX Holeshot and he then led his team-mate Antonio Cairoli and Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jeremy Seewer. Gebben Van Venrooy Yamaha Racing’s riders Calvin Vlaanderen and Alessandro Lupino both got off to a great start in the opening race and were fourth and fifth on the opening lap.
Jorge Prado
Team HRC’ Tim Gajser then moved into the top four, as he looked for a quick way to pass Cairoli, though that didn’t work as the two touched and Gajser was left on the floor. Prado then continued to lead the way with Seewer, Cairoli and Lupino right there as well.
Despite crashing a lap earlier, Gajser was already making a strong recovery as he broke into the top 10 on lap 2. Back with the leaders the gap between Prado and Seewer was 2 seconds, though as the race progressed Seewer was looking to take another win in the class as he set his fastest lap of the race and closed in on the lead.
Tim Gajser
Lupino though was coming under pressure from Team HRC’s Mitch Evans for fourth, with the Australian taking the position not long after.
Gajser then continued to make progress as he moved into 6th place, while Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Arminas Jasikonis searched for a way past Clement Desalle of Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team to move in to 9th.
With 10 minutes plus 2 laps on the clock, the gap between Prado and Seewer was just 0.5 seconds, as the factory Yamaha rider put the hammer down for the win. The gap between first and second remained below half a second for the remainder of the race, until Seewer made a mistake and had a huge crash while trying to pass for first place. Though he was able to quickly re-join the race, only losing one position to Cairoli.
Jeremy Seewer
In the end, Prado went on to take his very first MXGP race win of his career, with Cairoli second and Seewer third.
In race two, Prado once again proved himself as the master of starts as he added yet another FOX Holeshot to his ever-growing tally. Evans was right there in second, with Monster Energy Yamaha Factory Racing’s Gautier Paulin and Gajser in the top 4 too. Seewer was down in 6th.
Tony Cairoli
Gajser once again was wasting no time as he moved into second and was then followed by his team-mate, with Cairoli and Seewer right there too. Paulin then came under pressure from Standing Construct GasGas MXGP’s Glenn Coldenhoff and Romain Febvre of Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team.
Febvre was then the fastest guy on track as he continued to chase Coldenhoff, meanwhile Seewer was all over the back of Evans for fourth, as Coldenhoff and Febvre were closing in fast as well.
Romain Febvre
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Arminas Jasikonis then crashed out of 10th, to eventually finish the race in 13th position.
As Seewer moved into 4th, Gajser was all over Prado for the lead. The two looked like they almost came together, as Gajser made a risky move, which paid off, of course, and he was then the new race leader.
Prado then started to come under pressure from Cairoli and a lap later the #222 passed the young Spaniard in the exact same spot as Gajser. Seewer then looked to catch Prado for third, though Febvre sneaked up on him and went for the inside to steal fourth from Seewer.
Jorge Prado
Febvre then went after the race 1 winner, Prado, as he passed him on the same section as did Cairoli and Gajser. Though Prado immediately fought back and was able to move back into 3rd. This didn’t last long as Febvre responded and clinched 3rd once more.
And things didn’t get better for Prado who was passed by Coldenhoff, and it was again on that same part of the track that the #61 lost positions to Gajser, Cairoli and Febvre a few laps earlier. This dropped Prado to 6th in the race.
As Evans and Paulin battled for 8th, the gap between Gajser and Cairoli was coming down, as it looked like the Italian was going to push for that win. And Febvre was also showing great pace in the race as he pushed for second with 3 laps to go.
Mitch Evans
Towards the end of the race there was no change with the leaders as Gajser secured the second race win. Cairoli finished second, Febvre was third, Seewer fourth and Coldenhoff fifth.
With two consistent rides, Antonio Cairoli took to the top step of the podium and also became the new championship leader. Meanwhile Tim Gajser finished second overall, with Jorge Prado third. Cairoli now has a 7-point advantage over Gajser in the MXGP championship standings, with Jeffrey Herlings of Red Bull KTM Factory Racing still there in third.
Antonio Cairoli
“Of course today I am really happy. Every race I’m feeling a little better with the conditions. This morning in time practice I struggled a lot; I was three and a half seconds away from the pace so for sure it was not a good boost in motivation for the race. But still at the beginning of the race I made some mistake, keep twisting my knee, it was difficult but with the experience I have I know how to handle these situations. I wish Jeffrey a quick recovery, it is a pity that he’s not there. I didn’t start so good but now I wanna go for the championship and this is my goal. I’m really happy about the championship, 8 years is a lot of time but for sure I’m super happy to be there still fighting with those guys for the title. Now I’m 35 years old and this is a thing that I’ve never expected to be there at this age, anyway every time I ride, I enjoy riding at the track a lot. For sure I enjoy riding with young guys, every time I try to improve, it is more and more difficult every time but at the end, I’m really really happy and satisfied.”
Tony Cairoli
Tim Gajser
“I didn’t have a good start in either moto, they were solid and I tried to make quick passes in the beginning but I would have liked to have been nearer to the front. The first lap of the first moto I came together with Toni and I fell so I was back in the pack, eventually coming back to fifth. I was a bit disappointed but that was the result so I had to refocus for race two. I got a better start in this race and made a couple of good early passes to get into the lead. I pulled out a gap of a few seconds and controlled the race from there to get myself another moto win. It was a tough week of racing and not everything has gone my way but the championship is really close and we are all working hard in Team HRC to get the best results possible. Now there is a weekend off so I will go home and prepare myself for the next race in Mantova.”
Tim Gajser
Jorge Prado
“I’m feeling quite good with the bike at the moment. I think speed wise it’s quite good for sure the first twenty-five minutes. But I’m happy that I could get my first race win even if it was a tough day, I’m very happy. I used a lot of energy in the first race, but I really wanted that win. I give my maximum in every single race and that second race I already started with an empty tank. Yesterday was tough for me; I was feeling really bad and stayed in bed pretty much all day so I’m very happy that I can be on the podium. It’s normal that I feel powerless today, so I think I did a very good results in these circumstances.”
Jeremy Seewer
“First moto I had a decent start. I had some bar-banging with Tony (Cairoli), luckily we didn’t crash and I won it. I followed (Jorge) Prado for the whole moto and I struggled to pass. He made it very difficult and I couldn’t make a pass stick. I pushed, but I lost all of my energy doing so, and then I crashed because I hit the limit. I didn’t make a mistake really, it was just something that can happen in racing. I still managed third. In the second race I got stuck behind Prado again, but I could make a pass stick this time but I already lost some ground. Honestly, I felt a bit empty. I used a lot of energy in the first race battling for the win, and it just took it out of me. It’s a bummer to miss the podium, but I have taken good points for the championship, and I have no injuries and stuff so that is positive. Now it’s time to recover and keep pushing.”
Jeremy Seewer
Romain Febvre
“It could have been a very good GP but on the second lap of the first race I was surprised to see a big hole in a rut; I tried to avoid it but I went outside the track and crashed. I was nearly last when I got back on the track; I came back to tenth but crashed in a corner as I was still pushing to regain positions. I restarted thirteenth to come back again to finish tenth despite two crashes. It was too much to retain any hope of a podium, but nevertheless I gave everything to come back after a mid-pack start in the second moto; I finished third, close to Cairoli. My speed was again good in both races but we struggle a little with the starts as the chase to turn one is uphill with a different grip between the gate and the first corner! We have some testing planned in our programme next week to prepared for Mantova.”
Glenn Coldenhoff
“The day started good and there were a few track changes to make things different. I was fifth for a long time in qualifying and ended up sixth, but this was ok. I didn’t quite get the best start in race one and then used a lot of energy working my way through the riders towards the front. I had a much better start in race two. Came around the first turn in eighth and then came through to fifth at the finish. I wasted too much time trying to pass Prado, but it was difficult to push as the track was slick and you had to be careful. Overall, I’m not happy with the results, but not devastated either. I’ll continue to work hard and I’m looking forward to Mantova in two weeks.”
Gran Premio Lenovo di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini
Franco Morbidelli secured his maiden MotoGP victory in a dramatic Gran Premio Lenovo di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini. Morbidelli took the chequered flag 2.217-seconds ahead of compatriot Francesco Bagnaia (Pramac Racing), who celebrated his first premier class podium. Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) got the better of home hero Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) on the last lap to claim his second podium finish. Meanwhile, now former Championship leader Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT) crashed out – twice – at Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli.
Franco Morbidelli
Andrea Dovizioso now leads the MotoGP World Championship on 76-points ahead of Misano non-scorer Fabio Quartararo on 70-points. Jack Miller retained third place on the points table after his P8 and is on 64-points, four-points ahead of Joan Mir.
Yamaha is the leading constructor on 113-points to Ducati’s 107-points. KTM is in third on 88-points to Suzuki’s 73-points while Honda is on 53-points and Aprilia 23-points.
MotoGP Rider Quotes
Franco Morbidelli – P1
“I feel like this has been a magical week for me. Everything had been going well, so going into today I was thinking that maybe something good would be possible. Turns out, it was something great! I have never won a World Championship race at home before, so to do it in MotoGP is the greatest achievement in my life. I’m really proud to be able to say that. I want to say thanks to all the people that work with me, it isn’t just me. This win is a result of teamwork. Right now I’m just so proud of what we have achieved, not just today but in general. Seven years ago I was racing here with a stock 600, now I’m winning a MotoGP race. It’s just amazing, especially as it’s the first race with a crowd this year. It felt great to be able to salute the crowd after the race. We do this for them, so to celebrate with them was such a great feeling.”
Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT)
Pecco Bagnaia – P2
“When I arrived to Misano my goal was only to finish the race. On Saturday during FP3 when I just thought about riding I understood that I could push and my feeling when I rode was the same that I had in Jerez. The start of the race wasn’t very good, I lost some positions so I had to recover the gap with Mir. When I passed him I saw that I could reach the head group. I hadn’t thought about my leg and I thought only about my first podium in MotoGP during my home race with the fans. During the last 4 laps I felt pain but today we deserved this podium. I want to thank my team, Ducati and VR46RidersAcademy for their big support. Today this podium is for them. I’m looking forward to be back on this track.”
Pecco Bagnaia
Joan Mir – P3
“I’m really happy. I wasn’t as strong here as I was in Austria, but I’m on the podium anyway so that’s good news. I really enjoyed the end of the race, and it was exciting to make that final overtake! I knew I could do it at that corner so I was confident. I was aware that I would struggle a little bit on the first laps with the fresh tyre but my pace with the used tyre was a lot faster, and I felt great with the bike, so I managed to take advantage of that. We’re going to work in the test on Tuesday and be ready for next weekend.”
Joan Mir
Valentino Rossi – P4
“It’s a great shame because the podium is always special, here in Misano even more so. Also, to share the podium with Franco and Pecco would have been like a race at the ranch. I made a small mistake and Mir was very strong in that moment, he did very good lap times in the last part of the race. At the end he was able to beat me, which is a shame with just 2km to go. On the other hand, it was still a good race, a good weekend, because I rode well. We had a very good pace and I feel good with the bike. So, even without a podium, I enjoyed it. It was a good weekend for our team and for me, because we were always competitive. This is so important. I think that we can improve three or four things for next week, when we‘ll have another chance. This makes me even more happy, because we can try again.”
Valentino Rossi
Alex Rins – P5
“Today’s race was hard for me. In the first and middle parts of the race I was feeling confident and I had good pace and a good feeling with the bike. When I could see the podium getting closer I really pushed myself a lot and I began to have some problems with strength in my right arm due to my shoulder injury, so it was very tough to continue fighting. In the end, with a couple of laps to go, I was just trying to get through it and get a good position. I’m happy with fifth because the points are good, but for sure I’ll hope for more next time out.”
Alex Rins
Maverick Vinales – P6
“I don’t know what happened today. I’m really disappointed. I don’t know why I lost grip in the race. I tried everything I could, but I wasn’t getting enough feedback from the tyre. At the end of the race I did three or four really good laps, but that was too late. We will work on it. We have a test here on Tuesday. We will try to stay relaxed. We need to reset our minds for next weekend. We know we are fast here, so we can start in front again.”
Maverick Vinales
Andrea Dovizioso – P7
“It was a tough race. Since I was starting from the back, I struggled a lot to find the rhythm at the beginning. I still can’t be as competitive as I would like with these tyres and the riding style I’ve always adopted in the past years is not working right now. Fortunately, this Tuesday, we will have a day of testing here in Misano, which will be very important to try to solve this aspect. The championship this year is weird, and now we are leading the standings. We have to see the positive side of the current situation and continue to work, putting all our effort to come back stronger in the next races. I congratulate Pecco on his great performance today.”
Andrea Dovizioso
Jack Miller – P8
“That was one of those races where you have to look for the silver linings. Got a great start, got up to third, got to halfway … and then it all gradually went a bit downhill. Crossed the line ninth, got a place back after (Takaaki) Nakagami got demoted a spot for track limits, finished eighth. But there were positives. I’m still third in the championship, and actually narrowed to gap by a couple of points to 12. So not a great race for me, but we had a fairly crazy top three that nobody would have predicted again, and we live to fight another day.
“(Alex) Rins passed me for third on lap 14 to boot me off the podium after I’d managed to get the start I wanted from fifth, but I knew much earlier than then that I was probably going to be in some strife the longer the race went. I understood from probably lap five that I was going to struggle later on with the tyres, and on lap seven I switched the mapping to try to conserve to have something left at the end to fight with. Didn’t work, though. I suffered a lot with the rear tyre and then the front tyre on the left-hand side … maybe in hindsight I was using too much angle. I tried to manage as best I could, but by the end I was really having to control the speed in the changes of direction. I used the medium front and the soft rear (tyres), and maybe I need to trust my instincts with what tyres are working for me in the future and listen to myself more when we choose what I race with. So, we live and learn.
“I qualified fifth, and I had to pull a lap out of the bag even to get there and just beat my teammate Pecco (Bagnaia) by two-thousandths of a second … so that made for a good Saturday, but not a great one. Really, we were all fighting to be best of the rest behind the Yamahas because they’re pretty good around Misano, so it probably wasn’t a surprise that they qualified 1-2-3-4. I gave it my best to be as close to them as I could but I was still a couple of tenths off. I knew what my strategy needed to be – get to the front and try to play around with them a bit. On outright pace, they had our measure so I had to come up with another plan. I managed to jump Maverick (Vinales) and Fabio (Quartararo) off the start, but that was probably the highlight. I usually get a pretty good start, like Fabio said the Ducati is like a rocket launcher off the grid, so I was hoping to get out front and dictate what they could do, not the other way around.
“It was another weird race – Franky’s (Franco Morbidelli’s) first win, Pecco on his first podium and (Joan) Mir on his second … I think it will start to become more consistent this season with who is up front, but then I’ve thought that before too. It’s been pretty hard to read, hasn’t it? Six races, 12 different guys on the podium, five different winners, four guys winning races for the first time now Franky won here … there’s never a dull moment this year, that’s for sure. I think it’s 30-odd points covering 12 of us. It feels like a championship anyone can win at the moment because of the inconsistency.
“It was a day of survival, really, and I was missing 11 seconds to Franky at the front, so we need to fix that for next week here. But because we’re back here again next Sunday, at least there is a next week, which is a silver lining. Kinda where I started this … We’ll try to be better next Sunday at a circuit that doesn’t really suit our bike, and we have a week to figure out how we’ll do that.
Jack Miller
Takaaki Nakagami – P9
“Today was definitely quite a positive race for us because yesterday and Friday we were losing time and we did not put in a good enough performance in qualifying – 14th on the grid is not good for the race. But with the new holeshot device we are definitely improving at the start, and during the race the lap times were quite consistent around 33.1 or two. But this morning we got the top time which was really, really good for the team and were able to do a 32, but in the race we were not able to do that so we need to understand what the difference was between the warm-up and the race. It’s another top-10 and we need to see how we can improve for the next race, but definitely in the next race we can fight for the podium again. We are really looking forward to another Misano race weekend, we’ll stay positive and keep working hard to get that first podium.”
Takaaki Nakagami
Pol Espargaro – P10
“Not so much to say today. I had trouble to stop the rear of the bike from the first lap and I was stuck behind Johann for quite a long time. It wasn’t really safe to make it happen cleanly and I could only manage when the pace dropped and then the others caught me. We paid a bit for the mistakes on Saturday and we need to solve our problems before next weekend. I’m confident we can do it and we can have a better race.”
Pol Espargaro
Miguel Oliveira – P11
“It was a tough race. To be honest, it was quite hard to make up positions, especially in the beginning of the race. We had many riders with different tyre choices, so it made our life very difficult, but we had a good pace, where just too far away. Now we are focusing on Tuesday, trying a couple of things during the test in order to have a better weekend and especially a better Qualifying the upcoming weekend.”
Miguel Oliveira
Brad Binder – P12
“I didn’t start well and from then I tried my best to recover positions. The first 10-12 laps I didn’t have a good feeling but then it got better and better. I don’t feel I can complain too much. We have to take advantage of this test on Tuesday to make a few improvements. It was cool to be part of that KTM battle and I could see we were all having the same issues. It’s very tight in MotoGP right now but my attitude stays the same: I’m trying to enjoy and take the best of each race.”
KTM riders
Aleix Espargaro – P13
“The final position does not reflect reality. We are doing very well and my feeling is still very good with the new RS-GP. Today I had fun and the numbers confirm our improvements. The only difficulty is in overtaking. We are lacking the acceleration to get past our rivals and that forces us to hang back even when our pace could be better. Our growth is undeniable. We’ll get there, we just need to be patient and keep working.”
Aleix Espargaro
Iker Lecuona – P14
“In the Warm Up this morning, I felt really good with the bike. Like in FP3, I felt very fast and constant and my pace for the race was strong. I knew that my grid position was not ideal to fight for the top 10. Finally, in the race, I did that mistake in the Warm Up lap. I stopped the engine and eventually, I needed to do the long lap. I was very nervous, because I knew my potential. In the end, I could manage the situation with the penalty and lap by lap I improved. For many laps, I was the fastest KTM rider on the track, overtook many riders and finished in the points, so finally, I’m really happy. Sorry to my team for that mistake, but at the same time thanks to them for their great work.”
Iker Lecuona
Johann Zarco – P15
“I think the positive part of this race, seeing the result (P15) and 20 seconds away from the winner, far from the top of the race, is that I got a lot of positive things from the start. The step we took this morning in the warm up has helped me a lot in this start of the race to follow Dovizioso and Bagnaia. The start was good for me, but as the laps went by I suffered a lot with the rear tire, especially the last seven laps, I couldn’t keep the pace and I lost a lot”.
Johann Zarco
Danilo Petrucci – P16
“Today, I struggled a lot in the race. I had several contacts with a few riders at the beginning, and I couldn’t stay hooked to the leading group. As the bike got lighter with the fuel consumption, I was able to find a better pace, but by then, I was too far away to recover on the riders in front. Today’s race has allowed us to understand some aspects, and this is an indication that we will serve us for the future. Hopefully, Tuesday’s test will help us to get the situation clearer. I’m disappointed that today I couldn’t score points: I put it all into it, but unfortunately it wasn’t enough.”
Danilo Petrucci
Alex Marquez – P17
“Our pace today was good, especially towards the end of the race where I was able to lap at a similar speed to the leaders. My fastest lap of the race was my last one. We have made a big step from yesterday with the bike and it felt good today. It was a good race; I had a hard battle with Petrucci and we touched a couple of times. But it was really the grid position that hurt us today, otherwise I think we could have been up with Binder and Oliveira. Compared to where we started this weekend it’s not so bad, but we still need to be more consistent.”
Alex Marquez
Stefan Bradl – P18
“It was a frustrating race, I had a problem with the nerve in my right elbow that started yesterday but in the race it became worse. It’s not arm pump, but my two small fingers were going numb. Because of this I was about one second off my normal pace. Already it was not in the plan for me to test here Tuesday, so I will use the time to rest the arm. Hopefully we can come back next week stronger.”
Bradley Smith – P19
“Unfortunately, the crash in FP3 compromised our weekend. The sensations were good on Friday, but when I had to switch to the second bike, it wasn’t the same feeling in qualifying or in the race. Today I crashed on a bump and then, despite the bike being damaged, I was able to re-join and finish the race. We’ll use the tests on Tuesday to take a closer look at what is causing our difficulties so we can be better prepared for the next race.”
Fabio Quartararo – DNF
“First of all I want to congratulate Franco, because he really deserved the win today. It was a really tough race for me but it is what it is, I will learn from it. I made a mistake: I was trying too hard to overtake Maverick and it overheated the tyre. I made the move, and was the correct move to make, but Jack was in front and I wanted to catch him as well but too quickly. I braked too late and lost the front end. We are struggling to overtake with our bike, which is something we need to work on. Of course I am disappointed, as we had the speed to fight at the front, but we learn from the experience and I won’t make the same mistake next weekend. We have seen five different winners in six races and it is one of the closest championships we’ve had, so I’m going to continue to give my best and try to make it ours.”
Tito Rabat – DNF
“I think that this weekend I have taken steps forward, in terms of the fastest lap, the race pace and the first laps of this. My fastest lap in the race was similar to that of my teammate, as well as the pace, which was very even for both. Now we have to stay focused, arrive rested for the test on Tuesday and the following weekend and give 100% of myself”.
Razlan Razali – Petronas SRT Yamaha Team Principal
“This weekend was the best so far for Petronas Sepang Racing Team, as a collective. It was a fantastic win for Franco: very well deserved, especially considering his crash in the first Austrian race. Doing it at his home Grand Prix as well is amazing. It was unfortunate for Fabio; he crashed while trying to catch the front-runners. He is still second in the championship, so it’s not too bad and I’m sure he’ll come back stronger next week. In Moto2 we saw another big improvement from Xavi, finishing fourth. He was very close to the podium and we know that he can do well next weekend, when we are here again. It’s been a learning curve for Jake today; it’s only his second time at Misano. I’m sure next weekend will be better for him. In Moto3 John had his first win of 2020 today and after the ups and downs of the last few races this was really nice to see. To get his championship back on track again is great. For KIP, to be coming back from major surgery like he has is incredible. We do expect him to improve further in the second GP at Misano too.”
Franco Morbidelli
Ken Kawauchi – Suzuki Technical Manager
“A bit like with Red Bull Ring, I didn’t necessarily expect a good race here but we did a very good job. Both riders were in the Top 5 which was a great result, and Joan made an incredible last lap to get the podium. Alex was fifth which is also a good finish. Both riders will work hard to continue this form next weekend.”
Davide Brivio – Suzuki Team Manager
“We’re very happy to get another podium. It was great to see both our GSX-RRs at the top and keeping really competitive pace, and I think with stronger grid positions we could’ve had even better results. Joan recovered really well and he had a great last lap to earn a deserved podium, and also Alex did a really good race with unbelievable pace until the problem with his arm, so he was also impressive. We’ll try to bring this competitiveness into next weekend. Thanks to all the team for their hard work.”
Team Suzuki
Massimo Meregalli – Monster Yamaha Team Director
“We knew this race was going to be tough and that the tyres would play a decisive role. We had hoped to fight for the victory today, but unfortunately that wasn‘t possible. Valentino had a good start and his pace was really good throughout the whole race. It‘s a shame he wasn‘t able to get a podium result, because that would have been a real treat for the team and also the fans. But the way he performed is encouraging, so for sure he will try to be fighting at the front again next time. Maverick‘s pre-race experience was a bit unsettling, because we saw smoke coming from his bike when he arrived on the starting grid. We had a thorough check, and it turned out it was fine. However, the race was tough for him, because he didn‘t feel as good with the hard tyre today as he had done earlier this weekend. It‘s really disappointing, because we know how fast he is. But we get another chance next week. We will take today‘s experience on board, and we have the opportunity to test some new parts here on Tuesday, so we will push to come back stronger.”
Mike Leitner – Red Bull KTM Race Manager
“It was not the best results for us and the fact that the boys could not get a fast lap in qualifying made it difficult today to get near the front of the group because the rhythm of the riders is very similar. After the last few races we are not so happy with the results but the race pace today was positive. All four riders did well in their respective battles and brought the bikes home for points, especially Iker who came back from a long-lap penalty. We’ll try everything we can to be better for next weekend.”
Hervé Poncharal – Red Bull KTM Tech3 Team Manager
“Overall this was a quite strong team result for Red Bull KTM Tech3 here in Misano. For sure, we didn’t expect to duplicate the incredible and unforgettable victory from Spielberg here, but it was an interesting circuit for us. We end up 12 seconds to the winner, but we lost six seconds in the first two laps, so it means out of the 25 laps left we lost six seconds, which is showing how close the grid is. We could see that KTM has got a really strong line-up, because the four riders were doing the same lap times and Miguel was in a sandwich between Pol (Espargaro) and Brad (Binder) on the finish line. We got some good points. We need to understand what we can improve on that circuit, but I want to see the glass half full and I think we are not too far and we can improve next weekend. The championship is wide open, which is also very interesting, we are 28 points to the leading guy at the moment, so we need to keep our heads down and keep on believing and pushing. This is for Miguel. It was a bit more eventful race for Iker. He stalled the bike on the grid, which is not happening very often and he didn’t know exactly what to do. He went back to the starting grid, although he should have been starting from the pitlane. Then he was given a long lap penalty, that he did really well. He didn’t waste any time, put his head down and managed to finish 14th, which is really impressive. Most of the race he was the fastest KTM guy, doing the fastest laps. I think we can be proud of our four riders as KTM, we as Tech3 can be proud of Miguel and Iker and we need to keep on working hard and follow the same method, plus always improve and get closer to the leaders. I believe we can do it and this is a story I can tell you in a few days, because we’re staying here.”
KTM men racing each other
Piero Taramasso – Michelin
“We have had a very successful weekend here at Misano in both MotoGP and MotoE. The tyres performed very well and adapted to the new surface, despite us having little information on the asphalt when we had to choose the tyres before the start of the season. This the first time this season that the condition of the track and the weather has afforded the possibility of all MotoGP specifications being a genuine raceable option, as it was five options were used and we saw three different configurations on the podium. Breaking records is not the whole reason we are here, but it is great to do that and to set all-time lap-records in both classes and break the race durations in both is an especially pleasing aspect and demonstrates the performance of the tyres and one that can eventually be translated from the track to the street. It was a very exciting race for all concerned and especially good to see people in the grandstands again, this is a small step in the battle against the pandemic, but from the point of MotoGP an important one. We hope that Michelin contributed in some way to rewarding them with good racing. I want to send congratulations to Franco Morbidelli on his first victory, a feat that gives us four new winners this season and with the way some of the other guys are riding I can see that growing. MotoE produced another good race and the tyres again lived up to their potential following the new materials, compounds and rear construction we introduced for this season. Racing is fast and close and we broke every single record on show, so we have to be happy with that. We will now stay here at Misano for a test on Tuesday, where I am sure different tyre configurations will be tested by the riders to see if that can improve further and get an optimum set-up for their respective machines ahead of next week’s race at the same track.”
