2019 British Superbike Championship Round Seven – Thruxton – Friday
Peter Hickman topped the times after the opening Bennetts British Superbike Championship free practice sessions at Thruxton today, launching the Smiths Racing BMW to the fastest time in the Hampshire heat as he bids for a place in the Showdown.
Hickman had topped the opening session and with the times improving in the afternoon, the Smiths Racing BMW rider stayed at the top with an edge of just 0.273s from FS-3 Racing Kawasaki’s Danny Buchan who surged up the order in the closing stages.
Peter Hickman – P1
“We have had our usual day one really but it has been a good one! I felt really strong and happy with how it has gone today. We took an educated guess with the setup and we went straight out and did a 20-lap race run and the lap times were pretty good even at the end. The first session here is usually harder on tyres here as the track starts the weekend a bit green, but it didn’t seem to be like that today. We are in a good position at the moment but we have some tweaks we know we now need to make for tomorrow because qualifying is crucial and we really paid for that when I crashed at Snetterton at the last round. We have learnt a lot today and we finish the day happy and ready to try and make some more improvements tomorrow.”
Peter Hickman – Image by Dave Yeomans
Multiple Thruxton race winner Josh Brookes moved up into third to lead the Be Wiser Ducati charge, narrowly ahead of Jason O’Halloran on the McAMS Yamaha as four different manufacturers featured in the leading positions.
Championship leader Scott Redding was fifth fastest on his first visit to Thruxton with Glenn Irwin clocking a time to end the opening day in sixth place on his debut with Tyco BMW, and narrowly ahead of his brother Andrew.
Rookie Ryan Vickers climbed inside the top ten in the afternoon session; the RAF Regular & Reserve Kawasaki rider edged out Ben Currie on the leading Quattro Plant JG Speedfit Kawasaki. His team-mate Hector Barbera had a crash in the second session; the Spanish rider sustained a fracture to his right fibula and is having physio. He will be reviewed for fitness tomorrow before free practice three.
After a break to take in some of the European summer break this weekend it is time to burn some Michelins again as MotoGP gets set to light up Brno.
Championship leader Marc Marquez was first to speak at the pre-event press conference.
“The second part of the season will be the most important. Summer break has been very good. Time to relax, disconnect but also time to prepare for the second part of the season together with my brother and yeah, it’s time to rejoin the Championship. We will try to restart the same way we finished. We will see here in Brno and let’s enjoy it on the track! The first part of the season has been interesting. At some tracks it was one manufacturer, at others it was another but the main thing is we were always there. We were always there to have a small chance of victory or second place and this will be the target for the rest of the season. Here we will see which rider and which manufacturer will be there, but our goal is to fight for the podium, try to fight for the victory until the end of the race and yeah this is the way. If that’s impossible then it’s time to survive and time to take points for the Championship.”
Marc Marquez
Andrea Dovizioso
Andrea Dovizioso is currently second in the championship, 58-points behind Marquez, and has collected five podiums in total at Brno and is keen to take advantage of the characteristics of both the track and the Desmosedici GP to cut the gap from the leader.
“The summer break is always a good time to recharge and put things into perspective. Despite the fact that our position on the finish line at Assen and Sachsenring was acceptable, our feeling on the bike wasn’t been the best in those circuits. Without a doubt, we need to stay positive in this moment: we’ve worked hard under each aspect during these three weeks and we’re ready to tackle the second half of the season with great motivation. We’ll race on tracks where we should be very competitive and able to show our full potential.”
MotoGP 2018 – Round 10 – Brno – MotoGP Results 1 DOVIZIOSO Andrea 4 ITA 25 Ducati Team Ducati 41’07.728 2 LORENZO Jorge 99 SPA 20 Ducati Team Ducati 0.178 3 MARQUEZ Marc 93 SPA 16 Repsol Honda Team Honda 0.368
Maverick Viñales
Maverick Viñales was on the podium last time out in Germany and is looking forward to an even stronger second half of season 2019.
“I am full of energy because I finished the last two races in a good way. For me, this summer break was very long because I was waiting to be on the bike, the mood I had was really good. With the same mentality, we have nothing to lose and we will try to push at the maximum from the first lap on Friday. I feel good, calm and we need to keep trying to take the maximum from the bike, try and be at the front and understand and a learnt a lot. I think it will be very different, we will try a different way, as the bike is different to last year. I feel like we can profit from this layout and I am curious to see and I hope in the second half of the season we can prove our potential.”
Maverick Viñales
Valentino Rossi
Team-mate Rossi spoke next, a man who was on a more difficult run heading into the holidays. He’s now ready to start trying to unlock the secret to speed on the 2019 machine, having already taken podiums but then started to struggle a little more of late.
“For sure the break is a good chance to recharge the battery and take the right energy for the second half. The last races of the first part were very tough and very difficult. We expected to be stronger, so we need to concentrate and work better to be stronger for this second part. From Jerez, Quartararo and Maverick were very strong so this means the bike is competitive. We need to find another way to find the good feeling with the bike to ride at the limit.”
Valentino Rossi
For Crutchlow, 2019 has also been more of a challenge at times. But the Brit dug deep and impressed in Germany to take a rostrum finish despite carrying a cycling injury, and Brno holds good memories of his first Grand Prix win.
Cal Crutchlow
“I went into the summer break obviously very happy with the result in the Sachsenring. I took a few days off and then me and Lucy had a few days away in London, so it was nice to be able to do that, then I went back to the Isle of Man and was in training. It was typical summer weather over there, raining most days, but I enjoyed the three weeks off overall. Now I’m looking forward to getting back riding again, but Brno is a strange circuit. I always expect to go well here, some years I go really well and some years I don’t go great. Last year I went quite well until the last three or four laps, but didn’t manage my rear tyre well enough at the start of the race, so we’ll look to try and improve that. We’re happy with the setting we got in the Sachsenring, but whether that will work here we’ll have to see as it’s a completely different circuit. But we’ll try our best and I’m definitely looking forward to the second half of the year.”
Cal Crutchlow
Next on the mic’ was home hero Karel Abraham. He’s had a tougher year so far but Brno is always a special home race for the Czech rider.
Karel Abraham
“It’s been a very difficult season so far, if we’re scoring points anytime that’s a success and it will be a success for this weekend as well so I think that we have done a lot of work with our team and we have improved, especially on Friday and Saturday but Sunday is where it counts. We need to get better on Sunday but if we score points, as I mentioned, it will be a nice weekend. You can see the field is very close and it’s very difficult for me to get better results, like top ten would be a dream but it’s very hard. We have to work very hard for it, especially to make all the laps constant which is what counts.”
Karel Abraham
The assembled press at the conference also heard from Brad Binder. The South African has taken two intermediate class podiums in a row after a hard beginning to the season, and he’s also now confirmed as moving to the premier class next year.
Brad Binder
“Looking forward from now, I am super excited to be stepping up to MotoGP next year. I know it is going to be a massive task but all in all, I am ready for the challenge and I am really excited. This year has been a bit of a disaster to say the least, but each weekend we have found a little bit more. Basically, now we have a new bike and looking forward, I hope it is what we are looking for so we can chase after more victories and get some points back.”
Brad Binder
The Suzuki riders were not at the press conference but both Alex Rins and Joan Mir spent their holidays enjoying some rest, but also training hard to stay in shape for the remaining races. Likewise, the engineers – both in Hamamatsu and Europe – used the time to revise data and prepare for the second part of the season.
Davide Brivio – Suzuki Team Manager
“It’s good to be back at the races, we’re ready to take advantage of our strong first half of the season and we hope we can continue on this good path. We’ve already shown that we are competitive, and our target now is to continue to prove this potential. Alex is able to fight among the top positions in every race, while Joan is steadily getting closer to the top. The circuit of Brno is a fascinating track – maybe on paper it’s not one of our best tracks, but the progress we’ve made so far in terms of performance give us positivity for this weekend. It will be an important race for moral as well, because it will kick off of the second half of the championship and we want to go to Austria in good spirits too.”
As in previous years, the top twenty is made of a combination of regular TT front runners and Classic Racing specialists on a variety of single cylinder machines such as Norton and Matchless, twin cylinder bikes including Honda and Paton, plus hi-revving triples and four-cylinder bikes from MV Agusta and Honda.
First away is 2018 and 2016 winner, John McGuinness, who lines up on the Team Winfield Paton once again. With the exception of 2017 when he was forced out by injury, the 23-time TT winner has campaigned Roger Winfield’s machine every year since the inaugural Classic TT in 2013. With 4 valves per cylinder, the twin cylinder Paton’s enjoy a significant power advantage over the rest of the field and with McGuinness onboard, will start as hot favourite for the race win.
John McGuinness (500 Paton/Team Winfield) at Ballacraine during Friday evening’s Classic TT qualifying session in 2018. Image by Dave Kneen
Dean Harrison, the reigning Dunlop Senior TT champion, returns to the 500cc class following his absence in 2018 and will start at number 2 on board the LSS Waste Management Norton for the first time, having previously won the 2015 encounter onboard an MV Agusta.
Dean Harrison, MV Agusta, 2015 Classic TT
He’s followed by the experienced pairing of 2015 race winner Ian Lougher (John Chapman Racing/MV Agusta) and Michael Rutter (Ripley Land Racing/Matchless) at number 3 and number 4 respectively.
Michael Rutter at the Gooseneck on his way to winning the Sure Junior Classic TT Race in 2017. Photo Dave Kneen
James Hillier starts from number 5 with his regular CSC Racing team on their Honda 500-4 and is set to be followed by Michael Dunlop at his customary number 6, but the four-time Classic TT race winner has yet to announce what machine he will ride.
Number 7 is Maria Costello onboard the Beugger Racing Paton. Costello finished third in the 2017 edition of the race and was battling for a podium position in 2018, before dropping down the order and retiring on the final lap.
Maria Costello and Alan Oversby readying for practice at the 2018 Classic TT
Jamie Coward follows Costello at number 8, riding the Ted Woof/Craven Manx Norton on which he has taken three of his five previous Classic TT podiums. Coward has enjoyed a scintillating season so far, breaking the 130mph barrier for the first time at the Isle of Man TT Races fuelled by Monster Energy, taking his first TT podium in the Bennetts Lightweight Race, and winning the 2019 TT Privateer’s Championship following a string of top ten results.
Dominic Herbertson, winner of the 2018 Locate.im Junior Classic TT, starts at number 8 for Davies Motorsport onboard the only Yamaha TX500 in the field. His team mate, Lee Johnston, is onboard a Honda 500-4 and is back to his usual start number of 13 having started from 11 for the TT Races in June.
Lee Johnston – 2018 Classic TT
The top ten is completed by Chris Swallow on the Flitwick Motorcycles Royal Enfield, who finished less than four seconds off the podium in last year’s encounter.
Chris Swallow on the 500 Royal Enfield – Classic TT 2018
Numbers 11 to 20 feature further classic racing talent in Alan Oversby (Ireland Honda/Honda) starting at number 11, the vastly experienced Bill Swallow onboard the only 500 Ducati for Gleve Racing/John Poyner at 14, and Michael Russell (Izzard Racing/Norton) starting from number 15.
Alan Oversby (350 Honda/Davies Motorsport) at Ballacraine during qualifying for the 2017 Bennett’s Classic TT.
Danny Webb (Dunnell Racing) makes a return to TT Mountain Course action having missed the TT Races earlier this year and starts from number 12. Honda Racing’s David Johnson is at number 14 but, like Dunlop, has yet to confirm what machine he will take to the start line on. Horst Saiger (Egli Motorradtechnik) and Derek Sheils (Greenhall Racing) start at 17 and 18, with Rob Hodson (Geoff Bates Racing) completing the top 20.
Joey Thompson makes a return to Road Racing onboard the second John Chapman Racing MV Agusta, and slots in at 19.
The second day in the mountains at Red Bull Romaniacs saw competitors face the longest course of the week. The Gold class completed 151 kilometres, covering a mix of difficult rocky climbs in the morning and high-speed grassy trails in the afternoon. With over 100 kilometres of riding before the mid-day service, it would prove a physical and energy-sapping start to the day for all.
Wade Young had technical problems early on
While Graham Jarvis led the field away at 6.30am, drama would quickly strike Sherco Factory Racing’s Wade Young (RSA) who followed behind him in second. A technical issue on the first climb saw the 2018 winner return to the start line for hasty repairs, hoping to fix a gear selector issue. Despite losing almost one hour, Young re-joined the race, but he was ultimately forced to retire and call time on his bid to defend his Red Bull Romaniacs crown.
Wade Young rejoined the race but ultimately had to retire
At the head of the field, Jarvis looked strong through the morning’s Gold class sections and maintained his position as first on the road until service. Behind him, Gomez was on a charge and worked his way up to the wheel tracks of Lettenbichler, but was hungry for more.
Graham Jarvis
Finding a second wind as they exited service, the Spaniard went on a charge. Catching and overtaking Jarvis late in the day, Gomez was first past the post to ultimately win the day, but more importantly take control of the race lead. Admitting to not having the pace in the afternoon on the faster going, Jarvis placed second on the day. Keeping a consistently fast pace going, Lettenbichler ended his day in third.
Manuel Lettenbichler
Alfredo Gomez (Husqvarna – ESP)
“I was on the hunt today – chasing down the boys in front. I had a very good pace and really enjoyed my riding today. After the service it was a little bit scary going so fast on the grass, but all-in-all it was a very good day for me and I hope I can keep this pace up for the next couple of days.”
Alfredo Gomez
Behind the leading trio, Sherco Factory Racing’s Mario Roman (ESP) rode a lonely race for fourth, while the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing duo of Jonny Walker (GB) and Taddy Blazusiak (POL) placed fifth and sixth respectively.
Mario Roman
Building on his day one performance, Billy Bolt (Husqvarna – GB) improved to seventh, while JD Gunnex KTM Racing’s David Cyprian (CZ) continued to impress with eighth. Spain’s Josep Garcia (KTM) enjoyed a strong day with the Classic Enduro specialist placing ninth, while TTR Officine Rigamonti’s Pol Tarres (ESP) was 10th.
Josep Garcia (KTM – ESP)
“I’m really happy to be here at the finish line once again. Today was a really hard day, we hit some rain in the mountains and it made the uphills really slippery and difficult. We’ve got two more days to go so hopefully the weather will be ok with no rain. I really enjoyed my riding yesterday, the course was tough but flowed quite well, today was tougher with a lot of pushing and that isn’t as much fun. Overall, I’m feeling good and making some steady progress, so we’ll see what happens over the next couple of days.”
Josep Garcia
Stepping up to the Gold class as the 2018 Silver class winner, Austria’s Dieter Rudolf (KTM) is fast adapting to the challenge. The Austrian backed up his 10th place on Off Road Day One with 11th on Day Two and currently lies 10th overall in the race.
His compatriot Michael Walkner (KTM – AUT), Silver Class runner-up in 2018, is also performing well in his debut Gold class ride. The 21-year-old has ended both days in 13th to sit 12th overall at the halfway point in the race.
The three Aussies taking on the Gold Class are led by Anthony Solar who was 25th on Day Two ahead of Adam Giles who was 29th on stage and Chris Perry who was 32nd.
2019 Red Bull Romaniacs Off Road Day Two Results
Gold Class
Alfredo Gomez (Husqvarna – ESP) 5:41:00
Graham Jarvis (Husqvarna – GB) 5:46:58
Manuel Lettenbichler (KTM – GER) 5:47:22
Mario Roman (Sherco – ESP) 5:49:54
Jonny Walker (KTM – GB) 5:55:56
Taddy Blazusiak (KTM – POL) 5:59:37
Billy Bolt (Husqvarna – GB) 6:09:08
David Cyprian (KTM – CZ) 6:19:32
Josep Garcia (KTM – ESP) 6:54:07
Pol Tarres (Husqvarna – ESP) 6:57:28…
Silver Class
Josu Artola (ESP) 5:02:54
Josef Westgarth (GB) 5:16:02
Alberto Aramburu (ESP) 5:16:35
Sam Winterburn (GB) 5:17:04
Marc Wulf (GER) 5:26:11…
Bronze Class
Jean Michel Vigand (FRA) 4:29:58
Eric Slominski (USA) 4:34:25
Marius Muntean (ROU) 4:35:04
Radu Sardarescu (ROU) 4:37:34
Brent Brady (AUS) 4:38:11…
Iron Class
Vadim Tagirov (RUS) 4:51:43
Anna Schmolzl (GER) 4:59:44
Eduardo Martinez (MEX) 5:09:33
Oz Nehoray (ISR) 5:14:26
Agostino Crema (ITA) 5:20:48…
2019 Red Bull Romaniacs Overall Classificiation after Day Two
Gomez’ win on Off Road Day Two sees him move to the top of the Gold Class standings with two days still remaining. Jarvis slips down to second and is five-minutes behind his team-mate. Just over one minute behind Jarvis, Lettenbichler maintains third overall. With Roman in fourth, 10 minutes currently separate the top four.
Manuel Lettenbichler
In the Silver Class it’s Spain’s Josu Artola who continues to set the pace securing his second victory of the week. Behind him Josef Westgarth (GB) took second, ahead of Alberto Aramburu (ESP) and Sam Winterburn (GB). Winterburn is second overall to Artola, with Westgarth less than two minutes behind in third.
Shane Moss (23rd) was the quickest Aussie to complete Day Two in Silver Class ahead of countrymen Adam Poole (27th), Tim Gibson (46th) and Sam Preece (55th).
Jonny Walker
The Bronze category saw France’s Jean Michel Vigand push through for victory. The win sees him take control of the standings ahead of Marcin Welglarz (POL) who placed sixth today. USA’s Eric Slominski holds third overall thanks to his second-place ride on Off Road Day Two.
Brent Brady was the leading Aussie in the Bronze category on Day Two with a fifth place result ahead of countrymen Cameron Bice (32nd), Raymond Borg (45th), Christian Barrett (50th), Jason Beaton (55th), Marc Grillis (64th), Nicholas Kirk (68th), Robert Kingston (81st), Brendon Cousins (93rd), Paul Mapperson (96th), Dwayne Affleck (105th), Craig Roberts (115th), and John Cockings (165th).
In the Iron class it was Russia’s Vadim Tagirov who won the day to move into the lead in the overall classification. Germany’s Anna Schmolzl continues to show great form, second on Off Road Day Two moves her up to the second overall. Mexico’s Eduardo Martinez ended day two in third. Placing fifth on day two, day one leader Agostino Crema (ITA) slips to third position.
Aaron Mcfadzen is 36th in the Iron Class ahead of countrymen Domenic Dercole (43rd), Aaron Panozza (44th), Brenden Murphy (72nd), Andrew Donnelly (80th), Josh Devine (84th) and Christopher Withers (96th).
The 2019 Czech Grand Prix will be the 50th to be held at Brno and below are some facts and statistics related to the previous GP events at the circuit.
The only venue that has hosted more Grand Prix events than Brno is Assen in The Netherlands, which has hosted the Dutch TT in each of the 71 years of the motorcycling World Championship.
The first Czechoslovakian Grand Prix was held at Brno in 1965. The 500cc race, held over thirteen laps of the original 13.94 km long road circuit, was won by Mike Hailwood on an MV Agusta in a time of 1 hour 11 min 23.2 sec.
In 1975, the circuit was shortened to 10.92 km to improve safety. The last premier class race held on the road circuit at Brno was in 1977 and was won by Johnny Cecotto on a Yamaha.
The circuit was subsequently considered too dangerous for the large capacity machines. The smaller capacity machines continued to compete in Grand Prix races on the Brno road circuit until 1982, before it was removed from the calendar for safety concerns.
The current circuit was first used for Grand Prix racing in 1987 and hosted the Czechoslovakian GP until 1991. Brno did not appear on the calendar in 1992, but the event was back on the calendar in 1993 as the Grand Prix of the Czech Republic and has taken place every year since.
This will be the 32nd time that the current circuit has hosted a Grand Prix event, during which time the circuit has remained virtually unchanged. Minor modifications were made to the circuit in 1996 which extended the length from 5.394 km to the current 5.403 km.
Valentino Rossi took his first ever victory at Brno in 1996
A total of 162 Grand Prix races for solo motorcycles have been held at Brno since 1965 as follows: MotoGP – 17, 500cc – 25, 350cc – 17, Moto2 – 9, 250cc – 40, Moto3 – 7, 125cc – 38, 80cc – 3, 50cc – 6.
Since the first Grand Prix race in the premier class in Brno, Honda is the most successful manufacturer with 18 wins, eight in the MotoGP class, the last of which came with Marc Marquez back in 2017.
Marc Marquez – Brno 2017
Yamaha have had 12 wins in the premier class including six in the MotoGP class since 2002 with Max Biaggi (1), Valentino Rossi (3) and Jorge Lorenzo (2). Ducati have taken three MotoGP wins at Brno: with Loris Capirossi in 2006, Casey Stoner in 2007 and Andrea Dovizioso last year. Dovizioso crossed the line ahead of his teammate Jorge Lorenzo, making it the sixth Ducati 1-2 in the premier class.
Casey Stoner sprays the champagne at Brno in 2007
The last win for Suzuki at Brno was in the 500cc class in 1989, with Kevin Schwantz. Suzuki have had two podium finishes in the MotoGP class: second with John Hopkins in 2007 and third with Loris Capirossi in 2008.
The best result for an Aprilia rider at Brno in MotoGP is an eighth-place finish with Aleix Espargaro in 2017. In 2017, Pol Espargaro was the only KTM rider across the line in Brno, in ninth place, which is the best result for the Austrian manufacturer at this track in the premier class.
The best result for a Czech rider in the MotoGP class at Brno is ninth for Karel Abraham in 2012 riding a Ducati. There have only been two podium finishes for Czech riders at the current Brno circuit across all classes: Lukas Pesek was third in the 125cc class back in 2007 on a Derbi, and Jakub Kornfeil was third in Moto3 last year on a KTM.
Max Biaggi (4 x 250cc, 2 x 500cc, 1 x MotoGP) and Valentino Rossi (1x 125cc, 1 x 250cc, 1 x 500cc, 4 x MotoGP) are the most successful riders at the current Brno circuit, each with seven wins.
The nine Moto2 races that have taken place at Brno have been won by nine different riders: Toni Elias (2010), Andrea Iannone (2011), Marc Marquez (2012), Mika Kallio (2013), Tito Rabat (2014), Johann Zarco (2015), Jonas Folger (2016), Tom Lüthi (2017) and Miguel Oliveira (2018).
Previously in MotoGP
Previously… in MotoGP
299 – In Germany, Valentino Rossi finished in eighth place, scoring points for the 299th time since he stepped up to the premier class of Grand Prix racing in 2000.
124 – The win for Marc Marquez at the German GP was the 124th time he has been on the podium in his Grand Prix career. Only five riders have been on the podium on more occasions in Grand Prix racing.
60 – Lorenzo Dalla Porta’s win at the Sachsenring is the 60th for Honda in the Moto3 class since its introduction in 2012, equalling KTM as the most successful manufacturer in the category.
50 – At the Sachsenring, Marc Marquez set the fastest lap of the race for the 50th time since he stepped up to the premier class in 2013. Only two riders have set more fastest laps in the class: Valentino Rossi (75) and Giacomo Agostini (69).
31 – Since the opening Grand Prix in Qatar, 31 different riders have stood on the podium across all GP classes, one less than last year. Only Marc Marquez, with eight podium finishes, has finished on the podium more than five times in the opening eight Grands Prix of the season.
16 – With Marc Marquez’s win at the Sachsenring, Honda has won for the 10th successive time at the track, 16th overall as in Mugello.
MotoGP Facts and Stats
At the Sachsenring, Marc Marquez won his fifth race out of the opening nine races of the season.
In the MotoGP era since 2002, every rider who won at least five of the opening nine races went on to win the title: Valentino Rossi (8 – 2002, 5 – 2004 and 7 – 2005), Casey Stoner (5 – 2007), Jorge Lorenzo (6 – 2010 and 5 – 2012) and Marc Marquez (9 – 2014 and 5 – 2018).
Since the Catalan GP last year, Marc Marquez has only failed to score points three times: Australia and Valencia in 2018, and Austin this season. In the last 18 races he has finished, he has always been on the podium and finished third only once, in Brno.
Maverick Viñales finished second at the Sachsenring, which is his 19th podium finish in the premier class, equalling John Kocinski and Marco Lucchinelli on the list of riders with most podium finishes in the class.
His Dutch TT win and German GP podium make this Maverick Viñales fifth back-to-back podium finish since he stepped up to the MotoGP class in 2015. At the Czech GP, he will be aiming to stand on the podium three times in a row for the first time in the class.
Following the Dutch TT, Yamaha have scored 153 points in the Constructor’s World Championship classification, which is the lowest points accumulated after the opening nine races by Yamaha since 2006 when the Japanese manufacturer had 147 points after the British GP.
With Marc Marquez and Maverick Viñales, this is the second successive Spanish 1-2 and the third with both riders along, with Austin last year and the Dutch TT this year. It’s the the 49th overall in the premier class of Grand Prix racing.
In Germany, Cal Crutchlow finished third, which is his first podium finish since he was also third in the opening race in Qatar this year. This is Crutchlow’s 18th premier class podium finish, equalling Christian Sarron.
Danilo Petrucci crossed the line in fourth place as the highest placed Ducati rider. This is the first time Ducati riders failed to stand on the podium in the two successive races since Assen and Germany last year.
Jack Miller crossed the line in sixth place in Germany and is now leading the Independent Team rider classification, three points ahead of Fabio Quartararo and Cal Crutchlow who both have 67 points.
Valentino Rossi crossed the line in eighth place at the German GP, which is the first time he scored points since he crossed the line in fifth place at the French GP. In addition, at the Sachsenring, Valentino Rossi scored points for the 299th time in the premier class. In Brno, he will be aiming to become the first rider to reach the milestone 300 premier class races in the points.
Valentino Rossi on his way to victory at Brno in 2005
At the Czech GP, it will be the 24th successive year that Valentino Rossi will have started a Grand Prix race at Brno. It will be just the second circuit, along with Jerez, he will have raced at in every year of his Grand Prix career. The other three circuits that have appeared on the Grand Prix schedule every year whilst Rossi has been racing (Mugello, Catalunya and Assen) were all circuits at which he didn’t start following his injury sustained in practice at the Italian GP back in 2010.
Valentino Rossi – Brno 2017
In Germany, Pol Espargaro crossed the line in 12th place, scoring his 56th point this season so far. This is already the highest points accumulated by a KTM rider in one season since Austrian manufacturer stepped up to the MotoGP class in 2017.
Only two riders have now scored points in all nine of the MotoGP races in 2019: Danilo Petrucci and Pol Espargaro. The last time Pol Espargaro failed to score any points was in Malaysia last year when he retired from the race. At the German GP, Fabio Quartararo crashed out for the first time in a premier class race, but he is still leading the fight for the Rookie of the Year with 67 points ahead Joan Mir (39 points), who scored his third successive top 10 finish, Miguel Oliveira (15) and Francesco Bagnaia (11).
The only two of the four rookies in the MotoGP class this year to have previously won at Brno any of the smaller classes are Miguel Oliveira, who won last year in the Moto2 class, and Joan Mir, who won in the Moto3 class in 2017 on his way to clinching the title.
However, fellow rookie Francesco Bagnaia has stood on the podium at Brno, finishing third last year in Moto2.
Winning streak at the same circuit
The win for Marc Marquez in Germany was the seventh successive time he has stood on the top step of the podium in the premier class at the Sachsenring, equalling Valentino Rossi at Mugello. Only one rider has won more than seven successive races at the same track in the premier class:
Successive wins
Rider
Track
9
Giacomo Agostini
Imatra (1965 – 1973)
8
Giacomo Agostini
Spa-Francorchamps (1966 – 1973)
7
Marc Marquez
Sachsenring (2013 – 2019)
7
Valentino Rossi
Mugello (2002 – 2008)
6
Marc Marquez
Circuit of the Americas (2013 – 2018)
6
Casey Stoner
Phillip Island (2007 – 2012)
6
Mick Doohan
Mugello (1993 – 1998)
6
Giacomo Agostini
Sachsenring (1967 – 1972)
Sachsenring Round 9 – MotoGP 2019
In addition to Marquez’ seventh successive win in the MotoGP class at the Sachsenring, it was his 10th successive victory in Germany including his Moto2 win at the track in both 2011 and 2012 and his 125cc win in 2010. Giacomo Agostini holds the record in Finland with 13th successive wins at Imatra: 8 x 500cc (1966 – 1973) and 5 x 350cc (1969 – 1973).
Marc Marquez – Sachsenring Round 9 – MotoGP 2019
Marc Marquez closes in on Mike Hailwood Marc Marquez’ win at the Sachsenring was the 75th of his Grand Prix career, just one less GP win than nine-time World Champion Mike Hailwood (76) as shown in the table below of riders with most GP wins. There are just three riders in the history of Grand Prix racing who have taken more wins than Hailwood.
Pos
Rider
Wins
MGP/500
350
M2/250
125
80/50
1
Giacomo Agostini
122
68
54
/
/
/
2
Valentino Rossi
115
89
/
14
12
/
3
Angel Nieto
90
/
/
/
62
28
4
Mike Hailwood
76
37
16
21
2
/
5
Marc Marquez
75
49
/
16
10
/
6
Jorge Lorenzo
68
47
/
17
4
/
7=
Mick Doohan
54
54
/
/
/
/
7=
Dani Pedrosa
54
31
/
15
8
/
9
Phil Read
52
11
4
27
10
/
10=
Jim Redman
45
2
21
18
4
/
10=
Casey Stoner
45
38
/
5
2
/
Marquez took the win from Vinales and Crutchlow – Sachsenring Round 9 – MotoGP 2019
In addition, this was the 85th podium finish in the premier class for Marc Marquez, three less than Giacomo Agostini, who is in fifth place in the list of riders with the most podium finishes in the class.
Great start to the season for Marc Marquez
At the Sachsenring, Marc Marquez qualified on pole position for the 85th time in his Grand Prix career and the 57th time in the premier class, one less than the record held by Mick Doohan (58).
This was Marc Marquez’s 34th win in the premier class after qualifying on pole position. 45 of his 49 wins in the class came after qualifying within the top three. Marc Marquez’ win at the Sachsenring is the sixth time that he had won at any circuit in the MotoGP class after qualifying on pole position, leading across the line on every lap and setting the fastest lap of the race along with Jerez (2014), Austin (2014, 2016, 2018) and Termas de Rio Hondo (2019).
Marc Marquez
At the Sachsenring, Marc Marquez set the fastest lap of the race for the 50th time since he stepped up to the premier class in 2013. Only two riders have set more fastest laps in the class, Valentino Rossi (75) and Giacomo Agostini (69).
Marc Marquez has won at least five GPs per season over the past ten years, across three different categories: 125cc, Moto2 and MotoGP, beating his own record set over the last two years. Previously, Mike Hailwood was the only rider to have achieved at least five victories per season over seven years, across at least three classes, between 1961 and 1967.
In addition, Marc Marquez has won at least five GPs per season (in any class of GP racing) over the past ten years, equalling the record set by Giacomo Agostini between 1966 and 1975 in 350cc and 500cc.
Marc Marquez
Considering only the premier class, Marc Marquez has won at least five GPs per season over the past seven years, beating the record set by Valentino Rossi (2001-2006) and Giacomo Agostini (1967-1972), who each won at least five races over six consecutive seasons.
Following the German GP, Marc Marquez has 185 points, which is the second-highest points accumulated after the opening nine races by Marquez in the MotoGP class. 2014 was the highest, when he had won the nine opening races and accumulated 225 points.
With his brother Alex winning in Moto2, this was the fifth time both of them won on the same day, along with France and Catalunya earlier this year and Catalunya and Assen back in 2014 when both were on their way to winning their respective titles in Moto3 and MotoGP.
Andrea Dovizioso closes in on Mick Doohan Andrea Dovizioso crossed the line in fifth place at the Sachsenring and scored his 2279th point since he stepped up to the MotoGP class in 2008. At the Czech GP, he will be aiming to move above Mick Doohan, who is in fourth place in the list of riders with most points scored in the premier class.
Pos
Rider
500/MotoGP
1
Valentino Rossi
5211
2
Dani Pedrosa
2970
3
Jorge Lorenzo
2890
4
Mick Doohan
2298
5
Andrea Dovizioso
2279
6
Alex Barros
2079
7
Marc Marquez
2040
8
Loris Capirossi
1840
9
Casey Stoner
1815
10
Nicky Hayden
1698
Valentino Rossi celebrated his 100th GP victory at Assen way back in 2009
Mid-Season Report
There have been five different winners in the opening nine MotoGP races of the year, which is the third time there have been five different winners at this stage of the season since the introduction of the class in 2002, along with 2006 and 2017.
In addition, there have been nine different riders who have stood on the podium in the opening nine MotoGP races of the season, two less than the entire 2018 season. The record at this stage of the season in the MotoGP class since its introduction in 2002 is 12 back in 2007.
Two different riders have led the Championship classification in the opening nine MotoGP races of 2018: Andrea Dovizioso and Marc Márquez.
Ten different riders have qualified within the top three in MotoGP during the opening nine races of 2019. Three of them have qualified on pole position, three less than at this stage of the 2018 season.
Eight different riders have led at least one lap across the line since the opening MotoGP race in Qatar, one less than last year at this stage of the season. Marc Marquez leads the way with 142 laps, followed by Andrea Dovizioso (23) and Danilo Petrucci (14).
Eight different riders have led at least one of the 44 free practice sessions (FP3 in Austin was cancelled due to weather conditions) or one of the nine Q2 sessions. Marc Marquez leads the way with 24 sessions on top followed by Fabio Quartararo (13), Maverick Viñales (7), Danilo Petrucci (5), Valentino Rossi (1), Francesco Bagnaia (1), Alex Rins (1) and Andrea Dovizioso (1). All 22 riders competing full-time in MotoGP class have scored points since the opening race in Qatar.
On this day…
July 30th
At the 1972 Finnish GP, Jarno Saarinen won his home GP in 250cc, his fourth victory of the season, to clinch his only title in GP racing.
July 31st
At the 1982 British GP, Angel Nieto took his 50th win in the 125cc class (his 77th overall).
At the 1971 Finnish GP, Giacomo Agostini took his sixth 350cc win to clinch his 10th title in GP racing, becoming the rider with most titles.
August 1st
At the 1981 British GP, Anton Mang won the 350cc race to take the first of his two titles in the class.
August 2nd
In Imatra back in 1976, Pat Hennen won the 500cc race to be- come the first American to win in the premier class.
At the 2005 German GP, Valentino Rossi won the MotoGP race after it was interrupted following a crash for John Hopkins and then restarted for 25 laps. Rossi (now 115 wins) equalled Mike Hailwood with 76 GP wins, only Agostini (122 GP wins) and An- gel Nieto (90) had more wins at that time. 14 years later, at the 2019 German GP, Marc Márquez took his 75th GP win.
At the 1987 British GP, Jorge “Aspar” Martinez took his sixth win in the opening seven races of the season to clinch his second successive 80cc title.
At the 1983 British GP held at Silverstone, Angel Nieto won the 125cc race to clinch the 125cc title (his 12th) while Carlos La-vado took his first 250cc title by taking fourth.
At the same GP in Imatra, Johnny Cecotto took the first of his three wins in the 500cc class, while Barry Sheene finished sixth to clinch his second successive title in the class.
August 3rd
At the 1986 British GP, Ian McConnachie won the 80cc race, be- coming the first British rider to win at Silverstone in GP racing.
August 4th
At the 1953 French GP, Pierre Monneret finished second in the 350cc race, becoming the first French rider to stand on the podium in GP racing (solo classes).
Takazumi Katayama won the 350cc race held in Imatra back in 1977 to become the first Japanese rider to clinch a title in GP racing.
At the 1996 Austrian GP, Valentino Rossi finished third in the 125cc class behind Ivan Goi (who became the youngest winner in the class at that time) and Dirk Raudies, which was the first of Rossi’s 234 podium finishes in Grand Prix racing so far.
At the 1993 British GP, Jean-Philippe Ruggia won the 250cc race held at Donington Park, which was the first of his three wins in Grand Prix racing.
The Bennetts British Superbike Championship hits Thruxton this weekend (August 2/3/4) for the seventh round of the season, and the high-speed Hampshire circuit will prove crucial to the title chase with just seven races now remaining before the Showdown.
Thruxton is renowned for producing some incredible last-lap passes and daring slip-stream manoeuvres, and with a potential 175 points still available before the Showdown Title Fighters are decided at Oulton Park, every point counts.
Josh Brookes did British Superbike Double at Thruxton in 2014
Josh Brookes has previously been the man to beat at Thruxton; he has won races on eight occasions and finished a further four times on the podium, the Aussie will be hoping history can repeat itself this weekend on the second Be Wiser Ducati.
BSB 2015 – Thruxton – Josh Brookes
Josh Brookes
“I’m happy with the year so far, there have been a few low points but majority of that has been due to factors out of my control. I’m readying myself for this weekends round 7 at Thruxton. This has been a great circuit for me, here I got my very first BSB podium and then also my first BSB win.
BSB 2017 – Round Seven – Thruxton Josh Brookes (Anvil Hire TAG Yamaha) Peter Hickman (Smiths Racing BMW) +1.026s Jake Dixon (RAF Reserves Kawasaki) +1.774s
“Either I like the track so I get good results or the good results makes me like the track. Either way I hope the trend continues this weekend and I can get some extra points over everyone as we start the second half of the season. It’s not by choice but history says I get stronger as the season goes on so if that pattern runs true this year I’m in a very good position to potential take my second BSB championship.”
This season Brookes has joined Be Wiser Ducati
Broookes’s Be Wiser Ducati team-mate Scott Redding arrives at Thruxton leading the championship standings after a double win at Snetterton. But having never visited the circuit before, the seasoned MotoGP regular admits that he is going to have to plan a different strategy this weekend.
Scott Redding
“From what I have heard from other riders its fast, it’s quite open and the approach to the race will be different as I hear many of the guys have said it is a lot about tyre wear and I think with the high temperatures that will add to it. But it is something I am looking forward to as it is a different challenge and a different approach I will need to take. I am definitely looking forward to it; it is a bit more local to me so I am looking to put on a good race for the crowds there and see if we can try and bag some more podiums. This race like I say is going to be very different it is not going to be about who is the fastest, it is going to maybe be about who is the smartest rider and controlled rider for the tyre wear so I will be keeping that in mind of course. I have never been to the track at all, I have done zero laps there before in my life so I don’t know what to expect!
Scott Redding – Snetterton BSB 2019
Ready to take the Ducati duo on in the battle for victories this weekend are the hometown force of Devizies-born Tommy Bridewell and the Winchester-based Oxford Racing Ducati team. They arrive second in the overall standings after claiming eight consistent podium finishes, but the team has yet to claim a race win in the Superbike class, something that Bridewell is fully focused on achieving this weekend.
Tommy Bridewell at Brands Hatch – 2019
Following a podium finish and a crash last time out at Snetterton, Tarran Mackenzie holds fourth in the championship standings, with the McAMS Yamaha team also having previously won at Thruxton. Mackenzie, one of the five different winners this season, is bidding to try to consolidate his position in the Showdown for the first time.
Tarran Mackenzie
Knockhill race winner Danny Buchan holds fifth place for FS3-Racing Kawasaki as they try to make the cut for the Showdown for the first time; with an 18-point advantage over Xavi Forés, the Essex contender knows that he needs to be back fighting at the sharp end this weekend to maintain his marginal advantage.
Danny Buchan
Like Redding, Forés has never lapped Thruxton before and the Honda Racing rider holds the final place in the top six ahead of the two races on Sunday. The Spanish ace also has an 18-point advantage over Peter Hickman in seventh, but knows he needs to deliver two strong results this weekend if he is going to hold that all-important position in the standings.
Xavi Forés
Hickman is the first in the list trying to bump someone out of the top six; after a double podium at the circuit last year, the Smiths Racing BMW rider is eager to claw back the deficit this weekend. But he needs to also keep Andrew Irwin and Christian Iddon behind him.
Peter Hickman’s BMW S 1000 RR
Andrew Irwin had the strongest weekend of his Superbike career last time out at Snetterton, which has moved him to within 20 points of sixth place with Iddon on the Tyco BMW just two points adrift of the Honda Racing rider as they target a Showdown position for the first time.
Andrew Irwin and Jason O’Halloran
Glenn Irwin returns to action this weekend after parting company with Quattro Plant – JG Speedfit Kawasaki, he lines up in Tyco BMW colours for the remainder of the season as Keith Farmer remains sidelined through injury. Meanwhile for the Bournemouth-based Quattro Plant – JG Speedfit Kawasaki team, Hector Barbera returns alongside Ben Currie to make his Thruxton debut.
Britain’s Graham Jarvis has claimed victory on Off Road Day One at Red Bull Romaniacs, round five of the World Enduro Super Series. The Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing rider charged to the top of the standings on the opening full day of competition, finishing ahead of Sherco Factory Racing’s Wade Young (RSA) and Germany’s Manuel Lettenbichler.
Wade Young
With Tuesday’s Prologue in Sibiu soon forgotten, the competitors from 50 nations quickly got down to business on Off Road Day One. Although the shortest track in this year’s race at 102 kilometres in length for the Gold Class riders, it was anything but easy. With a brutal climb directly after the 6.45am start, riders were immediately woken up and put to work.
At the head of the field it was TTR Officine Rigamonti’s Pol Tarres (ESP) who led the riders out, followed by Red Bull KTM Factory Racing’s Jonny Walker (GB) and Taddy Blazusiak (KTM – POL) – all separated by three-minute gaps.
Taddy Blazusiak and Jonny Walker
Starting seventh on the road, Jarvis quickly went to work and closed in on his rival, using the opening climb to his advantage. But it was clear he wasn’t going to have things all his own way as Lettenbichler, Young, Blazusiak and Alfredo Gomez (Husqvarna – ESP) kept him honest.
During the afternoon the leading group broke up, with Jarvis, Lettenbichler and Young pulling clear. A technical problem saw Blazusiak drop back, losing positions as he fought to overcome his issue, while Walker sat steady in sixth.
Josep Garcia Montana
On corrected time it was Jarvis who took the opening day win by one-minute and 12-seconds from Young, with Lettenbichler only one minute further back in third. With Mario Roman (Sherco -ESP) fourth and Gomez fifth, the top five are separated by less than four minutes.
Graham Jarvis (Husqvarna – GB)
“It was an easier day compared with the Off Road Day 1 I had last year, which I was quite happy about. I didn’t really make any time on the difficult sections, but I kept a good pace throughout the race. Importantly, I didn’t make any serious mistakes and was able to catch the other guys early on. I gained a bit of time then and it’s probably made the difference today for sure. With my time here last year still haunting me I feel I’ve helped put things right on day one. But there’s going to be faster days, so how it will suit me I don’t know. But I need to get on with it and go full throttle.”
Graham Jarvis
Delivering one of the day’s most impressive rides was JD Gunnex KTM’s David Cyprian (CZ). The young 21-year-old looked confident on the challenging climbs and it showed with the privateer claiming a well-deserved seventh.
David Cyprian (KTM – CZ)
“I had a great day today and feel like I rode with a very solid pace. I managed to stay mistake-free through the day and ended up seventh, which is a great start to the week. As we finish today it’s just started to rain, so tomorrow might be pretty tough if it continues like that. But I’m looking forward to it and want to keep this momentum going – we’ll see what happens during the next few days.”
Australian Adam Giles was 24th outright on Wednesday, a brillliant performance. Countrymen Chris Perry was 29th and Anthony Solar 30th with that Aussie trio all contesting the premier gold class of the competition.
Adam Giles
In the Silver class the top honours went to Spain’s Josu Artola who showed his form in the hot temperatures to pull 10 minutes clear of second-placed Emanual Gyenes (ROU). With a number of riders given 10-minute penalties, third place went to Great Britain’s Josef Westgarth with Patrick Riegler (AUT) in fourth.
Aussie Shane Moss was 19th in Silver, Adam Poole 24th, Tim Gibson 31st, Sam Preece 61st and Shane Bowden 93rd.
The heavily contested Bronze class saw Poland’s Marcin Weglarz take an early lead in proceedings. Weglarz topped the standings over France’s Jean Michel Vigand with Germany’s Wilhelm Ehm third.
Graham Jarvis
Australian Brent Brady was fifth in the Bronze class ahead of countrymen Adam Brice in 28th, Christian Barrett 39th, Jason Beaton 46th, Robert Kingston 65th, Raymond Borg 68th, Dwayne Affleck 80th, Brendon Cousins 81st, Nicholas Kirk 92nd and Paul Mapperson 93rd, Marc Grills 111th, Craig Roberts 112th, John Cockings 168th, Brett Summers 181st, and
The opening day in the mountains for the Iron class saw Israel’s Oz Nehoray secure a commanding 13-minute 30-second margin of victory. Italy’s Agostino Crema was second with USA’s Danny Melvin third.
Aaron Macfadzen was the first Aussie in the Iron class ahead of Aaron Panozza in 38th, Klaus Mueller in 60th, Dominic Dercole 69th, Joshua Devine 75th, Brenden Murphy 81st, Christopher Withers 94th, Andrew Donnelly 95th,
Red Bull Romaniacs continues with Off Road Day 2 where competitors will tackle a new course that will take them deeper into the Carpathian Mountains. The longest day of the event, Gold class will cover 151 kilometres of riding.
Aussie road racer David Johnson will be jetting to Dundrod from the heat of his Adelaide home to race in the 2019 fonaCAB Ulster Grand Prix that gets underway next week, August 3-10.
The 36 year old will be having his first outing on the Honda Racing machines since the Isle of Man TT when he lines-up on the UGP grid for the Superbike, Superstock and Supersport races.
“I am looking forward to the Ulster because I will be riding bikes I am familiar with this year.” Johnson explained before leaving Australia.
“When I rode for the Tyco BMW team last season I didn’t even sit on the bike before I got to Dundrod. I am also hoping the team will have a test day at Kirkistown before practice begins at the Ulster.”
David Johnson on the Superstock podium – TT 2019
Johnson was a last minute replacement in the Moneymore based Tyco squad last August after Michael Dunlop opted to sit out the 2018 UGP following his brother William’s death.
The Adelaide racer made the most of his opportunity, giving the carbon fibre framed HP4 superbike it’s first international race rostrum after taking third place in Saturday’s curtailed Superbike race.
Johnson has been a steadying influence since joining the Honda Racing squad for 2019. The Adelaide man was overjoyed to claim his first podium finish at the TT with third place in the Superstock race.
“I had an awesome TT and we made big improvements with the bikes.” Johnson says.
“It was amazing, better than any race win I’ve ever had and I have gelled well with the team. My stocker was working perfectly.”
David Johnson on the Superstock podium – TT 2019
After many seasons of roads success the official Honda team has not had an easy ride with the latest edition of the Fireblade. Johnson is confident he can overcome the issues that have dogged John McGuinness, Guy Martin and his current teammate Ian Hutchinson, who will miss this year’s Ulster to have further surgery on his injured leg.
“You have to knuckle down and make things work.” Johnson says.
“I get a set up and I don’t make changes until I need to and when I do I make them work.”
David Johnson – Superstock TT 2019
That determined approach paid off for the Aussie at the TT2019 and he is certain he can perform a similar feat at Dundrod.
“At the TT my bike was so different to what anyone had ridden in the past few years.” Johnson explained.
“We went against the Honda grain and my bike was chalk and cheese compared to Hutchy’s, especially on the suspension settings. What worked for me didn’t work for other people and we will have new linkages and a swing arm for the Ulster.”
David Johnson – TT 2019
The Aussie had been confident he would have made a major step forward with the superbike in the Senior race but a broken crank sensor ended his race after just a lap.
Having previously helped develop the Norton superbike racer, Johnson has been inspired by the success of Conor Cummins over the past two seasons on the similar Padgett’s Honda Fireblade.
“I look at Conor and I see him riding unbelievably well.” Johnson says.
“The badge on the tank is the same as the one on our bikes and he is making it work.”
David Johnson in the pits on the Superbike at TT 2019
Dundrod has not always been a happy hunting ground for the Australian though. Riding a Wilson Craig Honda in 2016, he crashed at Quarterlands during practice and broke his back. A year later he bounced back to take a 4th place finish in the Superstock race on the 4Anjels BMW.
“I want good weather and dry roads this year to really enjoy riding around here.” he said.
David Johnson – Superstock TT 2019
Now 36, Johnson feels this could be his time if the conditions are right.
“The older I am getting the faster I am going.” he joked.
“I’ve taken great confidence from the TT podium this year and the TT and Ulster are my favourite circuits. The two guys at the front at the moment, Peter Hickman and Dean Harrison, plus Conor, are all setting the benchmark pretty high but I think I can push to be up there at the front with them.”
Another international road race podium is definitely on the cards Johnson says.
“A podium is within reach at Dundrod. It will be hard and a win would be another step but that’s what we have to work towards with a perfect set up for the bike.”
Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) is in good shape heading into the second half of 2019. The reigning Champion has a 58-points lead, he’s won more than half the races so far, and there’s been little sign of many chinks in his armour since his crash out the lead at the Circuit of the Americas.
Marc Marquez
“I am very excited to get back on the bike. Summer break is always nice to relax a little bit, but soon you miss the team and the bike! I am ready to get back to work and Brno is a fun circuit to ride. We finished the first half of the season in a very strong way and now we must keep our focus to continue this. Brno is a circuit where lots of riders are often strong so we can’t take anything for granted. I hope Jorge’s recovery is going well and we will soon have him back in the team.”
Sachsenring Round 9 – MotoGP 2019
But this is MotoGP and the course of racing rarely did run smooth, with Brno next up – the circuit that ended his omnipotent run in 2014 – and there is still a maximum of 250-points up for grabs in the remaining ten races. Can his rivals reset, bounce back and start taking the fight to the number 93?
His closest challenger remains Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team), despite a couple of more difficult races for the Italian, and the good news for him is that he won in the Czech Republic last year, in some style.
MotoGP 2018 – Round 10 – Brno – MotoGP Results 1 DOVIZIOSO Andrea 4 ITA 25 Ducati Team Ducati 41’07.728 2 LORENZO Jorge 99 SPA 20 Ducati Team Ducati 0.178 3 MARQUEZ Marc 93 SPA 16 Repsol Honda Team Honda 0.368
So it’s a good track to begin his assault on the second half of the season, with confidence and good memories nothing to be sniffed at when glory and defeat can be thousandths apart.
But Dovizioso’s teammate Danilo Petrucci is now pretty hot on his heels, only six points back, and he could complicate life for the now two-time runner up in the Championship. And ‘Petrux’ knows the bike he’s now on took a 1-2 at Brno last year. Will it repeat the feat in 2019? And if so, in which order?
Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar), meanwhile, is the man looking for a little more redemption. After two DNFs in a row, both from near the front, the Suzuki man went into summer on the back foot despite having some serious speed at both races. He’s now 84-points off Marquez and fourth in the Championship, but the upside is Rins now races with much less pressure. He’ll simply want to win and win as much as possible in the remaining ten rounds. He’s already taken a MotoGP victory, so why not again?
Alex Rins was victorious at Jerez
That’s also true of Maverick Viñales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) and nine-time World Champion teammate Valentino Rossi, although they arrive the second half of 2019 with very different recent runs of form. Viñales opened his victory account for the year at Assen and then followed it up with a podium, heading into summer looking like a serious threat. Can he start back up where he left off? If yes, it’ll be the first time he’s taken three premier class podiums in a row.
For Rossi, it’s the opposite – with three DNFs prefacing an eighth place in Germany, the ‘Doctor’ needs to bounce back and turn it around. But his CV at Brno is a good one, with a win in every category he’s raced there – including five in the premier class. After such a stellar start to the season, can Rossi come back out swinging for round two?
Brno was the scene of Valentino Rossi’s first ever victory, back in 1996
Then there’s the fight for top Independent Team rider. Jack Miller (Pramac Racing) currently leads it by virtue of consistency and that impressive podium earlier in the year, but he’s only three-points ahead of rookie sensation Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT).
Jack Miller – Le Mans 2019
Quartararo is another looking to bounce back at Brno but only from one mistake in Germany – incredibly, his first DNF caused by a crash – and if his form so far in 2019 hasn’t been quite ominous enough, he’ll now be much more recovered from the arm pump surgery that nevertheless didn’t hold him back from the podium. At full power, Quartararo will doubtless be bothering the field for more than the accolade of top Independent Team rider or Rookie of the Year. Brno, beware.
Fabio Quartararo
“Brno is a track I really like, because it’s fast, it has fun uphill changes of direction, and not so many straights. I’ve been able to have some rest over the break to help to heal my arm and shoulder, and I’ve also been training hard ready for the rest of the season. My arm and shoulder feels good now, and I’ve been doing some motocross to confirm it. I’m really looking forward to seeing how it’ll be during a race weekend again. My expectation will be the same as in the past few races, inside the top eight. We also know that we can be really fast in qualifying, so we can expect even better from that.”
Fabio Quartararo
Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda Castrol), however, will want to be one of those making that as difficult as possible. The Brit is equal on points with Quartararo and his unforgettable first win came at Brno in 2016 as Crutchlow was impeccable in difficult conditions – so he’s another for whom the Czech venue holds good memories. He also took his second podium of the season in Germany despite recovering from a cycling mishap and is another who will be in much better shape heading into the second half. A podium contender? Don’t doubt it.
Cal Crutchlow – Sachsenring Round 9 – MotoGP 2019
The fight throughout the top ten has been tight this year and the likes of Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu), Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) and Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) will all be gunning to remain key presences in the battle, with all having taken some top finishes in 2019 so far.
And what of Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) and teammate Andrea Iannone? And they’ll also have someone else to contend with: Stefan Bradl, Honda test rider, who replaces the absent and recovering Jorge Lorenzo at the Repsol Honda Team. The German has put in some solid rides and could cause the odd headache in the fight for Q2 and good points.
Red Bull KTM Tech3 with Miguel Oliveira and Hafizh Syahrin are eager to restart the season and can’t wait to develop the new project further in the latter half of season 2019.
Hervé Poncharal – Red Bull KTM Tech3 Team Manager
“With the Czech Grand Prix coming up, we at Red Bull KTM Tech3 are ready to open the second chapter of the 2019 MotoGP season. I believe and I have checked with our riders and our staff, that everybody seems to feel well rested and has made a very good use of this summer break. If we restart on the level we were in Germany, where Miguel was very strong – although he had unfortunate crash at start – I believe we can be quite competitive. I also know that KTM did some tests with test team and hopefully we could have an even more competitive bike. These two GPs back to back in Czech Republic and of course more important for us the Austrian GP, plus the test on Monday in Brno are a busy, but important moment of the season. We are really eager and impatient to arrive there! Brno is a great circuit and has a nice layout, fitting well to riders and machines. Although the break was more than welcome after Germany and a tough first part of the year, we are ready to come back and see our level compared to the rest of the field. We want to give the best possibilities to Miguel and also Hafizh, who at the moment has an uncertain future due to the official announcement that we will have Brad Binder with us next year. We just can’t wait to be reunited all together at Tech3, chat about our summer break and focus on the restart of the very important second part of the 2019 season.”
Miguel Oliveira
As we head for Brno for the 50th time, we’re back in business for 2019, with ten races remaining and 250 points on the table. Healed, reset and fired up to go racing again, the field is deep and gunning for glory…with everything far from decided. Another twist could be just around the corner….
The recent launch of the Northern Talent Cup has spread KTM’s influence wider into the foundations of road racing and further increased the credibility of the newest manufacturer to join the MotoGP entry list.
KTM recently announced providing the RC4R for the 2020 Northern Talent Cup
The Northern Talent Cup will draw 24 riders in 2020 between the ages of 12 and 17 for a seven round, one-make, cost-effective series with at least two of the events taking place alongside MotoGP fixtures. The scheme will compliment the other elements in Dorna’s development structure but with a firm emphasis on junior prospects from northern and central Europe. KTM will supply the 250cc four-stroke KTM RC4R that will be set and locked for several years in terms of technical specification.
The Northern Talent Cup solidifies the base of the pyramid from 2020 (the initiative replaces the ADAC Junior Cup powered by KTM where the KTM RC390 Cup bike was used) and where the levels begin.
2020 Northern Talent Cup – KTM RC4R
Moving up from the Northern Talent Cup riders will be able to expect the RC 250 R in the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup, which brings the bright and best young talent even closer to the tech of Grand Prix.
By the time riders might consider FIM CEV Moto3 Junior World Championship and the last ‘examination’ before the FIM World Championship then they will already be very familiar with the KTM RC4 currently used by 15 racers in Moto3. The RC12 in Moto2 is steered by nine athletes, while four have chosen the RC16 at the peak of the sport: MotoGP.
2020 Northern Talent Cup KTM RC4R
KTM hold three titles in road racing (2012, 2013 and 2016 in Moto3 with Sandro Cortese, Maverick Viñales and Brad Binder respectively) that take a valuable place in the 302 already won in all FIM disciplines by the factory from Mattighofen.
With the fresh investment into the Northern Talent Cup KTM make another statement in their belief, passion and value towards prototype racing and their role in the future for years to come.
2020 Northern Talent Cup launch conference
Pit Beirer – KTM Motorsports Director
“As we mentioned at the launch of the Northern Talent Cup in Sachsenring recently we are proud of what we have been able to contribute to the world of road racing so far and in normal KTM style, when we set our eyes on something we like to ‘go for it’. We already have a strong base thanks to the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup but the Northern Talent Cup allows us to go even closer to the beginning for many riders who want to be racers, and for families that want to start the dream but wonder how to make it work. For us it means a truly great stretch down through the prototypes and to that base machinery that might let the Espargaros and Zarcos of tomorrow start their journey. For a company like us – that takes such a big pride in our racing – there is no better feeling than watching that progression and helping it happen.”
2019 represents the third season for KTM and their Red Bull-backed teams in MotoGP and in rapid time the KTM RC16 has sliced race deficits to Grand Prix-winning rivals substantially. The motorcycle, in the hands of Red Bull KTM’s Pol Espargaro, has already crested the MotoGP podium and continues to inch closer to repeating the distinction in the foreseeable future.
Pol Espargaro
But while KTM may be relative ‘new guys’ to the premier class the factory has been accomplishing feats in Grand Prix and feeding elite talent into the upper echelons of the sport for almost two decades.
Firstly their supply of RC 250 R machinery to the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup from 2012 (previously providing 125cc two-stroke motorcycles from 2007) has helped over 180 riders from more than 30 countries sample the high-profile series on international FIM World Championship spec circuits and twenty of the alumni are currently competing in either Moto3, Moto2 or MotoGP.
The ‘Rookies’ contest has amassed over 150 races in 13 seasons and is still the pinnacle ‘feeder’ into Moto3. The very first champion, Johann Zarco, is Red Bull KTM’s third representative in MotoGP.
Johann Zarco
KTM previously excelled in the old 125cc and 250cc divisions between 2003-2008 where their two-stroke technology helped athletes like Casey Stoner and Marc Marquez to the initial chequered flags of their careers.
In their first entry to Moto3 in 2012 (after dipping out of 125s in 2009) KTM snared the title with their RC 250 GP in the hands of Sandro Cortese and have remained protagonists ever since with stars like Jack Miller, Miguel Oliveira and Brad Binder shining; the last two names being the first racers to make the full climb in KTM colours from the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies through the stages up into MotoGP and passing through the capable climes of long-term partners Red Bull KTM Ajo.
Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup
The ‘ladder’ was made complete with Moto2 (thanks again to the Ajo framework) and MotoGP participation in 2017: that same year was the ultimate milestone as KTM took two places on the premier class grid.
Less than two years on another landmark was dropped in the Grand Prix story thanks to the alliance with Red Bull KTM Tech3 for 2019. Partnership with one of the best satellite teams in the history of the sport permitted four RC16s to echo through the paddock and allow a significant acceleration in R&D and development. Amplification of the test team with KTM stalwart Mika Kallio and Dani Pedrosa accumulating essential non-race mileage was another noteworthy deed.
Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup
For the third year in a row the entire scope of KTM’s prototype efforts across the divisions will be in full evidence at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Austria on August 9-11.
MotoGP Schedule (AEST)
