MOTOGP ROUND 14, ARAGON, SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 19

Arai’s Dani Pedrosa claims second place and Cal Crutchlow breaks into top 10!

DANI PEDROSA, REPSOL HONDA
Race Position: 2nd           Championship Position: 4th 

“I HAD SOME FUN!”
Dani Pedrosa finished eight seconds behind his Repsol Honda team-mate Casey Stoner to claim yet another second place at the Grand Prix of Aragon. Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo took the last podium position, but could not match the dominance of the Honda riders.

Dani Pedrosa

“We already saw in practice that Casey was very fast here and it was also like this in the race. I was losing some tenths in the first sector and I was unable to reduce the gap in the other parts of the lap. The second half of the race I was sliding all the time and I had some fun, but it was a shame not to be closer to Casey; I had many problems with the rear tyre for the whole race. My priority was to control the gap to Spies and Jorge in the final laps and get another podium. We've been second in the last three races, which is not so bad, but we want to keep improving in the coming races”

CAL CRUTCHLOW, MONSTER YAMAHA TECH 3
Race Position: 9th              Championship Position: 13th

“I GAINED A LOT OF EXPERIENCE TODAY RIDING WITH VALENTINO…”
Cal Crutchlow quickly found his pace from the start after losing time in the braking zone at the first corner and his charge into the top 10 kicked off when he claimed 11th place from Colin Edwards on the fourth lap. He then launched an immediate attack on Hiroshi Aoyama and Toni Elias, passing both with masterful overtakes to claim ninth on lap six. Valentino Rossi then dropped the British rider back into 10th on lap seven. From that stage of the race until its conclusion 16 laps later, Crutchlow was involved in the most exciting battle on track in front of a windswept crowd of over 63,000 fans. He passed Rossi and Aoyama on lap 18 and despite coming under intense pressure from the more experienced duo, he managed to keep them at bay to claim his best result since the Catalunya race in early June. The seven valuable points collected move Crutchlow two places up the World Championship rankings into 13th position.

“I’m really pleased with how the race went because I was back inside the top 10 and having a really good and enjoyable fight with two of the best riders on the grid, who have had a lot of success in Grand Prix racing. It is a shame that I lost a couple of places at the first corner because I’m sure with a better start I could have been battling with Bautista and Hayden. But to hold off Valentino and Hiroshi at the end took a massive effort. I think if they’d started the final lap in front of me on the straight it would have been hard for me to slipstream. I gained a lot of experience today riding with Valentino and that has given me a lot of confidence for the next few races.”
COLIN EDWARDS, MONSTER YAMAHA TECH 3
Race Position: 13th              Championship Position: 9th

“WE WERE PRETTY MUCH CHASING OUR TAILS ALL WEEKEND.”
The race proved to be a difficult affair for Colin Edwards, who struggled to find the right set-up to give him the rear grip he needed to push with his normal confidence. He made more weight distribution modifications to his Yamaha YZR-M1 ahead of the race, but the tweaks didn’t have the desired effect and he finished in 13th.

“That certainly wasn’t a great way to celebrate my 150th race in MotoGP. We tried to get the bike right all weekend but we were pretty much chasing our tails the whole time. We were trying to improve the rear grip to compensate for the speed we lose on the straight and for the race; we altered the weight distribution again. We put a lot of weight on the rear but it never really worked. After about five laps, the grip just went down and I wasn’t expecting it to drop off that quickly. Once that happened, I couldn’t stay in that group I was in and I just went backwards. If somebody gave me 10 million Euros to do a 1.51 right now, there is no way I could do it. The last two races have been pretty tough...”

NICKY HAYDEN, MARLBORO DUCATI
Race Position: 7th          Championship Position: 7th

“WE HOPED THAT WE COULD PUT UP A BETTER FIGHT.”
Nicky Hayden started very well from the third row and finished in seventh place after a great battle with Hector Barbera, that lasted right until the final corner.

“I had a good start and was decent at the very beginning. We knew tyre wear was going to be an issue, and we had a drop in performance after the first couple of laps. It lost grip, and I also wasn’t able to load the bike well for turning. I was okay in parts of the track, but compared to the fast guys, I was losing time in the last corner. I hoped to hang onto the second group for a while, but it just wasn’t possible. I’d like to have fought with Bautista on the last lap because he was on our pace, but Barbera and I were going back and forth, which hurt both of us and let him escape. It’s unfortunate, because coming here we hoped that we could put up a better fight. Still, this is the first race I’ve finished normally with the GP11.1, since at Indy I re-entered just to get points. Hopefully that will help us to get some data and be better off in the future.”

Hiroshi Aoyama piloted his San Carlo Honda Gresini to 11th place, and remains 10th in the Championship. Karel Abraham DNF’d his Cardion AB Motoracing Ducati and drops back to 13th overall in the standings.

Round 15 of MotoGP is at Motegi, Sunday October 2.

For more news and  information on Arai Helmets please visit www.whyarai.co.uk

MOTOGP ROUND 13, MISANO, SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 4

Hot and heavy conditions for Arai riders in Italy, but Pedrosa makes podium again.

DANI PEDROSA, REPSOL HONDA

Race Position: 2^nd                       Championship Position: 4^th 

“I WAS ABLE TO IMPROVE MY TIMES LAP BY LAP…”

The twenty-eight lap GP Aperol di San Marino e Riviera di Rimini at Misano was a tough one, held in 62% humidity. Jorge Lorenzo took an early lead from the front row with Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa following closely behind. The Australian rider maintained the gap to Lorenzo at under three tenths of a second for the first ten laps, but he was unable to match Lorenzo’s pace, who gradually pulled away. Stoner tried to keep a distance to third placed Pedrosa, but was unable to fend off his Spanish team-mate who passed him on lap twenty two. Dani was happy enough with another podium, but admitted his bike set-up was far from perfect.

“I’m a little disappointed with the race because the bike didn’t feel as good as it was in practice. We wanted to make a change to the suspension to improve it a little but we had the opposite effect, sometimes it happens. From the first lap, I realised I couldn’t keep up with Jorge and Casey, at the beginning the bike was closing the front and then it was sliding in the rear. Jorge had a perfect race today, but I was able improve my times lap by lap and catch Casey. I overtook him and maintained my rhythm to the finish with another second place in two weeks, which is not so bad. It’s been two very demanding races in a row and this one in particular was perhaps the toughest of the season so far, as the circuit is challenging with so many hard braking areas and it has been very hot again, also after Indy it has been difficult to recover from the jet lag and fatigue.”

CAL CRUTCHLOW, MONSTER YAMAHA TECH 3

Race Position: 10^th                                       Championship Position: 15^th

“THAT IS A GOOD BOOST FOR MY CONFIDENCE!”

Super-fit Cal Crutchlow needed to call on all his reserves of energy to claim his first top ten finish since he was seventh at the Catalunya round. He was inside the top 10 on only the third lap, navigating pockets of light rain that had started to fall on sections of the track while the riders formed on the grid. Hector Barbera dropped him back to ninth on lap 25 but Crutchlow refused to settle for 10th position and launched a sustained attack on the Spaniard in the closing stages. Crutchlow gave his maximum effort but couldn’t find a way by Barbera, who clinched ninth by just over 0.2s.

  

“I am really pleased with the race and it is my first top 10 for a long time, so that is a good boost for my confidence. Finishing 10th was three places better than my qualifying position, so it was a positive outcome. It could have been a slightly better result but I just got pipped by Barbera right at the end. I did everything I could to get by him but I had a little issue with the rear tyre. Corner entry was really difficult at the end, so I didn’t feel like I could really push and have a go to overtake him with any confidence. His bike had a little more speed than me, so I just couldn’t get close enough to have a go. It was an unbelievably hard race for the body too. The humidity was incredible and I’m glad I do so many training miles on my bicycle because it was a real case of survival of the fittest out there. It was good that we gained a lot more experience and got another decent finish and now I can look forward to building on this result at the Motorland Aragon.”

  

COLIN EDWARDS, MONSTER YAMAHA TECH 3

Race Position: 13^th                                     Championship Position: 9^th

“I’VE GOT NO EXCUSES…”

The race turned out to be a difficult experience for Colin Edwards, who battled with factory Yamaha rider Ben Spies for the first eight laps, with the 37-year-old experiencing a severe arm pump issue from lap 21 onwards. The demanding humidity and hard braking zones at the 2.626 miles circuit only made the issue worse for Edwards, who rode on despite the considerable discomfort. His courage and determination was rewarded with 13th position, a result which retains Edwards’ position as the leading non-factory rider in the standings heading to the Motorland Aragon in Spain.

  

“I’ve got no excuses, today’s result was nothing to do with anything else but me. I’ve no idea but for whatever reason, I just always ride so tense at this track. I kept telling myself that I needed to relax and calm down and then on the grid there’s a few rain drops in the air, so that immediately means you can’t help but be tense because you’ve no idea how hard it is coming down on other parts of the track. I pushed as hard as I could for the first ten laps and was pretty close to Ben (Spies) and then it hit me like a pile of bricks. I got such bad arm pump I couldn’t feel the front brake or the handlebars and by the end I was just moving my arms in the direction I thought they needed to go. It got to a point where almost pulled in. But I gritted my teeth and thought I could probably get a couple of points, which we did. But it was a complete nightmare.”

NICKY HAYDEN, MARLBORO DUCATI

Race Position: DNF                    Championship Position: 7^th

“BAM! I WAS DOWN!”

Nicky Hayden had a tough qualifying session and started the race from 15^th on the grid, with plenty of ground to make up. It wasn’t to be, however and after a good start he fell while exiting Turn 15 on the third lap, and wasn’t able to return to the track.

 “It was obviously a disappointing race. The team did a good job, as they made a couple of changes overnight, and in warm up I was able to go a couple tenths faster than in qualifying, with a good rhythm. I thought we had a better chance for the race. It was raining a little bit at first, which is normally good for our bike. I got a decent start, felt good, and was going to take a few chances to try to get up as far as I could. Then I lost the front on the exit of Turn 15 and—bam!—I was down. We looked at the data, and I’m not really sure why I crashed. We were tip-toeing because of the rain, so maybe the left side of the tyre wasn’t quite up to temperature, although it was still rider error.”

Hiroshi Aoyama rode his San Carlo Honda Gresini to 11^th place, and remains 10^th in the Championship. Karel Abraham finished on his Cardion AB Motoracing Ducati just behind Aoyama and also stays 13^th overall in the standings.

Round 14 of MotoGP is at Aragon, Sunday September 18.

For more news and information on Arai please visit www.whyarai.co.uk

MOTOGP ROUND 12, INDIANAPOLIS, SUNDAY AUGUST 28

Arai riders bag points in Indy, Pedrosa scores second place.

DANI PEDROSA, REPSOL HONDA

Race Position: 2^nd                          Championship Position: 5^th 

“WE ARE VERY HAPPY!”

Dani Pedrosa rode superbly at the Indy Brickyard to finish second behind Casey Stoner. Pedrosa made one of his trademark flying starts and took an early lead, however Stoner passed him on lap seven and checked out while Pedrosa maintained second position comfortably, fending off the Yamahas of Jorge Lorenzo and Ben Spies.  Spies went on to pass his team-mate to claim the last step on the rostrum.

“We are very happy with second place for several reasons. After the qualifying session, we had to work hard to reduce the one-second gap we had from Casey, it wasn’t normal to be so far away from him. I knew that my race pace wouldn’t be as fast as Casey’s, but the team did a very good job, helped me to feel more comfortable with the front and I was able to find a good rhythm, just 3-4 tenths slower than Casey. It was a tough race being alone, but I focused on my lap times and I made my best lap at the end, so I’m happy with my performance and the bike. To get 20 points is not so bad after the crash in Brno and I look forward to going to Misano to try and take another step forward.”

CAL CRUTCHLOW, MONSTER YAMAHA TECH 3

Race Position: 11^th                            Championship Position: 15^th

“IT WAS IMPORTANT TO FINISH THE RACE…”

Cal Crutchlow’s reward for a weekend in which he worked tirelessly to improve the front-end feeling with his Yamaha YZR-M1 was his best finish since the Catalunya race in early June. He maintained a consistent pace throughout the race having led Loris Capirossi, Toni Elias, Randy de Puniet and Hiroshi Aoyama in a frantic opening few laps. A series of strong laps in the final stages saw him snatch 11th from Marco Simoncelli on the final lap to end his recent run of disappointing results.

“Firstly I want to say a big thanks to all my guys in the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team. They never gave up all weekend, even when we were struggling a little bit and it might sound silly, but I don’t think any of us in the garage have ever been so pleased to get an 11th place. After the bad recent run it was important to finish the race and I did that. The result wasn’t the best but my speed at the end of the race was really good and I’m happy about that, so there are a lot of positives to take to Misano. At the end of the race I was lapping faster than Jorge Lorenzo. I was a long way behind him but that still gives me a lot of encouragement. I’ve needed to finish races to gain some experience and I’m glad we did because I learned a lot this afternoon.”

COLIN EDWARDS, MONSTER YAMAHA TECH 3

Race Position: 7^th                           Championship Position: 8^th

“I NEEDED FRED FLINTSONE BEHIND GIVING ME A PUSH!”

Colin Edwards, wearing a patriotically painted one-off Arai RX-7 GP, made a fast start from the second row of the grid but as the pack jostled for position in the tight first section of the 2.62 mile track, Edwards was bumped back to eighth. He was involved in an exciting early battle with Alvaro Bautista, Ben Spies and Valentino Rossi before the field began to stretch out at the halfway stage of the race. With temperatures reaching close to 30 degrees, Edwards was left in a personal duel with Bautista until lap 23 when a big front-end slide cost him crucial time. With his front tyre starting to push more and more, Edwards decided to slow his pace to secure seventh place.

“I thought I got a fantastic start but the problem is the Yamaha is lacking a bit of grunt. I needed Fred Flintstone behind giving me a push to go faster, so I had a few people come by me on the run to the first corner. The first few laps I felt I could go faster but with Bautista sitting in front of me, I’d get close and then coming out of the corner he would just grab a few metres on me. In the twisty stuff at the end of the lap I was gaining it all back and at the last corner I almost ran into him. I really wanted to beat Bautista but he started to ride really well in the second half of the race. I was on his back wheel and looking for an opportunity to make an overtake but I lost the front at the end of the back straight and that was a warning just to back off and take seventh. The front tyre lost a fair bit of grip in the last few laps though I wasn’t the only one to have a problem. But I was top non-factory rider, I got another top ten and I moved up another place in the Championship, so it wasn’t a bad afternoon's work.”

NICKY HAYDEN, MARLBORO DUCATI

Race Position: 14^th                         Championship Position: 7^th

“WE THOUGHT THE SOFT FRONT TYRE COULD BE A GOOD OPTION.”

Nicky Hayden, who like Edwards was wearing a one-off Arai – this one celebrating his sister’s wedding – got a great start at what is his true ‘home’ race and was riding strongly in the top four. But the decision to use a soft front tyre didn’t pay off, and after seven laps he steadily lost ground before finishing in fourteenth place.

“It was a really tough day. We thought the soft front tyre could be a good option for the race, but unfortunately it only worked for seven or eight laps. Then I began to steadily lose ground until it even began shaking on the straightaways, and I had to come in. Since you’ve got to finish to get points, I went back out, and it was actually worth getting two points. I got a good start and was up front the first few laps, and that was the first time I put up a real fight in the dry all season. My bike felt fast in a straight line, and with this new gearbox, I could get out of that last corner and keep guys in the draft early on. We’re on our first race with this bike, and maybe we don’t know enough about what it needs.”

Hiroshi Aoyama took his San Carlo Honda Gresini to 9^th place, and is 10^th in the Championship. Karel Abraham DNF’d his Cardion AB Motoracing Ducati and moves to 13^th overall in the standings.

For more information on Arai helmets please visit www.whyarai.co.uk

MOTOGP ROUND 11, BRNO, SUNDAY AUGUST 14TH

DANI PEDROSA, REPSOL HONDA
Race Position: DNF Championship Position: 5th

“IT WAS A SHAME. I LOST THE FRONT AND CRASHED!”
Under similar circumstances to the last race at Laguna Seca, Casey Stoner managed to turn a difficult weekend into a win without opposition in a race that he led from the third lap, when Dani Pedrosa, after taking the lead, lost the front and crashed out of the race, luckily without injury. With the absence of Pedrosa, who had been the fastest man throughout the weekend and qualified in pole position, Stoner had no rival and set a steady pace to cross the finish line 6.5 seconds ahead of his teammate Andrea Dovizioso. Marco Simoncelli claimed the final podium position, his first in MotoGP.

“It was a shame. I lost the front and I crashed, that was it! I was not even pushing so hard, I just took the lead and, well I may have tilted the bike too much, maybe the tyre was not warm enough, still I don’t know. The problem is that I’ve wasted an important race that we had prepared for very well. I have to thank the team for the bike they gave me this weekend, it worked really well, and I will tell them I’m sorry for the mistake. It hurts because we were well prepared and finally the race was quite slow compared to the pace we did in practice sessions, but we cannot do anything, just think towards the next one and try to get back on top.”

CAL CRUTCHLOW, MONSTER YAMAHA TECH 3
Race Position: DNF Championship Position: 15th

“ANOTHER CRASH IS THE LAST THING I NEEDED…”
Brno ended in unhappy circumstances for Cal Crutchlow; the 25-year-old was optimistic he could battle for a top 10 result, but his race was ended prematurely by a front-end crash at the first corner on lap seven after he’d just passed Hector Barbera for 10th. Crutchlow was able to walk away uninjured but was frustrated that his hard work throughout the weekend went unrewarded.

“Nobody is more disappointed than me with what happened because another crash is the last thing I needed. I am currently having a difficult run of races but all I can do is get my head down, work hard with my crew and try and put things right in the future. At the moment I am struggling with grip in the front-end and we seem to have been going round in circles a little bit to find a solution. Today I was off-brake and accelerating at the first corner when I lost the front. The last person who wants to crash is me, but I can only do my best. I am sorry to my Team and Yamaha but I am sure they realise that I am trying as hard as I can to get a good result. We’ve got a test tomorrow and that is important because we can work on the bike without the time constraints of practice. I still believe in myself and I am determined to get a good result in Indianapolis.”

COLIN EDWARDS, MONSTER YAMAHA TECH 3
Race Position: 8th Championship Position: 9th


“IT WAS NOT AN EASY RACE.”
Colin Edwards started and finished the Czech Republic MotoGP in eighth position, once again finishing the leading non-factory rider. The 37-year-old rode a determined race throughout the 22-lap encounter, which took place under cloudy but warm skies in front of a massive crowd of 155,400 at the Brno circuit. He spent almost the entire race in close pursuit of fellow American Nicky Hayden’s factory Ducati machine; despite launching numerous attempts to up his pace and get within striking distance of the 2006 World Champion, Edwards was frustrated in his attempt to seize a hard-fought seventh position.

“I said yesterday that if I finished in the same position that I started that I would be pretty happy. I guess I am pretty happy but it was not an easy race. In the warm-up I had zero traction, so we made a small geometry change for the race and it was definitely better. I had more grip but the lap time was the same. All I kept seeing on my lap timer on the dashboard was 58.5, 58.5. It must have been like that for about 14 laps in a row and at one point I thought it had broken. I just couldn’t go much faster and it seems we are lacking traction compared to the others. I was spinning the rear tyre a lot and right now our bike feels a little bit unforgiving. I was right on the back of Nicky for pretty much the whole race but I couldn’t do anything with him. Our lap times just didn’t deviate at all, so I couldn’t get close enough to him. It wasn’t like he had more grip than me, but because we were doing the same pace I didn’t get close enough to attack him."

NICKY HAYDEN, MARLBORO DUCATI
Race Position: 7th Championship Position: 7th


“IT’S BEEN A REALLY TOUGH WEEKEND.”
Nicky Hayden finished up at Brno in seventh position, behind his team mate Valentino Rossi in sixth, but much closer to the leaders than at any other time this season. The American, however, was looking forward more to the following day’s test sessions, where he could focus on new parts for this year’s Ducati GP11 with, obviously an eye on next year’s 1000cc GP12 machine.

“It’s been a really tough weekend right from when we got the bikes out of the crates from Laguna, but we chipped away at it. The guys have worked extremely hard, and we got better and better. We even made a change after the morning warm-up that actually helped a bit, although I didn’t really understand it the first few laps, and the group was already gone. I held on and got seventh, which isn’t fantastic. Still, the gap to the front is the closest it’s been this season, which is positive. The bike was really good in a few places, but I was slow in change of direction and couldn’t get the bike to finish the corner and was spinning the tyre a lot. We also need to understand why I had the slowest top speed. It would’ve been nice to hang onto that front group a bit longer, but Colin pushed me all the way to the end. The work’s far from over, because we’ve got a big day testing. Valentino tried some new parts on the front that they seem real happy about, so hopefully I can try those.”

Hiroshi Aoyama steered his San Carlo Honda Gresini to 9th place, and lies 10th in the Championship. Karel Abraham unfortunately crashed his Cardion AB Motoracing Ducati out of his home race; he remains 12th overall in the standings.

Round 12 of MotoGP is at Indianapolis, Sunday August 28th.

For more information on Arai helmets please visit www.whyarai.co.uk

ARAI AT GEORGE WHITE MEGA FACTORY OUTLET OPENING IN BOLTON

Discount motorcycle clothing giant to launch massive new clothing super-store on Saturday 13th August with huge launch party with stars and mad one-day only deals.

George White will be opening the doors of their latest superstore - their first in the north of England - with a huge splash this summer.

Known for amazing deals and an equally amazing range of top name motorcycle brands at stunning low prices George White will offer the first 500 people to spend over £10 at the Bolton store a fabulous goodie-bag worth £50, absolutely FREE!

Visitors will be able to buy boots, gloves, Goretex jackets and full race suits from low, low prices!

As with all George White events, the day will rammed with wall-to-wall stars and entertainment - all absolutely Free!

Riders from the World and British Championships will be present to meet fans and answer questions fired at them by Eurosport's Jack Burnicle. Castrol Honda's Jonathan Rea will be present alongside eight-time TT winning legend Ian Hutchinson. Alex and Sam Lowes will also make an appearance and talk about their mad-busy 2011 season as well as BSB and BSS stars; Steve Brogan (Jentin Racing Honda), Tommy Hill (Swan Yamaha), Gary Mason (Colchester Kawasaki), Billy McConnell (Oxford Tag Triumph) and Steve Plater (Padgetts Honda)

World Factory Gas Gas trials rider, Michael Brown will be performing five gravity-defying shows during the day and there will also be a Formula 1 driving simulator on hand during the day that will test the professional riders four-wheel skills against the clock.
Arai’s Race Service will be on hand all day to fit and service helmets and offer technical advice.

During the day, the famous George White no-reserve auction will be back with a morning and afternoon session with eye-watering bargains and one very lucky customer will win a bike of their dreams for a year - in the free to enter prize drawer.

Add in the MCN girls, the Hornee jeans girls, and the famous George White Balloon its obvious that the George White Mega factory outlet opening on Saturday 13th August at 156 Bradshawgate, Bolton BL2 1BA will the THE place to be.

WSBK ROUND 9, SILVERSTONE, SUNDAY JULY 31

Arai’s Hopkins bags Superpole, Haslam tantalisingly close to a podium

LEON HASLAM, BMW MOTORRAD MOTORSPORT
Race One: 4th                                  Race Two: 8th                 Championship Position: 5th

“I WAS REALLY PUSHING FOR THE PODIUM”
Silverstone played host to a dramatic World Superbike round, with Leon Haslam coming close to clinching a rostrum finish in front of his home crowd, wearing a special one-off paintjob on his Arai RX-7 GP helmet in support of his chosen charity, SPARKS (Sports Aiding medical Research for Kids). Leon makes a contribution to the charity that is directly linked to his racing performance, and gives SPARKS £10 for every World Championship point he scores in 2011.

Race one started promisingly for Haslam, who made a good start from 9th on the grid to join the leading group in 6th in the early laps. As the laps tumbled, seven riders fell victim to the tricky Silverstone circuit, but Haslam crossed the line in 4th position after fighting hard with pole sitter John Hopkins and Marco Melandri. Top honours went to championship leader Carlos Checa. Race two saw a difficult opening lap for Haslam and he dropped back to 10th; but he continued to push and, at half race distance, managed to take seventh position from Fabrizio. However, with a four second gap to the leaders to contend with and a charging Guintoli chasing him down, Leon still faced a battle to the end, eventually being forced to settle for 8th position. But it was to be the same three from race one who took to the podium with Checa doing the double, followed by Laverty and Melandri.

“In race one I was really happy with the start, I was able to get myself into the position I wanted to be in and run with the leaders. I was really pushing for the podium and battled to keep with Melandri but I was really struggling to pass him and remain in front. I was happy to be running close to the front and the lap times were OK, I just couldn’t quite get on the podium. In race two I was having a few issues with the bike and was forced to adapt my riding style to try and ride around it. I got to the point where I was able to run consistent lap times but by then the leaders had gone. Now we have the summer break so I am just looking forward to spending some time at home and preparing in the gym for the next races.”

JONATHAN REA, CASTROL HONDA
Race One: DNS                               Race Two: DNS              Championship Position: 12th

Castrol Honda rider Jonathan Rea remained on the sidelines for his home round of the WSBK championship at Silverstone as his right arm, broken at Misano during morning warm up on race day, June 12 continues to heal.

Samsung Crescent Racing's John Hopkins raced to fifth and seventh places as a ‘Wild-Card’ entry at Silverstone. Following his victory in Superpole – where he set a new lap record – the British Superbike Championship contender started both races from pole, going in full of fight and dicing for the lead in the early stages of race one. But with a riding style that dictates use of the rear brake, disaster struck mid-way through for Hopkins when he suffered a rear brake issue, effectively ending hopes of a podium finish – but he still finished the race in an impressive fifth place. In race two, Hopkins was at the sharp-end of the action, battling hard with WSBK title contenders Marco Melandri, Max Biaggi and Eugene Laverty. He thoroughly enjoyed his day’s racing:

“Boy that was a lot of fun. The first race was a bit of a disappointment with the rear brake pad issues, but I managed to alter my corner-entry and keep my focus to bag that fifth place. Race two felt better, but to keep with those factory bikes you really need to make up time on the brakes and on the gas out of the turns. I knew that would kill my tyre, so it was no surprise in the closing stages of race two when we started losing the times. Overall, I’m really pumped about this weekend. I’ve bagged my first-ever World SBK pole position, mixed it at the sharp-end and enjoyed the racing immensely. A huge thanks to the whole team.”

Noriyuki Haga and his PATA Aprilia crashed out of race one and DNF’d in race two he remains 9th in the championship. Jakub Smrz and his Effenbert Liberty Racing Ducati didn’t make the end of race one, but finished 11th in the second outing, moving him back one place to 13th overall in the title chase.

Kawasaki Motocard.com rider Broc Parkes found the World Supersport competition tough in the early laps, with top names like Robin Harms, Sam Lowes and Gino Rea crashing or running off the circuit. The race settled into a pattern of Parkes vying for a top six finish which he achieved and after the race he was pragmatic, if a little unhappy with the performance:

“We struggled in the race big time and didn’t have the pace all weekend. It was damage limitation really, a matter of seeing what I could do in the race. For some reason our set-up is not working the way we want it. I could do the same consistent lap time but to have the pace to get to the front I could not pass people. Sixth was not so good for our championship push but we came out of here with some points and we have to improve and go into the last part of the season and see what we can do…”

The next Word Superbike championship round is at Nurburgring, on September 4.

For more information on Arai helmets please visit www.whyarai.co.uk

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MOTOGP ROUND 10, LAGUNA SECA, SUNDAY JULY 24

Arai riders race hard in California, Pedrosa makes podium again

DANI PEDROSA, REPSOL HONDA
Race Position: 3rd          Championship Position: 4th 

“I WAS VERY TIRED, ALMOST FINISHED…”
Dani Pedrosa started from third on the grid, and settled into second place in the early stages. His team mate Casey Stoner passed him, as Dani soon started suffering from fatigue and fitness problems; Stoner then chased down Jorge Lorenzo for nine laps and wasted no time in passing him around the outside of turn one on lap twenty seven. After being passed by Stoner, Pedrosa retained third position comfortably. He knew his fitness would be tested at a track that demands a huge physical effort, but has now moved above Valentino Rossi in the Championship standings to 4th position with 110 points.

“I’m very happy with another podium, the second after my come back from injury. I could have predicted this result before coming to Laguna because I knew it would be physically very tough for me and it has been great to keep up with the pace of Casey and Jorge in these past two races. Today, by the middle of the race, I was very tired, almost finished, I couldn’t get my left arm strong enough and here at this track you don’t rest for a moment, so I had to drop. It’s been quite difficult to set up the bike this weekend, I had a lack of grip generally, but the team worked very well. Now we have some holidays and it will be good for me to have some days off to rest and relax my muscles and be back training to arrive fully fit in Brno.”

CAL CRUTCHLOW, MONSTER YAMAHA TECH 3
Race Position: DNF              Championship Position:  15th

“ALL OF US ARE PUSHING ON THE LIMIT”
Cal Crutchlow’s debut at the spectacular Laguna Seca circuit was unfortunately a short experience, his hopes of a return to the top 10 ended by an early crash. Starting from the front of the fourth row, Crutchlow was shadowing tenth placed Alvaro Bautista when he lost the front-end of his bike at Turn 2.  The 25-year-old was unhurt in the fourth lap incident but it was a disappointing conclusion to a weekend that had promised much from the 2009 World Supersport champion, after he’d brilliantly got to grips with the 3.610km track.

“I lost the front at the second corner and it was a similar problem to what we’ve been experiencing in recent races. It was fine this morning in cooler conditions but as soon as the track temperature goes up, I have a few problems. Strangely it was only at that corner. It is a shame because I think we had a good pace. Bautista wasn’t getting away from me and he quickly got up to Valentino and Nicky, so I think I could have gone with him and been in that battle. I’m disappointed I didn't finish the race and it is not good for the Championship but I wasn’t the only one to crash today and it shows all of us are pushing on the limit. We have still learned quite a bit this weekend and the bike certainly felt better than it did in the last few races. Now we go to some tracks that I know and I’m looking forward to it because it has been a tough run and I need to recover the form I was showing in the beginning of the season.”

COLIN EDWARDS, MONSTER YAMAHA TECH 3
Race Position: 8th          Championship Position: 8th

“HONESTLY I’M REALLY DISAPPOINTED”
Colin Edwards seized eighth from Hector Barbera exiting the famous Corkscrew section on lap 14, but was already six seconds adrift of the battle for sixth place involving Ducati duo Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden. He was able to run identical lap times as Rossi and double Laguna Seca MotoGP winner Hayden in the middle phase of the race, but was unable to reduce the gap and he opted not to take any unnecessary risks to ensure he collected eight valuable points. The result, which was the 37-year-old’s seventh top ten finish of the campaign, moves him up one place in the overall rankings to consolidate his position as the leading non-factory rider in 2011.

“Honestly I’m really disappointed because I came here for my home race and I expected bigger and better things. I struggled all weekend with the set-up and we made a wrong turn somewhere in the last couple of races that have knocked us out of stride a little bit. This morning we just put in the same setting I ran in last year’s race and that wasn’t great, but at least I felt more comfortable with it than what I’d been running all weekend. It wasn’t the best setting but at least I felt comfortable to a point where I could push for some decent lap times. I just lacked front and rear grip. I’ve never ridden so hard in my life but I was a second off the pace and when Cal went down in front of me, there was no way I could go with Bautista. I just had to be smooth because if I pushed I just ended up going slower. I still moved up in the Championship and got some good points, so now I’m just looking forward to a couple of weeks relaxing to get ready for the final part of the season.”

NICKY HAYDEN, MARLBORO DUCATI
Race Position: 7th         Championship Position: 7th

“I’M NOT GOING TO JUMP UP AND DOWN CELEBRATING 7TH PLACE!”
Nicky Hayden finished his home round in 7th behind his team mate Valentino Rossi. He had good pace and rhythm but ultimately wasn’t fast enough to stay with the leading riders.

“I’ve won this race before, so I’m not going to jump up and down celebrating seventh place. We knew it was going to be tough, and crashing in qualifying didn’t help. I got a decent start, but I didn’t get to go with that second group like I had hoped. It was kind of like the Sachsenring: a good battle with Valentino, but thirty seconds behind the front. Vale was no faster than me, but he’s a racer: he doesn’t make mistakes and give you anything. A couple of times I thought I might be able to go up the inside, but I’m not just going to close my eyes and knock us both down trying for sixth place. We’ll take two weeks off, regroup and go to Brno.”

Hiroshi Aoyama rode his San Carlo Honda Gresini to 10th place, and moves to 9th in the Championship. Karel Abraham bought his Cardion AB Motoracing Ducati home in 11th; he remains 12th overall in the standings.

Round 11 of MotoGP is at Brno, Sunday August 14. (With Hopper!)

For more information on Arai Helmets please visit www.whyarai.co.uk