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Where Is Honda's Pneumatic Engine?
2008-05-07 12:23:00
That is the question which has been echoing around the MotoGP paddock since the start of the season. At Shanghai, the clamor grew to almost deafening levels, after rumors that HRC would ship new versions of the RC212V with pneumatic valves to the Chinese race track, where speed is at an absolute premium. Despite the speculation, the new engine failed to make an appearance, and the chorus of questions grew even louder: Where is Honda's new engine with the pneumatic valves, and when will it turn up. The Italian site MotoGrandPrix.it has a possible answer: the engine is Japan being tested, and will probably be ready for Mugello. According to the Italian news hounds, Honda's veteran test rider and former GP star Tady Okada is spending 3 to 4 days a week testing the bike at Motegi and Suzuka, under the watchful eye of HRC R&D and racing department engineers. The tests show that the reliability of the engine is "good", but whether "good" is good enough remains to be seen. It has long b...

2008 Shanghai MotoGP Race Report - Resurrection
2008-05-05 02:29:00
Throughout the first three races of the 2008 MotoGP season, all the talk has been of the newcomers to the class. Much to the chagrin of MotoGP's old guard. At Shanghai , the old guard struck back.
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2008 Shanghai MotoGP Race Results
2008-05-04 12:13:00
Full results of the 2008 MotoGP Grand Prix of China at Shanghai
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2008 Shanghai Warm Up Results - Stoner On Top In Wet
2008-05-04 09:14:00
11Casey STONERDUCATI2'13.055 246Valentino ROSSIYAMAHA2'13.9710.9160.916 32Dani PEDROSAHONDA2'14.2671.2120.296 421John HOPKINSKAWASAKI2'14.4141.3590.147 54Andrea DOVIZIOSOHONDA2'14.5601.5050.146 615Alex DE ANGELISHONDA2'14.7491.6940.189 77Chris VERMEULENSUZUKI2'15.1582.1030.409 85Colin EDWARDSYAMAHA2'15.4912.4360.333 933Marco MELANDRIDUCATI2'15.6662.6110.175 1013Anthony WESTKAWASAKI2'15.6922.6370.026 1156Shinya NAKANOHONDA2'15.9092.8540.217 1250Sylvain GUINTOLIDUCATI2'15.9762.9210.067 1369Nicky HAYDENHONDA2'15.9762.921313.4 1452James TOSELANDYAMAHA2'16.5743.5190.598 1514Randy DE PUNIETHONDA2'16.9703.9150.396 1665Loris CAPIROSSISUZUKI2'17.0473.9920.077 1748Jorge LORENZOYAMAHA2'20.2847.2293.237 1824Toni ELIASDUCATI2'21.9868.9311.702
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2008 Shanghai Qualifying Practice Report
2008-05-03 15:41:00
Two things were on everyone's mind during qualifying practice at Shanghai on Saturday afternoon. The first was the weather, the sun making conditions hot and sticky for qualifying, while torrential rain is forecast for the race on Sunday. This left the paddock in a quandary as to how to treat the session, whether to look for a dry race setup which may turn out to be irrelevant, or focus on qualifying as close to the front as possible, and hope it rains. In the end, most teams found a compromise, and split the session half and half. The bigger question, however, was whether Jorge Lorenzo could ride with the fractured ankles he suffered after crashing yesterday, and if he did, whether he would be able to keep his perfect streak of poles alive. Lorenzo answered part of that question in the morning's free practice session, riding 21 laps in 3 sessions, to see whether he was physically capable of riding. Though his times were nothing to write home about, the Spanish rookie showed he w...
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2008 Shanghai Qualifying Practice Times Day 2 - Four In A Row For Yamaha
2008-05-03 12:29:00
Full results of the MotoGP Qualifying Practice for the Grand Prix of China at Shanghai
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2008 Shanghai FP3 Times Day 2 - Rossi Fastest Again, Lorenzo Rides Through
2008-05-03 08:40:00
146Valentino ROSSIYAMAHA1'59.690 22Dani PEDROSAHONDA1'59.7380.0480.048 31Casey STONERDUCATI1'59.9080.2180.170 45Colin EDWARDSYAMAHA2'00.1020.4120.194 556Shinya NAKANOHONDA2'00.1410.4510.039 669Nicky HAYDENHONDA2'00.3390.6490.198 765Loris CAPIROSSISUZUKI2'00.3500.6600.011 821John HOPKINSKAWASAKI2'00.5530.8630.203 94Andrea DOVIZIOSOHONDA2'00.6210.9310.068 107Chris VERMEULENSUZUKI2'00.6921.0020.071 1124Toni ELIASDUCATI2'00.7151.0250.023 1214Randy DE PUNIETHONDA2'00.7311.0410.016 1315Alex DE ANGELISHONDA2'00.7511.0610.020 1448Jorge LORENZOYAMAHA2'00.7991.1090.048 1552James TOSELANDYAMAHA2'01.0811.3910.282 1633Marco MELANDRIDUCATI2'01.4761.7860.395 1713Anthony WESTKAWASAKI2'01.4871.7970.011 1850Sylvain GUINTOLIDUCATI2'01.5021.8120.015 Circuit records Fastest Lap: Lap 23 Valentino ROSSI 1'59.690 158.84 Km/h Circuit Record Lap: 2006 Dani PEDROSA 1'59.318 159.335 Km/h Circuit Best Lap: 2007 Valentino ROSSI 1'58.424 160.538 Km/h
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Honda Doesn't Have Pneumatic Valves At Shanghai
2008-05-02 13:09:00
The speculation over over the past few weeks had been intense: would Honda risk their untested pneumatic valve engine at Shanghai , to take advantage of the added top end power it should provide? Now that practice has started, the answer appears to be "no" at least according to Spanish sports daily AS.com. AS asked Dani Pedrosa whether he had the air valve engine, and Pedrosa answered that they did not. "The engine isn't here. It's not ready," the Repsol Honda rider said. "I asked to have the engine once it is ready and working, so we don't have to put it to the test. For the moment, we will have to work with what we have. No deadline has been set, and I don't know when it will be ready. We were supposed to have it to test after Estoril, but there were a few problems which meant it wasn't there". So it looks as if the Repsol Honda men will have to make do with the conventional steel spring engine. That bike isn't doing too badly so far: Although the RC212V was 9km/h slower tha...

2008 Shanghai FP2 Times Day 1 - Stoner Back On Top, But Only Just
2008-05-02 11:11:00
Casey Stoner was the fastest man on track during this afternoon's session, returning to familiar form. But his lead was small, and he had Valentino Rossi and Dani Pedrosa snapping at his heels. The lead swapped several times during the session, but the Australian World Champion eventually came out on top. Further down the field, several riders made remarkable improvements. Biggest surprise so far was Shinya Nakano's 4th fastest time, the Japanese rider really starting to find his feet on the Bridgestone-shod Gresini Honda. Some of the Ducatis showed an improvement as well, with Marco Melandri finding a couple of seconds and getting closer to contention. But it is Toni Elias who has made the biggest jump. At previous races, Elias had been running round at the very back of the grid, but the improvements the Spaniard found in testing at Estoril is starting to pay off, with Elias setting an 11th fastest time. James Toseland also made a big step forward, taking him up from 16th to 13t...
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2008 Shanghai FP1 Times Day 1 - Rossi Leads, Lorenzo Crashes
2008-05-02 10:07:00
Valentino Rossi was fastest in this morning's first free practice session, but the big news was Jorge Lorenzo's crash. Lorenzo had a huge highside, more reminiscent of a 500 cc two stroke than a modern electronics-packed MotoGP bike. As a result of the crash, Lorenzo has fractured an ankle, and is not taking part in the second free practice session. Doubts remain as to whether he will reappear during the remainder of the weekend. The speculation about Marco Melandri has intensified, after Melandri finished the first session nearly 5 seconds down on Valentino Rossi's time. 146Valentino ROSSIYAMAHA1'59.906 21Casey STONERDUCATI2'00.3180.4120.412 32Dani PEDROSAHONDA2'00.8190.9130.501 44Andrea DOVIZIOSOHONDA2'00.9741.0680.155 521John HOPKINSKAWASAKI2'01.1531.2470.179 665Loris CAPIROSSISUZUKI2'01.2491.3430.096 75Colin EDWARDSYAMAHA2'01.2871.3810.038 869Nicky HAYDENHONDA2'01.4191.5130.132 956Shinya NAKANOHONDA2'01.5131.6070.094 107Chris VERMEULENSUZUKI2'01.5881.6820.075 111...
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Yamaha Preparing For '09: Rossi To Take Pay Cut, Telefonica As Title Sponso
2008-04-27 02:18:00
An intriguing bit of news appeared over on GPOne.com over the past couple of days. Their main MotoGP reporter, Alberto Cani, writes that Yamaha is getting ready to finalize its plans for 2009. And the first item on the agenda for Yamaha supremo Lin Jarvis is the rider line up. Jorge Lorenzo and James Toseland already have contracts for next year, with Toseland signing an extension with Tech 3 at Estoril, after the French satellite team secured another two years of support from Yamaha, including access to factory-spec machinery. But that leaves two seats still left to fill. The most important of those seats is of course the other factory Yamaha. The most obvious and most likely sequence of events would be for Valentino Rossi to sign a new deal with the team. Rossi has previously spoken of his desire to end his career with Yamaha, and Jarvis has told the press he will be doing his best to keep the Italian multiple world champion. Pretty straightforward, you would think, but there's ...
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Honda To Run Pneumatic Valve Engine At Shanghai
2008-04-24 00:03:00
HRC's on-again-off-again testing of their pneumatic valve engine is about to shift up a gear. After electing not to test the air valve engine for the RC212V at Estoril, the new powerplant could make an appearance at Shanghai in China. The Spanish weekly magazine Solomoto interviewed both Dani Pedrosa and team manager Kazuhika Yamano after the Estoril Grand Prix in Portugal, and Italian site GPOne.com is carrying a summary and translation into Italian of those interviews. By far the most interesting fact to come out of that interview is that HRC will be shipping the new pneumatic valve engines to China, and allowing the riders to choose whether they want to run the bikes or not. The current plan is that both Dani Pedrosa and Nicky Hayden will be able to try the pneumatic engine during Friday free practice, and if they think it is good enough, use it in the race on Sunday. With Shanghai having two straights, one long one and one absolutely enormous one, the extra top end and acceler...
More About: Honda , Engine , Valve

Melandri Speaks Of His Despair On The Desmosedici
2008-04-21 16:01:00
Marco Melandri has something of a reputation for speaking out whenever he's not happy. Melandri's outburst about the weakness of the Honda RC212V, and HRC's reneging on promises of full factory support for the Gresini Honda team are still ringing in the ears of both Honda officials and journalists, and now Melandri is at it again. Melandri has posted a diary entry on his personal website speaking about the despair he feels at his current situation. "Whenever I think I've hit rock bottom, things just keep on getting worse," the Italian ex-250 champion wrote. Things are so bad that Melandri can't even bear to watch the races on TV, as the pain of seeing just how stiff and uncertain he is on the bike, the very opposite of his natural style: "I look like someone who's never ridden before," the Italian wrote. He confidence is at such a low ebb, he describes himself as being "a luxury spectator," rather than actually doing any racing, "but only at the start, for after the first tw...
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Nicky Hayden: Honda Or Ducati For 2009?
2008-04-18 01:33:00
Conflicting reports are emerging from Italy about the future of Nicky Hayden in MotoGP. On the one hand, we have MotoGrandPrix.it, who are reporting that Hayden is close to signing a new 2-year contract with Repsol Honda . According to Alessio Piana, HRC is determined to avoid the fiascos of the last two years, during which both Nicky Hayden and Dani Pedrosa didn't sign their new contracts with Honda until the very last minute, leaving HRC with few other alternatives should the negotiations with the riders fail. As a consquence Honda wants to sign contracts early, and keep control of the situation in its own hands. In this view, Honda would want to close the negotiations with Hayden as early as possible, and try and keep the last man to win them a world title a Honda man for life. The authoritative site GPOne.com sees it differently. Alberto Cani is claiming that the most likely scenario is that Hayden will make way for either Andrea Dovizioso or Marco Melandri. Dovi has made a hu...
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Shanghai Round - Is It On, Or Is It Canceled?
2008-04-18 00:50:00
The excellent and amusing Dutch newspaper columnist Bert Wagendorp wrote recently of the 2008 Beijing Olympics "If you really hate a country, you should let them organize the Olympic games." Ever since the announcement that China was to organize the olympics, there has been a growing movement of protest about the human rights situation in the Chinese heartland and in Tibet. The pressure is not just coming from outside the country, internally, groups are making use of the increased attention from the outside world to voice their discontent and get themselves heard. Instead of turning out to be the propaganda coup the Chinese government had hoped for, presenting the face of a new and dynamic country to the world, the Olympics are increasingly focusing attention on the fact that China remains a closed society presided over by an authoritarian regime, with scant regard for freedom of expression or political organization. The Chinese government's reaction to this growing dissent has b...
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2008 Post Estoril Round Test Times
2008-04-15 00:15:00
1Dani PEDROSA HONDA1'36.455 2Valentino ROSSI YAMAHA1'36.707 3Andrea DOVIZIOSO HONDA1'36.791 4Nicky HAYDEN HONDA1'36.928 5Colin EDWARDS YAMAHA1'37.145 6Randy DE PUNIET HONDA1'37.146 7Casey STONER DUCATI1'37.330 8Chris VERMEULEN SUZUKI1'37.617 9Shinya NAKANO HONDA1'37.725 10James TOSELAND YAMAHA1'37.767 11Loris CAPIROSSI SUZUKI1'37.781 12Alex DE ANGELIS HONDA1'37.782 13John HOPKINS KAWASAKI1'38.023 14Toni ELIAS DUCATI1'38.695 15Anthony WEST KAWASAKI1'39.695 16Sylvain GUINTOLI DUCATI1'39.223 17Marco MELANDRI DUCATI1'39.725
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2008 Estoril MotoGP Race Report - Grudge Match
2008-04-14 18:38:00
Jerez saw the rivalry of Dani Pedrosa and Jorge Lorenzo reach a crescendo. At Estoril in Portugal, the two rivals face off once again, with a bunch of wily veterans thrown into the mix. The showdown between the two sets the scene for a fantastic season in MotoGP.
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Lorenzo To Undergo Surgery For Arm Pump
2008-04-14 17:07:00
That 200 mph racing motorcycles with carbon disk brakes capable of braking at close to 2G of force place demands on the human body is self evident. The repeated effort of bearing the equivalent of twice your own bodyweight on your forearms several times a lap can cause enormous pain in a condition known as Chronic exertional compartment syndrome (CECS), more colloquially referred to as arm pump. It is a truly democratic condition, striking everybody from lowly motocrossers to world champions, as long as you are prepared to race hard enough. With his win at Estoril on Sunday, Jorge Lorenzo certainly proved that he isn't afraid to race hard, despite complaining of arm pump at the previous two races. And this afternoon, Lorenzo is to undergo surgery to fix the problem. He is scheduled to be go under the knife at 4pm Monday afternoon, at the Institut Dexeus in Barcelona, Spain. With a three-week break before the next MotoGP round at Shanghai in China, Lorenzo hopes to be able to mak...
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2008 Estoril MotoGP Race Results
2008-04-13 17:26:00
148Jorge LORENZOYAMAHA45'53.089 22Dani PEDROSAHONDA45'54.9061.817 346Valentino ROSSIYAMAHA46'05.81212.723 45Colin EDWARDSYAMAHA46'10.31217.223 521John HOPKINSKAWASAKI46'16.84123.752 61Casey STONERDUCATI46'19.77726.688 752James TOSELANDYAMAHA46'25.72032.631 87Chris VERMEULENSUZUKI46'29.47136.382 965Loris CAPIROSSISUZUKI46'31.35738.268 1056Shinya NAKANOHONDA46'32.56539.476 1115Alex DE ANGELISHONDA46'54.3951'01.306 1224Toni ELIASDUCATI46'56.9561'03.867 1333Marco MELANDRIDUCATI47'02.6141'09.525 1450Sylvain GUINTOLIDUCATI47'02.7231'09.634 1514Randy DE PUNIETHONDA47'04.6311'11.542 1613Anthony WESTKAWASAKI47'16.7181'23.629 Not Classified 69Nicky HAYDENHONDA26'23.67512 laps 4Andrea DOVIZIOSOHONDA24'43.87013 laps MotoGP Championship standings after Round 03, Estoril
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2008 Estoril Warm Up Results
2008-04-13 13:22:00
Warm Up took place under damp but sunny conditions. Conditions for the race are likely to be dry, but the weather radar shows clouds and rain just off to the North of Estoril. The question remains whether they will fall on Estoril during the afternoon. They may be Casey Stoner's salvation, if they do. 11Casey STONERDUCATI1'48.932 215Alex DE ANGELISHONDA1'49.3110.3790.379 346Valentino ROSSIYAMAHA1'49.6120.6800.301 47Chris VERMEULENSUZUKI1'49.7670.8350.155 550Sylvain GUINTOLIDUCATI1'49.7750.8430.008 614Randy DE PUNIETHONDA1'49.9471.0150.172 721John HOPKINSKAWASAKI1'50.1471.2150.200 869Nicky HAYDENHONDA1'50.5721.6400.425 965Loris CAPIROSSISUZUKI1'51.3202.3880.748 1048Jorge LORENZOYAMAHA1'51.3912.4590.071 1156Shinya NAKANOHONDA1'51.6602.7280.269 1213Anthony WESTKAWASAKI1'51.8432.9110.183 134Andrea DOVIZIOSOHONDA1'51.8672.9350.024 145Colin EDWARDSYAMAHA1'51.9242.9920.057 152Dani PEDROSAHONDA1'52.8503.9180.926 1633Marco MELANDRIDUCATI1'54.1415.2091.291 1752James TOSELA...
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2008 Estoril Qualifying Practice Report
2008-04-12 21:18:00
Saturday afternoon's qualifying practice session started warm and dry, conditions better than on Friday afternoon, when the session had started with a cool track. The riders had also had the benefit of a dry practice session in the morning, in which they had all improved their Friday times, and race setups were starting to materialize. Within 10 minutes of the session starting, times were down to the pace set in the morning, with Valentino Rossi leading the way. The Doctor had set a lap time of 1'37.540, just a fraction off Nicky Hayden's record race lap from 2007, and the kind of lap time which is likely to be race pace. Rossi had a small advantage over the man who then stood second, Loris Capirossi, but the Suzuki man had a bunch of riders all very close behind, including Colin Edwards, James Toseland, Dani Pedrosa and Jorge Lorenzo. This early in the session, the riders were working on getting the bikes into race trim, and the battle for grid positions had not yet begun. It w...
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Kawasaki To Pursue Rossi For 2009
2008-04-12 18:42:00
Ever since the start of Kawasaki 's MotoGP project, one of its main problems has been the lack of a rider capable of winning championships, to help push the development of the bike forward. Their signing of John Hopkins in a multi-million dollar deal went some way to address that issue, but Team Green's ambitions are obviously much higher. Just how much higher was obvious from an interview which Kawasaki's manager Michael Bartholemy had with the Italian sports daily Gazzetta dello Sport. Bartholemy announced his attention to approach 7 time world champion Valentino Rossi , and attempt to persuade The Doctor to join the team. The Belgian team boss has not yet spoken to either Rossi or his manager yet, but by making a very public approach, will hope to tempt the Italian into talks. Of course, it's hardly a surprise that Kawasaki are interested in signing Valentino Rossi. After all, there isn't a team in the MotoGP paddock who wouldn't sign Rossi, given the opportunity and the fi...

2008 Estoril Qualifying Practice Times Day 2 - Another Lap Record Bites The
2008-04-12 18:16:00
Full results from the official MotoGP Qualifying Practice session of the Portuguese Grand Prix at Estoril.
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2008 Estoril FP3 Times Day 3 - Edwards Close To Record Pace
2008-04-12 15:02:00
The third free practice session at Estoril's Portuguese Grand Prix started half an hour later than planned, after morning dew had left the track damp and treacherous. Though the spring sunshine soon chased away the damp patches, the air and track temperatures meant that the conditions remained cooler than the riders would have wanted. Of course, this did not stop them from going fast. The tone was set by Valentino Rossi and Randy de Puniet, who were swiftly running 1'38 laps, around the pace set in yesterday's much warmer afternoon session. Behind Rossi and de Puniet, Colin Edwards , Nicky Hayden and John Hopkins matched the speed of the leading pair. In the end, it was Colin Edwards who set the fastest lap, getting down to within 1/10th of a second of lap record pace halfway through practice, with a lap of 1'37.598. But it was no fluke, as it was set in the middle of a long run of very fast laps. The Texan, who is rapidly earning back his "Tornado" moniker, continued to run la...
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2008 Estoril FP2 Times Day 1 - Michelins Lead, Only Rossi Can Follow
2008-04-11 18:21:00
The weather had improved considerably this afternoon during MotoGP's FP2 session, the session starting sunny and dry. But sunny as it may have been, at the start of the session, the track was still pretty cool, as a coterie of crashers hit the deck on their first laps out of the pits. The fallers included Alex de Angelis, who has managed to fall off in almost every single session of practice so far this year, James Toseland, and the reigning champion Casey Stoner. Despite his strong start this morning, Casey Stoner had a rather unhappy time this afternoon. His early crash meant that he was unable to use his number 1 bike for the session, and as Stoner is very picky about which of the two Ducatis he rides, despite the machines being supposedly identical, the Australian never really hit his stride. The session turned into an entertaining back and forth between Repsol Honda's Dani Pedrosa, Tech 3 Yamaha's Colin Edwards, and Fiat Yamaha's Valentino Rossi . It was obvious that Edwar...
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2008 Estoril FP1 Times Day 1 - A Damp Start, The Usual Leader
2008-04-11 14:17:00
The morning started wet, with rain during the 125 practice session, but though the MotoGP riders went out on a damp track, at least the rain had stopped. The rain was good for some, though, as Ant West finally found himself running nearer the front, rather than at the back. West was joined early on by Chris Vermeulen, the other wet weather wizard, but Vermeulen's time didn't improve as fast as the conditions. But it was the names you would expect who were fastest. Casey Stoner ran only a few laps, but they were good enough for the fastest time, and Stoner was fast almost from the moment he hit the track. Valentino Rossi made good use of the weather to gain valuable experience on wet-weather Bridgestones, and Shinya Nakano showed that he still has what it takes, taking a surprising 3rd fastest time. Nakano and West weren't the only riders to benefit from the conditions. West was usually to be found at the rear of the pack, down with the Alice Ducatis, but the conditions meant th...
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2008 Estoril MotoGP Preview - The Western Shore
2008-04-11 00:54:00
After the bizarre, ghostly night race at Qatar and the seething cauldron at Jerez, MotoGP returns to some semblance of normality when it visits Estoril for the Portuguese Grand Prix. At Qatar, the night race entered completely unknown territory, the combination of falling temperatures and rising humidity making getting setup right a gamble at best. Then came Jerez, a track which places particular demands on the bikes and on setup. It also strongly favors Michelin, as it is one of the French tire
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Tech 3's Pneumatic Engined Yamaha M1 Pass Scrutineering
2008-04-10 18:26:00
British MotoGP fans can finally breathe a collective sigh of relief. There had been much speculation (and a great deal of fear) that Yamaha would hold back the air spring engines after both Colin Edwards and James Toseland had put in outstanding performances at Qatar and Jerez, to ensure that the Tech 3 riders didn't get in Valentino Rossi's way in his fight to reclaim the MotoGP title. But the conspiracy theorists have been confounded, with Autosport reporting that the pneumatic valve M1s have made it through technical inspection in Portugal. This is excellent news for both Edwards and Toseland, as the pair were down over 7 km/h on top speed down Qatar's massive straight. And with Estoril having a similarly epic straight, it would have meant the Tech 3 boys having to give their all just to try and keep up round the slow rear section of the track to make up for their lack of top end speed. Now, Toseland and Edwards stand a fair chance of staying with the leaders down the front s...
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Ducati To Adapt GP8 For Melandri
2008-04-09 17:54:00
It's been no secret that Marco Melandri has had a terrible time adapting to the GP8 since hist switch to Ducati at the end of the year. And Melandri is not the only rider to suffer: both Toni Elias and Sylvain Guintoli have struggled aboard the Ducati for the satellite Alice team. Yet reigning world champion Casey Stoner continues to dominate the MotoGP class, despite his recent setbacks at Jerez. Now, Ducati has recognized that they will have to make some changes to their title-winning bike if anyone other than Stoner is to be competitive aboard it. According to the Italian motorcycle magazine Motosprint, Ducati engineering supremo Filippo Preziosi will be making some changes to soften the bike up for Melandri, to make it easier for the Italian to adapt to the bike. According to Preziosi, the problem is that the current bike is too harsh, in terms of both power delivery and frame stiffness. This suits Casey Stoner down to the ground, as it gives him the intense feedback that he i...

Video Footage Of Kawasaki's New Screamer
2008-04-07 19:58:00
Although we are not much given to rehashing race team press releases here at MotoGPMatters.com, much preferring to go searching for actual news, from time to time, we get sent something which captures our imagination. Anthony Murphy, A reader of the site sent us a link to the Kawasaki Racing website, with a video of Kawasaki's new screamer engine. As you can hear, it sounds completely different to the old big bang engine Kawasaki are currently using in their ZX-RR race bike. Below are a couple of videos of the old bike for comparison, which we found on Youtube: Kawasaki's new screamer engine is not yet ready to make its official debut, but Team Green are hard at work trying to get the bike ready. Kawasaki hope the engine will provide both more top end power, as well as better drive, but getting the engine to work will rely on setting up the electronics to work. The team is believed to be looking to race the screamer engine towards the end of the season.
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