Team Aspar :: News About The 125cc and 250cc MotoGP Aspar Aprilia Squads and their riders; Bautista, di Meglio, Talmacsi, Gadea and Smith

Fancy helping us show Alvaro he has a great fanbase worldwide?
Well, maybe you’d like to join us - the BatiFans - by sharing flag-bearing duties on our brand new race banner.

We’ve designed a great groovy flag - 2.25 metres x 1.14 metres - dressed out in Spanish colours with a big fat number 19 on it, along with a “Go Bati!” message and our web address.
We’ve also included a list of all the current countries visitors to our website come from (that’s about 80 in all!) just to make sure nobody’s in doubt of Alvaro’s international appeal...

If you fancy taking this flag to a Grand Prix - either this season or next season (we’re always thinking ahead) then please join as a member at BatiFans.com - The Alvaro Bautista Fan Forum and have a chat with us, and we’ll take it from there.

We're hoping it may be ready for the Sachsenring, although this isn't definite as yet - but fingers crossed! If not, then it'll surely be ready for Brno and the other remaining races this season.

Come on, join in and help us show Alvaro more support than ever!

Congratulations to both! :)

1st Álvaro Bautista
“I am very happy about this result, above all because after the past two races when we weren’t able to win in the final moments. This victory is very important for us, because it gives confidence and continues our run of podium finishes. The conditions were difficult, and we had to tweak the bike five minutes before the race. The asphalt was dry, but they declared a wet race, and at the midway point I wasn’t going to push when leading. All except for Luthi were far back. It rained again and things were back to normal. Sooner or later this result was going to come, so we’ll try and continue this form, the desire to win remains as strong as ever for myself and the team.”

11th Héctor Faubel
“The weekend has been all good apart from the crash on Saturday afternoon. This affected our grid position, and put us far back. I was fifteenth, but started well. I touched a few riders, and watched a nice battle between Espargaro and Lai. Things went well apart from at the midway point, when the rain made things a bit more difficult, but in general I’m happy with how things have gone and we leave Assen with a good feeling. The best part of all is that we have discovered a great setting for the future.”

1st Gábor Talmacsi
“It’s really incredible, one of the happiest moments of my life. The weekend was difficult, with the conditions on track, but thanks to my team we answered back in the race. The first part was bad, but the second start was where I motivated myself to the maximum and tried to keep my concentration up. During the break we made some adjustments to the engine and I think that we have cleared up exactly why I was able to go so fast afterwards. I had an intelligent last lap, and it’s incredible that we could take victory. I am happy for the win, which I didn’t expect, but the 25 points are even more important as they arrive at just the right moment.”

21st Pere Tutusaus
“It was a really strange race. They stopped and we were made to start again, but I didn’t feel at ease in either of the races. The weekend was developing well and I felt a good feeling with the bike, but I didn’t have any good starts and was behind from the beginning. I would have liked to have fought for the top fifteen, but I wasn’t able to do it. In Sachsenring we have another opportunity to continue learning, and I hope that things go better.”

Sergio Gadea (DNF)
“The warm up was wet, then before the race I was a little nervous because of the dry asphalt in some parts and wet sections. The sighting lap was where I saw that it was totally dry, and I picked up more confidence from that. I started strong, got in the front pack, and tried to take things calmly because I wanted to avoid other riders and the possibility of a crash. I think that I grazed a another rider and the exhaust gave out. The bike lost power, and that was really unfortunate. In Germany we will be back fighting for the front.”

After a brilliant win by Bancaja Aspar rider Gabor Talmacsi in a very short second part of the 125cc race, Mapfre Aspar rider Alvaro Bautista took another brilliant and dominant win for the Aspar Team in the 250cc race right aftwards.

Congratulations to you both! :D

On to more wins to come this season. ;)

Spectators of the Dutch GP in Assen were witnesses of a brilliant and dominant 250cc win by Mapfre Aspar rider Alvaro Bautista.
Although started as a wet race all riders went out on slick tyres, because the track was mostly dry and only saw a few sprinkles of rain.
Alvaro had not a good start, also touching with a few riders in the first laps and was even down to 11th position at a time. After the first lap however he started his excellent chase for the win from 9th place, overtaking rider after rider and eventually catching leader Thomas Lüthi who already had an advantage of over three seconds.
With 8 laps to go, it slightly started to rain again and Alvaro started to go very careful, losing his 1,5 second advantage on Lüthi and falling almost two seconds behind. But two laps later, Alvaro gained confidence again, taking away over half a second of Lüthi's lead every lap and finally finished the race as a dominant winner with 4,5 seconds ahead. This win moved Alvaro up to 4th place in the championship with now only 38 points on the leader Kallio.
Teammate Hector Faubel just missed out on a Top Ten finish with the 11th place.

Pos. Rider Nation Team Total time

1 A. BAUTISTA SPA Mapfre Aspar Team 40'54.117
2 T. LUTHI SWI Emmi - Caffe Latte + 4.597
3 M. SIMONCELLI ITA Metis Gilera + 6.003
4 A. DEBON SPA Lotus Aprilia + 9.034
5 H. BARBERA SPA Team Toth Aprilia + 9.079
6 H. AOYAMA JPN Red Bull KTM 250 + 11.515
7 M. KALLIO FIN Red Bull KTM 250 + 12.874
8 Y. TAKAHASHI JPN JiR Team Scot 250 + 13.622
9 R. LOCATELLI ITA Metis Gilera + 21.168
10 J. SIMON SPA Repsol KTM 250cc + 28.789
11 H. FAUBEL SPA Mapfre Aspar Team + 37.607
12 R. WILAIROT THA Thai Honda PTT SAG + 37.741
13 F. LAI ITA Campetella Racing + 38.729
14 A. BALDOLINI ITA Matteoni Racing + 39.165
15 L. PESEK CZE Auto Kelly - CP + 43.037
16 E. LAVERTY IRL Blusens Aprilia + 54.171
17 A. ESPARGARO SPA Lotus Aprilia + 54.334
18 F. WATZ SWE Jaap Kingma Racing + 1'24.430
19 D. PRADITA INA Yamaha Pertamina Indonesia 1 Lap
20 I. TOTH HUN Team Toth Aprilia 1 Lap

Not classified
M. POGGIALI RSM Campetella Racing 7 Lap
M. PASINI ITA Polaris World 13 Lap

Not finished 1st lap
R. GOMEZ SPA Blusens Aprilia

Not starting
K. ABRAHAM CZE Cardion AB Motoracing

After a red flag because of rain the 125cc class saw a re-start of the race in Assen today, with only 5 laps to go and no combined timing.
Bancaja Aspar rider Gabor Talmacsi took advantage of the re-start, having experienced a few engine problems in the first part of the race, and took a close yet brilliant win. Congratulations, Talma!
Youngster Pere Tutusaus gained yet more experience in the world championship, finishing on 21st place, while Sergio Gadea was struck by bad luck as he suffered a mechanical problem in the first laps of the race, riding on podium position at the time.

Pos. Rider Nation Team Total time

1 G. TALMACSI HUN Bancaja Aspar Team 9'04.520
2 J. OLIVE SPA Belson Derbi + 0.128
3 S. CORSI ITA Jack & Jones WRB + 0.255
4 S. CORTESE GER Emmi - Caffe Latte + 0.340
5 B. SMITH GBR Polaris World + 0.425
6 E. RABAT SPA Repsol KTM 125cc + 0.568
7 M. DI MEGLIO FRA Ajo Motorsport + 0.846
8 A. IANNONE ITA I.C. Team + 0.928
9 N. TEROL SPA Jack & Jones WRB + 1.438
10 R. DE ROSA ITA Onde 2000 KTM + 2.554
11 S. BIANCO ITA S3+ WTR San Marino Team + 2.829
12 S. BRADL GER Grizzly Gas Kiefer Racing + 3.021
13 T. KOYAMA JPN ISPA KTM Aran + 3.201
14 M. RANSEDER AUT I.C. Team + 3.600
15 H. VAN DEN BERG NED Degraaf Grand Prix + 4.547
16 D. AEGERTER SWI Ajo Motorsport + 4.592
17 S. BONSEY USA Degraaf Grand Prix + 4.819
18 J. CLUZEL FRA Loncin Racing + 10.548
19 R. KRUMMENACHER SWI Red Bull KTM 125 + 10.643
20 P. NIETO SPA Onde 2000 KTM + 10.849
21 P. TUTUSAUS SPA Bancaja Aspar Team + 11.094
22 R. LASSER GER Grizzly Gas Kiefer Racing + 11.854
23 A. MASBOU FRA Loncin Racing + 13.716
24 L. ROSSI FRA FFM Honda GP 125 + 13.828
25 R. MURESAN ROU Grizzly Gas Kiefer Racing + 16.155
26 M. VAN DER MARK NED Dutch Racing Team + 18.201
27 R. GULL SWE Ajo Motorsports Jnr. Project + 25.692
28 J. IWEMA NED Abbink Bos Racing + 29.208
29 E. DUBBINK NED RV Racing Team + 29.949
30 J. VAN DE BUNT NED Degraaf Grand Prix + 36.419

Not classified
T. NAKAGAMI JPN I.C. Team 2 Lap
L. ZANETTI ITA ISPA KTM Aran 2 Lap

Not started race re-start
R. LACALENDOLA ITA Matteoni Racing
S. GADEA SPA Bancaja Aspar Team
S. REDDING GBR Blusens Aprilia Junior
E. VAZQUEZ SPA Blusens Aprilia Junior
J. LITJENS NED Abbink Bos Racing
M. MARQUEZ SPA Repsol KTM 125cc

Fifth pole position of the season for Mapfre Aspar rider Alvaro Bautista and third in a row.
Let's hope for third time lucky that he can snatch the win tomorrow.

1st Álvaro Bautista, 1.39.510 (21 laps)
“This is my fifth pole of the season and I’m delighted about it. The lap times didn’t come down today because the conditions were worse than yesterday but I feel comfortable with the bike, even in the wind. The track wasn’t as grippy as yesterday but I was happy on the bike. We have changed a few details with the configuration and we got more and more competitive each time. The initial objective for the race is the same as usual – to do my job properly and have fun. Once we see the situation in the race we’ll decide on a strategy. We have to stay cool on track and be ready for anything. It will be a tough race if the wind is as strong as it was today but I think we’re ready and even stronger than we were for the last race, which was in similar conditions.”

15th Héctor Faubel, 1.40.972 (16 laps)
“My neck’s a bit stiff after the crash but I don’t think it’s anything serious. I was feeling really comfortable but had a completely stupid fall just after I’d gone out. This morning went well but the crash in the afternoon complicated things for us. We’ve had a good pace all weekend and ran up front during practice but could have done with an extra five minutes at the end. Unlike Donington we have things clear here and we know how to do well, so I’m happy with that. If I get a good start and stick with the group in front of me I can have a good race. Tomorrow we have another chance to learn a lot in the race and I don’t plan to let it escape. I’m really hopeful.”

9th Sergio Gadea, 1.46.318 (14 laps)
“It’s annoying to see myself right up there in free practice and then not be able to do anything about it in qualifying. I don’t think the bike is 100% set up and even though I tried to compensate for it through effort I was close to running off track on more than one occasion. We’re still having problems with the rear end of my Aprilia which are really affecting my riding and I can’t relax. The idea is to make the most of the warm-up and get a better feeling ahead of the race. After two days the race is still a question mark as far as I’m concerned. Aside from the ninth place start, if we have a useful warm-up then we can expect a good race.”

13th Gábor Talmacsi, 1.46.532 (13 laps)
“This has been the toughest weekend of the season so far for us. On the first day we had a few doubts and went down the wrong path, whilst today in the rain I was fast but still didn’t have a good feeling for my Aprilia. The problems are mainly coming from the front tyre. In the afternoon I tried to give my best but I made a few mistakes and couldn’t get a rhythm together with that wind. We’re not competitive right now but working together with my technicians and with a good warm-up we can go for it in the race. We’ve struggled with the wind at Donington and here and we’re some way of the right set-up for this kind of condition.”

24th Pere Tutusaus, 1.47.354 (15 laps)
“Today was tricky because of the weather. In the morning we rode in the wet and got a good feeling but in the dry this afternoon we struggled to get a rhythm together. I got with a group of riders ahead of me and was almost as fast as them. I came in to change tyres and we stepped the pace up bit but then I got held up by Nico and Smith and it cost me a good lap. I think it wasn’t possible to lap as fast today as we did yesterday because of the conditions, which were damp all day, and tomorrow’s race will be tough for us starting from 24th. We have to believe in ourselves, get a good start and try to make up positions.”

With dry conditions but a lot of wind today in Assen, the 125cc final qualifying saw a lot of crashes and only few riders were able to improve their laptimes from yesterday.

Pos | Rider | Team | Time | Laps

1. Scott Redding Blusens Aprilia Junior 1:46.291 14
2. Mike Di Meglio Ajo Motorsport 1:46.400 + 0.109 12
3. Stevie Bonsey Degraaf Grand Prix 1:46.714 + 0.423 14
4. Nicolas Terol Jack & Jones WRB 1:46.745 + 0.454 14
5. Marc Marquez Repsol KTM 125cc 1:46.863 + 0.572 15
6. Sandro Cortese Emmi - Caffe Latte 1:46.940 + 0.649 15
7. Bradley Smith Polaris World 1:46.953 + 0.662 15
8. Randy Krummenacher Red Bull KTM 125 1:47.101 + 0.810 10
9. Esteve Rabat Repsol KTM 125cc 1:47.155 + 0.864 11
10. Simone Corsi Jack & Jones WRB 1:47.215 + 0.924 14
11. Sergio Gadea Bancaja Aspar Team 1:47.309 + 1.018 14
12. Raffaele De Rosa Onde 2000 KTM 1:47.325 + 1.034 11
13. Joan Olive Belson Derbi 1:47.365 + 1.074 14
14. Stefan Bradl Grizzly Gas Kiefer Racing 1:47.465 + 1.174 12
15. Andrea Iannone I.C. Team 1:47.526 + 1.235 13
16. Takaaki Nakagami I.C. Team 1:47.564 + 1.273 14
17. Joey Litjens Abbink Bos Racing 1:47.670 + 1.379 15
18. Pablo Nieto Onde 2000 KTM 1:47.716 + 1.425 14
19. Gabor Talmacsi Bancaja Aspar Team 1:47.785 + 1.494 13
20. Alexis Masbou Loncin Racing 1:47.795 + 1.504 13
21. Efren Vazquez Blusens Aprilia Junior 1:47.807 + 1.516 13
22. Stefano Bianco S3+ WTR San Marino Team 1:47.878 + 1.587 14
23. Pere Tutusaus Bancaja Aspar Team 1:47.918 + 1.627 15
24. Lorenzo Zanetti ISPA KTM Aran 1:47.951 + 1.660 11
25. Tomoyoshi Koyama ISPA KTM Aran 1:47.995 + 1.704 13
26. Roberto Lacalendola Matteoni Racing 1:48.037 + 1.746 15
27. Dominique Aegerter Ajo Motorsport 1:48.038 + 1.747 15
28. Jules Cluzel Loncin Racing 1:48.154 + 1.863 13
29. Michael Ranseder I.C. Team 1:48.250 + 1.959 14
30. Hugo Van Den Berg Degraaf Grand Prix 1:49.211 + 2.920 15
31. Robin Lasser Grizzly Gas Kiefer Racing 1:49.467 + 3.176 14
32. Michael Van Der Mark Dutch Racing Team 1:49.816 + 3.525 7
33. Robert Muresan Grizzly Gas Kiefer Racing 1:49.983 + 3.692 12
34. Louis Rossi FFM Honda GP 125 1:49.995 + 3.704 14
35. Ernst Dubbink RV Racing Team 1:50.126 + 3.835 15
36. Robert Gull Ajo Motorsports Jnr. 1:50.598 + 4.307 13
37. Jerry Van De Bunt Degraaf Grand Prix 1:52.277 + 5.986 14
38. Jasper Iwema Abbink Bos Racing 1:52.703 + 6.412 15

Someone has posted a comment on the Alvaro Bautista BatiFan blog, responding to the article about Dorna's move to kill of Eurosport's MotoGP coverage, and has kindly flagged up a petition...
http://www.PetitionOnline.com/RCV212V4
and the following email addresses to contact...
mkt@dorna.com
media@dorna.com
dornauk@dorna.com
tv@dorna.com
tvproduction@dorna.com

Please take a few minutes to write to them and then please spread these contacts as far as you can.

Although the BBC have not actually stolen the coverage from Eurosport, those of you in the UK (particularly those who have an interest in 125cc and 250cc) might also consider leaving a message for BBC Sport to make sure they understand that a lot of angry and frustrated MotoGP fans will be expecting a hell of a lot from them in terms of extensive and quality coverage...

1st Álvaro Bautista, 1.39.510 (22 laps)
“I’m really happy because even though it’s only the first day we’ve lapped really well. I’ve improved my lap time from last year and even improved on the lap record at this track so I’m very satisfied. We didn’t have the perfect set-up this morning and I crashed at the end of the session. But in qualifying we changed the geometry of my Aprilia and I felt much more comfortable, to the point that I was able to set that lap time. The adjustments to the engine also worked and we’ve gained in acceleration. Because of the way the track is here you need the engine to be working perfectly. At the end of qualifying there was a lot of traffic on track and I was only able to get one fast lap in. Hopefully we can improve tomorrow and set a better pace – I’m sure everybody else will so we can’t go to sleep.”

12th Héctor Faubel, 1.41.178 (20 laps)
“Everything went well on this first day apart from the final five minutes of qualifying. We put a different tyre on to normal and I improved my time but I didn’t feel as comfortable as usual. We’ve started out with the same set-up as Mugello and Montmeló, which I feel comfortable with and I’m very motivated because Donington was a tough weekend from the start. This is one of my favourite circuits, I did well here on the 125cc last year and I want to continue that level in this category. The feeling is good and the pace too so hopefully we can improve on it tomorrow.”

9th Sergio Gadea, 1.46.318 (13 laps)
“Things started out well this morning but in the afternoon we altered the setting with a new rear shock to try and stop the bike sliding in certain corners and I didn’t like it. I had a couple of moments and we went back to the original configuration, but there was no time to improve. There are a couple of points on the track that we are finding more difficult than we expected but in general terms the first feeling is good. We’re still working well, harmony within the team is perfect and the settings we used this morning are a good reference point for the second day. If it doesn’t rain we should be up there.”

13th Gábor Talmacsi, 1.46.532 (14 laps)
“We weren’t too fast this morning and we can do much better. It is no excuse but a lot of my laps in the afternoon session were spoiled by traffic. I don’t think there’s a specific reason why we’ve not been fast today though – it’s just those small details that lose time off your lap. Fundamentally the fast corners are the biggest problem because the bike isn’t turning as it should. We need to study the telemetry tonight to try and iron out those little issues that are costing us time on each lap. I don’t know exactly what the situation is right now so we have to look into it and try to prepare for tomorrow.”

24th Pere Tutusaus, 1.47.354 (15 laps)
“Assen is a pretty cool track – my first impressions are really good. In qualifying I improved my best lap by over a second from the morning. I think that taking into account the fact I didn’t follow anybody it is a good lap time but we have to hope that it doesn’t rain tomorrow, as it is forecast, so that we can continue to improve. We experimented with the rear wheel because I went for the smaller one (115), as I did at Donington, but it was moving around a lot so I came in and changed to the bigger one (120). The change worked well but the fact it is a completely new circuit doesn’t help much.”

Mapfre Aspar rider Alvaro Bautista snatched the provisional pole position in the first qualifying at Assen with an incredible laptime of 1'39.510, almost half a second faster than the pole position record set by Jorge Lorenzo last year.
With rainshowers expected for tomorrow, it might be hard for the 250cc pilots to further improve their laptimes.

Pos. Rider Nation Team Lap time

1 A. BAUTISTA SPA Mapfre Aspar Team 1'39.510
2 H. BARBERA SPA Team Toth Aprilia + 0.231
3 M. SIMONCELLI ITA Metis Gilera + 0.468
4 A. ESPARGARO SPA Lotus Aprilia + 0.700
5 T. LUTHI SWI Emmi - Caffe Latte + 0.945
6 J. SIMON SPA Repsol KTM 250cc + 1.176
7 L. PESEK CZE Auto Kelly - CP + 1.232
8 A. DEBON SPA Lotus Aprilia + 1.234
9 Y. TAKAHASHI JPN JiR Team Scot 250 + 1.286
10 M. KALLIO FIN Red Bull KTM 250 + 1.339
11 F. LAI ITA Campetella Racing + 1.352
12 H. FAUBEL SPA Mapfre Aspar Team + 1.668
13 M. POGGIALI RSM Campetella Racing + 1.670
14 R. LOCATELLI ITA Metis Gilera + 1.775
15 H. AOYAMA JPN Red Bull KTM 250 + 1.896
16 R. WILAIROT THA Thai Honda PTT SAG + 2.033
17 M. PASINI ITA Polaris World + 2.123
18 K. ABRAHAM CZE Cardion AB Motoracing + 2.170
19 I. TOTH HUN Team Toth Aprilia + 3.598
20 E. LAVERTY IRL Blusens Aprilia + 3.735
21 A. BALDOLINI ITA Matteoni Racing + 3.754
22 D. PRADITA INA Yamaha Pertamina Indonesia + 5.957
23 F. WATZ SWE Jaap Kingma Racing + 6.326
24 R. GOMEZ SPA Blusens Aprilia + 6.464

Pos. Rider Nation Team Lap time

1 S. CORSI ITA Jack & Jones WRB 1'45.533
2 B. SMITH GBR Polaris World + 0.340
3 J. OLIVE SPA Belson Derbi + 0.363
4 M. DI MEGLIO FRA Ajo Motorsport + 0.364
5 S. CORTESE GER Emmi - Caffe Latte + 0.402
6 S. REDDING GBR Blusens Aprilia Junior + 0.495
7 R. DE ROSA ITA Onde 2000 KTM + 0.572
8 N. TEROL SPA Jack & Jones WRB + 0.606
9 S. GADEA SPA Bancaja Aspar Team + 0.785
10 S. BRADL GER Grizzly Gas Kiefer Racing + 0.796
11 R. KRUMMENACHER SWI Red Bull KTM 125 + 0.863
12 D. AEGERTER SWI Ajo Motorsport + 0.911
13 G. TALMACSI HUN Bancaja Aspar Team + 0.999
14 S. BIANCO ITA S3+ WTR San Marino Team + 1.021
15 E. RABAT SPA Repsol KTM 125cc + 1.167
16 T. KOYAMA JPN ISPA KTM Aran + 1.227
17 M. MARQUEZ SPA Repsol KTM 125cc + 1.365
18 L. ZANETTI ITA ISPA KTM Aran + 1.402
19 P. NIETO SPA Onde 2000 KTM + 1.423
20 M. RANSEDER AUT I.C. Team + 1.486
21 S. BONSEY USA Degraaf Grand Prix + 1.544
22 E. VAZQUEZ SPA Blusens Aprilia Junior + 1.573
23 A. IANNONE ITA I.C. Team + 1.710
24 P. TUTUSAUS SPA Bancaja Aspar Team + 1.821
25 H. VAN DEN BERG NED Degraaf Grand Prix + 1.925
26 T. NAKAGAMI JPN I.C. Team + 1.969
27 J. CLUZEL FRA Loncin Racing + 2.084
28 A. MASBOU FRA Loncin Racing + 2.317
29 J. LITJENS NED Abbink Bos Racing + 2.402
30 R. MURESAN ROU Grizzly Gas Kiefer Racing + 2.494
31 R. LACALENDOLA ITA Matteoni Racing + 3.244
32 M. VAN DER MARK NED Dutch Racing Team + 3.640
33 R. LASSER GER Grizzly Gas Kiefer Racing + 3.674
34 L. ROSSI FRA FFM Honda GP 125 + 4.742
35 E. DUBBINK NED RV Racing Team + 4.791
36 J. IWEMA NED Abbink Bos Racing + 5.041
37 J. VAN DE BUNT NED Degraaf Grand Prix + 6.027
38 R. GULL SWE Ajo Motorsports Jnr. Project + 6.887

Thursday June 26

125cc :: Free Practice 1 :: 09:00-09:45
MotoGP :: Free Practice 1 :: 10:00-11:00
250cc :: Free Practice 1 :: 11:15-12:15
125cc :: Qualifying 1 :: 13:10-13:40
MotoGP :: Free Practice 2 :: 13:55-14:55
250cc :: Qualifying 1 :: 15:10-15:55

*************************************

Friday June 27

125cc :: Free Practice 2 :: 09:00-09:45
MotoGP :: Free Practice 3 :: 10:00-11:00
250cc :: Free Practice 2 :: 11:15-12:15
125cc :: Qualifying 2 :: 13:15-13:40
MotoGP :: Qualifying 1 :: 13:55-14:55
250cc :: Qualifying 2 :: 15:10-15:55

*************************************

Saturday June 28

125cc :: Warm-Up :: 08:40-09:00
250cc :: Warm-Up :: 09:10-09:30
MotoGP :: Warm-Up :: 09:40-10:00
125cc :: Race :: 11:00-11:45
250cc :: Race :: 12:15-13:00
MotoGP :: Race :: 14:00-15:00

*************************************

(*All times local)

Makes me sad to look at those pics of Bati, on the previous post, so hugely and rightly miffed at the spectacularly reckless Marco Simoncelli, that it made me think I should post up some photos of my Donington weekend.
A couple of paddock shots, Alvaro Bautista going round the Melbourne Hairpin, Sergio Gadea doing a practice start, and also me and Pere Tutusaus...
(*I also got to meet Alvaro - and the amazingly nice Jorge Martinez. Unforgettable.)

But still a great race by Alvaro Bautista, he went for the victory and could do nothing about the final result.
So, congratulations Alvaro on your second consecutive podium. :)

3rd Álvaro Bautista
“I adapted very well to the wind, and felt progressively more comfortable on the Aprilia, riding hard. It is important that we have two consecutive podiums under our belts, something that we hadn’t achieved up until now this year. We will see if in Holland we can continue this way and fight for the win. I was going for victory today, but Simoncelli cut me off. You can pass a rider, but you have to brake a little harder to do it, and it’s not normal to pass if you aren’t able to and throw whomever is in your path into the grass. I think that some action will be taken on the matter. He is a different rider to the rest, very aggressive and one for whom what he wants to do exceeds what he can do. The slow pace of the race meant that Kallio could catch us.”

15º Héctor Faubel
“The truth is that we didn’t come here totally prepared. The rain on Saturday stopped us improving. I tried to pass as many people as possible, going up into twelfth, but then I started losing places and was unable to do anything more. We have to be positive because the weekend is over and we have another to look forward to riding in.”

4th Sergio Gadea
“I am happy, to tell the truth. I hoped for a podium, but it wasn’t to be and this is a good result in any case. I started strong but on the first lap I nearly crashed a couple of times. It was a pity that conditions were so windy, because normal conditions would have seen us do much better. I had a lot of fun in the race, but I was riding on the edge despite everything that was going on around me. With eight laps to go I stagnated a bit, losing grip. That made me take the decision not to take any risks, and the decision paid off. We were back at the front after the result from Catalunya, and that makes me feel stronger heading to Assen.”

22nd Pere Tutusaus
“I am very disappointed with 22nd, because it wasn’t what I wanted and I think that I could have done more. I never felt comfortable with the bike and know that we can improve further with the bike. In the race I started really well, but there was a crash at the start that put my chances in danger. Now my goal is to be in the points over the next few races.”

Gábor Talmacsi (crash)
“I tried to push hard from the beginning, but I did not have enough confidence in the front wheel of the Aprilia, it felt too light. During the time that I was on the track, it always reacted very much on the wind from the outside of the curve. I tried to remain calm and simply trail the group, but at the end of the slope, in curve 4, I got hit by a gust of wind and couldn't control the bike anymore. I believe that it was not my fault, because I rode quite comfortably and safe. I suppose that the reason of this bad result has been the wind, because throughout the weekend we have been very competitive. I am disappointed, because the championship is now more complicated, but I do not surrender easily and will give my best in the next race.”

The British GP at Donington saw Alvaro Bautista again on the podium. Towards the end of the race it looked a lot like a win for the Mapfre Aspar rider, but in the penultimate lap Marco Simoncelli was too late on the brakes while trying to pass Alvaro and both riders had to go wide, allowing Mika Kallio to pass them and snatch the win. The move by Simoncelli relegated Alvaro to third place from which he was not able to recover anymore in the last lap. An unfortunate ending for Alvaro which he couldn't have done anything about.
Teammate Hector Faubel finished a difficult race on place 15.

Pos. Rider Nation Team Total time

1 M. KALLIO FIN Red Bull KTM 250 42'14.410
2 M. SIMONCELLI ITA Metis Gilera + 0.353
3 A. BAUTISTA SPA Mapfre Aspar Team + 1.237
4 H. BARBERA SPA Team Toth Aprilia + 8.875
5 T. LUTHI SWI Emmi - Caffe Latte + 11.359
6 H. AOYAMA JPN Red Bull KTM 250 + 16.124
7 A. DEBON SPA Lotus Aprilia + 16.136
8 J. SIMON SPA Repsol KTM 250cc + 18.007
9 Y. TAKAHASHI JPN JiR Team Scot 250 + 33.271
10 A. ESPARGARO SPA Lotus Aprilia + 49.681
11 R. LOCATELLI ITA Metis Gilera + 52.534
12 K. ABRAHAM CZE Cardion AB Motoracing + 55.311
13 L. PESEK CZE Auto Kelly - CP + 57.399
14 M. POGGIALI RSM Campetella Racing + 57.641
15 H. FAUBEL SPA Mapfre Aspar Team + 1'04.329
16 R. WILAIROT THA Thai Honda PTT SAG + 1'06.156
17 F. LAI ITA Campetella Racing + 1'15.812
18 R. GOMEZ SPA Blusens Aprilia 1 Lap
19 D. PRADITA INA Yamaha Pertamina Indonesia 1 Lap

Not classified
E. LAVERTY IRL Blusens Aprilia 8 Lap
A. BALDOLINI ITA Matteoni Racing 14 Lap
M. PASINI ITA Polaris World 15 Lap
I. TOTH HUN Team Toth Aprilia 16 Lap

In sunny conditions, but with a lot of wind, the spectators at Donington witnessed a spectacular 125cc race with Scott Redding as the first ever British winner at the circuit and also the youngest winner of the championship.
The best result for the Bancaja Aspar Team got Sergio Gadea who finished just off the podium on fourth position.
Rookie Pere Tutusaus rode a solid race and finished on 22nd place.
125cc World Champion Gabor Talmacsi had an early crash and was unable to rejoin the race.

Pos. Rider Nation Team Total time

1 S. REDDING GBR Blusens Aprilia Junior 41'39.472
2 M. DI MEGLIO FRA Ajo Motorsport + 5.324
3 M. MARQUEZ SPA Repsol KTM 125cc + 5.806
4 S. GADEA SPA Bancaja Aspar Team + 13.990
5 S. CORSI ITA Jack & Jones WRB + 16.855
6 T. KOYAMA JPN ISPA KTM Aran + 17.181
7 J. OLIVE SPA Belson Derbi + 18.014
8 T. NAKAGAMI JPN I.C. Team + 18.222
9 S. CORTESE GER Emmi - Caffe Latte + 18.404
10 B. SMITH GBR Polaris World + 18.891
11 E. RABAT SPA Repsol KTM 125cc + 18.976
12 M. RANSEDER AUT I.C. Team + 28.269
13 R. KRUMMENACHER SWI Red Bull KTM 125 + 28.347
14 R. DE ROSA ITA Onde 2000 KTM + 29.403
15 L. ZANETTI ITA ISPA KTM Aran + 35.763
16 J. CLUZEL FRA Loncin Racing + 35.868
17 S. BONSEY USA Degraaf Grand Prix + 38.158
18 N. TEROL SPA Jack & Jones WRB + 42.766
19 D. AEGERTER SWI Ajo Motorsport + 42.924
20 S. BIANCO ITA S3+ WTR San Marino Team + 1'06.296
21 R. LASSER GER Grizzly Gas Kiefer Racing + 1'10.158
22 P. TUTUSAUS SPA Bancaja Aspar Team + 1'10.905
23 L. ROSSI FRA FFM Honda GP 125 + 1'29.269
24 R. MURESAN ROU Grizzly Gas Kiefer Racing 1 Lap
25 H. VAN DEN BERG NED Degraaf Grand Prix 1 Lap
26 L. COSTELLO GBR Vent-Axia 1 Lap
27 R. LACALENDOLA ITA Matteoni Racing 1 Lap

Not classified
A. IANNONE ITA I.C. Team 6 Lap
S. BRADL GER Grizzly Gas Kiefer Racing 7 Lap
M. HOYLE GBR SP 125 Racing/Mackrory Demolition 11 Lap
C. BEHAN GBR Connor Behan Racing 11 Lap
P. JORDAN IRL KRP 11 Lap
A. MASBOU FRA Loncin Racing 20 Lap
L. HINTON GBR Buildbase/Knotts 21 Lap
G. TALMACSI HUN Bancaja Aspar Team 24 Lap

Not finished 1st lap
P. NIETO SPA Onde 2000 KTM
D. WEBB GBR Degraaf Grand Prix

1st Álvaro Bautista, 1.31.834 (23 laps)
“We have used the variation in conditions this weekend to find a good setting for either wet or dry in tomorrow’s race. The weather forecast is not clear so we’ll have to wait and see what happens. The target for today was to find a good feeling in the wet without taking any risks because this is a treacherous circuit and the bike can go from under you at any moment. Basically I focused on clocking up the laps and getting a good feel for the Aprilia in these conditions. Tomorrow we’ll just go out to try and enjoy it, give my best and decide on a strategy based on how I feel when the race starts. If a top result is possible then of course I’ll be fighting for it.”

17th Héctor Faubel, 1.33.954 (21 laps)
“We couldn’t do much today because of the rain. Yesterday we had a lot of problems setting the bike up and we were hoping to improve things today but the wet conditions are completely different. The important thing will be to have a dry warm-up so that we can work on the things we have left to fix, because the forecast for the race is dry. If it’s wet the target will be to try and stay on for as long as possible because there are always a lot of crashes here, as we saw today. If it’s dry then I have Debón, Pasini and Kallio just in front of me and I’ll try to follow them.”

2nd Gábor Talmacsi, 1.37.520 (15 laps)
“I’m happy again today because we’ve continued our good form. The morning practice was tricky because people were pushing on the wet surface and there were a lot of crashes. I used my experience to stay upright and set a good lap time. In the afternoon people were taking fewer risks because yesterday’s lap time was what counted. It was an interesting session for us because we went the right way with the set-up for the wet and we’re ready for rain or dry. We don’t know what the conditions will be like for the race but there a few riders going fast so the objective is to hold firm and think about the championship.”

3rd Sergio Gadea, 1.37.649 (15 laps)
“It has been a strange day with non-stop rain. This morning I was pushing but not to the limit and in the afternoon I did push a bit harder and ended up running off track. I preferred to do that than risk crashing and I’m happy with the result overall. Tomorrow we’ll start from third and they say it will be dry so if that’s the case we’ll try and run at the front from the start. The Aprilia is working well, it even feels good under braking in the wet and the pace is good. We’re fulfilling our objective, which was just to be consistent. This morning I had a bit of trouble with my knee, probably because of the cold, but in the afternoon the pain subsided a lot. I’d prefer to be in top shape but I feel strong enough to fight tomorrow.”

25th Pere Tutusaus, 1.39.538 (15 laps)
“I felt comfortable today. This morning I was seventeenth and in the afternoon I was fighting for a similar position but we dropped a few places at the end. We were competitive in the two wet sessions though and that is important to me. We’re optimistic about tomorrow but we’ll have to wait and see what the weather does. A lot of riders tend to crash so the main thing will be to stay upright and try to hold out for a result.”

With rain all throughout the day at Donington, the 250cc contenders had no chance to improve their laptimes from yesterday which leaves Mapfre Aspar rider Alvaro Bautista on pole position for the race tomorrow.

Pos. Rider Nation Team Lap time

1 A. BAUTISTA SPA Mapfre Aspar Team 1'31.834
2 M. SIMONCELLI ITA Metis Gilera + 0.170
3 H. BARBERA SPA Team Toth Aprilia + 0.519
4 T. LUTHI SWI Emmi - Caffe Latte + 1.001
5 Y. TAKAHASHI JPN JiR Team Scot 250 + 1.019
6 H. AOYAMA JPN Red Bull KTM 250 + 1.149
7 J. SIMON SPA Repsol KTM 250cc + 1.229
8 A. ESPARGARO SPA Lotus Aprilia + 1.282
9 L. PESEK CZE Auto Kelly - CP + 1.442
10 F. LAI ITA Campetella Racing + 1.447
11 A. DEBON SPA Lotus Aprilia + 1.463
12 M. PASINI ITA Polaris World + 1.468
13 R. LOCATELLI ITA Metis Gilera + 1.545
14 M. KALLIO FIN Red Bull KTM 250 + 1.761
15 M. POGGIALI RSM Campetella Racing + 1.826
16 K. ABRAHAM CZE Cardion AB Motoracing + 2.025
17 H. FAUBEL SPA Mapfre Aspar Team + 2.120
18 R. WILAIROT THA Thai Honda PTT SAG + 2.205
19 A. BALDOLINI ITA Matteoni Racing + 2.240
20 E. LAVERTY IRL Blusens Aprilia + 2.451
21 I. TOTH HUN Team Toth Aprilia + 3.737
22 R. GOMEZ SPA Blusens Aprilia + 5.247
23 T. MARKHAM GBR BM GroundWorks + 5.841
24 D. PRADITA INA Yamaha Pertamina Indonesia + 6.336

With a very wet final qualifying and about half of the field having crashes and running of the track, nobody was able to improve the laptimes from yesterday, meaning that the British GP will see two Bancaja Aspar riders in the first row tomorrow.
Gabor Talmasi will start from second position on the grid with his teammate Sergio Gadea right next to him on third spot.
Young gun Pere Tutusaus will start from 25th position, but showed promising form in the wet practice and qualifying.

Rider | Bike | Time | Gap

1 Simone Corsi Aprilia 1'37.488
2 Gabor Talmacsi Aprilia 1'37.520 0.032
3 Sergio Gadea Aprilia 1'37.649 0.161
4 Scott Redding Aprilia 1'37.766 0.278
5 Pol Espargaró Derbi 1'37.949 0.461
6 Andrea Iannone Aprilia 1'37.950 0.462
7 Nicolas Terol Aprilia 1'38.034 0.546
8 Marc Márquez KTM 1'38.044 0.556
9 Pablo Nieto KTM 1'38.104 0.616
10 Tomoyoshi Koyama KTM 1'38.153 0.665
11 Raffaele De Rosa KTM 1'38.186 0.698
12 Bradley Smith Aprilia 1'38.347 0.859
13 Esteve Rabat KTM 1'38.355 0.867
14 Daniel Webb Aprilia 1'38.473 0.985
15 Joan Olive Derbi 1'38.554 1.066
16 Steve Bonsey Aprilia 1'38.606 1.118
17 Sandro Cortese Aprilia 1'38.724 1.236
18 Stefan Bradl Aprilia 1'38.775 1.287
19 R.Krummenacher KTM 1'38.856 1.368
20 Michael Ranseder Aprilia 1'38.916 1.428
21 Mike Di Meglio Derbi 1'38.938 1.450
22 Takaaki Nakagami Aprilia 1'39.007 1.519
23 Stefano Bianco Aprilia 1'39.037 1.549
24 Lorenzo Zanetti KTM 1'39.386 1.898
25 Pere Tutusaus Aprilia 1'39.538 2.050
26 Jules Cluzel Loncin 1'39.760 2.272
27 D.Ägerter Derbi 1'39.806 2.318
28 Alexis Masbou Loncin 1'39.986 2.498
29 H.van den Berg Aprilia 1'40.357 2.869
30 Robin Lässer Aprilia 1'40.525 3.037
31 Robert Muresan Aprilia 1'41.070 3.582
32 Louis Rossi Honda 1'41.320 3.832
33 R.Lacalendola Aprilia 1'42.182 4.694
34 Matthew Hoyle Honda 1'42.316 4.828
35 Connor Behan Honda 1'42.593 5.105
36 Luke Hinton Honda 1'42.966 5.478
37 Lee Costello Honda 1'43.149 5.661
38 Paul Jordan Honda 1'43.227 5.739

Pol Espargaro will not take part in the race tomorrow after crashing in the second free practice this morning which lead to a broken collarbone.

1st Álvaro Bautista, 1.31.834 (23 laps)
“The pace was fast for a Friday but the most important thing is my feeling on board the Aprilia. In the afternoon we tried a new rear shock and I felt really comfortable. This circuit has two very different sections – one that is really fast and another that is really slow. It is important that we were quick through both of them, especially for the end of the race, with such a demanding T3 and T4. When I get a good feeling at this circuit I really enjoy myself and I like riding here. If it rains tomorrow we’ve got a good result in the bank and if it doesn’t we’ll use it to refine certain aspects of the bike. The set-up is really good but there is always room for improvement.”

17th Héctor Faubel, 1.33.954 (21 laps)
“We came here on the back of a good result at Montmeló but today was tough. We haven’t found the right way forward so tomorrow we’ll have to make a bunch of changes to the geometry of the bike and see if I feel more comfortable on my Aprilia. I’m finding it very hard to turn through the direction changes, the bike feels heavy and I’m losing time. We’re studying a variety of possibilities but for tomorrow we’ll shorten the bike so that it changes line easier. Everything is different on a 250, so for tomorrow we just have to focus on doing a better job.”

2nd Gábor Talmacsi, 1.37.520 (15 laps)
“The first session was really successful. We got the bike set up really quickly this weekend and I was fast from free practice. With one day gone we already only have some small modifications to make to the bike, which is what we were aiming for. I feel really solid and I think we can push even harder. There are a few secrets to this track that we’ll continue to work out and go faster. I’m really happy to be second on the first day - the Aprilia is working perfectly. We couldn’t have started out much better – the bike is 90% set up, I feel strong and I’m sure by Sunday we’ll be at 100%.”

3rd Sergio Gadea, 1.37.649 (15 laps)
“I’m comfortable, satisfied and happy. I was only a good run out of the final corner short of an amazing lap time – my Aprilia is working fantastically and we probably just need to work on being more solid under braking in order to go much faster. I felt more comfortable riding on my own than I did with a slipstream – I’ve got my markers sorted out and I’d feel happy riding on my own on Sunday if there’s a break on. I got my feeling back at Barcelona and I want to keep it for the rest of the year. I set pole pace for a few laps but was losing out in T4, which is the only improvement I think we can make tomorrow. This morning I had a little crash on the way into the chicane but it hasn’t caused me any problems. The pain in my knee is most noticeable in the fast direction changes but I barely feel it until I get off the bike.”

25th Pere Tutusaus, 1.39.538 (15 laps)
“I ran off track on the entrance to the back straight in qualifying but got straight back on track and everything was back to normal. We’re struggling quite a bit with corner speed and we still don’t know why but at the top end of the rev range the power isn’t coming through. Hopefully we can fix that tomorrow because I like the track and I think I can get a lot faster in the quick sections.”

A very strong qualifying by Mapfre Aspar rider Alvaro Bautista. Hector Faubel with problems on provisional 17th position.

Pos. Rider Nation Team Lap time

1 A. BAUTISTA SPA Mapfre Aspar Team 1'31.834
2 M. SIMONCELLI ITA Metis Gilera + 0.170
3 H. BARBERA SPA Team Toth Aprilia + 0.519
4 T. LUTHI SWI Emmi - Caffe Latte + 1.001
5 Y. TAKAHASHI JPN JiR Team Scot 250 + 1.019
6 H. AOYAMA JPN Red Bull KTM 250 + 1.149
7 J. SIMON SPA Repsol KTM 250cc + 1.229
8 A. ESPARGARO SPA Lotus Aprilia + 1.282
9 L. PESEK CZE Auto Kelly - CP + 1.442
10 F. LAI ITA Campetella Racing + 1.447
11 A. DEBON SPA Lotus Aprilia + 1.463
12 M. PASINI ITA Polaris World + 1.468
13 R. LOCATELLI ITA Metis Gilera + 1.545
14 M. KALLIO FIN Red Bull KTM 250 + 1.761
15 M. POGGIALI RSM Campetella Racing + 1.826
16 K. ABRAHAM CZE Cardion AB Motoracing + 2.025
17 H. FAUBEL SPA Mapfre Aspar Team + 2.120
18 R. WILAIROT THA Thai Honda PTT SAG + 2.205
19 A. BALDOLINI ITA Matteoni Racing + 2.240
20 E. LAVERTY IRL Blusens Aprilia + 2.451
21 I. TOTH HUN Team Toth Aprilia + 3.737
22 R. GOMEZ SPA Blusens Aprilia + 5.247
23 T. MARKHAM GBR BM GroundWorks + 5.841
24 D. PRADITA INA Yamaha Pertamina Indonesia + 6.336

Bancaja Aspar riders Gabor Talmacsi and Sergio Gadea on provisional front row.

Rider | Bike | Time | Gap

1 Simone Corsi Aprilia 1'37.488
2 Gabor Talmacsi Aprilia 1'37.520 0.032
3 Sergio Gadea Aprilia 1'37.649 0.161
4 Scott Redding Aprilia 1'37.766 0.278
5 Pol Espargaró Derbi 1'37.949 0.461
6 Andrea Iannone Aprilia 1'37.950 0.462
7 Nicolas Terol Aprilia 1'38.034 0.546
8 Marc Márquez KTM 1'38.044 0.556
9 Pablo Nieto KTM 1'38.104 0.616
10 Tomoyoshi Koyama KTM 1'38.153 0.665
11 Raffaele De Rosa KTM 1'38.186 0.698
12 Bradley Smith Aprilia 1'38.347 0.859
13 Esteve Rabat KTM 1'38.355 0.867
14 Daniel Webb Aprilia 1'38.473 0.985
15 Joan Olive Derbi 1'38.554 1.066
16 Steve Bonsey Aprilia 1'38.606 1.118
17 Sandro Cortese Aprilia 1'38.724 1.236
18 Stefan Bradl Aprilia 1'38.775 1.287
19 R.Krummenacher KTM 1'38.856 1.368
20 Michael Ranseder Aprilia 1'38.916 1.428
21 Mike Di Meglio Derbi 1'38.938 1.450
22 Takaaki Nakagami Aprilia 1'39.007 1.519
23 Stefano Bianco Aprilia 1'39.037 1.549
24 Lorenzo Zanetti KTM 1'39.386 1.898
25 Pere Tutusaus Aprilia 1'39.538 2.050
26 Jules Cluzel Loncin 1'39.760 2.272
27 D.Ägerter Derbi 1'39.806 2.318
28 Alexis Masbou Loncin 1'39.986 2.498
29 H.van den Berg Aprilia 1'40.357 2.869
30 Robin Lässer Aprilia 1'40.525 3.037
31 Robert Muresan Aprilia 1'41.070 3.582
32 Louis Rossi Honda 1'41.320 3.832
33 R.Lacalendola Aprilia 1'42.182 4.694
34 Matthew Hoyle Honda 1'42.316 4.828
35 Connor Behan Honda 1'42.593 5.105
36 Luke Hinton Honda 1'42.966 5.478
37 Lee Costello Honda 1'43.149 5.661
38 Paul Jordan Honda 1'43.227 5.739

Mapfre Aspar riders Alvaro Bautista and Hector Faubel took part in the traditional Day of Champions ahead of the British Grand Prix and gave some personal items away for auction.
A pair of gloves from Alvaro Bautista was sold for 400 Euros alone.
All in all the Donington Day of Champions made an incredible amount of 235,965 Euros on Thursday which will benefit Riders for Health to support health workers in Africa with reliable transportation and ensure medical care in remote areas of the countries.

Bancaja Aspar rider Sergio Gadea has another tough weekend ahead of him as he will compete in the British GP with a torn ligament in his left knee. A sprain in the same area makes the injury even worse.
Sergio writes on his personal Blog that an examination after the Catalunya GP showed the injury.
However, he's working hard to be as fit as possible for the race on Sunday.
And in Qatar earlier this season we have already witnessed what Sergio can do even when he's injured.

Fans of the Mapfre Aspar Aprilia Team who live in or near Madrid can have a close up look at the bike Alvaro Bautista and Hector Faubel compete with in the 250cc world championship.
From June 17th to July 2nd the Aprilia RSA of the Mapfre Aspar Team will be displayed in the Shopping Center Moda Shopping in Madrid.
Don't miss this chance to check out the bike that hopefully will win many more races this season. :)

FRIDAY, 20 JUNE 2008
09:00-09:45 125cc Free Practice 1
10:00-11:00 MotoGP Free Practice 1
11:15-12:15 250cc Free Practice 1
12:20-12:50 MotoGP2
13:10-13:40 125cc Qualifying Practice 1
13:55-14:55 MotoGP Free Practice 2
15:10-15:55 250cc Qualifying Practice 1
16:05-16:35 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup Free Practice
16:40-16:55 Thundersport GB2 Cup Qualifying Practice 1
17:05-17:35 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup Qualifying Practice 1
17:40-17:55 Aprilia Superteen Challenge Qualifying Practice 1
18:05-18:35 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup Qualifying Practice 2
18:40-19:05 Suzuki & Yamaha Cup Qualifying Practice

SATURDAY, 21 JUNE 2008
09:00-09:45 125cc Free Practice 2
10:00-11:00 MotoGP Free Practice 3
11:15-12:15 250cc Free Practice 2
13:10-13:40 125cc Qualifying Practice 2
13:55-14:55 MotoGP Qualifying Practice
15:10-15:55 250cc Qualifying Practice 2
16:20 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup Race (17 laps)
17:00-17:10 Aprilia Superteen Challenge Qualifying Practice 2
17:15-17:25 Thundersport GB2 Cup Qualifying Practice 2
17:30 Henderson R1 Cup Race 1 (10 laps)
17:55 ACU Suzuki GSXR Cup Race 1 (10 laps)
18:20 Thundersport GB2 Cup Race 1 (10 laps)
18:45 Aprilia Superteen Challenge Race 1 (10 laps)
19:10 Henderson R1 Cup Race 2 (10 laps)
19:35 ACU Suzuki GSXR Cup Race 2 (10 laps)

SUNDAY, 22 JUNE 2008
09:40-10:00 125cc Warm Up
10:10-10:30 250cc Warm Up
10:40-11:05 MotoGP Warm Up
12:00 125cc Race (25 laps)
13:15 250cc Race (27 laps)
15:00 MotoGP Race (30 laps)

*All times local - BST (GMT +1)

Alvaro Bautista:
“Donington is my favorite circuit. There I got my first points and my first podium in the world championship. I also got the fastest lap in 2004 and 2006 in 125cc.
For this race weekend I only hope that everything goes as good or better than in Montmeló and that we can keep the good rhythm, achieving two good consecutive results. I only want to have a good feeling with the Aprilia and enjoy racing as I did until now. What I like most about the English circuit is the enormous slope to the right that goes into a blind left curve. And the two corner close to the finish line.”

Héctor Faubel:
“After the sixth position on the grid and eighth in the race of Montmeló, I come to England very motivated. We are improving little by little in each race and the Aprilia RS is running very good. My team is working very well, so the goal must be to improve the results in each race. The circuit of Donington Park is very good and fun to ride with the combination of accelerations and brakings. These factors help to make the bikes more equal since there is also no long straight line.
During this week I have been realxing and my arm some rest and I will definitely be fit and ready to race in Donington.”

Gábor Talmacsi:
“The last few seasons the race results in Donington haven't been great, but during the practice and qualifying sessions I've always been with the front group. This season the circuit should be my turning point after I got feeling for the Aprilia back in Le Mans. I think that the French and the British circuit are similar as far as slow curves and strong brakings go, so I hope to use the setting references we got in France.
My goal is to finish discovering the secrets of the new Aprilia, so that I can be 100% comfortable and win. In the last races we went well, but we weren't fastest on the track, this one is an aspect on which we must work. We must avoid taking risks and go for the win.”

Sergio Gadea:
“Seeing how the season evolved so far, I really want to do well in Donington. We started the season really well, but then we had some problems. The Aprilia begins to work great in each race and goes very well and how I like it. I am really satisfied with the work of the team and after the Grand Prix in Catalunya we saw that we can be very competitive, although the result was not as good as we had hoped.
In England we have another chance to fo a great race. Donington is a circuit that seems to be better to me every year. Since I finished fourth last year, I will give everything this year to finish on the podium.”

Pere Tutusaus:
“After the Grand Prix of Catalunya I have stayed the whole week in Igualada, at home, to train with the trial bike. What I understand from all the comments is that Donington is a very complicated circuit since it does not have good grip and it usually rains at least one day at each race weekend.
After the weekend of Jerez where I achieved a podium position [in the CEV], I only want to continue working with the same dynamics like until now, to be prepared for the English race as good as possible. The goal once again is to try to get championship points and to continue learning every day.”

After clinching his first CEV podium of the season with a great second place in Jerez, Bancaja Aspar rider Pere Tutusaus talked about his race in the press conference afterwards, together with winner Luis Salom and third placed Efrén Vázquez.

We, over at BatiFans.com - The Alvaro Bautista Fan Forum have put another of those excellent limited edition Team Aspar jackets up to be won.
This time we've teamed up with the triffick people over at LondonBikers.com who are offering it up as a prize for a pre-British GP competition with a question so easy that any Alvaro Bautista fan should be able to answer it in their sleep.
We suggest you get over there and enter now to be in with another chance of winning one of these rare and rather cool jackets.
And enjoy a great biking website while you're there too, of course... :D

Click here to go to LondonBikers.com...

This is the second commercial for Team Aspar's sponsor Master Cadena, following this one.
Jorge Martinez is looking for his riders in the store, but Sergio Gadea, Hector Faubel, Gabor Talmacsi and Alvaro Bautista are a bit elusive. ;)

And here's the Making of for both commercials with Team Aspar:

250cc

2nd Álvaro Bautista:
"At the start I had a good pace, but wasn't too strong to avoid any possible mistake. Little by little we went faster and faster. In the final lap I tried to close every gap, but made an error in the La Caixa corner; I hit neutral instead of first and Marco was able to pass me. Then there was no time for me to pass him again, with so little space before the line. I am a little disappointed, but they are 20 valuable points and I rode an intelligent race. The most positive point has been our speed."

8th Héctor Faubel:
"I think that I did everything well. A good start, a place in the front group... but with ten laps to go my arm started to hurt. I don't know why that was, because all weekend I've had injections to avoid the pain. At the midway point I couldn't stand it anymore, and I went easy until I finished eighth. I am happy, because it was my home race and my best result of the year so far. It was a pity to not be in the top five with the Aprilia RSA, but with a rest and some physiotherapy I'll be back for the next race."

******************************************************

125cc

3rd Gábor Talmacsi
"I am very happy with third place. This weekend was easy for us in terms of finding our Aprilia setup. At the start I didn't get away well, but little by little I made moves up through the riders. It was difficult, because the bike was moving around a lot when braking and that impeded the fight for the win. From the start of the race I tried to keep my concentration and not make any mistakes; a podium is a good result for us today. We keep picking up points, and this is the important thing. Today we weren't at 100% but we still have to be delighted with what we achieved. We now just have to work on the front end of the bike ahead of the next few rounds."

9th Sergio Gadea:
"I pushed hard right from the start, and didn't want to let the chance of a good result get away. I gave my all, and it is a pity that with the pace I had I went off track. We were passing each other cleanly, and when I braked there was some extra space which I only noticed with my hand off the lever and no time to react. It's strange, because it wasn't like it was the end of the race; I can understand why that would happen at the end, but not at that moment. I am happy with Aprilia, the bike worked to perfection and now I hope to continue with the same dynamic at Donington."

19th Pere Tutusaus:
"It wasn't one of my best races, despite my finishing in the top 19. I don't think that was where I should have been. I think that we can and should do more, and I hope that in the next race I can get the best out of myself. The warmup left the track humid and made things hard, plus the weekend as a whole was a little complicated with a rear brake problem. We have to try and improve like always in Donington."

******************************************************

CLASSIFIED:

Pos | Rider | Bike | Time
1. Mike Di Meglio Derbi 41:08.708
2. Pol Espargaro Derbi + 0.268
3. Gabor Talmacsi Aprilia + 0.338
4. Stefan Bradl Aprilia + 8.765
5. Simone Corsi Aprilia + 10.141
6. Scott Redding Aprilia + 11.178
7. Steve Bonsey Aprilia + 13.671
8. Sandro Cortese Aprilia + 13.755
9. Sergio Gadea Aprilia + 15.541
10. Marc Marquez KTM + 18.962
11. Daniel Webb Aprilia + 22.653
12. D.Agerter Derbi + 24.928
13. Tomoyoshi Koyama KTM + 25.013
14. Bradley Smith Aprilia + 25.059
15. R.Krummenacher KTM + 25.188
16. Efren Vazquez Aprilia + 25.352
17. Michael Ranseder Aprilia + 25.541
18. Stefano Bianco Aprilia + 31.365
19. Pere Tutusaus Aprilia + 42.899
20. Jules Cluzel Loncin + 43.469
21. H.van den Berg Aprilia + 56.930
22. Takaaki Nakagami Aprilia +1:01.318
23. R.Lacalendola Aprilia +1:02.867
24. Robert Muresan Aprilia +1:17.370
25. Louis Rossi Honda +1:18.790
26. Ricard Cardus Derbi +1:27.350
27. Daniel Saez Aprilia +1:28.736

NOT CLASSIFIED/RETIREMENTS:

Rider | Bike | Laps
Axel Pons Aprilia 21
Nicolas Terol Aprilia 20
Raffaele De Rosa KTM 20
Joan Olive Derbi 19
Andrea Iannone Aprilia 17
Robin Lasser Aprilia 17
Lorenzo Zanetti KTM 14
Alexis Masbou Loncin 13
Jordi Dalmau Honda 11
Ivan Maestro Aprilia 10
Pablo Nieto KTM 1

CLASSIFIED:

Pos | Rider | Bike | Time
1. Marco Simoncelli Gilera 41:01.859
2. Alvaro Bautista Aprilia + 0.039
3. Hector Barbera Aprilia + 11.291
4. Alex Debon Aprilia + 21.373
5. Thomas Luthi Aprilia + 26.621
6. Mattia Pasini Aprilia + 26.720
7. Hiroshi Aoyama KTM + 35.818
8. Hector Faubel Aprilia + 36.321
9. Julian Simon KTM + 36.964
10. Lukas Pesek Aprilia + 41.237
11. R.Wilairot Honda + 52.391
12. Yuki Takahashi Honda + 56.656
13. Alex Baldolini Aprilia + 59.282
14. Manuel Poggiali Gilera +1:02.503
15. Fabrizio Lai Gilera +1:02.656
16. Eugene Laverty Aprilia +1:07.418
17. Russell Gomez Aprilia + 1 Lap
18. D.T.Pradita Yamaha + 1 Lap

NOT CLASSIFIED/RETIREMENTS:

Rider | Bike | Laps
Mika Kallio KTM 19
Imre Toth Aprilia 9
Karel Abraham Aprilia 7
Aleix Espargaro Aprilia 2
Daniel Arcas Honda 2
R.Locatelli Gilera 0

FASTEST LAP: Bautista, 1:46.143 on lap 21

250cc

1st Álvaro Bautista: 1.45.636 (21 laps):
"I am very satisfied because I took a home pole position; this gives me some good expectation for tomorrow. We went round fast, although in the afternoon the wind made things a little more difficult. In the end we pushed hard to control the situation, and hopefully we can continue our form in the race. I want to start in the same way as always, looking to give my best and have fun with the Aprilia. We will have to see how the race develops; If I see that I can get away and push hard, then I won't think twice about it. Since yesterday we've been riding fast and this afternoon was the confirmation of this."

6th Héctor Faubel: 1.46.594 (16 laps):
"We're starting from the second row, which was our goal and is until now the best qualifying result of the year. We're going step by step, and this is a good move. I think that we can have a good race tomorrow, and I just have to make a good start and get in the front group. I will go all-out and keep up with them as best I can. The grid is more or less like normal, and there are a pair of riders who can make the difference. The track conditions make the bike slide around, and I suppose that this is the same for everyone."

**********************************************************

125cc

6th Sergio Gadea: 1.51.339 (13 laps):
"I'm comfortable with the way the weekend's gone in general. I think everything is working well. I wanted to set pole here, it wasn't to be but I'm hopeful we can have a good result tomorrow. We have to take every opportunity that comes along because the championship is moving quickly and it won't be long before time starts to run out. I think it's going to be another tough race and it's time to start taking a few gambles. It will probably be similar to Mugello, maybe a little slower, but in similar conditions. Di Meglio looks really strong and we'll have to keep a close eye on him. Basically we've been running up front all weekend and that's what we were looking for. If we can keep that going I'm sure we'll end the weekend with a good result."

7th Gábor Talmacsi: 1.51.436 (13 laps):
"So far it's been a decent weekend. As far as the set-up is concerned we went the wrong way at the start of the session but managed to remedy that. We did a few tyre tests, firstly with a harder compound, and then in the final six minutes we switched and I pushed hard for a lap time. Unfortunately I ran into a lot of riders that got in my way and I couldn't even get a single quick lap in. In any case I think we'll be competitive for the race so I'm happy. It's going to be difficult because there are a lot of really fast riders but I hope to finish in the top three."

29th Pere Tutusaus: 1.52.806 (15 laps):
"It's been a bit of a strange day. In free practice I felt really comfortable but during qualifying we had a problem with the rear brake and I couldn't stop the bike well. I'm happy because I improved my time from yesterday but I don't think that's enough. Hopefully we can refine a few things tomorrow and then get a good start. I felt a lot of wind on the track in the last session and it was difficult to get the bike turned but I think we can still achieve something tomorrow."

**********************************************************

Pos | Rider | Bike | Time

1. Alvaro Bautista Aprilia 1:45.636
2. Alex Debon Aprilia 1:45.767 + 0.131
3. Hector Barbera Aprilia 1:46.062 + 0.426
4. Marco Simoncelli Gilera 1:46.295 + 0.659
5. Mattia Pasini Aprilia 1:46.363 + 0.727
6. Hector Faubel Aprilia 1:46.594 + 0.958
7. Yuki Takahashi Honda 1:46.668 + 1.032
8. Hiroshi Aoyama KTM 1:46.856 + 1.220
9. Mika Kallio KTM 1:46.952 + 1.316
10. Julian Simon KTM 1:47.121 + 1.485
11. R.Locatelli Gilera 1:47.190 + 1.554
12. Thomas Luthi Aprilia 1:47.207 + 1.571
13. Aleix Espargaro Aprilia 1:47.422 + 1.786
14. Karel Abraham Aprilia 1:47.510 + 1.874
15. R.Wilairot Honda 1:47.510 + 1.874
16. Lukas Pesek Aprilia 1:47.666 + 2.030
17. Manuel Poggiali Gilera 1:47.728 + 2.092
18. Fabrizio Lai Gilera 1:47.818 + 2.182
19. Alex Baldolini Aprilia 1:49.272 + 3.636
20. Eugene Laverty Aprilia 1:49.392 + 3.756
21. Russell Gomez Aprilia 1:49.618 + 3.982
22. Imre Toth Aprilia 1:49.776 + 4.140
23. Daniel Arcas Honda 1:50.186 + 4.550
24. D.T.Pradita Yamaha 1:50.450 + 4.814

Pos | Rider | Bike | Time
1. Pol Espargaro Derbi 1:50.557
2. Mike Di Meglio Derbi 1:50.696 + 0.139
3. Nicolas Terol Aprilia 1:50.740 + 0.183
4. Scott Redding Aprilia 1:51.101 + 0.544
5. Simone Corsi Aprilia 1:51.365 + 0.808
6. Sergio Gadea Aprilia 1:51.399 + 0.842
7. Gabor Talmacsi Aprilia 1:51.436 + 0.879
8. Bradley Smith Aprilia 1:51.439 + 0.882
9. Andrea Iannone Aprilia 1:51.500 + 0.943
10. Joan Olive Derbi 1:51.518 + 0.961
11. Sandro Cortese Aprilia 1:51.564 + 1.007
12. Raffaele De Rosa KTM 1:51.566 + 1.009
13. Stefan Bradl Aprilia 1:51.593 + 1.036
14. Marc Marquez KTM 1:51.650 + 1.093
15. Efren Vazquez Aprilia 1:51.780 + 1.223
16. Steve Bonsey Aprilia 1:51.932 + 1.375
17. D.Agerter Derbi 1:51.976 + 1.419
18. R.Krummenacher KTM 1:52.074 + 1.517
19. Takaaki Nakagami Aprilia 1:52.076 + 1.519
20. Pablo Nieto KTM 1:52.080 + 1.523
21. Daniel Webb Aprilia 1:52.161 + 1.604
22. Tomoyoshi Koyama KTM 1:52.250 + 1.693
23. Alexis Masbou Loncin 1:52.428 + 1.871
24. Lorenzo Zanetti KTM 1:52.428 + 1.871
25. Robin Lasser Aprilia 1:52.474 + 1.917
26. Stefano Bianco Aprilia 1:52.593 + 2.036
27. Michael Ranseder Aprilia 1:52.769 + 2.212
28. Pere Tutusaus Aprilia 1:52.806 + 2.249
29. Jules Cluzel Loncin 1:53.345 + 2.788
30. Axel Pons Aprilia 1:53.532 + 2.975
31. H.van den Berg Aprilia 1:53.560 + 3.003
32. Robert Muresan Aprilia 1:53.607 + 3.050
33. Ricard Cardus Derbi 1:53.698 + 3.141
34. R.Lacalendola Aprilia 1:54.090 + 3.533
35. Louis Rossi Honda 1:54.190 + 3.633
36. Jordi Dalmau Honda 1:54.944 + 4.387
37. Daniel Saez Aprilia 1:55.022 + 4.465
38. Ivan Maestro Aprilia 1:55.681 + 5.124

(*Above - Team Aspar; 125cc & 250cc squads at Barcelona ahead of this weekend's GP)

Monday, June 30, 2008

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Tuesday, June 17, 2008

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