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

Álvaro Bautista
“After the win in Japan I’m feeling happy, strong and confident about going to Jerez this weekend and picking up another good result. I hope that there can be a group of Spanish riders running at the front and putting on a good show for the home supporters. Discounting Qatar, where our performance was severely affected by the conditions, I think we’ve started the championship well and I’m convinced that all the set-up work we did in the winter will help us be competitive from Friday. Whatever happens, racing at Jerez is always special, I don’t know why but feeling the support from the fans in every corner somehow brings out the best in a rider and helps you to win.”

Mike Di Meglio
“We did a few preseason tests at Jerez and I think they really helped me to learn this new category. If we continue working as we have done up to now and put our hard work from the preseason into practice, I’m sure we can do well. I’m going to try and use my experience at Jerez to run at the top of the time sheets from Friday and try to get a good grid position that will allow me to compete in the race. Jerez is not one of my favourite circuits but I have good memories from the preseason tests there so I think we can run up front and put the fiasco in Japan behind us.”

Gábor Talmácsi
“Jerez is always a fantastic place to go racing – because of the fans, because my team is Spanish, because I love the circuit… so many reasons. We did a lot of testing there in preseason and it went well. I think we’re in much better shape now than we were back then and after the result in Japan I’m confident I can have a good race. My objective is still the same – to learn the new category and to hang with the front riders where possible. I had chance to spend two days at home after a tough week in Japan but every time I arrive at Jerez I feel really motivated to push for a top result and this year is no different. I know it will be tough because the level is very high in this class but we’ll be fighting to run up front.”

Julián Simón
“We arrive at Jerez lying second in the championship and really keen to play a lead role. The first two races have been really strange as far as the weather is concerned and the truth is that I’m looking forward to having a race in normal conditions. In Japan things went really well and looking towards Jerez the idea is to improve the set-up as much as possible, as well as improving my riding in order to be as best prepared for the race on Sunday as we can be and see if we can take our first win of the year. The fans are going to get behind the Spanish riders and we have to try and pay them back with a big performance.”

Bradley Smith
“I know the Spanish guys won’t be making it easy for us but Jerez is a circuit where we know we can go fast and we are not going to let the opportunity of a good result slip through our grasp. We have a lot of information from preseason testing that I’m sure will help us to get off to a good start and be on the pace from Friday. We haven’t had much luck with the weather over the opening two rounds so now is the time to follow up all the hard work we’ve been doing with a top result.”

Sergio Gadea
“I’m really looking forward to getting to Jerez because we still haven’t been able to complete a race in normal conditions and it feels a bit strange. We’re working well but haven’t been able to reap the fruit of it yet. In Japan we made the wrong tyre choice and weren’t able to show our true potential. Jerez is not one of my favourite circuits but that’s not a reason for us not to be up there fighting for the win. I’m really happy with the set-up of the bike and engine performance, as well as the way the team is working, so we have to just keep going like this until the results eventually come.”

The highlight of the weekend for the Aspar Team was without a doubt Álvaro Bautista's superb win in the 250cc race. This pic shows him speeding over the finish line with a wheelie while his team is almost falling of the pitwall in the background.
Well done, Alvaro!

Also congratulations to Julian Simon for his hard-fought 2nd place finish in the 125cc tyre gamble.

1st Álvaro Bautista
"It was a rather difficult race for us, because we had nearly no practice time on Friday and Saturday. I started quite badly and had some riders ahead of me on the opening corners, but soon I managed to get past and knew that I couldn't let Simoncelli escape. When I got up to third myself, Simoncelli and Aoyama were all together, and it was then that the wind picked up. Marco had a problem and that left myself and Aoyama, and I gave it my all to pass him. I am very satisfied with this result, and I think that it is an important victory that allows us to arrive at Jerez with our heads high. We have some good data for the race from preseason, and I hope to continue this way to give a win to the home fans."

4th Gábor Talmácsi
"I am very happy and I think that this is an incredible result. To tell the truth we had little time to prepare in either wet or dry conditions, and had near to no reference point for braking. Yesterday we made an important change in the practice session, but weren't able to try anything else when the qualifying session was cancelled. In the morning warmup we still had our doubts with the asphalt being a little wet, but I think that we made the right choice in the chassis setup. I felt comfortable when braking, and had a lot of fun Turing the race. I saw that Aoyama and Simoncelli were riding quickly, and I tried to keep up with their pace, but I had a scare at the same place that Di Meglio did, so I just tried to concentrate on my own race. I think that this is a satisfying result, and places us in a good spot in the standings, so that will help our morale when we get to Jerez."

Mike Di Meglio (DNF)
"I am a little disappointed with the crash, because I was feeling comfortable on the bike. After a good start I was convinced that I could have another great race, but I was unable to pass Gabor early on and when I did there was a damp patch on the track. My bike went out from under me, and there was nothing that I could do. It is strange, because right from the start I tried to concentrate and avoid making mistakes, but I suppose this shows my lack of experience. They are things that happen in racing, and now I just have to get back and try for a better result in Jerez."

2nd Julián Simón
"To tell the truth it was a pity not to ride in normal conditions here in Japan. In any case it was a longer and more fun race than in Qatar, and I enjoyed myself a lot on the opening laps. I was, however, unhappy with myself for my bad start. The race was hard because the conditions weren't great and the engine wasn't going through the revs well, but I don't think that we chose badly on the tyre front. All through the race I had good pace, and I am happy because I gave my all at every moment. I tried to keep up with Iannone but it was tough, so I can just be content in the work done by the team and see how we can improve in order to take the win at Jerez."

10th Bradley Smith
"The start of the race was pretty difficult, because I was using slicks and had no grip. I was just thinking about not crashing with the knowledge that the track was drying out rapidly, because my plan was too push on in the last part of the race. I had some problems with the engine on the corner exit, and it was more aggressive and harder to control. I don't know why this happened. With three laps to go I nearly crashed after the bike bucked, but I was thankfully able to complete the race. Tenth isn't what I expected, but at least there's a few more points on the board, so next weekend in Jerez I am convinced that we can be more successful."

19th Sergio Gadea
"When I started the race the track was wet, but you could see that there were some dry areas. The tyre choice was a risky one, and I knew after a few laps that we had probably made a mistake. I tried to start fast and gain places in the opening part of the race, but when the track dried further there was nothing that I could do. Despite this fiasco I am calm, because under normal conditions I know that we would have been at the front."

After a bad start Mapfre Aspar rider Alvaro Bautista rode a quite brilliant race to finish far ahead of home hero Hiro Aoyama and Italian Mattia Pasini. With this win Alvaro also took the lead in the world championship with one point ahead of Aoyama.

Pos Rider Bike Time

1. Alvaro Bautista Aprilia 44:06.488
2. Hiroshi Aoyama Honda + 5.889
3. Mattia Pasini Aprilia + 21.832
4. Gabor Talmacsi Aprilia + 25.906
5. Alex Debon Aprilia + 30.785
6. Shuhei Aoyama Honda + 33.788
7. Lukas Pesek Aprilia + 36.972
8. Thomas Luthi Aprilia + 41.018
9. Karel Abraham Aprilia + 41.649
10. Shoya Tomizawa Honda + 52.863
11. Hector Barbera Aprilia +1:00.888
12. Raffaele de Rosa Honda +1:06.347
13. Imre Toth Aprilia +1:53.149
14. Kazuki Watanabe Yamaha + 1 lap
15. Vladimir Leonov Aprilia + 1 lap
16. Bastien Chesaux Honda + 1 lap
17. Marco Simoncelli Gilera + 1 lap
18. Aitor Rodriguez Aprilia + 1 lap

Retirements:

Rider Bike Laps
Ratthapark Wilairot Honda 18
Alex Baldolini Aprilia 17
Hector Faubel Honda 6
Mike di Meglio Aprilia 5
Axel Pons Aprilia 3
Jules Cluzel Aprilia 2
Roberto Locatelli Gilera 2

Pos | Rider | Bike | Time
1. Andrea Iannone Aprilia 42:23.716
2. Julian Simon Aprilia + 1.346
3. Pol Espargaro Derbi + 5.039
4. Stefan Bradl Aprilia + 6.904
5. Marc Marquez KTM + 13.061
6. Sandro Cortese Derbi + 14.841
7. Joan Olive Derbi + 16.420
8. Jonas Folger Aprilia + 16.483
9. Dominique Aegerter Derbi + 27.500
10. Bradley Smith Aprilia + 30.359
11. Danny Webb Aprilia + 37.547
12. Tomoyoshi Koyama Loncin + 43.856
13. Esteve Rabat Aprilia + 59.889
14. Lorenzo Zanetti Aprilia +1:00.141
15. Simone Corsi Aprilia +1:02.601
16. Cameron Beaubier KTM +1:02.609
17. Nicolas Terol Aprilia +1:09.867
18. Randy Krummenacher Aprilia +1:09.883
19. Sergio Gadea Aprilia +1:15.049
20. Takaaki Nakagami Aprilia +1:19.858
21. Alexis Masbou Loncin +1:43.413
22. Efren Vazquez Derbi +1:52.910
23. Lukas Sembera Aprilia +2:07.124
24. Yuuichi Yanagisawa Honda +2:07.402
25. Luca Marconi Aprilia + 1 lap
26. Luca Vitali Aprilia + 1 lap
27. Hiroomi Iwata Honda + 1 lap
28. Satoru Kamada Honda + 1 lap
29. Yuki Oogane Honda + 2 laps

Retirements:

Rider | Bike | Laps
Yuma Yahagi Honda 11
Johann Zarco Aprilia 10
Scott Redding Aprilia 6
Lorenzo Savadori Aprilia 2
Jasper Iwema Honda 0

3rd Álvaro Bautista 1.53.836
"Whenever this happens you always regret not pushing harder in the first session but we’re on the front row and that will be important for us to make up positions in the first part of the race. I think we have a good setting for any condition so we just have to wait now and see what state the track is in tomorrow. I felt good in the wet practice this morning - I just had a visibility problem towards the end and couldn’t continue to improve my lap time, but the feeling with the bike was good. The objective will be to go out and give 100%, run at the front and take care to judge the track conditions correctly."

7th Gábor Talmácsi 1.54.594
"Our lack of experience in this category made it extra difficult for us in the wet today. We have only had one session in the dry but I’m happy because I think we can be competitive. The wet session this morning was quite tricky because we decided to make some changes to the bike and in those conditions it was difficult to draw any conclusions, which makes tomorrow’s race something of an adventure into the unknown. In any case I feel highly motivated and I’ll just aim to ride as well as I can out there. Personally I’d prefer a dry race so that I can continue to gather experience in this category."

2nd Julián Simón 2.00.864
"It is a real shame that the weather has prevented us from riding again. I finished up second fastest yesterday but I set a lap that would have been good enough for pole – the only thing was they didn’t show the chequered flag and I was out of time, even though I didn’t realise it. Anyway, I’m happy because we’ve got a good pace in the wet and the bike is working well. I’m keen for the race to get started and it would be nice if the weather allows us to run full distance because it would give us a better idea of where we all are. Whatever the conditions are, we’ll try and run up front and if it’s wet the main thing will be to stay concentrated and not make mistakes."

7th Bradley Smith 2.01.608
"We’re on the second row, which will be important tomorrow in order to make a good start. We’ll have to wait and see what the weather does but personally I’d prefer dry conditions. This morning I had a problem with my exhaust and the bike wouldn’t rev, even though the feeling with the Aprilia was good. It’s disappointing that we didn’t get chance to compete this afternoon but I just hope we can get a full race in tomorrow, unlike Qatar. The front folded on me under braking at the end of the straight this morning and I ran off track but luckily it was just a scare."

12th Sergio Gadea 2.02.333
"I’m not happy because I know we could have been much higher up the order than this. We set a good pace yesterday but we didn’t go flat out for a lap time and even though we could never have predicted this to happen today we’ve been caught out. Even so, I think we can have a good race tomorrow. We’ll have to be careful at the start and try to make up as many positions as possible without crashing. The whole session went well this morning apart from the crash in turn eleven but that was caused by the standing water so I’m not concerned by it."

Due to heavy rain and aquaplaning on the Twin Ring Motegi circuit the 125cc, 250cc and MotoGP qualifyings have been cancelled today. The grid positions will be according to the combined practice session results. With the second practice this morning being in wet conditions, this effectively means the results from yesterday's first practice.

In 125cc Bancaja Aspar rider Julian Simon will start tomorrow's race from second position on the grid, teammates Bradley Smith and Sergio Gadea will start from 7th and 12th position respectively.

Also in 250cc there will be an Aspar rider starting from the front row with Álvaro Bautista on 3rd position. Gabor Talmacsi and Mike Di Meglio will be right behind him in the second row on position 7 and 8.

The weather forecast for tomorrow is better than for today, but the races could still be affected by the rain.

A soaking wet second practice saw lots of crashers in the 250cc class.

Pos. Num. Rider Team Lap time Gap
1 55 Hector FAUBEL Valencia CF - Honda SAG 2'07.824
2 17 Karel ABRAHAM Cardion AB Motoracing 2'08.105 0.281
3 63 Mike DI MEGLIO Mapfre Aspar Team 250cc 2'08.147 0.323
4 58 Marco SIMONCELLI Metis Gilera 2'08.171 0.347
5 75 Mattia PASINI Team Toth Aprilia 2'08.418 0.594
6 25 Alex BALDOLINI WTR San Marino Team 2'08.633 0.809
7 12 Thomas LUTHI Emmi - Caffe Latte 2'08.654 0.830
8 4 Hiroshi AOYAMA Scot Racing Team 250cc 2'08.923 1.099
9 6 Alex DEBON Aeropuerto-Castello-Blusens 2'08.951 1.127
10 19 Alvaro BAUTISTA Mapfre Aspar Team 2'09.095 1.271
11 35 Raffaele DE ROSA Scot Racing Team 250cc 2'09.106 1.282
12 40 Hector BARBERA Pepe World Team 2'09.197 1.373
13 28 Gabor TALMACSI Balatonring Team 2'09.210 1.386
14 48 Shoya TOMIZAWA CIP Moto - GP250 2'09.364 1.540
15 73 Shuhei AOYAMA Harc-Pro 2'09.767 1.943
16 15 Roberto LOCATELLI Metis Gilera 2'10.046 2.222
17 14 Ratthapark WILAIROT Thai Honda PTT SAG 2'10.244 2.420
18 56 Vladimir LEONOV Viessmann Kiefer Racing 2'10.277 2.453
19 16 Jules CLUZEL Matteoni Racing 2'10.394 2.570
20 52 Lukas PESEK Auto Kelly - CP 2'10.477 2.653
21 10 Imre TOTH Team Toth Aprilia 2'11.521 3.697
22 7 Axel PONS Pepe World Team 2'13.555 5.731
23 8 Bastien CHESAUX Racing Team Germany 2'14.617 6.793
24 59 Kazuki WATANABE Bardral Racing with SJ-R 2'15.711 7.887

Out of limit time
77 Aitor RODRIGUEZ SPA Milar - Juegos Lucky Aprilia

Pos. Rider Team Motorcycle Lap time Gap

1 Julian SIMON Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc Aprilia 2'15.037
2 Marc MARQUEZ Red Bull KTM Motosport KTM 2'15.568 0.531
3 Dominique AEGERTER Ajo Interwetten Derbi 2'15.635 0.598
4 Andrea IANNONE Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. Aprilia 2'16.069 1.032
5 Sandro CORTESE Ajo Interwetten Derbi 2'16.070 1.033
6 Danny WEBB Degraaf Grand Prix Aprilia 2'16.354 1.317
7 Simone CORSI Jack & Jones Team Aprilia 2'16.676 1.639
8 Stefan BRADL Viessmann Kiefer Racing Aprilia 2'16.678 1.641
9 Efren VAZQUEZ Derbi Racing Team Derbi 2'17.319 2.282
10 Tomoyoshi KOYAMA Loncin Racing Loncin 2'17.532 2.495
11 Jonas FOLGER Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. Aprilia 2'17.893 2.856
12 Nicolas TEROL Jack & Jones Team Aprilia 2'18.038 3.001
13 Randy KRUMMENACHER Degraaf Grand Prix Aprilia 2'18.261 3.224
14 Takaaki NAKAGAMI Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. Aprilia 2'18.267 3.230
15 Bradley SMITH Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc Aprilia 2'18.618 3.581
16 Sergio GADEA Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc Aprilia 2'18.899 3.862
17 Lorenzo ZANETTI Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. Aprilia 2'18.987 3.950
18 Yuma YAHAGI Okegawajuku & Endurance Honda 2'19.123 4.086
19 Johann ZARCO WTR San Marino Team Aprilia 2'19.567 4.530
20 Scott REDDING Blusens Aprilia Aprilia 2'20.011 4.974
21 Cameron BEAUBIER Red Bull KTM Motosport KTM 2'20.062 5.025
22 Pol ESPARGARO Derbi Racing Team Derbi 2'20.345 5.308
23 Alexis MASBOU Loncin Racing Loncin 2'20.367 5.330
24 Esteve RABAT Blusens Aprilia Aprilia 2'20.693 5.656
25 Joan OLIVE Derbi Racing Team Derbi 2'20.770 5.733
26 Yuuichi YANAGISAWA 18 Grage Racing Honda 2'21.140 6.103
27 Luca MARCONI CBC Corse Aprilia 2'21.233 6.196
28 Lorenzo SAVADORI Fontana Racing Aprilia 2'21.456 6.419
29 Jasper IWEMA Racing Team Germany Honda 2'21.644 6.607
30 Hiroomi IWATA Dydo Miu Racing Honda 2'22.513 7.476
31 Satoru KAMADA Endurance & Osl Honda 2'23.134 8.097
32 Lukas SEMBERA Matteoni Racing Aprilia 2'23.281 8.244
33 Michael RANSEDER Haojue Team Haojue 2'23.394 8.357

Out of limit time
66 Matthew HOYLE GBR Haojue Team Haojue
10 Luca VITALI ITA CBC Corse Aprilia
57 Yuki OOGANE JPN Endurance & Okegawajuku Honda

3rd Álvaro Bautista 1.53.836 (18 laps):
"At the start I didn't feel too good on the bike and I couldn't brake hard in the slow corners. We improved in this area but on the cold track it was difficult to get a rhythm together. It was really cold today and we'll have to wait and see what happens tomorrow but we have to stay focused and put in 100% effort regardless of the conditions, there are no excuses.
The lap times aren't as fast as last year so there is plenty of room for improvement. It's the second race of the year and the goal is to pick up as many points as possible. With just one session on a Friday you have to work well, and quickly, and not take your eye off the ball otherwise you soon run out of time."

7th Gábor Talmácsi 1.54.594 (15 laps):
"It’s the first day, I’m seventh fastest and I think I need a few more laps to understand how the 250 behaves at this circuit and to get my reference points. The day went well despite the cold, although I still need to get more out of the Aprilia under braking. I’m happy because all the changes we made were for the better but we still need to analyse the data and improve further for tomorrow. If it rains then it will rain for everybody so we just have to stay focused, not make any mistakes and stick to the job at hand. I tried two different front tyres today and one rear – the results were good but we have another couple of things to try tomorrow, weather permitting."

8th Mike Di Meglio 1.54.595 (15 laps):
"It was so cold today that it was difficult to get the most out of the bike. I haven't ridden this bike here before so I had to get used to things lap by lap but I noticed that my Aprilia was moving around a lot under braking. It is strange to only have three practice sessions because it all goes by so fast and it's tricky to set the bike up. It looks like it's definitely going to rain tomorrow so it will be important to get a lot of laps in and gain confidence with this bike in the wet.
The cool temperatures today meant that we were a long way off the best times here but the riders at the top were close together so I want to keep gathering confidence tomorrow and get as close to them as I can."

2nd Julián Simón 2.00.864 (12 laps):
"I'm really happy to be back amongst the frontrunners again today. I tried a new set of leathers that I only received for this race but it is too small and it made it hard for me to ride. It's a shame because I like this track and I think we could have gone faster. If we can improve the set-up in the cycle part of the bike I'm sure we can go much faster tomorrow but in general I'm rally happy with the performance of my Aprilia. The track was really cold and it was hard to get the tyres up to temperature, which is why the lap times weren't as quick as we might have expected."

7th Bradley Smith 2.01.608 (14 laps):
"There is not much grip out there so the lap times are quite slow and it's difficult to get a good feeling. We usually come here when it's much warmer and in this heat everything changes - the setting, the feeling, everything. I think we have a good base setting for the dry but it looks like it might rain for tomorrow so it will be difficult to get prepared for the race, which in theory should be dry. Anyway, we have to stay focused and whatever the weather brings we have to try and work hard to improve and be as well-prepared for the race as we can be. We made a few changes to the front fork to improve the feeling of the bike today and they did work, but we still have to make more improvements."

12th Sergio Gadea 2.02.333 (16 laps):
"We tried a new exhaust today that worked well but I had a lot of problems with the front end of my Aprilia. It was folding a lot and I felt like I was going to crash in a lot of the corners. Despite this problem and the cold temperatures I tried to stay out and get a lot of laps in, to give the mechanics as much information as possible so that we can work on some positive changes for tomorrow - although if it rains, as is forecast, we won't have much chance to try anything. If it rains we'll try and work on our wet pace and if it doesn't we'll have an opportunity to keep working towards the race."

Pos. Rider Team Lap time Gap
1 Marco SIMONCELLI Metis Gilera 1'53.093
2 Hiroshi AOYAMA Scot Racing Team 250cc 1'53.695 0.602
3 Alvaro BAUTISTA Mapfre Aspar Team 1'53.836 0.743
4 Mattia PASINI Team Toth Aprilia 1'53.940 0.847
5 Hector BARBERA Pepe World Team 1'54.497 1.404
6 Raffaele DE ROSA Scot Racing Team 250cc 1'54.584 1.491
7 Gabor TALMACSI Balatonring Team 1'54.594 1.501
8 Mike DI MEGLIO Mapfre Aspar Team 250cc 1'54.595 1.502
9 Roberto LOCATELLI Metis Gilera 1'54.757 1.664
10 Alex DEBON Aeropuerto-Castello-Blusens 1'55.103 2.010
11 Lukas PESEK Auto Kelly - CP 1'55.158 2.065
12 Ratthapark WILAIROT Thai Honda PTT SAG 1'55.208 2.115
13 Thomas LUTHI Emmi - Caffe Latte 1'55.453 2.360
14 Jules CLUZEL Matteoni Racing 1'55.538 2.445
15 Hector FAUBEL Valencia CF - Honda SAG 1'55.588 2.495
16 Karel ABRAHAM Cardion AB Motoracing 1'55.724 2.631
17 Shuhei AOYAMA Harc-Pro 1'55.929 2.836
18 Alex BALDOLINI WTR San Marino Team 1'56.017 2.924
19 Kazuki WATANABE Bardral Racing with SJ-R 1'57.274 4.181
20 Imre TOTH Team Toth Aprilia 1'58.727 5.634

Out of limit time
7 Axel PONS SPA Pepe World Team Aprilia
56 Vladimir LEONOV RUS Viessmann Kiefer Racing Aprilia
8 Bastien CHESAUX SWI Racing Team Germany Honda
77 Aitor RODRIGUEZ SPA Milar - Juegos Lucky Aprilia
48 Shoya TOMIZAWA JPN CIP Moto - GP250 Honda

Pos. Rider Team Laptime Gap

1 Andrea IANNONE Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. 2'00.685
2 Julian SIMON Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc 2'00.864 0.179
3 Stefan BRADL Viessmann Kiefer Racing 2'01.029 0.344
4 Esteve RABAT Blusens Aprilia 2'01.372 0.687
5 Nicolas TEROL Jack & Jones Team 2'01.549 0.864
6 Dominique AEGERTER Ajo Interwetten 2'01.565 0.880
7 Bradley SMITH Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc 2'01.608 0.923
8 Pol ESPARGARO Derbi Racing Team 2'01.781 1.096
9 Sandro CORTESE Ajo Interwetten 2'01.797 1.112
10 Marc MARQUEZ Red Bull KTM Motosport 2'01.868 1.183
11 Joan OLIVE Derbi Racing Team 2'01.947 1.262
12 Sergio GADEA Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc 2'02.333 1.648
13 Danny WEBB Degraaf Grand Prix 2'02.637 1.952
14 Jonas FOLGER Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. 2'02.698 2.013
15 Lorenzo ZANETTI Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. 2'02.721 2.036
16 Scott REDDING Blusens Aprilia 2'03.285 2.600
17 Simone CORSI Jack & Jones Team 2'03.353 2.668
18 Johann ZARCO WTR San Marino Team 2'03.654 2.969
19 Tomoyoshi KOYAMA Loncin Racing 2'03.746 3.061
20 Efren VAZQUEZ Derbi Racing Team 2'03.925 3.240
21 Takaaki NAKAGAMI Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. 2'03.967 3.282
22 Randy KRUMMENACHER Degraaf Grand Prix 2'04.177 3.492
23 Cameron BEAUBIER Red Bull KTM Motosport 2'04.424 3.739
24 Lorenzo SAVADORI Fontana Racing 2'04.442 3.757
25 Alexis MASBOU Loncin Racing 2'05.015 4.330
26 Yuuichi YANAGISAWA 18 Grage Racing 2'05.081 4.396
27 Yuma YAHAGI Okegawajuku & Endurance 2'05.337 4.652
28 Satoru KAMADA Endurance & Osl 2'05.446 4.761
29 Hiroomi IWATA Dydo Miu Racing 2'05.900 5.215
30 Luca MARCONI CBC Corse 2'06.785 6.100
31 Jasper IWEMA Racing Team Germany 2'07.037 6.352
32 Michael RANSEDER Haojue Team 2'07.046 6.361
33 Lukas SEMBERA Matteoni Racing 2'07.352 6.667
34 Yuki OOGANE Okegawajuku & Endurance 2'07.418 6.733
35 Luca VITALI CBC Corse 2'08.860 8.175

Out of limit time
66 Matthew HOYLE GBR Haojue Team Haojue

The main sponsor of the 250cc Mapfre Aspar Team produced a new set of commercials with Álvaro Bautista and Jorge Martinez. The spots have the reoccuring theme of Álvaro "representing" a motorbike that faces all the adverse situations of standing on the streets.

The rest of the spots can be found here and here.

Álvaro Bautista:
"I'm really excited about going to Japan and I hope the result is better for us than Qatar. We had quite a good race at Motegi last year and set the circuit record, so hopefully we can use the data to do a good job during practice and then carry that into the race. You need to be very good under braking at this circuit and even though it is not one of my favourites I know we can be fast and this has to be the most important thing. Hopefully our pace can be as good as it was in practice last year because I want to have a better race and go home with the win."

Mike Di Meglio:
"I'm really happy with a podium in my first race on a 250 and it means I go to Japan full of confidence. The truth is that the team are doing a magnificent job and I hope we can keep it up. I've never ridden at this track on a 250 before and we won't have much practice time available, so this is when we'll really see who has done their homework. We'll have to give our maximum to get the bike set-up as quickly as possible. Our performance in the opening race proved that we've adapted well to the new category and we're ready to tackle the rest of the season."

Gábor Talmácsi:
"It honestly feels strange to be going to Japan so early in the year, but in any case after the opening race in Qatar two weeks ago, which left us feeling a little bit short-changed after the reduced race, I'm really looking forward to getting through some more work on my 250cc Aprilia. We did a good job at the Grand Prix of Qatar and even though there were a lot of crashes in the race, to take a top ten finish on my debut made me happy. This weekend at Motegi we have another chance to continue learning the new category and I think that if we keep working like we have been doing then we can look forward to another good result. The team and myself are giving their best so hopefully we can make up a few positions on the first race."

Julián Simón:
"The good form we showed in preseason carried through to Qatar, the whole team continued to work perfectly and everything is in place for us to have a successful year together, so I'm really happy with the job we're doing at the moment. It's a bit strange to be going to Japan at this time of the year because it's usually one of the final races of the season but Motegi is a circuit I really like and I had a good race there last time. The circuit has a lot of hard braking, which suits my style, so I'm going there expecting to get a good result and looking forward to completing full race distance!"

Bradley Smith:
"I really like Motegi and I know I can be fast there. I had the best result of my rookie season there and was the highest-placed Honda. I've had a bit of bad luck there over the past couple of seasons but with the way this year is going I'm sure we can do well. My intention is to pick up as many points as possible and make the most of racing at a circuit I love. The first race was far too short so we're all fired up for this one. I'm sure we'll be running at the front so let's see if we can finish on the podium in the second race."

Sergio Gadea:
"Our expectations are high for the race in Japan. I left Qatar feeling very happy, not so much for the race but for our form in practice. The rain kind of washed away our hopes but it was only the first race of the year and it's too early to be disheartened. The team is doing a fabulous job and it is thanks to them that the bike is running so well. The main objective for the Grand Prix of Japan is to continue the positive trend we have set since preseason and I'm sure the results will start to come. I like Motegi and if we are lucky enough to avoid any crashes I think we can have a big result."

Aspar-Curvacero rider Isaac Vinales won the first 125cc race of the Spanish championship in Albacete. The crash-ridden 18 lap wet race saw the Spaniard finish over a second ahead of the rest of the field.
Aspar teammates PJ Jacobsen and Adrian Martin who started from first and second spot on the grid finished the race in 5th and 14th place respectively with Martin crashing out from the lead early on and re-joining the race.
The next CEV race will be held at Jerez in early June.

Team Aspar rider PJ Jacobsen will start from pole in the first round of the Spanish 125cc Championship in Albacete tomorrow. This will be the first CEV race for the American and he started the weekend on the right foot with a best laptime of 1:36.3 min, set in the first qualifying with the second qualifying cut short due to rain.
Right next to Jacobsen on the front row will be fellow Aspar rider Adrian Martin with a fastest laptime of 1:36.5 min.
The 125cc race will start tomorrow at 12 o'clock and last for 18 laps.

Team Aspar will again be present in the CEV, the Spanish Championship, in the 125cc class this year, supporting the efforts of three young riders. Spaniard Adrian Martin and American Patrick "PJ" Jacobsen already appeared as wildcards for Team Aspar at world championship races last year and will do so again this season while competing in the 125cc class of the CEV. Spaniard Isaac Vinales will also ride for Team Aspar.
The first round of the CEV will be held next weekend in Albacete.

(*Race shortened to 13 laps)

1 Hector BARBERA SPA Pepe World Team APRILIA 26'50.940
2 Jules CLUZEL FRA Matteoni Racing APRILIA 26'51.766 + 0.826
3 Mike DI MEGLIO FRA Mapfre Aspar Team 250cc APRILIA 26'57.121 + 6.181
4 Hiroshi AOYAMA JPN Scot Racing Team 250cc HONDA 26'57.549 + 6.609
5 Raffaele DE ROSA ITA Scot Racing Team 250cc HONDA 26'57.596 + 6.656
6 Thomas LUTHI SWI Emmi - Caffe Latte APRILIA 26'57.612 + 6.672
7 Alvaro BAUTISTA SPA Mapfre Aspar Team APRILIA 26'58.548 + 7.608
8 Ratthapark WILAIROT THA Thai Honda PTT SAG HONDA 26'59.289 + 8.349
9 Roberto LOCATELLI ITA Metis Gilera GILERA 27'05.972 +15.032
10 Gabor TALMACSI HUN Balaton Racing Team 250cc APRILIA 27'11.+ 20.348
11 Hector FAUBEL SPA Valencia CF - Honda SAG HONDA 27'11.405 + 20.465
12 Shoya TOMIZAWA JPN CIP Moto - GP250 HONDA 27'19.342 + 28.402
13 Lukas PESEK CZE Auto Kelly - CP APRILIA 27'19.846 + 28.906
14 Alex DEBON SPA Aeropuerto-Castello-Blusens APRILIA 27'24.719 + 33.779
15 Alex BALDOLINI ITA WTR San Marino Team APRILIA 27'27.928 + 36.988
16 Bastien CHESAUX SWI Racing Team Germany HONDA 27'52.670 + 1'01.730
17 Imre TOTH HUN Team Toth Aprilia APRILIA 27'54.452 + 1'03.512
18 Vladimir LEONOV RUS Viessmann Kiefer Racing APRILIA 28'23.325 + 1'32.385
19 Aitor RODRIGUEZ SPA Milar - Juegos Lucky APRILIA 28'29.692 + 1'38.752

(Stopped after 4 laps)

1 Andrea IANNONE ITA Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. APRILIA 8'37.245
2 Julian SIMON SPA Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc APRILIA 8'37.425 +0.180
3 Sandro CORTESE GER Ajo Interwetten DERBI 8'42.456 +5.211
4 Pol ESPARGARO SPA Derbi Racing Team DERBI 8'43.014 +5.769
5 Bradley SMITH GBR Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc APRILIA 8'43.895 +6.650
6 Jonas FOLGER GER Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. APRILIA 8'43.946 +6.701
7 Nicolas TEROL SPA Jack & Jones Team APRILIA 8'44.016 +6.771
8 Stefan BRADL GER Viessmann Kiefer Racing APRILIA 8'44.837 +7.592
9 Danny WEBB GBR Degraaf Grand Prix APRILIA 8'45.414 +8.169
10 Esteve RABAT SPA Blusens Aprilia APRILIA 8'45.923 +8.678
11 Dominique AEGERTER SWI Ajo Interwetten DERBI 8'49.477 +12.232
12 Sergio GADEA SPA Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc APRILIA 8'49.482 +12.237
13 Scott REDDING GBR Blusens Aprilia APRILIA 8'49.605 +12.360
14 Simone CORSI ITA Jack & Jones Team APRILIA 8'50.999 +13.754
15 Johann ZARCO FRA WTR San Marino Team APRILIA 8'51.028 +13.783
16 Cameron BEAUBIER USA Red Bull KTM Motosport KTM 8'51.138 +13.893
17 Efren VAZQUEZ SPA Derbi Racing Team DERBI 8'51.415 +14.170
18 Joan OLIVE SPA Derbi Racing Team DERBI 8'51.697 +14.452
19 Lorenzo ZANETTI ITA Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. APRILIA 8'52.555 +15.310
20 Takaaki NAKAGAMI JPN Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. APRILIA 8'53.660 +16.415
21 Lorenzo SAVADORI ITA Fontana Racing APRILIA 8'55.847 +18.602
22 Randy KRUMMENACHE SWI Degraaf Grand Prix APRILIA 8'56.600 +19.355
23 Jasper IWEMA NED Racing Team Germany HONDA 9'05.279 +28.034
24 Luca MARCONI ITA CBC Corse APRILIA 9'05.359 +28.114
25 Lukas SEMBERA CZE Matteoni Racing APRILIA 9'05.444 +28.199
26 Alexis MASBOU FRA Loncin Racing LONCIN 9'05.517 +28.272
27 Tomoyoshi KOYAMA JPN Loncin Racing LONCIN 9'05.789 +28.544
28 Luca VITALI ITA CBC Corse APRILIA 9'31.172 +53.927

1st Álvaro Bautista 2.00.677 (19 laps)
"I am happy to have got pole position despite the difficulties posed by the wind. At the start of the session it started to rain, and we didn't know if we'd have qualifying at all. We had a good pace but at the start I had to work a little bit. We tried a new tyre that didn't work out and then returned to what we had before. I was going round in a pace below 01. Tomorrow's race will be complicated, as Aoyama will be up at the front and Barberá and Di Meglio will also have something to say. I expect a difficult race, but I want to have fun with it, and the important thing is that we have everything ready. In any case, we'll have the warmup for some final adjustments."

3rd Mike Di Meglio 2.01.113 (18 laps)
"I am very happy because we worked to perfection in bad conditions. I tried to give my all on every lap, and felt progressively better with my Aprilia. Third place is satisfying, and I hope to be able to top the weekend off with a great race. It's my first race, so I will try to get as much experience as possible, and tomorrow we will decide the finetuning in the warmup. I will aim to get a good start and figure up front, and base my pace on the tyres. I hope I hold my nerve and ride well, as in the MotoGP test I was in the top five. A podium would be a fantastic result."

6th Gábor Talmácsi 2'01.693 (17 laps)
"I am happy with my first qualifying session in the 250cc class. It was a difficult run because of the rain and the delay, and we finished very late. In any case I don't think that I was at 100%, as the wind stopped me arriving at my true limit. I tried to keep focused though. The front end is still giving us problems, but we are confident for tomorrow. With a good warmup session we can make the final adjustments that will allow us to have a good race. It is difficult to make predictions, but in any case Álvaro and Aoyama are looking strong. It will be my first race in the class, and a top five finish would leave me very satisfied."

1st Julián Simón 2.06.974 (14 laps)
"I have never been on pole in a Grand Prix before and I'm really happy. It is payback for a perfect job so far, now we need to finish it off in the race. The session went well - we ran the harder tyre too and it felt great. I think it's going to be a tight race because Smith and Iannone have closed the gap. It's obviously impossible to predict what could happen tomorrow because the slipstream is a major factor here with the long straight and it's difficult to escape, but I think it is going to be between us three. My objective is to finish well and leave Qatar with a job well done. This pole has given me a real boost because I gave it my all and everything worked out how we hoped."

2nd Bradley Smith 2.07.107 (17 laps)
"I was pleasantly surpised with how we were able to pick the pace up from free practice to qualifying. We've taken a big step with the lap times, I don't know why exactly but the grip has been improving gradually and so has my feeling with the bike. I think the conditions were better tonight than they have been all weekend. I set a lot of laps in the low 2'07s, which is really important for the race. I think it's going to be a close race between Julián and myself, and I'm sure Iannone will go with us, but there are other guys that will be able to make the most of the slipstream down this long straight and pick their pace up. We've done our homework, now we need to have a good rest tonight and get ready for the first race of the season."

6th Sergio Gadea 2.08.147 (17 laps)
"I'm happy with the result because we're steadily getting closer to the front. We're still missing something but I feel satisfied with this. I pushed for an extra lap at the end just to make sure and it felt quite easy but there was some traffic out there and it was a shame because I think I could have got a front row start. I just want to finish the race tomorrow at all costs and if possible do so within the top five. Bradley and Julito are a step ahead but it's not as big a step as it was and I'm sure the rest of us will get even closer because it's a long championship. Anyway, we're ready and I think we can look forward to a great race tomorrow."

The 250cc qualifying for the Qatar GP ended just as positively for the Aspar Team as the 125cc qualifying did, with Mapfre Aspar rider Alvaro Bautista taking the pole position. His teammate Mike Di Meglio also had a splendid session in the desert and will start his first 250cc race tomorrow from the first row. Fellow rookie Gabor Talmacsi had a good qualifying as well and will line up on the second row, having finished sixth quickest today.

Pos. Rider Team Lap time Gap
1 Alvaro BAUTISTA Mapfre Aspar Team 2'00.677
2 Hiroshi AOYAMA Scot Racing Team 250cc 2'00.777 0.100
3 Mike DI MEGLIO Mapfre Aspar Team 250cc 2'01.113 0.436
4 Hector BARBERA Pepe World Team 2'01.174 0.497
5 Hector FAUBEL Valencia CF - Honda SAG 2'01.636 0.959
6 Gabor TALMACSI Balaton Racing Team 250cc 2'01.693 1.016
7 Mattia PASINI Team Toth Aprilia 2'01.699 1.022
8 Alex DEBON Aeropuerto-Castello-Blusens 2'01.713 1.036
9 Thomas LUTHI Emmi - Caffe Latte 2'01.738 1.061
10 Roberto LOCATELLI Metis Gilera 2'01.839 1.162
11 Karel ABRAHAM Cardion AB Motoracing 2'01.872 1.195
12 Ratthapark WILAIROT Thai Honda PTT SAG 2'02.062 1.385
13 Jules CLUZEL Matteoni Racing 2'02.113 1.436
14 Raffaele DE ROSA Scot Racing Team 250cc 2'02.408 1.731
15 Lukas PESEK Auto Kelly - CP 2'02.567 1.890
16 Shoya TOMIZAWA CIP Moto - GP250 2'03.590 2.913
17 Alex BALDOLINI WTR San Marino Team 2'03.592 2.915
18 Imre TOTH Team Toth Aprilia 2'04.895 4.218
19 Axel PONS Pepe World Team 2'05.240 4.563
20 Vladimir LEONOV Viessmann Kiefer Racing 2'06.329 5.652
21 Bastien CHESAUX Racing Team Germany 2'07.096 6.419
22 Aitor RODRIGUEZ Milar - Juegos Lucky 2'07.701 7.024

Not classified
58 Marco SIMONCELLI ITA Metis Gilera Gilera

Julian Simon and Bradley Smith reinforced their great preseason form by setting the fastest and the second fastest laps in the 125cc qualifying for the Qatar GP. Sergio Gadea will start tomorrow's race from the second row.

Pos. Rider Team Lap time Gap
1 Julian SIMON Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc 2'06.974
2 Bradley SMITH Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc 2'07.107 0.133
3 Andrea IANNONE Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. 2'07.588 0.614
4 Nicolas TEROL Jack & Jones Team 2'07.781 0.807
5 Sandro CORTESE Ajo Interwetten 2'07.835 0.861
6 Sergio GADEA Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc 2'08.147 1.173
7 Stefan BRADL Viessmann Kiefer Racing 2'08.148 1.174
8 Pol ESPARGARO Derbi Racing Team 2'08.380 1.406
9 Marc MARQUEZ Red Bull KTM Motorsport 2'08.417 1.443
10 Jonas FOLGER Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. 2'08.424 1.450

Mapfre Aspar rider Alvaro Bautista lead the second free practice in Qatar for most of the time and was the only rider who consistently clocked low 2'01 laptimes, but was relegated in the last minute to third position, right ahead of new teammate Mike Di Meglio. Fellow rookie Gabor Talmacsi finished in 7th position.

Pos. Rider Team Lap time Gap

1 Hiroshi AOYAMA Scot Racing Team 250cc 2'01.106
2 Hector BARBERA Pepe World Team 2'01.126 0.020
3 Alvaro BAUTISTA Mapfre Aspar Team 2'01.169 0.063
4 Mike DI MEGLIO Mapfre Aspar Team 250cc 2'01.486 0.380
5 Thomas LUTHI Emmi - Caffe Latte 2'01.607 0.501
6 Roberto LOCATELLI Metis Gilera 2'01.713 0.607
7 Gabor TALMACSI Balaton Racing Team 250cc 2'01.718 0.612
8 Raffaele DE ROSA Scot Racing Team 250cc 2'02.037 0.931
9 Mattia PASINI Team Toth Aprilia 2'02.161 1.055
10 Karel ABRAHAM Cardion AB Motoracing 2'02.177 1.071
11 Ratthapark WILAIROT Thai Honda PTT SAG 2'02.230 1.124
12 Hector FAUBEL Valencia C.F. - Honda SAG 2'02.301 1.195
13 Lukas PESEK Auto Kelly - CP 2'02.330 1.224
14 Marco SIMONCELLI Metis Gilera 2'02.400 1.294
15 Jules CLUZEL Matteoni Racing 2'03.227 2.121
16 Alex BALDOLINI WTR San Marino Team 2'03.679 2.573
17 Imre TOTH Team Toth Aprilia 2'03.720 2.614
18 Shoya TOMIZAWA CIP Moto - GP250 2'04.310 3.204
19 Axel PONS Pepe World Team 2'05.356 4.250
20 Alex DEBON Aeropuerto-Castello-Blusens 2'05.715 4.609
21 Vladimir LEONOV Viessmann Kiefer Racing 2'06.856 5.750
22 Aitor RODRIGUEZ Milar - Juegos Lucky 2'07.598 6.492
23 Bastien CHESAUX Racing Team Germany 2'07.933 6.827

Bancaja Aspar rider Julian Simon made his intentions for Sunday's race clear again by clocking the fastest laptime in the second practice, being almost half a second quicker than second-fastest Nico Terol.
Teammates Bradley Smith and Sergio Gadea finished with in 4th and 6th respectively.

Pos. Rider Team Motorcycle Lap time Gap

1 Julian SIMON Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc Aprilia 2'07.578
2 Nicolas TEROL Jack & Jones Team Aprilia 2'08.016 0.438
3 Andrea IANNONE Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. Aprilia 2'08.022 0.444
4 Bradley SMITH Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc Aprilia 2'08.056 0.478
5 Sandro CORTESE Ajo Interwetten Derbi 2'08.360 0.782
6 Sergio GADEA Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc Aprilia 2'08.617 1.039
7 Scott REDDING Blusens Aprilia Aprilia 2'08.923 1.345
8 Simone CORSI Jack & Jones Team Aprilia 2'08.935 1.357
9 Marc MARQUEZ Red Bull KTM Motorsport KTM 2'09.160 1.582
10 Jonas FOLGER Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. Aprilia 2'09.228 1.650
11 Joan OLIVE Derbi Racing Team Derbi 2'09.269 1.691
12 Dominique AEGERTER Ajo Interwetten Derbi 2'09.360 1.782
13 Johann ZARCO WTR San Marino Team Aprilia 2'09.588 2.010
14 Pol ESPARGARO Derbi Racing Team Derbi 2'09.690 2.112
15 Efren VAZQUEZ Derbi Racing Team Derbi 2'09.718 2.140
16 Esteve RABAT Blusens Aprilia Aprilia 2'09.880 2.302
17 Stefan BRADL Viessmann Kiefer Racing Aprilia 2'09.914 2.336
18 Danny WEBB Degraaf Grand Prix Aprilia 2'10.345 2.767
19 Lorenzo ZANETTI Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. Aprilia 2'10.622 3.044
20 Takaaki NAKAGAMI Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. Aprilia 2'10.763 3.185
21 Lukas SEMBERA Matteoni Racing Aprilia 2'11.223 3.645
22 Luca MARCONI CBC Corse Aprilia 2'11.370 3.792
23 Cameron BEAUBIER Red Bull KTM Motorsport KTM 2'11.637 4.059
24 Jasper IWEMA Racing Team Germany Honda 2'11.760 4.182
25 Lorenzo SAVADORI Fontana Racing Aprilia 2'12.074 4.496
26 Randy KRUMMENACHER Degraaf Grand Prix Aprilia 2'12.195 4.617
27 Alexis MASBOU Loncin Racing Loncin 2'12.308 4.730
28 Tomoyoshi KOYAMA Loncin Racing Loncin 2'12.970 5.392
29 Michael RANSEDER Haojue Team Haojue 2'13.538 5.960
30 Luca VITALI CBC Corse Aprilia 2'15.931 8.353
31 Matthew HOYLE Haojue Team Haojue 2'16.210 8.632

1st Gábor Talmácsi 2.01.902 (16 laps)
"I am very happy because I improved my best time from the past week's test by a considerable amount. It is very positive, because the test hadn't been as productive as I had hoped. I think that it is a good time that signals that we should be at the front, but this is neither a qualifying session nor a race, just a good start that gives us the spirit to continue working hard. In this first session the track was dirty and had little grip, but I expect conditions to improve tomorrow and the others will come closer to my time. We have a good setting, so we'll carry on confident ahead of tomorrow's qualifying."

2nd Álvaro Bautista 2.01.943 (16 laps)
"We are a little far off the times that we did at the beginning of the week. The track isn't in the best of condition and this is definitely affecting our setting, as I haven't really felt comfortable on my Aprilia. It was vibrating a lot on the front when we entered the corners, so tomorrow I hope that when the other classes clean the track we can get a better grip from their rubber. The wind has also been a handicap. We all have good data from the test, so we've been able to ride in similar times, but we need to see who is able to carry on improving when the times really drop. Tomorrow we first need to check the state of the track, and then try to improve. If the track is as it was during the two days of testing, then we will be able to continue with our original setting."

11th Mike Di Meglio 2.02.836 (16 laps)
"Today we had a complicated session, because the engine wasn't performing at its best. We didn't get a good lap in, but in any case it is a free practice and we still have tomorrow to find out how to continue facing our problems and what the solutions are. The team have worked hard all preseason, and tomorrow we will fine-tune to have a good qualifying session. I want to have some fun and see how we are going to be when the race comes around. The important thing now is not to worry too much and carry on learning."

1st Julián Simón 2.07.791 (14 laps)
"I was able to make a step forward today because we solved the chattering problems we had in the MotoGP test. Having said that, the track was much dirtier today and there was more wind so the lap times have suffered. I'm happy with the progress we've made but we still have work to do. I need to decide which tyre to go with in the race - soft or hard - and then we'll be all set. Personally I prefer the softer one but after fifteen laps on it today the bike was moving around a lot so we'll have to try and work with the hard one tomorrow. I'm enjoying myself at the moment and I think that when you have the best material and the best team it is much easier to produce your best form."

2nd Bradley Smith 2.08.823 (17 laps)
"Unfortunately after the bad weather here recently the track was slippery so we spent the whole session trying to find a good feeling. I actually spent half an hour of the session out there without stopping, just getting laps in and trying to prepare for the race. The conditions here in the desert are really variable and we don't know what we'll get in the race so to spend so much time out there setting a good consistent pace is important. Julito's time is very quick but our objective is to be up there and try and get close on the second day. It looks like we're a step ahead of everybody else at the moment and I think it's better that way - let's keep it all inside the Bancaja box! My experience tells me that we can be up front in a lot of races this year and that's what we'll be fighting for. We got 95% of the set-up work done at the test so we just have small changes to make depending on the track conditions."

5th Sergio Gadea 2.09.366 (15 laps)
"I'm really happy to be up near the front again. It was a shame because we made a couple of changes that we hoped would gain us some time on the straights but we weren't counting on the wind slowing us down so much. I know that if we can fix that then we'll make up a second and move up the order. I'm satisfied because I felt comfortable despite the bad track conditions and I know we have plenty of room to improve. Every time I get on the Aprilia I feel more confident - we're not at 100% yet but if we keep this up I'm sure we'll soon be ready for battle."

The complete 125cc and 250cc Lineups for 2009 with all Aspar riders in the first row.

Also the 250cc class finished the first practice with the riders of Team Aspar coming out on top. Class rookie Gabor Talmacsi lead the way by a small margin to second fastest Mapfre Aspar rider Alvaro Bautista. Current 125cc world champion Mike Di Meglio finished the first day in 11th position.

Pos No. Rider Bike Time Diff Diff Previous

1 28 Gabor TALMACSI APRILIA 2'01.902
2 19 Alvaro BAUTISTA APRILIA 2'01.943 0.041 0.041
3 75 Mattia PASINI APRILIA 2'02.196 0.294 0.253
4 4 Hiroshi AOYAMA HONDA 2'02.346 0.444 0.150
5 40 Hector BARBERA APRILIA 2'02.383 0.481 0.037
6 14 Ratthapark WILAIROT HONDA 2'02.383 0.481 0.000
7 12 Thomas LUTHI APRILIA 2'02.426 0.524 0.043
8 16 Jules CLUZEL APRILIA 2'02.701 0.799 0.275
9 52 Lukas PESEK APRILIA 2'02.764 0.862 0.063
10 55 Hector FAUBEL HONDA 2'02.782 0.880 0.018
11 63 Mike DI MEGLIO APRILIA 2'02.836 0.934 0.054
12 17 Karel ABRAHAM APRILIA 2'02.848 0.946 0.012
13 35 Raffaele DE ROSA HONDA 2'03.159 1.257 0.311
14 6 Alex DEBON APRILIA 2'04.085 2.183 0.926
15 15 Roberto LOCATELLI GILERA 2'04.126 2.224 0.041
16 58 Marco SIMONCELLI GILERA 2'04.876 2.974 0.750
17 48 Shoya TOMIZAWA HONDA 2'05.091 3.189 0.215
18 10 Imre TOTH APRILIA 2'05.172 3.270 0.081
19 25 Alex BALDOLINI APRILIA 2'06.476 4.574 1.304
20 7 Axel PONS APRILIA 2'06.830 4.928 0.354
21 56 Vladimir LEONOV APRILIA 2'07.082 5.180 0.252
22 8 Bastien CHESAUX HONDA 2'08.877 6.975 1.795
23 77 Aitor RODRIGUEZ APRILIA 2'09.985 8.083 1.108

A very successful first day for the 125cc Bancaja Aspar Team with all three riders finishing the first practice in the Top 5. Julian Simon was again dominating the field, going over a second quicker than his teammate Bradley Smith. Spaniard Sergio Gadea clocked the fifth-fastest time of the day.

Pos No. Rider Bike Time Diff Diff Previous

1 60 Julian SIMON APRILIA 2'07.791
2 38 Bradley SMITH APRILIA 2'08.823 1.032 1.032
3 18 Nicolas TEROL APRILIA 2'09.165 1.374 0.342
4 93 Marc MARQUEZ KTM 2'09.266 1.475 0.101
5 33 Sergio GADEA APRILIA 2'09.366 1.575 0.100
6 11 Sandro CORTESE DERBI 2'09.583 1.792 0.217
7 29 Andrea IANNONE APRILIA 2'09.669 1.878 0.086
8 17 Stefan BRADL APRILIA 2'09.875 2.084 0.206
9 44 Pol ESPARGARO DERBI 2'10.170 2.379 0.295
10 94 Jonas FOLGER APRILIA 2'10.422 2.631 0.252
11 45 Scott REDDING APRILIA 2'10.494 2.703 0.072
12 77 Dominique AEGERTER DERBI 2'10.501 2.710 0.007
13 12 Esteve RABAT APRILIA 2'10.656 2.865 0.155
14 73 Takaaki NAKAGAMI APRILIA 2'10.825 3.034 0.169
15 6 Joan OLIVE DERBI 2'10.827 3.036 0.002
16 24 Simone CORSI APRILIA 2'10.893 3.102 0.066
17 32 Lorenzo SAVADORI APRILIA 2'10.906 3.115 0.013
18 8 Lorenzo ZANETTI APRILIA 2'11.287 3.496 0.381
19 99 Danny WEBB APRILIA 2'11.430 3.639 0.143
20 14 Johann ZARCO APRILIA 2'11.760 3.969 0.330
21 87 Luca MARCONI APRILIA 2'12.587 4.796 0.827
22 16 Cameron BEAUBIER KTM 2'13.138 5.347 0.551
23 53 Jasper IWEMA HONDA 2'13.466 5.675 0.328
24 7 Efren VAZQUEZ DERBI 2'13.849 6.058 0.383
25 71 Tomoyoshi KOYAMA LONCIN 2'14.223 6.432 0.374
26 88 Michael RANSEDER HAOJUE 2'15.087 7.296 0.864
27 69 Lukas SEMBERA APRILIA 2'15.559 7.768 0.472
28 5 Alexis MASBOU LONCIN 2'16.723 8.932 1.164
29 10 Luca VITALI APRILIA 2'16.800 9.009 0.077
30 66 Matthew HOYLE HAOJUE 2'19.394 11.603 2.594
31 35 Randy KRUMMENACHER APRILIA 2'23.205 15.414 3.811

Alvaro Bautista: "I think that we have had a good preseason. I had a bit of bad luck when I got hurt, but the recovery has been fast. I’m back to having a good feeling with the bike. After getting injured we were competitive in Jerez and Qatar, and I think that we are pretty clear about where we are for the first race. We can’t throw caution to the wind though, we have to be prudent. Our Friday work will be hard, because nothing comes for free in this class, so we’ll see whether we have the luck to start this year better than the last. I think that it will be fun, and that we will have a good result.”

Mike Di Meglio: "I have been able to enjoy two days of rest ahead of this race, and they have gone down well with me. Sometimes the last test can be unpredictable, but we have to maintain our concentration and concentrate on our hard work. I hope that conditions will be good. I went well in the last test, but I don’t want to say anything now, just that we should work hard and look for development. We don’t have much time to practice, so I can’t afford to make an error, but I don’t want to put more pressure on us than is necessary. It will be my first 250cc race, and I have a lot to learn still.”

Gábor Talmácsi: "We have been present at as many tests as possible, and the team have given me all the possibility of being ready for this first race. We are at a good level, but we still need to see where exactly we are and to what level we can set our goals. The 250cc class is a very competitive one, with lots of riders within a second of each other. We have been working all preseason for a good pace and that is more important than isolated Fast laps. We have done this, and we're fast, so if we can be like this then we will be competitive."

Julian Simon: "Next Friday I will begin a new adventure with this team. Everything has gone well in preseason since the first moment, and we have done very good times in every test. The last test in Qatar allowed me to finish fine-tuning my bike, and I believe that we are in a position to start well. The track is one that I like, but it isn’t amongst my favourites. I am going to give my all to leave the first race with a good taste in both my mouth and that of the team. We want to go well and –why not?- win it. We have a chance.”

Bradley Smith: "I can only say that I am really happy to be starting this season. Testing is nice, and we’ve done an exhaustive amount of work over the winter, trying to improve the bike the maximum possible when compared to last year. The end objective has always been the races. The work has been great up until now, and I think that we have taken a big step forward from my first test in Valencia back in November. We have to keep fighting up at the front, and the tests have given us an idea of this. Races are different though, and the season is long, so the goal for Sunday is to get as many points as possible and start things off well. Once we get past Japan and Jerez then we will see where we are.”

Sergio Gadea: "During the preseason we have been getting better every time, although maybe we were a bit venid at the last test in Qatar. I am happy, because we’re capable of solving problems and being amongst the top guys. I will always be positive as long as we are working this way, and we will be able to improve. Last year I wasn’t able to give 100% at this race and I won, which was an unforgettable experience, and I want to show that I can do even better. I want to start this season consistently, something that we didn’t do in 2008. Then I can start looking at winning again.”

1º Alvaro Bautista 2.00.496 (65 laps)
"I believe that we did some good work because we tested lot of things on the engine. Also it seems that we took another step forward with the frame because I feel better with the modifications on the front part. Although the work of today has centered mainly around the engine to achieve a better speed in the curves. We also tested different types of tires and now we know more or lesss clearly which ones work for us, always depending on the conditions of the track. The most important thing is that we now have a lot of information for the race. I got my good feeling back, a good rhythm with the bike and when we finished the test I was able to enjoy riding the bike and find my reference points."

4º Mike Di Meglio 2.00.946 (43 laps)
"I am very happy to finish fourth, because at the end of the test session everyone was able improve their laptimes from yesterday, but we needed just a little bit. We rode very well, the chassis made me feel really comfortable on the Aprilia and I believe that I did a very good laptime. But we still have some work left with the gear changes to get a bit more ahead, but I am very satisfied with the work of the team during this test. It's been two very positive days despite the fatigue and I leave this test very satisfied with the fourth fastest time of today. It will be necessary to stay focused, to follow with this way during the race weekend and to be strong and ready for the race."

13º Gábor Talmácsi 2.01.772 (51 laps)
When I went out for the last time I had a crash and this finish of the test leaves me unhappy. Today we tested numerous different settings, but our main problem in this circuit always came from the front part of the bike. We still don't have a solution, but the team is working hard to find it. Today wasn't our day, at the beginning we went very well, but from the middle of the session onwards we stopped improving and discovered some disadvantages. We didn't know what we needed to be faster. In any case I am calm because we did good work yesterday which we can use in practice on Friday, to improve this situation."

125cc
1. Julian Simon (E), Aprilia, 2:06,808
2. Bradley Smith (GB), Aprilia, 2:06,908
3. Sandro Cortese (D), Derbi, 2:07,090
4. Stefan Bradl (D), Aprilia, 2:07,104
5. Scott Redding (GB), Aprilia, 2:07,464
6. Marc Marquez (E), 2:07,695
7. Sandro Cortese (D), Derbi, 2:07,587
8. Jonas Folger (D), Aprilia, 2:07,726
9. Joan Olivé (E), Derbi, 2:07,923
10. Pol Espargaro (E), Derbi, 2:07,927
11. Lorenzo Zanetti (I), Aprilia, 2:08,034
12. Nicolas Terol (E), Aprilia, 2:08,042
13. Andrea Iannone (I), Aprilia, 2:08,058
14. Takaaki Nakagami (J), Aprilia, 2:08,108
15. Sergio Gadea (E), Aprilia, 2:08,250

250cc
1. Alvaro BAUTISTA APRILIA 2:00.496
2. Hiroshi AOYAMA HONDA 2:00.873
3. Mike DI MEGLIO APRILIA 2:00.946
4. Hector BARBERA APRILIA 2:01.061
5. Karel ABRAHAM APRILIA 2:01.094
6. Raffaele DE ROSA HONDA 2:01.129
7. Thomas LUTHI APRILIA 2:01.152
8. Roberto LOCATELLI GILERA 2:01.203
9. Mattia PASINI APRILIA 2:01.391
10. Ratthapark WILAIROT HONDA 2:01.479
11. Lukas PESEK APRILIA 2:02.026
12. Gabor TALMACSI APRILIA 2:02.207
13. Alex BALDOLINI APRILIA 2:02.249
14. Hector FAUBEL HONDA 2:02.293
15. Shoya TOMIZAWA HONDA 2:02.781
16. Imre TOTH APRILIA 2:03.733
17. Alex DEBON APRILIA 2:03.788
18. Axel PONS APRILIA 2:05.293
19. Vladimir LEONOV APRILIA 2:07.115
20. Aitor RODRIGUEZ APRILIA 2:08.559

1º Bradley Smith 2.06.568 (55 laps):
"Most important of today is that we have improved a lot and in addition the conditions of the track also have been improving throughout the training. We have worked mainly on the front suspension and I believe that we have found the best way to follow and work on tomorrow. In this circuit it is very important to achieve that the bike turns well, because the majority of the curves is long and it is necessary to get out of them fast. At the moment we are still very far from the fastest laptime of last year, but we still have a day to continue progressing. If we continue to work like we did today, I am convinced that we could again come out fastest.”

3º Julian Simón 2.07.042 (48 laps)
"Frankly speaking I was very uncertain to ride here for the first time with a 125cc bike at night and I immediately noticed that it is completely different from the 250s. Last year I had my worst race here and I had my doubts, but we have reached a good level from the first moment on, always getting better laptimes step by step. Our main disadvantage has been chattering on the rear in the fast curves, that has prevented us from getting better laptimes, but despite that I had a good rhythm in several laps and I am content with the first day. Looking to tomorrow the team and me will work the best we can to solve our chattering problems and to be prepared for the race."

4º Sergio Gadea 2.07.843 (35 laps)
"I am content, because at the beginning of the test session we did very well and finished in first position. In the later session I went on track again feeling very comfortable, but I had a crash early on and therefore I wasn't able to go out again. In the third session I also had a crash and we had to finish the day before time. It's a pity because the feeling with the bike was good. But be that as it may, I'm working hard to get a fast rhythm as quickly as possible, so we only have to polish up some details on the bike. For tomorrow we will continue to ride with the setup that we had last year and will try to make the setting perfect and get to the first race being competitive."

2º Alvaro Bautista 2.01.121 (58 laps):
"This first day has been a little complicated because the track didn't have much grip and it has taken us a little to get a good rhythm. While we were riding we finally found a solution for the front part of the bike, which really caused us the most problems. With some little variations we achieved great improvements, and progressively I've been able to ride more comfortable and the conditions of the track also improved. If we continue this line of work tomorrow then I am convinced that we will improve and I will gain confidence. Most important thing of today is that little by little I have found some feeling on the Aprilia, although there is still room to improve with the suspensions."

8º Gábor Talmácsi 2.02.278 (47 laps):
It has been quite a positive day although I still have some doubts. At the beginning of the session I had an incident with the gear lever and have spent a lot of time in the box, but the team has has done an awsome job and we have been able to continue testing things. With used tires I am able to get a fast rhythm, but with new tires I have much more problems which is really is not logical, so we will have to find out why. I think that with used tires I managed some fast laptimes, but we have to be able to be fast in any circumstances and condition and with the tire we have. Today we concentrated on evaluating the performance of the tires with each additional lap. At the end of the session I felt very comfortable riding the bike and I am satisfied."

10º Mike Di Meglio 2.02.469 (47 laps):
"This is a circuit I like much and I felt very comfortable on the Aprilia despite it being my first contact with the 250cc at night. I was very tired because we only arrived this morning and I believe that I was not at my maximum, but even so we have had fantastic a first day. We will try to continue improving tomorrow. Today we basically concentrated on working with the frame of the bike. I think that we found a good configuration of the chassis since I felt very comfortable riding the bike. We decided to finish the day a little ahead of the time so that I could rest a bit and will be able to return tomorrow with all my strength."

Results of Day 1 at the final IRTA test in Qatar.
In the 250cc class Mapfre Aspar rider Alvaro Bautista is among the fastest as expected while the 125cc Bancaja team managed to position all riders in the Top 4.
The test will conclude tomorrow at 10PM (CET).

250cc
1. Hector BARBERA 2:00.545
2. Alvaro BAUTISTA 2:01.121
3. Karel ABRAHAM 2:01.406
4. Hiroshi AOYAMA 2:01.685
5. Thomas LUTHI 2:02.085
6. Roberto LOCATELLI 2:02.252
7. Gabor TALMACSI 2:02.278
8. Alex DEBON 2:02.442
9. Mike DI MEGLIO 2:02.469
10. Lukas PESEK 2:02.575
11. Ratthapark WILAIROT 2:02.580
12. Raffaele DE ROSA 2:03.522
13. Mattia PASINI 2:03.708
14. Hector FAUBEL 2:03.959
15. Alex BALDOLINI 2:04.410
16. Imre TOTH 2:04.889
17. Shoya TOMIZAWA 2:05.051
18. Axel PONS 2:06.151
19. Aitor RODRIGUEZ 2:12.536

125cc
1. Bradley SMITH APRILIA 2:06.568
2. Andrea IANNONE APRILIA 2:06.708
3. Julian SIMON APRILIA 2:07.042
4. Sergio GADEA APRILIA 2:07.843
5. Joan OLIVE DERBI 2:08.062
6. Jonas FOLGER APRILIA 2:08.391
7. Sandro CORTESE DERBI 2:08.502
8. Pol ESPARGARO DERBI 2:08.531
9. Esteve RABAT APRILIA 2:08.617
10. Randy KRUMMENACHER APRILIA 2:08.783
11. Scott REDDING APRILIA 2:08.985
12. Lorenzo ZANETTI APRILIA 2:09.297
13. Takaaki NAKAGAMI APRILIA 2:09.371
14. Efren VAZQUEZ DERBI 2:09.460
15. Johann ZARCO APRILIA 2:10.098
16. Tomoyoshi KOYAMA LONCIN 2:10.684
17. Jasper IWEMA HONDA 2:11.270
18. Lorenzo SAVADORI APRILIA 2:11.496
19. Alexis MASBOU LONCIN 2:12.256
20. Luca MARCONI APRILIA 2:13.318
21. Michael RANSEDER HAOJUE 2:13.750
22. Lukas SEMBERA APRILIA 2:14.153
23. Matthew HOYLE HAOJUE 2:17.277
24. Luca VITALI APRILIA 2:18.415

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Jorge Martinez, left, and the president of Bancaja, José Luis Olivas, at a promotional event for the Aspar Team ahead of the 2009 season. It's been a hectic few weeks for the Aspar boss; which now continues with the Qatar test ahead of the GP itself next weekend. '09 is GO!

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

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