Pics Of The Day: Catalunya, Saturday 250cc

Pics Of The Day: Catalunya, Saturday 125cc

Catalunya GP - 250cc FP1, Bautista just off the lead

The final practice of the day saw Mapfre Aspar rider Alvaro Bautista as the fastest man in 250cc for most of the session, only to get pushed off the top spot in the final minute when Alex Debon pulled one quick lap to finish the day only 0.038 seconds ahead of Bautista. Nontheless Bautista's team seems to have found a good setting already, allowing the Aspar rider to constantly clock fastest laptimes.
His teammate Mike Di Meglio also had a good session, the Frenchman still feeling the effects of the arm-pump surgery he had this week, but getting along well with his new Aprilia RSA machine.
Different fortunes however for Rookie Balazs Nemeth who finished the first day at the Catalunya track outside the time limit.

Pos. Rider Team Lap time Gap
1 Alex DEBON Aeropuerto-Castello-Blusens 1'47.291
2 Alvaro BAUTISTA Mapfre Aspar Team 1'47.329 0.038
3 Hiroshi AOYAMA Scot Racing Team 250cc 1'47.422 0.131
4 Mattia PASINI Team Toth Aprilia 1'47.454 0.163
5 Mike DI MEGLIO Mapfre Aspar Team 250cc 1'47.675 0.384
6 Thomas LUTHI Emmi - Caffe Latte 1'48.153 0.862
7 Marco SIMONCELLI Metis Gilera 1'48.160 0.869
8 Karel ABRAHAM Cardion AB Motoracing 1'48.191 0.900
9 Hector FAUBEL Valencia CF - Honda SAG 1'48.418 1.127
10 Ratthapark WILAIROT Thai Honda PTT SAG 1'48.519 1.228
11 Raffaele DE ROSA Scot Racing Team 250cc 1'48.640 1.349
12 Lukas PESEK Auto Kelly - CP 1'48.704 1.413
13 Roberto LOCATELLI Metis Gilera 1'48.978 1.687
14 Hector BARBERA Pepe World Team 1'49.432 2.141
15 Alex BALDOLINI WTR San Marino Team 1'49.791 2.500
16 Jules CLUZEL Matteoni Racing 1'49.795 2.504
17 Axel PONS Pepe World Team 1'50.479 3.188
18 Imre TOTH Team Toth Aprilia 1'50.766 3.475
19 Valentin DEBISE CIP Moto - GP250 1'51.764 4.473
20 Shoya TOMIZAWA CIP Moto - GP250 1'53.104 5.813
21 Vladimir LEONOV Viessmann Kiefer Racing 1'53.166 5.875
22 Stevie BONSEY Milar - Juegos Lucky 1'53.168 5.877
23 Bastien CHESAUX Racing Team Germany 1'53.640 6.349
24 Toby MARKHAM C&L Racing 1'54.678 7.387

Out of limit time

11 Balazs NEMETH HUN Balatonring Team Aprilia

Catalunya GP - 125cc FP1, Simon leads Gadea

Scorching temperatures and sunny skies greeted the MotoGP circus in Catalunya today. The first 125cc practice saw another Bancaja Aspar 1-2 finish with Julian Simon being around half a second faster than teammate Sergo Gadea. Bradley Smith struggled with the bike setup and stayed in the box for a long time, he will hope to have solved the problems until tomorrow.

Pos. Rider Team Lap time Gap

1 Julian SIMON Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc 1'52.311
2 Sergio GADEA Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc 1'52.806 0.495
3 Nicolas TEROL Jack & Jones Team 1'53.098 0.787
4 Pol ESPARGARO Derbi Racing Team 1'53.207 0.896
5 Lorenzo ZANETTI Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. 1'53.220 0.909
6 Sandro CORTESE Ajo Interwetten 1'53.307 0.996
7 Marc MARQUEZ Red Bull KTM Moto Sport 1'53.316 1.005
8 Scott REDDING Blusens Aprilia 1'53.374 1.063
9 Randy KRUMMENACHER Degraaf Grand Prix 1'53.565 1.254
10 Andrea IANNONE Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. 1'53.683 1.372
11 Bradley SMITH Bancaja Aspar Team 125cc 1'53.824 1.513
12 Stefan BRADL Viessmann Kiefer Racing 1'53.871 1.560
13 Tomoyoshi KOYAMA Loncin Racing 1'53.963 1.652
14 Esteve RABAT Blusens Aprilia 1'54.095 1.784
15 Joan OLIVE Derbi Racing Team 1'54.200 1.889
16 Lorenzo SAVADORI Fontana Racing 1'54.243 1.932
17 Johann ZARCO WTR San Marino Team 1'54.251 1.940
18 Efren VAZQUEZ Derbi Racing Team 1'54.256 1.945
19 Takaaki NAKAGAMI Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. 1'54.536 2.225
20 Dominique AEGERTER Ajo Interwetten 1'54.607 2.296
21 Danny WEBB Degraaf Grand Prix 1'54.828 2.517
22 Jonas FOLGER Ongetta Team I.S.P.A. 1'54.850 2.539
23 Simone CORSI Jack & Jones Team 1'55.147 2.836
24 Jasper IWEMA Racing Team Germany 1'55.772 3.461
25 Cameron BEAUBIER Red Bull KTM Moto Sport 1'55.798 3.487
26 Alberto MONCAYO Andalucia Aprilia 1'56.469 4.158
27 Lukas SEMBERA Matteoni Racing 1'56.479 4.168
28 Sturla FAGERHAUG Red Bull KTM Moto Sport 1'56.586 4.275
29 Luis SALOM SAG-Castrol 1'56.650 4.339
30 Luca MARCONI CBC Corse 1'57.126 4.815
31 Johnny ROSELL Blusens BQR 1'58.090 5.779
32 Luca VITALI CBC Corse 1'58.658 6.347
33 Alexis MASBOU Loncin Racing 1'59.038 6.727
34 Jordi DALMAU SAG-Castrol 2'12.197 19.886

Catalunya GP Weekend - TV Schedules

Friday June 12th

Live MotoGP - 11.40am
Catalunya Grand Prix: 125cc Practice
(Eurosport 2)

Live MotoGP - 12.45pm
Catalunya Grand Prix: MotoGP Practice
(Eurosport 2)

Live MotoGP - 2.00pm
Catalunya Grand Prix: 250cc Practice
(Eurosport 2)

MotoGP - 9.10pm
Catalunya Grand Prix: MotoGP Practice (rpt)
(Eurosport 2)

.............................................


Saturday June 13th

MotoGP - 11.00am
Catalunya Grand Prix: Practice (rpt)
(Eurosport 2)

Live MotoGP - 12.00pm
125cc Catalunya Grand Prix: Qualifying
(Eurosport 2)

Live MotoGP - 12.45pm
MotoGP Catalunya Grand Prix: Qualifying
(Eurosport 2)

Live MotoGP - 2.00pm
250cc Catalunya Grand Prix: Qualifying
(Eurosport 2)

MotoGP - 9.30pm
MotoGP Catalunya Grand Prix: Qualifying
(Eurosport 2)

.............................................


Sunday June 14th

MotoGP - 9.00am
MotoGP Catalunya Grand Prix: Qualifying (rpt)
(Eurosport 2)

Live MotoGP - 10.00am
125cc Catalunya Grand Prix
(Eurosport)

Live MotoGP - 11.00am
250cc Catalunya Grand Prix
(Eurosport)

Live MotoGP - 12.30pm
Catalunya Grand Prix
(BBC2)

MotoGP - 4.00pm (*Delayed broadcast)
MotoGP Catalunya Grand Prix
(Eurosport)

Balatonring Team: Balazs Nemeth Looks Ahead To Catalunya

"I hope I can find a good feeling for my Aprilia from Friday and continue to learn what is a completely new category for me. The understanding with the team has been excellent from the first minute and it is thanks to them that my education has got off to a good start. If we keep working well I doubt it will be long before we start improving my speed and I'll soon be challenging for better positions, even though I must say I was satisfied with my debut. The differences between a two-stroke and a four-stroke are considerable, which is why I am training hard to make sure I'm in the right shape to make the transition as easy as possible. I'm really happy to have this opportunity and I can't wait to get to Montmeló and ride again."

Catalunya GP: Pics of the Day, Sunday

Catalunya GP: 250cc - Post Race Quotes

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."


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

Catalunya GP - Final Qualifying - 125cc

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

Random Pic: The Team!

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

Catalunya GP - Eurosport TV Schedule

Don't forget to follow the weekend with the gods themselves; Toby and Julian over at Eurosport...
Here's the schedule for both Eurosport and Eurosport 2, including repeats:

Friday June 6

Eurosport 2
12:00  Live MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix 125cc practice session
12:45 Live MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix MotoGP practice session
14:00 Live MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix 250cc practice session
22:30  MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix MotoGP practice session

Eurosport
20:00  MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix MotoGP practice session

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

Saturday June 7

Eurosport
11:30  Live MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix MotoGP qualifying sessions
12:00 Live MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix 125cc qualifying session
12:45 Live MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix MotoGP qualifying session
20:15  MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix MotoGP qualifying session

Eurosport 2
14:00 MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix 250cc qualifying session
17:00  MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix 125cc qualifying session
17:30 MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix MotoGP qualifying session
21:15  MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix MotoGP qualifying session

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

Sunday June 8

Eurosport
08:45  Live MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix warm-up session
09:15 Live MotoGP
An introduction to the Catalunya Grand Prix
09:45 Live MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix 125cc race
11:00 Live MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix 250cc race
12:15 Live MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix MotoGP race
19:30  MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix MotoGP race

Eurosport 2
15:00  MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix 250cc race
15:30 MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix MotoGP race
21:00  MotoGP
The Catalunya Grand Prix MotoGP race


(*Listings courtesy of the excellent mindthezap)

Catalunya GP - Event Schedule

Friday Jun 6
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


Saturday June 7
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 :: 13:10-13:40 
MotoGP :: Qualifying 1 :: 13:55-14:55 
250cc :: Qualifying 2 :: 15:10-15:55


Sunday June 8
125cc :: Warm-Up :: 08:40-09:00 
250cc :: Warm-Up :: 09:10-09:30 
MotoGP :: Warm-Up :: 09:40-10:05 
125cc :: Race :: 11:00-11:45 
250cc :: Race :: 12:30-13:00 
MotoGP :: Race :: 14:00-15:00

(*All times local)