MotoGP - Brno 2008

[The Phantom]

Only 6 days until resumption of hostilities!

Brno has been resurfaced - meaning much of the past data for electronics and tyres has gone out the window. Brno is one of those circuits where faster laptimes each year are not a given - it's a very fast and demanding circuit, at which a rider/bike combo needs to be in peak form to gain even 0.01 in a lap.

Hopefully the following data is correct, the internet is a minefield (and the MotoGP site is useless):

Lap record (Qualifying) : 1'56.191 (Rossi)
Lap record (2006 race): 1'58.157 (Capirossi)
Fastest lap 2007 race : 1'58.301 (Stoner)

Given that this track is largely about speed, with absolute handling a distant second, it's hard to go past Stoner for pole and victory. I hope Rossi can put up a fight, both for a good championship and also to show that Stoner can withstand the pressure. In 2006 Stoner did a 1'58.1 in post-race testing on the LCR customer Honda, equaling Capirossi's new lap record set during that race, so he certainly has pace at this circuit. Yamaha for their part have reportedly been chasing power during the break, so here's to success on their part.

250cc resumes at Brno after missing the US round - Simoncelli leads the title chase but Kallio has good form at Brno and may be hard to beat.

In the 125s, Mike De Meglio is looking pretty good.

[ArmchairBikeFan]

I just had a look at the World Superbike times from Brno this year.

Pole position: 1'58.345 (Troy Bayliss)
[2007 Pole]: 1'59.603 (Noriyuki Haga)

Fastest lap (race 1): 2'00.298 (Troy Bayliss)
Fastest lap (race 2): 1'59.979 (Michel Fabrizio)


So the Ducatis had the ultimate lap times this year, even though they're a bit slower than the Suzuki for top speed. And the World Supers picked up more than a second in qualifying over last year.

Should be interesting to see how fast the MotoGP machines go round this weekend.

[ChrisS]

Nicky Hayden is out of the Czech Republic Grand Prix at after he injured himself taking part in X Games during the break.

[BobbyC]

It's common practice in US motorsport for participants to attempt various events to get themselves ready. Hayden is no different, having participated in GNCC dirt track races and in this case, the Supermoto. The Supermoto at X Games is regarded as a major event because it is an event owned by The Walt Disney Company (ESPN) with national broadcasts -- the national broadcast is on network television, which gave it priority.

Ironically, it might have been a good way for Hayden to test equipment and even ideas because he has been critical of traction control because of how it hurts riders who began their racing on dirt tracks where they had to learn bike control and sliding -- speedway motorcycle racing.

[harsha]

is there going to be a replacement driver for the Repsol Honda Team....???

[The Phantom]

is there going to be a replacement driver for the Repsol Honda Team....???

I can't recall Repsol Honda ever having put a fill-in rider on one of their bikes? Does anyone know?

If they did get someone, Barros could be a candidate.

[Corny]

I would loove Barros to ride the Repsol another time, he's an amazing rider..

BTW, yamaha announced that Rossi will not use anything new on this weekend's GP.. What have they been doing at Yamaha in this last period, sleeping or something?

[The Phantom]

I did some research - teams can get away with a rider missing one race, but if the rider is to miss two races then a substitute rider must be placed on the bike for at least one of the two races.

As for the M1, I read that Yamaha have more power/higher rpms in a new motor for Rossi and Lorenzo (who seems to be back to reasonable fitness), and Toseland and Edwards will get the 'old' motor which is still more powerful than what they've been using. Which bodes well for Edwards who's done bloody well this year on a relatively underpowered machine!

[NinjaMaster]

Real shame for Hayden to miss at a track he goes ok at. Be interesting to see how much his teammate has recovered from his injuries, hopefully Dani is very competitive.
I'm really looking forward to this race. I really hope to see a battle like at Laguna only this time Casey on the dealing out end to tighten the championship further and put Rossi under pressure to see how he can respond.
Also, it will be interesting to see if CV can maintain his form and prove if Zook have made genuine inroads or if his past performances were more down to conditions.
Then there is the 250 title race between Simoncelli and Kallio with Bautista looking to upset the applecart should the other 2 falter.
Someone in the 125 pack needs to start winning regularly to peg the Flying Frenchman in Mike di Meglio back from building on his title lead. Like always, I'm sure they'll put on an epic show.
Should be a ripper. :up:

[Roby44]

is there going to be a replacement driver for the Repsol Honda Team....???


Are you available then...for the Repsol team that is...

[NinjaMaster]

Stoner fights back to end the first day the fastest.

Pos. Num. Rider Nation Team Motorcycle Lap time Km/h Gap
1 1 Casey STONER AUS Ducati Marlboro Team Ducati 1'57.231 294.197
2 46 Valentino ROSSI ITA Fiat Yamaha Team Yamaha 1'57.410 292.445 0.179
3 65 Loris CAPIROSSI ITA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP Suzuki 1'58.000 290.322 0.769
4 56 Shinya NAKANO JPN San Carlo Honda Gresini Honda 1'58.228 290.010 0.997
5 15 Alex DE ANGELIS RSM San Carlo Honda Gresini Honda 1'58.264 285.789 1.033
6 7 Chris VERMEULEN AUS Rizla Suzuki MotoGP Suzuki 1'58.462 286.548 1.231
7 5 Colin EDWARDS USA Tech 3 Yamaha Yamaha 1'58.672 292.682 1.441
8 21 John HOPKINS USA Kawasaki Racing Team Kawasaki 1'58.830 288.615 1.599
9 24 Toni ELIAS SPA Alice Team Ducati 1'58.881 294.759 1.650
10 50 Sylvain GUINTOLI FRA Alice Team Ducati 1'58.923 294.197 1.692
11 48 Jorge LORENZO SPA Fiat Yamaha Team Yamaha 1'58.977 292.286 1.746
12 4 Andrea DOVIZIOSO ITA JiR Team Scot MotoGP Honda 1'59.094 289.156 1.863
13 52 James TOSELAND GBR Tech 3 Yamaha Yamaha 1'59.328 289.855 2.097
14 14 Randy DE PUNIET FRA LCR Honda MotoGP Honda 1'59.405 284.135 2.174
15 33 Marco MELANDRI ITA Ducati Marlboro Team Ducati 1'59.943 292.921 2.712
16 2 Dani PEDROSA SPA Repsol Honda Team Honda 2'00.540 295.566 3.309
17 13 Anthony WEST AUS Kawasaki Racing Team Kawasaki 2'00.621 288.692 3.390

Casey was comfortably fastest all session, usually by half a second or more before Vale pulled out a quick one after the chequer. It appears Suzuki have indeed improved with both Capirex and Chris the V fairly competitive for 3rd. Pedrosa is really struggling with his injuries and I'll make the same excuse for Westy and Jorge has lost all semblance of form.

[Corny]

Casey's the clear favourite on every of the remaining tracks.. There are tracks where it's harder to pass, that might be the tracks where Vale can be able to hold him off..

1 Stoner
2 Rossi
3 Nakano

my prediction on sunday

[harsha]

is it me or does Pedrosa seem to be struggling really badly????

[Allyc85]

Pedrosa is still struggling with his hand injury and Stoner is ill making it hard for him to put a few laps together. He says even putting on his gloves takes energy out of him.

To put lap-time variations into perspective, if bikes are traveling at 250 km/h when they cross the start/finish line, they are covering a distance of 69.4 metres per second (for ease of calculation, say 70 metres per second).

Therefore a bike lapping 1 second slower than the leading bike traveling at the same speed would be 70 metres behind.

Rossi's fast lap time in FP2 was approx .18 second slower than Stoner's best which does not sound much but that equates to a lead of 12.6 metres (or approx. 41 feet) at 250km/h.

3.390 seconds covered the entire field (237.3 metres)

MORE IMPORTANTLY.............
WHEN YOU'RE RIDING ON THE ROAD AT 100 KM/H YOUR BIKE IS COVERING 27.777 METRES EACH SECOND..... IT TAKES THE AVERAGE PERSON 1.5 SECONDS TO REACT TO AN EMERGENCY AND HIT THE BRAKES OR DIVERGE BY WHICH TIME YOU ARE EITHER ALREADY 41.6 METRES CLOSER TO THE VEHICLE AHEAD OR ARE DETERMINING HOW WELL YOUR BODY AND BIKE WITHSTOOD THE IMPACT. :arrows:

[harsha]

Are you available then...for the Repsol team that is...

i'm available..... :cheese:

but i'd doubt they wanna have me :D

[Roby44]

i'm available..... :cheese:

but i'd doubt they wanna have me :D

Too expensive!! ;)

[jim mcglinchey]

Just how bad is Nickys injury ( not bad ?! ) and how keen is he to get back on the 'onda? Maybe he ll just take it easy until he gets on a Ducati.

This race could be interesting to see how far everyone, and I especially mean Kwak & Suzuki, has come over the holiday.

[Roby44]

FP3

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a20/MareeBrooks/immagineqc5.jpg

[Ranger]

Casey's the clear favourite on every of the remaining tracks.. There are tracks where it's harder to pass, that might be the tracks where Vale can be able to hold him off..

1 Stoner
2 Rossi
3 Nakano

my prediction on sunday

I don't think so. Stoner looks pretty sick with that stomach bug - meaning he's having trouble putting more than a few laps together at a time. If he manages to hold off Valentino for the win on Sunday it'll be a pretty superlative effort.

Having a look at Dani's time in practice... it's a bit sad to note that in the years that he has been in title contention, despite his conservative style he's somehow managed to let injury ruin his season (see Germany '08 and Malaysia '06).



Just how bad is Nickys injury ( not bad ?! ) and how keen is he to get back on the 'onda? Maybe he ll just take it easy until he gets on a Ducati.
Is that pretty much an open secret now? I can't see anyone else on that Ducati next year...

[Roby44]

Not looking too good for the Yamaha boys...

Top 10 for Westy is good!!

[ChrisS]

I think that if Nicky was trying to keep his seat at Honda he would be riding this weekend but I guess the Ducati deal is done and neither him nor Honda care much.

BTW Michelin is screwed this GP. Pedrosa and Lorenzo not fit, Hayden out. Only riders of satellite teams are left on Michelin

[ShiftingGears]

Kawasaki on front row with Stoner on pole by 1.2 seconds :eek:

[ChrisS]

Toseland and Lorenzo are out of the 107% Will they be allowed to race?

[jim mcglinchey]

Of course, theres already a shortage of entrants.

[The Phantom]

BRNO, Czech Republic, Aug 16 (Reuters) - Australia's world champion Casey Stoner overcame a slight fever and wet conditions on Saturday to take pole position in the Czech MotoGP.
The Ducati rider, last year's winner at Brno, completed the 5.4-km course in two minutes 11.657 seconds to claim the 16th pole position of his career and his sixth in a row.
Yamaha's Valentino Rossi of Italy, this season's points leader, was second, 1.189 seconds slower. American John Hopkins, the 2007 Czech runner-up, rounded out the front row on his Kawasaki, qualifying 1.302 seconds slower on his return from injury.
The wet Brno track caused problems for the racers, with James Toseland of Britain crashing out midway through the session and failing to qualify along with Jorge Lorenzo of Spain.
Fifteen riders qualified for Sunday's race, the first since Rossi won the U.S. Grand Prix on July 20.

So there it is - no Toseland or Lorenzo.

Awesome effort from Hopper, but with a dry track prediction for the race (I think) he may not capitalise on his qualifying.

Hard to go past Stoner for the win - he raced solidly at Qatar in 06 with the flu.

[The Phantom]

Despite feeling less than 100% with a fever, there was no stopping Casey Stoner from taking a sixth successive pole position for the Cardion ab Grand Prix Ceske republiky, as the Australian imposed his will on his rivals in a wet qualifying session.

Stoner recorded a fastest time of 2´11.657 in the soaking session, giving him the longest pole streak since fellow countryman Mick Doohan´s twelve-in-a-row from 1997. In doing so, he relegated MotoGP´s self-styled `Doctor´ -World Championship leader Valentino Rossi- down to second on the grid.

Rossi was suffering his own ailment on Saturday, with an ear and sinus infection posing him problems. Even with their respective medical woes, both Stoner and Rossi can be expected to battle against each other once more in Brno when the red light goes out on Sunday.

http://www.paddocktalk.com

[The Phantom]

From MotoGPMatters (Kropotkin):

The 107% rule
Submitted by popmonkey on Sat, 2008-08-16 22:15.

that 107% rule should be thrown out from wet sessions. it seems totally ridiculous considering what happened as the conditions worsened. not to mention that this isn't the first time someone was outside the 107% (tamada last year) and the grid was "full" anyway. so what's the point?

great summation, btw, rossi is also sick, apparently suffering from a sinus and ear infection which could be really nasty if you've ever ridden with your sinuses f'ed up. your balance is effected the pressure in your head can be insanely painful when changing altitude, even a few dozen feet. brno is an up and down track so that could actually be quite an issue for VR46.


Popmonkey is also a good MotoGP commentator/observer... I agree with him re. the 107 rule.

[Roby44]

From YRC_news@yamaha-network.com [racing@yamaha-network.com]



Disastrous wet qualifying for Lorenzo leaves him last in Brno

A soaking wet day at Brno brought about a depressing day's work for Jorge Lorenzo, the Fiat Yamaha Team rookie finishing the day in last place. It is a far cry from the consecutive pole positions with which the youngster started his year in MotoGP and he is faced with a difficult task tomorrow to make any kind of headway through the field.

Lorenzo was unlucky to miss the driest part of the qualifying hour, when he was inside the garage working on modifying his bike in order to try to find more grip. During the last forty minutes conditions deteriorated even more and there was no chance for him to improve his time, unable as he was to find any kind of grip or confidence in his tyres. His time of 2'23.701 left him outside of the 107% qualifying cut-off, but he will be allowed to race tomorrow at the discretion of Race Direction.





Jorge Lorenzo - Position: 17thTime: 2'23.701Laps: 12
"It's been a bad day! At the start of the qualifying it was drier and this is when I was in the garage trying to improve the bike with my team; I missed my chance and this is when the others set their fastest laps. I have had days almost as bad as this before, but I have to say that the fault is not all mine. I think that it is evident at the moment that our tyres are not working as they should. I am a professional however and I have to wait and have confidence in Michelin to find the right way forward. For tomorrow it's going to be important to get a good start and try to get in the top ten. The surface is very good but we don't have the grip we need, so whatever happens with the weather, it will be very hard."

[gco0307]

From MotoGPMatters (Kropotkin):

The 107% rule
Submitted by popmonkey on Sat, 2008-08-16 22:15.

that 107% rule should be thrown out from wet sessions. it seems totally ridiculous considering what happened as the conditions worsened. not to mention that this isn't the first time someone was outside the 107% (tamada last year) and the grid was "full" anyway. so what's the point?

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


Popmonkey is also a good MotoGP commentator/observer... I agree with him re. the 107 rule.


I kinda agree and kinda don't.

I would suggest that maybe the 107% become 110 or 112% but it should not be thrown out or discarded as there would then be absolutely no reason or incentive to qualify.

On the flip side, should it also be thrown out if the weather changes (ie. strong winds) during a dry session, conditions which would and could also greatly affect lap times.

It should not be overlooked that the cut-off time was 2.20.873 (pole time of 2.11.657) but that both Toseland and Lorenzo had best times well outside the cut-off (JT 2.23.303, JL 2.23.701).

I do think that at all times whether wet or dry if there are extenuating circumstances (such as changeable conditions), then allowances should be made but IMO there should always be a maximum time and that there should be no 'free rides'. That said, I fully expect both to be allowed to rideand wonder how teams will feel if these riders take valuable points away from a rider who did qualify on times.





Garry

[harsha]

i would say that the 107% rule should not be used in wet sessioons....PERIOD.

this sorta incident's just waiting to happen.But however i do agree with it being used in dry conditions

[NinjaMaster]

At the end of the day, the 107% rule will never be used in MotoGP unless they miraculously start getting grids of 30+. But the only time it doesn't work is if it rains half way through a qualifying session. As elite riders they should be able to get within that time comfortably.

Depending on his fitness, it looks like a Stoner weekend unless Rossi can pull off a Laguna style race and ride aggressively, basically blocking Stoner from a clear run. But I hate wet races (if it's wet) because luck plays a much larger part in proceedings and I have visions of riders sliding across the track at every corner. Hope it's dry and Stoner can beat Rossi straight up and Vermeulen, Hopkins, West and the Alice Ducati boys can all have strong races.

[Corny]

this will be one for Casey, he's four tenths quicker than Vale in this morning's warm up

[jim mcglinchey]

Game over, man!

[Corny]

Stoner should maybe do some mental practices..

[CaptainRaiden]

Wow, was that because of the pressure? It certainly looked like it. The "We'll see" comment looks SO silly now when you can't back it up.

I hope Rossi hasn't gotten into the head of Stoner like he did with Gibernau, just for the sake of good racing and the championship. It seems he really ups his game one notch when there's some tension involved.

Well done to Toni Elias though, and good on Nakano to finish fourth on the new Honda. About time they gave Dovizioso the new Honda too, don't you think??

[ChrisS]

125's weren't bad, concrats to Stefan Bradl for his first win. di Meglio now has a good lead in the championship

The 250's was a cracker. Simoncelli must have though he had the 25pts in the back and then in one turn he ended up 3rd.

Stoner's crash ended what could have been another fight for 1st. Elias is just great fun to watch riding and Loris showed he still has what it takes even as the longest running GP rider.

Good to see Kawasaki moved forward and so did Suzuki. Nakano showed the potential of a factory RCV on stones. Michelin once again had no idea what they were doing.

[tha_jackal]

Rossi - sublime, almost scarily comfortable :eek:
Elias - contract time :p
Capirossi - finally back to 'full' fitness ;)
Nakano - see elias :D
West - see nakano and its bout time Kwak did something with upgrades, will be interesting to see how he fares in testing tommorow :D
Vermeulen - expected a podium
Hopkins - obviously still not 'fully' fit
Stoner - maybe it's not as easy as it seems?
Michelin - guaranteed a sole tyre manufacturer for 09.

bring on misano..

oh and gooooooooooooo ant

[Corny]

BTW: I don't really think that Elias/Capirossi/Vermeulen/West are doing a that great job, if Rossi would've pushed towards the end, the gap would probably have been 30 seconds or so..

[The Phantom]

What an odd race.

I think the highest kudos should go to Westy - a superlative performance. I expected him to go backwards, but he hung in there and rode a tactical race. Kawasaki have clearly made some progress during the break. Hopper's injuries appear to have reduced his endurance, hopefully both Kawasaki riders will run strongly for the rest of the year.

Guintoli appeared to be the guy who was best coming to grips with the GP7, but Elias has obviously made a breakthrough. Great work.

As ChrisS said, Nakano showed how sweet an RC212V on Bridgestones is... will be interesting to see if he can mix it with the Repsol boys once they are both fully fit.

Rossi... nothing need be said. Loved the long slo-mo wheelie footage from the chopper over the line.

And Stoner, man, that is just seriously bad luck. Like Rossi crashing in the last round of 2006, just one of those things. Not pressure at all as far as I'm concerned - Rossi was nowhere near him, and the team had commented on the difficulties they'd been having with the front end on the new Brno surface. He smashed the race lap record on lap 2. But that is quite likely that as far as his tilt for a second title goes. He won't make it easy for Rossi, but it seems now to be a forgone conclusion.

[T-D]

good summary, phantom i don't think the "broke under pressure" narrative fits stoner's crash. he was leading, running a blistering pace as he always tends to do early in the race to try and break the field, and he just made a mistake. sometimes, racing is not as easy as stoner and the top professionals make it appear to be. they DO work hard every lap. just an error, which as rossi has shown in the past, happens to the best of them

[ChrisS]

BTW: I don't really think that Elias/Capirossi/Vermeulen/West are doing a that great job, if Rossi would've pushed towards the end, the gap would probably have been 30 seconds or so..

Stoner's and Vale's pace did make the other Bridgestone riders look bad

[The Phantom]

Stoner's and Vale's pace did make the other Bridgestone riders look bad

It's 2007 all over except this time Valentino has power and Bridgestones :D

I've changed my mind about Stoner's championship prospects since my post-Brno post - Rossi has one or two dumb moments per season, and so far this year his dumb tally stands at zero. The odds are on Stoner's side - long odds to be sure, but the sudden appearance of Elias at the front of the field has got to have sent at least a few cold shivers up Rossi's spine! :s hock: We should also remember that earlier this year Stoner turned a 50pt deficit into a 25pt deficit in four races.

I will not be surprised if Rossi has a DNF, or a very low points race, before the year is out, and there's every chance that Stoner will win every remaining race.

[ChrisS]

Rossi has one or two dumb moments per season, and so far this year his dumb tally stands at zero.

What about Assen?

[osg]

Put the cue in the rack folks..... the race for the title is over. Che Spetaccolo Vale!!!

Superb from West, even though it may have come a little to late to save him......... lets hope not.

[jonny hurlock]

i've got a good question. what the hell happen to Michelin riders today, jt 13th, edwards 14th, lorenzo 10th and Dovizioso 9th and Dani 15th, I heard that they had a dodgy front tyre what i've heard?

I don't think I'll check my "pickems" result, I'll proabably have to scroll down to the end.

[ShiftingGears]

Rossi has one or two dumb moments per season, and so far this year his dumb tally stands at zero.

Excluding Assen.

[NinjaMaster]

Well, could the MotoGP race have been more of an anti-climax? The title is now completely Rossi's to lose, Stoner and Pedrosa can't win it. Unfortunately it was just one of those things that racing can throw up when they are pushing so hard. It was fantastic to see some of the lesser lights perform so much better though with Kwak right up there with West and Hopkins was there til his tyres went off. Suzuki are proving to be making strong inroads now with their third podium in a row and Elias finally showed that the Ducati could be competitive with someone other than Stoner.
Kudos to Pedrosa for gritting it out when clearly everything was against him and many other riders would have pulled out in such circumstances.

[MrJan]

Can Stoner please stop falling off and robbing us of a decent race :cheese:

Casey and Vale made the rest of the field look like boys amongst men yesterday and I for one hope that it doesn't continue. A few years back Loris won on the Ducati by about 5 or 7 seconds which, at the time, was an absolute age in Moto GP time. Fast forward a few years to a field using TC and 800cc and Rossi wins by an eternity.

There was at least a smidgen of excitement between the Suzooks and Kwakas (with West falling off the end again), although if the Michelins had been anywhere near competitive and all riders fit then they would have been battling for about 8th-10th.

Stoner's accident = 1 of those things, just a bit too much lean/brake/speed for the front tyre to cope with.

[The Phantom]

Forgot about Rossi's problem at Assen...

Apparently the resurfaced Brno circuit is now very hard on front tyres, which I reckon has a lot to do with Stoners off.

I also thought it may have been the reason why Vermeulen did a Corser and dropped off mid-race to come back stronger at the end, but maybe he was just spooked by the way Elias charged through :)

[MrJan]

Forgot about Rossi's problem at Assen...

Apparently the resurfaced Brno circuit is now very hard on front tyres, which I reckon has a lot to do with Stoners off.

Nohne of the other Bridgestone riders had a problem. I know that Rossi is the only one who was anywhere near the pace of Casey (think he was quicker on the lap before the lowside) but I'm not sure that the track is fully to blame, especially so early on in the race. I think that a lot of it is down to Stoner trying really hard to grasp back the points that he lost earlier in the season. Even if he'd finished ahead of Vale then there would still be a 20 point gap. He'll bounce back because he's that kind of rider but hopefully we will get to see a few decent races as the curtain falls on the season :)

[fatman]

BTW: I don't really think that Elias/Capirossi/Vermeulen/West are doing a that great job, if Rossi would've pushed towards the end, the gap would probably have been 30 seconds or so..

If Michelin hadn't screwed up royally I don't think you would have seen these guys do as well as they did. I reckon that if Jorge, Edwards, Pedrosa and Toseland were able to compete at all, these guys would all be 3 or 4 places back from where they finished. Not that I don't think the points weren't deserved but I think the far better than normal finishes for these guys were only in a small part due to their own improvements and owe something to others miss fortune.

[leopard]

I missed the race and consequently missed how Casey has fallen off. Looking for the video but none of them was seriously telling me this matter.

If not mistaken, this is the first time he crashed on the Ducati, aside of Laguna which was I consider he only rode too wide. Did he push himself too hard, He took the lead on Rossi by significant time at early race, he should keep the distance without having to get pressured that lead him to the mistake.

[osg]

Forgot about Rossi's problem at Assen...

Apparently the resurfaced Brno circuit is now very hard on front tyres, which I reckon has a lot to do with Stoners off.


The replays were very very interesting Phantom...... geez it just dropped on it's side in an instant, no warning no clue. I've never seen a lowside happen so fast........ it's usually in slo-mo.

Agreed with all above, the Michelins were beyond a joke. Dani ran just 11 laps on monday before packing his bags and going, apparently there was no grip at either end.

[The Phantom]

The replays were very very interesting Phantom...... geez it just dropped on it's side in an instant, no warning no clue. I've never seen a lowside happen so fast........ it's usually in slo-mo.

Yeah, Stoner said afterwards that the front had gone a few times prior to that final time but he'd been able to catch it - geez, losing the front repeatedly and still trashing the lap record twice in the first five laps... he sure didn't want to have to swap spit with Valentino again :D Still learning his racecraft - hell, even Rossi says he's still learning - maybe he will realise that he might have been better off to save the rocket pace for later in the race.

[The Phantom]

Post-race testing - Stoner over a full second quicker than Rossi. Whatever Yamaha found in the summer break to get the M1 closer to the GP7, they're gonna have to find again to mix it with the Ducati at Misano... Stoner could well go under Rossi's 2006 best laptime on day 2 of the test (currently underway).

1. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro 1'56.261
2. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha Team 1'57.332
3. Toni Elias (SPA) Alice Team 1'57.457
4. Shinya Nakano (JPN) San Carlo Honda Gresini 1'57.652
5. Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Rizla Suzuki 1'57.742
6. Colin Edwards (USA) Tech 3 Yamaha 1'57.756
7. Alex De Angelis (RSM) San Carlo Honda Gresini 1'57.826
8. Sylvain Guintoli (FRA) Alice Team 1'57.859
9. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Fiat Yamaha Team 1'57.979
10. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1'58.177
11. Niccolò Canepa (ITA) Ducati Test 1'58.204
12. Marco Melandri (ITA) Ducati Marlboro 1'58.325
13. Randy De Puniet (FRA) LCR Honda MotoGP 1'58.568
14. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda 1'59.067
15. Olivier Jacque (FRA) Kawasaki Racing 1'59.130
16. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) JiR Team Scot MotoGP 1'59.130
17. James Toseland (GBR) Tech 3 Yamaha 1'59.228
18. John Hopkins (USA) Kawasaki Racing 2'00.414
19. Tadyuki Okada (JPN) Repsol Honda Team 2'00.735

Brno: Record Lap
L. Capirossi (Ducati) 2006, 1'58.157

Brno: Best Lap
V. Rossi (Yamaha) 2006, 1'56.191

[The Phantom]

Just checked the MotoGP site - phaaark! Yep, Stoner went quicker again on day 2... a LOT quicker!

"Undertaking regular four-lap stints on the Desmosedici GP8 as he attempts to put the nightmare of Sunday´s DNF out of his mind, Stoner set a remarkable time of 1´55.904 on race tyres shortly before midday on Tuesday. That left him 0.764s ahead of nearest rival Valentino Rossi on the 1pm timesheet – the lap also being marginally quicker than Rossi´s two-year old pole position record."

I wonder if Rossi was on race tyres???

[Allyc85]

The replays were very very interesting Phantom...... geez it just dropped on it's side in an instant, no warning no clue. I've never seen a lowside happen so fast........ it's usually in slo-mo.

Agreed with all above, the Michelins were beyond a joke. Dani ran just 11 laps on monday before packing his bags and going, apparently there was no grip at either end.

Thats a shocking attitude IMO. How the hell is giving up going to help solve things? He should have been out there putting in the laps and trying loads of settings to get the bike and tyres working.