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Moto2: Gardner Takes First Career Pole

The Moto2 World Championship qualifying for the 2019 Dutch TT got underway in the middle of the European heatwave.

The air was hot, the track was hot and so was Lorenzo Baldassarri’s pace at the beginning of Q1 for the Flexbox HP 40 squad, as he went to the top. At the top was where the Italian would stay, and he was joined in moving through to Q2 by Jorge Navarro (Beta Tools Speed Up), Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) and Nicolo Bulega (Sky Racing Team VR46).

In Q2 it was Remy Gardner (OMEXOX TKKR SAG Team) who continued his table-topping form from FP3 to take his first career front row and pole position, ahead of Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Xavi Vierge (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) who has seen a return to form in Holland to start from the back of the front row.

The winner of the last three races, Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) will start from the head of row two ahead of Sam Lowes and top rookie Fabio Di Giannantonio (Beta Tools Speed Up); whilst Jorge Navarro (Beta Tools Speed Up) will start from seventh ahead of Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP) and Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team).

Andrea Locatelli (Italtrans Racing Team) completes the grid’s top ten and heads up row four from Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46) and Marcel Schrotter (Dynavolt Intact GP); whilst Augusto Fernandez (Flexbox HP 40) heads up row five ahead of Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Tetsuta Nagashima (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) who was strong in the first part of the lap but continually missed out in the second half.

Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40) crashed in the beginning of Q2 and despite being able to get back out on track was unable to better his Q1 time and qualified just sixteenth. The Italian will be joined on the sixth row by Iker Lecuona (American Racing) and Nicolo Bulega (Sky Racing Team VR46).

Dominique Aegerter (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward) was the fastest rider to not make Q2 and will start from nineteenth ahead of Somkiat Chantra (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) and Marco Bezzecchi (Red Bull KTM Tech3).

Marco Bezzecchi KTM Moto2 TT Circuit Assen 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

Jonas Folger (Petronas Sprinta Racing) will start from twenty-second, ahead of Bo Bendsneyder (NTS RW Racing GP) and Jake Dixon (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) who is for the first time at a track he knows in 2019. Simone Corsi (Tasca Racing Scuderia Moto2) will start from twenty-fifth, ahead of Lukas Tulovic (Kiefer Racing) and Joe Roberts (American Racing) on the ninth row.

Row ten sees Steven Odendaal (NTS RW Racing GP) ahead of Xavi Cardelus (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) and Stefano Manzi (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward) who received a back-of-the-grid penalty for causing Dimas Ekky’s practice two crash on Friday, which has taken the Indonesian out of the weekend.

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Moto3: Second 2019 Pole for Antonelli

The dry conditions of Friday remained on Saturday for the Moto3 World Championship, as the lightweight class riders qualified for the eighth round of the 2019 season.

Q1 saw Lorenzo Dalla porta (Leopard Racing) fire in a late lap to top the session, whilst his teammate, Marcos Ramirez (Leopard Racing), joined him in advancing to Q2 along with Alonso Lopez (Estrella Galicia 0,0) and Can Oncu (Red Bull KTM Ajo).

In Q2, it was Niccolo Antonelli (Sic58 Squadra Corse) who took his second pole position of the season, and the lap record with it. Two of the last three Moto3 races have been won from pole (John McPhee for Petronas Sprinta Racing in Le Mans and Tony Arbolino for VNE Snipers in Mugello) so there is a good chance for Antonelli to score his second win of the season tomorrow.

Kaito Toba was nearly able to give Honda Team Asia and their beautiful retro paint for this weekend pole position, but he missed his final lap. His first flying lap was enough for second place, though, so he will start from the middle of the front row tomorrow.

On the back of row one is Tony Arbolino, who was seventeenth until his final lap which put him third to ensure Toba is the Japanese meat in the Italian sandwich.

Row two is the inverse of row one, with Tatsuki Suzuki (Sic58 Squadra Corse) in fourth and Ai Ogura (Honda Team Asia) in sixth either side of fifth-placed Celestino Vietti (Sky Racing Team VR46).

Jakub Kornfeil (Redox PruestelGP) has had a strong weekend but could only manage seventh on the grid ahead of the top two of the championship in reverse order, with Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Leopard Racing) in eighth ahead of Aron Canet (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) in ninth.

Gabriel Rodrigo (Kommerling Gresini Moto3) was fortunate to set a time at all with the state he got himself into in the final chicane on his first lap, but stayed on and his second run put him tenth ahead of Ayumu Sasaki (Petronas Sprinta Racing) and Raul Fernandez (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) on row four.

Row five sees Marcos Ramirez (Leopard Racing) ahead of Romano Fenati (VNE Snipers) and Kazuki Masaki (BOE Skull Rider Mugen Race); whilst Sergio Garcia (Estrella Galicia 0,0) is ahead of Jaume Masia (Bester Capital Dubai) and Albert Arenas (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) on row six.

Alonso Lopez at Assen TT Moto3 2019. Image courtesy of Box Repsol

Row seven sees Andrea Migno (Bester Capital Dubai) and John McPhee ahead of Dennis Foggia (Sky Racing Team VR46). Row eight is one of penalised riders, with Makar Yurchenko (BOE Skull Riders Mugen Race) ahead of Can Oncu (Red Bull KTM Ajo) bumped six places from seventeenth due to his causing of a big crash in Montmelo, and Alonso Lopez (Estrella Galicia 0,0) bumped six places for colliding with Aron Canet in free practice.

Darryn Binder (CIP Green Power) starts twenty-fifth ahead of Filip Salac (Redox PruestelGP) and Stefano Nepa who is replacing Vicente Perez at Reale Avintia Arizona 77 for the rest of the year. Tom Booth-Amos (CIP Green Power) heads up the last row, from wildcard Ryan van der Lagemaat (Qnuim Racing) and Riccardo Rossi (Kommerling Gresini Moto3).

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MotoGP: Third MotoGP Pole for Quartararo in Assen

Track temperatures approaching fifty degrees greeted the MotoGP riders when they went out for qualifying at Assen, the eighth round of the 2019 World Championship.

Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) was fifth in free practice three, but had his lap cancelled for exceeding track limits. Nonetheless, it was expected that the factory Yamaha rider would move through to Q2, because he had looked quite good on hot-lap speed through the weekend. However, the Italian was not fast enough, and it was Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) who went through with Pol Espargaro (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing).

Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT) took the lap record and the third pole position of his rookie year in MotoGP with a 1’32.017. He nearly broke the 1’32 barrier on his final flying lap but missed out in the final sector. He then set his airbag off celebrating his pole. The Frenchman has had outstanding pace this weekend, and if he can get away and do his rhythm from the start he has a great chance of his first MotoGP win.

Maverick Vinales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) will line up second on the grid tomorrow after a superb lap from the Spaniard. If he makes a start he might be one of the only riders who can go with Quartararo.

Another rider to have a chance of going with Quartararo is Alex Rins, who went through qualifying one to qualify third. The TT Assen circuit suits the Suzuki and the Yamaha well, with the long flowing corners suiting the nimble, stable front ends on the YZR-M1 and the GSX-RR. Quartararo, Vinales and Rins made the most of this in this qualifying.

Whilst Assen works for Suzuki and Yamaha, it has not worked for Honda this year, with Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team) out of the weekend after a big crash at turn seven on Friday. Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) and Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda CASTROL), too, have been suffering with the front end of the 2019 RC213V this weekend which has visibly missed stability. Marquez, even, was unable to continue his one-hundred per cent front row record for 2019, and he lines up fourth for the 2019 Dutch TT, although his front end save in turn one was perhaps the highlight of the session.

With Marquez on the second row are Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) and Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda IDEMITSU) who was the second-fastest Honda on the 2018 version.

Cal Crutchlow was seventh fastest in Q2, ahead of the top Ducati, Danilo Petrucci (Mission Winnow Ducati) who was eighth. Jack Miller (Pramac Racing) completes row three.

Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) heads up row four from Andrea Dovizoso (Mission Winnow Ducati) who seemed to go backwards on Saturday. Pol Espargaro was twelfth-fastest.

Francesco Bagnaia (Pramac Racing) lines up at the head of row five on Sunday, ahead of Valentino Rossi and Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini); whilst Karel Abraham (Reale Avintia Racing) heads up row six from the two KTMs of Miguel Oliveira (Red Bull KTM Tech3) and Johann Zarco (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) who fell at De Strubben in the closing stages of Q1.

Hafizh Syahrin (Red Bull KTM Tech3) heads up the back row, from Andrea Iannone (Aprilia acing Team Gresini) who will be disappointed after a good weekend. Tito Rabat (Reale Avintia Racing) will start from last.

Featured Image courtesy of Yamaha Racing

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BSB: Can Ducati be Bested in Knockhill?

This weekend the British Superbike Championship heads to Scotland and Knockhill for round five of the 2019 season, with Tommy Bridewell (Oxford Racing) leading the general championship.

Despite holding the points lead, Bridewell is at a deficit to both Be Wiser Ducati riders, Josh Brookes and Scott Redding, in the podium points which will already hold a greater significance for these three riders at this stage of the season, such is the format of the championship. Since the podium points structure was changed to 5-3-1 (five for a win, three for second, one for third) a few years ago the importance of reaching the top step in the first part of the season has grown in importance, and it is something Bridewell is yet to do in 2019, nor has he achieved it in the BSB class in Knockhill.

Josh Brookes at BSB Brands Hatch 2019. Image courtesy of Ducati

In comparison, the Be Wiser duo have won each of the last seven races, with Brookes doubling in Oulton Park at round two, as well as last time out in Brands Hatch; whilst Scott Redding did the triple at Donington back in the end of May. It has been Bridewell’s consistency that has him at the top of the points, but the high peaks of the PBM riders have countered their troughs to allow them to be clear at the top of the podium points.

This weekend, with respect to the Ducati riders, will be an interesting one, as Knockhill is arguably the track at which the Panigale V4R is likely to have the least advantage compared to its rivals, such is the lack of time at full throttle at the Scottish track. That said, the anti-wheelie provided by the winglets will be of some help in the undulating front straight off the bottom-gear final corner. Furthermore, the Ducati’s advantage cannot be underestimated – not only has the V4R won the last seven races, it has taken fourteen of the last twenty-one podium positions and hasn’t been off the podium since race two in Silverstone. Even still, not only does Knockhill fail to play to Ducati’s biggest strength, but it has also never seen a victory by any of the Ducati riders expected to be fighting at the front this weekend, despite a plethora of podiums from Josh Brookes in Scotland throughout his BSB career.

Perhaps, then, this weekend could provide an opportunity for the non-Ducati riders to reclaim some ground. Particularly, Tarran Mackenzie (McAMS Yamaha) will be hoping to make the podium this weekend after his double-DNS last time out in Brands thanks to his qualifying crash and resulting concussion. In his home race, Mackenzie and his nimble Yamaha could have a strong chance to take it to the V4R and pick up their first win since Silverstone race two.

Additionally, Peter Hickman (Smiths Racing) will be hoping to arrive on the podium this weekend for the first time in 2019, as will the two Tyco BMW Motorrad riders, Christian Iddon and Keith Farmer. The three were quite well-matched in Brands Hatch, and the non-stop layout of Knockhill should suit the 2019 S1000RR and its sweet handling chassis well.

Tarran Mackenzie. Image courtesy of Impact Images Photography/McAMS Yamaha

In the absence of Mackenzie in Brands Hatch, it was Danny Buchan (FS-3 Racing Kawasaki) who was the ‘best of the rest’ behind the Ducati riders. Buchan went 3-3 last year in Knockhill, and will be looking to add to his two 2019 podiums achieved so far (3-3 in Oulton Park) this weekend, and to put Kawasaki on the top step for the first time in BSB this year.

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MotoGP: Marquez Leads the Pack to Assen

MotoGP heads to the Netherlands this weekend and the Circuit van Drenthe for the 70th Dutch TT at Assen, round eight of the 2019 World Championship.

Normally, arriving in Assen means uncertainty over the weather, but 2019 seems as though it will be as 2018, with no threat of rain and warm conditions throughout the weekend in stark contrast to the snow-affected Saturday of the Dutch World Superbike round back in April.

Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) arrives in Assen as the championship leader, having won four of the seven races so far in 2019. The Honda rider’s points lead grew much healthier last time out in Barcelona, when two of his three proposed rivals for the title failed to finish whilst the #93 took a comfortable win. Indeed, the reigning World Champion also won in Assen twelve months ago, in what was one of the most thrilling races of recent times with a group of eight riders battling it out for the win almost from lights to flag. But it was Marquez who made the escape, and at a track at which Marquez has won five times in his Grand Prix career – including twice in the premier class, 2014 and 2018 – stopping him from doing the same this weekend will be a tough ask.

Valentino Rossi on the grid at the 2019 Barcelona MotoGP race. Image courtesy of Yamaha Racing

Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) has ten wins in Assen, the last one coming back in 2017. Indeed, that 2017 triumph remains his latest, and ending the two-year wait for victory will not be easy this weekend. Whilst Marquez will surely be contending for the win on Sunday, things are less obvious with The Doctor, who has struggled for consistency with his YZR-M1. Only two podiums have come Rossi’s way in 2019 so far, the most recent at round three in Texas and, whilst it looked as though he would be in the fight for the rostrum last time out in Barcelona, his retirement on the second lap meant it was impossible to tell.

However, if the Yamaha works well this weekend, expect not only Rossi to be fighting at the front, but also his Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP teammate, Maverick Vinales, to be there as well. The Spaniard has only two wins in Assen, and they came back-to-back in 2011 and 2012 – the last ever 125cc Dutch TT and the first Moto3 World Championship race in the Netherlands. That said, in 2017 – when Rossi was victorious – Vinales had arguably the stronger pace, but a poor qualifying meant he was pushing hard to come through the field – too hard, and he crashed at the final chicane. Vinales’ poor qualifying has been a trait of his time at Yamaha, as have his poor starts. He finally made a good one in Barcelona, and looked to have the potential to fight for the podium in those early stages before his race was cut short, like Rossi’s, on the second lap.

Perhaps the biggest star of Catalunya was Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT) who took pole in qualifying and finished the race in second place. The Frenchman’s first podium came arguably six weeks later than it should have, considering his pace in Jerez, but it came at the right time. Quartararo was on the podium in Assen in his first race there, back in 2015 in the Moto3 class as well as last year in the Moto2 race. The #20’s silky-smooth riding style has gelled well with the Yamaha this season, and after taking his fist podium in Montmelo, the first trip to the premier class top step will be on Quartararo’s agenda this weekend.

Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) has only three podiums in Assen, but that includes one last year when he was second only to Marc Marquez, and stuffed Maverick Vinales in the Ramshoek on the final lap. Rins had podium pace but not the straight line speed to get there in Barcelona – Danilo Petrucci’s Mission Winnow Ducati proving an intense annoyance for the Spaniard – but with the lack of emphasis on straight line performance in Assen there is a chance for Rins to return to the rostrum, and perhaps even add to his win tally this weekend at a circuit which should suit the Suzuki as well as the Yamaha, and for all the same reasons.

Whilst the low top speeds and limited number of hard accelerations, combined with the long, fast, flowing corners of Assen suit the Yamaha and Suzuki, they in theory work hard against the Ducati. The last podium for Ducati in Assen was 2017, with Petrucci – then on the satellite Pramac machine. In comparison, though, their last win in Holland was back in 2008 with Casey Stoner, and Andrea Dovizioso (Mission Winnow Ducati) has only three premier class podiums in Assen – one on Honda, one on Yamaha, and his only Dutch TT Ducati rostrum came in the mixed conditions of 2014. Last year the Desmosedici’s superior acceleration kept it in the podium fight, as Dovizioso was able to respond to overtakes in the final chicane immediately into turn one. This could prove the bane of Yamaha this year, but for Honda and Suzuki perhaps not, such have been their horsepower gains since 2018.

Featured image courtesy of Box Repsol

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Moto3: Assen Next Up with Canet on Top

The Moto3 World Championship heads to Assen this weekend, for the eighth round of the 2019 season following on from Marcos Ramirez’ (Leopard Racing) debut win two weeks ago in Montmelo.

Ramirez’ win was the fruit of his move back to Leopard Racing, with whom he fought for the 2016 CEV Moto3 Junior World Championship, and his first rostrum appearance since round one at Qatar. The result moved him up to eighth in the championship, fifty-four points off the top of the standings.

Marcos Ramirez winner of the Moto3 2019: Round Seven – Catalunya, Barcelona. Image courtesy of Hondanews.eu

Somewhat closer to the summit of the World Championship is Ramirez’ Leopard Racing teammate, Lorenzo Dalla Porta, who has returned to form in the last three races and was unfortunate to drop out of the Catalan GP his teammate won due to bike problems early on in the race. This weekend, the Tuscan will be after his first rostrum on Dutch soil and to close his twenty-three-point deficit to Aron Canet (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team) who is atop the standings.

Canet’s first appearance in Holland was astonishing. He was the fastest rider throughout the weekend, then riding the Estrella Galicia 0,0 Honda, and should have had pole position but for a crash in the first part of qualifying which meant he started at the back. In the race, he charged through the pack and looked, despite the poor starting position, like he could challenge for the win, but a crash in the final chicane ended his chances. Canet seems reformed this season, having finished every race inside the points, and all but one (Argentina, where he was twelfth) inside the top ten. Additionally, Canet has been on the podium in three of the seven races so far, including one win in Texas. Another extension of his championship advantage this weekend would start to set off the alarms for his rivals.

Celestino Vietti in the Catalunya Moto3 race 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose / KTM

Celestino Vietti (Sky Racing Team VR46) made a last corner, last lap move for the final rostrum spot in Barcelona. It was his third podium in Grands Prix and his second of the season. Like Canet, Vietti has finished outside the top ten only once in 2019, back in Argentina. Vietti’s consistency in his rookie season in the World Championship means he currently sits fourth in the standings, only twelve points behind Dalla Porta in second and thirty-five away from Canet. It will be interesting to see how the Italian fares on his first visit to Assen, known not only for being one of the fastest, most exciting circuits of the year, but also one of the most difficult to learn.

Third in the championship at the moment is Niccolo Antonelli (Sic58 Squadra Corse), despite his absence from the podium this year barring his win in Jerez. It is Antonelli’s seventh season in Moto3, so he certainly won’t have the problem facing Vietti for this weekend. Instead, Antonelli’s issue this weekend could be the one which has seemed to face him throughout the year, and that is his mid-race pace. The Italian has tended to slip back in the pack in the middle part of the races this year, falling to the fringes of the top ten and outside of it. In Barcelona a mistake forced him down the order, and after recovering to eighth place the #23 ran wide in turn seven, and he finished eleventh. Antonelli has had the pace this year, but seemingly not the race-craft.

Keep an eye out for Jaume Masia (Bester Capital Dubai) this weekend. The Spaniard has been quite inconsistent this season, at least since the arrival of the championship in Europe. Whereas race-craft has been one of the weak points for Antonelli this year, for Masia it has been a strong point, with Mugello being a prime example when he came from an almost invisible race to land himself a podium spot with an excellent out-braking manoeuvre and some fantastic bike-placement on the final lap.

Alonso Lopez (Estrella Galicia 0,0), too, should be competitive this weekend after Celestino Vietti’s Catalan GP podium came at the expense of the Spaniard’s prospective third place, after he had led for much of the race.

Featured image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM

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“Put a Ring On It” – 2019 Austrian Grand Prix Preview

Beyoncé may have said “if you like it, then you should’ve put a ring on it”, but in motorsport we race the rings instead. Yes, it’s race weekend once again, as F1 is welcomed by the circuit previously known as the Österreichring!

It was known as such between 1969 and 1995, and then became known as the A1 Ring from 1996 to 2003. Finally, Dietrich Mateschitz bought the circuit and in 2008 started a reconstruction. From 2014, the newly-branded Red Bull Ring became host once again to a European round of the Formula One Championship.

The Red Bull Ring was originally 5.911km in length, with its weakness being its safety record and high speeds (second only to Silverstone during its Österreichring period). Something had to be done, and as such it was shortened to 4.326km in its guise as the A1 Ring, and again in 2016 to 4.318km.

Red Bull Ring sectors. Image courtesy of Pirelli.This weekend we head back to the Red Bull Rin  after last week’s French Grand Prix at Paul Ricard, which was dominated by Mercedes with Hamilton and Bottas finishing 1-2.

Can I mention hot air? No, not the untruths one may hear, but instead air streams from the African continent. Tyres could again play a massive part in the race this weekend, with it predicted to be one of the hottest days in Europe so far, courtesy of very warm air streams. Last weekend in France saw temperatures hit 56°C, but this weekend could hit 60°C. That alone will shift the working windows of the tyres and also will vary between teams . With higher air temps we could also see the 2019 aero regulations cause some teams issues with heat distribution.

Available tyres for the races up to the Russian GP. Image courtesy of Pirelli

The Red Bull Ring, following its 2014 redesign, is one of the shortest tracks on the F1 calendar, with the current configuration’s lap record being a 1:06.957, set by Kimi Raikkonen in 2018. With four sharp turns (T1, T3, T7 and T8) and three DRS zones allowing overtaking, the race is not a foregone conclusion.

Infograpics for the 2019 Red Bull Ring. Image courtesy of Pirelli

2019 has been a year of Mercedes dominance, with them having won all eight races so far – two for Valtteri Bottas and six for Lewis Hamilton.

Ferrari has had correlation issues in their fluid dynamics simulation to wind tunnel analysis, hence the testing of new front wing and floor assemblies at Paul Ricard. With that issue presumably sorted, can their car finally show its promise?

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen won here in 2018, and he will be hoping for that to happen again this year to finally break the Mercedes strong-hold on the championship.

And if Verstappen, Vettel and Leclerc can’t mount a challenge? It will, yet again, be between the Mercedes boys of Hamilton and Bottas.

 

[Featured Image courtesy of Colombo Images/Scuderia Ferrari]

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Moto2: Marquez in Search of Fourth Successive 2019 Win in Assen

Two weeks on from a third consecutive masterclass by Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS), the Moto2 World Championship heads to Assen for round eight of the 2019 season.

His Catalan Grand Prix win gave Marquez the World Championship lead, one that he holds by seven points from Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP), although Marquez has two more victories than the Swiss. Marquez has only two podiums, though, in Assen, when he won dominantly in 2014 in the Moto3 class, and last year when Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40) suffered a puncture in the closing stages of the race which cost him second place. However, his recent form means Marquez goes into this weekend as the favourite.

Alex Marquez, Moto2 race, Catalunya MotoGP 2019. Image courtesy of David Goldman and Marc VDS

In fact, Marquez is the only rider racing in the Moto2 class this weekend who was on the podium last year in the intermediate category. Tom Luthi, though, was second in 2017, although his previous Dutch TT podium before that was back in 2010. In all, Luthi has only three podiums across all classes in Assen, the first coming in the 250cc class back in 2008. His form this year has been good, with four podiums from the first seven races, the lowest finish being the sixth place in Le Mans and only one DNF, back in Argentina when he clipped the back wheel of Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo). However, if Luthi wants to challenge Marquez for the title this year he needs to start beating him on track.

The same could be said for Lorenzo Baldassarri. The Italian was dominant in the first part of the season, unbeatable when he kept his backside off the asphalt. Since Le Mans, however, things have not gone so well for #7, with two crashes in the three races since then (in addition to the one in Texas when he collided with Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) on the opening lap in turn ten) and a fourth in the other. As previously mentioned, it was a puncture which cost Baldassarri a podium last year, and it could have cost him the win, since he was closing down eventual winner Francesco Bagnaia in the final stages of the race. The Pons rider needs to return to the podium this weekend and, as Luthi, get the better of Marquez if he wants to continue to challenge for the title. Qualifying will be the key to this. When Baldassarri qualifies poorly he tends to crash, perhaps pushing too hard to try to make up for the time lost at the stat when mired in the pack. Start up front, however, and he has a chance.

Jorge Navarro and Fabio Di Giannantonio at the 2019 Moto 2 Barcelona race. Image courtesy of Speed Up Racing

Jorge Navarro (Beta Tools Speed Up) returned to the podium last time out in Barcelona with third place – his fourth rostrum visit of the season. Perhaps more was expected of the Spaniard and his Italian chassis, as Fabio Quartararo has won on it a year before. Similarly, Quartararo was second in Assen last year, so Navarro should be hopeful of a good weekend in the Netherlands, as should his teammate, Fabio Di Giannantonio (Beta Tools Speed Up), who was second in Assen on his first visit back in 2016, although he crashed in 2017 and was only ninth last year. Di Gianntantonio had something of a breakthrough weekend in the Moto2 class last time out in Montmelo, despite his crash in the race, so could be running up at the front again this weekend.

Similarly, Di Giannantonio’s fellow Italian Moto2 rookies, Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) and Nicolo Bulega (Sky Racing Team VR46) have had good rookie seasons so far, Bastianini exceptionally so with two top fives in the last two races and seven out of seven finishes in the top ten. Bulega, on the other hand, has shows some flashes of speed but has been unable to transform that into a race result as yet.

Featured image courtesy of Gareth Harford /Marc VDS

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WorldSBK: Bautista Returns to Form as Rea Crashes in Misano Sprint Race

The rain of Saturday had disappeared on Sunday morning for the Superpole race at round seven of the 2019 Superbike World Championship in Misano, which proved to be one of the most dramatic races of the season.

Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) made the holeshot from pole position, and Sandro Cortese (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) made a good start from the middle of the front row. In third palce after turn one was Alvaro Bautista (ARUBA.IT Racing – Ducati) who had made good early progress from fifth on the grid.

Bautista was able to use the power of the Ducati to put himself in the position to pass Cortese into turn eight on the second lap, and he immediately closed the gap down to Rea out front. As they moved onto lap three, Bautista once more used the power of the Ducati, this time to storm straight past Rea before they arrived at the braking zone for turn one.

From then on, there was little, Rea could do about the Spaniard, who was able to pull away in the straights and seemed to have an advantage in the mid-corner and pulled away in a way which we have seen on many occasions this year. Bautista’s win was his fifteenth from eighteen WSBK races and his seventeenth top-three. Additionally, for Ducati it was their thirtieth WSBK win in Misano, the most of any manufacturer.

Rea, then, was resigned to second place once more. Initially, he was under pressure from Sandro Cortese who was able to go with Rea’s pace once he had settled into his rhythm. However, Cortese fell at the final corner on lap seven and threw away what looked to be a certain front row start for the second race.

Alex Lowes at Misano WSBK 2019. Image courtesy of Yamaha Racing

Cortese’s crash elevated Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK) to third place and a provisional front row start, but this became second for Lowes when Rea crashed at Tramonto. The reigning World Champion looked to lose the rear slightly as he released the brake, and when he touched the throttle, he folded the front. It was a bizarre crash, as when the tyres gripped the bike rolled on top of Rea as he held onto the Kawasaki to try to limit the damage caused to the bike. Fortunately for the Northern Irishman, there was little damage at all, and he was able to resume quite quickly in sixth place, although with limited time to improve his position.

Rea’s crash solidified Lowes’ position on the front row for race two, whilst Rea himself was now headed for a second row start in the second race. It also promoted Tom Sykes (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK) to the front row, although an expiration for the S1000RR put an end to those hopes.

The retirement of Sykes allowed Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) into third, and he was able to hold onto it after coming out on top in his race-long battle with Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing) who finished fourth.

Fifth place went to Rea, who was promoted from sixth when Sykes retired, whilst Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha WorldSBK) finished  ahead of Michael Ruben Rinaldi (BARNI Racing Team), wildcard Michele Pirro (BARNI Racing Team), Leandro Mercado (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) and Eugene Laverty’s replacement Lorenzo Zanetti (Team Goeleven) who rounded out the top ten.

Eleventh place went to Jordi Torres (Team Pedercini Racing) ahead of Loris Baz (Ten Kate Racing – Yamaha), Markus Reiterberger (BMW Motorrad WorldSBK), Yuki Takahashi (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team) and Ryuichi Kiyonari (Moriwaki Althea Honda Team) who took the last point.

Dominic Schmitter (IXS Racing powered by YART) was sixteenth, ahead of Chaz Davies (ARBUA.IT Racing – Ducati) who crashed early on and finished seventeenth.

Samuele Cavalieri (Motocorsa Racing) was the first retirement on the first lap, before one of the heroes of Saturday’s wet race, Alessandro Delbianco (Althea Mie Racing Team) crashed on lap four. The only other retirements were the aforementioned Sandro Cortese and Tom Sykes.

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Exclusive Interview with Tom Chilton

Tom doesn’t need much introduction. He made his debut in the BTCC aged 17, driving a Vauxhall Astra for Barwell Motorsport. He would take his first victory at Silverstone in 2004. He has taken 15 victories to date in the BTCC.

He very kindly agreed to answer some questions for us.

Warren Nel

Now two podiums at the start of the year at Brands Hatch, including a win that was taken away from you was a good start even excepting the penalty for the clash with Matt Neal. Then 4th being the best result in race two at Donington Park was quite a good start. Sum up your thoughts for me at this stage, as you were fourth in the overall championship and also first in the Independents Championship.

Tom Chilton at the wheel of his Motorbase Focus during race three, Brands Hatch. Photo credit, Warren Nel

Tom Chilton

We got off to a great start to the year. After Race two at Donington Park, we were leading both the British championships which is nothing to be sniffed at. Our problem was when we hit the hard tyre in race 3, we cannot get the hard tyre to work at all. 

W.N

Thruxton was a nightmare of a weekend, and I see that you have suggested to Mark Blundell that he should step out of the championship following the clash, you had with him during qualifying. Could you describe what actually happened, and how that effected the rest of your race weekend?

Tom’s car on the grid at Thruxton in May. Photo credit, Motorbase/Jakob Ebrey

T.C

Nightmares are better than how Thruxton went. It’s frustrating when anybody holds you up in qualifying, especially someone with so much experience like Mark. Having said that, Team Shredded Wheat racing with Gallagher was amazing and fixed the car so quickly. 

W.N

Thinking about car setup, do you think there are certain tracks that the Focus goes better at, and what influence do the different tyres have in making the car stable? Also, when success ballast is added to the car, do you change anything in the setup to compensate?

The BTCC always offers spectacular racing. Photo credit, Motorbase/Jakob Ebrey

T.C

The Focus has always been better at the tight twisty circuits due to its shorter wheel base and hatchback shape not needing to worry about drag for straight lines as much. Last year, I got a double podium at Oulton Park which is a real chassis circuit. You have to always change the car between circuits, tyres and success ballast. Which is one of the reasons why the BTCC rewards such experienced teams and drivers. It’s very hard to get it perfect every time. 

Tom celebrates his win last time out at Croft! Photo credit, Motorbase/Jakob Ebrey

W.N

It looks like Josh Cook and Rory Butcher are the drivers that you will be battling with for the rest of the season for the Independents Crown. When you look at the standings, can you see any other drivers like Jake Hill, Sam Tordoff and Adam Morgan joining the battle for this championship?

Tom celebrates with the champers! Photo credit, Motorbase/Jakob Ebrey

T.C

This championship is one of the most competitive championships in the world. You can’t count anyone out. All of our lap times are so close it still can be anyone’s. For me I just need to focus on myself and keep clicking those gears. Points make prizes and I love prizes!

 

Many thanks to Motorbase/Jakob Ebrey for the photos and for Romy Chandler for arranging the interview.

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