On The Record

Australian Ambrose gets hit with 25k fine

Australian V8 Supercars, NASCAR, On The Record

535aab90556c7.image

Photo: Sangjib Min

Sprint Cup NASCAR driver Marcos Ambrose has been fined $25,000 for punching fellow driver, Casey Mears, after an on-track altercation in last Saturday’s Toyota Owners 400 at the Richmond International Raceway in Virginia.

Mears was fined $15,000 after pushing and intimidating the Australian, enticing Ambrose to punch him in the face , after a disagreement about the result of a large crash.

Mears talked to Fox Sports 1’s Race Hub and said he and Ambrose are okay.

“At the end of the day, none of that should ever happen,” Mears said.

“But in the heat of the moment, when you get out of your race car, and some stuff just happened that you didn’t like, we started going at each other, and before we knew it, it escalated very quickly.”

Ambrose finished the race in 18th, alongside Mears in 19th place.

Both drivers have been put on probation until May 28, with neither suffering suspension for the post-race incident.

Ambrose, a former V8 Supercar champion, is known for his fiery attitude at the racetrack after having a similar altercation with New Zealand driver Greg Murphy at the Bathurst 1000 in 2005.

In an exclusive interview in 2012, a NASCAR journalist asked Ambrose if he had any regrets.

“Anything I regret? Yeah. There was this guy in Australia – Bathurst 2005 – and he took me out of the race.

“We had a bit of a shouting match, and I regret I didn’t punch him.”

Murphy later watched the video of Ambrose in America punching Mears.

“I didn’t think he had it in him,” Murphy said.

“Maybe he saw a picture of my head on Casey Mears’ shoulders, who knows?

“He obviously got a big shove from Casey for whatever reason that moved him aside and that was enough to get him riled up.”

Ambrose and Mears will come head-to-head at the next Sprint Cup race held at Talladega this weekend.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbsE2weoQ4w (video courtesy of Fox Sports)

Advertisement

New F1 is too quiet according to race goers

Australian V8 Supercars, Formula 1, On The Record

By LOREN HAZELWOOD

Kamui Kobayasi crashing out after a brake-by-wire failure. Photo: AP Photo/Ross Land

Kamui Kobayasi crashing out after a brake-by-wire failure. Photo: AP Photo/Ross Land

Australian Grand Prix organisers claim the new F1 cars may have breached race contracts because they were not loud enough.

Fans have also spoken and agreed that the new V6 turbo-charged powertrain cars sound duller than a lawnmower on a Saturday morning.

The Australian Grand Prix Coordination’s (AGPC) organiser Andrew Westacott said the new cars took away the fascinating spectacle of Formula One racing.

“One aspect of it was just a little bit duller than it’s ever been before and that’s part of the mix and the chemistry that they’re going to have to get right,” Mr Westacott told Fairfax radio.

Westacott also mentioned that AGPC chairman Ron Walker told Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone who said that the quieter sound might have breached the race contract.

“Ron spoke to [Ecclestone] after the race and said fans don’t like it in the venue,” Mr Westacott said.

“We pay for a product, we’ve got contracts in place, we are looking at those very, very seriously because we reckon there has probably been some breaches.”

Not only were the big bosses disappointed with the sound of the new cars—the fans and racing drivers were in disbelief with the V6-turbo sound, including NSW Formula Ford Driver, Daniel Holihan.

“They should definitely bring back the V8 or even the V10 and V12 engine, it’s the fans that come to hear the high pitch roar of a Formula One around the city of Melbourne,” Mr Holihan said.

“I was getting more of a thrill watching the rolling starts of the V8 Supercars.”

Although the cars were not as loud—the racing spoke for itself, with the drivers battling for position throughout the whole race, while trying to not break down.

The competition level was high and it was unpredictable who would win the race before it started, with reliability also playing a big part during the first race in Australia.

“I loved the action, the race was very entertaining because it was a complete fresh start for every team and there was a lot of passing going on,” Mr Holihan said.

Not only did the race deliver great action and unpredictability, it also saw controversy unfold as Australian young gun Daniel Ricciardo was disqualified after a fuel-flow sensor error.

Ricciardo’s team at Red Bull have appealed the decision, with the verdict expected to take a few weeks to be announced.

Nico Rosberg was the eventual winner of the race, with McLaren rookie driver Kevin Magnussen replacing Ricciardo for second on his Formula One debut, with McLaren teammate Jenson Button rounding out the top three.

Formula One management are yet to comment on the hybrid-generation cars.

Nico Rosberg takes victory at Grand Prix

Formula 1, On The Record

By LOREN HAZELWOOD

 

art-svROSBERG-620x349
Nico Rosberg crossing the line in Melbourne. Credit: AFP

After a strong pre-season testing, Formula One favourite Mercedes proved too strong at the weekend’s Grand Prix with driver Nico Rosberg taking the victory at Melbourne’s Albert Park street circuit.

Rosberg managed to win the first Grand Prix of the season by over 23 seconds, with Australia’s Daniel Ricciardo crossing the line in second place. However, he was later disqualified due to the fuel flow reading after the race.

Because of Ricciardo’s disqualification, McLaren’s rookie driver Kevin Magnussen stole the show, finishing second on the podium for his first ever Formula One race.

Mercedes was the strong favourite to win right from the start with driver Lewis Hamilton putting the car on pole position during qualifying.

The start of the race saw everything unfold, with Rosberg getting the jump and leading into the first corner.

Ricciardo was right behind in second place, making the country proud as he put the new Red Bull on the front row.

Turn one also saw the first crash for the season with Williams driver Felipe Massa being forced off the circuit after Kamui Kobayashi’s car had a rear brake-by-wire failure, causing Kobayashi’s Caterham to crash into the side of Massa.

With Rosberg and Ricciardo leading the pack, Hamilton started to fall backwards with the Mercedes V6 Turbo-charged engine having a failing cylinder, forcing him to retire early.

Reliability issues also saw current world champion Sebastian Vettel having to retire with the car down on power, while the two Lotus cars raced by Romain Grosjean and Pastor Maldonado both stopped on the circuit with few laps to spare.

The battle of the race was further down the field with William’s driver Valtteri Bottas making a great comeback and managing to finish in fifth position after brushing the wall and damaging his rear right tyre.

McLaren’s new car was looking strong, with driver Jenson Button also finishing on the podium due to Ricciardo’s after-race penalty.

Meanwhile Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso finished in fourth place.

German Rosberg currently leads the Formula One Drivers’ Championship, with Round Two of the FIA Formula One Championship being held at Malaysia from 28-30 March.

Screen Shot 2014-03-18 at 4.48.07 PM

Racing Tread: The Australian Grand Prix

Formula 1, On The Record

Published on: http://www.ontherecord-unisa.com.au/?p=3870

timthumb4

The Ice-man Kimi Raikkonen has done it again at the Australian Grand Prix, taking the top of the podium for the first round of the Formula 1 season.

The Finnish Lotus driver took the shock win, starting from his qualifying spot of 7th position.

Favourite for the race, Australian Mark Webber, suffered with wheel spin off the front row, falling back through the field before turn one.

The end of lap one was clean, with Sebastian Vettel leading the first, closely followed by Ferrari’s Felipe Massa and Fernando Alonso.

Newly signed Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton battled with the front of the field, with Raikkonen ready to pounce closely behind.

Current World Champion Sebastian Vettel led away from his pole position before the leading contenders made their early first stops to change from the super soft compound to the medium rubber tyre.

Experimentation with pit-stops was the talk of the first race of the season, with many teams considering a two-stop race.

The majority of teams started their drivers on the Pirelli super-soft tyre, which shed quicker than the medium compound.

Teams then discussed that the two-stop strategy was “too risky”, as two sets of tyres would not withstand the race.

Force India thought otherwise, the team pressing the limit on the Pirelli tyres, with Adrian Sutil taking the lead once the lead pack went in for their first round of pit stops.

As the race pressed on, the front-running teams decided to take on the three-stop pit strategy.

Lap 25 of the race saw Pastor Maldonado spinning in the gravel and out of the race, with Nico Rosberg later retiring after an electrical failure on his Mercedes.

Australian Daniel Ricciardo also retired with 19 laps to go, after his Toro Rosso suffered a broken exhaust.

The two-stop strategy was seen as a failure by Force India, with Sutil drifting back through the field.

Good pit-strategy saw Lotus driver Kimi Raikkonen take the race lead,  Raikkonen continuing to extend his lead as each lap went on to the final sprint.

Raikkonen took out the race by over ten seconds to Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso with third place on the podium going to RedBull Racing’s Sebastian Vettel.

The race was threatened by a light drizzle of rain, but was run mainly under dry conditions with no safety cars during the Grand Prix.

Final positions for the Australian Formula One Grand Prix:

Pos

Driver

Team

Time/Retired

Grid
1 Kimi Räikkönen Lotus-Renault Winner 7
2 Fernando Alonso Ferrari +12.4 secs 5
3 Sebastian Vettel Red Bull Racing-Renault +22.3 secs 1
4 Felipe Massa Ferrari +33.5 secs 4
5 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes +45.5 secs 3
6 Mark Webber Red Bull Racing-Renault +46.8 secs 2
7 Adrian Sutil Force India-Mercedes +65.0 secs 12
8 Paul di Resta Force India-Mercedes +68.4 secs 9
9 Jenson Button McLaren-Mercedes +81.6 secs 10
10 Romain Grosjean Lotus-Renault +82.7 secs 8
11 Sergio Perez McLaren-Mercedes +83.3 secs 15
12 Jean-Eric Vergne STR-Ferrari +83.8 secs 13
13 Esteban Gutierrez Sauber-Ferrari +1 Lap 18
14 Valtteri Bottas Williams-Renault +1 Lap 16
15 Jules Bianchi Marussia-Cosworth +1 Laps 19
16 Charles Pic Caterham-Renault +2 Lap 22
17 Max Chilton Marussia-Cosworth +2 Laps 20
18 Giedo van der Garde Caterham-Renault +2 Laps 21
Ret Daniel Ricciardo STR-Ferrari +19 Laps 14
Ret Nico Rosberg Mercedes +32 Laps 6
Ret Pastor Maldonado Williams-Renault +34 Laps 17
Ret Nico Hulkenberg Sauber-Ferrari Fuel System

Driven to Succeed: Scott McLaughlin

Australian V8 Supercars, On The Record

Published on: http://www.ontherecord-unisa.com.au/?p=3414

timthumb9

As Bathurst celebrates its 50th anniversary at Mt Panorama this weekend, one of Australia’s best young drivers is set to make his debut.

Scott McLaughlin, a 19-year-old New Zealand native, will be pairing up with V8 Supercar teammate Jonathon Webb in Tekno Autosports’ Holden Commodore.

V8 Supercar fans will be treated to cars whizzing past at more than 300km/h over 161 gruelling laps, in a circuit promising to challenge drivers regardless of their experience.

I recently caught up with Scott and asked him about Bathurst and his promising motor racing career.

Loren: So with you currently leading the championship in the Dunlop Development Series and having a successful run at Sandown the other weekend, what are your thoughts and feelings co-driving at Bathurst?

Scott: It’s going to be pretty cool. There is a bit of pressure on me, but the team has hired me to do the job because they believe in my ability and I am looking forward to my first Bathurst!

Loren: As you would be! Considering you are only 19, it is a great achievement and shows you have what it takes to tackle the mountain. But in saying that, with Mt Panorama being one of the most daring racing circuits in Australia, are there any parts of the circuit you are concerned about?

Scott: Definitely the chase; it’s so fast and (it) takes you a few laps really to get up to speed through there, (but) considering it’s 300kph I don’t think I’m the only driver working up to that part of the circuit!

Loren: I can definitely see what you mean! It takes great skill and courage to be able to reach such high speeds. I am sure Jonathon has been helping you out and giving you his advice – what are his tips for you over the weekend?

Scott: Just go out and enjoy it. He knows it’s a big weekend for me and my family, so just enjoy the moment, bring the car back straight and see where we end up.

Loren: Sounds like a pretty good plan, I’m sure your family is very excited also! Seeing that this Bathurst is also the 50th anniversary of racing at the mountain, I’m sure growing up as a kid you watched every race. What message would you send to other up-and-coming kids dreaming of one day racing at Bathurst?

Scott: Yeah, well, this year will be 10 years exactly since I watched my first ever Bathurst! All I can say is just keep pushing towards your dream. If it’s what you want keep going and going and don’t let anyone tell you, “you can’t do that, you don’t have enough money.” Just keep pushing towards your dream.

Loren: I know the Australian and New Zealand racing world is very proud of what you have achieved and can’t wait to see what you bring for the future. What will we see you doing next after Bathurst this weekend?

Scott: I’ll be off to New Zealand in a couple of weeks’ time with Jonathan for round 2 of the Enduro Championships of the V8 Supertourer series, which will great fun!

Loren: Sounds great, you’ll be back on home soil! I’ve noticed you’ve previously raced in the series –  what is the V8 Supertourers like compared to the Australian V8 Supercars Championship?

Scott: It obviously hasn’t got as bigger following as the V8 Supercars, but is doing pretty well in New Zealand; they are great cars, which can create great racing which is awesome.

Loren: Great racing is what it is all about. With you previously racing categories like go-karts, the Australian Mini Championship and Formula Ford, what did you find the most challenging and exciting?

Scott: Go-karts really I did more of. It was really tough and competitive and (I) had some really good battles over the years!

Loren: Go-karts are the stepping stone for car racing, that’s for sure. Well it was a pleasure talking with you once again, all the best for the Bathurst 1000 this weekend! I will be watching the race at home and cheering you on!

Scott: Thank you and talk soon!

The Bathurst 1000 will be on this Sunday, starting at 6.00am on Channel 7.

NASCAR: Aussie Ambrose wins in challenging conditions

NASCAR, On The Record

Published on: http://www.ontherecord-unisa.com.au/?p=3306

Finger Lakes 355 at the Glen

Australian Marcos Ambrose scored his second-straight win after an eventful finish at Watkins Glen, a race Ambrose later claimed to be the best race of his career.

Ambrose only led eight laps of the 90 lap race, but made sure the last lap counted, despite engine oil was spreading all over the circuit from Bobby Labonte’s car and a crash between then race leader Kyle Busch and Brad Keselowski.

With Keselowski and Ambrose away from the rest of the field, it was a final lap dash with pure racing.

Keselowski and Ambrose battled for position until the chequered flag, which saw both drivers running wide off the circuit to claim the final positions for the race.

Ford-driver Ambrose took his second-straight win at the Watkins Glen circuit, with Brad Keselowski finishing in second place and current championship leader Jimmie Johnson rounding out the top three.

With Ambrose using a three pit-stop strategy, this meant he could drive flat out throughout the entire race.

Despite falling back to as 24th position at one point, Ambrose continued to put himself back into contention for the win.

The final ten laps of the race saw Ambrose take second position from Keselowski, but with the fluid on the track and Ambrose’s tyres beyond new, Keselowski gained his position back before the final lap with Kyle Busch in first position.

After the race, Ambrose dedicated his win to his father, who has recently been dealing with illness.

“A big shout-out to dad, he’s been in hospital all week and I wish I was there with you,” Ambrose told the press.

“I hope this makes you feel better.

“It was great racing with Kyle and Brad and that’s the way racing should be.

“We burnt everything up at the end as our strategy was to do three stops. You just have to take lady luck when it strikes and it was our day.

“I was the first one to slip on the oil and that’s when Brad got past.

“It was just getting worse and worse, and you could just tell as the car was moving all over the race track.

“You have to take your chances and you have to commit at that point of the race.”

Out of the five starts the Australian has had at Watkins Glen, Ambrose has won two races, his worst finish in third place.

Ambrose is known as the king at Watkins Glen since his switch from V8 Supercars to the Sprint Cup series, with Ambrose stating that the win this year was “pure joy”.

Race Results

1. #9 Marcos Ambrose Ford 90 laps 2hrs 18mins 1secs (47/1 pts)
2. #2 Brad Keselowski Dodge 90 laps + 0.571s (43/1 pts)
3. #48 Jimmie Johnson Chevrolet 90 laps + 9.218s (41/0 pts)
4. #15 Clint Bowyer Toyota 90 laps + 9.269s (40/0 pts)
5. #22 Sam Hornish Jr. Dodge 90 laps + 9.493s (0pts)
6. #16 Greg Biffle Ford 90 laps + 10.289s (38/0 pts)
7. #18 Kyle Busch Toyota 90 laps + 10.489s (39/2 pts)
8. #17 Matt Kenseth Ford 90 laps + 11.124s (36/0 pts)
9. #78 Regan Smith Chevrolet 90 laps + 11.555s (35/0 pts)
10. #56 Martin Truex Jr. Toyota 90 laps + 12.631s (34/0 pts)
11. #39 Ryan Newman Chevrolet 90 laps + 12.940s (33/0 pts)
12. #27 Paul Menard Chevrolet 90 laps + 12.999s (32/0 pts)
13. #5 Kasey Kahne Chevrolet 90 laps + 13.076s (31/0 pts)
14. #99 Carl Edwards Ford 90 laps + 13.584s (31/1 pts)
15. #29 Kevin Harvick Chevrolet 90 laps + 16.460s (29/0 pts)
16. #13 Casey Mears Ford 90 laps + 16.934s (28/0 pts)
17. #195 Scott Speed Ford 90 laps + 16.976s (27/0 pts)
18. #43 Aric Almirola Ford 90 laps + 17.050s (26/0 pts)
19. #14 Tony Stewart Chevrolet 90 laps + 23.560s (25/0 pts)
20. #38 David Gilliland Ford 90 laps + 23.721s (24/0 pts)
21. #24 Jeff Gordon Chevrolet 90 laps + 24.430s (23/0 pts)
22. #34 David Ragan Ford 90 laps + 26.547s (22/0 pts)
23. #83 Landon Cassill Toyota 90 laps + 37.988s (21/0 pts)
24. #93 Travis Kvapil Toyota 90 laps + 38.259s (20/0 pts)
25. #32 Boris Said Ford 90 laps + 63.902s (19/0 pts)
26. #33 Stephen Leicht * Chevrolet 90 laps + 80.259s (18/0 pts)
27. #47 Bobby Labonte Toyota 90 laps + 88.469s (17/0 pts)
28. #88 Dale Earnhardt Jr. Chevrolet 89 laps + 1 lap (16/0 pts)
29. #87 Joe Nemechek Toyota 88 laps + 2 laps (0pts)
30. #31 Jeff Burton Chevrolet 84 laps + 6 laps (14/0 pts)
31. #51 Kurt Busch Chevrolet 81 laps + 9 laps (13/0 pts)
32. #20 Joey Logano Toyota 71 laps + 19 laps (12/0 pts)
33. #42 Juan Montoya Chevrolet 63 laps Accident (12/1 pts)
34. #11 Denny Hamlin Toyota 57 laps Engine (10/0 pts)
35. #249 Jason Leffler Toyota 42 laps Engine (0pts)
36. #36 Dave Blaney Chevrolet 41 laps Susp. (8/0 pts)
37. #98 Michael McDowell Ford 30 laps Rear Gear (7/0 pts)
38. #26 Josh Wise * Ford 25 laps Electrical (6/0 pts)
39. #1 Jamie McMurray Chevrolet 24 laps Accident (5/0 pts)
40. #10 J.J. Yeley Chevrolet 15 laps Brakes (4/0 pts)
41. #119 Chris Cook Toyota 5 laps Brakes (3/0 pts)
42. #30 Patrick Long Toyota 2 laps Brakes (2/0 pts)
43. #55 Brian Vickers Toyota 0 laps Engine (1/0 pts)

Casey Stoner announced his retirement, is Australian V8 Supercars now an option?

Australian V8 Supercars, MotoGP, On The Record

Published on: http://www.ontherecord-unisa.com.au/?p=3080

stoner

Current World MotoGP champion Casey Stoner recently announced that he will retire from the MotoGP category at the end of the 2012 season, after a long family decision.

The Australian is only 26 years old, with his decision to retire shocking the motorsport world. Although the rider is still young, Stoner believes the sport is changing and he doesn’t have the passion to race in MotoGP anymore.

“After so many years of doing this sport which I love, and which myself and my family made so many sacrifices for, after so many years of trying to get to where we have gotten to at this point, this sport has changed a lot and it has changed to the point where I am not enjoying it,” he said in a press release.

“I don’t have the passion for it and so at this time it’s better if I retire now.

“There are a lot of things that have disappointed me, and also a lot of things I have loved about this sport, but unfortunately the balance has gone in the wrong direction. And so, basically, we won’t be continuing any more.

“It would be nice if I could say I would stay one more year, but then where does it stop? So we decided to finish everything as we are now.”

With the two time world champion still young, it is believed that Stoner has his sights set on racing in the Australian V8 Supercar category within the near future, similar to what other Australian MotoGP World Champion Wayne Gardner did, who retired from the MotoGP category and raced in V8 Supercars.

Over the 2011 V8 Supercars season, Casey Stoner was seen at Bathurst and the Sydney Telstra 500 supporting Team Vodafone’s Craig Lowndes and Jamie Whincup.

It was believed then that Stoner was looking into racing in the Australian series, alongside the Triple 8 Engineering race team.

Since the Sydney Telstra 500 last year, Stoner has test driven one of Triple 8 Engineering’s VE Holden V8 Supercars, and seemed he was on the pace and could be ready to race within the near future.

“It is something I am definitely interested to do in the future, but whether I will be fast enough or not is another thing,” said Stoner at the press conference.

For now, Casey Stoner will continue racing MotoGP for the 2012 season and currently sits in second place in the MotoGP World Championship to Jorge Lorenzo.

Formula 1: Mark Webber wins the Monaco Grand Prix

Formula 1, On The Record

Published on: http://www.ontherecord-unisa.com.au/?p=3083

Mark-Webber-Monaco-F1

Australian Mark Webber took his first victory for the season on the streets of Monaco in the Monaco Grand Prix.

Webber was the first Australian to win two Grand Prix’s at the Monaco Grand Prix, after claiming his first victory in the streets of Monaco in the 2010 Grand Prix.

With Mark Webber taking out the Grand Prix, this makes the 35 year old the sixth winner for the season, which is a first in Formula 1 history.

The Australian started on pole position with a qualifying time of 1:14.381, after seven-time Formula 1 Champion Michael Schumacher posted a pole time of 1:14.301 but was penalised five positions after running into the back of Bruno Senna in the Spanish Grand Prix, with the incident seeing both Senna and Schumacher out of the race.

Mark Webber started on the front row of the historic Monaco street circuit, with Nico Rosberg starting alongside him. Webber gained a great jump from the rest of the field and didn’t look back, with Nico Rosberg claiming second spot.

Carnage was caused behind the leaders between Romain Grosjean and Michael Schumacher, seeing Grosjean taking his third retirement from a race start for the season and making it hard for the rest of the field to make it through the first chicane, causing many drivers to fall back several positions.

With the race being action packed, there was a safety car by the first lap, which gave driver’s realisation of how tight and tricky the streets of Monaco are.

Mark Webber failed to make a mistake throughout the whole race, with Webber claiming the Grand Prix victory despite the pressure being applied from behind from Nico Rosberg, Fernado Alonso and current World Champion Sebastian Vettel.

The Grand Prix saw Webber take his first victory for the season, with Rosberg in second, Alonso in third, RedBull racing team mate Sebastian Vettel in fourth and Lewis Hamilton rounding out the top five postions.

With Webber taking the victory, he is now in third place in the Formula 1 Driver’s Championship, with Fernado Alonso in first place and current World Champion Sebastian Vettel in second place.

27/05 – Circuit de Monaco – 78 laps – 162 miles

Points

Time/Lag

Avg. MPH
1 Mark Webber – Red Bull

25

1:46:06.557

147.312
2 Nico Rosberg – Mercedes

18

+0.643

147.297
3 Fernando Alonso – Ferrari

15

+0.947

147.29
4 Sebastian Vettel – Red Bull

12

+1.343

147.281
5 Lewis Hamilton – McLaren

10

+4.101

147.217
6 Felipe Massa – Ferrari

8

+6.195

147.169
7 Paul di Resta – Force India

6

+41.537

146.357
8 Nico Hulkenberg – Force India

4

+42.562

146.333
9 Kimi Raikkonen – Lotus

2

+44.036

146.3
10 Bruno Senna – Williams

1

+44.516

146.289
11 Sergio Perez – Sauber

0

–

145.276
12 Jean-Eric Vergne – Toro Rosso

0

–

144.491
13 Heikki Kovalainen – Caterham

0

–

144.361
14 Timo Glock – Marussia

0

–

144.265
15 Narain Karthikeyan – HRT

0

–

141.983
16 Jenson Button – McLaren

0

–

145.283
17 Daniel Ricciardo – Toro Rosso

0

–

145.609
18 Charles Pic – Marussia

0

–

144.7
19 Michael Schumacher – Mercedes

0

–

146.081
20 Vitaly Petrov – Caterham

0

–

134.575
21 Kamui Kobayashi – Sauber

0

–

119.761
22 Romain Grosjean – Lotus

0

–

–
23 Pedro de la Rosa – HRT

0

–

–
24 Pastor Maldonado – Williams

0

–

–

MotoGP: Casey Stoner claims second victory for the season

MotoGP, On The Record

Published on: http://www.ontherecord-unisa.com.au/?p=2469

timthumb2

Australian Casey Stoner has won his second Grand Prix in two weeks for the 2012 MotoGP season in Portugal, beating fellow rider Jorge Lorenzo in a two-rider showdown similar to last week’s Grand Prix in Jerez.

With two MotoGP victories in just two weeks, Stoner now holds the championship lead, snatching the lead away from Yamaha’s Lorenzo with just one point separating them.

Casey Stoner defend his first place position from start to finish, Lorenzo only attempting a challenge towards the very end of the race.

Stoner’s Repsol team mate Dani Pedrosa finished behind Lorenzo in third position, with Andrea Dovisioso in fourth, ahead of his Yamaha team mate Cal Crutchlow who rounded out the top five positions.

Australian Stoner admitted he felt under pressure throughout the race, even though he was the race leader for its duration.

“I felt good on the first few laps but then we had severe chattering from the bike,” Stoner said after the race.

“In the middle laps I didn’t feel confident and I couldn’t push.

“I just tried to keep Jorge behind me we were lucky to hold on for the win in the end.”

This victory is Stoner’s 35th MotoGP win, with the current world champion looking in fantastic form for round four at the world famous Le Man’s Bugatti circuit at the French Grand Prix.

Race Results

Pos.

Points

Num.

Rider

Nation

Team

Bike

Km/h

Time/Gap

1

25

1

 Casey Stoner AUS Repsol Honda Team Honda

154.0

 45:37.513

2

20

99

 Jorge Lorenzo SPA Yamaha Factory Racing Yamaha

153.9

 +1.421

3

16

26

 Dani Pedrosa SPA Repsol Honda Team Honda

153.8

 +3.621

4

13

4

 Andrea Dovizioso ITA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Yamaha

153.2

 +13.846

5

11

35

 Cal Crutchlow GBR Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Yamaha

153.1

 +16.690

6

10

19

 Alvaro Bautista SPA San Carlo Honda Gresini Honda

152.8

 +21.884

7

9

46

 Valentino Rossi ITA Ducati Team Ducati

152.5

 +26.797

8

8

11

 Ben Spies USA Yamaha Factory Racing Yamaha

152.1

 +33.262

9

7

6

 Stefan Bradl GER LCR Honda MotoGP Honda

152.0

 +35.867

10

6

8

 Hector Barbera SPA Pramac Racing Team Ducati

151.0

 +53.363

11

5

69

 Nicky Hayden USA Ducati Team Ducati

150.5

 +1’02.630

12

4

41

 Aleix Espargaro SPA Power Electronics Aspar ART

149.6

 +1’20.736

13

3

14

 Randy de Puniet FRA Power Electronics Aspar ART

149.4

 +1’23.483

14

2

51

 Michele Pirro ITA San Carlo Honda Gresini FTR

148.7

 +1’37.905

15

1

9

 Danilo Petrucci ITA Came IodaRacing Project Ioda

147.2

 1 Lap

MotoGP: Casey Stoner Takes Victory at the Spanish Grand Prix

MotoGP, On The Record

Published on: http://www.ontherecord-unisa.com.au/?p=2419

timthumb

Australian Casey Stoner has taken out his first race win for this year’s season, winning at the Spanish Grand Prix in Jerez, in a race Stoner called one of the greatest of his career.

The two-time world Moto GP champion claimed the victory in Jerez to hold off current championship leader Jorge Lorenzo.

The win left Stoner only four points shy of Lorenzo’s championship lead; however, the race although wasn’t an easy win for Stoner.

The current world champion started from a challenging fifth position and from the very beginning, was involved in a fantastic battle for the race lead.

Lap three saw Stoner pass Pedrosa for first place and the race lead.

The Repsol Team Honda lead majority of the laps of the Brazilian Grand Prix, but Jorge Lorenzo was on charge in second place.

With nine laps to go, Lorenzo started battling Stoner for the race victory, only to try and pass the Australian with three laps to go into first corner.

It was there Lorenzo lost ground, handing the Brazilian Grand Prix victory to Stoner.

After the race, the victorious Stoner said his Honda bike was set up for the wet circuit, but on the clearing dry track, the lack of rear-tire grip made the Honda very hard to ride.

The win at the Brazilian Grand Prix looks to be the beginning of Stoner’s 34th Moto GP victory, with the Australian looking on the money to take victory for this year’s season.

Race Results

Pos.

Rider

Team

1

 Casey Stoner Repsol Honda Team

2

 Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha Factory Racing

3

 Dani Pedrosa Repsol Honda Team

4

 Cal Crutchlow Monster Yamaha Tech 3

5

 Andrea Dovizioso Monster Yamaha Tech 3

6

 Alvaro Bautista San Carlo Honda Gresini

7

 Stefan Bradl LCR Honda MotoGP

8

 Nicky Hayden Ducati Team

9

 Valentino Rossi Ducati Team

10

 Hector Barbera Pramac Racing Team

11

 Ben Spies Yamaha Factory Racing

12

 Aleix Espargaro Power Electronics Aspar

13

 Danilo Petrucci Came IodaRacing Project

14

 Mattia Pasini Speed Master

15

 Ivan Silva Avintia Blusens

16

 Colin Edwards NGM Mobile Forward Racing

17

 Karel Abraham Cardion AB Motoracing

DNF

 Randy de Puniet Power Electronics Aspar

DNF

 James Ellison Paul Bird Motorsport

DNF

 Michele Pirro San Carlo Honda Gresini

DNF

 Yonny Hernandez Avintia Blusens