Ducati Monster Forum

At least we know that Marquez will be riding. We also know that Jerez is generally not bad for tires, so we should not see any drama on that side. This is a perfect opportunity for JLO to wake up and start racing.

Hoping the Zuke is up there ti make things extra interesting.

A good test to see where the Duc is without the straights

FP1

Pos.   Num.   Rider   Nation   Team   Bike   Km/h   Time   Gap 1st/Prev.
1   99   Jorge LORENZO   SPA   Movistar Yamaha MotoGP   Yamaha   288.3   1'39.174   
2   41   Aleix ESPARGARO   SPA   Team SUZUKI ECSTAR   Suzuki   281.6   1'39.223   0.049 / 0.049
3   35   Cal CRUTCHLOW   GBR   CWM LCR Honda   Honda   285.8   1'39.737   0.563 / 0.514
4   4   Andrea DOVIZIOSO   ITA   Ducati Team   Ducati   291.4   1'39.742   0.568 / 0.005
5   44   Pol ESPARGARO   SPA   Monster Yamaha Tech 3   Yamaha   290.9   1'39.871   0.697 / 0.129
6   46   Valentino ROSSI   ITA   Movistar Yamaha MotoGP   Yamaha   287.8   1'39.872   0.698 / 0.001
7   25   Maverick VIÑALES   SPA   Team SUZUKI ECSTAR   Suzuki   281.4   1'39.909   0.735 / 0.037
8   93   Marc MARQUEZ   SPA   Repsol Honda Team   Honda   289.4   1'39.914   0.740 / 0.005
9   8   Hector BARBERA   SPA   Avintia Racing   Ducati   290.0   1'39.937   0.763 / 0.023
10   45   Scott REDDING   GBR   EG 0,0 Marc VDS   Honda   286.3   1'39.967   0.793 / 0.030
11   6   Stefan BRADL   GER   Athinà Forward Racing   Yamaha Forward   284.6   1'40.037   0.863 / 0.070
12   29   Andrea IANNONE   ITA   Ducati Team   Ducati   291.4   1'40.091   0.917 / 0.054
13   76   Loris BAZ   FRA   Athinà Forward Racing   Yamaha Forward   283.4   1'40.092   0.918 / 0.001
14   50   Eugene LAVERTY   IRL   Aspar MotoGP Team   Honda   278.1   1'40.114   0.940 / 0.022
15   9   Danilo PETRUCCI   ITA   Pramac Racing   Ducati   288.2   1'40.365   1.191 / 0.251
16   38   Bradley SMITH   GBR   Monster Yamaha Tech 3   Yamaha   290.4   1'40.392   1.218 / 0.027
17   69   Nicky HAYDEN   USA   Aspar MotoGP Team   Honda   280.0   1'40.521   1.347 / 0.129
18   68   Yonny HERNANDEZ   COL   Pramac Racing   Ducati   289.6   1'40.604   1.430 / 0.083
19   17   Karel ABRAHAM   CZE   AB Motoracing   Honda   282.7   1'41.059   1.885 / 0.455
20   7   Hiroshi AOYAMA   JPN   Repsol Honda Team   Honda   294.7   1'41.064   1.890 / 0.005
21   43   Jack MILLER   AUS   CWM LCR Honda   Honda   279.7   1'41.201   2.027 / 0.137
22   19   Alvaro BAUTISTA   SPA   Aprilia Racing Team Gresini   Aprilia   279.0   1'41.416   2.242 / 0.215
23   63   Mike DI MEGLIO   FRA   Avintia Racing   Ducati   286.5   1'41.433   2.259 / 0.017
24   33   Marco MELANDRI   ITA   Aprilia Racing Team Gresini   Aprilia   282.4   1'41.914   2.740 / 0.481
25   15   Alex DE ANGELIS   RSM   Octo IodaRacing Team   ART   278.2   1'42.333   3.159 / 0.419
Weather Conditions:
  |   Track Condition: Dry|   Air: 21º| Humidity: 62%|   Ground: 23º

1.   Jorge Lorenzo   ESP Movistar Yamaha MotoGP (YZR-M1)   1m 39.300s
2.   Marc Marquez   ESP Repsol Honda Team (RC213V)   1m 39.428s +0.128s   
3.   Andrea Iannone   ITA Ducati Team (Desmosedici GP15)   1m 39.511s +0.211s   
4.   Andrea Dovizioso   ITA Ducati Team (Desmosedici GP15)   1m 39.535s +0.235s   
5.   Aleix Espargaro   ESP Team Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR)   1m 39.616s +0.316s
6.   Danilo Petrucci   ITA Pramac Racing (Desmosedici GP14.1)   1m 39.718s +0.418s   
7.   Cal Crutchlow   GBR CWM LCR Honda (RC213V)   1m 39.909s +0.609s   
8.   Pol Espargaro   ESP Monster Yamaha Tech 3 (YZR-M1)   1m 39.953s +0.653s   
9.   Maverick Viñales   ESP Team Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR)*   1m 40.087s +0.787s   
10.   Scott Redding   GBR Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS (RC213V)   1m 40.145s +0.845s   
11.   Bradley Smith   GBR Monster Yamaha Tech 3 (YZR-M1)   1m 40.293s +0.993s   
12.   Yonny Hernandez   COL Pramac Racing (Desmosedici GP14.2)   1m 40.363s +1.063s   
13.   Valentino Rossi   ITA Movistar Yamaha MotoGP (YZR-M1)   1m 40.394s +1.094s   
14.   Mike Di Meglio   FRA Avintia Racing (Desmosedici GP14 Open)   1m 40.444s +1.144s   
15.   Eugene Laverty   IRL Aspar MotoGP Team (RC213V-RS)*   1m 40.514s +1.214s   
16.   Hector Barbera   ESP Avintia Racing (Desmosedici GP14 Open)   1m 40.569s +1.269s   
17.   Hiroshi Aoyama   JPN Repsol Honda Team (RC213V)   1m 40.678s +1.378s
18.   Alvaro Bautista   ESP Factory Aprilia Gresini (RS-GP)   1m 40.752s +1.452s   
19.   Nicky Hayden   USA Aspar MotoGP Team (RC213V-RS)   1m 40.819s +1.519s   
20.   Stefan Bradl   GER Athina Forward Racing (Forward Yamaha)   1m 40.825s +1.525s   
21.   Karel Abraham   CZE Cardion AB Motoracing (RC213V-RS)   1m 40.917s +1.617s   
22.   Jack Miller   AUS CWM LCR Honda (RC213V-RS)*   1m 41.226s +1.926s   [13/16]   
23.   Loris Baz   FRA Athina Forward Racing (Forward Yamaha)*   1m 41.422s +2.122s   
24.   Marco Melandri   ITA Factory Aprilia Gresini (RS-GP)   1m 41.450s +2.150s   
25.   Alex De Angelis   RSM Octo IodaRacing (ART)   1m 42.176s +2.876s   

JLO is not so much of a surprise, but MM up there is. He's a machine!!

...and reportedly without pain meds.

It's shaping up to be another great weekend, alright!  I'm glad to see Lorenzo might be getting some of his mojo back, the Suzuki is running well, and the Ducs are doing OK on a track that doesn't give them much chance to use their straight line speed. [thumbsup]

An even bigger surprise to me than Marquez is to see Rossi mired in the middle of the charts yet again. I can't imagine any reason for him sandbagging in free practice & qualifying this year - ya really think anyone's going to underestimate him on race day, no matter how little he's shown earlier in the week? But it's definitely becoming a theme early in this season.

Marquez only did 16 laps and his fast lap was #4.

Time will tell how he can stand a 27 lap race.

Suppo already inferred he will be on some meds for Sunday.

Once more, it is confirmed that VR could go fishing on Fri and Sat  ;D
VR claimed he focused on the hard tire, and he did not have enough grip. Many others used the soft, but once again it is going to be the dilemma of "will the soft last the whole race".

I think we will see an interesting qualy session with the open bikes using the soft tire and capitalizing on the lack of straights.

Rossi knows that he just needs to do enough to get him into Q2. He's not going balls out unless it's really necessary. Now, if only he could put more focus on qualy.

I don't see the soft tire being a huge help if the temps stay where they are ion the afternoon.

Neither Espargaro, Iannone, or Dovi could do much with it in FP2 due to the heat. Just too greasy.

He won the last race from, was it, 9th place on the start grid?  Sure he's 120% focused on the things that he and Yamaha know are important...

IMO, you can't always start 8th or 9th, and pretend to dig your way up to the podium.
Fights put more strain on fuel and tires (and rider), so the less you have to pass the less risks you take.
But this seems like a pattern since last year. Rarely in the last two championships (Ducati time does not count - as he rarely was on podium anyway), we have seen VR in the first line.

Didn't watch either of the FPs. Work got in the way  :P

I figured they were running the harder options as that was the tire of choice last year.

JLo looking tough this weekend. Only one to get into the 1:37s (lap record) during qualifying. He seems to be the only one that has sector 4, especially T13, of the track figured out.

MM not too bad either, putting the bike in the #2 spot. Looks like he's struggling a bit though, as the bike is sliding a lot. I don't think he can keep that up for an entire race.

Prediction:

JLo
Rossi
MM
Iannone

No real surprises other than the Ducs didn't really show up today.

Iannone got a terrible start and Dovi had an offtrack and ended up finishing 8th after working his way back from last.

Kind of boring really.

+1

Not the most exciting race, but that's how JLo likes it. Pretty good on MM to hold on for second.

So boring. I hate watching Lorenzo win like that.

I overslept  :-\
I guess I did not lose much. Will fast-watch tonight ...

BORING!!!!!!!!

There's nothing worse than seeing Lorenzo get a good start and then watching him do lap after lap.

The only hope for the race was to have Rossi catch up to Marc.

I hope the coming races aren't anything like this one.

Even before the start of the weekend you could tell Jorghey was ready for this race. It was definitely boring, but great if you are into watching someone just put together perfect lap after lap.

Dovi messed up bad at the beginning. Could have been fighting for 3rd or 4th.

Cal did well again. He'said definitely found a good pace. Should be fighting with Iannone the whole season.

Well JLo renewed his contract with yamaha so maybe he wanted to show he is still a world class racer  :-\, it shouldn't take the signing of a contract for someone to show up and race. Plus there was all kinds of publicity leading up to the race with him being inducted into the walk of fame or something like that. Otherwise all in all boring like the "fight of the century" last night.  A good exhibition but nothing worth raising eyebrows over.

Not exactly...

Lin Jarvis just put an end to the speculation that You'reghey would be released before the two year contract he signed in '14 expired.

All the factory seats are occupied for at least one more year.

...barring arm pump, &c.

I'll bet you money...

right now...

that Dani's seat is safe.

I just meant that any prolonged injury or issue could shake things up, however unlikely such an injury is.  I mean, a rider could discover that they are lactose intolerant, for example.  [roll]

...and at that level lactose intolerance might be an issue.

Apparently helmet foam is.

Hard tellin' not having a clue what it takes to be there

Stoner's lactose issue was no BS. Seems like it was handled poorly on all sides, but Ducati especially did a poor job (offering JLo twice Stoner's salary while he was out).

Why do we continue to beat that dead horse? Anyway, whatever Jorghey's motivation was, he made the most of it. He dominated the weekend as he has not done since Valencia when he knew the championship was over.

Watching Dovi trying to come back from last place makes MM look that much freakish. Granted, Dovi is not the type of rider to bull his way through the field, but it's just so much entertaining to watch MM do it and get back up to at least top 5.

The Mayweather/Pacquiao fight was equally as boring.

At least Jerez wasn't billed as "the race of the century".


I get that some races will be dull like this, but what I wish they would do is when it's apparent that JL or MM or whoever is running away with it and there is no competition for 2nd or 3rd either, then invest more coverage in some of the other contests.  MotoGP glossed over the battle for 10th (?) briefly, which seemed like it was really exciting---at least more exciting than watching JL/MM/VR racing alone.  I think the race for 10th had like 4 riders jockeying for position.  [Dolph]

^+1 [clap]

Maybe that is their way of trying to get yah to buy the multi screen package.

 :-[

Best way to watch the race, plus I can turn off the announcers.  ;)

I agree with Kopf; however, the multi-screen package wouldn't help. It gives the TV feed, heli feed, and a few on-boards of the main riders. Nothing to show battles further down the field.

I thought you could select which rider you wanted to watch. They would switch between camera views, but it would be for the specific rider.

You can, but only out of 4 riders, which are typically the fast guys...Rossi, JLo, MM, Dovi, Pedrobot, etc. Unless they're down in 10th, no help.

So you can't pick the backmarkers? What if I wanted to watch Barbera piggy back around the track?

You'd be SOL  ;D

Story of my life

Glad to see VRossi on podium. 

I hope it continues great for VRossi but i fear MM.

Rossi has been on the podium consistently for the past year.

Boring race, but great for the championship fight.

Has anyone heard anything about Jack Miller and any reason he's not living up to any of the expectations?  Last year he was being heralded as the next big thing and now he's just another backmarker that gets mentioned less than other backmarkers.

Hoping that the jump to MotoGP wasnt as big of a mistake as it looks like it was.  Also makes that choice that MM made to stick it out in Moto2 for one more year vs jumping right into MotoGP seem very smart.  I remember thinking that he was crazy for not trying to make the jump asap but now I can def see the reasoning for getting more seasoning.

He's on the shitty Honda Open bike. I don't think he's doing too bad, all things considered.

Plus MM is a freak. Jumping from a Moto3 bike to a full blown MotoGP bike is a huge leap. Once he gets up to speed and starts being competitive in the Open class, then he might be a good candidate for a satellite.

12th and top open class rider was pretty good to achieve in your first 3 races.
He seems to make up places early and then go backwards.  I am guessing tyre management issues.

Wonder what Hondas plan is with him. 2 years on open or 1 and then lcr gets a 2nd satellite?

I reckon he'll dip into the top ten later in the year, maybe earlier in the wet. I think he's leading the open class with one crash, correct?

I'd love to see that but I feel that fighting for a championship in Moto2 and the spotlight entailed would serve him far better than fighting to be the top open bike.

He's gone from being mentioned every race as a stellar rider to having almost 0 coverage week after week.

I agree. He should have went to Moto2 IMO, if for no other reason than mental. It's easy to keep confidence in yourself when your fighting for the win, which I think he would have been doing in Moto2. Seems like it would be hard when you're constantly circulating in the teen positions.

As good as MM is, even he spent a couple seasons in Moto2.

MM wanted to win the Moto2 championship. That extra year probably helped him a lot.

I thought MM did it the right way. He carried championship winning confidence with him into the Premier class. That mindset is invaluable.