F1 News
Date: 26/February/2011
Sauber, Williams and Force India claimed the top three positions at the end of the Barcelona test, the second of three training sessions before the start of the new world championship season.
Sauber’s Kamui Kobayashi set the fastest time of the four-day test courtesy of ‘qualifying’ run on the final morning, with Pastor Maldonado just 0.079sec slower for Williams. Force India’s Nico Hulkenberg was 0.296sec from the top in third.
Sauber’s head of track engineering, Giampaolo Dall’Ara, insisted the team had a genuine need to chase a one-off lap time and was not simply grandstanding.
He said: “Qualifying was actually a weakness of ours in the last two seasons and we have to resolve this. This obviously requires proper practice. Kamui started with the medium compound before he used two sets of soft tyres, and in the end he got his first taste of the 2012 super soft compound.
“He did his fastest lap on the second set of softs. This lap time now stands as the overall fastest for this week, but of course this doesn’t mean much because proper comparisons are never possible during testing with each team running different programmes. In the afternoon we did longer runs for race preparation.”
Williams weren’t so transparent regarding Maldonado’s best time, preferring to talk of “a really productive day's testing to end an excellent couple of weeks”.
Hulkenberg, returning to an F1 race seat from the role of test driver, differed from the leaders in setting his best time on day two of four - track conditions generally improve the longer the cars are on track - before handing over to Scottish team-mate Paul di Resta, who went on to set the sixth fastest time.
Sandwiched between the Force Indias on the final timesheets were Sauber’s Sergio Perez and Red Bull’s reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel - the first of the ‘big hitters’ in fifth.
F1’s main four of Red Bull, McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes tend to play their cards close to their chest in testing, each trying to gauge their true race speed relative to the opposition - without revealing their own potential.
Vettel also set his best time on the second day of testing. The German declared it was a case of “so far, so good”, although he laments the loss of downforce caused by the relocation of the exhaust exits, as required by the 2012 technical regulations.
He said: “I think we are on the right road with the car. The first impressions at the last test were fine. The car reacted the way we expected. I keep talking about the loss of downforce compared to last year, as we don’t have the tools we had, but this is the same for everyone, not just us.”
Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso finished the test in seventh, followed by McLaren’s reigning title runner-up Jenson Button, Mercedes driver Michael Schumacher and Ferrari’s Felipe Massa.
Button’s team-mate Lewis Hamilton was eleventh, with Vettel’s team-mate Mark Webber 13th.
Lotus had set the pace in the first test courtesy of Romain Grosjean, but the team - which has signed former champion Kimi Raikkonen for a 2012 F1 return - was dealt a hefty blow in Barcelona when it was forced to abandon testing early on day one.
The team cited an unspecified “chassis issue”, which subsequent reports have suggested was related to the front suspension mounting points.
Team boss Eric Boullier said: “Not running this week has been a tough decision to take, but we feel that our choice is the right one. We have quickly identified the issue with the chassis and our design office has already devised a solution. We will be present at next week's test in Barcelona. We draw faith from the fact that the E20 was quick out of the box in Jerez and showed its reliability there.”
The third and final pre-season test will be held at Barcelona from March 1-4. The racing season will then begin at Melbourne’s Albert Park on March 16-18.
Shake-up at Caterham F1: Trulli out, Petrov in
F1 News
Date: 17/February/2012
Jarno Trulli has lost his drive with the Caterham F1 team, just one month before the start of the 2012 season.
The Italian veteran - an F1 racer since 1997 and winner of the 2004 Monaco Grand Prix - tested for the newly renamed Caterham squad during the recent Jerez test, but has now been replaced by Lotus-Renault exile Vitaly Petrov.
Trulli, like team-mate Heikki Kovalainen, has been with the Tony Fernandes run team since its 2009 debut, under the Lotus Racing then Team Lotus moniker.
Rumours of his exit have been circling since last season despite the 37-year-old claiming to have a contract in place. So why has Trulli been replaced now? After thanking the Italian for his efforts, Fernandes gave a few clues - but no clear motive:
The Air Asia founder said: "It was not an easy decision to bring Vitaly in to replace Jarno, but it was one we made to ensure that we give fresh impetus across the whole team and with a realistic eye on the global economic market.
“Jarno has an incredible natural talent behind the wheel, and his winning record and longevity in the sport will bear testament to that talent in the Formula 1 annals forever, but now it is time to open a new chapter in our team's story, and Vitaly is the right person to help us do that.”
Trulli, who (like Kovalainen) hasn’t scored a point since 2009, certainly didn’t seem to have any hard feelings.
Trulli said: "I want to take this chance to thank everyone in the team for the two seasons we had together. From zero we built up and established a solid F1 team. I'm really proud to have been part of it. I understand the decision the team has made and I want to wish to the whole team the very best of luck for the season ahead."
Trulli’s exit follows a change of role for Catreham’s Mike Gascoyne, who has moved from being the F1 team chief technical officer to a more broader appointment as CTO for the whole Caterham Group.
Gascoyne has long been a close ally of Trulli, the pair working together at numerous teams.
Petrov will make his Caterham debut during the second pre-season test at Barcelona from February 21-24.
Date: 17/February/2012
Jarno Trulli has lost his drive with the Caterham F1 team, just one month before the start of the 2012 season.
The Italian veteran - an F1 racer since 1997 and winner of the 2004 Monaco Grand Prix - tested for the newly renamed Caterham squad during the recent Jerez test, but has now been replaced by Lotus-Renault exile Vitaly Petrov.
Trulli, like team-mate Heikki Kovalainen, has been with the Tony Fernandes run team since its 2009 debut, under the Lotus Racing then Team Lotus moniker.
Rumours of his exit have been circling since last season despite the 37-year-old claiming to have a contract in place. So why has Trulli been replaced now? After thanking the Italian for his efforts, Fernandes gave a few clues - but no clear motive:
The Air Asia founder said: "It was not an easy decision to bring Vitaly in to replace Jarno, but it was one we made to ensure that we give fresh impetus across the whole team and with a realistic eye on the global economic market.
“Jarno has an incredible natural talent behind the wheel, and his winning record and longevity in the sport will bear testament to that talent in the Formula 1 annals forever, but now it is time to open a new chapter in our team's story, and Vitaly is the right person to help us do that.”
Trulli, who (like Kovalainen) hasn’t scored a point since 2009, certainly didn’t seem to have any hard feelings.
Trulli said: "I want to take this chance to thank everyone in the team for the two seasons we had together. From zero we built up and established a solid F1 team. I'm really proud to have been part of it. I understand the decision the team has made and I want to wish to the whole team the very best of luck for the season ahead."
Trulli’s exit follows a change of role for Catreham’s Mike Gascoyne, who has moved from being the F1 team chief technical officer to a more broader appointment as CTO for the whole Caterham Group.
Gascoyne has long been a close ally of Trulli, the pair working together at numerous teams.
Petrov will make his Caterham debut during the second pre-season test at Barcelona from February 21-24.
Mercedes pins hopes on late 2012 debut
F1 News
Date: 14/February/2012
A quick glance at the Jerez F1 test results might have prompted some to put a quick bet on Mercedes drivers Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher for the 2012 world championship.
That’s because the pair were listed as first and third, respectively, at the end of the opening test session of the year. But all was not as it seemed, since Mercedes was the only team - other than backmarkers HRT - still using last year’s 2011-spec car, without the new technical restrictions.
Fastest man Rosberg said: “I’m happy with the testing that we have achieved here in Jerez, and we learned a lot about the Pirelli tyres and a few other things for the new car. You can’t really compare the lap times with other teams, but it was interesting to learn a lot with our 2011 car.”
The Ross Brawn-run team has gambled that running last year’s car with the new Pirelli tyres - plus 2012 development parts - will allow them to steal an advantage over the opposition.
The downside is that Mercedes will now have just two (four-day) tests at Barcelona in which to prepare their 2012 racer prior to the March 18 season-opener at Melbourne’s Albert Park.
Brawn believes the extra info will prove ‘very useful’:
“We have had a productive and busy three days in Jerez running the MGP W02 car for the final time. Simultaneously the final preparations have been taking place back at the factory for the first test with our 2012 car in Barcelona.
“Michael and Nico have been able to complete some valuable mileage this week, and enhanced our understanding of the new season’s Pirelli tyres which will prove very useful once the new car in is on track.”
New Lotus driver Romain Grosjean was a surprise quickest of the 2012 machines, the Frenchman finishing second overall with a best lap time 0.8sec from Rosberg and 0.1sec ahead of Schumacher.
After setting his fastest lap on his 2012 debut, during day three of four, Grosjean said:
“I am one of the happiest guys in the world right now. It’s been a really good day for me. We were fastest in the morning then we completed some longer runs in the afternoon. For sure there’s margin for improvement in the tests ahead, but it’s a great start to the year.”
Grosjean was 0.4sec faster than the next-best 2012 car of Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso, who was followed on the timesheets by the Red Bulls of Mark Webber and world champion Sebastian Vettel.
The second pre-season test starts at Barcelona on February 21, when Mercedes will aim for a speedy debut with their new car.
Date: 14/February/2012
A quick glance at the Jerez F1 test results might have prompted some to put a quick bet on Mercedes drivers Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher for the 2012 world championship.
That’s because the pair were listed as first and third, respectively, at the end of the opening test session of the year. But all was not as it seemed, since Mercedes was the only team - other than backmarkers HRT - still using last year’s 2011-spec car, without the new technical restrictions.
Fastest man Rosberg said: “I’m happy with the testing that we have achieved here in Jerez, and we learned a lot about the Pirelli tyres and a few other things for the new car. You can’t really compare the lap times with other teams, but it was interesting to learn a lot with our 2011 car.”
The Ross Brawn-run team has gambled that running last year’s car with the new Pirelli tyres - plus 2012 development parts - will allow them to steal an advantage over the opposition.
The downside is that Mercedes will now have just two (four-day) tests at Barcelona in which to prepare their 2012 racer prior to the March 18 season-opener at Melbourne’s Albert Park.
Brawn believes the extra info will prove ‘very useful’:
“We have had a productive and busy three days in Jerez running the MGP W02 car for the final time. Simultaneously the final preparations have been taking place back at the factory for the first test with our 2012 car in Barcelona.
“Michael and Nico have been able to complete some valuable mileage this week, and enhanced our understanding of the new season’s Pirelli tyres which will prove very useful once the new car in is on track.”
New Lotus driver Romain Grosjean was a surprise quickest of the 2012 machines, the Frenchman finishing second overall with a best lap time 0.8sec from Rosberg and 0.1sec ahead of Schumacher.
After setting his fastest lap on his 2012 debut, during day three of four, Grosjean said:
“I am one of the happiest guys in the world right now. It’s been a really good day for me. We were fastest in the morning then we completed some longer runs in the afternoon. For sure there’s margin for improvement in the tests ahead, but it’s a great start to the year.”
Grosjean was 0.4sec faster than the next-best 2012 car of Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso, who was followed on the timesheets by the Red Bulls of Mark Webber and world champion Sebastian Vettel.
The second pre-season test starts at Barcelona on February 21, when Mercedes will aim for a speedy debut with their new car.
Rossi: Only Stoner and Lorenzo out of reach
MotoGP News
Date: 5/February/2012
A collective sigh of relief emanated from the Ducati pits during a crucial first test of its radically revised MotoGP bike, at Sepang in Malaysia.
Following a miserable 2011 season in which superstar home-signing Valentino Rossi managed just one podium finish, Ducati has made major technical changes to ensure they can be contenders in 2012, the first year of new 1000cc rules.
Nothing, bar the company’s iconic desmodromic valve system, has been left untouched.
Out has gone the unique carbon-fibre frame and use of a ‘stressed’ engine to be replaced by Ducati’s first ever aluminium beam frame. The engine is now ‘carried’ in a conventional manner within the frame (unstressed) instead of being part of it.
Ducati’s first attempt at a full aluminium frame for its grand prix bike was only seen in public at Valencia in November, with major revisions then made for the first test of 2012 at Sepang.
Tension was sky high as Rossi left the pits for the first time, but by the end of the day the seven-time MotoGP champion felt confident enough to give the new machine a resounding thumbs-up.
Rossi told reporters: “I am so happy because we fixed a lot of the problems that we were not able to improve in the whole of the 2011 season. Braking, corner entry, agility. The bike is a lot better.
“Ducati have done a great job in a short time. Now I can load the front tyre and I can ‘use’ the front of the bike. It is a big, big step compared to last year in that area.”
The wayward front-end characteristics, so important for a motorcycle racer, had long been an Achilles’ heel for the Ducati grand prix project, with only 2007 world champion Casey Stoner - now at Honda - able to overcome the often vague feedback felt by the rider.
“We have learnt that the ideas we had, regarding why the bike was not giving the rider the correct feedback and turning in the right way, were correct,” stated Ducati Corse General Manager Filippo Preziosi.
“We have a lot more to do, but at least the part that is most important in terms of feedback for the rider is done. The next priority is to concentrate our efforts in exiting the corner.”
With team-mate Nicky Hayden still recovering from a broken shoulder in a winter training accident, Rossi was the only factory Ducati rider to put serious mileage on the new machine at Sepang - the first of three pre-season tests.
The Italian’s results of fifth (+0.74s), seventh (+0.99s) and fifth (+1.22s) at the end of each day mean a 2012 title challenge presently looks unlikely.
But Rossi believes only two riders - reigning champion Stoner and Yamaha’s former champion Jorge Lorenzo - are currently out of reach, as he also underlined the difference in ‘life-span’ between his GP12 and the Japanese bikes.
Rossi said: “Stoner and Lorenzo are maybe too far and they also ride better than me, but with Pedrosa and Spies maybe it is not impossible. For us to fight for the podium would be a good start this year.”
Rossi finished seventh in last year’s championship, having endured his first ever winless season in grand prix. Yet he insists it was the lack of progress that hurt the most.
“Last year was quite frustrating. Not a disaster in terms of the results, but we worked a lot and didn’t improve anything. Sometimes we got worse!” he smiled. “But this week we worked for three days and improved every day. That is very positive.
“We were 0.7sec behind Lorenzo on the first day and on the last day it was the same difference. So I'm happy, especially because we still have two or three problems to fix.
“The potential of this new bike is high. Considering also that Honda and Yamaha have been working on their new bikes for a minimum of one year, where for us this is the first time.”
The second pre-season test will be held at Sepang later this month.
“Ducati were already working on improvements even before this test,” revealed Rossi. “So we should have those new parts for the next test and then the modifications from the data and information this week should be ready by Jerez [the final pre-season test].”
2012 will be Rossi’s 17th season in grand prix racing and 13th in the premier-class.
Date: 5/February/2012
A collective sigh of relief emanated from the Ducati pits during a crucial first test of its radically revised MotoGP bike, at Sepang in Malaysia.
Following a miserable 2011 season in which superstar home-signing Valentino Rossi managed just one podium finish, Ducati has made major technical changes to ensure they can be contenders in 2012, the first year of new 1000cc rules.
Nothing, bar the company’s iconic desmodromic valve system, has been left untouched.
Out has gone the unique carbon-fibre frame and use of a ‘stressed’ engine to be replaced by Ducati’s first ever aluminium beam frame. The engine is now ‘carried’ in a conventional manner within the frame (unstressed) instead of being part of it.
Ducati’s first attempt at a full aluminium frame for its grand prix bike was only seen in public at Valencia in November, with major revisions then made for the first test of 2012 at Sepang.
Tension was sky high as Rossi left the pits for the first time, but by the end of the day the seven-time MotoGP champion felt confident enough to give the new machine a resounding thumbs-up.
Rossi told reporters: “I am so happy because we fixed a lot of the problems that we were not able to improve in the whole of the 2011 season. Braking, corner entry, agility. The bike is a lot better.
“Ducati have done a great job in a short time. Now I can load the front tyre and I can ‘use’ the front of the bike. It is a big, big step compared to last year in that area.”
The wayward front-end characteristics, so important for a motorcycle racer, had long been an Achilles’ heel for the Ducati grand prix project, with only 2007 world champion Casey Stoner - now at Honda - able to overcome the often vague feedback felt by the rider.
“We have learnt that the ideas we had, regarding why the bike was not giving the rider the correct feedback and turning in the right way, were correct,” stated Ducati Corse General Manager Filippo Preziosi.
“We have a lot more to do, but at least the part that is most important in terms of feedback for the rider is done. The next priority is to concentrate our efforts in exiting the corner.”
With team-mate Nicky Hayden still recovering from a broken shoulder in a winter training accident, Rossi was the only factory Ducati rider to put serious mileage on the new machine at Sepang - the first of three pre-season tests.
The Italian’s results of fifth (+0.74s), seventh (+0.99s) and fifth (+1.22s) at the end of each day mean a 2012 title challenge presently looks unlikely.
But Rossi believes only two riders - reigning champion Stoner and Yamaha’s former champion Jorge Lorenzo - are currently out of reach, as he also underlined the difference in ‘life-span’ between his GP12 and the Japanese bikes.
Rossi said: “Stoner and Lorenzo are maybe too far and they also ride better than me, but with Pedrosa and Spies maybe it is not impossible. For us to fight for the podium would be a good start this year.”
Rossi finished seventh in last year’s championship, having endured his first ever winless season in grand prix. Yet he insists it was the lack of progress that hurt the most.
“Last year was quite frustrating. Not a disaster in terms of the results, but we worked a lot and didn’t improve anything. Sometimes we got worse!” he smiled. “But this week we worked for three days and improved every day. That is very positive.
“We were 0.7sec behind Lorenzo on the first day and on the last day it was the same difference. So I'm happy, especially because we still have two or three problems to fix.
“The potential of this new bike is high. Considering also that Honda and Yamaha have been working on their new bikes for a minimum of one year, where for us this is the first time.”
The second pre-season test will be held at Sepang later this month.
“Ducati were already working on improvements even before this test,” revealed Rossi. “So we should have those new parts for the next test and then the modifications from the data and information this week should be ready by Jerez [the final pre-season test].”
2012 will be Rossi’s 17th season in grand prix racing and 13th in the premier-class.
Stoner takes the pain for Sepang gain
MotoGP News
Date: 5/February/2012
‘Catch me if you can’. That was the clear, if unspoken, message delivered by reigning MotoGP champion Casey Stoner during the first test session of 2012.
The Repsol Honda star didn’t even ride on day one a Sepang in Malaysia, but went straight to the top on day two, then strengthened his position with a record-breaking day three lap.
Amazingly, Stoner achieved that success while nursing a painful back strain, which caused his day one absence, and despite significant vibration problems with the latest Bridgestone tyres on his RC213V motorcycle.
The hard-riding Australian, the only rider to tame the 800cc Ducati and a world champion for the second time in his debut season at Repsol Honda, strained his back whilst warming-up in the pit garage on day one.
"All of a sudden my back just locked up on me,” he said. “I had some more physio after lunch but it still wasn't easing up. I could have gone out in the afternoon but we agreed it would probably make it worse.”
The lost track time certainly didn’t seem to hold Stoner ‘back’. The #1 went on to finish 0.157s clear of the field on day two, and then extended his advantage to 0.591s on the final day.
But he had to grit his teeth to do it.
Shortly before leaving Malaysia, Stoner said: “The bike is getting better but unfortunately my back feels like it's gone three rounds with Mike Tyson! My whole back is killing me at the moment.
“I'm very surprised that we were able to be so competitive after what happened on day one. We just tried to make the test as productive as possible without doing too many laps, by weeding out what was good and bad in time for the next test.”
Stoner’s best time of 1m 59.607s is believed to be the fastest ever two-wheeled lap of the Malaysian Grand Prix circuit - and was set on only his second lap of the final day!
“Cloud cover was keeping the temperature lower in the morning. We knew we could do a fairly good lap time but we didn't expect that,” said Stoner. “I might have had one more run left in me in the afternoon to try and beat it, but it started raining.”
Stoner’s main technical concern is with solving a stubborn vibration issue which has emerged when using the latest specification of Bridgestone tyres.
“We're still chasing a solution for the vibration but we're going pretty fast even with the problem. So it's a positive and a negative,” he explained. “We had the vibration a bit last year, but it’s increased with the new tyres.”
Stoner handed Bridgestone its first premier-class title during open tyre competition in 2007, but now seems suspicious of what MotoGP’s exclusive tyre supplier tells him.
Stoner said: “You don’t really know what they’re giving you. They’ll tell me the tyre is exactly the same as the time before, but why are they the ‘new’ version if they are exactly the same?
“We’ve definitely got a problem [with the vibration] but I think we can overcome it.”
Stoner will return to Sepang alongside his main MotoGP rivals for a second test session later this month. Until then, his priority will be on personal matters.
“I'm looking forward to getting home to Switzerland to see Adriana and await the arrival of our baby!" he said.
Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo finished second at the test, with Stoner’s team-mate Dani Pedrosa in third.
Date: 5/February/2012
‘Catch me if you can’. That was the clear, if unspoken, message delivered by reigning MotoGP champion Casey Stoner during the first test session of 2012.
The Repsol Honda star didn’t even ride on day one a Sepang in Malaysia, but went straight to the top on day two, then strengthened his position with a record-breaking day three lap.
Amazingly, Stoner achieved that success while nursing a painful back strain, which caused his day one absence, and despite significant vibration problems with the latest Bridgestone tyres on his RC213V motorcycle.
The hard-riding Australian, the only rider to tame the 800cc Ducati and a world champion for the second time in his debut season at Repsol Honda, strained his back whilst warming-up in the pit garage on day one.
"All of a sudden my back just locked up on me,” he said. “I had some more physio after lunch but it still wasn't easing up. I could have gone out in the afternoon but we agreed it would probably make it worse.”
The lost track time certainly didn’t seem to hold Stoner ‘back’. The #1 went on to finish 0.157s clear of the field on day two, and then extended his advantage to 0.591s on the final day.
But he had to grit his teeth to do it.
Shortly before leaving Malaysia, Stoner said: “The bike is getting better but unfortunately my back feels like it's gone three rounds with Mike Tyson! My whole back is killing me at the moment.
“I'm very surprised that we were able to be so competitive after what happened on day one. We just tried to make the test as productive as possible without doing too many laps, by weeding out what was good and bad in time for the next test.”
Stoner’s best time of 1m 59.607s is believed to be the fastest ever two-wheeled lap of the Malaysian Grand Prix circuit - and was set on only his second lap of the final day!
“Cloud cover was keeping the temperature lower in the morning. We knew we could do a fairly good lap time but we didn't expect that,” said Stoner. “I might have had one more run left in me in the afternoon to try and beat it, but it started raining.”
Stoner’s main technical concern is with solving a stubborn vibration issue which has emerged when using the latest specification of Bridgestone tyres.
“We're still chasing a solution for the vibration but we're going pretty fast even with the problem. So it's a positive and a negative,” he explained. “We had the vibration a bit last year, but it’s increased with the new tyres.”
Stoner handed Bridgestone its first premier-class title during open tyre competition in 2007, but now seems suspicious of what MotoGP’s exclusive tyre supplier tells him.
Stoner said: “You don’t really know what they’re giving you. They’ll tell me the tyre is exactly the same as the time before, but why are they the ‘new’ version if they are exactly the same?
“We’ve definitely got a problem [with the vibration] but I think we can overcome it.”
Stoner will return to Sepang alongside his main MotoGP rivals for a second test session later this month. Until then, his priority will be on personal matters.
“I'm looking forward to getting home to Switzerland to see Adriana and await the arrival of our baby!" he said.
Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo finished second at the test, with Stoner’s team-mate Dani Pedrosa in third.
Lorenzo: New Yamaha has speed to succeed
MotoGP News
Date: 5/February/2012
2010 world champion Jorge Lorenzo made an impressive return to MotoGP action, minus part of his finger, at the Sepang MotoGP test.
Yamaha’s number one rider had been side-lined since a warm-up accident at Phillip Island last October, which cost the Spaniard the end of his left ring finger.
But he was straight up to speed with the new 1000cc M1, which he hadn’t ridden since September. Lorenzo led day one at Sepang, before Honda’s reigning world champion Casey Stoner took over at the top on days two and three.
Lorenzo left Malaysia with the second fastest lap time, 0.59sec from Stoner.
“The finger is shorter - and lighter!” he joked. “Seriously, the finger is ok. I can still touch the clutch lever with all the fingers so it’s no problem. Maybe if I had lost a little more it would be difficult.”
Lorenzo, runner-up to Stoner last season despite missing two events, is the only rider among MotoGP’s big four - alongside Stoner, Valentino Rossi and Dani Pedrosa - not to have raced in the earlier 990cc era, from 2002 to 2006.
But he insists it was no problem to adapt his riding style from the smaller 800cc machines.
Lorenzo said: “It was easy for me to understand how to go quickly with this bike. I didn't need to spend a lot of time thinking about it.”
Yamaha struggled to match the raw power of the Honda last season, but Lorenzo feels the factory has made significant gains in terms of erasing the top speed disadvantage.
Lorenzo said: “I like the power and top speed. It’s something we didn’t have in the past. Now we need to work a little more on the electronics. On the exit of slow corners, the engine is not very smooth. It feels a bit ‘dirty’.
“Of course every rider wants a better bike and sometimes it is not possible. There is always a limit.
“Yamaha naturally concentrated on the weak points of last year’s bike - top speed and maximum power. We’ve got it. And now we just need to concentrate on acceleration.”
Stoner aside, the new M1 certainly looks more competitive than last year.
“Casey would be fast on a bicycle! He is fast whatever they give to him,” said Lorenzo. “But I made my best time at midday, which is the hardest time with the track conditions so it was pretty good...”
Lorenzo’s team-mate Ben Spies was fourth fastest.
Date: 5/February/2012
2010 world champion Jorge Lorenzo made an impressive return to MotoGP action, minus part of his finger, at the Sepang MotoGP test.
Yamaha’s number one rider had been side-lined since a warm-up accident at Phillip Island last October, which cost the Spaniard the end of his left ring finger.
But he was straight up to speed with the new 1000cc M1, which he hadn’t ridden since September. Lorenzo led day one at Sepang, before Honda’s reigning world champion Casey Stoner took over at the top on days two and three.
Lorenzo left Malaysia with the second fastest lap time, 0.59sec from Stoner.
“The finger is shorter - and lighter!” he joked. “Seriously, the finger is ok. I can still touch the clutch lever with all the fingers so it’s no problem. Maybe if I had lost a little more it would be difficult.”
Lorenzo, runner-up to Stoner last season despite missing two events, is the only rider among MotoGP’s big four - alongside Stoner, Valentino Rossi and Dani Pedrosa - not to have raced in the earlier 990cc era, from 2002 to 2006.
But he insists it was no problem to adapt his riding style from the smaller 800cc machines.
Lorenzo said: “It was easy for me to understand how to go quickly with this bike. I didn't need to spend a lot of time thinking about it.”
Yamaha struggled to match the raw power of the Honda last season, but Lorenzo feels the factory has made significant gains in terms of erasing the top speed disadvantage.
Lorenzo said: “I like the power and top speed. It’s something we didn’t have in the past. Now we need to work a little more on the electronics. On the exit of slow corners, the engine is not very smooth. It feels a bit ‘dirty’.
“Of course every rider wants a better bike and sometimes it is not possible. There is always a limit.
“Yamaha naturally concentrated on the weak points of last year’s bike - top speed and maximum power. We’ve got it. And now we just need to concentrate on acceleration.”
Stoner aside, the new M1 certainly looks more competitive than last year.
“Casey would be fast on a bicycle! He is fast whatever they give to him,” said Lorenzo. “But I made my best time at midday, which is the hardest time with the track conditions so it was pretty good...”
Lorenzo’s team-mate Ben Spies was fourth fastest.
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