Italian Marco Melandri was supposed to be merely making up the numbers on the MotoGP grid this season, it would appear that somebody forgot to tell the Italian.

Melandri said before the season’s start that this year he had ‘nothing to lose’, Melandri’s is now aiming for more than just damage limitation to his reputation as a rider.

“This can be the starting point for something good. I started well, and when (Andrea) Dovizioso made a mistake I got past him. I knew that my pace wasn’t like that of the top three, but we were keeping it consistent and we definitely had a good race.”

Marco Melandri also couldn’t resist the opportunity to mention one of the highlights of his race, a sneeky manoeuvre on the teammate who he came nowhere near to matching, Melandri evetually fiinshed inside the top 6, and will be looking forward to Jerez for round 3.

At the pre event press conference at Motegi on Thursday the Casey Stoner spoke of the track’s unknown quantities as he previewed the weekend’s action.

The Polini Grand Prix of Japan pre-event press briefing was  also attended by Valentino Rossi, Dani Pedrosa, Casey Stoner, the veteran Loris Capirossi and the new kid on the block Yuki Takahash.

Unlike Qatar the venue for round one and Jerez which is set for the third race of the year, there has been no winter testing at Motegi, this means that riders will need to quickly adjust to the Twin Ring circuit on their new 2009 Bridgestone tyres, as Stoner talked about.

“We haven’t tested our new tyres here so we have to see how things will work out,” commented the Ducati Marlboro man. “I think Bridgestone will have done their homework. We have been pretty happy with the way our bike is working this year but now we have to make sure it is suited to the characteristics of this circuit on these new tyres. This is like the real start to the season where any small mistakes will show out.”

After the first ever single-tyre MotoGP manufacturer race was a far-from straightforward affair for rubber supplier Bridgestone, the race saw temperatures different to those of the previous year’s race and recent testing in Qatar. Then with an addition of an extra twenty minutes on track and a sandy surface that left lots of riders with adjustments to be made, but Bridgestone’s Race Tyre Development Manager Tohru Ubukata was happy with the company’s ablilty to adapt to the race.

“The Qatar night race was one of our most difficult tracks last year because of the cold night-time temperatures and the abrasive nature of the sandy track, so we came here this year knowing it would be challenging for our tyres again,” said Ubukata. “However I am happy with the way our soft and medium compound slicks worked this weekend and I believe the wider operating range of each tyre offered a more consistent level of performance this time. Also I was encouraged that our tyres coped well on this week's sandy conditions.

“All the riders favoured the medium compound. Our soft compound suffered graining on the sandy track with the heat and abrasion, but the medium compound worked better in these difficult conditions. Even with the medium compound tyre we had no problems with warm-up performance which was our main problem last year, so it shows the work we have done on widening the operating range of this year’s tyres.” said Mr Ubukata.

 

2008 World Champion Valentino Rossi was unable to stop Australian Casey Stoner from taking home first place for the third consecutive time at Qatar, but in vintage Rossi style the brilliant Italian took the positives from his second place finish in the Arabian desert in Monday.

The Italian started from second on the grid but was unable to go with Stoner from the first lap and had to overcome his old friend Loris Capirossi and own team-mate Jorge Lorenzo before he could try to catch Stoner.

After the race Valentino Rossi said “Today the conditions of the track were quite different to before and this evening in warm-up we encountered a couple of small problems related to tyres, so our strategy had to change slightly tonight. It’s a pity because I think last night we could have put up more of a fight, but anyway this is a good result to start the season, much better than last year.”

We look forward to round 2 in Japan as the MotoGP season continues.

 

2007 World Champion and Ducati rider Casey Stoner has won the first round of the MotoGP season in Qatar overnight, the Australian has a hat trick of victories at the Losail circuit.

After the postponement of the race yesterday due to Thunderstorms and a heavy rain down pour in the Arabian desert, Monday evening witnessed the first race in the new one tyre manufacturer era, but the result however was a familiar one with Casey Stoner finishing first, ahead of reigning World Champion Valentino Rossi.

A ruthless Casey Stoner took control from the start jumping out and building a two second gap at the end of the first lap. The 2007 World Champion’s victory never looked to be in any in doubt as he controlled the race from start to end.

Rounding out the poidum behind Stoner and Rossi was Valentino Rossi’s Fiat Yamaha team mate Jorge Lorenzo, Lorenzo repeated his result from his MotoGP debut in the opening race of 2008.

 

Italian giant Ducati will offer varioius Ducati Trackside Customer Support gatherings at Phillip Island and Eastern Creek Ride days throughtout 2009.

Ducati owners will be on track for fun. NF Importers will continue to offer this unique opportunity to receive free specialist advice and support and riding input at select Eastern Creek and Phillip Island Ridedays throughout the next year. 

 

The team will be available at various dates to provide complimentary technical advice and suspension advice and adjustments and of course riding tips for Ducati owners participating in the events arranged by Phillip Island and Eastern Creek Ride days.

 

 

 

After five long months since the final race end of the 2008 MotoGP season, the 2009 season starts on April 12th with the Commercial bank Grand Prix of Qatar.

Qatar is the first of seventeen races that will decide who shall be crowned the world champ  at the end of the season.

The Qatar race is the only night event in the MotoGP season, the Commercial bank Grand Prix of Qatar is a true showpiece event featuring both the state and the World Championship.

Italian and Reigning World Champion Valentino Rossi has won races at every track used in 2009, but is still chasing a win after sunset. Rossi was victorious by day in the desert in 2005 and 2006 Last season Rossi finished fifth in Qatar, off the podium for the first of only two occasions.

Following on from the Official MotoGP Test last weekend in Jerez, new Ducati team-mates Casey Stoner and Nicky Hayden called in at a Shell petrol station in Madrid for a photo, marking the ten year anniversary of Shell’s technical partnership with the Italian giant Ducati.

Nicky Hayden turned into a pump attendant for the day, filling up the bike of a Ducati fan with Shell V-Power road fuel, the whole procces was video taped, footage will be shown in a behind the scenes event.

Suzuki will be lending a hand the communities affected by Victoria's traggic bushfire disaster, Suzuki  will conduct an online auction, with net proceeds going to the Australian Red Cross.

An extensive range of experiences and motorcycle merchandise and memorabilia signed by Aussie stars Chris Vermeulen, Shawn Giles , Mat Mladin, Chad Reed and Suzuki World Champions of the past, including Kevin Schwantz, Joel Robert and Roger DeCoster will be available to enthusiasts worldwide to bid on.

Suzuki Victorian Bushfire Charity Auction, will be held on eBay from Thursday 23 April until Sunday 3 May and is open to bids from all around the world.

Be sure to get in early and happy biding to all.