Round 15: Japanese Grand Prix – Race
Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa continued his imperious form in the MotoGP™ World Championship by setting a new circuit lap record on course to claiming his fifth victory of the season.
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- Bridgestone slick compounds available: Front: Soft, Medium, Hard. Rear: Soft, Medium (Asymmetric)
- Bridgestone wet tyre compounds available: Soft (Main), Hard (Alternative)
- Weather: Dry. Ambient 19-19°C; Track 29-27°C (Bridgestone measurement)
Pedrosa’s main challenger once again was Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jorge Lorenzo with the two riders closely matched for the first half of the race before Pedrosa passed his rival on lap eleven and went on to win by 4.275 seconds. Lorenzo’s second place secures a valuable twenty points for his championship challenge while San Carlo Honda Gresini’s Alvaro Bautista took third place to ensure an all-Spanish MotoGP™ podium.
Tyre choice for the race was the same for every rider with the combination of the harder front and softer asymmetric rear slick best suiting the numerous acceleration and braking zones at Motegi. Weather conditions today were dry yet slightly cooler than yesterday due to some cloud cover in the afternoon with a peak track temperature of 29°C recorded during the race.
Pedrosa’s win at Motegi means he closes the gap to Lorenzo in the championship table to twenty-eight points with three rounds remaining. On the other Repsol Honda, Casey Stoner remains third overall in the riders classification after a valiant fifth place in his comeback race following an ankle injury.
Yuichiro Takenami – Vice President and Senior Officer, Corporate Communications and Motorsport
“My warmest congratulations to Dani and Repsol Honda for their victory at Motegi today. This was a very enjoyable weekend for the fans with the nice weather, various paddock activities and an exciting race combining to create a pleasant atmosphere, and I am pleased that Bridgestone is able to take part in such a wonderful activity. We are proud of our partnership with MotoGP as it provides the best possible environment for us to develop motorcycle tyre technology for the racetrack and road, and we are committed to continuing our fair and equal support of every rider and team in the paddock with the highest level of service.”
Shinichi Yamashita – General Manager, Bridgestone Motorsport Tyre Development Department
“Today’s race was held under cooler conditions than those experienced on Friday and Saturday, though this didn’t have any effect on tyre choice. All riders selected the same tyre combination of the harder front and softer rear slick as high levels of rear grip and front-end stability are important at Motegi due to its stop-and-go layout. The tyres performed well during the race with a new circuit lap record being set and the top three riders completing the race faster than last year’s total race time. Overall, it was a positive showing for our 2012 specification MotoGP tyres at Bridgestone’s home Grand Prix.”
Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda – Race Winner
“It was a hard race because from the beginning the pace was very fast. I tried to get a feeling for the bike in the early laps and it wasn’t too bad, and there was a moment where I got good drive out of a corner which allowed me to pass Jorge and then I just tried to build a gap. I suffered a bit of chatter towards the end of the race but I was able to manage it, and it’s great to get another win for my team and Honda here at Motegi, so I am happy.”
|
Pos
|
Rider
|
Team
|
Race Time
|
Gap
|
Front spec
|
Rear spec
|
Tyres
|
|
1
|
Dani PEDROSA
|
Repsol Honda
|
42’31.569
|
|
Hard
|
Soft
|
Bridgestone
|
|
2
|
Jorge LORENZO
|
Yamaha Factory Racing
|
42’35.844
|
4.275
|
Hard
|
Soft
|
Bridgestone
|
|
3
|
Alvaro BAUTISTA
|
San Carlo Honda Gresini
|
42’38.321
|
6.752
|
Hard
|
Soft
|
Bridgestone
|
|
4
|
Andrea DOVIZIOSO
|
Monster Yamaha Tech3
|
42’47.966
|
16.397
|
Hard
|
Soft
|
Bridgestone
|
|
5
|
Casey STONER
|
Repsol Honda
|
42’52.135
|
20.566
|
Hard
|
Soft
|
Bridgestone
|
|
6
|
Stefan BRADL
|
LCR Honda
|
42’56.136
|
24.567
|
Hard
|
Soft
|
Bridgestone
|
|
7
|
Valentino ROSSI
|
Ducati Team
|
42’57.641
|
26.072
|
Hard
|
Soft
|
Bridgestone
|
|
8
|
Nicky HAYDEN
|
Ducati Team
|
43’08.293
|
36.724
|
Hard
|
Soft
|
Bridgestone
|
|
9
|
Katsuyuki NAKASUGA
|
Yamaha YSP Racing
|
43’08.363
|
36.794
|
Hard
|
Soft
|
Bridgestone
|
|
10
|
Hector BARBERA
|
Pramac Racing
|
43’42.298
|
1’10.729
|
Hard
|
Soft
|
Bridgestone
|
WEBB BRINGS MAHINDRA HOME AT MOTEGI
* While in Italy Mahindra Wins Constructors’ Championship *
Danny Webb rode a solid race to 26th position – six better than his qualifying slot – at a race where the extreme nature of the track played against the strengths of the British rider’s Mahindra MGP-30 Moto3™ machine.
The 21-year-old British rider was scrapping to the end with Honda-powered Giulian Pedone: the pair was separated by less than two tenths of a second after Webb’s final lunge fell just a few feet short.
Team-mate Riccardo Moretti (27), making his comeback after injury problems, faced crippling disappointment when a minor mechanical glitch meant he was unable to make the start grid.
The Motegi track puts a premium on acceleration out of a series of stop-and-go corners. It was always going to be difficult for the only Indian machine in grand prix racing – one of a tiny handful of all-independent machines on a grid dominated by over-the-counter production racers. The strong point of the white-and-red Mahindra is in cornering speed rather than acceleration.
The team looks forward to better chances at the tracks coming up over the next two weeks of the intensive three-week series. Next Sunday they take up the challenge again at Malaysia’s more technical Sepang circuit, before flying south to Australia for the seaside swoops at Phillip Island.
Danny Webb – 26th position
It went about as I’d expected – this is a track where you need acceleration, and it is our weak point. We had some little problems with the clutch, but that didn’t really make a difference. Now we go to Malaysia to try again: I hope we go better, though there are two long straights there. Phillip Island is more fast and flowing, which should suit us better.
Riccardo Moretti – Did Not Start
I was already on the grid when the bike stopped. We think it was an electrical problem, and there was nothing we could do. It was too bad, because we’d worked hard to get there. Malaysia is another track I’ve never been to, but it looks like it should be fun and suit us a little better.
MAHINDRA WINS 125CC CONSTRUCTORS’ TITLE IN ITALIAN CHAMPIONSHIP (CIV)
Mahindra Racing’s development work in last year’s final 125cc two-stroke World Championship paid dividends today when the squad secured the 125cc Italian Championship (CIV) Constructor’s title at Vallelunga near Rome. Czech teenager Miroslav Popov, who had replaced Riccardo Moretti in the MotoGP team for the past few races, was back on the 125cc Mahindra machine and scored an emphatic win to secure the title. The team’s joy was cemented by a double podium with new recruit Lukas Trautmann from Austria taking second place. It was the third double podium for Mahindra who won six of the eight races.
“We worked very hard on our two-stroke bike last year, despite it being the final year for 125 class in MotoGPs,” explained Mahindra Racing CEO Mufaddal Choonia. “It feels very good to get this Championship in such style for Mahindra. It is an impressive achievement for a new manufacturer to racing and I would like to thank the team and riders for their hard work. Racing in CIV has been a useful part of our learning and has also given us the opportunity to discover new talent such as Miroslav Popov.”
source: mahindraracing.com, mahindra.com