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Category: Superbikes
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After a gruelling 24-hour battle, the Honda TT Legends team has completed the 76th annual Bol d’Or, placing ninth in the race overall and sixth in the Endurance World Championship class to claim 19 points.
The race took place in challenging conditions at the Magny Cours circuit in France, with intermittent rain and cold temperatures making for an eventful 24-hours. Cameron Donald, John McGuinness and Simon Andrews competed for the Honda TT Legends, with Donald taking part in the running race start at 3pm yesterday.
The team began well, maintaining a steady pace through the changeable weather to hold fifth place until the early hours of Sunday morning. As dawn broke, Andrews was forced to make an unscheduled pit stop with a quick shift issue that was quickly rectified. The team re-joined the race in sixth place behind Yamalube Folch Endurance.
As the weather deteriorated further, the Bol d’Or almost came to a premature end for the Honda TT Legends when Donald lost the front end and suffered a high speed crash on the back straight. In line with EWC rules, the uninjured Australian pushed the Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade back to the pits, where the team set to work repairing the extensive damage.
The well-rehearsed TT Legends crew fixed the bike with co-ordinated expertise, successfully returning it to the race with McGuinness at the helm in under 20 minutes. The slick repair saw the team maintain sixth position in the EWC class, while running ninth in the race overall. The final two hours passed without incident and the Honda TT Legends completed the race to claim 19 championship points. The race was won by SRC Kawasaki with SERT and Monster Energy Yamaha in second and third respectively.
Neil Tuxworth
I think the best we could have expected was fifth in that race. We couldn’t have come any higher at the pace we were going at. We still finished sixth overall in the EWC race which is good considering we lost time doing repairs after Cameron’s crash. It’s certainly been the most difficult endurance race that we’ve done and the one with the most problems. We’re going to analyse everything that has happened, figure out where the issues lie and continue from there. Hopefully we can have a better race the next time out.
John McGuinness
Not the result we came for but it was one of our strongest rides yet. We were holding fifth and looking good in very difficult conditions. It was a gruelling race with temperatures as low as 2 or 3 degrees through the night. I got caught up in some of the bad weather and had to pit for tyres changes which meant I then had to do double stints with 50 or 60 laps at a time and that is hard work. After Cameron slipping off at probably 150mph and the bike cart wheeling its way though the gravel, luckily Cam was alright and the team did amazing job at getting the bike back out there. We wanted to be a bit further up but at least we’ve picked up some world championship points.
Cameron Donald
After starting and finishing Le Mans last year I got to start and finish the Bol d’Or, which is really special. It was an absolute ordeal of a race. Everyone had their moments to shine and it was a big teem effort, but unfortunately we just didn’t quite come up with the goods. It was a little bit of bad luck and me skidding up the road didn’t help, but just to finish another 24-hour is a massive achievement.
Simon Andrews
It feels good to finish my first 24-hour race. Ten months ago I was lying in a hospital and my first race back I’ve completed a 24-hour so I feel triumphant and I’m pretty happy. We were quick and we were safe, I did everything to the best of my ability and I’m going home with a smile on my face.
For news, videos and images follow @HondaTTLegends on Twitter, bookmark www.hondattlegends.com and subscribe to HondaProRacing on YouTube.
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Both Honda World Superbike Team riders, Jonathan Rea and Hiroshi Aoyama, took two top ten finishes in today's opening round of the 2012 World Superbike championship at Phillip Island in Australia.
With the race victories going to Max Biaggi and Carlos Checa, Rea took seventh and fourth places in the two 22-lap outings, while his team-mate Aoyama finished eighth and ninth.
Starting from the outside of the second row, 25-year-old Rea enjoyed good starts to both outings. In race one, however, a lack of rear grip had dropped him back to seventh at the flag, while in race two, he held second place for much of the race after a set-up change improved grip levels. However, with just two laps to go, he slipped behind Biaggi and then lost out to fellow Brit Tom Sykes on the final straight.
After problems in qualifying, World Superbike rookie Aoyama, started from 16th on the grid. Opting for the softer rear tyre in both races, the Japanese rider fought through to the top ten in race one, while a small set-up change allowed him to make it a double in his debut SBK outing.
Jonathan Rea – 7th and 4th
We’ve still got a bagful of points to go on to Imola with but we wanted to be on the podium in both races. I honestly feel like we got a bad tyre in race one and in race two we didn’t want to run in the same situation, so we were thinking about changing the tyre, but all our logic and race runs throughout the weekend told us to keep this [harder] tyre in the heat. Directly, I had more grip – OK, the temperature was even hotter, which would go against our logic – but the tyre felt like it should feel and I was able to ride strong and consistent until probably five laps to go when durability fell off and I was going backwards. I felt fresh and strong in both races and the guys have worked well all weekend. We had a little crash on Saturday and the boys worked so good with the one-bike rule to get us back out there. You have to think that this circuit is a bit unique with the tyre character, how long you’re on the side and the heat generated in the tyre. Now we move on to some tracks that are good for us and there’s a lot of work to do back at base. The guys need to find some speed, so that’s on the agenda; I’ve just done a de-brief and everything feels OK. I want to say thanks to everyone for all their help this weekend – it feels good to get to the start of the season fit and healthy and I’m looking forward to round two now.
Hiroshi Aoyama – 8th and 9th
I think it’s not so bad for my first Superbike weekend. We had a not-so-easy start on Friday when I had one crash and we had a lot of problems. That didn’t help us to go much faster and we tried many things but couldn’t improve. In the races we managed to finish in the top ten with eighth and ninth and I want to say thanks to all the guys who worked for me. It was a tough weekend but ended up not too bad. I’m looking forward to the next race in Imola – of course I’ve never ridden there, so it’s going to be tough for Friday. We have month to improve the bike a little bit and, if I can find a better feeling, I can push a little bit more and this is what I am looking for. Anyway, considering the situation now, it’s not so bad!
Riders' comments are available to view on video at the following link:
2012 World Superbike championship, round one
Phillip Island, Australia – 4.445km, 22 laps
Race 1 results:
1 Max Biaggi (ITA) Aprilia 34m13.963s
2 Marco Melandri (ITA) BMW +7.104s
3 Sylvain Guintoli (FRA) Ducati +7.378s
4 Tom Sykes (GBR) Kawasaki +12.189s
5 Jakub Smrz (CZE) Ducati +16.424s
6 Michel Fabrizio (ITA) BMW +20.200s
7 Jonathan Rea (GBR) Honda World Superbike Team +20.223s
8 Hiroshi Aoyama (JPN) Honda World Superbike Team +24.108s
Race 2 results:
1 Carlos Checa (ESP) Ducati 34m26.728s
2 Max Biaggi (ITA) Aprilia +5.707s
3 Tom Sykes (GBR) Kawasaki +12.521s
4 Jonathan Rea (GBR) Honda World Superbike +12.665s
5 Leon Haslam (GBR) BMW +18.179s
6 Marco Melandri (ITA) BMW +18.831s
9 Hiroshi Aoyama (JPN) Honda World Superbike Team +19.554s
Championship points after one of 14 rounds:
1 Biaggi 45, 2 Melandri 30, 3 Sykes 29, 4 Checa 25, 5 Rea 22, 6 Guintoli 16, 9 Aoyama 15
Next round: Imola, Italy – 30 March - 1 April
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Honda’s new World Superbike Championship pairing of Jonathan Rea and Hiroshi Aoyama kick off their preparations for the 2012 season with a three-day test at Phillip Island in Australia this week (17-19 January).
The team will be running the SBK race specification 2012 CBR1000RR Fireblade for the first time since the 20th anniversary version of Honda’s iconic sports machine was launched last September.
The team will start its 2012 campaign boosted by news that, following a year as title sponsor, Castrol will remain as a key secondary partner until the end of the 2013 season.
The global lubricants manufacturer used Honda’s World Superbike effort as part of a worldwide marketing campaign to re-launch its Power 1 brand in 2011. Its continued support of the team extends a commercial and technical partnership between Honda and Castrol which dates back to 1959, when the Japanese manufacturer first started world championship racing.
Robert Watherston, motorcycle racing manager at Honda Motor Europe, said: “We’re delighted that Castrol has decided to continue its long-standing association with Honda and, in particular, our World Superbike campaign. We are especially please to have signed a two-year agreement, which takes us to the end of the 2013 season.”
Donald Smith, sponsorship manager in Castrol's Global Marketing Unit commented: “We are pleased to confirm the continuation of our long-standing relationship and support of Honda and motorcycle racing. World Superbikes is the ideal proving ground for the development of our advanced range of Castrol Power 1 lubricants and we look forward to the future of our continued relationship with Honda.”
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One lucky visitor at this year’s Motorcycle Live could become the proud owner of the Yamaha R1 machine ridden and signed by Jorge Lorenzo during his parade lap at the 2010 Isle of Man TT.
The bike – which was recently ridden from the UK to Spain as part of the Viva Valencia! charity trip by BBC’s Matt Roberts – will be up for grabs in the Riders for Health auction supported by Arai.
The Yamaha will be one of the star lots in the auction, which will take place at 12.30pm on Sunday 20 November with the help of Arai-sponsored riders Cal Crutchlow, Jonathan Rea and Leon Haslam. Visitors will also have a chance to bid for an exclusive behind-the-scenes experience at the Riders for Health Day of Champions at the 2012 Silverstone MotoGP, including the opportunity to meet and greet top riders from the championship.
Other one-of-a-kind lots will include a ride in the pace car at the Silverstone MotoGP, a signed Mick Doohan replica Arai helmet, signed Arai side pods from Ian Hutchinson and Kevin Schwantz, a signed Rossi cap and a signed canvas print of Crutchlow at the 2011 Misano MotoGP. All proceeds will go to Riders for Health, which makes sure that millions of people in rural communities in Africa have the health care they need by managing and maintaining reliable vehicles for health workers.
The ticket price for Motorcycle Live 2011 is completely all-inclusive, meaning visitors can enjoy everything the show has to offer at no extra cost. Tickets are £16 in advance* for adults, £10 for seniors, £6 for children aged 6-16 and kids 5 and under accompanied by a paying adult go free.
www.motorcyclelive.co.uk
www.facebook.com/motorcyclelive
or follow @motorcyclelive on Twitter
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MotoGP star Dani Pedrosa will head up a star-studded roll call of racers attending this year’s Motorcycle Live at The NEC Birmingham from 19-27 November. The Repsol Honda rider will appear on Monday 21 November as a guest of Arai, joining a long list of riders already confirmed for the nine-day show.
The World Superbike stars will be out in force with Castrol Honda’s Jonathan Rea, BMW Motorrad’s Leon Haslam, Kawasaki's Tom Sykes, newly-signed Crescent Suzuki rider Leon Camier and Effenbert Liberty Racing’s Sylvain Guintoli all making an appearance. Rea will attend on Sunday 20 November, Haslam will make a two-day visit on Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 November, Sykes and Camier will appear on Saturday 19 November and Guintoli will be present on Monday 21 November.
The Brits in the opening day line-up will take part in a celebration of the best of British racing talent to open the show, alongside 2011 World Supersport Champion Chaz Davies, 2011 British Superbike Champion Tommy Hill, Moto2 star Bradley Smith and MotoGP star Cal Crutchlow, who will be firing up his Yamaha M1 live on the Blackhorse Stage at 10.30am on Saturday 19 November.
Other stars to appear throughout the nine-day show include 125GP title contender Johann Zarco (Monday 21 November), young Brits Sam and Alex Lowes (Monday 21 November), road racing favourites John McGuinness (Sunday 27 November) and Guy Martin (Sunday 20 November) and MX stars Zach Osbourne and Arnaud Tonus (Saturday 26 November).
A full listing of riders attending the show can be found at www.motorcyclelive.co.uk/visitor-information/celebrities
The ticket price for Motorcycle Live 2011 is completely all-inclusive, meaning visitors can enjoy everything the show has to offer at no extra cost. Tickets are £16 in advance* for adults, £10 for seniors, £6 for children aged 6-16 and kids 5 and under accompanied by a paying adult go free. Visit www.motorcyclelive.co.uk or call 0844 5812345. Visit www.facebook.com/motorcyclelive or follow @motorcyclelive on Twitter.
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