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Category: Moto GP
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Noale, 1 August 2015 - Twenty-five year old German rider Stefan Bradl, 2011 Moto2 World Champion, will take part in the remaining nine 2015 MotoGP World Championship races astride the second Aprilia Racing Team Gresini Aprilia RS-GP alongside Alvaro Bautista.
Bradl will make his first appearance on the Aprilia RS-GP at the Indianapolis Grand Prix scheduled from 7 to 9 August.
Born in the Bavarian city of Augusta on 29 November 1989, Stefan Bradl made his debut in World Championship Motorycle racing in the 125cc category in 2005. In 2008 he took two wins and finished the season fourth in the overall standings. In 2010 he moved to Moto2, a category where he would be crowned World Champion the following year thanks to four wins. His rookie year in MotoGP came in 2012 astride a Honda, a bike that Bradl raced for another two seasons, taking a second place finish in the 2013 United States Grand Prix as his best result. This season Bradl has participated in the first eight Grand Prix races on the calendar astride the Forward Racing team Open class Yamaha, earning nine points. A fractured scaphoid in his right wrist suffered during the Dutch GP at Assen forced him to miss his home race at Sachsenring on 12 July.
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Bautista starts working straight away on his race setup, improving from one session to the next. Laverty sizes up his Aprilia RS-GP
Sachsenring (Germany), 10 July 2015 - MotoGP kicks off the second half of the season on the twisting German Sachsenring circuit. Alvaro Bauitista and Michael Laverty took on the first day of free practice with different intentions. If the German weekend is another stop along the Aprilia V4 development path for Alvaro, for Laverty it was, first and foremost, the time to gain confidence with the bike - which he already knows well, since he has been working as a test team rider - in race configuration.
A sliding crash this morning complicated things for Bautista who, fresh from surgery on his right forearm right after the Assen race, was bothered a bit by the injury. In the afternoon the Spanish Aprilia Racing Team Gresini rider in any case was able to get back onto the track, lapping on the same tyres with the clear intention of getting the bike set up for the race on Sunday, but also managing to shave almost 6 tenths of a second off his time from the morning session. Laverty showed consistent progress in FP1 but changing bikes slowed him up in the second session. In the end Bautista closed out the day with the 18th best combined time at 1’23,286. Laverty had the 24th time with 1’24,446.
ROMANO ALBESIANO (Aprilia Racing Manager)
“Another day of testing and hard work fine tuning. Alvaro was looking good going into turns and riding through them, but we still need to improve traction, so we need to work on improving grip in that condition. Laverty came out of the morning practice session satisfied, ending with the 23rd best time. However, in the afternoon he had to change the bike he had used in FP1, which is the one he felt better on, and with the other one he had a chattering problem that kept him from improving further.”
FAUSTO GRESINI (Team Manager)
“We are doing a lot of tests on the bike, as usual, but Alvaro, despite the crash which slowed him down this morning, is already in line with our expectations. Tomorrow we would still like to take a step forward because I think that we can really do well on this track. Laverty had a good day of practice and he started off working well with the team.”
ALVARO BAUTISTA
“This morning I took a spill on turn 11. The problem is that the spot where I had surgery on my arm last week opened up a bit.. But in the afternoon I was still able to ride. We used the same tyre for the entire session in order to find a good setting. Our most important goal is to improve grip at the rear. I need to feel the tyre more on the tarmac.”
MICHAEL LAVERTY
“In FP1 I felt very comfortable in the saddle every time I went out onto the track and in fact I did my best time in the last run. In the afternoon unfortunately I was only able to get one clean run in at the end of the session so I wasn't able to improve. In general I've got a good feeling with the bike. There's room for improvement in terms of grip. Today I tried the rear suspension link like the one Alvaro uses briefly and it seems to make things a bit better, so tomorrow I'll try it on both bikes.”
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After Bautista's good result at Barcelona the Aprilia RS-GPs are on the track to confirm their progress.
Assen (Holland), 23 June 2015 - As per tradition the MotoGP round in Holland - the classic TT - will be raced on Saturday. Aprilia Racing Team Gresini arrives at the Dutch round comforted by Alvaro Bautista's good result in the last race at Barcelona. Alvaro's tenth place finish at Montmelò, although favoured by a few DNFs, is the team's overall best result in this first part of the season and it is a nice injection of confidence for the rest of the championship. In any case, development of the Italian V4s moves forward, taking advantage of every race and every practice session. The Assen weekend will be no exception, especially in light of the fact that the Monday test session after Barcelona was hampered by foul weather.
ROMANO ALBESIANO (Aprilia Racing Manager)
“The result in Barcelona boosted our morale and it especially confirmed that we improve our race performance compared to the practice sessions, managing to stay in the centre of the group. This, along with the assessment of the various changes introduced from the Mugello round, helps to give us a clear idea on which areas need more work. These are experiences which are in line with the spirit of our test year and Assen will be the same, where we will bring new materials that we weren't able to test at Montmelò on the Monday following the race due to the inclement weather.”
FAUSTO GRESINI (Team Manager)
“After taking on two fast tracks like Mugello and Barcelona we are switching to a more flowing track where it will definitely be interesting to verify the steps we've taken forward recently. The tenth place that Alvaro brought home from Barcelona really pumps us up: the primary goal is still developing the bike in view of the future, but it's always a pleasure to have a good result and it represents nice compensation for the entire team, which has been working hard. We are expecting another weekend of testing, during which we want to continue gathering important data to move development of the RS-GP forward.”
ALVARO BAUTISTA
“We are coming to Holland highly motivated thanks to the nice result in Barcelona. We are still a bit disappointed because we could have completed the Spanish trip with some good post-race tests, but the poor weather kept us from doing the work we had scheduled. So we'll bring the material to Assen that we weren't able to evaluate during the tests: we won't have much time to do it, but we'll give it our best shot. The track has a lot of quick direction changes which is an area where we need to improve, so from the first free practice sessions we'll be looking for the best setup to improve our bike's performance in that area. In any case the whole garage is very enthusiastic and we're ready to get down to business.”
MARCO MELANDRI
“We are going to Assen with a bit of concrete optimism. In the Barcelona tests the team provided me with a much longer swingarm that gave me a better feeling. I only took two laps because then it began to rain but I noticed that the sensation was good. I like this track and I'm confident that we'll be taking some steps forward. Alvaro's result gave the team a strong signal of reliability. I see the glass as half full.”
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Packed final day of racing brings curtain down on successful first event
Over the past three days, classic racing fans have enjoyed thrilling racing from the biggest collection of former racing heroes ever assembled who between them have over 300 grand prix wins.
Wayne Gardner, Freddie Spencer and Kevin Schwantz each took to the top step of the podium in three headlining 500cc races at World GP Bike Legends at Jerez Circuit, Spain. The encounters, which also saw the likes of Christian Sarron, Didier de Radiguès José Cardoso, Phil Read and Steve Parrish battling it out for position, were the tip of the entertainment iceberg, as legends also raced in 125c and 250cc classes, plus there was supporting action from the International Classic Grand Prix series.
With Gardner winning the first race on Saturday, it was the turn of ‘Fast Freddie’ to take glory in the second battle aboard a Yamaha YZR 500 ahead of Schwantz and Radiguès. In the final contest, Schwantz grabbed the early lead but was caught and passed by Spencer. Undeterred, the pair swapped positions several times before Schwantz eventually made the move stick to the delight of the Spanish fans at the circuit.
In the supporting 250cc/350cc, Manuel ‘Champi’ Herreros and Jorge ‘Aspar’ Martinez both scored popular podium finishes, while the supporting ICGP races were both won by Ian Simpson.
Away from the track action, World GP Bike Legends has been full of fun, with trial shows taking place throughout the weekend, two spectacular stunt riding shows, plus displays of classic racing bikes and contemporary machines. Friday and Saturday nights were filled with live music from some amazing acts, with renowned tribute bands The ZZ Tops and QueenMania on Friday and James Toseland and Bonnie Tyler closing proceedings on Saturday with two brilliant performances.
With the success of this inaugural event, discussions are already underway to begin planning for the next chapter of World GP Bike Legends history.
Freddie Spencer said: “This event is all about what we’ve been experiencing outside with the public. It’s the passion and the emotion that gets generated – I’ve been around motorcycles my whole life, and it has given me so many things – and the look on people’s faces is what it’s all about. I saw a couple of young guys in the paddock and they said ‘thank you so much for doing this and allowing us to see you live’, and that’s what it’s all about. For us it’s also brilliant to be back on the 500s, I've been riding a bike I was actually racing against back in the ‘80s! It’s the beginning of this connection between us guys up here, the collectors who have given us the opportunity to ride, and the fans who have come along to see us. I’m truly looking forward to where this is going in the future.”
Wayne Gardner said: “My perspective of the event has been overwhelmingly successful. I saw the look in people’s eyes and heard all the cheering when I won yesterday which was so cool. It brought back a lot of memories and it’s my third GP victory at Jerez! To ride with all your friends is such a pleasure. Today I was riding around the outside of Christian and I had total confidence and it was a great feeling. These motorcycles are still so thrilling, and of course we’ve got it all filmed on TV and hopefully the documentary will help us grow further. There’s already negotiations for events in other countries so the future is very bright. I think this event will springboard the interest in it and will make it easier for us to fill the grids in the future. I applaud Nick Wigley and the team at Goose for coming up with such a great concept.”
José Cardoso said: “For me it has been a great weekend. I’m so happy to be here and to be with such heroes of grand prix racing – it’s a great pleasure. I’m a local rider and it feels so good – the people who come love to be near to us and the bikes, a lot of them have never had that opportunity and that’s the most important thing about the weekend.
Steve Parrish said: “It’s great to be back with the old motorcycles and remember how they were in the old days. Unfortunately I’d like to apologize to Steve Wheatman because I managed to break one of his today – it’s been very kind of him to lend them to me and I was able to go out on a different bike which was really enjoyable as I managed to finish the races today! To be out there with colleagues from the past, the fumes and the camaraderie that goes on as well as to go right into the middle of all the fans and see so many enthusiastic people is really great.”
Christian Sarron said: “I want to say that it is always heart touching to see the fans – I’ve seen so many people riding their bikes all the way from France, from England, Holland, all sorts of places, and they said to me that ‘we did it because we wanted to see you.’ This is something incredible, we are all so pleased and so honoured that they came. We’ll keep improving the show for the future to see as many fans and people as possible.”
Didier de Radiguès said: “We can see and feel that many many people love this and enjoy it. It’s great to give them something back, but I also must admit I had a lot of fun on the track! It was very nice to race again with the guys.”
Event director Nick Wigley said: “I’m so proud of the whole team for bringing World GP Bike Legends to life. I need to thank a lot of people for making it possible, but especially Wayne Gardner for being an incredible ambassador for what we are creating here and getting so many legends together to race this weekend. The passion from the fans at Jerez Circuit is like nothing I’ve ever seen, and the potential for this to become something on a global scale is really, really exciting. We hope everyone has seen just how special this can be, and are already in discussions to take the event to more venues all around the world.”
The Race Of Legends 500cc – Race 1
1.Wayne GARDNER – Cagiva V589
2.Didier de RADIGUES – Suzuki XR88 RGV 500
3.Kevin SCHWANTZ – Suzuki XR84 RGV 500
4.Christian SARRON – Yamaha YZR 500
5.Niggi SCHMASSMANN – Yamaha YZR 500
6.Freddie SPENCER – Yamaha OW48R
7.Gary LINGHAM – Suzuki RGB500 MK7
8.Graeme CROSBY – Suzuki XR34
9.Steve PARRISH – Suzuki XR34
10.Michael NEEVES – Yamaha YZR 500
11.Phil READ – Suzuki Mk1RG
12.Jose Luis CARDOSO – Kawasaki KR500
The Race Of Legends 500cc – Race 2 1.Freddie SPENCER – Yamaha YZR500 OW48R
2.Kevin SCHWANTZ – Suzuki RGV500 XR84
3.Didier DE RADIGUES – Suzuki RGV500 XR88
4.Christian SARRON – Yamaha YZR500
5.Niggi SCHMASSMANN – Yamaha YZR500
6.Wayne GARDNER – Cagiva V589
7.Jose Luis CARDOSO – Kawasaki KR500
8.Steve PARRISH – Suzuki RGV500 XR34
9.Phil READ – Suzuki RG500
10.Graeme CROSBY – Suzuki RGV500 XR34
The Race Of Legends 500cc – Race 3 1.Kevin SCHWANTZ - Suzuki RGV500 XR84
2.Freddie SPENCER - Yamaha YZR500
3.Niggi SCHMASSMANN - Yamaha YZR500
4.Jose Luis CARDOSO - Kawasaki KR500
5.Didier DE RADIGUES - Suzuki RGV500
6.Graeme CROSBY - Suzuki RGV500
7.Steve PARRISH - Suzuki RGV500
8.Phil READ - Suzuki Mk1RG
9.Wayne GARDNER - Cagiva V589
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Jerez gears up for party of the year as Bonnie Tyler and Toseland provide soundtrack to landmark event.
 With the first ever World GP Bike Legends just around the corner, southern Spain is soon to be gripped by festival fever as an amazing mix of racing and rock and roll blasts into Jerez on 19-21 June.
As well as unmissable races that will feature the legends like Kevin Schwantz, Freddie Spencer, Wayne Gardner and Loris Capirossi, there will be music legends closing the show on both Friday and Saturday nights.
World famous tribute acts will hit the stage on Friday, as The ZZ Tops and QueenMania blast out some of the best known songs of all time from ‘Sharp Dressed Man’ to ‘We Are The Champions’ – a fitting theme tune to World GP Bike Legends!
The event kicks into top gear on Saturday night when double World Superbike Champion James Toseland takes to the stage with his eponymous hard rock group before Bonnie Tyler blows the crowds away with her incredible repertoire of legendary hits.
With live music headlining the evenings, there’s plenty more to keep fans entertained throughout the day. Shows from Trials World Championship riders Marcel Justribó and Jordi Pascuet plus a comedy motorcycle show ‘No Limits’ will undoubtedly draw attention, and there will be static displays of both classic and modern bikes.
Thanks to all this off-circuit action the riders will be keen to put on a special show, and with the spectacular list of entries below fans are sure to leave Jerez smiling.
The full list of confirmed riders is as follows: •Freddie Spencer
•Wayne Gardner
•Christian Sarron
•Didier de Radiguès
•Kevin Schwantz
•Graeme Crosby
•Steve Parrish
•José Luis Cardoso
•Carlos Cardús
•Loris Capirossi
•Juan Garriga
•Ángel Nieto
•Jorge Martínez
•Carlos Lavado
•Tadayuki Okada
•Phil Read
•Manuel "Champi" Herreros
•Hubert Rigal
•Niggi Schmassmann
•Michael Neeves (Guest Rider)
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