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Category: Moto GP
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Gresini Racing: the collaboration, started back in 2011, sees the Italian group, a European leader in the field of tube manipulation and its components, supporting the team led by Fausto Gresini both in MotoGP and in Moto3, the ambitious project dedicated to young talents in the smaller class of the World Championship.
Making use of highly qualified personnel and advanced equipment, and thanks to over 40 years of experience, SAG TUBI is today capable to produce any kind of rigid tube or flexible hose combination for any application. High quality competitive products, accompanied by an extraordinary service, which led SAG TUBI to become a partner of the most important manufacturers of engines, agricultural machinery, earthmoving equipment, forklifts, passenger and freight transport.
WALTER ZINI (CEO SAG Group)
“I’m very pleased to continue the partnership with Gresini Racing, now in its fifth year: the 2015 season is proving to be one of the most interesting from a technical and sporting point of view, with the return of Aprilia in MotoGP and the great performances that the young Moto3 riders have been showing so far. For a big fan of the sport like me, being able to live first hand this experience, through the great reception that Fausto Gresini and all the people at Gresini Racing have always given to us, it’s a great privilege. We hope to live many beautiful moments during the season, starting with the home Grand Prix at Mugello, which is just around the corner!”.
FAUSTO GRESINI
“The 2015 represents a new chapter in Gresini Racing’s history, having reached an agreement with Aprilia in MotoGP and having made a lot of changes in the Moto3 program: SAG TUBI embraced with great enthusiasm this breath of fresh air, thus renewing a collaboration which continues uninterrupted since 2011. Therefore I would like to thank Walter Zini, a great lover of the sport, for having believed and continue to believe in our projects”.
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EIGHTH AND NINTH ROW FOR BAUTISTA AND MELANDRI
Le Mans (France), 16 May 2015 - The unpredictable weather conditions, with cold and a less than perfect track, after the rain late this morning and the resulting poor grip, did not help the work Bautista and Melandri were trying to accomplish, still looking for the right direction to go in development of the Aprilia RS-GP bikes.
After the morning free practice session where the good time Bautista put on the sheets (16th in 1'34.341) was a sign that the work being done in the Aprilia Racing Team Gresini garage was headed in the right direction, a light rain decidedly worsened the condition of the French asphalt. Although the track had dried off when the qualifiers started, the poor grip definitely hindered the performance of the Italian bikes and ended the session - which decided the order on the starting grid for the race tomorrow - with Bautista in 23rd place (1'35.458) and Melandri in 25th (1'37.522), positions which respectively place them on the eighth and ninth row for the start of tomorrow's GP.
ROMANO ALBESIANO (Aprilia Racing Manager)
"The poor grip conditions, precisely in the qualifiers, certainly didn't help since our main problem at this time is tyre performance. It's obvious that significantly poor grip like what we have today penalises us more than the others. It's a shame because the morning went rather well with Alvaro, who was then unable to repeat the performance in the decisive session. We are well aware of the problem and we absolutely must improve this aspect which is decisive in order to improve the overall performance of the bike."
FAUSTO GRESINI (Team Manager)
"It's quite clear that here at Le Mans today we paid the price for the poor grip, also due to the low temperature. In these conditions it's difficult to get power to the tarmac. But it's no surprise and what we need to do is take steps to fix the situation for tomorrow. We have some changes in mind and we'll try them tomorrow during warm up. The goal is to improve for the race."
ALVARO BAUTISTA
"After the free practice sessions we had to face rather unfavourable conditions in the qualifiers. Poor grip, despite the fact that the asphalt had dried off, put us at a distinct disadvantage, especially in terms of traction. I'm disappointed because in the morning I had put in a good time and I thought I could improve even more. For the race everything is hinging on the weather: if it's dry let's hope for some heat as well, which would eliminate some of the disadvantages that hindered us today."
MARCO MELANDRI
"I'm facing the same problems as I had at the beginning of the season. I need some significant changes that will help me gain more confidence on the bike. This is a fundamental condition for me to think about pushing hard to try and achieve results."
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The MotoGP European season continues this week on the historic French Le Mans track: the goal for Bautista and Melandri is to finish in the points
Le Mans (France), 12 May 2015 - Fresh from a positive Spanish Grand Prix, Alvaro Bautista and Marco Melandri will be back astride their Aprilia RS-GP bikes for the fifth round of the MotoGP championship on the French Le Mans circuit.
The dual objective for the Aprilia Racing Team Gresini riders is to finish in the points, further reducing the gap behind their adversaries - a result that Bautista has already brought home twice, in Austin and at Jerez - and to continue developing the bike, which has already undergone an initial acceleration from the start of the European season with positive feedback from Bautista who tested the new seamless gearbox for the first time in the post-race tests at Jerez.
ROMANO ALBESIANO (Aprilia Racing Manager)
“At Jerez the European phase of the Championship got off to a positive start: we finished the Grand Prix with both riders, the second championship point brought home by Bautista and a performance by Melandri that improved throughout the weekend. It was a trip where some comforting data came out for the future, thanks in part to the tests conducted the day after the race when Bautista provided the first positive feedback on a new seamless gearbox that should be making its début on the track very soon. This is confirmation that gives the entire team a boost of confidence: a first significant step in our development process that we knew would speed up once we got back onto European soil, with the opportunity to establish a more direct connection between on work at headquarters and track operations. Now we are taking on the French GP in the hopes of being able to take another step forward.”
FAUSTO GRESINI (Team Manager)
"In Spain we had a great weekend, completed by positive post-race tests. We can feel satisfied with our achievements so far, with the two championship points Bautista has earned. We have shown that we are able to easily battle to be in the top 15, so now it would be nice if Melandri could bring home his first points of the season in France. After all, Le Mans represents another important milestone in our path of development, so we'll keep working to reduce the gap behind our adversaries as we have done in recent races.”
ALVARO BAUTISTA
“At Jerez we worked very well throughout the entire race weekend. At Le Mans we'll be taking on a track which is similar in many ways, so I think that the data we collected in Spain may be a good base to start from. In the tests on Monday I was able to try the new seamless gearbox for the first time. It's a shame we won't have it already for Le Mans because it is already at a great level, but I'm confident that even with the current version of our bike we'll be able to do well this weekend. I have great memories of last year's race where I took the third step of the podium. The goal this round is the same as the previous races: to keep reducing the gap behind the other riders that are ahead of us and to be as competitive as possible. The track has a lot of direction changes, so we'll be working hard to obtain an agile and easy to ride bike. For the rest we'll try to stay as focused as possible in order to be ready for any conditions since weather conditions often change quickly here at Le Mans. The second championship point earned at Jerez provides great motivation for the entire team. We're ready to work hard.”
MARCO MELANDRI
“The Le Mans track is quite particularly, but I've always liked it. In fact, every time I've raced here I've done well. In this round it would be nice to try and get into the points. I think this is a realistic goal within our reach whilst waiting for important technical changes that will allow me to take more significant steps forward. The weather forecast seems pretty good so, as always, we'll be working as hard as we can and taking the weekend one day at a time, ready to take advantage of every opportunity.”
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Jerez, (Spain), 4 May 2015 – The day after the Jerez de la Frontera race, where Aprilia Racing Team Gresini continues improving with Alvaro Bautista's performance and the progress Marco Melandri made in the race, development on the RS-GP does not stop.
In the tests scheduled for today on the Andalusian track the seamless gearbox (continuous engagement), active in upshifting as well, made its début and was immediately appreciated by Bautista who was the first official rider to ride it onto the track.
The Italian team's entire season has been and will be characterised by continuous experimentation with technical solutions which serve both to improve the performance of the RS-GP and to provide data and information for the design of the prototype that will race in the 2016 season. For this the technical step today takes on particular importance and paves the way for the new gearbox's race début which could take place in one of the next European MotoGP rounds. The team also worked on new chassis solutions, particularly on a new frame and swingarm. The test results will now be processed at the Noale headquarters in order to prepare for the upcoming races.
ROMANO ALBESIANO (Aprilia Racing Manager)
“Today was a very positive day. For the first time we put our seamless gearbox technology, a particular Aprilia solution, on the track with an official rider. Alvaro liked it very much and found a clear advantage straight away compared to the conventional gearbox. So it was a complete success which now means that we'll have to work hard to get it into a race as quickly as possible. Considering how things went today I think we'll be able to do that soon, within the next two or three races. I'd like to have it for Mugello or at the latest for Barcelona. Marco did his job, bringing in new chassis ideas, some we liked and some not so much, so we still have some work to do in that area. In short I would say that, between the race and the tests, we are finishing up this trip to Jerez pretty well.”
FAUSTO GRESINI (Team Manager)
“Days like this are fundamental, especially for us as we are taking on a season where we need to learn and grow. They help us understand what steps to take in order to improve. In the end Alvaro also put in a good time with 1’39.766, but in these tests it is just as important to figure out which solutions to reject. Any new information is important, but to understand where to direct the technical advancements and to avoid going down paths that lead nowhere. Everything works together to make progress in the development of such an important project.”
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Bautista puts the fifteenth best time on the sheets to take a spot on the fifth row, his best performance thus far in the early stages of the season
Jerez (Spain), 2nd May 2015 - Alvaro Bautista rode his RS-GP to fifteenth place (in 1’39.612) and with his best performance qualifying in this early part of the season he secured a spot on the fifth row for tomorrow's race.
This is a sign of the progress that Aprilia Racing Team Gresini has achieved in the first rounds of the championship, moving the Spanish rider into that group that is the short-term goal at the moment. Now the challenge remains to confirm the progress shown today in a race tomorrow that promises to be difficult due to the hot conditions and poor grip. Melandri is a bit farther back, twenty-fifth (1’41.273) and also hindered by problems with his brakes on his best laps.
ROMANO ALBESIANO (Aprilia Racing Manager)
“My compliments to Alvaro who did very well both in qualifying and in the morning free practice. Now we need to work on making this performance consistent. We have the potential to ride a good race. I'm pleased because we are making progress and strengthening our presence in a group of bikes and riders who are much farther ahead of us in terms of MotoGP experience. This is a great result considering the fact that ours is truly a lab bike and that we are really learning a lot in preparation for next season. It was a shame that Marco also had problems with his brakes and that kept him from performing at his best.”
FAUSTO GRESINI (Team Manager)
“Today Bautista deserves a great round of applause. He put a really good time on the sheets and lapped fast despite the really difficult conditions due to the heat. He put in a respectable time that gives us confidence for a race that will be hard for everyone. I think we'll be able to do well tomorrow. Starting strong will be important and we have a good spot on the grid. Then it will be important to find the right race pace straight away because it will be challenging both physically for the rider and for the tyres.”
ALVARO BAUTISTA
“We worked well today to improve compared to yesterday. It was a positive day, partly because of all the data we were able to acquire. On my flying lap I simply tried to be as precise as possible, riding the bike that I felt most confident on, but we can even improve more on this, especially in the acceleration phase where I'm still lacking a lot of grip. The race will be hard. This track really eats up the tyres and making the right choice will be important. Today I tested the hard front tyre and I think that's what I'll go with for the race, whereas on the rear we'll mount the soft tyre. I think it is consistent enough for race length.”
MARCO MELANDRI
“We worked hard in all the sessions and then reaped less of a reward than we wanted in the qualifying session. Today I was also having some problems with the brakes but the truth is that I need some really radical changes and until I am entirely confident on the bike I just won't be able to push the way I'd like to.”
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