[954Stealth]

Back to back weekends...gotta love 'em!

So with the IMS race closing down shop, Marc's hitting 10 for 10, Colin retiring (Except Silverstone?) ... what's next?

The entire pack has to take all their teams, all the riders, all the equipment and the bikes and the tools and the trailers, pack them on jetplanes and travel 4,710 miles and then set up shop again. All in 1 week. I find that pretty amazing. We go from Summer Break and a long gap to back to backs and multiple races in 1 month!

So why 4,710 miles (7,580 Km)? The next destination is the Czech Republic and the Automotodrom Brno. Here's the traditional deets:




Introduction:

The world’s most famous riders have taken part in GP events in Brno since 1930, where up until 1982 they would race through the villages and western parts of the city on a road track named after the first Czechoslovak President - T.G. Masaryk. A new circuit was built during the 1980s with the aim of attracting Formula 1 to Czechoslovakia, and in 1987 it played host to the FIM Czech Grand Prix. Popular with both fans and riders, the new circuit is built in a natural bowl which is banked in places to offer spectators an excellent view. Brno constantly changes in elevation as it sweeps across forested hillsides and its fast undulating corners test rider talent and engineering to the limit.


Circuit info
Length: 5.403 m / 3.357 miles
Width: 15m
Left corners: 6
Right corners: 8
Longest straight: 636 m / 0.395 miles
Constructed: 1987
Modified: 1996
Laps: 22
Distance: 118.9 km - 73.9 miles


Schedule

14 August 2014
15.00 - 17.00 120 Pit Walk + Paddock
TBD - Press and Pre - event
TBS - Press and Pre - event

15 August 2014
Moto3 FP1 - 09:00 - 09:40
MotoGP FP1 - 09:55 - 10:40
Moto2FP1 - 10:55 - 11:40
Moto3FP2 - 13:10 - 13:50
MotoGPFP2 - 14:05 - 14:50
Moto2FP2 - 15:05 - 15:50

16 August 2014
Moto3 FP3 - 09:00 - 09:40
MotoGP FP3 - 09:55 - 10:40
Moto2 FP3 - 10:55 - 11:40
Moto3 QP - 12:35 - 13:15
MotoGP FP4 - 13:30 - 14:00
MotoGP Q1 - 14:10 - 14:25
MotoGP Q2 - 14:35 - 14:50
Moto2 QP - 15:05 - 15:50

17 August 2014
Moto3 WUP - 08:40 - 09:00
Moto2WUP - 09:10 - 09:30
MotoGPWUP - 09:40 - 10:00
Moto3RAC - 11:00
Moto2RAC - 12:20
MotoGPRAC - 14:00



Points So far:
1. M. Marquez 250
2. D. Pedrosa 161
3. V. Rossi 157
4. J. Lorenzo 117
5. A. Dovizioso 108
6. P. Espargaró 78
7. A. Espargaró 77
8. A. Iannone 62
9. B. Smith 58
10. S. Bradl 56

[954Stealth]

Historically, this is how the race has gone down:

2013 M. Marquez
2012 D. Pedrosa
2011 C. Stoner
2010 J. Lorenzo
2009 V. Rossi
2008 V. Rossi
2007 C. Stoner
2006 L. Capirossi
2005 V. Rossi

[954Stealth]

Difficulty for the braking system

<-----------------------[MEDIUM ]------------------------->


Brno is a track characterized by wide bends and few straight stretches which make it an average circuit in terms of demands on the brakes. Note the first cut out after the finish line, very demanding and difficult to the extent that it is the world championship braking action which requires the greatest braking distance, approximately 340 metres

[HFW003]

Should be a good race, always liked Brno.

Looking forward to our man Miller in the 3's getting closer to a title!

[954Stealth]

This past weekend, Marquez became the first rider since Giacomo Agostini in 1970 to win the first 10 races of the season.


Mick Doohan said today he expects Marquez to break his records and expects him to sweep the season.

[zx10guy]

It's nice to see Marquez living up to the hype. It's unfortunate Spies didn't pan out after taking the WSBK title in his rookie year.

What's funny was people were complaining how MotoGP got boring with the usual suspects going after the podium race after race. Now people don't care if Marquez wins every race.

[954Stealth]

Hopefully this will hold you over for now. I wonder what the Automotodrom will bring

This is very cool too if you haven't seen it!
http://www.redbull.com/en/motorsport...6960727/faster

[954Stealth]

Originally Posted by zx10guy

It's nice to see Marquez living up to the hype. It's unfortunate Spies didn't pan out after taking the WSBK title in his rookie year.

What's funny was people were complaining how MotoGP got boring with the usual suspects going after the podium race after race. Now people don't care if Marquez wins every race.

I think part of the reason is, while predictable, the racing is exciting from flag to flag. P1 gets swapped back and forth as do the other spots whereas in other series one car shoots ahead and maintains P1 for the entire race.

[954Stealth]

Originally Posted by HFW003

Should be a good race, always liked Brno.

Looking forward to our man Miller in the 3's getting closer to a title!

Miller is a brilliant rider and has a great, long career ahead of him!

Even though Vazquez won moto3 @ IMS, Miller was great (even if P3). I think Vazquez vs Miller is the duel to watch for 2014 part 2. With ranking 3rd his lead is now 21 points for the season. 6 podiums in 10 races and just 8 left to go.


Here's a cool article about Aussie Jack
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/spo...87c375bb2560de


Excerpt
"The Sunday Telegraph can exclusively reveal Miller, 19, will soon be announced as our next Casey Stoner with Repsol Honda to sign
the battler from the bush to a deal that will see him take on the likes of Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi in the world’s second biggest motorsport category.

A giant-killing year in Moto3 will see Miller continue the proud Australian motorcycle racing legacy forged by Wayne Gardner, Mick Doohan and Stoner, with the kid raised on a Townsville cattle farm to be signed by one of the sport’s biggest teams.

Sources have told The Sunday Telegraph Miller is a “done deal’’ with Repsol Honda, the team already agreeing to terms with the rider who has come from the clouds to replace Stoner as Australia’s newest two-wheeled hope."

[954Stealth]

If you havent heard, Alex de Angelis will be Colin Edwards' replacement

[954Stealth]

I just found these shots from the Brno testing that happened a few months ago

[954Stealth]

Ouch.

[954Stealth]

Dani

[954Stealth]

Originally Posted by 954Stealth

If you havent heard, Alex de Angelis will be Colin Edwards' replacement

If you don't know much about this Moto2 rider (I didnt) and want to read about de Angelis
go here:
http://www.alexdeangelis.com/?lang=eng


Here:
http://www.crash.net/motogp/racer_bi...e-angelis.html

and then of course here:
http://www.motogp.com/en/riders/Alex+De+Angelis

[954Stealth]

Originally Posted by 954Stealth

Miller is a brilliant rider and has a great, long career ahead of him!

Even though Vazquez won moto3 @ IMS, Miller was great (even if P3). I think Vazquez vs Miller is the duel to watch for 2014 part 2. With ranking 3rd his lead is now 21 points for the season. 6 podiums in 10 races and just 8 left to go.


Here's a cool article about Aussie Jack
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/spo...87c375bb2560de


Excerpt
"The Sunday Telegraph can exclusively reveal Miller, 19, will soon be announced as our next Casey Stoner with Repsol Honda to sign
the battler from the bush to a deal that will see him take on the likes of Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi in the world’s second biggest motorsport category.

A giant-killing year in Moto3 will see Miller continue the proud Australian motorcycle racing legacy forged by Wayne Gardner, Mick Doohan and Stoner, with the kid raised on a Townsville cattle farm to be signed by one of the sport’s biggest teams.

Sources have told The Sunday Telegraph Miller is a “done deal’’ with Repsol Honda, the team already agreeing to terms with the rider who has come from the clouds to replace Stoner as Australia’s newest two-wheeled hope."

He might be skipping Moto2 and heading for LCR Honda in 2015. This would be the first time since Garry McCoy in 1998 made the jump from 3 to premier...

"Jack is definitely coming into our team this he has decided I can now do nothing more The matter was handed over to our attorneys and they make sure I'm assuming that thing.... is clarified in the next few weeks or months. "
-- Michael Bartholemy

[954Stealth]

It wouldn't be a MotoGP thread without some pre-race quotes

Marc Marquez, Repsol Honda :
“We’ve not really stopped! After the race on Sunday we had a nice dinner with the team and then yesterday we were travelling all day to Europe. Brno isn’t one of my favourite tracks but I’ve had quite good results there in the past. We tested there a month ago and even if the grip was very low at the time, I hope some of the data we collected will be a help! Everyone knows that historically Yamaha are strong at Brno so we’ll have to work hard from Friday to give ourselves the best chance on Sunday!”

Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda:
“Brno is a track that I really enjoy, I usually do well there. I am really looking forward to getting there and getting back the feeling with the bike because Indianapolis did not go too well. I am hoping to be able to take full advantage of the good feeling we had while testing there before the summer break and I hope the setting we found then will help us push to get good results.”

Stefan Bradl, LCR Honda MotoGP:
“We have to put last Sunday’s disappointment out of our minds and focus instead of making sure we have a good weekend at Brno. The track is one of the faster ones in MotoGP and I have had some good results there, including a win in Moto2, so I think we can have a good race, if luck stays on our side.”

Alvaro Bautista, Team GO&FUN Honda Gresini :
“We want to forget as soon as possible the Indianapolis weekend, in order to get to Brno motivated and full of charge. We will find a very different track from the one we faced in the last Grand Prix, wide and characterized by really fast changes of direction; last year we were competitive, so we expect to be able to find a good feeling with the bike also this year, although at the moment we are struggling. Of course, we will give our best, as always, and especially it will be important to work well with the team and with Showa technicians to try to fix the rear grip issues that made us struggle in the last few races”.

Scott Redding, Team GO&FUN Honda Gresini:
“Brno is not one of my favourite circuits. However, with this bike my riding style is different compared to the past and therefore it suits a lot of tracks. In fact, I’ve never loved Sachsenring, but this year I was fast there. We just need to see the conditions once we get there, and then try to replicate the good job done in Indianapolis, maybe taking another step forward and trying to close the gap to some factory guys. It’s going to be hard because, like I said, Brno is not one of my favourite circuits but now I have a strong motivation because I know that I’m growing step by step, so I want to keep this rhythm and keep learning.”

Hiroshi Aoyama, Drive 7 Aspar Honda:
“The tenth-place finish at Indianapolis gives us great motivation for the second half of the championship. It is really important that we came back strongly after the summer break but we still have a lot of work in front of us. We need to find some more mid-corner speed this weekend and some more confidence from the front. Hopefully we can get through practice without the setbacks we had last weekend. We will try to be strong from Friday and work from a good plan that will see us competitive right through the weekend.”

Karel Abraham, Cardion AB Motoracing:
“The Indy weekend was quite difficult but in the end we were rewarded with a good result, our best of the season. Now we go straight into our home race and the home team always looks forward to racing at Brno, in front of all the fans. As always, we will do our best and on this occasion we hope that the support of the home fans will also help us to do well.”

Leon Camier, Drive 7 Aspar Honda:
“Even though I didn't manage to finish my debut MotoGP race at Indianapolis I learnt a lot of things – mainly in terms of the direction we need to go with the chassis set-up and what I need to do to ride this bike fast. Hopefully at Brno we can continue working in the same way. I felt more comfortable with every passing lap of Sunday’s race and understood what I needed to do to improve my pace, so I think that will be an important step for us going into this weekend at a circuit I know well.”


Bradley Smith, Monster Yamaha Tech3:
"After a good summer break it was decent way to commence the second half of the seasonwith a 6th placed finish in Indy as this is where I need to be. There is no rest this time as we are straight back to Europe for Brno, which I am really fired up for and where I will once again be doing my best to get close to the factory MotoGP bikes. My finger is healing gradually and as always I will be giving my all to get a top result in the Czech Republic with my confidence high. I qualified well last year where I achieved my joint highest qualifying result of my rookie year in 6th and even though the race didn’t go to plan, this year I am aiming to continue the good form found at Indianapolis. The fast sweeping corners of Brno should suit the Yamaha YZR-M1’s character, so I hope to qualify in the top six and then really go for it on Sunday."

Pol Espargaro, Monster Yamaha Tech3:
"The first thing I must say is that it was good to finish Indy with a strong result after the summer break. I am feeling more confident every time I run with the Yamaha YZR-M1 and for round 11 in the Czech republic, I intend to step it up further. The Brno circuit is great fun to ride especially with the hills and flowing corners, so for me I am very excited to see what the Yamaha and I can do here this weekend with my results at Brno being good in the past, including qualifying on the front row here last year in Moto2. At beyond the mid point of this season I am still learning although enjoying myself a lot so for sure, it will be a long race where we will have to work hard to get everything set up for a strong qualifying on Saturday then the Grand Prix on Sunday, but I can’t wait to get going and ride the hills at Brno!"

[954Stealth]

Here's a cool shot. Although it is from IMS Im putting it here

[954Stealth]

[954Stealth]

Originally Posted by 954Stealth

It wouldn't be a MotoGP thread without some pre-race quotes

Marc Marquez, Repsol Honda :
“We’ve not really stopped! After the race on Sunday we had a nice dinner with the team and then yesterday we were travelling all day to Europe. Brno isn’t one of my favourite tracks but I’ve had quite good results there in the past. We tested there a month ago and even if the grip was very low at the time, I hope some of the data we collected will be a help! Everyone knows that historically Yamaha are strong at Brno so we’ll have to work hard from Friday to give ourselves the best chance on Sunday!”

Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda:
“Brno is a track that I really enjoy, I usually do well there. I am really looking forward to getting there and getting back the feeling with the bike because Indianapolis did not go too well. I am hoping to be able to take full advantage of the good feeling we had while testing there before the summer break and I hope the setting we found then will help us push to get good results.”

Stefan Bradl, LCR Honda MotoGP:
“We have to put last Sunday’s disappointment out of our minds and focus instead of making sure we have a good weekend at Brno. The track is one of the faster ones in MotoGP and I have had some good results there, including a win in Moto2, so I think we can have a good race, if luck stays on our side.”

Alvaro Bautista, Team GO&FUN Honda Gresini :
“We want to forget as soon as possible the Indianapolis weekend, in order to get to Brno motivated and full of charge. We will find a very different track from the one we faced in the last Grand Prix, wide and characterized by really fast changes of direction; last year we were competitive, so we expect to be able to find a good feeling with the bike also this year, although at the moment we are struggling. Of course, we will give our best, as always, and especially it will be important to work well with the team and with Showa technicians to try to fix the rear grip issues that made us struggle in the last few races”.

Scott Redding, Team GO&FUN Honda Gresini:
“Brno is not one of my favourite circuits. However, with this bike my riding style is different compared to the past and therefore it suits a lot of tracks. In fact, I’ve never loved Sachsenring, but this year I was fast there. We just need to see the conditions once we get there, and then try to replicate the good job done in Indianapolis, maybe taking another step forward and trying to close the gap to some factory guys. It’s going to be hard because, like I said, Brno is not one of my favourite circuits but now I have a strong motivation because I know that I’m growing step by step, so I want to keep this rhythm and keep learning.”

Hiroshi Aoyama, Drive 7 Aspar Honda:
“The tenth-place finish at Indianapolis gives us great motivation for the second half of the championship. It is really important that we came back strongly after the summer break but we still have a lot of work in front of us. We need to find some more mid-corner speed this weekend and some more confidence from the front. Hopefully we can get through practice without the setbacks we had last weekend. We will try to be strong from Friday and work from a good plan that will see us competitive right through the weekend.”

Karel Abraham, Cardion AB Motoracing:
“The Indy weekend was quite difficult but in the end we were rewarded with a good result, our best of the season. Now we go straight into our home race and the home team always looks forward to racing at Brno, in front of all the fans. As always, we will do our best and on this occasion we hope that the support of the home fans will also help us to do well.”

Leon Camier, Drive 7 Aspar Honda:
“Even though I didn't manage to finish my debut MotoGP race at Indianapolis I learnt a lot of things – mainly in terms of the direction we need to go with the chassis set-up and what I need to do to ride this bike fast. Hopefully at Brno we can continue working in the same way. I felt more comfortable with every passing lap of Sunday’s race and understood what I needed to do to improve my pace, so I think that will be an important step for us going into this weekend at a circuit I know well.”


Bradley Smith, Monster Yamaha Tech3:
"After a good summer break it was decent way to commence the second half of the seasonwith a 6th placed finish in Indy as this is where I need to be. There is no rest this time as we are straight back to Europe for Brno, which I am really fired up for and where I will once again be doing my best to get close to the factory MotoGP bikes. My finger is healing gradually and as always I will be giving my all to get a top result in the Czech Republic with my confidence high. I qualified well last year where I achieved my joint highest qualifying result of my rookie year in 6th and even though the race didn’t go to plan, this year I am aiming to continue the good form found at Indianapolis. The fast sweeping corners of Brno should suit the Yamaha YZR-M1’s character, so I hope to qualify in the top six and then really go for it on Sunday."

Pol Espargaro, Monster Yamaha Tech3:
"The first thing I must say is that it was good to finish Indy with a strong result after the summer break. I am feeling more confident every time I run with the Yamaha YZR-M1 and for round 11 in the Czech republic, I intend to step it up further. The Brno circuit is great fun to ride especially with the hills and flowing corners, so for me I am very excited to see what the Yamaha and I can do here this weekend with my results at Brno being good in the past, including qualifying on the front row here last year in Moto2. At beyond the mid point of this season I am still learning although enjoying myself a lot so for sure, it will be a long race where we will have to work hard to get everything set up for a strong qualifying on Saturday then the Grand Prix on Sunday, but I can’t wait to get going and ride the hills at Brno!"

***Couple more ***


Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team #04)
“Brno is a nice, difficult track and totally different from Indianapolis. I like its up-and-down layout, even though it’s not one of my favorite circuits. The track itself has got a lot of straights, and my Desmosedici GP14 is certainly not lacking in power after the debut of the new engine at Indianapolis, so I’m feeling confident that we can again be closer to the others, like we were at Indy.”

Cal Crutchlow (Ducati Team #35)
“I’m looking forward to going back to Brno, which is one of my favourite circuits, and I’ll be aiming to get a good result there. The track seems more suitable for the Ducati, because there are a lot of hard acceleration areas where I think we can gain some time, and the GP14 is also strong in the braking zone, even though we still need to still improve the cornering. My guys are working very hard for me and I look forward to working with them again in Brno.”

Michele Pirro (Ducati Test Team #51)
“I am very happy to return to the track to take part in a grand prix race. I have been training hard and I hope to be able to help the engineers to gather data on this track, but at the same time I want to try and get as close as possible to the factory riders. The Brno circuit is not one of my favourites, but I am convinced that in any case I can get a good result.”

[954Stealth]

What do you think of the news of the British Grand Prix potentially moving from Silverstone to the Circuit of Wales?

[954Stealth]

"I'm not afraid to lose"
-- Marc Marquez



Yeah, I'm not usually afraid of things that won't happen either lol

[954Stealth]

Referring to tomorrow:

"We’ll have to work hard from Friday to give ourselves the best chance on Sunday!"

--Marc Marquez