As the preseason testing for the 2012 championship finally began at Sepang today, here are a few photos of Álvaro and his new 1000cc Honda RC213V out on track for the first time.

Photo Copyright: Honda Pro Images, Gresini Racing

The 2012 MotoGP season officially got underway today with the first day of preseason testing at Sepang. There was a melancholy feel to the day following the tragic events of October and the memory of Marco Simoncelli remains in the hearts of all those present, as it will for many years to come.

Shortly before lunchtime Alvaro Bautista took to the circuit on board the Honda RC213V for a shakedown that became more and more encouraging as the laps went by. By the end of the session he had completed 45 circulations of the Malaysian track, with some impressive lap times and a positive early feel for the Honda RC213V.

Alvaro Bautista (2’ 02” 869 – 45 laps) “This was my first day on the RC213V and I am very pleased with it because I instantly felt comfortable riding a ‘thousand’. Obviously after a three-month break from racing it is not easy to get back out there because you have to reset your mind and body to the task and rediscover your pace. We have worked on adapting the bike to my riding style and I have just tried to get confident without worrying about lap times at this early stage. I am satisfied because I am working well with the team and everybody is putting in a lot of effort. Over the next two days we will work on general set-up and the electronics but I am already feeling positive because we are not too far off the fastest times and we haven’t started pushing yet.”

Source: Gresini Racing

It’s been a good first day on the 1000cc Honda for Álvaro. After a rainshow during the night proceedings started a bit later than expected and the MotoGP riders only went out on track after 11.00 local time. Álvaro made a quick start, finishing the first session before the lunch break in fourth position with a time of 2.04’110 seconds, but having only done seven laps so far.

Except for Dani Pedrosa he was the busiest rider on track, completing 45 laps throughout the day and he improved his laptime considerably in the afternoon, closing in to the fastest rider Lorenzo until under a second. But ultimately he didn’t improve enough anymore in the latter stages of the second session and finished the day in ninth position with a laptime of 2.02’869 seconds, 1,212 seconds behind quickest man Lorenzo.

The Yamahas had a very strong first day overall, taking over three of the first four positions with only Dani Pedrosa breaking their dominance with the second-fastest laptime. However, hot favourite Casey Stoner did not get out on track all day after pulling a muscle and re-injuring his back before even getting on the bike. He’s expected to join the test tomorrow after receiving extensive physiotherapy and anti-inflammatory medicine.

Final results Day 1

Pos	Rider	Team	Fastest lap	Prev. Gap	Lead. Gap	Laps
1	Jorge Lorenzo	Yamaha Factory Racing	2:01.657	-	-	30
2	Dani Pedrosa	Repsol Honda Team	2:02.003	+0.346	+0.346	48
3	Cal Crutchlow	Monster Yamaha Tech 3	2:02.221	+0.218	+0.564	32
4	Ben Spies	Yamaha Factory Racing	2:02.234	+0.013	+0.577	28
5	Valentino Rossi	Ducati Team	2:02.392	+0.158	+0.735	43
6	Andrea Dovizioso	Monster Yamaha Tech 3	2:02.751	+0.359	+1.094	20
7	Hector Barbera	Pramac Racing Team	2:02.773	+0.022	+1.116	41
8	Katsuyuki Nakasuga	Yamaha Factory	2:02.829	+0.056	+1.172	32
9	Alvaro Bautista	San Carlo Honda Gresini	2:02.869	+0.040	+1.212	45
10	Nicky Hayden	Ducati Team	2:03.151	+0.282	+1.494	33
11	Stefan Bradl	LCR Honda	2:03.668	+0.517	+2.011	44
12	Karel Abraham	Cardion AB Motoracing	2:03.781	+0.113	+2.124	45
13	Franco Bataini	Ducati Team	2:04.986	+1.205	+3.329	35
14	Casey Stoner	Repsol Honda Team	2:07.163	+2.177	+5.506	4
15	Colin Edwards	NGM Mobile Forward Racing	2:08.240	+1.077	+6.583	21
16	Jordi Torres	Avintia Racing	2:10.671	+2.431	+9.014	42
17	Ivan Silva	Avintia Racing	2:11.267	+0.596	+9.610	12

Results Table: motogp.com

Showa has chosen to make their return to the MotoGP World Championship with Team San Carlo Honda Gresini, a show of faith in the prestigious Italian team, who will line up riders in the MotoGP, Moto2 and Moto3 classes this season. The new deal is a revival of a previous relationship between Showa and Fausto Gresini’s team, who hope to relive some of the many successes enjoyed together in the past.

Yoichi Hojo (President Showa Corporation) “It is our greatest pleasure to announce that through cooperation with TEAM SAN CARLO HONDA GRESINI, we will be making our return to the world’s most prominent motorcycle race. We have competed in MotoGP together with TEAM SAN CARLO HONDA GRESINI in the past, so it is heartening to be able to aim for the ultimate finish line together with our trusted friends. Showa Suspension will be used in the all of the race classes (MotoGP, the Moto2, CRT, and in the Moto3) so in addition to our expectations, we are also feeling a keen sense of responsibility. With Showa’s latest technologies being used in all the classes, we will continue to strive in the hopes of contributing to a championship win for the team.”

Fausto Gresini “To link up again with an important technical partner like Showa is a source of pride and great satisfaction for Team San Carlo Honda Gresini. We have enjoyed significant success together in the past and we hope to recreate that winning feeling again with this new deal. The technical support of a partner such as Showa is fundamental in MotoGP but especially so with additional projects such as CRT, Moto 2 and Moto3. We are sure that we can create a positive technical synergy with Showa that translates into top results on the track.”

We’ve completely overhauled our E-Cards section.
It’s easier to use than ever and contains a fab selection of over 100 classic Alvaro images.
Just click on the button beneath the image you want to send, fill in the ‘to’ and ‘from’ details, write your message – and press ‘Send’.
That’s it!
So easy – and loads of fun – you’ll really light up someone’s face with one of these fantastic E-Cards.
Click here to send an Alvaro Bautista E-Card now….

As the new season approaches and testing gets underway we thought we’d add to your fever with a very funky set of icons by site editor stv21.

There are 30 in all – ideal for forum avatars and messenger apps etc.
Just click here to download them.
We’ll be givgin them a permanent slot on the Downloads page soon too – and if you’ve never been there do go and look as there’s some great icons and wallpapers.

Enjoy

And share…

Spanish journalist Mela Chércoles sat down with Álvaro ahead of the first official test of the 2012 season which gets underway at Sepang this week to ask him a few things about last year, this year, Honda, Suzuki, CRT, Simoncelli and rekindled passion. Below you can find the complete translation.

Alvaro Bautista arrived on Saturday in Malaysia for the Sepang test, starting on Tuesday, “with renewed enthusiasm”, the result of having left behind the calamities of Suzuki to ride a bike like Stoner. The Malaysian city of Kuala Lumpur again welcomes Bautista, but this time the Talaverano brings a suitcase filled with more hope than ever. In his box at Sepang the promising 1000cc Honda RC213V, inherited from Simoncelli, awaits him instead of the slow train that was the Suzuki.

You’re radiating a sense of complete bliss. Is that the case?
I have renewed passion, because this season is a big change in my career and I face it with great enthusiasm, very eager to start and with the goal to ​​continue working as usual, but now with a good base before I even begin. That’s always more motivating than when you know you start on the back foot. With the Honda this is not the case.

Did you feel the winter was very long?
Honestly no, because I’ve been very focused on preparing as good as possible and had to undergo surgery to remove the nail which they put in in the fractured femur from Qatar.

And what a nail. It was like 42 centimetres, right?
Yes, it was huge. The size of the femur. For people to get an idea, it was like my whole thigh, from knee to hip.

How did everything go?
Very well and I’m at 100% now, even better than when I had the nail, because I’ve gained some mobility in the leg. I am recovering from the limitations I had.

How did you test that?
Basically with some motocross – carefully, because we already know that it’s dangerous – and cycling, fitness and flexibility exercises. No Supermoto, because now the asphalt is very cold and I do not want to risk a crash. I’m getting stronger, because with the 1000cc I do not know what I’m going to find.

Has Honda already shelled out and given you a Honda CRF for Motocross?
[Laughs] They’re going to.

What goal have you set yourself for this test in Sepang?
I think I’ll have to slow myself down a bit, to curb my enthusiam. [Laughs] The tests in Sepang are very tough – three days, very hot, with a lot of humidity and especially coming from three months without riding a MotoGP bike. Added to this it will be a 1000cc with more power and as on the first day I’ll do laps at the maximum, on the third I’ll be drained, because the muscles are not used to it. We must get the body and mind used to the speed again. Besides, I’ll get to know a new bike and a new team. I didn’t set objectives. Just getting the feeling and enjoy riding. There will be time to push. Now we have to go from little to more, not wanting more than what’s possible.

That’s all fine, but the fastest in this test last year was Simoncelli and that gave him a tremendous motivation…
[Laughs] It’s always nice to be ahead, even if it’s only in a test. But right now I have still a lot to learn, because it is a new bike, 1000cc instead of 800cc, and a new team. Moreover there’ll be the novelty that I will ride the forks and rear suspension from Showa instead of Öhlins, as the others. And to that you also have to adapt.

Are you worried that your Honda uses Showa and not Öhlins like Stoner and Pedrosa?
It is a proposal they made and, after thinking it through, it may have more pros than cons if all goes well, because Showa has been the suspension for Honda forever, except the last two years. The bad thing is that we will not have data from other riders. I’ll be the only one and have to make my way alone, but I’m used to this after my two years at Suzuki. Now it won’t be a whole bike, only the suspension and I made the final decision.

It helped the decision that your crew chief Antonio Jiménez has experience with Showa…
Yes. He has worked extensively with Showa and when he was with Melandri he saw that there was not much difference between Öhlins and Showa, neither regarding laptimes nor the feeling for the rider. Also, Showa is almost owned by Honda and its suspension brand of a lifetime.

Inevitable question: Have you been in contact with Gresini and do you feel they’ve absorbed the loss of Simoncelli yet?
We’ve spoken a few times on the phone to send best wishes for the holidays, but I talked more with Toni Jiménez, who is my technician and has already been at HRC testing the bikes and told me about the feeling he had. It seems that the team is once again completely and very excited about this project. I noticed that also with the sponsors. It’s always hard to forget what happened last year, but right now people are eager to smile again.

Will you carry a 58?
Of course, Marco’s 58 will be on the bike, leathers or helmet.

Does it give you a bad feeling to be the substitute for a deceased rider?
Wherever Marco is, he’d want the best for the team with which he made his debut in MotoGP and with which he took his first podium. It doesn’t give me a bad feeling at all. These things happen and that’s it. We don’t have to delve into it. Marco is in our memories and in our hearts, so we try to do a good season and dedicate it to him. The day I get my first podium in MotoGP it will be for him. Now we must prepare well to try to get on the podium in this category.

Last year you were well-liked among the grid and most were glad of your good results with Suzuki, the fifth places. Is that no longer so?
[Laughs again] Yes, sure I saw that some were glad when I took a fifth place with Suzuki, but I don’t care what people think of me. Moreover, I hope this year they won’t get along with me because I beat those who say: ‘Oh look, how nice, the poor little thing has finished seventh’. But let’s see how I feel with the Honda. I have worked hard during the winter to prepare as good as possible.

—-

Bautista also talked about the arrival of the CRT, the bikes with engines derived from the series and a prototype chassis. “The CRTs will be a test. They want to cut costs, like in Moto2, and if that’s successful it’s not a bad idea. I’m not saying they are dangerous. If they are too slow, then in a race they’ll get the blue flag and will be passed. It will be more or a problem in practice… But what matters is not the bike but the riders, because some coming to MotoGP lack the experience for the category. We’ll see what happens.”

And about the 1000cc: “I don’t know how much will change. They tried to cut costs and everything’s been a lot more expensive. The 800cc was a pocket rocket and I don’t know what I’ll find with the 1000cc, but it seems “too much bike” for the show. The people want that in the corners and it’s unnecessary to go 360km/h on the straights. The spectators want passes and see group fights in the races.

Source: AS.com

After the announcement that Barracuda would become an official team sponsor for San Carlo Honda Gresini during the 2012 season, the Italian company has published first photos of the new 2012 bike design with their logo. This is what Álvaro’s Honda RC213V will look like.

In other and less cool news, Álvaro has been dealing with tendinitis in his right arm for about a week now, regularly visiting his physiotherapist to fix the problem before having to leave for the Sepang test which starts in exactly one week. However, Álvaro is confident the arm won’t be a problem for testing, so we keep our fingers crossed he’ll be alright for his first ride on the 1000cc Honda.

And with the pre-season testing finally upon us in just a short time, it’s been announced that most of the CRT teams won’t be testing in Sepang due to financial reasons and will instead be testing in Valencia, Jerez and Aragon while the MotoGP prototypes are out in Malaysia. For the final test in Jerez – the “GP Zero” – all bikes of the class will be on track together for the first time. Here’s a quick overview of the MotoGP test dates still to come.

Sepang I – January 31st to Februay 2nd
Sepang II – February 28th to March 1st
Jerez – March 23rd to March 25th

Photo: Barracuda Facebook Page