I return to Europe “americanized” after a week in Indianapolis, where after two races without finishing I returned to take points and witnessed a Spanish hattrick in Moto2. Now I’ll be home for a day, just enough to wash clothes and say hello and goodbye, because we’re going to Misano.

“Americanized”. Hello friends. I’m already turning into an American after so many days in the USA, I was almost a week there, because I usually travel on Wednesday to the races, but when we have time differences I like to go early to get used to it and to be in good condition for the weekend. A weekend that was, in general, very good for Spanish motorcycle racing, getting six podiums including two wins.

Debut. There was new asphalt on the track which was needed, because the old was cracked and even had grass growing through the cracks, it was fatal. And like all circuits when they are resurfaced, in the first session there is no grip. Moreover, the track was dirty, it was a mix between wet and dry while riding with dry tyres, making it almost a balancing act. But session after session the conditions and laptimes improved, in MotoGP and Moto2 the pole position record was broken and the circuit record in all three categories, all thanks to the new asphalt without bumps. Since at the beginning the track was not perfect I had to modify the bike almost every time we went on track as the grip was changing, but anyway, at this track we were struggling a bit more, we ride in the opposite direction of how the layout was designed and so the corners are a little strange, different from a normal circuit. You need to have good engine power in the corners to get out of them fast and I think in this regard Honda and Yamaha are a bit ahead of us. Anyway, we did a good job over the weekend, because from the first session onwards all riders had problems with the front tyre because of the new asphalt; it was destroyed quickly and it would be difficult to get to the end of the race with it in good condition, but we were searching for a setting after the qualifying with which it could last for more laps.

We needed points. Sunday, finally, after a not too bad qualifying – I started from ninth – but honestly, I did not have the pace throughout the weekend to be with the top riders because of what I told you earlier. But my strategy was clear, try to make a good start and push for the maximum with the leading group; I also could benefit from other riders having tyre problems, like it happened to Simoncelli. I had a great time when I went to pass Hayden, Edwards and Simoncelli and even trying to follow Spies and Dovizioso at first, but they had a different pace and I could not follow, and later defending the attacks from Colin until I could open a gap to him. It was the maximum we could do; if no one crashes or has a mechanical problem, then sixth or seventh was the best, so I’m happy with the result because I gave my best with what I had, there wasn’t any more. And also because after the last two races, which were good but we didn’t finish, we needed to finish and get points to gain confidence. I am now convinced that everything will be better. I think Stoner is already quite clearly the one to take the title and he is showing an incredible level, it will be difficult for anyone to take the title from him.

Spanish hattrick. Congratulations to the Spanish hattrick in Moto2, led by Marquez who was far above his rivals and is cutting the gap to Bradl in the championship a lot, it starts to get a Spanish air. And of course, great race for Pol Espargaro and Rabat. Let’s see if we see Pol more often in the top positions like in the 125cc class. And Tito, who is doing great and has now topped it off with a podium. In 125cc we finally see a Grand Prix without problems for Nico and at a high level, he did a great first part of the race, breaking the circuit record three or four laps in a row and getting more dominance and distance in the championship. It was also a nice fight for second place and in regards to Viñales, getting a new podium, this guy is showing a lot of promise.

Greetings and farewell. And this has been the weekend at Indy, now I’m a day at home, just to wash clothes and say hello and goodbye, because this week we’re going to Misano. Last year I finished eighth and I think I can do well; we have good references from the work in 2010 and it will help us to be more competitive and I hope that my Suzuki will perform at the level of the last races and we can be closer to the riders on the podium. There will also be a surprise on Sunday, so do not miss the race! See you next week!

Source: AS.com
Photo: Rizla Suzuki MotoGP

Álvaro Bautista recorded his best dry race finish of the season so far at Indianapolis today as he raced to an impressive sixth on his Rizla Suzuki GSV-R.

Starting from ninth on the grid, Bautista got a good start and was in seventh at the end of the first lap. He then got involved in a local battle as he fought with the Americans on their home circuit over the next few laps. He got past Nicky Hayden and fought off the constant attacks of Colin Edwards, before resisting the Texan’s advances to leave him comfortably behind.

Today’s race was watched by 64,151 fans at trackside, and under the clear blue skies they saw another convincing victory from Honda’s Casey Stoner, as he took his seventh victory from 12 races to strengthen his championship lead.

Rizla Suzuki now heads straight back across the Atlantic for the next round of the 2011 season, when the San Marino Grand Prix takes place at Misano in Italy on Sunday 4th September.

Álvaro Bautista: “I am happy with today’s position because this weekend we didn’t have the same rhythm as we have done in the last couple of races. I had a good qualifying session, but I was not quite on par with the top guys and that meant I couldn’t really stay with them and fight in the race. I made a decent start and overtook a couple of riders, but I just couldn’t keep up with the front group. We struggled a bit more at this track because we just couldn’t get the bike to turn how we wanted it to and I think we were not quite at the same level as some of the others around here. I was consistent throughout the whole race and had a couple of good battles with other riders – especially with Edwards – but at the end I got a good rhythm and was able to get some distance on the riders behind. I think today was the best result we could have got – so we did the maximum. We now go to Misano and I think we can be more competitive from the beginning, so I am really looking forward to the race.

“One other thing that was very important was to finish the race as I have crashed in the last two, so I am very happy that I did that! It gives us more motivation and also the team needed a result. I want to say a big thank-you to the whole team for the passion that they showed this weekend and now we are in the best position to make another step forward.”

Paul Denning – Team Manager: “After showing so much potential in Laguna and Brno – and coming home with nothing – it was great to see Álvaro take the chequered flag today. It was a well won sixth place and it was richly deserved for him and the whole team. I don’t think this is one of the best tracks for us and we were only beaten by the three Repsol Hondas and the two factory Yamahas. This bodes well for the rest of the season, and we’re looking forward to Misano.”

Source: Rizla Suzuki MotoGP

After two non-finishes Alvaro finally converted his improved pace in recent races into an excellent 6th place at the Indianapolis Grand Prix. He made a decent start and improved one position in the first corners, being gifted another one as Ben Spies had a moment and went wide and Alvaro was able to go past.

He held that 7th place for much of the first part of the race, fending off a rather large group going back to 11th position. He was later battling with various riders, eventually losing out one place and sitting in 8th until he was able to pass Hayden and Simoncelli in the latter stages of the race and then continuously posted fast laptimes to hold on to the position for the rest of the race, successfully defending it against home hero Colin Edwards who made an effort to close the gap, but finally had to let Alvaro go who reached the chequered flag in a rather lonely position as the large gaps settled the first places with several laps to go.

Pos. Num. Rider Team Time/Gap
1 27 Casey STONER Repsol Honda Team 46’52.786
2 26 Dani PEDROSA Repsol Honda Team +4.828
3 11 Ben SPIES Yamaha Factory Racing +10.603
4 1 Jorge LORENZO Yamaha Factory Racing +16.576
5 4 Andrea DOVIZIOSO Repsol Honda Team +17.202
6 19 Alvaro BAUTISTA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP +30.447
7 5 Colin EDWARDS Monster Yamaha Tech 3 +39.690
8 14 Randy DE PUNIET Pramac Racing Team +53.416
9 7 Hiroshi AOYAMA San Carlo Honda Gresini +53.790
10 46 Valentino ROSSI Ducati Team +55.345
11 35 Cal CRUTCHLOW Monster Yamaha Tech 3 +57.184
12 58 Marco SIMONCELLI San Carlo Honda Gresini +1’00.141
13 24 Toni ELIAS LCR Honda MotoGP +1’02.169
14 69 Nicky HAYDEN Ducati Team 2 Laps

Not Classified
8 Hector BARBERA Mapfre Aspar Team MotoGP 1 Lap
17 Karel ABRAHAM Cardion AB Motoracing 8 Laps
65 Loris CAPIROSSI Pramac Racing Team 12 Laps

Rizla Suzuki’s Álvaro Bautista made a determined effort in this afternoon’s qualifying session at Indianapolis to ensure he has a grid position that gives him a chance of a good result for tomorrow’s race.

Bautista will start from the third row after qualifying in ninth place with a best lap–time of 1’40.333 from his 28-laps. He thoroughly tested the Bridgestone race tyres that he had available, to get the best option for Sunday. Bautista is still looking for a bit more durability from his preferred front tyre selection, but believes the team will be able to make a few changes to the set-up of the GSV-R to assist with tyre life in readiness for the race.

Today’s qualifying at the 4,216m Indianapolis Motor Speedway was held in warm and sunny conditions with track temperatures getting up to 51ºC. Current championship leader Casey Stoner took pole position, with American Ben Spies in second, and reigning World Champion Jorge Lorenzo making up the front row.

Tomorrow’s 28-lap race is round 12 of the 2011 MotoGP World Championship and the lights will go out to signal the start of the race at 14.00hrs local time (18.00hrs GMT).

Álvaro Bautista: “The qualifying today was not too bad compared with the last few races, so this is a lot better for us. We tried a long run at the start of the session and the grip from the rear was no problem, but the front did not have enough life in it to make a full race length. This will make things difficult for tomorrow, because we have to try and preserve the front tyre and make sure we have enough durability for 28-laps. We are starting from the third row so the main thing will be to get a good start and stay with the front guys. We will look at today’s data to see if we can use a setting that will give us more life in the tyre and stop it dropping off and sliding around. I am looking forward to tomorrow because we have a better grid position and I will give it full gas and 100% to get a good result.”

Paul Denning – Team Manager:
“I don’t think Álvaro or anyone else on the team is particularly excited with ninth on the grid, but the third row gives us a decent chance to go with the fast guys on the early laps and challenge for a good result tomorrow. We’ve done a number of long runs and as much as 35-laps on a race rear tyre – and the rhythm was still pretty good. We now need Álvaro to race aggressively tomorrow like he has done recently and I think we can hope to have an exciting afternoon.”

Source: Rizla Suzuki

Alvaro improved his fastest laptime at Indianapolis again by over half a second in qualifying which helped him to sneak into ninth position right at the end of the session this afternoon, securing a start from the outside of the third row on the grid tomorrow.

Behind the top three riders the gap again started to open up and positions four to 13 were covered by less than a second with Alvaro right in the middle of the pack. The close laptimes raise hopes to see another great race tomorrow with a large second group battling for the positions.

Pos. Rider Team Time Gap 1st/Prev.
1 Casey STONER Repsol Honda Team 1’38.850
2 Ben SPIES Yamaha Factory Racing 1’39.373 0.523 / 0.523
3 Jorge LORENZO Yamaha Factory Racing 1’39.629 0.779 / 0.256
4 Dani PEDROSA Repsol Honda Team 1’39.947 1.097 / 0.318
5 Andrea DOVIZIOSO Repsol Honda Team 1’40.024 1.174 / 0.077
6 Colin EDWARDS Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1’40.098 1.248 / 0.074
7 Marco SIMONCELLI San Carlo Honda Gresini 1’40.204 1.354 / 0.106
8 Nicky HAYDEN Ducati Team 1’40.244 1.394 / 0.040
9 Alvaro BAUTISTA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1’40.333 1.483 / 0.089
10 Hector BARBERA Mapfre Aspar Team MotoGP 1’40.360 1.510 / 0.027
11 Cal CRUTCHLOW Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1’40.620 1.770 / 0.260
12 Randy DE PUNIET Pramac Racing Team 1’40.815 1.965 / 0.195
13 Hiroshi AOYAMA San Carlo Honda Gresini 1’40.925 2.075 / 0.110
14 Valentino ROSSI Ducati Team 1’40.975 2.125 / 0.050
15 Toni ELIAS LCR Honda MotoGP 1’41.030 2.180 / 0.055
16 Karel ABRAHAM Cardion AB Motoracing 1’41.085 2.235 / 0.055
17 Loris CAPIROSSI Pramac Racing Team 1’41.092 2.242 / 0.007

The new track surface at Indianapolis is steadily improving as more rubber is put on the tarmac and the racing line is cleaned, again showing clearly in the drop of laptimes during the third and final free practice session of the MotoGP class this morning.

Alvaro managed to improve his laptime by over a second compared to yesterday and broke into the 1’40s with his last lap of the session, finishing in tenth position, only 0.001 seconds behind Randy De Puniet in ninth.

Meanwhile Casey Stoner went on to break the lap record as him and teammate Dani Pedrosa as well as home hero Ben Spies seem to be a step above the rest so far. Behind them a bigger gap opens up, making Alvaro’s gap of 1.3 seconds to Stoner look not too bad in comparison. His consistent laptimes are again encouraging and promise another good battle mid-pack.

Pos. Rider Team Time Gap 1st/Prev.
1 Casey STONER Repsol Honda Team 1’39.538
2 Ben SPIES Yamaha Factory Racing 1’39.670 0.132 / 0.132
3 Dani PEDROSA Repsol Honda Team 1’39.896 0.358 / 0.226
4 Marco SIMONCELLI San Carlo Honda Gresini 1’40.301 0.763 / 0.405
5 Andrea DOVIZIOSO Repsol Honda Team 1’40.326 0.788 / 0.025
6 Colin EDWARDS Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1’40.438 0.900 / 0.112
7 Jorge LORENZO Yamaha Factory Racing 1’40.547 1.009 / 0.109
8 Valentino ROSSI Ducati Team 1’40.698 1.160 / 0.151
9 Randy DE PUNIET Pramac Racing Team 1’40.915 1.377 / 0.217
10 Alvaro BAUTISTA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1’40.916 1.378 / 0.001
11 Nicky HAYDEN Ducati Team 1’41.067 1.529 / 0.151
12 Cal CRUTCHLOW Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1’41.209 1.671 / 0.142
13 Loris CAPIROSSI Pramac Racing Team 1’41.496 1.958 / 0.287
14 Hector BARBERA Mapfre Aspar Team MotoGP 1’41.512 1.974 / 0.016
15 Toni ELIAS LCR Honda MotoGP 1’41.676 2.138 / 0.164
16 Karel ABRAHAM Cardion AB Motoracing 1’41.740 2.202 / 0.064
17 Hiroshi AOYAMA San Carlo Honda Gresini 1’41.889 2.351 / 0.149

Rizla Suzuki’s Álvaro Bautista achieved a solid result at Indianapolis in America today with ninth place on the leader-board to show for his hard work.

Bautista was one of the busiest riders today, as he completed 41 laps around the 4,216m circuit during the two sessions He recorded his best time of 1’42.231 on his penultimate lap and is sure that both he and the Suzuki GSV-R have more to give this weekend. Bautista worked hard with his crew to get the best of the difficult conditions at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, as the newly surfaced circuit presented a whole lot of problems for all riders. The recently laid asphalt has not had much use, making it very slippery, but as the day wore on – and more rubber was laid down by the bikes from all three classes – the conditions improved, enabling Bautista to record a time three seconds quicker in the afternoon than he did in the morning.

Today’s practices were held in bright sunshine and air temperatures rose to 31ºC. Current World Championship leader Casey Stoner on a Honda recorded the fastest time of the day, with reigning World Champion Jorge Lorenzo fourth.

Bautista will have one more practice session tomorrow morning, followed by an hour of qualifying in the afternoon, when he will be going all out to get a good grid position for Sunday’s 28-lap race.

Álvaro Bautista: “This afternoon I was able to improve my lap-time because the track conditions were better than they were this morning. We still have some problems with turning the bike – we didn’t have good grip this morning because of the new surface, so this afternoon we tried to get more grip from the rear. We changed the setting of the bike, but because the track had improved and grip was better we lost a bit more turning in the corner. Now we know the track is much better, so for tomorrow we will try another setting and I’m sure that will improve things even further. We still have a lot of work to do, but I am happy with situation at the moment. We are in ninth position and I know we can still improve quite a lot. I hope to continue with the way we have been working today and in recent weeks in tomorrow’s sessions and I think we can take the bike further forward ready for Sunday.”

Source: Rizla Suzuki MotoGP

Another sunny and warm session for the MotoGP riders at Indianpolis saw the laptimes improve drastically from this morning as more rubber was laid down on the track and improved the grip conditions. Alvaro improved his laptime by over three seconds and also closed the gap to the front by almost half a second, finishing the session in ninth position.
Despite this clear progress there’s still work left to do for Alvaro and the team as the gap to eighth is almost half a second and they will be fighting hard to up the pace and again be able to fight with the second or third group in the race.

Pos. Rider Team Time Gap 1st/Prev.
1 Casey STONER Repsol Honda Team 1’40.724
2 Ben SPIES Yamaha Factory Racing 1’40.918 0.194 / 0.194
3 Dani PEDROSA Repsol Honda Team 1’41.205 0.481 / 0.287
4 Jorge LORENZO Yamaha Factory Racing 1’41.461 0.737 / 0.256
5 Andrea DOVIZIOSO Repsol Honda Team 1’41.536 0.812 / 0.075
6 Colin EDWARDS Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1’41.699 0.975 / 0.163
7 Marco SIMONCELLI San Carlo Honda Gresini 1’41.742 1.018 / 0.043
8 Nicky HAYDEN Ducati Team 1’41.789 1.065 / 0.047
9 Alvaro BAUTISTA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1’42.231 1.507 / 0.442
10 Randy DE PUNIET Pramac Racing Team 1’42.339 1.615 / 0.108
11 Valentino ROSSI Ducati Team 1’42.405 1.681 / 0.066
12 Hiroshi AOYAMA San Carlo Honda Gresini 1’42.673 1.949 / 0.268
13 Hector BARBERA Mapfre Aspar Team MotoGP 1’42.920 2.196 / 0.247
14 Loris CAPIROSSI Pramac Racing Team 1’43.034 2.310 / 0.114
15 Cal CRUTCHLOW Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1’43.085 2.361 / 0.051
16 Toni ELIAS LCR Honda MotoGP 1’43.230 2.506 / 0.145
17 Karel ABRAHAM Cardion AB Motoracing 1’43.528 2.804 / 0.298