CEO of Dorna Sports S.L, Carmelo Ezpeleta, was present at Wrooom 2012 this week in Madonna de Campiglio where he spoke about future MotoGP™ class regulations.

The MotoGP grid has an enrollment of 21 bikes for 2012, including twelve factory bikes and nine members of the new CRT category. Regarding this mix, Ezpelata stated: “We must immediately do two things: The first is to keep the grid is as compact as possible. This is not to say that there will be no differences, but to make sure that the CRT bikes are as close as possible to the factory bikes. Second, that factory bikes don’t technologically advance to performance levels that could be dangerous, with costs that can’t be assumed. For the problem is not just how to reduce costs, it’s that if someone invests a significant amount, wins the Championship and then leaves, it leaves you with nothing.”

In this regard, Ezpeleta says that communication is ongoing with manufacturers. “We have three manufacturers – Ducati, Yamaha and Honda. I’m talking with them and I have ideas for making the championship more competitive. The basics of motorsport are the combination of entertainment and technology. In times of crisis, if we cut back on something, it must be in technology, not the entertainment, which both television and circuits pay for. Again, I’m talking to the manufacturers and I think we will come to a conclusion in May as to how the championship will look from 2013.”

The CEO of Dorna is positive he can convince the manufacturers of the advantages these changes will bring: “Manufacturers are aware of the situation, not least because the crisis is affecting them too,” he said. “The problem is that, for them, the priority has always been the technological development. And this development has made the cost of the bikes too high, which until now have been offered on lease. On the other hand, this technology that has made the motorcycles running up front lightning-fast has also created an issue with competition, because they are so superior.”

“I think we will be able to resolve these issues by consensus,” he continued. “If not, we have ideas, such as the introduction of a spec ECU or a rev limit, which could be launched as early as 2013, a year in which the Championship will be completely different compared to 2012.”

“The establishment of the single unit, according to the manufacturers, would be the biggest limiter to continued technological development. We are looking at what the best way of limiting the performance—and thereby costs—will be, to ensure that a satellite team will be able to obtain bikes at a maximum of one million Euros per season, whether through selling, through a long term leasing commitment, or through CRTs, although this cost seems excessive to me for a CRT.”

Source: motogp.com

Ever wondered what goes through a rider’s mind when he keeps on doing one perfect lap after another? Or how he still manages to react on every tiny movement of the bike when everything starts going blurry around him at over 330 km/h? Chances are when you see a rider doing an outstanding job on track, he’s „in the zone“, a flow state which Clyde Brolin intensively and extensively deals with in his excellent debut book Overdrive – Formula 1 in the zone.

Brolin starts his exploration of this elusive and yet multi-present state with one significant event: Ayrton Senna’s perfect run in qualifying at Monaco in 1988. The now legendary Senna completely blitzed the competition, going much faster than anyone else even dared to. He later admitted that he felt he “was no longer driving the car consciously” and as soon as he realized that, he went back to the pits, frightened to go back out. He was almost 1.5 seconds ahead of his teammate and an astonishing 2.7 seconds ahead of the rest. In other words: He was out of this world.

In times when motorcycle media repeatedly talks about the „Aliens“ in MotoGP, who seem to be a step above the rest, this might sound familiar to you. But what is it that separates those riders from the mere „mortal“ rest on the grid?

Putting aside the semantic irrelevance of the term itself, there might be more to that difference than just better material. The specific state that Brolin describes in Overdrive allows an athlete – no matter if on four, two or no wheels at all – to do everything in flow, not consciously thinking about it, just naturally reacting and in extreme cases even reaching a state similar to out-of-body experiences. Despite the sound of it, this book is far from being esoteric.

One of the most important things Brolin draws from in his book and what makes this such a worthy read are the countless original quotes he collected over the years. Brolin obviously has good connections in the paddocks of the world and the athletes he spoke with about the subject are not limited to motorsport. And apart from the athletes themselves, the book assembles quotes from some of the greatest and most colourful minds in the world of professional sport to shine light on the topic from all sides.

Even though it is intended to be read from cover to cover, one of the great features of Overdrive is that you can jump in and out of it at any point – starting with a quote from your favourite athlete for example – but still get sucked in immediately and always take something away from it.

If you’re only interested in two-wheeled motorsports, don’t let the title fool you, because this book is still for you. Aside from the fact that the state of flow Brolin describes fits MotoGP and other motorsports just as well as any sport (citing athletes such as Boris Becker for good measure) it includes insightful quotes from some of MotoGP’s greatest riders as well as from legendary people behind the scenes such as Jerry Burgess, Valentino Rossi, Casey Stoner, Troy Bayliss, John Surtees and Doctor Claudio Costa, to name just a few.

Quite frankly, you don’t even need to be an avid follower of any of these sports. You don’t need to know anything about Senna’s career to follow the outstanding achievements of him described in the book. What this book is about is not a mere look AT athletes, it’s an attempt to look INSIDE athletes and therefore a look inside all of us and what is possible for us to achieve.

Overdrive is quite an excellent read by a first-time author, chock-full of memorable and personal insights from some of motorsport’s biggest heroes and well-elaborated thoughts on a highly interesting topic. If you ever wondered how on earth the athletes you admire are capable of doing what they do or why they do it – this book is for you.

Copies sell at a low price on Amazon, so go and get one, you won’t regret it.

Official book website: OverdriveF1.com

Original Photos & Manipulation by Vroom Media

The MotoGP community has moved to do all it can to support those in Japan following the recent earthquake and its after-effects. The 17 riders in MotoGP have put their signatures on a specially printed t-shirt with the message – We are for Japan!

The T-Shirt will be for sale at a range of circuits on the World Championship calendar, as well as being available from the MotoGP website weforjapan.motogp.com It can be purchased for €20.

The funds collected through this initiative will be presented to a humanitarian organisation during the Japanese Grand Prix, which is scheduled to take place on October 2nd.

Unite with the MotoGP community and buy this T-Shirt to help the people of Japan. Please forward this information to friends, relatives and colleagues across the globe using every outlet of social media to bring the MotoGP paddock and fans together with the message WE ARE FOR JAPAN!

Álvaro Bautista: “It is very important to show our support to all the people in Japan during this tragic time. My thoughts go out to everyone affected by this awful event. The Japanese are a very strong race of people, but I am sure they will also welcome any support and assistance we can give them during this very dark time. Please buy this shirt and show that ‘We are for Japan!’”

Source: Rizla Suzuki MotoGP

The new season is just around the corner and no matter if you live in the United States, Australia or just anywhere with an internet connection – If you’re a fan of MotoGP then chances are that you’ve heard this commentator’s voice a lot of times before, bringing you the latest news from the track and the most interesting tidbits from the paddock.
Gavin Emmett has been around the MotoGP circus for almost a decade now, making his mark from early on. We had the chance to talk to Gavin at the 2010 Valencian Grand Prix and tried to find out a bit more about the man behind the voice.

How did you get into motorsport journalism originally, what’s your educational background?
My background is actually languages. I studied literature, Spanish and French at university. But this here is something I’ve always done, my dissertation was on Spanish sports media. It was just a different way to get into it.
I moved to Spain when Dorna invited me to come over because of the languages I spoke, that’s how I got into writing for the website. So it wasn’t a direct way into journalism, although my degree had some elements of communications in it and that sort of thing. It was sort of a roundabout way to get into it, but I was always gonna do languages, because that’s what I was best at.

How did you get to work with Dorna?
It was actually through Matt Roberts who was already working for Dorna in 2000 [Matt now works as MotoGP reporter for the BBC]. We were friends at university and he told me they needed someone else to help him run the website and he gave me the contact of the communications director. I got in contact with him and already a week later I was out in Barcelona, working for the website.
It was basically just me and Matt working on all the English content for the website. He worked for them from the start of 2001 and I was joining him pretty soon after.

And how did you go from there to becoming a commentator for the live feed?
I was only doing the web stuff for the first year really and already helping out doing the TV interviews. And back in that time we used to do a few in-the-house videos for Suzuki, Dunlop etc and I got that job. The videos for Suzuki which I did from about 2002 also used to have voice-over, so I was doing that too. And it just came from there. I used to do the trial voice-overs as well.
It’s just something I always wanted to do; I actually wanted to be a commentator since I was a little kid. And when I was with Dorna I pushed towards that side of things to get to do it and it was great, it moved on from there. First doing the Suzuki stuff and then Matt started doing commentary in 2003 and I joined him later that year, in Phillip Island, doing the commentary with Matt and Nick [Harris] from that year on.

What was your inspiration for wanting to become a commentator?
It’s just something I always wanted to do. I used to watch any sport on TV. I had almost an obsession with it and I always wanted to be a professional sportsman of some sort, but I was one of those Jacks Of All Trades, Master Of None. I think the only way I was ever gonna get into it was on the other side of the touch line, whether it’s in motorsports or field sports or anything. That was the only way for me to get into it really. My talent was more for writing and things like that, rather than taking part.

Did you do any specific training or practice before you started working as a commentator?
No, I haven’t done any of that. It’s just something I’ve studied in a passive sense through watching it so much since I was a kid and loved doing it. And I enjoy doing it to this day.

Leaving everything behind and coming down to Spain for work must have been difficult.
It wasn’t difficult whatsoever. I really wanted to use the chance. I wanted to work in sports, write, use my languages and travel. There was no way I’d say No to that. I was working in marketing before, at a recruitment company in London, because it was the first thing after coming out of university to pay the bills, and looking for stuff and it just happened. One of those quirks of fate.

Which do you consider your home now, Spain or England?
England. I moved back to England in 2009 for a change of scenery. I was in-house for Dorna and then I went freelance at the beginning of 2009.

Talking about your work, how do you prepare for a race weekend?
One of the main things I do – and people at home just laugh when I tell them, because they don’t consider it work – is just to read as much as I can and soak up the information. I read all the magazines I can and a lot of websites of course. Especially Italian and Spanish ones, because it’s one thing that a lot of the other English-speaking journalists can’t do, to get that information. Although it’s good that there are lots of people now who translate all those things, so that everyone can have access to it. But yeah, just doing lots of reading and preparation through research.
And as well, when you arrive on Thursday, just speaking with lots of people. You know the stories that are around and about, so you try to find out a bit more information, try to get a little bit of an edge, something that you might hold back until Sunday or until you’re actually back on air. I do actually enjoy the preparation side of it, the finding-things-out, finding the little tidbits.

Is there anything particular you always try to look out for in your commentary and reports, to make it your style?
Well, I really love reading the Italian and Spanish press, because they would just go and invent things. While to a certain extend the British press will also do that, it’s not to the same extend and with those liberties they take. And I would always try to get in some of the “This is what they’re talking about”, because some of these things are so out of left field. [laughs] I always say that with some of these journalists it’s like they just throw so many arrows that one of them will hit the bullseye. And it’s often like that. You can work out from a lot of situations the likely things that might happen. So, lots of times you’ll see them throwing stuff and suddenly they’ll get one thing right and then it’s “We told you!”. But they also told us a lot of other things… I always find that pretty funny.

How many languages do you actually speak?
I speak Spanish and French fluently. English I do alright with as well. [laughs] My Italian is something I’ve picked up in the paddock over the years, it’s okay. I get by talking to Italian riders and having conversations in Italian. Catalan I understand, but don’t speak, just from working in Dorna. And I can read the odd German thing, it’s been my best language actually, but since I’ve been 16 I never used it, so it’s now completely gone.

In a paddock that consists in large part of Spaniards and Italians, how much do you think is it a necessity for journalists to speak those languages?
I don’t think it’s a necessity, because most of the European journalists have to speak English for work. And we as British and American journalists are mostly a bit lazy learning another language for starters, so other people would usually learn English. But for me I consider it an asset. Whether it’s the likes of Lorenzo and Pedrosa – I’ve known them since they couldn’t speak English, when they were kids; I have seen them coming through and known the characters and these sort of things. I think you have a little edge in that. You know the English-speaking riders as well as the other journalists, but you also have a sense of the other riders, you get a little bit of an edge in what they’re like. Because whenever you talk in a foreign language, you’re a bit stilted, you might be a bit uncomfortable and not natural etc. Like Hector Barbera did the [Valencia pre-event] press conference in Spanish. He speaks okay English now, it’s not the best, but he’s trying. But when he speaks Spanish you work out that he’s actually a real funny guy and this sort of thing really comes across in their own languages. So for me I consider it an asset, it’s a bonus to have.

Getting to know the riders better over the years and working closely together, did you develop any friendships or favourites over that time? How do you maintain your distance to stay objective in your job?
Something I’ve really never tried is to be friends with a rider. I get on well with riders and enjoy their company, but I’ve always tried to keep a professional distance. I think some people don’t do that, they get a little too close to the riders and then become protective of them or not objective enough to be in this kind of situation. It’s important to keep that kind of relationship professional and I think most of the riders respect that as well, that you’re keeping some distance. I know some journalists who would ask for autographs and I never did that. I think once for charity I asked Valentino Rossi for an autograph. But it’s not something I would ever actually do. I think there’s a boundary there and it’s important to have that. So they [the riders] can respect you when you criticize them and they can respect your opinions as well; they know you’re an objective person and you only see things as you see them, rather than “This is my favourite rider, so I’m gonna believe this”.
I have the utmost respect for every single rider that crosses that line and goes out there. There’s nobody I dislike; there are maybe some personalities that are harder to deal with, but every single one has my utmost respect for going out there and doing what they do and providing us all with this show.

Do you find it easy to keep that distance or does it simply come with the job?
It comes pretty much naturally to me and it’s also a bit the way I am as well. Actually Nick Harris and I have talked about this and it’s not really an active thing at all, it’s just a way to do your profession I think. It’s just trying to keep that little bit of distance and have the respect for people’s job and livelihood. I don’t know if it’s something we’re really actively trying to do, it’s just how it is.

This is the first part of our exclusive interview with Gavin Emmett. The second part will be posted tomorrow.

Interview and photo by Vroom Media.
Screencap taken from After the Flag, Copyright Dorna Sports SL.

With the first MotoGP test of 2011 being only a couple more days away, several motorsport magazines, journalists and riders have finally awaken from their “media winter sleep” and suddenly new tidbits and interviews start flooding the MotoGP world again on a daily basis.
This includes quite a few short statements from Alvaro that have been published all over the place and one more longer interview that he did with the sport’s official website motogp.com. Few of the statements are really new as similar questions have been asked before, but for the sake of completion we collected all of them here.

Last Tuesday Alvaro attended the celebration of the 95th anniversary of the Real Moto Club de España in Madrid, joining Jorge Martinez, Angel Nieto and Julian Simon. During the event the Traffic Department of the Guardia Civil was honoured with a special award for their exemplary work, also on Grand Prix weekends. Alvaro agreed that the award was well-deserved: “I am one of those riders who sleep in the hotel rather than at the circuit and I can confirm how positively they have evolved in terms of access to the circuit, because there is no traffic chaos like it was before. Thank you for your work and keep going like this.”
Asked by at the event about the new season, Alvaro stated that he wants “to continue to grow in MotoGP, doing the best possible job on the Suzuki to then get the best possible results on track”. As he said in a previous interview his aim this year is to fight for a podium position in some races, but the main problem with the bike is that “it lacks grip in the entrance and exit of corners”. Nevertheless, he’s positive about the challenge: “Our bike has good parts and some not so good, so we have to improve those.”

On Friday the official Alvaro Bautista fanclub presented their new headquarters in Alvaro’s hometown Talavera de la Reina [as we reported earlier] with Bati himself also joining the presentation, stating that “I am convinced the collaboration with the Sport Center will be very good because, as we all know, it is a landmark. This will greatly benefit the Fan’s Club and, therefore, also myself, because surely it will give an opportunity for more people to join who maybe now are no fans because they don’t know me, but with the noise made here with this collaboration more of them will join the Fan’s Club. I’m confident that we’ll share a long and successful path together.”

Local journalists of course used the opportunity to ask the most famous resident of Talavera about his take on the new season and what expects from his second year in the big class. “I can’t wait to get back to action again, the winter kept me at home for a little too long”, he admitted. But for his second year in MotoGP his basic aspiration remains the same as last year and is characteristically humble: “What I hope to do this season is keep learning and evolving as a rider. Being the only rider for Suzuki the factory will work just for me, but I have the responsibility to develop this bike and make it competitive. It will again be a year of new experiences for me, but I think together with Suzuki we can make a good bike.” Pressed on about what results he expects to get in 2011, Alvaro stayed realistic: “Last year we were more or less regular, reaching almost always a place among the first eight and this year I think we can aim for more with the experience I have.”
Asked about the many major rider changes this year, including Rossi to Ducati and Stoner to Honda, Alvaro doesn’t seem fazed much by it. “Those who are fast will continue to be fast. It is a world championship and if anything it’ll be more difficult than last year, because from what I saw in the last test [at Valencia] the level is very high and there are many strong riders.”
Furthermore, he acknowledged that his own chances are somewhat limited. “If I said that my aim this year is the title, then I’d probably be lying, because I still have to learn a lot in this class. But I see the chance to fight for the podium in some races, it all depends on the work Suzuki and myself are doing this winter.”

In a more extensive interview with motogp.com Alvaro elaborates on the development of the Suzuki, talks about his off-season and reiterates his expectations for the new season as he did in previous interviews.

Alvaro, with the first test in Malaysia being close, tell us how you spent this winter break…
I took a week of vacation in the Caribbean to disconnect and then the first week of January I was in the mountains to go skiing. Except for those two weeks everything else was just flat out training, trying to get as strong as possible to begin the season at 100% physically.

How do see your second year of competiting in the premier class, now as the sole rider of an official team?
It’ll be a difficult year, but I have more experience with the bike and surely everything I learnt last season will help me. It’s true that I’ll be the only rider of the team and the one to represent it in every race. But I have a lot of confidence in Suzuki, because last year we did a great job of evolving the bike and we’ll continue that this year. Of course now it’s not enough anymore just to finish races. Last year we got two fifth positions and those were very good, but this year I’d like to fight for the podium in some races. I think if we do a good job in the pre-season it could be possible.

Is the lack of references from other Suzuki riders a handicap for you in the development of the GSV-R?
I always try to make the best of what I have. If I am the only rider the factory will work on what I ask them to. If there is another rider he maybe suggests a different path. I know they will work only for me and that is more positive because they will work with my references.

Where do you start your work at the Sepang test next week?
We begin with the setting we tested last time out in Valencia [in November]. We saw many positives there and will start from that basis. In Japan they have been working very hard this winter to try to get some improvements in this aspect. We tested a different engine position in the chassis and it looked like it gave a little more confidence, but we’ll have to confirm it in this test to see if we are going in the right direction.

Do you think the GSV-R can evolve to match the level of rivals such as Honda or Yamaha?
All bikes can improve. When Valentino went to Yamaha the bike was maybe inferior to the others and he made it to a winner. I believe that with hard work and knowing what to do in every moment it can be improved. Suzuki has the ability and potential to improve and we’ll see if we can do it this winter. I think we need a bit of rear grip at the entrance and exit of corners, and we will focus on improving this part; if we succeed, we will have made good progress.

After a year in MotoGP, how do you think you’ve evolved as a rider?
Well, I learned a lot last year. I had good experiences but also some bad ones, I injured my collarbone… I think I’ve matured a lot as a rider and I improved a bit at the end of the year. I have a lot to learn in this class, I still see myself as a bit of a greenhorn, but if I have no physical problems or injuries I think I can take a big step forward as a rider.

When you let your imagination run wild, where and how do you see your first podium or your first win in the premier class?
Uff, I don’t know, dreaming is free. I see myself in a future where I’m fighting for the world championship and of course that’s my goal and that’s why I’m here. I don’t know in which race I can win or how, but I know I have rivals who have won races – or even the title, like Lorenzo – and who I won against when I competed with them in other categories. Why shouldn’t I be able to do it in this class? But I also know that it is not easy and I have to work very hard for it.

How do you see the grid in 2011, with some “heavyweight” team changes like Stoner and Rossi and the arrival of new talents?
The rivals will be as strong as last year, if not more. There are riders who have switched bikes, but I don’t think it’s a disadvantage for them, because as we saw in the last test they still go as fast. The good thing is that I have more experience and when we get to a circuit we don’t have to start from scratch, instead using the references from last year, having a good base to improve. So this year will be easier for me, but at the same time the level is certainly higher than last year, because here they get better every year.

Sources: soymotero.net, La Tribuna de Talavera, motogp.com
Photos: RCME, caesarobriga.com

Despite the understandable media focus on the riders, MotoGP is essentially a team sport. All the natural talent and relentless work of a MotoGP rider only amounts to true competitiveness when he’s also got a good bike and the support of an excellent team to help him.
When Alvaro Bautista moved to the MotoGP class, his team suddenly became much bigger than it was in previous seasons in the smaller categories. And in every MotoGP team the most important go-to guy for a rider every weekend is his crew chief who represents the link between the feedback of the rider and what needs to be done on the bike.
Since Alvaro joined the Rizla Suzuki team last year, he has the calm and affable Tom O’Kane by his side who’s already worked in MotoGP for over a decade and with riders like Kenny Roberts Jr. and Chris Vermeulen.
We met up with the Irishman at the 2010 post-season test in Valencia and asked him a few questions about his work with Alvaro.

Looking at the current weather* would it make any sense for you to go out in wet conditions now to test? Do you have wet tyres to use?
We do have a set of wet tyres sitting there, yes, but probably it’d be better to wait and see if the conditions improve. But if it looks like it’s gonna be wet for both days then we might make the decision to run in the rain.

But regarding the development of the bike it wouldn’t make much sense for you to go out?
No, we only go out in the rain if we can’t get any dry time.

Okay, so let’s start the interview with your educational background and how you got into MotoGP.
I’ve got a Bachelor of Engineering and Electronic Engineering. I first started as an electronic engineer about twenty years ago and then moved into this job.

And how did you get to work for the Suzuki team?
I used to worked for Kenny Roberts Sr. when I started first in 1998 with Kenny’s team. I continued there until Kenny Jr. was working here with Suzuki and he asked me to come across and work as crew chief with him.

You’ve worked with different riders over the years, all with different riding styles and probably different ways of working as well. What is the biggest difference for you and what do you try to do when you get a new rider to work with?
You have to adapt to the rider. You know, Alvaro for example is much less interested in the detail of what we do with the bike than some of the other riders. Which for me is the ideal situation if you can have it. But on the other hand, when you have a rider who wants more technical information about the bike, you can’t say to him “No, no, you can’t have it”. You have to try to give him what he wants. But for me the ideal situation is if you have a rider who is just thinking about going fast and giving us the feedback on whether we are going in the right direction or not.

How much do you rely on what the rider tells you about the bike instead of taking it from the data?
100%. The data just gives us the quantity. The rider tells us what’s going on and we check the data just to see basically how to fix the problem that the rider reports on.

Are there ever situations when the rider tells you one thing, but the data maybe tells you differently? How do you go about that?
No, the thing is, people maybe sometimes overestimate how much the data tells you. There is not one channel on there that, for example, tells you how well the bike is turning. There are a number of channels where you can see the lean angle and the forces and so on, but if the rider says the bike doesn’t finish the corner then you can’t go to the data and see a channel which says “No, the bike is actually finishing the corner”. It just doesn’t work that way.

When asked about the impact of the new feedback coming from Valentino Rossi Ducati’s General Manager Filippo Preziosi also said something similar, that for the development of a bike there’s maximally 50% of it coming from the data, the other 50% comes from the feeling of the rider. Would you agree with that?
I don’t even think you can put a percentage on it. Because I think the data only plays a supporting role, you can’t really break that down into percentages. It’s not like it’s 50% rider here and 50% data there. It’s more like you have the rider information here and in the background you have the data when you want to go into more detail, you know.

You said that it’s an ideal situation for you if the rider doesn’t want to know that much about what you do with the bike and only focuses on going fast. But how much do you think is still necessary for the rider to know about the technical details of the bike, do you think it helps them to do their job better if they know what’s going on?
Up to a certain extend. Obviously certain things they have to be 100% aware of, like the tyre situation and some basic things. But if a rider asks you for example “What’s my steering head angle?”, for me it doesn’t help the situation for the rider to know this. It means that maybe he has experience with other bikes that he’s ridden in the past and he’s known what the geometry was and it may sort of create an image in his mind before he gets on the bike as to what to expect from the bike. It’s much better that the rider gets on the bike and just feels it as a combination and then comes back and says that it either turns well or it doesn’t turn well or it tucks the front or the front feels planted. No preconceived ideas is always better for us.

With Alvaro coming from 125cc and 250cc bikes, how do you think does that compare to MotoGP and how he maybe needed to change his way of working to tell you exactly what he feels on the bike?
Well, I actually asked Alvaro that same question around this time last year [testing at Valencia 2009] not long after he started to ride the bike and he said there was a much bigger step going from the 125cc bike to the 250cc than it was from the 250cc to MotoGP bike. In terms of dynamics, in terms of how heavy the bike was to change direction and what it felt like to run into the corner. The big difference for him was going from 125cc to 250cc.

When the rider comes in and just says that the bike doesn’t turn well, how do you actually translate that into what you can do with the bike?
It just comes from past experience really. You know, we obviously have an idea of a base setting. Okay, that same setting doesn’t work on every type of corner or every type of race track or in every grip condition. But just from past experience on how our bike has worked in different types of corners and different types of conditions; if he comes in with a certain comment like for example that the front tyre doesn’t give him a good feeling going through the corner, then the first thing you think about is of course the tyre compound. If the tyre compound is correct for the conditions then you’ll look at suspension positions and if the suspension positions look like they are in the ballpark, giving the correct steering geometry, then you start to think about other things like weight distribution and so on. All based on your past experience. You basically check the simple things first, like have we got the right tyre in there, have we the right position of the bike going into the corner. And then you move on to the more difficult stuff.

Speaking about previous data: How much does the work change for you in the 2011 season when you already have the data for him going to all the tracks?
It’ll be much better. It gives us a platform then. We have for the initial setup every weekend the previous data. And at every race track so far with Alvaro we had to take last year’s [Chris Vermeulen’s] setting and then go from there. But next year it’ll be straightforward, we know what’s the best setting and begin with that.

Does the work for you change at all with Alvaro being the only rider in the team? Because this year there’s also been a lot of data exchange between Loris and Alvaro.
Yeah, it makes it difficult in one way and easier in another. The difficulty is that we have less feedback. Sometimes with two riders and two different styles, you get more of an overview of the situation. Like for example if we go to a race track next year and we can’t get any grip, we have to ask us if it’s the track or is it the setting. If we have two riders and one of them is getting grip and the other is not, then we immediately know that there’s nothing wrong with the track, we have to get the grip out of the bike. That’s the negative side.
The positive side is that the Japanese Suzuki staff is now really focused on Alvaro and basically we have twice the attention that we had last year.

There’s of course the worry that with only one rider there’ll also be less development, because Suzuki probably pulled out the other bike for a reason…
Well, no. I mean, we have the test menu for this [Valencia] test and the development is actually accelerating.

Can you tell us what you’re testing?
In this test it will mainly be chassis items and some engine items also.

Talking about new test items, how much can you actually adjust a bike for a certain rider? Can you really make it completely his, so that others would have difficulty to ride it well, even though the components are the same?
Well, we have enough adjustments to get it completely wrong. [laughs] I mean really, these bikes are so adjustable. You know, with a given rider you work within a certain area and every now and again you find a direction that moves you to another area of setting and hopefully you’re moving to a higher level and then you can work from there. But yeah, they are very, very adjustable. Most of the settings we keep close to the baseline.

Which would probably also make it easier to keep the bike universally rideable when a new rider comes in.
Well, with Alvaro coming in last year, because both his and Loris’ background were the same, being 125cc and 250cc riders, no Superbikes or anything, it was easy. We just started him with Loris’ setting completely and started from there at this Valencia test last year.

It seems that Alvaro has the tendency, already visible in the smaller classes, not to do too well in practice and qualifying, but then fire up on Sunday and improve immensely in the race. How much of those troubles can you actually trace back to problems with the bike, or lack of experience in the class or just to Alvaro’s style of racing?
Well, probably 90% of my focus next year will be trying to get us up the grid and start from the first three rows, minimum the first three rows, every time if we can. How to do that I haven’t fully worked out yet [laughs]. But from our side, the technical side, we do everything possible that we can. You know, getting a better setting in the first session is always gonna help us. The problem with being the first year on the bike at every race track is that every first session is usually spent just getting a good baseline. Next year is gonna be better, because first of all we have an extra session. Even if it’s only 45 minutes, it’s still an extra session and it’s an extra period between sessions where he can think about what’s going on. And the second thing next year is that we will be starting from a good setting in every session, hopefully. Those things I think are gonna help next year.

In the races themselves he’s often fallen back a bit in the first few laps and then improved his laptimes immensely towards the end of the race. Afterwards he was often quoted that he didn’t have a good feeling with the bike at the beginning. Can you explain why his feeling with the bike sometimes changes so abruptly during a race?
Yeah, well, there is a technical matter there as well of getting the feeling and the grip from the tyres in the first few laps. And when I say tyres I mean the rear tyre basically. Some teams and riders are obviously getting that. All you have to do is look at Casey [Stoner] on some of his outlaps on new tyres and you see what can be done. That’s something we really have to work on as well. But I think it’s one thing to get good grip and feeling in the first few laps, but also if you’re trying to do that and you’re in 12th place, it makes it twice as hard. Because you can’t ride the bike the way you want to ride it as you’re basically trying to get past other riders first.

Finally, in terms of rider differences, is there anything special about working with Alvaro? You’ve mentioned before that he wants to know less about the bike than other riders.
Just his ability to race is better than anyone that I’ve seen for a long, long time. And how much fun he gets from racing.

Thank you very much for the interview.

We’d like to thank to Tom O’Kane for taking the time to talk to us and Tim Walpole for helping us set up interviews with the Suzuki team members at Valencia.
Interview by Vroom Media. Photos courtesy of Rizla Suzuki MotoGP Team.

*[It had been raining the morning of the first test day with forecasts being a bit unpredictable]

As we reported earlier, Alvaro visited the Gala del Deporte in Toledo yesterday to present the sports prizes to young athletes, together with Julian Simon. The attending journalists of course did not let that opportunity slide to get a quick interview with Alvaro about his first season in MotoGP.

“It was difficult”, said Bati, “but also very positive, because I gained a lot of experience and in the future this will help me. Even though the injury [when he broke his collarbone in motocross training] lost me several races and getting to know the bike better, I am satisfied, because in the last GPs we finished most of the races among the Top 10 and we also got two 5th places. So it was a good year, despite the injury, because we came back strong in the final part of the season. It helped me that I got to know the bike better, that the team knew what I needed to go fast and now we have to see if Suzuki can develop a more competitive bike.”

Next year Alvaro will be the sole rider for Suzuki and can’t rely on the help of his former teammate Loris Capirossi anymore to develop the bike.For him this has good and negative sides. “When we have new parts and there is a lot to test, then it always goes slower with only one rider. But at the same time Suzuki now puts all the focus on me and will try to improve the things I ask for. For me this has more positive than negative points.”

Looking forward to the next season, Alvaro mused that “the expectations will be different, because I have more knowledge, more experience and more references and at the moment, in the first official test of the preseason, things were very positive. We tested a lot of new things and we did well, we were much closer to the first positions. My aim will be to improve my feeling from last season and we’ll see if I can ride without injuries at 100% and improve myself.”

A helpful factor in it all is the treatment by Suzuki. “We are a good family. When I came into the team, I knew it was not the best bike, but I always had faith in the factory and they treated me exceptionally well from the first day on and I managed to finish in front of my teammate. Suzuki is very motivated, they work very hard, like me, though it’s not as easy as it might seem, but it’s clear that I have faith in them and they have faith in me.”

Source: La Tribuna de Talavera

The Rizla Suzuki squad and Álvaro Bautista have concluded the final day of testing at Valencia with a very encouraging result as Bautista recorded the seventh quickest time of the day.

Bautista (1’32.738, 86 laps) took almost a second off his previous best lap-time from both the race weekend and yesterday’s testing, as he moved to just over half-of-a-second off the quickest time of the day. The Spaniard tested various chassis configurations and several settings, along with evaluating new bodywork for the Suzuki GSV-R and numerous other parts in a thorough and comprehensive test programme. The whole team got through a significant amount of work and with the information collected at this two-day test, the engineers back in Japan will certainly have plenty to work with during the winter months.

Today’s weather was very similar to yesterday with strong winds and cold track temperatures making conditions very difficult. Casey Stoner on a Honda was the quickest rider on the timesheets, with World Champion Jorge Lorenzo in second, but Bautista certainly had them in his sights as he improved continuously throughout the day.

Rizla Suzuki, Bautista and the rest of the MotoGP paddock will now face an enforced winter testing ban that begins on December 1st and ends on January 31st. The next test will be at Sepang in Malaysia in early February, with the 2011 season due to kick-off at Losail in Qatar on Sunday 20th March.

Álvaro Bautista: “Today has been another good day because after testing the new forks yesterday and getting a good base setting, I was able to go straight out and improve my lap-time. We continued through the day to test other stuff and I tried a new frame with new specifications, and I quickly felt it was much better than the old one. That means that we have made a step forward and with it I was able to do my best time. At the end of the day I tested some new compound Bridgestone tyres, there were three different styles, but I didn’t feel much difference between them all. I am happy because the whole crew has done a good job today and I want to say thank-you to Suzuki because I think we made steps forward at this test and with the data from here I hope they can bring me some more new and better stuff from Japan for the test in February.”

Paul Denning – Team Manager:
“It has been a very positive end to what has been a difficult season. We found a decent step forward yesterday compared to the race weekend and took more steps forward today. We have found something, based on today’s data at least, that may help Álvaro get the best out of the GSV-R on new tyres, which has been a weak point for us this year both in qualifying and in the first few laps of the races. We all know that he is a race-day guy and not a testing guy and that he always finds additional performance in the races themselves. So, for him to end up in seventh place and only 0.6 seconds from the fastest rider is a very positive result.

“Thanks to everyone involved with the team throughout 2010, hopefully today’s test will enable the Factory to have some interesting material prepared for the test in February and we can continue to take the next step forward.”

Source: Rizla Suzuki MotoGP