MotoGP Preview: Grand Prix Of Czech Republic
August 13, 2010 | By Paul Kelly
EVENT: Grand Prix of Czech Republic
WHERE: Automotodrom Brno, Brno, Czech Republic. Circuit is 3.357 miles (5.403 km), with 14 turns. Race is 22 laps.
WHEN: Sunday, Aug. 15. It is the 10th of 18 events this season.
2009 RACE WINNER: Valentino Rossi, by 11.766 seconds over Dani Pedrosa
2009 POLE WINNER: Rossi, 1 minute, 56.145 seconds
U.S. TV: 8-9 a.m. (ET), Sunday, Aug. 15, SPEED (live). Moto2: 6-7 p.m. (ET), Sunday, Aug. 15, SPEED. 125cc: Noon-1 p.m. (ET), Tuesday, Aug. 17, SPEED.
THE AMERICANS: U.S. riders Nicky Hayden (Owensboro, Ky., Ducati Team), Ben Spies (Longview, Texas, Monster Yamaha Tech 3) and Colin Edwards (Houston, Monster Yamaha Tech 3) will compete in the MotoGP race. Hayden is sixth in the MotoGP World Championship standings, with Spies seventh and Edwards 11th. Kenny Noyes (Borrego Springs, Calif., Jack&Jones by Antonio Banderas) will compete in the Moto2 race. Noyes is tied for 19th in the Moto2 World Championship standings.
•Nicky Hayden (after practice Aug. 13): “It was certainly nice to be back in the saddle today and the bike felt quite good out of the gate. The two weeks away gave me time to think about some things and the team, too, and together we were able to come up with some ideas that seemed to have worked. I’m not sure what everybody else had in the bag, but I’m sure we’re not miles away for the first session. Hopefully it’s the start of good things to come.”
•Ben Spies (after practice Aug. 13): “We started with the setting from Laguna Seca, and I just couldn't quite reach the pace of where I needed to be. But I know there is definite room for improvement. The first bike I just couldn't get working like I needed, and we'd got quite a bit different front-end setting in the second bike. The second bike should make it easier for me to roll through the middle of the corner because I was having to hold the brake a bit too much on the other bike to help it turn. I'm pretty frustrated because that bit of rain stopped me from getting in a few laps to properly try it and get some data. I wasn't fussed about bettering my time; I just wanted to feel the difference. But I'm 90 percent sure that the second bike setup is the way we need to go.”
•Colin Edwards (after practice Aug. 13): “I felt pretty good immediately, and I feel like we should be in for a strong weekend if we can build on the momentum from today. A lot this season we have started on the back foot a bit and spent the whole weekend playing catch-up. But we've got a platform to build on, and that's mainly down to a new front-end setting we tried. Thanks to my guys at Monster Yamaha Tech 3 because they came up with this experimental setting, and it worked really well. We put more weight on the front, and I like it better than what I started the session on. Now the bike holds the turn a lot better, and I'm not running wide. We've put more force through the front tire to help it turn. I've never had a top six here before, so after this start, I'm hoping to put that right on Sunday.”
THEY SAID IT: “Today I did not take any painkillers, and I unfortunately had a small high side after few laps, which hurt my leg. That was very painful!” – LCR Honda MotoGP rider Randy De Puniet, talking about a crash Aug. 13 at Brno, where he returned to action just 22 days after surgery to repair a broken leg suffered in a crash last month
FAST FACTS: LCR Honda MotoGP rider Randy De Puniet returned to race at this event just 23 days after undergoing surgery to repair a broken leg suffered in the Grand Prix of Germany on July 19 … If points leader Jorge Lorenzo finishes in the top two at this event, he will become just the third rider in the 62-year history of Grand Prix motorcycle racing to finish either first or second in the first 10 races of a season. Multi-time World Champions Giacomo Agostini and Mick Doohan are the only riders to achieve that feat. Lorenzo has three career victories at Brno but none in MotoGP. He won in 250cc in 2006 and 2007 and in 125cc in 2004 … Seven-time MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi has earned five victories in his 10 career starts at Brno in the premier class. He also earned his first Grand Prix victory at this track, in 125cc in 1996 … Brno is one of the few circuits on the MotoGP schedule at which American rookie sensation Ben Spies has racing experience. He won a Superbike World Championship race in 2009 at the track en route to the series championship … 2007 World Champion Casey Stoner is winless in his last 10 starts, his longest drought since joining Ducati in 2007 … Rossi plans to announce his 2011 racing destination Aug. 15 after this race. He is widely expected to move from the Fiat Yamaha Team to the iconic Italian manufacturer Ducati Team … If a Spanish rider wins this event, it will be the nation’s 50th victory in the premier class. Spain would join Italy, the United States, Australia and Great Britain in that exclusive club … Just two riders have scored points in all nine MotoGP races this season: Lorenzo and Andrea Dovizioso … 125cc points leader Marc Marquez, 17, became the youngest rider to win five consecutive races in the World Championship with his victory July 18 at Germany. Marquez is the first 125cc rider to win five consecutive races since Rossi won six in a row in 1997 … Spanish riders have won 18 consecutive 125cc races in the World Championship, dating back to last season.
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IMS tickets: Tickets for the 2010 Red Bull Indianapolis GP are on sale now. A new structure offers additional value and flexibility to fans attending the annual MotoGP event.
Among the highlights of the new ticket structure are lower prices and single-day reserved and general admission tickets for Race Day, Sunday, Aug. 29. Children 12 and under will be admitted free any day of the event if accompanied by an adult holding a general admission ticket.
Fans can order tickets online at www.imstix.com, call the IMS ticket office at (317) 492-6700, or (800) 822-INDY outside the Indianapolis area or visit the ticket office at the IMS Administration Building at the corner of Georgetown Road and 16th Street. Online orders can be made at any time. Hours for phone orders and the ticket office are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. (ET) Monday-Friday.
General admission tickets provide access to the grounds, viewing mounds along the infield section of the circuit and selected grandstands, which provide excellent angles to see the greatest riders in the world.
Fans can now print their tickets – three-day reserved seat and Race Day-only general admission and reserved seat tickets – with their printer after ordering tickets online at www.imstix.com.
Tickets for groups of 20 or more also are on sale. Contact the IMS Group Sales Department at (866) 221-8775 for more information.