Moto Racing Live by Michelin All the lastest news from Michelin's Motorcycle Competition

Friday
10h10-10h40: Free practices
15h10-15h40: Free practices

Saturday
10h05-10h45 : Free practices
15h15-15h45: Qualifying practices (The first 20 qualified in SP1)
16h00-16h15: SUPERPOLE 1 (the first 8 qualified in SP2)
16h25-16h40: SUPERPOLE 2

Sunday
08h45-08h55: Warm Up
10h50: Race 1
16h15: race 2

Remember? AZ Moto Expert is the small, Clermont Ferrand-based team we followed during April’s Le Mans 24 Hours which it finished in 27th spot; a more than honourable result for a first participation. Today, the squad is as motivated as ever as it turns its attention to a new adventure, the 2010 Bol d’Or, even though its partnerships manager Olivier Picod admits that the budget is very tight…

Team AZ Moto Expert

The team will nonetheless be hoping that its undying motivation will contribute to a strong performance in the French classic as it fine-tunes its preparations for the big day.

Despite a recent fall during a practice session that has kept him away from the racetrack recently, Jérôme Bard will be a part of the rider line-up, along with Stéphane Mézard and Stéphane Kokes who have been busy doing set-up work. To help its preparations, the team took part in an endurance challenge in June at Magny-Cours where it came third overall.

It also attended the pre-Bol d’Or test session organised at the French circuit to put the finishing touches to the bike’s settings and evaluate the latest tyres provided by Michelin. Its lap times were particularly reassuring for the riders whose confidence will have been boosted as a result. For the record, you may recall that they qualified on the final slot of the grid at Le Mans by the skin of their teeth.

Their run at the pre-Bol d’Or test also enabled them to try a new brake pad evolution which will permit them to change the front wheel without having to remove the callipers, thereby saving valuable seconds during pit stops. Indeed, a couple of seconds less spent in the pits each time can translate into one or two laps over a period of 24 hours…

Meanwhile, the team’s technical staff has been reinforced with a view to optimising its stops and overall organisation.

Let’s hope all this groundwork will enable AZ Moto Expert to secure a decent result at Magny-Cours. Look out for more news soon at http://www.motoracinglive.com

Following the long summer break, the French Superbike Championship resumes this weekend at Le Mans which hosts the 2010 campaign’s penultimate round.

Erwan Nigon, Sébastien Gimbert

Since the beginning of the season, the Michelin-equipped BMWs have practically swept the board, with only the two wins at the opening meeting escaping the German make.
Today, with two rounds remaining, and 102 points up for grabs, five riders can theoretically still claim the title, but the BMW-Michelin pair seem to be in the best position.

The championship leader Erwan Nigon enjoys a 22-point cushion over his team-mate Sébastien Gimbert and admits he enjoys a small advantage: “I’ve had it since the start of the year, and I’ve won the four last pole positions. I feel very motivated, but the important thing is to stay focused so as not to make any mistakes.”

Erwan Nigon could actually wrap up the title at Le Mans should he succeed in pocketing 29 more points than his team-mate, although that promises to be a tough mission given that Sébastien generally finishes on Erwan’s heels whenever the latter wins, with the exception of the fourth round which saw Sébastien finish ninth.

If Sébastien Gimbert wants to keep the French crown, he has little margin for error, since he will need to qualify on pole position and win the last two events. That will be no easy matter, because Erwan Nigon has every intention of pocketing his first home crown. “At Le Mans,” he says, “my aim will be to increase my lead and then wrap up the title at Albi.”

The scrap for third place at Le Mans promises to produce an exciting battle between Julien Da Costa (Kawasaki-Pirelli) and Junior Team Suzuki’s Vincent Philippe and Freddy Foray. All three benefit from good knowledge of the circuit after taking part in spring’s Le Mans 24 Hours.

This weekend’s race will also mark the come-back of Suzuki rider Guillaume Dietrich who has spent a long time recovering injuries sustained in his frightening fall in April’s endurance classic.

The results of free practice will be available from 10:05am, Saturday, September 4.

Bernard Cazade became the new team manger of the MICHELIN Power Research Team (MPRT) at the start of this season. The Michelin-backed squad will be looking to profit from the Bol d’Or to make up for failing to reach the finish of April’s Le Mans 24 Hours.

Bernard Cazade

MPRT’s boss looks back at the recent two days of testing ahead of the 2010 Bol d’Or and looks forward to the race which will take place on the weekend of September 11-12 at Magny-Cours, France.

“The entire team did a remarkable job over the two days. The riders/bike/tyres package worked very well and I couldn’t have wished for a better test. The atmosphere between the riders was excellent, too,” says Bernard Cazade.

“We profited from the run to do stint simulations which proved very quick. We’ve also succeeded in finding a set-up that makes the bike easy to ride. Despite the changeable weather, we were able to try the new tyres provided by Michelin. We could well come across similar showery conditions during the Bol d’Or itself.”

Bernard Cazade is targeting the best result possible for his team in order to put its premature elimination from the Le Mans 24 Hours with engine failure behind it. “Our aim at Magny-Cours is to show that MPRT is a mature operation capable of obtaining top results. Endurance racing calls for a great deal of hard work, discipline and experience, but you can’t rule out the role played by luck, and we were unlucky at Le Mans.”

Follow the MICHELIN Power Research Team live during the Bol d’Or from Thursday, September 9, at www.motoracinglive.com

Source: www.youtube.com/user/tvfim

Victory in Sunday’s Indianapolis Grand Prix, round 11 of the 2010 World Championship, was won handsomely by Dani Pedrosa (Honda HRC), with the Spaniard finishing the American race well clear of Ben Spies (Yamaha Tech 3) and Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha Factory).

Despite qualifying on the second row, Pedrosa soon found his marks in the race. By the end of Lap 7, he was sitting on the tail of Ben Spies – who had secured his first ever MotoGP pole position – before profiting from the pits straight to ease into the lead. The Spaniard then pulled away from his chasers to cross the line with the handy lead of 3.575 seconds over Spies who, in turn, obtained the best result of his nascent career in the premier class.

It was Pedrosa’s third win of the season: “I have beaten the score of two wins in a single MotoGP season and I’m thrilled with that,” said the Spaniard. “We’re working well and I hope to continue on my momentum next weekend at Misano.”

Lorenzo (Yamaha Factory) finished on the third step of the podium, his lowliest result of the year after claiming only wins and second places in the 10 races contested ahead of the Indianapolis clash. The championship leader was unhappy with his performance but still tops the table with a 68-point advantage over fellow Spaniard Pedrosa. “I didn’t get off to the greatest of starts and I didn’t race well after that,” he reported.

Rossi (Yamaha Factory) finished just shy of the top-three, while Randy De Puniet’s left leg injury gave him trouble in the heat and he could manage no higher than 13th and last overall.

Next round: San Marino Grand Prix, Misano (September 5)

That’s a question we put to MotoRacingLive pundit Matthieu Lagrive who is contesting this year’s Supersport championship with the ParkinGo Triumph BE1 team’s Triumph Daytona 675.

“There’s a pretty big difference in the quality of the two fields. The Supersport World Championship is having trouble attracting riders and manufacturers, while Moto2 clearly has plenty of potential. The Moto2 grids feature something like 40 riders, which is twice the number we are seeing in Supersport

“The promoter of the Supersport World Championship needs to respond quickly to find ways of reducing the costs of competing, otherwise I can see the category disappearing. I think we need to revert to bikes that are much closer to a production specification. Supersport bikes are taking their cue more and more from Superbikes, and that means having to invest in electronics, which in turn calls for an enormous amount of money. And, as usual, it’s the front-runners who are in the best position to profit from the situation…

I think Supersport needs to turn the page and return to its fundamentals, which means showroom-spec bikes. I believe its survival depends on making that move.

Moto2 is enjoying good media coverage, too, with MotoGP serving as a locomotive. Moto2 should and must remain a development exercise with investment coming from the manufacturers.”

Monday and Tuesday saw the majority of the teams entered for this year’s Bol d’Or profit from two days of pre-event testing at Magny-Cours, France.

MICHELIN Power Research Team

All the expected victory contenders were in attendance, with the exception of GMT 94 which ran its own private test last week.

The two days were marked by showery weather, but the teams were still able to get some decent work under their belts and post some promising times. BMW-Michelin, the MICHELIN Power Research Team, SERT and Kawasaki GSR all succeeded in lapping in the 1m41s bracket.

The run was especially encouraging for BMW-Michelin, the operational side of which was recently taken over by Michael Bartholemy. “Everything went very well,” reports rider Erwan Nigon. “The bike is competitive and the team worked very hard, despite the fact that they only got their hands on it for the first time a month-and-a-half ago. It was pretty much a case of starting from scratch.”

“We didn’t get in much track time because we only had one bike for four riders (Erwan Nigon, Sébastien Gimbert, Matthieu Lagrive and Damian Cudlin), but it provided us with a promising build-up to the Bol d’Or. We will return to Magny-Cours for another test on Tuesday, September 7.”

Matthieu Lagrive, who celebrated his first ride on the BMW, was also pleased with the way the two days went: “It’s a great bike which has clearly got plenty of potential, and the tyres work very well. It was all very positive, really. There were no falls to report and I felt good on the bike. I would have liked to have got in a few more laps but I thoroughly enjoyed the time I did spend on the track. I feel confident for the Bol d’Or.”

The 65 teams entered for the 2010 Bol d’Or will begin free practice at 12:30pm on Thursday, September 9.

This provisional entry list has been published for the 74th Bol d’Or which will take place at Magny-Cours, France on the weekend of September 11-12.

The only major change compared with Le Mans is the fact that the factory BMW will be run by Mickael Bartholemy’s BMP Elf 99 Racing Team. As far as the riders go, the BMW S 1000 RR will once again be shared by Sébastien Gimbert, Erwan Nigon and Matthieu Lagrive.

Edit: List has been updated

N°	Team	Nat	Brand	Cat	Riders	Michelin
1	YAMAHA AUSTRIA RACING TEAM	AUT	Yamaha	EWC	I. Jerman S. Martin G. Giabbanni
2	SUZUKI ENDURANCE RACING TEAM	FRA	Suzuki	EWC	V. Philippe D. Sakai F. Foray G. Dietrich
4	YMES FOLCH ENDURANCE	ESP	Yamaha	EWC	P. L. Valcaneras J. M. Luis Rita J. Almeda Font
5	TEAM X-ONE	ITA	Yamaha	SST	L. Bono E. Belluci
8	BOLLIGER TEAM SWITZERLAND	CHE	Kawasaki	EWC	H. Saiger P. Muff F. Stamm F. Chabosseau
9	ANDALUCIA BMW	ESP	Bmw	SST	A. Molina C. Hedelin A. Rosivall G. Lindner
11	GSR - KAWASAKI	FRA	Kawasaki	EWC	J. Da Costa O. Four G. Leblanc T. Metro
13	PENZ13.COM	DEU	Bmw	SST	J. Stibily ST. Mizera S. Legrelle M. Miller
14	BK MACO MOTO RACING TEAM	SVK	Yamaha	EWC	J. Pridmore D. Ribalta V. Carrasco M. Kuzma
15	SH TECHNOLOGIE	FRA	Yamaha	EWC	H. Royer D. Dumain N. Pouhair N. Chevaux
18	TEAM 18 SAPEURS-POMPIERS	FRA	Suzuki	EWC	S. Moulinier D. Briere J. Tangre
21	RMT 21 RACING GERMANY	DEU	Honda	EWC	F. Moreira V. Kispitaki Th. Roth
22	SPORT PASSION ENDURANCE	FRA	Suzuki	EWC	K. Hiernaux F. Holub K. Taramoto J. Martinez
24	3D ENDURANCE MOTO CENTER	FRA	Kawasaki	SST	CH. Geers L. Braun E. Labussiere
25	RTM	FRA	Kawasaki	SST	G. Battaglia K. Szalai S. Henri
27	TRT27 / BAZAR 2 LA BECANE	FRA	Suzuki	SST	V. Houssin D. Buisson J. Cramer
30	SCUDERIA ROSSO		Ducati	EWC	L. Ancelin S. Pagani P. Teissier D. Chiabo
31	BI MECA RACING TEAM	FRA	Suzuki	SST	D. Feuillee B. Nunnari O. Lamy R. Echard
32	BMP		Honda	SST	G. Darme S. Gerard D. De Carolis T. Joly
33	MAIL PERFORMANCE 33	FRA	Yamaha	SST	G. Fastre B. Cuzin A. Plancassagne
38	TMS RACING		Suzuki	SST	D. Henriques E. Farlat J. Khartchenko
39	MOTO 39 COMPETITION		Kawasaki	SST	R. Maitre J. Danton
41	RAC41 - CITY BIKE	FRA	Suzuki	EWC	G. Black O. Depoorter M. Gines
44	NO LIMITS MOTOR TEAM	ITA	Suzuki	SST	A. Aldrovandi V. Casas S. Saltarelli
45	METISS JLC MOTO	FRA	Metiss	Open	CH. Michel C. Huvier E. Cheron
46	TEAM FLEMBBO	FRA	Yamaha	EWC	T. Jardin T. Guyot S. Chamoin C. Marcon
50	TEAM MOTORS EVENTS	FRA	Suzuki	SST	V. Bocquet E. Humeau G. Muteau
53	MAYERT	FRA	Suzuki	SST	J. Lassus J. Busteau Y. Lanniel
55	NATIONAL MOTOS	FRA	Honda	EWC	S. Scarnato S. Barrier E. Jonchiere
57	LTG 57	FRA	Yamaha	SST	N. Jaulneau K. Denis A. Ganfornina B. Mackels
61	TEAM ESPOIR AUVERGNE MOTO	FRA	Yamaha	EWC	D. Giltaire M. Filaire C. Riboulet F. Ladevie
63	MICHELIN POWER RESEARCH TEAM	FRA	Honda	EWC	W. Costes H. Marchand J. Monge B. Stey
65	MOTOBOX KREMER RACING TEAM SHELL ADVANCE	DEU	Suzuki	EWC	M. Scherrer F. Gaziello T. Paavilainen
66	RACING TEAM SARAZIN	FRA	Kawasaki	SST	CH. Guerouah X. Barbancon J. PH. Genetay
67	COLEXON RACING	DEU	Bmw	SST	FL. Koesse M. Wildisen F. Bertendorfer
68	ATOMIC MOTOSPORT	FRA	Suzuki	SST	M. Lalevee E. Thuillier P. Lerat Vanstaen C. Schmidt
69	R.T. MOTOVIRUS RACING	ITA	Suzuki	EWC	W. Grarre F. Jond E. Mizera C. Mariottini
70	ROBBY-DAKAR.COM	SWI	Honda	SST	D. Brugiere P. Castellan R. Knecht
71	AZ MOTO EXPERT	FRA	Suzuki	SST	ST. Kokes St. Mezard J. Bard
72	JUNIOR TEAM SUZUKI LMS	FRA	Suzuki	SST	C. Tangre L. De Carolis B. Guittet J. Enjolras
74	HONDA SWISS ENDURANCE	SWI	Honda	SST	B. Labarthe J. Duvoisin Y. Di Mauro
77	CORDOBA PATRIMONIO DE LA HUMANIDAD	ESP	Kawasaki	SST	D. Sainz de la Maza J. Valera L. Castro S. Sanz
78	HONDA BMR MOTO 78	FRA	Honda	SST	J. Hardt L. Beguelin A. Perrault
82	ALPES ENDURANCE		Suzuki	SST	P. Pesselier Z. Tsitos B. Bocus M. Andeol
84	SERBIAN RACING TEAM - DIJAMANT	SRB	Suzuki	SST	D. Perisic Z. Stanicic P. Polesso P. Richard
85	TEAM RACING 85	FRA	Kawasaki	EWC	Y. Francois G. Poinfoux S. Gaufreteau
87	TEAM R2CL	FRA	Suzuki	SST	R. Chausse C. DE Laville A. Baratin C. Cohen
89	DMA & TMB ENDURANCE RACING TEAM	FRA	Kawasaki	EWC	M. Sauve B. Chevalier M. simon M. Berot
94	YAMAHA FRANCEL - GMT 94 - IPONE	FRA	Yamaha	EWC	D. Checa K. Foray G. Junod Ch. Guyot
95	QATAR ENDURANCE RACING TEAM II (QERT I)	QAT	Suzuki	SST	A. Delhalle A. Cudlin R. AL Mannai
96	QATAR ENDURANCE RACING TEAM II (QERT II)	QAT	Suzuki	SST	S. AL Naimi N. AL Malki J. AL Malki S. AL Kuwari
98	DMA & TMB ENDURANCE RACING TEAM		Suzuki	SSR	M. Brobny J. Drazdak E. Bounier T. Holubec
99	BMP ELF 99 RACING TEAM	BEL	Bmw	EWC	S. Gimbert E. Nigon M. Lagrive D. Cudlin
100	TEAM ENDURANCE MOTO 45	FRA	Suzuki	SST	A. Lagrive F. Bernon J. Diguet
109	TEAM FMA ASSURANCES	FRA	Honda	EWC	M. Morin F. Boulange M. Kipp
110	AM MOTO RACING COMPETITION	FRA	Suzuki	EWC	F. Auger R. Chevre J. Millet
114	MOTOS ACTIVES SPORT 14	FRA	Suzuki	SST	F. Pigeon Fr. Pigeon C. Roche
119	SLIDER ENDURANCE	FRA	Yamaha	EWC	M. Lecouturier D. Lebail Ph. Lepecheur B. Coquereau
167	STARTEAM 67	FRA	Suzuki	SST	L. Fremy C. Lucas J. Sainz P. Meynle
174	TEAM ZRT 74 ENDURANCE	FRA	Yamaha	SST	S. Guichon M. Fontes J. Durieux H. Charvaux
199	TEAM BIKERSDAYS	BEL	Yamaha	SST	G. Fastre R. Schouten D. Bouan
221	TEAM DUNLOP MOTORS EVENTS	FRA	Suzuki	EWC	J. Gallerand F. Deneque E. Bouvier F. Jarrigue
222	LEEK RACING TEAM (DE DONCKER) YAMAHA		Yamaha	SST	C. Seclbellembois L. Hanon G. Arnaud F. Herfort
411	MCS RACING - IPONE	ITA	Suzuki	SST	F. Backlumd J. Prosenik T. Miksovsky A. Fanotto
848	DUCATI ENDURANCE RACING TEAM	FRA	Ducati	Open	F. Botoguieri C. Maubourguet A. Protrat R. Taracco