MOTOGP SILVERSTONE QUALIFYING: MARQUEZ WITH LAP RECORD AND POLE

MotoGP's qualifying session in Silverstone was undoubtedly characterized by thrilling duels, but Marc Marquez beat first and foremost himself to claim the 55th pole position of his career and rewrite the track record. The Spaniard already made a sensation by being the first rider to go below the 2:01 mark and lapping in 2:00.691 at his first attempt, but raised the bar even higher after mounting the second fresh rear tire, posting a scorching 2:00.234. Rather than simply confirming his return to top form after the early-season chassis issues, Marquez's two flying laps in England stole the show and took everyone by surprise. Especially Jorge Lorenzo, who dominated the free-practice sessions and constantly dictated the pace but was forced to yield by 0.288 seconds. Dani Pedrosa and Valentino Rossi also went below the 2:01 mark, ending in third and fourth position respectively, but never posing a threat to the pole position holder.

Movistar Yamaha MotoGP's Jorge Lorenzo came up second by 0.288 seconds after Marquez's explosive qualifying effort, but the Majorcan was satisfied with his performance and feels confident for the race.

“It was a couple of good laps, though not perfect ones,” commented Marquez, smiling. “Maybe I could have gone below the 2:00 mark, but I was on the limit and missed just a little something in braking in the last sector. Anyway I had a great feeling on the bike in FP4 already and knew I could score pole position.”

“Once again, the qualifying session saw many riders post incredible lap times,” conceded Lorenzo. “Everyone seemed willing to go beyond the limit to gain that extra tenth, and I needed an almost perfect lap to score first row. The Hondas were just explosive, but I'm proud of our performance.” Given the pace shown in race configuration, where they both consistently lapped in the mid 2:01s on new tires, the two Spaniards at the top have good odds to pull away and build a gap early in the race, which is exactly what their closest competitors want to avoid.

“First row is really important here in Silverstone, because Lorenzo and Marquez usually have great starts and it's crucial to stay with them past the first few corners,” analyzed Pedrosa. “They have a great rhythm, and we still lack something compared to them, despite the clear steps forward. The weather will also play a key role. If it changes (there are high chances of rain during race time), it will be important to be ready to adapt.”

“I'd still prefer to race in the dry, because everything can happen, both good and bad, in the rain,” added Rossi. “I still need to focus on the long distance, because last year I had a drop in performance after the first six or seven laps and couldn't stay with Marc and Jorge. Also, Pedrosa is really strong here, so even just stepping on the podium won't be easy. My first goal is to beat Lorenzo, because I know that if he finished in front of me, Marquez and Pedrosa, I'd lose a lot of points. At the moment, we miss something, but this is such a long track that even a small change can make a difference.”

In a day to forget, Ducati was not able to join the first-row scuffle, placing the first GP15 (ridden by Andrea Iannone) on the grid in ninth position, behind four privateer bikes. Andrea Dovizioso, who had shown the most promise on the Italian prototype in the earlier sessions, even dropped back to twelfth position after clutch issues kept him in the pits during FP4.

“I'm really disappointed because we worked hard and well and I could have stayed in the top four positions,” said Dovizioso. “I made only a few laps in the afternoon and wasn't able to verify the track conditions, which have changed significantly. These things should not happen, especially in such important moments. I'm not blaming anyone in particular, but there's a big group working and clearly we under-performed today. The clutch had already given us some troubles in the past, so this type of incident cannot happen. I'm really pissed off.”

It is rare to see Dovizioso lose his cool but, come tomorrow, the proverbial English weather may shuffle the cards further. The line between victory and defeat has rarely seemed so thin.

MotoGP Silverstone qualifying results:
1. Marc Marquez (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 2:00.234
2. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Movistar Yamaha MotoGP 2:00.522
3. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 2:00.716
4. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Movstar Yamaha MotoGP 2:00.947
5. Pol Espargaró (SPA) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha 2:01.031
6. Bradley Smith (GBR) Monster Tech 3 Yamaha 2:01.140
7. Scott Redding (GBR) Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS Honda 2:01.329
8. Cal Crutchlow (GBR) LCR Honda 2:01.376
9. Andrea Iannone (ITA) Ducati Team 2:01.874
10. Aleix Espargaró (SPA) Team Suzuki Ecstar 2:01.880
11. Yonny Hernandez (COL) Octo Pramac Racing Ducati 2:01.894
12. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Ducati Team 2:01.979
13. Maverick Viñales (SPA) Team Suzuki Ecstar 2:02.016
14. Stefan Bradl (GER) Aprilia Racing Team Gresini 2:02.657
15. Loris Baz (FRA) Athinà Forward Racing Yamaha 2:02.677
16. Jack Miller (AUS) LCR Honda 2:02.697
17. Hector Barbera (SPA) Avintia Racing Ducati 2:02.784
18. Danilo Petrucci (ITA) Octo Pramac Racing Ducati 2:02.800
19. Eugene Laverty (IRL) Aspar Honda Team 2:02.894
20. Alvaro Bautista (SPA) Aprilia Racing Team Gresini 2:02.908
21. Nicky Hayden (USA) Aspar Honda Team 2:02.946
22. Mike Di Meglio (FRA) Avintia Racing Ducati 2:03.641
23. Claudio Corti (ITA) Athinà Forward Racing Yamaha 2:03.789
24. Karel Abraham (CZE) AB Motoracing Honda 2:04.133
25. Alex De Angelis (RSM) E-Motion Ioda Racing Aprilia 2:04.304

MotoGP British Grand Prix 2015: Valentino Rossi storms to victory and retakes the lead in the Championship standings

Traditional English weather of grey clouds and spitting rain didn’t stop the British making their way to the Northamptonshire circuit as over 73,000 people roared as nine-time world champion Valentino Rossi started from fourth on the grid to then lead from the second lap to the chequered flag of a wet race.

Going into the twelfth round of the championship, Rossi and teammate Jorge Lorenzo led the championship tied on 211 points. After completing the warm-up lap of what was declared a dry race, every rider returned to the pits immediately to change to their wet-tyred bike so incurred a 30-minute delay and the grid was reset.

Although defending world champion Marc Marquez had won pole position yesterday, it was Lorenzo who charged from the front row of the grid to the first corner, leading the first lap with Marquez on his heels. Rossi maintained fourth place but swiftly climbed to second within the first lap before lunging at the Spaniard on the second lap and stealing the lead.

With the rain coming down harder, Lorenzo quickly lost second place to Marquez and the front pair soon pulled away with a seven second gap to the chasing pack. British rider Cal Crutchlow got a great start from eighth place on his LCR Honda, overtaking Bradley Smith and Dani Pedrosa to eventually take third place from Lorenzo.

The Yamaha factory rider immediately hit back as LCR teammate and rookie Jack Miller, who had a magnificent start to climb up to fifth place, went into the corner too deep sending him straight into Crutchlow’s Honda RC213v and finishing his race there. Crutchlow attempted to carry on, entering the pits briefly and returning to the track only to crash a second time and retire to the pits for good.

With Pramac rider Yonny Hernandez being the first to retire by crashing in the first corner, teammate Danilo Petrucci made his way from 18th position on the grid through the pack to battle with the front runners on his satellite Ducati.

Finding himself incredibly in fourth place after the two LCR Honda’s vacated, Petrucci and compatriot Andrea Dovizioso simultaneously swooped on Movistar Yamaha rider Lorenzo on lap seven to then battle for the last podium position. Repsol Honda’s Pedrosa dropped Lorenzo further back by taking fifth place but the Movistar Yamaha rider soon found the pace to re-pass his compatriot.

On lap twelve, second-place Marquez - barely 0.1 seconds behind Rossi - highsided at turn 1, waving his arms in the air clearly having no idea what caused it, but promoted the two Italians behind to secure podium positions. Lorenzo passed Pedrosa for fourth place and began the chase for the two Ducati’s closing the gap to 1.619 secs but unable to challenge for the last spot and valuable championship points, having to settle with fourth place.

With Crutchlow out of the race, Scott Redding and Bradley Smith were left to fight for the British contingent, crossing the line in fifth and sixth places respectively, with fifth being the best result for Redding this season.

In Moto2 Johann Zarco took victory while defending world champion Tito Rabat and fellow Spaniard Alex Rins fought for the other two positions on the podium, with Rins taking second 2.2 seconds ahead. Englishman Sam Lowes fell from the front row of the grid to ninth position but battled with Tomas Luthi and Anthony West to cross the line in seventh place.

In Moto3, leading the championship standings by 45 points going into the British round, Wiltshire born Danny Kent led from the early in the race, taking the win and extending his lead to 50 points.

The next race will take place at Rossi’s home round of Misano in San Marino on Sunday 12 September. BT Sport 2 exclusively broadcasts all the action.

Yamaha R1 signed by Valentino Rossi up for auction

Highest bidder to win a Rossi signed Yamaha R1 and the chance to help good cause, Charitystars

In a move which looks set to make one lucky MotoGP fan the envy of fellow petrolheads world over, Yamaha has recently donated a bike to charity fundraisers, Charitystars, signed by superstar, Valentino Rossi.

The highest bidder for the charity auction will get the chance to own a brand new Yamaha R1 with a Movistar MotoGP replica paint scheme that would excite any motorbike fan. And if that wasn't enough of a pull for you, the R1 is also signed by Rossi, who recently took the podium at Silverstone.

You won't want to miss out on this wonderful opportunity as the bike is only one of three bikes in the world to feature Rossi's signature. The R1 is also signed on both the tank and front fairing which doubles the rarity of the bike.

The current bid placed on the bike at time of writing is at approximately £21,000 and was placed slightly over two days ago.

The proceeds of the auction will be going to Italian charity, La Gotita Onlus, which supports the educational, social, and economic development of children in need.

To find out more about the auction and to bid, visit the Charitystars Yamaha R1 auction site here. Don't wait another second as you only have until 18 September to bid.

Valentino Rossi's Home Track Advantage

The scene: the back of a Dodge Tradesman van leaving an American dirt track race in the mid-1970s. An XR750 is strapped in while toolboxes, boots and leathers lay in heaps. One rider is driving the van while another is sitting on the floor in the back. New travel buddies, the pair left a local dirt track race Saturday night and were on their way to the Sunday national a few states away.

Settling in, the driver tuned in an AM radio station and cranked the van all the way up to just slightly over the new national speed limit of 55 mph. Eventually, though, among the drone of the tires and the rattling of the wrenches in the toolbox drawers, he smelled something odd.

Marijuana smoke wafted forward from the back of the van.

Knowing the AMA would crack down if they were caught with an illegal substance or arrested, the driver grew worried.

Hey, man, you really think you should be doin' that? he asked.

The other rider's voice was reassuring in both tone and message:

"Relax, man, the circus don't fire the clowns," he said.

Valentino Rossi has posted photos of himself astride an R1 Superbike at Misano several times this year. Certainly the recent Silverstone MotoGP winner hasn't hidden the fact he has ridden an R1 Superbike regularly at Misano this season. And why should he? Basically as long as Rossi is not testing an M1 MotoGP bike, or any MotoGP bike, he's technically not breaking any of the standard MotoGP test rules. And for all we know he may have been given permission to do so via MotoGP's all encompassing Any activity authorized by Race Direction rule.

Misano is truly Valentino Rossi's home track: the front gate is about six miles from Rossi home and riding ranch in Tavullia.

Rossi, when explaining his laps at Misano, was quick to point out that when riding a Superbike that all lines are different from those used in MotoGP and also the braking is much different as well. He suggested that he rides an R1 at Misano more for the physical training than anything.

Taking all of Rossi's rationalization out of the situation, it's hard to believe that any rider who has ridden at Misano would not see Rossi's laps there as an unfair advantage simply for one factor: Misano's legendary tricky surface. Misano has been an anomaly in racing for more than a decade because of its hard to read surface, only made more unknown with a recent re-paving.

However, larger issues are at play here than any rulebook. Consider for a moment the number of VR46 t-shirts one sees in the stands at any MotoGP race from Sepang to Catalunya. Consider that his t-shirt business, in scope and revenue, rivals that of any NASCAR driver; and also that VR46's merchandising and riding school employs around 50 people. Now multiply those bleacher loads of Rossi fans by a factor of 1000 or even 10,000 when it comes to television ratings for MotoGP events. And also that in the darkest days of Rossi's Ducati collaboration or when Rossi missed races after breaking his leg that TV ratings plummeted and without him on the grid that there was plenty of elbow room in the stands.

In many ways Valentino Rossi is bigger than MotoGP itself.

So while riding around for afternoons on a Superbike, at a track that the series uses, while in the middle of a championship title fight might seem like an interesting interpretation of the spirit behind the MotoGP test rules, the fact is that MotoGP is a championship supported by the participation of one rider.

And that rider can do as he pleases.

Ex-MotoGP rider Loris Capirossi says Valentino Rossi is "a monster"

The "fragile" Jorge Lorenzo will find it hard to beat the "monster" Valentino Rossi to the 2015 MotoGP title, reckons their former rival Loris Capirossi.

Rossi re-established a 12-point lead over Yamaha team-mate Lorenzo when he won the wet British Grand Prix last month, but afterwards Lorenzo suggested that he was still the faster rider in normal conditions.

Former works Ducati and Suzuki rider Capirossi agrees, but he thinks pure speed might not be enough given Rossi's strength in other areas.

"Lorenzo is quicker in ideal conditions, but is more fragile than Rossi," Capirossi told Italian magazine Motosprint.

"Psychologically Valentino is definitely more prepared, he is working so hard in order to win this world title, and every time he gets a chance he launches his attack.

"He is still a monster. Thirty-six years of age is a lot and he has won plenty.

"He doesn't have the hunger of an 18-year-old boy, yet he keeps looking for every little bit and puts it all together in order to keep on improving and be able to take the fight to two super strong and younger rivals."

Capirossi, a nine-time grand prix winner in his own MotoGP career, believes Rossi is in the best form of his life.

"On a single lap he doesn't have the strength he used to have 10 years ago, but with age that's inevitable," he said.

"If you know your limit perfectly, it's not easy to go beyond it.

"But as for everything else, he is the same and even better than the Rossi I knew on track."

MARQUEZ: ROSSI 'UNBELIEVABLE'

Reigning world champion Marc Marquez shares Capirossi's belief that Rossi will have answers to Lorenzo's raw pace advantage.

"On speed, it looks like Lorenzo is faster," Marquez said.

"But Valentino is experienced. He's unbelievable.

"He's so consistent and he's able to take profit from all situations.

"It will be really interesting to see. We will try to be there in the middle at every race."

Marquez declared his own title bid effectively over after a Silverstone crash left him 77 points behind Rossi with six races left.