2011

Year: 2011

Month: ALL

Checa weighing up big money BMW deal

14 October 2011 by Michael Guy

Checa weighing up big money BMW deal

Carlos Checa has until the tomorrow to accept a lucrative offer from the BMW Motorrad Italia team to ride the S1000RR in 2012. MCN understands that the 2011 world champion has been offered in the...

Checa takes control in first qualifying at Portimao

14 October 2011 by Michael Guy

Checa takes control in first qualifying at Portimao

Carlos Checa ended the opening day of qualifying at the top of the time sheets in Portimao today. The newly crowned world champion held off a late charge from Irishman Eugene Laverty who enjoyed one...

Australia MotoGP: Stoner and Rossi criticise Marquez

14 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Australia MotoGP: Stoner and Rossi criticise Marquez

Casey Stoner and Valentino Rossi were both heavily critical of Marc Marquez after the rising Spanish star caused a horrific accident during Moto2 practice at the Phillip Island track in Australia...

Aoyama to Castrol Honda – decision imminent

14 October 2011 by Michael Guy

Aoyama to Castrol Honda – decision imminent

Current Gresini Honda MotoGP man Hiroshi Aoyama is set to join the Castrol Honda squad in WSB in 2012. Long time GP rider and 250 world champion, Aoyama will line up alongside multiple race winner...

Australia MotoGP: Marc Marquez penalised after horror crash

14 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Australia MotoGP: Marc Marquez penalised after horror crash

Marc Marquez will have to start from the back of the grid for Sunday’s Australian Moto2 race after he caused a horrific high speed collision with Thai rider Ratthapark Wilairot at Phillip Island...

Australia MotoGP: Valentino Rossi struggles in lowly 13th

14 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Australia MotoGP: Valentino Rossi struggles in lowly 13th

Valentino Rossi never expected to continue Ducati’s phenomenal winning record at the Phillip Island circuit after a nightmare 2011 campaign. But the Italian certainly didn’t expect to be as far off...

Australia MotoGP: Casey Stoner fastest after early crash

14 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Australia MotoGP: Casey Stoner fastest after early crash

Casey Stoner bounced back from an early crash to top the timesheets on the opening day of practice for his home race at the spectacular Phillip Island circuit today. But the home favourite, who could...

Biaggi cautious about weekend ahead

13 October 2011 by Michael Guy

Biaggi cautious about weekend ahead

Max Biaggi has revealed to MCN that he won’t know if it will be possible to race this weekend at Portimao until he has completed a full day on the bike tomorrow. The 2010 world champions has a broken...

Fourteen round 2012 WSB calendar confirmed

13 October 2011 by Michael Guy

Fourteen round 2012 WSB calendar confirmed

The FIM has released the 2012 WSB calendar today with the series swelling to fourteen races next season. New to the calendar is the Russian race at Moscow International Raceway in August. Other...

Casey Stoner hails world champion Chaz Davies

13 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Casey Stoner hails world champion Chaz Davies

Casey Stoner has spoken of his delight at seeing close pal Chaz Davies make a major career breakthrough by clinching the 2011 World Supersport crown earlier this month. The Australian has remained...

Nicky Hayden positive after Ducati aluminium frame debut

13 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Nicky Hayden positive after Ducati aluminium frame debut

Nicky Hayden said his debut on Ducati’s new aluminium frame in Jerez last week was positive, but the American admitted Bologna engineers still have plenty of work to do to make the GP12 a more...

Finger injury boost for Valentino Rossi

13 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Finger injury boost for Valentino Rossi

Valentino Rossi is confident the broken left little finger he suffered in the Japanese Grand Prix will not be a major problem during this weekend’s Phillip Island clash. The Italian broke his left...

Aspar confirms Ducati split

13 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Aspar confirms Ducati split

Spain’s high profile Aspar squad will split with Ducati at the end of the 2011 MotoGP world championship and is now working on its own private 1000cc project. Having initially agreed to expand to a...

Paul Bird submits 2012 MotoGP bid

13 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Paul Bird submits 2012 MotoGP bid

Paul Bird’s bid to move to the MotoGP world championship in 2012 moved a step closer yesterday (Wednesday). Bird, who lost the contract to run Kawasaki’s factory World Superbike squad for next season,...

Valentino Rossi: ‘Maybe if it snows I can win’

13 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Valentino Rossi: ‘Maybe if it snows I can win’

Valentino Rossi might be close to losing his proud record of winning at least one race in every season of his illustrious Grand Prix career in 2011, but he proved today he’s not lost his sense of...

Laverty poised for Aprilia future, but not yet signed

11 October 2011 by Michael Guy

Laverty poised for Aprilia future, but not yet signed

Eugene Laverty is on course to become an Aprilia rider in 2012, but contrary to reports on Italian websites has told MCN that he is yet to sign any contract. The 25 year old Irishman was in advanced...

Valentino Rossi expects strong Phillip Island performance

11 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Valentino Rossi expects strong Phillip Island performance

Valentino Rossi has dismissed his chances of extending Ducati’s phenomenal winning record at the Phillip Island track this weekend, but the Italian is still confident of a strong result in...

Frustration builds as Suzuki stalls on 2012 decision

11 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Frustration builds as Suzuki stalls on 2012 decision

Factory Suzuki MotoGP boss Paul Denning has admitted the wait for a final decision on whether the Japanese factory will line-up on the grid in 2012 is building frustration within the British-based...

Yamaha not bidding to sign Marc Marquez for 2012

11 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Yamaha not bidding to sign Marc Marquez for 2012

Yamaha has denied launching an audacious bid to poach Spanish starlet Marc Marquez from under the noses of Japanese rivals Honda. The reigning 125GP world champion has been linked with a move to...

Tech 3 thrilled to capture Andrea Dovizioso for 2012

10 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Tech 3 thrilled to capture Andrea Dovizioso for 2012

Monster Yamaha Tech 3 boss Herve Poncharal has spoken of his delight at signing Andrea Dovizioso for the 2012 MotoGP world championship. Dovizioso agreed a one-year deal with the French-based squad...

Brands Hatch BSB: Hill takes championship in photo finish

09 October 2011 by Liam Marsden

Brands Hatch BSB: Hill takes championship in photo finish

Tommy Hill has won the 2011 British Superbike championship after beating John Hopkins in the final race of the season by six thousandths of a second. With just two points separating the pair going...

Brands Hatch BSB: Shane Byrne wins race two

09 October 2011 by Liam Marsden

Brands Hatch BSB: Shane Byrne wins race two

HM Plant Honda rider Shane Byrne won the seond BSB race of the weekend in damp conditions at Brands Hatch this afternoon. Byrne was gifted the lead when race leader Michael Laverty crashed at Druids...

Brands Hatch BSB: Laverty takes win, Hopkins extends lead

08 October 2011 by Liam Marsden

Brands Hatch BSB: Laverty takes win, Hopkins extends lead

Swan Yamaha rider Michael Laverty has won the first race of the final round at Brands Hatch ahead of fellow championship hopeful Josh Brookes. Laverty and Brookes were in a race of their own, pulling...

LCR Honda to turn to John Hopkins?

08 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

LCR Honda to turn to John Hopkins?

Lucio Cecchinello will turn his attention to John Hopkins, Randy de Puniet or Alvaro Bautista for a 2012 MotoGP ride now that Andrea Dovizioso has opted to sign for Tech 3 Yamaha. Cecchinello had made...

Andrea Dovizioso shuns Honda for Tech 3 Yamaha

08 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Andrea Dovizioso shuns Honda for Tech 3 Yamaha

Andrea Dovizioso has turned down the chance to ride a factory-backed RC213V machine for LCR Honda to agree a deal with Tech 3 Yamaha in 2012. The Italian informed Tech 3 boss Herve Poncharal of his...

Brands Hatch BSB: Brookes smashes lap record for pole

08 October 2011 by Liam Marsden

Brands Hatch BSB: Brookes smashes lap record for pole

Relentless by TAS Suzuki rider Josh Brookes will start from pole position for this afternoon’s race after smashing the lap record with a time of 1:24.111. Brookes, who is still in with a chance of...

FTR to delay Aprilia-powered 1000cc project

06 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

FTR to delay Aprilia-powered 1000cc project

British chassis specialists FTR will shelve plans to run an Aprilia RSV4-powered bike in MotoGP next season. The Buckingham-based company had designed a frame around the RSV4 motor and it looked like...

Marc Marquez coy on 2012 MotoGP switch

06 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Marc Marquez coy on 2012 MotoGP switch

Marc Marquez remains coy about whether he will move to MotoGP in 2012 if he wraps up this year’s Moto2 world championship. Marquez seized the lead in the Moto2 title race for the first time this...

Valentino Rossi fit for Phillip Island despite test absence

06 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Valentino Rossi fit for Phillip Island despite test absence

Valentino Rossi will be fit to ride in next weekend’s Australian MotoGP race, despite withdrawing from a vital 1000cc test at the Jerez circuit today with a hand injury. The 32-year-old was due to...

Cooper to race Buildbase BMW at Brands

05 October 2011 by MCN Sportsdesk

Cooper to race Buildbase BMW at Brands

Buldbase BMW’s newly crowned National Superstock 1000 Champion Richard Cooper will be competing in both the Superstock and BSB races at this weekend’s season finale at Brands Hatch. The...

BSB Showdown: Hill vs Hopkins

05 October 2011 by MCN

BSB Showdown: Hill vs Hopkins

John Hopkins. Tommy Hill. Just eight points separate them at the top of the points table going into the final, three round Showdown of the MCE British Superbikes Championship at Brands Hatch this...

MotoGP bosses keen to secure Paul Bird entry for 2012

05 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

MotoGP bosses keen to secure Paul Bird entry for 2012

MotoGP bosses are hoping that British team owner Paul Bird can finalise plans to enter a new team in the inaugural 1000cc world championship next year. Bird is currently trying to put together a...

Ducati appear in state of confusion, says Marco Simoncelli

05 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Ducati appear in state of confusion, says Marco Simoncelli

Marco Simoncelli reckons Valentino Rossi and Ducati are in a state of confusion about how to transform the struggling Desmosedici into a consistent podium threat. Rossi has endured a miserable debut...

Josh Hayes to ride Tech 3 Yamaha at Valencia test

04 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Josh Hayes to ride Tech 3 Yamaha at Valencia test

American superbike champion Josh Hayes will test Colin Edwards’ Yamaha YZR-M1 800cc MotoGP bike after the final race in Valencia next month. The 36-year-old will ride the current 800cc machine and...

Light delay caused Motegi jump starts, says Valentino Rossi

04 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

Light delay caused Motegi jump starts, says Valentino Rossi

Valentino Rossi reckons a delay with the start lights going out at the Twin Ring Motegi caused three riders, including Briton Cal Crutchlow, to jump the start in Sunday’s Japanese Grand Prix. Repsol...

No MotoGP freight issues for Phillip Island race

04 October 2011 by Matthew Birt

No MotoGP freight issues for Phillip Island race

MotoGP teams have been assured that their equipment and machinery will arrive at Phillip Island with no problems after being transported from Japan. Rumours circulating the paddock recently suggested...