Australian Grand Prix 2016

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Valencia MotoGP: Lowly 13th for Bradley Smith

06 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Valencia MotoGP: Lowly 13th for Bradley Smith

Bradley Smith was a lowly 13th fastest in 125GP practice this afternoon as the final race of 2009 kicked off at a sunny but windy Valencia circuit. Having secured second place in the world...

Valencia MotoGP: Valentino Rossi ‘curious’ about Ben Spies

05 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Valencia MotoGP: Valentino Rossi ‘curious’ about Ben Spies

Valentino Rossi has told MCN he is ‘curious’ to gauge the performance of reigning World Superbike champion Ben Spies during his Yamaha MotoGP debut in Valencia. The Texan, who has raced in three...

Valencia MotoGP: Ben Spies: 2010 podium ‘a miracle’

05 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Valencia MotoGP: Ben Spies: 2010 podium ‘a miracle’

American Ben Spies reckons it would be a miracle if he claimed a podium in his first full MotoGP world championship campaign in 2010. Preparing for his Yamaha YZR-M1 debut in this weekend’s Valencia...

Valencia MotoGP: Dani Pedrosa encouraged by Honda effort

05 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Valencia MotoGP: Dani Pedrosa encouraged by Honda effort

Spaniard Dani Pedrosa reckons he’s been encouraged by the effort Honda is putting into its 2010 MotoGP world championship challenge. But the triple world champion says he will reserve judgement on...

Valencia MotoGP: Casey Stoner sad to see team boss quit

05 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Valencia MotoGP: Casey Stoner sad to see team boss quit

Casey Stoner has spoke of his disappointment that factory team boss Livio Suppo has opted to quit Ducati and move to rivals HRC in a senior management role for 2010. Suppo’s departure from Ducati...

Valencia MotoGP: Valentino Rossi eager to test 2010 Yamaha

05 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Valencia MotoGP: Valentino Rossi eager to test 2010 Yamaha

With the 2009 MotoGP world championship already secured, Valentino Rossi has cast one eye on next week’s crucial test session when he will debut Yamaha’s prototype 2010 factory YZR-M1 machine. ...

Valencia MotoGP: Ducati confirm Livio Suppo departure

05 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Valencia MotoGP: Ducati confirm Livio Suppo departure

Ducati has confirmed team boss Livio Suppo will leave its factory team after this weekend’s final race in Valencia. Although not yet officially confirmed, Suppo will take up a management role with...

Valencia MotoGP: Ben Spies shows off wild card Yamaha

05 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Valencia MotoGP: Ben Spies shows off wild card Yamaha

Reigning World Superbike champion Ben Spies has shown off the stunning looking factory Yamaha YZR-M1 he will race as a wild card at this weekend’s Valencia MotoGP. Spies, who recently won the WSB...

Valencia MotoGP: Ducati poised to announce team boss departure

05 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Valencia MotoGP: Ducati poised to announce team boss departure

Ducati is expected to confirm that long-serving team manager Livio Suppo will leave the team after this weekend’s final MotoGP race in Valencia. Although nothing has yet been confirmed by the...

Ben Spies Valencia bike and kit revealed

04 November 2009 by Ped Baker

Ben Spies Valencia bike and kit revealed

Reigning WSB champ Ben Spies is making his MotoGP debut this weekend in Valencia and this is the bike he’ll be doing it on, a Sterilgarda sponsored Yamaha M1. The bodywork and leathers are for one...

Silverstone: The fastest MotoGP track in the world

04 November 2009 by Mike Nicks

Silverstone: The fastest MotoGP track in the world

Riders will lap Silverstone at an average speed of more than 122mph at the British MotoGP in 2010, making the new circuit the fastest on the MotoGP calendar by a clear 10mph. Silverstone date to...

Valencia MotoGP: Still plenty to play for

04 November 2009 by Gary Pinchin

Valencia MotoGP: Still plenty to play for

Valentino Rossi may have sealed the 2009 MotoGP World Championship at Sepang, but there’s plenty to play for in the final MotoGP round of the season at Valencia this weekend. Probably the most...

Aoyama on the verge of 250 World title

04 November 2009 by Gary Pinchin

Aoyama on the verge of 250 World title

After prevailing in his epic battle with Marco Simoncelli at Sepang, Hiroshi Aoyama is within touching distance of being named the 2009 250cc World Champion in the final race of the season – and...

Valencia MotoGP: Niccolo Canepa to miss final race

04 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Valencia MotoGP: Niccolo Canepa to miss final race

Niccolo Canepa’s spectacular crash during practice at Phillip Island last month will be his last memory of MotoGP for a while after the Italian was ruled out of this weekend’s season finale in...

Valencia MotoGP: Casey Stoner eyes hat-trick

04 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Valencia MotoGP: Casey Stoner eyes hat-trick

Casey Stoner is looking to end a troubled 2009 campaign in positive fashion in Valencia this weekend with the Aussie chasing a third successive victory. The 24-year-old has been in brilliant form...

Jerry Burgess: Valentino Rossi could race until 2015

04 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Jerry Burgess: Valentino Rossi could race until 2015

Valentino Rossi’s crew chief Jerry Burgess believes the Italian could carry on racing until the end of 2015 at least. Burgess reckons Rossi could carry on dominating in MotoGP into his mid-thirties in...

Silverstone date to change in MotoGP calendar reshuffle?

04 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Silverstone date to change in MotoGP calendar reshuffle?

The 2010 British MotoGP at Silverstone could be moved from its provisional June 6 slot with a major re-shuffle of next season’s premier class calendar expected. Finalising next year’s calendar has...

Valencia MotoGP: Chris Vermeulen targets points milestone

03 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Valencia MotoGP: Chris Vermeulen targets points milestone

Aussie Chris Vermeulen is hoping to end his MotoGP career in style this weekend and preserve his 100 per cent point-scoring record in 2009. Vermeulen, who is leaving MotoGP to return to World...

Valencia MotoGP: Bradley Smith aims for strong finish

03 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Valencia MotoGP: Bradley Smith aims for strong finish

Having secured second place in the 125GP world championship with a brilliant run of five successive podium finishes, Bradley Smith is aiming to end 2009 on a high at the season’s final race in...

Valencia MotoGP: Dani Pedrosa seeks winning finish

03 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Valencia MotoGP: Dani Pedrosa seeks winning finish

Home favourite Dani Pedrosa wants to end a largely disappointing 2009 MotoGP campaign in style with victory in Sunday’s final race in Valencia. The Spaniard has again failed to mount a serious title...

Valencia MotoGP: Jorge Lorenzo looking to clinch second overall

03 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Valencia MotoGP: Jorge Lorenzo looking to clinch second overall

Jorge Lorenzo has unveiled a double plan for this weekend’s final MotoGP clash in Valencia. The Spaniard is hoping to notch a fifth victory in an impressive 2009 title challenge and is also aiming to...

Valencia MotoGP: Valentino Rossi relaxed and ready

03 November 2009 by Matthew Birt

Valencia MotoGP: Valentino Rossi relaxed and ready

Valentino Rossi hopes to end another MotoGP world championship-winning campaign at bogey circuit Valencia on Sunday. The Italian has endured a nightmare recent run at the Valencia track, which started...

FTR field two-man Moto2 team

02 November 2009 by Gary Pinchin

FTR field two-man Moto2 team

Brit-based FTR Moto will have a two-rider line-up for the final two Moto2 Spanish Championship races at Jerez on November 15 and at Valencia on November 22. Working closely with its development...

Mattia Pasini signs Moto2 deal

29 October 2009 by Matthew Birt

Mattia Pasini signs Moto2 deal

Italian Mattia Pasini will ride for the JiR Moto2 team in 2010. Pasini’s deal with the JiR squad, run by former MotoGP boss Gianluca Montiron, is expected to be confirmed before the end this week. The...

Gresini admits Moto2 funding issue

29 October 2009 by Matthew Birt

Gresini admits Moto2 funding issue

Fausto Gresini has denied he is contemplating pulling the plug on his new Moto2 team. Gresini was due to run two bikes designed and built by Japanese tuning specialists Moriwaki in 250cc two-stroke...

Scott Redding meets Hollywood star’s Moto2 team

29 October 2009 by Matthew Birt

Scott Redding meets Hollywood star’s Moto2 team

British teenager Scott Redding has met the Moto2 team backed by Hollywood star Antonio Banderas about a 2010 ride in the new four-stroke 600cc class. Redding flew to Spain shortly after returning from...

Honda needs stronger leadership, says Mick Doohan

29 October 2009 by Matthew Birt

Honda needs stronger leadership, says Mick Doohan

Aussie legend Mick Doohan reckons Honda needs stronger leadership to drag itself out of the doldrums in MotoGP. After watching factory Honda rider Dani Pedrosa recently outclassed by Casey Stoner and...

Yamaha confident Valentino Rossi will stay

29 October 2009 by Matthew Birt

Yamaha confident Valentino Rossi will stay

Yamaha boss Masao Furusawa is confident the Italian will not leave the Japanese factory when his current contract expires at the end of the 2010 MotoGP world championship. The 30-year-old, who wrapped...

Kevin Schwantz to head Suzuki satellite squad in 2011?

27 October 2009 by Matthew Birt

Kevin Schwantz to head Suzuki satellite squad in 2011?

American legend Kevin Schwantz could be the figurehead of a new Suzuki MotoGP team planned to debut in 2011, MCN can reveal. The Texan, who has been linked previously with a management role at...

Bradley Smith close to new 125GP deal

27 October 2009 by Matthew Birt

Bradley Smith close to new 125GP deal

Bradley Smith is close to finalising details of a new deal with the Aspar Aprilia 125GP team. The 18-year-old had wanted to move to the Moto2 600cc world championship in 2010 but the Spanish-based...

Honda waiting on Scot decision for 2010

27 October 2009 by Matthew Birt

Honda waiting on Scot decision for 2010

Honda is still willing to prop up the MotoGP grid with a seven-pronged attack on next year’s world championship. A deadline for the cash-strapped Scot Honda squad to confirm it would lease an RC212V...

Dani Pedrosa: ‘I can be world champion with Honda’

27 October 2009 by Matthew Birt

Dani Pedrosa: ‘I can be world champion with Honda’

Dani Pedrosa insists he can still become MotoGP world champion at Honda. The Spaniard recently signed a one-year extension to his factory HRC contract having been linked with a big-money switch to...

Yamaha want Valentino Rossi on lifetime deal

27 October 2009 by Matthew Birt

Yamaha want Valentino Rossi on lifetime deal

Yamaha is trying to secure Valentino Rossi on a lifetime contract to stop the newly crowned world champion from making a Ducati switch in 2011. Rumours about a big money future move to Ducati and...

Sepang MotoGP: Valentino Rossi expects tough 2010

25 October 2009 by Matthew Birt

Sepang MotoGP: Valentino Rossi expects tough 2010

Valentino Rossi barely gave himself time to let his seventh MotoGP world title success sink in when his thoughts turned to mounting a successful defence in 2010. The Italian, who clinched the ’09...

Sepang MotoGP: Valentino Rossi stats and facts

25 October 2009 by Matthew Birt

Sepang MotoGP: Valentino Rossi stats and facts

Valentino Rossi’s ninth world championship success in Sepang cemented his place in the history of racing. The record-breaking Italian clinched his seventh MotoGP world title with third place in a...

Sepang MotoGP: Valentino Rossi reflects on 9th world title

25 October 2009 by Matthew Birt

Sepang MotoGP: Valentino Rossi reflects on 9th world title

Valentino Rossi has been reflecting on his ninth world championship triumph and seventh in MotoGP after a dramatic rain-hit race in Malaysia. Third place was enough to clinch the title for the...