Suzuki Motor Corporation suspends GP racing

Suzuki Motor Corporation has decided to suspend temporarily its participation in FIM Road Racing Grand Prix MotoGP from 2012. 

 

This suspension is to cope with tough circumstances mainly caused by the prolonged recession in developed countries, an historical appreciation of Japanese Yen and repeated natural disasters.

Having an eye to returning to MotoGP in 2014, Suzuki will now focus on developing a competitive new racing machine for that class.

Suzuki will continue motocross racing activity and support of road racing activities using mass-produced motorcycles, by obtaining FIM homologation and co-operation with the supplier of its development racing kit parts.

Spies completes important M1 work

Rider Ben Spies spent the sessions working through two differing engine specifications and a number of frame and geometry settings on the 2012 1000cc YZR-M1. The data will now go back to Japan with the Yamaha engineers who will work on the next stage of development ahead of the first 2012 test in Malaysia at the end of January. Despite missing the valuable input of team mate Jorge Lorenzo, all the required testing was completed within the two days.

At the conclusion of the test Spies was third in the timesheet with a best lap time of 1’32.338 after completing 57 laps.

Ben Spies:
“It’s been a long two days. We had a lot of work to do with Jorge not being here but we’ve got through everything. I think we got the guys working in the right direction, we’re still quite a way from Qatar and what we’ll be racing with but we’ve got a good idea of what we need to work on. There’s a lot of potential in what we have so they’ll go back to Japan now to work on it for a couple of months and we’ll see what we have as a package next year. The team and engineers have worked really hard for the last couple of days so a big thank you to them.”

Massimo Meregalli, Team Director:
“It’s been a really good test. We got a lot of data, everything we were missing in the previous tests from cancellations and injuries etc. The work that we’ve done is good, the schedule is completed and we are quite satisfied. There is of course still some work to do but I think it’s been positive. Now they’ll check the data in Japan and we’ll see the next step in January. Ben did a really good job; I’ve never seen him so focused in a test. It’s the best way to start the new season.”

Rossi and Ducati ready to evaluate following Test

Just as was the case yesterday, the second and final day of Valencia’s post-race MotoGP test was blessed with ideal weather conditions.

Valentino Rossi was among the first riders to get on his bike after the track was opened, and he worked tirelessly with his team and Filippo Preziosi to carry out the tests requested by the engineers, who will continue working on the 2012 project tomorrow in Bologna.

Once again, official test rider Franco Battaini substituted for Nicky Hayden, who has an injured scaphoid in his right wrist, though the American stayed at the track and followed the test from the Ducati Team garage. Hayden will likely undergo a small operation in the coming days to speed up his recovery.

MotoGP concludes its 2011 season of racing and testing, and will return to action with the first winter test, planned in Sepang, Malaysia, from January 31st to February 2nd.

Valentino Rossi:
“These were two important days of testing because we needed to collect a lot of data for the next few months of work, which will be crucial. The positives of this bike are certainly the engine, which I like, and the fact that it handles a bit better than the previous one. It’s definitely more fun, in part because you can get sideways more. The frame isn’t bad, but it needs work. We have to improve the braking, because I need to brake harder and later, and we need to improve traction under acceleration. Filippo has many ideas, and now we have a little time to apply them before next year’s tests.”

Filippo Preziosi, Technical Director:
“We were lucky to have sun and generally much better conditions than what we had over the race weekend, and this allowed us to take full advantage of both test days. Unfortunately, Nicky wasn’t able to ride, but at least he’ll have plenty of time to recover before the first test at Sepang next year. We asked Valentino, Franco (Battaini) and the other Ducati riders to carry out a series of comparisons between different solutions, as there are still chassis parameters that we have to define for the project we’re working on. It has been really hard work, but we’ve collected a lot of information that we’ll now use for the design that we’ll be doing in the coming weeks.

2011 World Championship

2011 MotoGP World Champion Casey Stoner

 

2011 Moto2 World Champion Stefan Bradl

Emotional funeral service bids farewell to Marco Simoncelli

Thousands of mourners came together for the funeral of Marco Simoncelli held at the Santa Maria Assunta church in Coriano on Thursday, October 27th. 

 A huge gathering of fans, friends, family members and prominent figures from the world of sport attended the funeral service for the MotoGP rider who passed away on Sunday. The funeral was held at 3pm on Thursday at the Santa Maria Assunta church in Coriano, Simoncelli’s hometown, close to Riccione in the Italian province of Rimini.

The casket arrived at the Assunta church carried by friends and members of the Gresini team, and at 3pm the service commenced. Simoncelli’s Gilera bike, on which he won the 2008 250cc World Championship title, and the Honda RC212V, on which he competed in the MotoGP class were displayed on either side of his casket.

The ceremony was broadcast on a large video screen outside of the church, as well as on an additional large screen installed at the nearby Misano circuit, so that those outside of the church and at the circuit could witness the ceremony. Prior to the service the screens ran footage of the 24 year-old at his charismatic best in the paddock.
Alongside Marco’s father Paolo, mother Rosella, sister Martina and girlfriend Kate, in attendance were current and former fellow riders including Valentino Rossi, Giacomo Agostini, Alex Criville, Simone Corsi, Yuki Takahashi, Raffaele de Rosa, Chaz Davies, Mattia Pasini, Manuel Poggiali, Jorge Lorenzo, Andrea Dovizioso, Randy de Puniet, Loris Capirossi, Toni Elias, Hiroshi Aoyama and Alex de Angelis.
Also present at the services were FIM president Vito Ippolito and CEO of Dorna Sports, Carmelo Ezpeleta, who commented on the services.
“What I experienced this afternoon in Coriano was very moving. After seeing the turnout of citizens, fans and the whole paddock there is no doubt that a great rider and a brilliant person has left us. The outpouring of affection that has been shown demonstrates that he has left his mark.”
“I was impressed by the courage of Marco’s family, and especially the strength of his father, Paolo, who was able to transmit his strength and energy to others.”
“It has been extraordinary to see the MotoGP family come together for Marco Simoncelli. Despite the unfortunate loss, the tribute makes clear the immense affection that people had for him. We will never forget Marco.”

Marco Simoncelli Colin Edwards Crash in Sepang Malaysia