Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Yamaha take final World Endurance victory and claim the Manufacturer’s Title

Yamaha Racing

News  16/11/2009 
Yamaha take final World Endurance victory and claim the Manufacturer's Title
YART in action
YART in action

The Yamaha Austria Racing Team took yet another race win last weekend at the 8h of Doha, Qatar for the final round of the 2009 FIM World Endurance Championship.

The impressive ride to victory by YART riders Igor Jerman, Steve Martin and Gwen Giabbani, who led the entire race from the first lap, gave Yamaha enough points to claim the 2009 FIM World Endurance Manufacturer title. The Team had already sealed the championship title at the previous round in September but kept the pressure on for the final race to take a clean sweep for Yamaha to add to their already impressive list of world championship title wins this year.

"We had some problems at the Bol d'Or round and Suzuki passed us in the manufacturer's championship standings," said YART Team Manager Mandy Kainz. "So we came here to Qatar to win. The race was perfect, there were no mistakes and it was a good weekend for us, as it was usually over the year! We also wanted to finish on the podium on Sunday, it was the best way to finish the year."



Yamaha Racing Communications
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Friday, November 13, 2009

MX GP: Factory Yamaha Motocross team joins forces with Ohlins

Yamaha Racing

News  12/11/2009 
Factory Yamaha Motocross team joins forces with Ohlins
Ohlins and YZ450F
Ohlins and YZ450F

The Yamaha Monster Energy Motocross Team will be able to count on the technical expertise of renowned Swedish suspension specialists Ohlins for the 2010 FIM MX1 and MX2-GP World Championship after an alliance between the two parties was recently confirmed after successful initial tests.

The new YZ450FM of David Philippaerts and 2010 revised YZ250F of fresh recruit Gautier Paulin will embrace the technology of the firm established in 1976. Testing will continue extensively with a view towards achieving optimum set-up for the beginning of the pre-season campaign in February and then the first Grand Prix of fifteen in Bulgaria on April 4th.

For the Rinaldi Group a union with Ohlins will signify a return to earlier glory days in which Michele Rinaldi – then as Team Manager – grasped the first world titles for the squad and Yamaha in the early 1990s (1994, 125cc with Bob Moore, and 1992, 250cc with Donny Schmit).

Ohlin and Rinaldi
Ohlin and Rinaldi

"I have pleasant memories of working with Ohlins and of course their reputation in the motorcycle sport world is very highly regarded," commented Team Principal and Owner Michele Rinaldi. "We have two new motorcycles with the latest generation of the YZ450F and the 2010 YZ250F and we are confident that the support and knowledge of Ohlins will help us achieve our goals both on and off the track."

"This new co-operation is very exciting for us. We have a completely new damping system ready for the team along with our high level of technical service and support - we believe that a forceful combination has been created," said Ohlins Racing Manager Mats Larsson. "The factory team has a fantastic racing history and we look forward to similar success in the future. We are also very much looking forward to being part of the competitive development for the new YZ450F and YZ250F."

Created by Kenth Ohlin in the mid-1970s, Ohlins won their first world championship in motocross in 1978; it would be the first of 200 titles gained across many disciplines of motorsport. Today the firm has three hubs, in Stockholm, Sweden, North Carolina and in Germany and employees more than 230 people. They have more than 30 employees dedicated to high-end racing support and service.



Yamaha Racing Communications
Hoogte Kadijk 61 HS / 1018 BE Amsterdam / The Netherlands
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Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Super Spies shines at Valencia test

Yamaha Racing

News  10/11/2009 
Super Spies shines at Valencia test

Ben Spies played a starring role on the second day of MotoGP testing in Valencia today, the Texan producing another confident and assured performance on his Monster Yamaha Tech 3 YZR-M1 machine.

Making only his fifth appearance on board Yamaha's YZR-M1 machine, the 25-year-old continued his seamless transition from World Superbikes to finish with the fourth quickest time.

Spies again resisted the temptation to experiment with different settings today, the reigning World Superbike champion taking full advantage of improved conditions to dedicate more time on adapting his riding style to suit the YZR-M1 machine.

His best la p time of 1.32.942 was 0.5s faster than his fastest pace yesterday and for the majority of today he occupied third position on the timesheets behind Jorge Lorenzo and Casey Stoner.

At the end of a positive and fruitful day, Spies was only 0.414s away from reigning MotoGP world champion Valentino Rossi in his 61-lap stint.

Fellow Texan Colin Edwards was unable to test today, the 35-year-old struck down by a virus overnight that forced him to undergo treatment in the Clinica Mobile for a high temperature and low blood pressure.

The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team now starts a thoroughly deserved winter break before reconvening at the Sepang circuit in Malaysia in early February.

Ben Spies - Position: 4th Time: 1.32.942 Laps: 61
"I'm really happy with this test. My performance in the race surpass ed my expectations and so did the test. I didn't touch the set-up of the bike again and continued mainly working on adapting my style. I feel like I made a lot of progress. My data guy could see on the computer that I was riding with more of a MotoGP style and each day I've made steps and gained confidence with the tyres. At the end I put on some tyres that had half race distance on them, but I was still able to lap half-a-second faster than yesterday. And where I was running 34'1s in the race I could get into low 33s consistently today. I've been making small steps but I'm a lot closer to the front than the back, so that is a good sign. I've enjoyed working with my new guys at Monster Yamaha Tech 3. It has been a tough year but a great year for me and I'm looking forward to the winter, training hard and being ready to go again in February."

Colin Edwards
"I woke up this morn ing at 5am and felt horrendous. I felt completely drained of all my energy. I thought I'd got food poisoning and I knew then I wasn't going to be able to ride today. But the Clinica Mobile guys said I'd got a virus and I've just been lying in bed all day. It obviously wasn't the way I wanted to end the year but I'm looking forward to a long break now and coming back strong for 2010. I've had another great season with the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team and would like to thank all my guys again for their hard work. They are an awesome bunch. And looking at the times today, Ben has done a great job. He's not only showed what a fast learner he is, but how talented he is. There should be a good bit of friendly Texan rivalry in 2010 and I can't wait."

Test Times

1. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Fiat Yamaha Team 1'31.939
2. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro Team 1'32.195
3. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha Team 1'32.528
4. Ben Spies (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1'32.942
5. Nicky Hayden (USA) Ducati Marlboro Team 1'32.981
6. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda 1'33.025
7. Randy De Puniet (FRA) LCR Honda MotoGP 1'33.111
8. Mika Kallio (FIN) Pramac Racing 1'33.125
9. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1'33.211
10. Marco Melandri (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini 1'33.326
11. Alex Espagaro (SPA) Pramac Racing 1'33.345
12. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Repsol Honda 1'33.456
13. Hector Barbera (SPA) Aspar Team 1'34.206
14. Marco Simoncelli (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini 1'34.230
15. Alvaro Bautista (SPA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1'34.540
16. Hiroshi Aoyama (JPN) Scot Racing Team 1'35.261

Comunitat Valenciana: Record Lap
C. Stoner (Ducati) 2008, 1'32.582

Comunitat Valenciana: Best Lap
V. Rossi (Yamaha) 2006, 1'31.002



Yamaha Racing Communications
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Season ends with successful test in Valencia

Yamaha Racing

News  10/11/2009 
Season ends with successful test in Valencia

A year of hard work finally came to an end for the Fiat Yamaha Team today with the last day of testing in Valencia. Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi finished the day first and third, signing off for the winter in strong form.

Both riders continued to work on the new evolution YZR-M1, as well as doing some laps on their 2009 bikes in order to compare the new updates. Lorenzo set his best lap towards the end of the day's work and was 0.256 seconds faster than Casey Stoner, with Rossi 0.333 seconds behind the Australian.

Having swept the board of trophies this season, the team will now enjoy a hard-earned break before reconvening at Sepang, Malaysia in early February for the next test.

Jorge Lorenzo - Position: 1st Time: 1'31.939 Laps: 62
"I am happy that we are so competitive here with this new version of the bike. I was able to do some very fast laps and it feels good to be the fastest on the last day of the season. There is a long time now until the next text and it is good for me mentally to know that I was fast today. We have worked on some electronics and the suspension, and we have compared the new chassis to the old one and taken a lot of important information for our engineers. I am so happy about my season, I've won three races, taken many podiums and finished second in the championship. I think this is a great achievement by us and now I would like to wish everyone a good holiday to recover so we all come back in February at the maximum ready to work again!"

Valentino Rossi - Position: 3rd Time: 1'32.528 Laps: 55
"I am happy about what we have so far with the new evolution of the bike, because it's already faster and already feels better than the old one. The throttle is easier to open and I think that Yamaha has done a good job so far. We were quite fast today and I'm happy about the work we have done over these two days. I think that we have given our engineers plenty to work on over the winter and I am looking forward to the next updates in February. It's good to finally finish work and now we have some months to relax and recharge the batteries ahead of next year, which for sure is going to be a big, big fight!"

Test Times

1. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Fiat Yamaha Team 1'31.939
2. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro Team 1'32.195
3. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha Team 1'32.528
4. Ben Spies (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1'32.942

5. Nicky Hayden (USA) Ducati Marlboro Team 1'32.981
6. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda 1'33.025
7. Randy De Puniet (FRA) LCR Honda MotoGP 1'33.111
8. Mika Kallio (FIN) Pramac Racing 1'33.125
9. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1'33.211
10. Marco Melandri (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini 1'33.326
11. Alex Espagaro (SPA) Pramac Racing 1'33.345
12. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Repsol Honda 1'33.456
13. Hector Barbera (SPA) Aspar Team 1'34.206
14. Marco Simoncelli (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini 1'34.230
15. Alvaro Bautista (SPA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1'34.540
16. Hiroshi Aoyama (JPN) Scot Racing Team 1'35.261

Comunitat Valenciana: Record Lap
C. Stoner (Ducati) 2008, 1'32.582

Comunitat Valenciana: Best Lap
V. Rossi (Yamaha) 2006, 1'31.002



Yamaha Racing Communications
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Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Yamaha teams start work for 2010 in Valencia

Yamaha Racing

News  10/11/2009 
Yamaha teams start work for 2010 in Valencia

One day after sealing the Triple Crown of titles for 2009, the Fiat Yamaha Team was back at work in Valencia today looking towards the next season. World Champion Valentino Rossi and runner-up Jorge Lorenzo tested this afternoon and will continue tomorrow before finally getting the chance to take some time off. Lorenzo finished the day second fastest behind Casey Stoner and Rossi was just behind him in third.

Both riders had a new evolution of the 2010 prototype YZR-M1 to try alongside a 2009 bike, a step on from the first version they tried in August in Brno. They both reported back positively to the Yamaha engineers and were able to set some good times on the prototype bikes. Lorenzo's best time was just 0.025 seconds off Stoner, with Rossi 0.141 seconds behind his team-mate.

Valentino Rossi - Position: 2nd Time: 1'32.685 Laps: 45
"I was really excited to try this new version of the M1 today and I had a lot of motivation to get back to work. The feeling out of the corner is much better and we have more grip already in the rear so it's a big improvement for me. We still need to work on accelleration but I like what we have so far and I think we will continue to be competitive like this year. We have to wait and see the comparison between the old and new bike at a different track next year, but I am excited. I'm quite tired because this is already our fourth day riding here, but I am happy to have one more day of testing."

Jorge Lorenzo - Position: 3rd Time: 1'32.826 Laps: 37
"It was quite hard work to get back on the bike today but it's a very important test for us. The new prototype we have already feels better than what we tried in Brno, so this is positive. I was faster than with the old bike straight away so we know we're working in the right way and hopefully we can improve some more tomorrow. Of course we still have a 2009 specification engine and we won't have an update until the next test in February, but the bike already feels more stable and has more rear grip. Tomorrow we have quite a lot to get through and it will be an important day before we can finally relax."


Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team begin 2010 preparations

Less than 24 hours after the conclusion to a successful 2009 MotoGP world championship campaign, the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team was back in action at the Valencia circuit today to begin preparations for next season.

With track action not commencing until 1pm, this morning gave the team chance to welcome new rider Ben Spies, who will partner fellow Texan Colin Edwards in 2010. It was also an opportunity for his mechanics to acquaint themselves with new crew chief Tom Houseworth, who has been a fundamental part of Spies' successful career to date.

Spies raced to a brilliant seventh place on his Yamaha debut yesterday and his impressive pace cont inued in sunny but blustery conditions today.

For Spies, this afternoon's four-hour session was all about continuing to familiarise himself with Yamaha's YZR-M1 machine. The World Superbike champion opted to work more on refining his own riding style than making alterations to the set-up of his Monster Yamaha Tech 3 machine.

The 25-year-old completed 50 laps with a best time of 1.33.496 making it a positive and productive first day with Tech 3. His time was the sixth quickest today and only 0.8s away from fastest rider Casey Stoner and he knocked a massive 0.6s off his best time posted in yesterday's race.

Fresh from a brilliant fourth place in yesterday's 30-lap Valencia MotoGP race, which secured fifth overall in the final rankings, Edwards completed a short stint of 35 laps while experimenting with wheelbase and front-end settings on his YZR-M1.

Ben Spies
Ben Spies

Ben Spies - Position: 6th Time: 1'33.496 Laps: 50
"I am really happy to finally make my debut for the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team. They are a great team and it feels good to finally get to work with them. Today I was obviously on a different bike but with the same setting that I raced on and it felt good. I improved on my qualifying time so it was a positive and productive day. I really just focused on doing a couple of things different with my style and in the last two sessions I tried to do some things very different and it worked. I was slowly able to chip away at the lap times, so it is encouraging that I'm getting faster and more comfortable without even making any changes to the set-up of the bike. We'll make some changes to the bike tomorrow, more for me to see what I can feel, than looking for big improvements."

Colin Edwards
Colin Edwards

Colin Edwards - Position: 12th Time: 1'33.929 Laps: 35
"First of all I want to welcome Ben to the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team, or should that be Team Texas. He's joined a fantastic squad and we already love him here because his brilliant Yamaha debut in the race helped me get fifth in the world championship. Personally I'm really excited about working with him in 2010 because he's a talented rider, and I'm sure we'll be motivating each other a lot. I didn't too many laps today and all I did was work on the wheelbase and some different front-end geometry. The bike felt good and we definitely learned a couple of things by making the bike longer. I've got a couple of other things to check on the bike tomorrow and then it will off for a hard earned winter break."

Test Times

1. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro Team 1'32.660
2. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Fiat Yamaha Team 1'32.685
3. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha Team 1'32.826

4. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda 1'33.088
5. Nicky Hayden (USA) Ducati Marlboro Team 1'33.358
6. Ben Spies (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1'33.496
7. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Repsol Honda 1'33.675
8. Mika Kallio (FIN) Pramac Racing 1'33.726
9. Randy De Puniet (FRA) LCR Honda MotoGP 1'33.775
10. Marco Melandri (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini 1'33.839
11. Alex Espagaro (SPA) Pramac Racing 1'33.878
12. Colin Edwards (USA) Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1'33.929
13. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1'34.144
14. Marco Simoncelli (ITA) San Carlo Honda Gresini 1'35.229
15. Alvaro Bautista (SPA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1'35.772
16. Hector Barbera (SPA) Aspar Team 1'36.204
17. Hiroshi Aoyama (JPN) Scot Racing Team 1'37.964

Comunitat Valenciana: Record Lap
C. Stoner (Ducati) 2008, 1'32.582

Comunitat Valenciana: Best Lap
V. Rossi (Yamaha) 2006, 1'31.002



Yamaha Racing Communications
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Monday, November 9, 2009

Message from Tsunji Togami, President & CEO, Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd.

Yamaha Racing

News Iwata, Japan 09/11/2009 
Yamaha Factory Racing Team Press Release

On Winning the 2009 MotoGP Triple Crown

Message from Tsunji Togami, President and CEO, Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd.

"It gives me the greatest pleasure to announce that, for the second consecutive year, Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. has achieved its ultimate goal in MotoGP competition by winning the Triple Crown of rider, team and manufacturer championship titles.

"We owe this great achievement today to the spirited support of the many Yamaha fans and our sponsors, and I would like to take this opportunity to extend to all of you my heartfelt appreciation.

"We at Yamaha Motor believe that our participation in MotoGP and our challenge to win titles makes it possible to share the excitement and deep satisfaction we call Kando with people all over the world, while also contributing to the marketing of our motorcycles.

"In these efforts, I ask for your ongoing support of our company and our teams."



Yamaha Racing Communications
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2009 MotoGP - Valencia Race

Yamaha Racing

RACE REPORT 08/11/2009
Double podium sees Fiat Yamaha seal triple crown in Valencia as Edwards scores fourth and Spies seventh place.
Valentino Rossi
Valentino Rossi

Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo finished second and third in the season-ending Grand Prix of Valencia this afternoon, the ninth time the pair have shared the podium this season. It ensured that Yamaha won the Triple Crown for the second year running after Rossi took the Riders' title, Fiat Yamaha the Teams' and Yamaha the Constructors'. Today's result also sealed Lorenzo the runner-up spot in the Championship in just his second year in MotoGP. Between them the Italian and the Spaniard have taken ten wins and a further seventeen podiums, Yamaha's most successful year ever in MotoGP.

With pole-man Casey Stoner crashing on the warm-up lap the first corner shuffle saw Dani Pedrosa take the lead followed by Toni Elias, Rossi and Lorenzo, who quickly passed Rossi to re-take third. The first few laps were a mini battle between the Yamaha team-mates as Lorenzo fought to hold off Rossi and look for a way past Elias at the same time. He passed his fellow Spaniard in the last sector of lap three and Rossi followed quickly in his footsteps, overtaking Elias on the brakes into turn one on the fourth lap. A huge slide by Lorenzo soon after however left the 22-year-old unbalanced and shaken up and Rossi went through, leaving Lorenzo to take a bit of time to find his rhythm again. The World Champion set off after Pedrosa and for a little while looked like he was gaining but Valencia is a notoriously tricky track to make up ground on and in the end he was content to chase home the Spaniard for second place, his best result at Valencia since 2004. Lorenzo finished just three tenths off Rossi but was delighted to seal second in the championship in front of his home fans.

As well as Yamaha sealing the Triple Crown and filling the first two spots in the championship, a brilliant performance from Tech 3 rider Colin Edwards today saw him take fourth and ensure fifth place in the championship, the top non-factory rider. Yamaha wild-card Ben Spies finished a brilliant seventh in his first MotoGP race on the M1 and James Toseland finished 12th in his farewell race for the team.

Quote from Lin Jarvis, Managing Director, Yamaha Motor Racing
"It gives me a great personal satisfaction for Yamaha and the Fiat Yamaha Team to have achieved "back to back" titles for 2008 and 2009. Our strong performances throughout this year's MotoGP championship are the result of a good cocktail of essential ingredients all being blended together in the right way. The performances of our riders have been incredible. Vale has won his 9th World Championship, making it 4 titles with Yamaha in his 6 seasons with us. Jorge has again surprised and thrilled us all year and made fantastic progress to claim the runner's-up position in only his second MotoGP season. Our engineers have used every single input from our riders' feedback over the past years and throughout this season to develop the YZR-M1 bike into the "bike of reference" in the MotoGP paddock. Our Team staff have worked tirelessly at every test and every Grand Prix to provide the optimum circumstances for our riders to be ready to win. Our corporate staff in Japan and Italy have also provided the essential "base camp" support to provide the back-up for all of the "troops" in the front line. Last but not least, Fiat Auto and our official sponsors and suppliers have also provided the essential support to enable us to go racing in the best possible way. I would like to personally thank everybody for the great team work that has allowed us to achieve all our targets."

Valentino Rossi - Position: 2ndTime: +2.630
"I'm really happy about this result because it was fantastic to be able to ride well at Valencia and it's my best finish here since 2004. Of course it would have been better to win but I lost some time at the start battling with Elias and Lorenzo and by that time Pedrosa had gone and at this track it's almost impossible to make up a two second gap. It's not one of our best tracks but after the problems we had all weekend we can be very pleased, we made a great modification in warm-up so thanks to all my guys for this. We've ended the championship on the podium and it's been a great season, another world title and the triple crown for Yamaha, I am very proud. Thank you to Yamaha, all my team, Bridgestone and everyone else, now we will have a little party before we start work on the 2010 bike tomorrow!"

Jorge Lorenzo
Jorge Lorenzo

Jorge Lorenzo - Position: 3rdTime: +2.913
"I had some good fights at the start and I was feeling quite strong but then I made a big mistake in the slow corner and I was lucky not to crash, so Valentino got by. I was in a bit of pain and I took some time to recover,\ and by then the gap was a bit too big to catch him. Anyway I'm happy to get another podium in Spain and I am so proud to have finished second in the championship; I want to thank everyone, Yamaha, Bridgestone and all my team, because we have worked so hard and this is a great achievement in just our second season. Now I can't wait to start testing the new bike and I look forward to being even stronger next year."

Davide Brivio - Team Manager
"After two days of struggling with the setting this was a very good race for us. I think the team and the engineers did a very good job to change the bike completely and find a way that worked for Valentino and we're happy to finish second here in Valencia, which has never been one of our best results. Now if we arrive here next year needing a good result, we'll be a bit more confident! It's been a great season, a historic one for Yamaha because we won everything we could and our riders won the most races and the triple crown, it's a season to remember. Now we're looking forward to the next one, which starts tomorrow for us, and we will try to repeat the result!"

Daniele Romagnoli - Team Manager
"This was a good end to the championship for us and a good way to celebrate a wonderful season with Jorge and the fantastic job the whole Yamaha team have done this year to win the triple crown. We've shown all season how strong Yamaha is and the job everyone has done has been fantastic. This is my last race with Yamaha so I want to take the chance to thank everyone here, it's been a great eight years and I wish Jorge and all the team all the best for the future."


Jubilant Edwards claims fantastic fifth overall

Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team rider Colin Edwards produced a stunning final race in Valencia today to clinch a dramatic fifth place in the final 2009 MotoGP world championship standings.

Starting from fifth on the grid in front of 94,177 vocal Spanish fans, all eyes were on the Texan and his fight for fifth in the points-standings with Andrea Dovizioso.

In sunny but blustery conditions, the Texas Tornado held fifth place until lap seven when he passed Toni Elias to move into fourth. At the time, Dovizioso was back in 11th.

Edwards maintained an impressive pace to sit comfortably in fourth position and remain on course for fifth overall. But Dovizoso then produced a dazzling charge through the field to move into seventh position on lap 16.

That meant fifth place would go to Dovizioso with no further position changes. But there was one final dramatic twist in arguably Edwards' best ever MotoGP campaign, thanks to new Monster Yamaha Yamaha Tech 3 rider Ben Spies.

The Texan's brilliant Yamaha debut ended with him passing Dovizioso on lap 25, a move that secured Edwards his hard earned but thoroughly deserved fifth place in the final points tally.

British rider James Toseland produced a gallant ride in his final appearance for the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team that saw him in contention for a top ten finish throughout the 30-lap encounter.

A stunning start and skilled overtaking on the first lap saw him climb into 11th position and he was lock ed in a thrilling dice with Spies, Dovizioso, Mika Kallio, Alex de Angelis and Marco Melandri in the first half of the race.

But a small rear tyre issue prevented Toseland from maintaining his fast and consistent pace and he slipped back to finish 12th.

Colin Edwards
Colin Edwards

Colin Edwards - Position: 4thTime: +32.515
"Things really fell my way today but over the course of the season I feel like I really deserve fifth place in the championship. At best I was thinking I could finish fifth in the race but then I saw Casey wasn't on the grid and immediately I thought 'well, there's some more points up for grabs.' I got a great start and the bike was working awesome but those three out front were untouchable. I don't know how they do it, what they've got or what they eat for breakfast, but I couldn't run their pace. In the middle of the race I couldn't carry the corner speed I wanted to so I tried to smooth myself out and just rode out of my skin. I was doing the best I could but wasn't sure where Dovizioso was. It turns out Ben got by him and that point proved crucial. I gave him a big bug after the race and anything he wants me to buy him, he can have it. I'm glad he adapted so quickly to the Yamaha because him riding so well is what got me that fifth overall and I'm really looking forward to working with him. To finish fifth in the championship is a great feeling when you look at the talent in front of me. I was consistent all season and feel like I rode some of my best races to get this final position. I'm happy for myself and for my guys at Monster Yamaha Tech 3. We are a really close unit and they always give me 100 per cent, so hopefully they can take a lot of satisfaction out of this result as well. I wish James all the best for the future too and am convinced he can carry on Yamaha's success in World Superbikes."

James Toseland
James Toseland

James Toseland - Position: 12thTime: +50.226
"I really enjoyed my last race. I wanted to give my team everything I had and I'm proud to say I did that. I had a good first few laps and took a few risks with not a lot of temperature in the tyres and got myself into a good position. But unfortunately on about lap 15 the rear tyre turned on the rim and I wasn't able to keep the pace and stay in the bunch that were battling for seventh place. I'd like to congratulate Colin for fifth in the championship because he has done a brilliant job. I'd like to thank everybody working with the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team for all the effort and support they have given me. I've had an absolutely fantastic time with them and I'll take a lot of interest in how they perform in the future. I've made a lot of friends in MotoGP and at Tech 3 and the team will always hold a special place in my heart. Now I've got to look to the futu re and I do so relishing a new challenge with Yamaha."

Herve Poncharal - Team Manager
"I can't congratulate Colin enough for the amazing job he has done this season. To finish behind those four guys is an incredible feat and one that gives the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team a lot of pride to have been involved in helping achieving fifth position in the championship for him. He has been consistent all year long and hardly ever outside the top six, and I would say this has been his best ever season. I'm so happy he is still with us next year because he brings so much to the team. Not just in terms of his results but his personality has been a great asset to the team, Yamaha and MotoGP. The sport needs more people like Colin and I can't wait for next season when we have the full Texan team. I am really excited about the prospect of working with Ben. What he did this weekend w as amazing. By passing Dovizioso as well he did a great favour to Colin and a great job for our team. I also want pass on my heartfelt thanks to James for all his hard work since he joined us at the end of 2007. We've had some up and downs but he brought a lot to the team. He is a true gentleman and he has been one of the hardest working and highly motivated riders ever to be at Tech 3. He has plenty to proud of in MotoGP. He is staying in the Yamaha family and I would like to wish him all the best in 2010. I'm sure he will keep Yamaha on top in World Superbikes."


Spies takes well earned seventh in Valencia GP

Ben Spies made a good job of silencing any critics he may have today as he set about putting his mark on the GP field ahead of his racing year in 2010. Starting from ninth on the grid he had a good start to hold his position until Marco Melandri passed him towards the end of the first lap. As he got used to his race tires and settled into his pace he dropped further until lap eight where he held 12th behind Andrea Dovizioso. As lap 11 got under way the American wildcard tucked in and got down to business, taking Melandri for 11th and beginning to chase down Mika Kallio. He caught him on lap 17 to take 10th then swiftly dispatched De Angelis on the next lap for ninth.

By lap 19 Spies was turning in a 1'34.1 second lap, quick enough to be running with Colin Edwards in fourth. The speed enabled him to catch Randy De Puniet by lap 21 for eighth and close in on Dovizioso in seventh. With six laps to go, he capitalized on a mistake as the Repsol Honda rider ran wide, passing on the inside to take seventh and hold it to the line, claiming his first top ten MotoGP race finish for Yamaha.

Ben Spies
Ben Spies

Ben Spies Sterilgarda Yamaha Team - Position: 7thTime: +37.706
"It was a good day. We got a good start which something I didn't think was going to happen. For the first six or seven laps I wasn't really on it, I wasn't used to the way the tires come in so I was halfway taking it easy and halfway getting pushed around because I didn't want to do anything silly. Once we got into a rhythm I got to follow some people and it was ok, then I slowly started to pass some people and got my eyes set on the guys in front. Once I got passed Dovizioso I could see Nicky Hayden and Tony Elias up ahead. I knew I wasn't going to catch them but I tried to keep my pace going and was able to keep it steady. It's been a dream first weekend for us, to get seventh on a track I don't particularly favour is pretty cool, the feeling is the same as winning a superbike race. I'm happy we've kept the bike off the ground and made solid progress all weekend which was our number one goal. I just want to thank Yamaha for giving me this opportunity, and all the sponsors that helped put this together for the weekend, especially Sterilgarda, BM Group, Fimer, Parts Europe and everybody else who made it possible to get this thing going, I think we did a good job for them."

Massimo Meregalli, Sterilgarda Yamaha Team Manager
"Another impressive weekend from Ben. He improved steadily in all the sessions, we knew this morning that he would finish the race higher than he started. I think soon he'll pick up full confidence in the bike and tires and in time will reach his full potential on the track. I'm pretty sure that next week he'll improve some more and get closer to the pace. I know he's a very clever rider and he's going to achieve his goals in MotoGP. I too want to thank all the sponsors who made it possible for us to come and race here this weekend, Sterilgarda, BM Group, Fimer, Parts Europe and everyone else have been brilliant."

Circuit Length: 4005
Weather: Windy

Lap Record: 1'33.043 (Marco Melandri, 01/01/2005)
Fastest Lap Ever: 1'31.002 (Valentino Rossi, 29/10/2006)
Last Years Winner: Casey Stoner
2009 MotoGP Spain - Valencia 08/11/2009
Race 1
Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time
1 Daniel Pedrosa Honda ESP 46'47.553
2 Valentino Rossi Yamaha ITA 0'02.630
3 Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha ESP 0'02.913
4 Colin Edwards Yamaha USA 0'32.515
5 Nicky Hayden Ducati USA 0'34.585
6 Toni Elias Honda ESP 0'34.888
7 Ben Spies Yamaha USA 0'37.706
8 Andrea Dovizioso Honda ITA 0'38.364
9 Mika Kallio Ducati FIN 0'42.491
10 Alex De Angelis Honda SMR 0'43.689
11 Randy De Puniet Honda FRA 0'46.018
12 James Toseland Yamaha GBR 0'50.226
13 Aleix Espargaro Ducati ESP 0'57.168
14 Loris Capirossi Suzuki ITA 1'06.877
15 Chris Vermeulen Suzuki AUS 1'11.701

Rider Standings 08/11/2009
Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Points
1.Valentino RossiYamahaITA306
2.Jorge LorenzoYamahaESP261
3.Daniel PedrosaHondaESP234
4.Casey StonerDucatiAUS220
5.Colin EdwardsYamahaUSA161
6.Andrea DoviziosoHondaITA160
7.Toni EliasHondaESP115
8.Alex De AngelisHondaSMR111
9.Loris CapirossiSuzukiITA110
10.Marco MelandriKawasakiITA108
11.Chris VermeulenSuzukiAUS106
12.Randy De PunietHondaFRA106
13.Nicky HaydenDucatiUSA104
14.James ToselandYamahaGBR92
15.Mika KallioDucatiFIN71
21.Ben SpiesYamahaUSA9

Manufacturer Standings 08/11/2009
Pos. Manufacturer Points
1.Yamaha386
2.Honda297
3.Ducati272
4.Suzuki133
5.Kawasaki108



Yamaha Racing Communications
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Sunday, November 8, 2009

2009 MotoGP - Valencia Qualifying

Yamaha Racing

QUALIFYING 1 REPORT 07/11/2009
Lorenzo takes 16th front row of season, Rossi qualifies fourth, Spies ninth
Jorge Lorenzo
Jorge Lorenzo

Jorge Lorenzo qualified third today in the final MotoGP qualifying session of the season in Valencia. It was the 16th time the Spaniard has been on the front row this season, more than any other rider. His Fiat Yamaha team-mate and the 2009 World Champion Valentino Rossi qualified in fourth at the Spanish track, ahead of tomorrow's season finale.

Lorenzo continued from where he had left off yesterday afternoon, making some more improvements to his M1-Bridgestone package throughout the session and going into provisional pole with just over ten minutes remaining. He immediately surrendered his lead to eventual pole-man Stoner however and was eventually moved one place further down when Dani Pedrosa also bettered his time by just 0.018. The 22-year-old is happy to be on the front row however and with a strong race pace he is confident of a good race tomorrow, from which he needs just one point to confirm the runner's-up spot in the championship.

It was a more difficult day for Rossi, who has a somewhat turbulent history with this tight and twisty Spanish circuit. The Italian and his crew were unable to come up with a set-up today that gave them enough grip to allow him to ride as he would like and they are faced with some hard work overnight to improve the situation. A better flying lap near the end of the session was good enough to secure him fourth on the grid so he will be in touch to challenge tomorrow, as long as he is able to make a step forward in warm-up. Rossi's fourth position today sealed him the 2009 best qualifier award, for which he will receive the prize of a new car.

Jorge Lorenzo - Position: 3rdTime: 1'32.537Laps: 30
"I'm happy to have ended the season on the front row, where I have been for all but one race! I am feeling very confident about a good race tomorrow because my bike feels good and I am riding well here. My number one aim tomorrow is to make sure I finish the championship in second and I only need one point to do this, but of course I would also like to finish the season with a good race so I will try to challenge at the front as well. I'm looking forward to riding in front of all the Spanish fans, it's always an amazing atmosphere here for the last race!"he wants to. We need to analyse all the data we have from the two days and find something that works better for us. Fourth position isn't too bad however and if we're able to fix the problem then we're still in a position to challenge at the top tomorrow."

Valentino Rossi
Valentino Rossi

Valentino Rossi - Position: 4thTime: 1'32.922Laps: 25
"Today was not the best day for us. We haven't found the right setting for the bike yet, we've tried hard but we don't have enough grip yet to allow us to go fast. I have to start on the second row and we have quite a big question mark for tomorrow's race. At the end of the session I was able to do some better laps with the softer tyre but unfortunately with these conditions we will have to use the harder tyre tomorrow. We will work tonight and again in the morning warm-up and hopefully we can find a way to improve so that we can race as we would like to. I'm happy about the qualifying award, at least we have one positive thing to take from today!"

Daniele Romagnoli - Team Manager
"Two good sessions for us today and we're happy because our target was the front row, as it has been all season. Our race pace is good too and we are confident that tomorrow we can put up a good challenge for the last race of the season, which looks like it will be very exciting! It was quite windy today so we hope it's less so tomorrow, we'll try and refine the setting a little more but we're ready to race."

Davide Brivio - Team Manager
"We've got quite a lot of work to do at the moment and we haven't yet been able to find a good solution. The problem is that our bike still isn't able to put enough grip on the tyres and so it's a struggle for Valentino to ride like


Fantastic fifth gives Edwards boost for season finale

Colin Edwards qualified on the second row of the grid in Valencia today to give his hopes of securing a brilliant top five finish in the 2009 MotoGP world championship a huge boost.

At a sunny but windswept Ricardo Tormo circuit, Edwards took full advantage of improvements with the front-end handling of his Monster Yamaha Tech 3 YZR-M1 machine to set the fifth quickest time.

Forced to take anti-inflammatory tablets to ease the discomfort of a recurring neck injury, a best lap of 1.33.085 clinched fifth on the grid for the sixth time in the last seven races and saw Edwards finish just 0.163s behind reigning world champ ion Valentino Rossi.

Trailing Andrea Dovizioso by just four-points going into tomorrow's final race, Edwards is confident he can overhaul the Italian to clinch fifth in the final points standings.

Finishing behind dominant the quartet of Valentino Rossi, Jorge Lorenzo, Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa would be a remarkable achievement for the popular 35-year-old, who is determined to end 2009 on a high to reward the hard work of his Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Yamaha crew throughout 2009.

James Toseland will start his final MotoGP appearance for the Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team from 14th place on the grid.

The British rider set his fastest time of 1.34.107 on his 28th and final lap and while disappointed with his grid position, the 28-year-old is optimistic he can bow out in style with a challenge for a top ten finish in tomorrow's 30-lap race .

Colin Edwards
Colin Edwards

Colin Edwards - Position: 5thTime: 1'33.085Laps: 28
"I seem to be pretty much stuck with that fifth place! I know I run number five but it doesn't mean I have to qualify in that place every race. But as I've said before, I've got to be pleased to be finishing next best behind those four guys, or should I say aliens. They are riding out of this world and to be right behind them means I'm doing the best job I can and that's about as good as I can hope for at the moment. On my first couple of softer tyres I ran into a bit of traffic, which was a bit frustrating because I knew I could get a good time. We'd softened the front forks and I felt much more comfortable. We've really got the bike turning well this weekend and I think I've got a good race pace. Now the bike turns without running wide and that's helping tyre life too. I'm not sure if I've got the pace of the four in front of me on race tyre s but I wanted to give myself a shot at fifth in the championship and I've done that. Dovizioso is a few places behind me but I just need to focus on doing my own job. I'm sure my neck won't be a problem tomorrow. I first hurt it when I crashed in Germany last year and every few months I do something to aggravate it. This time I was in the shower reaching for the shampoo and the way I turned my head it just seized up. It won't stop me from trying to end a brilliant season on a high and giving my guys at Monster Yamaha Tech 3 something to cheer about for all their hard work and effort in 2009."

James Toseland
James Toseland

James Toseland - Position: 14thTime: 1'34.107Laps: 28
"The conditions were really difficult out there this afternoon. There was a strong wind and it made reading the track conditions really difficult. The lap times were not brilliant this afternoon but that was because there was quite a lot of dust being blown onto the track and it wasn't easy to find grip. The session certainly didn't go as planned but I feel I've got a good and consistent set-up for the race tomorrow. Starting from 14th on the grid isn't going to be easy at this track. It is quite tight and twisty and that makes it difficult to overtake. My plan is to make a good start and get into a consistent pace and finish the season on a high note for all my guys at Monster Yamaha Tech 3."


Spies just misses second row start for Valencia MotoGP race

True to form, Sterilgarda Yamaha rider Ben Spies got straight down to business today making gradual improvements through the free practice and following qualifying session. Having had time overnight to digest his first experience on the M1 in yesterday's free practice Spies put his new knowledge to productive use and started shaving his times. The first heat in the morning saw him cut nearly a second off his times from yesterday, taking a lap best of 1'34.1 as he started to work more with the Bridgestone tires.

The afternoon's qualifying session saw more improvement again as he picked up the pace, hitting as high as 8th on the board with a provisional second row start until he was dropped to ninth at the closing seconds of the session. The times tumbled too, picking up where he left off in the morning, he took over six tenths of a second off the morning time to secure his top ten start in tomorrow's MotoGP race.

Ben Spies
Ben Spies

Ben Spies, Sterilgarda Yamaha Team - Position: 9thTime: 1'33.539
"it was another good day today, I'm still not where I feel comfortable and I'm definitely not at home yet but I think for such a short time on the bike I'm pretty happy to be in the top ten and not so far off some of the other guys on the Yamahas. In the end I need to try and get a good start, which I definitely haven't mastered yet, I've only had the chance to practice a couple so I think that could be where the downfall of the race will be for me. In the end I think it's an ok qualifying result for us, we just need to keep doing more laps on the bike. I can feel what the bike wants to do but I'm just not ready to take it there yet. Every time we get on it we go faster and that works for me. I'm still not close to what the tires can do either, I just need laps, laps and more laps!"

Massimo Meregalli, Sterilgarda Yamaha Team Manager
"As we thought, today went even better than our first outing yesterday. Ben is continuing to learn the bike and the tyres, unfortunately the wind here in Valencia today is making it much harder for him. Having said that, to start on the third row having spent just three hours riding this bike is pretty good. I think he achieved a great result today and we're looking forward to tomorrow."

Circuit Length: 4005
Weather: Dry

Lap Record: 1'33.043 (Marco Melandri, 01/01/2005)
Fastest Lap Ever: 1'31.002 (Valentino Rossi, 29/10/2006)
Last Years Winner: Casey Stoner
2009 MotoGP Spain - Valencia 07/11/2009
Qualifying 1
Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time
1 Casey Stoner Ducati AUS 1'32.256
2 Daniel Pedrosa Honda ESP 1'32.256
3 Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha ESP 1'32.537
4 Valentino Rossi Yamaha ITA 1'32.922
5 Colin Edwards Yamaha USA 1'33.085
6 Nicky Hayden Ducati USA 1'33.154
7 Randy De Puniet Honda FRA 1'33.391
8 Toni Elias Honda ESP 1'33.475
9 Ben Spies Yamaha USA 1'33.539
10 Andrea Dovizioso Honda ITA 1'33.678
11 Mika Kallio Ducati FIN 1'33.809
12 Alex De Angelis Honda SMR 1'33.844
13 Loris Capirossi Suzuki ITA 1'34.097
14 James Toseland Yamaha GBR 1'34.107
15 Marco Melandri Kawasaki ITA 1'34.188



Yamaha Racing Communications
Hoogte Kadijk 61 HS / 1018 BE Amsterdam / The Netherlands
T. +31 (0) 20 330 2709 / F. +31 (0) 20 420 9470
E. office@yrc.nl W. www.yamaha-racing.com