According to , MotoGP superstar Valentino Rossi is poised to launch his own Moto2 team for the 2011 season. Rossi is said to be funding the team, with lifelong friend Uccio Salucci acting as team manager. Italian rider Andrea Iannone (currently 3rd in the Moto2 Championship) has been linked to the team, as has chassis designer Suter (how’s that for a star-studded cast?). It’s not clear at this time if Rossi is expected to field one or two machines in the 600cc prototype class.
Reports are coming back from the Aragon GP that the entire paddock has honored Shoya Tomizawa by putting the fallen Japanese rider’s number and likeness on the front fenders of their bikes. Some riders have also done their own personal memorial, for example Valentino Rossi has a cartoon of Tomizawa on his helmet, while fellow Japanese rider and friend Yuki Takahashi has been spotted wearing a black armband.
Photo: © 2010 Jason Yu / Asphalt & Rubber – Creative Commons – Attribution 3.0
AMA Pro Racing will continue to field its three support races for the Laguna Seca GP during the 2011 season. The announcement made about the 2011 season makes for the seventh consecutive season that AMA Pro Racing has supported the sole MotoGP race at Laguna Seca. Unlike the Indianapolis GP, the Laguna Seca GP runs without the 125 GP & Moto2/250 GP support classes.
With the announcement of the Moto3 series replacing 125 GP in 2012, there’s been some talk about whether the other GP series will make the trek out to California. The answer, at least for 2011, is no, but with only a one-year renewal on the contract, 2012 could be another story.
The death of Shoya Tomizawa has rocked the MotoGP paddock and cast a dark cloud on the motorcycle industry. The tragic incident was especially tough on Scott Redding, one of the riders involved in the crash. According to Redding’s father, the British rider was initially uncertain if he’d return to motorcycle racing, but after taking some time to heal the laceration to his back, Redding now seems poised to return to Moto2 racing next week.
More sad news from MotoGP this weekend, as we have recieved word that Shoya Tomizawa died today during a tragic accident in the Moto2 race at the San Marino GP. Entangling with riders Scott Redding and Alex de Angelis, Tomizawa sustained massive injuries to his chest and back, and later succumbed to those injuries at the hospital in Riccione. Tomizawa was in fourth, battling with the lead group, when he crashed during the 12th lap of the race.
Struck by de Angelis’ bike, Tomizawa was rushed to the hospital via ambulance, where he was pronounced dead shortly thereafter. The incident was felt by the entire MotoGP paddock, where riders are still recovering from the loss of Peter Lenz, the 13 year-old USGPRU rider who died at Indianpolis last weekend during the Indianapolis GP, who was memorialized before the start of the 125 GP race.
Taking a two-day testing session at The Brickyard, American riders Roger Lee Hayden, Jason DiSalvo, Kenny Noyes, Robertino Pietri (US Resident) had an opportunity to lap around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in preparation for the Moto2 race held during the Indy GP this coming weekend. The first riders to take to the 2.6 mile, 16 corner course since MotoGP visited The Brickyard last year, the four riders were given 90 minutes each day to setup and practice for Sunday’s race.
Toni Elias was banned from Free Practice 1 today at the Czech GP because he and his team, Gresini Racing, violated rules concerning when teams can test during the summer break. Holding a quick testing session at the Misano Circuit, Gresini and Elias were found to have broken the rules concerning testing, and were levied a €3,000 fine and banned from participating in today’s one-hour practice session. Gresini Racing opted not to appeal the ruling, saying they had not read the rules carefully enough regarding testing sessions. Whoops!
Karel Abraham has just confirmed that he will be riding a Ducati Desmosedici GP11 in next year’s MotoGP Championship series. Who is Abraham you may be asking? Well he’s the son of Karel Abraham of course. Yeah…we didn’t think that would explain things very well either. Let’s put it this way, Abraham Sr. is the owner of the GP track at Brno, and Abraham Jr. is his son that has never won a race, let alone a podium, at any GP level race.
Swelling Ducati’s numbers on the MotoGP grid, Karel Abraham (Jr.) will be the sixth Ducati on the grid, which includes the two factory Ducatis of Marlboro Ducati, the two semi-factory Ducatis of Pramac Ducati, and the satellite Ducati of Team Aspar. That’s a lot of Desmos.
American Honda has released the race livery of their wild card Moto2 entry for the Indianapolis GP, which sees Roger Lee Hayden riding at the helm of the bike and Kevin Schwantz managing the team’s effort. Using a Moriwaki MD600 chassis, American Honda tapped Drudi Performance to come up with the red, white, and blue Honda paint scheme. Additionally, Drudi has also designed a special set of leathers for Hayden, find them and more info after the jump.