Sepang - Testbeginn

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Honda Debuts 2012 Team and Number '1' RC213V in Sepang

The Repsol Honda Team kicked off their defence of the MotoGP World Championship by having 2011 MotoGP World Champion Casey Stoner and team-mate Dani Pedrosa take the wraps off their all-new Honda RC213Vs at a news conference on the eve of the start of the official testing season in Sepang, Malaysia. Joining the riders was HRC Executive Vice President Shuhei Nakamoto, who gave a brief and light-hearted technical presentation while making certain not to reveal too many secrets.

The 2011 Repsol Honda three-rider team dominated last year's championship, winning 13 of 17 races and finishing first, third, and fourth overall. Stoner led the way, winning ten times and clinching his second MotoGP World Championship on a emotional day in his home grand prix at Phillip Island, Australia. Stoner had a nearly flawless season, with podium appearances in every race but one, when he was knocked to the ground early in the Spanish Grand Prix. That turned out to be a minor setback, with Stoner winning the title by 90 points. Then Repsol Honda rider Andrea Dovizioso finished third, with Pedrosa finishing a close fourth, despite missing four races after being knocked out of the French Grand Prix. Pedrosa won three times and added six other podiums.

With the three-day test set to begin on Tuesday, Stoner is looking forward to rolling out the number '1' plated machine, while Pedrosa is also eager to get back on track after an injury-free end of season and off-season. The Spaniard goes into the 2012 campaign in his best physical shape in years, and he hopes to maintain it throughout the grueling 18-race globe-circling challenge.

The Honda RC213V replaces the championship-winning 800cc RC212V as the MotoGP World Championship begins a new1000cc era. The machine was developed over the course of the last season, with Stoner testing it three times and Pedrosa twice, with continuous development and testing being done in Japan. Pedrosa finished the 2011 season by topping Stoner in the end-of-season test in Valencia, Spain.

With a winter's worth of refinements to the RC213V, the riders are anxious to begin the test at the Sepang Circuit, site of the Malaysian Grand Prix. Following this test, the riders will return in
26 days for a second test before finishing the testing season in Spain at Jerez de la Frontera in late March.

The return to Sepang was bittersweet for the Repsol Honda Team. It was here that Honda's rising star Marco Simoncelli lost his life in a racing accident on the second lap of the 2011 Malaysian Grand Prix.
The entire Repsol Honda team visited the corner where "Super Sic"
lost his life, laid a wreath of flowers, and held a minute's silence.

Casey Stoner, Repsol Honda RC213V

We haven't started this year, and going from 800s to 1000s I think it's going to be a little bit more interesting during the pre-season, trying to understand where everybody's level is, as well as what everybody's machine level is. We know we have a lot of work to do now before the first race and that's what we're focused on doing. But how we can envision this championship going, we have no idea. We're just going to do the best job we can at these tests, try and put ourselves in the best position we can for race one and start the championship well. But we don't really know everybody else's level or where we're going to have to improve. I think Honda have done a fantastic job to give us this bike that we're going to start with and hopefully we can improve it over these next tests. Hopefully, we're going to do a little bit better job than the other manufacturers.

Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda RC213V

Yes, it's clear I've been good all this time. I could enjoy the holidays and think of other things than being in the hospital or things in recovery. So I could be with family and friends and enjoy the time. About the season, as Casey (Stoner) said, there are lots of things to feel in the pre-season, a lot of tests and we have to figure out how we are for the first race. How the rivals are also.
And just work, because it's going to be for sure a long season and the battles are going to be strong, as always. It can be similar to last season or it can be different. Nobody knows at the moment, but actually the thing is to work hard and keep the head until the end.

Shuhei Nakamoto, HRC Executive Vice President

The engine and chassis were developed last year because of the regulation change. We kept the same concept from the last year's 800 machine. We expect this machine to be competitive enough to win the championship again this year. Even with the 800 machine you must reduce the power from first through fourth gear. With the 800, fifth gear, sixth gear, we could use the full power, then in a straight line. Of course this machine is a little bit faster. But time was gained only in fifth and sixth gear in the acceleration area. At the same time, the top speed is higher, meaning sometimes you must brake a little bit earlier. Then the cornering performance, if the chassis or tyres are virtually the same, it means that the cornering performance is exactly the same. So the new engine couldn't make such a big difference. Then if you want gain the time, therefore you need more braking stability. And also we are having our chattering problems that we have to fix. Then I expect, of course, the lap time is better than 800, but not such a big difference, I expect.

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MotoGP Test Sepang Day 1

MotoGP Test Sepang, Malaysia
Day one of three-day test.
January 31, 2012

Weather: Hot and sunny
Track temperature: 45 degrees
Ambient temperature: 34 degrees

PEDROSA OFF TO FAST START IN MALAYSIA

The first day of the 2012 MotoGP testing season provided mixed results for the Honda riders at the sultry Sepang Circuit in Malaysia. Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC213V) finished with the day's second fastest time while team-mate Casey Stoner (Repsol Honda
RC213V) retired early after an old back injury flared up. The two newest riders to the Honda camp had encouraging starts. Alvaro Bautista (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC213V) was ninth fastest while Stefan Bradl, the MotoGP rookie and 2011 Moto2 World Champion, was only half a second behind in his debut on the LCR Honda RC213V.

Anticipation was high on the first of three days of testing at the start of the 2012 season, with the garages brimming with new technology and riders eager to test it. But overnight and morning showers doused the track, keeping the 17 riders, including two test riders and three CRT riders, in their pit boxes until late in the morning. Once the track was dry, Pedrosa put in a full day's work completing 48 laps of the Sepang Circuit, the most of any rider. His efforts paid off with the second fastest lap time of 2m, 2.003s. Only former world champion Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) was faster, and only by .346s.

Pedrosa's time compared favorably to the 2m, 1.462s lap that he turned to earn the pole for the 2011 Malaysian GP. The race was later canceled after the horrific accident that took the life of rising star Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V) on the second lap.

What Pedrosa quickly discovered was that Repsol Honda RC213V is a much more physical motorcycle to ride than the previous RC212V.
Despite being in peak physical condition for the first time in years, he admitted at the end of the day that he was a bit sore after having not ridden a MotoGP machine for close to three months. But the discomfort was a small price to pay for the data gathered over the course of the day's work. Honda has provided Pedrosa with more than one chassis specification, but he chose to stick with one bike and make incremental changes before the heart of the testing begins in earnest on Wednesday.

Stoner's day was over almost before it began. The two-time world champion was stretching before putting on his leathers when his back suddenly locked up. So severe was his predicament that he needed help just to be moved into a less painful position. A physiotherapist eased the pain enough so that he could get into his leathers and take to the track, but he quickly discovered there was nothing to be gained and retired for the day. More physiotherapy was performed before he returned to the hotel to prepare for the second of the three days, which he's certain of riding. Stoner first injured his back years ago, while racing the Dutch TT during his 125cc days.

Bradl declared himself "satisfied" after his first laps on the LCR Honda RC213V. The young German had ridden the 800cc RC212V at the November Valencia test, but that was so long ago that he couldn't make a comparison to the larger displacement machine. What impressed him greatly about his new ride was the seamless gearbox, which shifted so smoothly that it didn't upset the motorcycle while leaned over. Much of the day was spent on riding position; the brute power of the RC213V made it imperative that his body be properly positioned on acceleration. Once properly situated, Bradl could concentrate on handling the physicality of the machine, which requires far more strength to race than the Honda-Kalex he raced to last year's Moto2 title.

Bautista finished ninth, but less than .2s from sixth on his first day on the San Carlo Honda Gresini RC213V at the Sepang Circuit.
Bautista ended the 2011 season badly with a crash in the first turn of the Valencia Grand Prix and he'd also started the season badly, crashing out of the Qatar Grand Prix in practice. The Qatar crash required that pins be inserted into his left femur, pins which were surgically removed in mid-December. Now 100% healthy for the first time in a year made adapting to the new motorcycle much easier for Bautista.

The test continues Wednesday and Thursday with similar weather expected.

HONDA MotoGP RIDER QUOTES

Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V): 2nd, 2m, 2.003s "Today was good. For the first laps I think it was important for me to come back and just ride again. Of course, the first day I was a little bit stiff, not totally smooth on the bike, but we completed some laps and they were good. Today was mainly a test for myself, to get used to the bike again, recover the feeling, feel the throttle and the brakes after a long time off. The whole day I stayed with the same bike that I tested in Valencia in November and tomorrow the real test will start for us. We will work on the setup and probably try a modified chassis that Honda has brought here according to our requests after Valencia."

Casey Stoner (Repsol Honda RC212V): 14th, 2m, 7.163s "I was stretching this morning for a good twenty minutes preparing to go out on track for the first time and then all of a sudden my back just locked up on me. I couldn't move or do anything. I had to call someone to come and help me move into a position that was less painful! Then I had some physio on it straight away trying to get it better for this afternoon, but it wasn't feeling good. I had some more physio after lunch, but it still wasn't easing up. I felt I could have gone out on the bike in the afternoon, but we all agreed it would probably make it worse for tomorrow. We have two more days testing here in Sepang, we know the track well and we are getting to know the bike, we just need some time to test the new parts we have here to give feedback to HRC. I think tomorrow the track conditions will be better and as long as my back improves overnight we should get back on schedule with our testing programme tomorrow."

Alvaro Bautista (San Carlo Honda Gresini): 9th, 2m 02.869s "This was my first day on the RC213V and I am very pleased with it because I instantly felt comfortable riding a 'thousand'. Obviously after a three-month break from racing it is not easy to get back out there because you have to reset your mind and body to the task and rediscover your pace. We have worked on adapting the bike to my riding style and I have just tried to get confident without worrying about lap times at this early stage. I am satisfied because I am working well with the team and everybody is putting in a lot of effort. Over the next two days we will work on general set-up and the electronics but I am already feeling positive because we are not too far off the fastest times and we haven't started pushing yet."

Stefan Bradl (Team LCR Honda RC213V): 11th, 2m, 3.668s "I am quite satisfied about this first outing aboard the new bike.
After a few laps I was impressed by the potential of my machine and I did not find it particularly physically demanding as I trained a lot in the winter break. We mainly concentrated on my riding position adjusting the seat, the handlebar, the foot rest and so on. Later, from 1:00 to 4:45 p.m. we worked hard including the electronic side, chassis regulations and tyres changing: I posted my best lap time on hard rubber. So far I can say it was a productive day for everybody.
Now I need to look at the data to fix more adjustments for tomorrow."

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MotoGP Test Sepang Day 2 of 3

MotoGP Test Sepang, Malaysia
Weather: Hot and sunny
Temperature: Ambient 35 degrees C / Track 50 degrees C

STONERS TOPS THE FIELD IN MALAYSIAN HEAT

One day after wondering if he could even ride, Casey Stoner (Repsol Honda RC213V) sprinted to the top time on the hot and sultry second of three days of MotoGP testing at the Sepang Circuit. Team-mate Dani Pedrosa was fourth fastest, with San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Alvaro Bautista improving one place to eighth, while MotoGP rookie Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda RC213V) recovered from his first MotoGP spill to improve his time by over 1.2s.

Reigning World champion Stoner was rendered immobile when a nearly decade-old back injury flared up as he was preparing for the start of the test on Tuesday morning. The injury, suffered in the 125cc GP in the 2003 Dutch TT, put him out of action and onto the physiotherapist's table after only a few exploratory laps. But when he woke up on Wednesday morning, and with the help of some over-the-counter medication "that takes the edge off," he was ready to ride, he said.

The 26-year-old Australian spent the day comparing the new RC213V chassis to the one he had tested at the end of 2011 in Valencia. The diligence paid off, with the team finding a direction for the third and final day of the test, while giving Stoner a machine on which he could set both the day's best time and one of his personal best.
Stoner was the only one to lap the 5.548Km track under the two minute one second target, with a best of 2m, 0.895s.

Pedrosa took advantage of the better weather to improve his time by over half a second. Unlike Tuesday, when overnight rains kept riders idle until late in the morning, Wednesday was sunny, hot, and humid; the track temperature was 50 degrees C. The team continued working on the new RC213V to reduce chatter, which has become noticeable on most of the MotoGP factory prototypes with the newest generation control tyres. Solving that issue is magnified by the concurrent issue of braking stability, which most of the riders agree is more essential on the 1000cc machines than the previous 800s.

San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Bautista took nearly a second off his best lap time as he gained confidence in the Honda RC213V. Bautista sprinted out of the garage in the morning to take advantage of the slightly cooler temperatures; from 11 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. the searing heat makes it more difficult to achieve a good lap time. It was in the slightly cooler afternoon-the track is open until 6:00 p.m.-that the Spaniard recorded his best time, on the 45th of 46 laps. That put the team on the right path for the third and final day of the test on Thursday.

Bradl's best lap of 2m, 2.414s was set in the morning on the ninth of
41 laps. Not long after the young German endured every rider's rite of passage, his first MotoGP crash, which was a result of trying a slightly different line in a right hand corner around the middle of the day. With only minor damage to both himself and his LCR Honda RC213V, he was able to resume his testing program and considerably improve his time.

The test concludes on Thursday.

HONDA MotoGP RIDER QUOTES

Casey Stoner (Repsol Honda RC213V): 1st, 2m, 0.895s "It was great to be able to ride today and everything went pretty well, although I would have liked to have done a few more laps. We spent most of the day on the new chassis comparing it back to back with the one we had in Valencia and we found a good direction and where we want to go. As usual, it would be great to take some elements from one chassis and some from the other, but at least we found the direction we are happy to follow. We used the hard front tyre this afternoon, but found we had more chattering with it so we have to work on this. There is still room for improvement. We didn't get a chance to use the new spec tyres that Bridgestone have brought here. We'll try them out tomorrow and go from there."

Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC213V): 4th, 2m, 1.508s "Today we started to work well from the beginning; the track conditions were better than yesterday and it was hotter out there.
We've been working on the setting of the bike, focusing mainly on the braking and reducing chatter, to improve the stability on the entry of the corners; that's our main target right now. We made some comparisons between the two chassis' and we will keep working with the bike and see what can we do before choosing. We have one more day, so we'll try some other things with the shocks-this could help-and also different tyre pressures. We will see. I didn't do many laps during the day, but now it's time to test as much as possible and sometimes you have to spend more time in the garage. It's normal.
The new Bridgestone tyres are working OK, I just tried one hard on the rear, but I didn't have much grip and the soft ones are working better. Even for the endurance they don't look so bad."

Alvaro Bautista (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC213V): 8th, 2m, 1.933s "The second day of the test has seen us improve our lap times slightly, but above all put together a consistent pace over a series of outings. Today I had more confidence with the bike and I was able to push with more conviction, which I am particularly pleased about.
We have tried some things with the electronics and some setting solutions that will give us an idea of what we need to do tomorrow. I am sure that we can improve the bike and my riding significantly.
Obviously I need to get used to riding a 'thousand' because it has different characteristics to an 800, mainly in that it has more power and you have to use that in a different way. I have been able to see how professional this team is. They are doing a great job so that gives me confidence for tomorrow, when we will try to take another step forward."

Stefan Bradl (Team LCR Honda RC213V): 11th, 2m, 2.414s "Today has been a full day of work for me and the guys. We made some good steps forward including in our 'to-do' list, suspension regulations, chassis geometry adjustments and some electronics. I found the bike easier to ride and my fastest lap time came early in the morning and I was very pleased with that."

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MotoGP Test Sepang Day 3

MotoGP Test Sepang, Malaysia
Day three of three-day test.
February 2, 2012
Weather: Hot and sunny
Track temperature: 42 degrees
Ambient temperature: 35 degrees

HONDAS DOMINATE OPENING TEST OF 2012

Repsol Honda riders Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa finished first and third after three days of testing on the sweltering Sepang Circuit, validating the off-season development of the Honda RC213V that they'll take into battle when the 2012 MotoGP World Championship begins in Qatar in April. The newest Honda riders, Alvaro Bautista (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC213V) and Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda RC213V) both improved their times on the final day of the test and gathered valuable data for when they return at the end of the month.

Stoner, the 2011 MotoGP World Champion, finished this test with the fastest ever lap by a motorcycle around the 5.548km circuit. On the second of 21 laps, the 26-year-old Australian lapped in 1m, 59.607s, lowering the mark of 1m, 59.665s that he'd set a little less than a year earlier at the second Sepang test of the 2011 winter season.
Stoner was the only rider to lap under two minutes and finished the test with a margin of .591s on the second fastest rider, Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha). The time might have been even lower had he not continued to suffer soreness in his back, which compromised the strength in his right arm as he tried to compensate.

Now Stoner returns to his home in Verbier, Switzerland to be with his wife Adriana as they await the birth of their first child. The child is expected to arrive between this test and the next three-day Sepang test which begins on Feb. 28.

Like Stoner, Pedrosa took advantage of the slightly cooler morning temperatures to set his fast lap early. His best of 2m, 0.256s was run on the third of 26 laps and was only .058s off the time set by Lorenzo. More importantly was that Pedrosa improved his time by 1.252s from Wednesday and by nearly two seconds from the start of the test. Having run 109 laps over the three days in searing heat, Pedrosa admitted that the testing had left him exhausted but happy.

Still, there's work to be done when the teams return to Malaysia later this month. There is a need to improve braking stability, as well as the electronics to manage the newfound power of the 1000cc machines. Handling all that power is what Pedrosa found taxing, but the Spaniard said he would increase his training regimen to be ready for the second test.

San Carlo Honda Gresini rider Bautista improved his lap time by nearly 1.5s over the course of the test, finishing with the ninth fastest time to Stoner, who was in a league of his own. Bautista was just over a second behind the second fastest rider and about half a second from a top five position. What most impressed the Spaniard was the electronics and engine management, which allowed him to make the most of the brute power of the RC213V.

Bradl continued to improve day by day, even though he maintained the same 11th place position in his first extended MotoGP test. The 2011
Moto2 World Champion gained experience with each of his 107 laps over three days. Today he tried a different geometry by changing the offset, and also shortened the swingarm; the whole bike got shorter, he said. They also sorted out the electronics, fine tuning the wheelie and traction control. The team worked so efficiently that they were able to finish their program by 2:00 p.m. What they didn't do was a long run-it wasn't in the plan-but they will when they return for the second test. From the beginning to the end of the test, Bradl lowered his lap time by 1.774s, finishing with a best of 2m, 1.894s.

HONDA MotoGP RIDER QUOTES

Casey Stoner (Repsol Honda RC213V): 1st, 1m, 59.607s "It's been a good test in general. We only managed two out of the three days, unfortunately, but the weather has been really good to us and we've been able to do what we planned. The day I missed hasn't affected us too much and we've managed to complete our testing programme. To be honest, I think track conditions on the first day weren't that great anyway, as the lap times were not so fast. I'm still not feeling great with my back, but the bike is ok, so we've made progress in reducing the chatter a little more and trying a few different things, some small settings on the shock that we haven't tried before amongst other points. So far it's been pretty positive, we'll just have to wait and see what we have for the next test and hopefully improve a little more. Now I'm looking forward to getting home to Switzerland to see Adriana and await the arrival of our baby!"

Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC213V): 3rd, 2m, 0.256s "Three days testing here in Malaysia is very tiring. This morning when I woke up I was pretty sore and stiff, but once I got running I was a little bit better. Anyway, it's been worth it to do a general test of the engine, chassis and tyres and overall it is the biggest test we have done on this bike and we have good data to analyse and can start to build up points we need for the second test. As I said yesterday, the biggest point to improve is on braking, and we are also working on the electronics to improve the management of the power and the grip level. The chatter is still there; I know it's something very difficult to fix, but I'm sure Honda is working hard on it. In general, it's been a positive test for us and we will come back here in three weeks with new ideas. This bike is physically more demanding, you feel the power in the acceleration, the speed under hard braking and also the extra weight, but it's alright. I will keep working hard physically to prepare for the second test."

Alvaro Bautista (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC213V): 9th, 2m, 1.384s "I finished the first test and my evaluation of these three days I think is positive. Even today I made another step forward especially in the rhythm. We have worked very well and the first contact with the RC213V has been particularly good. Now, before the next test later this month ever here at Sepang, I have a little 'time to reflect and think about all the wealth of knowledge acquired in these three days. We must put them all in the right place and be ready for the next three days of testing in Malaysia. I'm happy, satisfied and very confident for the future. The synergies with the guys and Honda are wonderful and this will enable us to achieve positive results.
Lastly, I have to say that the thing that most impressed me the RC213V is definitely the electronics and its management that allows you to drive linearly and progressively ease with the incredible power of 1000. "

Stefan Bradl (Team LCR Honda RC213V): 11th, 2m, 1.894s "Considering the three-day overall work I feel quite satisfied about my first performance aboard this new bike. Everyday we made some little adjustments to help my riding style and I feel more comfortable now. We gathered important data for the next test session here at the end of the month and I am sure there's still more to come. There's a lot of work to do, but in general I had a positive first experience. Of course I want to thank Lucio (Cecchinello), the guys and HRC technicians for their support during these three days."

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