casey stoner

STONER IS THIRD IN PRACTICE III AT QATAR

2012-04-07T06:45:00.000-07:00

Casey Stoner may have been shuffled from first to third during final practice for the MotoGP season opener in Qatar, but the Repsol Honda rider was far from worried.

Stoner looked on course to complete a perfect practice sweep as he led the way with just minutes of FP3 to go, at which point Yamaha riders Jorge Lorenzo and Cal Crutchlow moved ahead after switching to a soft rear tyre.

Stoner was poised to respond, albeit still with the harder rear, only to be held up by slower riders. The Australian's best time was thus set on only his 4th of 13 laps, but he still finished just 0.372sec from Lorenzo.

“Today has been pretty good for us in general,” said Stoner, fastest from the 9th to 41st minute of the final session.

“We've been able to turn down the electronics a lot more and now I have more feeling and connection with the rear tyre which gave me a lot more confidence. This allowed me to do some good lap times with some pretty old tyres.

“A few people got in our way throughout the session so we were unable to show what we were really capable of, but we know how we feel and we're confident for qualifying tomorrow."

Team-mate Dani Pedrosa was fifth fastest and suffered a fall in FP2.

"The day wasn't as good for us as we would have liked," said the Spaniard. "I had some problems with the electronics and I couldn't ride at a hundred percent, especially in the exits of the corners where we have more issues.

"Let's hope the mechanics can find a solution and we can have a good qualifying session tomorrow.

"The crash in the first session was totally unexpected; it was on my first lap of the second exit and I was not pushing at all. But I escaped unhurt and do it's ok."

crash.net

PRACTICE I RESULT AT LOSAIL QATAR

2012-04-06T01:14:00.000-07:00

Qatar is the first event of the new 1000cc MotoGP era and first to feature the new privateer 'Claiming Rule Team' (CRT) class.

The Losail round has a unique four-night format - practice continues on Friday, with qualifying on Saturday, then warm-up and the race on Sunday.

1. Casey Stoner AUS Repsol Honda (RC213V) 1m 56.474s
2. Jorge Lorenzo ESP Yamaha Factory Racing (YZR-M1) 1m 56.648s
3. Nicky Hayden USA Ducati Team (GP12) 1m 56.924s
4. Ben Spies USA Yamaha Factory Racing (YZR-M1) 1m 56.982s
5. Dani Pedrosa ESP Repsol Honda (RC213V) 1m 57.130s
6. Cal Crutchlow GBR Monster Yamaha Tech3 (YZR-M1) 1m 57.395s
7. Alvaro Bautista ESP San Carlo Honda Gresini (RC213V) 1m 57.512s
8. Andrea Dovizioso ITA Monster Yamaha Tech3 (YZR-M1) 1m 57.547s
9. Hector Barbera ESP Pramac Racing (GP12) 1m 57.912s
10. Valentino Rossi ITA Ducati Team (GP12) 1m 57.914s
11. Karel Abraham CZE Cardion AB Motoracing (GP12) 1m 57.971s
12. Stefan Bradl GER LCR Honda MotoGP (RC213V) 1m 58.934s
13. Randy de Puniet FRA Power Electronics Aspar (ART CRT) 1m 59.985s
14. Colin Edwards USA NGM Forward Racing (Suter-BMW CRT) 2m 0.044s
15. Michele Pirro ITA San Carlo Honda Gresini (FTR-Honda CRT) 2m 0.322s
16. Aleix Espargaro ESP Power Electronics Aspar (ART CRT) 2m 0.720s
17. Ivan Silva ESP Avintia Blusens (FTR-Kawasaki CRT) 2m 1.138s
18. Mattia Pasini ITA Speed Master (ART CRT) 2m 1.261s
19. Yonny Hernandez COL Avintia Blusens (FTR-Kawasaki CRT) 2m 1.276s
20. Danilo Petrucci ITA Came IodaRacing (Ioda-Aprilia CRT) 2m 2.487s
21. James Ellison GBR Paul Bird Motorsport (ART CRT) 2m 3.657s

Official Qatar MotoGP records:
Best lap:
Jorge Lorenzo ESP Yamaha 1m 53.927s (2008)
Fastest race lap:
Casey Stoner AUS Ducati 1m 55.153s (2008)
CRASHNET

CASEY STONER STILL FACED CHATTER ISSUE AT LOSAIL QATAR

2012-04-06T01:11:00.001-07:00

Casey Stoner and his Repsol Honda crew were forced to subdue 'huge' chatter from the world champion's RC213V on their way to setting the Thursday night free practice pace for the season-opening Qatar MotoGP.

The Australian was the only Honda rider in the top four, having moving ahead of Yamaha's Jorge Lorenzo on the twelfth of his 13 laps.

Stoner, who has battled chatter issues at the Sepang tests but not at the final pre-season outing in Jerez, said:

“The track tonight wasn't so bad, I expected the conditions to be much worse but in general it was ok. We started this evening with huge chatter issues and I was a little afraid we couldn't fix this, but after a few more exits we managed to reduce it to a more comfortable level.

“This is a positive point for the weekend but with such a short session and then nothing until tomorrow it's slightly strange. It was an ok start tonight, we finished quickest which is good, but we'll have to wait until tomorrow for some real track time and with the conditions a little better and see where we are.”

CASEY STONER: I'm excited to get the season started and fight for another World Championship.”

2012-04-03T07:28:00.000-07:00

The 2012 MotoGP™ World Championship officially starts this weekend in Qatar, the small Peninsula off the Persian Gulf, noted for hosting the only race of the calendar under floodlights. The Commercialbank Grand Prix of Qatar is, without any doubt, one of the most spectacular races of the season.

Months of development, testing and hard work have gone into the preparation for this season which sees a switch to 1000cc bikes. In addition to this change the Repsol Honda Team faces another challenge; defending the Triple Crown they achieved in 2011 when they won the rider, team and constructor titles.

Casey Stoner, the current MotoGP World Champion, has also been the man to beat in pre-season, dominating both tests in Malaysia and Jerez, where his team-mate, Dani Pedrosa, also confirmed himself as one of the fastest riders in the top class.

Stoner’s record at the Losail circuit is impressive: he is the main reference with four pole positions and four wins out of six in the MotoGP class. Pedrosa has visited the podium three times in MotoGP and will be fighting, like the Australian, for a strong start to the season.

Casey Stoner:

“After good pre-season Tests in both Sepang and Jerez, we head to Qatar feeling positive, but still have some work to do. This will be the first time with the new bike on this circuit so we will need to spend some time on the set-up to put ourselves in the best position. We've always enjoyed good results at the Losail circuit but this is a new season and there are more competitors contesting for victory this year. I'm excited to get the season started and fight for another World Championship.”

SOURCE: Repsol Honda press release

CASEY STONER : “We've always enjoyed good results at the Losail circuit"

2012-04-03T01:38:00.000-07:00

Reigning double MotoGP champion Casey Stoner heads to this weekend's Qatar season opener favourite to take the first win of the new 1000cc era.

The Repsol Honda rider finished top of the timesheets with the new RC213V in all three 2012 pre-season tests, and has won at Qatar four times from six appearances.

The first of those appearances, Stoner's 2006 MotoGP debut, was on a 990cc Honda and he then took his first premier-class win - on his Ducati debut - in the opening race of the 800cc era in 2007.

“After good pre-season tests in both Sepang and Jerez, we head to Qatar feeling positive, but still have some work to do,” said Stoner. “This will be the first time with the new bike on this circuit so we will need to spend some time on the set-up to put ourselves in the best position.

“We've always enjoyed good results at the Losail circuit but this is a new season and there are more competitors contesting for victory this year. I'm excited to get the season started and fight for another World Championship.”

Yamaha's former champion and 2011 title runner-up Jorge Lorenzo is again expected to provide Stoner's biggest opposition.

First free practice in Qatar will take place at the Losail Circuit on Thursday evening.
source: crashnet

STONER QUITE BIT NERVOUS IN RACING

2012-03-31T05:03:00.000-07:00

Casey Stoner needs no introduction. The fastest man on two wheels begins his quest for a third world championship crown at the Losail International Circuit in Qatar where the inaugural race of the 2012 MotoGP season will take place on April 8. Stoner, 27, who won his first world title in 2007 with Ducati and the second last year with Honda, spoke to Gulf Times Sports Editor Anil John about his childhood, his family and his hobbies in an exclusive interview from Jerez, Spain, where he was fastest in testing earlier this week.Q: Casey, everyone knows about the strides you have made in motorcycling, but tell us what got you interested in the sport and a bit about your childhood in Australia.A: I began riding from a very young age, when I was just 3 years old, and I immediately felt comfortable and happy on a bike. My childhood in Australia was pretty much spent at racetracks, travelling around and competing and then at the age of 14 we moved to England so I could road race, as the legal age in Australia for road racing was 16, not 14 as it was in England.Q: Who were your childhood sporting heroes and who are your heroes now?A: I would say the same now as they were when I was little. Mick Doohan has always been a hero of mine and certainly a great inspiration for my career. What he achieved after the accidents and injuries he endured is something really incredible.Q: Valentino Rossi was virtually the king of motorcycling before you entered the scene. Tell us about your rivalry and about the interaction you have with him.A: I have a lot of respect for Valentino and what he has achieved in the sport. I have always enjoyed racing against him as I do all my competitors. We don’t have much interaction or a relationship, certainly not the kind of friendship I enjoy with Ben (Spies), Dani (Pedrosa) and Jorge (Lorenzo).Q: You have done pretty well in Qatar. What do you think your chances are this time? How have been the testing and the training so far?A: Well we will certainly prepare in the best way to give ourselves the best chance for the race! We have enjoyed good results here in the past but this is a new season, on new bikes so we will have to wait and…

Source:crash.net

STONER BLASTED IN FIRST JEREZ TEST

2012-03-31T04:51:00.000-07:00

Reigning double champion Casey Stoner topped the Friday test timesheets at Jerez, as MotoGP began its third and final official pre-season test.

The Repsol Honda rider only moved to the head of the timesheets on his 54th and final lap, but felt the day had gone largely to plan.

“Today has been quite good, we did race distance with a soft set of tyres this morning and we were getting quicker and quicker as we progressed but I think also the circuit was getting better,” he explained.

“Then we put the hard tyre on and did a tyre comparison and we had very similar feelings to what we had in Sepang.

“We tried a few things with the chassis as the bike was proving slow to turn in the corner but in general it is working well especially at the end of the tyre life. On the last exit we did our fastest lap on a new soft rear tyre. It's been a good first day".

Stoner finished the day 0.273sec ahead of Yamaha's Jorge Lorenzo.

In contrast to Stoner's steady schedule, team-mate Dani Pedrosa had a 'tough' time on his way to third place.

“It's been a pretty tough day, the mechanics had a lot of work to do in the garage and I've been stationary a long time, so it was not easy to get into the rhythm quickly,” he said. “But I'm happy because we have a clear idea about the changes we need to do on the bike to improve tomorrow, especially on braking and the exits of the corners.

“We also tested the new front Bridgestone tyre, but just for a few laps, so I will keep testing it tomorrow to know if it's better. Unfortunately, in the afternoon I had a problem on one bike and I couldn't use it any more, so I spent quite a long time in the box between runs and thinking about the changes we want to do.

“We didn't have too much chattering today, but I think it's because of the circuit characteristics".

Testing concludes on Sunday evening.

CASEY STONER: “This track (Jerez) is too small, especially for these big bikes

2012-03-31T04:45:00.001-07:00

Reigning MotoGP world champion Casey Stoner says the extra horsepower on his new 1000cc Honda RC213V machine makes riding short and tight tracks like Jerez a frustrating experience.

Many people anticipate the new 1000s to be capable of hitting top speeds of more than 220mph at fast tracks like Qatar, Catalunya and Mugello.

But after spending three days riding at the tight Jerez track during the final pre-season test of 2012, the Australian believes the performance of the 1000s is going to be too much for tracks like Jerez and Sachsenring.

Stoner, who topped the timesheets in Jerez to complete his domination of winter testing, told MCN: “This track (Jerez) is too small, especially for these big bikes. You don't need sixth gear. Even in Laguna Seca I think we may have a higher top speed.

"Here (Jerez) it is frustrating to ride because it is all partial throttle, on-off and then one corner into the next and there is nowhere where you can really use the power of these bikes really well. You are constantly trying to stop wheelies.

"When we get to the tracks that are more open it is going to be a lot more fun to me when you can use the power of these bikes."

British rider Cal Crutchlow agreed with Stoner and said the power and speed of the new Monster Yamaha Tech 3 machine meant Jerez felt like a ‘go-kart track’.

The former World Supersport champion, who was fifth quickest in Jerez, told MCN: “You hardly get to 100% throttle at Jerez now on the 1000 and the bike wants to wheelie a lot. It is a bit of a handful to be honest coming out of those low gear corners.

"Coming from a long and fast track like Sepang which is about 20 seconds longer than Jerez, it made it feel like a go-kart track.”

For more from Stoner and Crutchlow, see the March 28 issue of Motor Cycle News.

SOURCE: MCN

CASEY STONER: "it is difficult to gauge the potential of Ducati’s new factory GP12"

2012-03-31T04:39:00.001-07:00

Reigning MotoGP world champion Casey Stoner says it is difficult to gauge the potential of Ducati’s new factory GP12 ahead of the start of the new 1000cc era in Qatar next week.

Ducati has rolled out a radically revised concept this season including a new engine position and conventional aluminium twin spar chassis to try and improve front-end performance with the GP12 model.

But an understeer issue that hampered Rossi in 2011 remains and the Italian finished almost a second adrift of Stoner at the end of the final test in Jerez last weekend.

That followed Rossi being beaten by Hector Barbera at the second test in Sepang earlier this month. The Spaniard isn’t riding the latest spec GP12 and he is currently competing on the Desmosedici Rossi rode at a test session in Valencia last November.

Aussie Stoner, who has dominated winter testing for Repsol Honda and topped the leaderboard in all three sessions, told MCN: “It is impossible to see what is going on and where is the level when there is different rider in the top position at every test and the gap is different from the front.

"Everything is still a little new and they are trying find their limits, so we will see at the first race."

For more on Stoner’s thoughts heading into the new MotoGP season, see the April 4 issue of MCN

SOURCE:MCN

JEREZ TEST MARET 2012

2012-03-27T04:11:00.001-07:00

stoner: We can still improve the bike quite a bit

2012-03-26T06:04:00.000-07:00

Defending double world champion Casey Stoner will head into the first race of the new 1000cc MotoGP era having been fastest in all three 2012 pre-season tests.

Quickest at the two Sepang visits, the Repsol Honda rider completed the sweep by deposing Yamaha's Jorge Lorenzo from the head of the Sunday Jerez test timesheets by 0.173sec on his 61st and final lap.

“Today we were really pleased with the lap times we're running but I think we can still improve the bike quite a bit before the race here. Anyway we feel like we've made some progress on a track like this for us,” said Stoner.

Whilst the late run grabbed the limelight, Stoner's pace during a long (for him) ten flying-lap run was equally formidable. The most successful rider of the previous 800cc MotoGP era recording nine laps under 1m 40s (see below).

The Jerez race distance is a much longer 27 laps, which Lorenzo and Stoner's team-mate Dani Pedrosa chose to complete (see separate stories), but in the past Stoner has been able to effectively replicate full distances by starting his 'mini' simulations with well-worn tyres and high fuel loads.

“We did a lot of laps and a longer run to get a little more understanding of fuel consumption and things like this and in general we're satisfied with how the whole test has gone for us. Now we can go racing which is what we really enjoy.”

The only real negative of the Australian's pre-season has been a stubborn chatter problem at the Malaysian tests, related to the latest Bridgestone tyres. Stoner revealed he felt some vibration again on Sunday, but doesn't think it's related.

“Towards the end of the day we had some chattering but we have an idea what caused this and it's not the same as in Sepang,” he said.

Pedrosa was third fastest, 0.204sec behind Stoner.

Stoner and his #1 RC213V will next be on track for opening practice in Qatar, on the evening of Thursday April 5. The Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez will take place at the end of April.

Stoner's Jerez test 'mini' race simulation:

1. 1:55.240

2. 1:39.411

3. 1:39.285

4. 1:39.491

5. 1:39.753

6. 1:39.845

7. 1:39.872

8. 1:40.113

9. 1:39.777

10. 1:39.645

11. 1:39.781

Average (10 flying laps): 1m 39.700s

source:crash.net

HEAVY RAIN DISTRUBED CASEY TO FIND A GOOD SETTING

2012-03-25T04:35:00.000-07:00

Good track conditions experienced on Friday did not last for the MotoGP™ riders on day two at Jerez, with the forecast rainfall hitting southern Spain. The participants were able to ride briefly in the dry in the early hours of the Test, but at 10.30am the rain made its presence felt and left wet asphalt for the riders. That meant a return to the garages and a wait for the mechanics to make the necessary set-up changes.

The day’s work was mainly carried out in such conditions until, after Pedrosa and Stoner had already brought their run to a close at 4.30pm, the track had dried out sufficiently for the remaining riders to go round in the dry once more.

Pedrosa was one of those putting in the most wet laps – 25 – and put a total of 110km under his belt. The Repsol Honda rider was debuting the obligatory new red rear light on his RC213V and was the quickest in the conditions, with a time of 1’49.822 from his eleventh lap.

Team-mate Casey Stoner took to the track a little later than Pedrosa, although the asphalt was still wet. There was, however, less rainfall for him to battle against. He tested out the conditions in a brief three-lap ride, before deciding to call it a day and await better weather on Sunday. His best lap on Saturday was a 1’51.856.

Dani Pedrosa:
“I decided to go out when it started raining properly because it's always good to get some information about the behaviour of the bike in wet conditions before the beginning of the season, and even more important with a new bike. Obviously, the set up of the bike was pretty standard on chassis and electronics, but I had good feelings riding it, the bike worked well and it gives me confidence. If it's not raining tomorrow we will go back to the testing programme we had planned for today: basically to try some new ideas for the chassis and the electronics and if we have time I'd like to do a race simulation. Everything has been positive and smooth so far, so let's hope to close the pre season with a good result.”

Casey Stoner:
“We realised that the weather conditions weren't really suitable for what we needed to work on today so we decided to wait for the heavier rain, which never appeared. We went out briefly but realised it wasn't really wet enough to work on anything regarding wet set-up and there was no reason for us to stay out on track and ruin sets of tyres. They were 50/50 conditions and you never set up a bike for these circumstances. I hope the weather improves tomorrow so we can continue our plan.”

Repsol Honda press release

CASEY STONER BLAST AT JEREZ TEST IN FIRST DAY

2012-03-25T04:25:00.000-07:00

FINAL RESULT AT JEREZ TEST

2012-03-25T04:19:00.000-07:00

Testing began at 10am and concluded at 6pm. The final hour saw the track action briefly halted after an accident for Mattia Pasini.

The three-day test marked the first time that the full 21 rider grid, including the nine new CRT entries, have been on track at the same time.

Honda's reigning champion Casey Stoner was fastest at the two previous tests, held in Malaysia, and also on day one in Jerez. Ducati's Nicky Hayden then led a rain-interrupted second day.

The first round of the 2012 racing season will be held in Qatar from April 5-8.

1. Casey Stoner AUS Repsol Honda (RC213V) 1m 38.780s (Lap 61/61)
2. Jorge Lorenzo ESP Yamaha Factory (YZR-M1) 1m 38.953s (18/84)
3. Dani Pedrosa ESP Repsol Honda (RC213V) 1m 39.157s (21/73)
4. Ben Spies USA Yamaha Factory (YZR-M1) 1m 39.495s (57/61)
5. Cal Crutchlow GBR Monster Yamaha Tech3 (YZR-M1) 1m 39.585s (79/83)
6. Valentino Rossi ITA Ducati Team (GP12) 1m 39.733s (68/90)
7. Andrea Dovizioso ITA Monster Yamaha Tech3 (YZR-M1) 1m 39.860s (70/72)
8. Nicky Hayden USA Ducati Team (GP12) 1m 39.919s (73/91)
9. Alvaro Bautista ESP San Carlo Honda Gresini (RC213V) 1m 40.017s (83/86)
10. Stefan Bradl GER LCR Honda (RC213V) 1m 40.098s (60/85)
11. Hector Barbera ESP Pramac Racing (GP12) 1m 40.287s (55/91)
12. Karel Abraham CZE Cardion AB Motoracing (GP12) 1m 40.579s (68/88)
13. Randy De Puniet FRA Power Electronics Aspar (ART)* 1m 40.601s (64/71)
14. Aleix Espargaro ESP Power Electronics Aspar (ART)* 1m 41.645s (37/69)
15. Danilo Petrucci ITA Came Iodaracing (Ioda-Aprilia)* 1m 41.926s (87/87)
16. Franco Battaini ITA Ducati Test Rider (GP12) 1m 42.057s (50/85)
17. Colin Edwards USA NGM Forward Racing (Suter-BMW)* 1m 42.073s (19/58)
18. Mattia Pasini ITA Speed Master (ART)* 1m 42.184s (55/59)
19. Michele Pirro ITA San Carlo Honda Gresini (FTR-Honda)* 1m 42.212s (19/52)
20. James Ellison GBR PBM (ART)* 1m 42.437s (32/83)
21. Ivan Silva ESP Avintia (FTR-Kawasaki)* 1m 42.446s (70/84)
22. Yonny Hernandez COL Avintia (FTR-Kawasaki)* 1m 42.906s (56/59)

* CRT entry.

Fastest day two time:
Nicky Hayden USA Ducati 1m 40.755s

Fastest day one time:
Casey Stoner AUS Honda 1m 39.146s

Official Jerez MotoGP lap records:
Pole position:
Jorge Lorenzo ESP Yamaha 1m 38.189s (2008)
Fastest race lap:
Dani Pedrosa ESP Honda 1m 39.731s (2010)
SOURCE: CRASH.NET

Casey Stoner: One week of baby bliss and back to Sepang

2012-03-22T03:46:00.001-07:00

Hi everyone.

After a wonderful week at home with Adri and Ally, I've just arrived back in Sepang for the second test.
It's been a wonderful week, Ally is feeding and sleeping well and without wanting to tempt fate, it seems we have a perfect child at the moment! Both Adri and I have thoroughly enjoyed ourselves this week, getting to know our little girl and sharing little things with her, such as her first experience of hiccups!

Besides baby time, I've also spent some time with my trainer working on various things. My friends at GoPro sent me some belated Christmas presents and I had a chance to rig up the cameras to my bike, and on my helmet! The quality of them is amazing, I can't wait to get them on the go-karts in the Summer!

Anyway, early yesterday morning I was heading to the airport to fly back out here to Sepang for the second test. The first test went very well for us and I'm looking forward to getting back to work with my team. I'll spend most of today at the track and then I'll go into Kuala Lumpur to do a little shopping, maybe pick up something for my girls and try to stay awake to get on the time zone to be 100% for the first day of testing tomorrow.

Along with this blog, I've finally caved in and have decided to open a Twitter account… Don't expect too many Tweets but I'll try to keep you updated. You can follow me on @Official_CS27.

Have a great week wherever you are, and see you next week!

Casey
Source: http://blogs.repsol.com/competition/casey_stoner

Casey Stoner has brought back Honda's lost pride

2012-03-20T07:17:00.001-07:00

After being the driving force behind MotoGP's 800cc formula, Honda badly needed to win it before the category was replaced by 1000cc machines in 2012. Thankfully for the manufacturer, along came Casey Stoner, as Toby Moody explains
Sitting at my desk back in February I eagerly followed the progress of the MotoGP test that was taking place out in Malaysia after the enforced winter testing ban. Liveries were revealed and new crash helmet designs shown to the world, but one picture caught my eye. It was spectacular and showed that one guy in particular was totally hand-in-glove with his 2011 motorbike; that guy was Casey Stoner. He was hanging off the bike through a right-hander, the rear Bridgestone spinning like hell behind him with the front firmly planted. During a lap both wheels were certainly not always in contact with the ground.

Stoner pushed hard for Honda from the early tests, and hasn't let up since
Honda had had enough of having its nose rubbed in it by Ducati and Yamaha from 2007-2010 and hired Stoner for 2011 and the year after. Honda Racing Corporation management had seen the Australian as the final pice in its jigsaw after giving everything to Dani Pedrosa, who won races well, but had not strung together a complete season due to numerous injuries. Honda needed another rider to just get the job done and that rider was Stoner. Remember, HRC didn't really care who won the title, it just wanted that rider to be Honda-mounted in 2011.

Stoner won the first race and, at the time of writing, recorded a further eight victories with two still to go. His speed and times came from an anger towards those who said he only won the title in 2007 because the Ducati was the best bike. He's proved that he can win on two different types of bike, becoming only the fifth rider to do it after Geoff Duke, Giacomo Agostini, Eddie Lawson and Valentino Rossi. The smile in parc ferme after he'd won the title on home soil at Phillip Island said it all. He won the race and the title in front of his home fans â€“ and all on his 26th birthday. There may not be a better day in his racing life after last weekend.

There are those who criticise his moaning even though he's won races by a country mile. I can see their point, but they are usually those who've never met him. He is hugely hard on himself as he strives for the two things that are very, very rare in motorsport - the perfect lap and the perfect race. Stoner wants every lap to be that lap and revs his mouth off once back in the garage if there's anything wrong with the bike, the tyres or if some other guy has got in his way.

As Keith Huewen said when he came up to the commentary box at Silverstone: "I'd pay to come here and just watch this guy go around on his own."

Stoner flew around Silverstone, leaping over the kerbs with both wheels off the black stuff through Club while nearly at full lean. It defied belief. Anyone who has ridden a bike quickly on a track will have some idea what these guys go through every 10 days at 200mph. Like all good sportsman, Stoner didn't make it look easy, just less difficult than the others.

Stoner's rivals had better beware â€“ now he's got title number two under his belt, we could be looking at another Mick Doohan!
source:autosport.com

CASEY STONER Q & A

2012-03-20T02:09:00.002-07:00

CASEY STONER

Following his dominant performance at the Sepang test at the beginning of this month, Casey Stoner has returned to his European base in Lausanne, Switzerland, where Stoner has enjoyed the first few weeks of fatherhood with wife Adrianna following the birth of his first child, Alessandra Maria Stoner.

With almost a month's rest under his belt, reigning MotoGP champion Stoner will return to Malaysia for the next test on the 1000cc RC212V as the countdown to the opening race of the season at Losail in Qatar on April 23 continues.

Specifically, how is the 1000 different from the 800 on corner entry, mid-corner, exit?

Casey Stoner:

Well, the only thing I think, not so much from the 1000 to 800, but just an improvement that we've made with Honda, is braking stability. The wheelbase is maybe a little different and when we go on the brakes we've, of course, got a bit more stability as we're going into the corner. The rear's not wanting to hop up as much. So we can actually sink our hands into the brakes a lot harder. So it's actually changing the braking points by a little bit less than what we'd expected, because our bike has improved quite substantially in that point. I'd say corner entry is exactly the same. Everything from that point on is very similar. I think it's mainly just chassis-wise that we've improved. The weight of the bike is exactly the same, the way it's going to react is very similar, if not the same.

Is the weight of the RC213V the same?

Casey Stoner:

Now we've gone four kilos, but that was quite recently that they decided to add that. The bikes were designed and built and then they go, Ah yeah, we're going to add four kilos. So I don't think that's really the right way forward. And I hope they fight it. I hope they fight it and win because you don't make rules and change it at the last minute when the bike's already developed. So I think the extra four kilos isn't changing anything like that anyway. It's more or less the same weight. If it was 20 kilos difference in the bike, it might be a bit of difference. At this point it just feels very similar to the 800. The only thing that's different for us is the way the chassis feels. Like I said, I think we've made some improvements with that. And just corner exit, we're able to use that power a lot better, we're able to get a more torque out of the engine, have a lot more control with the engine because it's not so peaky. And actually I've found a lot more traction. Because of the extra torque and control, it wants to drive out of the corner a lot longer before it spins.

Can you be less precise with the 1000 and still get away with it?

Casey Stoner:

I'd say no. In a small way I think maybe, because of that extra torque you've got you can just square the corner off then and shoot it out. But the 800s already had a lot of power. And especially by the end of their time they already had a quite substantial amount and too much. You're still spinning up everywhere. So I'd say, no. I think you've still got to ride them in a very similar way. Try to ride them very accurately and everyone's just trying to massage out the bugs at the moment.

If you make a mistake, is it less forgiving than the 800?

Casey Stoner:

No, I think it's very similar. The 800s, maybe you were carrying a little bit more corner speed. Because you didn't have the same power on the 800s then you didn't have the same problems with wheelies. The 1000s, of course, especially on a small track with a short gearbox, is just going to want to wheelie quite a lot, so that's going to be something you'll have to think about. So they did turn a little bit harder and you keep a little bit more throttle in the middle of the turn really. But such a minute amount. You can still ride them in exactly the same way. I was watching some of the lines out there of everybody today and looking at some of the black marks. They're using the whole track still. I'm using less and less of the track, because I'm happy with that extra bit of torque. But in general you can still ride them in both ways.

You've said that having a child is going to give more meaning to your life. When did you come to this realisation?

Casey Stoner:

Four years ago, I'd say. I've always known there's more to life than just racing for a long time. But when I finally decided this isn't going to be me for the rest of my life I started looking for things that I can do away from racing, that's my fishing and things like that I really enjoy. And spending as much time with friends as I can. Things I've just missed out on because this championship doesn't permit you to do that. And all my good friends race in other championships, so we're all busy on opposite weekends and we just never get time together. And you miss those things and you learn that you're supposed to appreciate the time that you've got together and try and spend as much time as you can.

You've won a title before. Is it harder to win a title or defend a title?

Casey Stoner:

I think there is no defending a title. You don't go into a season with a points advantage over anyone. So I don't think it's ever a title defence. I think you've got a different number on your bike, if you choose so, but everyone starts at zero again. Especially this year; we're going from 800s to 1000s, so there's nothing similar to the past year except we're running tyres on bikes and we're doing the same kind of championship, but a completely different category you could call it now. So, I don't think you ever go into a season trying to defend your championship. I think you're going out trying to attack for another one.

The year after you won your championship you had a number of problems, which made keeping the number one plate more difficult.

Casey Stoner:

I think we didn't start out so great with the bike, the 2008 bike. We struggled with quite a lot at the start of the season. We were having a lot of pumping issues and trying to figure out with chain tensions, all that sort of thing. Even just small things like that to try to stop the slack, try to stop the pumping problems we were having. But then we had a camera come off and flap around my bike in Estoril, which no one's even realized that. We had an engine go on us in Le Mans. Then we had major issues at the end of the year with my wrist falling to pieces, but everyone just remembers me losing the title. But I think we put up one hell of a fight considering the year we had. And I think I proved to everybody that we had every right to be champion again that year, but it wasn't to be. Things didn't go right. Same in 2009. We were leading the championship when my lactose issue started to play havoc in our lives. It was pretty much only 2010 that we didn't have any excuses. We didn't have the bike, we didn't have the equipment, we didn't get it sorted quick enough. We made mistakes. Pushed too hard in places we maybe shouldn't have. And things just didn't go well from there. But we showed at the end of the season once we got everything sorted that we still had the speed and came out on a bike that hasn't given us everything we wanted, but has been a fantastic partnership with myself and my team and sort of showed everybody what we could do again.

Wayne Rainey famously said that with each passing championship he felt he had to win and that there was no settling for second place.

Casey Stoner:

I think this championship's changing quite a lot. I'm looking at it in different ways, similar in some ways to Wayne. Wayne, he was the benchmark so he had nothing really to chase, but I suppose you can always win more races during the season, you've always got goals you can set. But for me, it's a problem the way the championship's sort of heading and the way there's always rule changes, there's always excuses, this, that and the other and it doesn't seem to be about racing as it was in those days and there's a lot more to it than just going out there and having a good scrap. There's just too much in between. I think if you look at things in the same sort of way, it sort of makes me unhappy looking at the way the championship, the direction that it's going. But at the same time I've still got goals that I can set this year and try and fulfill, but if I can't, I've got to be happy with the career I've had.

One of his problems was that by winning so often, there was little improvement to his machinery. That doesn't seem to be a problem with Honda.

Casey Stoner:

This team, everything, every bit of input I do, you see that motivating them and trying to do better. With Honda, you see that they just want to keep improving. They don't ever want to sit still. Last year there wasn't too much to put down, but now that there's a 1000 in, straight away there's a lot of input going into it and they're trying to sort out all their small gremlins.

At Laguna Seca you had one of your most frustrating races in 2009 and last year you had one of your greatest races.

Casey Stoner:

I think everyone can appreciate that maybe the race wasn't so easy on a Ducati now. That maybe it wasn't as clean cut as everyone thought it to be. I rode my butt of in that race and things didn't work out. I forgot about that shortly after and just everybody else didn't. So it's not my problem any more.

The pass that you made on Jorge Lorenzo, how far ahead did you plan that?

Casey Stoner:

A few laps to be honest. Not in that exact spot; I just thought if the opportunity arose then I wouldn't have any doubt about doing it. One of the different corners that suit you better and I've always been good in the last sector of Laguna-nothing to do with the acceleration, I was fast on the Ducati. It's just all about getting the gear shifts right just to keep the front down, because it's such a short track. Gear shifts are really quick and very difficult. So I've always felt comfortable coming out of the last corner going on the main straight. On the laps previous to that I was catching Jorge every time doing that spot. And I thought if I got close enough and he just makes a small slip-up with gear shift, which it's not going to take much, but it's just enough to get me that momentum. And it happened. If you actually watch you'll see me all of a sudden sort of get an acceleration. It's not that, it's just the fact that he left that wheelie a little bit too long. Lost that little bit of momentum and that allowed me to carry that momentum around the outside.

Some believe that was the turning point in the championship? Do you agree or disagree?

Casey Stoner:

No, I completely disagree. Then it turned again and it turned back again, so there's constantly turning points in the championship. I think, just let it go. Just let every race be a different turning point in the championship. There's always different moments and you just need to let them flow.

source: crash.net

CASEY STONER HIGHLIGHT 2011

2012-03-20T01:26:00.002-07:00

CASEY STONER AND DANI PEDROSA IN SEPANG VIDEO

2012-03-18T04:52:00.004-07:00

CASEY STONER AT 1000 CC VIDEO

2012-03-18T04:30:00.003-07:00

CASEY CAREER

2012-03-17T22:50:00.001-07:00

As a toddler Casey Stoner displayed a passion and talent for motorbike riding that was extraordinary, even by the standards of his bike-mad family. By the age of three he'd already graduated from pushing his older sister's (Kelly) 50cc Peewee around the yard to taking his first ride on his own.

At four years of age Casey competed in his first race in the under 9s category at the Hatchers dirt racing track on the Gold Coast. By the age of six he had won his first Australia title. Many, many hours of riding, travelling and long nights working on bikes followed. Between the ages of 6 and 14 Casey raced all over Australia, travelling with his father (Colin), mother (Bronwyn) and sister (Kelly).

In that time Casey won 41 Australian dirt and long track titles and over 70 State titles, riding up to 5 bikes at a meeting in different capacity categories.

When he was twelve Casey raced the Australian Long Track Titles on the NSW Central Coast in 5 different categories with seven rounds in each capacity; a total of 35 races over the one weekend! He won 32 out of those 35 races and took five out of five Australian titles in the one meet.

Just after his 14th birthday Casey and his parents decided to make the move overseas and packed up and headed to England to start his road racing career. Casey could not legally road race in Australia until he was 16, but had decided he was ready for the challenge. So the decision was made to move to England where Casey was already of legal age to race. A big risk to take, but it paid off.

Casey was lucky enough and talented enough to attract immediate sponsorship after just one race in England. He went on to take out the English 125cc Aprilia Championship in 2000, in his first year of road racing.

In that year he also raced two rounds of the Spanish 125cc Championship. It was there he was noticed by GP great Alberto Puig. Alberto was impressed by Casey's determination and skill and invited him to race for the Telefonica Movistar Team in the 125cc Spanish Championships the next year.

In 2001 Casey raced in both the English and Spanish championships in the same year. Despite missing some English races due to clashes with Spanish rounds, he still managed to come second in both championships. In that same year he was also granted wildcard entries into the MotoGP 125cc world series, in both England and Australia. He placed 18th and 12th respectively and as a result was offered a ride in the Grand Prix world series the next year for the Safilo Oxydo LCR team.

Straight onto a 250cc machine in his rookie year, and at only 16 years of age, Casey demonstrated his ability and speed with results. His best result for the year was a 5th at Brno as well as several 6th place finishes.

In 2003 he went on to ride for Lucio and Safilo Oxydo LCR in the 125cc GP series and took four podium finishes and his first race win, in Valencia, at the end of the season. His first win in a GP race was a huge turning point for Casey and his career.

In 2004, at 18 years of age, Casey moved to KTM for a season where he helped to develop the team's 125cc bike into a winning machine. That year he made it to the podium six times and took KTM's first ever win in a GP class.

2005 saw Casey once again come back under the welcoming umbrella of Lucio Cecchinello's team, this time riding an official 250cc Aprilia. He spent 2005 battling it out with Dani Pedrosa for the championship, visiting the podium ten times in the process and taking wins in Portugal, Shanghai, Qatar, Sepang, and Istanbul.

Finally in 2006, at twenty years of age, Casey accomplished his long held ambition of racing in MotoGP, the fastest and most prestigious of the classes. He set pole position in his second MotoGP race in Qatar and battled for the win until the final corner in the GP of Turkey, finishing runner-up just a fraction behind winner Melandri. Too many errors conditioned the second part of the year, but Casey, in finishing eighth overall in his rookie MotoGP season, demonstrated that he was in amongst the elite group, of which he is the youngest rider.

In 2007 Casey Stoner has joined the Ducati Marlboro Team alongside Loris Capirossi, with whom he has struck up a good friendship. In winter testing he has often been amongst the pacesetters and has proved to have rapidly adapted to the Desmosedici GP7 and Bridgestone tyres.

On March 10, 2007, at the Losail International Circuit in Qatar, Stoner won the first grand prix of the season, the first ever 800cc grand prix, and had his first win in the MotoGP class. After that the young Australian took other nine wins, four further podium finished and scored five pole positions.

On September 23rd, in Japan, Stoner secured Ducati’s first MotoGP World Championship becoming the first rider in over 30 years to win the MotoGP title on a European made bike and the second youngest premier-class World Champion, after American legend Freddie Spencer who won his title in 1983, and at the time was 84 days younger than the 21 year old Stoner.

The following year Stoner set out to defend his title and began his quest with a fantastic victory in the first GP to be held at night, in Qatar, but this was followed by a series of highs and lows that saw him lose ground in the classification.

Nevertheless Stoner continued to work tirelessly with his team until a breakthrough came during the tests following the Catalunya GP when the Ducati technicians identified a method to maximise the potential of the GP8. Three consecutive victories followed in the UK, The Netherlands and Germany but then, after the hard-fought podium at Laguna Seca, two falls at Brno and Misano, and a physical problem caused by the reopening of an old fracture to his left wrist, the defense of the title seemed impossible.

Improvement towards the end of the season with two podiums and another two convincing wins, in Australia and at the final round in Valencia, meant that Stoner closed the season as the vice-champion of 2008 with the highest ever points score.

Ducati is the manufacturer to have taken the most victories thus far in the 800cc class, with 17 wins in 36 races. The day after the Valencia GP, and immediately before undergoing surgery for his fractured scaphoid, Casey Stoner participated in the first winter tests alongside his new team-mate Nicky Hayden, beginning preparation for the 2009 World Championship on board the Desmosedici GP9 with new carbon fibre chassis.

In 2009 Stoner is again involved in the fight for the MotoGP title, in a season that is characterized by both successes and difficult moments. The Australian rider, after the success of the opening race and his first podium at Jerez with Ducati, also awards the Italian manufacturer with its first ever win at Mugello. Stoner seemed ready to battle it out until the end against Rossi, Lorenzo and Pedrosa, who together are the four riders that demonstrate a superiority over the rest of the pack throughout the 2009 season.

Unfortunately for Casey, he is hindered by a mystery fatigue problem that forces him to sit out three races mid-season, missing the Brno, Indianapolis and Misano GP rounds. It is a very difficult decision for the Australian, which eliminates his chances of winning the title but he is able to return for the Portuguese GP in October, back in shape and ready to demonstrate once more his full potential on board the GP9.

Stoner steps onto the podium at Estoril and then wins the next two races in Australian and Malaysia. In Valencia he is extremely fast but then falls in the warm-up lap prior to the race, thus losing third position in the overall standings.

Fully recovered from the illnesses that tainted his 2009 campaign, Casey begins the season as a title favourite, but a series of nondescript results in the opening rounds swiftly rules him out of the running. Complaining of set-up woes on the GP10, Casey doesn’t reach the podium until the sixth round at Assen and doesn’t top it until round 13 at Motorland Aragon. Though it leads to another two wins over the next three races, Stoner can’t lift himself higher than fourth in the standings.

Even so, Casey’s future is already assured having confirmed much discussed rumours that he is defecting to Honda for 2011, while arch-rival Rossi assumes his place at Ducati.

Mated with the RC212V, Casey swiftly gels with the machine and promptly demolishes the opposition over the course of the 2011 season, winning on his Honda debut at Qatar and repeating the feat on a further ten occasions.

Missing the podium just once, at Jerez when he is wiped out by Rossi, Casey seals his second MotoGP World Championship title by a mammoth 90 points, cementing his status as a pretender to the Italian’s hallowed crown.

All that remains to be seen is whether Casey can replicate such feats on the new generation of 1000cc machines…

CALENDAR 2012

2012-03-17T10:04:00.003-07:00

2012 Calendar

COMMERCIALBANK GRAND PRIX OF QATAR
8 April
Losail Circuit | Qatar
1
GRAN PREMIO bwin DE ESPAÑA
29 April
Jerez | Spain
2
GRANDE PREMIO DE PORTUGAL CIRCUITO ESTORIL
6 May
Estoril | Portugal
3
MONSTER ENERGY GRAND PRIX DE FRANCE
20 May
Le Mans | France
4
GRAN PREMI APEROL DE CATALUNYA
3 June
Circuit de Catalunya |Catalunya
5
BRITISH GRAND PRIX
17 June
Silverstone | Great Britain
6
IVECO TT ASSEN
30 June
Assen | Netherlands
7
eni MOTORRAD GRAND PRIX DEUTSCHLAND
8 July
Sachsenring | Germany
8
GRAN PREMIO D'ITALIA TIM
15 July
Mugello | Italy
9
RED BULL U.S. GRAND PRIX
29 July
Mazda Raceway | United States
10
RED BULL INDIANAPOLIS GRAND PRIX
19 August
Indianapolis | Indianapolis
11
bwin GRAND PRIX CESKÉ REPUBLIKY
26 August
Automotodrom Brno | Czech Republic
12
GP APEROL DI SAN MARINO E DELLA RIVIERA DI RIMINI
16 September
Misano | San Marino
13
GRAN PREMIO IVECO DE ARAGÓN
30 September
Motorland Aragon | Aragon
14
AIRASIA GRAND PRIX OF JAPAN
14 October
Motegi | Japan
15
MALAYSIAN MOTORCYCLE GRAND PRIX
21 October
Sepang Circuit | Malaysia
16
AIRASIA AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX
28 October
Phillip Island | Australia
17
GRAN PREMIO GENERALI DE LA COMUNITAT VALENCIANA
11 November
Comunitat Valenciana |Valencia
SOURCE: http://www.motogp.com

STONER: .... USUAL SUSPECT

2012-03-17T09:32:00.001-07:00

With two of the three MotoGP pre-season tests complete, reigning double world champion Casey Stoner expects the 'usual suspects' to provide his closest competition during the opening season of 1000cc racing.

Over the previous five years with 800cc machines, only four riders scored more than one victory - Stoner (33), Valentino Rossi (21), Jorge Lorenzo (17) and Dani Pedrosa (13).

With one of those 'aliens', seven time MotoGP champion Rossi, still to find form at Ducati, Stoner expects his main rivals be Yamaha's former champion and 2010 runner-up Jorge Lorenzo, and Honda team-mate Pedrosa.

“I think we can guarantee Jorge will be running up front, same as Dani,” said Stoner, fastest at both Sepang pre-season tests.

“It's always the same ones. I think if Valentino was on a bike he is comfortable with he'd be running at the front as well, so hopefully they can make some improvements.

“It'll be the usual suspects. Maybe there will be some changes and a few surprises, but we can guarantee that Jorge and Dani will be there.”

Lorenzo was second to Stoner at the first Sepang test, with Pedrosa runner-up in this week's return visit.

The third and final official test will be held at Jerez from March 23-25, when the full 21-rider grid - twelve manufacturer bikes plus nine of the new privateer 'CRTs' - will be on track together for the first time.

The first race of the new season will then be held at Losail, Qatar on the evening of April 8.

The single 800cc race winners were Andrea Dovizioso, Chris Vermeulen, Loris Capirossi and Ben Spies.

source: http://www.crash.net

PRACTICE AT SEPANG MALAYSIA

2012-03-17T08:50:00.006-07:00

STONER IN NO 1

STONER AND THE TEAM

PRACTICE IN SEPANG

IN STYLE

REPSOL ORIGINAL

2012-03-17T08:32:00.002-07:00