Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

Pedrosa One-Upped By Stoner was due to run out on Monday, November 7. Pons agreed with Stoner's dad, Colin, that the deadline could be pushed back until after Stoner completes a three-day test session in Sepang later this month. If there is still no sponsor, then Stoner would be a free agent again. However, after his debut in Valencia, he is now reluctant to leave the Honda stable. Pons and Honda seem to be pinning their hopes on Camel's relenting on its wish to have Biaggi running its distinctive bananayellow colors. A Honda spokesman said: "It depends how much Camel places on its marketing strategy in MotoGp, or how much it places on its loyalty to Max [Biaggi] to see what they do." Rumor has it that, as Camel bosses realize that nobody is willing to touch Biaggi with a 10-foot pole, they may come back to Pons with a new proposal. But their offer would be at least a SO-percent cut in the rumored int-sized Spanish road racer Dani Pedrosa made his long-awaited transfer to MotoGP during a test session held after the season-ending Grand Prix in Valencia, Spain, but the 250cc World Champion couldn't match his rival Casey Stoner's P impressive debut. Following the pattern of his racing career, three-time World Champion Pedrosa was steady rather than spectacular, though his debut did create the biggest stir at the Valencia test. Meanwhile, Sito Pons said he would pull out all the stops to ensure he could give Stoner a Honda RCV ride in next year's MotoGP World Championship. The Spaniard was drooling after watching the young Aussie's impressive debut at the Valencia test, and he is now praying that he $10 million budget it was willing to pay had Biaggi been involved. While Pons ponders his off-track quandary, he knows he may have gotten his hands on a gem in Stoner. "I am really surprised with his perform- can solve his team's financial crisis to snap Stoner up on a long-term contract. Pons' very mature. He is not worried and stays very calm. He has adapted very quickly to the MotoGP bike and he feels very free on the bike, not tight at all. It looks like he's got future is still clouded after he was thrown into turmoil last week when Honda refused point-blank to let his title sponsor Camel run "Since I knew I'd be testing, I had trouble sleeping, because its been a dream to ride a MotoGP bike since I was 4 or 5 years old." - Casey Stoner The featherweight 20-year-old, who weighs in at a diminutive 106 pounds, already has the huge weight of expectation on his shoulders within Spain that he is the man who can finally put Valentino Rossi in his place. Pedrosa's debut created a media frenzy, Max Biaggi on an RCV. While it seems a potential change of heart may be in the cards, with Pons admitting he was still confident that a solution with Camel brand owners JTI could be found, he is frantically searching for a new multimillion-dollar and his mechanics were forced to barge their way through a huge swathe of TV He will certainly need one if Camel digs in its heels and says it will quit MotoGP unless they can find a solution that keeps Biaggi on the grid. As yet, Pons has not yet been able to sign offi- crews, photographers and journalists just to get him out of the garage for his first tentative run. Pedrosa, whose feet barely touch the floor when he's perched on the RCV, set a best time of I:35.5 after a 62-lap stint that was more of a familiarization exercise than a display of his Rossi-beating potential. "I know how powerful the bike is, because I tested it last year after Valencia," Pedrosa said. "Nothing has really changed since then. But now I have got to adjust the bike for me. I worked a lot with footrests and handlebar positions, just to get comfortable, as we wanted to find a base to take us forward throughout the winter. Some of my crew have come with me from the 250, so they have as much to learn as what I do." 10 NOVEMBER 23, 2005 • investor. cial contracts with either Stoner or Carlos Checa. Stoner has signed an agreement with the former 250cc World Champion, which means if a sponsor is found, he won't be able to move to another team. A deadline for Stoner to begin negotiations to try to secure his future away from Honda (most likely with Yamaha) CYCLE NEWS factory Aprilia 250 en route to finishing third in the Valencia GP. "Since I knew I'd be testing, I had trouble sleeping, because it's been a dream to ride a MotoGP bike since I was 4 or 5 years old," Stoner said. "It was pretty nice to take the first step towards my dream." Far from being overawed by the brutal horsepower of the RCV - which has approximately an extra 140 hp, compared to his Aprilia RSW - Stoner said the RCV was a pussycat compared to his fickle 250. "I didn't have too many problems getting used to the speed," he said. "I couldn't believe it, but it didn't actually feel as powerful as what I expected. I expected it to be absolutely ballistic. But I suppose for a bike that is as big as it is, then there can only be so much power, otherwise it would be lethal. It's good fun to be able to slide a bike without it highsiding you. They are so easy to ride. They are smooth and on the throttle and feel constant from. the bottom end to the top of the rev range. The power is consistent, whereas on a 250, it's all over have Casey for the long term. We know he has the potential, and we want him to be the show, all up and down, and you've got to learn to ride with that and not let it spit you in the air. A 250... you are never quite in control of them." Stoner also said that he had no problems adapting to the extra physical demands of MotoGp, again claiming the RCY was easier to muscle around the tight and twisty Valencia circuit than his 250. "Physically, I actually found it easier than riding a 250, but the Aprilia is quite a nerv- with us when he is ready to win. Casey has ous bike, and it takes a fair bit to muscle shown that he doesn't need three years to be competitive in MotoGP. In one day he has them round," Stoner said. "These bikes, in the change of direction, I actually found it lighter, because on a 250 you carry lots ance," Pons said. "He is young but appears a natural instinct to ride a big machine. Casey showed his natural talent, and we want to shown that." Stoner provided the major shock at the test before admitting that riding a 250-horsepower Honda RCV missile is easier than 250s. The 20-year-old won his first battle with Pedrosa as he clocked the fifth-fastest time at the Spanish track. Before his impressive RCV debut, the biggest bike Stoner had ridden had been an Aprilia Tuono production machine. But he looked like he'd been on an RCY for years, as he clocked a best time of 1:35.0. Despite far-from-ideal conditions, that was 1.5 seconds quicker than he'd been on his more corner speed. which makes it a lot more difficult to change direction. I didn't really have a problem standing it up; it's a little bit heavier, but it just feels like a little bit bigger 250 with a lot more power. It's not as arm-ripping as I thought it would be, because the power is so controllable." Stoner, though, couldn't have imagined in his wildest dreams making such an early impact on the five-cylinder RCV, and he confessed to being surprised at how well he'd performed. "It's actually very surprising, especially to be ahead of a few people who are ,.... used to how things work on these bikes," he said. "I just took my time, because the main difference is in the middle of the corner. I'm very happy with my time. I never expected to be anywhere near that sort of pace. I wasn't even thinking about times, I just wanted to see what it was like to slide a bike without it throwing you off." Matthew Sirt Pedrosa, however, was upstaged by his 250cc rival Casey Stoner; the Australian was Impressive in his MotaGP testing debut.

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