Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/159279
VOL. 50 ISSUE 34 AUGUST 27, 2013 Ben Spies replacement rider Michele Pirro on lap eight, then steadily closed on the Spaniard. He was just one second adrift at the end. He was thrilled to be in contention again, after spending much of the season battling near the back. "When we get the bike working, I can race," Edwards said. Over the last few rounds, "We stopped messing with electronics, and the chassis is good." But the bulky Kawasaki engine in the FTR frame was still a drawback. "It's like driving a bus – it likes to go straight." Bradley Smith had qualified ahead of Rossi on his Monster Tech 3 Yamaha, but was an early crash victim, joined on the list by Lukas Pesek, Corti and Hector Barbera. Marquez added a new lap record to his honors, and now leads the championship by 26 points over Pedrosa, 213- 187. Lorenzo is next on 169, then the improving Rossi (143), Crutchlow (127) and Bradl (103). CN MotoGP 1. Marc Marquez (Honda) 2. Dani Pedrosa (Honda) 3. Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) 4. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 5. Alvaro Bautista (Honda) 6. Stefan Bradl (Honda) 7. Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati) 8. Nicky Hayden (Ducati) 9. Andrea Iannone (Ducati) 10. Aleix Espargaro (ART) P71 Briefly... Moto3 ECU supplier. On Thursday at Brno, Race Direction decided on the penalty. There has been no appeal. Yamaha riders are still awaiting the new seamless-shift gearbox, which they tested at Brno during the summer break. But it will not be the complete answer, according to Valentino Rossi. He and teammate Jorge Lorenzo are agitating also for chassis improvements, in the battle to close the gap on the Honda RC213V, which had improved significantly over the last 18 months or so. Valentino Rossi put the finger on better braking performance by the Honda, an area made worse because he is still having problems in braking, where his particular technique makes the tire collapse. Crew chief Jerry Burgess said they were working on overall balance of the bike to improve it, and had made another small step at Brno. "The seamless-shift is important, but not enough," said Rossi. "We have some other problems compared with the Honda… we have to work." Moto3 title leader Luis Salom, on crutches at Brno, revealed that he had several fractures in his left foot – and that during the last race at Indianapolis he couldn't feel his foot at all. At Indy he raced to fifth, but admitted: "It was difficult. I felt like I had no foot, and I got a lot of neutrals trying to change gear. I had a painkilling injection before the race and it touched one nerve, and I couldn't feel my foot at all." Austrian wild card rider Martin Bauer made his Grand Prix debut at the age of 37 at Brno and made a little history in the process - in the firstever all-German-speaking team in the class. Bauer, three-time German Superbike Champion, rode a Suter BMW developed by S&B Motorsports for the Remus Racing Team. The bike had its first rollout less than a month ago, when Bauer joined Yamaha in a private test session at Brno. He came away encouraged, after posting a time within three seconds of Rossi's best. "Naturally I rode behind Rossi and Lorenzo a few times, and watched how they positioned their bikes and where they were faster. It was interesting to see they can't work magic either… at the corner entrance there isn't much between us, though there is a world of difference accelerating out of the corner." Team Marc VDS have signed twotime race winner Tito Rabat to replace Scott Redding in the Moto2 team next year. Rabat is significantly best of the rest in the class behind Redding and his current Tuenti HP 40 Pons teammate Pol Espargaro, after two wins this year, including Indianapolis a week ago. Team manager Michael Bartholemy said: "In Tito I'm confident we have a rider who can challenge for the title for the next two years. His results this season have been impressive, and I am confident we can take him to the next level, adding consistency to his obvious speed." There was a proviso, however. "First we must make sure we beat him to the championship title, as he is looking more of a threat every race." After several tire failures and withering criticism from top Moto2 riders continued on next page