MotoGP

Movistar Yamaha MotoGP's Valentino Rossi turned his fortunes around today at the eyetime Motorrad Grand Prix von Österreich, claiming a strong 6th place after a superb comeback race. Maverick Viñales had a more challenging outing at the Red Bull Ring - Spielberg track, but made up ground in the second half of the race to finish in 12th position. Rossi started from 14th on the grid and was wary of the first lap, when the busy mid-pack of the rider field would be diving into the tight first c

Following a test at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya three weeks ago, the Movistar Yamaha MotoGP Team return to Barcelona for round seven of the MotoGP World Championship. After securing a third place at the Mugello circuit, being serenaded by the Italian crowds, and simultaneously taking over second place in the championship rankings, Valentino Rossi is ready to commence the championship battle in Barcelona. The Doctor has a 23-point margin to the leader in the standings and hopes t

Today the Yamaha Factory riders were each able to test one of the two new frames available. Tomorrow they will switch to get a feel for the other option. After a challenging outing yesterday, Viñales was a man on a mission: he was one of the first riders to venture out on track again this morning and the last to return to the pit box as the session closed. His goal for today was to try one of the new frames as well as improve his feeling with the bike in hot conditions. Whilst consistently

Viñales arrived in Montmeló in a good mood, after a mature ride at the Mugello Circuit. He extended his lead in the championship to 26 points with a well-deserved second place finish, giving him a healthy margin as he commences the seventh round of the 2017 MotoGP season. The young contender hopes to ride his YZR-M1 to the rostrum this weekend in front of the Catalan fans. He previously achieved four consecutive podium finishes here in the lower classes, with a second place in 125cc (2011),

Rossi was up for the challenge of repeating his strong ride of two weeks ago. He needed little time to get back into the swing of things and was quick to take over the top spot from his teammate at the start of the eight-hour long session. As the temperature started rising the pace of the field picked up, but the Doctor was quick to respond and cruised back to the top the leader board with an impressive 2’00.414s lap, which kept him sitting on top for the rest of the session. Teammate Loren

With the track still cool in the morning, teammate Rossi took his time to further test set-ups with the aim to prolong tyre life. When the track started to warm up he put his YZR-M1 to the test and posted the sixth fastest time of 2’00.676s, +0.713s behind his teammate, despite suffering some chattering issues. While the track was baking in the blistering afternoon temperatures at 2pm, the riders took some time to regain their strength and consume enough fluids, before heading back out into

Rossi didn’t let the changeable conditions slow him down and set a fastest lap of 1’32.437 on lap five. As things closed up at the front, fans were thoroughly entertained with a heated battle between Rossi, Marquez and Iannone. Sparks were flying from Rossi’s bike on lap 12 as Dani Pedrosa started to get into the mix. Six laps later rain threatened again, allowing the Doctor to reel in Marquez. Rossi kept his head down, but as the track dried again he came just short and finished in a deserved s

Aware that he was still followed by rival Marquez, the Doctor put the hammer down on the next lap but went slightly off line on the last corner and was forced to give the position to Marquez. Rossi refused to give up and chased his rival but, as the tyres started to wear down and the heat started to take its toll, he was unable to retake the lead and finished the race in second, +2.445 behind the leader. Teammate Lorenzo catapulted off the line at the start of the Sepang battle and arrived

Valentino, how are you today? VR: “I’m fine, everything is ok, and this is the most important thing. I did not injure myself too much except for a big bump to the head. Last night I had a little headache but today I'm fine, I'm 100%. It was a real shame because before the race we made a change that would have helped me a lot; the bike was strong, I was going well, I had recovered the gap in the first few laps and I was there with the leading riders. I felt good and I am sure I could have made a

Teammate Jorge Lorenzo experienced his second Grand Prix weekend to forget today, making a jump start at the beginning of the race and receiving a ride-through penalty as a result. He pitted immediately at the end of the opening lap and re-joined at the back of the field in 23rd. The four-time world champion then showed his dedication and professionalism, working hard to move back through the pack to earn his first championship points of the season. As he crossed the finish line he did so in ten

The Team now move directly to Phillip Island in Australia for a further test before the season kicks off under the floodlights of Qatar on the 23rd March. Monster Yamaha Tech3’s Bradley Smith and Pol Espargaro completed the final day of testing with many positives to conclude, for the beginning of the MotoGP season at the end of March. Both Monster Yamaha Tech3 riders experimented with various aspects of their Yamaha YZR-M1 MotoGP bikes in order to find the most suitable set ups which

Rossi and Lorenzo both undertook a race simulation in the stifling Malaysian heat this afternoon to shake the 2014 M1 down over race distance. Four–time world champion Lorenzo was also happy having completed the three days. The Mallorcan made good progress during the riding sessions, managing to closely replicate the feeling of the 2013 bike whilst making the big reductions in fuel required for the 2014 season. Lorenzo completed the final day in third position, just 0.333 seconds from the f

Lorenzo rose to the occasion, firing off the start line like a bullet in front of Yamaha’s home crowd to lead the race into the first laps. The Mallorcan was able to build a gap of nearly two seconds in the first three laps then saw it cut as championship rival Marc Marquez closed in. Marquez and Dani Pedrosa were able to get onto the heels of Lorenzo but unable to pass. The defending champion held on to the line to score his 51st Grand Prix victory, crossing the line just over three seconds cle

This incredible success story goes back to 1973, when British rider Chas Mortimer took the first ever 500cc victory in the class that would become the modern day MotoGP Championship. Yamaha is still only the second manufacturer to achieve this milestone. The greatest MotoGP legend of all-time, Giacomo Agostini played a key part in writing Yamaha’s story of race success, taking six 500cc wins in the 1970s to add to the score. Later on in the story it was the Americans who wrote their piece

Further disaster was also narrowly avoided when Marquez exited the pits just as Lorenzo passed down the straight at high speed, the two making contact into turn one. Luckily both were able to stay upright and continue. Lorenzo kept the pressure on and held the top spot for the remaining nine laps to claim the race win. Rossi enjoyed yet another intense race long battle with rivals Cal Crutchlow and Alvaro Bautista. The three swapping positions in the fight for the last podium spot throughou

Jorge Lorenzo successfully completed his weekend of damage limitation with an exhausting ride to sixth place. Still physically compromised following his two surgeries to his collarbone the Laguna race proved to be a big challenge for the world champion. Starting from sixth on the grid he initially made up two places to fourth, diving inside Dani Pedrosa on turn one for position. The race became a war of attrition for Lorenzo, battling to stay focused for the 32lap stint, eventually bringing it h