Stoner: Racing is best way to honour Simoncelli
Stoner: Racing is best way to honour
Simoncelli
Casey Stoner admits it will be tough to return to racing in this weekend's Valencia Grand Prix, following the tragic loss of Marco Simoncelli, but believes it is the best way to honour the Italian.
"It will be difficult to return to racing this weekend after Marco's terrible accident in Sepang but I think it is the best thing we can do to honour him," said Stoner, already crowned the 2011 word champion.
"We know we all play a risky game and, even if compared to the past the safety of our sport is much better, unfortunately these kind of events still occur. My thoughts go out to his family and I hope that they are coping through this period."
Valencia will not only be the final round of the 2011 season, but also of the 800cc era. A two-day test with the new 1000cc bikes will be held early next week.
"The race this weekend is the final round of an incredible season for us, we worked hard all year and after clinching the title in Phillip Island we are starting to look to 2012," said the Repsol Honda rider, winner of nine races this year.
"After the race here in Valencia we will have the two day test on the 1000cc machine and then we can take a well deserved break and reflect on the ups and downs of a very long hard season.
"We will go out there this weekend and try to put on a good show for all the fans and especially in memory of Marco".
Numerous official and unofficial tributes to the much-missed Simoncelli - including a possible 1 minute of noise - are expected throughout the Valencia weekend.
Capirossi's final MotoGP, thoughts with
Simoncelli
"No one will feel like going on the track, but we have to do it for Marco and for all fans of motorcycle racing" – Loris Capirossi.
Loris Capirossi's 22-year grand prix career will come to a close at this weekend's Valencia season finale.
But there will be few celebrations, as the former 250cc and double 125cc world champion's thoughts remain with fellow Italian Marco Simoncelli, who lost his life at the previous Sepang round.
"It will be difficult to be in the paddock without Marco, as everyone will miss him," said Capirossi.
"No one will feel like going on the track, but we have to do it for him and for all fans of motorcycle racing.
"It will be my final race, and I still don't know what will be going through my head, but I want to do it as well as possible."
"It will be an unusual race for Loris, as it will be the last of his career. It was supposed to be a party, but no one will feel like celebrating anything," added Pramac Ducati technical director Fabiano Sterlacchini.
Capirossi has won nine races during his premier-class career and finished third in the championship on two occasions.
"I share Capirex's thoughts; it will be really difficult to race at Valencia without Marco, but part of our job is to continue on," stated team-mate Randy de Puniet. "I'll try my best to finish off the season with a good result"
de Puniet is yet to sign for 2012.
Bridgestone MotoGP Preview - Round 18: Valencia
November 01, 2011The Ricardo Tormo circuit in Valencia plays host to the final round of the season on 6 November and the MotoGP community travels there to honour and pay tribute to the memory of Marco Simoncelli.
The traditional season finale is a tight and twisty affair that does not give the tyres much rest during a lap, so it is very important that teams get their bikes setup to use them most efficiently. With little chance during a lap to cool down, excess sliding can easily generate excess tyre temperature and accelerate tyre wear. With one of the longest total race distances of the year, the tyres have 420 corners to contend with during the 30 laps.
Despite this, warm-up performance is crucial in the cooler European climes. In past seasons the temperature has fluctuated significantly year-on-year, so the conditions will play an important role in riders’ tyre compound choices. Inpreparation for the cold, Bridgestone have selected the soft and medium compound front slicks and the medium and hard rears, the same as used last year. The softer option rear also features the extra soft compound rubber in the
lesser-used right shoulder to maximise warm-up performance during opening laps.
Hiroshi Yamada – Manager, Bridgestone Motorsport Department
“It is with heavy hearts that we travel to Valencia this week for the final round of the season, but that we continue racing is in itself a fitting tribute to Marco. He never gave up, so nor shall we. Marco will be with us all in our hearts and minds, and no doubt watching every step and at every corner, and I’m sure that the MotoGP family will honour Marco’s colourful and vibrant life suitably and appropriately, remembering the good times we all shared with him.”
Hirohide Hamashima – Assistant to Director, Motorsport Tyre Development Division“
Valencia is a slippery and technically complex circuit with a slow, twisty asymmetric layout. It’s what we could call a busy circuit because the number and layout of corners means that the tyres are always working and have very little
respite. If a bike’s setup isn’t optimised, it is easy to generate excess tyre temperature because of this, especially as softer compounds are generally required because of the cool ambient conditions.
“We will use the soft and medium front compounds but the front tyre must be strong to cope with the heavy braking loads into the first corner. With the low track temperature softer rear compounds are also required to provide good grip but a harder compound is needed in the left shoulder of the rear tyres because of the asymmetric layout and the tyre temperature generated by the long left-handed last corner. There are only a few tight right-handers so warm-up performance in the right shoulders is important, and this is why we are again using our extra soft compound in our softer option asymmetric rear tyres in Valencia.”
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