Moto GP : Pole position et record du circuit pour Dovizioso / Ducati get first pole position since 2010 courtesy of Dovizioso

Andrea Dovizioso s’est offert sa première pole position avec Ducati, la première du constructeur italien depuis 2010, samedi après-midi au Twin Ring Motegi et partagera la première ligne avec Valentino Rossi et Dani Pedrosa.

Andrea Dovizioso poursuit sa montée en puissance avec Ducati et a remporté sa deuxième pole position en MotoGP™ depuis celle de 2010, qu’il avait aussi obtenue au Twin Ring Motegi. Profitant de l’avantage que lui confère le pneu extra-soft, l’Italien a tourné en 1’44.502, soit près d’une demi-seconde de mieux que l’ancien record du circuit japonais. Ducati sera en tête de la grille pour la première fois depuis la pole de Casey Stoner au GP de Valence de 2010.

Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) a confirmé que sa fracture à l’index de la main droite ne l’handicaperait pas ce week-end au Japon en se qualifiant en seconde position, à 0.055s de son compatriote. Le nonuple Champion du Monde n'avait jusque-là été en première ligne qu'une seule fois cette saison suite à sa qualification en troisième position à Misano.

Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) complètera la première ligne après avoir chuté sur son dernier tour tandis que son coéquipier Marc Márquez (Repsol Honda) sera en tête de la deuxième ligne.

Le Champion du Monde en titre, qui dispose de sa première balle de match pour le titre MotoGP™ 2014, a fini à un rien de Pedrosa, tout comme Jorge Lorenzo (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP), vainqueur au Motegi l’an dernier, qui partira cinquième, devant Andrea Iannone (Pramac Racing).

Pol Espargaró (Monster Yamaha Tech3), Cal Crutchlow (Ducati) et Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda MotoGP) seront quant à eux en troisième ligne après avoir devancé Bradley Smith (Monster Yamaha Tech3) ainsi que Aleix Espargaró (NGM Forward Racing) et Álvaro Bautista (GO&FUN Honda Gresini), qui étaient tous les deux passés par la Q1. 

S’il n’a pas encore complètement récupéré de sa blessure au poignet, Nicky Hayden (Drive M7 Aspar) a tout de même réussi à être le premier pilote sur RCV1000R en qualifications, à la quatorzième position, tandis que son coéquipier Hiroshi Aoyama a fini dix-huitième, derrière le wildcard Katsuyuki Nakasuga (Yamalube Racing Team with YSP). 

Mike di Meglio (Avintia Racing) est qualifié en vingt-troisième position.

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MotoGP™ Q2 was another frantic sprint for pole at the Motul Grand Prix of Japan, with the honours taken by Andrea Dovizioso - as Valentino Rossi and Dani Pedrosa also slotted onto the front row – despite a late crash for Pedrosa.

A new pole record of the Twin Ring Motegi circuit of 1’44.502 by Dovizioso gave Ducati Team their first pole position since Casey Stoner was on pole at Valencia in 2010.

For full MotoGP Q2 results from Motegi click here.

Behind Dovizioso, Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) had provisional pole early in the session before he dropped down the timesheet, only to respond with a hot lap which left him just 0.055s behind his pole setting compatriot.

Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team) was also chasing pole and was on a hot lap when he fell at turn 12 in the final stages. Nonetheless the Spaniard qualified on the front row, a quarter of a second behind Dovizioso, with three different manufacturers represented on the first line of the grid.

Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) will launch his bid to retain the title from fourth on the grid having qualified just 0.02s behind his teammate Pedrosa.

Aragon race winner Jorge Lorenzo (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) qualified fifth, a 0.282s gap from pole. The second row is completed by Andrea Iannone (Pramac Racing) who like Dovizioso took advantage of an extra soft rear tyre.

Pol Espargaro (Monster Yamaha Tech3), Cal Crutchlow (Ducati Team) and Stefan Bradl (LCR Honda MotoGP) all qualified on row three, whilst Bradley Smith (Monster Yamaha Tech3) slotted into tenth place.

Aleix Espargaro (NGM Forward Racing) and Alvaro Bautista (GO&FUN Honda Gresini) made it through from an intriguing and fiercely contested Q1 session to qualify 11^th and 12^th respectively. Espargaro was forced to push hard to get through from Q1 on his final lap after being put under pressure by Yonny Hernandez (Energy T.I. Pramac Racing) who will start 13^th.

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BARN FIND: DAVE MUCCI’S DREAMY HONDA CA95

We love a good barn find, and they don’t come much better than this sweet little Honda CA95. It’s a typically stylish build from Dave Mucci, and there’s a great story to match.

A few months ago, we got an email from Lauren, a Chicago rider who wanted to upgrade from a scooter to a classic motorcycle. So we put her in touch with her near-neighbor Dave. After running through a few options with him, Lauren decided she liked the curves of the Honda CA95.

It was a good choice. “The CA95 was the finned Cadillac of motorcycles,” says Dave. “The frame extends from the steering tube all the way back to the rear fender, in one swooping stamped-steel structure.”

The hunt was on, and Dave got wind of a 1962 model that had been sitting unused for more than a decade. “It was the dictionary definition of a barn find,” he remembers. “Covered in a thick layer of dirt, with hay stuffed into all the crevices, plus the remnants of generations of mice.”

Dave was almost afraid to touch it in case it fell apart. And then he swiped his thumb across the instrument gauge and revealed something pretty astonishing: the odometer read 00078 miles.

The remarkably low mileage isn’t the only unusual thing about this Honda. Lauren’s first requirement was practicality and storage—something that scooter riders take for granted, but motorcyclists often struggle with.

“The CA95 already has two square compartments, on either side of the bike,” says Dave. “They house the electrics and air filter box. So we replaced the airbox with a K&N pod filter, and built a custom electronics box within the frame.”

The side compartments were now free, so Dave fabricated metal cages and fitted soft, upholstered side bags. And for even more storage space, he added a removable luggage rack at the back.

With the storage issue out of the way, the rest of the build took a more familiar path. There’s a completely new electrical system, complete with a red USB chord snaking into a side bag so that a phone can be charged while riding.

In the US, the CA95 was delivered without turn signals, so Dave sourced and wired in an early Honda control with a turn signal switch. “Given the cell phone charger, we wanted to keep the electrical draw to a minimum. So we swapped out the rear taillight for a pair of LED units from Prism Moto Co.”

The tails are wired up to also function as turn signals, using a basic trailer converter and a couple of resistors. (“They’re bright as hell and draw a tenth of the current.”)

The curvature of the CA95 backbone is one of its most elegant features. “You can just picture a designer carving out that perfect silhouette in the 50s with a couple of pencil strokes. But unfortunately, someone then made the decision to plop a big black rectangle of a seat on top of that beautiful design element.”

So Dave designed a seat unit with more sympathetic lines. It’s one of the most dominant elements of the bike now, accentuating the backbone of the frame and tailing off down the rear fender.

The rest of the bike was overhauled, from the nickel-plated fender up front to the skinny new exhaust system—which replicates the original, but now sports a set of louvered baffles from a different Honda model. “The sound is surprisingly deep and bubbly for a pair of 75cc pistons!”

Even more attention went into the muted colors: warm and desaturated, they add a classy, haute couture vibe. “I enjoy working with contrasting materials and finishes, as well as the hues themselves,” says Dave.

“The brass hardware was bead-blasted down to its raw golden state, and there’s a pop of red via some of the smaller elements—like the plug wires, zipper pulls and carburetor parts. They complete the red motif seen in the neutral switch, speedo needle and taillight lenses.”

It’s a thoroughly well built bike, but it was constructed at breakneck speed to go on display at The One Moto Show in Portland last February. The judges were so impressed, they created a special award: the “What’s Up With That Seat” trophy.

With several high quality builds under his belt, Dave Mucci has now gone pro—with a new motorcycle design company called Draft Studio. If you’re in the American Midwest and want a one-of-a-kind custom, now you know who to call.

Images by Patrick Daly.

via BIKEexif

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photos Mark Bramley 

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