Moto GP : Rossi félicite Márquez pour son second titre / Rossi congratulates Marquez on World title win

Le pilote du team Movistar Yamaha MotoGP s'est incliné face à Marc Márquez dans leur duel pour la seconde place au Motegi et n'a donc pas pu retarder le sacre de l'Espagnol malgré une bonne performance.

Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) était très bien parti depuis la seconde position sur la grille du Twin Ring Motegi et a mené durant les quatre premiers tours, avant d'être dépassé par son coéquipier Jorge Lorenzo. 

Distancé par ce dernier, Rossi s'est ensuite concentré pour conserver la seconde place mais n'a pu se maintenir devant Marc Márquez (Repsol Honda), qui allait, en finissant deuxième, remporter le Championnat du Monde MotoGP™ 2014.

Grâce à sa troisième place, Rossi est maintenant à égalité de points avec Dani Pedrosa dans la lutte pour le titre de vice-Champion du Monde, qui se jouera désormais à trois puisque Lorenzo n'a plus que trois points de retard sur les deux suite à sa victoire au Japon.

« J'ai eu une petite opportunité de laisser le championnat ouvert, je voulais que ça reste ouvert pour encore une autre course, » a commenté Rossi. « Marc avait beaucoup d'avance mais il y avait une possibilité de laisser le championnat en jeu. J'ai fait mon maximum, surtout à la fin, quand Dani était derrière moi. J'avais un bon rythme mais Márquez avait un petit quelque chose en plus et c'était impossible. Je crois que le niveau de cette course a été le plus élevé de toute la saison et je suis donc satisfait de ce que nous avons fait. Nous étions toujours sur le record du tour et personne n'a fait d'erreur. »

« Nous ne jouons pas le Championnat du Monde mais la lutte pour la deuxième place va être de très haut niveau. Dani et Jorge sont très forts et nos teams aussi. Jorge est en excellente forme et il m'inquiète un peu ! Notre objectif est de renouer avec la victoire. Je pense que Marc mérite le championnat, il a remporté beaucoup de courses et dans des situations très différentes. Il ne fait pas d'erreur et il a encore progressé. Félicitations à Marc ! »

Movistar Yamaha MotoGP’s Valentino Rossi fought hard to keep the World Championship open at the Motul Grand Prix of Japan, eventually finishing third.

The nine time World Champion made an excellent start from the front row of the grid, leading through the opening turns. Rossi was able to extend his lead, running at the front for the opening four laps.

Lap five saw Jorge Lorenzo (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) get past Rossi and create a comfortable lead. The Italian then focused on staying ahead of Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda) and keeping the World Championship alive, even if for just another race.

The pair battled during the middle of the race with Marquez eventually getting the upper hand on Lap 16. Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda) closed in drastically on Rossi, pushing the Italian to improve his pace as the race drew to a close.

Rossi finished half a second ahead of Pedrosa at the flag and is now level on points with the Spaniard in the battle for second.

Rossi reflected on the race, “I had a small chance to keep the championship party open, I wanted to keep it open another race. Marc’s advantage was very big, but maybe we could keep it open still. I tried my maximum, especially with Pedrosa behind me at the end. I had a good pace but Marquez had something a little extra so it was impossible. I think this was a higher level race to the rest of the season, so I’m satisfied with how we went. We were always on the lap record pace and no one made a mistake.”

“It’s not for the World Championship, but for second place the battle will be very high level. Me, Dani and Jorge are all very strong and our teams are all working at the top. Jorge is in great shape and I’m very worried about him! Our target is to win again. I think that Marc deserves the championship; he won a lot of races and in a lot of conditions. He doesn’t make mistakes and he improved his level so congratulations to Marc,” he finished.

Moto GP : Márquez : « Merci à Honda et à ma famille » / Marquez: ‘Thanks to my family and Honda’

Marc Márquez était logiquement sur un petit nuage dimanche à l'arrivée du Grand Prix Motul du Japon, où il a remporté son deuxième titre MotoGP™ en seulement deux saisons dans la catégorie reine.

Parti de la quatrième position au Motegi, Márquez a perdu un peu de terrain sur le premier tour mais a doublé ses adversaires un à un pour revenir sur Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) et lutter avec le nonuple Champion du Monde pour la deuxième place, un résultat qui pouvait le mener au titre.

Suite à une brève bataille avec l'Italien, Márquez a pu s'emparer de la seconde place mais avait trop de retard sur Jorge Lorenzo (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) pour jouer la victoire. La deuxième place lui permettait cependant de décrocher le titre mondial, à trois courses de la fin de la saison 2014, et de devenir le plus jeune pilote, et l'unique Espagnol, à être titré deux fois de suite dans la catégorie reine.

« Vous savez, la course ne compte pas vraiment aujourd'hui ! » a commenté Lorenzo. « Je ne roulais peut-être pas comme d'habitude parce que je me sentais un petit peu différent. C'était dur de doubler et je ne voulais pas faire d'erreur. J'en avais fait deux sur les dernières courses mais nous avons le titre ! C'est incroyable de le remporter ici, chez Honda. Merci à ma famille et à Honda. »

« Ce n'est que ma deuxième année en MotoGP et avoir déjà deux titres est incroyable. Beaucoup de gens s'imaginent que c'est facile parce que je suis toujours souriant mais il y a beaucoup de presion. Nous avions fait des erreurs à Misano et à Aragón et il était important d'être concentré ici chez Honda. Je suis très heureux pour mon team, ma famille et mes fans, qui me soutiennent tous. C'est vraiment comme dans un rêve. »

Marc Marquez reacted joyfully after becoming the youngest ever back-to-back premier class World Champion after a solid ride at the Motul Grand Prix of Japan aboard his Repsol Honda RC213V.

Having started fourth on the grid Marquez made a steady start to the race, dropping behind Andrea Iannone (Pramac Racing) through the opening corners. The Spaniard quickly dispatched with the Ducati rider and focused on claiming second position ahead of Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP).

A brief midrace battle emerged between the pair, swapping positions for several corners. Marquez eventually got the better of the nine time World Champion and went about closing down Jorge Lorenzo (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP) who had built up a comfortable lead.

Marquez made an attempt to catch Lorenzo, but the Yamaha rider responded and Marquez settled for second. This result allowed him to claim his second MotoGP World Championship, and fourth World Title, with three races to go.

Now the youngest ever rider to take consecutive premier class World Titles, Marquez looks to return to winning in the final three races.

An ecstatic Marquez explained, “You know, the race doesn’t really matter today! Maybe I wasn’t riding like always, as I felt a little different. It was hard to overtake and I didn’t want a mistake. I had two mistakes in the last races but we got the title! It’s incredible to take it at home. Thanks to my family and Honda.”

“Just two years in MotoGP with two titles is incredible. Maybe for the people it looks easy because I’m always smiling, but there is a lot of pressure. Misano and Aragon we made some mistakes so it was important to focus here for Honda. I’m really happy with my team and family and fans, they’re all pushing me. It’s like a dream right now,” he added.

BSMC GEAR GUIDE #29

This week’s Gear Guide features more lovely stuff from the mercurial El Solitario, a lively ladies leather jacket by Boda Skins, cool Ts from The Foundry, waterproof protective sneakers, and a handy handlebar mounted case for your (illegedly) smartphone. Splendid.

 

PRODUCT REVIEW BY THE BIKE SHEDS VERY OWN LITTLE BIG NOISE, AKA VIKKI VAN SOMEREN – BODA SKINS QUILTING BIKER JACKET

Ladies; as autumn kicks-in and your feeling a little blue, cheer yourself up, and your winter wardrobe, by investing in a gorgeous Boda Skins leather Biker Jacket. I got my hands on an outrageous red one and I love it. It just makes me smile every time I put it on, although I rarely smile in pictures as you can see.

The leather is lightweight, full of detail and hugs your body in all the right places. Boda Skins’ philosophy is based on a luxury, ethical sourced second skin and with this jacket they’ve nailed it. They come in a range of colours from baby blue, vintage cream, fawny brown to a crisp white.

Based in Manchester, the Boda team share their love of leather with the fashion world, as well as providing the local community work experience and apprenticeships. Their family of sixteen expert leathersmiths artfully craft each jacket using traditional tanning methods, ensuring the manufacturing process stays environmentally friendly. Using only leathers and furs imported under strict licensing laws, Boda refuses to trade in endangered species. There products are made in a small village in Turkey. Ticking quiet a few boxes methinks!

You can definitely tell they love their products. The attention to detail is evident. I love the quilting; a mix of diamond and banded with light touches of stitch work, but what I really love is that you feel like you’re wearing top quality leather but without the heavy weight. This jacket is perfect for parties or hanging around at some launch event, kicking tyres and drooling over the cool looking beards, I mean bikes.

On the bike it moves effortlessly with you, it has a good coverage of the lower back and the arms don’t rise as you stretch over the tank… I don’t know how warm it is as its only just started to get chilly, but it’s so soft it’s easy to put on a few layers underneath… but hey, what’s a few chills when you’re looking so damn good.

Oh and for an additional 10% of the jacket price, they will provide you with one of their signature pieces tailored to your exact measurements, not bad huh!

http://bodaskins.com

TCX – X STREET BOOT

For those of us who like to wear a sneaker style boot on a bike, but want a good degree of protection, the X Street is a great option.

A durable waterproof ankle boot, the X Street is designed with an impressive level of protection, comfort and attention to detail. The sole has a steel shank and makes the boot CE approved. The fact it’s also waterproof is impressive for the price.

Made from full grain leather upper (except for the denim version), it has a full waterproof lining (except for the denim and perforated versions), it features toe, heel and ankle reinforcements.

It features an anatomic footbed and a rubber sole, and features the Comfort Fit System.

The Comfort Fit System, developed by TCX is special and virtually entirely manual technique allows the boot to be shaped on a “mould” that faithfully reproduces the anatomy of the foot, making the boot exceptionally comfortable and ideal for prolonged use in different situations, both on and off the bike. These can be worn on the ride, at work, in the pub and are pretty comfortable walking in.

They come in waterproof black, blue and in ladies anthracite and two tone brown: and non waterproof denim and perforated. A great alternative to thick leather biker boots.

http://www.tcxboots.com

 

EL SOLITARIO – THE VANDAL

Not content with building some of the most controversial and outrageously cool motorcycles, El Solitario make some pretty interesting clobber too.

Their latest creation, The Vandal, is their “ vision of an overshirt, which is a more versatile garment than any of the others. Wear it over other clothes and/or between layers.”

Made by hand from raw 14oz denim and stitched with contrasting gold twine, it features suede shoulder panels. It has canvas lined inner pockets to stash your valuables in addition to two breast pockets. The El Solitario lone wolf is embroidered on the back of the collar.

Like all of El Solitario’s gear, this is incredibly well made by craftsmen and not in sweatshops, and are built to last.

The first run is manufactured in very limited numbers in medium, large and extra large. It comes at a premium, but is a beautifully crafted garment.

“Not a jacket not a shirt El Solitario Vandal is way cooler than any of them.” Who are we to argue?

http://elsolitariomc.com

THE FOUNDRY OL’ 56 T SHIRT

One of my favourite builds is from our mates down at The Foundry, the beautiful 1956 Triumph T110 Tiger bobber.  In what appears as a deceptively simple build, is a clear example of what The Foundry crew do best, classic inspired builds that are perfectly balanced and exquisitely finished. Perfect, unfussy lines and muscular good looks.

With a background in engineering, sculptural metalwork and industrial design Tom and Simon build bikes with character, distinction and engineering credibility. Based up the road from Goodwood, they serve great coffee and sell some good gear too.

As T shirts are my staple, I was well chuffed to discover Foundry had manufactured a T with an illustration of the lovely ’56 on the chest. Made out of natural cotton in a slim fit with a sepia image, this simple, well fitting T is the nearest I’m ever going to get to owning this lovely machine.

The Foundry do a range of Ts that feature their builds.

http://www.foundrymotorcycle.co.uk

INTERPHONE UNIVERSAL SMARTPHONE MOTO HOLDER FOR TUBULAR HANDLEBARS

For those of you who haven’t done ‘the knowledge’, or have a homing pigeon’s sense of direction, this universal waterproof smartphone holder is the business. Designed specifically fo motorcycles with tubular bars, this is secure and protected by a impact resistant case that’s extremely solid when mounted on handlebars. Your smartphone can become a handlebar mounted GPS (or music player) with full touchscreen functionality.

The holder is equipped with a mounting bracket that can be fixed on circular handlebars of various diameters (up to 30mm or 1 1/8″). Since the bracket is articulating, the holder can be tilted and turned in a number of ways, so it is optimally positioned and acessible.
It protects your mobile phone from impact and environmental hazards such as: mist, dirt, dust and light rain. The clear front window made of special crystal film protects the phone and allows the keys on your touch screen to be fully functional. The double zip offers a practical system for threading earphone and power cables through the case and into the phone. It is universally compatible fitting smart phones up to 4.3″ screen size.

So no excuses for getting lost coming home from the pub.

http://www.urbanrider.co.uk

via The Bike Shed

WEC : TOYOTA RACING, HÉROS DU JOUR À FUJI ! / TOYOTA ARE HOME TOWN HEROES AT FUJI

Photo : John Rourke  / AdrenalMedia.com

Toyota Racing a ravi aujourd’hui les milliers de fans japonais venus leur rendre hommage, en réalisant un magnifique doublé de la marque sur le podium des 6 Heures de Fuji, 5e manche du Championnat du Monde d’Endurance FIA WEC 2014. De plus, le constructeur japonais a également enfoncé le clou, puisqu’il  a signé toutes les victoires à Fuji depuis le début du championnat en 2012.

La Toyota TS040 Hybride n°8 d’Anthony Davidson et Sébastien Buemi  a devancé de 25,627 secondes,  la deuxième voiture du team, la n°7 pilotée par Alex Wurz, Stéphane Sarrazin et la star locale Kazuki Nakajima. La n°8 monte pour la troisième fois de la saison sur la plus haute marche du podium (+Silverstone et Spa).

Avec cette nouvelle performance, Davidson et Buemi creuse l’écart également au classement du Championnat du Monde des Pilotes avec une avance de 27 points sur leur plus proches adversaires Marcel Fässler, Benoît Tréluyer et André Lotterer (Audi Sport Team Joest - R18 e-tron quattro n°2).

Toyota prend par ailleurs l’avantage au classement du Championnat du Monde des Constructeurs, avec désormais 8 points d‘avance.

Outre la rapide prise en main de la tête de la course par la Porsche 919 Hybride n°20 pilotée par Mark Webber dans les premiers tours , Toyota a mené la course de bout en bout. Une des clés de ce succès a été la stratégie développée autour de l’utilisation des pneumatiques Michelin. L’écurie japonaise a choisi dès le départ de réaliser des simples relais, pendant que Porsche prenait tout d’abord l’option de les doubler. C’était une initiative audacieuse, mais qui leur a finalement coûté de précieuses minutes à la fin du deuxième relais.

Mark Webber, Brendon Hartley et Timo Bernhard s’offrent leur deuxième podium de la saison (3e à Silverstone en avril dernier), en terminant finalement sur la troisième marche, non sans avoir à se battre contre leur voiture sœur la n°14 dans les derniers tours.  Webber est par ailleurs l’auteur du tour le plus rapide en course, réalisé au 12e tour en 1 :27'759.

Même le drapeau jaune déployé sur l’intégralité de la piste (Full Course Yellow), destiné à enlever des débris sur le circuit, n’allait pas enfreindre la détermination de Toyota aujourd’hui. Ses plus proches rivales, l’Audi R18 e-tron quattro n°2 (Lotterer, Fässler, Tréluyer) et la n°1 de Tom Kristensen, Lucas di Grassi et Loïc Duval terminent respectivement à la sixième et à la cinquième place. Une mauvaise journée pour le constructeur d’Ingolstadt…

La victoire de la catégorie LMP1-L revient à Rebellion Racing, mais la surprise est dans le numéro de la voiture, puisque cette fois-ci, c’est la n°13 d’Andrea Belicchi, Dominik Kraihamer et Fabio Leimer qui prend les lauriers de la première marche. Malgré un problème d’amortisseur survenu sur la voiture, le trio est parvenu à revenir à la charge et à prendre l’avantage, pour signer sa première victoire de la saison 2014.

Chez Lotus, les performances de la CLM P1/01 étaient parfaitement louables, puisqu’elle pointait en deuxième position de la classe jusqu’à ce que Christophe Bouchut soit victime d’un incendie dans la dernière heure. Le Français a été contraint de s’arrêter à l’entrée du pitlane, et a pu s’extirper de la voiture sans blessure grave. Mais malgré l’intervention des équipes de sécurité du circuit et des mécaniciens de Lotus et de Rebellion, le feu a totalement détérioré la voiture.

G-Drive Racing prend la première place du classement LMP2, et ce malgré une crevaison lente survenue sur la Ligier JS P2 dans la dernière heure de la course. Après un superbe duel en piste, c’est dans les tous derniers tours qu’Olivier Pla a effectué une manœuvre d’anthologie pour dépasser l’ORECA Nissan de KCMG, en utilisant une GT moins rapide, pour prendre l’avantage sur Alexandre Imperatori. C’est la 3e victoire du team en 2014 à ajouter à celles de Silverstone et Spa-Francorchamps. Roman Rusinov et Julien Canal ont réalisé de très beaux relais et se réjouissent de pouvoir poursuivre leur chasse au titre à Shanghai.

Après une superbe course et des batailles fabuleuses entre les deux LMP2, Richard Bradley et Matt Howson n’ont pas pu résister à la victoire de G-Drive. Au classement pour le Trophée Endurance FIA remis aux meilleurs pilotes LMP2, l’écart est désormais bien réduit, car Sergey Zlobin encore en tête ne termine aujourd’hui qu’à la 4e place. Les pilotes de G-Drive Racing n’ont désormais plus que 16 points de retard sur le Russe, et il reste trois courses…

Le podium LMP2 est complété par la Morgan OAK Racing de Keiko Ihara, Gustavo Yacaman et Alex Brundle. Un beau résultat pour cette équipe qui avait dû prendre le départ en fond de grille après la disqualification de la voiture pour ne pas avoir respecté le règlement en qualification.

C’était une rude journée pour l’ORECA Nissan n°27 SMP Racing de Sergey Zlobin, Maurizio Mediani et Nicolas Minassian, qui termine 4e après avoir écopé de deux pénalités, une pour changement de moteur, l’autre pour vitesse excessive dans la voie des stands. De plus, alors qu’ils se battaient pour la troisième place, ils ont été victimes d’une touchette avec la Morgan Judd OAK Racing de Yacaman.

La n°37 d’Anton et Kirill Ladygin et Viktor Shaitar a également perdu du temps après avoir été contrainte de repasser dans les stands pour effectuer des réparations suite à une collision avec la Lotus LMP1-L (alors entre les mains de James Rossiter).

Après une superbe manche japonaise qui a rassemblé plus 51 000 spectateurs passionnés, la caravane du Championnat du Monde d’Endurance FIA WEC se tourne désormais vers la Chine, pour la 6e manche qui se déroulera sur le circuit de Shanghai le 2 novembre prochain.

Sam Smith Traduction Mapidu Media

Toyota Racing thrilled their home fans by finishing 1-2 in the 6 Hours of Fuji, the fifth round of the 2014 FIA World Endurance Championship. As a result of today’s success Toyota has completed a hat-trick of FIA WEC victories at the Fuji Speedway since 2012.

The #8 Toyota TS040 Hybrid of Anthony Davidson and Sebastien Buemi led home the sister car, crewed by Alex Wurz, Stephane Sarrazin and local hero Kazuki Nakajima by 25.627s. It was the third victory for the #8 Toyota TS040 Hybrid this season after previous successes at Silverstone and Spa.

The win for Davidson and Buemi means that they have now extended their World Endurance Drivers’ Championship lead to 27 points to their nearest adversaries – the #2 Audi Sport Team Joest trio of Marcel Fassler, Benoit Treluyer and Andre Lotterer. 

Toyota has also now overtaken Audi at the head of the World Endurance Manufacturers’ Championship and leads it by eight points.

Toyota controlled the entire race despite Mark Webber’s #20 Porsche 919 Hybrid leading briefly after some highly entertaining first lap action. Tyre strategy was crucial at Fuji and the Toyota team chose early on to single stint their Michelin tyres, as opposed to Porsche who initially tried to double stint their rubber. It was a bold move but one which ultimately cost them precious time later in the second stint.

Webber, along with team mates Brendon Hartley and Timo Bernhard, rounded out the podium to score their second podium after holding off the #14 Porsche in the final stages. It was the second podium for Webber, Hartley and Bernhard after their third placed finish at Silverstone in April. Webber also set the fastest lap - 1m27.759 - on lap 12. Webber had earlier been keeping in touch with Buemi but a slow puncture meant an early stop on lap 8, putting the Porsche 919 Hybrid out of sequence to the rest of the field.

Even a brief full course caution period for debris on the track could not halt Toyota’s warrior like march to victory today. Their current nearest title rivals – the #2 Audi trio of Andre Lotterer, Marcel Fassler and Benoit Treluyer - could only finish sixth at Fuji today. The #1 Audi R18 e-tron quattro of Tom Kristensen, Lucas Di Grassi and Loic Duval finished just ahead of the sister Audi in fifth place in what was a tough day for the Ingolstadt-based manufacturer.

Rebellion Racing took another win in the LMP1-L class but this time it was the #13 Rebellion R-One-Toyota of Andrea Belicchi, Dominik Kraihamer and Fabio Leimer who took maximum points.

Securing their first win of the year, Belicchi, Kraihamer and Leimer took the chequered flag despite a damper issue that cost the car time.

The Lotus entered CLM P1/01 was running well in second place until the final hour when a major fire stopped Christophe Bouchut at the entry to the pit lane. The Frenchman was able to extricate himself from the blaze but the car was badly damaged in the incident, despite the quick response of the pit lane marshals and both the Lotus and nearby Rebellion Racing mechanics. Bouchut escaped with no significant injuries from the incident.

Despite a last hour slow puncture the G-Drive Racing Ligier-Nissan took maximum points in the LMP2 class. Olivier Pla overtook the KCMG Oreca-Nissan in the final stages of the race after a superb race long duel. In what was perhaps the overtaking move of the season, Pla used a slower GT car to make an audacious pass on Alexander Imperatori’s Oreca-Nissan. It was the third race victory of the season for G-Drive after previous wins at Silverstone and Spa. Roman Rusinov and Julien Canal had impressive stints at the wheel and were both delighted to renew their title charge ahead of Shanghai.

Earlier in the race Imperatori had held the charging Pla impressively at bay and despite solid stints by his British team mates – Richard Bradley and Matt Howson - it was eventually not enough to stop the G-Drive Racing entry. However, with the FIA Endurance Trophy for LMP2 Drivers title leader, Sergey Zlobin, finishing in fourth position, both the G-Drive and KCMG crews reduced the points deficit at Fuji today. As it stands the G-Drive drivers are now just 16pts behind the Russian with three races remaining.

Completing the LMP2 podium was the OAK Racing Morgan-Judd of Keiko Ihara, Gustavo Yacaman and Alex Brundle. It was an especially impressive result after they were forced to start from the rear of the grid after being penalised for a technical infringement in qualifying. It was a result that ensured both of the Japanese entered racers at Fuji were able to celebrate on the podium at their home track today.

SMP Racing had a tough day with the #27 Oreca-Nissan of Sergey Zlobin, Maurizio Mediani and Nicolas Minassian finishing a delayed fourth after two separate penalties, one for going over their allocation of engine units used and the other for speeding in the pit lane. An incident which resulted in contact with Yacaman’s OAK Morgan-Judd, while fighting for third place, further delayed them. 

The #37 entry of Anton Ladygin, Kiril Ladygin and Viktor Shaitar also lost time due to necessary repairs after a collision with the LMP1-L Lotus, driven by James Rossiter at the time.

After a fantastic weekend of racing, where 51,000 race fans enjoyed multiple battles throughout the classes, the FIA World Endurance Championship now moves on to Shanghai with more close and exciting racing set for Sunday 2nd November. 

CLICK HERE for the results from Round 5 of the FIA World Endurance Championship - 6 Hours of Fuji

CLICK HERE for the provisional classifications after Round 5