Motourage

FTR Moto is looking for more Moto2 success in this Sunday’s seventh round of the MotoGP World Championship at the Circuit de Catalunya, near Barcelona, Spain with FIMMCO Speed Up Team rider Andrea Iannone looking to become the first rider to win three races in the inaugural year of the 600cc four-stroke class.

Iannone has taken the FTR M210 to wins in Italy and last Saturday in Holland and sits fourth in the World Championship, 33 points behind with 11 races to go. Aeroport de Castello-Ajo Team M210 rider Alex Debon will race in his home GP despite suffering a shoulder injury at Assen last week.

Iannone’s FIMMCO Speed Up team-mate Gabor Talmacsi will be looking to improve on his 10th place in the World Championship while Czech Republic rider Karel Abraham continues to adapt to the M210 after his career-best ninth place finish at Assen on his Cardion AB Motoracing FTR machine.

FTR Moto's M210 Moto2 machine has been successful all over Europe in 2010

In addition to the Catalunya Grand Prix, FTR Moto has a presence at other major events this weekend – all in addition to retaining its focus on the CEV Spanish Championship and the Kev Coghlan - Monlau Competicion program and today’s test session at the new Motorland Aragon circuit.

The FTR M210 will make its debut at a British Superbike Championship round this weekend when Scottish rider Coghlan will perform demonstration laps on his Silverstone Grand Prix wild card machine at the Knockhill sixth round on Saturday and Sunday.

Also this weekend, the FTR Moto2 race machine will make an appearance at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in the Dunlop Live Arena. The event, held at Goodwood Estate in Sussex, Eng, runs today through Sunday and features a historic-vehicle hill climb, expo and celebration of motorsports.

FTR’s Steve Bones:
“From heading into the first round of the World Championship in Qatar less than three months ago with three riders we’ve now got four riders on the M210 and two more teams in discussions about running the FTR machine.
We’ve become the first Moto2 constructor to contest the Isle of Man TT races and this weekend’s activities probably typify just how far the FTR Moto name has come in such a short space of time. Obviously we’d like further success at World Championship level but success in the Spanish Championship also remains crucial to our machine and rider development program.
We hope that the BSB fans enjoy the sight and sound of the FTR at Knockhill this weekend and I’m sure the first ever Moto2 machine to be present at the Goodwood Festival of Speed will attract a lot of attention. We also need to say thanks to our various partners for their support in all of these activities.”

Álvaro Bautista and the Rizla Suzuki team are heading to Spain for his home MotoGP event to be held this weekend at Montmelo near Barcelona.

Bautista comes from Talavera de la Reina near Madrid and although there will be four Grands Prix held in Spain this year; the 25-year-old is focusing on the next race as his local event. He is sure to have plenty of home support at a circuit where he has tasted success with two victories in the last four years in the 125cc and 250cc classes.

Loris Capirossi has an equally impressive record at the Spanish circuit. He finished fifth there last season in Rizla Suzuki colors and has only once completed a race lower than sixth place. Capirossi is in a determined mood to put recent events behind him and get the Suzuki GSV-R back to a competitive package as soon as possible.

The 4,727m Circuit de Catalunya is situated at Montmelo near Granollers, about an hour’s drive from the city centre of Barcelona. It is a modern circuit and has all the ingredients you could want for a fantastic Grand Prix event. A kilometer-long straight where speeds in excess of 300kp/h will be achieved, fast right-handers, elevation changes and a huge fan-base of highly excited and colorful Spanish fans. The Catalan Grand Prix is certainly a highlight on the MotoGP calendar and one not to be missed.

Rizla Suzuki will take to the track for one practice session on Friday afternoon, followed by another on Saturday morning. An hour of qualifying on Saturday afternoon will decide grid positions for Bautista, Capirossi and the rest of the field for Sunday’s 25-lap race.

Álvaro Bautista:
“I have had a couple of days rest and my arm feels a lot better than it did in Assen and I am sure it will be much stronger this weekend. Barcelona is a very good track for me to go to next, because it is very long and very fast so it won’t be as physically demanding as Assen. It is a very special place for all the Spanish riders because you can feel every fan pushing you and wanting you to go fast, so it is a very good feeling to be there. I won in 2006 in 125 and 2009 in the 250, so I have very good memories of the circuit and with it being my home Grand Prix I will be trying to get a good result for myself and the whole team – we really need one now so this will be a good place to start.”

Loris Capirossi:
“We need to get back on track quickly to try and find a solution to what has been holding us back in the recent races. Barcelona is a good circuit for me and I know can go well there and that the GSV-R can perform there. The whole crew has been working hard at every race, but we just can’t find the answers we need at the moment and with a back-to-back race like this and so little testing in the season now, it doesn’t give you much time to make many major changes to work out what the problem is. These results are not good enough for anyone, but we are still focused on what we have to do and everybody in the team is still motivated that we will be able to turn things around very quickly.”