Motourage

FTR Moto was reunited with Kev Coghlan and the Joe Darcey Racing Team to take seventh place in Sunday’s sixth round of the CEV Buckler Spanish Moto2 Championship at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit in Valencia. Coghlan, riding the FOGI Racing M211 machine campaigned by Kenny Noyes in this year’s Moto2 World Championship, qualified fifth before finishing seventh in the damp and tricky conditions.

Coghlan led the race into the first corner and was involved in a battle throughout the 19-lap affair before finishing just 0.023” behind former 125cc Grand Prix rider Tomoyoshi Koyama in a race that set a new record of 38 riders in a Spanish Moto2 race.

“It was a tough race in those conditions and easy to make little mistakes,” said Coghlan. “But, overall, it was great to be working with the FTR guys and with the Joe Darcey Team again, and I’d like to thank Angus Borland of FOGI Racing and everyone for the opportunity.”

“Kev rode intelligently in the conditions and it was his first time on the Michelins with the M211 in a race so there was plenty for him to think about,” said FTR’s Steve Bones. “We’ve had a pretty satisfactory weekend at Valencia – after also qualifying in the top five – Kev set his fastest lap on the penultimate lap and we definitely have something to build on at Jerez this coming weekend.”

Coghlan will now contest the seventh and final round of the CEV Buckler Spanish Moto2 Championship at Jerez this coming Sunday, November 20.

FTR Moto’s challenger for the new Moto3 World Championship in 2012 will make its track debut later this month as interest in the new machine continues to grow.

The M311 has been produced specifically for the HRC-developed, single-cylinder, four-stroke motor which will be supplied to the World Championship teams and serviced by Geo Technology of Switzerland.

Armed with the knowledge from three years of Moto2 chassis development, FTR Moto’s Steve Bones believes the Moto3 machine will be a front-runner in what is certain to be a highly competitive series.

“We have learnt a lot in the last two years of the Moto2 World Championship and in the previous year’s Spanish Championship races,” he said. “The M311 prototype features a conventional design to assist with the introduction of the machine into the inaugural year of the World Championship and is obviously produced in this manner with development firmly in mind. We’ve also learnt a lot in the last 12 months with the CFD program and that has helped us react and develop machinery much faster than previous methods of analysis.”

Orders for the machine have already been taken and Bones expects – as with its race-winning Moto2 machinery – that the FTR Moto3 machine will prove popular.

Bones added: “We estimate that, from the interest shown in the Moto3 project that we would expect to have six or eight FTR riders in the 2012 Championship.”

Alessandro Andreozzi

19-year-old Alessandro Andreozzi continued his impressive form with two more wins in rounds three and four of the Italian CIV Moto2 Championship on his FTR M211 at the Misano Circuit on the Adriatic coast.

Andreozzi won Saturday’s race by four seconds from Davide Fanelli before a dominant win in Sunday’s second race with a winning margin of nine seconds over Danilo Marrancone.

The wins also rocketed Andreozzi to the top of the championship table, opening up a lead of nine points over Marrancone with four of the eight rounds remaining.

Federico D’Annunzio – on the second of the FTR machines – followed up his eighth-place finish on Saturday at Misano with fourth place on the IODA Team machine, narrowly missing out on a second podium finish of the year after being third in the Misano opening round in early April.

FTR’s Steve Bones:
“Since his non-finish in the opening round of the year at Misano Alessandro Andreozzi has never looked back, he’s now won the last three rounds is fast becoming a favorite for the 2011 inaugural Moto2 title in Italy.

“We’re really pleased with the way the FTR Moto2 machines are working in the national championships, especially in Italy, and the performance of Andreozzi will hopefully continue and take FTR to a first championship title.”

Round five of the Italian Championship is at Mugello on July 23.

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FTR Moto is looking to improve on the opening two rounds of the Moto2 World Championship at this weekend’s bwin Grande Prémio de Portugal at the Estoril Circuit.

Simone Corsi put an FTR chassis on the podium at Jerez

FTR enjoyed a first podium finish of 2011 with the IODA Racing Project’s Simone Corsi taking third place at Jerez in Spain three weeks ago, and seven of the 10 FTR riders have already scored World Championship points after just two of the 17 rounds.

Corsi’s teammate Mattia Pasini took his first points of 2011 with 13th place at Jerez and will be aiming higher at Estoril while World Championship debutant Kev Coghlan has an excellent eighth-place finish in Jerez to build on aboard his Team Aeroport de Castello machine.

Yonny Hernandez, on the Blusens-STX FTR machine, has already shown consistency in 2011 with two point-scoring finishes and the Colombian will be chasing a first top 10 finish on his M211 in Portugal. His teammate, Esteve Rabat, has also scored points in both the Qatar and Spanish races and will, like Hernandez, be chasing a first top 10 finish on Sunday.

Thai rider Ratthapark Wilairot collected his first points of the year at Jerez with 12th place while his fellow Stop and Go Team rider Santiago Hernandez continues the search for his first points of the year, as does Kenny Noyes on the FOGI/GP Tech Team M211.

“The opening two rounds have been manic and the rain in Jerez threw in added drama so the Championship is probably still just settling down and in the next few rounds a pattern should emerge as to who can challenge for the 2011 title,” said FTR’s Steve Bones. “We’re certainly enjoying the early success and getting the World Championship points on the board and obviously hope that continues in Portugal on Sunday. Since Jerez and with the data collected from the first two rounds, we’re confident we have further developed and improved the M211 and are thankful to the teams for their feedback.”

FTR Moto heads into Sunday’s second round of the Moto2 World Championship in Spain looking to capitalize on the Jerez circuit experience of much its 12-strong rider line-up.

Non-Spanish riders Kev Coghlan (Team Aeroport de Castello), Kenny Noyes (FOGI/GP Tech Team), Yonny Hernandez (Blusens-STX) and brother Santiago Hernandez (Stop and Go Team) are all graduates of the CEV Buckler Spanish Championship classes.

Esteve Rabat

Additionally, Spanish riders Esteve Rabat (Blusens-STX) and Pol Espargaro (HP Tuenti Speed Up Team) will both be keen to impress on their FTR M211 debuts in their home Grand Prix.

The IODA Racing Project’s Simone Corsi arrives in Spain after a sixth place finish in the opening round in Qatar two weeks ago, improving from 11th on the grid to take 10 World Championship points on his M211.

His luckless team-mate Mattia Pasini was one of eight riders to crash out of the opening round and the determined Italian will be keen to impress at Jerez – the circuit where, in 2006, he recorded the first of 11 pole positions in the 125cc World Championship. Pasini also climbed the podium at Jerez in 2008 after taking a runner-up finish in the 250cc race.

“We got the 2011 World Championship under way with four of our riders in the points but, as is always the case with racing and development, you always feel you can do better and hopefully that will be the case in Jerez this weekend,” said FTR’s Steve Bones.

He continued: “We began our Moto2 story as a constructor in Spain at the end of 2009 and with four Grands Prix there last year plus our Spanish Championship commitments it really does feel like home. Last year we felt like we had a possible race win on the cards at Jerez after Alex Debon showed tremendous pace in the practice sessions – all until a first lap crash.

“This year we are looking to the strong Spanish presence and Spanish Championship experience that we have on the M211s. We’re also keen to continue our technical development after spending time testing at Jerez in the winter months so this weekend also offers us a comparison test for development of the new machine.”

IODA Project's Simone Corsi

FTR Moto will be represented by five teams running a total of 10 riders in the 2011 Moto2 World Championship, which gets under way in Qatar on Sunday, March 20.

Buckingham, England-based FTR has retained its relationship with two of the three teams from 2010 – Alex Debon’s Motor Sport 69 project and the Speed Up Team while the third 2010 partner, Karel Abraham’s Cardion Team, moves to the MotoGP class after Abraham won the season finale Moto2 race at Valencia in November.

The Motor Sport 69 Team is being managed by the now-retired Debon and features one rider, Scotsman Kev Coghlan. Speed Up has replaced its two 2010 riders with Spaniard Pol Espargaro and French youngster Valentin Debise.

The established BQR squad moves to FTR machinery with a three-rider lineup of Esteve Rabat, Yonny Hernandez and Kenny Noyes. Noyes runs under the Avintia STX banner in a team established by financial and technical partners GP Tech and FOGI Racing, the latter continuing its relationship with FTR after supporting Spanish Championship and GP wild card entries in 2010.

Giampiero Sacchi’s Italian IODA Project team features Simone Corsi and Mattia Pasini on FTR M211s while the Spanish SAG squad fields Colombian Santiago Hernandez and Ratthapark Wilairot.

“From our four riders of 2010 things have really moved on this winter and the level of interest in FTR Moto is exactly what we hoped for,” said FTR’s Steve Bones. “The team partners we have for 2011 offer a variety of everything imaginable in racing, from experience to youth and from very well established teams to relatively new ones.

“In theory the 2011 Championship should offer more stability in terms of consistency from riders but from the winter testing it really is difficult to see any pattern emerging. We know from 2010 that the class can be unpredictable and that may well be the case once more.

“At the beginning of 2010 Alex Debon took his one and only podium finish in the first round while Speed up’s Andrea Iannone struggled to 19th place in Qatar then won three races. We still have interest from other teams for 2011 but, right now, everyone at FTR is really geared up for an exciting 2011 campaign.”

FTR Moto is teaming up with the new Ioda Racing Project Team for the 2011 Moto2 campaign with Simone Corsi and Mattia Pasini preparing to challenge for the Moto2 World Championship on their FTR M211s. The all-Italian team is the brainchild of former Aprilia, Derbi, Gilera and Piaggio Group manager Giampiero Sacchi and in Pasini and Corsi has two riders capable of success.

Pasini has 10 grand prix wins in the 125cc and 250cc classes and a total of 26 podiums while Corsi has taken five 125cc wins and 14 podium finishes in 125 and Moto2 and took fifth place in the inaugural Moto2 World Championship last year – taking best race finishes of third place at Le Mans in France and at the Italian Grand Prix at Mugello.

Sacchi himself has masterminded numerous world championship victories and nurtured young riders such as Loris Capirossi, Max Biaggi, Valentino Rossi and Jorge Lorenzo.

“The experience of Giampiero Sacchi is something we are keen to tap into and working alongside him in 2011 is something to look forward to,” said FTR’s Steve Bones. “With Mattia Pasini and Simone Corsi I’d say the new Ioda Racing Project Team has a strong a rider line-up as any team in the 2011 Championship. Corsi was especially consistent in the 2010 championship; he took seven finishes inside the top five and only failed to score points in two of the 17 races. At 23 years of age he’s also experienced enough now to challenge for the title.

“In Pasini, the team has an exceptional talent. He has had his ups and downs in the past but he rode most of 2010 with a shoulder injury and had surgery in December to sort that out so hopefully there’ll be a fully fit and determined Mattia Pasini in Qatar for the first race in mid March.”

Team Joe Darcey Monlau Competicion’s Kev Coghlan took fifth place in Sunday’s sixth and penultimate round of the CEV Buckler Spanish Moto2 Championship at the Valencia circuit to retain second place in the series.

Coghlan qualified in sixth  on the FTR M210 and held that position for most of the 19-lap thriller before setting his fastest lap on lap 17 to move ahead of Spaniard Xavier Fores and secure a fifth place finish, ending the race just 3.1s behind winner Carmelo Morales.

Coghlan’s title rival Morales grabbed the lead and the victory from Axel Pons on the last lap to extend his Championship lead to 21 points over Coghlan heading into next Sunday’s seventh and final round at Jerez.

“It was a tough weekend for us,” admitted Coghlan. “But to be in the top five in today’s race and stay second in the Championship gives us plenty to fight for in next week’s final race.”

Italian Federico D’Annunzio took 11th place on the last lap on his FTR while Russian Alexey Ivanov – having qualified in 25th place – was up to 18th before being forced to retire on the 11th lap.

“Coming into the weekend we were very much focused on challenging for the win,” said FTR’s Steve Bones. “In the end Kev’s finished just three seconds away from winning so he was on the pace but in the end was forced to settle for fifth.

“He also went faster in the race than he did in qualifying so the signs from Kev and the M210 continue to be positive. He won the Jerez race earlier in the year on the M210 so we’ll be hoping for a repeat performance next Sunday.”

FTR Moto is looking to close the inaugural Moto2 World Championship in successful fashion with victory in this weekend’s 17th and final round at Valencia in Spain.

Leading FTR M210 rider Andrea Iannone, in the FIMMCO Speed Up Team colors, could clinch second place in the Championship if he can overcome a six-point deficit to Julian Simon in Sunday’s 27-lap race at the 2.49-mile circuit.

FIMMCO Speedup Moto2 rider Andrea Iannone

Iannone has three race wins this year – at Mugello, Assen and Aragon – and has taken five pole positions, two more than any other rider. The 21-year-old Italian has also recorded the fastest lap of six of the 16 races so far.

“Andrea has been a stand-out rider in 2010 and has achieved far more than anyone anticipated,” admitted FTR’s Steve Bones. “When he rode a four-stroke for the first time – in a Spanish Championship race at Valencia at the end of last year – he really looked like he would take a long time to adapt. Thankfully he quickly got used to the FTR M210 and has been devastating at times.”

Iannone’s teammate Gabor Talmacsi will be looking to protect his sixth place in the Championship at Valencia after the Hungarian scooped a first pole position in Portugal last week and finished the race in eighth place.

Karel Abraham, riding the Cardion AB Motoracing Team M210 for the final time before moving to the MotoGP class, can climb as many as five place in the Championship if results were to go his way on Sunday at Valencia – a circuit where he took a 250cc career-best sixth place finish last year.

Luckless Alex Debon and his Aeroport de Castello-Ajo Team will miss this weekend’s final round after Debon suffered a fractured right collarbone during practice at Estoril last week.

“The final round promises to throw up some spectacular action with a lot of riders wanting to end the Championship on a high, some are still to confirm a place for 2011 so therefore keen to impress and most are just looking for some final round glory,” added Bones.

“Since Estoril we’ve been moving forward with our own 2011 plans and had some really interesting track time with potential new riders at Aragon on Monday. In all we’re pretty confident about next year’s program with the much-improved M211.”

FTR Moto took two more top-10 finishes in an action-packed 16th round of the Moto2 World Championship at the Estoril Circuit in Portugal on Sunday.

Gabor Talmacsi took his first pole of the season in Portugal

Gabor Talmacsi, on the FIMMCO Speed Up Team machine, finished in eighth place after taking his first pole position of the year and the sixth for FTR Moto – after two days of wet practice on Friday and Saturday led to a dry race.

Karel Abraham worked his way through from 22nd place on the grid and the Cardion AB Motoracing Team M210 rider finished in 10th place after making a trademark burst in the second half of the 26-lap race and finishing just four seconds behind the race winner.

Hard-charging Andrea Iannone looked set for a fourth win of the year as he battled through from 34th place on row nine of the grid to hold fourth place with six laps to go – after a succession of fastest laps for the Italian. But the luckless Iannone crashed out on the FIMMCO Speed Up Team machine at the start of lap 20 to end his challenge. He remounted to finish the race in 21st place. Iannone remains third in the World Championship with Talmacsi moving up to sixth. Abraham sits in 14th with Debon 15th.

Aeroport de Castello-Ajo Team M210 rider Alex Debon was a non starter at Estoril after the Spanish rider crashed in Saturday’s free practice and fractured his right collarbone.

“The lack of dry practice made for an interesting race and it looked like Andrea Iannone was going to pull off a fantastic victory at one point but it wasn’t to be,” said FTR’s Steve Bones. “Seeing Gabor Talmacsi get pole position then lead the race was superb and the battle for third on the last couple of laps could have easily gone a different way and Talmacsi and Karel Abraham could have been in contention for podium finishes.

“The weekend was obviously a disappointing one for Alex Debon and we wish him well in his recovery. We’re all looking forward to Valencia next weekend now and hopefully a victorious finish to the 2010 Championship.”