[954Stealth]

Mugello, Italy will play host to stop number six of this year's MotoGP season in just over3 day's time!


Rossi ready to battle with Marquez at 300th Grand Prix
Monday, 26, May 2014
As MotoGP™ heads to Mugello for what is always one of the most anticipated rounds on the calendar, Valentino Rossi is all set for his 300th Grand Prix appearance - having achieved his 150th premier class podium last time out at Le Mans.



Introduction:
Located 30km north-east of Florence in the beautiful countryside of Tuscany, Mugello is a modern circuit with excellent facilities. Bought by Ferrari back in 1988, the 5.245km track has been renovated to a high standard and has a growing reputation as one of the world’s most up-to-date, scenic and safest race circuits.

A blend of slow and fast turns with sweeping curves, long straights and off-camber corners make Mugello one of the most challenging circuits for the riders and engineers. Having hosted its first MotoGP event back in 1976 the venue became a permanent fixture in 1991 after extensive refurbishment. Set within a beautiful tree lined Tuscan valley, Mugello also offers ample viewing areas for a particularly boisterous and partisan Italian crowd.


Points so far:

1. Marc MARQUEZ- 125
2. Dani PEDROSA - 83
3. Valentino ROSSI - 81
4. Andrea DOVIZIOSO - 53
5. Jorge LORENZO - 45
6. Stefan BRADL - 39
7. Pol ESPARGARO - 38
8. Aleix ESPARGARO - 37
9. Bradley SMITH - 34
10. Alvaro BAUTISTA - 26





Here is Pramac / Andrea's Mugello preview:
https://www.youtube.com/watchv=ZCYu9...0O2n17S14UA34Q

[954Stealth]

From Motogp.com:

At the beginning of May 2014 Dorna, in agreement with the FIM, opened a tender for tyre manufacturers interested in becoming Official Tyre Supplier to MotoGP™ from the 2016 season.

Interested tyre manufacturers were able to request the technical specifications from Dorna’s Managing Director Javier Alonso, with three potential tyre suppliers initially expressing an interest – before Michelin alone made a formal tender before the 22nd May deadline.

The next step in the process will be the drawing out of a commercial agreement between Dorna and Michelin as Official Tyre Supplier, Michelin having already clearly proven its technical abilities to respond to the needs of a demanding Grand Prix racing schedule.


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[954Stealth]

[954Stealth]

Read the full article at www.racer.com:


Marc Marquez thinks there is a strong chance that the resurgent Valentino Rossi can end his MotoGP winning streak at Mugello next weekend.
Marquez is undefeated so far in the 2014 season, but suspects Rossi will be hard to beat on home ground in this weekend's Italian Grand Prix. Rossi won the Mugello race every year from 2002-08, and has begun this season with three podiums from five races.
Responding to 35-year-old Rossi joking that he wished he had been up against Marquez "when I was 22", the Spaniard said: "OK, in these five races I've had the top level but at Mugello Valentino will be 22 years old again.
"Valentino will be so strong there because it's his home circuit. He will be so hard to beat and he will push a lot."
Rossi admitted that the desire to beat Marquez would be even higher in Italy, and he is optimistic about his Yamaha's pace there after Jorge Lorenzo's wins at Mugello over the last three seasons.

[954Stealth]

Whoops! What happened here?

[954Stealth]

More setup shots:

[Chihuahua]

I spy a picture of good ol' 58 in that sequence. Still miss him, still can't believe what happened.

Race your life!

[thetastelingers]

Your threads are about as good as going to MotoGP.com. LOL

Thanks for the threads.

[954Stealth]

Originally Posted by thetastelingers

Your threads are about as good as going to MotoGP.com. LOL

Thanks for the threads.

Thanks! I have fun making them. I'm glad their being read

Here's a MM93 quote:
“Mugello is a tricky circuit - one of the hardest on the calendar - and we struggled a lot last year. I had many crashes over the weekend and then crashed out of the race also. Now I have an extra year's experience and I hope it will go more smoothly for us!

“I know that Valentino will be very strong at his 'home' race, Jorge has won there for the past three years and Dani is also very fast there, so we will need to stay focused and if we cannot challenge for the win then we must take important points for the Championship.”

[954Stealth]

[954Stealth]

This guy, IodaRacing's Danilo Petrucci will be back for this race. His wrist has healed sufficiently enough now




Petrucci has this to look forward to!:
Mugello is undoubtedly among the most secure, diverse and spectacular circuits in the world scene. A track which since 1974 has not changed because its track is absolutely fantastic. The explosive mixture between a straight-long 1141 meters, one of the longest of the entire group of circuits, breathtaking ups and downs that require great driving skills, unplug violent, fast corners for a total drop of over 41 meters

[954Stealth]

Here's some Mugello history for y'all:

- The Mugello GP was first held in 1976 and has long since become a classic in the calendar . Valentino Rossi is the Mugello record holder - with nine GP wins .
- The Autodromo di Mugello has been host to MotoGP for a total of 29 times since 1991 without interruption (ie, for the 24th time ) as the scene of the Motorcycle GP of Italy.
- Mugello has experienced some memorable races. In 1976 Barry Sheene and Phil Read fought in the 500cc GP with particular severity. Sheene won the 500cc World Championship race 0.1 seconds ahead of Read, the race was over 29 laps and 62 minutes. ( On Sunday 23 laps are completed . ) At that time Suzuki dominated. ; the best Yamaha could muster was Borge Nielsen at No. 10 .
- The history of racing in Mugello began before WWI
- At the time the "track" was laid out on public roads and ran from Scarperia to Firenzuola through San Piero and back to Scarperia which MASSIVE uphills and downhills
-It was the racing since the 1920s, the beautiful Tuscan scenery, investment from Ferrari that helped initiate the building of the track in the 1970s
- Ferrari owns the track now and uses it though the year for testing especially due to the 50meter altitude changes around the circuit.
- The track layout of Mugello has remained unchanged since 1976 after a Ferrari redesign in 1974 basically . The length of the route with 5.245 km remained the same.
- Yamaha was in the MotoGP four-stroke era ( they started in 2002 ) so far the most successful manufacturer in Mugello : Yamaha has won eight wins , five from 2004 to 2008 , then Lorenzo 2011-2013 Honda has so far won three Mugello victories . . recent by Dani Pedrosa Ducati 2010 managed a single victory - 2009 with Casey Stoner .
- Valentino Rossi is across all three classes the most successful driver at the Mugello GP. He has even won a victory with the 125 and the 250, plus seven in series with the MotoGP bike, the last in 2008.

The question of everyone's mind is..will Rossi do it again?? Has he come back enough, has his resurgence been sufficient to end The Streak?

[954Stealth]

I wish these were mine!

[thetastelingers]

I couldn't go even if I had tickets. Two kids and not a lot of time off. Boo!

[954Stealth]

Originally Posted by thetastelingers

I couldn't go even if I had tickets. Two kids and not a lot of time off. Boo!

Ah man! You should get the kids interested in 2 wheeled racing so they'll want to go with you

[954Stealth]

Valentino Rossi #46:
“I am very happy to go to Mugello. This is a beautiful track and I like it so much. This is one of my favorite weekend’s of the season! For this reason I will try to give my best. There are always 25 points as the other races, but Mugello is a matter of honor. Jorge has won the last three years on the Yamaha, doing fantastic races, and this means that the M1 is very competitive on this track. It will be my three hundredth GP this weekend and for that I am not very happy because it means that I’m old but I’m happy because I am in good shape and I can still be very fast! See you at Mugello!”

Jorge Lorenzo #99:
“Well, first of all I would like to forget what happened at Le Mans. There I couldn’t feel good on the bike and therefore we need to think about the future. I will never give up and continue working really hard to get ready when our moment comes. Now we are going to visit some special tracks for me and I think we can change some things to stay in front. We need to try to fight for our first victory of the season. That would be great for all of us, the team and I. Mugello is a suitable scenario for me where I’ve made some good memories in the past few years. It’s a special track and the layout is fantastic for my style of riding. Hopefully we can find our way in Tuscany!”

Nicky Hayden #69:
“Mugello is one of my favorite circuits, I love riding there and the races are always different – the atmosphere is incredible. The track itself is awesome, so are the fans, so overall it’s one of the best races of the season. Mugello is a technical track, it’s not easy at all, with a lot of blind corners and some bumps. I always have fun riding it though and I hope that continues this season. We will try to get the best out of our bike and tackle the circuit as best we can. I am looking forward to getting started and seeing how competitive we can be at Mugello. Hopefully we can have a good weekend and put the bad luck from the last race behind us. This is an incredible circuit so hopefully we can do a good job there for the team and the sponsors.”

Hiroshi Aoyama #7:
“Mugello is one of the most challenging circuits on the calendar. It has some very technical corners and a long straight. But every time I ride the bike I feel more comfortable and I am highly motivated for this next race in Italy. I guess the long straight will not be good for us but on the other hand we have a great handling bike for the corners. Mugello is difficult but in general I love it. We will keep working in the same direction as the last few races to try and get the bike turning more. We are doing a great job here and the results are coming, but we would like to take that next step and start finishing races in higher positions

[954Stealth]

Here is Marquez's Honda last year at Mugello after crashing at 210mph:

[thetastelingers]

Originally Posted by 954Stealth

Ah man! You should get the kids interested in 2 wheeled racing so they'll want to go with you

That is all included in my master plan. muahahaha!

[thetastelingers]

Originally Posted by 954Stealth

Valentino Rossi #46:
“I am very happy to go to Mugello. This is a beautiful track and I like it so much. This is one of my favorite weekend’s of the season! For this reason I will try to give my best. There are always 25 points as the other races, but Mugello is a matter of honor. Jorge has won the last three years on the Yamaha, doing fantastic races, and this means that the M1 is very competitive on this track. It will be my three hundredth GP this weekend and for that I am not very happy because it means that I’m old but I’m happy because I am in good shape and I can still be very fast! See you at Mugello!”

Jorge Lorenzo #99:
“Well, first of all I would like to forget what happened at Le Mans. There I couldn’t feel good on the bike and therefore we need to think about the future. I will never give up and continue working really hard to get ready when our moment comes. Now we are going to visit some special tracks for me and I think we can change some things to stay in front. We need to try to fight for our first victory of the season. That would be great for all of us, the team and I. Mugello is a suitable scenario for me where I’ve made some good memories in the past few years. It’s a special track and the layout is fantastic for my style of riding. Hopefully we can find our way in Tuscany!”

Nicky Hayden #69:
“Mugello is one of my favorite circuits, I love riding there and the races are always different – the atmosphere is incredible. The track itself is awesome, so are the fans, so overall it’s one of the best races of the season. Mugello is a technical track, it’s not easy at all, with a lot of blind corners and some bumps. I always have fun riding it though and I hope that continues this season. We will try to get the best out of our bike and tackle the circuit as best we can. I am looking forward to getting started and seeing how competitive we can be at Mugello. Hopefully we can have a good weekend and put the bad luck from the last race behind us. This is an incredible circuit so hopefully we can do a good job there for the team and the sponsors.”

Hiroshi Aoyama #7:
“Mugello is one of the most challenging circuits on the calendar. It has some very technical corners and a long straight. But every time I ride the bike I feel more comfortable and I am highly motivated for this next race in Italy. I guess the long straight will not be good for us but on the other hand we have a great handling bike for the corners. Mugello is difficult but in general I love it. We will keep working in the same direction as the last few races to try and get the bike turning more. We are doing a great job here and the results are coming, but we would like to take that next step and start finishing races in higher positions

It will be my three hundredth GP this weekend and for that I am not very happy because it means that I’m old but I’m happy because I am in good shape and I can still be very fast! See you at Mugello!

[954Stealth]

Originally Posted by thetastelingers

It will be my three hundredth GP this weekend and for that I am not very happy because it means that I’m old but I’m happy because I am in good shape and I can still be very fast! See you at Mugello!

Lol. You know, he has been talking a lot about his career, getting older, Marc's young age. Up until a few days ago when I read about his desire for another 2-year contract extension, I thought he was building up to a retirement announcement.

[954Stealth]

motogp.com racing numbers:
150 – Valentino Rossi’s second place finish at the French Grand Prix marked the 150th time he had stood on the podium in the premier class. The next most successful rider, in terms of podium finishes in the premier class, is Mick Doohan with 95 to his name

18 – Valentino Rossi has finished inside the top eight at the last 18 MotoGP races, since Mugello last year when he crashed on the first lap with Alvaro Bautista

16 years – On the day of qualifying at Mugello it will be exactly 16 years to the day since Alex Criville won the 1998 500 French GP, to become the first Spanish rider to lead the premier class World Championship

7.088s – At the French GP, Jorge Lorenzo finished in sixth place in the MotoGP race, just 7.088s behind race winner Marc Marquez. This is the smallest time margin covering the top six finishers in a full-length MotoGP race since the 2002 German GP, when winner Valentino Rossi finished just 2.780s in front of sixth place rider Norick Abe

6 years – On race day at Mugello, it will be exactly six years since the 2008 Italian GP took place, which was the last time that Italian riders have won all three races at a GP event: 125cc – Simone Corsi, 250cc – Marco Simoncelli and MotoGP – Valentino Rossi.

5 years – On the day of qualifying at the Italian GP, it will be exactly five years since Casey Stoner won in Italy in 2009, to give Ducati their first ever MotoGP win at the Mugello circuit

4 – There are just four riders who have scored points in all of the first five Moto2™ races of 2014: Tito Rabat, Mika Kallio, Sandro Cortese and Anthony West

3 – At the French GP Jack Miller took his third GP win in the Moto3™ class, which makes him the second most successful Australian rider of all-time in the Moto3/125 class of Grand Prix racing in terms of GP wins. The only Australian rider who has stood on the top step of the podium more often than Miller in the lightweight class of GP racing is Tom Phillis, who took four 125cc GP wins - all of which came in 1961, when he won the world title

2.173s – In the Moto3 race at Le Mans, tenth place finisher Jakub Kornfeil crossed the finish line just 2.173s after race winner Jack Miller. This is the closest top ten in the Moto3/125cc class of Grand Prix racing since the 125 GP at Valencia in 2001, when tenth-placed rider Joan Olive was just 2.078s behind race winner Manuel Poggiali

0.64s – The total accumulated time separating the race winners from second place finishers in the five Moto3 races so far in 2014

[thetastelingers]

Originally Posted by 954Stealth

Lol. You know, he has been talking a lot about his career, getting older, Marc's young age. Up until a few days ago when I read about his desire for another 2-year contract extension, I thought he was building up to a retirement announcement.

I believe he and Chad Reed will race until they can't. I think they love it too much.