MOTOGP » 'Realist' Rossi 'a long way off' heading to Qatar

“I'm a realist, and I know well that our times are still a long way off and 

that there are still some things to fix” – Valentino Rossi.

A lot has changed in the year since Valentino Rossi made his Ducati debut at Qatar in 2011.

But despite multiple frame incarnations - leading up to the full twin-spar chassis on the final version of this year's GP12 - and MotoGP's switch from 800 to 1000cc engines, the Italian finds himself in a similar position to last year heading into Sunday's season-opening night race.

A strong debut test at Sepang with the GP12 was followed by a wrong turn with set-up at the second Malaysian visit, which took until the final day of the Jerez test to correct. 

Rossi, seventh in the championship with one podium last year, concluded the pre-season with the sixth fastest lap time, 0.953sec behind Casey Stoner (Honda) in Spain.

At Qatar 2011, Rossi took the chequered flag in seventh place, 16 seconds from winner Stoner after 22 laps. 

Although optimistic that he and Ducati are back on track in terms of set-up, The Doctor doesn't expect any miracles when it comes to taking on the pace-setting factory Hondas and Yamahas this weekend.

“We worked hard over the winter, and although we went the wrong direction at one point, we once again managed to find the good feeling with the GP12 that we'd had in the first test,” said Rossi.

“With those settings, which we'll start with in Qatar, I was able to get good feedback from the bike. 

“At Losail it will be very important to work well during the sessions leading up to qualifying so that we can increase our confidence step by step as we approach Saturday, always trying to maximize our potential. 

“I'm a realist, and I know well that our times are still a long way off and that there are still some things to fix. 

“We won't be able to address some of them right away, but it's also true that both we at the track and the guys back home now have a direction to work in, and we must try to do as well as we can. 

“We won't completely redo the bike during the season, but we'll try to progress little by little,” concluded the 79-time 500cc/MotoGP race winner.

Upgrades for the GP12 are already in the pipeline, but are not expected to be race ready for at least several rounds.

“We know that other steps await and we've planned for them, and as always, the races will give us more accurate answers than the tests,” said team manager Vittoriano Guareschi. 

“Although our priority will be to work toward putting Vale and Nicky [Hayden] in the best conditions possible for Sunday, I'm sure that we'll also gather important information to help us continue improving our bike.”

Opening practice at Losail takes place on Thursday evening.

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Your hottest paddock babe for March revealed!

Want to see a selection of some of the sexiest grid girls to have graced the world of motorsport over the past month? Then you're in the right place and this month we have a 'Monster' line-up...

It's that time again, when we reveal who you voted as the sexiest paddock babes for the month of March.

To see the top ten, and who was rated as the hottest, simply CLICK HERE - you won't be disappointed. Also don't forget to keep voting and to check back next month to see who comes out on top in the April vote!

Enjoy...

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Burgess: 360km/h 1000cc MotoGP bikes 'folly'

"A rider slip-streaming another with just a breath of a tail wind will top
360km/h" - Jeremy Burgess.

Valentino Rossi's crew chief, Jeremy Burgess, believes that MotoGP's switch to 1000cc engines for the 2012 season is 'folly'.

The premier-class has increased its engine capacity back to 1-litre after five seasons of dull 800cc racing, but Australian Burgess - the most successful crew chief in the history of MotoGP - believes it is a mistake in terms of top speed and manufacturer relevance.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with The Adelaide Advertiser, Burgess said: "It was a folly to return to the 1000cc limit... On the fastest circuits, a rider slip-streaming another with just a breath of a tail wind will top 360km/h."

Those top speed concerns echo similar comments from Yamaha's former world champion Jorge Lorenzo. The present MotoGP top speed record is 349.3km/h (217.1mph) set by Honda's Dani Pedrosa at Mugello in 2009.

In terms of the technical challenge, Burgess added: "They [the manufacturers] have already developed 1000cc bikes.

"Rules that require them to make more power out of a smaller engine give manufacturers a reason to be there."

Burgess, who would prefer a MotoGP engine limit of 600cc and had some harsh words for Dorna's involvement in rule making, believes that Rossi should be able to challenge Pedrosa (Honda) and Andrea Dovizioso (Yamaha) for the podium during his second season at Ducati.

Burgess presumably expects Honda's reigning champion Casey Stoner and 2011 runner-up Lorenzo to fill the top two places.

-crash.net

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Chevrolet Colorado kini di Malaysia

Naza Quest Sdn Bhd, selaku pengedar rasmi kenderaan Chevrolet di Malaysia melancarkan model baru segmen pikap trak, Chevrolet Colorado.

Menerusi pelancaran itu, Naza Quest optimis menyasarkan jualan Colorado di Malaysia secara kumulatif akan melebihi jumlah jualan kenderaan Chevrolet tahun lalu.

Menurut Ketua Pegawai Operasi Naza Quest Sdn Bhd, Datuk Maruan Mohd Said jumlah jualan Chevrolet 2011 mencatatkan jualan sebanyak 1272 bagi dua model Chevrolet Cruze dan Captiva.

“Menerusi pengenalan model ketiga Chevrolet Colorado ini, syarikat telah mengukuhkan lagi barisan kenderaan Chevrolet di Malaysia dan melepasi sasaran jualan tahun lalu kerana harganya yang kompetitif.

“Kumpulan pertama Colorado yang tiba sudahpun ditempah sepenuhnya dan penghantarannya bermula April ini,” katanya pada Majlis Pelancaran di Kuala Lumpur.

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MAA sees flat or lower Q1 vehicle sales

PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Automotive Association (MAA) expects total vehicle sales in the first quarter of this year to be either flat or lower than the 158,432 units registered in the same period a year earlier, mainly due to the impact of Bank Negara's responsible lending guidelines that were implemented this year.

“It (vehicle sales) could be slightly lower or the same level as it was last year due to the more stringent hire purchase loan rules,” president Datuk Aishah Ahmad said at a press conference following the association AGM yesterday.

Following the new lending guidelines that came into effect on Jan 1, loans are now approved based on net income compared with gross income previously, in addition to which is the need for more documentation.

Aishah

Aishah said the impact was more profound on the lower capacity passenger car segment.

“Customers within this segment will find it harder to get their loans approved.”

She however said that the MAA's members were starting to adapt and familiarise themselves with the new submission procedure for loan approvals.

“Our members are now more in-tune with what is being offered by the banks,” said Aishah.

Total vehicle sales fell 25% to 40,948 units in January 2012 from 54,781 units in the same month last year. This was not only attributed to tighter hire purchase loan approvals, but also to the shorter working month as a result of the Chinese New Year holidays and impact from Thailand's flood disaster, which had yet to recover fully.

Sales of vehicles, however, rebounded in February to rise 9% to 44,013 units from 40,387 units a year earlier, boosted by a return of consumers' buying interest, a longer working month and improved performance by the commercial vehicles segment.

Year-to-date February vehicles slipped to 84,961 units from 95,168 units in the previous corresponding period.

According to the MAA, sales volume for March is expected to improve further as the local market adjusts to the stricter requirements of hire purchase application process.

Despite the impact from the new loan approval guidelines, Aishah said the MAA was still maintaining its total industry volume forecast of 615,000 units for this year.

On a separate note, when asked about the status of the National Automotive Policy, Aishah said that it was “more or less finalised.”

“The Government intends to drive exports for Malaysia and make the country a hybrid and electric vehicle hub,” she said, hinting that there could be further liberalisation within the manufacturing sector of the local automotive industry.

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