Rain spoils front row assault of Kallio and Aoyama at French
250cc GP
 World
Championship leader Mika Kallio and his Red Bull KTM team-mate
Hiroshi Aoyama had their chances of a front row position for
the 250 cc French Grand Prix washed out when rain fell during
the final qualifying session for Sunday's race.
Even though the track dried up towards the end of the session
the remaining time was too short for Kallio, who had just
found the right settings for his bike. The Finn did move up
to sixth place on the starting grid but missed out on further
improvements when he ran into traffic on his last and fastest
lap. Aoyama also tried hard to get the best out of the drying
track on the last minutes of the session but he wasn't able
to rediscover the good feeling for the bike and eventually
settled for tenth place.
Repsol KTM rider Julian Simon, who had been the fastest KTM
250 rider on day one in sixth position, also failed to improve
on his previous best time. On Sunday he starts with Kallio
in the second row in seventh position.
Mika Kallio (Red Bull KTM 250 - sixth in 1:38.790)
"The rain made it a difficult final qualifying session
for us, maybe more difficult than for our opponents, because
they already had good lap times under their belt. We struggled
a lot on this track in the beginning. I didn't get the right
feedback from the front and couldn't push the way I would
have liked to. Today we found the solution with a different
set-up for the rear shock absorber. Life as a racer can be
really strange sometimes - you make an adjustment to the rear,
but then you end up feeling a significant change on the front!
This change helped me a lot, it made it much easier to go
into the turns but obviously I would have needed some more
laps. My lap time only started to come back at the end of
the session. I was only one tenth of a second behind the leader
after the first three sections on my last lap but then I ran
into traffic."
Hiroshi Aoyama (Red Bull KTM - tenth in 1:39.197)
"We managed to improve the set-up of our bike bit by
bit from the first practice session onwards and our lap times
got steadily faster. I expected to continue with this progress
in the final session but then it rained. The track dried out
and some of the riders were able to put in some good lap times
but even though I pushed I wasn't able to get back the good
feeling for my bike and that showed up in the time sheets.
I might have made the front row if it hadn't rained. Now I
just hope for good weather tomorrow. Our dry set-up is good,
so I'm confident for the race!"
Harald Bartol (Technical Director)
"We shouldn't just blame the weather conditions for our
grid positions in the 250 cc class, because if others manage
to go faster, we should be able to go faster, too. At the
same time, our grid positions are no reason for concern, because
the lap times are very closer together, and anything can happen
in the race."
Krummenacher gaining in strength and confidence
ahead of 125cc French GP
Red Bull KTM rider Randy Krummenacher has bounced back from
a spleen operation and is recapturing form and mental attitude
ahead of Sunday's 125 cc French Grand Prix on the Le Mans
racing circuit.
The 18-year-old Swiss rider now has a new chief technician
and new positive spirits and he is bouncing back to close
the gap on the front runners. Krummenacher qualified in thirtieth
place but has promised much more in Sunday's race.
Randy Krummenacher (Red Bull KTM 125 - thirtieth in
1:46.569)
"Racing is a mind game in many respects. And when things
started to go wrong for me, first with technical difficulties,
then with my spleen injury, this was a whole new experience
and I didn't know how to deal with it. I was thinking a lot,
maybe too much. But things are different this weekend. I managed
to prepare myself mentally, I've turned things around and
I'm looking at racing with a very positive attitude. Having
Santi (Hernandez) as a new chief mechanic also helps me a
lot. He worked with Bradley Smith last year and we've worked
very well together from the first minute. I've managed to
reduce the gap to the front runners from four to three seconds,
and I feel there's a lot more to come. I can still do better
as a rider and we can improve the bike settings even further.
This could turn out to be an explosive mix for tomorrow. Something
really good could happen. I am ready for the fight!"
Esteve Rabat of the Repsol KTM 125 cc team is also encouraged
after being supplied with a new chassis for his KTM RR 125
machine.
Esteve Rabat (Repsol KTM 125 - ninth in 1:44.344)
"I struggled to find my rhythm and go faster this afternoon
because the track conditions got worse after the morning rain
and the increasing wind. But I'm still happy because the new
chassis helps me a lot. I lacked confidence going into the
turns in most of the races so far. I just didn't get the right
feedback from the front end. Things are very different with
new chassis. I can flick the bike into the turns easily and
it maintains a neutral and predictable attitude. It's more
than a step in the right direction - for me, it makes all
the difference!"
Harald Bartol (KTM Technical Director)
"It's encouraging to learn that we made the right move
with our new chassis for Esteve's FRR 125. Next week, all
our riders will have a chance to test this chassis in Valencia,
and then we will be able to decide if and when we distribute
the new chassis to the others!"
Salom wins third of four rounds in Red Bull MotoGP
Rookies Cup
Young Spanish rider Luis Salom continued his domination in
the 2008 Red Bull Rookies Cup on Saturday on the Le Mans racing
circuit in France, winning his third race in four rounds of
the competition.
He now extends his lead over American JD Beach, second in
Le Mans, by eight points. Third place in the heart-stopping
race went to 15-year-old Frenchman Nelson Major but he had
to work for it in a hard fought battle with Germany's Daniel
Kartheininger, 15, and 14-year-old Frenchman Florian Marino.
All riders in the cup competition are onboard KTM RC 125 cc
machines.
From pole to top of podium for Salom
Salom qualified on pole but was constantly challenged by Beach
who is his toughest rival so far. Beach has been second on
the podium in all four races. "It was such a hard race,"
said Salom. "I pushed from the start to get away and
my plan was to do the same as I did in Jerez. I could not
get far away from JD though, he kept coming and if I made
the slightest mistake he was there. Over the last laps I just
concentrated on being very smooth and it worked."
Beach challenges mid race
The 16-year old American did take the lead for a period in
the middle of the race but said after that it had been his
braking that had let him down, something he does not encounter
in the dirt track racing that he has been used to. "I
was braking too early and too hard. I'm just not used to it,"
he said. "I got frustrated, I was really going for it
and I could catch him but couldn't stay ahead."
Major said the race was great fun and he was thrilled to be
on the podium in his home race. "I think I had the advantage
on the brakes and I made that work for me," he said.
The 16 lap race was over 66.96 km.
New rule compensates for age restriction at Le Mans
Several of the regular riders - Daijiro Hiura, Kevin Calia
and Niklas Ajo were unable to compete on the French circuit
because they are not yet 14, a requirement at Le Mans. Deane
Brown of Scotland was also not racing because he suffered
a broken leg in a warm up for a British national event last
weekend. The riders excluded because of the age limit will
benefit from a new regulation agreed with the International
Motorcycle Federation (FIM) for the Rookies Cup whereby the
worst result from each rider will be dropped from the overall
season's results.
Results Fourth Round
1. Luis Salom, Spain, 29:17.533
2. JD Beach, USA, 29:19.231
3. Nelson Major, France, 29:20.882
4. Daniel Kartheininger, Germany, 29:20.977
5. Florian Marino, France, 29:21.546
Standings after Four Rounds
1. Luis Salom, 88 points
2. JD Beach, USA, 80 points
3. Nelson Major, France, 50
4. Sturla Fagerhaug, Norway, 48
5. Daijiro Hiura, Japan, 47
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