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MotoGP
MOTOGP: Stoner - ‘We Are Still The Pacesetters’
Casey Stoner believes his third-place result in the opener has made some forget that the reigning champ is still the fastest man in MotoGP.
Repsol Honda's Casey Stoner (Photo: HRC)
PROGRAMMING NOTE: The 2012 MotoGP round from Jerez, Spain will air LIVE on SPEED on Sunday, April 29 at 8:00am ET. Qualifying will air LIVE all season long on SPEED2. #SPEEDmoto
Casey Stoner and the Honda RC213V are still the combination to beat in MotoGP.
That's the belief of the man himself, reigning World Champion Stoner, who is unconcerned by the surging start to the new season by Yamaha rival Jorge Lorenzo.
In advance of Sunday's second race, the Spanish GP at Jerez, Stoner reflected on what many saw as a setback in the opening race in Qatar won by Lorenzo.
The surprise onset of arm pump cost Stoner a chance of victory and he finished third but reckons there were a lot of positives to support his title defense.
Arm pump and chatter issues with the RC213V aside, Stoner believes that the Qatar opener, where he quickly opened a two-second lead before fading to third, gave him in an insight into what lies ahead.
"It gives me so much confidence knowing I was the fastest guy out there (in Qatar) after difficult qualifying and practice sessions; we are still the pacesetters," said Stoner reflecting on the opening race. "Without this issue (arm pump) I would have won that race and taken the victory with a nice gap but nobody really wants to know that.
"I'm sure they are happy with the fact that I got passed and the race was close in the last couple of laps.
"The reality is we are still very competitive and even the way Yamaha was looking, the fact we still came out that strong was fantastic for us.
"The lap times I was doing -- I felt almost embarrassed riding around the way I was and I was still able to pull a gap. It was great, the bike felt fantastic.
"I struggled at the end with chatter but a lot of that was to do with that I couldn't keep the brakes on going into the corner (because of arm pump) and that doesn't help make the bike turn and reduce chatter."
Casey Stoner and the Honda RC213V are still the combination to beat in MotoGP.
That's the belief of the man himself, reigning World Champion Stoner, who is unconcerned by the surging start to the new season by Yamaha rival Jorge Lorenzo.
In advance of Sunday's second race, the Spanish GP at Jerez, Stoner reflected on what many saw as a setback in the opening race in Qatar won by Lorenzo.
The surprise onset of arm pump cost Stoner a chance of victory and he finished third but reckons there were a lot of positives to support his title defense.
Arm pump and chatter issues with the RC213V aside, Stoner believes that the Qatar opener, where he quickly opened a two-second lead before fading to third, gave him in an insight into what lies ahead.
"It gives me so much confidence knowing I was the fastest guy out there (in Qatar) after difficult qualifying and practice sessions; we are still the pacesetters," said Stoner reflecting on the opening race. "Without this issue (arm pump) I would have won that race and taken the victory with a nice gap but nobody really wants to know that.
"I'm sure they are happy with the fact that I got passed and the race was close in the last couple of laps.
"The reality is we are still very competitive and even the way Yamaha was looking, the fact we still came out that strong was fantastic for us.
"The lap times I was doing -- I felt almost embarrassed riding around the way I was and I was still able to pull a gap. It was great, the bike felt fantastic.
"I struggled at the end with chatter but a lot of that was to do with that I couldn't keep the brakes on going into the corner (because of arm pump) and that doesn't help make the bike turn and reduce chatter."
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