English Version 12.03.17

2017 Gran Premio Motul de la Republica Argentina

ENGLISH VERSION 12.03.17

RACE 01/05

2,000 KILOMETRES OF PREPARATION

Team HRC moved its logistics and its Hon- the championship after a few route incidents as in da CRF450 Rallys to the United Arab Emirates to leg two. I had just crossed 70 kilometres when I felt take part, from 1 to 6 April, in the Abu Dhabi De- bogged down in a dune. I had to stop to get my sert Challenge with Motul's technical support. This breath back before continuing. I had some chance first round of the FIM Cross Country Rally World of clinching that leg but knew that this type of Championship saw Kevin Benavides make his big event, entirely composed of dunes, could reserve come-back after his right hand fracture deprived such a scenario.' Benavides could have finished hi- him of the Dakar in January. His team-mate, Paulo gher than 16th place had it not been for a technical Gonçalves, fought for the podium until the 2073rd glitch on day three. kilometre to come 4th. The Argentinian like the Of interest, the day after the arrival of the rally in Portuguese man each won one leg out of the five Yas Marina, two other riders of Team HRC, Joan scheduled. Barreda and Michael Metge, were present in Bar- Paulo Gonçalves wasn't too disappointed over lo- celona for a presentation evening of the 40th sta- sing the win by a few minutes in the last leg. 'I'm ging of the Dakar in 2018, for which we know Motul satisfied with this result and with scoring points in will be major partner!

RACE 02/18

DEBUTANTES STANDINGS Movistar Yamaha MotoGP, 86 pts 01 BALL Monster Yamaha Tech3, 27 pts 02 Octo Pramac Racing, 26 pts 03

The Argentinian Grand Prix was the second to good starts before adopting a very rapid pace.' round of the MotoGP and the first of the four meets The French team is now 2nd in the Teams cham- on the calendar for which Motul is title sponsor. Two pionship! teams supported technically by Motul will not keep No Suzuki could finish in the points. Collided into an indelible memory of this 9 April at Termas de Rio in the first corner after the start by another rider, Hondo, whereas the third one had reason to rejoice: Andrea Ianonne avoided falling but lost several Johann Zarco and Jonas Folger, the Monster Ya- places. He was then penalised for a jumped start. maha Tech3 rookies, took 5th and 6th places! Alex Rins could race despite an ankle injured during Yet they were only 14th and 11th on the grid but the motocross training. But a fall brought back the pain Frenchie like the German proved fantastic in the and he preferred to quit. race. 'The changing weather conditions disturbed Hero of the Qatari Grand Prix, Aleix Espargaro confir- our trials and we didn't know what to expect before med his competitiveness and that of Aprilia RS-GP the start,' stated team manager, Hervé Poncharal. by bagging an excellent 8th time. He unfortunately 'What's more, Jonas was suffering from a stomach crashed when attempting to take 6th place. Sam disorder. Finally, our two MotoGP rookies got off Lowes renounced owing to a technical problem.

RACE 01/06

MOTUL AND SRO: A WELL OILED PARTNERSHIP

Motul is already involved in many major ming by 57,000 fans on Facebook. History will events on the Asian continent, from the Asian Le recall that Mitch Gilbert and Aditya Patel, sharing Mans Series to Super GT without forgetting the the wheel of an Audi R8 LMS GT3 of team OD Ra- Sepang 12 Hours, final round of the Interconti- cing, won the very first race of the Blancpain GT nental GT Challenge. The international high per- Series Asia. The strategy consisting in stopping formance lubricants specialist has just strengthe- at the beginning of the pit-stops window paid off. ned this presence by signing a new agreement A long-standing Motul technical partner, team with SRO (Stéphane Ratel Organisation). Motul Clearwater Racing experienced a black weekend, has thus become the official lubricant partner of a violent collision eliminating its McLaren 650S the Blancpain GT Series Asia, which saw its first GT3 a few metres after the start. meet on 8 and 9 April in Sepang. The second race rewarded the Ferrari 488 GT3 The two races, organised with a 60 minutes du- entered by BBT for team Liu/Rizzo. They too were ration and a driver change in accordance with among the first to make the compulsory pit-stop. SRO's favourite format were followed in live strea- The series will resume in Thailand on 20 and 21 May.

SUPER GT OKAYAMA RACE 01/08

TOM’S AND MOTUL STANDINGS Cassidy / Hirakawa (Lexus), 20 pts 01 PARTNER A ONE-SIX LEXUS Oshima / Caldarelli (Lexus), 15 pts 02 Kovalainen / Hirate (Lexus), 11 pts 03

The 25th Super GT championship season be- nish the formation lap. Meanwhile, #17 was towed gan on 9 April by a 300 km race in Okayama. Lexus to its pit and #64 broke down on the grid! They dominated the day by placing its six LC500s in the both finished the event but with much delay. #100 first six places in the GT500 top category! Famous did not have such luck and its outing finished after team Tom’s, partnered technically by Motul, won five laps. The Mugen #16 is the only Honda NSX to with Nick Cassidy and Ryo Hirakawa's #37. Heikki have got through the 81 laps without trouble, 9th- Kovalainen and Kohei Hirate, still at the wheel of placed. It alone enjoyed Motul's technical support. defending team Sard's Lexus, mounted the third Nissan also appeared to be taking a back seat but, step. Contrasting with the joy of the winners, once again, the only team that performed well hostile attitudes were the order of the day at dis- wore Motul's colours and defended its technology. contented Nissan and, above all, Honda,... Former champions Quintarelli and Matsuda took In a Q2 tests session disturbed by two red flags, the Motul Autech GT-R to 7th place, best of the the Honda NSX #8 clinched pole. But it couldn't fi- rest at the arrival of this strange race.

POZNAN MOTOR SHOW

MOTUL CREATES A BUZZ IN THE REAL AND VIRTUAL WORLDS

Poznan Motor Show is Poland's largest car and GT3, a Ford Fiesta for rallying and a Toyota Supra motorcycle show and was held from 6 to 9 April developed for Drift and delivering 1,200 hp. Motor- with the participation of the biggest brands. Motul cycles were not forgotten with two Ducati Panigale had a three dimensional presence: a particularly R Superstocks and two Suzuki custom dragsters. rich and interesting booth, an arena devoted to Boasting 446 hp, the latter give their lubricant a stunt driving and freestyle and also special access tough ride! to virtual reality. The MotulEvo concept for the maintenance of au- Motul's 200 sq. m. booth was devoted to cars and tomatic gearboxes also occupied a corner of the motorcycles. Apart from developing the brand's stand. Last, the show served as a launch-pad for visibility locally, the aim was to reposition its main- the Motul World Virtual Reality Tournament. The ly 'two-wheeler' image to extend it to the car uni- tournament is based around a game showcasing verse. Hence the booth's location among car ma- Motul's high-tech image. You are a motorcycle nufacturers and accessorists. race mechanic and you have to find the right pro- The public could admire vehicles representing ducts, equipment and set-up to get your rider to Motul's involvement in racing and the perfor- win! Poland hosted the first of the 14 rounds of a mances of its related products: a McLaren 650S tournament that will cross several continents.

Motul Sport News 2016 © Motul - All right reserved Credits : Lukasz Swiderek, Team HRC, SRO, Super GT, Motul 119 bd Felix Faure • 93300 Aubervilliers Chloé Agniel Publishing & editing coordinator : Leslie Raiwoit / [email protected]