Lorenzo rules out fighting for title.

Jorge Lorenzo says he is out of the running for the MotoGP championship this season after crashing at Mugello last weekend.

The Spanish rookie now lies 28 points behind his Fiat Yamaha teammate Valentino Rossi in the standings, and 16 points behind his countryman, Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa, going into this weekend's Catalunya Grand Prix at Barcelona.

"We crashed at Mugello and that's very disappointing, but we can't change the past," Lorenzo told MotoGP.com. "Now we have to look to the future and lift our motivation and the results will return.

"We had some options to go for the championship but with the crash, we are out of the possibilities to win the championship. We have to concentrate every race to have fun and entertain all the people."

Lorenzo admitted he struggled with the bike throughout the weekend at Mugello, but put the disappointment out of his mind quickly with the race at Barcelona just a week later.

"We struggled a lot throughout the Friday and Saturday and didn't have a good set-up. The bike was moving a lot and pushing at the front, and I knew I had more possibilities to crash and in the end it happened.

"But two hours after the race I had forgotten about it and I was only thinking about Catalunya. It's nice that there was only one week between this race and the last one."

By Steven English

Honda to make late decision on engine

The Repsol Honda team will make a late decision on whether Dani Pedrosa and Nicky Hayden will use the new pneumatic engine at Barcelona this weekend.

Tadayuki Okada raced with the new power plant for the first time at Mugello last weekend, but the team have not yet confirmed which engine they will use in Catalunya.

"We don't know yet," Pedrosa told MotoGP.com. "We'll have another meeting today and will try to get some more information on our position. It is a possibility of course, the engine is there, but we will see if we take it or not.

"This race is important for me. It's close to my home and of course I'd like to do a great result, but I will try to enjoy it. I think since last year the bike's potential is higher."

Hayden believes the Honda RC212V is better suited to the new unit, but he too doesn't know whether they will race with it.

"The pneumatic engine is interesting because, for me, the 2008 chassis works better with it. Hopefully it can be more than just a good engine for us, but we've got to check all the data before we make the decision."

source: autosport.com

Stoner hoping to try 2009 Ducati.

MotoGP world champion Casey Stoner is hoping to get his first ride on an early version of Ducati's 2009 MotoGP machine during post-race testing at Barcelona, venue for this weekend's Catalan Grand Prix.

"The new bike will be here this weekend and Vito [Guareschi - test rider] will take it round on Monday morning, so if we are happy with how it is going I might get to try it too," confirmed the young Australian.

The Barcelona test, which takes place on Monday and Tuesday, is also expected to mark the first time that Dani Pedrosa and Nicky Hayden have used Honda's pneumatic-valve engine since pre-season testing.

Rossi to run special livery in Catalunya.

Following a special helmet design at his home Italian Grand Prix, Valentino Rossi's YZR-M1 will carry a one-off livery for this weekend's Catalan Grand Prix in celebration of the European Football Championships, which begin on Sunday.

The MotoGP World Championship leader's Fiat Yamaha has been specially painted in the style of the shirts of the Italian national team, the 'Azzurri', ahead of their opening game against Holland on Monday.

Rossi will also wear leathers designed in the same vein and even his famous number 46 has undergone a change for the weekend.

"Yes we have different colours on the bike because Fiat want to show [support] for the Italian football team," said Rossi. "The European championship starts on Saturday but Italy plays on Monday. I like the bike; it is blue like the Italian jersey. It is quite good."

The livery will be officially unveiled on Friday morning at the Montmelo circuit.

source: crash.net