Pol Espargaro at Brno Moto2 Practice2013 Brno Moto2 Friday Practice ResultsFollowing a short break since last weekend's Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix, the 2013 Moto2 Championship got underway Friday with the first practices for the Czech Republic Grand Prix at Brno.And setting the pace in the second free practice was Marc VDS Racing Team's Mike Kallio. He led the way from Italtrans Racing Team’s Takaaki Nakagami and Tuenti HP 40’s Pol Espargaro, although it was Espargaro’s morning time that established the overall pace for the day.
Recovering from a crash in the morning, Nakagami looked set to go quickest in the afternoon, only for Kallio to top the timesheets with his last effort.As the Finn led the way, Nakagami and Espargaro were separated by fractions while Indianapolis winner Tito Rabat (Tuenti HP 40) and Johann Zarco (Came Iodaracing Project) rounded out the top five. It was a relatively quiet day for Redding, ending proceedings eighth, but title rival Espargaro set the fastest overall lap time with 2’03.125 in the morning.A selection of riders hit trouble during the day, not least Thai Honda PTT Gresini Moto2’s Thitipong Warokorn who suffered a non-displaced fracture of his right fibula after crashing in the first session; the Thai rookie was able to continue in the afternoon. Three riders would crash in the afternoon: Axel Pons (Tuenti HP 40), Alex de Angelis (NGM Mobile Forward Racing) and Dani Rivas (Blusens Avintia).
Aprilia Tuono 660 Factory + Steve ’Stavros’ Parrish
byMotos and Friends by Ultimate Motorcycle
Hello everyone and welcome once again to Ultimate Motorcycling’s weekly podcast—Motos and Friends. My name is Arthur Coldwells.
Our first segment features the new Aprilia Tuono 660 Factory. Senior Editor Nic de Sena brings us his report on the flagship version of Aprilia’s upright middleweight machine. He gives us insight into whether it’s worth spending the extra money on the Factory version, and also of course, whether this sporting Aprilia is really the motorcycle for you.
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The next guest segment of Motos and Friends is brought to you by the faster and most technologically advanced, 2023 Suzuki Hayabusa—one of the most iconic sportbikes ever. Check it out in person at your local Suzuki dealer now, or visit suzukicycles.com to learn more.
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In this segment, Associate Editor Teejay Adams chats with (arguably) one of the most interesting Suzuki race riders of all time. the iconic RG500 alongside teammate double World Champion Barry Sheene. The two were almost as famous for their exploits off-track, as for their success on it. Those were the days! Steve also raced the Isle of Man TT for about ten years where he won 13 Silver Replicas, and got a podium finish. His insight into that particular brand of mayhem are fascinating.
But there’s waaay more to Steve Parrish than his motorcycle racing. He is also the most successful Semi-Truck racer ever, and, little known piece of useless trivia—he’s my birthday twin: 24th February. He is a natural entertainer and you can’t miss his recounting of the world’s most entertaining—and arguably terrifying—double-decker bus ride ever. If any of you were actually on that hell-ride then we’d love to hear from you!
