Tag Archives: Alex De Angelis

Alex De Angelis to retire from racing

Alex De Angelis announces racing retirement


Alex De Angelis has said goodbye to racing after a career that began in 1999, with the rider from San Marino, to finish his second season in MotoE with Team Octo Pramac’s Energica, has therefore decided to “hang up his helmet ”After 21 years of racing.

MotoE Jerez Test March De Angelis
Alex De Angelis

In his long career, De Angelis was one of best rider of the 125 class, where he was “Rookie of the Year” in 2000 and vice world champion in 2002. In the 250 class he raced for Aprilia Racing fighting with the best riders in the world in the category from 2003 to 2006, obtaining podiums and victories, while in MotoGP he won a second place in Indianapolis on the Honda of Team Gresini. In Moto2 he collected victories and podiums and in Superbike he reached the second step of the podium in Germany aboard the Aprilia RSV4, until most recently racing in MotoE where he will end his career after the Le Mans races.

MotoGP Rnd Misano Fri MotoE front row Ferrari De Angelis Simeon
Alex De Angelis led Ferrari and Simeon claiming pole – Misano MotoGP 2019

De Angelis will still be a protagonist of the paddocks thanks to his new activity as Team Manager of the Roc & Dea team engaged in the CIV (Supersport 300 class) where he wants to discover and train new talents.

Alex De Angelis

“Saying goodbye to the MotoGP tracks, to the paddock, to my colleagues and everything that was my home for twenty years is absolutely not easy. The most important parenthesis of my life comes to an end with the 2020 final round of MotoE at Le Mans. Twenty years as a professional rider in the World Championship: victories, podiums, joys and sorrows but, above all, half of my life spent traveling around the world at full speed. Now I am an adult, I am a team manager, a federal instructor, I work on TV, I teach people how to ride a motorcycle on track safely and having fun. Many commitments that however do not make me forget that I am first of all (and forever) a rider. Regrets? No, at all. I have had a career that I think is incredible, I have met incredible people and I have seen beautiful countries, many different worlds that have enriched me over the years. When I started I was 15-years-old with a pageboy weird haircut and a great desire to “open the gas”. Now I am a man with some wrinkles but the desire to “open the gas” has remained the same, even if in other fields and with a different spirit. A dutiful THANK YOU goes to all those who believed in me, first of all my family, to all the extraordinary people who worked with me, to my friends and my fans for always supporting me. Goodbye…”

FIM MotoE World Cup Alex De Angelis
Alex De Angelis

Alex De Angelis’s Biopic

From San Marino’ parents, Alex was born in Rimini on February 26, 1984 into a family where the passion for engines and speed can be considered normal. His father, Vinicio, in fact, was a rally car tuner and passed on the passion to Alex and his brother William.

At the age of 7, the two received a mini bike as a gift and with it they began to get passionate and to make their first races on the Miramare track, just a stone’s throw from home.

Alex De Angelis, after passing through the Italian Minimoto Championship and the Honda 125 Trophy, in 1999 joined the Matteoni Team with he raced in the Italian Speed ​​Championship and the European Championship, finishing in second and seventh position respectively.

The good results and the determination shown open the doors for the World Championship. The debut in the world series taked place in 1999 in Imola where he takes part in the GP as a wild card. From this moment on, Alex De Angelis’ career changes pace and begins a constant escalation.

In 2000, Alex still riding a Honda of Team Matteoni, and with this team he did all the season in the World Championship in the 125 class, winning the “Rookie of the Year” award.

Alex De Angelis
Alex De Angelis

The first world podium arrives in 2002 in Germany. Alex De Angelis gets it riding a 125 Aprilia RS managed by Lucio Cecchinello’s team.

2003 is a year of satisfactions: the San Marino rider becomes one of the protagonists of the 125cc world championship and ends the season as world vice-champion.

The second final place in the season and the continuity in the results opened him the opportunity to race in the 250 class, in which he will line up in 2004 season on the official Aprilia Racing saddle. At the end of his debut season in the “quarter of a liter” class, Alex was fifth in the ranking.

In 2005, Alex De Angelis races with the colors of the internal team from Noale, the MS Aprilia Italia Corse and closes the season seventh overall, but takes home two second places and two third positions.

Alex De Angelis
Alex De Angelis

The following year, in 2006, De Angelis was still an Aprilia Racing official rider in the Aspar Team, climbing on the podium 11 times. He closed a very convincing season (third position on the final ranking), with his first victory in the world championship, obtained in the closing round of the championship at the Valencia Ricardo Tormo circuit.

The consistency in the results were confirmed in 2007, when Alex De Angelis, with eight podiums in the season, confirmed himself third in the 250cc world championship final rankings.

2008 is the year for him of the big jump into the premier class. Alex De Angelis makes his MotoGP debut in the ranks of Team Gresini. This is not exactly an easy season, but Alex shows, on more than one occasion, his skills and potential by touching the podium in the Italian and German GPs. Alex De Angelis’ first season in the premier class ends with 14th place in the standings.

MotoGP Assen DeAngelis GP AN
Alex De Angelis

In 2009, Alex De Angelis once again wears the colors of Team Gresini and this is the year of his podium in MotoGP. On 31 August in Indianapolis, the blue and white flag of San Marino is hoisted on the second step of the podium, thanks to a decidedly hard-fought race which ended for Alex De Angelis close to victory. Riding the Honda of Team Gresini, De Angelis also obtained fourth place in the Australian GP and in the British GP. These results, together with the fifth place in the Dutch GP at Assen, allow him to obtain the eighth place in the world championship’s ranking.

In 2010 the transition to Moto2 with the RSM Scot Team. This was a not very lucky season, which sees Alex De Angelis forced to miss the Spanish GP due to an injury and not to participate in the British GP due to an injury for a crash in free practice. During the same year Alex was called to MotoGP to replace the injured Hiroshi Aoyama in the German and Czech Republic GPs.In the 2010 season also there is the transition to Team Jir always in Moto2 with which he will win the Malaysian GP, ​​will get second place in Australia and a third place in the Portuguese GP.

In 2011 Alex De Angelis continues his adventure with Team JIR obtaining a third place in the GP of Germany and a victory in the GP of Australia, closing the season in fourth position and registering the achievement of world points in all the races of the season except one.

In 2012, Alex De Angelis is at the start of the Moto2 season with the NGM Forward Team, but he will change bikes, going from FTR to Suter and this will force Alex to do a second internship “in the race” which has not prevented him from obtaining a third place at the Sachsenring and a victory in Malaysia. To be recorded the early end of the 2012 season for Alex De Angelis due to a left hand injury he got for a crash at Phillip Island circuit.

The 2013 season sees Alex De Angelis still riding the Moto2 of Team NGM Forward, with a participation in the MotoGP Class at the United States GP at Laguna Seca on the Team Ignite Pramac Desmosedici GP13 ended with an eleventh position.

In 2014 Alex De Angelis is still a Moto2 with Team Tasca, but in mid-season he seizes the opportunity to jump back into MotoGP replacing Colin Edwards on Team NGM Forward’s CRT Yamaha.
In 2015 MotoGP is once again Alex De Angelis’ class, this time riding the ART machine of Team Octo Iodaracing. With this CRT bike he will be the protagonist of his worst injury in his career. Due to a crash in free practice at the Japanese GP, Alex remains in induced coma for a few days, then he will begin a long recovery path that he faced with tenacity and stubbornness.

Alex De Angelis and Michael Van Der Mark
Alex De Angelis

The efforts to get back in shape paid off the following year. In 2016 De Angelis is again with the Iodaracing Team making his Superbike debut on the Aprilia RSV4. In the new class, De Angelis gets a second place in Race 2 on the Lausitzring track in Germany.

In 2017 Alex De Angelis is still in Superbike, but riding the Kawasaki ZXR1000RR of Team Pedercini, but will return in the season in Moto2 as a wild card in the GP of San Marino and the Rimini Riviera with The Intact Team and then in Silverstone with the Tasca Team.

2018 is the year of change. Alex De Angelis begins his adventure as journalist from the pit box for the Italian broadcast company SKY Motori in the MotoGP races and worked as a coach of the Moto2 rider Federico Fuligni. Alongside this, he works as an instructor for driving courses.

MotoE World Cup test Valencia Final Alex De Angelis
Alex De Angelis

In 2019 Alex confirms himself to the microphones of SKY Motori television, continues as an instructor but returns to the races with Team Octo Pramac MotoE, becoming one of the strongest rider of the new category, obtaining two fourth places in Austria and Valencia, finishing in seventh final position.

2020 is still with the Octo Pramac MotoE Team, but he is also Team Manager of the Roc & Dea Team which deploys young talents in the Italian Super Sport 300 championship and the activity as federal instructor of the FMI (the Italian Motorcycle Federation).

Source: MCNews.com.au

The opening era of MotoE begins with official test at Jerez

10-seconds off Moto2 pace but a lot of speed to be found

High-profile MotoE riders sparked up their mounts for the first time in Spain overnight in company with the official Moto2 testing schedule ahead of season 2019.

The fastest time from the first outing for the MotoE machines came from Ajo Motorsports rider Niki Tuuli, a 1m51.721. That opening day benchmark nearly ten-seconds slower than the fastest Moto2 time of the day recorded by Lorenzo Baldasarri, as a new chapter also started for Moto2 with the move to Triumph engines for season 2019.

Clearly, these are only the first baby steps for the MotoE machines, but with high-profile teams and highly skilled riders, Dorna is certainly providing this new class with every chance of success.

MotoE Test Jerez Day Enerigca Angel Nieto
Angel Nieto Team’s Energica MotoE machine

Many riders would have liked to have turned a lot more laps but were restricted by battery capacity and recharge times, as at this test many of the two-rider teams only had one machine at their disposal to be shared by two riders. 

Former WorldSSP podium finisher and Moto2 rider Niki Tuuli (Ajo Motorsport MotoE) topped the times on Day 1 of three, setting a quickest time of 1:51.721.

Moto3 laptimes had tumbled dramatically after the first runs, and by the end of play Tuuli, a previous WorldSSP podium finisher, proved fast enough to beat 2017 European Moto2 Champion Eric Granado (Esponsorama Racing) by 0.121s.

Former Grand Prix rider Randy de Puniet (LCR E-Team) completed the top three with only 0.185 splitting the trio.

MotoE Test Jerez Day Randy De Puniet
Randy de Puniet (LCR E-Team)

Bradley Smith is another high-profile current riders to be taking on MotoE in 2019, alongside his new official test role as development rider for Aprillia MotoGP, the Brit will race MotoE with the One Energy Racing Team and was 0.618 off the top on his first outing.

MotoE Test Jerez Day Bradley Smith
Bradley Smith

Bradley Smith

“I am happy to have completed my first laps on the MotoE bike. The first session was in the wet, so it was a good opportunity to compare it to the feeling in the dry conditions that we had later. I am positively surprised with the handling of the bike and the way it has performed here at Jerez. We have to work out which steps we need to take to improve everything and evaluate the result of each step. So far everything we have seen has been positive; now we need to analyse the work we have done on this first day and make a plan for tomorrow. We were in the top three for the majority of the day, now we have to work out a way to be the fastest, which is the objective.”

MotoE Test Jerez Day Bradley Smith
Bradley Smith

Alex De Angelis (Alma Pramac Racing) was just 0.064 behind Smith in P5. The much anticipated return of former MotoGP frontrunner Sete Gibernau, meanwhile, saw the 45-year-old hit the ground running and only just over a second off the top.

MotoE Test Jerez Day Sete Gibernau
Sete Gibernau

World Endurance Champion Josh Hook was P14 and shared the Alma Pramac electric bike with team-mate Alex De Angelis as the Australian got his first brief taste of MotoE machinery. Hook finished up in P14 just behind fellow WEC regular Kenny Foray who made his debut with the new Tech3 MotoE squad.

Kenny Foray – P13

“Everything was totally new for me today and I also didn’t know the track very well yet. So, the first laps I spent to learn the track and then I started to try to find a feeling, after being on a 1000cc machine all the time. Lap by lap, I enjoyed it more and more, but I know, I still have to work a lot on myself to adapt my style, especially to improve my corner speed and some other things. I have to admit, it’s not easy, but it’s a lot of fun!”

MotoE Test Jerez Day Kenny Foray
Kenny Foray

Josh Hook – P14

“I had a great time. If I have to be honest, I was impressed by the power delivery of the bike when accelerating, but mainly the most impressive thing was how easy the bike is to ride. After two laps I was already pushing hard. I wanted to lap more but the battery doesn’t allow it”.

Female road race sensation María Herrera is also taking on the new challenge of in an Ángel Nieto squad alongside team-mate Nico Terol. Terol was the faster of the two on day one after completing ten laps with a best effort of 1’54.192. Terol had the opportunity to ride the bike here on the occasion of the Spanish Grand Prix earlier in the year and is confident that there is plenty of room for improvement over the next two days of the test.

Nico Terol – P12

“I did seven laps in the final session of the day, after watching my team-mate in the other two. I didn’t have the set-up how it needed to be – it was very soft on the front and I couldn’t brake how I wanted. On the fourth lap I set my best time and I am sure I could have gone faster but tomorrow I will have two sessions back to back and I’ll be able to give more and get more out of the bike.”

MotoE Test Jerez Day Nico Terol
Nico Terol

María was riding the Energica machine for the first time and was sixteenth fastest in her debut appearance on the bike she will race in 2019. The Spanish youngster reported a good feeling from her first laps of the Spanish track and already has some ideas on how to adapt her riding style to the specific demands of this new machine.

María Herrera – P16

“The first feeling with the MotoE bike is good, the acceleration is quite smooth and it reminds me of a 600 – you have to keep the corner speed up because you can’t be aggressive on the gas. I have to understand the best way to get this bike stopped with the weight it has, which will be one of the main points of focus, as well as the inertia in corner entry, having never ridden a bike like this before. I didn’t ride much today, only the first two sessions, but I am keen to get the bike set up how I like it and seeing how far we can go with it.”

MotoE Test Jerez Day MariaHerrera
María Herrera

Teams and riders were not just getting their heads around new and very different machinery than they had ridden before, but also were getting up to speed with new rubber.  Specially designed, the front tyres are a derivative of MotoGP tyres but the rears have more of a Superbike background.

The fronts need to support the heavy bikes under braking, whereas the rears need to warm up quickly for the shorter race distances in the FIM Enel MotoE World Cup. With the different characteristics of each, that made it something very new for each rider out on track – regardless of their racing experience. 

Lucio Cecchinello LCR Pic
Lucio Cecchinello put this image out on his Instagram account that shows some of what is behind the fairings of the new MotoE machines

MotoE testing will continue over the weekend. 

MotoE Jerez Test 2018
Day One Times

  1. Niki Tuuli – Ajo Motorsport 1m51.721
  2. Eric Granado – Esponsorama 1m51.842
  3. Randy De Puniet – LCR 1m51.906
  4. Bradley Smith – One Energy 1m52.339
  5. Alex De Angelis – Alma Pramac 1m52.403
  6. Mike Di Meglio – Marc VDS 1m52.574
  7. Jesko Raffin – Dynavolt Intact 1m52.675
  8. Lorenzo Savadori – Trentino Gresini 1m52.689
  9. Sete Gibernau – Pons Racing 1m52.817
  10. Matteo Casadei – Ongetta SIC58 1m53.629
  11. Niccolo Canepa – LCR 1m53.959
  12. Nico Terol – Angel Nieto Team 1m54.192
  13. Kenny Foray – Tech3 1m54.413
  14. Josh Hook – Alma Pramac 1m55.731
  15. Matteo Ferrari – Trentino Gresini 1m58.314
  16. Julian Miralles – Avintia Esponsorama 2m06.002
  17. Luca Vitali – Ongetta SIC58 2m06.560

Source: MCNews.com.au

Josh Hook to race MotoE in 2019 with Pramac

Josh Hook to ride MotoE with Pramac and defend World Endurance Title with F.C.C. TSR Honda

Josh Hook

“I’m thrilled to be with Alma Pramac Racing on this new MotoE adventure. The 2019 season will be the first of many years for this new category and represents a great opportunity for me. I am very grateful to the team for believing in my ability and I am sure that we can get great satisfaction. MotoE is something new for everyone, so it will be great to work on the development of the bike and I’m sure we can have some great races. We have a few days of testing next week in Jerez and I am looking forward to working with the team on this new project so that we can have a real understanding of the bike. I would like to thank the Alma Pramac Racing team once again for making this possible”.

Josh Hook and F.C.C. TSR Honda win 8H of Oschersleben
Josh Hook (centre) and F.C.C. TSR Honda after winning the 2018 8H of Oschersleben

After the MotoGP official test in Valencia next week, the team will fly to Jerez de la Frontera where the MotoE test will take place on the weekend of 23-25 November.

There is great expectation in seeing on track the 18 prototypes of Energica that will give life to the 2019 FIM Enel MotoE World Cup, with five European Grand Prix (Jerez, Le Mans, Sachsenring, Spielberg and Misano).

Alma Pramac Racing will be on the starting grids of this fascinating adventure with former MotoGP rider Alex De Angelis, and 25-year-old 2018 FIM Endurance World Champion Josh Hook.

Alex De Angelis

“It’s going to be “electrifying”. It may sound like a pun, but it’s not. I’m excited to be part of this project and I’m very pleased to be back on this team with which I’ve already had a very happy experience in Laguna Seca in 2013. It’s a very professional team and I’m sure they can give me that extra help to do well. I’ve been off the track for a year now and that’s why I’m so keen to get back on track at Jerez: it’s going to be a good break-in for me and for the new bike. I would like to thank Paolo Campinoti and Francesco Guidotti for giving me this opportunity. I know the team’s deep competition spirit and I will do my best to achieve great results”.

Alex De Angelis seen here after winning the Moto2 race at Phillilp Island in 2011

Source: MCNews.com.au