ARMA ENERGY SNX :: EAT YOUR ENERGY
ARMA ENERGY SNX :: EAT YOUR ENERGY
The newest addition to the Arma Energy familie Weston Peick finished an amazing 10th overall in the 450 class at the first race of the outdoor season at Hangtown. Weston finished in solid 8th place in the second moto. Click on the link below to head over to Racer X and vote for Weston as the surprise of the weekend!
http://racerxonline.com/2013/05/20/what-was-the-biggest-surprise-from-hangtown
It has been an insane weekend for the Arma team around the world! Here is a recap of all the action that went down at X-Games, Moto GP, Hangtown MX, MXGP, and the pro wakeboard tour!
-Gary Young won his first gold medal in BMX Park at X-Games. Gary has been with Arma from the begining and we couldn’t be more stoked for him!
-Stevie McCann took 5th in BMX Big Air and 6th in BMX Vert at X-Games.
-Matt Buyten took a bronze medal in X-Games step-up.
-Scott Redding and Mika Kallio finished 1 and 2 at Le Mans Moto GP2. Great weekend for the Marc VDS team.
-Weston Peick overcame a few unfortunate problems with his bike and still finished 10th overall at Hangtown. Great finish for a privateer!
-Phil Soven won the first stop of the Pro Wakeboard Tour in Georgia.
Le Mans, France – 17 May 2013: Scott Redding wasted no time in stamping his authority on proceedings during the opening day at Le Mans, topping the timesheet in both free practice session to lay down a marker for his championship rivals.
Mika Kallio was a little disappointed to finish the day only 13th fastest, despite improving his lap time this afternoon, to close to within a second of his Marc VDS teammate. The 30-year-old Finn still lacks the all-important confidence in the front of his Kalex Moto23 machine, a situation he is confident will be rectified by set-up changes ahead of tomorrow morning’s third and final free practice session.
Jules Danilo, who is making his Moto3 Grand Prix debut as a wild card rider this weekend at Le Mans, ended the day 17th fastest overall. The French rider, who celebrates his 18th birthday tomorrow, is confident of making further improvements ahead of the all-important qualifying session.
After struggling to find confidence in the front tyre in the cold conditions of this morning’s free practice session, it was the rear that caused Livio Loi issues this afternoon. Pumping from the rear suspension under acceleration meant the 16-year-old Belgian was unable to push for a fast lap time and he ended the day 20th on the timesheet.
Scott Redding #45: 1st – 1’38.203
“I like the Le Mans circuit, so my confidence was high coming into this weekend, especially off the back of three good results at tracks that were either new or a little unkind to me in the past. I’m feeling good on the bike here; we’ve had a couple of small issues during practice, but nothing that we haven’t been able to sort out quickly. The lap times today came without really pushing hard, so I know there’s more to come in qualifying if I need it. But this is Le Mans, so who knows what the weather will throw at us tomorrow. It could be dry or it could be wet, either way I think we’re in a good way here with the bike and the set-up.”
Mika Kallio #36: 13th – 1’39.174
“We ran the set-up we tested at Almeria this morning, but it didn’t give me the feeling with the front end that I was looking for. It meant I didn’t have the confidence on corner entry and that lost me a lot of time. We made some improvements to the front for the second session, but there’s still something missing. The bike just doesn’t feel right when I trail the brake into the corners. We have a few ideas for tomorrow, but we need to sit down tonight and decide in which direction to go. I’m not so happy with 13th but with the problems we’ve had, to finish within a second of Scott’s time is not too bad.”
Jules Danilo #95: 17th – 1’46.157
“We had some problems with the bike this morning, but the team managed to get everything sorted for this afternoon’s second free practice session. I’m happy with how things have gone today, as I felt confident on the bike this afternoon and we managed to improve the lap time with every exit. We still have a few things we want to improve on the bike but, overall, it’s been a good opening day at my first ever Grand Prix.”
Livio Loi #11: 20th – 1’46.295
“The track temperature was very low this morning, so it was difficult to have confidence in the front tyre. Conditions had improved for FP2, but I had a real problem with the rear suspension pumping under acceleration. Even with a new rear tyre the bike was unsettled on the throttle and I was losing time out of every corner. We need to fix the problem tonight ready for tomorrow, as you can win a lot of time on a Moto3 bike by getting on the gas both hard and early on corner exit, which I couldn’t do today.”
More information and high resolution images are available on the Marc VDS Racing Team website at www.marcvds.com.
Gosselies, Belgium – 14 May 2013: The Marc VDS Racing Team head this weekend to the French Grand Prix at Le Mans, where Scott Redding and Mika Kallio are keen to continue the run of form that has seen a Marc VDS rider finish on the podium in every Moto2 race so far this season.
Redding heads to Le Mans off the back of a second place finish in Jerez – where he was one of only two non-Spanish riders on the podium – and a successful two-day test at the Almeria Circuit. The 20-year-old Briton currently trails championship leader Tito Rabat by just a single point but is keen to reverse the positions this weekend, on a track at which he finished on the podium last season.
A crash that forced him out of the Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez saw Kallio drop to seventh in the championship standings, but the 30-year-old Finn heads to France determined to close the gap to the top five. Kallio has enjoyed success at Le Mans previously, twice finishing on the podium in the 125cc category and taking a hard fought fifth place in last year’s French Moto2 Grand Prix.
After an impressive debut that saw him finish in the points last time out in Jerez, Livio Loi heads to France with his sights set firmly on another top 15 finish. The 16-year-old Belgian won the opening round of the French Moto3 Championship at the track earlier this year and arrives in France full of confidence after a successful two-day test at the Aragon circuit in Spain.
Joining Loi in the Marc VDS Moto3 box this weekend at Le Mans will be Frenchman Jules Danilo, who will be making the first of three wild card appearances with the Marc VDS Racing Team.
The Elf logo will be prominent on all four of the Marc VDS bikes and riders at Le Mans, as part of an agreement that will see the French oil and lubricants giant as the primary sponsor of the Marc VDS Racing Team at five races this season, starting with the French Grand Prix this weekend.
Scott Redding #45:
“It’s been a strong start to the season and, three races in, I’m just one point off the top of the championship standings. But this early on the championship standings are just names on a piece of paper. More important is approaching the Le Mans weekend as we have the previous three races, putting in the work during practice and qualifying to give us the best chance of a good result on Sunday. It’s worked for us so far, so I don’t see why it shouldn’t work again this weekend.”
Mika Kallio #36:
“We’ve put the disappointment of Jerez behind us now. The two-day test at Almeria was interesting, because we tried a set-up on the bike that is quite different to the one we’ve used for the first three races this season. The changes worked well at Almeria and we’re confident they’ll also work at Le Mans, where there are quite a few chicanes and hard braking points. An added advantage is that the revised set-up appears to offer more rear traction, which was our major problem in Jerez. Obviously we will confirm the new settings in practice at Le Mans, but I’m hopeful they’ll work and we’ll be back to where we were in Austin just two races ago.”
Livio Loi #11:
“It was good to finish in the points on my debut in Jerez, but now I need to do the same again this weekend in Le Mans. I won the French Championship race at Le Mans earlier this year, so I know the track, but I’m hoping for slightly less snow when we return for the Grand Prix this weekend! Qualifying on the seventh row of the grid in Jerez made the race more difficult for me, so I need to focus on improving my grid position at Le Mans. I need to be more aggressive, more on the limit in qualifying. I was pushing hard in Jerez, but I think there is still some time to find and, hopefully, I’ll be able to do this in Le Mans this weekend.”
Michael Bartholemy: Team Principal
“At every race so far this season we’ve had a Marc VDS rider on the Moto2 podium and this is a trend I’d like to see continue this weekend in Le Mans. It is the first race of the season at which Elf will be our primary sponsor and I’d like nothing more than to give them something to celebrate at their home race, just as we did last season. I know Scott and Mika feel the same way and, as they’ve shown already this year, both are capable of finishing on the podium. Livio started strongly with a points scoring finish on his Moto3 debut in Jerez, a success I hope he can repeat this weekend, on a track at which he has already won a race this season. I’d also like to extend a warm welcome to Jules Danilo, who joins us this weekend in Le Mans for the first of three wild card appearances he’ll make this season.”
More information and high resolution images are available on the Marc VDS Racing Team website at www.marcvds.com.
The sixth event of the Fim Mtocross World Championship went back to Portugal on the famous red sand of Agueda.
PHILIPPAERTS had another very good weekend on his way back to the top positions where he was used to play before his double injury. For the second consecutive race he finished 8th overall of the Grand Prix after two motos where he was battling with the top five riders. In the second moto DP19 almost took the holeshot with Cairoli on his side and he could manage to ride in the top five for most of the race and just a small mistake let Nagl pass before the end of the moto but David could hold Strijbos behind till the checkered flag. Philippaerts is now 9th overall of the MX1 class and he is now looking forward to the Brazilian GP where he always scored heavy points.
Harri KULLAS in Portugal showed again little improvements and finished 12th overall of the MX2 class. In race #1 Kullas after another start at the back of the field could manage to get through the field bettering his laptimes up to the end and finishing very fast close to the tenth place and signing one of the fastest laptime in the race. Unfortunately in the second moto after the first lap, he was again at the back and couldn’t manage to finish better than fourteen. Kullas is now 14th in the overall MX2 and pointing to the top ten before the end of the season.
Vseva BRYLYAKOV was riding in Portugal the first round of the European Championship MX2 which ammassed nearly 80 riders for the qualifying races and, after a good 8th finish in the Saturday race he was not very lucky on the Sunday Final where he crashed twice trying to get into the top ten and finished 16th overall.
Giacomo Gariboldi: Gariboldi Honda Team Owner:
“I’m satisfied with DP19 races and even if he still misses some spark at the beginning of the races, he then shows that he can now race on the same laptimes of the riders from fourth to six place. May be not everyone realizes how difficult it is for any rider to come back at the best after such a big injury. He is improving all the time and any GP could be the one where he can make the surprise.”"
David Philippaerts, 8th overall of the MX1-GP:
“I’m happy about my 8th place, my laptimes are improving all the time and now we need in Brazil a good result for the team and there everything can happen.”
Harri Kullas, 12th overall of the MX2-GP:
“I feel that every GP I’m improving a bit and today I had a good first moto but of course I still need to work a lot to find back my form and my speed”
Gosselies, Belgium – 29 April 2013: The Marc VDS Racing Team’s Mika Kallio and Scott Redding head for the third round of the 2013 Moto2 World Championship at Jerez this weekend with some confidence, after an impressive performance from both last time out in Texas.
Kallio secured his 36th Grand Prix podium with a hard fought third place finish at the Circuit of the Americas two weeks ago, which saw him leave America tied for second place in the championship standings. The 30-year-old Finn is keen to repeat that success this weekend in Jerez, a track at which he has previously been successful on both 125cc and 250cc machinery.
Redding started from pole position for the first time in his Grand Prix career in Texas, but tyre issues in the race thwarted his bid for a second successive podium finish. The 20-year-old Briton rode intelligently to fifth place and the points lead in the Moto2 World Championship standings, a lead he is keen to extend this weekend with a strong showing in Jerez.
Livio Loi will make his World Championship debut in the Grand Prix of Spain at Jerez this weekend, after celebrating his 16th birthday just two days ago. The Belgian has already won in France this season and heads to Jerez off the back of two top ten finishes in difficult conditions at the opening round of the Spanish Moto3 Championship, which took place at Circuit de Catalunya last weekend.
Situated in southwest Spain on the outskirts of Jerez de la Frontera, the Jerez circuit has a complex layout, offering riders a real challenge. It boasts 13 turns over its 4.42km distance, with a combination of slow technical corners and fast sweeping turns making stability under braking and a good feeling from the front tyre critical when it comes to bike set-up.
Mika Kallio #36:
“The first few races are the most important, with good results helping to build confidence. Now we’re two races into the season and I’ve been top five in both, so my confidence is high going into Jerez, which is a track that suits my riding style better than Austin. In Texas we managed to sort out the few problems we had ahead of the race and the podium finish showed that I had the pace. For this reason I believe we can fight for a podium again this weekend. That’s the goal, anyway.”
Scott Redding #45:
“Jerez promises to be a tough weekend, one of the toughest of the season. A lot of riders are fast at this track and the Spanish riders in particular are always keen to do well at home. After just two races the championship is just names on a piece of paper, but at least it shows we’ve started strongly and that we can be in the hunt for the title. If I’m in with a shout of winning races then I’ll go for it, but this year it’s not about winning every race, it’s more about scoring points every weekend. That’s what we did in Texas and that’s how we’ll continue. If I can come away from Jerez still leading the championship then I’ll be satisfied.”
Livio Loi #11:
“It’s been a long wait but, finally, I get to make my Grand Prix debut this weekend in Jerez and I’m really looking forward to it. I was quick in the wet during preseason testing at the circuit, but we had a few issues with set-up in the dry. This is something we addressed last week while we were at Catalunya and I’m confident that we’ve made a significant improvement in this area now. My main aim this weekend in Jerez is to continue the learning process but, if all goes well, then I think a top 20 finish is a realistic goal.”
Michael Bartholemy: Team Principal
“We head to Jerez on a bit of a high after the success of Texas. We are leading the championship, but the pressure will be on the likes of Nico Terol and Pol Espargaro this weekend. It’s their home Grand Prix and I’m sure they’ll be keen to put on a show for their fans. For us it’s just another race; a race that we’ll approach in the same was as we did Qatar and Texas, hopefully with the same result. It’s a big weekend for Livio, as he’ll finally make his Grand Prix debut for the team at Jerez. He’s keen to make his mark straight away, but we need to be realistic with our expectations. He’ll be racing at the very top level for the first time, against riders who’ve already had two races in which to get up to speed, so I’ll be happy if he comes away with a top twenty finish this weekend.”
More information and high resolution images are available on the Marc VDS Racing Team website at www.marcvds.com.
Barcelona, Spain – 28 April 2013: The Marc VDS Racing Team’s Livio Loi overcame a qualifying crash and tricky conditions to secure a top ten finish in both of today’s CEV Moto3 races at the Circuit de Catalunya.
Fast in the dry conditions of Friday, Loi struggled to find a good set-up on his Kalex-KTM Moto3 machine when the rain arrived on Saturday. The Belgian, who celebrated his 16th birthday yesterday, crashed in the closing stages of the final qualifying session and had to start both Moto3 races from 21st position on the grid.
Despite persistent rain making conditions tricky and grip unpredictable, Loi managed to fight his way through the field to finish tenth in both of today’s 16-lap Moto3 races.
The Marc VDS rider will now head south, to the Jerez circuit in Andalucía, where he will make his debut in the Moto3 World Championship next weekend.
Livio Loi Race 1 – 10th : Race 2 – 10th
“The opening day was the only dry track time we had and I was happy with my lap times, which I was able to improve with every exit. It was wet for qualifying and we struggled to find a good wet set-up on the bike for this track. It was very different to Jerez, where I was able to run in the top five in the wet. Here the front and rear were sliding everywhere, not just on the gas or on the brakes, and I had a fast crash at the end of the long straight as a result. We hadn’t solved the problem for the first race, so tenth was the best I could do in the conditions. We made some changes for the second race, but the feeling with the bike still wasn’t there and I ended up tenth again. At times it was like riding and ice speedway bike, but without the spikes! Now I’m looking forward to Jerez, where I’ll make my world championship debut next weekend.”
Michael Bartholemy: Team Principal
“Livio makes his world championship debut next weekend in Jerez, so he was under orders not to take any risks in Barcelona. In the dry on Friday he quickly got to grips with the track and posted some impressive lap times. The rain arrived on Saturday and remained for today, with Livio struggling to find a set-up in the wet that gave him the confidence he needed to push harder. Despite this, and a crash in qualifying that left him in 21st position on the grid, he still managed two top ten finishes against stiff competition and in tricky conditions today. He’s learning all the time and this weekend was good preparation for his Grand Prix debut next weekend.”
More information and high resolution images are available on the Marc VDS Racing Team website at www.marcvds.com.
Stevie McCann headed down to South America over the weekend to compete in the first of four Global X-Games Series in Brazil. Stevie competed in BMX Big Air and Vert, and was able to walk away from the weekend with a bronze in the vert ramp. The next event will be held in Spain May 16-19th. 
Austin, Texas – 21 April 2013: The Marc VDS Racing Team had double reason to celebrate at the end of the inaugural Grand Prix of the Americas today, with Mika Kallio storming to a brilliant third place and Scott Redding seizing the Moto2 World Championship points lead with a hard earned fifth.
A lightning start from ninth on the grid and a super aggressive first two laps immediately thrust Kallio into podium contention where he remained to the chequered flag after a pulsating fight with Dominique Aegerter and Esteve Rabat.
Using all his experience to try and protect second position at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA), he was fortunate not to crash on the final lap when Aegerter clipped the back of his Kalex machine. Kallio expertly kept control of his bike and he missed out on securing second place by just 0.050s.
His third Moto2 podium though moved him into a three-way tie for second position in the overall World Championship rankings.
Starting from pole position for the first time in his 86-race World Championship career, Redding went straight into full attack mode to try and put clear air between him and the pursuing pack.
But rapidly deteriorating front and rear grip, which Redding had expressed concerns about in advance of the 19-lap clash, meant he was unable to sustain his blistering early pace.
Rather than take unnecessary risks to force his way back into the podium hunt, Redding rode the remainder of the race with precious World Championship points in mind after Pol Espargaro’s unfortunate early crash.
The 11-points secured for a battling fifth position gives Redding a four-point cushion at the top of the World Championship standings heading to the start of the European phase of the 2013 World Championship in Jerez next month.
Mika Kallio #36: 3rd
“I am really happy to be on the podium because it backs up a solid top five in the first race and now I am in a very good position in the championship. It was a very difficult race because I knew Aegerter and Rabat would be coming to attack on the last lap and I knew we’d have a moment. I got clipped from behind but fortunately I stayed on the bike to get a podium. I’m a little disappointed because a small mistake at the last corner cost me second, but I’m still very satisfied. I didn’t have the best top speed or the best front grip, but I could see that I could fight for the podium from the beginning. It has been a great weekend for the Marc VDS Racing Team and this result gives us a lot of confidence heading to Jerez.”
Scott Redding #45: 5th
“I’m obviously disappointed not to be on the podium after starting from pole position but I salvaged fifth position out of a difficult race and now I am leading the championship and that’s a great feeling. Before the race I knew we’d struggle with the tyres going off and that’s exactly what happened. I went out there to win but after six laps I knew it was impossible. I guessed that Espargaro and Nakagami were out so I just used my brain and didn’t push too hard to risk a crash that would have been very costly. It was a decent fifth and now I am leading the championship I need to hold it together for the rest of the year after a great start to the season.”
Michael Bartholemy: Team Principal
“We certainly won’t be forgetting our first trip to COTA in a hurry. Scott scored an amazing debut pole position and today he leaves leading the World Championship after a very mature ride. And Mika got a podium, which was a great way to end the weekend. Mika got a great start and was very aggressive in the first two laps to give himself a great chance of the podium. He then rode really fast while trying to conserve his tyres to stay in the podium places right to the end. He’s now finished in the top five in both races and that is great for his confidence. After Scott’s pole position we’d hoped he’d at least be on the podium. His strategy was to make a break and manage the gap at the front, but we knew he’d have some issues with tyre wear. He still did a brilliant job and he used his head to score some really important points. I’m really happy for the Marc VDS Racing Team and in particular Marc, who has given incredible support to this project. We are leading the World Championship for the first time and hopefully we can remain there.”
More information and high resolution images are available on the Marc VDS Racing Team website at www.marcvds.com.
Gosselies, Belgium – 15 April 2013: The Marc VDS Racing Team head across the Atlantic this week, for the second round of the FIM Moto2 World Championship at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas.
It’s the first time the Circuit of Americas has featured on the Moto2 calendar, but learning the track is not a concern for Scott Redding, who is keen to continue the run of form that saw him finish on the podium in the opening round of the season in Qatar just over one week ago.
Mika Kallio left Qatar disappointed with fifth place in Qatar, as the 30-year-old Finn was convinced a podium finish was on the cards after qualifying on the front row of the grid. Kallio lost ground in the early stages of the race as a result of some over enthusiastic overtaking moves by others, a situation he is keen to avoid this weekend in Texas
Circuit of the Americas was completed in 2012 and is the first purpose built Grand Prix track in the United States. The track, which features a change in elevation of almost 41 metres and a unique incline at the end of the front straight, was designed by Hermann Tilke with input from the 1993 500GP World Champion, Kevin Schwantz.
At 5.513km in length the circuit comprises 11 left and nine right corners, many of which mirror famous sections of iconic racetracks from around the world.
Scott Redding #45:
“Second in Qatar was a good start to the season, but we need to carry that momentum into the next outing in Texas. It’s a new track for everyone, which will be interesting, but I’m sure it won’t take any of us long to get up to speed. I’ve never had a problem learning new tracks and I’m looking forward to seeing what the Circuit of the Americas has to offer. If we approach this race in the same way as we did the last then I think there’s every chance we can repeat the success of Qatar in America. That’s the goal, anyway.”
Mika Kallio #36:
“It was good to get a top five finish in the first race of the season in Qatar, despite some issues with the engine. I didn’t seem to have the acceleration or top speed of the people I was racing against. Other than that the bike worked well in Qatar and, although Circuit of the Americas is a brand new track for us, I’m pretty confident we won’t have to make any big changes to get the bike working equally well there. New circuits have always been quite good for me in the past, so I hope Circuit of the Americas will be the same. It will still take some learning, but I think we’ll be pretty much up to speed on the first day if we can get plenty of laps done in the first two practice sessions.”
Michael Bartholemy: Team Principal
“We got the season off to a flying start in Qatar, with Scott on the podium and Mika finishing top five, but now we need to build on that in Texas with two more strong results. Both riders showed last weekend that they are capable of qualifying and racing at the front and, although Circuit of the Americas is a track at which we have no previous experience, I can see no reason why Scott and Mika shouldn’t do the same again this weekend. Two more good results in Texas would put us in a strong position when we return to Europe at the end of the month for the Jerez race.”
More information and high resolution images are available on the Marc VDS Racing Team website at www.marcvds.com.
