Hi Everyone

Are you going to the NEC Bike Show ?

Danny has joined the trio of British 125 cc stars attending the Carole Nash International Motorcycle and Scooter Show at the NEC Birmingham at the end of the week.

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Danny will be joined by this years worls championship runner up, Bradley Smith and last year’s British Grand Prix winner Scott Redding.

The trio will be at Press Day on Thursday and will be available for interviews and photographs.

Danny will be available throughout the day on the 'Young British Riders' stand in Hall 2 for autographs and photographs.

Danny, who had a successful test with his new Jack and Jones 125 cc team last week, will also be at the Silverstone Stand on Thursday morning and will attend the show on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. 

Steve

The Ricardo Tormo Circuit provided the location for Danny Webb’s initiation on the Aprilia of the Jack & Jones team this week, as the youngster began the process of fine tuning the bike to his own requirements ahead of the new season.

The test proved a successful one for both rider and team, with Webb finding a very comfortable “feeling with the bike”, despite still carrying some after-effects of his crash in Malaysia.

Webb completed just 20 laps due to the slightly unfavourable conditions of the track, and the 18 year-old was pleased with how things went.

“I like how the team works a lot,” said Webb. “I believe in them and I think we have the best mechanics. I’ve gotten used to them very quickly and this is because they have a great attitude. With some more tests and some fine tuning of the bike, we know we can be fast.”

There was great news for young English rider Danny Webb this weekend at the Gran Premio Generali de la Comunitat Valenciana, when it was announced that he has signed for the Jack & Jones sponsored WRB team for the 2010 and 2011 seasons.

Webb will hope to realise his potential with the successful Jack & Jones team, having has an inconsistent season this year with Degraaf Grand Prix in his third full season in the World Championship. The Jack & Jones team currently have Grand Prix winner Nico Terol sitting third in the 125cc rankings and Simone Corsi was the 125cc World Championship runner-up on their machinery last year.

“I am really excited as this is one of the top teams in the 125cc class, so I can’t wait to start testing and to start bonding with the team,” stated Webb. “Hopefully I can get results like Nico has done and maybe even better and try for the World Championship. Next year I will still be getting used to the team, but hopefully the year after I can really challenge.”

Javier Sabio, Team Manager for Jack & Jones, added, “We decided to sign Danny because of the enormous enthusiasm he showed about joining us and the obvious natural riding talent he possesses. We believe that with plenty of hard work and with a long term strategy in mind, we will get the results we want.”

During this session there was a lot of wind and the riders couldn’t ride the same lap times as in the pre season test. Both DeGraaf Grand Prix riders used the session to get a good set-up for the rest of the weekend. British rider Danny Webb used the session to find out how his broken foot would react on riding at the track. Webb has a lot of pain but the good thing is that the pain stays the same the whole session. This means Webb is able to ride the race in his full length.

During the last Grand Prix at Valencia British teenager Danny Webb signed for the top rated WRB Jack & Jones Team for the 2010 and 2011 season in the 125GP World Championship. The 18-year old Danny Webb will join the Jack & Jones squad which has run the highly-rated Spaniard Nicolas Terol in the 2008 and 2009 season.

Danny Webb: “First of all I want to thank the DeGraaf Grand Prix Team of team-owner Arie Molenaar. They have given me the change to ride Grand Prix’ and, looking back to my first GP season in 2007, we made a big step forwards. I had a great time the past three years. I want to thank team owner Arie Molenaar and team manager Jarno Janssen. Jarno really helped me a lot the in this period. I’m grateful for my personal mechanics Rob van de Braak and Rick Vertogen and my friend Damion Bailey which helped me out these past seasons with the suspension and my bike. My chief engineer Hans Spaan gave me the best bike as possible and I have a lot of respect for him. My friend Marlon Fluit will still helping me out the next years and I’m really happy that he will continue with me.
Now it is time to take the next step in my career. I will join the WRB Jack & Jones team for the next two years and I really excited to ride for this team. They are really a great team and I like to ride for them. They have a lot of experience and I think I can have a real change of fighting for the World Championship the next two seasons. I will have my first ride for them in the next two weeks. Hopefully my foot will be a bit better than now at the time!”

British rider Danny Webb had not a good start of the weekend. In the last ten minutes Webb lost the front and crashed. This innocent crash was the end of the session for the English man who had troubles with the front. Webb closed the session on a 22nd position with less than 3 seconds behind the provisional pole position.

The DeGraaf Grand Prix Team had a disappointed qualification session. Right at the beginning of the session both riders crashed. First Randy Krummenacher crashed out and a couple of minutes later also Danny Webb crashed. The mechanics had a tough job to fix the both Aprilia’s on time so the DeGraaf Grand Prix riders could continue the session. They succeeded and Danny Webb was able to ride three laps and will start tomorrow from the sixth row at a 21^st position.

The qualification during the bwin.com GRANDE PREMIO DE PORTUGAL in a sunny Portugal went good for the DeGraaf Grand Prix Team. British rider Danny Webb made a big step forward compare to the Friday session and qualified 10th. Also Randy Krummenacher made a big improvement compare to the Friday in lap time and qualified on an 18^th position.

The free practice session on the Saturday morning both DeGraaf Grand Prix riders were able to improve their lap times of the Friday session. The set-up of both Aprilia’s felt good for both riders. Danny Webb and Randy Krummenacher want some more grip in the rear and the team is working on this. Danny Webb finished the session at the 15^th place and Randy Krummenacher ended the session on a 19e position. 

The weather circumstances during the qualification session were nearly the same as on Friday with temperatures around the 26 degrees. British rider Danny Webb had a good session and qualified on a good 10^th position. Webb had a long first run and was able to improve his lap time from the Saturday morning and was even on P2 in the first 10 minutes of the session. In his last run Webb was able to improve his lap time again and didn’t use a tow of some other rider. After the session was finished Webb qualified on the third row on P10.

Danny Webb (21^e, 1:48,539): “It didn’t went well today. After three weekends of rest it took me a few laps to get in my rhythm. From the start of the session I felt the bike wasn’t as strong as normal. After the session me and Hans Spaan checked the data and we saw were we can improve. I will have a good night sleep so we can be on it tomorrow!”

The GP Cinzano di San Marino e Riviera di Rimini 125cc race was one of the most exciting races of the season. In this race Danny Webb manage to grab another top 10 position this season. Randy Krummenacher has been held up in the first lap by a crash of Sergio Gadea and finish just outside the points on a 17th position. 

British rider Danny Webb didn’t have one of his good starts and dropped back from 13th to a 17th place in the first lap. Already in the beginning of the race Webb was in a group fighting for a 14^th position. After the Blusens riders Scott Redding and Esteve Rabat came in to the pit-lane with mechanical problems, Webb‘s group was battling for a 12^th position. In the last lap the two leaders of the race crashed out and Webb finish at a good 10^th place.

After the extreme hot weather on Friday during the GP Cinzano di San Marino e Riviera di Rimini it was today a little bit cooler. With still temperatures around the 30 degrees it was a hard job for the riders. The DeGraaf Grand Prix rider Danny Webb manage in the last minute to qualify on a 13^th spot and the Swiss rider Randy Krummenacher had to accept a 23^rd position on the sixth row. 

The free practice on Saturday morning did not go entirely smoothly. Both riders still had problems with the front suspension set-up but by the end of the session it went better and better. Randy Krummenacher made a big step and finished the session on a 17^th position. The British rider Danny Webb crashed in his fastest lap in the last minute of the session. Webb ended on a 22^nd spot.

Temperatures rose above 30 degrees here in the qualifying session so the conditions were almost the same as on Friday. Qualifying was difficult for both DeGraaf Grand Prix riders. Throughout the session, both drivers stayed out of the top 20 and the Swiss rider randy Krummenacher was not even in the top 30. Danny Webb moved forward in the last three and manage to take a second of his lap time and finished 13^th. Krummenacher also made amends in the final minutes and came from the 32nd to the 23rd position 2.0 seconds from the fastest man Bradley Smith. 

Danny Webb (13^th, 1:45,188): “It wasn’t easy today! We have made a step forward in the set-up of the suspension and this felt better. In qualifying it was difficult and I struggled to ride a fast lap time. In the last three laps I was in a group which helped me to improve my lap time. I couldn’t see the lap time on my dashboard but when I saw P13 I was happy. Tomorrow we will make some minor adjustments at the suspension that we can test in the warm-up. I'm ready for the race tomorrow and I try to fight for a top 10 position.”

The Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix has brought the DeGraaf Grand Prix Team five important points. After a bad first lap the British rider Danny Webb climbed up to a 11^th position. Randy Krummenacher had a tough race and crashed out six laps before the chequered flag. Luckily Krummenacher didn’t hurt himself. 

The start was good from Danny Webb. Only the first lap Webb lost a lot of positions and dropped back to a 21st spot. With excellent lap times Webb was able to pass many riders and could hold on this race pace. With five more laps to go Webb came trough on P9 but made a mistake in the last lap coming out of the last turn and lost two positions. Webb survives the nearly high sider and scored five points for the championship.

 After a couple of showers at the Friday session, today it was dry at the Indianapolis Speedway. In the free practice this morning both riders tested a different set-up of the front fork and this was a big step in the right direction. Danny Webb was able to ride a faster lap time than his time of the Friday and ended the session on a 13^th position. Randy Krummenacher was even more than a second faster than the Friday and closed the session at a 20th position. 

The qualification session started well for the British teenager Danny Webb. In the first ten minutes of the session Webb was leading the pack and could hold this position a couple of minutes. After Webb came in for a small adjustment of the suspension Webb was able to ride consistent fast lap times on his own. In the last ten minutes Webb took nearly a second of his lap time and moved up to a 7th position. In his last flying lap Webb was able to take a tow of Ianonne but couldn’t improve his lap time. Webb closed the session on an 11^th position with just 0,6 seconds behind pole position man Julian Simon.

The start of the Red Bull Indianapolis Grand Prix started sunny but spoiled the practice into he last six minutes of the session.  The DeGraaf Grand Prix riders Danny Webb and Randy Krummenacher ended this first session at a 18^th and 19^th position.  

With temperatures around the 30 degrees the 125cc class started sunny but ended with rain. The riders really like the track and especially the accommodation with 500.000(!) seats at the stands. Danny Webb builds up this session lap by lap. Every lap Webb was a bit faster. In the last ten minutes the British rider wanted to focus on fast laps but didn’t have a change because of the rain which was dropping at the track in the last six minutes.

Danny Webb (18^th, 1:52,491): “This is not the result I expected. We worked a lot at the set-up of the suspension and searched for a good rear-tyre for this track and conditions. When we finally found a good set-up and the right tires it started to rain in the last session I went out. It is too bad because I know that these last minutes would be much faster than before. Anyway, it is the first session and tomorrow we have to qualify. I have a good feeling and expect tomorrow to be more in the front.” 

After some tough practices and qualification session the Cardion AB Grand Prix Ceske Republiky didn’t bring points for the DeGraaf Grand Prix riders. Danny Webb and Randy Krummenacher were battling in the same group and end up at a 16^th and 17^th position. 

With a 15^th spot at the grid Danny Webb didn’t had a good start as usual. When the lights went out the British teenager lost three positions in the first turn and passed the first lap in 18^th position. Webb had difficulties to pass a slower rider in front of him and lost connection with the group. During the race it wasn’t possible to close the gap and Webb had to battle for a 16th position. In this group was also his team-mate Randy Krummenacher and they both had a big fight in the group. Webb ended the race at a 16^th position.

The Cardion AB Grand Prix Ceske Republiky is till now a difficult mission. Danny Webb could improve his lap time of this morning with more than one second and qualified 15th at tomorrow’s grid. Randy Krummenacher improved his time of yesterday with more than one and half second but still had to be satisfied with a 23rd position at the sixth row at the grid. 

The second free practice of this morning was used by the two DeGraaf Grand Prix Team riders to find a good set-up of their suspension. Also both riders were using different type of tyres so they can make a good choice for the qualification and the race. The results were not good at the end with a 23rd position for Randy Krummenacher and a 25th position for Danny Webb.

The Cardion AB Grand Prix Ceske Republiky didn’t start well for the DeGraaf Grand Prix Team. The British teenager Danny Webb had a short session. After a few laps the Aprilia of Webb had a mechanical problem and couldn’t continue the session. Swiss rider Randy Krummenacher had today problems to find his rhythm and finish at a 28th position.

The weather circumstances were good at the Brno track with temperatures of 22 degrees. For Danny Webb the session was too soon over. After running in his engine and two fast laps, Webb came into the garage. After several minutes Webb went out again but just could finish his first lap. Just before the last turn the bike had a mechanical problem. It wasn’t possible to fix this during the session and so the session was over for the British teenager.

Danny Webb (33rd, 2:14,559): “This is the first time this season that my Aprilia broke down. I’m glad that it happened today in the free practice and not in the qualification session. I was breaking into the last turn and suddenly the power was gone. I looked back and saw a lot of smoke and knew that this will be the end of the session. When I came back in the garage it was clear that we couldn’t fix the problem during this session. Tomorrow I have to focus on the set-up in the free practice. I feel good and despite this problem we still can do a good result!”

 After the sunny day at the Saturday qualification today it was typical British weather with showers. The race was split in two races after a red flag in the 14^th lap of the race. For Danny Webb the race was short because of a crash in the chicane in the first lap together with five other riders. Randy Krummenacher had a good first race but had an innocent crash and could participate in the second race over 5 laps. The second race Krummenacher finishes just outside the points on an 18th position. 

During the first race there was some light rain dropping down and there were some wet spots at the track like the chicane. Danny Webb did not survive the first lap and was involved in the crash with several riders. Some of the riders rode over Webb’s Aprilia and the race was over for the little British rider.

Exciting qualifying session at Donington Park brings DeGraaf Grand team 4th and 6th starting row The weather was perfect today at Donington Park. After the heavy showers on the Friday today it stays dry and sunny. The home race for Danny Webb isn’t successful yet. In the qualification session the British rider qualified at the 4th row with a 14th position.  De thuis wedstrijd van de DeGraaf Grand Prix rijder Danny Webb is tot nu toe nog niet succesvol verlopen. De Brit kwalificeerde zich op de vierde startrij met een 14^e positie. The Swiss rider Randy Krummenacher had some set-up problems and couldn’t be further to the front than the 21st position at the 6th row.

The free practice session in the morning didn’t go good for the DeGraaf Grand Prix Team. The team was struggling with the set-up for both riders. Danny Webb and Randy Krummenacher tried different type of tires and were looking for a better set-up. At the end of the session both riders had to give in one and a half second compare to the fastest rider of the session Julion Simon. Danny Webb finishes at the 15^th position while Randy Krummenacher ended the session at an 18^th position.

The qualification session has been ridden in dry and Sunny weather circumstances. De kwalificatie werd gelukkig in droge en zonnige weersomstandigheden gereden. It was an exciting qualification session with 14 riders in the 1,1 seconds of the fastest rider Bradley Smith. Also the DeGraaf Grand Prix rider and British citizen Danny Webb was one of these 14 riders. Webb has some difficulties with the two hairpins of the track and will focus of these turns in the warm-up session tomorrow morning.

At the British Donington Park the free practice started dry but within three laps the showers started. Just like the free practice at the Sachsenring the rain breaks in into o this session. The DeGraaf Grand Prix riders could only run in their bike in the dry spare moment and switch after the running in laps on rain tires. These running in laps were there classification of this session. British rider Danny Webb ended at a 15^th position and Randy Krummenacher at a 33^rd position.

After ten minutes Danny Webb and Randy Krummenacher went out in the rain. Both riders build up their laps and didn’t want to force a fast lap time in the rain. Halfway the session the rain stopped but the track didn’t dry fast. 

Danny Webb (15^th, 1:49,125): “Today it was typical British weather. Then the sun is shining and a minute later it can heavily rain. Also in this session today we started at a dry track and a couple of minutes later we had heavy showers. The lap times of today are the running in laps. At the dry track. In the rain I had a good feeling and could build up my pace every lap. I have a lot of confidence for the rest of the weekend and I hope the qualification session on Saturday will be dry.”

The Alice Motorrad Grand Prix Deutschland did not bring luck yet for the DeGraaf Grand Prix Team. Randy Krummenacher had a technical problem and Danny Webb crashed out hard in this wet qualification session.  Danny Webb will start from the 17th position and Randy Krummenacher wasn’t even qualified but will be riding the race tomorrow.

The free practice session started wet but the last 20 minutes the track was dry. Danny Webb and Randy Krummenacher ended this session at the 11^th and 12^th position.

Danny Webb (7^th, 1:29,967): “It was strange in that halfway the session the rain came down. I could ride a 7^th time before the rain started but I wasn’t pushing at all yet. My injuries are pretty ok after my crash in Assen so that won’t be a problem this weekend. In the rain I was building up the speed and every lap I could ride 2 seconds faster and ended up on a 5^th position in the rain. I have a good feeling and the weather forecast for tomorrow is rain again but I think I can be on the second row in qualifying.”

The Alice TT Assen race was a short one for Danny Webb. In the first lap Danny was taken out by the American Cameron Beaubier. Beaubier crashed before he hit Webb in the slow corner named De Strubben. Webb doesn’t blame Beaubier about the crash and also Beaubier came by to say sorry.

After the crash Webb went to Doctor Costa because Webb had injured his left foot and his right little finger again. Luckily his foot is not broken and goes better at the moment with his foot. This will not be a problem for the next race in Germany at the Sachsenring.   Webb injured his right little finger during the Grand Prix at Catalunya. Webb needed a couple of stitches and lost his nail. It went better for the next race last weekend at Assen.

Unfortunately in the race Webb injured his little finger again and went for a check-up with Doctor Costa. Doctor Costa cleaned his finger and put some bandage on the finger.  On Sunday, when Webb arrived back in England, the finger was still bleeding and went to a local hospital nearby his village. The doctors at the hospital noticed that the finger got infected and let Webb stay for a night in the hospital and gave him antibiotics.  

Luckily Webb was on time at the hospital because it was close that the infection could course an amputation of the finger. Webb arrived today back home and still have to take the antibiotics but will be 100% fit for the next race at Sachsenring on 19 July.

The warm-up session was a bad one for Danny Webb. Sergio Gadea took Webb out in the out lap and the bike was too much damaged to ride the session. Randy Krummenacher had a good pace in this session but finished on a 14th position.    

The race was short for DeGraaf Grand Prix rider Danny Webb. In the first lap Webb was t-boned by another rider and injured his left foot. Randy Krummenacher had a reasonable start and tried to connect to the second group. In the second lap Krummenacher pushed a bit too hard and crashed also. The home race for the DeGraaf Grand Prix Team was ended soon.

The good start of the weekend for the DeGraaf Grand Prix Team during the 79th Alice TT Assen couldn’t be continued in the qualification session. Danny Webb and Randy Krummenacher qualified at the fourth row with a 13^th and 14^th position.

 The Friday morning session went very good for British rider Danny Webb. During nearly the whole session Webb was able to ride lap times in the top 5. In the last minutes of the session Webb dropped back to a 7^th position and was only half a second slower than the fastest rider Sergio Gadea. Randy Krummenacher still worked in this session to get a better set-up and could improve his lap times every lap in the last part of the session. Krummenacher ended the session on a 14^th position.  

The qualification session started good for the British rider Danny Webb. In the first ten minutes Webb was the quickest rider. Halfway the session Webb dropped back to a 7^th position and came in for a set of new tires. In the last ten minutes Webb was really pushing but every lap he was held up by slower riders or riders who are waiting for fast riders. Webb has to be satisfied with a 13^th position on the fourth row, which he is really not.

De Gran Premi Cinzano de Catalunya race was a difficult and tough one for the DeGraaf Grand Prix Team. Randy Krummenacher had an ok start but lost a lot of positions in the first lap and dropped back to P16. Krummenacher had a catch up race and fought back to a 10th position and scored 6 points. Danny Webb had a superb start but couldn’t hold the whole race with his hand injury and call it a day in the 13^th lap.  

During the warm up session, which started at 08.40 hour, it was already hot with 24 degrees. Randy Krummenacher had a good session and ended the session at a nice 7^th position. Danny Webb used the session only to ride in the piston of his Aprilia and gave his hand some rest to save it for the race.

Till today we had a very sunny and hot Gran Premio D’Italia Alice but today it started to rain. The 125cc race had some luck and was ridden at a dry track wherein Danny Webb with a good start was battling in the leading group. Unfortunaly the race ended too early for Webb by a crash. Randy Krummenacher had a bad start but rode a very strong race and take three points with a 13th position.

At the Sunny and hot track of Mugello the DeGraaf Grand Prix Team manage to qualify at the third and fourth starting row during the Gran Premio D’Italia Alice. Danny Webb grabbed the 13^th position and Krummenacher rode his Aprilia to a nice 13^th position at the fourth row. 

The second free practice this morning was a good one for the DeGraaf Grand Prix Team. Danny Webb and Randy Krummenacher ended this session on a good 8^th and 9^th position. This result gave hope for the team to hold on this positions or even better in the afternoon qualification. 

It’s all about slipstreaming at the high-speed track of Mugello. In the thirst half of the session Danny Webb tried to get a good race pace and concentrate at the second half of the session to catch a good slipstream at the long straight. One time Webb had a perfect slipstream and manages to set his fastest lap time in that lap. In the last ten minutes Webb waited for another slipstream but couldn’t find a good one. In his last lap of the session Webb had a good tow of Nicolas Terol but this time Terol wasn’t so fast and Webb couldn’t improve his lap time. The British teenager will start tomorrow from the third row of the 10^th position.

The fifth Grand Prix of the season started today under sunny and warm circumstances.  The Gran Premio D’Italia Alice brought British rider Danny Webb a 13th position in the first free practice. Swiss rider Randy Krummenacher was only half a second slower than his teammate and ended on a 16th position. 

The DeGraaf Grand Prix Team used the one hour free practice to create a good basic set-up. For the riders Danny Webb and Randy Krummenacher it went ok to find a good set-up and were able to ride competitive lap times. Danny Webb had a good session and was nearly all the session in the top 10. In the last minutes Webb dropped to a 13^th position. Randy Krummenacher tried to get into the top 10 and nearly succeeded but at the end he was on the 16th spot.

The Grand Prix of France was a real battlefield for the 125cc riders. There were 30 registrations of crashes and several riders crashed two or three times this race. Also Randy Krummenacher crashed three times but manages to finish the race and scored his first point of the season. Danny Webb crashed already early in the race and couldn’t continue the race.  

  The warm-up session in the morning was a good session for the DeGraaf Grand Prix riders. The track was dry and Danny Webb had an excellent session and finished on a 5^th position. Randy Krummenacher had also a good session and was till the last few minutes in the top 10 but ended on a 15^th spot.   

Half an hour before the start of the race it started slightly to rain. On the grid it was already serious rain. Danny Webb had again a good start and tried not to push in the first chicane and was 10^th in the first lap. The race was short for the little British teenager and crashed in the fourth lap. Unfortunaly the clip-on and foot rest was broken and the race was over for him.

The extra time in the Friday practice which started from this Grand Prix in Le Mans, didn’t brought yet the result the riders were hoping for. Danny Webb ended the session on a 16th position and teammate Randy Krummenacher ended on a 19th position.    

After the rain on Thursday night, the track was still wet in the first 20 minutes of the one hour session. But the sun was already shining and the track dried very fast. Most of the riders used the rain tyres and were running in the engine and came after this into the pit box to switch to slick tires. Danny Webb missed the first part of the practice because of a small technical problem. In this case it wasn’t a problem this time because Webb could directly go out on slick tires and didn’t lose so much time.

The 125cc race of the Gran Premio bwin.com De España has given the deGraaf Grand Prix Team the second top 10 finish in a row. The British rider Danny Webb couldn’t connect with the Group in front of him but still manage to take a 8th position. Randy Krummenacher finisht on a 17th position and just lost the fight for the points.

On the Saturday of the Gran Premio bwin.com De España it was all about the wind. After rain at Qatar and Japan, there is a lot of sun but also a lot of wind in Spain. The lightweight Danny Webb was in advance with his weight and manages to grab the second row with an 8^th position. Randy Krummenacher was smart in this session and used other riders their slipstream and ended up at a nice 13th starting position.

 In the Saturday morning session the wind wasn’t as strong as in the qualification session but still much more compare to the Friday. Randy Krummenacher was the fastest DeGraaf Grand Prix rider with a 14th position. Danny Webb was struggled with the set-up and wasn’t happy with his 16th position.   

The wind was so hard during the qualification session that it was hard for the mechanics to hold their light weight carbon pit boards. Also the DeGraaf Grand Prix riders found it difficult to ride with this wind but manage to have both a good qualification. Danny Webb grabbed the second row and Swiss rider Randy Krummenacher just missed the third row and will start tomorrow from a 13^th position.   

Danny Webb (8^th, 1:49,353): ‘This second row feels good. It is the best qualification we had for this season. I’m happy with the progression we make. We not on a perfect set-up yet but we working in the right direction and it feels better and better on the bike. The wind was really extreme today. I had to work hard to hold mine line but manage to ride to the second row. For tomorrow in the race I hope to fight for a top 5 position but it will be tough to get there!”

PEMBURY'S Danny Webb was just eight laps from winning his first 125cc MotoGP following a remarkable ride in Motegi, Japan, on Sunday.

The 18-year-old gambled on wet tyres on a drying circuit and at one point led the race by an astonishing nine seconds. But as his tyres overheated and riders on slicks gained more confidence the gap soon came down, and he was unable to defend his lead.

Webb eventually finished 11th, but was nonetheless delighted with his performance.

"I'm really happy with this race," the DeGraaf Grand Prix rider said. "I couldn't believe I was leading the race for so long and with this gap. I was waiting for the others to pass me because I was on full wet tyres and a lot of fast riders were on slicks. The track was drying very quickly and I knew I couldn't hold this position. At the end I still got five points. I'm happy with the bike and I think we have sorted out the suspension problems we had before. I can't wait for Jerez."

Webb had been on the pace all weekend in changeable conditions and showed his potential in the wet early on by posting the fastest time in treacherous conditions during free practice. He eventually qualified 13th.

For the race it was a gamble for choosing the right tyres.Webb chose the full wet tyres on the front and rear and it went superbly during the first half of the race.

In the early stages those with rubber more apt for fully wet conditions took off in front with Webb leading by nearly 10 seconds. However, the race didn't have a fairytale ending and he was hunted down by the pack, headed by Julian Simon and eventual winner Andrea Iannone.

The Polini Grand Prix of Japan was a patchy damp track for the opening laps rapidly drying, and the riders took their chances on the changeable weather at Twin Ring Motegi. In the early stages of the race those with rubber more apt for fully wet conditions took off in front with Danny Webb leading. Halfway the race Webb had to let pass the other riders with slick tires but still manage to finish at the 11^th position. Randy Krummenacher had a cut slick in the rear and full wet in the front but it started to dry for him too late and finished just outside the points on a 18^th position.    

The warm-up session was extended with ten minutes because there was no qualifying session at Saturday due the heavy rain fall. The track was still wet but drying in this session and those conditions suited Danny Webb very good. The British teenager manages to finish this session on top of the timesheets with nearly a second gap to the rest of the field. Randy Krummenacher didn’t like these conditions and had no good feeling with the bike and was struggling. The Swiss youngster ended this session at the 29^th position.    

For the race it was a gambling for choosing the right tires. Danny Webb chooses the full wet tires in front and rear. It went superb the first half of the race and Webb was leading the race with a nearly ten second gap. The track was drying fast and in the 12^th lap Simon past the British DeGraaf Grand Prix rider. Now it was important to score some points and Webb did with a 11^th position being fastest rider with full wet tires at the track. 

The Polini Grand Prix of Japan started Friday on the cold track of Motegi. The first free practice and also the last practice of today, Danny Webb was able to ride to a 13^th position. Randy Krummenacher made to the 22^nd position during this first session.  

The weather circumstances are a lot colder than the desert temperatures of Qatar. It was barely 13^th degrees at the Motegi circuit. During the 40 minute session of today the British rider Danny Webb needed a little bit more track time to get a better lap time and set-up. Because of a technical failure Webb missed ten minutes of the session. Still Webb was able to ride a decent lap time and got on the 13^th position at the timesheets.

Season 2009 started today. It wasn’t the best start for the DeGraaf Grand Prix Team. Danny Webb was struggling with the front fork set-up and Swiss rider Randy Krummenacher didn’t had a fast lap because of a mechanical problem. Danny Webb finishes this free practice at the 19th position and Randy Krummenacher ended at the last position. 

For the second time in the history there is a Grand Prix race in the dark here on the Losail International circuit. This new season the organisation decided to cut down one session on the Friday. Now there is only one free practice on the Friday and one free practice and one qualification session at the Saturday. All the sessions are 40 minutes this year. British teenager Danny Webb struggled with the set-up of the front fork. Saturday their will be two sessions and more time to find the right set-up.

The DeGraaf Grand Prix Team had a successful second test day at the Losail circuit of Qatar. British rider Danny Webb finishes this day just outside the top 10 and was a second faster than Monday. Teammate Randy Krummenacher could improve his lap time by one tenth of a second compare the first test day and ended in the top 15. The DeGraaf Grand Prix Team has some points to improve at the set-up of the Aprilia RSA bikes before the first Grand Prix of the year starts. The riders have two days of rest and than the season start!

The First test of the DeGraaf Grand Prix Team is a fact. Today was the third and last day of the Estoril test. The weather circumstances were again good but their was much more wind than the days before. With this wind it was very difficult to improve lap times. British rider Danny Webb didn’t manage to improve his lap times and had some problems at the end of the day. Randy Krummenacher was able to improve his lap time with half a second. The DeGraaf Grand Prix Team looks back at a successful test and can’t wait to travel to the IRTA test from Wednesday 25 March until Friday 28 March at the Spanish Jerez track.  

 Danny Webb: “This wasn’t the best day of the test here at Estoril. We struggled in the morning with the set-up of the engine but at the end of the morning we had a good set-up. Unfortunaly the weather changed compare to the two days before. Their was a lot of wind today and it is hard to improve your lap time. In the afternoon it went better and we worked a lot on the suspension set-up. Two hours before the end of the day we had small engine problem and decided to call it the day. I’m quite happy with this test. The bike has a lot of potential. We still have five more days of testing and I can’t wait for next week to ride again during the official IRTA test at Jerez.”

After a couple of laps during the team presentation on the Dutch TT Assen track, today started the first official test of the DeGraaf Grand Prix Team of 2009. On the beautiful track of Estoril in Portugal the first test day was successful with great weather and temperatures of 25 degrees. DeGraaf Grand Prix riders Randy Krummenacher and Danny Webb had a good test and were satisfied with today. 

Danny Webb: “Finally it feels nice to be back on the bike. With this great weather it was a very useful day of testing. The bike is completely new for me and for the team. From the moment I left pit-lane it felt good. We still have a lot of work to do before the light goes to green in Qatar. I’m satisfied about today and can’t wait for tomorrow.”

British teenager Danny Webb will ride for his third year for the Dutch DeGraaf Grand Prix Team.  After Danny scored 3 points in his first full Grand Prix season in 2007 Webb showed his potential in 2008. After several top 10 and even a top 5 finishes and three times front row qualifying last season, Webb feels ready to make the jump to the absolute top of the 125GP World Championship and battle for the top positions. With the new factory Aprilia RSA Webb is convinced to grab podium finishes.
 
Danny Webb:

“First of all I want to thank the DeGraaf Grand Prix team for the Faith in me and sign me up for the third season. We had a pretty good season in 2008 and we showed the world that we can be very fast at some tracks. We had also some bad luck but still the team has the potential to win races. I really have the feeling that with this combination we have this year that we can battle for the championship. We have a great team with the right people at the right spot and a top of all we have a factory Aprilia RSA. I can’t wait to start the season but before the start of the season we will test at the Estoril track (15-17 March), the IRTA test at Jerez (25-27 March) and just before the first race in Qatar we will test 2 days (6-7 April) at this track. It’s going to be a great season and hopefully we can bring the World Title to England!”