The 2011 Valencian Community motorcycle Grand Prix was the last round of the
2011 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season
The 2011 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season was the 63rd F.I.M. Road Racing World Championship season. The 2011 season was also the final season for 800cc engines in MotoGP, and also for 125cc machinery, as both MotoGP switched back to 1000cc ...
. It took place on the weekend of 4–6 November 2011 at the
Circuito Ricardo Tormo
Circuit Ricardo Tormo, also known as ''Circuit de Valencia'' and officially named ''Circuit de la Comunitat Valenciana Ricardo Tormo'', is a motorsport race track located in Cheste ( Valencian Community, Spain) and built in 1999. The track i ...
. It was the first race after the death of
Marco Simoncelli in
Sepang
Pekan Sepang is a small border town and also a mukim in Sepang District, Selangor, Malaysia. The Sepang International Circuit in the western part of the town, where the Malaysian F1 Grand Prix was and Malaysian MotoGP Grand Prix is held. Mal ...
. It was the final race for the current formula in the premier (MotoGP) and lightweight classes (now known as Moto3). In the premier class, the 800cc engines would be replaced by 1000cc engines. Honda also would change motorcycles at the end of the season, as the
Honda RC212V
The Honda RC212V is a Japanese motorcycle created for road racing in the MotoGP series. Officially introduced on 30 October 2006 as the RC211V replacement in the MotoGP series, it was developed by Honda Racing Corporation ''(HRC)'' throughout 20 ...
that débuted at the
2007 Qatar Grand Prix would be replaced by the
RC213V for the following season. In the lightweight class, the 125cc
two-stroke motorcycle formula would be replaced by 250cc
four-stroke
A four-stroke (also four-cycle) engine is an internal combustion (IC) engine in which the piston completes four separate strokes while turning the crankshaft. A stroke refers to the full travel of the piston along the cylinder, in either directio ...
s for
2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
. This was also the final race for
Suzuki
is a Japan, Japanese multinational corporation headquartered in Minami-ku, Hamamatsu, Japan. Suzuki manufactures automobiles, motorcycles, All-terrain vehicle, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), outboard motor, outboard marine engines, wheelchairs ...
as a factory team until their return in
2015
File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...
.
On Saturday,
Stefan Bradl
Stefan Bradl (born 29 November 1989) is a German professional motorcycle racer. Bradl is best known for winning the Moto2 World Champion. Then he made the move to MotoGP in 2012 with LCR Honda. While in MotoGP, Bradl is best known for his per ...
officially became Moto2 World Champion after his only rival,
Marc Márquez, could not go on the track during the free practices and the qualifying session, because of injuries sustained in
Malaysia.
MotoGP classification
Colin Edwards had an injured shoulder and was replaced by
2011
File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
AMA Pro Superbike champion
Josh Hayes on the
Yamaha Tech 3 and
Jorge Lorenzo was replaced for the second time by test-rider
.
Loris Capirossi retired from
motorcycle racing
Motorcycle racing (also called moto racing and motorbike racing) is the motorcycle sport of racing motorcycles. Major varieties include motorcycle road racing and off-road racing, both either on circuits or open courses, and track racing. Ot ...
following the race.
Although
Gresini Racing originally pulled out of the Valencia race after Simoncelli's fatal accident, it was later decided that the team would race. As tribute to Marco Simoncelli, Loris Capirossi, in his final MotoGP race, participated wearing Simoncelli's racing number 58 instead of his usual racing number 65, although on the official reports he was still listed as #65. All riders from MotoGP, Moto2 and the 125cc races participated in a parade lap on Sunday morning after the warm-up session with 1993 500cc World Champion
Kevin Schwantz riding Simoncelli's bike.
Valentino Rossi wore a tribute helmet.
The finish was one of the tightest in MotoGP history as already crowned World Champion
Casey Stoner came from a long way back on acceleration out of the last corner to leapfrog
Ben Spies at the finish line by just 0.015 seconds.
Moto2 classification
125 cc classification
Championship standings after the race (MotoGP)
Below are the standings for the top five riders and constructors after round eighteen has concluded.
;Riders' Championship standings
;Constructors' Championship standings
*
Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.
References
{{MotoGP 2010–19
Valencian Community motorcycle Grand Prix
Valencian
Valencian motorcycle
21st century in Valencia
Valencian Community motorcycle Grand Prix