Lorenzo Baldassarri (born 6 November 1996) is an Italian
Grand Prix motorcycle racer, currently competing for GMT94 Yamaha in the
2023 Superbike World Championship. Baldassarri recently raced in the
Supersport World Championship, finishing runner-up to
Dominique Aegerter in the
2022 standings, but is best known for winning the
2011 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup.
Career
Junior career
Baldassarri won the
2011 Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup with incredible consistency, despite being just 14 years old when he won the title. He won just two races, compared to runner-up
Arthur Sissis winning four, but never finished outside the points, and only once finished outside the top 6, while all his rivals had multiple retirements during the season. Baldassarri won the 2011 title with 208 points, over riders like Sissis,
Philipp Öttl,
Florian Alt,
Brad Binder
Brad Binder (born 11 August 1995) is a South African Grand Prix motorcycle racer. He is most-known for winning the 2016 Moto3 World Championship. In November 2019 he was confirmed as Red Bull KTM Factory Racing rider in MotoGP class for the 20 ...
,
Joe Roberts, and
Andrea Migno
Andrea Migno (born 10 January 1996) is an Italian Grand Prix motorcycle racer. Migno has also been a competitor in the Italian Honda 125GP Trofeo, the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup
The Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup is a motorcycle racing series con ...
.
At age 15, not being the minimum age of 16 to enter the
Moto3
Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the premier class of motorcycle road racing events held on road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held since the start of ...
championship, Baldassarri returned to the Rookies Cup for the
2012 season, but struggled with motivation, winning the second race of the season in Jerez, and then never finishing on the podium again. He ended the year 8th in the standings, with 101 points.
Moto3 World Championship
Baldassarri finally made his long awaited
Grand Prix motorcycle racing debut in the
2013 Moto3 World Championship, partnering
Niccolò Antonelli
Niccolò Antonelli (born 23 February 1996) is an Italian Grand Prix motorcycle racer, who most recently competed in the 2022 Moto2 World Championship, riding for Mooney VR46 Racing Team. Antonelli won the Italian 125GP Championship in 2011.
Ca ...
at
Gresini Racing
Gresini Racing is a motorcycle racing team competing in the MotoGP World Championship under the name Gresini Racing MotoGP as a Ducati satellite team, in the Moto2 World Championship as Team Gresini Moto2, and the MotoE World Cup as Felo Gresin ...
team. His season was a big disappointment, failing to score points in any of the 17 races that year.
Moto2 World Championship
Gresini Moto2 (2014)
Still considered an elite talent, Baldassarri was promoted to
Moto2
Grand Prix motorcycle racing is the premier class of motorcycle road racing events held on road circuits sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM). Independent motorcycle racing events have been held since the start of ...
for the
2014 season, partnering
Xavier Siméon at Gresini. Baldassarri fared better, scoring points in four races, an 11th place in Barcelona, a 9th place in Assen, a 14th place in Phillip Island, and a 10th place in Valencia, scoring 20 points total for the season, and finishing 25th in the standings.
Forward Racing Team (2015–2017)
Switching teams for the
2015 season, Baldassarri would ride for Athina
Forward Racing
Forward Racing is a motorcycle racing team competing in the Moto2 World Championship.
History
The team started competing in the MotoGP class as the Hayate Racing Team, a scaled down version of the Kawasaki factory team that withdrew from MotoGP ...
, partnered by
Simone Corsi
Simone Corsi (born 24 April 1987) is an Italian former Grand Prix motorcycle racer. Born in Rome, Corsi has been racing in motorcycle world championships for nearly 20 years, amassing over 300 races, 4th all-time, behind only Valentino Rossi, ...
. He had a good season, finishing in the points 12 times, finishing in the top-ten 10 times, and scoring his maiden podium in the category by finishing 3rd in
Australia. He ended the year 9th in the standings, with 96 points.
Staying with Forward Racing, Baldassarri's teammate for the
2016 season was
Luca Marini. Baldassarri would improve again, upping last year's 3rd place with a 2nd place in his home GP in
Mugello
The Mugello is a historic region and valley in northern Tuscany, in Italy, corresponding to the course of the River Sieve. It is located to the north of the city of Florence and includes the northernmost portion of the Metropolitan City of Fl ...
, and taking his first victory in the category, in also his home GP, in
Rimini
Rimini ( , ; rgn, Rémin; la, Ariminum) is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It sprawls along the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia (the ancient ''Ariminu ...
. He finished the season with 127 points, 8th in the overall standings.
The
2017 Moto2 World Championship was a down year for Baldassarri. He started the season with an 8th place in Qatar, and 4th place in Argentina, before crashing out in Le Mans and Mugello. He had another 4th place in Barcelona, but suffered a crash in Assen, causing him to miss the Dutch and the German GP, where he was replaced by
Federico Fuligni. Baldassarri rode the rest of the season not fully fit to ride, and only finished with 51 points, 16th in the final standings.
Flexbox HP40 (2018–2020)
Baldassarri would switch teams for the
2018 Moto2 World Championship, leaving
Forward Racing
Forward Racing is a motorcycle racing team competing in the Moto2 World Championship.
History
The team started competing in the MotoGP class as the Hayate Racing Team, a scaled down version of the Kawasaki factory team that withdrew from MotoGP ...
for HP40
Pons Racing
Pons Racing is a motorcycle and auto racing team owned by the British company Pons Racing UK Limited. The team principal is former 250 cc world champion, Sito Pons. In motorcycle road racing world championships, Pons has fielded riders su ...
on a three year deal. Fully healed, he had a bounce-back year, starting the season with a 2nd place podium in Qatar, and a 4th place in Argentina. He absolutely dominated the weekend in Jerez, completing the weekend hattrick: pole position, fastest lap, and race win, and he did this by leading for every lap in the race as well. He finished 2nd in his home GP in Mugello, making it three podiums in six races. The middle of his season was disappointing however, finishing outside of the points in the Netherlands, Germany, and Austria too. Baldassarri would finish off the season with one good race, and one bad race: he was 3rd in Aragón, retired in Thailand (after starting from Pole position), was 2nd in Japan, 22nd in Australia, 6th in Malaysia, and retired from the season closing race in Valencia. He finished 5th in the championship with 162 points, in front of riders like
Joan Mir
Joan Mir Mayrata () (born 1 September 1997) is a Spanish Grand Prix motorcycle racer riding for the Repsol Honda Team, who is best known for winning the 2020 MotoGP World Championship with Suzuki. He is the fourth Spanish rider to win the prem ...
,
Luca Marini,
Fabio Quartararo
Fabio Quartararo (; born 20 April 1999), nicknamed El Diablo, is a French Grand Prix motorcycle rider racing in MotoGP for Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP. Having won the 2021 MotoGP World Championship, he is the first French World Champion in the ...
,
Iker Lecuona, and
Remy Gardner
Remy Christopher Gardner (born 24 February 1998) is an Australian motorcycle racer, best known for winning the 2021 Moto2 World Championship with Red Bull KTM Ajo. He is the son of 1987 premier class world champion, Wayne Gardner.
Career M ...
.
The
2019 Moto2 World Championship would start incredibly well for Baldassarri, winning the first two races of the year in Qatar and Argentina, before crashing out from third in the USA. He would win the next race in Jerez, making it three wins out of four rounds. He would not get back on the podium for the rest of the season though, finishing with 171 points, and 7th in the championship standings.
The
2020 season started off well, with Baldassarri finishing the opening round at Qatar in 2nd, but just like 2019, he could not score another podium for the remainder of the season, a 5th place in Valencia was as close as he got. He finished 12th in the standings, with only 71 points, and was not given a contract extension by
Pons Racing
Pons Racing is a motorcycle and auto racing team owned by the British company Pons Racing UK Limited. The team principal is former 250 cc world champion, Sito Pons. In motorcycle road racing world championships, Pons has fielded riders su ...
.
MV Agusta Forward Racing (2021)
In his eighth Moto2 season, Baldassarri signed back with
Forward Racing
Forward Racing is a motorcycle racing team competing in the Moto2 World Championship.
History
The team started competing in the MotoGP class as the Hayate Racing Team, a scaled down version of the Kawasaki factory team that withdrew from MotoGP ...
on a one year contract, partnering
Simone Corsi
Simone Corsi (born 24 April 1987) is an Italian former Grand Prix motorcycle racer. Born in Rome, Corsi has been racing in motorcycle world championships for nearly 20 years, amassing over 300 races, 4th all-time, behind only Valentino Rossi, ...
again. Forward Racing got its chassis and motorcycle from
MV Agusta, who struggled to build a competitive bike for the
2021 season, the pair of riders only scoring 19 points throughout the whole year. Corsi finished with 16 points, a 9th place in Le Mans, a 10th place in Aragón, and a 13th place in Austin, while also qualifying himself to Pole position in the season closer in Valencia, earning himself a ride for 2022. Baldassarri on the other hand had his worst season in the category, finishing in the points just twice, a 14th place in Portimao, and a 15th place in Jerez. He was not given a new contract, the team instead choosing to go with Corsi, and
Marcos Ramírez for 2022.
Supersport World Championship
Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team (2022)
He competed in the
2022 Supersport World Championship
The 2022 Supersport World Championship was the twenty-sixth season of the Supersport World Championship, the twenty-fourth held under this name. The championship was won by Dominique Aegerter at the Mandalika round.
Race calendar and results
Th ...
, with the Evan Bros. WorldSSP Yamaha Team.
Superbike World Championship
GMT94 Yamaha (from 2023)
Baldassari graduated to Superbike World Championship riding for GMT94 Yamaha in the following season.
Career statistics
Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup
Races by year
(
key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)
CEV Buckler Moto3 Championship
Races by year
(
key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)
Grand Prix motorcycle racing
By season
By class
Races by year
(
key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)
Supersport World Championship
By season
Races by year
(
key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)
Superbike World Championship
By season
Races by year
(
key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)
* Season still in progress.
CIV National 600
Races by year
(
key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baldassarri, Lorenzo
1996 births
Living people
Italian motorcycle racers
Moto3 World Championship riders
Moto2 World Championship riders
Supersport World Championship riders
Superbike World Championship riders