Sandro Cortese

Last updated

Sandro Cortese
Sandro Cortese podium 2012.jpg
NationalityGerman
Born (1990-01-06) 6 January 1990 (age 34) [1]
Ochsenhausen, West Germany
Current team Outdo Kawasaki TPR
Bike number11
Motorcycle racing career statistics
Moto2 World Championship
Active years 20132017
Manufacturers Kalex
Championships 0
2017 championship position18th (43 pts)
StartsWinsPodiums Poles F. laps Points
880300301
Moto3 World Championship
Active years 2012
Manufacturers KTM
Championships 1 (2012)
2012 championship position1st (325 pts)
StartsWinsPodiums Poles F. laps Points
1751574325
125cc World Championship
Active years 20052011
Manufacturers Honda, Derbi, Aprilia
Championships 0
2011 championship position4th (225 pts)
StartsWinsPodiums Poles F. laps Points
11621137736
Superbike World Championship
Active years 20192020
Manufacturers Yamaha, Kawasaki
Championships 0
2020 championship position19th (14 pts)
StartsWinsPodiums Poles F. laps Points
430000148
Supersport World Championship
Active years 2018
Manufacturers Yamaha
Championships 1 (2018)
2018 championship position1st (208 pts)
StartsWinsPodiums Poles F. laps Points
122837208

Alessandro "Sandro" Cortese (born 6 January 1990) is a retired German motorcycle racer, who last competed in 2020 World Superbike Championship for Team Pedercini. Cortese won his first world title in the Moto3 class, in 2012, [2] and his second in the Supersport World Championship, in 2018. [3] He lives in Berkheim, Germany.

Contents

Cortese contested every race from his Grand Prix début in 2005 until the 2016 French Grand Prix, where he missed the race due to a knee injury. [4]

Career

Early career

Cortese was born in Ochsenhausen, West Germany, as the son of an Italian father and a German mother. He started his career at the age of nine on pocket bikes and was European Pocket Bike champion as well as German Mini Bike champion. He competed in the German IDM Championship in the 125cc class, finishing 10th. [1]

125cc World Championship

Sandro Cortese races MotoGP at Sachsenring, 2011 Sandro Cortese - MotoGP - Sachsenring 2011.jpg
Sandro Cortese races MotoGP at Sachsenring, 2011

Cortese made his 125cc World Championship debut with Kiefer-Bos-Castrol Honda in 2005, finishing the season in 26th place with 8 points. His best finish was 14th place in Germany, the Czech Republic, and Turkey. In 2006, he switched to the 2005 125cc Championship-winning team, Elit – Caffè Latte Honda as team mate to 125cc World Champion Thomas Lüthi. He made steady progress scoring some championship points, His best result was in the Portuguese Grand Prix in 10th place, improving his championship standing to 17th place with 23 points.

In 2007 his team was renamed Emmi – Caffè Latte and it switched to Aprilia motorbikes. Lüthi moved up to 250cc, also with Aprilia. Cortese improved in 2007, finishing most of the season's races in the top 10, including 7th places in the French, the Italian and German Grands Prix. He finished the championship in 14th place with 66 points. For 2008 he rode a works Aprilia RSA 125. The 2008 season started poorly for him, finishing outside the top 8 at the first five races. His fortunes changed for the better after Mugello and he finished consistently in the top eight. In the Australian Grand Prix he crashed while leading but managed to recover to sixth and helped Mike Di Meglio to win the championship by finishing ahead of Simone Corsi, Di Meglio's championship rival. In the Malaysian Grand Prix he rode the fastest lap of the race despite starting 18th on the grid to finish fourth. He was the only 125cc rider to finish all races that year, gaining points in every race except in China.

In 2009, Cortese rode for the Finnish Ajo Motorsport team that took Di Meglio to his 125cc World Championship. He replaced Di Meglio and teamed up with Dominique Aegerter, running factory Derbi RSA 125 bikes. Cortese finished on the podium three times and ended up sixth in the championship.

For 2010 he rode a Derbi again, for Ajo Motorsport. He was teamed up with Marc Márquez and Adrián Martín, with each rider running different sponsorship. Cortese took two podiums during the season, at the Sachsenring and Indianapolis. He also achieved pole position in Italy, and finished seventh in the championship.

For the 2011 season, Cortese moved to Dirk Heidolf's Racing Team Germany outfit, as a single-bike entry. [5] He took second-place finishes in Qatar and Portugal, before taking his first Grand Prix victory – in his 109th start – in the Czech Republic, having battled with Johann Zarco in the closing stages of the race. [6] Cortese eventually ended the season fourth in the championship.

Moto2 World Championship

Cortese moved up to Moto2 class as a Moto3 champion in 2013. He joined Dynavolt Intact GP as the sole rider of the team. [7] In 2014, Cortese recorded his first podium finish in Moto2 at Brno. He remained at the team until the end of 2017 season.

Supersport World Championship

After failing to secure a ride for 2018 Moto2 season, Cortese signed a deal with Kallio Racing to race in Supersport World Championship, aboard Yamaha YZF-R6. [8] He won 2 races at Aragon and Donington Park, securing 8 podium finishes and became the champion of 2018 Supersport World Championship in his maiden season. [9]

Superbike World Championship

He promoted to Superbike class for 2019 season, signing for GRT Yamaha World SBK team where he finished 12th in the standings. The following year he moved to Team Pedercini, switched bike from Yamaha to Kawasaki. He crashed in the first race of Portimao round, suffering multiple injuries which he would recover from after 8 months. [10] He did not participate for the rest of the season, and his place was taken over by Roman Ramos, Valentin Debise, and Loris Cresson respectively. [11]

Retirement

Twenty months after his crash at Portimão, Cortese announced his retirement from motorcycle racing on his own Instagram account. [12] He credited local emergency medical efforts for saving him from paraplegia but noted that his body has never fully recovered from the accident. Cortese is due to start a job at one of his former sponsors, Gutmann Gruppe. [13]

Career statistics

Grand Prix motorcycle racing

By season

SeasonClassMotorcycleTypeTeamRaceWinPodium Pole FLapPtsPlcd
2005 125cc Honda Honda RS125R Kiefer-Bos-Castrol Honda160000826th
2006 125cc Honda Honda RS125R Elit – Caffè Latte1600002317th
2007 125cc Aprilia Aprilia RS125 Elit – Caffè Latte1700006614th
2008 125cc Aprilia Aprilia RSA 125 Elit – Caffè Latte1700011418th
2009 125cc Derbi Derbi RSA 125 Ajo Interwetten 1603121306th
2010 125cc Derbi Derbi RS 125 R Avant Mitsubishi Ajo 1702121437th
2011 125cc Aprilia Aprilia RSA 125 Intact-Racing Team Germany1726122254th
2012 Moto3 KTM KTM RC250GP Red Bull KTM Ajo 17515743251st
2013 Moto2 Kalex Kalex Moto2 Dynavolt Intact GP1700002219th
2014 Moto2 Kalex Kalex Moto2 Dynavolt Intact GP180100859th
2015 Moto2 Kalex Kalex Moto2 Dynavolt Intact GP1801009011th
2016 Moto2 Kalex Kalex Moto2 Dynavolt Intact GP1701006115th
2017 Moto2 Suter Suter MMX2 Dynavolt Intact GP1800004318th
Total22172910111362

By class

ClassSeasons1st GP1st Pod1st WinRaceWinPodiums Pole FLapPtsWChmp
125cc2005–2011 2005 Spain 2009 Qatar 2011 Czech Republic 116211377360
Moto32012 2012 Qatar 2012 Qatar 2012 Portugal 17515743251
Moto22013–2017 2013 Qatar 2014 Czech Republic 8803003010
Total2005–2017221729101113621

Races by year

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position, races in italics indicate fastest lap)

YearClassBike123456789101112131415161718PosPts
2005 125cc Honda SPA
20
POR
25
CHN
Ret
FRA
15
ITA
Ret
CAT
23
NED
24
GBR
15
GER
14
CZE
14
JPN
Ret
MAL
21
QAT
17
AUS
19
TUR
14
VAL
Ret
26th8
2006 125cc Honda SPA
16
QAT
Ret
TUR
16
CHN
17
FRA
15
ITA
Ret
CAT
19
NED
14
GBR
14
GER
13
CZE
11
MAL
17
AUS
14
JPN
14
POR
10
VAL
18
17th23
2007 125cc Aprilia QAT
17
SPA
7
TUR
Ret
CHN
18
FRA
7
ITA
7
CAT
11
GBR
12
NED
8
GER
7
CZE
10
RSM
15
POR
Ret
JPN
Ret
AUS
10
MAL
Ret
VAL
Ret
14th66
2008 125cc Aprilia QAT
11
SPA
10
POR
10
CHN
16
FRA
11
ITA
8
CAT
8
GBR
9
NED
4
GER
6
CZE
7
RSM
7
INP
5
JPN
6
AUS
6
MAL
4
VAL
5
8th141
2009 125cc Derbi QAT
3
JPN
6
SPA
6
FRA
12
ITA
10
CAT
9
NED
Ret
GER
6
GBR
Ret
CZE
6
INP
18
RSM
5
POR
2
AUS
3
MAL
6
VAL
8
6th130
2010 125cc Derbi QAT
5
SPA
11
FRA
6
ITA
Ret
GBR
6
NED
5
CAT
4
GER
3
CZE
16
INP
2
RSM
5
ARA
5
JPN
12
MAL
6
AUS
Ret
POR
Ret
VAL
5
7th143
2011 125cc Aprilia QAT
2
SPA
6
POR
2
FRA
7
CAT
4
GBR
7
NED
4
ITA
12
GER
8
CZE
1
INP
3
RSM
4
ARA
7
JPN
5
AUS
1
MAL
2
VAL
Ret
4th225
2012 Moto3 KTM QAT
3
SPA
3
POR
1
FRA
6
CAT
2
GBR
3
NED
2
GER
1
ITA
3
INP
2
CZE
3
RSM
1
ARA
2
JPN
6
MAL
1
AUS
1
VAL
2
1st325
2013 Moto2 Kalex QAT
17
AME
25
SPA
18
FRA
12
ITA
14
CAT
Ret
NED
14
GER
14
INP
16
CZE
Ret
GBR
20
RSM
Ret
ARA
10
MAL
Ret
AUS
11
JPN
15
VAL
16
19th22
2014 Moto2 Kalex QAT
7
AME
14
ARG
9
SPA
9
FRA
12
ITA
13
CAT
Ret
NED
Ret
GER
Ret
INP
6
CZE
3
GBR
18
RSM
12
ARA
12
JPN
Ret
AUS
6
MAL
7
VAL
Ret
9th85
2015 Moto2 Kalex QAT
7
AME
14
ARG
7
SPA
Ret
FRA
14
ITA
8
CAT
Ret
NED
17
GER
11
INP
Ret
CZE
8
GBR
8
RSM
8
ARA
13
JPN
3
AUS
Ret
MAL
7
VAL
13
11th90
2016 Moto2 Kalex QAT
15
ARG
Ret
AME
12
SPA
Ret
FRA
DNS
ITA
11
CAT
Ret
NED
12
GER
15
AUT
11
CZE
23
GBR
12
RSM
9
ARA
13
JPN
5
AUS
3
MAL
17
VAL
Ret
15th61
2017 Moto2 Suter QAT
22
ARG
8
AME
23
SPA
Ret
FRA
14
ITA
19
CAT
Ret
NED
Ret
GER
8
CZE
Ret
AUT
Ret
GBR
Ret
RSM
5
ARA
9
JPN
Ret
AUS
9
MAL
Ret
VAL
Ret
18th43

Supersport World Championship

Races by year

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

YearBike123456789101112PosPts
2018 Yamaha AUS
3
THA
4
SPA
1
NED
6
ITA
4
GBR
1
CZE
2
ITA
3
POR
6
FRA
2
ARG
2
QAT
2
1st208

Superbike World Championship

Races by year

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

YearBike12345678910111213PosPts
R1SRR2R1SRR2R1SRR2R1SRR2R1SRR2R1SRR2R1SRR2R1SRR2R1SRR2R1SRR2R1SRR2R1SRR2R1SRR2
2019 Yamaha AUS
8
AUS
7
AUS
8
THA
7
THA
7
THA
7
SPA
7
SPA
9
SPA
10
NED
13
NED
C
NED
11
ITA
Ret
ITA
13
ITA
C
SPA
8
SPA
9
SPA
6
ITA
7
ITA
Ret
ITA
15
GBR
Ret
GBR
Ret
GBR
13
USA
14
USA
11
USA
14
POR
8
POR
8
POR
10
FRA
10
FRA
11
FRA
Ret
ARG
DNS
ARG
7
ARG
15
QAT
Ret
QAT
8
QAT
10
12th134
2020 Kawasaki AUS
13
AUS
11
AUS
9
SPA
14
SPA
14
SPA
14
POR
Ret
POR
DNS
POR
DNS
SPA SPA SPA SPA SPA SPA SPA SPA SPA FRA FRA FRA POR POR POR 19th14

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References

  1. 1 2 "MotoGP™ Riders". www.motogp.com.
  2. "Cortese crowned Moto3 World Champion with win in Sepang". MotoGP.com. Dorna Sports. 21 October 2012. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  3. "Mahias takes win in extraordinary Losail race; Cortese becomes WorldSSP Champion". WorldSBK.com. Dorna Sports. 27 October 2018. Retrieved 27 October 2018.
  4. "Nach 206 GP-Starts in Serie: Cortese verpasst Le Mans" [After 206 GP starts Streak: Cortese missed Le Mans]. Süddeutsche Zeitung (in German). Südwestdeutsche Medien Holding. Deutsche Presse-Agentur. 6 May 2016. Archived from the original on 18 August 2016. Retrieved 16 May 2016.
  5. "Cortese joins Racing Team Germany". motogp.com. Dorna Sports. 14 December 2010. Retrieved 19 August 2011.
  6. "First victory for Cortese in Brno". Dorna Sports. 14 August 2010. Retrieved 19 August 2011.
  7. Sports, Dorna. "Cortese and Dynavolt Intact GP present 2013 bike | MotoGP™". www.motogp.com. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
  8. "Sandro Cortese to join Kallio Racing! - Kallio Racing". www.kallioracing.com. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
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  10. "Sandro Cortese: "Im Leben ergibt sich immer etwas" / Superbike-WM - SPEEDWEEK.COM". www.speedweek.com (in German). Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  11. "Cresson steps up to WorldSBK for Estoril Round with Pedercini Kawasaki". www.worldsbk.com. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  12. "Sandro Cortese on Instagram: "Missing that feeling already 😍"".
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