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PREVIEW ? UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX - LAGUNA SECA 23/07/2006
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TRANSATLANTIC CHALLENGE BECKONS FOR CAMEL YAMAHA TEAM
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TRANSATLANTIC CHALLENGE BECKONS FOR CAMEL YAMAHA TEAM
Just five days after their stunning showing at the Sachsenring circuit
in Germany the Camel Yamaha Team will be back on track on the other
side of the Atlantic as the MotoGP World Championship takes another
whirlwind trip across the globe from the east of Europe to the west
coast of the USA. Following an absence of almost a decade, the Laguna
Seca circuit near Monterey in California plays host to the world?s
premier motorcycle race series for the second consecutive season and
represents a crucial date with destiny for both Valentino Rossi and
Colin Edwards.
Last season both riders finished on the podium, an ideal way to
celebrate Yamaha?s 50th Anniversary and a fitting reward for the
factory?s role in bringing the sport back to the continent. This time,
however, nothing less than a victory will satisfy the Italian and the
American, who both have their own agendas as they tackle one of the
most important races of the season so far.
For Rossi the eleventh round of seventeen represents another key
opportunity to close the gap to series leader Nicky Hayden (Honda) and
provides a chance to strike a major psychological blow on the Kentucky
rider, who used his explicit local knowledge of the circuit to take
victory last season. However, crucial data gathered by Rossi and his
team in that race, as well as track modifications that have taken place
since then in the interest of safety, have levelled the playing field
and the reigning World Champion is confident the advantage can swing in
his favour.
The goal for Edwards is to take his first ever victory in MotoGP racing
after coming desperately close in the Dutch TT earlier this season. The
American has shown flashes of winning potential this season and he
would like nothing more than to finally savour the top step of the
podium at his home Grand Prix before heading to Japan with an identical
target at the prestigious Suzuka 8-hour race.
VALENTINO ROSSI: STRONG FROM THE START
Following on from his remarkable victory in Germany, Valentino Rossi is
looking forward to his second visit to California thanks to an
enjoyable and promising Laguna Seca debut one year ago. The reigning
MotoGP World Champion was the first non-American rider across the line
as he took third place in his first ever USGP but this year he doesn?t
plan to have anybody in front of him at all as he looks to sign off for
the summer with another maximum points haul.
?Even though I didn?t know the track last year I was able to follow
Nicky for many laps and then Colin too, so I learnt a lot from both of
them,? explains Rossi. ?By the end of the race I was getting stronger
and I actually set my best time on the last lap so I hope that this
year we can be strong from the start and this time beat the Americans!
We had some difficulties with the bike in Germany and we don't have
time to make many big changes before this weekend, but hopefully the
good setting we found for the race on Sunday and the data we have from
last year will be enough.
?The latest modifications to the track will make a difference and we
will see how they are when we get there. After last year we discussed
everything with the Safety Commission and we made some more suggestions
to improve the track, because really it was not at the level of the
rest of the championship. It?s okay for Superbikes but we are coming
into the corners 40km faster, so it was necessary to make some more
changes, especially at turn one. Now we have to wait to see if it is
better and safer this year.?
COLIN EDWARDS: VICTORY STILL THE TARGET
Colin Edwards is approaching the second home Grand Prix of his career
with his focus completely set on taking victory, despite his set-up
troubles with the YZR-M1 in Germany. After finishing second to Nicky
Hayden in Laguna last year and battling with the same rider for victory
at Assen in Holland earlier this season - only to lose out in the final
corner ? conceding ground to his compatriot is a scenario the Texan
does not plan on repeating as the pair tussle for home glory this time
around.
?Before Sachsenring I said that I am not hoping to win at Laguna Seca,
I am expecting to win, and that remains the case,? affirms Edwards, who
will be in Los Angeles on Tuesday to take part in a MotoGP bike parade
along Hollywood Boulevard before attending the screening of the new
MotoGP movie ?The Doctor, The Tornado and The Kentucky Kid?, in which
he stars.
?We had our problems in Germany but we also had problems at Catalunya
earlier in the season and seven days later I was fighting to win at
Assen. It seems the bike that we have works at some circuits and not so
well at others so, like Assen, Laguna will be a bit of a shot in the
dark. One thing for sure is that I?m going to fight and barge and do
whatever it takes to win. If it comes down to a scrap between the
Americans, Hayden and I, then I know I can come out on top this time.
Hopefully the bike will work as well as it did at Assen and if it does
than I definitely won?t make the same mistakes.?
VALENTINO ROSSI: INFORMATION
Age: 27
Lives: London, UK
Bike: Yamaha YZR-M1
GP victories: 83 (56 x MotoGP/500cc, 14 x 250cc, 12 x 125cc)
First GP victory: Czech Republic, 1996 (125cc)
First GP: Malaysia, 1996 (125cc)
GP starts: 166 (107 x MotoGP/500cc, 30 x 250cc, 30 x 125cc)
Pole positions: 41
World Championships ? 7 Grand Prix (1 x 125cc, 1 x 250cc, 1 x 500cc, 4
x MotoGP)
COLIN EDWARDS: INFORMATION
Age: 32
Lives: Conroe, Texas
Bike: Yamaha YZR-M1
First GP: Japan, 2003 (MotoGP)
GP starts: 59 x MotoGP
World Championships - 2 World Superbike
DAVIDE BRIVIO: DOUBLE TOP THE TARGET
Camel Yamaha Team Director Davide Brivio is confident that both riders
can take the role of protagonists in what promises to be another
groundbreaking step for the sport?s popularity in America. Brivio
watched Edwards and Rossi finish on the podium in last year?s inaugural
event and he is hopeful of a repeat performance on Sunday ? this time
with one of the pair on the top step.
?Last year both our riders were on the podium and the target is the
same this time, but in better positions,? says Brivio. ?The competition
in MotoGP is getting tougher and tougher as the season goes on but we
need to keep working as we are now because there is a long way to go.
With six rounds left after the summer it would be nice to go on holiday
with the psychological boost of victory at Laguna Seca.
?We know that Nicky Hayden is fast at this circuit but this is the
challenge. We are all in racing because we enjoy the battle and on the
evidence of what we saw last year I think both our riders can be up
there giving Nicky a hard time this Sunday. We?re going there with
great confidence after Valentino?s win in Germany and I think Laguna
comes at the perfect time for Colin, who needs to get back on the
podium. It is only a few days but for him and for us the race can?t
come soon enough.?
TECHNICALLY SPEAKING: LAGUNA ACCORDING TO DANIELE ROMAGNOLI
Famed, feared and revered for the world-famous ?Corkscrew? corner, the
Laguna Seca circuit near Monterey in California lived up to its billing
as one of the most exciting circuits on the calendar when MotoGP
visited for the first time ever last season. With only a few short
straights, a series of fast and sweeping corners and elevation changes
that leave front wheels frequently spinning through thin air, the
3.602km circuit provides the ideal viewing spectacle for fans but is
surprisingly straightforward when it comes to machine set-up.
?Actually Laguna was not as technical as we thought it might be when we
visited for the first time last year,? explains Daniele Romagnoli,
Chief Engineer for Colin Edwards. ?It is a special circuit because
there are almost no straights so there is no need to use the full gear
range or the maximum power of the bike. Power delivery is much more
important than top-end power and it must be smooth and easy for the
rider to manage. At the same time the circuit is very ?up and down? so
the chassis is important because the bike needs to keep turning in
several different conditions. You need good traction when the bike is
leaned over ? especially at the end of the main straight when the bike
is at an angle at high speed and in the Corkscrew. The Corkscrew also
requires stable suspension and good performance under braking because,
as we saw with Colin last year, it is a place he likes to overtake.
?Honestly it was quite easy to find a good set-up for Colin last year.
His experience at the circuit meant that we already had some good
information for the gear and suspension settings before we arrived.
This time things are a little different because, even though we can
dial in the same settings on the bike, the tyres have changed a lot
from last year so we will need to work on something new to adapt the
chassis and the suspension. We had a difficult weekend finding the
right setting in Germany but Colin will not let this affect him and we
will come out fighting like we did at Assen.?
CIRCUIT INFORMATION
Pole position right
Lenght: 3610 m
Width: 15 m
Right corners: 4
Left corners: 7
Constructed in: 1957
Last modified: 2006
Laguna Seca Lap Record: Colin Edwards (Yamaha) 2005, 1?23.915
Laguna Seca Best Lap: Nicky Hayden (Honda) 2005, 1?22.670
2005 United States Grand Prix Results
1. Nicky Hayden (USA) Honda, 45?15.374
2. COLIN EDWARDS (USA) Yamaha, +1.941
3. VALENTINO ROSSI (ITA) Yamaha, +2.312