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MotoGP : Rossi makes perfect start at Jerez
Round: 1 - 2006 MotoGP Jerez
Circuit: Jerez
Date: 24 March 2006
Temp: 20?C
Weather: Dry
Round: 1 - 2006 MotoGP Jerez
Circuit: Jerez
Date: 24 March 2006
Temp: 20?C
Weather: Dry
Camel Yamaha Team rider Valentino Rossi kicked off his MotoGP World
Championship defence in fine style today, setting the fastest lap time in
the first free practice sessions for the opening round of the 2006
season at Jerez. After light rain showers hit the track this morning, when
Rossi decided not to ride and his team-mate Colin Edwards put in just
two laps, both riders were able to work without interruption in the
afternoon as they aimed to iron out set-up difficulties encountered in
recent pre-season tests at this circuit.
Whilst Rossi was able to overcome the majority of his problems,
immediately finding the right direction to work with the team's engineers and
technicians, Edwards suffered a minor setback today but he is confident
that he can recover lost ground in tomorrow morning's final free
practice before the crucial afternoon qualifying session. The American
clocked the seventh fastest time today as Loris Capirossi (Ducati) produced
the strongest challenge to Rossi's dominance, lapping 0.012 seconds
slower than his Italian compatriot.
Valentino Rossi (1'41.613, 24 laps)
"We haven't fixed everything just yet but the Yamaha engineers came up
with a few ideas to solve the vibrations we suffered during the test
and they all worked. So far we have come up with a setting that allows me
to ride in a better way to control the bike and, even though we still
have some small vibrations, it is giving us less problems. This is the
perfect way to start the season and I am really happy with the way the
team have worked. This afternoon the track conditions were still not
perfect so the times weren't so fast, but I think tomorrow it will be
better. Tomorrow we have to keep working hard to come up with some more
solutions and I am sure we will be in good shape for the race. There is
already a good atmosphere and I can't wait until Sunday!"
Colin Edwards (1'42.266, 28 laps)
"To be honest things didn't go as we would have wished today. After
losing an hour this morning because of the weather we missed out on
another 45 minutes in the afternoon. I felt something was wrong but it took a
long time for us to work it out. Basically there was too much pressure
in the tyre and once we realised that we were able to start working
properly - unfortunately it was a bit too late to be reflected in the lap
times. Looking across the garage we can see that the engineers have got
some really good data that will definitely help us tomorrow to refine
the set-up and sort out some of the problems we had in the test. It will
be two important hours but I have full confidence in the job the team
is doing."
Davide Brivio - Camel Yamaha Team Director
"It looks like we are making improvements and moving in the right
direction, which is very encouraging at this early stage of the weekend. We
lost this morning's session to the weather but I have to say that the
engineers and the technicians made the most of the available time to
make the first adjustments to the bikes. Both riders have done a different
job today, and our team has great cooperation so now we can put all
this information together and find the best way forward for both riders
tomorrow morning. Hopefully the bad weather is now out of the way for the
rest of the weekend."
Round: 1 - 2006 MotoGP Jerez
Circuit: Jerez
Circuit Length: 4423
Lap Record: 1' 40.596 (Valentino Rossi, 2005)
Fastest Lap Ever: 1' 39.419 (Valentino Rossi, 2005)
Date: 24 March 2006
Temp: 20?C
Free practice 1
1. Loris Capirossi ITA Ducati Marlboro Team 1min 56.260 sek
2. Marco Melandri ITA Fortuna Honda 1min 57.056 sek
3. Casey Stoner AUS Honda LCR 1min 57.131 sek
4. Jose Luis Cardoso SPA Pramac d'Antin MotoGP 1min 57.272 sek
5. Shinya Nakano JPN Kawasaki Racing Team 1min 57.626 sek
6. Alex Hofmann GER Pramac d'Antin MotoGP 1min 58.477 sek
7. Kenny Roberts USA Team Roberts 1min 58.566 sek
8. Nicky Hayden USA Repsol Honda Team 1min 58.575 sek
9. Chris Vermulen AUS Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1min 58.627 sek
10. Sete Gibernau SPA Ducati Marlboro Team 1min 58.655 sek
11. Dani Pedrosa SPA Repsol Honda Team 1min 59.173 sek
12. Carlos Checa SPA Tech 3 Yamaha 2min 1.268 sek
13. Makoto Tamada JPN Konica Minolta Honda 2min 4.356 sek
14. Randy de Puniet FRA Kawasaki Racing Team 2min 7.270 sek
15. James Ellison GBR Tech 3 Yamaha 2min 8.386 sek
16. John Hopkins USA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 2min 25.516 sek
17. Colin Edwards USA Camel Yamaha Team 2min 48.089 sek
Free practice 2
1. Valentino Rossi ITA Camel Yamaha Team 1min 41.613 sek
2. Loris Capirossi ITA Ducati Marlboro Team 1min 41.625 sek
3. Dani Pedrosa SPA Repsol Honda Team 1min 41.798 sek
4. Sete Gibernau SPA Ducati Marlboro Team 1min 41.798 sek
5. Shinya Nakano JPN Kawasaki Racing Team 1min 41.939 sek
6. Marco Melandri ITA Fortuna Honda 1min 42.108 sek
7. Colin Edwards USA Camel Yamaha Team 1min 42.266 sek
8. Nicky Hayden USA Repsol Honda Team 1min 42.276 sek
9. Randy de Puniet FRA Kawasaki Racing Team 1min 42.455 sek
10. Toni Elias SPA Fortuna Honda 1min 42.518 sek
11. Kenny Roberts USA Team Roberts 1min 42.538 sek
12. Casey Stoner AUS Honda LCR 1min 42.552 sek
13. Carlos Checa SPA Tech 3 Yamaha 1min 42.608 sek
14. John Hopkins USA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1min 42.727 sek
15. Makoto Tamada JPN Konica Minolta Honda 1min 42.868 sek
16. Chris Vermulen AUS Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1min 43.101 sek
17. Jose Luis Cardoso SPA Pramac d'Antin MotoGP 1min 43.712 sek
18. Alex Hofmann GER Pramac d'Antin MotoGP 1min 43.781 sek
19. James Ellison GBR Tech 3 Yamaha 1min 45.239 sek
Free Practice 3
1. Marco Melandri ITA Fortuna Honda 1min 40.699 sek
2. Loris Capirossi ITA Ducati Marlboro Team 1min 40.790 sek
3. Dani Pedrosa SPA Repsol Honda Team 1min 40.811 sek
4. Sete Gibernau SPA Ducati Marlboro Team 1min 40.961 sek
5. Casey Stoner AUS Honda LCR 1min 41.081 sek
6. Kenny Roberts USA Team Roberts 1min 41.098 sek
7. Toni Elias SPA Fortuna Honda 1min 41.175 sek
8. Nicky Hayden USA Repsol Honda Team 1min 41.223 sek
9. Colin Edwards USA Camel Yamaha Team 1min 41.374 sek
10. Valentino Rossi ITA Camel Yamaha Team 1min 41.383 sek
11. Randy de Puniet FRA Kawasaki Racing Team 1min 41.526 sek
12. Shinya Nakano JPN Kawasaki Racing Team 1min 41.549 sek
13. John Hopkins USA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1min 41.550 sek
14. Chris Vermulen AUS Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1min 41.658 sek
15. Makoto Tamada JPN Konica Minolta Honda 1min 42.271 sek
16. Carlos Checa SPA Tech 3 Yamaha 1min 42.763 sek
17. James Ellison GBR Tech 3 Yamaha 1min 43.005 sek
18. Jose Luis Cardoso SPA Pramac d'Antin MotoGP 1min 43.113 sek
19. Alex Hofmann GER Pramac d'Antin MotoGP 1min 43.155 sek
GRAN PREMIO DE ESPANA
First qualifying practice / FORTUNA HONDA RIDERS READY FOR SEASON OPENER
The long wait is over. The first day of practice for the opening round of the MotoGP World Championship took place today at Jerez de la Frontera. After the long winter of testing the riders finally entered serious action today as they make their final preparations for the first race of the season, which takes place on Sunday. The rain that was present throughout the morning did not leave the track in ideal conditions and prevented the teams from completing the work they had planned in the opening session. However, warm sunshine covered the track in the afternoon and allowed normal proceedings to resume. In general it was a good start for the FORTUNA HONDA riders, who improved on the best times they set at this circuit only two weeks ago.
MARCO MELANDRI (1?42?108, 6th fastest):
?We couldn?t make the most of the morning session because of the weather but we did have some reference data thanks to the recent tests here a couple of weeks ago. I am satisfied because we have taken a major step forward today. We have noticed an improvement and the Michelin tyres have worked perfectly. The objective was to continue on the same line of work to prepare the first race of the 2006 season. We have been consistent and I think we can improve even more tomorrow.?
TONI ELIAS (1?42?518, 10th fastest):
?The weather hasn?t helped us too much and we preferred not to go out onto the track during the morning session. In the afternoon we went out with the same set-up configuration that we used during the IRTA tests. I still have a wide margin for improvement and I have to pick up my pace. I?m confidence and tomorrow we will be working closely with the Michelin guys.?
MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2006
KAWASAKI RACING TEAM PRESS OFFICE
24 MARCH 2006 - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
TOP TEN FOR NAKANO AND DE PUNIET AT JEREZ
The 2006 season opened at Jerez today, with Kawasaki's Shinya Nakano and Randy de Puniet both putting in impressive performances during this afternoon's one-hour free practice session, to finish in fifth and ninth place respectively.
Overnight rain left the 4.423 km Jerez circuit damp and slippery for this morning's opening free practice session, during which both Kawasaki riders opted to remain in the pit box, venturing out only at the end of the session but completing less than 10 laps between them.
An improvement in the weather for afternoon free practice was good news for the thousands of Spanish race fans lining the circuit, but conditions on track remained unpredictable, as damp patches in the faster sections almost caught out a number of riders early in the session
Both Kawasaki riders complained of losing the rear through the fast series of turns at the back of the circuit, with de Puniet out of the seat on a number of occasions as the rear tyre on his Ninja ZX-RR span up after losing traction on the slippery track surface.
Nakano and de Puniet took advantage of improving grip levels towards the end of the session to test a new rear tyre from Bridgestone, constructed using a revised drive compound to increase traction out of the turns while remaining more consistent over race distance.
And while conditions weren't ideal for evaluating subtle differences in tyre construction, both Nakano and de Puniet set their fastest times on the new tyre with just minutes of the session remaining.
While declaring themselves happy with today's performance both Kawasaki riders remain confident that, as conditions tomorrow are forecast to match those during the recent IRTA test at Jerez, there are significant improvements still to come.
Shinya Nakano: 5th - 1'41.939
"This morning was a bit of a wash out. I waited right to the end before going out to bed in a new engine, but the track was just too slippery for the cut slick I'd opted for in the rear of the bike. This afternoon the conditions were better, but parts of the track were still very slippery right to the end of the session. We tested a new rear tyre from Bridgestone right at the end, with positive results, but we'll need to confirm the results tomorrow when conditions are due to improve. It took me a little time this afternoon to get used to having so many bikes around me on track; a one-hour practice session is very different to the day long tests we've been doing over the winter when you mostly have the track to yourself! I'm happy to finish in the top five today, and tomorrow we just need to find those final tenths of a second from me and the bike to put us in the best position for qualifying."
Randy de Puniet: 9th - 1'42.455
"There was nothing to learn this morning on track, as conditions weren't dry enough for slicks nor damp enough for full wets. It was a bit of an anti-climax after waiting so long to make my MotoGP debut! At the start of the afternoon session I felt a little bit nervous; I don't know why, because I felt okay this morning, but it quickly passed. Conditions were difficult this afternoon, and there were a couple of places on the fast sections of the track where the rear tried to come round on me when on a fast lap, but I don't think this will be a problem if the weather improves for tomorrow as forecast. Overall I'm happy to finish inside the top ten today. Tomorrow we need to continue working the same way, so that we're ready for my first MotoGP qualifying session in the afternoon."
Press Release issued by: Kawasaki Racing Team Press Office