MotoGP Free Practice Two Times: 1. Alex BARROS, Honda, 1:38.516 2. Sete GIBERNAU, Honda, 1:39.065 3. Nicky HAYDEN, Honda, 1:39.072 4. Colin EDWARDS, Yamaha, 1:39.144 5. Carlos CHECA, Ducati, 1:39.200 6. Valentino ROSSI, Yamaha, 1:39.446 7. Max BIAGGI, Honda, 1:39.477 8. Shinya NAKANO, Kawasaki, 1:39.535 9. Toni ELIAS, Yamaha, 1:39.732 10. John HOPKINS, Suzuki, 1:39.769 11. Kenny ROBERTS, Suzuki, 1:39.804 12. Loris CAPIROSSI, Ducati, 1:39.820 13. Makoto TAMADA, Honda, 1:39.997 14. Marco MELANDRI, Honda, 1:40.020 15. Ruben XAUS, Yamaha, 1:40.163 16. Troy BAYLISS, Honda, 1:40.639 17. James ELLISON, Blata WCM, 1:42.140 18. Shane BYRNE, KTM Proton KR, 1:42.462 19. Roberto ROLFO, Ducati, 1:42.768 20. Franco BATTAINI, Blata WCM, 1:43.404 More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki Racing Team: NAKANO RIDES ALONE FOR KAWASAKI AT ESTORIL Kawasaki Ninja ZX-RR rider, Shinya Nakano, completed a heavy work load of testing during today’s two hours of free practice at Estoril, finishing in the top ten with the eighth fastest time. The Japanese ace will be Kawasaki’s sole representative in Sunday’s Portuguese Grand Prix following the forced withdrawal of teammate Alex Hofmann. As a consequence Nakano is carrying the full responsibility of evaluating tyres, chassis and engine settings. The 27-year-old Japanese rider is in strong early season form coming off an impressive fifth in last Sunday’s Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez. Hofmann fractured the scaphoid bone in his left wrist when he crashed in a pre-event promotion in Estoril on Wednesday. Wisely, team management have decided to rest Hofmann to allow him a full recovery for the next race, the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai. The Kawasaki Racing Team do not have the benefit of previous test sessions at Estoril, and today was the first appearance at the demanding 4.1km Atlantic Coast circuit for the 2005 model Ninja ZX-RR. Apart from Bridgestone tyre tests, Nakano and Kawasaki engineers worked on crucial adjustments to the engine control systems for the recently introduced big-bang firing order motor. The data collected today will prove invaluable in fine-tuning race set-up in tomorrow’s practice and qualifying sessions. Apart from electronics, it is hoped revised gearbox ratios will improve acceleration and top speed. After rain showers interrupted the morning free practice, the afternoon session was conducted in sunny but cool conditions. Track temperatures started at 32 degrees, but dropped to 27 degrees by the end of the session. Shinya Nakano: #56 – Eighth – 1.39.535 “The biggest impression today was how much easier the big-bang type engine is to use at track like Estoril, especially around the infield section. This has been a problem track for us in the past, but today I’m very confident we will have a good race set-up. I had to collect a lot data today, and we still have many settings to adjust. Tomorrow I will try different gearbox ratios and hopefully get some more top speed, and also try and improve front stability over the bumps here. Already I have two good choices of race tyres from Bridgestone and we will also confirm that selection tomorrow.” Ichiro Yoda: Technical Director. “Shinya did a lot of tyre testing today with Bridgestone and it seems we already have excellent options for the race in regards to grip and endurance from the new generation tyres. Technically we need to assess data from the engine control system to improve acceleration and top speed; also gearbox ratios are not yet perfect. Spring balance, front-to-rear, is also on our list tomorrow, so Shinya will again have a lot of work to do.” More, from a press release issued by Gauloises Yamaha: GAULOISES YAMAHA TEAM MAKES STEADY START AT SLIPPERY ESTORIL Gauloises Yamaha Team riders Valentino Rossi and Colin Edwards began adjusting their YZR-M1 machines to the demands of the Estoril circuit in typically mixed weather conditions on the windy west coast of Portugal today. Thick black rain clouds blew intermittently across long stretches of blue skies and warm sunshine, with occasional rain showers leaving the track surface slippery and unpredictable. Despite the changeable conditions, which are expected to continue for the rest of the weekend, Colin Edwards was able to follow on from a positive day of tests at Jerez earlier this week with another step forward in the set-up of his YZR-M1. Edwards is using a shorter exhaust system to his Gauloises Yamaha team-mate Valentino Rossi, as he has done ever since Yamaha’s private pre-season tests at Phillip Island last month, and the American was particularly impressed with its performance at this tight and twisty circuit. Whilst Edwards was fourth fastest over today’s two free practice sessions, neither of which contribute to the formation of the grid for Sunday’s race, Rossi lapped sixth fastest with a time still some way off the circuit lap record of 1’38.423 which he set on the Yamaha YZR-M1 last season. Alex Barros (Honda) was quickest in both sessions, clocking a best time of 1’38.516 in the afternoon. The action will continue in Saturday’s third free practice and qualifying practice on Saturday. COLIN EDWARDS, (1’39.144, 47 laps) “This morning was a bit of a waste of a session because I had a slow puncture on the front tyre. Despite that I went out this afternoon and it felt good straight away we definitely made an overall improvement to the bike at the Jerez test. I find that the throttle connection to the engine is much better with the new exhaust, which is an important aspect at this circuit. I’ve never ridden the Yamaha here before but I had a feeling it would work well and in the twisty sections it’s awesome. MotoGP racing is never easy but if we can work on our strong points and make those twisty sections even better then we have a good chance. “ VALENTINO ROSSI (1’39.446, 37 laps) “Friday isn’t so important for the grid any more but it is important to use this time constructively to work on the set-up. We are okay but we have some difficulties, especially with the rear end, and there is not a lot of grip at this circuit anyway. I was close to falling twice in that session. Some things are not working perfectly and the conditions are making it very hard. It’s difficult to get the tyre to the right temperature, especially on the left side, because the conditions are changing all the time. We are not at our maximum yet but I hope the weather is better tomorrow so we can sort everything out. People are talking about rain on Sunday but I’m not worried because we know our bike works well in the wet.” DAVIDE BRIVIO TEAM DIRECTOR “It was quite cold today and there were strong winds, as well as light spells of rain, which made it very difficult to get the tyres to perform to 100%. That is not an ideal situation when you are trying to find an initial set-up for a circuit but it is the same for everybody. Colin is going well and showing signs of improvement from Jerez, whilst Valentino still has a few problems to fix. With the new qualifying format we can dedicate the whole of Friday to collecting information so now we can look ahead to using it to make improvements tomorrow. Hopefully the weather is on our side!” More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse: DUCATI MARLBORO MEN FIGHT HARD ON DAY ONE Ducati Marlboro Team riders Carlos Checa and Loris Capirossi secured fifth and 12th fastest times on the opening day of practice for the Portuguese Grand Prix, on the slowest circuit on the MotoGP calendar. Each rider carried some degree of injury into the early session, with Capirossi recovering from a cracked bone in his left ankle and Checa still suffering pain from a pre-season shoulder dislocation. Rain in the morning session held back progress for a time, making for a busy afternoon of work. Threatening rain clouds passed by without incident in the second session, at a circuit well known for providing changeable track conditions. The team has not used the new engine braking control system which was tried out for most of the weekend at Jerez last week. Ducati MotoGP project manager Livio Suppo stated. “It looks better than it did at Jerez and that is important. It is just a case of the riders regaining confidence and of course, for Loris especially, recovering from injury. It is painful for him during gearchanges and it also affects his mobility on the bike. So it is difficult for him. Carlos rode consistently well: we are happy for him and his shoulder is not a big trouble at the moment. I think we can be confident of a good weekend.” CHECA CONFIDENT AFTER FIRST DAY OF PRACTICE Ducati Marlboro Team man Carlos Checa was up to second fastest after a few minutes of afternoon track action. Working hard on machine set-up, he now looks forward to the second day and the single timed qualifying session, which will determine the shape of the grid for Sunday’s race. He set fifth fastest time today, with a 1’39.200. “The situation is that we could not test too many different front and rear tyres this morning but we can see that we have good potential in some areas. The engineers have to work clearly and cleverly for tomorrow, to put everything in a situation where I can ride the bike at my best. My shoulder is in less pain here, at least for a few laps. It does not disturb me too much, because the feeling from the bike is quite good. I am quite confident for this weekend.” CAPIROSSI BATTLES ON AGAINST INJURY The Ducati Marlboro Team man struggled against the effects of his recently cracked left ankle, setting a best time of 1’39.820 and going 12th on the leader board. Capirossi, in pain in each session and running wide on occasion, due to his difficulties changing down the gears entering turns, was nonetheless combative in outlook. “Today has not been easy and the track is in a strange condition. The tarmac was too cold and it made it difficult for the tyres to work in the correct way. I also have problems shifting down gears. I knew this GP would be even more difficult than Jerez, because the injury was fresh there, but now I have been walking on it for a few days. The foot feels like it is being punctured with needles all the time. It needs time to recover. The important thing is to fix the bike and then we will think about the race. More, from a press release issued by Camel Honda: Barros improves eleven times, Bayliss the lionheart Fastest in the morning free practice and also fastest from start to finish in the afternoon second free practice session, improving his own fastest time eleven times in the process, Alex Barros stamped his authority on the first day of practice at the Portuguese Grand Prix, setting the fastest time of 1’38.516 on race tyres. Troy Bayliss, who in the morning free session rode a good pace to set the sixth fastest time, crashed in the afternoon hour whilst on a fast lap, bashing his left shoulder and head against the ground. Nevertheless, with the determination and courage which has become his trademark, he returned straight to the pit garage only to immediately get back out on track for the rest of the session with his second bike. At the end of the session, given that he didn’t remember the incident, he visited Doctor Ruggiero Mattioli’s mobile clinic, who after consultation with the circuit medical centre, decided there was no need for a CAT scan, and will simply visit the Camel Honda rider tomorrow morning before the third free practice session. Troy’s left shoulder is hurting him slightly and he also had some memory loss from the hours prior to the crash, which is thankfully now coming back to him. Sito Pons – Camel Honda “I’m happy with how today’s practices went, although I’m sorry for Troy’s crash. However I know he’s okay now, that he went straight back out on the track and I’m sure he’ll be out there again tomorrow. Alex went really well, as we expect from him, consistent and quick. I hope that tomorrow he continues at this pace, so we can see him have the ride that everyone expects from him in the race.” Alex Barros Camel Honda 1’38.516 1st position “I’m very happy, not only because of setting the fastest time, but also because our rhythm today was very consistent. We did some good work, getting a good base set-up for the bike, even though the conditions aren’t perfect; it’s cold and the asphalt hasn’t got much grip. This morning we had fifteen minutes maximum on a completely dry track, while it was better in the afternoon, if a little cold. You had to be careful because it was hard to keep the tyre warm, especially on the left hand side, seeing as the track has ten right turns and only four left. However, we’ve started off better than in Jerez, that’s for sure, and even though I still haven’t seen the others’ pace, I can easily say that ours is faster than during last year’s race. Tomorrow the forecast is for better weather and the others will also improve, but we will try and do so too, working through some of the finer details of the set-up. I think that a good race pace would be in the low 1’38s, with a few laps in 1’37 perhaps. I’m sorry that Troy crashed, I didn’t realise until the end of the session because I saw him riding right to the end.” Troy Bayliss Camel Honda 1’40.639 16th position “I can’t really say much about today because I don’t remember too much! I crashed, and then returned to the box, but don’t remember the incident. I hit the ground with my left shoulder, it was a big hit, but as it wasn’t hurting that much I went out again. I think I need a bit of a rest, but tomorrow I’ll ride again because this morning we did a good job, riding consistently fast and I want to make some good progress also tomorrow”. More, from a press release issued by Telefonica Movistar Honda: GIBERNAU COMES THROUGH FIRST TEST Sete laps second fastest in free practice at Estoril, whilst Marco Melandri suffers teething troubles PORTUGUESE GP – MOTOGP 1st FREE PRACTICE SESSIONS Sete Gibernau’s shoulder responded better than expected in the first day of free practice for the Portuguese Grand Prix today, with the Spaniard lapping second fastest behind Honda colleague Alex Barros. Gibernau took the morning session calmly, with weather conditions making it dangerous to take any unnecessary risks. Ultrasound and ice treatment have helped to reduce the swelling of his left shoulder tendon and, even though he finished the day feeling more tired than usual as he was forced to put more effort into his right arm, he is already feeling more optimistic than when he arrived at Estoril. Rain showers ruined the morning session and Marco Melandri ran out of time to push for a fast lap as he got to grips with the Portuguese circuit on his first visit here with the Honda. The Italian is confident of improving his feeling and his lap times tomorrow. SETE GIBERNAU (2nd, 1’39″065): “I’ve been looking forward to this Grand Prix. This morning the weather wasn’t on our side and with my shoulder problems I preferred not to push it. The pain is bearable, I’m suffering less than I expected and the only thing I am worried about is that I don’t have much strength in my left shoulder. I’ll have more treatment this evening from the doctors here and we’ll see if it improves tomorrow.” MARCO MELANDRI (14th, 1’40″020): “We’re starting from scratch at this circuit and the rain this morning ruined the first session, so an hour this afternoon wasn’t enough to find the perfect set-up. We started off with the same setting as Jerez and my feeling wasn’t perfect so I decided not to risk it. We’re still working on the bike and we know exactly what we have to change tomorrow.” More, from a press release issued by Fortuna Yamaha: The World Motorcycling Championship moved to the Portuguese circuit of Estoril on Friday after last weekend’s opening round at Jerez. After a difficult start, both FORTUNA YAMAHA riders enjoyed productive days, although they were not helped by the weather. Rain and wind hampered all the riders at what is acknowledged as one of the championship’s slowest circuits, and it was ultimately Alex Barros who posted the quickest lap of the day. Toni Elías (24): (Free qualifying 1: 1.43.941, 16th) (Free qualifying 2: 1.39.732, 9th) Toni Elias has a good record at Estoril having won at the track for the last two years in the 250cc class, and recovered well on Friday after a big crash in the morning. “I am very happy with how the day went. We are getting closer to the top riders all the time. This morning I had a stupid, but quite hard fall that affected me. I was trying to let Rossi through and went on to a dirty part of the circuit and lost the front end that is how the crash happened. We also had a slight problem with the suspension, but the team managed to fix that quickly in the afternoon and we did well after that. I like Estoril because you are on the brakes a lot and I like the more technical circuits.” Ruben Xaus (11): (Free qualifying 1: 1.43.157, 10º) (Free qualifying 2: 1.40.163, 15º) Although Xaus did not finish in a brilliant position, he looked more comfortable and at ease on his Yamaha than ever. His performance gave real hope for the rest of the weekend. “We are continuing to work hard. It’s clear given the standard of MotoGP that if you change from the bike that you have ridden for five years it will be very demanding and there are some aspects that I am not finding easy. I would have liked to have done more during pre-season as well but what’s done is done now and you can’t look back. We are getting better bit by bit, and whoever puts in the most time will have the best rhythm in the race and will get their rewards.” Hervé Poncharal, FORTUNA YAMAHA team manager “Both riders worked very well all day. We were a bit worried after Toni’s fall at the start of the day, but after those initial concerns things got much better. The day of testing we did at Jerez after the Grand Prix really has paid off. You could see how productive it was today and both riders learnt from the first race of the year. I just hope the weather holds tomorrow and allows the riders to work in comfortable conditions.” Circuit: 4.182 m. Record: Valentino Rossi, 04′ (1.38.423) Pole 2004: Makoto Tamada (1.37.933) Best lap of day: A. Barros (1.38.516) More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki: Mixed day for Team SUZUKI MotoGP Team SUZUKI MotoGP racers John Hopkins and Kenny Roberts Jr had differing outcomes from today’s practice sessions for this weekend’s MotoGP at Estoril in Portugal. The morning session was interrupted by a heavy downfall that left all riders waiting for the track to dry out. When conditions improved it allowed just enough time for both Suzuki racers to temporarily top the time charts during the remainder of the disrupted session. The afternoon practice was free from any further rain, enabling both riders to work on race settings. The fastest time of the day was achieved by Honda’s Alex Barros. Hopkins (1’39.769) was pleased with his day’s endeavours, having used the same Bridgestone front tyre for both sessions and various rear compounds to find the one he was happy with for the race. Hopkins said: “I worked on my riding style and different lines here today, and getting the right settings for Sunday. “Times mean nothing today, it’s all about getting things right. If I’d have put in some new rubber I know I would have recorded a faster time but that’s not what today is about – tomorrow’s for quick times! “I’m really pleased with the bike, it felt good and so did I – the flu took a lot out of me in Jerez. We still have a couple of small things to work on in the morning but everything is looking good for qualifying and for racing.” Roberts Jr (1’39.804) was thwarted in his attempts to test both of his Suzuki GSV-R prototype bikes – on different settings – by a series of unfortunate circumstances. Having missed most of the morning session because of the rain, Roberts Jr hoped to use the later period to its full extent to test the two bikes. This was not possible as a minor fault caused him to stop and cut short his attempts at a full comparison – despite his best efforts of running back to the garage to get out on the other bike as quickly as he could. Roberts commented: “I just seemed to have problems today, we had some big ideas for different settings that we wanted to try but because of the rain and the fault we didn’t get to do them. We will just have to see what tomorrow brings.” Team Manager Paul Denning said: “In this morning’s session, both riders were able to get to a decent pace within the 15 minutes available at the end. John is happy with his performance but he still has a few things to work on tomorrow to improve in the final sector of the lap. “Kenny was unlucky this afternoon but I hope we will be able to make all the necessary improvements in time for Saturday’s qualifying. “Both of the guys will be doing all they can to make sure the Suzuki GSV-R is near the front of tomorrow’s time-sheets.” Team SUZUKI MotoGP has a further practice session on Saturday morning before an hour long qualifying period in the afternoon to determine grid positions for Sunday’s race that begins at 14.00CET (13.00 local time).