From a press release:

HONDA RACING INFORMATION

2002 MotoGP 500 World Championship, round 10
Czech Grand Prix, Brno
August 23/24/25 2002

MotoGP LEADER ROSSI FACES EXTRA RCV RIVAL AT BRNO

The MotoGP circus reconvenes at Brno this weekend, commencing the second phase of the 2002 World Championship after a five-week midseason break. Round ten of this year’s 16-race campaign, the Czech GP is a crucial event for all concerned. With a month’s rest behind them (track testing was banned during the August recess), all riders will be anxious to get back up to speed as quickly as possible, not least MotoGP dominator Valentino Rossi (Repsol Honda Team RC211V).

Rossi ruled the first half of the season, taking eight wins from the first nine races, and will be determined to maintain his reign of supremacy despite growing opposition. So far the only man to have beaten him in 2002 is team-mate Tohru Ukawa (Repsol Honda Team RC211V). The two riders have also scored lap records at all nine tracks and pole positions at eight of the nine venues. In other words, the all-conquering RCV V5 four-stroke is the bike to have in the new MotoGP World Championship. But from Brno onwards there’s be another RCV rider with whom Rossi and Ukawa must contend. Brilliant MotoGP rookie Daijiro Kato (Fortuna Honda Gresini RC211V) has been promoted from the NSR500s he’s used so far and will be equipped with RCVs for the remainder of the season. And there will be another RCV in the mix for the final four races, when HRC supply a bike to the West Honda Pons squad.

“I’m expecting more competition as more RCVs arrive on the grid,” says Rossi. “That’s why I can’t relax just yet. Our results have been great so far, which is a credit to my team and the bike, but now we’ve got to keep working.”

Nonetheless, Rossi’s situation at Brno is less tense than this time last year when he was involved in a tense battle for the last-ever 500 World Championship with arch-rival Max Biaggi (Yamaha). The pair went into the Czech GP separated by just ten points, Biaggi leading the early stages, only to fall to earth, allowing Rossi to cruise to another win. “I think Brno is the masterpiece of my career because the mental situation was so difficult before the race,” reveals Rossi. “Though after Biaggi crashed it wasn’t very much exciting. This year’s race will be different for me, a different kind of pressure.”

Rossi has already enjoyed great success at Brno. He scored his first-ever GP victory at the epic track in 1996, in the 125 class, and added a 250 win in 1999 before completing the triple crown last August. The 23-year old is a big fan of the track that sweeps majestically across wooded hillsides which give riders the added complication of multiple elevation changes and numerous negative-camber corners.

“We tested at Brno in June and I think this will help us at the GP, because we have a good base to start from,” he adds. “During the tests we tried some new suspension links and a selection of Michelin tyres, working to improve traction and edge grip. I think we’ve made big steps since then, so I think we can be quite fast in the race.”

Ukawa is currently second in the MotoGP title chase, 96 points down on his team-mate. Badly battered from a crash during qualifying for the British GP in mid-July, the Japanese ace bravely rode to a third-place finish at the German GP the following weekend, then headed home to Japan to complete his convalescence. He had been expected to compete in the big Suzuka Eight Hours endurance race earlier this month, but decided to skip the event.

“The summer holiday came at the right time for me to get fully fit, I was disappointed not to do Suzuka but it was important to focus on GPs, so I can give my best,” says Ukawa. “I’m now very keen to maintain my position in the championship. Six podiums and two lap records is the best start to a season I’ve ever had but I think there will be more pressure from now on as teams develop their bikes.”

The omens for Kato’s four-stroke MotoGP debut are good. Although the reigning 250 World Champion has no four-stroke GP experience, he’s already proved his speed on four-strokes, most recently winning the Suzuka Eight Hours race on August 4, riding a Honda SP-2 Superbike in partnership with former World Superbike champ Colin Edwards. SP-2s filled the first three positions.

“That win was great for my confidence!” he smiles. “Now I face a big change in my GP career and I’m looking forward to it. The RCV is obviously an incredible motorcycle, but I expect it will take me a little time to get fully accustomed to the machine. We don’t have much time to get the bike right for me at Brno, so we must work hard, keep our focus and make steady progress during the last seven races.”

West Honda Pons riders Alex Barros (West Honda Pons NSR500) and Loris Capirossi (West Honda Pons NSR500) will have to wait a while longer to get their hands on an RCV, and in the meantime will continue with their NSR500s. The Brazilian and Italian have been the fastest 500 riders of 2002 so far, though Capirossi has been out of action for the past two months, after breaking his right wrist at Assen in late June. He returns to action at Brno fully fit and a married man, after tying the knot with long-time girlfriend Ingrid Tence earlier this month.

“I’ve been waiting a long time to start riding again, but the wrist seems good and strong,” says Capirossi. “The worst thing about the injury was that I missed the two tracks where the 500s had a real chance of winning Donington and Sachsenring and now I’m returning at Brno, where the four-strokes will be difficult to beat. But that won’t stop me trying. I’m looking forward to this race because I’ve missed riding.”

Barros had less holiday than most of his MotoGP rivals. The veteran GP star was part of the Honda line-up that totally dominated the Suzuka Eight Hours on August 4. Barros started the race from pole, set the fastest lap and finished third, partnering Yuichi Takeda on a Honda VTR SP-2.

“I always enjoy the Eight Hours and think it’s good for your riding,” say Barros, currently fourth overall behind Biaggi. “I’ve only been off a race bike for three weeks, while many of the other guys haven’t ridden for five weeks. But Brno is a fast, wide circuit which will favour the more powerful four-strokes, plus I’ve got to readapt to the 500, so I’m not expecting an easy weekend. My aim is to finish top two-stroke in this year’s championship and we’re looking good for that, though there’s still a long way to go.”

Winner of last year’s Czech 250 GP, Tetsuya Harada (Pramac Honda NSR500)can’t wait to get back in the saddle of his NSR500 at one of his favourite tracks. “The Brno layout is good for me,” says Harada. “And our machine package gets better every race, so this could be a good one for us.”

Jurgen van den Goorbergh (Kanemoto Racing Honda NSR500) has high hopes for the latest batch of Bridgestone tyres due at Brno. “Bridgestone have been working hard in the break, so we hope we’ll have another big improvement,” says the Dutchman. “The tyres keep getting better, though during the race in Germany I was still having understeer problems, with oversteer on gas. It will be interesting to see what I can do with the latest tyres.”

Italian 250 firebrand Robby Rolfo (Fortuna Honda Gresini NSR250) also hopes for better things at Brno, and throughout the second phase of the 250 season. Rolfo currently holds third overall in the 250 series, largely thanks to three brilliant runner-up rides, but he has yet to win a race. “The bike keeps getting better at every GP and my team is working really well,” he says. “But we need to keep working at getting the right feeling for this race. Also, speed is important at Brno, which could be a concern for us.”

Teammate Emilio Alzamora (Fortuna Honda Gresini NSR250) won’t race at Brno because he recently underwent surgery for ‘arm pump’, a common racer’s condition which had been hampering his riding for some while. His place will be taken by fellow Spaniard David Garcia.

Daniel Pedrosa (Telefonica Movistar Jr Team Honda RS125R) hopes for a return to the podium at Brno, five weekends after a troubled ride to seventh at the German GP, his worst dry-weather result of the year. “I think the Sachsenring was the most difficult weekend of my career, so I hope Brno will be very different,” grins the teenager, who’s currently third in the 125 points chart. “We need some good results at the next few races if I am to stay in contention for the title.”

The Grand Prix season continues with the Portuguese GP, at Estoril, on September 6/7/8. Then the circus embarks on a five-week, four-event trip outside Europe, with races in Brazil, Japan, Malaysia and Australia. The year ends at Valencia on November 3.