Busy day for Alex and Troy divided between track tests and photo shoots

It was a day full of hard work for Alex and Troy, who today divided their time between some very positive tests on the track, and preparing the photographic material for the upcoming team presentation in Milan, on March 16th. The team therefore made the most of the time at hand, before they dedicate the whole of next two days to on-track testing the team actually will keep working here until Friday. There was a lot of satisfaction flying around the Camel Honda box, with both riders on the pace despite having put in a lot fewer laps than their rivals.

Sito Pons Camel Honda
“I’m very satisfied with the work both riders and the team are doing: whilst we only dedicated a part of the day to tests, we we’re on a par with the fastest out there and that means that our preparations are going well for the season. Alex was fast straight away as in previous test sessions and Troy is constantly improving on the Honda. He looks a lot more at ease to me now and I think that this test, after Jerez, is the test he has gone best in. The riders’ times are very similar, and that means there’s good balance, which should guarantee a fascinating and hard-fought season. Today we anticipated a bit of the work we had to do later in the week, the promotional work had been planned for Friday, so in the next two days we will have more time to concentrate fully on our technical testing.”

Alex Barros Camel Honda 1:57.80 (26 laps) 6th fastest
“We got through twenty-six laps today, so still short of what’s needed to get the set-up right. More than anything we tested new tyres, four fronts to be exact, before we stopped for the photo shoot. In the next two days, however, we will focus entirely on the set-up of the bike.”

Troy Bayliss Camel Honda 1:58.55  (25 laps) 8th fastest
“We didn’t ride too much today either, but nonetheless I’m very happy. In those few laps I was able to improve my time considerably from yesterday’s, taking over two seconds off it! I can see the improvements coming and we’ve found a good direction. Tomorrow and Friday we will be able to make the most of all the time left and we will be able to work on the data we’ve picked up today.”

More, from a press release issued by Marlboro Ducati:

CAPIROSSI SETS QUICK TIME WITH THE DESMOSEDICI IN QATAR

Loris Capirossi ends the second day of testing with a time of 1:57.69. Carlos Checa just two-tenths of a second slower. Both riders carried out tests with several different Bridgestone front tyres.

Doha (Qatar), 2 March 2005 – The Ducati Marlboro Team has concluded the second day of a three-day test at the Losail circuit in Qatar. Despite strong winds, the good weather (air 28° C/track 48° C) helped Loris Capirossi and Carlos Checa complete the scheduled programme and carry out tests with several different types of front race tyres.

While yesterday Loris Capirossi had concentrated on establishing a good set-up for his Desmosedici GP5, today the Italian tested the numerous front tyres brought by Bridgestone and ended with an excellent time of 1:57.69 in his 58 laps.

“Today was a really tough day, but it gave me a lot of satisfaction” commented Loris. “We tried a lot of front tyres and at the end of the day three rear race tyres. I set a good time, I’m pleased about that but am ready to work even harder tomorrow”.

As well as the tyres, Loris also tested a number of different gearbox settings.

Carlos Checa was also on the pace, recording a quickest time of 1:57.91 in his 60 laps. The Spanish rider also concentrated almost entirely on the front tyres.

“We worked a lot with the front tyres, I tested several different types but in the end found a good compromise” declared Carlos. “It was a long hard day, but I am pleased that I was able to get the most out of it. The track also improved, we were able to work better than yesterday and as a result the times were quicker”.

Tomorrow the Ducati Marlboro Team will wrap up the three-day test at the Doha circuit, where it will return for the Qatar GP on Saturday 1 October.

The next test sessions for the team are:
Barcelona – IRTA Tests, 18-20 March
Jerez de la Frontera – IRTA Tests, 25-27 March