More Rio MotoGP Previews

More Rio MotoGP Previews

© 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

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From a press release issued by Fuchs Kawasaki:

MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2003
ROUND 12 – CINZANO RIO GRAND PRIX
16TH SEPTEMBER 2003 – EVENT PREVIEW

RIO RACE NEXT STOP FOR FUCHS KAWASAKI TEAM

Four races in five weeks, that’s the demanding MotoGP schedule that faces Fuchs Kawasaki riders Andrew Pitt and Garry McCoy as they prepare for this week’s South American adventure at the Rio Grand Prix.

The Rio race is round 12 of the MotoGP World Championship and traditionally takes place on Saturday rather than the more usual Sunday. It is the first of a series of multi-continent flyaway events that will take the Kawasaki squad through Brazil, Japan, Malaysia and Australia.

It’s a long, tough trip with GP teams and riders working out of packing crates and away from their traditional European bases. However there is a silver lining for Pitt and McCoy.

The reward for the Australian pair is that the final flyaway race, before a return to Europe for the season grand finale, is their home Grand Prix at Phillip Island on October 19th, where they will have the once-a-year opportunity of racing before family, friends and home fans.

McCoy and Pitt will face vastly different challenges at Rio as they try to reverse the disappointment of the recent Portuguese GP. As with the at Estoril, the Kawasaki team goes to Rio for the first time with no data or base settings to work from in this first development year of the 990cc ZX-RR MotoGP machine.

MotoGP rookie Pitt has another new track and culture to learn as he prepares for his Brazilian debut. However Pitt, who won the Supersport World Championship with Kawasaki in 2001, has proved to be a fast learner in his first season aboard the prototype Ninja ZX-RR.

Meanwhile, McCoy is a Rio regular and is familiar with the unpredictable conditions, both weather and track, that can be part of the racing equation in Brazil. While dismayed to be a non-finisher at the recent Portuguese race, the resilient McCoy is hoping the wider and faster Nelson Piquet Circuit will provide the opportunity to maximise the performance of the ZX-RR.

The Rio circuit has a couple of unusual features apart from its bumpy and abrasive surface. The road course is combined with an Indy car oval track and there are two cross-over points for the car circuit. Then there are the two parallel straights, the shorter of which contains the start-finish line and pit garages while the super-fast 1,000 metre main straight rockets its way past a huge grandstand that provides a panoramic view of the whole complex.

Garry McCoy
“Every time I go back to Rio the track seems like its torn up more than the last time; maybe we get spoilt in Europe with mostly smooth tracks, but it can be pretty wild over the bumps, a little like a motocross track. I know the track as a rider, but the tough part is that unlike most of the other factory teams Kawasaki is going there for the first time without data from previous races. There are some changes of direction that might be hard on us, but also there are some faster corners and a long straight and Kawasaki have been tweaking our motors recently so that should help. It can be either hot or raining and tyre wise Dunlop have made some positive progress for both conditions, but if I had to pick right now I guess a wet race might be a little better for the ZX-RR at this stage.”

Andrew Pitt
“I’ll be in Rio a few days early to try and shake off the jet lag and have a look around and get the feel of the place, as I’ve never been there before, either as a racer or a tourist. I’ll probably try and get on a scooter and do some laps and work out which way the corners go. First practice on Friday morning will be a learning session for me as I know the track will look a lot different at 300km/h on the ZX-RR. But I’m looking forward to the challenge; I learn tracks pretty quick and hopefully we can find a race set-up that gives us a chance of moving forward, running at the back is no fun.”


From a press release issued by Honda Racing:

HONDA RACING INFORMATION
Preview Rio Grand Prix at Jacarepagua
18 – 19 – 20 September 2003

HONDAS EXPECTED TO FLY DOWN IN RIO

The Nelson Piquet circuit on the fringes of the bustling conurbation of Rio de Janeiro hosts the first and only South American based MotoGP race of the intense 2003 season on Saturday 20 September, with all three of the top Honda RC211V riders in the series having tasted victory at least once so far.

The top three championship positions at this important juncture of the season are filled by the V5-powered triumvirate of 2002 World Champion Valentino Rossi (Repsol Honda RC211V), Sete Gibernau (Telefonica MoviStar Honda RC211V) and Max Biaggi (Camel Pramac Pons RC211V). Rossi sits on 237, Gibernau on 191 and Biaggi on 161.

Such has been the consistency and speed of these men and their Honda machines that the next nearest challenge is 48 points behind Biaggi’s total and comes from MotoGP returnees Ducati, in the shape of Loris Capirossi (Ducati). MotoGP rookie Troy Bayliss (Ducati) is a further seven points adrift.

The second season of four-stroke MotoGP regulations has been a real battle for wins from day one, with Gibernau four times puncturing the frequently indestructible force field surrounding multiple world champion Rossi. More recently Rossi has found new focus and powers of race long concentration allowing him to secure the last two race wins, for a season total of five.

Rossi in full flow is an awesome sight to behold, and his personal record of five Rio wins, spread through all solo classes, is a telling statistic for his rivals to consider at this juncture. Rossi’s form is back to its exquisite best, having won the most recent Brno and Estoril MotoGP events, taking him to a career total of 55 in all classes.

“I am very happy after the last two GPs with good results,” said the 2001 and 2002 World Champion. “We worked very hard on the bike with the team and after the summer break we came back and concentrated at 100%. I think earlier in the season maybe we lost a little bit of our concentration. We made a few mistakes but now we are coming good for the important part of the season. We have had good success in Rio and I have many good memories of this track in the past. We hope to make more of the same results that will be good for the championship.”

The man who matched Rossi blow for blow for much of the season, Sete Gibernau, is optimistic about his upcoming Rio performance but recognises that the nature of the 4.933 km circuit can catch out the unwary, even on day one.

“Of course I’m very enthusiastic going into the Rio race,” said the rejuvenated Spaniard. “The race is important and I’m willing to fight for the win on Saturday. The track is not one of my favourites but I don’t dislike racing there. The big factors at Rio are the weather – sometimes it rains – and the tyres. Tyre choice is crucial at Rio and you have to get the set up right as soon as possible so you know your tyre choice is the right one.”

For Max Biaggi, his most recent experiences of the RC211V have imbued him with enthusiasm for the fight in South America.

“I had a good result in Estoril and I hope the next race will be even better,” said Biaggi, the Donington race winner. “I pretty much like the layout of the circuit but not the tarmac. Normally the grip is not good and it’s quite bumpy. You need a very good set up there. Anyway there are a couple of things that make me positive about Rio: the first one is that the RC211V is a naturally very, very well balanced machine, the second is that we made a step forward with the set up in Estoril. Hopefully we’ll improve even more from there.”

For Tohru Ukawa (Camel Pramac Pons RC211V) his 2003 season has featured a mixed bag of results, and he sits seventh after 11 rounds.

“We had a good race at Estoril and I feel a lot happier now – after a few poor results earlier on,” said the 30-year-old Japanese. “The team worked very hard at the Brno test and at Estoril and we found solutions to some problems. Now I hope we can keep carry on the same way for the rest of the season.”

Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC211V) has enjoyed his rookie MotoGP season so far but more importantly has been a thorn in the side of many more experienced competitors on several occasions.

“I’ve been feeling better and better on the bike recently and am really looking for some good finishes from the last few races,” said Hayden, who has another reason to be at his best at Rio. “I was pretty disappointed with the result in Portugal where I had come into the weekend with some high expectations from the previous two races. It only really started to come good at the end of the race and it’s too late then! I’ll be looking to get on pace quick in Rio and I definitely want to move up the riders table before the end of the season.” Hayden currently lies ninth on overall classification.

Makoto Tamada (Pramac Honda RC211V) is playing the role of Bridgestone tyre development rider and full-on racer for his team, and Rio offers yet another challenge to his talents.

“We had a better day in Estoril, I’m happy with the race overall,” said three time SBK race winner, currently in 12th place. “We are closer to our rivals and I hope we carry on improving when we get to Rio. It will be my first race at the track.”

Another MotoGP rookie Ryuichi Kiyonari (Telefonica MoviStar Honda RC211V) faces a stiff test of his abilities at Rio, and hopes he will be able to put in new personal bests once more.

In the 250cc Championship Roberto Rolfo (Fortuna Honda RS250RW) sits third overall, part of a five-man group covered by only 22 points. World Championship leader Manuel Poggiali is at the head of a whole gaggle of Aprilia riders in contention with Rolfo.

Having scored a win on the undulating twists of Sachsenring he rates the very different Rio as a tough trial for both man and machine this weekend.

“Rio is a track I don’t really like very much,” confessed Rolfo. “In the past the bikes I have raced there suffered on the two long straights. The biggest problem at Rio is set up to run the long corners on the track. Maybe the Honda I have now will be better suited to the circuit than what I raced before.”

One man who looks forward to Rio, for more than just professional reasons, is Argentinean rider Sebastian Porto (Telefonica MoviStar Junior Team RS250RW). Based in Europe for almost all the year, Porto moves closer to home when the circus heads for Rio.

“I travelled home to Argentina after Estoril, celebrating my 25th birthday with my friends,” said Porto, who will start his 120th GP this weekend. “Sure Rio is a special place for me I won the race last year. Rio is the closest race to my home so a lot of Argentine fans come to the race. We make progress with the bike each race so I hope we have improved again since Estoril. I’m looking forward to the race.”

Daniel Pedrosa (Telefonica MoviStar Junior Team RS125R) was blessed with some good fortune at Estoril in the previous 125cc championship round, his two main rivals clashing and Pedrosa taking the opportunity to move 38 points clear of his nearest rival Stefano Perugini (Aprilia).

Pedrosa now finds himself in an unexpectedly clear leading position, and may have to modify his normal approach of going for the win at all costs this weekend.

“Rio is one of those places where we might get rain, I hope not this year,” said Pedrosa. “It rained last year and I was doing OK in third place until my boot slipped off the footrest and touched the rear brake and I crashed. The way things worked out at Estoril was good for me but if it rains at Rio I will not take any risks. I just hope it stays dry.”

Masao Azuma (Ajo Motorsports Honda RS125R) was a convincing winner of the Rio race in 2002, and is understandably looking forward to similar riding conditions to last year.

“Last year Rio was a fantastic race for me, I have good memories of Rio,” said Azuma. “When the surface is clean it has good grip, also in the wet. If I could choose between wet and dry right now I would prefer the wet with the set up we have for the rain.”

Thomas Luthi (Elit Grand Prix Honda RS125R) has some experience of the Rio circuit.

“I raced at the track in Rio last year, it’s not so bad,” understated the young Swiss. “Like all tracks in the championship its OK for me. I like the atmosphere in Brazil, it’s a nice country and I enjoyed racing there.”

The Rio race takes place on Saturday 20 September, not the more usual Sunday of most other MotoGP weekends. This means that official qualifying also starts one day earlier than normal, on Thursday 18th.




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