Motegi Track Presents Unique Set-up Challenges

Motegi Track Presents Unique Set-up Challenges

© 2005, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

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TRACK FACTS Honda constructed the 4.801km circuit, which also incorporates an Indy Car style oval, in 1997 in the hilly countryside 100kms north of Tokyo. It was a massive construction project and the complex also includes the famous Honda Museum and a hotel. The track has a comparatively long back straight but a series of slow corners and also two tunnels which allows the oval to run round the outside. The circuit staged its first grand prix in 1999, the very wet Japanese Grand Prix, which was won by the Kenny Roberts riding the Suzuki. Roberts won the Pacific Grand Prix the next year at the track but after that it became the domain of the circuit owners Honda and also the Honda Pons team. Valentino Rossi won the 500cc race at the Pacific Grand Prix in 2001 but after that Sito Pons’s Honda team have won three races in a row. Alex Barros won on his first appearance on the RCV four-stroke Honda in 2002. A year later Max Biaggi brought the Camel Honda team success and last year at the Japanese Grand Prix, Makoto Tamada totally dominated the proceedings. Not only did he win the 24 lap race, but he also started from pole position and set the fastest lap, riding the Camel Honda. Unfortunately Troy Bayliss will not take part in the Grand Prix of Japan at Motegi after injuring his wrist (Monday 12th September) whilst training on his motocross bike in Australia. Only a series of closer examinations will confirm the length of recovery time required by the Australian although he will definitely be forced to miss the next race. FROM THE SADDLE Alex Barros: “I like Motegi, it’s a track where I can look back at some great races, and not just the win in 2002, when I rode this Honda four-stroke for the first time, but also the podium from the year before. Last year’s race was also good for me, because after the first corner incident where lots of riders crashed out, I was in last place, at the back of the group. The whole race was a fightback for me, and finally I came fourth, just a couple of seconds off the podium, just behind Nakano. We will try to make the most of the team’s experience on this track, so we can have another great race.” Troy Bayliss: “There is not much I can say other than that I am very, very disappointed to be forced out of this race. I was really looking forward to racing at Motegi after the tests we completed at Brno and I was training on my own to try and be as best prepared as I could. Now we will have to find out what treatment I need but my objective is to get fit as soon as possible.” CIRCUIT – JAPANESE GRAND PRIX – 18/09/05 MOTEGI Track data Length: 4.801kms Pole Position: Left Width: 12-15 m Right corners: Eight Left corners: Six Longest Straight: 762m Constructed: 1997 Record lap: Makoto Tamada (Camel Honda) 1m48.524s – 159.261 km/h Record Pole lap: Makoto Tamada (Camel Honda) 1m46.673s – 162.024 km/h 2004 Race winner: Makoto Tamada (Camel Honda) 43m43.220s – 158.129 km/h Alex Barros/Troy Bayliss 2004 Barros fourth Bayliss dnf TECHNICAL INSIGHT – JAPANESE GRAND PRIX – 18/09/05 MOTEGI TECHNICAL INSIGHT The famous Twin-Ring Motegi was built in 1997 by the Japanese company Honda. Looking back over the last four years results we see that the first rider across the finish line was always an Honda rider. In 2002 out of the first seven places on the grid, five were Honda bikes and the first four bikes to finish were also Honda. One can certainly say that this is a Honda circuit. The two main characteristics of the Motegi track are rapid accelerations and sharp braking. In Twin-Ring Motegi there are six areas of acceleration where the bike goes from under 100 Km/h to over 230Km/h and in three of these straights speeds of more than 260 Km/h are registered. Elsewhere there are four areas of braking where the bike decreases from over 250 km/h to less than 90 Km/h. These characteristics influence the setting up of the bikes for the Japanese GP. With these braking areas, and taking into account that for 40 % of the lap the bike is decelerating, it is essential to find stability under braking and an engine brake correctly adjusted, in particular to avoid the rear wheel locking up, to gain fast times. To achieve this more weight is added to the rear of the bike than is usual which also increases grip under acceleration. As is normally the case, this weight adjustment does cause other problems, in particular “wheelies” where the front wheel loses contact with the track surface. Since the accelerations begin from low speeds, the first and second gear ratios are relatively short which also increases the tendency to do wheelies and make the bike uncontrolable. Often when this happens the riders must close the throttle to regain control of the bike. Also, since the braking is sharp, the front springs fitted are normally hard, and this too means that the bike front sits higher than normal. With more weight in the rear of the biké under acceleration, the front of the bike becomes lighter and this can lead to the appearance of catering in the front Wheel, especially in the esses. The gearbox settings are another critical factor at Motegi. All gears are used at one point or another of the circuit and since the first is short and the sixth is relatively long, the it is vital to set the correct ratios to avoid falling out of the power delivery zone. First gear is used in the corners, “5”, “V-Corner” and “Hairpin”. Second gear is used to negotiate the corners “2”, “3”, “4”, “90º corner” and “Victory Corner”. The “S-Curves” are taken in third and the “130R” in fourth. When finding the right engine settings we must take into account that 25% of the lap is taken with the throttle fully open which clearly affects fuel consumption. On this note the race distance has been reduced from 25 laps three seasons ago to 24 with the introduction of the MotoGP four-stroke bikes, since it was impossible for these bikes to complete the twenty seven laps (2+25) using the 24 litres of fuel that the regulations permitted. The accelerations and braking at this circuit influence the composition of the tyres used. In many circuits, the rear wheel becomes worn on one side, depending on the amount of left or right-handed corners. However at Motegi the centre section of the rear tyre becomes worn most easily. The constant acceleration and the long straights at the circuit mean that centre section of the tyre is manufactured with a harder compound than the lateral sections. The front tyre choice is also crucial since the constant braking also make the tyre suffer heavy wear in the centre section. Another special setting to be decided at this circuit is the size of the front brake discs so that the brakes perform correctly throughout the 24 laps of the race. With the numerous braking points at this circuit, many riders choose to fit larger discs than normal.

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