From a press release issed by Fortuna Yamaha:

CHAMPIONSHIP HOTS UP AGAIN AFTER SUMMER BREAK

After a string of races across northern Europe, the Fortuna Yamaha Team makes its way with the rest of the MotoGP paddock back to the Iberian peninsula this weekend for the Portuguese Grand Prix in Estoril. This weekend’s race marks the end of the European sector of the season before each team packs its equipment into freight cases for the string of four ‘flyaway’ races in Brazil, Japan, Malaysia and Australia. The nomadic paddock then returns to Europe for the final showdown in Valencia, Spain on 2 November.

After a six week lull, interruputed only by the Gauloises Czech Republic Grand Prix in Brno in mid-August and the ensuing Michelin tyre test at the Czech circuit, the MotoGP riders will be looking forward to getting back to the action in what has turned into an unusually close championship . The excitement reached its peak at the last race in Brno, when at mid-race distance the top five riders were covered by just 1.171 seconds, and the race win was claimed by just 0.042 seconds by Valentino Rossi from Sete Gibernau. The leading pack didn’t just change positition on every lap but virtually every corner!

Fortuna Yamaha Team rider Carlos Checa was one of the strongest race contenders in Brno. Although he followed the leading five riders for the majority of the race, his times improved lap by lap and he closed in on the top group to finish in a solid fourth. His team-mate Marco Melandri had a more difficult weekend, struggling to get comfortable with his Yamaha YZR-M1 four-stroke machine but eventually overcoming his difficulties to finish what was an impressive tenth place, considering his seventeenth place starting grid position.

Checa and Melandri came away from the group Michelin tyre test which followed the Czech race feeling the benefits of the day. Checa continued to set impressively fast and consistent lap times, and Melandri made more progress conquering the troubles that had affected his performance during the race weekend. Both riders and their crews will return to Estoril this weekend not only with the confidence that they left the test with, but also fully relaxed and focused after the two week break since. The team’s Italian director, Davide Brivio, knows how much extra effort his team has put in recently, and the result is making a difference. He is sure that the enhanced performances of both riders will improve even more this weekend.

“Carlos got pole position in Estoril last year so has a proven track record with the M1 there,” said Davide Brivio about the elder of his two riders. “Also he’s come from another positive race in the Czech Republic and at the races before it, with Brno probably the most positive. We are looking forward to this end of the season for Carlos – he was fighting again in Brno with the top group so his confidence is improving. We’re working to get him on the podium soon.

“With Marco, his weekend in Brno was not as positive as we were expecting but I think that probably that track doesn’t perfectly suit his riding style on the M1. However, he made the best of a difficult situation and by race day had made adjustments working closely with his crew, which made a lot of difference, and he was able to achieve a solid result despite a difficult grid position. This was all part of an important and steep learning curve! Estoril will hopefully be a different story. During the winter testing Marco had a small fall on the wet there, and hurt his shoulder but now he is so much more confident with the bike. I think we can have him back on good form this weekend.

“Both riders were pleased with the chance to test at Brno on the Monday after the race in the Michelin tyre test. Carlos’ lap times were as good with the tyres he was testing as they were in the race on Sunday. His times were also consistent and the same as the pace setters were achieving in the race, so he has come away from the test feeling confident. The test was also positive and useful for Marco – a chance to clarify some doubts and improve some settings.”


CHECA SIXTH IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP AND DETERMINED FOR HIGHER
Carlos Checa’s season did not start out as one of his best but he is making up for lost time, and now just needs a podium finish to reestablish himself as one of the top protagonists in motorcycle racing’s premier class. His season has improved slowly but surely, his change in luck starting at his home Barcelona Grand Prix in June when he finished fourth. Since then he has achieved another fourth in Assen, sixth in Donington, a frustrating eighth in Sachsenring, and then back on track to finish fourth at the Czech Republic Grand Prix three weeks ago. He has moved up to sixth position in the championship standings – eighteen points behind Ducati MotoGP rookie Troy Bayliss and nineteen points behind Bayliss’ team-mate Loris Capirossi.


Checa will need to use every ounce of his determination this weekend to achieve Fortuna Yamaha’s first podium finish of the season. Last year he finished second at the Portuguese circuit after a pole position start, and a hard-ridden race in harsh wet conditions. The Spaniard is looking forward to getting back into the championship after the break, and feels that the Portuguese circuit can provide the platform for his first podium of the season.

“I got the pole there last year, so obviously it’s a track that I quite like,” said the Spanish rider. “At all tracks you need good front and rear balance and good stability on turning, that’s the basic character, and then you build on that from circuit to circuit. Estoril has a long straight, and you need hard braking on T1. Then about seventy percent of the track consists of slow turns where you need hard braking. The last section has the slowest corner, and for me it’s the slowest corner of all the GP circuits. You need good handling there and connection with the throttle. The bike becomes very heavy at that point.

“The track doesn’t look like it has any grip but actually when you’re on the track the grip level isn’t so bad. The last section is quite important for the lap time, and by the last section I mean the last two turns. It’s easy to lose a lot of time in the slower area. I like the track in general but not the bumps, especially on the exit of turns one and two. That last slow section is too slow for us four-stroke riders really, it’s too slow for 200 horsepower.”


TWENTY-ONE YEARS OLD AND READY FOR ACTION
Marco Melandri has spent the two short season intervals training, hanging out with friends, looking forward to the next race, and turning twenty-one! He celebrated his birthday just before the Czech Grand Prix, and the Brno Grand Prix was certainly a test of his maturity. The 250cc World Champion had a tricky weekend, struggling to find a set-up that he felt comfortable with, and didn’t find a compromise until morning practice on race day, when he and his crew made adjustments that set him up for a steady race. He finished in tenth place, and now lies nineteenth in the championship.

His current championship standing belies the progress he has made in his rookie MotoGP season. Having missed the first two races of the year due to injury, and spending the following few races relearning the ropes, he amazed everyone by claiming his first MotoGP front row start at the French Grand Prix in Le Mans, then claiming a second front row start at the British Grand Prix in Donington when he fought with the race leaders before tumbling out of the race from fourth place. At the ensuing German Grand Prix in Sachsenring he brilliantly fought his way as high as second after a twelfth place start, unluckily falling off when he had difficulties changing gear.

Melandri’s weekend in Brno was more complicated. Despite a reasonable test at the Czech circuit in mid-July, he struggled to find a set-up that he felt comfortable with during the race weekend. He and his crew worked harder than ever to overcome the difficulties, and after lowering the front geometry of his YZR-M1 on race day, the young Italian went on to complete a steady race, finishing tenth. The same set-up helped him complete a positive Michelin test the following day at the group tyre test in Brno. Now he moves on to Estoril

“Last year I finished second in Estoril, I was hoping for another win but couldn’t quite make it. I was still winning the 250cc championship at that stage anyway so I have good memories of this circuit. However in winter testing this year I had a tumble when I was testing Michelin’s wet tyres in the rain. I slid on an uphill chicane on my second lap in the wet, and had to be taken to the Clinica Mobile. They confirmed that my right collar bone had separated from my shoulder blade, it really hurt! At least I got to ride about 22 laps before the fall, with a reasonable time, so I do have some experience with the M1 on the Estoril circuit.

“All through the summer break I haven’t been able to relax properly because I’ve been so focused on racing. After having such a good feeling with the bike in Donington and Sachsenring, I was so disappointed in Brno when I couldn’t ride as I wanted to. It seemed that no matter what we did on Friday and Saturday, it didn’t get any better. My crew worked so hard all weekend and then we made another change on Sunday and it immediately felt better.

“Now I’m just desperate to get back to the racing, and I really want to finish the race in a good position in Estoril. In some ways the frustration in Brno was good for me because it taught me that if you can’t get the feeling you want at the start of the weekend, you have to be patient sometimes, trust your crew, and keep working without making too many changes.”


TECHNICALLY SPEAKING
In some ways many of the issues that plague the South African circuit, Welkom, also make racing at Estoril interesting, to say the least. The combination of its design and geography make it a technically challenging venue. Situated 32km west of Lisbon on the western coast of Portugal, 7km from the beach resort of Cascais, Estoril is regularly hit by offshore winds – resulting in a light film of dust on the track surface. This, combined with the circuit’s flat camber and irregular use, means that grip levels are always minimal for the first couple of days during the Portuguese Grand Prix, until a clean racing line is formed.

As the circuit naturally becomes cleaner and faster over the course of the Grand Prix weekend, the chassis characteristics and the ideal setting continually change, making bike set-up difficult for all. The engine alone must cater for all extremes here; predictability, due to the low grip levels; low to midrange power, which must satisfy the drive needed off the half dozen second gear corners; and top-end over-rev, essential to make the leap between each bend.

Chassis wise the first target is a balanced, neutral geometry; offering good turn-in characteristics while also catering for the big braking areas, such as turn one. The base setting will be similar to that used at Donington, only with slightly higher rate fork springs to deal with the extra weight transfer under deceleration. Meanwhile the rear spring will be softer to improve feedback under power. This will be done while the technicians and riders focus on a set-up suited more on the latter part of the race, at which point the tyre grip levels will be fading, rather than on a one-off ultra fast time on new rubber.



More, from a press release issued by Pramac Racing Press Information:

ESTORIL: ELEVENTH MOTOGP RACE BEFORE TRANSFER TO SOUTH AMERICA

The Estoril circuit is located 28 kilometres from Lisbon, just off the Atlantic coast, and will be the venue for the eleventh round of the World Road Racing Championship. Built in 1972, the Portuguese track hosted a number of Formula 2 races in the 1970s, before being “consecrated” at world level with the arrival of Formula 1 in 1984. Since 2000, it has been the Portuguese venue for the world motorcycling tests of the Grand Prix.

The Estoril circuit is difficult to interpret and its layout contains all those complexities that make it technical and selective. Many corners to be taken at slower speeds are followed by rapid acceleration while other are faster, leading into tight chicanes where a change of direction needs to be negotiated with great skill. And there is more: extreme braking to enable overtaking, and then the long straight, where engine power can make all the difference. This means that Estoril has all it takes to make things difficult for both technicians and riders – and the weather remains an unknown factor: its proximity to the Atlantic coast makes the area susceptible to rapid changes in temperature.

The circuit. Length: 4,182 metres – 4 left-handers – 9 right-handers – longest straight: 986 metres – Maximum width: 14 metres –

Constructed in: 1972 – Modified in: 1999.

2002 winners.
125 class: Vincent (FRA) Aprilia
250 class: Nieto (SPA) Aprilia
MotoGP class: Rossi (ITA) Honda.

Circuit records:
125: 1:46.329, Ui, 2001
250: 1:42.285, Kato 2001
MotoGP: 1:40.683, Capirossi, 2001.

MAX BIAGGI THIRD IN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP RATINGS

CAMEL PRAMAC PONS TEAM SECOND IN TEAM RATINGS

Four-times world champion Massimiliano Biaggi finished the Brno race in third place, gaining 11 precious points that keep him firmly in third place in the world championship standings. The arrival of some updates for his RC211V required some extra work on setting up the bike and there is a good chance that it will be right here at Estoril that Max Biaggi will be able to show what he and such a powerful machine are really capable of. The gap separating him from the top is now 71 points – a lot, and hard to claw back, but nothing is impossible. Assisted by Ukawa’s eighth place in the Czech Republic, the Camel Pramac Pons Team still maintains second place in the special team standings. Tohru Ukawa is currently seventh in the world championship with 71 points.

MORE TRACK TESTS FOR MAKOTO TAMADA AND THE PRAMAC HONDA TEAM

There was no respite for Makoto Tamada and the Pramac Honda Team as they carried out tests on the Monday following the Brno race. The same track, with hot summer conditions like during the race the day before. A good opportunity to carry on Bridgestone development work and to carefully examine with the technicians the set-up of the bike as it had been used for the race. The Japanese rider clocked up a total of 72 laps, posting a best time of 2:00.4. The Brno tests were used to try out some new materials from Bridgestone: evolution plies and profiles on which this end-of-season’s work will concentrate, but also the basis for the work to be carried out next year.

After the race in the Czech Republic, Makoto went back to Japan and will be flying in directly to Portugal in time to take part in the promotional event for the Estoril GP promotional event slated for Thursday afternoon.


More, from a press release issued by Marlboro Ducati:

DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM – PRESS INFORMATION
Marlboro Portuguese Grand Prix, Estoril
September 5/6/7 2003

DESMOSEDICI REFINEMENTS INSPIRE DUCATI MARLBORO MEN
The Ducati Marlboro Team goes into this weekend’s Marlboro Portuguese Grand Prix confident of once again being in the hunt for victory. At last month’s Czech GP Ducati Marlboro Team riders Loris Capirossi and Troy Bayliss were in the thick of the action, and while the Desmosedici has already proved itself a winning force in MotoGP, this was the first time that both riders have been in with a chance of victory.

New chassis parts helped Capirossi and Bayliss fight for the win at Brno, and further refinements have been made since then to give the pair an even better chance of success at Estoril on Sunday. Capirossi still holds fourth in the World Championship standings, just one point ahead of Bayliss, who has scored podium finishes at the last two GPs. And Ducati is still running strong in the manufacturers’ championship, currently holding second place in its debut MotoGP season.

Estoril is MotoGP’s final race in Europe before the paddock heads oversees for a gruelling run of four flyaway races in Brazil, Japan, Malaysia and Australia over just five weekends. The GP circus returns to Europe for the season finale at Valencia, Spain, on November 2.

AWESOME DESMOSEDICI KEEPS MOVING FORWARD
Ten races done, six to go, and the Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici continues to improve with every outing. Three weeks ago at Brno Loris Capirossi and Troy Bayliss both raced with a new frame, designed to speed the bike’s progress through esses and chicanes. And this weekend at Estoril the pair will have at their disposal a new, larger diameter Ohlins front fork, designed to further improve the bike’s behaviour in direction changes, as well as increasing stability under braking.

“We tested the new fork at Brno the day after the race,” explains Ducati Marlboro Team technical director Corrado Cecchinelli. “Loris really liked the new fork and also some new front tyres that Michelin wanted us to evaluate. He went even faster than he did during the race, even though he was using race-compound tyres. Troy also bettered his race lap times from the race on race tyres, so we go to Estoril in confident mood. We went well there during winter testing and the bike is much better now, we’ve made some good steps forward over the past few weeks.”

Ducati Marlboro Team director Livio Suppo believes Estoril will provide an interesting gauge of just how far the Desmosedici has come since winter testing. “The bike was very young when we went there in February,” he says. “So it will be nice to see how far we’ve come since then. Both riders are happy with the latest new parts, it seems like the bike is getting better and better. It’s also good that Troy is now really used to MotoGP and getting more and more confident, he rode a great race at Brno. Loris also rode a wonderful race, it’s just a pity that he lost points due to an electrical fault. We can sure that he’ll be very hungry at Estoril! Finally, I think we will all arrive at Estoril nice and relaxed, because most of us have had some time off for holidays since Brno.”

CAPIROSSI TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF LATEST UPGRADES
Loris Capirossi has already proved that the Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici is a winning machine. The super-determined Italian won the bike’s first MotoGP success at Catalunya in June and he looked capable of repeating that success at Brno last month until a minor electrical fault halted his victory assault three laps from the finish. This weekend Capirossi will be out to make up for the misfortune and bolster his championship position.

“We put what happened at Brno behind us,” says Capirossi. “At least that race proved just how good the bike is at the moment, so Estoril shouldn’t be bad for us. We went okay there during winter testing but the bike has changed quite a lot since then, so we will have to work carefully on set-up. We’ve made good progress this year, and we’re now at a very good level. The new frame we received at Brno helped improve the overall balance of the bike, and the new Ohlins fork and Michelin front tyres we tried during the tests make the bike even better in direction changes and also more stable on the brakes. I think everyone can see we’re moving in the right direction. The test team is working really hard to help us, we appreciate their input.”

“I like Estoril and the bike seems okay there, though I’m not so keen on the tiny chicane which is a bit awkward, but I think it’s the same for everyone in MotoGP. Anyway, we have a lot of speed and that will be good for us down the two straights.”

BAYLISS PRAISES ‘PRETTY PERFECT’ DESMOSEDICI
Troy Bayliss comes to Estoril this week anxious to get back to work after his best-ever MotoGP ride in last month’s Czech GP. The Ducati Marlboro Team rider scored his third MotoGP third-place finish at Brno, but this time he was less than a second away from victory, proving that the hard-riding Aussie has the talent and the equipment to go all the way.

“The bike is starting to feel pretty perfect, I feel a lot more comfortable on it now,” says Bayliss. “Brno showed that we can run right up front, that’s where I want to be and I think I should be there all the time. Estoril is another place we visited during the off-season, but the bike has come on a long way since then. It’s bumpy and twisty, but I enjoy the track, it’s fun. The bike is really coming on now. We got a new chassis at Brno that makes the bike easier in direction changes and I’m looking forward to working on the new front fork when we get to Estoril.”

Bayliss and wife Kim are expecting their third child within the next few weeks. Baby boy Oliver is expected in early October. The Bayliss family already has two kids – son Mitchell (seven) and daughter Abbey (five). “We’re hoping that Oliver will arrive a few days early so that Troy can say ‘hello’ before he heads off to the three flyaway races in Japan, Malaysia and Australia,” says Kim.

THE TRACK
Estoril is the slowest circuit on the GP calendar, with a lap record of less than 150kmh. Nevertheless the track presents a real challenge to riders and engineers. The contrast between very slow and very fast corners demands some tricky compromises in chassis set-up, with riders requiring manoeuvrability in the tight corners and stability in the sweepers. These two characteristics aren’t mutually exclusive but it’s not easy to create a motorcycle that excels in both situations, so compromise is the only answer. It’s the same with the engine – the contrast between the fast start-finish straight and the many slow-speed corners requires maximum peak horsepower as well as gentle low-rpm performance.

But perhaps the greatest concern for riders is the track’s proximity to the Atlantic. High-speed winds often whip off the ocean, blowing bikes and riders off course, and throwing dust onto the circuit, with potentially disastrous results.

Estoril hosts its fourth GP this weekend, though this is the sixth Portuguese GP. The nation’s first two GPs were held at Spanish tracks in 1987 and 1988, because Estoril failed stringent track safety standards.

ESTORIL: 4.182km/2.599 miles
Lap record: Loris Capirossi (Honda), 1m 40.683s, 149.530kmh/92.914mph (2001)
Pole position 2002: Carlos Checa (Marlboro Yamaha Team), 1m 39.793s


DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM DATA LOGS

TROY BAYLISS
Age: 34
Lives: Monaco
Bike: Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici
First GP: Australia, 1997 (250)
GP starts: 11 (10xMotoGP, 1×250)
World Superbike victories: 22
World Championships: 1 (Superbike: 2001)
Estoril 2002 results: DNS

LORIS CAPIROSSI
Age: 30
Lives: Monaco
Bike: Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici
GP victories: 23 (1xMotoGP, 2×500, 12×250, 8×125)
First GP victory: Britain, 1990 (125)
First GP: Japan, 1990 (125)
GP starts: 194 (24xMotoGP, 59×500, 84×250, 27×125)
Pole positions: 35 (2xMotoGP, 5×500, 23×250, 5×125)
First pole: Australia, 1991 (125)
World Championships: 3 (125: 1990, 1991, 250: 1998)
Estoril 2002 results: Grid 7th. Race DNF


More, from a press release issued by Yamaha Racing:

ROUND: 11, PORTUGESE GRAND PRIX
September 7, 2003
Circuit: Estoril
Country: Portugal
Track length: 4182 m
Opened: 1972
Fastest Lap Ever: 1:39.793 (Carlos Checa, 2002 – MotoGP)
MotoGP lap record: 1:40.683 (Loris Capirossi, 2001)
Last year MotoGP winner: Valentino Rossi
GP250 lap record: 1:42.285 (Daijiro Kato, 2001)
Last year GP250 winner: Alfonso Nieto
Circuit tel: +351 21 4691462
Circuit web site: http://www.fpak.pt

2002 race summary
The 11th round of the 2002 MotoGP World Championship came under the attack of not only the most exotic two-wheeled motorcycles on the planet, but the temperamental Portuguese weather too when wind and heavy rain lashed the 4182m Estoril circuit. Defending MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi (Honda) was the man who splashed his way to yet another win, to close in on his second MotoGP title; while Portuguese polesitter Carlos Checa (Yamaha) recovered from a difficult opening few laps to clinch a gutsy second place finish on the ever-improving YZR-M1.

The Spaniard suffered excess wheelspin of the start line, relegating him as far back as 12th on the opening lap, before finding the momentum to climb eight places in three laps. Once on the tail end of the leading quartet Checa began the progress of inching his way to yet another podium performance. Tohru Ukawa (Honda) was unable to match the pace of the #7 machine and settled for a safe third.

However, the man robbed of the win was fellow Spaniard Sete Gibernau, who shot off the grid to take the race lead on lap three, building a buffer of nearly six seconds, before victory slipped through his fingers with four laps remaining. The Suzuki man was one of nine riders to be caught out by the treacherous conditions; seventh placed finisher Norick Abe (Yamaha) being the first victim. Abe’s misfortune began on the sighting lap when he lost the front of his YZR500 at walking pace – forced back to the pits to mount his spare machine he started from the rear of the grid. The Japanese completed the race one place behind sixth placed Max Biaggi (Yamaha).

Set-up report YZR-M1
In some ways many of the issues that plague the South African circuit, Welkom, also make racing at Estoril interesting, to say the least. A technically challenging venue, due to a combination of its design and geography, make it so. Situated 32km west of Lisbon on the western coast of Portugal, 7km from the beach resorts of Cascais, Estoril is regularly hit by offshore winds – resulting in a light film of dust on the track surface. The common problem between the two circuit. Combined with its flat camber and irregular use, grip levels are always minimal for the first few days during the Portuguese MotoGP, until a clean racing line is formed.

As in Welkom, this makes setting up a MotoGP bike difficult. As the circuit naturally becomes cleaner and faster over the course of the GP weekend the chassis characteristics continually change – as will the ideal setting. This combined with the fat that the actual layout sees to it that an ideal chassis is, in itself, difficult to find. With its high-speed straight – topping 310kmh – combined with some hard braking – especially into turn one, the most popular passing point. Add in a sequence of tight twists and turns, a few fast sweepers, the meanest chicane on the championship calendar, and the best race set-up is a compromise.

The engine alone must cater for all extremes here – predictability, due to the low grip levels; low to midrange power, which must satisfy the drive needed off the half dozen second gear corners; and top-end over-rev, essential to make the leap between each bend.

Chassis wise the first target is a balanced, neutral geometry; offering good turn-in characteristics while also catering for the big braking areas, such as turn one. The base setting will be similar to that used at Donington, only with slightly higher rate fork springs to deal with the extra weight transfer under deceleration. Meanwhile the rear spring will be softer to improve feedback under power, although it is a fine line, with the circuit reasonably narrow and the limited amount of grip off the racing line there is little room to understeer and run wide.

All this will be done while the technicians and riders focus on a set-up suited more on the latter part of the race, at which point the tyre grip levels will be fading, rather than on a one-off ultra fast time on new rubber – more so than at any other circuit. The different grip characteristics as the tyre wears will make a substantial difference and will ultimately determine the outcome of the race. Again the low grip levels are a factor, as are the repetitive bumps in the track surface on the exits of the turns, which can unsettle a fast bike on old tyres easily.


More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki:

PORTUGUESE GP ANOTHER STEP FOR SUZUKI

Team Suzuki Press Office Friday 29th August 2003.
Next weekend’s Portuguese GP marks the end of the European season, and closes off a phase of racing in 2003 – for the Suzuki team, as well as the MotoGP rivals.

Held at Estoril, in the coastal hills near historic Sintra, the race is the 11th of 16 rounds, and the last of a non-stop European series that began at Jerez in Spain back in May. The next four races follow the gruelling flyaway schedule, spanning South America, Malaysia, Japan and Australia.

It is an important juncture for one of the most exciting championship battles for some years – with defending champion Valentino Rossi fighting back after a mid-season lull in race wins. And Estoril is the last race where teams will have the full range of facilities at their disposal –from now until the grand finale at Valencia on November 2, they will be operate out of crates and containers, with only the tools and spare parts they can carry with them.

It is an important race also for Suzuki, working this year to find the right combination to unleash the full competitive potential of the GSV-R MotoGP prototype racer. Radically redesigned for its second season in the new 990cc four-stroke premier class, the ground-breaking eight-valve V4 has cracked the 200mph barrier and finished in the top ten. The target of challenging for race wins has so far proved elusive.

The machine has been undergoing constant improvement, however, and now a new racing department head has pledged to speed up the rate of development over the last races of the season, at the same time as laying the foundations for the 2004 MotoGP racer.

Masahito Imada, who took control in July, is a veteran race engineer who was a key member of the RG500 team during the square four two-strokes’ years of serial success. Imada-San has returned to find a racing department where the racing team and the factory engineers work even closer than formerly, but where increasing size has complicated the overall structure. His aim was a return to the quicker decision and technical response times of the Eighties.

Imada-San said: “I believe the riders, the mechanics and engineers and the race department have the capabilities we need. The machine is not good enough yet, but we have set new deadlines and objectives, and are already working on new designs and parts for the next development, to realise its full potential.”

As well as tests after the last round at Brno, the Portuguese GP represents another chance to push the machine forward, as well as to prove progress so far with better race results for both riders.

Last year, the race was hit by bad weather, and came within a few laps of giving Suzuki’s new four-stroke GSV-R a first race win. Rider Sete Gibernau was comfortably in the lead when he slipped off with only four laps left to go. Team-mate Roberts finished fourth, his best result of the season so far, followed by a rostrum third in the next round at Rio.

KENNY ROBERTS – LOOKING FORWARD TO HAVING FUN
At this stage, we’re racing to the machine’s potential at the same time as working on increasing that potential. For the race, I’ll do the best