From a press release issued by Daytona International Speedway’s PR Department:

Riders Feel The Need For Speed During Practice At Daytona

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — The beautiful Florida sunshine broke through at Daytona International Speedway on Wednesday for daylong practice sessions in preparation for the upcoming Daytona 200 Week events.

Motorcycles competing in the Daytona 200 By Arai, Pro Honda Oils U.S. Supersport, Suzuki Genuine Accessories Superstock, the MBNA 250 Grand Prix and the inaugural BMW Motorrad International BoxerCup were all on track as riders prepare their two-wheel machines for qualifying sessions.

Fastest among the Superbikes in the first practice session was Kurtis Roberts, who rides the No. 80 Erion Honda RC51. Roberts posted a speed of 117.240 mph.

In last year’s Daytona 200, Roberts gave Nicky Hayden a formidable challenge in the early portion of the 57-lap race but Roberts’ rear tire failed and Hayden captured the victory in dominating fashion.

Roberts, the son of legendary motorcycle rider Kenny Roberts, is unsure if that experience will help him challenge for a victory in this year’s Daytona 200 By Arai, which is the AMA Superbike season opener.

“It did and it didn’t,” Roberts said. “For one, if I had been there on Lap 57 last year, everyone would have seen what I would have done then. I think being consistent and making sure you’re there for the finish is what’s going to win this thing. We’ll see what everyone else is doing, but it looks like we’re right where we need to be right now and we just need to keep improving on that.”

Rounding out the top five in the first session was Aussie Mat Mladin (116.573), Aaron Yates (115.399), Eric Bostrom (115.397) and Miguel Duhamel (115.024).

In the second session, Mladin was fastest rider with a speed of 117.134. Mladin, who won the Daytona 200 in 2000 and 2001, never got a chance to compete for a third straight in last year’s race. He suffered an arm injury during a practice incident which prevented him from defending his title.

“It’s working well,” Mladin said. “It’s obviously the first race for the new bike. We didn’t get as much as testing as what we would’ve liked so we’re still going through some stuff. The thing in general is working pretty well.”

Rounding out the top five in the second session was Roberts (116.803), Duhamel (116.351), Ben Bostrom (115.724) and Aaron Yates (115.684).

Jamie Hacking was fastest overall in the two Supersport practice sessions with a speed of 113.523 mph while his Yamaha teammate Jason DiSalvo lurked close behind with a lap of 113.326. In Superstock, Jason Pridmore led the way with a speed of 112.869.

In MBNA 250 Grand Prix, Rich Oliver posted the fastest speed at 110.915.

The BMW Motorrad International BoxerCup teams took to the track for the first time at Daytona.

Making its first and only appearance in the United States during Daytona 200 Week, the BMW Motorrad International BoxerCup features an international field aboard BMW R 1100 S Motorcycles. The BMW Motorrad International BoxerCup is slated for Sunday at 11:30 a.m. before the Daytona 200 By Arai.

The fastest during the lone practice session on Wednesday was Germany’s Markus Barth with a fast lap of 100.515.

“For me everything is new,” Barth said. “I’ve never raced on oval, so I’m very surprised that I have the fast time.”

On tap for Thursday at the Speedway is qualifying for Pro Honda Oils Supersport, BMW Motorrad International BoxerCup, Suzuki Genuine Accessories Superstock and the Daytona 200 By Arai (top four qualifiers locked-in).

Tickets for any of the Speedway events are available online at
http://www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com or by calling the Speedway ticket office at (386) 253-7223.


More rider quotes, from another press release issued by Daytona International Speedway’s PR Department:

NOTES AND QUOTES
March 5, 2003

DAYTONA 200 By Arai – FIRST PRACTICE SESSION
Eric Bostrom, No. 32 Kawasaki (Bostrom ran wide in turn one and tipped over in the wet grass) “I’m OK. The front brakes (were bad). We were breaking in new brake pads and I didn’t have anything going into the turn.”

Anthony Gobert, No. 16 Ducati Austin
“We achieved what we wanted. We did just a few laps and we’re happy. I just did a few laps, came in and talked to the boys. It’s the first session so there’s no point in rushing anything. We’re happy with what we achieved.”

Kurtis Roberts, No. 80 Honda
“Things felt really good. Just right now being consistent and you know, not showing everything we have until Sunday on the last couple of laps.”
DID THE RACE LAST YEAR TEACH YOU ANYTHING ABOUT WHAT YOU’LL NEED TO DO TO WIN THIS YEAR’S RACE?
“It did and it didn’t. For one, if I had been there on Lap 57 last year, everyone would have seen what I would have done then. I think being consistent and making sure you’re there for the finish is what’s going to win this thing. We’ll see what everyone else is doing, but it looks like we’re right where we need to be right now and we just need to keep improving on that.”

Ben Bostrom, No. 155 Honda
HOW WAS YOUR FIRST SESSION?
“Not so good. We had a few small problems, but in general the bike is pretty good. We were working on setup and trying to weed out the problems.”

Ben Spies, No. 11 Yoshimura Suzuki
HOW WAS YOUR SESSION?
“The bike was good. We came up with a different setup that we’ve been running at Malaysia and at the past couple of tests. It wasn’t too far off. We know exactly what we’ve got to do. I know there was a second in me with that time and the bike is going to be setup a whole lot better the next time. So we’ll be right there.”
DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU’LL GAIN SOME MORE SPEED?
“It’s mostly me getting comfortable on the bike. It’s just my second time on a Superbike at Daytona. These tires are a bit different. I have to learn that. The race isn’t until Sunday. So it’s a long ways away.”

FOLLOWING THE SECOND DAYTONA 200 BY ARAI PRACTICE
Mat Mladin, No. 66 Yoshimura Suzuki
“It’s working well. It’s obviously the first race for the new bike. We didn’t get as much as testing as what we would’ve liked so we’re still going through some stuff. The thing in general is working pretty well. We’re looking forward to getting into the race on Sunday and then head North and finish off a championship.
HOW IMPORTANT WAS THE MALAYSIA TEST?
“It was a good test. Hot conditions – the sort of conditions that we race over here mostly. Certainly without that test, we would’ve been behind the eight ball.”

Aaron Yates, No. 20 Yoshimura Suzuki
“It’s going pretty decent so far. It looks like we have our work cut out for us in the 600 (Supersport), but we’ve got some things to try and we’ll get the bike going better than today. The Superbike is new and it really pulls good around Daytona and you just have to hold on. The thing wants to spin around everywhere. I was kind of used to the old Superbike and it takes some getting used to, but it’s going to be good.”


Pro Honda Oils U.S. Supersport Practice
Jason DiSalvo, No. 40 Yamaha
HOW’S THE BIKE?
“The bike is great. Everything is running perfect out there right now. We come into this with a good base setup. That’s how I like to do things — none of this swapping back forth and changing the bike all around. We’re just fine-tuning it. It’s really makes my job easier fine tuning on the first day”

ON YAMAHA’S SUPERSPORT PROGRAM
“Yamaha’s Bike and team is by far one of the best paddock. This year, we’re not running Superbike. We’re sticking to production bike racing. It really shows. These are the bikes that we sell to the public. There are the same bikes that are performing well on the track.”

TALK ABOUT THE COMPETITION IN SUPERSPORT
“It’s going to be a tough race. I’ve watched the tape from last year over and over. The whole race is going to be hairball. I think it’s going to be a good race, interesting to say the least.”

Jamie Hacking, No. 2 Yamaha
HOW’S THE BIKE?
Everything is going really well. The guys at Yamaha have built us a helluva bike to come down here and hopefully do something with these guys on the red bikes. This morning, we couldn’t really get anything done. The track was so green. It’s kind of coming in. It’s still green right now. I still think right now that everybody is still taking it easy. I think it’s going to get better, weather permitting.”

ON YAMAHA’S SUPERSPORT PROGRAM
“These guys have really worked hard over the offseason. They’ve done a really good job on these motorcycles. It’s showing. All of us are running really well. We’ve got the new kid (Jason DiSalvo) here that only weighs 52 pounds. We need to tag on the end and let him pull us around for qualifying. These guys deserve every bit of the credit we get because they’ve done a hell of a job.”

Genuine Suzuki Accessories Superstock Practice
Jason Pridmore, No. 43 Attack Suzuki
“We didn’t get any laps this morning, so it was the first time on the bike. We had a couple of little problems this morning so we only did like a lap. It feels good. We’re just discussing what we can do to make it a little better. It was the first time I’ve been around here on a 750 in a couple of years. The track is getting better. I think the more rubber that gets laid down the faster the times will be. I think all the times are off a little bit right now, but once we get everything sorted out I think it will be OK.”

Steve Rapp, No. 51 Valvoline EMGO Suzuki
“Everything is great. I’m happy to be on this team. The bike is running good and the track is coming in nice. I can’t complain for the first day.”
Did you get a draft on your fast lap?
“No. All my laps were pretty much by myself.”

Chris Ulrich, No. 18 Valvoline EMGO Suzuki
“I dropped my lap times a little bit from this morning. We’re just making some progress and slowly chipping away at it. Our goal is to get top five, if not a podium and leave here with some good points.”

BMW Motorrad International BoxerCup
Markus Barth, No. 6 BMW (From Germany)
“For me everything is new. I’ve never raced on oval, so I’m very surprised that I have the fast time. The tactic for the race is very important here, and also the slipstream. I used slipstream from some other guys, so I feel that’s the best solution for the race.”

Jay Springsteen, No. 19 BMW
“It was all right. We’ve got to do a little work because the wheels start chattering. You’ve got to get on the brakes, then get off them again to get the wheels settled down. Me and a couple of guys were going at it up on the banking and I waved at a few of them. It was fun.”

MBNA 250 Grand Prix
Rich Oliver, No. 97 Team Oliver Yamaha
“We had a good run today. I haven’t ridden a 250 since Virginia last year. The last memory for me riding a 250 was laying on my rear end in the corner after the gearbox locked up. So it’s nice to get off the bike on purpose (laughs). We were fast right out of the chute and then in the afternoon we battled with Chuck Sorensen on the Aprilia and we eked out a better time by about two-tenths. For not riding for six months I feel like I’m a little rusty and taking it a little cautiously. Last year I broke my pelvis here, so I don’t know if I have a little more respect for the place, a little more respect for my body, or I’m just getting old.”

Chuck Sorensen, No. 1 Stargel Aprilia
“We’re still working on the setup of the motorcycle. That was just our second time out on the motorcycle here and I think there’s still some more to go. We’re really stoked that these kinds of times are coming. I think the track is a little faster with the new chicane, but we’re already going faster even with the correction. We’re running a conservative engine setup and we don’t have the top speed we had last year as of yet. The main improvement is in the chassis.”