Updated Post: Assen Track Dries Out, Rossi Breaks Lap Record, Takes MotoGP Pole

Updated Post: Assen Track Dries Out, Rossi Breaks Lap Record, Takes MotoGP Pole

© 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

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Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Final MotoGP Qualifying Results:

1. Valentino ROSSI, Yamaha, 1:58.758
2. Carlos CHECA, Yamaha, 1:59.440
3. Sete GIBERNAU, Honda, 1:59.903
4. Marco MELANDRI, Yamaha, 2:00.724
5. Shinya NAKANO, Kawasaki, 2:00.755
6. Alex BARROS, Honda, 2:00.977
7. Kenny ROBERTS, Suzuki, 2:01.182
8. Makoto TAMADA, Honda, 2:01.212
9. Ruben XAUS, Ducati, 2:01.312
10. John HOPKINS, Suzuki, 2:01.593
11. Alex HOFMANN, Kawasaki, 2:01.617
12. Max BIAGGI, Honda, 2:01.635
13. Colin EDWARDS, Honda, 2:01.642
14. Troy BAYLISS, Ducati, 2:01.707
15. Loris CAPIROSSI, Ducati, 2:02.029
16. Nicky HAYDEN, Honda, 2:02.062
17. Norick ABE, Yamaha, 2:02.427
18. Shane BYRNE, Aprilia, 2:02.580
19. Jeremy McWILLIAMS, Aprilia, 2:02.613
20. Neil HODGSON, Ducati, 2:02.896
21. Michel FABRIZIO, Harris WCM, 2:03.852
22. Nobuatsu AOKI, Proton, 2:03.912
23. Kurtis ROBERTS, Proton, 2:05.311
24. Chris BURNS, Harris WCM, 2:06.137


More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

DUCATI MARLBORO MEN ON ROW 5 AT WET ‘N’ DRY ASSEN

Ducati Marlboro Team riders Troy Bayliss and Loris Capirossi will start tomorrow’s Dutch TT from the fifth row of the grid after a difficult final day of qualifying at the ultra-high-speed Assen circuit. Torrential rain and high winds dominated yesterday and this morning, the circuit eventually drying out for this afternoon’s final qualifier.

Capirossi had been as high as fifth during this all-important outing and was confident of making the second row until a minor machine glitch slowed him on his fastest run. Tomorrow the Italian plans to race Ducati’s new twin-pulse Desmosedici engine for the first time. Team-mate Bayliss is also likely to race with the new engine.

“It’s been a difficult two days of practice,” said Ducati Marlboro Team director Livio Suppo. “The weather has been bad and our guys have had two different bikes to choose from. Loris looked like he could have made the second row this afternoon – the first two sector times on his best lap were good, then he suffered what we think was a minor electrical fault. Troy ended up riding the four-pulse motor this afternoon. He had been comfortable with that engine in the wet, but will try the twin-pulse in morning warm-up. At least both of riders have been able to do some laps in the dry. However, I think the race will be a bit of a lottery because the forecast is dry and no one has had much dry track time.”

BAYLISS YET TO DECIDE WHICH ENGINE TO RACE

Troy Bayliss has run both twin-pulse and four-pulse engines during practice and has yet to decide which motor he will use in tomorrow’s race. The Ducati Marlboro Team man rode much of this afternoon’s qualifier using the older four-pulse powerplant, simply because his crew had readied that bike for dry conditions, while the twin-pulse machine had wet-weather settings.

“The weather didn’t work for our plans,” said the Australian who ended the day 14th quickest. “I wanted to spend most of the afternoon session on the twin-pulse but it just didn’t happen. We had one bike set up for the dry and one for the wet, so I ended up back on the four-pulse. Tomorrow morning we’ll put those settings in the bike with the twin-pulse and see how things go. We’re having a bit of a struggle at the moment, so we’ll just have to see what tomorrow brings. The ankle I hurt in the race at Barcelona is causing me a little bit of havoc but it’s getting better and shouldn’t be a drama in the race.”

CAPIROSSI PLANS TO RACE NEW TWIN-PULSE MOTOR

Ducati Marlboro Team rider Loris Capirossi was hoping for a place in the top six during today’s final qualifying session but he was out of luck, suffering a suspected electrical fault during his end-of-session run.

“I was quite happy with my pace in that session,” he said. “But after we fitted a qualifying tyre for my final run we had some kind of problem, so I wasn’t able to complete a proper qualifying lap at full speed. I was confident that I could be fast enough to make the second row, then I went from fifth fastest to 15th at the end. I did the first few laps of that session with the old engine, then swapped to the new one, so we could work on dry-weather set-up. The race won’t be easy. We have had very little dry track time but the forecast is for a dry race. Whatever the conditions, I will give my best.”


More, from a press release issued by John Hopkins’ publicist:

HOPKINS SCORES SECOND STRAIGHT TOP-10 QUALIFYING RUN

ASSEN, Netherlands (June 25, 2004) – Suzuki’s John Hopkins scored his second consecutive top-10 qualifying result Friday at the Circuit van Drenthe in Assen. Hopkins qualified 10th with a time of 2 minutes, 1.593 seconds on the six-kilometer circuit – the longest on the MotoGP calendar. This performance comes on the heels of an eighth-place qualifying performance in the Catalunya Grand Prix two weeks ago. It was a good day in total for the Suzuki GP squad. Hopkins’ teammate and fellow American Kenny Roberts, Jr., qualified seventh.

“Things are going well,” said the 21-year-old Hopkins, who bettered his qualifying position of 16th set last year. “Every session up until this afternoon’s was wet. I got a lot of rain riding in over the last two days, which is something I’ve needed. I got it in the top 10 even in the wet so my confidence is getting better in those conditions.”

Hopkins explained the track was changing during Friday’s final qualifying session.

“The track was still mostly wet, but a dry line was forming. I did a few laps on race tires and the track kept drying even more. We decided to go ahead and put on qualifiers and make a run at our best time since the track was pretty much dry and the weather here can change very quickly.

“I made a few laps and then came in and they had my back-up bike ready with a completely different set-up. I went out on that and immediately went faster.”

Hopkins said he, along with all the other teams scrambled to find a good race set-up during the brief dry window presented during Friday’s qualifying session.

“It’s supposed to be dry here tomorrow, so we were trying all kinds of new tire combinations that Bridgestone have given us. The new race tires seem to have good grip and we’ll find out tomorrow how’ll they do over the long course of a race.

“Right now the spirits are high on the team. We are heading in the right direction and that’s all you can ask for. The drafting here should keep the pack together for a long time in the race. So Kenny and I are just going to try to work together and see how things go. We’re optimistic about our chances.”


More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki Racing Team:

SUPER SHINYA SETS NEW QUALIFYING MARK FOR FUCHS KAWASAKI

From last place to fifth on the grid; Shinya Nakano set a new qualifying mark for the Fuchs Kawasaki Racing Team with a super-fast performance at Assen today.

Nakano’s second row starting spot for the Dutch TT is the best by a Kawasaki rider since the return of the factory team to MotoGP competition.

Just 24 hours earlier Nakano found himself in last place after a disappointing wet session on a water-logged track.

His Fuchs Kawasaki teammate, Alex Hofmann, will start from 11th place, after his best qualifying performance of the season, although the German rider was frustrated not to have been much faster.

Hofmann, with Nakano following, paced his fastest lap for the final minute of qualifying. The result was a complete transformation from first qualifying, with both riders moving forward dramatically from the last row of the grid.

While Nakano was both overjoyed and surprised with his efforts, Hofmann could only think of what might have been. The 24-year-old German rider’s late session speed was slowed by his engine momentarily cutting out and then being baulked by a slowing rider on the exit from the final chicane to the finish line.

After two days of almost constant rain, final qualifying was run in heavily overcast but dry conditions. This left Kawasaki and Bridgestone technicians with less than an hour to maximise dry settings and tyres, not only for qualifying, but in anticipation that the forecast improved weather will arrive for race day.

Despite the lack of dry track time both Fuchs Kawasaki riders have high hopes for a strong race performance tomorrow.

Shinya Nakano: 5th (2:00.775)
“I didn’t expect this fifth position after such a difficult day yesterday. And for this to be the best qualifying result so far for Kawasaki is even better. With the rain we have lost a lot of time for a dry set-up but, finally, this afternoon, with some changes, the rear of the bike was working much better. Our race set-up in the dry is still not perfect, but the bike feels good through the fast sections. I was lucky that the seat padding that broke away did so just at the end of the final lap, because if this had happened earlier I would have had to abandon my last qualifying run.”

Alex Hofmann: 11th (2:01.617)
“I’m quite upset, because what was supposed to be a fast, fluid lap at the end of the session was much slower than it should have been. My motor cut out twice during the lap, and then onto the straight from the final chicane Jeremy McWilliams backed off right in front of me; maybe he didn’t realise I was there. I struggled to get around him, but there’s not a lot of room at that part of the track. This is not what I wanted from qualifying. I think I could have been with Shinya on the second row, but after struggling in the wet I think we have a very good race set-up for both tyres and bike.”

Harald Eckl – Team Manager
“Fifth and eleventh for Shinya and Alex is great, especially after the problems in the wet first qualifying yesterday. In a dry race I think we can have a strong result here, although there has been limited time to assess race tyres and machine set-up. Unfortunately, on his fast lap, it seems Alex may have either accidentally activated the kill switch or there was an intermittent electrical problem which cut the motor and upset his rhythm, but for this he could have been faster.”


More, from a press release issued by Galouises Fortuna Yamaha:

ROSSI AND CHECA BREAK RECORDS IN ASSEN QUALIFYING

The Gauloises Fortuna Yamaha team dominated the final qualifying session at Assen, with Valentino Rossi and Carlos Checa filling the top two places on the grid, both their quickest lap times well under the previous best at the classic Dutch circuit. The rains which had blighted all previous sessions held off for the final qualifying, and as the damp track dried conditions improved enough for Rossi to destroy the existing best qualifying time with a new record lap of 1:58.758.

Checa was the first rider to beat the previous track best, and he extended his performance still further to qualify second with a lap of 1:59.440. Championship leader Sete Gibernau qualified third on the grid, thanks to his 1:59.903, over 1.2 seconds from Rossi.

With the track drying visibly with each passing lap the MotoGP competition was a fraught affair in the early laps, as each rider tried to put in a quick lap in case the rains returned. Both Checa and Rossi stormed away, setting top three times in the first ten minutes.

Rossi, Checa and Gibernau were each at the head of the qualifying lists for a time, but a last lap charge by Rossi took him into a whole new territory, under the 1:59s barrier for the first time ever.

VALENTINO ROSSI (1st, 1:58.758)

“The last lap was incredible. We put in the qualifying tyre but at the start of the lap I didn’t go at 100%, then on the last two sections I pushed very hard. It was possible to take a good advantage and get pole position. To ride in Assen with these bikes is incredible, difficult to explain. We had a good practice today, used all the final hour to make the bike better. I am quite worried because in the wet we have some problems and in three sessions we have not been able to get the bike 100% the way I want. For tomorrow I hope we can have good weather and make a dry race.”

CARLOS CHECA (2nd, 1:59.440)

“We must be satisfied because we improved the lap time every time we went out. It was not easy because conditions were still not perfect but we had the feeling step by step and finally we got a really good lap time. It was just Valentino was so fast I could not catch him. Our target was to start in the first row, so we made it. Tomorrow we have to start to set the bike up for the race because we didn’t have much time today. We are ready to race anyway and today we all did a great job.”

DAVIDE BRIVIO – TEAM DIRECTOR

“For a team to be first and second is a perfect job, especially as we only had this single session in the dry. We were very good at finding the best possible settings and to have them 1-2 was just great. Marco Melandri was fourth on his Yamaha so for the YZR-M1 it’s great, a big improvement from yesterday. Assen has a lot of corners and our chassis has good agility, good handling, and that helped us a lot. Valentino did a fantastic lap, one second better than last year in just one hour of dry track time. The forecast says that it will be dry tomorrow so I hope that it’s not wrong. We have to use the 20 minutes of warm-up as well as possible to look at tyre choices for the race, gearbox settings, all other parameters and every minute will be important. It will be the same conditions for everybody. I have to say thanks to all the people involved; they worked hard and quickly and could not make a mistake. I think we were very good today, we have the riders in the front and I’m sure we can stay at the top.”


More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki:

ROBERTS SETS YEAR’S BEST TIME
Team Suzuki Press Office, Assen, Holland – June 25, 2004.

Team Suzuki MotoGP rider Kenny Roberts Jr came within two tenths of a second-row start at Assen today with a flying final lap that lifted him up to seventh overall in a fast and dry final qualifying session for tomorrow’s Dutch TT.

It was the 2000 World Champion’s best qualifying position so far this year after he had been fastest of all in the wet morning session.

Team-mate John Hopkins had already made his fast bid on soft-compound qualifying tyres, setting sixth-fastest time only to see his name drop down the order to tenth in the closing-stages battle for pole. This puts him on row four of the new-this-year three-per-row grid.

Roberts had set fastest time in the morning free training session on a streaming track as rain continued to sweep across the flat north-Holland countryside. The weather cleared just in time for the second and final timed session, though conditions were still cool with some lingering damp patches. It gave teams just one hour to find dry set-up and pick race tyres.

Roberts made the most of it, showing his skill in difficult conditions by heading the time sheets as he had during the wet morning free practice. A brief interruption came when he ran off the track, concerned that his bike might have a handling problem. Roberts was soon back in action, saving his best for last with a stirring lap in the closing minutes of the hour. By then, the drying track and the qualifying tyre lottery had reshuffled the order.

Roberts was using the latest modified version of the 990cc V4 GSV-R engine, with revised firing intervals; Hopkins used the deeper-sounding standard engine.

Dutch former Suzuki racer and five-time GP winner Wil Hartog visited the pit after the session to congratulate the riders. “Suzuki is always close to my heart so I am very pleased to see the progress they are making this season,” he said. “This year’s bike is obviously improved. I can see that the steering is still heavy on the fast changes of direction, but the cornering is good and the bike seems to accelerate well. And the mood of the team is a lot better also,” said Hartog, whose race wins came between 1978 and 1980.

Dry and warmer weather if forecast for tomorrow’s race, the sixth of 16 rounds in the World Championship.

KENNY ROBERTS Jr. – Seventh position, 2:15.182:

“I started off well, but then I looked down and saw something on the bike that made me a little worried about tipping it in the next corner. I ended up running off the track and trying to get through the gravel to get back to the grass. When I hit the grass I spun out … it was like ice. I got it going again, but with no grip I finally stalled it in the grass. I guess I had a rough day after that. We have new tyres here and we need to make our bike more stable on the straightaways because of the new profile. That’s a little setting thing we need to get right tomorrow. I don’t really know where we’re at race-wise – just try and get a good start and see what happens, but I’m happy with where I’m at as far as starting position goes.”

JOHN HOPKINS – Tenth position, 2:01.593:

“We started out on soft tyres – not qualifiers, but a soft compound. I wanted to stay out and get my rhythm in the dry then I came in for qualifying tyres to go for a time in case it started raining again. At that stage there were still some damp patches, and wasn’t the best time, but it put us on the board. After that I was going through tyres with just time to do a couple of laps on each. I found some that had good grip for two laps and I think the durability will be good. We’ll get the answer tomorrow. Then I put on another qualifier with time for only one lap and went for a better time. I can’t complain at tenth. Tomorrow I’ll try and get with the lead group and go for it. I hope it’s dry … it’ll be mor e fun.”

GARRY TAYLOR – Team Manager:

“It’s been difficult for us and for the others with only one dry session to find the right set-up at a difficult track. That makes it all the more competitive for the team members, doing work that usually takes four hours in just one hour. On the other hand, if it does rain or conditions are mixed, we’re confident we can cope well with that situation – Kenny was fastest this morning and John well up also, in seventh place.”


More, from a press release issued by Proton Team KR:

Proton KR riders qualify for Dutch TT



Nobuatsu Aoki: 22nd, 2:03.912
Kurtis Roberts: 23rd, 2:05.311

Proton Team KR riders Nobuatsu Aoki and Kurtis Roberts both overcame niggling difficulties in the single dry practice session to qualify for tomorrow’s Dutch TT, starting side by side from the eighth row of the grid.

Aoki had been running well in the earlier part of the session, before a clutch problem put him into the pits. From then on he was switching from one bike to the other, but finding problems that slowed his progress in the one chance to set a fast qualifying time at the challenging 6.027km circuit. He had been six places higher in yesterday’s wet session.

Team-mate Kurtis Roberts, a first-timer at the complex Dutch circuit, was also thwarted in his hopes of a clear dry session, to give him a chance to gain familiarity with the circuit’s intricacies. The class rookie had been an impressive 13th-fastest in the morning wet session.

The weather also meant there was little chance to test the latest generation of Dunlop dry-weather tyres, new for this race. They had given encouraging results at tests following the last round.

Rain has blighted three out of four hour-long practice and qualifying sessions at Assen, but better weather is forecast for tomorrow’s race.

Pole position was claimed by defending champion Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) at record speed. Rossi has won the last two races. Points leader Sete Gibernau (Honda) was third-fastest.

Nobuastu Aoki
Everything was going well, but then my race bike developed a small oil leak that made the clutch slip. I switched to my spare, but the set-up wasn’t as good, and it was shaking a lot on the straight. I was worried that there might be a fault, so to be safe I pulled in. My race bike had a new clutch, but for some reason it also had a bad chatter. Even when we changed tyres it was still there. In the end, I never did get the chance to make a fast qualifying lap. I hope it rains tomorrow – that will be a better chance for us.

Kurtis roberts
I’ve never been here before, and having a bunch of little problems really killed us – it kept me from getting the dry laps I needed. One bike had an engine problem; and there was some problem changing wheels on my spare, so I had to go back to that one. I really need to get the set-up right; at the moment I can’t get the bike to turn through the fast stuff. There’s a lot of work for the team to do, and 20 minutes in the morning to try to get the bike right. Tomorrow might be a long day.

Chuck Aksland – Team Manager
Not a very good day. Kurtis has never raced here – he must be about the only rider on the grid without Assen experience. He needed as much dry track time as possible, but in one bike the engine was not good, and there was some alignment problem with the other one. Nobu had a clutch oil seal go just as he was getting a good rhythm. We replaced that, but the bike didn’t work well. We had a lot of things we needed to test here, including evaluating tyres . things that you should get done in the first session. The weather prevented that. We’ll have to wait and see what it does tomorrow.


More, from a press release issued by d’Antin Ducati:

Difficult second day in Assen
[25.06.2004]



The weather gradually improved today in Assen, allowing the MotoGP riders at least some time in the final qualifying session on a dry surface. The d´Antin MotoGP riders lost some grid position with regards to Thursday’s provisional line-up, but took advantage of the scant time they had to work on the set-up of their Ducati Desmosedici bikes and get the best possible out of them for a race which looks like being run in the rain.

RUBÉN XAUS was in amongst the top five riders throughout the session, but eventually finished up ninth and will start tomorrow’s race from the third row: “It was a difficult situation today because the track was drying out but I think we all believed it would pour down any second. That was why we didn’t wait too long before fitting the qualifying tyres, but the set-up isn’t completely right for dry and… well in the end I finished ninth. The most important thing is that we have been able to do something for the race and tomorrow we will continue to work during the warm-up so I can feel comfortable and get a good result.”

NEIL HODGSON lost eight positions and will start from the seventh row, but he still remains optimistic, “We had a good wet set-up, but this afternoon the conditions changed again and it was a more difficult situation. We used the qualifying tyre early on because we were worried it was going to start raining again and at the same time we were searching for the all-important dry set-up. Everyone’s pretty sure that the race will be dry and we think that we can complete our work in tomorrow’s warm-up. Obviously I don’t like being in twentieth place, but the most important thing is being ready for the race and I just hope to get a good start tomorrow.”

TIMES:

1st V.ROSSI 1.58.758
2nd C.CHECA 1.59.440
3rd S.GIBERNAU 1.59.903
4th M.MELANDRI 2.00.724
5th S.NAKANO 2.00.755
9th RUBÉN XAUS 2.01.312
20th NEIL HODGSON 2.02.896


More, from a press release issued by MS Aprilia:


Aprilia duo 18th and 19th for Assen battle

SHANE Byrne and Jeremy McWilliams will start 18th and 19th respecitively on the grid for tomorrow’s Dutch TT at Assen round six of the MotoGP world championship.

The British pairing were split by just 0.033s after this afternoon’s final qualifying session. Run under grey and gloomy skies but without the rain that has been the main feature of the historic race so far, today’s session saw provisional times tumble dramatically. After a sudden and surprising break in the relentless downpours, the track quickly dried and Byrne and McWilliams managed to post respectable times despite having never rode the Cube three-cylinder in the dry at Assen.

The rapidly drying track certainly didn’t work in Byrne’s favour. This weekend is his first visit to the classic circuit – the only track on the current calendar which has hosted a world championship race every season in the 55-year history of GP racing. Having spent three sessions proving he is a force to be reckoned with in the wet, this afternoon’s short stint in the dry was Byrne’s first opportunity to ride the 3.745 miles venue on slick tyres. He set a best time of 2.02.580s and said: I’m pretty satisfied because today was the the first chance I’ve had to do some laps in the dry at Assen. It wasn’t bad considering I’m still trying to learn the track because I’ve never seen it before I turned up the other day. It is a very technical and demanding track but the team are working as hard as they can to help me feel more comfortable and go faster. I’m still going to be learning the track in the race tomorrow but hopefully I’ll be able to pick up a few positions.

McWilliams spent a large chunk of the session on the fringes of the top ten, though his best time of 2.02.613s left him on the seventh row of the grid. His efforts to take full advantage of Michelin’s sticky qualifying tyre were foiled by strong winds. Like Byrne, McWilliams too had proved himself competitive in the earlier wet conditions. I tried my hardest to push when the guys were really stepping up the pace towards the end of the session but the wind was just so strong in some corners that I couldn’t manage it. Assen is a very hard track but if it rains tomorrow I’m sure I can finish in the top 10, said Jeremy, who unfortunately is unlikely to get his wish for more rain with forecasters predicting fine weather for tomorrow’s 19-lap clash.


More, from a press release issued by Camel Honda Racing Information:

Weather improves in Assen with mostly dry qualifying session

The weather conditions improved slightly today and the qualifying session came and went without any rain, with it looking likely that tomorrow’s race will take place in the dry. The set-up work to adapt the bikes to all the possible conditions for tomorrow afternoon’s race was under a great deal of pressure. It was tough work, and the final choices still have to be made, with tomorrow’s warm-up serving as a crucial twenty-minutes dash to complete outstanding tasks.

Sito Pons – Camel Honda (Team Principal)

“The ever-changing climate meant our work schedule had to be changed. Things haven’t gone as planned and we haven’t found the ideal set-up to be competitive in the race. As such, the warm-up tomorrow will be a last testing session for us where we will search for the most important thing – the kind of rhythm which will let us get amongst the front runners in the race. I don’t think that Max’s indifferent grid position will be a problem, but it is imperative to get him into the right shape so he can pick up the race pace and fight for victory.”

Max Biaggi – Camel Honda (Michelin Tyres) – 12th – 2:01.635

“Our practices didn’t go well, it’s obvious to me. We still have problems that we are unable to solve, although both myself and my team are trying our very best. We tested two slightly different strategies, but neither allowed us to improve the corner entry and the mid-corner, the areas where we are losing most time; this becomes clear when you look at the data from the telemetry compared to last year. This doesn’t mean that I’m giving up, because that’s not in my character and not in my team’s either, but it’s almost certain that I won’t be able to get my usual kind of result.”

Gianluca Montiron – Camel Honda – (Makoto Tamada Team Manager)

“Changeable weather and a really hard-pushed final qualifying session. Makoto and the team were able to adapt to the changing conditions, and Tamada’s eighth position on this difficult Dutch circuit is testament to the hard work they’ve done. Tomorrow’s warm-up will give us the last details for the race and I think Makoto could go well.”

Makoto Tamada – Camel Honda (Bridgestone Tyres) –8th – 2:01.212

“After yesterday’s awful weather and this morning’s too we’ve improved our times and in the afternoon we adapted to the track which had dried by that time. We are still a bit behind and there are still a few things to set up like the bike’s handling which I’d like to improve. As for the tyres, I haven’t really had the chance to push them to the limit yet, but I’m satisfied with the options I tried. I did the second part of the session with the second bike. On the first bike there was a small problem, I think it was electrical, but I was quick with the number two machine and so I’m happy with today’s eighth fastest time.”


More, from a press release issued by Telefonica movistar Honda/Gresini Racing:

GIBERNAU DEFENDS FRONT ROW POSITION

Sete Gibernau took yet another front row grid position, as he has at every round since South Africa, and is confident going into the Dutch TT, where races begin an hour later than usual, starting at 15:00 CET. Sete is the only rider in all three categories to have finished on the podium at all five of the races which have taken place up to now in 2004, and at the technical Assen circuit, which has the highest average speed in the whole championship, he feels prepared to give a hundred percent whether in wet conditions – in which he took provisional pole on Thursday – or in the dry, as in today’s session. Colin Edwards will start the race from the fifth row of the grid.


SETE GIBERNAU (3rd, 1:59.903): “The session was tough for everyone, but I think we did some good work and we found what we needed, even within the limitations of only having an hour to do so. At the end with the qualifying tyre fitted, the clutch broke and I cou! ldn’t complete a good lap. However it is enough to start from the front row, which is the important thing. Tomorrow the race will be a complicated affair and the we will have to work flat-out as a team and with Michelin in the warm-up, so we can make a good tyre choice for the race.”


COLIN EDWARDS (13th, 2:01.642): “We made a mistake this afternoon. The weather was really unpredictable and we were worried that it might start raining, so we decided to use the qualifying tyre at the start of the session. It was a gamble because after three wet sessions we really needed to work on the dry setting. It was a shame. It will be tough tomorrow starting from the fifth row but I hope to make positions up quickly and keep going forward”.


FAUSTO GRESINI (Team Manager): “After a wet session yesterday, the hour in the dry today wasn’t much use because this track is so complicated. Despite everything we tried to find the best pos! sible settings and it’s gone well. Third is a good grid position and the warm-up will be important to refine a few details. It will be a long hard race – like all of them this year”.


More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing:

Dutch TT, Assen, June 25, 2004

GIBERNAU IN THE HUNT AS ROSSI REAPS THIRD POLE

Weather conditions played havoc with qualifying here at a rainy and windswept Assen. Yesterday’s session was wet and today a dry line was useable early on with the 6.027km track

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