Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Friday’s MotoGP Qualifying Results:

1. Sete GIBERNAU, Honda, 1:33.531
2. Makoto TAMADA, Honda, 1:33.534
3. Valentino ROSSI, Yamaha, 1:33.795
4. Troy BAYLISS, Ducati, 1:34.102
5. Max BIAGGI, Honda, 1:34.299
6. Loris CAPIROSSI, Ducati, 1:34.324
7. Colin EDWARDS, Honda, 1:34.394
8. John HOPKINS, Suzuki, 1:34.420
9. Shinya NAKANO, Kawasaki, 1:34.475
10. Alex BARROS, Honda, 1:34.500
11. Carlos CHECA, Yamaha, 1:34.500
12. Alex HOFMANN, Kawasaki, 1:34.599
13. Ruben XAUS, Ducati, 1:34.881
14. Nicky HAYDEN, Honda, 1:34.938
15. Norick ABE, Yamaha, 1:35.072
16. Jeremy McWILLIAMS, Aprilia, 1:35.177
17. Marco MELANDRI, Yamaha, 1:35.374
18. Gregorio LAVILLA, Suzuki, 1:35.858
19. Nobuatsu AOKI, Proton, 1:35.956
20. Neil HODGSON, Ducati, 1:36.177
21. Olivier JACQUE, Moriwaki, 1:37.129
22. Garry McCOY, Aprilia, 1:37.212
23. Kurtis ROBERTS, Proton, 1:37.922
24. James ELLISON, Harris WCM, 1:38.427
25. Chris BURNS, Harris WCM, 1:38.661


More, from a press release issued by Dorna:

Gibernau sets home rule at Valencia

Sete Gibernau marked his territory at the Ricardo Tormo circuit today with the provisional pole time for the Gran Premio Marlboro de la Comunitat Valenciana. Riding in front of his passionate home support, the Spaniard clocked a time of 1:33.531 in cool and windy conditions to stay clear of a late pole attack from Honda colleague Makoto Tamada by just 0.003 seconds. Tamada’s effort dislodged Valentino Rossi from second place and knocked Troy Bayliss off the provisional front row just minutes after the Australian had occupied top spot.

“We’ve arrived at our home Grand Prix in optimistic mood and we have started well,” said Gibernau, who has already secured the runner-up spot in the championship for the second consecutive season. “We’ve done a good job today although we’re still lacking a bit of rhythm. I need a bit more grip when the bike is leaned over and my feeling is not yet perfect. We have work to do – amongst other things we need to find a rear tyre. Tomorrow we’ve got all day to get everything ready.”

Fourth place would represent Bayliss’ best grid position of the season if he can repeat his performance in tomorrow’s final qualifying session, ahead of what will be his final MotoGP appearance for Ducati on Sunday. Bayliss is joined on the provisional second row by his team-mate Loris Capirossi, who was sixth fastest behind the Honda of Max Biaggi.

Colin Edwards, who is making his final appearance for Honda this weekend before switching to Yamaha, was seventh fastest and is joined on the second row by Suzuki rider John Hopkins and Shinya Nakano on the Kawasaki. Alex Barros qualified tenth fastest on his second bike after a crash early in the session. There were no other fallers today although Kenny Roberts has pulled out of the Grand Prix after making a brief return to action this morning.

The former World Champion set the fastest time in the first free practice session after missing the previous four rounds recovering from a dislocated elbow. However, it was later decided that he would not have the strength to last race distance on Sunday and he has been replaced at Suzuki for the remainder of the weekend by Gregorio Lavilla.

Dani Pedrosa began a weekend of celebrations in style with a dominant performance in the first qualifying session for the 250cc race. Pedrosa, who won the quarter-litre title at the last round in Australia, raised expectation amongst the home crowd with a lap of 1:36.830 – some 0.404 seconds quicker than nearest challenger Sebastián Porto and 0.818 seconds clear of third placed Alex de Angelis. Pedrosa’s team-mate Hiroshi Aoyama completes the provisional front row.

Jorge Lorenzo followed up the announcement last night that he will be leaving Derbi to join Pedrosa at Honda in the 250cc class next season with provisional pole position for the 125cc race at Valencia. Lorenzo won an exciting battle for top spot with fellow Spaniard Sergio Gadea, who set the fastest time in the morning free practice before mounting a strong pole challenge in the afternoon. Recently-crowned World Champion Andrea Dovizioso broke up local hegemony on the front row in third place ahead of Pablo Nieto.


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

NAKANO AND HOFMANN ON THE PACE AT VALENCIA

First day qualifying for the final race of the 2004 season saw Fuchs Kawasaki riders, Shinya Nakano and Alex Hofmann, ninth and twelfth respectively on the provisional grid for Sunday’s Valencia Grand Prix.

It was a highly competitive session with the fastest 12 riders separated by just one second on the tight and twisting, 14 turn, four kilometre Valencia circuit.

Nakano was less than two tenths of second outside a top six, second row starting spot, while Hofmann is planning to join his team-mate in the top ten of the final grid for the 30 lap race.

Both Nakano and Hofmann concentrated on race set-up work today and both riders felt they did not maximise their final qualifying runs on soft compound tyres.

Nakano said he was ‘out of rhythm’ on his fast lap while Hofmann faced the usual heavy traffic late in the session on this comparatively narrow circuit.

Rear-end settings to control slides through the busy sequence of five, second gear corners on the infield section, and fine tuning of the engine electronics for power delivery, will be the focus of tomorrow’s second day of practice.

Track conditions were less than ideal, with cool and windy weather, and this was reflected in overall lap times. Today’s provisional pole position time by Sete Gibernau was one second slower than the 2003 qualifying mark set by reigning World Champion Valentino Rossi.

Although the Valencia GP is the final event of the 16 race MotoGP World Championship, both Hofmann and Nakano have a busy month of two wheel activity in November.

The Kawasaki team will test at Valencia on Monday.

Hofmann will then go to America to prepare for a wild card entry in the final round of the AMA Supermoto Championship in Las Vegas on November 13.

Later in November Hofmann and Nakano will complete an end-of-season test session at Jerez prior to the commencement of the winter test ban.

For the moment however both riders’ clear focus is on the Valencia race, and a strong finish to the season.

Shinya Nakano: 9th (1:34.475)
“I did not have a very good rhythm on my final fast lap, so I think I can still go faster. I still have a lot of set-up work to do, as this is my first time on the track with the Ninja ZX-RR and Bridgestone tyres. I have some front end chatter and the rear end is sliding too much through the stadium section. I have already found a good race tyre, but will do some more work on that tomorrow.”

Alex Hofmann: 12th (1:34.599)
“I ran into some traffic on my fast lap, but everyone has that problem here. More importantly I am still searching for a comfortable race set-up on race tyres, and we have a lot of work to do tomorrow. I need better rear end grip through the second gear left-handers and also the faster fourth gear corner; the rear is sliding too much. I’m sure we can find some more balance in the chassis; the front is also lifting a little too much on acceleration. I’m just outside the top ten and to get inside is my aim for tomorrow.”

Harald Eckl – Team Manager
“Our focus today was on race set-up and tyre evaluation, so I’m happy for both Shinya and Alex to be in the top 12 on the grid, as neither of them got the most out of their qualifying run. This track is tight and tough, with very close lap times, and set-up for the race distance is very important. On today’s performance I think both riders can be in the top ten on the grid, with Shinya having chance of a top six starting spot.”


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

ROSSI AND CHECA FINISH HARD DAY’S WORK IN VALENCIA

Gauloises Fortuna Yamaha riders Valentino Rossi and Carlos Checa spent today’s first day of qualifying at the tight and twisty Valencia track in pursuit of a perfect set-up, with Rossi finishing his day third fastest, Checa 11th. Rossi, the newly-crowned World Champion set a fastest lap time of 1:33.531, which puts him on the provisional front row, while Checa’s 1:34.500 sees him onto the fourth row. Sete Gibernau (Honda) was the fastest qualifier, followed by Makoto Tamada (Honda), on what was a generally slower dry session than many expected, thanks to blustery winds and low track temperatures.

Rossi went to the top of the leader board after just five minutes of today’s qualifying hour, displacing Checa as he did so. Only in the last five minutes of the session did Ducati rider Troy Bayliss hijack Rossi’s lead, albeit temporarily, with first Rossi and finally Gibernau then bettering his time. Tamada, almost the last man on the track, nudged ahead of Rossi in the final seconds; with most other riders already back in pitlane.

Checa, who will race as a Yamaha rider for the final time on Sunday after six years in the Yamaha Factory Team, worked through set-up and tyre options during the session, but gradually dropped down the order. He ended the hour 11th fastest, unable to improve his pace due to a lack of confidence in the front end.

VALENTINO ROSSI (3rd, 1:33.795)

“The bike was not so much fun to ride today, it’s too cold and when I was accelerating the bike was difficult to control. There was an annoying wind on the track and the bike felt a bit nervous because of it. Now we will look at the data and try to find somewhere to improve our set-up. We are third so that’s not so bad. We did start to reduce the problems this afternoon and the bike felt a bit stronger, and my motivation is still high. Our objective is now to do our maximum to be ready for Sunday’s battle.”

CARLOS CHECA (11th, 1:34.500)

“I’m having some troubles and we didn’t expect to have the problems we have under braking. I cannot go into the corner with the confidence or the grip I would like to have from the front, and that’s pretty scary. Especially when you get on the gas and the front is still light. Qualifiers make this problem worse, but we will work hard to improve tomorrow.”

DAVIDE BRIVIO, TEAM DIRECTOR

“This last race of the year feels quite strange because we have just won the title and this is the last race for Carlos with Yamaha. Even with those things, we are approaching it as a normal weekend and we have been working through the standard first day problems. Both riders have some small problems, and they just need to be smoothed out. Valentino is close to the lead even if the pace seems to be slower than before. I think that is because of the lower track temperatures. Carlos is struggling a little but it is Friday, so we have time to improve.”


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

PROTON KR PAIR SEEK THE PACE AT SLOW VALENCIA

Proton Team KR riders Nobuatsu Aoki and Kurtis Roberts were placed 19th and 23rd after the first of two timed sessions for Sunday’s Valencia GP. It was a better than usual result for the Japanese rider, in conditions that suited the Proton KR V5 machine – but Kurtis was struggling with his own condition, in his first race back after sustaining wrist and elbow injuries at the Czech Republic GP in August.

The first day brought some satisfaction to Aoki, who was 18th in morning free training, when the track conditions were cooler still. In the afternoon track temperatures rose from 21 to 24 degrees, still relatively cool after a series of ultra-hot flyaway GPs, but a fresh wind was one factor that kept overall lap times down compared with last year.

It was a hard day for Kurtis Roberts, who has been battling for fitness after undergoing surgery to his left wrist. He had hoped to return to the tracks earlier, but continuing weakness meant he had to wait until the final race of the year.

As well as having to pick up the pace, Roberts found that the physical strain of riding an ultra-powerful 990cc MotoGP prototype was causing him pain and problems. He plans to try again tomorrow after yet more intensive physio-therapy, hoping at least to get close to lap times he set in pre-season tests at the 4.005km Ricardo Tormo circuit.

Sunday’s race is the final round of the 2004 MotoGP World Championship series, following a trio of “flyaway” GPs on consecutive weekends in Qatar, Malaysia and Australia. There is one more day of practice before Sunday’s race.

NOBUATSU AOKI
This morning the cooler temperatures were good for us. Our Dunlop tyres work pretty well in these conditions. It was a little warmer in the afternoon, but the tyres were still pretty okay. It gave me the chance to push a little bit further. Bike-wise, we’re okay. From the morning the suspension and chassis settings have been pretty good. We didn’t touch anything this afternoon, which is good for me. I can concentrate on picking the right tyre for the race. I hope the weather stays cooler all weekend.

KURTIS ROBERTS
That was pretty horrible. My wrist was really sore out there, and also my shoulder. I don’t know what that is … maybe I slept on it wrong, or something. I can’t even put my leathers on by myself. The main thing is to get through it. I’ve been riding minibikes at my dad’s ranch for an hour non-stop without trouble, but obviously there’s a lot more load on the wrist on a MotoGP bike. I’m not sure if I can manage 30 laps, but I’m too stupid to quit, so I’ll keep trying. Dean Miller is working with me, and he’s done a lot of good things to help riders to get through races. As for the lap time, I did a 1:34.6 here before the season, and I’ll keep trying to get back to that. The bike can go round here faster than I’m going.

KENNY ROBERTS – Team Principal
The track seems slower than before, but everything is running okay for us. Nobu’s doing fine, but Kurtis’s wrist is hurting. It’s an issue, and I’m not sure if he will be able to race. We’ll have to wait and see.


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


Provisional front row for Makoto Tamada. Max Biaggi, fifth fastest

A provisional front row for Makoto Tamada after the first day of practice, with the second fastest time of the day and just a whisker away from pole; three thousandths of a second. Max Biaggi was fifth fastest, which is a provisional second row start. The track’s grip, as often on the first day in Valencia, is not optimal, but if the weather remains stable the lap times should improve as the track picks up more rubber.

Sito Pons – Camel Honda (Team Principal)
“it’s a good start to the weekend here at Valencia, the last round of this year’s championship. Our riders are 2nd and 5th after today’s practices. We still have a lot of work left to do though, and we can still improve in terms of lap times and consistency of performance. We are confident about tomorrow and the objective will be to get our riders on the front row of the grid, as well as finalising the preparations for the race.”

Max Biaggi – Camel Honda (Michelin tyres) – 5th 1:34.299
“It was a bit of a so-so day today, with a few too many problems which we hope to solve, given that we tested at this track in similar conditions at the end of last year and got top results. The bike was hard to ride today and I couldn’t get the most out of it, it was tough to finish off the corners properly. On this track which is tight and twisty, not being able to keep on the right lines costs you dear. We know that we can be quick here though, so I hope that we can find the right direction.”

Giulio Bernardelle – Camel Honda – (Makoto Tamada’s Technical Director)
“In the last four races in the championship we have got consistent performance out of the tyres, and at a high level too. This means we can work harder for longer, and we can spend more time on the bike’s set-up. We can do a full job on things, for example even working on the electrics in the engine, and we’re getting good results. If the weather holds and remains stable and probably if the track temperatures rise a little we will see an improvement in performance. As is usual on the first day in Valencia, the grip hasn’t been perfect. So we are hoping that Makoto can be even quicker tomorrow.”

Makoto Tamada – Camel Honda (Bridgestone tyres) – 2nd – 1:33.534
“The temperatures were higher than in the morning and in fact we found some good set-up solutions in the afternoon. Despite this, we still have a few things to test to get up to full speed. So tomorrow I will try to improve a few things; on the tyre front I’m satisfied and if the temperature improves compared to today, we even have other tyre solutions to test.”


More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

Ducati Marlboro men looking good on second row

Ducati Marlboro Team riders Loris Capirossi and Troy Bayliss produced strong performances during this afternoon’s opening qualifying session for the Marlboro Valencia Grand Prix, the final event of the 2004 MotoGP season. In bright, breezy and chilly conditions the pair put their Desmosedici GP4s on the second row of the provisional grid, just a few tenths of a second down on provisional pole sitter Sete Gibernau.

“That was a positive session for us,” said Ducati Marlboro Team director Livio Suppo. “Both our riders did a good job, so it looks like we’re working towards a strong finish to the season. We aren’t using any of the new parts we tested at Phillip Island after the Australian GP because they were prototype parts, which are the start of our 2005 preseason testing programme.”

Bayliss flying in fourth

Troy Bayliss was in flying form at Valencia this afternoon, wrestling his Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici GP4 around the tortuous Spanish track to go fastest with five minutes to go. By the end of the session he had slipped to fourth, just three tenths of a second outside a slot on the provisional front row of the grid.

“That wasn’t bad, we’re going okay for the first day,” said Bayliss. “But we’ve got to work some more on the rear end because at the moment we’re working the tyre too much. If we can fix that we’ll be right, just another small step tomorrow and I’ll be happy. I’m reasonably happy anyway, though on my second qualifying run I lost the front a couple of times which cost me some time going into those turns, which also lost me some drive on the way out, but the lap time still wasn’t that bad.”

Capirossi on the pace in sixth

Boosted by his superb ride to third place in Australia a fortnight ago, Loris Capirossi was in excellent form today, running sixth quickest on his Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici GP4, just two tenths slower than team-mate Bayliss. And the Italian is hoping for even better tomorrow, when conditions are expected to be warmer.

“This morning was really cold so we had some traction problems, though I guess that was the same for everyone,” said the Italian. “We’ve had to work hard on set-up because our Phillip Island settings aren’t good here. We made a good step forward this afternoon, working mostly on the front end. I’ve now got a good feeling from the front but with a few more adjustments I think we can make it a little better. We’re quite close to the leaders and I might’ve been even closer if I hadn’t made a little mistake on my qualifying tyres – and in this wind a little mistake becomes a big mistake. At the moment I’m feeling okay and looking forward to some warmer weather tomorrow.”


More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki:


Hopkins thwarted, Lavilla learning in Spain

Team Suzuki MotoGP riders John Hopkins and Gregorio Lavilla were eighth and 18th fastest in today’s first timed qualifying session for Sunday’s Valencia GP – with both expecting more to come.

Anglo-American racer Hopkins (21) is convinced he could have run faster, after earlier lying sixth overall. In fact he was halfway through a faster lap on his second set of qualifying tyres, when he was baulked, he believes deliberately, by another rider through the second half of the 4.005km Ricardo Tormo circuit. This lost all the advantage he had gained, and more.

Spaniard Lavilla was having his first ride of the weekend in today’s timed afternoon qualifying session, after being drafted into the team to take the place of Kenny Roberts Jr. The American had set fastest time in the morning warm-up session, but then withdrew from the meeting, still troubled by injuries sustained at the Japanese GP in September. Roberts has missed four races after dislocating his left elbow; Lavilla was standing by in case Kenny’s Valencia come-back proved premature.

Today’s times for the last race of the season were more than a second slower than last year, with cool track temperatures and a troublesome wind slowing the pace for everybody. This is against the norm, in a year when records have been regularly smashed at every circuit, except in wet conditions.

The Valencia GP is the last of 16 rounds of the 2004 season – a year when a continual programme of improvements to the Suzuki GSV-R MotoGP prototype racers have seen a trend of better qualifying and race results.

John Hopkins – Eighth Position, 1:34.420
The track and the pace seemed slower than in the morning, even though I did go faster. That was because we made some good improvements in the break between sessions. I’d been having a bit of a struggle getting the engine braking consistent, and we also worked on the gearing and the front and rear suspension, and that improved the lap time. I’d like to have gone quicker, but we had a lot of race tyres to go through. Then I put on my first qualifying tyre to get the feel of it, and it went quite well, though a bit lairy through the right-handers. With the second qualifier I had a moment that cost a bit of time, but I was still faster than I had been through the first half of the track. Then I came up behind another rider who deliberately slowed me and some other guys up. I always look out for people coming on a fast lap, and I know he saw me coming . but he intentionally got in my way, and that spoiled the lap. It’s quite pathetic really.

Gregorio Lavilla – 18th Position, 1:35.858
For sure, I have not had enough laps yet. I need to get the feel of the track. We had two bikes set up differently – one like in Australia, and the other with some ideas we came up with when we were there. But I didn’t get a good feeling with either of them. But I know that is because I need more laps myself. Tomorrow morning we will start again with two bikes, and I’ll work hard to get a rhythm, then I can make a decision about settings.


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


Sete looks to make progress from pole

Sete Gibernau kicked off proceedings at the Valencian GP today with provisional pole position, confirming his motivation and desire to take victory at the final round of the season. Despite setting the fastest time at the end of the session, when Valentino Rossi and Troy Bayliss had both taken turns at the top, the Spaniard insists he cannot afford to relax. Sete wants to concentrate on improving his race pace and giving himself the best possible opportunity of delivering victory to his fanatical home support on Sunday. Colin Edwards made several changes to his bike throughout the session and was rewarded in the final few minutes, even though he dropped a couple of places to seventh in the late push for times. The American is confident that the data gathered today will allow him to significantly improve his times tomorrow.

Sete Gibernau (1st, 1:33.531)
“We’ve arrived at our home Grand Prix in optimistic mood and we have started well. We’ve done a good job today although we’re still lacking a bit of rhythm. I need a bit more grip when the bike is leaned over and my feeling is not yet perfect. We’ve got work to do – amongst other things we need to find a rear tyre. Tomorrow we’ve got all day to get everything ready.”

Colin Edwards (7th, 1:34.394)
“We suffered in the morning free practice and in the first part of qualifying trying to find the right set-up for this circuit. In the end we foun d the way forward and that gives me confidence for tomorrow. I am sure that I’ll improve my time.”

Fausto Gresini (Team manager)
“I’m very happy with Sete’s pole because he’s showing that is very motivated althought the title is already decided. We are working well”.


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

CHILLY START TO WEEKEND IN VALENCIA

The first day of practice at the Grand Prix of Valencia saw the cold as the main talking point, with the lower track temperature prohibiting the riders from setting the kind of pace normally expected, but the d´Antin MotoGP riders in turn put in some solid work on the set up of their Ducati Desmosedici.

Spaniard Rubén Xaus finished thirteenth, and will undoubtedly push for a spot amongst the top ten tomorrow, whilst Briton Neil Hodgson couldn’t quite find the right combination, and finished twentieth.

RUBEN XAUS : “It wasn’t an easy day because it was windy and was quite cold. Furthermore the track was a little dirty and that means the grip levels leave a little to be desired for everyone, as the times showed. This is a complicated circuit, where you have to have everything spot on to get good times and in certain sections it was hard to feel comfortable, because when you are on an aggressive bike with sharp power delivery it’s even harder. We’ll keep on working tomorrow to make it as good as possible in this last race of the year in front of an incredible crowd. I raced here before in Superbikes, but there were a lot less people here and ever since I got here this week, I have received nothing but great support and it’s brilliant to feel that, so I’ll be doing everything I can to repay it.”

NEIL HODGSON : ” Unfortunately I don’t feel comfortable on the bike once again. There’s a lot of work left to do, but I’m confident I can improve and finish the season with good sensations. It’s an important race, and there’s so many more fans here than when we came with the Superbikes, and I’d like to be able to enjoy the weekend with all of them.”