Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Final MotoGP Qualifying Results From Mugello:

1. Valentino Rossi, Honda, 1:51.927
2. Loris Capirossi, Ducati, 1:51.954
3. Shinya Nakano, Yamaha, 1:51.986
4. Max Biaggi, Honda, 1:52.021
5. Tohru Ukawa, Honda, 1:52.027
6. Sete Gibernau, Honda, 1:52.153
7. Carlos Checa, Yamaha, 1:52.290
8. Olivier Jacque, Yamaha, 1:52.333
9. Alex Barros, Yamaha, 1:52.439
10. Makoto Tamada, Honda, 1:52.513
11. Troy Bayliss, Ducati, 1:52.644
12. Marco Melandri, Yamaha, 1:52.687
13. Colin Edwards, Aprilia, 1:52.767
14. John Hopkins, Suzuki, 1:52.969
15. Alex Hofmann, Kawasaki, 1:53.146
16. Noriyuki Haga, Aprilia, 1:53.149
17. Nicky Hayden, Honda, 1:53.190
18. Kenny Roberts, Suzuki, 1:53.399
19. Jeremy McWilliams, Proton, 1:53.813
20. Garry McCoy, Kawasaki, 1:54.052
21. Andrew Pitt, Kawasaki, 1:54.345
22. Ryuichi Kiyonari, Honda, 1:54.315
23. Nobuatsu Aoki, Proton, 1:56.394


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

Makoto Tamada, tenth, confirms third row for start of Italian Grand Prix

Making his debut on the technical circuit of Mugello, the gifted Japanese rider of the Pramac Honda team concluded the qualifying sessions up in the top ten. A good result that will let him aim to make his mark on the “home” race tomorrow. Under the vigilant eye of the captain of the Fiorentina soccer team and member of the Italian national team, Angelo di Livio, a guest of the Gruppo Pramac, Makoto went through an extremely important test session to prepare for tomorrow’s race, trying out further set-up solutions and adjusting the power delivery management from the engine. Makoto always likes to have rapid response from the engine when he uses the throttle, and the technicians gave him just what he wanted. The new Bridgestone tyres that were tested at Le Mans after the race were again used in the practice sessions.

Everyone held their breath when Tamada posted the best T2 (second intermediate time) in the last seconds of the session, but he made a slight
slip that prevented him from getting a surprise result. Mugello has been in the sweltering heat over the past two days and it will not be easy to make the last tests on the tyres. Just to make things worse, the weather satellites are suggesting raging storms for tomorrow.

Makoto Tamada (Pramac Honda Team): 10th – 1:52.513

“I was fast at T2 but then overconfidence led me to make a mistake, but I’ve already got a good feeling for Mugello and I can go close to the limit. We tried out other set-up solutions and other tyres for the race, and I know we can do well Sure, knowing that I can go fast on the “home” track, it’s obvious I wanted to do better than tenth quickest. The fact remains that we tried going for the fast lap only right at the end, while throughout all the rest of the session we concentrated on preparing for tomorrow. Mugello might seem to be a circuit where it’s easy to overtake, but actually it isn’t. You need inspiration and determination to do it so I’m going to try to stay up with the leaders and maintain a pace that will let me move up the field so I can get a good result in Tuscany.”


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

Hopkins finds improvement in final qualifying for Italian Grand Prix

MUGELLO, Italy (June 7, 2003) – John Hopkins, coming back from a shoulder injury suffered two weeks ago in the French Grand Prix, made major improvements throughout Saturday to qualify 14th for Sunday’s Italian Grand Prix in Mugello with a time of 1:52.969. Pole setter Valentino Rossi’s qualifying time was 1:51.927. Hopkins will start from the fourth row.

The weekend was one of continued testing for the Suzuki squad, the team trying to find additional speed and handling out of the GSV-R Grand Prix machine.

“It’s been another weekend of testing new parts,” Hopkins said. “It’s tough when you’re testing so many different things to know for sure what’s working and what’s not. We’ve gone back and forth on the settings for everything from suspension, to engine mapping, you name it and we’ve tried it.”

Hopkins was happy with the improvements made during Saturday’s practice and qualifying, but is still hoping for more from the bike come Sunday.

“This track as a lot of sweeping corners and we’ve been struggling to find a decent set-up,” Hopkins explained. “Stuart (Shenton) found some things in the data Friday night that helped us improve today. We’re chipping away at it, but we’ve still got some way to go. Hopefully we’ll find a little more on Sunday.

“They’re forecasting rain here for race day. I’ve tested here in the rain and it’s not nearly as bad as Le Mans in the wet, but there are still some slick spots. If we struggle in the dry we’ll probably struggle on a wet surface as well to be honest.”

Hopkins said his right shoulder is improving, but still giving him problems in certain sections of the 5.2-kilometer Mugello circuit.

“In the chicanes where I have to flick the bike, it bothers the shoulder a bit. The bike feels heavy to me, but I’m ready to race and am going to give it 100 percent.”

Last year at Mugello Hopkins qualified 13th and finished 11th in the race.

Keep up to date with Hopkins via his website at www.hopperracing.com.


More, from a press release issued by Fortuna Yamaha:

ITALIAN HEAT MAKES FOR A DIFFICULT FINAL QUALIFIER FOR FORTUNA YAMAHA

The final qualifying session for the Italian Grand Prix today at the picturesque Mugello circuit proved to be a difficult time for both Fortuna Yamaha Team riders Carlos Checa and Marco Melandri, with neither able to improve their provisional times from yesterday in the sweltering conditions. It was a similar story for much of the 23-bike MotoGP field, with the first improvements in laptimes only making an appearance midway through the hour-long session, and only half that number making any progress through the time sheets.

Despite all efforts made at bettering his Friday time, once a competitive race day set-up had been archived, Checa could not defend his fifth place on the grid and will start tomorrow’s 23-lap race from seventh. The only consolation is that it will still be a second row start for the 30-year old, who finished fourth in the Mugello main event last year.

Even provisional polesitter Loris Capirossi (Ducati, 1:51.954) was unable to do any better. This left the window of opportunity open for a rather determined Valentino Rossi (Honda, 1:51.921), who took the prime position by a mere 0.033 seconds. D’Antin Yamaha Team rider Shinya Nakano produced a 1:51.986 to finish third for tomorrow’s starting grid, making it three manufacturers in the ’51s, with Max Biaggi (Honda, 1:52.021) completing the front row.

Fortuna Yamaha Team rider Carlos Checa’s qualifying time, a 1:52.290, fell short of the 1:51.900 he produced during the private Fortuna Yamaha Team test held here in May, which he mostly attributed to today’s high track temperatures;

“I couldn’t improve on yesterday’s time today, I just couldn’t get a good feeling,” said Checa. “It might be that the track condition has changed, the asphalt condition or something. I tried different tyres, both front and rear, but I still didn’t feel as confident as I would have liked. Towards the end of the session the engine was not running normally as well so I couldn’t finish the session and aim for a faster lap time. My target was to get a good pace, not just to get a good grid position and I wasn’t able to do that. I’m not bothered about the starting position, I just want to make a good race and I hope that I’ll be able to do that tomorrow.”

It was a similar story for his team-mate Marco Melandri, who lost the front of his M1 with 20 minutes remaining after pushing a little too hard and hitting a bump. Despite this the local 250cc World Champion has continually shown steady progress since his first competitive MotoGP ride in Jerez, only two rounds ago, and is clearly coming to terms with the characteristics of the YZR-M1 machine and the competitiveness of the premier class of the World Championship. Since he was unable to improve on the 1:52.687, set during Friday qualifying, the 20-year-old Italian will start his home MotoGP race from 12th on the grid – only 0.766 seconds off pole.

“I was pushing hard with the rear and it felt so good, then there were lots of bumps in the corner and I crashed,” said Melandri. “I was maybe a bit too fast, but the feeling had been really good until then, it felt better than yesterday. I was able to get a good rhythm and was focussing on how it would feel in the race. After I fell I took my number one bike, I had been using bike number two until then, and even though the bike was set up exactly the same, it didn’t feel quite as good. My fan club is here and have come from many places in Italy, so I want to perform well for them tomorrow.”

Fortuna Yamaha Team director Davide Brivio is hoping that both riders will be able to regain a ‘good feeling’ for tomorrow, “Today neither rider could improve on yesterday’s grid lap times, unfortunately Carlos couldn’t try for a hot lap at the end of the session. We have found out that due to some problems with the fuel pump he was forced to pull in and wasn’t able to complete the session. Marco had to use his other bike after he slid off, and he just couldn’t find the same feeling again so it was a difficult session for him. But before he fell he had found a good race pace. Let’s hope for a good race tomorrow – it’s such a competitive group out there, again, so it will be difficult.”


More, from a press release issued by Alice Aprilia Racing:

ITALY GRAND PRIX/ SECOND QUALIFYING SESSION

SCARPERIA – Hot temperature and setting problems for the Rs Cube of Alice Aprilia Team in the exciting Tuscan track of Mugello. Some problem in the rear did not give Edwards and Haga the chance to be more competitive. The Japanese improved a bit his yesterdays lap time while Edwards lost some grid positions. This GP will be very difficult but the technical staff managed by Dall’Igna engineer is working hard to solve the problems for the race: the warm up session will be very important for both Aprilia riders.

COLIN EDWARDS: “Today it was very difficult. I tried to do all the best, we tested many things but the bike is not enough fast in the corners yet. There three different corners where I am not able to go faster than the other parts of the track”.

NORIYUKI HAGA: “We do not miss the problems: especially in the corners cause the bike jumps to much. I hope to solve them soon cause I want to get to the top”.

GIGI DALL’IGNA (Project Leader): “We had some setting problems due to the hot temperature. We tried to test different solutions but we are still in trouble. If we check the data the bike still jumps in the corners but this is not a serious problem. The worst is the skip of the rear. We have some new ideas in order to solve it and we will do it tomorrow during the warm up: we want to get to the top and we are working very hard”.


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

GPMP Italian Grand Prix at Mugello

Final Qualifying Saturday June 7

ROSSI GRABS THIRD POLE OF SEASON AT HOME TRACK

In searing 32 degree heat and with track temperatures nudging 47 degrees Valentino Rossi (Repsol Honda RC211V) made a last minute lap that knocked another home hope off the top of the grid. Loris Capirossi (Ducati) was aiming to give the Italian Factory a home debut to remember and was within a minute of achieving his aim before Rossi shattered the dream with a 1m 51.927 lap.

Capirossi had to rely on his Friday time to hold his slot at the top of the qualifying rankings and it looked like it might have been enough as conditions proved to be even more punishing for riders and machines in today’s session.

Max Biaggi (Camel Pramac Pons RC211V) who qualified fourth had earlier predicted that the top three riders would be Italian and his prediction looked entirely accurate until Shinya Nakano (Yamaha) charged into third within the last two minutes of the hour-long session. He was the only rider to break into the sub-1m 52s laps that Rossi and Capirossi could achieve.

This is Rossi’s third consecutive pole at Mugello and with all the attendant attentions and pressures in his home environment the reigning World Champion played his hand to perfection. “Like everybody else at the end of the session I really pushed to make the best time,” he said. “I tried to go with about six or seven minutes left and made a 1m 52s lap so I stopped trying too hard and came in.

“The team did a fantastic job and changed the tyre within 30 seconds and that gave me the time I needed to do the extra lap. In one lap I really pushed and used the tyre to 100% of its capability. In the middle of the lap I had a big advantage but then I had to overtake Bayliss and made a mistake on the last corner – but it was enough for pole position. It will be a hard battle tomorrow but it’s good to start from the front.”

Max Biaggi secured a vital front row slot but wanted a pole badly at his home race. Despite the hard work of a team that was trying to squeeze more speed from his V5 machine the Roman never felt he had the speed needed to challenge effectively.

“I have to be happy with the qualifying results because at least I’ll start for the front row,” he said. “The only thing that worries me is that we were not able to solve the engine problem that we had yesterday. It’s probably a matter of setting and that’s why I keep my fingers crossed that it stays dry tomorrow so that we can try something in the warm-up. I really hope we can solve this thing because the rest of the bike setting is very good. It’s going to be a tough race because there are a lot of fast riders out there.”

His team-mate Tohru Ukawa (Camel Pramac Pons RC211V) had to rely on Max for a ‘tow’ at the halfway point of the session. Ukawa tucked in behind Biaggi and used the slipstream to tug himself towards a 1m 52.027 time that was good enough for the front row until Nakano’s late effort spoiled the party.

“The track was really hot out there,” said the Japanese. “I put a new tyre on at one stage and within two laps it was spinning-up. It was good to get the tow from Max because this morning was much better for lap times and my times are not much faster than they were in the warm-up. The second row is okay because tomorrow will be a hard race. We’ve still got a bit more work to do on the engine and we’ve almost got a race set-up but maybe tomorrow will be different.”

Sete Gibernau (Telefonica Movistar Honda RC211V) qualified only two tenths off the pole time but has to make do with a second row start from sixth. The Spaniard knows things will be tough tomorrow but is confident that he has an effective race set-up.

“We lapped consistently in the 1m 52s bracket which is positive as far as the race goes,” he said. “I would have liked to have defended my position on the front row but it wasn’t to be. In the last few minutes when I went for a fast lap I was help up by another rider. The weather makes it feel like we’re at the Malaysian Grand Prix and tomorrow will be a very tiring race. Fitness will be important but I feel in good shape and ready to fight for the win.”

Things were tough for Makoto Tamada (Pramac Honda RC211V) on his Mugello debut but he powered into the top ten yesterday and even more impressively stayed there today qualifying in tenth place after looking like he might even better that in the closing stages of the session.

“I’ve got a good feel for the track,” he said. “And I can go close to the limit. We tried some other set-up solutions and tyres for the race and I know we can do well. But we only really went for a fast lap right at the end and the rest of the time I was trying race set-up. Mugello may look like a track where it’s easy to overtake but in fact it’s not. You really need to muscle your way past so I’ve got to stay with the leaders and maintain a pace that will let me move up with them.”

Rookie Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC211V) qualified in 17th on his first visit to Mugello and the American is eager to get even more track time under his belt in tomorrow’s warm-up session. “I felt better on the track today,” he said. “I managed to take more than a second off my time from yesterday, but I’d still like to be higher up the grid. I guess I’m struggling a bit with front end confidence and in the morning everything feels better than when it heats up and the grip isn’t there.

“I’m finding my way round here a lot better and the track’s really fun. I’m looking forward to the race and although it’ll be tough I’m really ready for it. The last two races have been a little bit disappointing after the first two and I want to get things back on track.”

Another rookie was Riuichi Kiyonari (Telefonica Movistar Honda RC211V) who qualified 23rd at his first visit to the tricky and daunting Mugello was happy with the strides he’s making in only his second MotoGP race. “I’ve improved my time from yesterday by two tenths,” he said. “And I am very satisfied with the session today. I know that I still have a lot to learn and I have to make the most of all the time available to me.”

The 250 qualifying session was an Aprilia affair with the two leading Honda runners Roberto Rolfo (Fortuna Honda RS250RW) and Sebastian Porto (Telefonica Movistar Junior Team RS250RW) relegated to the second row. Randy de Puniet grabbed pole with Manuel Poggiali second, Fonsi Nieto in third and Franco Battaini in fourth (all Aprilia).

Tony Elias (Aprilia) heads row two and then it’s Rolfo in sixth. “We’ve improved the acceleration,” he said. “But we’re still not close enough to the Aprilias, not here anyway. All the engine settings are better and we found a good set-up for today and being on row two should be enough, but the worry is the time difference – two seconds away is a big gap and I’m not sure we can do enough to close that. But we’ll see.”

Sebastian Porto is two tenths down on Rolfo in seventh. “The fact that we’re both stuck on the second row tells it’s own story,” he said. “The engine is down on power and the temperature is way up. The gap between us and the front row is huge but we know Honda is working to close that gap and we’ll have to come up with something soon.”

Casey Stoner (Aprilia) grabbed his first ever pole position in the 125cc class with a 1m 58.914s lap that was another Aprilia benefit with the first six places filled by the Italian machines. The front row reads Stoner, Stefano Perugini, Alex de Angelis and Pablo Nieto.

Andrea Dovisioso (Team Scot Honda RS125R) qualified on the second row in seventh. “We had a small problem with the rear tyre which kept sliding. The engine temperature was high as well at 60 degrees but it didn’t seem to be a problem.”

Daniel Pedrosa (Telefonica Movistar Junior Team RS125R) qualified tenth and is hoping the team can eradicate the engine trouble that has plagued him during the two days of qualifying. “The engine is always slower in the afternoon than it is in the morning and we have to solve this for tomorrow,” he said.

HONDA TEAM QUOTES:

MotoGP:

Valentino Rossi, Repsol Honda Team: 1st: “At the end of the session – like everybody else – I really try to push to make the best time. I tried first with six or seven minutes remaining and made a 52.0 so I stop trying and came in. My team did fantastic work and changed the tyre in 30 seconds and it was possible top make the extra lap. One the last lap I pushed very much using 100% of the tyre. In the middle of the lap I had a big advantage but I then had to overtake Bayliss and I made a mistake on the last corner but it was enough for the pole position. It will be a hard battle tomorrow but it will be good to start from the front.”

Max Biaggi, Camel Pramac Pons, 4th: “I am disappointed because I really thought I had a chance of taking pole position, but on the last lap I found it hard to follow the Aprilia because I was still lacking power. I hope we find a solution in time for tomorrow because it will be a very complicated race if we do not.”

Tohru Ukawa, Camel Pramac Pons, 5th: “We obviously had a much better day than yesterday and already in the morning session we made considerable progress. The problem is that it is too hot. The tyres last a couple of laps and then start to slide. I didn’t manage to get on the front row, which was my objective, but I think that second row is not a bad result. It will be a difficult race since the three Italian riders are very fast here, but I will try to stick with them and fight for a podium finish.

Sito Pons, ” The times are very even and it promises to be a thrilling race. I think our two riders are in a good position to be amongst the leaders tomorrow. It is a shame that Max was forced to slow down by another rider on the last lap because if not he could have snatched pole position. It will clearly be a hard Grand Prix, but I think that both Max and Tohru will be up with the leaders.”

Sete Gibernau, Telefonica Movistar Honda: 6th: “Again, I think my team is doing a great job. We had not tested here with this bike and we are only two tenths off pole position. I have a good rhythm – we have lapped consistently in 1’52 which is very positive with regard to the race. I would have like to have defended my position on the front row but it wasn’t to be. In the last few minutes of the session when I went for the fast lap I was held up by another rider. The weather conditions are really tough – it feels like we are at the Malaysian GP! Tomorrow will be a very tiring race – fitness will be very important, but I feel in shape and ready to fight for the win.”

Makoto Tamada (Pramac Honda Team): 10th: “I was fast at T2 but then overconfidence led me to make a mistake, but I’ve already got a good feeling for Mugello and I can go close to the limit. We tried out other set-up solutions and other tyres for the race, and I know we can do well Sure, knowing that I can go fast on the “home” track, it’s obvious I wanted to do better than tenth quickest. The fact remains that we tried going for the fast lap only right at the end, while throughout all the rest of the session we concentrated on preparing for tomorrow. Mugello might seem to be a circuit where it’s easy to overtake, but actually it isn’t. You need inspiration and determination to do it so I’m going to try to stay up with the leaders and maintain a pace that will let me move up the field so I can get a good result in Tuscany

Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda Team: 17th: “I felt better on the track today and managed to go take over a second off my time from yesterday. Of course I would like to start further up the grid. I guess I’m struggling a little with front-end confidence. I’ve got more time on the track tomorrow – every little bit helps. In the morning everything feels better than when it heats up and the grip just isn’t there. I’m finding my way round here a lot better – the track’s really fun. I’m looking forward to the race – it’ll be tough tomorrow but I’m really ready for it. The last two races have been a little disappointing after the first two – I want to get things back on track.”

Ryuichi Kiyonari, Telefonica Movistar Honda:22nd: “I am very satisfied with the session today. I have improved my time from yesterday by two tenths. Taking into account that Mugello is such a difficult track and with the heat I can be satisfied. I know that I still have a lot to learn and I have to make the most of the time we have available in each session.”

Fausto Gresini, Team manager: “The set-up work of the bikes for the race continues. Today Sete kept up a good rhythm throughout the whole session. We will start from the second row, as we did in France, so we have to be confident. Kiyonari is improving. There is no rush for him – it is important that he keeps working like this and picking up experience.”

250cc:

Roberto Rolfo, Fortuna Honda, 6th: “All the work did was concentrated on finding the best possible handling from the chassis on the entry to the corner. On that point we have improved a lot.” said Rolfo. “Besides that we have also improved acceleration and top speed a little. We have found what we were looking for with the engine, and that is reflected by my lap times and grid position. That’s why I can be satisfied with the weekend so far.”

“If the last changes we will make for tomorrows warm up are successful I think we will be in a position to run a good race,” concluded the Fortuna Honda rider.


Sebastien Porto, Telefonica MoviStar Honda Jnr Team, : 7th: “I am quite satisfied with today’s result. This morning we have tried a mountain of things which in the end have not helped, so we went back to yesterday’s settings. We still lack speed but the bike in general is well balanced – it was just a shame I couldn’t get the right tyre for a faster lap. The important thing is to have a good rhythm and I think tomorrow could be the hardest race of the year for us because of the long straight

125cc:

Andrea Dovizioso, Scot Racing Honda, 7th: “That was not so bad. Now the only problem I have is with the rear tyre. I’m using a hard compound and the rear end is sliding a lot. The engine is running too hot, it’s over 60′ but it’s not a big problem. We wait for the race and see what will happen.”

Dani Pedrosa, Telefonica MoviStar Honda Jnr Team, 10th: “I am very disappointed with this result. We weren’t able to get the carburation right, which meant I lost a lot of time in the box trying to sort it out. This morning the bike worked quite well but this morning it just wasn’t quick enough. When you add the fact that there was a lot of traffic and I could not get a decent slipstream, the conclusion was tenth place on the grid. The race tomorrow will be between a group of about ten riders. It will be a big fight and it will be vital to get good top speed to make sure I am not passed on the straight. I will have to get a decent start but I don’t think anyone will escape”.

Simone Corsi, Scot Racing Honda, 17th: “Considering I couldn’t find anybody to slipstream in the final laps my time was not so bad. I have the problems as Andrea (Dovizioso). Anyway, I’m closer to the top riders than at the last races so I’m happy for that. If I get good start I can run well in the race.”

Masao Azuma, Ajo Motorsport Honda, 22nd: “I have many problems with the chassis and suspension, it’s getting better each session but in very small steps. I’m just not strong enough in the corners with this set up. The engine is good, we have improved the acceleration and top speed a little since Le Mans. My problem in the race will be chassis and suspension, if we don’t find a better set up in the warm up. ”

Mika Kallio, Ajo Motorsport Honda, 24th: “In the morning the bike was not so bad, it was as fast as last year and the time as well. But we changed a couple of tings on the chassis for the qualifying session, one millimeter higher on the front end and a harder rear end but it was not so good. If De Angelis had not knocked me down I would have been faster, I was on my best sequence of laps when that happened. I was not pleased about that at all! The new engine is working quite well her we have made progress. Top speed is nearly about the same as the best Honda’s but there is not a lot of difference between all of us.”