From a press release issued by Fuchs Kawasaki:

MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2004
CINZANO RIO GRAND PRIX – NELSON PIQUET CIRCUIT
1ST JULY 2004 – EVENT PREVIEW

HIGH SPEED RIO AWAITS FUCHS KAWASAKI RIDERS

Despite a rushed travel schedule, Fuchs Kawasaki riders, Shinya Nakano and Alex Hofmann, are ready for the annual MotoGP visit to Brazil for the Rio Grand Prix.

The challenge of the high-speed Rio race comes just one week after the Dutch TT at Assen. The Rio GP is the seventh round of the MotoGP World Championship.

For Hofmann it is a welcome return to Brazil where he has not raced for three years, with his previous appearance being in the 2001 250cc GP.

A steep learning curve awaits MotoGP rookie Hofmann, as makes his 990cc four stroke debut aboard the Ninja ZX-RR at a track that has a well deserved reputation for being both bumpy and abrasive.

Even so, the 24-year-old Fuchs Kawasaki rider hopes to capitalise on the speed and consistency he has shown in recent races.

Meanwhile, Hofmann’s Fuchs Kawasaki teammate, Shinya Nakano, believes the chassis and steering balance of the new generation Ninja ZX-RR, together with the arrival of further new specification tyres from Bridgestone, will produce a competitive package this weekend.

The 26-year-old Japanese rider comes to Rio on the back of a season best fifth qualifying position at Assen, although he was bitterly disappointed not to finish the Dutch TT after falling victim to a mechanical problem during the race.

Rio is a once-a-year track with no pre-event testing, thus adding to the task of both team and tyre engineers to confirm race settings in just four hours of practice and qualifying.

The 12 turn Rio circuit is part of a complex that includes an Indy car oval with a layout that features parallel straights. Here it is the back straight that is the faster and longer of the two and, at 1,000 metres in length, the home of high-speed slipstreaming. The long, fast curves also place a premium on front-end stability.

This year the Rio race has been returned to a Sunday afternoon staging and moved forward in the calendar to mid-winter in the Southern Hemisphere. One benefit could be the absence of the tropical downpours that have often hit the Rio GP weekend and conditions will be cooler, although pleasantly mild, with a forecast of 25 degree temperatures during practice, qualifying and for Sunday’s race.

Shinya Nakano: No.56
“I like Brazil and this track. It will be my first time here on the Ninja ZX-RR and with no testing or previous data available finding a good race set-up in practice will be critical. The bumps and low grip levels are not easy to deal with, but the new 2004 Kawasaki chassis is a strong point for us. Like Assen I’m looking for a good qualifying position, although this time I want to see the chequered flag at the end of the race. And it will be good if we have three days of dry weather to properly evaluate the latest Bridgestone tyres, which we did not get a chance to do in Assen because of the rain.”

Alex Hofmann: No.66
“I’m happy to be back in Rio; I haven’t raced here for three years. It’s my first time on a MotoGP bike here, so I’m sure it will take some time to settle in on the Ninja ZX-RR at this track which is usually bumpy and dirty for the opening sessions. My last race here was on a 250cc machine, so it’s difficult for me to predict too much regarding the MotoGP bike, other than that Rio has some long and fast corners, which usually suit my style. I like the layout of the circuit, although the fast back straight needs a lot of top speed. Another strong finish and more championship points is my main aim this weekend.”