From a press release issued by Camel Honda Racing Information:

Sweltering heat at Sepang on second day of Malaysia tests

After the mild weather of recent days at the Sepang circuit, the great heat of Malaysia is back with a vengeance: 36°C (97°F) in the air and 52° C(127° F) on the ground. A tough day but invaluable in terms of tyre development.

In the morning Makoto Tamada completed the chassis settings programme for his RC211V. When compared with the settings used in December, all the adjustments provided useful confirmation and made it possible to gain greater knowledge of the development work on the bike. Both on the Valencia circuit in December, and here in Sepang, a very satisfactory balance was found for the bike.

After the morning tests, Makoto was able to spend the afternoon trying out the tyres. The high temperature of the tarmac gave a perfect opportunity to carry out an in-depth analysis of the new material from Bridgestone. The Camel Honda Team rider tried out almost a dozen different combinations of tyres, making an important initial selection. Endurance tests are planned for tomorrow along with a Grand Prix simulation run.

Shinichi Itoh, the official Bridgestone test rider, continued with his development work. He tried out 15 combinations of tyres and did even more in-depth testing than Makoto Tamada.


Makoto Tamada (# 6 – Camel Honda Team – Bridgestone Tyres)
“They heat’s really up and we’ve got an enormous amount of work to do. This preparatory stage on the run-up to the championship is crucial however, so we just roll up our sleeves and get down to work. I’m pleased about how this second day of tests went and I’m glad to know we’ll be back as early as February for further tests. An all-round job that will let us concentrate entirely on our choices for this year’s championship.”

Luca Montiron (Team Manager Makoto Tamada – Camel Honda Team)
“Today’s conditions, which were very similar to those of the race here last year, gave us an excellent opportunity to see what progress we’ve made so far. In the 2003 race we had some problems in maintaining constant performance from the tyres, so today’s tests gave us some idea about how much the development work has gone ahead. We’ve still got lots more tyres to try out and we’ve got the endurance test to do, but we’re pleased with the references we’ve picked up so far.”

Times on second day of tests:

Makoto Tamada – 2:03 41 – 55 LAPS
Shinichi Itoh – 2:05 07 – 74 LAPS