Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Friday’s Qualifying Results:

MotoGP:

1. Valentino Rossi, Honda, 1:24.335
2. Max Biaggi, Honda, 1:24.370
3. Jeremy McWilliams, Proton, 1:24.412
4. Carlos Checa, Yamaha, 1:24.735
5. Troy Bayliss, Ducati, 1:24.742
6. Sete Gibernau, Honda, 1:24.864
7. Marco Melandri, Yamaha, 1:24.876
8. Norick Abe, Yamaha, 1:24.981
9. Loris Capirossi, Ducati, 1:25.019
10. Shinya Nakano, Yamaha, 1:25.122
11. Alex Barros, Yamaha, 1:25.210
12. Tohru Ukawa, Honda, 1:25.234
13. Olivier Jacque, Yamaha, 1:25.416
14. Nicky Hayden, Honda, 1:25.555
15. Garry McCoy, Kawasaki, 1:25.563
16. Colin Edwards, Aprilia, 1:25.614
17. Makoto Tamada, Honda, 1:25.719
18. Noriyuki Haga, Aprilia, 1:25.784
19. Kenny Roberts, Suzuki, 1:25.907
20. Alex Hofmann, Kawasaki, 1:26.014
21. John Hopkins, Suzuki, 1:26.247
22. Nobuatsu Aoki, Proton, 1:26.564
23. David De Gea, ROC Yamaha, 1:26.727
24. Ryuichi Kiyonari, Honda, 1:27.463
25. Andrew Pitt, Kawasaki, 1:27.806
26. Chris Burns, ROC Yamaha, no time recorded


250cc Grand Prix:

1. Randy De Puniet, Aprilia, 1:26.122
2. Roberto Rolfo, Honda, 1:26.434
3. Franco Battaini, Aprilia, 1:26.437
4. Sebastian Porto, Honda, 1:26.500
5. Manuel Poggiali, Aprilia, 1:26.611
6. Sylvain Guintoli, Aprilia, 1:26.643
7. Naoki Matsudo, Yamaha, 1:26.670
8. Fonsi Nieto, Aprilia, 1:26.768
9. Toni Elias, Aprilia, 1:26.876
10. Anthony West, Aprilia, 1:26.942
11. Joan Olive, Aprilia, 1:27.099
12. Alex Debon, Honda, 1:27.817
13. Hector Faubel, Aprilia, 1:27.898
14. Chaz Davies, Aprilia, 1:28.052
15. Erwan Nigon, Aprilia, 1:28.063


125cc Grand Prix:

1. Alex De Angelis, Aprilia, 1:28.645
2. Steve Jenkner, Aprilia, 1:28.913
3. Pablo Nieto, Aprilia, 1:28.941
4. Mika Kallio, Honda, 1:28.987
5. Thomas Luthi, Honda, 1:29.053
6. Casey Stoner, Aprilia, 1:29.109
7. Stefano Perugini, Aprilia, 1:29.118
8. Daniel Pedrosa, Honda, 1:29.147
9. Mirko Giansanti, Aprilia, 1:29.259
10. Andrea Dovizioso, Honda, 1:29.302
11. Youichi Ui, Aprilia, 1:29.311
12. Hector Barbera, Aprilia, 1:29.491
13. Lucio Cecchinello, Aprilia, 1:29.537
14. Fabrizio Lai, Malaguti, 1:29.573
15. Gino Borsoi, Aprilia, 1:29.659


More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

DUCATI MARLBORO MEN LEARN FAST AT THE ‘RING
Ducati Marlboro Team riders Troy Bayliss and Loris Capirossi unleashed their awesomely powerful Desmosedicis at the ultra-slow Sachsenring for the first time today and ended the opening qualifying session a highly respectable fifth and ninth fastest. Both men were tantalisingly close to the front pace, Bayliss just 0.407 seconds off provisional pole position, Capirossi 0.684 seconds down, despite the team’s lack of track knowledge.

“Loris is the only guy in the team who’s been here before, so I think we can be happy with our lap times so far,” said Ducati Marlboro Team technical director Corrado Cecchinelli. “We’re very close to pole, but I’m not so happy with our provisional grid positions because the weather forecast says it could rain tomorrow and it’d be a pity to start the race from the second and third rows. Troy is happy with his bike while Loris is lacking some front-end feeling, so he’s not yet confident to push 100 per cent. We’ve tried a number of suspension adjustments, they’ve not been enough but I think we know what to do for him – we’ll make a minor geometry change overnight.”


ROOKIE BAYLISS JUST 0.007 SECONDS OFF FRONT ROW
Ducati Marlboro Team rider Troy Bayliss was stunningly fast on his first day at the tight, tortuous Sachsenring, ending the first qualifier in fifth spot, just seven thousandths of a second off the provisional front row. “I don’t mind the place, it’s a bit unusual, a bit bumpy and there’s a few blind turns, but it’s okay,” said the Aussie. “We’ve been playing around with the bike a bit and I’m getting a good feeling, so I’m reasonably happy.”

Bayliss had a big scare this afternoon when he ran off the track at the high-speed turn 11, just maintaining control as he rocketed through the gravel trap. “When you roll off the throttle the rear can come around a bit,” he explained. “I’d been getting gamer and gamer into that turn and finally I ran in there a bit too fast. I thought I was going down.”

Bayliss is wearing a new short-cropped hairdo here, the result of some paddock fun yesterday evening. “One of the team cooks turned up here with a new haircut which everyone else thought was a bit daft, so they cut it off!” he grinned. “I said I’d have mine shaved as well to make the guy feel better!”


CAPIROSSI NINTH, MORE WORK TO DO
Loris Capirossi hasn’t been to the Sachsenring since 2001 – this time last year he was recuperating from an injury sustained at the Dutch TT – so he spent some of today reacquainting himself with the track aboard his Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici. The Italian ended the session ninth, four tenths off the second row.

“I’m not happy because the front end isn’t doing what I want it to do around this track,” he said. “We changed a few things during both of today’s sessions, but without the desired results, so we have some more adjustments to make for tomorrow. I just hope it doesn’t rain. We always knew that this track wouldn’t be great for my bike – it’s so slow and tight – and it’s also our first time here with the machine.


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

HARD AND BINDING DAY

Difficult day for the Alice Aprilia Racing team at the Sachsenring circuit for the 9th round of the calendar. Edwards and Haga used the new chassis and they both crashed. The Japanese rider lost the grip with the surface felling off: no damage for the rider but the bike was useless so he used the “old” version bike to end the session. Edwards had more problems than his team mate because off a loss of fuel the tank caught fire and the American rider jumped off quickly. No damage for Colin as well (just some burns in the right arm and thigh) but the fright was big. So now the development is over for today because there are many things to recover…

COLIN EDWARDS: “I can only say that I must learn the track in the best way and I am improving lap by lap. But today I discovered that the barbecue is a terrible thing if you are in the wrong side!

At the beginning of the session when I was riding with the new chassis on I saw some drops in the visor: I immediately thought at the rain and then the water cooling of a bike in front of me. But I felt something cold on my neck and after a few seconds a big heat. That was FIRE! I was completely wrapped by the flames and I decided to jump off quickly. I felt really scared but I hope this was the only one of my life!”

NORIYUKI HAGA: “My real problem is the chattering and the short confidence with the front. I do not like this track and tomorrow we will try to manage the things in the best way. It won’t be easy but I want to get my positive period back”

GIGI DALL’IGNA (Project Leader: “Edward’s bike lost some fuel from the tank. After a braking the fuel went out of the tank sliding in the front and then on the exhaust pipes starting the fire. Colin has been very prompt jumping off and luckily he did not suffered serious damages. Unfortunately that crash and Haga’s one in this morning free session destroyed the bike with the new chassis on. Edwards is a human and he was a bit afraid in the afternoon session but it’s normal. Anyway both riders lost a session and we are now rebuilding the bikes with the new chassis in order to be ready for tomorrow session”.


More, from a press release issued by Fortuna Yamaha:

CHECA LEADS THE YAMAHA CHARGE WITH A PROVISIONAL FRONT ROW

Sachsenring turned up the heat for the opening day of the German Grand Prix today where the first qualifying times were ultimately close. With one second covering the top 13, an exploding bike the talk of the paddock, and perfect East German weather tanning the thousands of motorsport fans who turned out for the spectacle, the day’s action didn’t disappoint anyone. The conditions also proved favourable for the Fortuna Yamaha Team, with both factory Yamaha riders Carlos Checa and Marco Melandri regularly featuring in the top five during this afternoon’s hour-long opening qualifier, before eventually finishing fourth and seventh respectively.

Checa felt instantly comfortable during this morning’s opening free practice session and carried that momentum through to the afternoon first qualifying session, where he set the initial pace. The 30-year-old remained on top of the timesheets until mid-session, at which point he began to focus on a competitive race package and attempted to cement his position with a provisional pole time. After an initially successful attempt Checa found himself fourth, but looked set to retake pole on his final lap when his lap was disrupted by a backmarker. Nevertheless the Spaniard was reasonably happy with a personal best time of 1:24.735, to take fourth place and provisional front row.

“We worked fairly well today, and I don’t think there are too many problems with the bike,” said Checa, who finished last year’s race here in fourth place. “We’ve kept the basic set-up from the last few races but have adjusted the suspension. I had a few problems with the first bike I used so I switched to my second, and it took a while to get used to it but I improved at the end. Yamaha have worked really hard here but it’s still important that we get a slightly better time tomorrow and therefore better advantage for the race start. But I’m optimistic and it would be great for all the team to get a good result.”

Melandri, unlike his Fortuna Yamaha Team-mate, wasn’t completely settled today as minor front-end grip problems proved to be an issue. Yet still the 250cc World Champion rode like a veteran, despite this being the MotoGP rookie’s first visit to the German venue aboard the YZR-M1 four-stroke.

Fifth in this morning’s free practice session led on to regularly featuring in the top three on the qualifying time sheets this afternoon. However in the final jostling for positions the 20-year-old Italian placed his #33 machine seventh on the grid with a time of 1:24.876, just 0.541 seconds off Valentino Rossi’s (Honda, 1:24.335) provisional pole performance.

The defending MotoGP World Champion Rossi currently leads the front row ahead of Max Biaggi (Honda, 1:24.370), Jeremy McWilliams (Proton KR two-stroke, 1:24.412) and Checa. Meanwhile Colin Edwards (1:25.614) qualified 16th after being in the hot seat during practice when his factory Aprilia caught fire and the American was forced to jump ship at nearly 200kmh. The 2002 Superbike World Champion suffered no serious injuries.

Melandri, who scored his first 250cc victory at the German circuit, was sure that his small grip problems today will be solvable tomorrow. “We started with the Donington set-up today because it was such a positive weekend for us in terms of my feeling with the bike,” he explained. “I’ve always done well at this track in the past and we did improve this afternoon from this morning but I’m hoping to do better. This morning I had a few problems with front-end feeling and grip but when we tried adjusting the front forks it didn’t feel much better. We had a long think about it and decided to modify the rear slightly and it felt better immediately.

This afternoon I couldn’t turn the bike too easily and on the last lap I lost some time as I ran wide on the uphill section. Now I will talk to my crew chief and engineers and we will decide whether to make any more changes before tomorrow. I’m not far off the front row, but more than anything else the most important thing for me is to find a good feeling, and with that will come a good time.”

“That was a fairly strong start to the weekend,” said Davide Brivio, Fortuna Yamaha Team Director. “This is another circuit which favours Yamaha and both of our riders had a good session. Our thanks to Michelin for their continuing support, which really helped us this afternoon. Carlos is pleased with his set-up, which he has kept from previous races where he has done well, so hopefully that will stand him in good stead for a front row start on Sunday. We’re pleased with Marco’s performance. He has made several changes to his suspension with his crew and hopefully that will improve his feeling more tomorrow. Overall quite a positive start.”


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

Makoto Tamada, seventeenth, getting to grips with Sachsenring circuit

Makoto had some difficulty finding the best way to negotiate the short and technical circuit of the Sachsenring right from the beginning, and did not feel confident with the front end of his bike. In this first day of the racing weekend in Germany, Makoto posted the 17th quickest time in this afternoon’s official sessions. With a time of 1:25.719 he was thus one second and 384 thousandths from the provisional pole, after making a remarkable improvement over the time he made in the morning’s free practice.

The part of the circuit that the Japanese rider finds the toughest is the medium-fast section where the bike stays down a long time and where Makoto hasn’t yet got the right feeling for the front. The technicians and rider worked hard on the settings, without concentrating as yet on in-depth tyre tests. Tamada thus rode with a race configuration, without using soft tyres – and he is sure he’ll be able to make some improvements.

Makoto Tamada (Pramac Honda Team): 17th – 1:25.719

“I thought the characteristics of the track were going to require extremely nimble handling of the bike. But in fact it’s more important to have a set-up that makes the bike really stable during the medium-fast section. That’s exactly where I still haven’t got a perfect feeling for it, so I’m not as fast as I’d like to be. I like the track and want to get to know it as soon as possible. Unfortunately, although our work on the settings enabled me to make a considerable improvement on the lap time I got in the morning, I wasn’t able to test the tyres. This means we’re running a bit late on our schedule and tomorrow we’ll have to catch up. But I think I’ll be ready by the time the race starts.”


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

McWill on Front Row

McWilliams 3rd quickest on 1st day

Front Row McWilliams Celebrates Two-stroke Return

Jeremy McWilliams: Third, 1:24.412
Nobuatsu Aoki: 22nd, 1:26.564

Team Proton KR rider Jeremy McWilliams celebrated his enforced return to last year’s two-stroke machine with a blistering performance today, surviving one heavy crash and having “a miracle save” from another to put the 500cc on the provisional front row for Sunday’s German GP – ahead of all but two of the much more powerful 990cc four-stroke MotoGP prototypes.

McWilliams was fast all day, able to exploit the lightweight 500cc triple’s accurate steering, nimble handling and excellent braking at the tortuous 3.671km Sachsenring circuit, the shortest of the year. His biggest problem was a badly banged left hand, in a spectacular high-speed crash early in the session.

Team-mate Nobuatsu Aoki was facing problems of a different sort. With his spare two-stroke delayed in a journey from Iran, he had just one machine, and a consequent compromise on settings left him struggling to make the lap time. The Japanese star was left languishing near the back of a close field, with plenty of work to do tomorrow if he is to match his team-mate.

The two-stroke was brought out of mothballs at the last race, due to a shortage of parts for Proton KR’s own four-stroke racer, a radical V5 design. The England-based team is still awaiting delivery of second-generation parts, designed to solve teething problems with the first version, which made its racing just seven weeks ago, at the Italian GP at Mugello. Last year, the two-stroke-friendly Sachsenring gave the team its best result of the year – a double top-ten finish, with McWilliams seventh and Aoki eighth.

Today’s first practice took place in dry and sunny conditions, but there were drenching rains yesterday afternoon, and a continuing threat of rain today and tomorrow. If it is wet tomorrow, today’s times will determine the starting grid for Sunday’s race, confirming McWilliams’s first front-row start of the year.

Jeremy McWilliams
I was flat out in fourth gear when I had a little slip on the left-hander at the top of the hill. I saved it, but basically ran out of track. I thought as I was flying through the air: This is going to hurt! I almost did the same thing at the same place at the end of the session, but this time I had a miracle save. I don’t think we’re going to be able to go much faster tomorrow. We know this bike so well that we can find the limit pretty quickly. We’ll make some suspension changes that should help me open the throttle earlier. The two-stroke is a bit better this year than last – we were using a new chassis here then, which was a development for the four-stroke, but had a smaller airbox which spoiled the performance at the top end. This bike has the earlier chassis, and the guys have it going a bit better than last year.

Nobuatsu Aoki
Not a very good day – my spare bike is on the way from Iran, so I have only one machine. We never expected to be racing the two-stroke again. This afternoon we thought it might rain again like yesterday, so my setting was a compromise between wet and dry, and this was terrible. It was okay this morning, but in the afternoon when I started to push harder the feel of the bike got worse and worse. In the end I put a qualifying tyre on the rear, but my front tyre was already finished, so I had no chance to improve. It seems I hardly had a chance for one complete lap today without some little problem. We’ll try again tomorrow.

Chuck Aksland– Team Manager
Nobu’s spare two-stroke was on promotional duty in Iran for three motor shows there.We’ve been working on trying to get it back … it’s somewhere in the air at the moment, but hopefully we’ll have it tomorrow, or definitely on Sunday. It’s been thrills and spills for Jeremy today, and he banged his left hand pretty heavily. He did a great job getting back on on going so well. We hope to sort out Nobu’s problems and get him a bit further up the page tomorrow.


More, from a press release issued by Harris WCM:

David de Gea – 23rd – 1.26.727
“There is a big difference in my bike compared to Donington and everything seems to be okay. I am very happy with my mechanics and my team and at last it has been a good day for us. I feel more confident on the bike now and I am trying to concentrate on my bike, so I can achieve even more.

I think it is possible for more improvement tomorrow, but in my head I am still being careful after my big crash in Donington. You know, I made a quicker time than John Hopkins did last year on the YZR 500 for Friday qualifying so I am very happy, I like this track very much.”

Chris Burns ­ retired due to collar bone injury
“When I went out in practice this morning there was some pain in my collar bone but I really wanted to continue on. After some discussions with Peter, we felt it was best for me not to ride for the remainder of the weekend, and give my injury a chance to heal properly.

Of course after the qualifying session this afternoon, all I can think about is how much I want to be out there especially since the two-stroke has some chance at this track. I’ve had laser treatment every day since the crash and more intensive treatment twice a day at the track with Dr. Costa, so I thought my injury would be repaired by now.

I know for sure it¹s the right thing to do; to stand down this weekend and I will be well fit for Brno.”

Peter Clifford ­ Team Manager
“It’s a real achievement for David to be so quick compared with previous times set on full factory 500’s and we feel we are yet to get the best out of this bike. We have to be realistic though and we know that we are still going to be in the second half of the field.

Chris was keen to rider this afternoon but it was obvious this morning that the broken collarbone he sustained at Donington made that virtually impossible. We need him to be fit for the rest of the season and it made no sense for him to compromise that by continuing here so I suggested he stood down.”


More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki:

Suzuki Riders Chase the Curves at Twisty Sachsenring

Sachsenring, Germany – Friday, July 25, 2003: Team Suzuki riders Kenny Roberts Jr. and John Hopkins were 19th and 21st in today’s first practice for Sunday’s German GP, barely 1.5-seconds off provisional pole in a set of ultra-close times characteristic of this tight and twisty 3.671km circuit, the shortest of the year.

Kenny Roberts, celebrating his 30th birthday, was making a racing return after missing the last three rounds through injury. Today was the first time he had been back on a motorcycle since the Italian GP on June 8. Roberts, 2000 World Champion, was also nursing a fresh injury – he sprained his left ankle playing basketball seven days ago, part of his training routine.

Hopkins, in his first time at the slightly revised Sachsenring on a four-stroke, was carrying something extra in his leathers: on-board data gathering equipment measuring not only heart rate and temperatures, but other factors affecting his racing leathers. “I’m doing some research for Alpinestars,” he explained, as a technician plugged a laptop computer into his back padding, to download data.

The Suzukis bring with them improvements that were introduced two weeks ago at the British GP at Donington Park, which eased crucial throttle control. However the different character and almost constant corners of the Sachsenring circuit put different demands on the machine, with the focus on handling at extreme lean angles.

Kevin Schwantz, who won the 1993 World Championship along with 25 GPs as a Suzuki rider, was present for a second GP, observing from the trackside to help his old team as they progress towards the goal of achieving the race-winning potential of the 2003 Suzuki GSV-R.

There is one more day of qualifying before Sunday’s race, but the threat of the return of yesterday’s drenching thunderstorms meant that today’s times might determine the final starting grid, putting the Suzuki’s on the fifth and sixth rows of the grid.

Kenny Roberts Jr. – 19th Position, 1:25.907
It’s good to be back on the scene, but frustrating not to be part of the action up front. Physically my body is doing great, except for a black and blue left ankle. It’s a bit sore, but nothing major. I’m disappointed with my position, and I can’t use my ability to make the bike to a better lap time than it is capable of. I can only sit on top of it and do what it wants to do, and that’s what we’re trying to improve right now.

John Hopkins – 21st Position, 1:26.247
The position we’re both in explains our frustration the riders and the team are feeling. We’re doing everything we can, but this track seems to magnify one of the weaker areas of this bike. It’s difficult to hold the throttle open at maximum lean because it pushes the front, but when you back off then it tends to get out of shape. And here you are leaned right over for such a long time. But fingers crossed, we’ll make the most of what we have.

Kevin Schwantz
Watching from the side, I can see how both riders have to get off the gas to change direction, and that unsettles the bike. Then they have to wait before they can open the throttle again, and that is costing them both time. It’s a character of the bike that is more exaggerated at a track like this. I would be asking for engine position and maybe chassis changes to try to improve that particular aspect.


More, from a press release issued by Camel Pramac Pons Honda:

Max Biaggi just misses out on pole position in Sachsenring

A truly impressive battle took place today during the first day of Qualification for the German Grand Prix, the ninth race of the season taking place for the sixth consecutive year at the Sachsenring circuit. Max Biaggi, who has been in superb form recently, just missed out on pole position, finishing only 35 thousandths off the fastest time. Tohru Ukawa, meanwhile, finished in twelfth position as he recovers from the injuries sustained in a crash at Donington.

2nd Max Biaggi
“I am very happy because the day has been very productive. I have set a fast time and I am very close to the fastest time, so for tomorrow there should be a good battle for the pole position. I am satisfied because we have worked very hard on the bike setup for the race which is the most important thing because the weather conditions here can change very quickly and we have already found a good compromise. I like this circuit and I must be optimistic about my chances”.

12th Tohru Ukawa
“My position is obviously not so good, but the truth is I am not so unhappy. My elbow and leg hurt a little but less so than I had first imagined and it is not really a handicap for me. I improved in the afternoon, but clearly it is not enough. We still have work to do on the setup, especially in the gear change to optimize the performance of the bike. My feeling is not so bad and I am sure that I will continue to improve tomorrow if it does not rain”.

Sito Pons:
“Max has made a great start and has an excellent rhythm for the race. Ukawa, meanwhile, is making a big effort as he struggles to overcome his injuries sustained at Donington, and tomorrow he should be looking to move further up the grid. On another note, I would like to send our best wishes to Antonio Cobas, the team’s Technical Director, who has not been able to accompany the team during the last two races. Antonio is suffering from a lung complaint and is receiving treatment in Barcelona. He is not allowed to travel at the moment although he is in constant contact with the team. Doctors have told him to rest during treatment and we all hope he is back with us very soon”.


More, from a press release issued by Yamaha Racing:

Sachsenring turned up the heat for the opening day of the German MotoGP with the qualifying times extremely close – one second covering the top 13 – with an exploding bike the talk of the paddock and perfect East German weather tanning the thousands of motorsport fans who turned out for all the action. For the Fortuna Yamaha Team the conditions proved favourable with both factory Yamaha riders Carlos Checa and Marco Melandri regularly featuring in the top five during the hour-long opening qualifier, before eventually finishing fourth and seventh respectively.

Checa felt instantly comfortable during today’s opening free practice – influenced by the team’s recent and successful Brno (Czech Republic) test, held July 16-17. He carried that momentum through to the first qualifying session where he set the initial pace. The 30-year-old remained atop the timesheets until mid session, at which point he began to focus on a competitive race package, before attempting to cement his position with a provisional pole time. After an initially successful attempt Checa found himself fourth, but looked set to re-take pole on his final lap when his lap was disrupted by a backmarker. This left the Spaniard reasonably happy with a personal best, a 1:24.735, for fourth.

Melandri, unlike his Fortuna Yamaha Team-mate, wasn’t completely settled today with front-end grip proving to be an issue. Yet still the 2002 GP250 World Champion rode like a veteran, despite this being the MotoGP Rookie’s first visit to the German venue aboard the YZR-M1 four-stroke. His fifth in free practice led on to regularly featuring in the top three on the qualifying time sheets. In the final jostling for positions, however, the 20-year-old Italian placed his #33 machine seventh on the grid with a 1:24.876 – only 0.541 seconds off Valentino Rossi’s (Honda, 1:24.335) provisional pole performance.

The defending MotoGP World Champion currently leads the front row ahead of Max Biaggi (Honda, 1:24.370), Jeremy McWilliams (KR two-stroke, 1:24.412) and Checa. Meanwhile Colin Edwards (1:25.614) qualified 16th after being in the hot-seat during practice when his factory Aprilia caught fire and the American was forced to jump ship at nearly 200kmh. The 2002 Superbike World Champion suffered no serious injuries.

Yamaha Factory Test rider Norick Abe put in an impressive wildcard ride during the first day of practice to qualify eight fastest aboard his test and development M1 – only 0.105 seconds behind Melandri, with Shinya Nakano (d’Antin Yamaha Team, 1:25.122) rounding out the top ten ahead of the injured Alex Barros (Gauloises Yamaha Team, 1:25.210)

Fortuna Yamaha Team
Carlos Checa 4th, 1:24.735: “We worked fairly well today, and I don’t think there are too many problems with the bike. We’ve kept the basic set-up from the last few races but have adjusted the suspension. I had a few problems with the first bike I used so I switched to my second, and it took a while to get used to it but I improved at the end. Yamaha have worked really hard here but it’s still important that we get a slightly better time tomorrow and therefore a better advantage for the race start. But I’m optimistic and it would be great for all the team to get a good result.”

Marco Melandri 7th, 1:24.876: “We started with the Donington set-up today because it was such a positive weekend for us in terms of my feeling with the bike. I’ve always done well at this track in the past and we did improve this afternoon from this morning but I’m hoping to do better. This morning I had a few problems with front-end feeling and grip but when we tried adjusting the front forks it didn’t feel much better. We had a long think about it and decided to modify the rear slightly and it felt better immediately. This afternoon I couldn’t turn the bike too easily and on the last lap I lost some time as I ran wide on the uphill section. Now I will talk to my crew chief and engineers and we will decide whether to make any more changes before tomorrow. I’m not far off the front row, but more than anything else the most important thing for me is to find a good feeling, and with that will come a good time.”

Yamaha Factory Test Team
Norick Abe 8th, 1:24.981: “Today was a pretty good result considering it has been such a long time since I have raced this bike. I’m very happy to be eighth, but even happier to be this close to pole with so little track time. We started with a very good base setting, which helped me to settle in quite quickly. Hopefully tomorrow will see me improve further.

D’Antin Yamaha Team
Shinya Nakano 10th, 1:25.122: “I’m not happy with the tenth place. In the beginning things went okay, but at the end of the session it was impossible for me to improve my lap times. The felling is good and this track is good for Yamahas, so I think that if we solve the problems with the rear-end I have options for tomorrow and Sunday’s race.”

Gauloises Yamaha Team
Alex Barros 11th, 1:25.210: “Basically we have being trying to adapt the bike to my injuries. My hand is a litt