One of a racing sanctioning body’s core missions is to make and enforce rules fairly and consistently, but over the past several years AMA Pro Racing has proved to be inconsistent when levying penalties on riders AMA officials say have broken the rules. Today, AMA Pro Racing announced that Jake Holden and Aaron Yates, the first- and second-place finishers in the final AMA Superstock race of the season at Laguna Seca, and Martin Cardenas, the third-place finisher in the final AMA Supersport race of the season, raced with illegal modifications to their motorcycles, specifically, that the PAIR anti-emission systems on their racebikes had been tied into the crankcase venting to reduce crankcase pressure. This modification prevents countershaft sprocket seals from blowing out and causing oil leaks by reducing crankcase pressure, but also reduces peak airbox pressure and thus the effectiveness of the ram-air system, resulting in a relatively small increase in horsepower. Holden, Yates and Cardenas were each fined $2000 and docked 20 Championship points, but they were allowed to keep their finishing positions. AMA officials claim that this penalty follows a precedent set by the previous AMA Pro Racing regime, which assessed a $2000/20-point penalty on Tommy Hayden (for illegal machining to the cylinder head and combustion chamber of his Superstock Kawasaki ZX-6R) in 2003 and on Ben Spies (for illegal intake modifications to his Suzuki GSX-R600) in 2002. Both Hayden and Spies were allowed to keep their finishing position. But last year, Josh Herrin was allowed to keep his third-place Supersport finish and was fined only $500 and docked only five points after he was ruled to have used an “illegal fairing” at Miller Motorsports Park. And in 2000, Chuck Chouinard was completely stripped of his second-place finish in the 750cc Supersport race at New Hampshire International Speedway because his tuner had cleaned his GSX-R750’s valves with Scotchbrite, which meant that “material was removed from the valves,” according to the AMA. Also at the recent AMA season finale at Laguna Seca, Shaun Summers and Morgan Murphy were each disqualified and suspended for six months from the date of their next license renewal for getting caught using over-displacement engines in Supersport (Summers) and Formula Xtreme (Murphy). Summers used a GSX-R750 engine in his Suzuki GSX-R600, and Murphy used GSX-R750 internals to boost the displacement of his GSX-R600, AMA officials said. But when Darren Luck was caught using a hybrid GSX-R600/750 engine in his Suzuki after finishing 10th in the Supersport race at Barber in 2003, he was fined $1000 and forfeited about $1200 in purse money, but was not disqualifed; the results archives on the official AMA website, amasuperbike.com, still list Luck as 10th in the 2003 Supersport race at Barber. (As a side note, Luck now says he had also modified the crankcase ventilation system, routing it through the PAIR valve, although AMA tech inspectors did not penalize him for doing so.) After Larry Pegram complained at VIR to AMA officials that Marty Craggill’s Formula Xtreme Ducati was using a lighter aftermarket frame with thinner-wall tubes and additional bracing, officials did nothing until the Thursday prior to the AMA National at Road Atlanta, when, according to AMA tech chief Kevin Crowther, they inspected the frame and told Craggill’s team that the frame was not legal. No penalties were assessed, and Craggill raced with a different frame and finished third on Saturday of the Road Atlanta weekend. And newly-crowned AMA Supersport Champion Roger Hayden told the media that he purposely ran competitor Chaz Davies off the track because he didn’t like the way he was riding during the Supersport race at California Speedway earlier this year. In spite of this being a clear violation of Rule 7.2. c.17. (Page 72 of the 2007 AMA Road Racing Rulebook) “Riding at any time in such a manner as to endanger the life or limb of other riders, officials or the public,” no disciplinary action was known to have been taken against Hayden. In other words, what action AMA officials take against any given rider or team for a claimed rules violation appears to either be completely inconsistent, or politically motivated, or both.

The Jordan Suzuki team has been notified of penalty citing Sections 1.21c (re: Fluid Containment) and 3.2 (re: Modifications from OEM) of the AMA Rulebook, and the AMA has fined both riders $2000 and 20 championship points. We will file the obvious appeal, and present our case to an appeals board ASAP (if needed) to completely exonerate our riders and crew from any wrong doing. We will prove without a doubt that on several occasions dating back to Daytona 2005, again in 2006, and yet again in 2007, that there was specific approval from the AMA Tech department to create a safer crankcase breather system, which still adheres to the Rulebook, of which we now have been penalized for. The system that we have in place is used by several other teams, who also received specific approval. Our Superstock motorcycles have been through final technical inspection 7 times this season without incident, where in at least one case, the AMA looked specifically at the breather systems. In fact, our Superbike system is set-up the exact same way, which also passed final tech inspection 3 times, including this past weekend at Laguna Seca less than 2 hours after the Superstock bikes were questioned. The Superbike class is governed by the same General Equipment Section 1.21 of the 2007 AMA Rulebook. The current routing system does use OEM parts, and does adhere to Section 1.21c, as well as Section 3.11 (Emissions Equipment), which provides that certain “emissions equipment may be removed”. This incident is truly tragic. It will do nothing but slander the good names of the Jordan Suzuki and M4 EMGO Suzuki teams, as well as the AMA. In sight of the “New AMA”… they have already shown inconsistency and division. We are in full support of the new AMA staffing, the “New Vision” of the AMA and look forward to a better future in AMA Pro Racing… but this is the wrong time to make such a wrong decision. Ken Abbott General Manager Michael Jordan Motorsports Suzuki A memo sent from Michael Jordan Motorsports Suzuki’s Pete Mauhar to the AMA on Tuesday, and provided to Roadracingworld.com by the team: September 18, 2007 TO: Morgan Broadhead FR: Pete Mauhar RE: Technical Inspection Issues at Laguna Seca Considering the Superstock technical inspection post-race on September 18, 2007 at Laguna Seca Raceway and our subsequent conversations since, I will present some background information that will hopefully clear up this misunderstanding. As for the rules that are relative to this issue, I site Section 3.11 as it states in the 2007 Rulebook under the Superstock section: 3.11 Emission Equipment (Supersport / Superstock Equipment Standards) The following emission equipment may be removed: 1. Air injection valve and hoses – air box and vacuum ports for these hoses must be sealed. 2. Reed valves and covers – air ports must be closed or new reed valve covers may be made which do not allow any air passage. As I understand the Suzuki PAIR valve system, it is indeed a part of the emission equipment to help burn unburned hydrocarbons and is connected to the airbox and the head via reed valves. If one was to follow this, the PAIR valve could be removed and the airbox inlet must be sealed. However, Rule 1.21 (c) and (d) under the General Equipment Standards section possibly poses a conflict to the above rule: 1.21 Fluid Containment c. All vent, breather, or overflow tubes coming from the engine, transmission, or radiator must be routed into a heat-resistant catch can of at least 350cc capacity or into the air box. If the air box is utilized, any drains from the box must be routed into a catch can or removed and the box sealed. d. Oil catch can vent tubes must be routed back into the airbox. If an airbox is not installed, vent tubes must be routed to the intake bell of a carburetor or fuel injection throttle body so that any oil expelled will be drawn into the engine. As early as Daytona 2005, when Jason Pridmore finished third and our Superstock motorcycle was sent to tech inspection and passed, this point was brought up to Kevin Crowther afterwards by James Compton and Sean Storment. We disassembled the bike and showed him our routing and asked his opinion. He said the intent of Rule 1.21.c and d was to contain fluids in the event of an engine failure and said our interpretation of that rule along with Rule #3.11 was correct. We have been routing it that way ever since under the understanding it was approved by the lead technical person of the AMA. At this Daytona, early in the week, several instances of crankcase countershaft seals blowing out arose on the brand new 2007 GSX-R1000. With Pat Alexander, Don Sakakura, and Keith Perry, this situation was revisited to try to understand the reasons why seals were blowing out. Again, after this review it was deemed that our motorcycles were in compliance of the rules. We have been to tech inspection at least seven times in 2007 with our Superstock motorcycles and not once was it ever mentioned to us. A couple of other instances have led us to believe that going to tech and asking approval was the proper thing to do. Earlier this season, we approached Kevin in tech to ask about the 2007 rear axle nut. We asked for approval to run the 2005-6 style which has the provisions for a pin for safety but would violate the Rule #3.3 as shown below: 3.3 Updating or Backdating Absolutely no updating or backdating of parts will be allowed unless specified by the rules. Superseded parts must be submitted to AMA Pro Racing for review and approval before use on applicable models in competition. In addition, these parts must be listed in the current OEM parts list as supplied to AMA Pro Racing. The Approved Equipment List is available from the AMA Pro Racing office. We were given approval by Kevin and have used the 2005-6 rear axle nut since. I have noticed that most of the other top Suzuki teams use it as well, however I am not sure if they went about it the same way as far as the approval process is concerned. In this instance, we did not get anything signed from tech inspection nor have we ever seen anything published by them concerning it. In another instance, we were deforming our rear axle adjuster blocks because of the new linkage system on the 2007 GSX-R1000 and its need to run the drive chain tighter than on previous models. Once the adjuster block deformed, the axle would move causing a safety issue. We approached Kevin with the idea of using billet aftermarket axle adjuster blocks to help us with this potential safety issue. He asked us to bring a set the next round for him to look at and make his decision then. We followed through with this and he denied our request to use the aftermarket parts. Once again, I have no idea if this was (is) documented within the AMA tech area. With respect to the two rules in question on this current issue””at best, they are in conflict with each other and nebulous for sure. At worst, they are a very strong safety issue. In the current days of motorcycle design with ram air, if you breathe the crankcase into the airbox, you are at risk of failing the countershaft seal or other engine seals under deceleration and off throttle at the end of a long straight where the racer is traveling the fastest. I can’t speak for the AMA in this case, but I would think our top priority as a racing organization should be of rider and fan safety. Thank you for your time in this matter and I trust that you and your crew will make the proper decision with respect to this issue. Regards, Pete Mauhar Chief Engineer & Technical Manager Jordan Suzuki

MICHELIN KEEPS WORKING TO BUILD ON PORTUGUESE GP WIN Michelin’s MotoGP crew joins the rest of the MotoGP paddock in dashing from Portugal to Japan this week, boosted by a brilliant one-two finish at Estoril last Sunday. Valentino Rossi (Fiat Yamaha Team YZR-M1-Michelin) and Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team RC212V-Michelin) dominated the race, while fourth-place finisher Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda Team RC212V-Michelin) took pole position and the lap record. The Portuguese GP success was a well-deserved reward for the intense development work undertaken by Michelin’s technicians in recent months. Now Michelin is working to build on that performance, refining a new profile front tire and new construction rear, both of which should feature at Motegi this weekend. MICHELIN AND THE TECHNICAL CHALLENGE OF MOTEGI There are two recently introduced tires within Michelin’s tire consignment at Motegi. The new profile 16-inch front slick, which was first used by Michelin’s MotoGP riders during last month’s post-Czech GP tests at Brno, scored its maiden victory at Estoril. The new construction 16.5-inch rear slick (the fourth generation of a new tire first introduced in April), which was first tried during post-San Marino GP tests at Misano earlier this month, has also generated positive feedback from Rossi and other Michelin riders, though Rossi didn’t use the tire at Estoril because the compounds available with the ‘old’ construction rear were better suited to the conditions. At Motegi riders will once again be able to choose new or ‘old’ profile fronts and new or ‘old’ construction rears within their weekend allocation of 31 tires. “Motegi will be a very interesting weekend for us,” says Jean-Philippe Weber, Michelin’s director of motorcycle racing. “At least half our rear tires at Motegi will be of the new construction, so we hope that our riders will be able to use the new tire, though that will once again depend on which compounds are best suited to the conditions. We have got some very positive feedback about this construction, both from the Misano tests and Estoril practice sessions. The tire gives a better feeling which gives the rider more confidence, so he can be more aggressive with the bike. The tire delivers more edge grip because it is more stable at maximum lean. It also delivers better traction out of the corners, which allows riders to get on the throttle sooner and harder out of the corners. “Traction is particularly important at Motegi because most of the corners are fairly slow and short, and several of these turns lead onto reasonably long straights, so riders need to get on the throttle hard and fast if they are to be competitive. So we are really looking forward to seeing how the new construction works at this track. “We have also been working on both construction and compound to improve warm-up performance and we have found some interesting directions which have delivered improvements. Dani was very fast from the opening laps at Estoril, so we will keep working in that direction. “After Vale’s win with the new profile front it will be interesting to see how many of our riders put this tire in their allocation at Motegi. The new profile gives good feeling and is good during braking into corners, which is important at Motegi because the track features some of the heaviest braking of the season.” MOTEGI DATA Lap record: Valentino Rossi (Camel Yamaha Team YZR-M1-Michelin), 1:47.288, 161.095km/h-100.100mph Pole position 2006: Loris Capirossi (Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici), 1:45.724 MICHELIN IN JAPAN The Japanese motorcycle market is huge and so is the Japanese motorcycle tire market with around six million bike tires sold per annum in the country. The national biking scene is also very diverse, covering all kinds of powered two-wheelers, from supersport bikes to scooters and from off-road bikes to super scooters. Michelin has one factory and an R&D centre in Japan, based in Ota City in the Gunma Prefecture. Nihon Michelin Tire Co., Ltd, established in 1975, employs about 1400 people. Recent winners at Motegi 2006 Loris Capirossi (Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici), 43:13.585 2005 Loris Capirossi (Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici), 43:30.499 2004 Makoto Tamada (Camel Honda RC211V), 43:43.220 2003 Max Biaggi (Camel Honda Pons RC211V-Michelin), 43:57.590 2002 Alex Barros (West Honda Pons RC211V-Michelin), 44:18.913 2001 Valentino Rossi (Nastro Azzurro Honda NSR500-Michelin), 46:32.600 2000 Kenny Roberts (Telefonica Movistar Suzuki-Michelin), 46:23.327 1999 Kenny Roberts (Suzuki Grand Prix Team-Michelin), 51:54.386 (wet race) Michelin’s 2007 MotoGP riders Carlos Checa (Honda LCR RC212V-Michelin) Colin Edwards (Fiat Yamaha Team YZR-M1-Michelin) Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda Team RC212V-Michelin) Shinya Nakano (Konica Minolta Honda RC212V-Michelin) Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team RC212V-Michelin) Kurtis Roberts (Team Roberts KR212V-Michelin) Valentino Rossi (Fiat Yamaha Team YZR-M1-Michelin)

It is with much regret that Celtic Racing would like to announce that Patrick ‘PJ’ Jacobsen, the current USGPRU 125cc Champion will no longer be running with the team for the remainder for the season. PJ has become the first American rider ever to be accepted to ride with the Red Bull MotoGP Academy. Having tested with the Academy throughout the season in Spain, PJ was finally accepted after he turned 14 years old earlier this month. Riding a familiar RS125 Honda PJ will contest the final four races of the Spanish Championship. On behalf of PJ, Celtic Racing would like to sincerely thank the USGPRU for giving him the opportunity to race at such an early age and the stepping stone that has brought him to this ‘chance of a lifetime’ opportunity. The most disappointing element of the 2007 season for PJ is that he will miss the 2007 USGPRU final this weekend at Mid Ohio. He currently leads the standings by 40 points but can lose the Championship to Japenese exile, Nobi Iso who must win at Ohio to take the title. Celtic Racing wishes PJ every success as he bids to become America’s future MotoGP star. We at Celtic Racing cannot deny the talent and desire that PJ has and we stand proud as a team that PJ wore his Celtic Racing colors with such pride.

Bridgestone GP Briefing Round 15: Japan Thursday 20 September 2007 With its technical centre located in Kodaira on the outskirts of Tokyo, the Japanese Grand Prix in Motegi is very much a home event for Bridgestone and one with special memories from recent seasons. Motegi has heralded some of the tyre manufacturer’s most successful results in its short MotoGP history with three wins on Bridgestone tyres in the last three seasons. The company aims to continue this run of race-winning performance in the 2007 Japanese GP this weekend with Bridgestone-shod Ducati rider Casey Stoner leading the riders’ championship with an enviable 76 point lead with just 100 points still available in the four remaining events of this season. Bridgestone will be hoping to use its usual Motegi magic to good effect with all five of its teams this weekend. After a season in which nine of fourteen wins have been taken using its rubber, Bridgestone will be searching on home soil for win number ten with hundreds of corporation employees watching and supporting from the Motegi grandstands. Suzuki and Kawasaki will celebrate their own home grand prix by fielding wildcard riders. Kousuke Akiyoshi is making his second appearance of the season for Suzuki after taking part in the Spanish GP in Jerez back in March, while Akira Yanagawa will be making a welcome return for Kawasaki. The additional pressure of a home race, coupled with the increasing championship challenge, will undoubtedly spur Bridgestone on this weekend. Tyre Talk with Hiroshi Yamada Bridgestone Motorsport – Manager, Motorcycle Sport Unit Does the home race in Motegi put Bridgestone under greater pressure to supply race-winning tyres? “Bridgestone is a Japanese corporation, so there is naturally added pressure racing in our home country and in front of the Japanese fans and Bridgestone employees, but it is an enjoyable challenge for us. The last three seasons we have seen Makoto Tamada and Loris Capirossi win on our tyres, but we will give our maximum effort for a fourth Bridgestone-shod Motegi win this weekend. We know it will be a tough challenge, though, especially against our rivals who, in Portugal, proved that they can never be underestimated.” What are the characteristics of the Motegi circuit and what does that mean for the tyres? “The Motegi track surface is one of the high-grip, abrasive tracks and the layout of the circuits puts quite a focus on braking stability and acceleration out of the slower corners. Riders will need a strong, stiff front tyre for this purpose, which is something that Bridgestone-supported riders have always seemed to benefit from. We conducted some useful tests at Motegi towards the end of August with the Kawasaki and Suzuki teams, who have designated Motegi as their home test track, and the results have formed the basis of our Motegi tyres for this year’s race weekend.” What would it mean for Casey Stoner to win the championship in Bridgestone’s home GP? “As the championship gradually reaches its end, the focus is naturally on the title challengers and his third place in Estoril last weekend certainly helped Casey keep a firm grip on the title with a 76 point lead. But again we will treat Motegi as one race out of 18, albeit an important one for Bridgestone as our home event, and we hope that our tyres can help Casey and Ducati, and indeed all five of our teams, get the best out their packages this weekend.” Riding Perspective with Loris Capirossi (Ducati Corse) Motegi race winner in 2005 and 2006 “I always look forward to the Japanese Grand Prix and Motegi is a circuit at which I have been very successful in recent years. I won the 2005 and 2006 races with Ducati and Bridgestone, so I have very good memories from there. It is quite a stop-go circuit which demands a lot of horsepower from the engine to get good acceleration out of the slow corners. Motegi is a home race for Bridgestone, whose tyres have performed consistently well this season and also at Motegi in the last two seasons. The front tyre especially is put under stress at Motegi but this has traditionally been one of Bridgestone’s strengths so I am sure we can have a competitive weekend with the entire package.” 2006 Flashback Race Winner and Top Rider on Bridgestone Loris Capirossi Ducati Corse 43m13.585s Qualifying Pole Position and Top Rider on Bridgestone Loris Capirossi Ducati Corse 1m45.724s

2007 Pro Honda Oils AMA Supersport Championship Presented by Shoei Helmets Revised Final Point Standings: 1. Roger Hayden (Kaw ZX-6R), 297 2. Jamie Hacking (Kaw ZX-6R), 294 3. Josh Hayes (Hon CBR600RR), 261 4. Steve Rapp (Kaw ZX-6R), 247 5. Tommy Hayden (Suz GSX-R600), 216 6. Blake Young (Suz GSX-R600), 212 7. Josh Herrin (Yam YZF-R6), 208 8. Geoff May (Suz GSX-R600), 181 9. Ben Attard (Kaw ZX-10R), 178 10. Aaron Gobert (Hon CBR600RR), 174 11. Ryan Andrews (Hon CBR600RR), 155 12. Chaz Davies (Yam YZF-R6), 145 13. Martin Cardenas (Suz GSX-R600), 140 14. Danny Eslick (Suz GSX-R600), 137 15. Cory West (Yam YZF-R6), 123 16. Michael Beck (Suz GSX-R600), 108 17. Ryan Elleby (Hon CBR600RR), 96 18. Bobby Fong (Suz GSX-R600), 94 19. Garrett Carter (Yam YZF-R6), 93 20. Chris Siglin (Suz GSX-R600), 87 2007 AMA Superstock Championship Presented by Dynojet Revised Final Point Standings: 1. Ben Spies (Suz GSX-R1000), 292 2. Ben Bostrom (Yam YZF-R1), 264 3. Aaron Yates (Suz GSX-R1000), 231 4. Geoff May (Suz GSX-R1000), 229 5. Scott Jensen (Suz GSX-R1000), 207 6. Chris Ulrich (Suz GSX-R1000), 203 7. Danny Eslick (Suz GSX-R1000), 198 8. Blake Young (Suz GSX-R1000), 194 9. Jake Holden (Suz GSX-R1000), 163 10. Robertino Pietri (Suz GSX-R1000), 155 11. David Weber (Suz GSX-R1000), 133 12. TIE, Ivan Garza (Suz GSX-R1000)/Johnny Rock Page (Yam YZF-R1), 115 14. Chad Rolland (Suz GSX-R1000), 78 15. TIE, John Haner (Suz GSX-R1000)/Ben Thompson (Suz GSX-R1000), 68 points 17. Gary Mason (Suz GSX-R1000), 65 18. Santiago Villa (Suz GSX-R1000), 59 19. Jason Curtis (Suz GSX-R1000), 57 20. Chad Lewin (Suz GSX-R1000), 56

Featuring Best of Motorcycle, Open-Wheel, Sports Car and Historic Racing MONTEREY, Calif. The 2008 season at the world-renowned Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca will feature the best in motorcycle, historic, sports car and, after a three-year hiatus, open-wheel racing, on the 2.238-mile Monterey Peninsula circuit. The 52nd season of racing officially kicks off May 16-18, with the new Monterey Festival of Speed, a doubleheader weekend featuring the Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series on Saturday and the Champ Car World Series on Sunday. The event will mark the fourth consecutive year for Grand-Am’s Daytona Prototype and GT cars in Monterey, while the Champ Cars are returning after a three-year absence. The biggest event on the 2008 schedule the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix is set for July 18-20 and again features the prestigious MotoGP World Championship. The event attracted more than 140,000 fans in 2007. The 2008 event will include support races from the AMA Superbike Championship and, new for this year, the Red Bull Rookies Cup. The 35th Rolex Monterey Historic Automobile Races presented by Toyota, the premier historic race in North America, returns to the Monterey Peninsula August 15-17. Event details, including the feature for 2008, will be announced in the near future. For the second consecutive season, September will see all four classes of the AMA Superbike Championship conclude their season at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in the Corona AMA Superbike Finale, Sept. 27-28. The Monterey Sports Car Championships October 17-19 concludes the 2008 season in dramatic fashion with the high-tech, high-speed Le Mans prototypes and GT machines of the American Le Mans Series staging a Saturday afternoon-into-evening four-hour race. Sunday’s action features the season finale of both the SPEED World Challenge Touring and GT classes. “With the best in sports car, open wheel, motorcycling and historic racing on the 2008 schedule, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca continues its position as the premier road racing circuit in North America,” said Gill Campbell, the track’s CEO and general manager. “We are proud to enter our eighth season in partnership with Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca,” said Jim O’Sullivan, CEO & president, Mazda North American Operations. “We’re especially pleased to see the return of the Champ Car World Series, along with the Mazda powered Atlantic cars, bringing world-class open-wheel racing back to the Monterey Peninsula.” Tickets for all events except the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix go on sale in early 2008. Select 2008 Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix tickets go on sale November 1, 2007. Information is available by calling (800) 327-SECA or at www.laguna-seca.com. Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca is celebrating its 50th Anniversary in 2007. The world-renowned raceway has been operated since its inception by SCRAMP, a not-for-profit 501C(3) corporation. Each race season, SCRAMP donates its net proceeds to the volunteer groups that help put on the races. Last season, SCRAMP donated over $400,000 to those local charities and civic organizations.

Rizla Suzuki MotoGP heads to the land of the rising sun this week with its team strengthened by the inclusion of Team Test Rider Kousuke Akiyoshi, to form a three-man attack at the Japanese rider’s home circuit. Akiyoshi will be making only his third Grand Prix start this coming weekend and is eager to continue with the excellent form he showed at last season’s Japanese Grand Prix. He qualified in 12th position and finished in 13th in front of many more experienced riders whilst giving a very impressive debut performance. Rizla Suzuki MotoGP regulars Chris Vermeulen and John Hopkins will be looking to continue with the impressive form they have both shown this season giving Suzuki its best ever points haul in the four-stroke era in front of many Factory guests and management who will be at trackside. Motegi is about 100kms north of Tokyo and situated between the cities of Mito and Utsunomiyo. The Twin Ring Motegi is not only a fantastic MotoGP venue with modern facilities and good safety, it is also a state-of-the-art oval race circuit where NASCAR and Indy cars are regularly tested. The track that the Rizla Suzuki riders will be taking part on is far removed from the oval racing as it features many short corners, some fast bends, a tight hairpin and a top-speed downhill run to a hard braking effort at the creatively named 90-degree corner. The three Rizla Suzuki MotoGP racers take to the track on Friday for two free practice session, there will be a further free session on Saturday morning followed by and hour of qualifying in the afternoon. Sunday’s 24-lap race gets underway at 14.00hrs local time (05.00hrs GMT). Chris Vermeulen: “I enjoyed my first time in Japan last year and although the track was quite difficult to learn at first, I managed to get to grips with it on race day and finished as the first Suzuki home. I will certainly want to repeat that this weekend but I am planning that it will be a lot higher up than the 11th place I got last year. We are still working hard to improve the bike at every race and we know we still have a bit of work to do, but we will be trying to get as many points from the rest of the season as possible and be as strong as we can be for next year.” John Hopkins: “I had a bit of bad luck at Motegi last year when Dani Pedrosa and I touched and I ran off the track. I am pretty sure I would have got a better result than I did if that hadn’t have happened. I really like the Motegi circuit and seem to go quite well there at least in qualifying! I’ve had some strange things happen to me in races there but I want to put on a good show for all the Suzuki staff and fans and get a good result there this year that will leave then cheering!” Kousuke Akiyoshi: “I am very please to riding at my home Grand Prix. I have done many miles of testing on the 800cc GSV-R and the bike has improved a lot throughout the season. I will be trying my best and hope to give Suzuki a good result as a thank-you for letting me race.”

The A-Style Grand Prix of Japan takes place this coming weekend as the MotoGP circus travels to Motegi for the 15th round of the world championship. Opened in 1999, the 4.8km Twin Ring circuit, some 160km north of Tokyo, sits in a rural landscape and, as its name suggests, boasts not one but two tracks: a “super speedway” oval and the longer, snaking “road course”, which the premier class teams will be tackling on Sunday. Kawasaki’s Randy de Puniet will be aiming to improve upon last year’s premier class outing here, when he crashed out on lap nine. In previous years, when riding in the 250cc World Championship, the Frenchman proved more than capable of conquering the circuit: scoring a couple of top ten finishes at the track. After the disappointment of last week’s Portuguese Grand Prix, where a mechanical fault ended his race, de Puniet hopes for a better result at the Twin Ring on Sunday. Anthony West is also familiar with the circuit, having raced 1000cc V-twins throughout Japan in his younger years, as well as competing in 250s, and one 500cc race, at world championship level. He also took part in an endurance race here once, his team coming second, so he’s put enough laps in to know his way around. The 26-year-old Australian, who recently signed to stay with the Kawasaki squad next season, will be hoping to overcome his recent struggles with set up and show both strength and stamina this weekend. Wild card entry, Akira Yanagawa, will be joining the Kawasaki team for a one-race ride on the Ninja. Currently leading the All Japan Superbike Championship on a ZX-10R, the 36-year-old will be aiming to exorcise his Motegi demons: he crashed out and broke his pelvis on lap six of the Pacific Grand Prix in 2002, riding the 990cc ZX-RR on its debut MotoGP outing. Kawasaki’s MotoGP history at Motegi is somewhat chequered: of the two factory riders and a wild card entry taking part last year, none finished. However, Shinya Nakano secured a 3rd position here in 2004, claiming the team’s first podium spot since returning to the class five years ago. Certainly, with four straights and a lot of tight corners, the super-fast 800cc ZX-RR could do very well here and, with three green bikes due to line up on Sunday’s grid, who knows what will happen? Randy DePuniet Kawasaki MotoGP Pilot #14 “I like this track. It’s strange because there’s a lot of ‘stop and go’, and normally I don’t like that much, but here it always feels better. Also, I think it’s a good track for the Kawasaki and Bridgestone. With the 800cc bike, I’m confident about dealing with the hairpins and the handling in the corners. As for acceleration, last year’s bike was good but this year’s is even better, which is why I feel we can do well here. I didn’t get any podiums at Motegi when I was riding in 250s but I managed some good places and, while I crashed out last year, it was the first time I was fighting near the front of the pack so I think it could go well on Sunday.” Anthony West Kawasaki MotoGP Pilot #13 “It’s good to be at Motegi again, I love Japan and I’m looking forward to riding here. I’ve done a lot of laps here so I know my way around, and I just hope we don’t have as many problems as we had in Portugal. I’m confident the bike will work pretty well here. There are a lot of hard braking areas, which normally I can use to make up a lot of time, and the engine’s acceleration is amazing so it should be quick enough on the straights. I think if we can get the bike to exit the corner quicker, we can try and get a good result here in front of the knowledgeable and enthusiastic Japanese crowd. But we’ll just have to see what happens.” Akira Yanagawa Kawasaki MotoGP Wild Card #87 “I tested the ZX-RR over a couple of days at the end of August but I’m still not perfect on it. Normally, I ride a superbike and there’s a big difference between the characters of the two machines. The Ninja is special, you can’t buy a bike like it and it’s totally different from anything else. That makes me a bit nervous! But I know Motegi very, very well; I’ve done well over 1000 laps here, I’m sure. I have bad memories of racing the former ZX-RR here, when I crashed: so this time, my aim is to get to the chequered flag