The Istanbul Circuit, with its dramatic changes of elevation, is a rollercoaster track and a veritable theatre for race fans. It is also a circuit that holds special memories for Team Honda Gresini rider Marco Melandri, winner of the Grand Prix of Turkey for the past two seasons. Expectations are high for a race that is being touted as the first true challenge of the season in terms of race strategy and tyre choice. Unlike Qatar and Jerez, the riders did not complete any preseason testing at this circuit so tyre choice for the weekend will be made ‘on the drawing board’, based on the characteristics of the circuit and recent tests following the Grand Prix of Spain. After enjoying positive results in those tests at Jerez, both Marco Melandri and Toni Elias are looking forward to the third round of the season with confidence. The Italian is determined to repeat his victories from the past two years at the Turkish track and maintain his record as the only rider in MotoGP to win there since it opened in 2005. After taking fourth place at Jerez, Toni Elias is also aiming high and looking for an even better result at a circuit where he holds the lap record – set in the race last year. MARCO MELANDRI: “The Jerez test was really important for Sunday’s race because we were able to try out a couple of interesting solutions aimed at improving the feeling on the front end, which has given me some problems during the first two races. We’ve taken a step forward and that allows me to look ahead with confidence to Istanbul, a special circuit that holds wonderful memories for me. I scored my first MotoGP victory there in 2005, the first time we had visited the circuit. In 2006 I repeated the win after a breathtaking battle with Casey Stoner. I like the track a lot – it is balanced and technical, characterised by frequent changes in direction and pace. I’m confident that the feeling we found in the test, my determination to have fun and the good memories I have of this circuit will give me the ammunition I need”. TONI ELIAS: “I feel really motivated ahead of the trip to Istanbul. That fourth place at Jerez and the work we completed in the test after the race has given me optimism because we took a big step forward with the set-up and the feeling with the tyres has improved once again. Istanbul is a circuit I like a lot because there are so many elevation changes, hard braking areas, a mixture of fast and slow corners and I have always been fast there. Last year I made a good fight-back from twelfth to fifth place and even set a new circuit record! Bridgestone should be bringing some new stuff to Turkey so I hope this can help me improve more on the rear. This will be the first race where we have to make our tyre choice without any previous data because we’ve never ridden here with the 800 and for us it will also be the first time with Bridgestone”. Focus: The tyre challenge Bridgestone certainly won’t be unprepared for the next two rounds, which represent one of the biggest challenges of the season for the Japanese firm. Last year the Bridgestone tyres struggled at Istanbul, despite the pole position set in the damp by Chris Vermeulen, who eventually finished seventh – one place behind the top Bridgestone rider Loris Capirossi. “Turkey is a demanding circuit,” comments Hiroshi Yamada, Bridgestone’s Motorcycle Sport Department Manager. “With respect to last year we need to find more grip and consistency so we will take a mixture of medium and hard tyres for all the teams. We have opted for the new generation compound that we tested at Jerez. Without any previous data for these machines at this track, we have looked closely at the technical demands of the circuit and the data from 2006, adapting that to the 800cc specification. We will make our final choice during the week before the race depending on the latest weather forecast.”

SUPERBIKE ON BOARD WITH MASCALZONE LATINO CAPITALIA TEAM The partnership between Superbike World Championship and Mascalzone Latino Capitalia Team, the Italian entry in the Luis Vuitton Americas Cup has been renewed for 2007. At press conference on Thursday 12 April, this weekend’s fourth Round of Superbike World Championship at Ricardo Tormo circuit was presented at the Valencia base of Mascalzone Latino Capitalia Team. The press conference was attended by Vincenzo Onorato, President of Mascalzone Latino Capitalia Team, Paolo Ciabatti, SBK Project Leader and David Serra, Minister of Sport for the Community of Valencia. Also in attendance were World Superbike stars Max Biaggi, Lorenzo Lanzi, Noriyuki Haga, Fonsi Nieto and Ruben Xaus. Following the press conference the riders went on board the team’s boat, Ita 99, accompanied by its skipper Vasco Vascotto and his crew for group photograph.

Rizla Suzuki MotoGP looking for Turkish delights in Istanbul Rizla Suzuki MotoGP racers Chris Vermeulen and John Hopkins will be back in action for the first time in three weeks when the MotoGP circus roars into Istanbul next weekend. Vermeulen qualified in pole position for last year’s Turkish Grand Prix and will be looking to emulate that feat this year. The Australian star knows that he must do be better in qualifying to enable him to capitalise on his impressive race performances. In the first two rounds in Qatar and Spain Vermeulen qualified in 13th and 14th places, but raced to seventh and ninth respectively. Hopkins is still recovering from the wrist injury that he sustained at the Qatar test in February. Suzuki’s tough Anglo-American rider was offered the chance of surgery during the break to repair the injured joint, but chose not to go along with an operation as it would have meant a six week lay off. The Grand Prix of Turkey is round three in the MotoGP World Championship and the 5.3km long Istanbul Park circuit is one of the most demanding and technical on the calendar. With fast tricky downhill braking sections and many elevation changes, plus one of the fastest corners in racing – which is taken at speeds in excess of 250km/h the circuit has supplied plenty of high-speed action in its two previous motorcycle Grand Prix. Rizla Suzuki MotoGP takes to the track on Friday 20th April for two hour-long practice sessions. This is followed on Saturday with a further hour’s practice in the morning before the all-important afternoon qualifying session. Sunday’s 22-lap race gets underway at 15.00hrs local time (12.00hrs GMT). Chris Vermeulen: “I have good memories of Istanbul because that is where I got my first ever pole position. I have been a bit disappointed with the first two races as I know I can do better. The bike is improving all the time and I must improve on my qualifying. Being down on the fifth row makes the job hard work. I need to be up there with the front guys from the start and not playing catch up. So this will be a good place to start going about doing that!” John Hopkins: “My wrist is still painful, but there was no way I was going to have an operation! I would have been out for about six weeks and every race is so important that I can’t afford to miss any. I will have my wrist taped up and once I’m out on the bike the adrenalin will kick in and it should all be ok. I think that at Jerez last time out I could have made the podium, if I hadn’t have crashed, so I need to get my head down and keep aiming for that goal.”

Shinichi Nakatomi is ready for the 4th round of the Superbike World Championship. He discovered this track last year and participated to the winter tests. Norifumi Abe finished here two times in fourth position last year. Shinichi Nakatomi was careful at Donington, were about 60 riders crashed, including Troy Bayliss, Yukio Kagayama, Sebastien Charpentier, Kevin Curtain and Broc Parkes. March 18 and 19 tests result: 1-Bayliss (Ducati) 1:34.102; 2-Xaus (Ducati) 1:34.565; 3-Lanzi (Ducati) 1:34.584; 4-Biaggi (Suzuki) 1:34.708; 5-Corser (Yamaha) 1:34.851; 6-Haga (Yamaha) 1:35.029; 7-Nieto (Kawasaki) 1:35.410; 8-Muggeridge (Honda) 1:35.470; 9-Neukirchner (Suzuki) 1:35.532; 10-Laconi (Kawasaki) 1:35.639 — ¦15-Nakatomi (Yamaha) 1:36.832 The Valencia circuit The first Valencia World Superbike race was held in 2000. The circuit is next to the town of Cheste, 25 km from Valencia, 320 km from Madrid and 370 km from Barcelona. The “Circuit de la Comunitat Valenciana – Ricardo Tormo” is 4,005 km long and between 12 and 13 meters wide. It has 9 left-hand turns and 5 right-handers, with radii ranging from 30 to 250 meters. The start-finish straight is 876 meters long. Maximum downhill camber is 5.33% with 3.58% uphill. Paddock area is 49,066 m2. Maximum seating capacity for spectators is 60,000, with room for a further 50,000 on the hills surrounding the circuit. Valencia is a fascinating but tricky circuit. It’s easy to get caught out by the many slow turns. It’s certainly not the kind of track where a Superbike rider can really use his machine’s power and speed. First gear has to be used several times and that always means extra care has to be taken. The track heats up the left hand side of the rear tyre. Especially in the double left-hander that leads down onto the start-finish straight and really puts the edge of the tyre under pressure. Valencia is a real stop-and-go circuit where the front tyre has to be good for hard braking and fast cornering. World Championship standings: 1-Toseland (Honda) 115 points, 2-Biaggi (Suzuki) 110, 3-Haga (Yamaha) 88, 4-Corser (Yamaha) 81, 5-Lanzi (Ducati) 66…18-Nakatomi (Yamaha) 12 2007 Yamaha Race Training program at Valencia While the third round of the World Superbike Championship was happening at Donington Park, Yamaha were busy making sure that a selection of national race teams from all over Europe were getting the best training to help them maximize the potential of their race bikes. For the past five years, Yamaha Europe’s Racing Division has run the Yamaha Race Training (YRT); a three day course aimed at providing European Yamaha race teams the opportunity to learn about how to make the most of their R-series race bikes. Within this training Yamaha’s best Japanese and European Yamaha Racing engineers help teams with their pre-season preparations and raise the knowledge level in terms of the technical set-up and machine tuning of their YZF-R6 and R1. Valencia stats Practice record (2003): 1:34.633 Neil Hodgson (Ducati) 152.360 kph Lap record (best race time 2003): 1:35.007 Neil Hodgson (Ducati) 151.760 kph 2006 Yamaha Motor France practice times: Nakatomi: 1:36.794 / 21st; Abe: 1:35.974 / 8th; Alfonsi: 1:39.117 / 33rd Race 1 result 2006: 1- Bayliss (Ducati), 2-Corser (Suzuki), 3-Lanzi (Ducati), 4-Abe (Yamaha), 5-Haga (Yamaha) 2006 Yamaha Motor France race 1 results: Nakatomi: 12th; Abe: 4th; Alfonsi: DNF Race 2 results 2006: 1- Bayliss (Ducati), 2-Corser (Suzuki), 3-Lanzi (Ducati), 4-Abe (Yamaha), 5-Haga (Yamaha) 2006 Yamaha Motor France race 2 results: Nakatomi: 12th; Abe: 4th; Alfonsi: DNF 5th round of the Superbike World Championship: April 29th at Assen (Nederland)

SPIES HOPES FOR VICTORIOUS AMA SUPERBIKE REPLAY AT BARBER DOUBLEHEADER PICKERINGTON, Ohio (April 13, 2007) Last year Suzuki’s Ben Spies swept the AMA Superbike Championship Doubleheader at Barber Motorsports Park and never looked back. On April 20-22 the AMA Superbike Championship presented by Parts Unlimited returns to Birmingham, Ala., for the 5th annual Honda Superbike Classic, rounds two and three of the 19-race series. Spies, the defending series champ from Longview, Texas, is hoping to duplicate his sweep at Barber of a year ago. Coming into Barber last year six-time AMA Superbike champion Mat Mladin was the rider to beat. However, Spies surprised a lot of people by winning both rounds on the scenic and challenging 2.3-mile Barber circuit. It not only marked the first two victories of an AMA Superbike record tying six-race winning streak for Spies, it also marked the emergence of Spies as a championship-caliber rider in the series. Spies returns to Barber this year as the favorite to repeat as AMA Superbike’s No. 1 rider, especially considering the tough break experienced by teammate Mladin in the opening round at Daytona International Speedway in March. Mladin, the all-time Barber Superbike wins leader with three previous wins, had a tire go bad at Daytona resulting in a crash. The gritty Australian picked up his damaged machine and rode to 10th-place finish in spite of his bike’s front tire continuing to deteriorate. Spies looks ready for his rematch with a renewed Mladin this year. “We’re confident going to all the tracks this year,” said Spies, who could crack into the top-10 on the all-time AMA Superbike wins list at Barber. “I’d like to win all the races, but these guys are speeding up, and everybody’s getting closer, which is good. Hopefully I don’t have a bad day. If I do have a bad day I hope it’s no worse than second or third place. I think this year you’ve got to be a lot more consistent with all the talent in the class” Second in points coming into Barber Motorsports Park is Honda veteran Miguel Duhamel. In spite of being the oldest factory Superbike rider in the series Duhamel continues to be a leading contender. The Montreal native is still seeking to earn back the AMA Superbike title he last won in 1995. He feels he has a good shot this year. “Obviously we’re here to win, and we came up one short of it (at Daytona), but I’m really proud of the team,” Duhamel said after finishing second to Spies at Daytona. “It was definitely a team effort and I think we will get faster. I’m excited about this season.” Duhamel’s Honda teammate Jake Zemke is third in the standings. He is hoping Honda can close the margin the Suzuki squad has enjoyed in recent years. “The Superbike championship this year is going to be really tough,” Zemke said. “Right now we still have a little bit of a bridge to gap there to get up to where Ben’s at right now. And also Mat. I think it’s going to be a very competitive series, especially if we can all step our game up a little bit and catch up with these guys.” One of the surprises at Daytona was the instant competitiveness of the new Yamaha Superbikes. Eric Bostrom led early at Daytona, before his bike had tire issues. Bostrom thinks the Yamaha R1 will continue to improve as the season progresses and he and teammate Jason DiSalvo are aiming to find the podium at Barber. Monster Kawasaki regulars Jamie Hacking and Roger Lee Hayden had a tough day at the season opener where both crashed out. The two will be looking to make up lost ground at the Barber doubleheader. Team M4 EMGO Suzuki rider Geoff May turned in a solid fifth-place ride at Daytona. The speedy Georgian appears to be ready to mix it up with the factory riders all season. ordan Suzuki is another of the leading independent teams and the squad owned by the basketball superstar Michael Jordan is on the rise with Aaron Yates and Jake Holden. Both are eager to prove their team has what it takes to finish on an AMA Superbike podium. Corona Extra Honda’s James Ellison could be a factor at Barber. The former MotoGP rider from England is a former European champion and insiders say he has the talent to be a podium contender this season. Former Barber Superbike winner Kurtis Roberts is slated to race with NFS Honda along with teammate Doug Chandler, a three-time AMA Superbike Champion. Eraldo Ferracci is back in AMA Superbike and the exotic MV Agusta F4-1000R will be at Barber with Matt Lynn and Luca Scassa at the controls. The MVs are so stunning they look like they should be in the Barber Museum, but they had a tough time at Daytona. The team is hoping to rebound and overcome teething problems to see progress in Birmingham. Tickets for the 5th annual Honda Superbike Classic at Barber Motorsports Park can be purchased via the website www.barbermotorsports.com or you can charge by phone at (205) 327-RACE or 1-800-240-2300. The Barber Superbike doubleheader will be shown back to back on SPEED, Sunday, April 22 starting at 2:00 pm Eastern. Sunday’s race will be aired live. About AMA Racing AMA Racing is the competition arm of the American Motorcyclist Association and is the leading sanctioning body for motorcycle sport in the United States. Its professional properties include the Amp’d Mobile AMA Supercross Series, the AMA Toyota Motocross Championship presented by FMF, the AMA Superbike Championship presented by Parts Unlimited, the AMA Ford Quality Checked Flat Track Championship, the AMA Supermoto Championship and the AMA Pro ATV Championship. In amateur and pro-am competition, AMA Racing sanctions over 4000 events in 24 different disciplines and supports over 110 thousand active members. For more information about professional racing, visit www.amaproracing.com.

British Superbike racing is coming home for the Dorset based Rizla Suzuki team this weekend when the second round of the Championship takes place at the high-speed Thruxton circuit on Sunday. Rizla Suzuki’s Team headquarters are situated at the Crescent Performance Centre in nearby Verwood, Dorset. Traditionally there is a huge amount of home support for the squad when it visits the bumpy 2.35-mile long Thruxton track, which boasts the highest average lap speed of any venue the series visits. The double-header races at Thruxton come less than a week after the opening round at Brands Hatch in Kent. Last Bank Holiday Monday, Rizla Suzuki’s Chris Walker finished with a fifth and eighth and his team mate Cal Crutchlow – on his Superbike debut – scored 13th and 18th. Both Rizla Suzuki riders suffered from a lack of rear grip and are targeting better results at Thruxton. Superbike racing starts at 1300 on Sunday, April 15th at the Thruxton circuit in Hampshire. Simon Buckmaster – Team Manager: “It’s been a quick turnaround for Rizla Suzuki, racing on Monday earlier this week and then preparing for first practice at Thruxton on Friday. It has been incredibly busy as we have explored ways and means to give Chris and Cal more rear grip – and importantly – to allow that grip to last for full race distance. “For Chris it has been a solid start to his Superbike campaign. It’s been seven years since he last rode at Thruxton so his learning curve is going to be steep, but we still expect him to use the undoubted horsepower and speed of the Rizla Suzuki to best effect and to be challenging for podiums this weekend. “Cal is still learning his trade in Superbikes but knows Thruxton well. He’s eager to race after what for him was a disappointing start to the season. He will really want to make his mark in front of the team’s home fans that are sure to give him and the whole squad a boost this weekend.”

ROUND 4 VALENCIA, SPAIN 12 APRIL 2007 RACE PREVIEW April 2007, Valencia (Spain) After three rounds the 2007 WSBK season has had a recent shake-up in its overall standings. In this first part of the year the riders that most expected to be the main protagonists confirmed their great talent and potential, and thanks to the new tyres Pirelli brought for this season, the top riders also improved the records, both during the races and test sessions. This Sunday they’ll all race at Valencia, where only a short time ago almost the whole paddock made a three day test, evaluating new solutions that will be used in this meeting. For the SBK class itself, Pirelli will bring three different front tyres and five different rear tyres, plus the qualifier, in order to be ready to face all the different conditions Valencia has offered-up in the past. Supersport riders will have at their disposal three front and three rear solutions, while as usual the two ‘Stock’ classes will race with a single solution (DIABLO SUPERCORSA SC2). This meeting will be also feature the first race of the season in the Suzuki Cup, which will take the total number of riders in the paddock up to 165. This is a huge number, and with all of them using Pirelli tyres, it took nine trucks to move all the necessary machinery, tents and so on to Spain. Last year Bayliss won both the Valencia races, this season Biaggi set the fastest lap in the November test and Toseland missed the most recent test-session, in mid-march. Together with Lanzi, and Yamaha riders Corser and Haga, these are the most likely riders to be fighting for first place, and once again the battle will be teak-tough. In Supersport with the two top Yamaha riders injured in crashes at Donington, the Ten Kate Honda team may be favourites, but other riders have already proved to be competitive and ready to fight for the big result, riders like Harms and PI race winner Foret. Thus far in 2007, Superstock 1000 and Superstock 600 have disputed only one race apiece, so it is still too early for predictions. But for sure it will be a great show; especially in the 1000cc category, with MV, Ducati, Suzuki, Honda and Yamaha bikes featuring, all of which seemed to be really competitive in the opening round.

Interview to Gianluca Montiron KONICA MINOLTA Honda Team Manager Which are the key moments in your long career in the various motorcycle world championships? The next one! Ha! Fortunately I have many good memories; the first one is about the 250cc World title that Tetsuya Harada won in 1993 on the Telkor Yamaha. For sure, remembering the seasons I spent when I was with Aprilia is very good. I can’t forget the three consecutive titles in 250cc with Max Biaggi, and after that we obtained many other victories with different riders and I think that era represents something unique for me. After that successful period I decided that it was time for me to make a step forward and I moved to the top class of the Motorcycle category 500cc.I consider the personal motivation to be important and the desire to succeed at the next level is important. Is this is the reason why you established your own team? I think that the best evaluation of someone’s capacity is through results and I want to distinguish among the rest for the quality of the work I offer. From the managerial point of view I’m satisfied with the job I’ve done with my MotoGP Team, because for the first time in the motorcycle championships, I have had the support of a Japanese technology company Konica Minolta as main sponsor of my team and for this season my team will be the promoter of the 2008 world road-racing cycle championships in Varese, another important step forward for me. If you evaluate the general worldwide economic situation I’m in a comfortable situation considering that our rider is Japanese and that it isn’t always easy to gain a sponsor. I believe our team has a very efficient structure: every year I’ve made relevant investments in the team and our structure in order to follow the sponsor’s need. What is your opinion about the present situation in MotoGP? In the last few years MotoGP has seen an escalation in term of popularity and cost, basically the MotoGP world has not been able enough to follow this escalation and we are now in the transition period. For the motorcycle manufacturers this isn’t a big problem: even if the manufacturers would like to reduce the cost of their own racing departments, the main problem at the moment is for the private teams who have to survive in this period. I think that in the third millennium we need to approach motorsport with a more commercial and aggressive mind. Which kind of action do you intend to take? I think we have a topic here that needs time to be dealt with and really needs the collaboration of all the parties involved. For a private team sometimes it is difficult to open a dialogue with the manufacturer because both parties have different needs and objectives, even if the best sport result remains the main goal for both. Where the various World champions come from is also interesting. The reason why we have two Spanish riders as world champions in 125 and the 250 class is because Dorna invested heavily to create a competitive Spanish championship and riders like Pedrosa come from this championship. The reason why in the past we had some Italian champions as Biaggi, Rossi, Capirossi is a different matter: the Italian championship was very competitive in the past because Aprilia and Cagiva invested money to organize the various national trophies. How can the manufacturer help private teams like yours? I think is a rule for everybody, if the income is not sufficient, it’s necessary to consider how to reduce costs. I think that the manufacturer can reduce the machine rental cost and also reduce the number of winter tests. This year Dorna made a financial contribution to both manufacturers and to the teams and this helps everybody. In general, I believe that the manufacturers and the private teams should work in the same direction together with Dorna and Irta. For many years the private teams were in a comfortable situation but now it is the moment for everybody to invest in the future, in this sector it will be possible to do a step forward to approach motorsport with a more commercial mind and to offer an efficient service to the sponsor by focussing on the marketing and communication activities of the team itself. Personally, I’ve already employed this strategy and the efforts have been rewarded.