Yamaha Teams Fired Up for 20th Anniversary Round at Donington This weekend sees the third round of the World Superbike Championship come to Donington Park for the first of three rounds in the UK. Donington hosted the very first championship round on 3rd April 1988 and it is returning to the circuit for the first time in six years to mark the championship’s 20th anniversary. The track is known for its two-faced character – fast sweeping corners combined with slower first gear sections. The Yamaha team’s technicians will have a challenging job in finding the best compromise between stability at high-speeds and agility for quick changes of direction. The track is an ideal setting for spectators as it is a natural amphitheatre with spectator banking around most of the circuit. After an extensive test session in Valencia last weekend, the Yamaha Motor Italia Team has gathered new data that will help them find the best setting for the upcoming race. With the focus on tyre-life at race distance the riders lapped multiple race distances on their 2007 YZF-R1s. As a result of last week’s testing session the team will be looking to improve on their results in the championship so far this season. Corser claimed the first third place podium for the team at Qatar while Haga gave the team another third position at Phillip Island. Currently Corser lies in fifth position in the championship standings so far and Haga in fourth. Haga comes to Donington looking to fight for race wins and to potentially repeat his double win at Donington in 1998. His third place at Phillip Island was achieved in spite of him having a cold so he is determined of a better result, now he is back in peak fitness. With Corser being victorious in two races during the 1996 round, both riders have proven to be winners on this venue. “I’m looking forward to Donington very much because it is where I took part in my first European round of WSB in 1998!” Haga says, “I won both races that time, so I’m hoping I can repeat it again this year. It is a very exciting circuit to race at because it is demanding both technically and mentally, I like it and, with the right set up, it suits my riding style. We tested many things at Valencia which I am sure will help with the race set up at Donington – you will be able to see for yourself from the result of the race!” Following on from a slightly disappointing home round at Phillip Island and then a productive testing session at Valencia, Troy Corser is positive about success at one of his favourite circuits where he also managed a double win in 1996. “I’m glad to be back at Donington Park” he says. “Hopefully the weather will be good. Whenever I have raced there previously I have done pretty well. I like the track and, at Valencia last week, we got to try out lots of new set-up options that we hadn’t tried before so I’m expecting a good result this weekend.” The Yamaha World Supersport Team hopes to improve on the mixed results at Phillip Island. Parkes scored a good but hard fought third place at the second round, leading for all but the final three laps, when he ran out of grip. Curtain struggled as well with rear end traction due to tyre problems which saw him drop from the battle for top spot to 11th position. In spite of the disappointing result at the last round, Curtain put in the quickest lap at last week’s Valencia testing session. Parkes came in fifth fastest, leaving the team feeling upbeat going into the third round. Kevin Curtain states, “I haven’t been to Donington since 2001, but I do like the circuit and am really happy to be back there. I was just getting to know it when it was taken off the calendar! During the test in Spain last week we worked on suspension settings to get more life out of the rear tyre. With the set-up alterations we made the bike showed some consistent speed during the long runs, which is a good step forward for this round.” Donington also marks the first round of the Superstock 1000 FIM Cup. Claudio Corti and Michele Pirro got some pre-season testing in at the official FGSport tyre test in Valencia last week. Corti posted the fastest time overall while youngster Pirro ended an impressive fourth quickest despite still getting to grips with the Superstock class. Both riders are planning to show their fighting form at Donington on Sunday, with Corti looking to demonstrate his championship winning capabilities. Pirro is looking to focus on adapting his riding style from the 125cc machines he has ridden previously to the inline four cylinder engine of the YZF-R1. 2005 Superstock 1000 champion ,Didier van de Keymeulen returns to the class for the 2007 season and will try hard to regain his championship status. Donington Park Track length: 4023 Opened: 1977 (original circuit 1931) Fastest lap ever: 1’32.824 (Neil Hodgson 2000) Race record: 1’33.470 (Troy Corser 1996) 2001 WSB race winner: Pierfrancesco Chilli (Suzuki), Neil Hodgson (Ducati) Circuit tel: +44 1332 814320 Circuit website: http://www.donington-park.co.uk/

STONER ALSO QUICK IN THE WET WITH THE DESMOSEDICI GP7 Casey Stoner showed today that he is a quick rider in all conditions with the Ducati Desmosedici GP7, even in the cold and wet conditions that greeted the MotoGP riders the day after Sunday’s Spanish GP at Jerez. The young Australian, determined to make use of the conditions and time available to test tyres and wet-weather set-up, put on his leathers and helmet late in the morning to notch up a best time of 1m51.736s in his 21 laps. His Ducati Marlboro team-mate, Loris Capirossi, did not take part in the test as he returned to Monte Carlo on Sunday evening immediately after the race to be close to his wife Ingrid for the expected birth of their first child, Riccardo, in the next few days. Test-rider Vittoriano Guareschi lapped with Stoner and in the hope that conditions will improve, the Ducati Test Team will remain at Jerez for the next two days in order to continue development work on the Ducati. The MotoGP Championship now takes a three-week break before the Turkish GP race scheduled for April 22 at the Istanbul Park Circuit, the first track where there has been no winter testing and where as a result the new 2007 rules limiting the number of tyres will be put to the test. Casey Stoner (Ducati Marlboro Team), 1m51.736s (21 laps) “When I woke up this morning and saw that, like in Qatar, we were unable to test in normal conditions, I tried to look on the bright side of things: I’ve only tested the Bridgestone wets once and this was a good opportunity to do some more laps. For sure it would have been better to test in the dry but at least the day wasn’t wasted. We worked on the tyres and the electronics without trying to go for a quick time. I’m pleased with the way things went and I think it will be useful for races with similar conditions. Now I’m going back to Monte Carlo for a day or two and then back home to Australia, where I’ll start to train for the Turkish GP, a race that I like a lot”. Conditions: wet. Temperatures: air 13 Celsius / track 12 Celsius Times, Monday 26 March 2007 1. Olivier Jacque (Kawasaki) 1’51.422 (52 giri) 2. Randy De Puniet (Kawasaki) 1’51.502 (59) 3. Chris Vermeulen (Suzuki) 1’51.536 (27) 4. Kenny Roberts Jr (Kr-Honda) 1’51.567 (30) 5. Casey Stoner (Ducati) 1’51.736 (21) 6. Carlos Checa (Honda) 1’51.827 (44) 7. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 1’51.899 (41) 8. Alex Barros (Ducati) 1’52.129 (36) 9. Toni Elias (Honda) 1’52.198 (56) 10. Shinya Nakano (Honda) 1’52.212 (53) 11. Nicky Hayden (Honda) 1’52.637 (67) 12. Marco Melandri (Honda) 1’52.842 (45) 13. Alex Hofmann (Ducati) 1’52.904 (55) 14. Colin Edwards (Yamaha) 1’53.104 (36) 15. Dani Pedrosa (Honda) 1’53.240 (51) 16. Silvayn Guintoli (Yamaha) 1’55.992 (44) 17. Makoto Tamada (Yamaha) 1’57.917 (38) 18. Akiyoshi Kousuke (Suzuki) 1’58.635 (36) 19. Vittoriano Guareschi (Ducati) 2’00.291 (33) More, from a press release issued by Gresini Racing Honda: WET TESTING FOR MELANDRI AND ELIAS AT JEREZ Wet birthday for Toni Elias at Jerez that todays celebrates his 24th anniversary. The rain, started to fall from early morning, spoiled today’s test session. The Gresini Honda riders worked on the set up of the bike on wet conditions, collecting positive sensations. Tomorrow Marco Melandri and Toni Elias will continue testing at Jerez. TONI ELIAS (1’52″198, 56 laps): “We would have preferred to test on dry conditions. Anyway it was a positive day because we could test on wet, working on the set up, compared to last time I tested here on wet, today the feeling was a lot better even if there is still room for improvements. Tomorrow we need dry conditions for an important tyre testing”. MARCO MELANDRI (1’52″842, 45 laps): “It was the first time that we tested with Bridgestone tyres on wet conditions. We worked on the set up and the feeling was good. Today we were supposed to work on the front of the bike and test qualifying tyres but we couldn’t because of the rain. I hope that the weather improves for tomorrow”. More, from a press release issued by Konica Minolta Honda: KONICA MINOLTA Honda enjoys productive wet Jerez test day The KONICA MINOLTA Honda Team and rider Shinya Nakano enjoyed a very productive wet test session at the Jerez circuit today. With the majority of teams present from yesterday’s Spanish Grand Prix, the rainy conditions allowed Shinya to try Michelin’s wet-weather tyres for the first time. Coming back to use the French tires in 2007, Team and rider were glad to adjust the test schedule with the different weather conditions. Nakano who led the wet Australian Grand Prix for a number of laps last year was sitting near the top of the standings during most of the day when the track was completely flooded. The former 250cc championship runner up completed a total of 54 laps setting a best time of 1’2.212″. Nakano qualified seventh for the weekend’s Spanish GP and eventually came home in 10th place. The next round of the 2007 MotoGP World Championship takes place in Istanbul, Turkey in just over three weeks time on April 22nd. Shinya Nakano Rider, KONICA MINOLTA Honda (Total laps 54 1′ 52.212″) “It has been a very interesting and positive test in these wet conditions. Rain tyres of different brands can have a completely different character and feel, so after many seasons on Bridgestones, it was good to try the Michelins. Although I prefer to ride and race in the dry, I enjoyed riding today in the wet very much and could feel the grip from both the front and rear. As a result, I could get some really good lap times in, which has been very good for my confidence. The feeling I had from the bike and the tyres in the wet was very good and that’s the sort of feeling we’re after from the bike in dry conditions, too. Once I have found a setting to give me the same feeling then I know we will go much faster. Today we compared both the 2006 and 2007 Michelin wet tyres so that was a very useful exercise in itself. Obviously for the conditions our settings at both the front and rear are much softer for the wet, but we did try many different settings and combinations to analyse and give us some ideas of what we could try for the dry. We still have a small chattering problem from the front-end, but I’m more confident thanks to being near the top of the timing sheets for most of the day.” Giulio Bernardelle Technical Director, KONICA MINOLTA Honda “This was a good first test in full wet conditions and the result was very good. We tested for around four hours in total, running continuously from 12.30pm. It was good that all the major teams were here, which gave us a good yardstick to measure ourselves against. We tried some 2006 specification Michelin wet tyres first and also made some setting adjustments for Shinya. This was the first time for Shinya on the new Honda RC212V in wet conditions. We also tested some settings, in particular, for gearbox and suspensions. It was a normal job but it allowed us to define a good base set up to be used when we will find these conditions during the season. We were pleased as Shinya had a particularly good feeling from the tyres, even with the front. So much so, that the problem we’ve had in the dry in the first part of the corner seems not to be present in the wet with wet settings. This meant that Shinya was at one point the quickest Michelin rider for a while. As the track began to dry at the end of the day we decided to stop while our rider was in 6th position overall.”

Rizla Suzuki completed its pre-season test programme at a cold, windy and dry Snetterton circuit in Norfolk [Sunday, March 25] with Chris Walker and Cal Crutchlow making more development progress with their GSX-R1000 race bikes. Stalker, returning to the circuit for the first time in seven years, spent time reacquainting himself with Snetterton’s fast straights and turns before testing various suspension parts and settings in the final afternoon session. Blighted by three red flags, his time on track was limited so he opted to continue testing parts right until the chequered flag rather than go for an outright lap time. He finished ninth overall. Crutchlow found a comfortable setting on his bike early in the day and was competing for the leading positions when he suffered a freak crash at the Russell Bend. He was unhurt but didn’t return to the track for the last 14-minutes. His time from earlier was good enough for 10th overall. Honda’s Jonathan Rea was fastest. Rizla Suzuki is back in action on Bank Holiday Monday, April 9th, for the first round of the 2007 British Superbike Championship at the Brands Hatch GP circuit in Kent. Chris Walker: “Given the cold and windy conditions, we decided rather than chasing lap times we’d work on developing the bike for race conditions. On that front it’s been a good day – right at the end we made a change to the forks that made a positive difference to the front end feel on my bike. “Today’s lap times don’t show how competitive we really are but I’m not apologising for that, we’ve made more progress and that’s the result we wanted. I’m excited that the next time we are on track it’s going to be the opening round. I can’t wait.” Cal Crutchlow: “I worked through a couple of changes to the link and added a rear thumb brake today, all of which helped to improve my Rizla Suzuki. I was feeling good and the bike was quick, so when I crashed on a closed throttle out of the chicane, it was a surprise. “I’m not hurt from the crash and frustrated as the time sheets really don’t give a true reflection of our position. It’s not the perfect way to finish our test programme but the fact is we are faster and better than we showed today and I’ll be out to prove that at Brands Hatch on April 9th.” Simon Buckmaster – Team Manager: “Chris got through some useful testing today but I would have liked him to have had time to go for an outright fast lap. He got through some good parts tests but that doesn’t mean that ninth on the time sheets is acceptable – we are all a little disappointed. “Cal was riding well and looked on top of his game right up until his accident. At the point of the crash he was more than three-quarters of a second faster than his previous best lap and contending for the top six. We think it might have been caused by a rapidly-cooling track and cold tyre, so he can leave here knowing it wasn’t his fault and hungry to show what he can do at the opening round. “Overall the team underperformed to expectation today but we will learn from that and focus on the positives – we learnt more about the bikes and are in good shape for the start of the season at Brands Hatch in two weeks time.” Official Test Times: 1: Jonathan Rea (Honda) 1:05.010, 2: Leon Haslam (Ducati) +0.819, 3: Ryuichi Kiyonari (Honda) +0.992, 4: Tommy Hill (Yamaha) +1.096, 5: Gregorio Lavilla (Ducati) +1.155, 6: Tom Sykes (Honda) +1.376, 7: Leon Camier (Honda) +1.463, 8: Shane Byrne (Honda) +1.667, 9: Chris Walker (Rizla Suzuki) +1.953, 10: Cal Crutchlow (Rizla Suzuki) +1.974. More, from a press release issued by Steve Plater’s publicist: PLATER SCORCHES THE TRACK Woodhall Spa Superbike rider Steve Plater scorched the track on both sides of the channel – but in very different circumstances – when he conducted a series of tests last week. He was the fastest rider over the two-day period with the World Endurance team Kawasaki France at Le Mans but ended the week with a spectacular crash at Snetterton where he was testing the AIM Yamaha in preparation for the forthcoming British Superbike championship. “The test at Le Mans went really well. The weather was cold and cloudy, with the temperature ranging between six and 10 degrees but the second day was quite sunny. It was ideal for us really as we need to test in cold conditions because endurance racing continues through the night when the temperature drops,” said Steve. “We were on the pace throughout, lapping about a second faster than last year. We made some good changes to the bike and tested some new Pirelli tyres. We still have a few more adjustments to make and these will be done at the final Le Mans test just a few days before the Brands Hatch British Superbike opener at Easter.” But when he arrived back in the UK for the Snetterton test with AIM Yamaha on Saturday Steve was greeted with foul weather conditions. It was misty, cold and a strong easterly wind blowing with some light rain making track conditions hazardous and the team decided to give testing a miss on Saturday preferring to wait and see if the weather improved on Sunday. “There was nothing to be gained by going out in those conditions,” said Steve. “The weather forecast for Sunday promises a dry and sunny day so it makes sense to wait. “The bike has done quite a few miles on the dyno but this is the first time on the circuit for us so we have plenty of testing to get through. Sunday’s opening session saw Steve put in some good times but after eight laps the bike developed an oil leak causing him to crash. “My foot slipped off the peg and I realised too late that there was oil leaking from somewhere,” explained Steve. “And as I negotiated the Esses the bike just flicked me off.” The second session went without a hitch but on returning to the track for the afternoon session it all went wrong. Steve appeared to be comfortable on the bike and on the pace but as he followed Greg Lavilla into Russells he suffered a massive high side and crashed heavily. “I looked up and saw the bike already on fire and heading towards me at a fast rate of knots. I rolled out of the way and it missed me but then I realised that my ankle and back were hurting. But there is nothing broken and I am relieved just to have some heavy bruising to contend with. “The bike is more or less ok as well. The damage is mostly cosmetic, fairing etc and the fuel tank but other than that is fine. It is a shame I couldn’t have spent more time out there but these things happen. Obviously Brands Hatch will now be a big test over the Easter period.” Steve returns to action at Le Mans on April 3 & 4 where he will conclude his testing for Kawasaki France in preparation for the opening round of the World Endurance series, the Le Mans 24-hour race on April 20 & 21. He returns to the UK for the season opener of the British Superbike championship with AIM Yamaha with testing on April 7. Qualifying is on April 8 with racing on Easter Monday, April 9. More, from a press release issued by Hawk Kawasaki: Despite the cold and wet weather conditions Hawk Kawasaki are pleased with the progress they made at the pre season test at Snetterton at the weekend, 23rd 25th March. It was the first time that all four riders, Smart, Hickman, Hallett and Wright had been out on the track as a team. The two Superbike riders Smart and Hickman braved the wet elements on Saturday and found a good wet race set up. It was the first outing for Smart on the ZX10 since he signed with Hawk a few weeks ago. Having not ridden a Kawasaki since 2004 the Maidstone rider adapted well to the bike and the atrocious conditions. The two riders tested a variety of new electronics plus new compound Dunlop tyres which proved to be a success. Hickman continued to bond with the 06 ZX10 and consistently improved his times throughout the weekend in both the wet and dry. He is settling in well to the new bike having ridden the 05 model last season. The team tested a number of new set ups over the weekend and the varying conditions were useful for the team to get a good understanding of how the bikes work in all weather elements. The two Hawk Junior riders Hallett and Wright both were taking it steady and getting to grips with their new bikes. Hallett riding in the Superstock Cup, adjusted well to his new 1000cc machine and they made a huge amount of progress and he was adapting his riding style to suit it. Wright was bedding in his new ZX6 and getting to grips with the ultra fast Snetterton Circuit. The two riders are now eager for the season opener at Brands Hatch on Easter Weekend. Team Owner Stuart Hicken was happy with the weekend saying “The weather didn’t prove to be a problem for us as it allowed us to try a number of different settings out on the four bikes. We know which direction we are heading in now and know what we have to do to get there. We are going to try and get out again before Brands as we have a significant amount of new parts to test before the racing starts. I’m pleased with the two youngsters, David and Jak, they took things steady but I feel have learnt a lot in just the one weekend. I’m looking forward to the season and hoping all the riders will have a good one.”

Red Bull Rookies Cup Race Results 1. Lorenzo Savadori, Italy, KTM, 15 laps 2. Luis Salom, Spain, KTM, -0.493 second 3. Johann Zarco, France, KTM, -1.125 4. Robert Gull, Sweden, KTM, -1.427 5. Cyril Carrillo, France, KTM, -2.039 6. Cristian Trabalon, Spain, KTM, -19.910 7. Markus Reiterberger, Germany, KTM, -29.380 8. Deane Brown, UK, KTM, -29.594 9. Sturla Fagerhaug, Norway, KTM, -30.561 10. Adam Blacklock, UK, KTM, -40.161 11. Daniel Kartheininger, Germany, KTM, -47.681 12. Christoph Schonberger, Germany, KTM, -50.820 13. Javier Cholbi, Spain, KTM, -50.954 14. J.D. Beach, USA, KTM, -53.476 15. Cameron Beaubier, USA, KTM, -55.601 16. Matthew Hoyle, UK, KTM, -55.846 17. Stuart Mitchell, UK, KTM, -71.238 18. Jamie Mossey, UK, KTM, -2 laps, DNF 19. Kris Turner, USA, KTM, -3 laps, DNF 20. Lukas Sembera, Czech Rep., KTM, -12 laps, DNF 21. Lucy Glockner, Germany, KTM, -14 laps, DNF Red Bull Rookies Cup Qualifying 1. Salom, 1:52.187 2. Zarco, 1:52.644 3. Savadori, 1:52.914 4. Mossey, 1:53.268 5. Hoyle, 1:53.673 6. Gull, 1:53.817 7. Fagergaug, 1:53.940 8. Glockner, 1:54.160 9. Trabalon, 1:54.337 10. Brown, 1:54.511 11. Carrillo, 1:54.689 12. Turner, 1:55.104 13. Beaubier, 1:55.225 14. Kartheininger, 1:55.239 15. Sembera, 1:55.257 16. Reiterberger, 1:55.504 17. Blacklock, 1:55.582 18. Cholbi, 1:55.881 19. Schonberger, 1:55.943 20. Mitchell, 1:57.283 21. Beach, 1:57.792 More, from a press release issued by Dorna Sports: Savadori wins first Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup race Action at the circuit of Jerez de la Frontera was finished off beautifully this afternoon after a day’s action in MotoGP, as Lorenzo Savadori (ITA) became the first winner in the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup. The Jerez podium was completed by Luis Jaime Salom (ESP) and Johann Zarco (FRA) The start went smoothly and without incidents, after the first lap the classification saw pole holder Luis Jaime Salom (ESP) leading the race from Savadori and Jamie Mossey (GBR). A lead group of six made a break with only eight tenths of a second separating them. On the third lap, the only female rider in the cup retired when Germany’s Lucy Gloeckner crashed, but was thankfully uninjured. After four laps American Cameron Beaubier took the lead, moving up from P13 to P1 from the start. Close behind lay Salom, Hoyle, Zarco and Savadori separated by just one second. The lead group proved the well-balanced quality of the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup. No rider was able to make a decisive break with the young riders using the slipstream of their competitors very skillfully. On lap 11 contact was made between Beaubier and Salom, with the American running across the grass and into the gravel before returning to the track. Beaubier lost 50 seconds and dropped back to P16, a real shame after the great run the “man of the race” had! Zarco, Salom, Savadori, Mossey, Carrillo and Gull were all in with a shout of victory as the end approached, but on the penultimate lap, Britain’s Jamie Mossey had to retire after an off-road excursion luckily escaping injury as well. On the final lap, Italian Lorenzo Savadori surprised the two leaders with a daring manoeuvre in the final corner, and as Zarco and Salom fought for the win, Savadori sneaked through to take the flag first, setting the fastest lap of the race in the process. After a dramatic and high-grade race, the first podium of the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup 2007 in Jerez looks like this: Lorenzo Savadori (ITA), Luis Salom (ESP) and Johann Zarco (FRA) Robert Gull (SWE) and Cyril Carrillo finish fourth and fifth, following closely behind. The best Brit: Deane Brown (8th) The best Scandinavian: Robert Gull (SWE, 4th) The best German: Markus Reiterberger (7th) The best American: JD Beach (14th) The overjoyed winner Lorenzo Savadori: “I’m celebrating my 14th birthday in ten days time, and this has been my nicest present. It’s really something special to win the first race of a new cup, especially in a country like Spain that’s crazy about motorsports. I was a bit lucky with my charge late in the race but so what? A terrific race and a worthy start to this great cup!” This just in regarding Kris Turner’s DNF, from eyewitness Mat Oxley: Turner’s clutch went at the start, he was last away, got up to eighth and then the transmission or something broke and he went off the track. Beaubier should’ve won but got punted off the track. They weren’t happy, poor kids. J.D. Beach was delighted with his ride.

1. Valentino Rossi, Yamaha YZR-M1, Michelin, 27 laps 2. Dani Pedrosa, Honda RC212V, Michelin, -1.246 seconds 3. Colin Edwards, Yamaha YZR-M1, Michelin, -2.701 4. Toni Elias, Honda RC212V, Bridgestone, -4.351 5. Casey Stoner, Ducati GP07, Bridgestone, -4.993 6. Carlos Checa, Honda RC212C, Michelin, -10.000 7. Nicky Hayden, Honda RC212V, Michelin, -14.146 8. Marco Melandri, Honda RC212V, Bridgestone, -19.969 9. Chris Vermeulen, Suzuki GSV-R, Bridgestone, -24.786 10. Shinya Nakano, Honda RC212V, Michelin, -24.955 11. Alex Barros, Ducati GP07, Bridgestone, -25.852 12. Loris Capirossi, Ducati GP07, Bridgestone, -25.852 13. Randy de Punier, Kawasaki ZX-RR, Bridgestone, -26.445 14. Makoto Tamada, Yamaha YZR-M1, Dunlop, -36.653 15. Sylvain Guintoli, Yamaha, Dunlop, -36.744 16. Kenny Lee Roberts, KR212V, Michelin, -48.911 17. Kousuke Akiyoshi, Suzuki GSV-R, Bridgestone, -50.784 18. Olivier Jacque, Kawasaki ZX-RR, Bridgestone, -60.901 19. John Hopkins, Suzuki GSV-R, Bridgestone, -63.371, crash DQ, Alex Hofmann, Ducati GP07, Bridgestone 250cc Grand Prix Results 1. Jorge Lorenzo, Aprilia, 26 laps 2. Alvaro Bautista, Aprilia, -0.218 second 3. Andrea Dovizioso, Honda, -0.478 4. Alex de Angelis, Aprilia, -8.156 5. Alex Debon, Aprilia, -14.747 6. Hiroshi Aoyama, KTM, -15.045 7. Shuhei Aoyama, Honda, -17.918 8. Yuki Takahashi, Honda, -28.438 9. Anthony West, Aprilia, -39.435 10. Dirk Heidolf, Aprilia, -62.689 125cc Grand Prix Results 1. Gabor Talmacsi, Aprilia, 23 laps 2. Lukas Pesek, Derbi, -0.014 second 3. Hector Faubel, Aprilia, -5.720 4. Pol Espargaro, Aprilia, -6.489 5. Sergio Gadea, Aprilia, -6.867 6. Pablo Nieto, Aprilia, -9.219 7. Sandro Cortese, Aprilia, -19.078 8. Joan Olive, Aprilia, -19.133 9. Michael Ranseder, Derbi, -19.664 10. Lorenzo Zanetti, Aprilia, -28.434 13. Steve Bonsey, KTM, -43.699 More, from a press release issued by Bridgestone: Elias Takes Strong Fourth in Front of Home Crowd Round 02 – Jerez Race Circuito de Jerez Sunday 25 March 2007 Honda Gresini’s Toni Elias and Ducati’s Casey Stoner were denied podium results in today’s Spanish Grand Prix but strong, consistent performances by both riders throughout the 27-lap race in Jerez were rewarded with encouraging fourth and fifth placed results respectively. With ten laps of the race remaining Elias was seven seconds adrift of race leader and ultimate winner Valentino Rossi and Stoner was ten seconds behind, but their soft compound rear Bridgestone tyres maintained optimum performance right up to the chequered flag and enabled them to greatly reduce the deficit to just over one second. Stoner now lies second in the riders’ table with 36 points, equal with Dani Pedrosa who finished runner-up to Rossi today, the Italian’s win taking him to the head of the championship. Suzuki’s John Hopkins was in the hunt for a strong podium challenge until a fall on lap 17 relegated him to the back of the field. The competitiveness of the Suzuki-Bridgestone package was highlighted with Hopkins setting the second fastest lap of the entire GP, accompanied only by Rossi under the 1m41s mark. Marco Melandri was forced to settle for eighth place having been an early pace setter. His eight points keep him fifth in the riders’ classification. Chris Vermeulen added a second top ten result to his season tally with ninth place on his Suzuki today, keeping him in seventh place in the championship just ahead of Elias, Hopkins and Pramac d’Antin’s Alex Barros, whose 11th position in Jerez places him tenth in the overall riders’ table. Hiroshi Yamada Bridgestone Motorsport – Manager, Motorcycle Sport Department: “Naturally, we are a little disappointed that our riders could not finish today’s race on the podium, but I am still pleased with the overall competitiveness of our tyres this weekend. Based on the results from the free practice sessions and the expected arrival of cooler weather in Jerez this afternoon, most of our riders opted to run with a soft specification rear tyre. The cooler track conditions enabled them to extract the full performance from this tyre, together with their chosen 16.5” front, to post quick times over the full race distance. Unfortunately, starting from the second and third rows of the grid was more of a disadvantage than usual because we have seen such a competitive field this weekend, which made progressing up the order tricky. The fact that Toni and Casey were able to lap in the high 1m41s in the closing stages, around half a second quicker than some of our rivals, and make up so many places in the process demonstrates that we had the tyres to achieve more this afternoon. John and the Suzuki team also showed great performance in race trim, setting the second quickest lap of the race. Generally, there are many positive aspects to take away from these opening two races of the season with Casey’s excellent win in Qatar and increased competitiveness against our rivals here in Jerez. However, we have some tough tracks coming up with Turkey and China, so we have plenty of work to do. Weather permitting, our preparations for these races will begin with all five of our teams in Jerez tomorrow.” Toni Elias Honda Gresini 4th place (+4.351s from race winner) “I am very happy with fourth place today and to be the top Bridgestone rider in front of my home fans. I struggled a bit at the start of the race because I could not get the tyres up to temperature quickly, but it was possible to keep ninth place in the initial laps. After that I was able to maintain a constant and competitive rhythm for the duration of the race. When the rivals in front of us started to drop their pace a bit, the rhythm from the Bridgestone tyres helped me make my way through the field and recover some ground. Unfortunately there was already too much of a gap to Colin for that final podium place. We have worked a lot this weekend together with Bridgestone and I am quite proud of our achievements together. It is my 24th birthday tomorrow and this result is not a bad early present.” Bridgestone Race Results Front Rear P4 Toni Elias Honda Gresini 45m57.691s +4.351s Slick Soft Slick Soft P5 Casey Stoner Ducati 45m58.333s +4.993s Slick Medium Slick Soft P8 Marco Melandri Honda Gresini 46m13.309s +19.969s Slick Medium Slick Soft P9 Chris Vermeulen Suzuki 46m18.126s +24.786s Slick Medium Slick Soft P11 Alex Barros Pramac d’Antin 46m18.348s +25.008s Slick Medium Slick Soft P12 Loris Capirossi Ducati 46m19.192s +25.852s Slick Medium Slick Soft P13 Randy de Puniet Kawasaki 46m19.785s +26.445s Slick Medium Slick Soft P17 Kousuke Akiyoshi Suzuki 46m44.124s +50.784s Slick Medium Slick Soft P18 Olivier Jacque Kawasaki 46m54.241s +1m00.901s Slick Medium Slick Soft P19 John Hopkins Suzuki 46m56.711s +1m03.371s Slick Medium Slick Medium Exc. Alex Hofmann Pramac d’Antin N/A N/A Slick Medium Slick Soft Weather: Dry. Air 19°C, Track 31°C, Humidity 20% More, from a press release issued by Michelin: MotoGP World Championship 2007 Spanish Grand Prix, Jerez Race Day, Sunday March 25 MICHELIN MAN ROSSI WINS TO LEAD THE WORLD Michelin riders ruled the Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez today, monopolizing the podium. Valentino Rossi (Fiat Yamaha Team YZR-M1-Michelin) won the race to take the World Championship lead after seeing off a strong challenge from polesitter Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team RC212V-Michelin) in front of around 132,000 fans. And Rossi’s teammate Colin Edwards (Fiat Yamaha Team YZR-M1-Michelin) chased Pedrosa hard all the way to finish a close third. Rossi’s victory was also the first success for Michelin’s new 16-inch front slick, now used by all of Michelin’s seven MotoGP riders. “This victory and these 25 points are important,” said Rossi, who has won five premier-class world titles with Michelin. “We worked very well with Michelin here and the tires worked well all the way to the end of the race. It was a fast race and a great battle with Dani. I pushed hard from the beginning and built a small advantage lap by lap.” Carlos Checa (Honda LCR RC212V-Michelin) also showed strongly all weekend, qualifying on the front row and beating World Champion Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda Team RC212VMichelin) to sixth place. “We are happy, the race was quite good for us,” said Jean-Philippe Weber after his first victory as Michelin’s director of motorcycle racing. “We made our tires for this race according to the results from last month’s tests here and also according to the weather forecast. All our guys used tires in the medium range, tailored to their needs, and everyone seemed pretty happy with the tires’ performance. There was just a small difference between the tires used by Yamahas and those used by Dani. As usual, Dani’s were slightly softer, but it was only a small step. “This is our first win for our 16-inch front, which also makes us happy. With this tire our riders were able to go fast right from the beginning of the race. We started testing this generation of the 16 at this track at the end of last year and we did back-to-back comparisons with the 16.5. Our riders immediately preferred the 16 because it allows them to flick faster into the turns and gives them more grip and feel as they attack the turns. “This wasn’t an easy weekend for anyone because of the difference in temperature from the morning sessions to the afternoon. The difference was sometimes as much as 17 degrees, which makes it hard to work on race set-up and race tires during the morning. But our team did a great job, learning to work with the new tire regulations.” MICHELIN RIDERS’ TIRE CHOICES Race Condition: DRY, SUNNY Temperature (ºC): Air 21°, Track 29° Rider Points Team Front 16″ Rear 16.5″ PEDROSA Dani 16 Repsol Honda Team Medium Medium ROSSI Valentino 20 Fiat Yamaha Team Medium Medium CHECA Carlos 9 Honda LCR Medium Medium EDWARDS Colin 10 Fiat Yamaha Team Medium Medium NAKANO Shinya 6 Konica Minolta Honda Medium Medium ROBERTS Kenny 3 Team Roberts KR212 Medium Medium HAYDEN Nicky 8 Repsol Honda Team Medium Medium The above tire choice chart is intended as a guide only. It refers to the grade of tire compound/construction within the range of each rider¹s allocation, thus one rider¹s medium tire can be softer or harder than another rider¹s medium tire. Michelin tailor-makes tires for each of its MotoGP riders, according to their riding style and the demands of their machine, as well as circuit layout, track surface and weather conditions. More, from a press release issued by Dorna Sports: Rossi strikes back at Jerez to take victory Gran Premio bwin.com de España Sunday 25th March Race Report Valentino Rossi bowled over all challengers to take victory at the Gran Premio bwin.com de España and put himself at the head of the overall classification. The five-time MotoGP World Champion was never troubled after passing poleman Dani Pedrosa midway through the opening lap, and ended his five-race winless streak with a masterful display of how to lead a Grand Prix. ‘The Doctor’ has won at Jerez on four previous occasions, and marked victory number five with a special celebration alongside his fan club. Decked out in skittle costumes, the group fell at the Italian’s feet as he gave them an underarm bowl on his parade lap. His triumph makes him the first rider to win races on 500cc, 990cc and 800cc machines at the highest level. Hyped up as a battle between Rossi and Pedrosa for dominance of the Spanish circuit, the race never really became a duel between the two riders. As the Fiat Yamaha rider continually upped his race pace, Pedrosa was left with little to do but follow his rival into second. Whilst clearly unable to keep up with Rossi, he was likewise unfazed by the presence of third placed Colin Edwards nearly three seconds behind him. For the ‘Texan Tornado’ the Gran Premio bwin.com de España marked a welcome return to the podium after an assured ride. Aiming to give the Spanish fans another reason to be happy, Toni Elias was right up there with Rossi’s fastest speeds although starting from further down the grid. The exciting rider finished in fourth after some excellent overtaking, just edging out Casey Stoner who couldn’t repeat his dominance from two weeks ago. The Australian Ducati rider was once again mature in his overtaking choices, and was rewarded with some valuable points for the World Championship. Carlos Checa, starting from the front row for the first time since 2005, rounded off the top six, ahead of reigning World Champion Nicky Hayden. ‘The Kentucky Kid’ made a fantastic start, but was unable to get near the leaders and dropped off towards the end of the race. Marco Melandri, Chris Vermeulen and Shinya Nakano completed the top ten. John Hopkins suffered a crash on lap 16, having just overtaken Hayden for fourth, but picked the Suzuki GSV-R800 up to finish the race, albeit in 19th. The brave Anglo-American was once again racing despite pain in his right hand. 250cc After having dominated the 250cc class for the whole weekend at his home track, Jorge Lorenzo gave the thousands of fans gathered at Jerez reason to celebrate with a superb victory. In his post-race celebration, Lorenzo ran to the gravel trap and planted down a flag marking his territory. And he could rightfully call the Spanish circuit ‘Lorenzo’s Land’ after taking his second quarter litre victory at the track in as many years. That is not to say that the factory Aprilia rider had things easy- far from it. Second placed Alvaro Bautista and third placed Andrea Dovizioso all took turns in leading the race, exchanging positions at a dizzying rate. The former managed to complete a home one-two ahead of the 2006 World Championship runner-up, competing in only his second 250cc race. Dovizioso was displaying a newfound aggression as he rode to a podium finish, not allowing himself to be pushed out of the running. A small wobble from Bautista at the Dry Sack corner held up the duo and allowed Lorenzo to finally build a small gap, which he maintained until the finish line. 125cc A dramatic 125cc race saw Gabor Talmacsi take victory in a photo finish. The Hungarian, on the receiving end of a slipstreaming manoeuvre from team-mate Hector Faubel at the opening round in Qatar, this time ousted Czech rider Lukas Pesek from the top spot after a tense game of cat-and-mouse. The two were out on their own for most of the race, breaking away from the pack with Pesek closing down the Master MVA Aspar rider all the way. Tactics came into play, with the Derbi man content to stalk Talmacsi for the duration and even at one point declining an invitation from his rival to take the lead. Pesek left his move late, overtaking on one of the final corners but, after a few hairy moments in the sprint to the line, was just pipped to the chequered flag and his elusive first 125cc victory. Hector Faubel was the only Spanish representative on the podium, taking third ahead of countryman Pol Espargaro. The latter had an amazing race, starting awesomely and maintaining a cool head whilst battling with such riders as Sergio Gadea and Pablo Nieto, who completed the top six. Sandro Cortese, Joan Olive, Michael Ranseder and Lorenzo Zanetti made up the remainder of the top ten. Red Bull Rookies Cup An exciting first race took place in the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup, where Lorenzo Savadori took another Italian victory on the final lap. Luis Salom did well to make a save on the final lap to prevent highsiding his KTM kit, and took second ahead of French Rider Johann Zarco. The race was an excellent show of the abilities gained by the riders during the past few months, and provided all the excitement of a World Championship round towards the end. There were light crashes for leading riders Cameron Beaubier and Jamie Mossey in the latter stages, and the duo will be sure to learn from this over the coming races. The Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup is next back on track at the Gran Premio Italia Alice at Mugello. The next race of the 2007 season takes place in Turkey on April 22nd. More, from a press release issued by KTM: 250cc race Red Bull KTM Hero Hiroshi Aoyama of Japan rode his KTM 250 KRR bike through the pain of a hand injury to finish sixth in the 250cc class on Sunday. The result gave the Japanese rider 10 championship points, some compensation for the crash he sustained in Qatar in the opening round. Hiroshi decided to forego painkillers in favour of a better feel for the bike. His team-mate Mika Kallio, who joined the 250cc class this season after shining in 125cc was less fortunate and was forced to withdraw in the 19th lap with a broken second gear. Hiroshi Aoyama, sixth place 250cc 45:50.891 “I am really happy with this result considering my finger injury. I had a good start but took it easy on the first lap, and a bunch of other riders passed me again. But then I found my rhythm, and I wasn’t in too much pain, even though I didn’t take any pain killers because an injection would have numbed my hand too much and would have destroyed the feeling for the bike. At the end, it got tougher and tougher, but sixth is great in these circumstances and gives me a lot of hope for this season. Luckily we have three weeks off before the next race in Turkey. I won my first Grand Prix with KTM on the Istanbul track last year, and I want to be 100 per cent fit when we return there!” Mika Kallio, retired 19th lap 250cc “My start was very good, and I was able to improve my position and fight within the same group my team-mate was in. Then some other riders touched my fairing and I ran wide and lost my rhythm for a while. Then I got back into the groove, made good lap times again and thought a result between fifth and seventh place was possible. Then the bike broke, and I just had to stop.” Team Race Director Harald Bartol “Respect to Hiroshi for what he did today, to ride within half a second per lap of the race winner is remarkable, considering his injury. It’s a real pity that Mika missed out on the race finish again, this time it was the sprocket of the second gear that broke.” 250cc Results 1. Jorge Lorenzo, Spain, Aprilia, 45:35.846 2. Alvaro Bautista, Spain, Aprilia, 45:36.064 3. Andrea Dovizioso, Italy, Honda, 45:36.324 4. Alex De Angeles, San Marino, Aprilia, 45:44.002 5. Alex Debon, Spain, Aprilia, 45:50.539 6. Hiroshi Aoyama, Japan, KTM, 45:50.891 Mika Kallio, Finland, KTM, DNF 125cc Race Jerez, Spain American teenager Steve Bonsey was the Red Bull KTM 125cc rider of the day when he finished 13th in the championship points in Jerez Spain. It was the first time the young American, making his debut season on the MotoGP circuit, had picked up championship points. Bonsey’s young 17 year-old team-mate Randy Krummenacher of Switzerland was no less heroic riding with a painful cracked scaphoid bone in his right wrist and still finishing in 17th place. Tomoyoshi Koyama was close to a podium finish when he crashed with four laps to go in the 125cc while hot on the trail of a podium place. Steve Bonsey, USA, 13th 42:35.848 “I lost my left knee slider right after the start, which was a big problem because my strongest point so far was the left hand corners. So I just tried to be consistent. I felt good on the bike, and as the race went on, I also was picking up corner speed in the right hand turns. When I saw a bunch of other riders crash and my pit board signalling 19th position, I thought of possible world championship points and pushed even harder. To get my first points in the end is great, and to finish a race in front of this audience is an awesome feeling. In American Dirt Track racing, we don’t get as many people on the grandstands as there are here in one corner!” Randy Krummenacher, Switzerland, 17th 42:43.402 “In the first few laps, I was well within the battle, but I also realised that with my cracked scaphoid bone I couldn’t control the bike at the corner entrances very well. So I tried to find smooth lines and to be as precise as possible. I gave all I could with my damaged hand and tried my best to stay upright until the end, but now it’s hurting really, really bad!” Tomoyoshi Koyama, 125cc DNF “For the first three laps, I didn’t have a lot of grip on the rear, but then I felt really good on the bike. We had made a last minute change to the chassis set-up that worked out really well, and I could match the pace of my group quite easily. In the end, I was able to close in on Hector Faubel and I thought a podium finish would be possible. I pushed on, and then, in the first corner, it was too much and I crashed. I tried to restart the bike, but the exhaust was bent so there was no way to carry on. It’s a real shame, but at least we have improved in comparison to the first race in Qatar and we know that we are not far off the pace!” Team Race Director Harald Bartol “Tomoyoshi had clearly the fastest bike on the track today, but still was so much on the limit that he eventually crashed. We have to carefully analyse why. As far as Steve Bonsey goes, I am sure that we are going to have a lot of joy with this guy this year–he is getting better and better!” 125cc Results 1. Gabor Talmacsi, Hungary, Aprilia, 41:52.149 2. Lukas Pesek, Czech Republic, Derbi, 41:52.163 3. Hector Faubel, Spain, Aprilia, 41:57.869 4. Pol Espargaro, Spain, Aprilia, 41:58.638 5. Sergio Gadea, Spain, Aprilia, 41:59.016 13. Steve Bonsey, USA, KTM, 42:35.848 17. Randy Krummenacher, Switzerland, KTM 42:43.402 Tomoyoshi Koyama, Japan, KTM DNF Rookies Cup Italian Lorenzo Savadori, riding number 32, will only celebrate his 14th birthday on April 4 but that did not stop him taking victory in the first ever Red Bull Rookies Cup at Jerez Spain. Lorenzo streaked home on the Jerez circuit in the inaugural Rookies Cup race on Sunday ahead of Luis Jamie Salom of Spain and Johann Zarco of France in the 15 lap race in what was a huge experience for the budding young riders. Lorenzo, impressive in training for the Rookies program was introduced to motor sports by his father and is looking forward to celebrating his 14th birthday in April racing on his favourite circuit in Mugello, Italy. He started Sunday’s race from third place on the grid. It was appropriate that pole sitter Luis Salom and Johann Zarco, second on the starting line, soaked up the minor places. The Rookies Cup program, from Red Bull in cooperation with KTM and Dorna Sports allows 23 talented young riders to compete on identical KTM RC 125 machines, a specially developed race model for rookies. The program, held in conjunction with the 2007 MotoGP races, means that the young riders compete on leading motor racing circuits and in front of huge crowds. Rookies Cup Results 1. Lorenzo Savadori, Italy, KTM 28:36.428 2. Luis Salom, Spain, KTM, 28:36.921 3. Johann Zarco, France, KTM 28:37.533 4. Robert Gull, Sweden, KTM 28:37.855 5. Cyril Carrillo, France, KTM 28:38.467. More, from a press release issued by Fiat Yamaha: Jerez – Grand Prix of Spain Event: Grand Prix of Spain – Race Date: Sunday, 25th March 2007 Ambient temperature: 19 degrees C Track temperature: 31 degrees C Humidity: 20% DOUBLE PODIUM GLORY FOR FIAT YAMAHA TEAM IN JEREZ Valentino Rossi returned to the top step of the podium today after leading for all 27-laps of the Grand Prix of Spain, taking his first victory since Sepang last year and his 46th win of the four-stroke MotoGP era. Rossi’s 26th win for Yamaha also makes him the most successful rider at Jerez in the premier class, with five wins at the Spanish track. He was joined for the podium celebrations by his team-mate Colin Edwards, who rode a strong race from fourth on the grid to stay in contention behind Dani Pedrosa, eventually finishing third and taking his seventh MotoGP podium in front of a record crowd of 138,000. Both Yamahas got a good start off the line, Edwards riding around the outside of Carlos Checa to take third at turn two and Rossi passing pole-sitter Pedrosa to take the lead shortly after. By the fourth lap the leading trio had begun to pull away from Nicky Hayden and John Hopkins and Rossi had started to stretch his lead on Pedrosa, setting the fastest lap of the race on lap five. Despite a strong showing from the Spaniard in front of his home crowd, Rossi’s lead never looked in jeopardy and he eventually crossed the line 1.246 seconds in front. Edwards meanwhile never stopped pushing in third place, spurred on by the looming Honda of Toni Elias in the latter stages. Tyre worries for the pair proved unfounded as their Michelins worked well to the flag and Rossi and Edwards now take first and fourth in the Championship after two rounds of the eighteen-race season. Valentino Rossi Position: 1st Time: 45’53.340 “After the situation at this race last year, this is much, much better! Our first priority today was to get points and I knew that to win I would have to ride at the maximum, but today my Yamaha really flew and I was able to do a great race. It feels like a long time since I last won and this is a great emotion and a very special victory for me, especially in Jerez in front of this great crowd. Qatar was good but to taste victory again is a wonderful feeling. We had some problems on Friday and again yesterday and then after this morning’s warm-up we made some more small modifications; I have to thank my team, from Jeremy Burgess to all my mechanics and engineers. They did a fantastic job for me this weekend and they all deserve this win. My tyre worked very well today and Michelin have done a good job too in difficult conditions, so thank you to them. I got a great start, didn’t make any mistakes and had a good battle with Pedrosa, who we knew would be the danger today. I’m really happy for Colin too and to have both Yamahas on the podium shows that we’re in good shape for what’s going to be a long season. Now we have two race tracks which might be difficult for us so it’s very important to leave here leading the championship.” Colin Edwards Position: 3rd Time: +2.701 “On Friday morning you wouldn’t have thought we would end up on the podium, but here we are and it was a good race for me. I’ve got to say an enormous thank you to all my guys because they worked non-stop all weekend and came up with some pretty good solutions to the problems we had. Michelin also had something up their sleeve for us and seemed to know what would work and they were proved right – they’ve done a good job for us this weekend. I got a good start and my best move was getting past Checa so quickly; I knew I had to find some clear air and try to hang onto the back of Valentino and Pedrosa. I made a couple of small mistakes and they were able to pull away from me a bit which was a pity, but my bike was working well so I was able to keep a pretty good pace throughout. Towards the end I could see Elias had appeared behind me and I didn’t like the idea of him getting spurred on by his home fans and trying to snatch a podium, so I really had to keep hammering away! The last few laps were a little hairy at times as I started to slide but anyway we managed to make it and it feels great to be up here on the podium again.” Davide Brivio Team Director “It’s great to be back with both riders on the podium and especially here in Jerez where we struggled so much in last year’s race. It’s a really positive sign and shows what a good job our Yamaha engineers have done with our new bike. Everyone has worked very hard over this weekend and the entire team deserves congratulations. The new tyre regulations mean we have to manage what we have very carefully and this is a great result for us. It’s also a very important result because we now have two tricky circuits and it’s good to be going into this stage of the season in front. Thanks again to all the team and everyone involved, we’re very happy today!” Results 1. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha Team 45’53.340 2. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team + 1.246 3. Colin Edwards (USA) Fiat Yamaha Team + 2.701 4. Toni Elias (SPA) Honda Gresini + 4.351 5. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro Team + 4.993 6. Carlos Checa (SPA) Honda LCR + 10.000 7. Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda Team + 14.146 8. Marco Melandri (ITA) Honda Gresini + 19.969 9. Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP + 24.786 10. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Konica Minolta Honda + 24.955 11. Alex Barros (BRA) Pramac d’Antin + 25.008 12. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati Marlboro Team + 25.852 13. Randy de Puniet (FRA) Kawasaki Racing Team + 26.445 14. Makoto Tamada (JPN) Dunlop Yamaha Tech 3 + 36.653 15. Sylvain Guintoli (FRA) Dunlop Yamaha Tech 3 + 36.744 16. Kenny Roberts Jr (USA) Team Roberts + 48.911 17. K Akiyoshi (JPN) Suzuki + 1’00.784 18. Olivier Jacque (FRA) Kawasaki Racing Team + 1’00.901 19. John Hopkins (USA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP + 1’03.371 Championship Standings 1. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha Team 45 2. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro Team 36 3. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 36 4. Colin Edwards (USA) Fiat Yamaha Team 26 5. Marco Melandri (ITA) Honda Gresini 19 6. Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda Team 17 7. Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 16 8. Toni Elias (SPA) Honda Gresini 15 9. John Hopkins (USA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 13 10. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Konica Minolta Honda 12 Jerez: Lap Record Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 2005, 1’40,596 Jerez: Best Lap Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 2007, 1’38,394 More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki Racing: KAWASAKI’S DE PUNIET PICKS UP POINTS IN TOUGH JEREZ WEEKEND Randy de Puniet scored Kawasaki’s only world championship points after bringing his Ninja ZX-RR home in a hard fought 13th place in today’s Spanish Grand Prix, which was won by Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) from home hero Dani Pedrosa (Honda) and watched by more than 132,000 spectators. De Puniet’s fellow countryman, and Kawasaki teammate, Olivier Jacque, was unable to add to his points haul from the opening race in Qatar, finishing in a disappointing 18th place after struggling with traction problems throughout the 27-lap race. Kawasaki’s expectations had been high coming into the second race of the season, with Racing Director, Ichiro Yoda, predicting a strong performance from his two riders, but these expectations had to be re-evaluated during the opening practice session on Friday, as de Puniet and Jacque encountered problems with their Ninja ZX-RR machines that hadn’t been apparent during the IRTA test at Jerez just one month ago. The problems persisted throughout practice and qualifying on Saturday, but de Puniet saw a distinct improvement in the handling of his Ninja ZX-RR during this morning’s 25-minute warm-up session. Despite this improvement, both de Puniet and Jacque lined up for today’s Spanish Grand Prix knowing that today would be an exercise in damage limitation, rather than an opportunity to push hard for a top ten finish. Even so, if it hadn’t been for some back luck then de Puniet could have potentially secured a top ten finish for Kawasaki today, but two small mistakes at mid-race distance saw him lose contact with the battle for ninth place, and he lost further time when forced to run wide after Kenny Roberts (Honda) suffered machinery problems on the racing line. To say that Jacque was disappointed with his result today would be something of an understatement. The 33-year-old Kawasaki pilot was left frustrated after suffering with traction problems from the start of the race, which left him chasing Suzuki’s test rider, Kousuke Akiyoshi, at the back of the field. Jacque closed on to the back of Akiyoshi in the latter part of the race, but was unable to pass after using his tyres up in the chase. Only Suzuki’s John Hopkins, who rejoined the race behind the Kawasaki pilot after crashing out of fourth place, spared Jacque the ignominy of finishing last. 13th Position “I kept the position and at the beginning I was faster than other riders, but here it is really difficult to pass. I stayed behind, as I didn’t want to make any mistake. Rear tyre performance dropped down, but I managed to stay with the group until ten laps to the end, when I made a mistake and lost some time. I pushed and caught the group again. But then, four laps to the end, I don’t know what happened but I saw Roberts’ bike stop and I lost about a second avoiding him, which allowed Capirossi to catch me. His bike is more powerful and I couldn’t prevent him from passing me on the back straight. The positive is that the bike’s performance improved a little, but we now need to find solutions to all the issues we had this weekend.” 18th Position “It’s been a hard weekend; even though I was not expecting much from this race, it has been a bit frustrating. I did a good start, but had absolutely no grip after only three laps, which meant I was spinning the rear tyre at every single corner. I was losing a lot of ground exiting the corners and it got worse lap by lap. I made some mistakes as well, trying to catch up on braking, but it was just impossible. Slide control was really good, and I could have had fun, but it was not efficient in terms of lap time. At the end, the tyres were ruined but I managed to finish. We don’t know what has gone wrong this weekend but, fortunately, we have two testing days to sort it out.” Kawasaki Competition Manager “Randy showed his growing maturity by riding a risk free race to pick up his first points of the season today, despite the fact that we still need to make some improvements to our Ninja ZX-RR. But, while Randy was able to salvage some points, the same wasn’t true of Olivier. We need to sit down with him and find out why he wasn’t able to match Randy’s lap times today. Kawasaki isn’t here to finish so close to the back of the field, so if there is a problem then we need to find a solution. I’m sure it was possible to leave here with a better combined result today; yes, we’ve had some problems this weekend, but whether we have the perfect package or not, we’re here to compete and we need to be going into every race 100% committed to securing the best result possible.” More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse: STONER FIFTH AFTER GREAT FIGHT BACK Ducati Marlboro Team man Casey Stoner rode a hard-fought race in front of more than 130,000 fans at Jerez today, fighting all the way to finish fifth and put himself second in the World Championship. Team-mate Loris Capirossi had a more difficult day on the occasion of his 250th GP start but salvaged some points with a 12th-place finish. Down in ninth place at mid-distance after a fraught first few laps, Stoner and his Desmosedici GP7 were the fastest combination on the track during the last part of the race as they hunted down and passed Marco Melandri, Carlos Checa and World Champion Nicky Hayden. Stoner ended the race six tenths off fourth place and just 2.3 seconds off the podium. Capirossi had a challenging two days of practice and attempts to modify his bike’s set up for this afternoon’s race didn’t work as well as he had expected. Casey Stoner, race result 5th , World Championship 2nd, 36 points “It wouldn’t have been too tough if we’d got away with them at the start but we just didn’t seem to have it there at the beginning of the race and then I got shuffled back a fair way by a few dodgy pass manoeuvres. Once we’d got our rhythm and finally got past Marco (Melandri) and Carlos (Checa) then we were free to put in some good lap times and push further forward. There were a few stupid manoeuvres out there which lost us a few seconds. The bike and the tyres were okay, so without that dodgy passes we would’ve been fighting for the podium at the end of the race but that’s the way it goes, that’s the way the race panned out. Now I’m going back to Australia for these next two weeks to train as hard as I can and get myself set for the rest of the season.” Loris Capirossi, race result 12th , World Championship 14th , 4 points “This morning we thought we had found a better set-up but the race didn’t go well. At the start something happened with the engine, I got a bad start and after… well, I didn’t ride so well. We worked on engine mapping this morning but maybe we didn’t get it right because I didn’t have great acceleration and that made things worse. I’m not happy, I had a bad race. Yes, I finished, but this is not the way I like to race. During the next few weeks we will work on a few things to make sure we start Turkey in better shape. The track conditions weren’t bad today, the tyres worked well, but maybe my riding style doesn’t perfectly suit the engine character. I’m a bit aggressive with the gas and maybe this is the problem. When we use the electronics to make the power more sweet the bike loses it competitiveness. It’s a thing I have to work on – trying to adapt my style.” More, from a press release issued by Gresini Honda: ELIAS WITHIN TOUCHING DISTANCE OF JEREZ PODIUM Gresini Honda rider Toni Elias met the huge expecations of the home fans with a stunning ride in the Grand Prix of Spain, battling for a podium position in a race won by Valentino Rossi, ahead of Dani Pedrosa and Colin Edwards. The youngster from Manresa, who celebrates his 24th birthday tomorrow, recovered important positions after making a disappointing start from the third row of the grid and charged through to fourth place in a high-paced race. As the first Bridgestone rider across the line, Elias once again showed his grit and determination. It was a real shame for his team-mate Marco Melandri, who dominated the morning warm-up but didn’t find the right feeling with his bike for the race and struggled to eighth place. Marco is now looking ahead to tomorrow’s test and to the next GP in Turkey, where he has taken victory for the past two seasons. TONI ELIAS (4th): “I’m really happy. With respect to the race in Qatar we have grown a lot and together with the team we’ve done a great job. I didn’t get a good start and in the beginning it was hard to get the tyres up to temperature. I just tried to maintain a constant pace and make up as many positions as possible. The pace of the front guys was incredible but when the others started to have problems I was able to maintain my pace and get past Stoner, Checa, Melandri and Hayden. I’m the first Bridgestone rider home so it’s a good result. We’ve worked well together and we still have some room for improvement.” MARCO MELANDRI (8th): “It’s a disappointing result at a circuit where I should have done much better. This morning we were really quick in the warm-up and I was confident but unfortunately in the race I suffered with the same problem as in Qatar – to pass people I need to brake in a really aggressive way and that takes too much out of the front tyre. Tomorrow we have a day of tests to try a few different solutions and we’ll work particularly on the forks ahead of the race in Turkey, a circuit that holds a lot of good memories for me.” More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing: DANI ON PODIUM WITH HARD-EARNED SECOND PLACE Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) won this Spanish Grand Prix from Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V) with Colin Edwards (Yamaha) third. In front of a passionate 138,000 crowd in perfect racing conditions, this race was never quite as close as the tight-fought qualifying session promised it might be. Dani hit turn one in the lead from pole with Rossi right on his rear tyre and Edwards just behind. With track temperature at 31 degrees and with a 19 degree ambient temperature the atmosphere was set for a close contest. Especially when Rossi slipped past Dani at the first hairpin to take the lead. Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC212V) was up to fourth after starting from 11th on the grid with Casey Stoner (Ducati) in fifth ahead of Carlos Checa (LCR Honda RC212V) and John Hopkins (Suzuki) in seventh ahead of Marco Melandri (Gresini Honda RC212V) and Toni Elias (Gresini Honda RC212V). Hopkins set an early race fastest lap of 1m 40.938s as he moved up to fifth place, while Stoner dropped back and Melandri charged up to seventh. Dani was hanging onto Rossi comfortably at this stage even though the Italian had set a new fastest lap on lap five. As Dani kept in touch with Rossi, Edwards dropped off the pace and by lap 11 Rossi led Dani by 0.75 seconds while the pair enjoyed a 1.1 second cushion over Edwards who led Nicky and Hopkins by 2.5 seconds. Melandri was now sixth and Elias seventh. The leaders would not switch position now until after the flag, but at mid-race distance there was still plenty of action to unfold behind the podium places. Hopkins fell while holding fourth place on lap 17. This elevated the flying Elias from fifth. Hayden had now slipped back to seventh. Dani pressed on after Rossi but the Italian was in control here. His team-mate Edwards couldn’t haul Dani any closer, but behind them Stoner had closed in on Hayden and stolen fifth from the reigning World Champion. Rossi would win by 1.2 seconds at the flag (having set a lap record of 1m 40.905s), and Edwards would cross the line 2.7 seconds behind the winner. This was a high-speed procession of a race, but one in which Dani stayed in touch at the sharp end of the overall points standings. The points table after two rounds shows Rossi in front on 45 points, Dani and Casey Stoner tied in second with 36 points each, Edwards fourth on 26 with Marco Melandri on 19 points. Dani said, “I’m very happy to be on the podium for the second race in a row and we’ve had a good weekend here at Jerez since first practice on Friday. At the beginning of the race I was trying really hard not to lose too much ground to Valentino. From the middle of the race to the end I was a little bit slower than him so I just tried to keep my focus and not make any mistakes. I feel a little bit sorry for the fans here because I really wanted to win for them. I think they enjoyed the racing today and this crowd supports everybody, not just the Spanish riders. The result is very good for the team because they have been working hard for me, so a big thanks to them.” Fourth-placed Elias said, “I’m really happy. I didn’t get a good start and in the beginning it was hard to get the tyres up to temperature. I just tried to maintain a constant pace and make up as many positions as possible. The pace of the front guys was incredible but when the others started to have problems I was able to maintain my pace and get past Stoner, Checa, Melandri and Hayden. I’m the first Bridgestone rider home so it’s a good result. We’ve worked well together and we still have some room for improvement.” Carlos Checa finished sixth and said, “The lower track temperatures today did not give me the same feeling with the rear tyre as I had in practice, but even so it feels good to finish my home race and score some points. I made a good start but I was not decisive enough on the first lap and lost some positions that cost me valuable time. I enjoyed the fight with Casey and Toni, this was the best part of the race, but when they pushed with five laps to go I did have the tyre grip to respond.” “I got a good start and the first few laps were decent'” said Nicky in seventh. “I was pushing really hard though I didn’t really have the set-up to run at that pace. It felt good to be up front and see what those boys were doing but I was taking a few chances and I probably used up my tyres too much in the first few laps trying to work my way forward. It’s a little frustrating because at the last race in Qatar we got faster as the race went on yet here it was the opposite.” Marco Melandri was eighth. He said, “It’s a disappointing result at a circuit where I should have done much better. This morning we were really quick in the warm-up and I was confident but unfortunately in the race I suffered with the same problem as in Qatar to pass people I need to brake in a really aggressive way and that takes too much out of the front tyre. Tomorrow we have a day of tests to try a few different solutions and we’ll work particularly on the forks ahead of the race in Turkey, a circuit that holds a lot of good memories for me.” Shinya Nakano (Konica Minolta Honda RC212V) finished tenth and said, “Another difficult race. I made a good start, but didn’t push so hard from the beginning, so I lost a few places. When I started to get a better feeling from the bike, I tried to push harder again but we were having some chatter problems from the front. I tried to follow other riders and hung in there and on the final lap overtook Barros for 10th. Towards the end our rhythm wasn’t so bad, but now I’m looking for more entry speed in the corner.” Kenny Roberts (Roberts KR212V) had to make do with 16th place. The American only just made it over the line and said, “I don’t know exactly what went wrong, but something happened either the chain, or the transmission. It happened suddenly, and I went sideways for about half-a-second in third gear. I was going to pull in, but I was able to make the last few laps. Up until then, I felt I had a little bit better pace than the guys in front of me, that I was saving for the last couple of laps. But I don’t think that matters now.” Jorge Lorenzo (Aprilia) won his second race of the season with a calculated victory in the 250cc class. He beat Alvaro Bautista (Aprilia) into second place and Andrea Dovizioso (Humangest Racing Honda RS250RW) was third after leading a large part of the race. Lorenzo lead off the line from pole with Dovi in close attendance. Julian Simon (Repsol Honda RS250RW) who had qualified third made a poor start and was left way behind as the leaders peeled into turn one. Within a lap a pattern had been set with Dovi out front leading Lorenzo, Hector Barbera (Aprilia) and Bautista. But on lap 16 Barbera fell at the final turn to leave just three riders dicing for the lead. The trio swapped places at least nine times on lap 22 before the final tour of this 26-lap encounter loomed. Lorenzo had established just enough of an advantage to win by 0.218 seconds. Shuhei Aoyama (Repsol Honda RS250RW) was seventh and Yuki Takahashi (Humangest Racing Honda RS250RW) eighth. The luckless Simon fell on lap 13 having clawed his way up to sixth place after a terrible start. Dovi said, “I’m very happy with my race at a track I don’t really like. My pace was good it is always very important to run at the front of the race, especially here. My problem is a lack of power against my rivals. If you stay behind the others it is very difficult in a race like today. Alvaro (Bautista) was quick in some parts of the track and I was faster in others but that helped Lorenzo get away from us. Once he had a one second lead it was always going to be very difficult for me. But I have to be happy with this result at this track.” “The crash was a shame,” Simon said, “I have to apologise to the whole team because we made a great job throughout the weekend. I made an awful start. Then I reached a group that was lapping more or less like me, although I think that I was a bit faster than them. I took the lead of the group and began to open a gap and once I had escaped I lost the front-end on the left-hander after Dry Sack and wasn’t able to avoid the crash. The team has worked brilliantly and I haven’t been able to do the same.” Aoyama said, “I made a good start and did well in the first two corners, but then the three leading riders began to push harder. I tried to be faster, but wasn’t able to keep their pace and they escaped. I tried to follow the front group, but just couldn’t. Halfway through the race and towards the end I tried to push harder, but it was so difficult. I had some problems with the suspension and tyre settings, but the problem is mine, because I haven’t been able to set them the way I like during practice.” The World Championship points table shows Lorenzo out in front after two wins on 50 points, Alex de Angelis (Aprilia) is on 33 points and Dovi lies third with 27 points. Gabor Talmacsi (Aprilia) won a very tight 125cc Grand Prix from Lukas Pesek (Derbi) with Hector Faubel (Aprilia) a distant third. Pole man Mattia Pasini (Aprilia) failed to complete the sighting lap and was forced to start from the back of the grid. Pasini then collided with Bradley Smith (Repsol Honda RS125R) as he tore through the field. Both riders managed to restart, Pasini to retire at the end of the lap with Smith eventually finishing 26th. But the fight for the win was strictly between Talmacsi and Pesek. Talmacsi led throughout the 23-laps with Pesek playing a waiting game until the final lap when he pounced on the Hungarian. But Talmacsi kept tight on Pesek and managed to draft him over the line to take the win by just one hundredth of a second. Joey Litjens (Arie Molenaar Racing Honda RS125R) finished in 21st position and was the leading Honda finisher. Talmacsi leads the World Championship with 45 points after two rounds. Faubel sits in second on 41 and Pesek in third with 36. “I made a very good start,” said Smith. “And the truth is that I was feeling quite good. I made a small mistake in turn four and the group got away. Then we got to turn six, Pasini wanted to get through the inside but when he did he crashed and threw me off. These things happen some times. Now I only have to maintain the belief that I’m able to lap with the front group, because my lap times weren’t bad.” Honda rider race quotes Spanish GP Jerez March 25, 2007. MotoGP. Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda: 2nd: “I am very happy to be on the podium for the second race in a row and we’ve had a good weekend here at Jerez since first practice on Friday. At the beginning of the race the pace became very fast and I was trying really hard not to lose too much ground to Valentino in the early laps. From the middle of the race to the end I was a little bit slower than him so I just tried to keep focussed and not make any mistakes. The bike felt good today and the Michelin tyres too, and I enjoyed the battle, even though I wasn’t able to fight for the win. I feel a little bit sorry for the fans here because I really wanted to win for them because they are very passionate. I think they enjoyed the racing today and this crowd supports everybody, not just the Spanish riders. The result is very good for the team because they have been working hard for me, so a big thanks to them.” Toni Elias, Gresini Honda: 4th: “I’m really happy. With respect to the race in Qatar we have grown a lot and together with the team we’ve done a great job. I didn’t get a good start and in the beginning it was hard to get the tyres up to temperature. I just tried to maintain a constant pace and make up as many positions as possible. The pace of the front guys was incredible but when the others started to have problems I was able to maintain my pace and get past Stoner, Checa, Melandri and Hayden. I’m the first Bridgestone rider home so it’s a good result. We’ve worked well together and we still have some room for improvement.” Carlos Checa, LCR Honda: 6th: The lower track temperatures today did not give me the same feeling with the rear tyre as I had in practice, but even so it feels good to finish my home race and score some points. I made a good start but I was not decisive enough on the first lap and lost some positions, that cost me valuable time. I enjoyed the fight with Casey and Toni, this was the best part of the race, but when they pushed with five laps to go I did have the tyre grip to respond.” Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda: 7th: “I got a good start and the first few laps were decent I was pushing really hard, though I didn’t really have the set-up to run at that pace. It felt good to be up front and see what those boys were doing but I was taking a few chances and I probably used up my tyres too much in the first few laps trying to work my way forward. It’s a little frustrating because at the last race in Qatar we got faster as the race went on yet here it was the opposite. Hopefully we can get two good days of testing and really try to make a big step before the short break. The issue is still getting the front end to turn, especially when the front tyre gets a little worn. Thanks to my team and to Michelin because those guys have been working hard and did some stuff to help me and even though the result isn’t a lot better I do feel like we made some progress this weekend and we’re going to keep fighting to get up front.” Marco Melandri, Gresini Honda: 8th: “It’s a disappointing result at a circuit where I should have done much better. This morning we were really quick in the warm-up and I was confident but unfortunately in the race I suffered with the same problem as in Qatar to pass people I need to brake in a really aggressive way and that takes too much out of the front tyre. Tomorrow we have a day of tests to try a few different solutions and we’ll work particularly on the forks ahead of the race in Turkey, a circuit that holds a lot of good memories for me.” Shinya Nakano, Konica Minolta Honda: 11th: “Another difficult race! My warm-up crash happened when I tried to carry more speed into the corner and lost the front. I made a good start in the race, but after a crash it’s not so easy to push so hard from the beginning, so I lost a few places. When I started to get a better feeling from the bike, I tried to push harder again but we were having some chattering problems from the front. I tried to follow other riders and hung in there and on the final lap overtook Barros for 10th. Towards the end our rhythm wasn’t so bad, but now I’m looking for more entry speed in the corner. Overall the engine is good and working consistently but now I just need to find a better feeling from the chassis. It’s been an up and down weekend, but the team are helping me and we will work together to solve our problems. It’s important to get these points, but as soon as we have the bike to my liking, then I will push much harder.” Kenny Roberts Jnr, KR212V: 16th: “I don’t know exactly what went wrong, but something happened either the chain, or the transmission. It happened suddenly, and I went sideways for about half-a-second in third gear. I was going to pull in, but I was able to make the last few laps. Up until then, I felt I had a little bit better pace than the guys in front of me, that I was saving for the last couple of laps. But I don’t think that matters now.” Kenny Roberts Snr Team Owner: “We don’t know exactly what happened “¦ seems there was a problem in the transmission. Whether it be the clutch, gearbox or chain, we don’t know. We’ll have to see. Until then, it was not as fast as we need to go. We have to work on more speed.” 250cc: Andrea Dovizioso, Scot Honda: 3rd: “I’m very happy with my race at a track I don’t really like. My pace was good it is always very important to run at the front of the race especially here. My main problem is a lack of power against my rivals. If you follow the leaders it is very difficult to get to the front in a race like today. Alvaro (Bautista) was fast in some parts of the track and I was faster than him in others but that helped Lorenzo get away from us. Once he had a one second lead it was always going to be very difficult for me. But I have to be happy with this result at this track.” Shuhei Aoyama, Repsol Honda: 7th: “I made a good start and did well in the first two corners, but then the three leading riders began to push harder. I tried to be faster, but wasn’t able to keep their pace and they escaped. I tried to follow the front group, but just couldn’t. Halfway the race and towards the end I tried to push harder, but it was so difficult. I had some problems with the suspension and tyre setting, but the problem is mine, because I haven’t’ been able to set them the way I like during the practices. I’ll have to improve my performance during practices.” Yukio Takahashi, Scot Honda: 8th: “I got a good start and that allowed me to stay in the second group for almost the whole race. But at themed-race point I lost contact with the rider I was following and to recover in that situation is not as simple as it seems. I made some errors while braking because of the problems with my leg. But I am satisfied because I put in a better performance in the race than in practice. I’m also happy with my fifth place in the world standings.” Ratthapark Wilairot, Thai Honda PTT-SAG: 12th: “At the start, two riders ahead of me blocked me and I couldn’t get a better line for the first corner. After that I struggled a bit to get in a good rhythm, but midway through the race I began to improve my lap times and I was able to cut the gap with the riders ahead of me. It’s a technical track and leaving with another four points is very important, it shows we’re doing a good job.” Eugene Laverty, LCR Honda: 14th: “I could have done even better without my arm problems, I was up to 12th with ten laps to go but then I had to back-off. I had to use new leathers after my crash yesterday and didn’t realise they were so tight on my forearms. I knew I had to be brave on lap one and it paid-off, this result is a great boost for me.” Julian Simon, Repsol Honda: dnf. crash: “The crash has been a shame. The truth is that I have to apologise to the whole team because we made a great job throughout the weekend. We had the bike ready to make a great race, with a good pace, but it just hasn’t been possible. I tried to keep the bike at 10,000 revs at the start, but it went too high and when I released the cutch the bike almost stalled. I made an awful start; I was one of the last to start and began to recover. Then I reached a group that was lapping more or less like me, although I think that I was a bit faster than them. I took the lead of the group and began to open a gap and once I had escaped I lost the front end on the left-hander after Dry Sack and wasn’t able to avoid the crash. The truth is that the team has behaved excellently and I haven’t been able to do the same. Fortunately I didn’t hurt myself and the collarbone is OK, which is actually the most important, so we’ll be back in the fight in Turkey 125cc. Joey Litjens, Molenaar Honda: 21st: “Things went a lot better for me than before, I easily bettered my previous best time. I got a good start and won nine places on the opening lap and was sitting in a good position in the race. It’s a pity I used too much tyre grip running in 1m 51s. If I could have run those times in practice maybe I would have chosen harder compound Dunlop tyres. But I have made a big step forward in comparison to last year I’m now very close to the top 20.” Dino Lombardi, Scot Honda: 23rd: “This was the first race for me and so I’m quite satisfied, but of course I could also get better. I made an error on the exit from a turn that slowed down me and then we found some problems with suspensions, in particular when I make the fast turns, but overall the kike was good.” Bradley Smith, Repsol Honda: 26th: “I made a very good start and the truth is that I was feeling quite well. Actually, I cannot say much about that because I was there for only one lap, but it didn’t seem as if they would be doing anything spectacular. I made a small mistake in turn 4 and the group got away. Then we got to turn six, Pasini wanted to get through the inside but when he did he crashed and threw me off. Such are races, these stupid things happen some times. Now I only have to keep the confidence that I am able to lap with them, because my lap times weren’t bad. My feelings from the beginning – as long as I’m able to make a good start – are that I’m able to be with them, so we’ll see what happens in the next race.” Danny Webb, Molenaar Honda: dnf technical problem: “My engine seized on lap 18 of the race. It happened at the short straight I felt it tighten up. Pity because even if the back end was moving about the bike was running fast. Up till then I was enjoying a good race in the same group as my team-mate (Joey Litjens).” Alexis Masbou, FFM Honda: dnf crash: “After my poor start I was able to move up the field gradually. I felt good and when I passed Cortese and Olive I could see a group of riders about 3 seconds ahead of me. My idea was to catch them, it was worth the try. That¹s when my brake problems started, they weren¹t reacting normally. I tried to modify the set-up with the adjusting screw on the bars but the feeling was always different. My opponents started to pass me on the brakes. I lost concentration, my lap times became erratic and as I was turning the adjusting screw to try and improve the brakes, the setting I dialled in was more violent than what I expected, and I lost the front. This crash is difficult to accept because the whole team did a great job throughout the week-end.” Esteve ‘Tito’ Rabat, Repsol Honda: dnf – crash: “I made a very good start and I was able to overtake a few riders in the first corner. But then I tried to brake late in turn two and touched another rider. I went straight, towards the wall and there was nothing I could do. I crashed and wasn’t able to rejoin the race. The lesson I learned from this race is that you have to start eager and strong but always keeping calm.” Mike Di Meglio, Scot Honda: dns: Di Meglio did not start the race due to injuries sustained in final qualifying. More, from a press release issued by Team Roberts: ROBERTS HITS TROUBLE IN CLOSING LAPS AT JEREZ Jerez de la Frontera, Spain – March 25, 2007: Kenny Roberts Junior finished 16th in today’s Spanish GP, one place out of the points, after dropping back from what seemed a secure top-ten finish when a transmission gremlin struck his Honda-powered KR212V machine. It happened on the 24th of 27 laps of the 4.423km Andalucian circuit, outside the sherry capital of Jerez, while the 2000 World Champion was holding a strong position in a six-strong group contesting ninth place. Roberts was feeling secure, and confident he could prevail over his immediate rivals, until the problem struck. It was a disappointing end to a weekend of solid improvement for the independent England-based team, after the difficult first race at Qatar. Roberts had started from the fourth row of the grid, and had held tenth position for the first half of the race. At that point, Alex Barros (Ducati) and then Chris Vermeulen (Suzuki) managed to sneak past. But Roberts was confident he had the pace to regain the front of the group when it mattered until trouble struck suddenly. The race, marking the start of was run in sunny but cool and breezy conditions, in front of a crowd of 132,000 fanatical Spanish fans. It was won by Valentino Rossi (Yamaha), from Dani Pedrosa (Honda) and Colin Edwards (Yamaha). The next race is the Turkish GP at Istanbul, in three weeks. KENNY ROBERTS Jr. – 16th Position I don’t know exactly what went wrong, but something happened possibly with the transmission or something. It happened suddenly, and I went sideways for about half-a-second in third gear. I was going to pull in, but I was able to make the last few laps. Up until then, I felt I had a little bit better pace than the guys in front of me, that I was saving for the last couple of laps. But I don’t think that matters now. KENNY ROBERTS Sr. – Team Owner We don’t know exactly what happened. It seems there was a problem in the transmission. Whether it be the clutch, gearbox or something else we don’t know yet. We’ll have to check into it and find the problem. Until then, it was not as fast as we need to go. We have to work on more speed.

MotoGP Warm-up Practice 1. Marco Melandri, Honda RC212V, Bridgestone, 1:41.288 2. John Hopkins, Suzuki GSV-R, Bridgestone, 1:41.295 3. Colin Edwards, Yamaha YZR-M1, Michelin, 1:41.323 4. Valentino Rossi, Yamaha YZR-M1, Michelin, 1:41.413 5. Carlos Checa, Honda RC212V, Michelin, 1:41.643 6. Nicky Hayden, Honda RC212V, Michelin, 1:41.659 7. Alex Barros, Ducati GP07, Bridgestone, 1:41.671 8. Chris Vermeulen, Suzuki GSV-R, Bridgestone, 1:41.685 9. Casey Stoner, Ducati GP07, Bridgestone, 1:41.797 10. Randy de Puniet, Kawasaki ZX-RR, Bridgestone, 1:41.914 11. Toni Elias, Honda RC212V, Bridgestone, 1:41.964 12. Loris Capirossi, Ducati GP07, Bridgestone, 1:41.973 13. Alex Hofmann, Ducati GP07, Bridgestone, 1:42.233 14. Shinya Nakano, Honda RC212V, Michelin, 1:42.389 15. Sylvain Guintoli, Yamaha YZR-M1, Dunlop, 1:42.641 16. Makoto Tamada, Yamaha YZR-M1, Dunlop, 1:42.728 17. Dani Pedrosa, Honda RC212V, Michelin, 1:42.792 18. Kousuke Akiyoshi, Suzuki GSV-R, Bridgestone, 1:42.927 19. Kenny Lee Roberts, KR212V, Michelin, 1:44.262 20. Olivier Jacque, Kawasaki ZX-RR, Bridgestone, 1:44.882 250cc Grand Prix Warm-up Practice 1. Alex de Angelis, Aprilia, 1:45.086 2. Hiroshi Aoyama, KTM, 1:45.372 3. Andrea Dovizioso, Honda, 1:45.409 4. Alvaro Bautista, Aprilia, 1:45.578 5. Alec Debon, Aprilia, 1:45.678 6. Jorge Lorenzo, Aprilia, 1:45.852 7. Marco Simoncelli, Gilera, 1:45.886 8. Julian Simon, Honda, 1:45.940 9. Shuhei Aoyama, Honda, 1:46.394 10. Mika Kallio, KTM, 1:46.434 125cc Grand Prix Warm-up Practice 1. Mattia Pasini, Aprilia, 1:48.308 2. Esteve Rabat, Honda, 1:49.486 3. Gabor Talmacsi, Aprilia, 1:49.852 4. Simone Corsi, Aprilia, 1:49.854 5. Hector Faubel, Aprilia, 1:49.914 6. Joan Olive, Aprilia, 1:49.915 7. Lukas Pesek, Derbi, 1:50.098 8. Pol Espargaro, Aprilia, 1:50.134 9. Andrea Iannone, Aprilia, 1:50.428 10. Michael Ranseder, Derbi, 1:50.486

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Gran Premio bwin.com de España Sunday 25th March Sunday Guide motogp “¢ The last six MotoGP races have been won by six different riders: Rossi, Melandri, Capirossi, Elias, Bayliss and Stoner. “¢ If a Ducati rider wins the race it will be the first time that a non-Japanese manufacturer will have won three successive races in the premier-class since MV-Agusta back in 1973/74. “¢ This is the closest top ten qualifying result ever in the premier-class, with Kenny Roberts in tenth place on the grid just 0.325 seconds slower than Dani Pedrosa on pole. “¢ The top sixteen riders on the grid have lapped faster than the lap record set in the 2005 race by Valentino Rossi. “¢ Dani Pedrosa, who finished second here last year on his debut ride in the MotoGP class, will be starting from pole for the fifth time in the premier-class. His two victories in 2006 both came after he had qualified on pole. “¢ The last time that a Spanish rider started on pole in the premier-class at Jerez was 1999 when Alex Criville was on pole and went on to win the race. “¢ Valentino Rossi has gone five races without a victory; the longest sequence of races for Rossi without a win since he took his first premier-class victory at Donington in 2000. “¢ Carlos Checa has qualified on the front row for the first time since the Portuguese GP in 2005. “¢ Colin Edwards’ best result at Jerez was a seventh place finish in 2004. “¢ A win for Casey Stoner would make him the second youngest rider ever to take back-to-back victories in the premier class after Freddie Spencer. “¢ If John Hopkins, Chris Vermeulen or Kousuke Akiyoshi finish in the top three it will be the first podium appearance at Jerez for a Suzuki rider since Roberts’ victory in 2000. “¢ Loris Capirossi is starting his 250th Grand Prix race across the three different classes. 250cc “¢ Jorge Lorenzo starts from pole for the second successive year at Jerez. Last year he went on to take his debut GP victory and if he repeats that this year he will become the first Spanish rider in the 250cc class to win his home race in successive years. “¢ Hector Barbera has finished fifth in both his previous appearances at Jerez in the 250cc class. “¢ Julian Simon has qualified on the front row in only his second start on a 250cc machine. “¢ For the first time ever in the 250cc GP class the top three places on the grid are filled by Spanish riders. “¢ Andrea Dovizioso finished third last year at Jerez after qualifying down in eleventh place on the grid. “¢ Alex de Angelis has qualified in his lowest grid position since moving to the 250cc class at the start of 2004. “¢ If Alvaro Bautista wins the race he will be the first Spanish rider to have won a Grand Prix in both the 125cc and 250cc classes at Jerez. “¢ Jerez is the only circuit at which Marco Simoncelli has had a GP victory, having won the 125cc race in both 2004 and 2005. “¢ If Thomas Luthi finishes in the top three in the race he will be the first Swiss rider to have a podium in the 250cc class since Jacques Cornu finished third at the Czech GP in 1989. 125cc “¢ With pole, Mattia Pasini repeats his qualifying performance from 2006 at Jerez when he started from pole for the first time in his GP career. Pasini has not been on pole since the French GP last year. “¢ Gabor Talmacsi’s best result at Jerez was a fifth place finish in 2005 when riding for KTM. “¢ Last year at Jerez, Lukas Pesek became the first ever Czech rider to finish on the podium in the 125cc class. “¢ Sergio Gadea’s seventh place finish last year was the first time he had scored points at the Spanish GP. “¢ If Hector Faubel wins the race he will become the fourth Spanish rider to have won three or more successive races in the 125cc GP class, joining Angel Nieto, Jorge Martinez and Alvaro Bautista. “¢ Tomoyoshi Koyama has qualified in his best grid position since he was 6th on the grid at the Australian GP in 2005. “¢ Bradley Smith is the top Honda qualifier in the 125cc class, in eleventh place on the grid.

MotoGP Qualifying Jerez de la Frontera, Spain 1. Dani Pedrosa, Honda RC212V, Michelin, 1:39.402 2. Valentino Rossi, Yamaha YZR-M1, Michelin, 1:39.453 3. Carlos Checa, Honda RC212V, Michelin, 1:39.460 4. Colin Edwards, Yamaha YZR-M1, Michelin, 1:39.486 5. Casey Stoner, Ducati GP07, Bridgestone, 1:39.524 6. John Hopkins, Suzuki GSV-R, Bridgestone, 1:39.625 7. Shinya Nakano, Honda RC212V, Michelin, 1:39.632 8. Toni Elias, Honda RC212V, Bridgestone, 1:39.660 9. Marco Melandri, Honda RC212V, Bridgestone, 1:39.722 10. Kenny Roberts, KR212V, Michelin, 1:39.727 11. Nicky Hayden, Honda RC212V, Michelin, 1:39.834 12. Randy de Puniet, Kawasaki ZX-RR, Bridgestone, 1:39.883 13. Alex Barros, Ducati GP07, Bridgestone, 1:40.196 14. Chris Vermeulen, Suzuki GSV-R, Bridgestone, 1:40.328 15. Loris Capirossi, Ducati GP07, Bridgestone, 1:40.391 16. Olivier Jacque, Kawasaki ZX-RR, Bridgestone, 1:40.405 17. Makoto Tamada, Yamaha YZR-M1, Dunlop, 1:40.617 18. Alex Hofmann, Ducati GPO7, Bridgestone, 1:40.710 19. Kousuke Akiyoshi, Suzuki GSV-R, Bridgestone, 1:41.202 20. Sylvain Guintoli, Yamaha YZR-M1, Dunlop, 1:41.219 250cc Grand Prix Qualifying 1. Jorge Lorenzo, Aprilia, 1:43.099 2. Hector Barbera, Aprilia, 1:43.383 3. Julian Simon, Honda, 1:43.707 4. Andrea Dovizioso, Honda, 1:43.764 5. Alvaro Bautista, Aprilia, 1:43.955 6. Marco Simoncelli, Gilera, 1:44.096 7. Roberto Locatelli, Gilera, 1:44.116 8. Shuhei Aoyama, Honda, 1:44.174 9. Alex Debon, Aprilia, 1:44.185 10. Thomas Luthi, Aprilia, 1:44.200 125cc Grand Prix Qualifying 1. Mattia Pasini, Aprilia, 1:47.245 2. Gabor Talmacsi, Aprilia, 1:47.483 3. Lukas Pesek, Derbi, 1:47.485 4. Sergio Gadea, Aprilia, 1:47.670 5. Hector Faubel, Aprilia, 1:47.727 6. Tomoyoshi Koyama, KTM, 1:47.791 7. Pol Espargaro, KTM, 1:48.030 8. Simone Corsi, Aprilia, 1:48.115 9. Pablo Nieto, Aprilia, 1:48.153 10. Sando Cortese, Aprilia, 1:48.435 More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse: Saturday Mar 24 2007 Jerez GP – Qualifying STORMING STONER JUST 0.1 SECONDS OFF POLE IN CLOSEST TOP TEN EVER Ducati Marlboro Team man Casey Stoner rode a superb qualifying session at Jerez today to take a second-row start just 0.122 seconds off pole position. Team-mate Loris Capirossi had a tougher day, with 15th fastest time, still less than a second off pole. World Championship leader Stoner made the running on race tyres this afternoon, leading the first 40 minutes, then twice returned to pole on his two runs with qualifying tyres before slipping to an ultra-close fifth quickest. Just 0.325 seconds cover the top ten riders, the closest top ten in premier-class history. Capirossi, winner here last year, will make some big changes for morning warm-up to improve his chances in the race. Tomorrow’s Spanish GP will be his 250th GP start. The Italian made his GP debut at Suzuka, Japan, exactly 17 years ago on March 25 1990. Casey Stoner, 5th fastest, 1m 39.524s “This morning we were struggling with a few set-up problems, we seemed to go backward with the turning and the grip. So we looked over everything, saw what we needed and came up with a good package before the afternoon session. We hadn’t been able to find a good feeling with the second bike, so we swapped the forks out of the first bike and that seemed to solve the problem. Straight away I felt comfortable, we made a couple more changes during the session and our race pace is looking very good. I’m not sure if the problem was in my head or in the forks! I don’t know which bike we’ll race, both have performed pretty well. We found out what race tyre we wanted in the last session and if it’s around this temperature tomorrow we’re going to be pretty happy. Qatar worked out perfectly and this weekend could do the same but we’ve got to be realistic because there’s going to be a lot more riders up front in this race. As you saw last year the first turn can be a bit rough here, I think I went from 15th to fifth, you never know what can happen at this track.” Loris Capirossi, 15th fastest, 1m 40.391s “We started the qualifying session quite well, I was soon faster on race tyres. But then I took two big risks and nearly lost the front, and given that the crash I had in Qatar was because I lost the front, and we still don’t know why, I lost a bit confidence in the front. We tried to make some small set-up changes, but with no success, so we have decided to make quite a drastic change for morning warm-up, trying to put more weight on the front. Anyway, our race rhythm isn’t so bad. We are all very, very close and in the race the situation is always different from practice. We have to get the maximum from the warm-up and to try to do our best in the race.” More, from a press release issued by Bridgestone: Stoner, Hopkins Secure Second Row in Spain Round 02 – Jerez Qualifying Circuit de Jerez, Spain Saturday 24 March 2007 Ducati’s Casey Stoner and Suzuki’s John Hopkins have secured strong second row grid slots for tomorrow afternoon’s Spanish Grand Prix after a fiercely competitive MotoGP field saw the top twelve riders separated by less than half-a-second. Qatar GP winner Stoner was just 0.122s from Dani Pedrosa’s pole-setting time but the Australian was ultimately forced to settle for fifth place after some last-gasp efforts from other riders. A mere 0.1s adrift of the Ducati was Suzuki’s John Hopkins who had to settle for a competitive sixth place after another solid qualifying showing from the Anglo-American. Honda Gresini duo Toni Elias and Marco Melandri have shown promising race pace on their Bridgestone tyres this weekend and will look to make their way up the order from 8th and 9th places on the grid respectively. Ensuring that all four manufacturers on Bridgestone tyres are represented within the top twelve for the second consecutive GP, Kawasaki’s Randy de Puniet took 12th position. After some difficulties with qualifying tyre performance over the winter and at the pre-season IRTA test in Jerez, the reduced gap to the front runners in this afternoon’s session gives Bridgestone cause for optimism even if the final grid results do not truly reflect the increased competitiveness of its qualifying rubber against its rivals. Bridgestone will now carry out further development work on its qualifying tyres during a two-day test in Jerez on Monday and Tuesday. Tyre Talk with Shinji Aoki Bridgestone Motorsport Assistant Manager Motorcycle Race Tyre Development Q: Were you pleased with the outcome of qualifying in Jerez this afternoon? A: “On the one hand, I am pleased that our qualifying tyres have measured up against our rivals in terms of lap time and that the gap to the pole time has been significantly reduced following the pre-season Jerez test. However, the end results effectively masked the competitiveness of our qualifying tyres because of the compact nature of the grid. With the top five separated by just 0.1s, it was hundredths-of-a-second that made the difference between pole position and second row.” Q: How do you expect Bridgestone’s selection of race tyres to perform tomorrow? A: “We were able to do some long run tests in today’s practice sessions and we did not experience any major problems. We evaluated both soft and medium compounds over 20 laps or so and based on the results, we believe that we are ready to race with either option. So far, it would seem that tyre wear over a full 27 lap race distance will be crucial and the battle for podium places will be between those riders who can lap consistently in the low-mid 1m41s. That said, the final race tyre selection will be quite dependent on the weather because the current forecast is for cooler, cloudier conditions than we have experienced today.” Riding Perspective – Casey Stoner Ducati 5th Place “We have struggled a bit to get the rear tyre to work at a hundred percent and we have experienced some spinning, but this afternoon we have found an almost perfect setting to get the bike and Bridgestone tyres to work well. We only missed out on pole by a tenth and if I had pushed a little more we would have had it, but I’m happy. After last year everything is already working much better and I am very confident for the race. I am sure we can last the distance.” Bridgestone Qualifying Practice Session Results Pos Rider Team Best Lap Gap P5 Casey Stoner Ducati 1m39.524s +0.122s P6 John Hopkins Suzuki 1m39.625s +0.223s P8 Toni Elias Honda Gresini 1m39.660s +0.258s P9 Marco Melandri Honda Gresini 1m39.722s +0.320s P12 Randy de Puniet Kawasaki 1m39.883s +0.481s P13 Alex Barros Pramac D’Antin 1m40.196s +0.794s P14 Chris Vermeulen Suzuki 1m40.328s +0.926s P15 Loris Capirossi Ducati 1m40.391s +0.989s P16 Olivier Jacque Kawasaki 1m40.405s +1.003s P18 Alex Hofmann Pramac D’Antin 1m40.710s +1.308s P19 Kousuke Akiyoshi Suzuki 1m41.202s +1.800s More, from a press release issued by Fiat Yamaha: Event: Grand Prix of Spain – Qualifying Date: Saturday, 24th March 2007 Ambient temperature: 24 degrees C Track temperature: 40 degrees C Humidity: 13% FRONT-ROW START FOR ROSSI IN JEREZ AS EDWARDS JUST MISSES OUT Valentino Rossi will start from second position for tomorrow’s Grand Prix of Spain in Jerez after an exciting and extremely close qualifying battle today, while his team-mate Colin Edwards will be just behind him in fourth having lost out on third position in the dying moments of the session. It is Rossi’s eighth consecutive top-three start for Yamaha, the Italian having started from the front row in the final six races of 2006 and at this season’s opener in Qatar. After struggling for grip once again this morning and finishing free practice way down the order in 18th position, it was clear from the start this afternoon that warmer temperatures and the latest changes made to the setting of his M1 had improved Rossi’s package and he quickly posted his fastest time of the weekend so far. Edwards and his crew had made drastic changes to his bike setting overnight and he too showed a marked improvement to his race pace both this morning and again this afternoon, as he and Rossi used the improved track conditions in their quest to find the right tyre package ahead of tomorrow’s 27-lap race. With eight minutes to go Rossi moved into pole position with the first of his two Michelin qualifying tyres, only to be ousted by his team-mate less than a minute later as the Texan set his first flying lap. The last five minutes saw the usual flurry of quick laps and position-changing amongst the leading protagonists before Rossi took the top slot once again with a lap of 1’39.453, before being pushed into second by Spaniard Dani Pedrosa (Honda), who set the eventual pole time of 1’39.402. Edwards’ final lap seemed sure to give him a front-row slot alongside his team-mate but he fell victim to another local favourite as Carlos Checa (Honda) claimed third in the last seconds of the session. Valentino Rossi Position: 2nd Time: 1’39.453 Laps: 26 “It’s been an up and down weekend for us so it’s good that we’ve achieved our number one goal of getting onto the front row. It’s going to be very important for tomorrow’s race I think. It was a good qualifying session and my lap was quite good, but we know it’s possible to be a lot quicker because last month at the test I was more than one second faster! We knew it would be difficult to match the 1’38.394 I did then however, because then we had four qualifying tyres and with the new tyre restrictions now we only have two. With the race tyre we were struggling quite a bit yesterday and this morning it was even worse, so we were a bit worried, but we looked at the situation together with Michelin and found a good solution and this afternoon we were in much better shape. I think tyres are going to be the biggest issue tomorrow and the last ten laps especially are going to be very hard and difficult for everyone. I think it’s going to be an exciting race for the fans!” Colin Edwards Position: 4th Time: 1’39.486 Laps: 28 “I’m pretty annoyed to have missed out on the front row by so little! I didn’t have quite enough speed into turn one with my last qualifying tyre and so lost a little bit of time in the first section and that proved to be the difference that mattered. Anyway, you live and learn! We were a bit worried last night but my team turned the bike upside down overnight and it felt much better this morning. Then this afternoon we used the tyre we’re planning to use for the race and things improved again, so I’m feeling quite happy about my race pace now. We’ve still got a few things to tweak and a couple of decisions to make before tomorrow afternoon but we’re more or less there so hopefully we’re going to be able to get a good start and run a good race. It was pretty close today and everyone’s really stepped up their game, I think it’s going to be one hell of a race tomorrow! Finally I want to say thank you again to my team for working so hard last night to come up with a good setting – they did a great job.” Davide Brivio Fiat Yamaha Team Team Director “Well things are much better when it’s warmer! This afternoon we could really work properly and get some proper testing done. In fact Colin was much better this morning and again this afternoon, he seems happy with his tyre choice now so I think he can do a good race tomorrow. Valentino had some troubles this morning but we found a good solution and this afternoon the situation was more normal. It was a shame Checa pushed Colin off the front row and we missed having them both there, like in Qatar, but anyway second and fourth is not so bad and I think they both have the pace to fight at the front now. We’re in a good position for the race.” More, from a press release issued by Gresini Racing: JUST TWO TENTHS OFF POLE The Grand Prix of Spain looks as though it could be one of the closest of the season after a host of riders staked their claim for a podium place today. The MotoGP Qualifying Practice session saw an incredible number of riders taking their turn at the top of the time sheets, with ten of them inside three tenths of pole at the end. The front row is headed by Dani Pedrosa (Honda), closely followed by Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) and Carlos Checa (Honda). Toni Elias was just two tenths of a second off pole time, qualifying in eithth place (1’39″660), whilst Marco Melandri was just another tenth behind (1’39″722) and is one position further back on the outside of the third row. The Team Gresini Honda riders worked hard on their preparations for the race and are satisfied with their pace, their grid positions not really a true reflection of their potential. Tomorrow both Melandri and Elias are confident of making up positions early in the race with a good start. TONI ELIAS (8th ,1’39″660): “I’m happy because we are continuing to improve. We are only two tenths off pole but I can’t say I’m satisfied with eighth position. Today we worked well and my race pace is quite good. Tomorrow I just hope to get a good start and recover some important positions. The fans at Jerez are amazing and I’m sure they’ll give me plenty of support.” MARCO MELANDRI (9th, 1’39″722): “I’m happy with the bike. This morning we had a good endurance test with the bike in race setting and I’m confident. We’re getting much better with a qualifying tyre and I was able to get a good lap in with the first one. I was confident because there was still room for improvement. With the second tyre I pushed a bit too hard and the tyre went off. I made a mistake in the final corner which cost me the few tenths of a second that mean I’m now on the outside of the third row. Physically I feel better – the fever has passed although I am still a little blocked up and it’s hard to breathe.” More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki: JEREZ PROVES CHALLENGING FOR KAWASAKI Kawasaki’s Randy de Puniet was disappointed to end today’s qualifying session ahead of tomorrow’s Spanish Grand Prix in twelfth position, despite lapping less than half-a-second off the pole position time set by Honda’s Dani Pedrosa. While de Puniet will start tomorrow’s 27-lap race from the fourth row of the grid, his Kawasaki teammate, Olivier Jacque, is facing a much tougher challenge, as he tries to make up places from the sixth row of the grid, after finishing today’s hour-long timed session in 16th position. Subtle adjustments to the chassis and suspension set-up of de Puniet’s Ninja ZX-RR during today’s practice and qualifying periods led to a slight improvement in rear traction, with the Kawasaki pilot lapping consistently on race tyres before switching to the first of his three qualifying tyres halfway through this afternoon’s timed session. His first run saw him top the timesheet for a short time, with Jacque just behind in second place, but de Puniet soon found himself demoted to 12th position on the grid as his MotoGP rivals also switched from race tyres to soft qualifying rubber as the end of the session approached. De Puniet will approach tomorrow’s Spanish Grand Prix in the same way as always, aiming to get a good start and then trying to stay in contact with the leading group of riders for as long as possible. Tyre life will be critical in tomorrow’s race, and the 26-year-old Frenchman will be looking to use the consistency of his Bridgestone tyres to maximum effect should any of his rivals start to suffer with tyre wear towards the end of the 27 laps. Olivier Jacque was disappointed not to have made the same level of improvement today as his teammate. The 33-year-old Kawasaki rider worked his way through a number of different chassis and suspension set-up options today, but was unable to significantly improve his feeling on the Ninja ZX-RR. Despite a rise in track temperature increasing available grip in the afternoon, Jacque was still complaining of a lack of confidence in the front end of his Ninja ZX-RR as the end of the timed session approached, leaving him with no option but to switch to qualifying tyres and simply ride the bike as best as he could. Struggling to get the bike turned around the tight and technical Jerez circuit, Jacque was unable to take full advantage of his qualifying tyres and eventually had to settle for 16th position on the grid for tomorrow’s Spanish Grand Prix. The qualifying performance of both riders fell short of the targets set by Kawasaki’s Racing Director, Ichiro Yoda, but the Japanese engineer had nothing but praise for de Puniet and Jacque, as they were forced to overcome handling problems that were absent during the IRTA test at Jerez just one month ago. Both Kawasaki riders will be aiming to further improve their race set-up during morning warm-up tomorrow. Randy de Puniet 12th – 50 Laps – Best Lap 1’39.883 “Compared with yesterday, this morning I felt better riding the bike and I improved my lap times on race tyres in the afternoon. With the changes done, we reduced a little the rear tyre sliding but it is not enough. I don’t feel yet at 100% but I hope to make the last adjustments tomorrow morning. With the qualifying tyres I improved my lap times with every set that I used. Finally I did the same lap time that I did here one month ago at the IRTA test, but today I have qualified twelfth. If I do a good start tomorrow, I think that a top ten position is still possible.” Olivier Jacque 16th 43 Laps Best Lap 1’40.405 “We worked hard this morning but things seemed not to change at all compared to yesterday; it was a little bit frustrating. However, things went a little bit better in the afternoon, although I don’t like the way the bike is working on the track. We don’t have enough rear grip; I fight to make the bike turn and I can’t keep the speed in the corner. The bike is controllable but not efficient. I improved my lap times and I felt more comfortable with the qualifying tyres than I was in Qatar, but I couldn’t do it better.” Ichiro Yoda Kawasaki Racing Director “This is not the position in which we expected to be, but after two days of practice and qualifying sessions, in which we suffered some problems that we weren’t expecting, we discovered some areas that need to be improved both in chassis and engine. Both riders have done a good job, but we need to improve three or four tenths making the power delivery friendlier and working in other areas to improve rear tyre grip. We have found some directions to follow for Monday’s test, as we have almost dismissed this race. Our hopes are not really high, though we expect our riders to finish the race and do it in the points.” More, from a press release issued by Dorna Sports: Pedrosa takes home pole in historic qualifying Gran Premio bwin.com de España Saturday 24th March Report Day 2 motogp Dani Pedrosa will start tomorrow’s Gran Premio bwin.com de España from pole position, after a blistering qualifying session at his home race. The Repsol Honda rider laid down a record breaking lap at the Circuito de Jerez to take his first top spot of the season, driving the tens of thousands of fans gathered at the Spanish track wild with delight. The session created the closest ever top ten in MotoGP history. Pedrosa traded the fastest time honours with Valentino Rossi, and the two will start alongside each other on the front row at a race in which they are predicted to fight for the win all the way. The two were the quickest at last month’s Official MotoGP Test, with Rossi emerging as the victor in a 40 minute shootout on that occasion, however this time they will do battle over 27 laps. The pole-setting 1’39.402 lap from the 21 year old was just five hundredths of a second quicker than that of the five-time World Champion, with Carlos Checa just seven thousandths behind him. Checa has been on great form all week at his home track, and will start tomorrow from the front row after a long absence from the leading three. Colin Edwards, Casey Stoner and John Hopkins, who on any other day might have taken pole with their jaw-dropping times, will follow the leading three from row two. Shinya Nakano picked up his pace to take seventh, ahead of Gresini Honda duo Toni Elias and Marco Melandri and Kenny Roberts Jr. 250cc Reigning 250cc World Champion was at his dominant best in qualifying for tomorrow’s race at the Circuito de Jerez. The Spanish star led the way this afternoon, quicker than arch-rival Hector Barbera at the track where the factory Aprilia rider took his first quarter litre victory last year, to put himself in a prime position to repeat his 2006 triumph. The ex-teammates have had their run-ins in the past, and tempers were flaring on track with a number of angry gestures between the compatriots. Lorenzo and Barbera will lock horns tomorrow on the front row for the Gran Premio bwin.com de España, with fellow Spaniard Julian Simon and 2006 World Championship runner-up Andrea Dovizioso all looking to take the holeshot when the red light goes out. Reigning 125cc World Champion Alvaro Bautista, a non-finisher in Qatar two weeks ago, heads row two, followed by Marco Simoncelli, Shuhei Aoyama and Thomas Luthi. Alex de Angelis suffered a small accident at low speed in the afternoon session, and will be disappointed to only start from 13th tomorrow. The paddock awaits news of the condition of 250cc rider Roberto Locatelli, who suffered an horrific crash in this morning’s practice session and remains in hospital at nearby Cadiz. The full extent of the popular veteran’s injuries are not yet known. 125cc Mattia Pasini will start tomorrow’s 125cc Grand Prix from pole position, ahead of a number of his rivals for the lower cylinder category title. The Italian’s 1’47.245 lap was enough to edge out Gabor Talmacsi, the poleman two weeks ago in Qatar. Talmacsi once again edged out the rider below him on the timesheets, with Lukas Pesek this time missing out on the second spot. The Derbi rider was just two thousandths of a second off Talmacsi’s time, lining up on the front row alongside home rider Sergio Gadea. Hector Faubel, Tomoyoshi Koyama, Pol Espargaro and Simone Corsi round off the top eight all separated by less than a second. British rider Bradley Smith was the fastest Honda of the session, leading the way for the Japanese factory in eleventh. Red Bull Rookies A Spanish rider will be on pole for the first ever Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup race tomorrow afternoon, as Luis Salom will start the event for young talent ahead of Johann Zurco and Lorenzo Savadori. British riders Jamie Mossey and Matthew Hoyle join Swede Robert Gull in the top six. The Gran Premio bwin.com de España begins tomorrow at 11am local time, with the MotoGP race taking place at 2pm. Fans are reminded that clocks go forward one hour tonight in Spain, where time will then be GMT +2. More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing: Final qualifying Spanish GP Jerez, March 24, 2007 Saturday March 24, 2007 DANI TAKES A FIRM GRIP IN SPAIN WITH ‘HOME’ POLE The MotoGP class served up a typically hard-fought hour of qualifying with Spanish sensation Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V) powering to pole here in Jerez. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) qualified second fastest with another Spanish star Carlos Checa (LCR Honda RC212V) completing the front row. With the 4.423km track notoriously sensitive to temperature changes, grip was not at the level provided during tests here earlier in the month when times were well up on last year’s. Dani’s pole time is 0.388 seconds slower than Loris Capirossi’s 2006 pole mark of 1m 39.064 seconds. The track surface was at 24 degrees C, ambient temperature at 40 degrees C as the 800cc machines began the hour. Casey Stoner (Ducati) got things moving with a swift early lap of 1m 40.903 to head the timesheet until the halfway point. Rossi and yesterday’s quick-man Checa lay second and third fastest. Dani, who had been parked in 13th spot opened the real attempts at pole with a 1m 40.899s time to grab the number one slot with 26 minutes gone. Rossi then responded by firing his machine to the second fastest time before the Kawasaki team launched Randy de Puniet out of pit lane with a qualifying tyre on for the Frenchman to put in a 1m 40.523s lap to take pole from Dani. His team-mate Olivier Jacque slotted into a provisional second place before the bulk of the field began to pit for qualifiers with 15 minutes of the hour remaining. With 12 minutes left Stoner sped to a 1m 39.940s lap good enough for pole but only for now. John Hopkins (Suzuki) snatched second spot with Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC212V) now temporarily third fastest. With ten minutes left on the clock things got serious with Marco Melandri (Gresini Honda RC212V) rocketing to second and then Rossi grabbing pole with a 1m 39.765s time. Then Colin Edwards (Yamaha) put in a 1m 39.765s lap to head the proceedings and it seemed many men had the speed to figure at the front of the rankings. With five minutes left on the clock, the order was Edwards, Rossi, Melandri, Stoner, Pedrosa and Hayden. But Qatar winner Stoner had some more speed left to dial in a 1m 39.524s lap and go pole again. Then Rossi intervened with a 1m 39.453s time and as Hayden shot to fourth and Hopkins to third, Dani was on a hot lap”¦ The clock stopped at 1m 39.402 seconds and try as the rest of the grid might, no one had the legs on the homeboy. It’s a significant pole for Dani and with Rossi second fastest and Checa completing the front row the race promises to be a firecracker of a contest. Just 1.003 seconds covers the first 16 riders. It is also the closest the top ten riders have been on a grid in the entire history of the premier class. Dani said, “The race set-up we have for the bike is quite good and the tyre choice looks OK as well so we’ll have to see how their performance continues over the race distance. The times are very close so a good start will be very important tomorrow. The crowd was amazing today. On the last lap coming into the pits I was more relaxed and I could actually notice how many people there were. It’s great for the Spanish riders and the others to have so much support and I think the atmosphere tomorrow will be very special.” Checa said, “This front row is a very good feeling, especially for my home race. Predictions are difficult but if the weather and track are the same for the race as in practice, then we have a very good set-up, and a chance to fight for the podium. The LCR team has done a great job, especially to give me more confidence with the front-end. And until today I have struggled with a lot of chatter on the soft rear qualifying tyre but, with the support of Michelin, we have made a lot of progress in this area.” Shinya Nakano, seventh fastest on row three, said, “That was so much better than yesterday! Overnight the team explained what my problem has been. I think that maybe I was pushing too hard in some areas. From the data and by following some of the top guys I could see that something was missing from my technique with this new 800cc bike. I was losing a little confidence, but then I could see that I was entering the corners way too fast and then as a result I could not get on the throttle early enough. As soon as I stopped trying so hard and relaxed a little the times improved.” Toni Elias (Gresini Honda RC212V) qualified eighth quickest and said, “I’m happy to confirm the improvements we made. And I’m happy with the lap time, only two-tenths of a second off pole, but not happy with my grid position on the third row. Our target was the first or second row so I have to make a good start and follow the front guys but that depends on the rhythm they set. My pace is quite good but I’m not sure how fast the race pace will be.” “I’m very happy with the bike,” said his team-mate Melandri in eighth. “This morning we made a long run on race set-up, about 13 laps, and I was quite fast. With the qualifying tyres we made a big step forward from Qatar and the IRTA test. The first qualifying tyre was good and I was confident I would improve my performance with the second qualifying tyre but I used up too much rubber too quickly and lost time at the last corner where I didn’t have enough grip. Tomorrow’s race will be between a few riders not just Pedrosa and Rossi.” Kenny Roberts (Roberts KR212V), whose team has now acquired three new sponsors, managed ninth for a third row start. The American former World Champion said, “We’re three tenths off pole, and on the fourth row! It could have been worse, but I’m proud of the guys. And we’re better off than we were in Qatar. At least we were able to shine when everything was right on Friday. We have to keep plugging away and hopefully the sponsorship stuff kicks in. Everything looks good and the bike looks fine. I think it’s going the right direction.” Reigning World Champion Hayden is having a troubled start to his title defence. He qualified 11th fastest and said, “We’ve made some improvements with the bike today and the feeling is pretty good. I wasn’t totally satisfied with my qualifying laps and of course I’m definitely a little disappointed with my grid position 0.4s doesn’t sound like a long way off but right now in this league at this track it’s a lot. It’s frustrating to be this far back especially knowing how tight it could be on the first lap you’ve got to be smart in turn one, but you can’t go in there tip-toeing either.” In the 250cc class Honda battler Andrea Dovizioso (Humangest Racing Honda RS250RW) hauled himself onto the front row of the grid as fourth fastest man behind Jorge Lorenzo on pole, Hector Barbera (Aprilia) second fastest and speedy 125cc graduate Julian Simon (Repsol Honda RS250RW) third fastest. The two Honda men are just over half a second off the pole time and should be well in contention tomorrow if they can get off the line in close contact with their Aprilia rivals. Shuhei Aoyama (Repsol Honda RS250RW) qualified eighth fastest for a second row start. An injured Simon, after a qualifying tumble, said, “The team has made a great job. I have to thank them for what they’ve done both in Qatar and here, because they have taken care of me and have been trying to help me to ease the pain of my collarbone on the bike. And we are managing to do so. The main target for tomorrow is finishing the race and withstanding the pain, because despite the good results in practice the race may be very hard for my shoulder.” Dovi said, “I had many problems all day today in practice and qualifying always setting around 10th best time. Then on the last lap my time was good enough for fourth place that was a big surprise to me. The truth is I am not in good shape here, the front-end is not as good as I need it to be and I have a little problem finding traction. This has probably got a lot to do with me not liking this track too much.” Mattia Pasini (Aprilia) secured pole in the 125cc class. The Italian rider was fastest in yesterday’s session and today he turned in a best lap of 1m 47.245s to head the field in qualifying. Gabor Talmacsi (Aprilia) qualified second fastest with Lukas Pesek (Derbi) third on the grid and Sergio Gadea (Aprilia) completing the front row. Bradley Smith (Repsol Honda RS125R) is the best Honda qualifier in 11th, with Alex Masbou (FFM Racing Honda RS125R) 16th fastest, Esteve Rabat (Repsol Honda RS125R) lining up as 19th fastest rider and Mike di Meglio (Humangest Honda RS125R) qualifying 20th despite a huge crash in the final five minutes of the session today. He broke a collarbone however and will not ride tomorrow. Smith said, “My feeling with the bike is good, even on a cold track I set good times. In the afternoon I could have been better but it’s OK. The track conditions were not so good in qualifying as before and I’m not quick enough to adjust to changing conditions yet. I’m on the third row, like at Qatar, but I hope for a better start here than I got there.” Honda riders quotes: MotoGP. Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda: 1st: “I think we did a good job and I’m very happy to have qualified on pole position of course, though the really important thing is to be on the front row that was our main aim today. The race set-up we have for the bike is quite good and the tyre choice looks ok as well so we’ll have to see how their performance continues over the race distance. I don’t think there’s any extra pressure that comes from being on pole position but the times are very close so a good start will be very important tomorrow. The crowd was amazing today. On the last lap coming into the pits I was more relaxed and I could actually notice how many people there were. It’s great for the Spanish riders and the others to have so much support and I think the atmosphere tomorrow will be very special. I hope I can make a great start and fight for the win.” Carlos Checa, LCR Honda: 3rd: “This front row is a very good feeling, especially for my home race. Predictions are difficult but if the weather and track are the same for the race as in practice, then we have a very good set-up, and a chance to fight for the podium. The LCR team has done a great job, especially to give me more confidence with the front-end. And until today I have struggled with a lot of chatter on the soft rear qualifying tyre but, with the support of Michelin, we have made a lot of progress in this area. ” Shinya Nakano, Konica Minolta Honda: 7th: “That was so much better than yesterday! Overnight the team explained what my problem has been. I think that maybe I was pushing too hard in some areas. From the data and by following some of the top guys I could see that something was missing from my technique with this new 800cc bike. I was losing a little confidence, but then I could see that I was entering the corners way too fast and then as a result I could not get on the throttle early enough. As soon as I stopped trying so hard and relaxed a little the times improved. From seventh on the grid the start will be so important and if I make a start like I’ve made during practice then we should be able to get away with the top riders. Race pace will be low 1m 41s I think, so maybe I need to improve by a couple of tenths. I want to have a good race as my father is over from Japan to watch me!” Toni Elias, Gresini Honda: 8th: “I’m happy to confirm the improvements we made. Happy with the lap time, only two-tenths of a second off pole but not happy with my grid position on the third row. Our target was the first or second row so I have to make a good start and follow the front guys but that depends on the rhythm they set. My pace is quite good but I’m not sure how fast the race pace will be. We are still improving and working hard with Bridgestone and we are confident we will improve at the next races.” Marco Melandri, Gresini Honda: 9th: “I’m very happy with the bike. This morning we made a long run on race set up, about 13 laps, and I was quite fast. With the qualifying tyres we made a big step forward from Qatar and the IRTA test. With the first qualifying tyre I was good and I was confident that I would improve performance with the second qualifying tyre but I used up too much tyre too quickly and lost time at the last corner where I didn’t have enough grip. Tomorrow the race will be between a few riders not just Pedrosa and Rossi. The only problem will be in the warm up. With the clocks going back it will be like 8.45 and the bike will feel very different in the race! I’m not 100% fit yet my fever is less than this morning but I am still having trouble breathing.” Kenny Roberts Jnr, KR212V: 10th: “That was more difficult than it looked. We’re at 100 percent capacity within our group, but sometimes we don’t have enough manpower to pick up on things. We think there was an error made going into qualifying with the rear suspension. According to the computer, it wasn’t sitting where it should. The guys picked up on it halfway through the session, but I was already on my good tyre and had already done everything up until qualifying at that point. They made an adjustment, and I was able to do one lap, and it felt like it was in the right position, so then we just jumped right into qualifying. “I shouldn’t be in this position after what we were able to do Friday, but everybody in this garage is trying 100 percent. We’re three tenths off pole, and on the fourth row! It could have been worse, but I’m proud of the guys. And we’re better off than we were in Qatar. At least we were able to shine when everything was right on Friday. We have to keep plugging away and hopefully the sponsorship stuff kicks in. Everything looks good the bike looks fine. I think it’s going the right direction.” Kenny Roberts Sr: Team Owner: “We’re living up to our sponsor in Las Vegas, sometimes you win, sometime’s you lose. We were fourth, until the last splits. But with 15 guys within one second, it doesn’t take much to change your place. All in all, after Qatar, we’re back in touch.” Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda: 11th: “We’ve made some improvements with the bike today and the feeling is pretty good. I’m wasn’t totally satisfied with my qualifying laps and of course I’m definitely a little disappointed with my grid position 0.4s doesn’t sound like a long way off but right now in this league at this track it’s a lot. It’s frustrating to be this far back especially knowing how tight it could be on the first lap you’ve got to be smart in turn one, but you can’t go in there tip-toeing either. Nonetheless I’ll be trying to get an awesome start and ride hard for 27 laps and try to move forward. I’m due for a good start so I’ll be banking on that tomorrow. I haven’t got any excuses on the qualifying laps I didn’t hit traffic though the last laps I didn’t get perfect. “ 250cc: Julian Simon, Repsol Honda: 3rd: “The practices have been good so far. The team has made a great job. I have to thank them for what they’ve done both in Qatar and here, because they have taken care of me and have been trying to help me to ease the pain of my collarbone on the bike. And we are managing to do so. The main target for tomorrow is finishing the race and standing the pain, because despite the good results of the practices the race may be very hard for my shoulder. But I’m motivated with the third place and I hope to be in the leading group tomorrow just like during the practices and finish the race the best I can.” Andrea Dovizioso, Scot Honda: 4th: “I had many problems all day today in practice and qualifying always setting around 10th best time. Then on the last lap my time was good enough for fourth place — that was a big surprise to me. The truth is I am not in good shape here, the front end is not as good as I need it to be and I have a little problem with finding traction. This has pobably got a lot to do with me not liking this track too much.” Shuhei Aoyama, Repsol Honda: 8th: “It’s not been very good. The settings of the bike and the engine were the same as yesterday and the feelings were also the same, but I haven’t been able to improve my laptimes. I think that the problem is my riding style. We will work with the telemetry this evening to see if we can see were we can improve looking at the data. As regards the tyres, we’ll have to see tomorrow’s weather conditions to decide which tyre will fit best. “ Yukio Takahashi, Scot Honda: 15th: “Compared to Qatar Jerez is hard work for me. My right foot has little feeling and when it touches the track I don’t always feel it. Today I tried to change my riding style a little to help. Usually I square off some of the corners at this track but now I am running smooth lines through the turns to help improve my feeling on the bike.” Ratthapark, Wilairot, Thai Honda PTT-SAG: 19th: “I’m satisfied with today’s result as I was convinced I could dip under the 1m 46s mark. The session was a bit more complicated than usual as we had some problems with the carburettor, but the team was able to solve the issue promptly. On my last run I was able to make significant progress. The set-up of the bike for the race is quite good; my goal is to improve every day and tomorrow I will try to get into the point-scoring positions.” Eugene Laverty, LCR Honda: 25th: “This morning’s crash was a big highside between turns three and four, I just made a silly mistake. I improved my times this afternoon but I still have a problem with rear end grip, I know I can do better.” 125cc. Bradley Smith, Repsol Honda: 11th: “My lap time and my feelings are better. This morning was positive; we managed to be quite fast despite the cold. I might have done better in the afternoon, but I’m happy. It’s true that I’m a bit further away from the front row than expected, but the track conditions weren’t as good as before. I’ll be starting from the third row tomorrow, like in Qatar, and I really hope to make a better start, to be able to stay with the other riders. Let’s see if I manage to set a good pace and stay in the group and make a good race.” Alexis Masbou, FFM Honda:16th: “I’m fairly disappointed for this first European Grand Prix because my first day of practice was very positive after I managed to qualify tenth. But today, in the closing stages of the session we didn’t anticipate enough on our tyre choice. I’m finally 16th on the grid after qualifying 15th for the seasons opening race in Qatar, but here the lap times are closer. It’s going to be tough tomorrow. Tonight we will keep working on the chassis set-up in order to further improve my lap times in tomorrow morning’s warm-up. For the race It’s extremely important that I have a good start, in order to keep pace with the leaders.” Tito Rabat, Repsol Honda: 19th: “This morning was good and we were able to make a good job. But I was eager to do things right in the afternoon and we had several problems that hindered me from being fast. I hope to be able to solve everything tonight to make a good race tomorrow.” Mike Di Meglio, Scot Honda: 20th: Di Meglio crashed heavily on the 10th lap of final qualifying sustaining a badly gashed chin that required hospital treatment. He will not race tomorrow. Danny Webb, Molenaar Honda: 30th: “I had a crash and could not better my time qualifying today. I hit my team-mate (Joey Litjens) I got a better drive off a corner than Joey did and clipped the rear end of his bike. Pity because my bike was really good in that session. We had improved the set up with a few suspension changes and the engine was really good. I’m a long way back on the grid so I’ll need a good start. But I have raced here before and like the track. “ Joey Litjens, Molenaar Honda: 31st: “I was half a second faster today than at the IRTA test last month so I am happy about that. I made my best times alone I just didn’t find anybody to slipstream. On my fast lap I made a mistake coming into the two fast right hand corners near the end of the lap, I accidentally downshifted two gears instead of one.” Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez