The Repsol Honda team began their preparations for the 2007 MotoGP World Championship here at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo Valencia, today, just three-days after the curtain came down on the 2006 series. Newly crowned World Champion Nicky Hayden and team-mate Dani Pedrosa took their RC212V four-cylinder 800cc Hondas out on track for the first session of their extensive winter test programme. American Hayden was riding the RC212V for the very first time and the World Champion put in 87-laps of the tight and demanding 4.005 km Spanish track recording a best lap time of 1m 33.66s just six-tenths of a second slower than his fastest time aboard the 990cc RC211V machine he raced to a title clinching third place in the GP of Valencia, held at the same circuit last Sunday. Hayden had to adjust his riding style slightly to get the best out of the machine finding the RC212V more compact than its title-winning predecessor. The new bike was easier to ride and gave him more traction. Spaniard Dani Pedrosa, who had previously tested the 800cc machine at Motegi, Japan, was just one-tenth of a second outside his best time he set in the grand prix. The former 125cc and 250cc World Champion quickly settled on the 800cc machine a more compact version of its forerunner and reeled off a series of fast laps. Pedrosa spent the day on defining the best direction for a solid base set up as he adjusted to the compact machine and the lighter feeling improving little by little as he reeled off 73 laps around the tortuously twisty circuit. The Gresini Honda squad stayed on at Valencia for a one-day test session with, new for the 2007 season, tyre supplier Bridgestone. Team riders Marco Melandri and Toni Elias ran virtual back-to-back test measuring their new rubber against that of their previous supplier. Both men ended their assimilation test session in a very positive frame of mind. The two riders lapped faster today than they had in Sundays race the improvement due, in part to the lower track temperatures. Italian Melandri, a three-time MotoGP race victor in 2006, put in 67-laps of the 4.005 km circuit on his five-cylinder 990cc RV211V and despite a slow start, due to a bout of food poisoning, adjusted to the Bridgestone tyres as the day went on surprising himself with his consistently fast lap times. Team-mate Elias was even faster. The young Spaniard quickly established a good rhythm putting in a string of laps in the low 1m 33s bracket. Elias had found a good base setting for his RC211V without too many changes and was impressed with tyre performance and how quickly he settled. He now moves onto 800cc racing with increased confidence. Honda rider quotes and lap times: Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda: 1m 33.66s 87 laps. “I enjoyed riding the new bike today and I’m quite excited because it’s got some pretty trick parts and it looks really cool. I got down into the 1m 33s lap-times pretty easily this morning which is a good sign. The new bike feels like it’s got a lot more traction especially under acceleration. The power delivery feels a lot smoother, and when you first open the throttle you don’t need to get the bike picked up as much as you did with the 990. It feels a lot lighter but actually the weight is not much different. The bike definitely feels quite small and has a different feeling that I’ll have to get used to. We’re already going around the corners faster than the 990cc bike and it’s going to require a different style of riding and be a different breed of bike. It does have high corner entry and corner speed and I’ll have to adapt a few things with my style. Sunday almost feels old now and I know we’ve made Valentino mad by taking his title, so I’m looking forward to taking him on next season. I want to come back next year and win again on this bike. To win one title is great but to take two of them takes you into another elite group so I’m still hungry.” Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda: 1m 33.21s 73 laps. “The feeling from the bike here, at a European circuit, is more or less the same as in the first test in Japan. We have ridden for many more hours today, so that’s been good and I’ve been improving bit by bit. We’ve made general tests to start finding the best set-up and to get closer to the performance during the Grand Prix. There are some differences compared to the 900cc machine. This bike is obviously totally different to the previous one, but in the end it’s also a motorbike, so the way to work with it is the same. I still have to find the right way to ride it because I’m still used to the other bike. However, it will soon come naturally as we continue lapping. As regards to the tyres, we’ve been using the same ones we used during the Grand Prix weekend.” Marco Melandri, Gresini Honda: 1m 32.90s 67 laps. “It was a very interesting day and I’m satisfied with the choice of tyres the team has made. I only struggled a little at the beginning because I was feeling ill with food poisoning. Anyway, I didn’t want to miss this test. The behaviour of the bike was so different on the Bridgestone’s but the feeling with the bike was good. I could ride as smoothly as I like to particularly in the middle of the corner. Now we will have to see how the tyres behave on the 800cc but we have made a good start. I established good cooperation with the Japanese Bridgestone technicians so I am eager to start work on preparing for the new championship.” Toni Elias, Gresini Honda: 1m 32.73 87 laps. “I am very satisfied with the first day of testing with the Bridgestone tyres. It’s too early to make comparisons with the tyres we used all through this season. However, today I could put in many laps with a good rhythm in low 1m 33s times and my fastest lap was very good. Now I am looking forward to testing the new RC212V 800cc at Sepang in mid-November.”

Today, the first test of the PRAMAC D’ANTIN MOTOGP Team took place on the Ricardo Tormo circuit of Valencia. The rider ALEX BARROS, on the DUCATI GP6 “Sat” with BRIDGESTONE tyres, began to take confidence with the bike and had the occasion to know better the whole Team and its technicians. There are many news for the Italian-Spanish Team. Between the Brazilian rider and the new motorcycle-tyres package, there already seems to be a good feeling. ALEX made 61 laps with 1’33.626 as a best time and a rhythm of 1’33.800. The test will go on tomorrow, Thursday 2nd November, still on the Valencia track. ALEX BARROS (1’33.626 – 61 laps): “Things went quite good today. It was our first practice day and we began to set up the motorcycle. There are very favourable points and others on which we need to work, we’re here for this. I had a good feeling with the BRIDGESTONE tyres. Generally, the first impressions are good, but there is still a good margin to improve. My best laptime has been 1’33.6, and we’re at less than one second from the fastest time. To close, I would say that I already have a good feeling with every member of the Team, the atmosphere is really good and I like the way they work”. EMANUELE MARTINELLI – Track Engineer: “This first day of free practice is positive. We went on track with a basic set-up and BARROS’ laptimes already are quite good. It was our first time with BRIDGESTONE and there is satisfaction. It is obvious that we cannot make any real confrontation as BARROS never rode on the DUCATI with the tyres we used during the 2006 season. For now, things are going very good. He likes the motorcycle and I can say everything began in a right way. To conclude, the first impressions are really positive and we still have one Test day at our disposal tomorrow, to go on working”. LUIS D’ANTIN – Team Manager: “In general, we are happy. There has been a good feeling with everything, and the performances have been good too. As a first test, we can be satisfied. The 2007 World Championship is beginning right now and we will have a lot of work to do. There will be another practice day tomorrow and then we will come back on track in January, for the test in Malaysia”. Unofficial Times/Total Laps 990 cc Rossi 1.32.7 (27) Elias 1.32.7 (87) Melandri 1.32.9 (67) Barros 1.33.6 (61) 800cc Rossi 1.33.10 (43) Capirossi 1.33.11 (53) Hopkins 1.33.14 (29) Vermeulen 1.33.18 (40) Pedrosa 1.33.21 (73) Stoner 1.33.41 (77) Hayden 1.33.66 (87) McWilliams 1.35.8 (38) Pitt 1.36.6 (21)

Just a couple of days after the final round of the 2006 season, which ended with a first historic 1-2 win for Ducati in MotoGP, all eyes are now focusing on the future. Today saw the first of two days scheduled testing for the Ducati Marlboro Team at Valencia. Conditions were sunny in the morning and cloudy in the afternoon, with temperatures considerably lower than last Sunday, and this meant that the test session could continue as scheduled from 10am in the morning to 5pm in the afternoon. After achieving his best result this year for Ducati in the top category (3rd overall), Loris Capirossi is now looking forward to 2007 with optimism. The Italian rider, who had already tested the Ducati GP7 immediately after the Brno, Motegi and Estoril rounds, continued engine and suspension development work on the new machine from the Borgo Panigale manufacturer. Loris completed a total of 53 laps, setting a best time of 1m33.11s. Thanks to special dispensation from Lucio Cecchinello, the owner of the team for whom the Ducati Marlboro Team’s new signing, Casey Stoner, raced this year, the Australian was able to get to grips for the first time with the Ducati he will race in next year’s MotoGP World Championship. Stoner immediately established a good feeling with the Desmosedici GP7 and the Bridgestone tyres and set some encouraging times right from the start of the morning. Casey completed 77 laps of the Valencia track, recording a quickest time of 1m33.41s Temperatures: air 25°C / track 32°C

After the announcement of the agreement between Gresini Racing and Bridgestone Corporation last Monday, today Marco Melandri and Toni Elias tested their RC211V on Bridgestone tyres at Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia. Both Gresini Honda riders were very satisfied of the first day of testing and look forward to testing soon the new 800 cc on Bridgestone tyres. MARCO MELANDRI (1’32″90, 67 laps): “It was an interesting day. Unfortunately I was sick because of food poisoning and I could not ride at my best, but I couldn’t miss the test. I was surprise by the new tyres, they are quite different from the ones we have used so far but I’m very happy of this choice. The behaviour of the bike changes a lot and the feeling was good. I could ride smoothly as I like. In particular, I had a good feeling in the middle of the corner. I found a good cooperation with the tyres technicians. Now I look forward to see how the new tyres will behave with the 800cc, but I’m confident because the start was very good. There are all elements to make a good work in the pre-season in preparation of 2007 season”. TONI ELIAS (1’32″73, 87 laps): “I’m satisfied of this first day of testing. Now it’s too early to make a comparison with the tyres we used during the season but the start was good. I made many laps in a row in low 1’33” and also the single lap time was good. There is a lot of work to do but I’m confident. I look forward to test the new 800cc in Sepang middle of November. It will be an interesting test”.

Rizla Suzuki MotoGP began using its brand new 800cc MotoGP engine for the first time today and was quickly on the pace, as both racers posted times faster than their best from Sunday’s final 990cc race. John Hopkins led the way with a best of 1’33.14 from his 29 laps with team-mate Chris Vermeulen only fractionally behind, as the young Australian recorded a time of 1’33.17. The new 800cc engine was tested today in the same chassis as the current 990 GSV-R. Suzuki has a major development programme for the chassis, bodywork and all major components over the winter testing period. This includes testing a completely new prototype chassis, which Factory test rider Nobuatsu Aoki will debut tomorrow. Rizla Suzuki MotoGP has one more day testing at Valencia in Spain, when both riders will be trying many new settings to evaluate the new engine and provide more data for the factory. John Hopkins: “I gotta admit I’m very happy with the day! Right out of the box we were able to get into our race-lap times that we did on the 990cc bike. We have some basic problems, which you always get with a new bike, such as engine mapping. We still need a bit more acceleration and some fine tuning, but for a new machine this is the best position we have ever been in since I’ve been at Suzuki! Like I said I’m very happy and we have a lot more things to test over the winter, but how it stands at the moment I am expecting big things to happen with this machine!” Chris Vermeulen: “It was the first ride on the 800 for John and me today. Our test riders have obviously done a lot of miles on it already and the whole test team and Suzuki have done a great job the bike was good to start with. We made some modifications to suit the Valencia circuit and we were able to do lap-times consistently close to the ones we did over the weekend. It is very promising for the first ride and even more so when you consider it’s an 800 engine bolted into our 990 chassis. I am quite happy for the first test and there is a long way to go to the first race. It all looks very promising and if we can start like this we certainly have a goal to aim at.”

Yoshimura Suzuki is testing today on the 2.5-mile, nine-turn road course at Willow Springs International Raceway, a former AMA Superbike race venue located in Rosamond, California, about 75 miles north of Los Angeles. Present and testing are 2006 AMA Superbike Champion Ben Spies, six-time AMA Superbike Champion Mat Mladin and Tommy Hayden, who has not been officially announced to the team but will be racing in Superbike and Supersport for Yoshimura Suzuki in 2007 and 2008. The test is closed to the public and the media, according to Team Manager Don Sakakura, and is only meant to be a shakedown run for the team’s new 2007-spec GSX-R1000s before they are packed up and shipped off to tests overseas, possibly at Sepang in Malaysia.

Suzuki World Champion Kevin Schwantz and Grand Prix legend Randy Mamola took to the track yesterday on a pair of Rizla Suzuki GSV-Rs, and the years rolled back as the two stars of yesterday completed some high-speed demonstration laps. Both riders showed that they had lost none of their racing hunger as Schwantz first followed Mamola around the 4km circuit and then Suzuki’s 1993 World Champion led the way for Mamola to follow him round. The pair were involved in Rizla Suzuki MotoGP’s journalist test event and the opportunity for the two to be on the track together was something that neither of them could resist. The ‘competitive’ side of the demo laps was also evident as both riders unofficially recorded times within three seconds of the average race laps from Sunday’s final Grand Prix of the season. Kevin Schwantz: “Any time you are out on the track and riding around with Randy it is entertaining, and it can turn into a competition almost immediately. I had just left the pits and I followed him around the track which was real interesting for me. Then I noticed he wasn’t really going anywhere and I thought jeez I guess I just gotta try and run with him. It was nice to have both of us on the same bike the GSV-R responded well to everything I wanted it to do. Most of all though it was fun to be out there again with Randy because both of us have raced together in the past, he still looks like the same Randy that I battled against on the track all those years ago.” Randy Mamola: “It’s more than just Kevin and I out there – it is more the history of Suzuki. One of my first podiums was on a Suzuki and I have great memories from that, so it was great to be on the Suzuki bike nearly three decades later. When I saw Kevin on the track I thought this will be cool. Then we started to play and I looked round and he went past me. That was the best bit because I followed him and he still has that aggressive Schwantz style, and he can get the bike to turn right in the middle of a corner so differently to anybody. For both of us to be on Rizla Suzukis at the same time was just fabulous!”

PICKERINGTON, Ohio — The American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) has announced that its Board of Directors has selected Robert M. Dingman to be the Association’s next President. Dingman succeeds Robert Rasor, who is retiring as AMA President and will serve as AMA Director of International Affairs. Dingman previously served the AMA for nearly five years as its Washington (D.C.) Representative, and is returning to the Association from the position of Assistant Commissioner for Transportation Safety for New York State’s Department of Motor Vehicles, where he headed the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee. “Every AMA member, along with everyone in the American motorcycling community, can look at Rob Dingman and say, ‘He’s one of us’ — a true enthusiast with a genuine passion for the work we do,” said Dal Smilie, Chairman of the AMA Board of Directors. “We’re fortunate to have found a person of his professional experience and personal commitment to guide the AMA into what promises to be a bright and successful future.” “I’m honored to have been chosen by the Board of Directors to lead the AMA at this time of change and growth,” said Dingman. “I believe in the Association’s mission of ‘rights, riding, racing,’ and for me there’s no greater privilege than to serve the AMA’s 280,000 members.” Before joining the AMA staff in 1994, Dingman was a Government Relations Specialist for the Motorcycle Industry Council, and a Legislative Aide and Research Associate in the New York State Assembly. A 13-year AMA member and an avid street rider and off-highway enthusiast, he holds a Master of Arts in political management from The George Washington University and a Bachelor of Arts in political science and journalism from the State University of New York at Albany. Dingman’s first day as AMA President will be November 27, 2006. Based at the Association’s headquarters in Pickerington, Ohio, he’ll report to AMA Chief Executive Officer Patricia DiPietro on an interim basis during a transition period.

The Formula 1 World Championship ended over a week ago and the MotoGP series finished on Sunday, so what would MotoGP star John Hopkins and F1 racer Tonio Liuzzi do for a bit of post-season fun? Why, get back on a race track of course! Today, the Rizla Suzuki MotoGP racer and the Scuderia Toro Rosso driver, both of them part of the Red Bull family, took part in a special seat-swap event, riding and driving each other’s machines around the Valencia circuit that hosted the MotoGP finale on Sunday. “I’ve been looking forward to today for weeks now,” said Hopkins, who admitted his only other experience of a four wheeled race vehicle took place in a go-kart. “Ever since I had the seat fitting, this experience could not have come soon enough and today was a dream come true. At first it was a bit overwhelming, looking at all the buttons on the steering wheel, but once I understood the most important thing is to keep the heat in the tyres under braking then it all got easier. It’s easy to say you can do this but when the time actually comes, it’s quite a challenge and I spun it a couple of times. Then I began to get the hang of braking very late and on my final run I got a feeling for the car moving around underneath me. I could feel it drifting and I could sense the front end pushing coming out of the corners. I was trying my hardest and going for it without being reckless.” Before today, Hopkins admitted his target was to get his car lap time down to what he did on his Rizla Suzuki MotoGP bike this weekend. He wasn’t messing around: 1’31.65 on two wheels and a very impressive 1.19.8 on four, which is only around five seconds off a competitive F1 driver’s time at this track! “By the end of the run, it began to feel natural to me,” added Hopkins. “I think I’d consider racing one of these in the future. I always knew it would be easier for me to get into four wheels than for Tonio on two, but with his lack of experience I think he did real good. He popped a wheelie and got his knee down!” So what did Liuzzi think? “It was an orgasm! It was amazingly cool! It was really great!” Did we mention Mr. Liuzzi is an excitable Italian? “I’ve always loved bikes but after today, I love them even more, because the guys who race these are unbelievable and not human. The bike is like a crazy horse and it is really difficult to keep the front end down. I was trying, but I kept something in reserve because I could feel the shadow of Franz and Gerhard (Toro Rosso team bosses Tost and Berger) telling me to be careful as I am testing in two weeks! I think you just need to take more risks than I was prepared to take today. The way you tackle the lap is very different on two wheels, as the most important thing is to have the balls to keep the throttle open. It was a fantastic adrenalin rush. The most amazing thing about the bike was the grip, as you can lean right over. Unbelievable! I would love to have a race on this bike.” And an assessment of his fellow Red Bull racer? “The Formula 1 car is a much more complicated technically to drive than the bike,” reckoned Tonio. “But once John got the hang of the car and how it handled, he was very impressive and very fast.”