Fortuna Honda team rider Marco Melandri, who arrived at the Assen circuit yesterday after being discharged from the Catalunya General Hospital (Barcelona), spoke to the media today for the first time since his accident. The Italian sat and chatted with journalists, despite still suffering with stiffness in his neck, after getting the green light from doctors to return to action on his Honda RC211V tomorrow. He will undergo a further medical examination after taking part in the second free practice session. MARCO MELANDRI: “I am satisfied with my recovery. I would never have thought that I could be here after the accident on Sunday. For me this is a complete success. Yesterday I began a physiotherapy programme in the Clinica Mobile, which I continued with throughout today. I am really keen to get back on the bike but I’ll see how I feel tomorrow. I’m still in pain and I am getting cramps and pains in places I didn’t notice before. For example my right shoulder now hurts me more than my left. although my physical conditioning has helped. My objective in the short term is to recover my fitness as son as possible. At lunchtime Marco completed a few laps of the track on a scooter. “Assen has always been the nicest circuit n the calendar although they have changed it now. It is much shorter and looks like a lot f other circuits so I think it has lost some of its character. Tomorrow I’ll know more about it after free practice..”

Ducati Marlboro Team rider Loris Capirossi is looking forward to returning to action during tomorrow’s first practice sessions for Saturday’s Dutch TT. The Italian has been undergoing physio from Clinica Mobile staff following the battering and bruising he sustained in last Sunday’s turn-one accident at Catalunya. Meanwhile team-mate Sete Gibernau is recuperating from the operation he underwent yesterday in Barcelona to plate the left collarbone he fractured in the multiple pile-up. It is expected he will have to wait between three and five weeks before he can ride again. The Ducati Marlboro Team has chosen D’Antin Ducati’s Alex Hofmann as his substitute for the Dutch TT. LORIS CAPIROSSI, 2nd overall, 99 points “It was a bad accident at Catalunya but that kind of thing can happen in racing. I’m not feeling too bad, though the left part of my chest is still very sore, so it’s difficult to breathe normally. Anyway, I am happy to be at Assen and I’m looking forward to getting on the bike tomorrow. I definitely want to race here because this championship is so important to me. Ducati consulted me when they were considering substitutes for Sete, I told them I am happy to have Alex riding alongside me. It’s strange, because when I got injured in 2002 while riding for Honda, Alex was my substitute.” SETE GIBERNAU, 11th overall, 44 points “I’ve not see the accident and I don’t want to see it. People have told me it was a really bad one, so I think I am very lucky. I’d like to say a big thank you to Arai and Spidi because they gave me perfect protection. I’d also like to thank the media and my fans because I am receiving so many messages of encouragement. This will be the first time in ten years that I have missed a race, so knowing that I will miss Assen and Donington is a very strange feeling. The accident happened at a bad time, with so many races over a few weekends, but there’s never a good time to have an accident. Now all I am thinking about is getting fit again so that I can return to racing in the strongest way possible.” ALEX HOFMANN, 17th overall, 12 points “I am very proud to have been chosen to be Sete’s substitute and very happy to be able to race the factory Ducati. Without doubt this is the best bike/tyre package I have ever had for a race and I will do my best to help Loris, especially on tyre choice. I am really looking forward the weekend and I’m not feeling any pressure. All I want to do is do my best for the team. My thanks to everyone: Ducati, Pramac, Luis d’Antin and Paolo Campinoti for the trust they’ve shown in me. I hope to repay them by giving them by best. And special wishes to Sete for a speedy recovery.” DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM RIDER DATA LOGS LORIS CAPIROSSI Age: 33 (born April 4, 1973) Lives: Monaco Bike: Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici GP6 GP starts: 238 (68xMotoGP, 59×500, 84×250, 27×125) GP victories: 26 (4xMotoGP, 2×500, 12×250, 8×125) First GP victory: Britain, 1990 (125) First GP: Japan, 1990 (125) Pole positions: 40 (7xMotoGP, 5×500, 23×250, 5×125) First pole: Australia, 1991 (125) World Championships: 3 (125: 1990, 1991, 250: 1998) Assen 2005 results: Grid: 7th. Race: 10th ALEX HOFMANN Age: 26 (born May 25, 1980) Lives: Richterswill – Switzerland Bike: Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici GP6 GP starts: 85 (38xMotoGP, 4×500, 41×250, 1×125)) GP victories: – First GP: Germany, 1997 (125) Pole positions: – Assen 2005 results: Grid: 10th . Race: DNF

With practice at the A-Style TT Assen beginning tomorrow, the MotoGP paddock has already re-formed at the Dutch circuit, transported in its entirety from Spain between Sunday and today. After speculation as to exactly who will be lining up on Saturday’s grid, there have been a number of reshuffles announced by the teams ahead of tomorrow’s first day of practice sessions. Sete Gibernau was operated on yesterday, replacing a metal plate to help aid his recovery from a fractured collarbone. Out of action for three to five weeks, the Spaniard’s place in the Ducati Marlboro team will be taken this week by Pramac d’Antin’s Alex Hofmann, whose vacant seat is in turn occupied by Spanish rider Ivan Silva. Loris Capirossi is a confirmed participant in the A-Style TT Assen, whilst Marco Melandri is still doubtful. The Italians were both discharged from hospital on Tuesday, and Melandri will make the decision as to whether he races before tomorrow’s practice. A pre-event activity was organised for Dutch riders Joey Litjens and Hugo van den Berg and MotoGP star Kenny Roberts Jr., who took a trip to the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. The museum is housed in a building which dates back to 1885, and contains a number of Dutch masterpieces from the renaissance and baroque periods. One of the most famous rooms is the home of numerous pieces by Dutch Baroque painter Rembrandt, and this year sees the 400th anniversary of his birth. The MotoGP riders were able to admire some of the artist’s most famous works, including ‘The Nightwatch’. Of course, there was also the customary pre-Grand Prix press conference, in which Valentino Rossi, Toni Elias, Nicky Hayden, Chris Vermeulen and Kenny Roberts spoke about the race in Catalunya and especially about the modifications to the Assen Circuit. In 250cc, the Repsol Honda Team have announced their replacement for retired rider Sebas Porto. The team have opted for Colombian Martin Cardenas, who until now has been riding Honda BQR in the category. This in turn has seen Cardenas’ place occupied by Aleix Espargaro, promoted from the 125cc team, whilst Esteve Rabat completes the reshuffle by joining the lower cylinder category.

After Roadracing World’s Ed Sorbo and Shoei Racing Coordinator Bret Milan were unable to think of a younger racer than 16-year-old Josh Herrin to earn a podium finish at an AMA National, Milan decided to offer a Shoei T-shirt and hat to the first Roadracingworld.com reader who could answer the question: Is Josh Herrin the youngest podium finisher in an AMA National? If you know of someone younger than Josh Herrin who finished on the podium at a professional AMA road race, send their name, the race location and date to [email protected]. Include your name and address so we can send out the prize to the first person with the correct answer. Josh Herrin’s DOB: May 23, 1990 Josh’s Recent AMA Supersport Third Place Finish At Miller Motorsports Park: 1. Jamie Hacking (Yam YZF-R6) 2. Roger Hayden (Kaw ZX-6RR), -4.995 seconds 3. Josh Herrin (Yam YZF-R6), -5.137 This is Herrin’s second year riding for Graves Yamaha. In 2005, he won a WERA National Challenge Series Championship on a Yamaha YZF-R6. In 2004, he won the USGPRU 125cc Grand Prix National Championship on a Honda RS125.

When he crashed on lap three of the Barcelona GP last weekend, Red Bull KTM GP 125 rider “Julito” Julian Simon broke his right thigh. The 19-year old Spaniard was taken directly into the clinic Deixeus in Barcelona. On Monday Dr. Xavier Mir lead the successful seven hour operation. Depending on daily progress Julito might get up for the first time by the end of the week. The doctors have suggested that if everything goes according to plans, we shall see “Julito” Julian Simon back on the race track at Brno GP. KTM and Red Bull will not replace Julian Simon with any other rider at the Assen round. For the coming round at Donington there is no decision taken yet.

This past weekend at the inaugural AMA Superbike Championship race at Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah, Yoshimura Suzuki’s Mat Mladin posted the first-ever 100 mph average lap. Six-time AMA Superbike Champion Mladin’s lap time was 1:50.091 for an average speed of 100.063 mph. Mladin was presented with a check for $1000 from Miller Motorsports General Manager Alan Wilson for this feat on Friday, June 16. Mladin just announced that he donated the $1000 to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, which has been enriching the lives of children with life-threatening medical conditions through its wish-granting work since 1980.

BILL WERNER JOINS AMA RACING COMMITTEE PICKERINGTON, Ohio — The American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) and AMA Pro Racing have announced that Bill Werner, member of the Motorcycle Hall of Fame and legendary Harley-Davidson tuner, will serve on the AMA Racing Committee, one of two standing committees of the AMA Board of Directors. The AMA Racing Committee manages strategic planning and direction within its area of the AMA’s mission, with the goal of responding to the interests of the AMA’s 270,000 members. The other members of the Racing Committee are Carl Reynolds (chair), Art More, Jeff Nash, and John Ulrich. “We’re pleased that Bill Werner has agreed to serve on this important Board committee,” said Reynolds. “His wealth of racing and business experience will be invaluable as we strive to make the AMA’s professional competition even better.” “When I heard in February that the AMA had created the Racing Committee, I felt that it could be a step in the right direction,” said Werner. “Now I’m glad to have the opportunity to contribute, along with the other members of the committee and the AMA Board of Directors, to shaping the future of the world’s best racing.” The AMA Board of Directors, which meets four times a year, consists of 12 members. Six individual Directors are elected by the general membership in their respective regions and serve three-year terms. Six corporate Directors are elected by the corporate membership and serve two-year terms.

Foggy PETRONAS Racing riders Steve Martin and Craig Jones are on a Misano mission for the sixth round of the Superbike World Championship this weekend. After recent mishaps at Monza and Silverstone, the focus is on solid performances at the fast and flowing circuit on the Adriatic coast of Italy. Both riders have recovered fully from injuries sustained in heavy crashes at Silverstone and are confident that recent set-up progress will have a positive effect on their Misano lap times. It will be Craig’s second visit to the circuit, following a test there in April, but Steve has a good track record, having been on pole position and the podium at Misano, as well as having achieved one of last season’s better results for FPR with an eighth place finish. Steve said: “Misano is a track I always go well at, including last year when I scored my first good points for FPR. And, considering all the improvements we have made to the bike over the last year, I am really looking forward to going back there. Hopefully the recent test in Brno will also have made us more competitive. It’s a physically demanding circuit, where you have to be aggressive, and I think it is going to be hot. If that’s the case, and the surface is quite slippery, the excellent handling of our bike should help.” Craig said: “I am really looking forward to this weekend. Last week’s test at Brno went really well and I have got a good direction to go in with the set-up of the bike. Our last test at Misano was also very positive and I followed that with even more progress at the Valencia race. So, with the improvements we have made since we were last here, I am confident that I can go a good amount quicker. There are a couple of hard-racing sections that suit me because I am good on the brakes and I love the flat-out top gear corner, Curvone, onto the back straight.” Circuit information: Misano, Italy Pole position: Left Circuit length: 5.793km Corners: 5 left, 8 right Corner radius: 610m maximum, 12.5m minimum Maximum slope: 2.4 per cent

Following its disastrous weekend at Silverstone, Team Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra is going to round six of this year’s Superbike World Championship at Misano in a positive frame of mind. Misano is a track reigning World Champion Troy Corser knows well and, although the track does favour twins, he is hoping that the good test work done by his team mate Yukio Kagayama in Brno last week will pay dividends. Kagayama has had a bit of a topsy-turvy season and although he is not fully fit, he too is determined to get back on the podium. For Alstare Engineering rider Fabien Foret, the San Marino round is the halfway point in what has been a difficult learning year for the Frenchman. But in the Brno tests, he made a significant step forward with his bike set-up and is now much happier about his Misano prospects. Troy Corser: “I’m obviously disappointed to have missed the Brno tests but I know that Yukio has done a good job there. The first day of practice at Misano will be used to try out some of the ideas from Brno and it’ll also be a chance for me to ease myself back in the saddle after a lay-off of nearly a month. Misano is quite a technical track and there are a few places where you can either make up or lose time, so you have to have a pretty good set-up and know what you’re doing. It’s a track that seems to suit the twins and, because it is their ‘home circuit’, Ducati will be pulling out all the stops to win, but that will not stop me from trying to spoil their party. Yukio Kagayama: “I think we did a lot of good work in Brno recently and now I hope that all the information we collected can be put to good use. Physically the three days in Brno were very tiring because Troy-san was not there, but since then I have had a chance to rest and I will be ready for Misano for sure. Although I am not 100% fit, when I am on the bike I forget about any discomfort and just ride. In Misano last year I had a crash in the first race and I was sore in the second and couldn’t push hard. It is not an easy track, but I want to get my season back on track and take a podium or two. This is my goal.” Fabien Foret: “My learning curve continues and I am more happy after the two days at Brno recently because I found a setting I really liked. Now it is up to me to put it into practice in Misano and score some good championship points. The season has not panned out the way I thought, so Misano being half way would be a good place to make a big improvement.” 2005 results: Race 1: 1 Laconi (Ducati), 2 Vermeulen (Honda), 3 Troy Corser (Aus-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra). Yukio Kagayama (J-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) DNF. Race 2: Laconi, 2 Vermeulen, 3 Troy Corser (Aus-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra). 12 Yukio Kagayama (J-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra).