CAL RAYBORN XRTT SALE PRICE $176,000! Cal Rayborn’s Harley Davidson XRTT road racer broke the record for an American motorcycle consignment auction by selling for a total price of $176,000 including the buyer’s premium at the J. Wood and Company Daytona Motorcycle Auction, held March 10 in Deland, Florida, near Daytona. The bike was well represented as famed Harley Davidson tuner Bill Werner was at the auction to answer questions about the history of the machine. The entire auction grossed over a million dollars, a new record for the event. Full auction results will be available soon at www.jwoodandcompany.com

Kenny Noyes to Replace David Checa in Spanish World Supersport Round Barcelona-based American Kenny Noyes has gotten the call from Yamaha France to replace Spaniard David Checa on the GMT94 World Supersport team at the up-coming round of the World Championship top be held at Valencia on April 21-23. Checa, younger brother of MotoGP Yamaha rider Carlos Checa, broke his wrist in preseason testing and was replaced at Losair (Qatar) and Phillip Island (Australia) by Anthony Gobert who was 12th in Qatar and retired with handling problems when running sixth in Australia. Checa is now recovered but is committed to riding in the 24 Hours of Le Mans scheduled for the same weekend as the Spanish World Superbike round. Noyes, who rides for Folch Yamaha in the Spanish 1000cc Formula Extreme Championship, was penciled in as Checa’s replacement for Valencia even before David’s injury. “After I finished second in the World Endurance round last year at Albacete with the Folch R1, Yamaha France put me on their list of replacement riders,” said Kenny. “I thought they would probably stick with Anthony to replace David at Valencia as well, but I’m really glad to get the chance to ride a World round. I haven’t raced a 600 since 2001 so it will be a challenge to make the adjustment, but I am looking forward to it.” Kenny (26), who was born in Spain and lived there until he was 14, won the Formula USA Pro Singles National Dirt Track Series after a season long-battle with J.R. Schnabel and Bryan Smith in 2000 before returning to Spain to start a roadracing career. After five seasons in Spain he has won two minor titles (Superseries/Superstock in 2003 and the National Endurance Cup in 2005) and is now considered one of the top contenders in Spain’s top National series, the Buckler’s 1000cc Formula Extreme Championship.

BAXTER AUTO PARTS PORTLAND HISTORIC RACES RENEWS COMMITMENT TO CHILDREN’S CANCER ASSOCIATION PORTLAND, Ore. – March 13, 2006 – The Baxter Auto Parts Portland Historic Races has named the Children’s Cancer Association as the event beneficiary for this summer’s 30th annual event, taking place July 7 through 9 at Portland International Raceway, 1940 N Victory Blvd. The Children’s Cancer Association (CCA) is a not-for-profit organization based in Portland that works to positively impact the care and quality of life for seriously ill children and teens with cancer and other life-threatening illnesses throughout Oregon and the United States. This is the fifth year the racing event has associated itself with CCA. CCA was established in honor of five-year-old Alexandra Ellis, who courageously fought cancer for two and half years before she died on May 7, 1995. In the year of Alexandra’s death, CCA was born. Since then, CCA has worked to offer award-winning programs, along with information, advocacy and support that help enrich the quality of life for seriously ill children and their families. A variety of activities at the Portland Historic Races will raise funds for the CCA, including a food and wine pavilion, a kids activity area, and an autocross. Additionally, the event sponsors a luncheon with vintage car rides for children and family members involved with CCA. The Portland Historic Races is an exciting blend of high-speed racing and classic presentation. Nearly 250 prestigious historic cars are divided into groups according to make, age and horsepower. A typical representation includes Aston Martin, Brabham, Ferrari, Jaguar, Lotus, Lola, Maserati, MG, Porsche, Shelby and Triumph, among many others. This year’s featured marque will be the Corvette, America’s first true sports car. Legendary Corvette driver Dick Guldstrand will serve as the race’s Grand Marshal. Guldstrand is famed for his international achievements on road racing tracks since the 1960s, and his reputation for driving and developing high-performance vehicles. This year’s event will also feature a paddock celebration of 50 years of the British roadster Allard, and a featured race of Vmoto vintage motorcycles, To engage the spectator, the event also presents a display of more than 700 collector cars and hot rods; an upscale food and wine chalet; a kid zone; an autocross for car clubs in attendance; and a vendor midway. One of the most distinct features of the Portland Historic Races is its “open paddock,” which allows spectators the opportunity to view these legendary and pricey machines up close, and encourages interaction with the drivers and crew. The Portland Historic Races run daily from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tickets cost $40 for all three days; $10 for Friday; or $25 for Saturday or Sunday. Children under age 12 are admitted for free when accompanied by an adult. Tickets are available at www.portlandhistorics.com and at the gate. Advance discount tickets are available at all Baxter Auto Parts locations. The event is produced and sanctioned by the Historic Motor Sports Association (HMSA). Established in 1977, HMSA is an organization specializing in race events that feature historic cars through 1972. HMSA emphasizes the preservation and proper use of historic racecars. For more information about the Baxter Auto Parts Portland Historic Races, call 818-249-3515 or visit www.portlandhistorics.com.

KAWASAKI RACING TEAM WINS SUPERSPORT OPENER AT DAYTONA Roger Hayden wins in Supersport, Tommy Hayden finishes fifth in Superbike debut. DAYTONA BEACH, FLA. Kawasaki Racing Team’s Road Racing contingent returned to Daytona International Speedway by claming an exciting victory at the season opener in AMA Supersport and a top five finish in AMA Superbike. In the AMA Supersport action on Thursday, Roger Hayden, who earned the AMA Supersport pole position on Wednesday with a track record pass of 1:41.552 seconds, remained continuously engaged in a four-man, 22-lap battle, before edging out Jamie Hacking to take the checkered flag. Reigning AMA Supersport champion Tommy Hayden, ran in the lead group for the duration of the race and repeatedly challenged Roger along with Hacking. As the final laps wound down it appeared that Tommy would take second behind Roger before a late draft-pass by Hacking through lapped traffic sealed his fate and forced the two-time champion to accept a third place finish. “Winning at Daytona is huge for me,” said Roger. “I’ve been coming here since I was a kid, just hanging out in the infield for as long as I can remember. Daytona has always been the biggest race. And to start out the year strong is also a big deal. And for my Kawasaki team too I really wanted to win for them because they’ve been working so hard.” Despite his disappointment with finishing third, Tommy had this to say about his brother’s victory. “I remember what it feels like to win your first race at Daytona. I am definitely happy for him and the team. It’s good to see him get a good start to his season and it’s good for the team.” Attack Kawasaki riders Damon Buckmaster and Ben Attard started the Supersport race in ninth and 11th with Buckmaster making a charge on the lead group after lap five to finish in sixth-place. Attard held his position throughout the feature to round out the top ten. In AMA Superstock action on Thursday, Attard and Buckmaster started with a considerable gap between each other after the first lap. Buckmaster crossed the stripe in sixth while Attard had his work cut out for him after starting in 17th. As the laps wound down, Attard charged ahead for a top-ten position while Buckmaster held his position during the 13-lap drafting battle to finish in sixth. Attard ended up just outside the top ten, finishing in 12th. During Saturday’s AMA Superbike race, Tommy and Roger started in third and fourth aboard their all-new Kawasaki NINJA® ZX™-10Rs and eventually settled into fourth and fifth after the fourth lap. The duo remained at the top of the grid until lap 12 where Roger high-sided his bike in turn six and crashed. Roger jumped up quickly but complained of pain in his right foot immediately following the crash. An evaluation including X-rays to his foot at the in-field medical center did not reveal any significant injuries and he is scheduled for an MRI later this week. Tommy continued the race after witnessing his brother’s crash and held his position to round out the top five for the all-new ZX-10R’s Superbike debut. “The race went pretty good,” said Tommy. “We would like to have done better but we got a good start and mixed it up for most of the race and the Kawasakis ran good. I had an open mind coming into this race because we still have a lot to learn. We’ve done a lot in a short time and we would have been pretty upset with anything else but a top-five finish, so I think we’ve got something good to start with.” Racing resumes when the teams head to Birmingham, Ala., April 21-23, for a Superbike doubleheader at Barber Motorsports Park. More, from a press release issued by Team Stargel Castrol: Team Stargel Castrol Earns Points At Daytona Daytona International Speedway is many things, historic, intimidating, vast, and for Team Stargel Castrol always presents a high degree of difficulty. The 2006 event proved to be no different. As the team decided to build a new Yamaha R6 Formula Xtreme bike for 2006, there was more preparation work than usual. Many parts for the R6 were slow to arrive, and as a result, rider Brian Stokes was not able to throw a leg over the F/X bike until the second practice session at Daytona. To further compound things, an engine problem was discovered on the Yamaha R1 superbike with no time to correct it before qualifying. Crew chief, Ward Wilson, made the call that the problem would not be terminal and sent the bike and rider out. Stokes went to work and managed to qualify with an ailing engine. Despite the engine problem, Stokes made the most of his excellent handling Yamaha and Michelin tires to finish in 18th position in Sunday morning’s superbike race. The team was a bit nervous about the Daytona 200 as they had never competed in this race, nor had ever done a pit stop. Friday was spent making minor medications to the R6 and practicing pit stop procedures. Everyone felt very confident in the motorcycle, but wished they had more time to sort it out. Stokes, relying on years of endurance racing experience, and excellent physical conditioning began working his way through the pack and turning consistent lap times. Team Stargel Castrol was running as high as 10th place at one point in the race. A small problem in the second pit stop, combined with some bad luck with the timing of the pace car, moved the team back a bit. At the end, Stokes took the checked flag in 16th position concluding the team’s first Daytona 200. More, from a press release issued by Michael Jordan Motorsports Suzuki: Michael Jordan Motorsports Suzuki Celebrates Top-10 Finish at Daytona Superstock Season-Opener DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (March 13, 2006) -Jordan Suzuki’s Jason Pridmore celebrated a ninth-place finish at the season-opening round of AMA Repsol Superstock at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla., on Thursday, March 9, 2006. Teammate Jake Holden finished close behind in 11the place, while Steve Rapp suffered a mechanical failure and did not finish. “Admittedly we had a few issues this weekend,” said Pridmore. “But a top-10 finish is a good start to the season and we’re looking to improve on that at the next round at Barber next month.” Pridmore started from the 10th position on the grid, rode an extremely consistent race on his Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000 and finished up ninth. Team newcomer Holden got a better start and moved up as high as sixth before finishing 11th. “I’ve never gone up and down in positions so much before,” said Holden. “The Jordan Suzuki was running great but I just made a lot of mistakes toward the end of the race. I’m looking forward to racing the Superbike race on Saturday.” The Jordan Suzuki team will compete in the second round of AMA Repsol Superstock at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Ala., April 21 -23, 2006. Jason Pridmore, Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000, #43 9th Place – AMA Repsol Superstock 9th Place – Overall Jake Holden, Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000, #59 11th Place – AMA Repsol Superstock 11th Place – Overall Steve Rapp, Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000, #15 DNF – AMA Repsol Superstock 34th Place – Overall More, from another press release issued by Michael Jordan Motorsports Suzuki: Michael Jordan Motorsports Suzuki Scores Two Top-10 Daytona Superbike Finishes DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (March 13, 2006) – Michael Jordan Motorsports Suzuki riders Jason Pridmore and Jake Holden finished ninth and 10th, respectively, at the season-opening round of the AMA Superbike Championship at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla., on Saturday. Teammate Steve Rapp was unable to finish the race. “I’m happy,” said Pridmore. “We’ve made a lot of progress with the motorcycle and I feel really positive about its potential. Unfortunately, we just had a few problems in the race.” In Thursday’s Superbike qualifying session, newly signed Holden won a spot on the third row, thanks to a best time of 1:40.470. One row back, Rapp was slated to start from 13th (1:41.048) and Pridmore from 14th (1:41.064). In the 15-lap race, Pridmore and Holden ran together for much of the event. Each put in consistent laps on their Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000s, swapping positions several times throughout the race. Rapp, meanwhile, hit a cone, which damaged his bike, and was forced to retire from the race. All three riders are looking forward to the next round of AMA Superbike at Barber Motorsports Park in Alabama. “I’m looking forward to getting to Barber,” said Pridmore. “We’re going to try something new. We’re going to use a street-shift pattern there instead of race-shift and see if that helps me.” Rapp and Holden are also looking forward to the Barber event. “I’ve done pretty well there,” said Holden. “I haven’t got a lot of experience there but I’ve cut some good laps there so I’m feeling pretty confident.” Added Rapp: “I like that track a lot and I’m looking forward to the next race. We’re testing there in a few weeks and overall the bikes are handling well so I’m looking forward to the race.” The Jordan Suzuki team will compete in the second round of AMA Superbike at Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Ala., April 21 -23, 2006. Jason Pridmore, Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000, #43 9th Place – AMA Superbike 9th Place – Overall Jake Holden, Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000, #59 10th Place – AMA Superbike 10th Place – Overall Steve Rapp, Jordan Suzuki GSX-R1000, #15 DNF – AMA Superbike N/A – Overall Legendary NBA star Michael Jordan formed Michael Jordan Motorsports in 2004 as a result of his passion for motorcycle racing. His mission is to bring a new level of excellence and style to the motorcycle racing industry. For more information on the team, visit the race team website at www.23RACE.com and the Jumpman website at www.Jumpman23.com More, from a press release issued by Buell Motorcycle Company: BUELL DEALER TEAMS CONTEST DAYTONA 200 WITH BUELL XBRR Challenging Debut for XBRR in Formula Xtreme Season Opener DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. Four Buell dealer teams started the 65th running of the prestigious Daytona 200, marking the professional debut of the new Buell XBRR production racing motorcycle based on the Firebolt XB12R. The race was the opening round of the 2006 AMA Superbike/Lockhart Phillips USA Formula Xtreme series. The four Buell dealer entries performed well in qualifying Thursday as each team placed its rider solidly in the 71-bike field. Warr’s London H-D/Buell’s Jeremy McWilliams qualified eighth, good for a second row starting position and ran as high as seventh position during the race. Buell Hannover (Germany) rider Rico Penzkofer qualified 14th and ran as high as 11th, while Deeley H-D/Buell Canada rider Steve Crevier qualified 16th and ran as high as 12th. Hal’s H-D/Buell rider Mike Ciccotto qualified 15th. All four riders retired from the race with suspected clutch/primary drive related problems. “Some people were expecting a miracle from Buell here today,” said Erik Buell, Chairman and Chief Technical Officer, Buell Motorcycle Company. “But we know what racing is all about and this is a heck of a start. It was a thrill to have the bikes qualified so well, and it would have been great to have all of our riders finish, but the Daytona 200 is the ultimate endurance test for a racing motorcycle, and we’ve learned a lot. We will get better.” American Honda factory rider Miguel DuHamel was fast qualifier for the event, which was won by his teammate Jake Zemke. Josh Hayes (Honda) finished second and Jason DiSalvo (Yamaha) finished third, among the 47 riders who finished the race. The Buell teams racing at Daytona were supported by Pirelli Tires, Sentry Insurance, Harley-Davidson Financial Services, Harley-Davidson Visa, and Screamin’ Eagle SYN3 Synthetic Lubricant. Buell Motorcycle Company has expanded its racing support program for 2006, with more than $700,000 posted in cash contingencies for Buell racers competing in a variety of national and regional race series events and classes aboard Buell XB models and the Buell XBRR production racing motorcycle. Buell Motorcycle Company, a subsidiary of Harley-Davidson, Inc., produces sport motorcycles, motorcycle parts, accessories and apparel. To learn more about Buell motorcycles, visit your local Buell dealer today and experience the pure streetfighter attitude, style and performance only found on board a Buell. Pull into www.buell.com for the Buell dealer nearest you. More, from a press release issued by Vallely Racing: VALLELY RACING IMPROVES 12 SPOTS TO TICKLE TOP TEN Vallely racing’s Mark Crozier remained flexible yet well-paced to strategically climb 12 places to finish 13th in the 2006 Daytona 200 Presented by Honda. With Suzukis occupying only four of the top 13 final positions, Mark was proud to be the third-highest finishing Suzuki that was not a factory or satellite bike. Pre-race practice saw a brief scrub session for the team’s second set of tires and a brief round of pit stop rehearsals. With that, the team was ready to conquer the 200 mile task later in the day. Crew chief Jerry Dagget planed for two stops with fuel at both and a rear tire change at the second stop. 44 laps was a comfortable lifetime for the tires under race conditions, so the time benefit of not changing the tire in the first stop could translate to improved track position early in the race. As the race unfolded, and with the increased temperatures caused by the lifting of earlier cloud cover; the team ended up changing the rear at both stops. After the contest, when he was observed to not be tired, Mark remarked that “this is an everyday thing for me. Doing the endurance [racing] for the last five years, this is like one stint for me. I’m used to doing three of these in a day. The only thing that’s really tired or sore is my neck from getting beat around on the banking and stuff. Other than that, hey – let’s go do another 68.” Team owner Tom Vallely was disappointed that the event saw a pace car period because “all the teams we beat with our quick-change caught back up with us when the pace car came out, so it dropped us down to 13th. But out of 70 bikes, we can’t help but be happy with how the event unfolded.” Earlier in the weekend, Vallely Racing announced its support for The Paralyzed Veterans of America. The PVA – a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, congressionally chartered veterans service organization founded in 1946, has developed a unique expertise on a wide variety of issues involving the special needs of its members – veterans of the armed forces who have experienced spinal cord injury or dysfunction – all veterans and the disability communities. PVA is a leading advocate for quality health care, research and education, veterans benefits and civil rights which maximize the independence of all people with disabilities. For more information or to make a donation, visit www.SupportVeterans.org or call 800-555-9140. With the first event behind the team, focus now turns to preparing for its next AMA round at Barber Motorsports park. More, from a presss release issued by Safety First Suzuki: Safety First Suzuki put in a solid performance at Daytona aboard the all new 2006 Suzuki GSX-R 600 with stock engines. Team owner, Kevin Hanson, commented on how proud he was of his new crew and riders, Tony Meiring and Opie Caylor. “We got the new GSX-R 600 only eight days before we left for Daytona,” explained Hanson. “I can’t tell you how proud I am of this team. Two thirds of our crew is new along with brand new riders. The crew worked their butts off under the guidance of veteran AMA crew chief, Jim Rashid, to get the bikes ready and Tony and Opie didn’t throw a leg over the bikes until Wednesday morning practice!” exclaimed Hanson. “We didn’t have time to do any engine work to the motors and ran them bone stock with a pipe that Hindle made for us in only 4 days,” commented Hanson. “Tony qualified 32nd and Opie qualified 33rd for the 200. For Tony to finish 12th and Opie to finish 23rd in the 200″¦.that just shows you how good this new GSXR 600 is and how hard these two guys rode the bikes,” related Hanson. “It took a lot of people working together to pull this weekend off from Lee/Lang at Hindle, Dave/Chip at Gp Suspension, Tim at Penske and Lee/Wayne from Komodo getting us our new leathers and custom crew shirts and all the guys on the team..I’m really proud of the effort from everyone and looking forward to Barber and the rest of the season,” exclaimed Hanson. Tony Meiring finished 12th in Formula Extreme and 19th in Supersport. “I can’t tell you what a great group of guys the Safety First crew is to work with. These guys did a great job getting the bikes ready and we had flawless pit stops during the 200, ” commented Meiring. “My first impression of the new bike was really good, the thing handles great and we didn’t make hardly any suspension adjustments all weekend, I just needed to get more seat time on it. Now that we have time to do some motorwork, the new Suzuki will be awesome by the time we get to Barber”¦so everybody look out!” commented Meiring. Chris “Opie” Caylor finished 23rd in Formula Extreme and 24th in Supersport. “Man”¦the whole crew from my lead mechanic Huey to Jim, Mark, Brian and Rikki did a great job getting the bikes ready in a short amount of time. We knew going in we were going to be down on power, but the new GSX-R 600 handles awesome! I can’t wait to get to Barber now that Jim has some time to work his magic on the motors and we’ll be rollin,” exclaimed Caylor. More, from a press release issued by KWS Motorsports: Millennium/KWS Suzuki upbeat about the first race weekend of the 2006 season The Millennium/KWS Suzuki team had an up and down start to the 2006 season. Daytona luck hampered the CCS and AMA race weekends but John Haner and Matt Lynn rode brilliantly on the Millennium/KWS Suzuki GSX-R1000’s. The Superstock race was the first of the AMA weekend. Both riders got excellent starts on their Pirelli mounted Suzuki GSX-R1000’s but Haner was hit by another rider going into the chicane on the first lap and was knocked back to the 21st position. Haner rode hard and fought his way back through the field to finish in 13th. Lynn rode a smooth and consistent race to finish in the 16th position. The Superbike race was a mixture of highs and lows with John Haner retiring from the race. Matt Lynn rode a smart race with smooth, consistent lap times that netted Lynn a 15th place finish, his best ever finish in Superbike. John Haner “The results don’t show it, but overall the week was very positive.” said Haner. “The team chemistry was great and I look forward to moving on to Barber. Thanks to my mechanics Michael Godin and Owen Garnett. We had a lot of issues that where beyond our control and those guys gave me great motorcycles all week.” Matt Lynn – “I think the CCS and AMA weekends went really well” said Lynn. “I set some goals for myself before I turned a wheel on the track, and I met all of them. Daytona is kind of a weird place, it’s like a whole championship in itself just to survive the track and the week’s worth of racing there. Thanks to my mechanic Rick Matheny, Brian Stricker, Thermosman and the whole KWS Millennium team, we survived.” Kevin Hunt, Team Owner “We are in the best position mechanically that we have been in years. The GSX-R1000 is the bike to have in Superstock and Superbike and our sponsors are going above and beyond to make sure we have everything we need” said Hunt. “We have the riders, we have the bikes, and we will see it all coming together at Barber.”

Mixed Bag for Leo Vince/Pegram Racing Honda at Daytona Shaking down their brand new HRC kitted Honda motorcycles, Leo Vince/Pegram Racing Honda had mixed results this weekend after a promising start. Team owner Larry Pegram suffered two mechanical failures which put him out of contention in the AMA Superbike race. “I had a part break in qualifying so I only got 1 lap in which resulted in a 21st start position.” Pegram said. With a strong warm-up time Pegram looked forward to moving up the field for the race. “In the race I rode hard and passed 11 riders before another small mechanical with 1 1/2 laps remainning forced me to retire.” Larry concluded. Pegram placed 21st after pulling out of the race. Larry is confident in his new package, with good power and added reliability, plus the Michelin tires, he looks forward to the upcoming rounds in April at Barber and California Speedway. Ryan Elleby had a solid first race weekend for Leo Vince/Pegram Racing Honda. He followed up a 15th in 600 Supersport with an excellent 11th in the Daytona 200. Pegram commented. “I am very happy with Ryan’s first AMA races with the team. To finish near the top 10 in the 200 is a great accomplishment. He was consistant through-out the race and will continue to surprise alot of people this year.” More, from a press release issued by Team M4 EMGO Suzuki: GEOFF MAY TOP SUZUKI FINISHER IN DAYTONA 200 Team M4 EMGO Suzuki concluded a memorable two weeks of racing at Daytona International Raceway with a top-ten result in the prestigious Daytona 200. Adding to the six victories he scored at the circuit last weekend in CCS/ASRA competition and the two impressive results he picked up on Thursday in AMA Supersport and Superstock action, Geoff May finished seventh in the 65th running of the famed race on Saturday afternoon. The hard-charging May filled in for the team’s usual Formula Xtreme rider, Michael Barnes, who was unable to ride due to a knee injury suffered in a fall earlier in the week. May added the Daytona 200 duties to his already busy schedule and the team elected to use his Supersport machine with some special parts from Barnes’ bike. Despite a lack of time on this configuration of the team’s Pirelli-shod machine, the Georgian was immediately on the pace. The team put in a measured performance in the hectic 68-lap race to claim seventh place at the checkered flag. Afterwards, a satisfied May remarked, “That was a lot of fun. I was out there just riding around. Everybody behaved themselves — even the lappers were holding lines. I’m happy to bring Team M4 EMGO Suzuki this bike home. The thing was flawless the entire race and we had no issues. I’m happy. It was a good finish in a difficult race.” Team M4 EMGO Suzuki will travel to Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, AL on April 21-23 for the second round of AMA roadracing competition with hopes of building upon May’s season-opening fourth-place finish in Superstock and seventh-place finishes in Supersport and Formula Xtreme. More, from a press release issued by Parts Unlimited Ducati: HODGSON FIGHTS FOR POSITION IN DAYTONA Daytona (Florida) 11 March 2006: Parts Unlimited Ducati’s Neil Hodgson battled for a podium spot in Saturday’s Daytona Superbike race before finishing a close fourth. Hodgson, who rebounded from a touchy moment in the chicane during the opening laps of the race, used his Ducati 999 to pass several riders and make a strong charge toward the front in the 15-lap race. “I rode as hard as I could and just wish we had a second race here. We’d make a few little changes and be right there in the swing of things,” said the 2003 World Superbike champion. “I quite enjoyed it. Passing a few people made the race for me. The bike feels quite a bit better than last year. I’ve got a great feel from the 999 and hope we can improve that in testing.” Hodgson was 6.017 seconds from the leader at the finish. Ben Bostrom was disappointed to finish seventh with a grip issue after qualifying on the front row. However, he was upbeat after the Daytona race despite the event not living up to his expectations. “The bike’s fantastic, that’s the real bummer,” said Ben. “I really like riding this bike and I think it’s the most fun I’ve ever had roadracing. Off the start, it’s just that the tire felt like it was an old race tire. I could only do a 1:39.5 lap. It never got worse and never got better. The bike’s great, we just needed more grip out there today.” Parts Unlimited Ducati will next race at Barber Motorsports Park, April 21-23. Results: 1. Mat Mladin, Suzuki 2. Ben Spies, Suzuki 3. Miguel DuHamel, Honda 4. Neil Hodgson, Parts Unlimited Ducati 5. Tommy Hayden, Kawasaki 6. Aaron Yates, Suzuki 7. Ben Bostrom, Parts Unlimited Ducati 8. Jake Zemke Honda 9. Jason Pridmore, Jordan Suzuki 10. Jake Holden, Jordan Suzuki More, from a press release issued by WMG Management: Jake Zemke Scores the Biggest Win of his Career Daytona, Florida March 13, 2006 In a race that will not soon be forgotten, Jake Zemke had his name forever etched in the history books by winning the Daytona 200, the most celebrated Superbike race the country. Jake Zemke made a big statement this season by winning the Daytona 200, by far the biggest race of the year and one that will guarantee his name is forever tied to the prestigious event. After battling amongst the top five for most of the race, Jake took the lead on lap 43 and never looked back en route to taking the checkered flag after a wild 68 lap race. “The Daytona 200 — as anyone can tell you, if you grew up racing you know all about it. It doesn’t even matter if you’re a motocrosser, everybody knows about it. If you look at the names on the list of the winners of the 200, it’s a ‘Who’s Who.’ I’m proud to put my name up there” remarked an ecstatic Zemke after the race. Much like Nascar’s Daytona 500, the Daytona 200 is superbike’s “superbowl” and winning the event is quite an achievement, especially given the level of the competition that participates. By winning the event, Jake will be the odds on favorite to win most of the races this year and will definitely be considered the man to beat.

SUPER-FAST DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM AT JEREZ. Capirossi and Gibernau ahead of everyone both on race and qualifying tyres in the last of the three MotoGP test days. A very positive day for the Ducati Marlboro Team today at Jerez. In warm and sunny conditions, Loris Capirossi and Sete Gibernau put the finishing touches to their Desmosedici GP6s before the World Championship opener on this same circuit in 2 weeks time. Using qualifying tyres, Loris improved on his new lap record and also lowered last year’s Pole Position time. Sete also did a very good job, continuing to bond with his new team. Both riders now can’t wait for the racing to start. It was also the last work day in Spain for the factory test rider, Vittoriano Guareschi, riding with the Development Team. Livio Suppo, Ducati MotoGP Project Manager “We can only be happy with how things went in these three days of tests. We must thank Loris and Sete who once again proved just how strong they are! We are now getting ready for the first race, we are aware that it’s not going to be as easy as it might look after today, but we are certainly confident. The Ducati Corse engineers did a great job, back at the factory and at the tracks, and so did the Bridgestone engineers who made remarkable progress during the winter. However, this championship level is so high that we just cannot relax. I would also like to thank all our technical partners and Shell Advance in particular.” Loris CAPIROSSI (laps: 56 – Best time on qualifying tyres 1’39.411 – Best time on race tyres: 1’40.296) “Three very positive days for us. We are well prepared for the season opener and I am very happy. My Desmosedici responded well to all the set-up modifications that we introduced and now it’s perfect on this track. It is not easy to find the perfect set-up for our GP6, but once it’s done, we have a great bike. In any case, I think that the work done in the past few days will be important and useful on other tracks too, and it will be a good starting point for the season that is about to begin. Today we’ve been a little bit faster than yesterday: doing 40.2 on race tyres is quite an achievement! We improved our pace too, I’m satisfied. I enjoyed riding on qualifying tyres and I was fast. We must keep our feet on the ground because the others will improve also but, now we can only enjoy this good ending to our winter tests! I’d like to thank Bridgestone for the great job done in these months and everyone at Ducati Corse. Our boys are really strong!” Sete GIBERNAU (laps: 87 – Best time on qualifying tyres 1’39.663 – Best time on race tyres: 1’40.744) “It was a long, hard day and we tested a lot of new things on the bike and with the tyres. Generally speaking, it went well although we took a bit too long finding the right way to go and there was a little confusion at some point. I would like to thank my team for the very good job done, I’m happy with the way the pre-season testing ended. Bridgestone also proved to be very competitive and very responsive. They brought the right material to allow us to be both up to pace on race tyres and very fast on qualifying tyres here. I would like to thank everybody because we’re working so well together. Now I can’t wait for the new season to start!” Temperatures: Air 24°, Track 38° More, from a press release issued by Dorna Communications: Capirossi confirms candidature at final MotoGP preseason test On a day in which preseason testing drew to a close for MotoGP, the crowds at the Jerez circuit in southern Spain saw veteran Loris Capirossi demonstrate why he is a serious title contender for 2006. The Ducati rider today earned the fastest lap of the three day MotoGP Official Test, a 1’39.411 which knocked eight milliseconds off Valentino Rossi’s 2005 pole position record. “The truth is that a lot of things have changed since we tested in November. We have improved in many areas and now we have a bike which is very competitive here, we can go round fast and have a good rhythm. We are hoping that things go well for us at the Grand Prix in less than two weeks,” explained Capirossi. The Italian was also fastest on Friday’s session at the Andalusian circuit, just ahead of team-mate Sete Gibernau, a feat which was mirrored in today’s final outing. Gibernau was the only other rider to break the 1’40 barrier, and the Ducati one-two is a positive sign for both the team and their tyre suppliers Bridgestone. Further good news came for the Japanese tyre brand in third place, as after topping the timesheets yesterday, Shinya Nakano was once again in fine form onboard the Kawasaki Ninja. He was joined in the top five by fellow Kawasaki rider and MotoGP rookie Randy de Puniet, who was fifth. Another rookie to place highly was Spaniard Dani Pedrosa. The reigning 250cc champion put in the fourth fastest lap a second off that of Capirossi, but will be pleased at the amount of miles he has been able to put in on the RC211V this weekend. Team-mate Nicky Hayden was the next highest Honda rider in sixth, ahead of countryman Colin Edwards. Edwards’ Yamaha was part of a group of three bikes to go round within a tenth of each other. Immediately behind the Texan was Toni Elias, at his home circuit and the final Honda to place in the top ten, who in turn was closely pursued by yet another strong rookie showing, Suzuki’s Chris Vermeulen. Completing the top ten on the timesheets was reigning World Champion Valentino Rossi. The charismatic Italian was one and a half seconds behind Capirossi on a day where many teams were focusing their energies on tyre testing. It will only be with the first free practices and race of the season, which will take place at the Circuito de Jerez in two weeks’ time, that the true potential of the title contenders will become apparent. However today’s final day of testing, under dry sunny conditions with a temperature of around 25 degrees, has served as a tasty appetiser ahead of March 26th’s main course, the Gran Premio betandwin.com de España. More information on today’s results and tomorrow’s final day can be found at www.motogp.com More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki Racing Team: HARALD ECKL: “WE ARE READY TO GO!” Shinya Nakano again proved the competitiveness of Kawasaki’s all-new Ninja ZX-RR, by finishing with the third fastest time overall, as the final day of the IRTA test at Jerez saw a dramatic increase in pace by the frontrunners. Nakano was closely followed by his Kawasaki teammate, Randy de Puniet, who waited until the closing stages before putting in a flying lap that saw him jump up the timesheet to finish an impressive fifth fastest. Conditions were perfect at Jerez today, with warm and sunny weather greeting the teams and thousands of fans, as they arrived at the Jerez circuit for the final MotoGP pre-season test before the championship gets underway in two weeks time. With tyre choice at Jerez critical, Nakano again started his test schedule working together with the Bridgestone technicians to confirm his choice of potential race tyres for the opening round of the season. The 28-year-old Japanese rider also evaluated some small changes to the fuel injection system on his Ninja ZX-RR, before trying two different qualifying tyres in the last 30 minutes of the test. On his second run on a qualifier, and with just five minutes of the test remaining, Nakano shaved over half-a-second off the lap record, to finish this final test with the third fastest time overall. De Puniet used this morning’s test session to evaluate different suspension options on his Ninja ZX-RR, but switched back to his previous set-up after struggling to match his pace from yesterday. The 25-year-old Frenchman lapped consistently throughout the afternoon, bettering his previous best time on race tyres at the end of his final ten-lap run. Like his teammate, de Puniet waited until the very end of the test before trying two different qualifying tyres, with his final flying lap elevating him to a position on the timesheet that few expected the MotoGP rookie to achieve in such a short space of time. The Jerez IRTA test brings to a conclusion an exhausting series of winter tests for the Kawasaki Racing Team, the intensity of which has been magnified with the introduction of the all-new Ninja ZX-RR at Valencia back in November last year. During the course of the winter the Kawasaki Racing Team have travelled three times to the Sepang circuit in Malaysia, and once to Phillip Island in Australia, to test with regular Grand Prix riders Nakano and de Puniet. Almost simultaneously development tests have been ongoing in Japan, with former 250GP rider Naoki Matsudo shouldering the testing duties. European Test and Development rider, Olivier Jacque, has also completed two test sessions at the Doha circuit in Qatar since the MotoGP testing ban ended in January. The results of this intensive test schedule have been clearly seen during the IRTA tests at Catalunya and Jerez, with the latest version of Kawasaki’s Ninja ZX-RR providing Nakano and de Puniet with a competitive package that is capable of running consistently in the top six on race tyres. After three days of testing and fine-tuning, both Kawasaki riders leave Jerez confident that, when they return for the opening race of the season in just two weeks time, they’ll be able to run at the front of the race, with a podium finish a more realistic prospect than at this same race 12 months ago. Shinya Nakano: 3rd – 1’39.776 (82 Laps) “Yesterday I felt like we still needed to take another step forward, so today we spent a lot of time looking for the last small improvements from the suspension, the fuel injection system and also from the tyres. I’m happy to say we found it, but then everyone else improved towards the end of the test, so we now need to make another small step during practice and qualifying for the opening race here. We know that some of the guys who didn’t have such a good test here will be quick to improve once the season starts, so we can’t afford to rest on our laurels. Having said that, after such a successful test schedule over the past months, we will arrive at the first race with higher expectations than we have had in the past, and I’m confident that, in the 2006 Ninja ZX-RR, we have a package that will enable me to improve upon my fifth place in this race last year.” Randy de Puniet: 5th – 1’40.468 (95 Laps) “Today was quite hard. This morning we tried some different suspension components and settings on the bike, but it wasn’t so easy to find a good feeling with the bike set-up this way, even after 55 laps. In the afternoon we switched back to the previous set-up and that definitely improved things. I managed to improve my lap time on race tyres, and my times were pretty consistent throughout. At the end of the day I tried two different qualifying tyres, and again I was able to improve my time from yesterday. I’m happy to finish fifth fastest today, but I know that I still have a lot of work to do this season; learning the circuits again on a MotoGP bike, and also learning how best to manage the race. The whole team have done a great job helping me adapt to the Ninja ZX-RR during testing, and I’m looking forward to returning to Jerez for my first MotoGP race, where I hope I can repay all their hard work with a good result.” Harald Eckl: Team Principal “What can I say, other than that we are ready to go! Both the team and the riders are in excellent shape for the start of the 2006 season. We’ve done our homework, confirmed everything during a successful winter test schedule, and now we’re ready to start racing. I’m looking forward to travelling back to Jerez for the first race, and I’m confident that the team will acquit themselves well.” More, from a press release issued by Camel Yamaha: RE-SEASON TESTING DRAWS TO A CLOSE IN JEREZ Valentino Rossi and Colin Edwards completed their final pre-season test in Jerez today in front of hordes of Spanish fans, after riding thousands of kilometres during a total of fifteen days’ testing since January. Following a strong showing at the Barcelona Test last week, the Camel Yamaha Team’s preparations have suffered something of a set back here and both riders have been hampered by vibration problems throughout the three days of this test. Despite not making as many improvements as they had hoped today, important information has been gathered over the three days which will hopefully enable the Yamaha engineers and Michelin to come up with a solution for the impending race. The time-sheets were topped today br Ducati duo Loris Capirossi and Sete Gibernau, with Capirossi lapping under Rossi’s pole-time from 2005 with a lap of 1’39.411. Rossi, Edwards and the Camel Yamaha Team now have the chance to relax at home for ten days before they return to this circuit for the season-opening Spanish Grand Prix on 26th March. COLIN EDWARDS (7th, 1’40.721, 82 laps) “It would be nice if I could say that we’ve solved all our problems today, but sadly it’s just not the case and we’re still struggling a bit. I think we’ve really gone in circles a bit here. We’ve changed a lot of things and we haven’t really concentrated on a race simulation or the endurance of the tyre, we’ve just been trying to find ways to dial out the problems we have. To be honest our pace isn’t bad but it’s certainly not a winning pace, which is frustrating when we saw in Barcelona last weekend how great our package is when it’s all working! Yamaha and Michelin have more than enough information after three days and I am confident that they will come back with something to solve our problems. Anyway, that’s it for testing! I’m heading home for ten days to chill out a little bit and let’s hope that the new stuff we have when we come back for the race will help us out so we can challenge for a win.” VALENTINO ROSSI (10th, 1’40.907, 83 laps) “There were so many people here today, it was like a race! Of course it’s really nice to have so many spanish fans, but today it’s been quite difficult for me even to go from the hospitality to the team truck! Yesterday I was confident that we could find some big improvements today but honestly that hasn’t happened and now I am quite worried. The vibration has remained and at the moment we don’t know how to solve it. Yamaha and Michelin have done a lot of good work today and we’ve tried many different tyres and settings, but we are still slow. This is the last test and throughout the whole pre-season period we’ve always been fast and the bike has felt good, but this test has been completely different. At the moment I am not sure what will happen in the race, we’ll have to wait and see. I hope that Jeremy, together with the Japanese engineers and the Michelin technicians, can use all the data they have now to understand the problem and see how to solve it.” DAVIDE BRIVIO CAMEL YAMAHA TEAM DIRECTOR “After this test we don’t know how the race will go, but it’s been very important to have this chance to test before it. As the riders say, we’ve tried many different things and collected a lot of information. Now our engineers will have ten days to work on this and come up with some new ideas and solutions. This is the end of winter testing and we’ve seen that our bike can work very well at different tracks. We need to understand why this hasn’t been the case here, but we’re convinced we can find a way forward and we know that we still have a very good package.” Lap Times: 1. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati Marlboro Team, 1’39.411 2. Sete Gibernau (SPA) Ducati Marlboro Team, 1’39.663 3. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Kawasaki Racing Team, 1’39.776 4. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team, 1’40.416 5. Randy de Puniet (FRA) Kawasaki Racing Team, 1’40.468 6. Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda Team, 1’40.570 7. COLIN EDWARDS (USA) Camel Yamaha Team, 1’40.721 8. Toni Elias (SPA) Fortuna Honda, 1’40.732 9. Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP, 1’40.750 10. VALENTINO ROSSI (ITA) Camel Yamaha Team, 1’40.907 11. Carlos Checa (SPA) Tech 3 Yamaha, 1’41.134 12. Marco Melandri (ITA) Fortuna Honda, 1’41.208 13. John Hopkins (USA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP, 1’41.208 14. Makoto Tamada (JPN) Konica Minolta Honda, 1’41.380 15. Kenny Roberts (USA) Team Roberts, 1’41.673 16. Jose Luis Cardoso (SPA) D’Antin Pramac, 1’41.761 17. Alex Hofmann (GER) D’Antin Pramac, 1’42.034 18. James Ellison (GBR) Tech 3 Yamaha, 1’42.686 19. Vittoriano Guareschi (ITA) Ducati, 1’42.759 20. Tadayuki Okada (JPN) HRC, 1’43.513 Jerez Lap Record: Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 2005 1’40.596 Jerez Best Lap: Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 2005 1’39.419 More, from a press release issued by Fortuna Honda: THE FORTUNA HONDA RIDERS END PRE-SEASON TESTING IN SATISFYING STYLE AT THE CIRCUIT OF JEREZ FOTUNA HONDA riders Toni Elias and Marco Melandri today completed their pre-season testing schedule ahead of the 2006 MotoGP World Championship. The riders made the most of excellent conditions and spent the entire day lapping at the final IRTA session of the pre-season. The Fortuna duo both spent the day working on a set-up for the first GP of the season to be held at this same track in a couple of weeks time. Toni Elias ended a very positive day by testing different Michelin compound tyres which performed well, although the Spaniard’s main aim was once again to improve his own rhythm. In general terms things went very well for Elias who got through 100 laps and posted the eighth quickest lap of the day with a time of 1’40.753. TONI ELIAS (100 laps, 1’40.753, 8th fastest lap): “Today we concluded our pre-season testing plans. My evaluation of the work done by all the team is very positive, in that respect I’m very satisfied. We have improved steadily which has allowed us to lap faster and also helped me feel more comfortable on the bike which I think is the most important thing. I must thank Michelin for all the work they have done. I can’t wait to race here at Jerez in front of these great fans – the atmosphere here during race weekends is really fantastic.” MARCO MELANDRI (82 laps, 1’41.208, 12th fastest lap): “Overall we are very satisfied with the close work we have done with Michelin. I must say I am very happy with the performance of the 2006 tyres. In the afternoon i covered part of the race distance and i posted my best time of the day, (1’41.208) on my 12th lap. our race rhythm has improved and i think we are not too far from what can be the race pace during the gp. We still have to improve further, but I am confident.” More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing Information: Pedrosa and Hayden end final MotoGP test in positive mood MotoGP pre-season testing came to a close when the teams and riders ended their three-day IRTA test at Jerez today. The next time they fire up their 990cc four-stroke grand prix machines it will mark the start of the 17-round world championship which opens on the same 4.423 km Jerez circuit on March 26. Honda fields its youngest ever senior class line up for a championship campaign this year. The six RCV riders have a good balance between youth and experience averaging 23 years of age, with Dani Pedrosa and Casey Stoner the youngest at 20, Makoto Tamada the elder statesman at 29. Nicky Hayden 24, Marco Melandri 23, and Toni Elias, a 24 year old complete the line up. In addition Team Roberts have chosen Honda power for their all-new for the 2006 season KR211V. The RCV engine housed in a Team Roberts built rolling chassis. Kenny Roberts Jnr will race the machine he has helped develop since the drawing board stage. On the last day of the three-day test the Repsol Honda pairing of Dani Pedrosa and Nicky Hayden set the pace for their fellow RC211V riders to chase. Pedrosa ended the day with a flourish setting fourth fastest time of the day, Hayden a tenth of a second behind in sixth. Both riders worked hard on race simulations using the latest Michelin rubber. While Hayden feels he improved the rear end of his all-new 2006 factory machine he hopes for more feeling from the machine at the grand prix. MotoGP debutante Pedrosa is on a fast learning curve but ends winter testing in better shape than he could have hoped for. The young Spaniard has improved each time out on the 240 hp plus RC211V but the real test comes when he returns to Jerez to race. Fortuna Honda riders Marco Melandri and Toni Elias emerged from the final day of testing in confident mood. Both men spent the day tyre testing running a series of tests on 2006 race rubber. Melandri set his fastest time of the day on lap 12 of a 15-lap session on race tyres. While Elias worked his way through an intensive tyre testing programme ending the day more as one with his RCV than at any time during winter testing. Makoto Tamada (Konica Minolta Honda) ended the day faster than yesterday but the gritty Japanese rider is still searching for the optimum base setting for his RCV. He is still trying to eliminate the chatter problems he ran into yesterday. Kenny Roberts Jnr ended the test with fifth fastest time aboard the KR211V. Roberts spent the day gathering as much data as possible for the team before they return to their UK base to decide upon the next phase of chassis development. Honda rider Lap times and quotes. Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda: 1m 40.570s – 109 laps. “Well all the testing’s all over and now it’s time for the real deal. Next time we get on the bikes it’ll be showtime. I’d like to say we’re right there and everything’s all gravy but the truth is still couldn’t quite get the bike to stay in line and get hooked up as good as we wanted. We’ve made some progress today and at the end we put on some soft tyres, not qualifiers, just to see what it would do and that definitely helped my lap time a lot. And I did a full race run to get a feeling but I it was hard to maintain the pace. Nonetheless, I’m excited to go racing. Testing’s cool but going toe-to-toe with the boys is the fun part!.” Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda: 1m 40.416s – 81 laps. “It’s been a very good pre-season for me because each time on the bike I’ve been able to improve step-by-step. I did a lot of laps over the winter and this is very useful to get to know the bike because the step up from the 250 to MotoGP is much bigger than the step from 125 to 250. Physically I’m getting stronger and this will continue throughout the year. I’m starting to understand how the tyres work, though I need more experience with the electronics, on race starts and qualification tyres. I don’t know if I’m ready for round one – we’ll have to wait and see!” Makoto Tanaka – Repsol Honda Team Manager. “We have worked through a demanding menu of testing here, in readiness for the up-coming Spanish GP. Both Nicky and Dani have done lots of laps. Thanks to all of our staff, they all worked very hard during this pre-season test schedule. Dani showed very good progress today, especially with his consistency during the long run with race tyres. Dani made good progress, more than what we hoped, so we are very much looking forward to the opening race. We are the quickest Michelin runner throughout three days of testing here and Nicky showed good speed and he gave us the top two times of the Michelin runners. But Nicky hasn’t got the perfect set-up yet and we still have a lot of work to do to improve his machine for the race. We have some positive feeling from a good race tyre pace but still need more hard work. We’ll do our best to ensure a good race here in Jerez.” Toni Elias, Fortuna Honda: 1m 40.753s – 101 laps. “Today we concluded our pre-season testing plans. My evaluation of the work done by all the team is very positive, in that respect I’m very satisfied. We have improve steadily which has allowed us to lap faster and also helped me feel more comfortable on the bike, which I think is the most important thing. I must thank Michelin for all the work they have done. I can’t wait to race here at Jerez in front of these great fans the atmosphere here during race weekends is really fantastic.” Marco Melandri, Fortuna Honda: 1m 41.208s – 82 laps. “Overall we are very satisfied with the close work we have done with Michelin. I must say I am very happy with the performance of the tyres. At around midday I posted my best time of the day, (1m 41.208s), on my 12th lap. We still have to improve further, but I am confident.” Makoto Tamada, Konica Minolts Honda: 1m 41.380s – 88 laps. “These three days test have been useful to define the setting to use for the race but I am not completely satisfied because we did not completely solve the chattering problem I felt yesterday. Actually, today I have been able to slightly improve the performance and, above all, I run more constantly on the 1’41” pace. In order to be absolutely competitive, in the two days of Grand Prix tests we should find the way to better our performance of approximately 0.5seconds a lap.” Giulio Bernardelle – Konica Minolta Honda Technical Director “Even today we have continued testing different suspensions setting solutions, working in particular on the swing arm and attempting to solve the chattering problem annoying Makoto in the last braking phase. As concerns the choice of the race tyres, we have nearly defined the front one while we still have to work on the rear tyre. We have tried to make the most of the time we had at our disposal to define the race setting deciding not to test with a qualifying setting. Apart from this, we still have some work to do that we intend to complete in the first two free practice hours of the first Grand Prix of the Championship.” Kenny Roberts Jnr, KR Honda: 1m 41.673s – 108 laps. Team Manager Chuck Aksland said: “We ran with pretty much the same stuff we ran yesterday just confirming a few things we learned so far and we got some quality data at the end of the day. The chassis is working well but now we have to study what we have before moving forward.” More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki: Vermeulen continues impressive learning curve at Jerez Rizla Suzuki MotoGP racer Chris Vermeulen continued his consistent pre-season improvement today as he set his fastest time of the weekend, during the last day of testing at Jerez in Spain. Vermeulen clocked a best time of 1’40.750 using a Bridgestone qualifying tyre and recorded the ninth quickest time overall. The young Australian rider was at Jerez for the first time in his career and continued to impress over the three day test. He completed 77 laps today and worked tirelessly with his technicians to improve chassis settings and rear grip on his Rizla Suzuki GSV-R. John Hopkins tested a completely new experimental chassis on his bike today. The Anglo-American was so determined to concentrate on getting the best results from the GSV-R in race spec, that he gave up the chance of using qualifying tyres to make sure that the team and factory technicians will have as much data as possible to evaluate before the start of the season. His best time of 1’41.305 was set on Bridgestone race tyres and gave him 13th place overall from his 71 laps although his time was still one and a half seconds quicker than his fastest race lap from last year. Today’s quickest time was set by Loris Capirossi on a Ducati, also on Bridgestone tyres. Rizla Suzuki MotoGP will now re-visit and analyse all the results from the pre-season tests to make sure that everything will be the best it can be when the 2006 MotoGP World Championship kicks off at Jerez on Sunday 26th March. Chris Vermeulen: “I’ve enjoyed this test, even though I felt I hit a bit of a brick wall today. I managed to get consistently in the high one minute 41 seconds bracket on race tyres but I just couldn’t find that extra bit to bring my times down further although my team did keep reminding me that this is my first visit to the track and should be pleased with what I have achieved. I am happy with the way the bike and I have improved over the three days and I am sure I can make further advances when we return here for the race. I now can’t wait for my first Grand Prix as a Rizla Suzuki MotoGP rider.” John Hopkins: “It’s been a hard three days work here at Jerez. The Rizla Suzuki was not as well suited to the circuit as it had been to Sepang, Qatar and Catalunya. I feel a bit battered and bruised from fighting the bike around the track for over 200 laps but it was worth it because we now have a definite direction to follow when we come here in two weeks for the race. I am really positive about the steps that we have taken as a whole team and I know there is a lot of potential in the new bike and I am now really eager to get back here for the race.” Paul Denning – Team Manager: “Both riders and the whole team have worked really hard not only at this test but over the last few weeks. We are now looking to re-group over the next week or so in time for the first Grand Prix at Jerez and make sure that we are in the best condition for the race. Chris has continued his fantastic growth and he is starting to show his true potential that I am sure will se him pushing John and other established riders right from the start of the season. “John has again given a faultless performance at this test and sacrificed a fast lap time on a qualifying tyre to make sure he got every bit of testing possible from today. This is the sort of commitment and dedication that I am sure will take him forward this season.”

Jake Zemke Wins First Daytona 200 By Honda Mladin Takes Opening Round Of AMA Superbike DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., (March 11, 2006) — Honda rider Jake Zemke held off Erion Racing’s Josh Hayes in a nine-lap pace car restart to capture his first Daytona 200 By Honda victory on Saturday at Daytona International Speedway. “Everybody knows about the Daytona 200,” Zemke said. “It’s something as a kid that you always look at the names on the list of the winners of the Daytona 200 By Honda and it’s a who’s who list. I’m proud to put my name up there.” While it was Zemke’s first Daytona 200 By Honda victory, it was Honda’s 11th in the prestigious motorcycle classic. Zemke, riding the No. 98 Honda, held off Hayes, aboard the No. 4 Honda, over the final nine laps for 1.562second margin of victory. In Zemke’s previous two Daytona 200 By Honda starts, he earned second and third-place finishes. Hayes was delighted with his runner-up finish. He said in his three previous Daytona 200 By Honda starts, he never made it to the first pit stop. “I was gaining on him,” Hayes said of Zemke. “I really started trying hard. I thought I might have something for him. Once he realized I was there and coming, he picked up the pace. He won it honest.” Yamaha’s Jason DiSalvo earned a podium appearance in his first start in the Daytona 200 By Honda. Miguel Duhamel had himself in perfect position for his record sixth Daytona 200 By Honda victory. Riding with a sizable lead, the Canadian rider took a hard spill entering Turn 1 on Lap 44. Despite a broken visor and wind screen, Duhamel continued to fight for the win but settled for a fifth place finish. “I was just trying to salvage, to see if anything was going to go my way and have a shot at it still,” Duhamel said. “It was real disappointing. Nothing you can do. That’s racing.” The top-finishing Buell rider was three-time Irish champion Jeremy McWilliams, who finished 52nd and earned the $10,000 Cal Rayborn Award. Mladin Wins Opening Round Of AMA Superbike Mat Mladin played the chicane the perfect way on his way to victory in the opening round of the AMA Superbike Championship on Saturday at Daytona International Speedway. Mladin, riding the No. 1 Suzuki, and his Yoshimura Suzuki teammate Ben Spies were able to break way in the 15-lap event. On the final lap, Mladin, not wanting to lead Spies out of the chicane, backed off allowing Spies to take the lead. The Aussie then quickly hustled his Suzuki around NASCAR Turns 3 and 4 to nip Spies at the start/finish by .032 seconds. “With five to go, I figured that was what I was going to have to do,” said Mladin, who earned his third straight Daytona Superbike win and his fifth overall. “I certainly didn’t want to slow up going into the chicane and try to let him by there because it’s just become silly. Everyone doesn’t know who wants to take the lead. “I just tried to catch him by surprise. I made sure he had momentum when he went past so he couldn’t check up and if he didn’t, I would’ve been gone anyway. It worked well this time. That will go in his memory bank and probably won’t work next year. I’ll have to come up with another plan.” Said Spies: “I was figuring I was going to be that guy who got drafted and beat at the line.” Mladin, who is chasing an unprecedented seventh AMA Superbike championship, earns the maximum amount of points (38) this weekend at Daytona as he earned the pole, led the most laps and earned the victory. Rounding out the podium was five-time Daytona 200 By Honda champion Miguel Duhamel. More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki: Defending Champion Mat Mladin headed a Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 one-two at the opening round of the AMA Superbike Championship at Daytona in Florida today. The six-time series winner beat team mate Ben Spies by less than 300ths of a second after 15 laps at Daytona Speedway after taking the lead early on. Spies briefly led on the seventh lap but the Australian retook him one lap later. Third team rider Aaron Yates moved from ninth at the start to finish in sixth place. Said Mladin: “It was a good race. It’s good to get the Yoshimura Suzukis up here one and two. In these races you can look really good or you can look really bad. Today came out good for us and now I’m ready to head on to the next round.” Thursday’s qualifying session saw Mladin capture his third Daytona Superbike pole position by posting a record-breaking time of 1:37.075. Spies came in a close second with a fast 1:37.559 lap time. Yates, still suffering from a shoulder injury and conserving his energy for the afternoon’s Superstock race, posted a 1:39.429 time and carded a third-row grid position. “The new Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 is working beautifully,” said Mladin after qualifying. “It’s fast, the suspension is working well and the tyres are good. It’s a great motorbike to start the season with.” In Saturday’s 15-lap race, Mladin showed exactly how good of a motorbike the GSX-R is by getting a great start and pulling quickly into the lead. He pulled away with Spies in tow. Mid-race, they swapped spots but a lap later, Mladin regained the lead. On the last lap, Mladin again let Spies go by but then passed him right before the finish line. “With about five laps to go, I figured that’s what I would do,” Mladin said of letting Spies by at the end. “I tried to catch him by surprise. After I got going, I gave him a little more room on the banking because I wanted to make sure I didn’t pass him too soon.” Said Spies: “Mat and I both got great starts on the Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000s and I knew it would be settled between the two of us. I tried to make it work at the end but he caught me at the finish. But I was just happy to stay with him for the whole race and I’m glad we got out ahead of everybody.” Yates, meanwhile, was still nursing the shoulder he broke at last month’s California Speedway test. Starting from the Daytona third row, he slotted in behind the lead groups and rode consistently to sixth place. “I’m happy with my results,” said Yates. “Considering my condition, I’m pretty pleased with this outcome. Overall, we’ve made some progress with the Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 and I’m looking forward to getting in condition so I can race with my team mates for the win.” Daytona Superbike Results: 1 Mat Mladin (Suzuki), 2 Ben Spies (Suzuki), 3 Miguel Duhamel (Honda), 4 Neil Hodgson (Ducati), 5 Tommy Hayden (Kawasaki), 6 Aaron Yates (Suzuki), 7 Ben Bostrom (Ducati), 8 Jake Zemke (Honda), 9 Jason Pridmore (Suzuki), 10 Jake Holden (Suzuki). More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing Information: Crowd: 45,000 Climate: Warm, sunny Temperature: 25 Zemke Takes First Daytona 200 Win American Honda’s Jake Zemke scored his first win in the Daytona 200 on a sun-filled Saturday afternoon at Daytona International Speedway, with Erion Honda’s Josh Hayes giving the Honda CBR600RR a one-two finish with a close second in the Formula Xtreme race. The win, in the 65th annual Daytona 200, was especially sweet for Zemke, who’s finished second and third at Daytona, but never first. This completes his set of trophies, he said from the podium. “Everybody knows about Daytona 200,” Zemke said after beating Hayes by 1.562 seconds. “It’s something as a kid, that you always look at the names on the list of the winners of the Daytona 200 by Honda and it’s a who’s who list. I’m proud to put my name up there.” Zemke’s fortune coincided with the misfortune of his prolific teammate Miguel Duhamel. From a new lap record pole position, the reigning class champion built a 12 second lead before losing the rear end and high-siding in turn one on the 44th of 68 laps. Undeterred, the resolute Duhamel picked up his lightly damaged Honda CBR600RR and rejoined the fray, now second to Zemke. “I was still in the hunt. I still had a shot at it,” Duhamel said. “The bike was good enough and I was still able to pound out some pretty good lap times.” When an accident brought out the pace car on the 54th lap, Duhamel was in the perfect position to fight for a historic sixth win. But a mistake by race officials put Duhamel, and not race leader Zemke, directly behind the pace car. It meant the French-Canadian, who now calls Las Vegas home, had to make up almost an entire lap when the field was released. Fighting through the pain, Duhamel finished fifth in his only Formula Xtreme appearance of the year. He and teammate Zemke will now concentrate on winning the AMA Superbike Championship. That quest began earlier Saturday morning with Duhamel finishing third in the 15-lap Superbike season-opener on the Honda CBR1000RR. He ran just behind the race leaders and fought off the challenges of former World Superbike Champion Neil Hodgson to finish on the podium. Teammate Zemke suffered arm pump early in the race and bravely hung on to finish eighth. A session with his physiotherapist during the two hours between the Superbike and Formula Xtreme races helped alleviate the condition. The Superbike race was won by Suzuki’s Mat Mladin from teammate Ben Spies. Jake Zemke, Formula Xtreme, 1st I don’t know what to say. I got second the first year and third last year and there was one spot on the box that I’ve got to get. We’re there. There was some confusion with the pace car thing. They are supposed to let the leader get to the front and they never did. My pit board went from plus-4 (seconds) to plus 25 the next lap. I thought Josh (Hayes) must have stopped for gas. I’m cruising along and I come around and my pit board said 1.5 or .5 (seconds), but my eyes opened up about this big and I said, ‘There ain’t no way, as my friend Nicky Hayden would put it, and I put my head down. Josh was right there. That board said the last two or three lap, 0.5. Luckily, it never said, .0. It was great. Miguel Duhamel, Formula Xtreme, 5th Coming out of turn one, I’ll be the first one to admit it I know what happened, but I’m not too sure why. The rear end just kicked out violently. It was the last stop of the stint on that tire, I don’t know if I hit some debris, a tear-off. I was tracking and powering on as I did every lap, but it just snapped so abruptly. I couldn’t believe how it got so far. I went to the lock trying to save it. It was like it got a shot of 1000cc of power. I’ll say it’s definitely the bonehead move of the world. A 10-second lead at Daytona with half the race done, you don’t do stuff like that. But that being said, the race was still pretty young and I didn’t want to start slacking off and give these guys a chance, but it caught me off guard. Jake Zemke, Superbike, 8th I have no one to blame but myself. I couldn’t hold on anymore – my arms pumped up. I think I figured out why. I realized that every time I came off the corner and was accelerating, my ass was sliding to the back of the seat and I was holding on with my arms. That’s no excuse. The bike was awesome today. I worked my way through the guys real fast and at that point, from where I had come from, I kept looking to see where Mat [Mladin] and Ben [Spies] were, and I could see that I was catching them. I’m just disappointed in myself. That’s all there is to it. The bike was good. It [the arm pump] started this morning. I tried a new set of leathers and they were a bit tight and my arms pumped up a little bit, and maybe they didn’t have enough time to recover in between. Miguel Duhamel, Superbike, 3rd My main goal here was to get points, maximum points. Winning would have been great, but realistically top three was what we were shooting for. I rode a B- race. I didn’t ride good in the beginning; I was a little too soft. I let them get away and the bike was good. At the end we were running the same times almost and could have been there for a win, but third is okay. The championship is our main goal, so we’re happy with third. Daytona 200: 1. Jake Zemke (Honda) 2. Josh Hayes (Honda) 3. Jason DiSalvo (Yamaha) 4. Eric Bostrom (Yamaha) 5. Miguel Duhamel (Honda) 6. Aaron Gobert (Honda) 7. Geoff May (Suzuki) 8. Eric Wood (Suzuki) 9. Blake Wood (Suzuki) 10. Will Gruy (Yamaha) Daytona Superbike: 1. Mat Mladin (Suzuki) 2. Ben Spies (Suzuki) 3. Miguel Duhamel (Honda) 4. Neil Hodgson (Ducati) 5. Tommy Hayden (Kawasaki) 6. Aaron Yates (Suzuki) 7. Ben Bostrom (Ducati) 8. Jake Zemke (Honda) 9. Jason Pridmore (Suzuki) 10. Jake Holden (Suzuki) More, from a press release issued by Vreeke & Associates on behlf of Dunlop: Dunlop Motorcycle Tires race report: Mladin collects Superbike victory, Zemke takes first Daytona 200 win Daytona, FL — March 11, 2006 — Daytona International Speedway (DIS) delivered excitement and drama today as the first round of the AMA Superbike Series concluded Bike Week with a hotly contested Superbike event and a controversial late-race caution in the Daytona 200 that left the top five riders in disarray with just 10 of 68 laps remaining. Yoshimura Suzuki’s six-time AMA Superbike champ Mat Mladin and teammate Ben Spies dueled throughout the Superbike event, with Mladin eventually taking the win with a last-second draft pass at the flag; his margin of victory was just .032 seconds. Honda Racing’s Jake Zemke won his first-ever Daytona 200, surviving the charge of Erion Racing’s Josh Hayes by a slim margin of 1.561 seconds. Dunlop arrived at Daytona with more than 2600 tires and 24 engineers, service technicians and tire-fitters to support five manufacturers–Ducati, Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki, Yamaha–and their seven support teams: Erion Racing, Rockwall Honda, Attack Kawasaki, Jordon Motorsports, Matsushima Racing, Mladin Motorsports and Graves Motorsports. Collectively the teams represent the series’ top 24 riders, including 10 who compete in Superbike, 12 in Superstock, seven in Supersport and 10 in Formula Xtreme. The surface at DIS places greater demands on motorcycle racing tires that any other racing venue in the world. The elimination of the west banking on the AMA circuit in 2005 was a positive step toward reducing tire temperatures, but the track–always known to generate a lot of wear and heat in the left portion of the rear tire–added more infield turns, most of them lefts, so wear on the left side of the tread is still evident. In addition, last May the track was repaved from turn one through the new infield section, increasing available traction and subsequently wear. For the Superbike competition, Dunlop brought two front and five rear tire compounds from which the teams could select. For the Formula Xtreme class, there were one front and five rear compound options offered. The day’s first race was the Superbike event and Mladin enjoyed the pole position after setting a track record of 1:37.075 on Thursday. He rocketed into the lead at the start of the race on his Suzuki GSX-R1000, followed closely by Spies. With Spies nipping at Mladin’s heals throughout the race and a pack of riders–Honda’s Racing’s Miguel Duhamel, Kawasaki Road Racing’s Tommy Hayden and Roger Lee Hayden and Parts Unlimited Ducati’s Neil Hodgson–scrapping with each other just a few seconds behind, fans enjoyed a dogfight that lasted to the last lap. Following Mladin’s draft pass of Spies for the win, Duhamel crossed the line 5.1 seconds later to fill out the podium. “This race could have gone either way when it’s that close,” said Mladin. “So it’s good to win it, but you know, it’s Daytona. Let’s move on and get to the next races where the draft and these things don’t come into play as much. And then let the championship play out.” It was a victorious race for Dunlop, whose riders collected all of the top 10 finishing positions. The 65th running of the Daytona 200 was the weekend’s feature event and it played out as a battle of wits, determination, and strategy. Dominated in qualifying by 600cc four-cylinder machines, five-time winner Duhamel put his Honda CBR600RR on the pole with a record-setting qualifying time of 1.40.928. The early laps featured a back-and-forth battle between Duhamel, Yamaha Racing’s Jason Disalvo and Eric Bostrom and Duhamel’s teammate Zemke. Following the first set of pit stops for fuel and tires, Duhamel built a lead of as much as 12 seconds when, on lap 44, he high-sided violently exiting turn one, allowing Zemke to take the lead. Duhamel miraculously collected himself and the bike and managed to re-enter the race in fifth place. Zemke rode a determined race and avoided trouble, only to see his lead shrink to nothing when the pace car entered the course to slow the field as an accident was cleared. Confusion among race officials parked Zemke, Disalvo, Bostrom and Erion’s Hayes deep in the field while fourth and fifth place holders Duhamel and Bostrom were at the head of the column. When the green flag came out for the last 10 laps, the race leaders were mired in a large group of lapped riders while Duhamel and Bostrom had effectively lost any chance of improving their position. To his credit, Zemke masterfully worked through the field of lappers, holding off Hayes’ late-race charge; Disalvo was third in his first Daytona 200. “Everybody knows about the Daytona 200,”said Zemke. “It’s something, as a kid, that you always look at the names on the list of the winners and it’s a Who’s Who list. I am proud to put my name up there.” Dunlop was also victorious; its riders took the first six positions and eight of the top 10. Next stop for Dunlop and the AMA Superbike road racing tour is the Barber Motorsports Park in Birmingham, Alabama, April 21-23. Round two also features a doubleheader for the Superbike series. About Dunlop Tires Dunlop Tires is the largest supplier of original equipment and replacement motorcycle tires in the U.S. and the only manufacturer of motorcycle tires in North America. With North American operations headquartered in Buffalo, NY, Dunlop has been making and selling high-quality tires in the U.S. since 1923. For more information, please visit www.dunlopmotorcycle.com.

DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM: SUCCESSFUL RACE SIMULATIONS More spring weather for the second MotoGP Test day at Jerez de la Frontera. Loris Capirossi and Sete Gibernau were able to make the most of the warmest hours of the day and continue the development work on their Desmosedici GP6s and Bridgestone tyres. The Borgo Panigale manufacturer’s factory riders exclusively used race tyres today, with a view to preparing for the 2006 season opener. The Ducati Marlboro Team men have been very fast since the first sessions this morning, with Loris clocking his best lap time on race tyres in 1’40.544, which beats Valentino Rossi’s lap record set last year (1’40.596). Capirossi and Gibernau then used the afternoon to carry out a 27-lap race simulation which yielded important, positive information for the Ducati Corse and Bridgestone engineers. Loris CAPIROSSI (68 laps – Best lap time: 1’40.544) “I am really very happy. This morning we fine-tuned our settings even more and I managed to lap really, really fast, to the point that I broke the lap record! My bike and tyres were good, the weather conditions were also perfect and we succeeded in completing a race simulation. I am satisfied because I practically always lapped within the 41’s at a consistent pace throughout today’s simulation. Tomorrow, we’ll try and improve some more but I can say we’re in a good position for the first race.” Sete GIBERNAU (82 laps – Best lap time: 1’40.954) ” For the first time today we had the right conditions for a long-run test, and I can say now that we’re right where I expected to be. The work done by my Team and by Bridgestone so far has been very positive and we made substantial progress compared to when we were last here in November. However, there’s still some margin for improvement and we must stay concentrated and work as hard as we’ve always done so far. It felt good to do a full 27-lap race simulation without any problems: it’s a good starting point to try and improve even more tomorrow.” Temperatures: Air 21° – Track: 30° More, from a press release issued by Fortuna Honda: THE FORTUNA HONDA RIDERS KEEP ON WORKING Another hard day for the Fortuna Honda Team at the Jerez de la Frontera for the second day of the last pre-season test. Sunshine ruled throughout the day and the Fortuna Honda riders could profit of nice track conditions (19degrees the air temperature, 32 degrees the asphalt). Marco Melandri worked a lot on the bike and completed 84 laps but he didn’t reach the expected results, while his team mate Toni Elias worked first on the suspensions before testing Michelin tyres. Despite the hard work, the Fortuna Honda riders couldn’t improve their positions: the Spaniard finished 11th while his team mate finished 16th. TONI ELIAS ( 91 laps, 1’41″254, 11th): “This morning we continued working on the suspensions in order to improve my feeling in the corner entry. Starting from this base, which is the result of all our pre-season work, we did some tyre testing with Michelin technicians. I have improved my lap time but I still need to focus on my rhythm in order to be ready for the first race. Tomorrow we have one more day to test Michelin tyres and I hope to do another step forward.” MARCO MELANDRI ( 84 laps, 1’42″636, 16th): “We worked a lot on the bike, testing many different solutions. We have found some good things but I have to say at this moment this is my limit. I’m confident and tomorrow we will keep on our work schedule.” More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki Racing Team: NAKANO TOPS THE TIMESHEET AT JEREZ Kawasaki’s Shinya Nakano blitzed his way to the top of the timesheet at Jerez today, in front of Spanish race fans who’d turned out in their thousands to get a sneak preview of the MotoGP riders ahead of the opening race of the season at Jerez in three weeks time. With race conditions likely to be similar to those of today, Nakano started his test programme working with Bridgestone to identify potential race tyres, before running a race distance simulation to confirm their initial selection early in the afternoon. The 28-year-old Kawasaki rider also used the 27-lap endurance run to evaluate the latest revisions to the fuel injection system on his Ninja ZX-RR engine, designed to improve driveability around the technically demanding Jerez circuit. Late in the afternoon session Nakano returned to the track with a qualifying tyre fitted to his Ninja ZX-RR, lapping the 4.432 km Jerez circuit more than half-a-second faster than his fifth place qualifying time from the race here last year, and almost the same distance ahead of his nearest rival today, Loris Capirossi. Nakano declared himself happy with today’s performance, but still keen to see further improvements during tomorrow’s final day of testing. Hot on Nakano’s heels was his Kawasaki teammate, Randy de Puniet, who set the fourth fastest time today, despite still suffering with the toothache that caused him so many problems during the opening day at Jerez yesterday. De Puniet, who was running today on a slightly older specification engine than Nakano, started with tyre testing for Bridgestone, working his way through a number of different compounds and profiles on the rear of his Ninja ZX-RR. The 25-year-old Frenchman also evaluated different fuel injection and engine management settings, in a bid to better control the bike when hard on the throttle out of the turns. De Puniet will run a race simulation tomorrow afternoon, after his endurance run today was cut short after just 24 laps due to problems with rear traction on his Ninja ZX-RR. Shinya Nakano: 1st – 1’40.047 (70 Laps) “It’s been a hard day today, because we’ve been testing specifically for the race here in three weeks time, so it was good to finish with the fastest time. This morning we tested quite a few tyres from Bridgestone and then in the early part of the afternoon we ran a 27-lap race simulation to confirm tyre choice for the race, when we think conditions will be fairly similar. Late in the session we put a qualifying tyre in the bike to test, and it was on this tyre that I set the fastest time of the day. In the new Ninja ZX-RR we have a very competitive package, and I’m confident that we will unlock more of the bike’s potential in the future, but for now we have found a combination of engine performance, chassis settings and tyres that, together, suit the characteristics of the Jerez circuit very well. We still have some decisions to make about our race tyre selection, so we will continue with tyre testing tomorrow.” Randy de Puniet: 4th – 1’40.839 (89 Laps) “If someone had told me back in October that I’d finish the second day of the Jerez IRTA test fourth fastest, I would not have believed them. I feel really comfortable on the bike and it’s working well here in Jerez, just as it has at all the pre-season tests. I still had some pain from my tooth, but it’s more of a dull ache today and it wasn’t such a distraction on the bike. We’ve covered a lot of ground today, made some more improvements to the bike, and I’m happy with my lap time. Tomorrow we hope to test the same specification engine as Shinya, but it depends on whether the parts get here in time; they are stuck in Madrid at the moment I understand. Either way, new parts or not, I hope we can continue to improve, both the bike and my lap time, during tomorrow’s final day of testing.” Harald Eckl: Team Manager “I’m sure that many people seeing Shinya’s name at the top of the timesheet, and Randy’s just three places further back, will think that it’s some kind of miracle given our results over the past three years. In reality, our performance today is a direct result of all the hard work put in by Kawasaki, the team, the riders and also Bridgestone during winter testing. I hope that we will be able to carry this momentum into the first race and come away with a good result, because there is no better way to start the season.” More, from a press release issued by Camel Yamaha: CAMEL YAMAHA TEAM POSITIVE DESPITE PROBLEMS IN JEREZ Camel Yamaha Team riders Valentino Rossi and Colin Edwards both improved considerably on yesterday’s lap times in Jerez today, but are still hard working hard with Michelin to find a way to rid the M1 of the vibration problems that they are both experiencing here. A new batch of Michelin tyres and some set-up changes brought some improvements to the package today, but the riders are still not able to use the M1 at its full capacity and are still further down the time sheets than in Barcelona last weekend, when they were both consistently fast. Shinya Nakano showed his 2006 potential on the Kawasaki by topping the time sheets with a lap of 1’40.047, nearly half a second faster than second-placed Loris Capirossi (Ducati). Tomorrow’s final day of testing concludes the pre-season MotoGP programme, ahead of the first race here in two weeks time. VALENTINO ROSSI (6th, 1’40.915, 67 laps) “We still have quite a few problems with the vibration and this means that we can’t use the bike to its full potential and make fast lap times. We’ve tried lots of changes to the set-up today balance, suspension, but the problem remains. In some of the fast corners my speed is down by as much as 15 or 20kms. The good thing is that we’re much better than yesterday and we’ve done some really good work within the team to make these improvements, but it’s still not enough and some other riders are looking very strong. Luckily we still have tomorrow to try to find the solution and I am not so worried. If we still have this situation on the Saturday afternoon of the first race, then maybe we can worry but for now I have 100% confidence in Yamaha and Michelin. For tomorrow we will have some new tyres to try and then for sure Michelin will work very hard between now and the first race so that we’re in a better position when we come back here.” COLIN EDWARDS (9th, 1’41.105, 62 laps) “Yesterday we thought that the new tyres today would make all the difference. The situation is a bit better and I’m faster today, but the improvements really aren’t as big as we had hoped. Basically the chatter that both Valentino and I are experiencing is acting as a speed limit to our bike we can push so far but no more. We didn’t want to turn the bike upside-down yesterday before we’d tried the new stuff from Michelin, but after today it’s pretty clear that’s just what we’re going to need to do tomorrow. It’s frustrating after last weekend to have spent two days here without making any real steps forward, so we need to make the most of tomorrow! I am sure that Michelin are going to bring some more new stuff, we’ll fiddle with the settings and hopefully together we can figure it all out.” DAVIDE BRIVIO CAMEL YAMAHA TEAM DIRECTOR “We still have tomorrow left to try to find some new solutions for our problem and we’re analysing all the information that we have to find a way forward. Our engineers will make some new plans for tomorrow and we will see how the situation is. Hopefully we can leave here having made some more improvements.” Lap Times: 1. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Kawasaki Racing Team, 1’40.047 2. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati Marlboro Team, 1’40.544 3. John Hopkins (USA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP, 1’40.791 4. Randy de Puniet (FRA) Kawasaki Racing Team, 1’40.839 5. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team, 1’40.859 6. VALENTINO ROSSI (ITA) Camel Yamaha Team, 1’40.915 7. Carlos Checa (SPA) Tech 3 Yamaha, 1’40.943 8. Sete Gibernau (SPA) Ducati Marlboro Team, 1’40.954 9. COLIN EDWARDS (USA) Camel Yamaha Team, 1’41.105 10. Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP, 1’41.110 11. Toni Elias (SPA) Fortuna Honda, 1’41.254 12. Makoto Tamada (JPN) Konica Minolta Honda, 1’41.561 13. Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda Team, 1’41.745 14. Kenny Roberts (USA) Team Roberts, 1’42.127 15. Jose Luis Cardoso (SPA) D’Antin Pramac, 1’42.593 16. Marco Melandri (ITA) Fortuna Honda, 1’42.636 17. Alex Hofmann (GER) D’Antin Pramac, 1’42.647 18. James Ellison (GBR) Tech 3 Yamaha, 1’43.797 19. Vittoriano Guareschi (ITA) Ducati, 1’43.846 20. Tadayuki Okada (JPN) HRC, 1’45.622 Jerez Lap Record: Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 2005 1’40.596 Jerez Best Lap: Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 2005 1’39.419 More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing Information: Pedrosa retains fastest Honda rider status on day two of Jerez IRTA test The second day of the IRTA three-day MotoGP test at Jerez was again run in bright sunshine giving the Honda riders a dry track to work with as they enter the final phase of pre-season testing before the grand prix season begins at Jerez in two weeks time. Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa was the fastest RC211V rider again today. The diminutive Spaniard set fifth fastest time working to refine the set up he will take into qualifying for the grand prix at Jerez on March 26. Pedrosa’s team-mate, American Nicky Hayden didn’t make the hoped for progress with the latest version of the RCV. Despite a hard days work with his team technicians and Michelin tyre engineers Hayden struggled to find traction on the demanding circuit. The Fortuna Honda team riders worked on suspension settings for their RCVs before working on Michelin tyre testing in the afternoon. Toni Elias was faster than team-mate Marco Melandri for the second day running. Makoto Tamada made progress with his RCV matching his best ever times at the 4.423 km Spanish circuit. The Konica Minolta Honda rider has improved his feeling with the 2006 RCV and spent his time working with Michelin to find the best combination of machine set up and tyre performance. Kenny Roberts Jnr continued working with the new Team Roberts built chassis that houses the five-cylinder RC211V engine. The team tested various base line settings on the KR working on machine balance and suspension before testing a range of Michelin tyres comparing handling performance with each set of front and rear tyres as they continue their search for the optimum base line to work from at each race track on the championship calendar. Honda rider Lap times and quotes. Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda: 1m 41.745s – 97 laps. “We tested some Michelin tyres which were a little bit better, yet overall our performance today was only slightly better than yesterday, so we’re not totally happy. I did some longer runs today to test the feel of the bike and we had some trouble getting the back of the bike to settle down ­ so this is what we’re working on. We’ll sit down with the boys tonight and definitely try to come up with something for tomorrow and make some big progress.” Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda: 1m 40.859s – 88 laps. “Today was good. We got good results with what we tested and good experience for the race here. The pace of the long run was not really fast – I could do better – but it was the first time we tried it and I’m happy. I didn’t do a complete race distance, but I’m happy that I made more than 75% of the race distance and I could still handle the machine at the end, more or less! But now I am very tired.” Makoto Tanaka – Repsol Honda Team Manager “Both our riders worked hard again and we had another busy day testing. At the end of day, Dani did a very consistent run of 11 laps, including three laps in the 1m 40s bracket. I think a lot of Dani’s supporters who came here enjoyed his progress. We could not achieve the fastest time today and Nicky needs more time to get the right set-up here. Clearly we must do some more work but our pace today with race tyres was quite strong, and again we got the top time of all the Michelin runners. I believe, working in partnership with Michelin, we can improve further. I’m looking forward to see what happens tomorrow.” Toni Elias, Fortuna Honda: 1m 41.254s – 91 laps. “This morning we continued working on the suspensions in order to improve my feeling in the corner entry. Starting from this base, which is the result of all our pre-season work, we did some tyre testing with Michelin technicians. I have improved my lap time but I still need to focus on my rhythm in order to be ready for the first race. Tomorrow we have one more day to test Michelin tyres and I hope to do another step forward. Marco Melandri, Fortuna Honda: 1m 42.636s – 84 laps. “We worked a lot on the bike, testing many different solutions. We have found some good things but I have to say at this moment this is my limit. I’m confident and tomorrow we will keep on our work schedule.” Makoto Tamada, Konica Minolta Honda: 1m 41.561s – 87 laps “In a moderate manner, I’m satisfied of the work I’ve done today. I have clearly improved the performance with a race set-up reaching the same levels of the IRTA tests made on this circuit last season. The problem is that we still have a wide gap from the fastest riders and we are already at the last day of test before coming here again for the first race of the 2006 Championship. Tomorrow, therefore, we will do our best to make a step ahead and especially to solve an annoying chattering problem at the rear tyre which does not allow me to be so effective in the final part of the breaking.” Giulio Bernardelle – Konica Minolta Honda Technical Director “Our Honda RC211V is evolving continuously and today we could make a massive work closely collaborating with the Michelin technicians. Makoto can only use the number one bike as the feeling with the second bike is completely different. This morning we asked to verify this impression of Makoto to the HRC test rider, Tadayuki Okada, who, after having tested our bikes for some laps, confirmed our rider’s version. Thus, we should carefully verify every bike 2 single component to understand the reason of this machine different feeling. Apart from this inconvenient we can say we have found the right way to follow in the search of the ideal setting for the Jerez G.P.” Kenny Roberts Jnr, KR Honda: 1m 42.7s -90 laps.”Not much to say today. We are basically looking for the base line we need to make progress. We have been playing with the suspension trying to find the best combination of suspension and tyres. We learn something every time we take the bike out, even if we only eliminate stuff that doesn’t work. We’re in good shape and moving forward.”