From a press release issued by Winston Ten Kate Honda:

BAD WEATHER LIMITS TESTING FOR WINSTON TEN KATE HONDA

The Winston Ten Kate Honda team left the Ricardo Tormo circuit in Valencia, Spain early this morning, one day ahead of schedule after heavy rain prevented any further testing of the team’s 2005 Honda CBR machines.

Only superbike rider, Chris Vermeulen, and Katsuaki Fuijiwara of the supersport team took to the circuit yesterday (Monday) in cold and damp conditions.

“It’s unfortunate,” commented team manager, Ronald ten Kate, “but we can do nothing about the weather. There is a silver lining in these clouds, however, in that we can have an extra day to prepare everything for Qatar.”

The team will spend the next few days loading almost eight tonnes of equipment into 15 crates that will be shipped to Qatar early next week in preparation for a further test at the Losail circuit in Doha on 19-20 February, followed one week later by the first World Superbike and World Supersport championship rounds.

“We have been able to do further shakedown tests on Chris’s and Kats’s second bikes to ensure everything is working properly but there was no possibility of fully testing any new components,” added ten Kate.

“We always have to balance the benefits of testing against risk,” he concluded. “So, after the team launch in Milan next Tuesday, we fly straight to Qatar where we will hopefully get some dry track time at last!”


More, from a press release issued by Scuderia SC Caracchi-NCR:

THE RAIN STOPS THE VALENCIA’S TWO-DAY TEST

The heavy rain which flagellates the circuit area for all the night and the morning forced the end for the test of SC Ducati Team. The factory teams like Xerox Ducati Corse and Yamaha France rode some lap on the floated track to test some new rain tyre, but all the other teams preferred to run any risk at the eve of the first round of the championship.

“It has been a true misfortune to not make o good use of this two-day test session..” – said Stefano Caracchi renouncing to go on with the test. “Fonsi Nieto will fly in Qatar in practice without any experience of the 999RS. Yesterday Fonsi made an excellent job: without pushing he rode about 1,5 seconds slower as the top, but it’s obvious that he needs to practice more to get a good feeling with the bike in all racing conditions. By luck the first rounds are scheduled on circuits that he knows, at least we haven’t the unknown track doubts. However to start the season on a quite unknown bike which is very different of the 250GP he’s used to will be not easy also for a full experienced rider like he’s.”

“Lorenzo Lanzi suffered the light crash of yesterday morning.” – continues Caracchi. “Lorenzo has a enormous potential, he must force himself to ignore the pressure that all the people looking for his results could cause. But he’s not only very fast in riding, he’s a clever guy too, able to get experience out of his mistakes and I’m sure that he’ll be a protagonist od the racing season from the beginning.”

Late Caracchi starts speaking about Supersport program, which represents an important engagement for Scuderia SC Ducati this year.

“Farnè and his guys has done an excellent work on the 749R and yesterday we have seen the first results. That’s not a newness for him to pull out from the smaller twin engine all his potential. Unfortunately the bad weather doesn’t allow us to work on the setting of the chassis package. Nannelli looks to be very up and satisfied for the job done, we are satisfied for how he engages himself to develop the bike. I’m confident we’ll be able to contest a good championship in Supersport too.”


More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

DUCATI XEROX TEAM SUPERBIKE TEST CUT SHORT BY RAIN

Valencia (Spain), Tuesday 8 February: The Ducati Xerox Team’s penultimate test before the start of the 2005 World Superbike championship season was cut short early in the afternoon of the second day of testing as rain continued to lash the Ricardo Tormo circuit in Valencia, forcing riders and engineers to pack up early.

Cold and wet throughout the scheduled two-day test meant that very little dry-weather track time was completed, but James Toseland and Régis Laconi were both quick in these conditions and declared they were satisfied with the set-up and the handling of the Ducati 999 F05 on the wet track.

Toseland was slightly quicker than his French team-mate today, the 24 year-old from Sheffield recording a time of 1:52.3 in his 18 laps.

“It was a pity about the weather conditions because I really wanted to come here and put in some endurance lapping on the bike to sort everything out,” declared the reigning world champion, “but it’s not a problem and we’re in a good position as we go to Qatar for two more days of testing”.

“The 999 F05 is ready, we’ve just got to get rid of the teething problems you usually have with a new bike. There are a lot of new parts and we’ve got to test everything. Everything is looking good, it’s just a case of having more time to do more laps”, added Toseland.

Laconi, just a couple of tenths of a second slower in his 23 laps, was upbeat about his and his bike’s performance despite crashing late in the morning.

“Today was OK in these conditions”, declared Régis. “We were running full wets because it was raining a lot out on the track but we worked very well to improve the 999’s handling and set-up in these conditions. The track was very slippery and I lost the rear on the entry to the final right-hander and had a small crash but there is no problem”.

“I am happy about what we found this morning and it feels so great to work with my engineers in the team again. We’ve still got a few things to do but I can’t wait for the season to start”, he concluded.

The Ducati Xerox Team now heads to Qatar for the final two days of pre-season testing on February 18-19 in preparation for the opening round of the 2005 championship at the Losail circuit in the Arabian peninsula state on February 26.


More, from a press release issued by Pirelli:

Test Session Report

7th-8th FEBRUARY 2005, Valencia (Spain) – Only few days before the Championship’s start and some of the main actors of the new season have met for a two days test session in Valencia, Spain.

Pirelli and the riders came here looking for both confirms and new indications for the development.

The work of Pirelli’s Technicians didn’t stop all the winter long, so the Spanish track was the best place for Pirelli to test the new improvements and for the private riders to check the last tires developed in accordance to the development teams.

After last December test, the R&D department has realized new solutions to be tested here by some of the development teams (with the 4 cylinders Honda and the Ducati). In the meantime the private riders have the chance to try the last released tyres, approved only two months ago and available for the first round in Qatar.

Together with the new products we could assist to the debut of some great names of the Championship, like the Japanese Abe with his R1 of Yamaha France, the first laps of the new Ducati Xerox team with the World Champion Toseland and his team mate Laconi, and the Spanish Cardoso and Fonsi Nieto with his new bike, for the first time on a track after the presentation of two weeks ago.

Unfortunately the weather made this all more difficult, with a really low temperature and an unusual rainy day for the Valencian track. Anyway nobody renounced to run some laps, even if with no trials for a lap time and most of them with rain tyres.

Giorgio Barbier, Pirelli Moto world racing manager:

“From the tests of November we’ve done a lot of work, and we wanted to test many new solutions that would be available for the first races. Today with this rain we had really a bad luck. Let’s wait for tomorrow even if we have already achieved a good result being able to deliver to this guys the last improved tyres, the result of the work we made after December. Unfortunately they could use this new tyres only during the last minutes of the day.

Anyway we go on working hard and we can see some good results. Our development teams are really fantastic partners and they allow us to present always some improvement that make this Championship more and more competitive and our products more and more reliable and performing.”

Copyright 2005, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

While Roadracingworld.com and Roadracing World & Motorcycle Technology magazine are all about taking it to the racetrack while wearing appropriate safety equipment, and while we do not advocate excessive speed and stunting on public roads, we have to admit that the post on a law enforcement website reached by using this link sent to us by former 250cc GP racer Ashley Peterson appears somewhat shocking (What we don’t know is, is it real or is it a hoax?):

http://forums.officer.com/forums/showthread.php?s=cd65cc5076ba7fe1d1d244b6bcd8e997&threadid=25938&perpage=20&pagenumber=1

From a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

DUCATI XEROX TEAM GETS DOWN TO BUSINESS IN SPAIN

Valencia (Spain), Monday 7 February: The Ducati Xerox Team, which was presented to the international press at the Ducati factory in Bologna last Thursday, saw its 2005 World Superbike campaign get off to a wet start on the first day of a two-day testing session in Valencia, Spain.

Rain fell most of the morning at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit and the cold and wet conditions prevented James Toseland and Régis Laconi from putting in much track time on their Ducati 999 F05 factory machines as they start the countdown to the new season, which gets underway in three weeks time in Qatar.

Laconi (45 laps) was the quickest rider throughout the day with a time of 1m41.3s while Toseland (40 laps) recorded a 1m43.6s, but today’s times are not significant due to the poor weather and track conditions.

2004 champion Toseland was slightly disappointed with today’s testing: “We haven’t done many full laps and it’s been a disappointing day because I was looking forward to this last test before going to Qatar,” he declared. “We haven’t been able to do much all day, the track dried up a bit but it was intermediates to slicks and we didn’t get a good run at it today.

“Tomorrow if it’s dry I’ll be OK and will be able to push and do some decent lap times. I just don’t want to go away from this test feeling it’s a bit of a waste of time because of the weather. I feel ready and the bike’s ready but we’ve still got to test everything. It’s just a case of having more time to do some more laps,” concluded Toseland.

Ducati Xerox team-mate Laconi was of the same opinion, the Frenchman commenting: “Today it was really hard out there, the cold and the wet didn’t allow us to conclude much.

“Towards the end of the day we fitted a slick on the rear but the track still had patches of damp all around and it was impossible to push hard. Let’s hope things will improve tomorrow to enable us to leave for Qatar with a better idea of where we are” he added.

Testing at the Spanish track concludes tomorrow, Tuesday.


More, from a press release issued by Scuderia SC Caracchi-NCR:

THE BAD WEATHER HINDERS THE VALENCIA’S SUPERBIKE TEST

The bad weather doesn’t give any respite to the World Superbike teams engaged at Valencia for a two-day test. Cloudy sky, rain showers and a temperature which reached only a maximum of 13°C degrees characterised the debut practice day, vanishing the efforts of the teams here in Spain for the final setting of the bikes at the eve of the 2005 Series debut, scheduled for next February 26, Saturday, on the Losail circuit at Doha, in Qatar.

Fonsi Nieto finally found his season challengers; the Spanishe rider rode a total of 50 laps to improve his 999RS Ducati knowledge, with a better score of 1:43.80, absolutely to appreciate looking at the minimum experience of Fonsi on a four stroke machine.

“I must say once more that’s a bike totally different fron the bike I’m used to.” – said Fonsi Nieto at the end of the day. “This difference is very big, so I drove quiet, without pushing, trying to learn the maximum possible. The bad weather didn’t help us and that it’s really a pity, because the championship debut is very close and I’ve been not able to get any complete test before. But I’m confident because I see the team that works very hard, I found a good feeling with my chief-mechanic Marco Mozzone and all the crew’s guys. Now we must hope in a better weather tomorrow, so could be possible to push, but the weather forecast are not good.”

Many eyes were looking to Lorenzo Lanzi in this test, but an early crash in the morning didn’t allow to complete the test program scheduled for today.

“It’s actually a fantastic debut.” – jokes with a bitter smile Lorenzo Lanzi. “It was the first lap of the day when I’ve lost the front at the first chicane, I’m sure for the cold tyres, and I had a bad shot at the right knee and hip, which now give me some pain. The bike in those weather conditions is good, as we saw during the last test session in December, but now we need to test in dry conditions. Today I’ve been able just to ride for five laps and, of course, it’s impossible to speak about fast laps. I hpe that tomorrow we’ll be able to do something bette.”

Gianluca Nannelli on the 749R Supersport made a great size of test work and at the end of the day look to be quite satisfied about today job: “The team has done a lot on the bike, thank Franco Farnè and the guys, and today finally we could test all the evolution done. I’m very satisfied because the torque problems we found in the past test look to be solved.The engine is more linear with a better power range until the limiter works. So for the engine I must say to be satisfied. Unfortunately in such weather and track conditions is not possible to have any valid information about the suspension setting. I rode a total of 40 laps and the team clocked me a better lap in 1:43.96.”

From a press release issued by Proforma:

LEO VINCE EXHAUST SYSTEMS ANNOUNCES ROAD RACE CONTINGENCY AND SUPPORT PROGRAMS FOR 2005

LeoVince USA announced today their 2005 road race contingency and support programs for competitors in virtually every regional and national road racing series in the U.S. Riders purchasing and using LeoVince SBK exhaust systems are eligible for over $300,000 in the different road race organizations, series and classes.

“LeoVince is excited to provide this unprecedented level of support to road racers in the U.S. for 2005,” said Tim Calhoun, sales and marketing manager for LeoVince USA. “These programs will encourage racers to use our products and to experience the performance and quality that has made LeoVince SBK the premier exhaust system manufacturer in Europe for over 50 years. LeoVince is fully established in the U.S., ready to support our riders and win championships.”

The foundation of the contingency program is the support for the regional road racer, with postings in AFM, CCS, CMRA, CRA, MRA, OMRRA, WERA, WMRRA and WSMC for the entire season. Payouts for the LW, MW, HW and Open Superstock classes (or their equivalents) for both Novices (Amateurs) and Experts will be 1st-$75, 2nd-$50 and 3rd-$25.

Riders taking on the challenge of running the national series can earn LeoVince contingency in the Formula USA, WERA National Challenge and WERA National Endurance Series. Payouts in all of the national series classes will be 1st-$150, 2nd-$100 and 3rd-$50. In Formula USA, the posted classes are Sportbike, Superbike and Formula Sportbike. For the WERA National Challenge Series, the payouts will be in the 600, 750 and Open Superstock Expert classes, and in the WERA National Endurance Series events the MW and HW Superstock as well as LW, MW and HW Superbike classes are supported.

All four classes in the 2005 AMA Superbike Series are supported with contingency awards as well. Riders in Superbike, Superstock, Supersport and Formula Xtreme are eligible. Payouts in all classes are 1st-$1,000, 2nd-$500, 3rd-$250, 4th-$100, 5th-$100, 6th-$100, 7th-$75, 8th-$75, 9th-$50 and 10th-$50.

LeoVince USA is also currently accepting resumes for the 2005 LeoVince Corsa Support Program. More information on the contingency and support programs is available by calling (817) 244-8552 or by e-mailing [email protected].

LeoVince is a division of Sito Gruppo Industriale based in Monticello d’ Alba, Italy. Sito is the largest exhaust manufacturer in Europe. LeoVince
USA brands include SBK for sportbikes, Silvertail for cruisers, Scoot for scooters, and X3 for off-road and ATVs. For more information visit www.leovinceusa.com. LeoVince products are distributed to U.S. motorcycle dealers by Western Power Sports.

From a press release:

Desmo Of Indiana, a northern Indiana club that has been conducting track days for over a decade, has announced its 2005 track day schedule. It will be holding track days at Putnam Park Road Course in Mount Meridian, Indiana on May 29, June 18, and August 6, 2005. Desmo Of Indiana’s track days are are open to riders of all brands of motorcycles who are at least 18 years old and possess either a vaild motorcycle operator’s or competition license. For more information, go to Desmo Of Indiana’s website at www.desmoindiana.org

Schedule:
All events at Putnam Park in Mt. Meridian, Indiana.
May 29
June 18
August 6

NESBA Announces Membership Drives

Wyomissing, PA The Northeast Sportbike Association
(NESBA) is holding two membership drives this year, passing savings onto new and renewing members.

Pre-season Membership Drive: Get a Jump Start on the Riding Season and Save $25.

Now through February 28, anyone who signs up for a NESBA membership online will receive a $25 credit in his/her NESBA account.

Northwest Membership Drive

NESBA is offering a special year-long promotion to boost membership in its newest operating region, the Northwest. Anyone living within NESBA’s Northwest region (Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, Alberta, British Columbia, and Northwest Territories) who purchases a membership online will receive a $75 credit in his/her NESBA account. NESBA holds track days at Spokane Raceway and Portland International and is the only track day organization to hold weekend dates at Pacific Raceways. This membership promotion is good for all of 2005.

These membership incentives mean more money in your pocket for track days or NESBA merchandise. Not to mention, a NESBA membership has a ton of benefits including crash assurance, rain insurance, and dealer and sponsorship discounts. And no worries for those of you who bought memberships earlier this year these offers are retroactive through January 1, 2005. Memberships are good for one calendar year and can be renewed before expiring, so get or renew your NESBA membership today!

NESBA is a non-profit, volunteer-run organization that sponsors track days and provides riding instruction at racetracks across the country, including Barber, Road America, Road Atlanta and VIR. For more information, visit www.nesba.com or call
1-877-AT-NESBA.

See you at the track!

Credit will be applied within 48 hours of membership purchase. Offer not valid on memberships purchased through any other discount program.

From a press release issued by Suzuki:

Team SUZUKI MotoGP optimistic for forthcoming tests

Team SUZUKI MotoGP is in an upbeat mood for the forthcoming tests at Sepang in Malaysia and Phillip Island in Australia.

After an encouraging test at Sepang last month, Team SUZUKI MotoGP manager Paul Denning has discussed how pleased he is with the progress of the Suzuki GSV-R race bike and his hopes for the upcoming tests.

Denning said: “I was very happy with the first test, the whole team worked flawlessly together with everybody putting in a huge effort to start the season off with a giant step forward.

“The existing and new team members forged strong bonds straight away. Tom O’Kane and Stuart Shenton, who are the Chief Technicians for Kenny Roberts Jr and John Hopkins respectively, formed a proactive relationship immediately. They were able to assist each other throughout the test with chassis and mechanical set-up data.

“The Suzuki technicians in Japan have worked tirelessly over the winter months to make the GSV-R competitive and I know they are still working long hours to give us the right package. The GSV-R needs more refinement and the team will be working hard at Sepang and Phillip Island to set a baseline to be ready for the Official MotoGP Tests in March. The potential with the GSV-R is enormous and I am optimistic we will make further advances.

“Kenny and John are both fired up for the new season and are eager to get back on their GSV-Rs. Kenny enjoyed his riding at the last test and put in consistent times on race tyres that were competitive with the front runners. John was riding for the first time since his operation in November when he had pins removed from his femur and both ankles. He was not as flexible as he would like to have been, but he still put in an incredible performance considering his recent surgery and set some great times.

“I have also had important assistance and guidance from the Suzuki personnel within the team, especially Imada-san and Sahara-san – their knowledge and understanding of the ethos of racing is very thorough. They know exactly what is needed for the team from a racer’s and an engineer’s perspective.”

Team SUZUKI MotoGP will be testing at Sepang between February 9th-12th, before moving to Phillip Island for further tests between February17th-19th. The team then goes to Europe for more test sessions before the MotoGP World Championship begins at Jerez in Spain on April 10th.

From a press release issued by Ducati North America:

SNOW STORM DOESN’T STOP THE DUCATI MONSTER CHALLENGE IN NEW YORK CITY

The are no snow days in motorcycling, and the search for the coolest Monster in North America continued in New York City.

Cupertino, CA – The Ducati Monster Challenge didn’t miss a beat as snow fell in New York City during the 2005 Cycle World IMS Show. Although most entrants brought their bikes to the show by trailer, one brave Ducatisti from Manhattan actually rode through the frigid temperatures to deliver his bike. The New York show featured totally unique Monsters including Lock Baker’s bike with many custom fabricated parts and a police bike built by BCM Motorsports for display only.

Lock Baker’s retro-styled Monster took first place and he’ll be one of the finalists in Daytona competing for a 2005 Monster S4R or trip to a MotoGP race. Unlike most people who start a ground-up modification job with a wrecked bike, Lock bought his 2004 Ducati Monster 1000 brand new and began tearing it apart. The attention to detail, excellent metal work, and welding skills made this bike a favorite among the judges.

Brian Catterson from Cycle World said, “I appreciate that Lock created something totally unique instead of just bolting on parts from a catalog. The bike also reminds me of an old Pantah I used to race.”

Second place went to Leslie Grossman of Yardley, Pennsylvania for his 1999 Monster 900S. Leslie considers his bike a sleeper, because the more you look at the details, the more things you notice that set this bike apart. Close inspection reveals trick parts like an Ohlins Superbike front end, carbon-carbon Brembo monobloc front brakes, Marvic 888 wheels, and even a radial clutch master cylinder directly from Rossi’s MotoGP bike. Many of the parts on this bike are off of Ferracci’s ex-World Superbike and AMA bikes.

Leslie says the coolest thing about his bike is, “Rossi’s clutch master cylinder, I found that on Ebay and had a friend at Brembo verify that it was legit.”

Justin Picillo from New York, New York rode his highly modified 2001 S4 to the show and won third place. His long list of go-fast parts work well and the bike makes 117.4 HP at the rear wheel. And the best part is that Justin rides the bike daily around Manhattan. His favorite addiction though is the carbon fiber and he says he can’t get enough of it for his bike.

The “People Choice” award went to Wendy Hammond and her Monster 900. Not only does the flashy yellow paint and black stripe make it look good, she also does track days with the bike and is an accomplished rider.

From a press release issued by AMA Pro Racing:

AMA PRO RACING REWARDS DONATONS TO MEDICAL CENTER WITH SUPERPASS

PICKERINGTON, Ohio – AMA Pro Racing today announced an opportunity for American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) members to receive an all-access SuperPass, granting entry to every event on the AMA Pro Racing calendar, in exchange for a $2500 donation to the Asterisk Mobile Medical Center.

The custom-built Asterisk Mobile Medical Center is used throughout the THQ AMA Supercross Series and AMA Motocross Championship events as a quick-response assessment and treatment facility. The center is fully staffed by medical personnel, and relies almost exclusively on donations to cover operational costs.

“Every dollar we raise from AMA members will go directly towards the operation and maintenance of the Asterisk Mobile Medical Center,” AMA Pro Racing Director of Safety and Logistics Hugh Fleming said. “Our goal is to not only help maintain the high level of medical treatment afforded by the center, but also to reward those AMA members who make a donation with special VIP-type access at the races.”

“This is a great way for racing fans or companies to get an inside look at all forms of AMA Pro Racing events and at the same time help the Asterisk Mobile Medical Center with its mission to provide on-site medical care for the racing community”, said Dr. John Bodnar, Director for the Medical Center and trackside physician for the Supercross and Motocross Series.

In addition to supporting safety efforts in racing, AMA members who make a $2500 donation to the Asterisk Mobile Medical Center will receive an AMA Pro Racing SuperPass, good for entry to over 70 AMA Pro Racing events nationally. This includes race and pit access to the THQ AMA Supercross Series, AMA Motocross Championship, AMA Superbike Championship, AMA Supermoto Championship and AMA Flat Track Championship. Other benefits include a plaque and recognition by AMA Pro Racing on its website.

For further information on the Asterisk Mobile Medical Center or to make a donation, call Hugh Fleming c/o AMA Pro Racing at (614) 856-1900 extension 1281, or email [email protected]

From a press release issued by AMA Pro Racing:

HAYDEN LOOKING FORWARD TO RACING BACK HOME IN AMERICA

PICKERINGTON, Ohio (Feb. 4, 2005) — In a recent news release issued by AMA Pro Racing on the combined MotoGP/AMA Superbike event Nicky Hayden was inadvertently left off of the list of returning U.S. MotoGP riders. It was a simple editing error and AMA Pro Racing regrets the mistake. Hayden, the 2002 AMA Superbike Champion, is obviously one of the big reasons many fans are looking forward to the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix on July 8-10, at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. The combined MotoGP/AMA Superbike event promises to be one of the biggest motorcycle racing events ever held in America. It’s been nearly three years since Hayden raced in the U.S. and he’s happy to be finally coming home to perform in front of home fans. Of the four American riders currently competing in MotoGP he is the only former AMA Superbike Champion. We caught up with the 23-year-old Hayden, who is also the youngest rider ever to win an AMA Superbike title, this week when he was home in Kentucky between a heavy schedule of a pre-season testing with the Repsol Honda squad. Larry Lawrence, the author of the original news release, confessed to Hayden his mistake of inadvertently leaving him off the Laguna Seca release. Hayden laughed and was very gracious in accepting Lawrence’s apology.

Nick, what’s it going to mean to you to come back and race in America?

I’m super excited about coming back. It’s going to be a big honor to race the GP here in my home country. I think the home fans here are hungry to finally have a GP.

How about the decision to bring the U.S.G.P. back to Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca?

I love Laguna. It’s a great location for the fans and I’ve done well there in the past. If you’re going to bring a lot of people from around the world to America you really couldn’t pick a better place. I’ve heard a lot of work has gone into bringing the track up to MotoGP standards and hopefully all that work by Dorna and the track and everyone else involved will pay off.

How strong is the support for an American round among the GP regulars?

People are pumped about it. I think it’s going to be a huge weekend. When I was in Malaysia it seems like the whole paddock is excited about coming to America. We go to a lot of countries that people don’t look forward to going to I guess as much as America. There’s a lot of racing history here and a lot of mystique about running at Laguna. This country has produced so many of the great riders over the years too. The mechanics and others riders stop me and want to know about Laguna and how far it is from different places. I think a lot of people plan on sticking around or coming early to do some sightseeing.

Do you think America can match some of the other host countries of MotoGP in terms of general interest from racing fans and the media?

I think so. I’ve heard the ticket sales are already strong. People watch some of our national races on TV and think that there aren’t many fans of motorcycle racing. I know sometimes television doesn’t do it justice and I’ve told those guys [his fellow MotoGP racers and team members] that some of the AMA races are pretty big. I think when they see the kind of crowd that shows up at Laguna that they’ll know that we’re into it just as much as most of the other countries we go to. Another thing that American fans should love is getting to see the GP bikes up close and in person for the first time. They’re pretty trick and the sound, the acceleration and braking, everything makes these bikes really neat to watch.

What do you think of the idea of combining a MotoGP with an AMA Superbike Championship round?

I think it’s going to be good for the GP guys to get to see how strong AMA racing is firsthand. I mean they see it on TV, but they’ll probably be surprised at how much talent there is in this country. And for the fans it’s a win-win situation. With all the AMA classes they’re definitely going to get their money’s worth.

Do you think the American riders will have a bit of an advantage at Laguna Seca since they’ve raced and tested there so often?

To be honest, with the level of the riders in MotoGP it won’t take them long to learn the track. But maybe if it rains leading up to race day, that might give us a bit of an advantage. Laguna’s not the easiest track to learn for sure and maybe a little bit of knowledge of the track will make a difference.

Will you guys be testing before the MotoGP? No our team isn’t and I haven’t heard of any other teams testing there, plus the series has restrictions on testing at certain tracks that host a GP so I doubt that there will be any going on. But like I said, these guys are world class riders and we raced for example at Qatar last year and everybody was up to speed pretty quick, so not having testing shouldn’t be a problem.

Do you have any idea what the lap time difference between the GP bikes and the AMA Superbikes might be?

I’m not real sure to be straight up. Not a lot probably. I mean you know Laguna doesn’t have a lot of long straightaways or anything like that where the horsepower is going to make a big difference. If I had to guess I would say a second and a half or maybe two seconds.

When you found out Laguna Seca was going to be on the schedule did something in the back of your mind say that might be a good place to earn your first victory?

Well to be honest any place to get my first victory would be pretty incredible (laughs). There’s going to be a lot of emotion for all the American riders racing a MotoGP in their home country. For me I’m going to have to put all that aside and go out and do my job.

How about being able to race on the same weekend on the same track with your brothers again?

Oh yeah, that’s going to be fun. Whenever all the family gets to come together at the track with all our friends it’s a great time. There’s a lot of my buddies here in America that have never got to see me race in a MotoGP event, so that’s going to be fun as well.

To watch Hayden, Edwards, Hopkins, Roberts and the rest of the MotoGP stars such as Valentino Rossi along with AMA champs like Mat Mladin and Miguel Duhamel together on the same track on the same weekend call 1-800-327-SECA or (831) 648-5100 or visit the website www.laguna-seca.com .