Solid progress for Rizla Suzuki RIZLA SUZUKI enjoyed a successful test at Donington Park in Leicestershire today with both John Reynolds and James Haydon completing over 70-laps each. Gusting high winds kept both riders on their toes throughout the day as they went about testing Dunlop tyres and a host of mechanical parts for their Rizla Suzuki GSX-R1000s. JR said: “I am very happy with the feel and performance of my Rizla Suzuki. We have made minor alterations to the bike and found additional performance. I feel in control and have plenty of feedback from the bike, I know exactly what it is doing and that allows me to push to the limits. “I am exhausted now, it has been a very tiring day as we had lots of parts to test and not a great deal of time on track. It is by testing and riding that you develop race fitness and today has helped me enormously after such a long lay-off because of injury. I’m back and ready to race.” James said: “That was a very busy day, but also very productive. Despite racing for two rounds for Rizla Suzuki, I never really had an opportunity to stamp my mark on the bike or get it to suit me because we were so focused on the upcoming qualifying or race. Today we spent time getting the bike to fit me physically and to give me the sort of feedback and control that I need to push hard – the Rizla Suzuki now feels like my bike. “Once I was comfortable on the bike I tested a few different tyres and rear shock settings and we took steps in the right direction. You can’t get a more logical, progressive or professional team in the paddock than Rizla Suzuki and we are going quicker with every lap.” Simon Green, Team Co-ordinator said: “Rizla Suzuki used today to test a lot of different parts and we have made solid progress. On top of that, both riders completed plenty of laps and finished the day comfortable and able to push their bikes to the limit. This test has revitalized the team and we can’t wait to get back to racing.” Rizla Suzuki now travels to Knockhill in Scotland for the seventh round of the British Superbike Championship on Sunday, June 26th.

The Yamaha Motor Italia squad today completed an extensive two day test at the Brno circuit in the Czech Republic. Riders Andrew Pitt and Noriyuki Haga completed 160 and 120 laps respectively during a busy programme that saw the team combine the testing of a new gearbox, chassis settings, tyre development work and acclimatization to the circuit ahead of next month’s race at the venue. Pitt recorded a best lap time of 2:03.9 around the long, flowing circuit with Haga just one tenth of a second behind despite concentrating on recording consistent laps on race settings rather than ultimate lap times. With sunny weather allowing the riders to maximize their time on track, the team’s mechanics were able to make big changes to the chassis characteristics of the R1s – mainly by altering the height of the rear swingarm pivot. Despite moving in opposite directions in terms of chassis set-ups, both riders declared themselves happy with the changes – claiming improvements in both grip levels and steering characteristics. Also attending the test was Yamaha’s officially supported world supersport riders Kevin Curtain and Broc Parkes. The Yamaha Motor Germany riders spent the two days working on finding a good set-up for next month’s race. Curtain set a best lap of 2:06.6 with Parkes just behind on a 2:06.9. Round six of the series takes place at Misano in Italy next weekend (24-26 June) with superbike racing returning to Brno after an absence of a decade three weeks later (15-17 July). Andrew Pitt (Yamaha Motor Italia) “We’ve found a good base setting for the circuit, so hopefully that will give us a slight edge when we come here for the race. I’m happy because I didn’t feel I was pushing too hard on my fast lap so that gives me confidence that we are able to find a bit more. It’s been good to be able to try out these new settings and find out what works and what doesn’t and, overall, we have moved forward. Pirelli also brought a bunch of tyres along for us to test on the second day so we’ve certainly been kept busy.” Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) “It has been good to have this test. The weather has been good and it has allowed me to make a lot of laps and try out new things away from the race weekend. Overall it has been not so bad. We changed the swingarm position and this gave me a better feeling with the steering so this is a good step for us. We were able to get through a lot of work and I have spent the time to find some settings that will work here in the race.” Kevin Curtain (Yamaha Motor Germany) “Coming here to test should give us some advantage when we come here for the race next month. Brno is a long circuit so it’s been good to get in so many laps and be able to get a good set-up for when we come back. There was one scary moment when someone had a huge crash in front of me and I had to take avoiding action, but we’re really happy with how it’s gone here. I’m doing a wild-card in the German championship this weekend and then it’s off to Misano and, hopefully, doing better than my second place last year.” Broc Parkes (Yamaha Motor Germany) “It’s been good to get all these laps in and if I’m not used to the R6 by now I guess I’ll never be! All in we did about 130, 140 laps over the two days and I’ve ended up just two tenths of a second behind Kevin and able to put in a lot of comfortable 2:07 laps. That’s the closest I’ve been all year and I should’ve gone quicker but for another rider getting in my way during my fast lap. I’m looking forward to Misano now, but before then we’re going to the Nurburgring where I’ll be riding an R1 for the first time in the IDM championship.” Wilco Zeelenberg (Technical Coordinator – Yamaha Motor Europe) “It has been a good choice to have Brno as our test track because it is a long circuit that takes some time to learn properly and this should benefit our riders in the race, especially as it is a ‘new’ track in the championship and one we have no previous settings for. It was particularly good for the R6 guys who normally only get four 45 minute sessions to set up the bike in the race, so to get two full days is a real benefit to them. It was also their first big test with their new suspension technician and you can see that the riders are becoming more and more confident with the bike. The superbike guys were also able to try a lot of things with Andrew really benefiting. He was struggling a bit on the first day and wondering why he couldn’t go as fast as Noriyuki but the team was able to make the changes he needed and, by the end, he was going over a second a lap quicker and feeling very comfortable on the bike. Overall a very good test with no crashes or silly mistakes and that’s good for the confidence too.”

DUCATI XEROX TEAM WRAPS UP TESTING AT BRNO Brno (Czech Republic), Thursday 16 June: Ducati Xerox Team riders James Toseland and Régis Laconi wrapped up their second two-day testing session in a week at the legendary Brno circuit in the Czech Republic. The four days of testing gave both riders a final opportunity to prepare for the forthcoming round of the World Superbike championship at Misano Adriatico (24-26 June), as well as the subsequent Brno event in mid-July. Conditions were much improved from last week’s cold and windy outing, and despite the occasional shower, the team was able to get down to some serious mid-season work at one of its two optioned testing circuits. As well as tyre testing for Pirelli, the sole supplier for the SBK championship, the Ducati Xerox Team riders also carried out development work on several new components for the 999, including a lower steering clamp and MotoGP-derived brake callipers. Both riders set their best times (Toseland 2m03.2s, Laconi 2m03.4s) on race tyres yesterday. Toseland, who had never even seen Brno before, summed up his first experience on the Czech track: “It’s really good, a bit like Mugello with long, fast, flowing corners. I’m quite pleased with the way the test went and the bike is working good. I missed a bit of time when I went off yesterday and today the conditions were not as good, but I feel sure that I could have knocked quite a bit off my best time without that crash”. Laconi, who lapped a couple of tenths off his team-mate’s pace, declared: “I found it a bit difficult to get into the rhythm of this track mainly due to the conditions, but I’m sure that in July, when it’ll be much hotter, things will be a lot easier. We’ve already got quite a good set-up for the race, but you’ve got to remember that conditions will be different when we come back here”. The Brno circuit, which extends over 5.4 kilometres, has not been a fixture of the World Superbike calendar since 1996. It has twice been the venue for a round of the championship; in 1993, when the two wins went to Carl Fogarty (Ducati) and Scott Russell (Kawasaki), while three years later it was the turn of 2005 points leader Troy Corser to notch up a double win on a Promotor Ducati 916, run by current Ducati Xerox team manager, Davide Tardozzi.

FIRST PERSON/OPINION Via e-mail: To whom it may concern, I am a CCS racer, subscriber to Roadracing World and producer of motorcycle affiliated products. I forward my mail to Red Bull for Roadracing World to review to communicate the difficulties and frustrations many of us are now faced with. Respectfully yours, Douglas Frederick Rockville, Maryland From: Douglas Frederick Sent: Thursday, June 16, 2005 11:40 AM To: ‘[email protected]’ Subject: MotoGP USA: Hotel Reservations & Ignominious Red Bull Importance: High I am one of the many in the motorcycle community who was ignobly stripped of my hotel reservation at the MotoGP USA in Monterey for July 8-10. I made this reservation on September 9, 2004. To add injury to insult, I was offered a hotel 90 miles away from an event with 160,000 tickets presold. Anyone who has been to large World Superbike events at Laguna Seca is very familiar with the impossibility of this option due to logistics, traffic and time delays. I am not only a 35-year motorcyclist, I am a motorsport fan and build products to support motorsports. I had scheduled my marketing team to promote our Ducati Racing wireless game at the races, and now find months of preparations and expenses at risk because we cannot find rooms close enough to allow us to set up our marketing booths. I had always had a great deal of respect for Red Bull and their profound influence in worldwide racing circles. To say that this places your organization in a different perspective would be an understatement. You can be sure that motorcyclists and motorsport enthusiasts will be very disenchanted with this unfair treatment and unacceptable business practice, and will measure your brand and activities accordingly. You can be sure this news is travelling swiftly and through broad circles. We deserve our rooms. We planned ahead. I expect Red Bull to support the fans of motorsports and their products promptly. Douglas Frederick President, Vir2L Studios LLC Rockville, Maryland

FIRST PERSON/OPINION Via e-mail: After all this talk of rooms being cancelled we decided it was probably a good idea to check on our reservations. It is certainly no Hyatt but I was told the Super 8 in Marina has some rooms available and the hotel is supposedly only 12 minutes from the track. They also told me it was illegal to cancel rooms once a person had a confirmation for a reservation. The website for the hotel is www.super8marina.com. I hope this helps. Josef Buxton Marketing and Sales Manager Vortex Odessa, Florida

Dutch TT, Assen, June 23/24/25 2005, Preview DUCATI MARLBORO MEN READY FOR FASTEST TRACK OF THEM ALL After two hot and dry races in Italy and Spain, this week the MotoGP circus travels north to Assen, the most northerly fixture in the Grand Prix World Championship. Ducati Marlboro Team riders Loris Capirossi and Carlos Checa are both fans of the unique Dutch circuit, the oldest and fastest venue in MotoGP racing, so long as the rain stays away. Both men have high hopes of a good weekend’s racing at Assen, a track which in some ways is more similar to Mugello, where they recently scored excellent third- and fifth-place results, than Catalunya, where they had an altogether tougher weekend. Like Mugello, Assen is fast and flowing, which should suit the Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici. “In the space of a few days we went from a wonderful result at Mugello to a disappointing race at Catalunya,” says Ducati MotoGP project manager Livio Suppo. “So now we are analysing all the data, because we learned a lot at both races, and that’s how you keep growing. We knew after the Catalunya IRTA tests in March that we were missing something there. Bridgestone brought new specification tyres to the race but it wasn’t quite enough. They are working very hard and moving forward all the time. We’re optimistic about Assen – the Ducati always goes well there and Bridgestone should be strong too.” According to Ducati Marlboro Team technical director Corrado Cecchinelli at Assen. “You need good handling and good stability in the fast changes of direction, plus a good engine because it’s a very fast circuit,” he says. “But even though you need a lot of horsepower it is a rider’s track, where the rider can make the difference. In some ways it’s a bit like Phillip Island – there are several fast changes of and no real hard brakings.” CAPIROSSI: ‘DUCATI SHOULD BE GOOD AT ASSEN’ Earlier this month Loris Capirossi scored a stunning third-place finish at Mugello and the Ducati Marlboro Team man comes to Assen aiming to build on that promising result. “At Mugello we showed what we can do when everything is good,” says Capirossi, who finished that race less than four seconds behind the winner. “We struggled with rear grip at Catalunya but I think we should be better off at Assen, which is very different. It’s more flowing, like a classic track. For sure the Ducati should be good at Assen. It will be interesting for me because this year I’m using a modified chassis, with more rigidity, which should help in the high-speed changes of direction. I have always loved Assen, it used to be one of the best tracks in the world but maybe not any more because they keep changing it. I don’t like the new sections they’ve made.” Capirossi has always gone well at Assen, a racetrack that rewards riding talent. He won the 1993 and 1999 Dutch 250 TTs, scored premier-class podiums in 2000 and 2001 and took pole position in 2003 aboard his Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici. CHECA LOOKS FORWARD TO UNIQUE CHALLENGE Like team-mate Capirossi, Carlos Checa enjoys the unique challenge of Assen, the only current MotoGP track that originated as a public-roads venue. The circuit is all about speed, but not just straight-line speed, since the track barely has a straight worthy of the name. The secret to a fast lap is getting through the high-speed twists and turns as quickly as possible, which calls for unerring kerb-to-kerb accuracy at speeds of over 300kmh. “Assen is a very different circuit, it’s unique really,” affirms Checa. “Even the straights aren’t really straight and most of the corners are banked and very fast. Also, there’s very little room between the white lines and the grass, which means you’ve got to be perfect with your lines. I like the layout a lot and I appreciate riding on different kinds of tracks, it’s great to have some variety. I’m really looking forward to trying it for the first time on the Ducati, because this bike is so fast and its chassis should suit the track’s flowing character. I’ve already put Catalunya behind me. Considering our positive result at Mugello I’m hoping that Catalunya was just a blip.” Checa has proved himself up to the Assen challenge on several occasions. He scored his best result at the track in 1997, when he finished second to Mick Doohan, and took his other podium finish in 2002, when he was third. THE TRACK Unlike most racetracks, which feature wide straights and mostly slow to medium-fast corners, Assen is a narrow, meandering circuit, dominated by high-speed corners and rapid direction changes. Its surface is also special, because it is crowned like a public road for improved drainage, whereas other racetracks are flat. The crown poses a particular challenge to riders, who must cope with several changes of camber as they enter and exit most of Assen’s corners. As they head towards the apex they experience positive and then negative camber, then as they start to accelerate they enjoy positive camber once more, but as they drift wide on the exit they cross the crown in the centre of the track and suddenly they must contend with negative camber and an immediate loss of traction. Engineers run stiffer-than-usual suspension settings to cope with the cornering forces, so the bike doesn’t ‘unload’ violently as it crosses the centre crown. Assen’s layout underwent a major change in 1984, adapted from the original Circuit Van Drenthe constructed in the fifties, and was changed again for 2002. Further alterations are due at the end of this year when much of the northern loop will be lost. Lap record: Valentino Rossi (Yamaha), 1:59.472, 181.609kmh/112.847mph (2004) Pole position 2004: Valentino Rossi, (Yamaha) 1:58.758, 182.701kmh/113.525 mph DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM RIDER DATA LOGS LORIS CAPIROSSI Age: 32 (born April 4, 1973) Lives: Monaco Bike: Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici GP5 GP victories: 23 (1xMotoGP, 2×500, 12×250, 8×125) First GP victory: Britain, 1990 (125) First GP: Japan, 1990 (125) GP starts: 222 (52xMotoGP, 59×500, 84×250, 27×125) Pole positions: 36 (3xMotoGP, 5×500, 23×250, 5×125) First pole: Australia, 1991 (125) World Championships: 3 (125: 1990, 1991, 250: 1998) Assen 2004 results: Grid: 15th. Race: 8th CARLOS CHECA Age: 32 (born October 15, 1972) Lives: London, England Bike: Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici GP5 GP victories: 2 (500) First GP victory: Catalunya, 1996 (500) First GP: Europe, 1993 (125) GP starts: 174 (54xMotoGP, 92×500, 27×250, 1×125) Pole positions: 3 (2xMotoGP, 1×500) First pole: Spain, 1998 (500) Assen 2004 results: Grid: 2nd. Race: 9th

Superbike & Supersport World Championships, Superstock FIM Cup Misano-RSM, 26/06/2005: Wild-card riders The wild-card riders who will race in the Superbike and Supersport World Championships and Superstock FIM Cup rounds scheduled on the circuit of Misano on June 26 next, are the following : Superbike 72, Michele Gallina, (MV Agusta F4 1000 MT), ITA, Gallina Team 73, GiuseppeZannini, (Yamaha YZF-R1), ITA, Team Giesse 74, Adam Badziak, (Suzuki GSX-R 1000), POL, Poland Position 75, Norino Brignola, (Ducati 999R), ITA, Team Guandalini 92, Luca Conforti, (Ducati 999R), ITA, Team Guandalini 113, Paolo Blora, (Ducati 998RS), ITA, Piazza Corse Supersport 89, Juri Proietto, (Kawasaki ZX-6RR), ITA, Passione Moto 161, Simone Sanna, (Honda CBR600RR), ITA, Improve Racing Team Superstock 44, Roberto Lunadei, (Yamaha YZF-R1), ITA, 44 Racing Team 45, Gianluca Rapicavoli, (Suzuki GSX-R1000), ITA, Fucile Racing

FIRST PERSON/OPINION

This just in, via e-mail:

Thank you, Roadracingworld.com . After your post came out I received multiple offers for rooming assistance, and also free representation by a lawyer-racer who said I had a legal stance. I have decided to take up the first offer that came, from Jim Race, AFM #250, and will join him at the Holiday Inn. He is a racer and long-time cornerworker with USARM, and has apparently attended and/or worked at every past GP and WSB race ever held at Laguna. In our brief phone conversation he had a wealth of local information for me, and I look forward to making a new friend out west. The fact that the Holiday Inn is three miles closer is icing on the cake. The manager you interviewed by phone at Embassy Suites (also named Jim) called my home, and after I described the arrangements down the road, renewed their earlier offer to pick up the tab for my first night and invited me in to their enjoy their free breakfast and evening wine-tasting affairs. As far as I’m concerned, it’s a win-win, so I will accept that offer. If Embassy Suites will instead give me complimentary voucher of equal value for one night at a hotel out here, I can score points with my wife and make it a win-win-win. Obviously, the lesson from this is to check your reservations, and keep hard copies AND an open mind. And please, three cheers for Jim Race! For you folks who only watch events on TV, I heartily recommend you go to a track and sign up to cornerwork. It’s not necessarily easy work, but it is very rewarding, and is literally the best seat in the house. If you don’t believe it’s important, watch the recognition that the racers give to them on the cool-down laps. You can find out more about cornerworking by visiting usarm.org, (they apparently cover car and motorcycle events at multiple venues) or usmarshalls.org. (The group that covers New Hampshire International Speedway, where I race.) There are never enough cornerworkers to go around, and the good/committed ones get respect equal to any racer in the paddock around the kegs at NHIS. B.J. Worsham “23 days and counting” Old Westbury, New York

FIRST PERSON/OPINION: Via e-mail: The Embassy isn’t the only one giving excellent customer service. I just got off the phone with the General Manager at the Hyatt Regency Monterey, who informed me that Red Bull had rented the entire hotel, and that I would not have a room when I arrived. I made the reservations the day it was released to the press that the MotoGP was coming, so this is surprising to say the least. Thanks Red Bull, Thanks Hyatt. Anyone got a room? David Roy North Texas Superbikes Double Oak, Texas Editorial Note: Roy is a former AMA racer and the former head of Ducati North America’s racing department.

Reader and LRRS road racer B.J. Worsham e-mailed Roadracingworld.com today because his months-old, confirmed reservation at the Embassy Suites Hotel Monterey Bay Seaside for the weekend of the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix, July 8-10, was suddenly canceled yesterday, June 14. “Got a call today from Alisha, saying a computer snafu had resulted in overbookings. (‘Not a human error, I assure you,’ as if HOW it happened would make it less irksome.) The alternative offer was a room at a regular Hilton 40 miles away, with one night complimentary,” Worsham wrote in his e-mail to Roadracingworld.com . We then requested that he FAX us a copy of his reservation confirmation. Worsham immediately FAXed a reservation confirmation for a Deluxe King, Non-smoking room at the rate of $289/night (plus tax), arriving Friday, July 8 and departing Sunday, July 10, 2005. The FAXed confirmation did not include the date the reservation was made, but Worsham said he booked the room at the same time he booked his flight from New York to California, in August or September of 2004. Roadracingworld.com Associate Editor David Swarts made unsuccessful attempts to reach the General Manager of the Embassy Suites Hotel in Monterey/Seaside, the hotel’s Assistant General Manager and “Alisha,” whom Worsham had been in contact with, in Group Sales. At approximately 2:25 p.m. Pacific Time, Director of Sales & Marketing Jim Van Deusen returned Roadracingworld.com’s phone call. Below is the complete, word-for-word transcription of that telephone conversation: David Swarts: Thanks for calling me back. Jim Van Deusen: Certainly, how are you doing today? Swarts: I’m doing OK. I tried to reach a few people over there and was unsuccessful on all attempts. I tried to speak with the General Manager George, and his message said he was out of the office. He referred to an Assistant General Manager Neal, and I left a voice message there”¦ Van Deusen (interrupting): OK, how can we help you? Swarts: I’m an editor with a magazine called Roadracing World. We cover motorcycle road racing. Particularly, we will be covering the Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca. Van Deusen: Great. Swarts: We had a reader contact us today that his reservation there at the Embassy Suites was canceled due to overbooking, and the only alternative he was given was another reservation with a Hilton hotel about 30-plus-miles away from your location, which is about 35-plus-miles away from the track in total. I just wanted to see what brought this about and if there is an overbooking situation there that we should notify the readers about? Van Deusen (stuttering): Well, let me ask you, what you would talk to me about today, when would that actually go into print? Swarts: We publish a website that updates daily and continuously”¦ Van Deusen (interrupting): Great, great. Well, Mr. Swarts, ah, um, the way that we operate our business is extremely reputable. We’ve run into a little confusion with some of the reservations. We are accommodating those reservations the best we can. Beyond that, how we operate the business is really not for us to go into detail about the if’s, when’s, how’s, why’s or who’s. We are very excited about the event and are doing the best we can to accommodate our guests. Swarts: OK. This gentleman says he made the original reservation in”¦ Van Deusen (interrupting): You know, I’m not going to get into that with you, Mr. Swarts. It doesn’t matter. I don’t think it’s any”¦frankly, it’s none of your business what my conversation or the hotel’s conversation was with one of our customers. Alright? Have a great day. (Hangs up.) The Embassy Suites Hotel Monterey Bay Seaside is the “Official Hotel of Mazda Raceway at Laguna Seca.” Embassy Suites Hotel Monterey Bay Seaside 1441 Canyon Del Rey Seaside, CA 93955 (831) 393-1115 (831) 393-1113 (fax) ~http://montereybay.embassysuites.com/~ Embassy Suite Hotel Monterey Bay Seaside is one of 175 Embassy Suites brand properties owned by Hilton Hotels Corporation (HHC). HHC is run by Co-chairman Barron Hilton, Co-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Stephen F. Bollenbach, President and Chief Operating Officer Matthew J. Hart and Thomas L. Keltner, Executive Vice President and President – Brand Performance & Franchise Development Group with headquarters at 9336 Civic Center Drive, Beverly Hills, California 90210, 310-205-4656 /310-205-8640. This just in, via e-mail: Mr. Worsham wasn’t the only one that lost reservations. After having reservations made as soon as the race date was announced, I got the phone call Tuesday informing me of the “room issue”. Todd Fenton Attack Kawasaki Santa Fe Springs, California