Superbike & Supersport World Championships, Superstock FIM Cup Anti-doping controls Anti-doping controls were carried out at the event of the Superbike & Supersport World Championships held on the circuit of Silverstone, Great Britain, on May 29 last. Neither prohibited substances nor markers of the use of prohibited methods were found in the tested samples. The riders controlled were : Pierfrancesco Chili (ITA, Superbike), Max Neukirchner (GER, Superbike), Massimo Roccoli (ITA, Superbike), Jarno Janssen (NED, Supersport), Broc Parkes (AUS, Supersport), Sami Penna (FIN, Supersport).

RAIN HALTS GAULOISES YAMAHA TEAM TEST IN BARCELONA Valentino Rossi and Colin Edwards cut short their planned one-day test today, as the good weather from the weekend finally broke and rain moved in over the Montmelo circuit in Catalunya. After his fifth victory from five races in the Catalan Grand Prix here yesterday, Rossi planned an early start to the day and managed 17 laps before the weather turned, gathering some valuable information for the Yamaha engineers and setting a best lap of 1’44.00. His Gauloises Yamaha team-mate Colin Edwards, who finished seventh in yesterday’s race, had been hoping to check some settings and do some tyre work, but the rain halted him and he completed only two laps before deciding to call it a day. Riders from Honda, Ducati, WCM and Kawasaki, as well as David Checa on the Fortuna Yamaha bike, decided to stay on to test throughout the afternoon despite the bad weather. Valentino Rossi (17 laps, 1’44.00) “We were expecting the rain and so we managed to get most of our work done in time before it came. It was a short but very important test. We tried some new engine parts so we could tell the engineers the right way to take in their development. There were some good and some bad things, and we needed to decide on one direction. We’ve decided that we probably won’t use these new parts at the next race in Holland, but we might try them in the US.” Colin Edwards (2 laps) “It’s a real shame the weather didn’t hold out, because we had some work to do and we were really hoping to clear some things up today. Unfortunately, as I rode out of the garage it started to rain so I didn’t even finish my second lap! I guess we could have done some work in the wet this afternoon, but that wasn’t part of our plan and to be honest it wasn’t going to get wet enough for effective rain testing. Now we’ll just have to use the time we have in Assen really well so we’re ready to race there.” Davide Brivio “We started early because we knew it was going to rain, and we needed to try to do some work before the bad weather came. Valentino managed to do most of the things we needed to do and has been able to give some important information to the engineers to help with the future development of the bike. The only thing we weren’t able to do before the rain came was some tyre testing for Michelin. For Colin we wanted to go back and check some settings and some tyres, in order to better understand what happened yesterday. The rain didn’t help and cut short our plans, so now we will wait until Assen, which is a track that Colin really likes and we hope will be good for him.” More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki Racing Team: JACQUE JOINS KAWASAKI TEST AT CATALUNYA The Kawasaki Racing Team were out in force for a development test at Catalunya today, as Olivier Jacque returned to the team to test alongside regular Kawasaki pilots, Shinya Nakano and Alex Hofmann. While Jacque started the day with shakedown tests on the two Ninja ZX-RR MotoGP machines he’ll race at Sachsenring and Valencia, Nakano and Hofmann got straight down to testing with Kawasaki’s tyre partner Bridgestone. For Nakano the aim of today’s test was to evaluate a new profile rear tyre from Bridgestone, but the conditions conspired against him. For comparison purposes Nakano started the test on the same tyre he used in yesterday’s race, but before he could switch to the new tyre the onset of rain forced him back to the Kawasaki pit box. The Japanese rider patiently sat in the pit box waiting for the weather to change, but with the rain continuing on and off throughout the day, any plans to return to the track to complete the planned tyre test had to be abandoned. Hofmann took advantage of the damp conditions to test for the first time the wet tyre that took Olivier Jacque to second place in the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai six weeks ago, with positive results. The 25-year-old German rider was impressed with the improvements the latest wet tyre offered over the old, especially when combined with revisions to the electronics package fitted to his Ninja ZX-RR. For Jacque the day ended with a minor crash, but the 31-year-old Frenchman declared himself happy with his progress after working his way through an intensive test schedule with his new crew. Jacque slid off his Ninja ZX-RR uninjured right at the end of the day, after being caught out by the combination of a full wet tyre on a rapidly drying track. Shinya Nakano: #56 “Today we intended to concentrate purely on tyre testing, as Bridgestone have a new profile rear slick for evaluation. I went out this morning on the same tyre I used in the race yesterday to allow a direct comparison, but the rain started before we’d even had a chance to put the new tyre on the bike. The weather looked like it might improve in the afternoon, but when it was still raining at four o’clock we decided to finally call it a day.” Alex Hofmann: #66 “Conditions weren’t ideal for testing today, but at least the rain gave me a chance to try for the first time the wet tyre that Olivier used in China. Bridgestone have definitely made some improvements with this wet weather tyre; the performance was very impressive. We also tested some new engine components, together with some slight modifications to the electronics package that made the bike a little easier to control on the throttle. Overall, despite the weather, it’s been a productive test.” Olivier Jacque: #19 “The idea of today’s test was to shakedown the two bikes I’ll use for the Sachsenring race next month. Despite conditions that weren’t really ideal for testing, we’ve managed to get a lot done today. We’ve tried different set-ups on the bike and we’ve also had the opportunity to test a range of wet tyres from Bridgestone. Unfortunately, right at the end of the day I crashed after being caught out with a wet tyre on a drying track. The rear just came round on me mid-corner and down I went. I’ve lost some skin off my little finger, but apart from that I’m perfectly okay and I’m looking forward to my next outing on the bike. Overall it’s been a good day of testing.”

Team Yoshimura Suzuki’s Atsushi Watanabe and World Superbike Championship contender Yukio Kagayama raced their GSX-R1000 to victory in the Suzuka 300km Endurance race in Japan on Sunday. Watanabe started the 52-lap race in a lowly 20th position but carved through to fifth place by lap eight, passing SERT Suzuki’s Keiichi Kitagawa just before pitting for tyres and a rider change at half distance. Kagayama took over the Yoshimura Suzuki holding fourth position, more than 30 seconds down on leader Tohru Ukawa (Honda). But on lap 28, a big accident forced the pace car onto the circuit after one of the machines crashed and caught fire. The incident cost the SERT squad dearly and team rider Vincent Phillipe lost more than a minute which they were unable to claw back when the race resumed. Kagayama moved from fourth to second and then into the lead on lap 44 which he held until the flag. Said Kagayama: “The Yoshimura Suzuki is very different to my Alstare World Superbike but myself and Watanabe got the machine set up in a very short space of time. All the Yoshimura parts worked very well and the machine ran very fast throughout the event. Last year, we were beaten by the Honda factory squad so this year we wanted revenge!” Fujio Yoshimura added: “This was a very exciting race and we are very pleased to beat Honda for the win! Today, Watanabe missed the start but raced at 100% and never gave up. Kagayama’s performance was also fantastic and he did a great job for our team.” Suzuka 300km Endurance Results: 1 Atsushi Watanabe/ Yukio Kagayama (Yoshimura Suzuki), 2 Tohru Ukawa/ Ryuichi Kiyonari ( Factory Honda), 3 Noaki Matsudo (Moriwaki Honda), 4 Takeshi Tsujimura (TSR Honda), 5 Shin-ichi Nakatomi/ Wataru Yoshikawa (Factory Yamaha), 6 Keiichi Kitagawa/ Vincent Phillipe (SERT Suzuki), 7 Norihiko Fujiwara/ Nobuyuki Osaki (Yamaha), 8 Chojun Kameya (Honda), 9 Tatsuya Yamaguchi/ Kazuki Tokudome (Factory Honda), 10 Hiroki Noda/ Takuma Yamamoto (Honda).

A Japanese racer suffered fatal injuries when he crashed and hit a concrete wall during qualifying at Suzuka Circuit Sunday morning. According to Japanese news reports, racer Keisuke Sato, 24, crashed his CBR600RR in oil from a multi-bike pileup in turn two and hit a concrete wall on rider’s right. Sato was attempting to qualify for a 300-kilometer race scheduled for Sunday afternoon at the famed Japanese circuit. (Thanks to Rick Williams of Concord, California, AFM Expert #956, and his wife for the translation of Japanese-language news reports.)

MotoGP 1. Valentino ROSSI, Italy, Yamaha, 25 laps, 43:16.487 2. Sete GIBERNAU, Spain, Honda, -1.094 seconds 3. Marco MELANDRI, Italy, Honda, -7.810 seconds 4. Alex BARROS, Brazil, Honda, -8.204 seconds 5. Nicky HAYDEN, USA, Honda, -8.273 seconds 6. Max BIAGGI, Italy, Honda, -12.051 seconds 7. Colin EDWARDS, USA, Yamaha, -18.762 seconds 8. Troy BAYLISS, Australia, Honda, -42.631 seconds 9. Shinya NAKANO, Japan, Kawasaki, -46.638 seconds 10. Ruben XAUS, Spain, Yamaha, -46.692 seconds 11. Carlos CHECA, Spain, Ducati, -60.357 seconds 12. Loris CAPIROSSI, Italy, Ducati, -63.864 seconds 13. David CHECA, Spain, Yamaha, -63.985 seconds 14. Roberto ROLFO, Italy, Ducati, -70.258 seconds 15. Kenny ROBERTS, USA, Suzuki, -83.731 seconds 16. Shane BYRNE, UK, Proton KR, -94.624 seconds 17. Alex HOFMANN, Germany, Kawasaki, -1 lap 18. James ELLISON, UK, Blata, -1 lap 19. Franco BATTAINI, Italy, Blata, -1 lap 20. John HOPKINS, USA, Suzuki, -9 laps, DNF, pitted 21. Makoto TAMADA, Japan, Honda, -20 laps, DNF 250cc 1. Daniel PEDROSA, Honda, 23 laps, 41:29.428 2. Casey STONER, Aprilia, -5.637 seconds 3. Andrea DOVIZIOSO, Honda, -10.597 seconds 4. Hiroshi AOYAMA, Honda, -17.638 seconds 5. Simone CORSI, Aprilia, -19.499 seconds 6. Randy DE PUNIET, Aprilia, -33.235 seconds, crash 7. Yuki TAKAHASHI, Honda, -37.408 seconds 8. Sylvain GUINTOLI, Aprilia, -37.530 seconds 9. Mirko GIANSANTI, Aprilia, -42.814 seconds 10. Alex BALDOLINI, Aprilia, -43.611 seconds 125cc 1. Mattia PASINI, Aprilia, 22 laps, 41:15.125 2. Marco SIMONCELLI, Aprilia, -9.034 seconds 3. Mika KALLIO, KTM, -12.408 seconds 4. Gabor TALMACSI, KTM, -18.256 seconds 5. Tomoyoshi KOYAMA, Honda, -18.440 seconds 6. Manuel POGGIALI, Gilera, -18.544 seconds 7. Thomas LUTHI, Honda, -21.460 seconds 8. Julian SIMON, KTM, -21.566 seconds 9. Lorenzo ZANETTI, Aprilia, -29.029 seconds 10. Fabrizio LAI, Honda, -29.471 More, from a press release issued by Dorna Communications: Rossi takes fifth win from six at Catalunya Valentino Rossi continued his incredible start to the 2005 MotoGP World Championship with his fifth victory from six rounds at the Gran Premi Gauloises de Catalunya on Sunday. In front of a record crowd of 105,698 fans at the Montmeló track on the outskirts of Barcelona, home favourite Sete Gibernau could do nothing to prevent a breathtaking charge to the line from the World Champion, who smashed the circuit record by almost 1.5 seconds with just three laps remaining to open up an insurmountable advantage as the chequered flag was prepared. “To do the fastest lap three laps from the end at a track like this is amazing – it was around two seconds faster than the last lap last year and it shows the fantastic job Michelin have done with tyre endurance,” explained Rossi, who was racing in front of a Spanish crowd for the first time since a controversial last-corner pass on Gibernau in the opening round of the season at Jerez. “I was a little worried before this weekend about the reaction from the crowd but I was so happy with the reception I got. It shows that motorcycle fans are the best kind and especially here in Spain, where it is always a pleasure to ride. The advantage in the championship is allowing the team to work in a relaxed way and we are having a lot of fun, which is an extra motivation in itself.” Marco Melandri remains second in the championship standings, 58 points behind Rossi, after clinching the final place on the podium for the second successive season at this track. The Italian youngster led the race in the combative early stages and was involved in a thrilling battle on the final few laps as he held off the attentions of Honda colleagues Alex Barros and Nicky Hayden, who were forced to settle for fourth and fifth place respectively. Max Biaggi did his best to get involved in the podium struggle but was some way adrift of Hayden in sixth place as he failed to follow up a strong showing in his home Grand Prix at Mugello last weekend, when he finished second. Biaggi remains third in the World Championship, four points clear of Gibernau and ten behind Melandri. Colin Edwards rode a lonely race to seventh place after struggling with tyre problems in the latter stages of the race, although by that time he had escaped an intense struggle for positions in the middle of the pack involving Troy Bayliss, Shinya Nakano and Rubén Xaus. Ducati pair Carlos Checa and Loris Capirossi had also formed part of the skirmish but dropped away drastically in the second half of the race, when they also encountered tyre troubles in rising temperatures at the notoriously demanding Spanish circuit. David Checa produced a stirring ride to finish in thirteenth place, just 3.5 seconds behind his brother Carlos in only his second MotoGP appearance. Checa’s performance was made all the more remarkable by the fact he missed the first day of practice as he waited on standby for Toni Elías, who attempted to ride through the pain of a broken wrist before eventually stepping aside on Friday evening. The final point-scoring positions were taken by Roby Rolfo and Kenny Roberts. Despite Gibernau’s disappointment in the MotoGP race there was plenty for the local crowd to celebrate in the 250cc class as Dani Pedrosa took his third straight victory by a comfortable margin of 5.637 seconds over Casey Stoner. Pedrosa was forced to battle his way through the pack in an explosive start to the race after stalling his bike on the line, his cause aided by crashes to front-runners Jorge Lorenzo, who broke his collarbone, and Alex de Angelis and a mechanical problem for Héctor Barberá. Stoner now moves up to second in the championship ahead of Andrea Dovizioso, who clinched a brave third place today after missing yesterday’s final qualifying practice due to injuries sustained in a high-speed morning crash. Mattia Pasini became the first rider to take two victories in the 125cc class this season with a dominant display in the day’s opening race, winning by a 9.034 second advantage over Marco Simoncelli and moving to the top of the championship by a single point ahead of Thomas Lüthi, who finished seventh. Mika Kallio completed the podium today and is now third in the rider standings, a further point behind Lüthi. More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki: MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2005 Download PDF ROUND 6 – GRAN PREMI GAULOISES DE CATALUNYA 12 JUNE 2005 – MOTOGP RACE NAKANO FINISHES TOP TEN IN BARCELONA Shinya Nakano showed pure class to ride his Kawasaki Ninja ZX-RR into a brilliant ninth place under difficult circumstances in today’s Catalunya Grand Prix. Nakano was the first rider using Bridgestone tyres to finish the race, and just failed to hold what would have been a deserving eighth place in the final stages. Nakano’s brave fight against diminishing rear end grip forced him to unwillingly concede eighth position with two laps remaining of the 25-lap race, which was won by Valentino Rossi. Nakano started 12th and by lap six had charged into eighth place after passing a group of riders, including the Ducati of Loris Capirossi. For the next 18 laps Nakano controlled his top ten position with a stylish performance in hot and slippery conditions. This was Nakano’s fifth top ten result out of six races this season. The race was a huge disappointment for German rider Alex Hofmann, who has been out of luck since breaking his wrist in a promotional event more than two months ago. After an intense two days of tyre testing and set-up preparation, Hofmann was primed for a strong performance. However, his race was spoiled when tyre induced vibration at the rear of his Ninja ZX-RR forced the Kawasaki pilot to pit for a change of tyre. Hofmann had started the race with a slightly softer specification rear tyre compared to Nakano, but felt comfortable with his choice for the race having completed more than 20 laps on the same tyre earlier in the weekend. Hofmann’s pit crew made a fast rear tyre change to send their rider back out, to eventually complete the race in 17th position, one lap down. On his return to the race Hofmann said he was initially able to run at the pace of Colin Edwards and Max Biaggi, which only added to his feeling of frustration. Hofmann was having just his second race after an eight-week injury layoff. Today’s race was watched by a capacity crowd of 105,698, who again confirmed the massive following that the MotoGP World Championship has in Spain. Shinya Nakano: #56 – Ninth “I enjoyed the race, even though I would have preferred to hold off Bayliss at the end, but it was just not possible. Over the final ten laps it was very difficult for me to control the sliding of the rear tyre. But I was the first Bridgestone rider to finish, which showed that compared to other Bridgestone teams our set-up for the race was the best it had been all weekend. My start was fast and I pushed very hard in the opening laps and was able pass some riders, but then I had a lonely race just trying to score top ten points.” Alex Hofmann: #66 – Seventeenth “My luck has gone missing for the past two months, after such a good start to the season at Jerez. After the warm-up this morning everything looked positive, but the tyre performance was not the same as in practice and after 12 laps I had to make a pit stop because of tyre induced vibration at the rear of the bike. Straight after the pit stop for five laps I was able to run at the same pace as Edwards and Biaggi, I just needed to be able to do that for the whole race.” Harald Eckl: Team Manager “This was a tough race for Kawasaki given the track and tyre conditions today. But Shinya saved some important points with another determined ride. Shinya’s strong start and opening laps showed positive potential for the Ninja ZX-RR. It was not easy for Alex whose rear tyre was a softer compound compared to the tyre that Shinya used. The endurance was not quite what we expected, so he had no other choice but to make a pit stop for a fresh tyre.” More, from a press release issued by Gauloises Yamaha: Catalunya Grand Prix Barcelona, Spain Sunday 12th June ROSSI EXTENDS CHAMPIONSHIP LEAD WITH CATALUNYA VICTORY Gauloises Yamaha Team rider Valentino Rossi re-ignited his love affair with the Spanish public today as he stormed to a fifth win from the opening six rounds of the 2005 MotoGP World Championship in front of a record crowd of 105,698 at the Catalunya Grand Prix. After losing places in a combative opening to the race, the reigning World Champion stormed through the field to go head to head with home favourite and pole setter Sete Gibernau (Honda) in another nail-biting finish. Just as he had done with Max Biaggi at Mugello last weekend and Gibernau himself two weeks previously at Le Mans, Rossi timed his victory charge to perfection, passing the Spaniard with three laps remaining and setting a stunning time of 1’43.195, almost 1.5 seconds inside the previous circuit record, to open up a decisive advantage over the final two laps. Whilst Marco Melandri won a dramatic battle to the line for the final podium finish ahead of Alex Barros and Nicky Hayden (all Honda), Rossi’s Gauloises Yamaha team-mate Colin Edwards could only manage seventh place behind Biaggi (Honda). Despite showing podium pace through the weekend practice sessions, the American took a gamble with his tyre choice that backfired in the race as he struggled for rear grip at the demanding Spanish circuit. Despite today’s result Edwards remains sixth in the MotoGP World Championship, which is now led by Rossi with an advantage of 58 points over Melandri. VALENTINO ROSSI (1st 43’16.487) “The first lap was a hard fight with a lot of riders coming crazy, everybody wanted to be at the front and it was so much fun. Gibernau set a fast pace and I tried 100% to follow him. I had some problems on the right side of the tyre early in the race but Sete started to slide too. At the end it was difficult but the bike was so good into the corners and great fun to ride. To do the fastest lap three laps from the end at a track like this is amazing – my last lap was around two seconds faster than the last lap last year and it shows the fantastic job Michelin have done with tyre endurance. I was a little worried before this weekend about the reaction from the crowd but I was so happy with the reception I got. It shows that motorcycle fans are the best kind and especially here in Spain, where it is always a pleasure to ride. The advantage in the championship is allowing the team to work in a relaxed way and we are having a lot of fun, which is an extra motivation in itself.” COLIN EDWARDS (7th – +18.762) “We made a mistake by testing the race tyre yesterday morning when the temperatures were much cooler than they were this afternoon. We thought we were being sly by choosing a tyre only one other rider had but it didn’t work out. I had no rear grip at full lean in the second half of the race, so I had to stand the bike up through the corners and ran wide all the time. It’s a shame because we had a great front tyre but I couldn’t push it. Not the best finish but we’ve learnt a lot of things that we will now take to Assen.” DAVIDE BRIVIO TEAM DIRECTOR “The whole race was run at a full second inside lap record pace, which is incredible. It shows the great job done by our engineers and the wonderful partnership we have with Michelin. I am so pleased to hear Valentino say he is enjoying riding the bike that is a great compliment to everybody in the team. It is a pity Colin could not confirm his excellent progress in the race but we know he is on the right tracks and I’m looking forward to seeing him at Assen, a circuit he likes and knows well.” RESULTS 1. VALENTINO ROSSI (ITA) Gauloises Yamaha Team 43’16.487 2. Sete Gibernau (SPA) Movistar Honda MotoGP +1.094 3. Marco Melandri (ITA) Movistar Honda MotoGP +7.810 4. Alex Barros (BRA) Camel Honda +8.204 5. Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda Team +8.273 6. Max Biaggi (ITA) Repsol Honda Team +12.051 7. COLIN EDWARDS (USA) Gauloises Yamaha Team +18.762 8. Troy Bayliss (AUS) Camel Honda +42.631 9. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Kawasaki Racing Team +46.638 10. Ruben Xaus (SPA) Fortuna Yamaha Team +46.692 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS 1. VALENTINO ROSSI (ITA) 145 2. Marco Melandri (ITA) 87 3. Max Biaggi (ITA) 77 4. Sete Gibernau (SPA) 73 5. Alex Barros (BRA) 65 6. COLIN EDWARDS (USA) 57 7. Nicky Hayden (USA) 47 8. Loris Capirossi (ITA) 43 9. Shinya Nakano (JPN) 40 10. Carlos Checa (SPA) 33 More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki: Frustrating day for Team SUZUKI MotoGP at Catalunya Kenny Roberts Jr scored a single point at today’s Gran Premio Gauloises de Catalunya whilst team-mate John Hopkins had a DNF after previously entering pit lane to change a tyre. The race was held in hot and humid conditions and tyre choice was always going to be an issue on the recently resurfaced Circuit de Catalunya. Hopkins’ Chief Technician Stuart Shenton was bitterly disappointed for both John and his crew: “Words cannot express how upset we are after today’s race. We thought we had made a good tyre choice but we ran into trouble and John had to come in and change the rear. We had another problem after that but it was irrelevant at that stage.” Roberts Jr (P15) put on a brave display as the track surface took its toll on his Bridgestone race tyres, but he still managed to bring his Suzuki GSV-R home safely in a point scoring position. Roberts said; “There’s not a lot to say really. We are struggling in every facet of the bike and tyres at the moment. Suzuki and Bridgestone are trying real hard and of course myself and John are probably trying too hard sometimes, which is difficult to see when we can’t show our true colours. “The only way we’re going to get better is to try as hard as we can. Suzuki want to make it better and so do Bridgestone and we’re here if they want to do it – that’s all I can say at the moment.” Today’s race was watched by 105,698 fans and they were treated to another victory by World Champion Valentino Rossi – his fifth win in six rounds this season. Team SUZUKI MotoGP Manager Paul Denning was very disappointed by the day’s result. He said: “Kenny showed real determination to carry on and finish the race even though he had absolutely no tyre left in the latter stages. He again scored a point in a difficult situation when it could have been easier – and probably safer – for him to pull in. “John has had a difficult weekend. He was in the top-ten throughout all the practice sessions and went well in qualifying. He started the race well but had to pit and change the tyre, and then suffered another DNF. We can take some solace from the fact that his chance of a high finish had gone, so if there is such a thing as an acceptable failure this would be it. “We will now move on to the next round at Assen and look to get both Kenny and John challenging higher up the field. If the Bridgestone tyres work well at a track which should suit the nimble GSV-R chassis we certainly have a better chance” The next round of the MotoGP World Championship will be the Dutch Grand Prix from Assen Holland on Saturday 25th June. Gran Premio Gauloises de Catalunya Race Classification 1. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 43’16.487: 2. Sete Gibernau (Honda) +1.094: 3. Marco Melandri (Honda) +7.810: 4. Alex Barros (Honda) +8.204: 5. Nicky Hayden (Honda) +8.273: 6. Max Biaggi (Honda) +12.051: 7. Colin Edwards (Yamaha) +18.762: 8. Troy Bayliss (Honda) +42.631: 9. Shinya Nakano (Kawasaki) 46.638: 10: Ruben Xaus (Yamaha) +46.692: 15. KENNY ROBERTS JR (TEAM SUZUKI MOTOGP) +1’23.731: DNF. JOHN HOPKINS (TEAM SUZUKI MOTOGP): World Championship Classification 1. Rossi 145: 2. Melandri 87: 3. Biaggi 77: 4. Gibernau 73: 5. Barros 65: 6. Edwards 57: 7. Hayden 47: 8. Loris Capirossi (Ducati) 43: 9. Nakano 40: 10. Carlos Checa (Ducati) 33: 14. HOPKINS 16: 19. ROBERTS JR 9: More, from a press release issued by Bridgestone: Barcelona June 12th, 2005 Catalunya Grand Prix Challenging Day for Bridgestone After encouraging practice results with strong and steady performances, all three Bridgestone teams in the MotoGP category ran into difficulties in today’s Catalunya Grand Prix. With a determined ride to ninth position, Kawasaki star Shinya Nakano was the one rider from the Bridgestone squad to finish within the top ten of the race. Ducati riders Carlos Checa and Loris Capirossi dropped back to eleventh and 12th position, a dissapointing finish from their great success last weekend in Mugello with Capirossi’s first podium finish of the year. Whereas Suzuki’s former world champion Kenny Roberts still managed to take a point in 15th position, his team-mate John Hopkins retired with nine laps to go. German Kawasaki rider Alex Hofmann came in for a tyre change and finished the race in 17th position. During the official pre-season testing session in March, Bridgestone had gathered data to modify its tyres to match the new tarmac of the Catalunya track, that had been re-surfaced back in December last year. Since that test session, much effort was made to solve the problems encountered, and for the front tyre, Bridgestone had been able to come up with the right solution. But for the rear tyre, Catalunya’s new tarmac remained a tough challenge as performance level decreased on the right side during the race. The tyres selected by all teams were hard compound tyres, made for the ultra-fast main straight, and for the sweeping right turns, with rider’s safety as a top priority, but was not sufficient enough in terms of durability and grip consistency. Bridgestone’s engineers immediately started to analyse all race tyres in their mobile engineering facility, and will air-freight the tyres back to Japan for further analysis, in order to address the problems as quickly as possible. Shinya Nakano Kawasaki Racing Team 9th position “I had a great start and found a good race rhythm immediately. I found myself behind Colin Edwards, I could match his speed, and I could even see the top guys in the group ahead of us for quite some time. But from mid-race on, my rear wheel started to slide, and it got increasingly difficult to control the bike. That’s why Troy Bayliss managed to sneak past me towards the end. But at least, I went faster than in practice, and we were able to show that we were right on track with the set-up of our bike!” Akira Nishimura General Manager Motorcycle Racing Bridgestone Motorsport “That was a bitter day for us. We have done a lot of testing and tried our best to come up with a solution for this track, but still, our riders ran into difficulties over the race distance, and suffered rear tyre durability and performance problems. Obviously, there is a lot of work left to do for us. We need to analyse and understand the relationship between tyre durability and the new tarmac of the Catalunya circuit, and we need to come up with results and a solution quickly. We will do everything possible to get back on track for the next race in Assen, and to enable our riders to fight on the highest level again. “ Bridgestone Results: 9. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Kawasaki, 44.03,125 11. Carlos Checa (SPA) Ducati, 44.16,844 12. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati, 44.20,351 15. Kenny Roberts (USA) Suzuki, 44.40,218 17. Alex Hofmann (GER) Kawasaki, 43.43,269 DNF: John Hopkins (USA) Suzuki Temperature Track Air Weather 36 C 32 C Sunny More, from a press release issued by Telefonic Movistar Honda: DOUBLE PODIUM FOR TEAM MOVISTAR HONDA MOTOGP Sete Gibernau takes second place and is followed onto the podium by his team-mate Marco Melandri. CATALUNYA GP – MOTOGP RACE The Movistar Honda MotoGP team led by Fausto Gresini celebrated their 150th Grand Prix in style today with a double podium at Catalunya, where Sete Gibernau and Marco Melandri finished second and third respectively. Both Movistar riders started from the front row of the grid and set the pace in the race, with Sete Gibernau imposing an intense rhythm in the second half that only Valentino Rossi could follow. Sete led the way for the majority of the race (18 of the 25 laps) with a consistent pace in the low 1’43s – well inside the circuit record. The Spanish rider was roared on to second place by 105,600 fans, a record crowd at the Montmelò circuit. Marco Melandri made a perfect start and, after leading the way for three laps in the opening stages, tried his best to stick with the pacesetters at the front. Later, the battle with Hayden and Barros for third place cost him valuable time and he eventually lost touch with Valentino Rossi and Sete Gibernau. However, Marco held his concentration and focused on his main objective a third podium finish of the season. SETE GIBERNAU (2nd): “The team have done a great job and I had a good feeling with the bike today. I set a good pace over the opening laps which gave me a couple of tenths advantage and allowed me to lead for the majority of the race. At eight laps to go the left side was sliding too much and I wasn’t able to maintain my pace. I’m disappointed for the fans, who have given me great support all weekend, but I’m sure they enjoyed the excitement in the race and a great show all round.” MARCO MELANDRI (3rd): “It was a tough but incredible race for me. I got a good start and tried to stay with the lead riders over the opening laps. I had a good pace and even managed to lead for a few laps but I ran wide when Nicky Hayden passed me and Barros also came through to send me back to fifth place. The fight with Barros and Nicky for third meant that I lost contact with the front two and I was never able to make the ground up. Even so, I am really happy with third place. I won a personal battle today my race pace was much better compared to Mugello and the podium confirms that we are getting constantly better. I want to say a special thanks to the whole team, to Fausto and to Michelin, that has helped me a lot in the right tyre choice.” FAUSTO GRESINI, TEAM MANAGER: “We have celebrated the 150th Grand Prix with two riders on the podium. It’s an incredible result and I want to thank Sete, Marco and all the team. Unfortunately Sete couldn’t finish with a victory but he did a great race. The race pace was incredible today, in fact today’s total race time was 45 seconds less than in 2004. I want to thank Honda and Michelin because we could keep up with this incredible rhythm.” RACE CLASSIFICATION 1. Valentino Rossi (Ita/Yamaha) 43’16.487 2. Sete Gibernau (Sp/Honda) +1.094 3. Marco Melandri (Ita/Honda) +7.810 4. Alex Barros (Bra/Honda) +8.204 5. Nicky Hayden (USA/Honda) +8.273 ….. MotoGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 1. Valentino Rossi (Ita/Yamaha) 145 p. 2. Marco Melandri (Ita/Honda) 87 3. Max Biaggi (Ita/Honda) 77 4. Sete Gibernau (Sp/Honda) 73 5. Alex Barros (Bra/Honda) 65 More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing: Catalan Grand Prix at Catalunya Sunday 12 June, 2005 FIVE HONDAS IN TOP SIX BUT ROSSI WINS AGAIN Sete Gibernau (Team Movistar Honda RC211V) rode a typically brave race in front of his adoring home fans here in Barcelona today, but second was the best he could do as Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) won his fifth race from five starts in 2005. Marco Melandri (Team Movistar Honda RC211V) rode to a fighting third. A baying crowd of 106,000 race fans watched the action unfold in hot conditions with the track temperature elevated to 40 degrees as the MotoGP race got underway. Despite the resurfacing work carried out to the circuit, tyre wear was to be the critical issue here in the heat. Gibernau stormed off the line from pole into turn one with his team-mate Melandri right on his shoulder and with Max Biaggi (Repsol Honda RC211V) and Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC211V) in third and fourth. The fast-starting Loris Capirossi (Ducati) lay fifth with Rossi sixth. But it didn’t take Rossi long to make his way to the front of the field. He was up to second as lap two began, with Alex Barros (Camel Honda RC211V) charging through from the third row of the grid to fifth. Into turn one at the start of lap two and Rossi was squeezed to third by the RC211Vs of Gibernau and Melandri, with Sete retaking the lead from his team-mate Melandri. Barros snatched fourth from Hayden as the Brazilian set one of the early fastest laps. The action was never less than intense as six riders fought for supremacy at the head of the field: Melandri from Rossi, from Gibernau, then Barros, Hayden and Biaggi with Makoto Tamada (Konica Minolta Honda RC211V) now making up ground on the leaders. The fight was so frantic that Sete touched Marco’s rear wheel on lap three as Tamada made the most of the fierce in-fighting to get on the tail of the group. The Japanese also set another fastest lap as he made his way forward. Gibernau then put in a fastest lap before Rossi briefly led on lap five while Barros was trying to secure third from Hayden who was trying everything to get it back. Tamada was the fastest man on the track, but was to crash out a lap later. As Gibernau upped the pace to try and break the will of his pursuers he put in another fastest lap of 1m 43.253 seconds. And only Rossi could stay with the flying Spaniard now. By mid-race the pair were 3.2 seconds ahead of the three rider struggle for third place between Melandri, Hayden and Barros. Max was by now 2.7 seconds adrift of the fight for third place in sixth and there he would remain until the flag. At least he was close enough to see the three riders ahead of him ride three abreast into turn one as they tried everything to grab that third podium place. Rossi then forced the pace in the final three laps. He led into turn one on lap 22 of the 25-lap contest, and Gibernau had no answer to the reigning World Champion’s speed as the Italian set a fastest lap of 1m 43.195 seconds on lap 23. Rossi maintained a gap of at least 0.5 seconds in the final two laps and as the pair crossed the finish line, Gibernau had clearly settled for second place and a points finish the gap at 1.094 seconds. Melandri came out on top in the fight for third. Gibernau said, “I was putting in some good laps, but then eight laps from the end the front-end began sliding too much going into turns. I thought I had something left in reserve for the end of the race but not as much as Vale had at the end. I’m looking forward to Assen now and trying to stay positive and keeping the pressure on.” His team-mate Melandri said, “I’m a bit disappointed because I lost time at the start with a foot-peg problem. It was hard to stay with the leaders, but as long as I keep improving race by race that’s OK with me. Riders are fighting more and more as the season goes on but I won my battle for the podium and it’s good to be here again.” Barros said, “I’m quite happy because it was a while since I had a race like this. I enjoyed myself. Towards the end I overtook Nicky and then waited until the last lap to try and pass Marco too. I wanted to get him at turn six, but I was too far back, I then tried it at turn nine and didn’t manage it. It’s a shame, but in the end it was a good race and now we can look forward to the next one at Assen, a track which I really love.” Nicky said, “The whole race was a bit of a dog fight really. We were really going at it. I got a good start and made a few overtakes stick in the opening laps. I got up to third and wasn’t that far behind the leaders when I made my fastest lap of the race trying to close the gap. Then Melandri came past with a big move that cost me time. I got back to third and just tried to get a steady rhythm and pull away. On the positive side the bike went well, the Michelins hung on well and my boys did a great job.” Max in sixth said, “It went bad. We rode a different bike from the one we used at Mugello, with a set-up meant to improve braking. In those sections the feeling was good but it really worsened handling and cornering, with consequent problems for tyre life. I could never take part in the game and it makes me very sad. I look to the next Assen Grand Prix knowing that it’s not going to be easy, but we must push harder.” Troy Bayliss (Camel Honda RC211V), who finished eighth after starting from 15th said, “Qualifying didn’t go as planned yesterday, but in the free practices I was quick, so I knew that in the race today I could go fast. I had the worst start of my career I couldn’t believe it, I was something like seventeenth or eighteenth at the end of the first lap. We’re improving, but now we need to make another step forward and I’m hoping we can do it in testing here tomorrow.” “What happened?” said Makota Tamada. “I wasn’t pushing my bike so much. I could stay with the fastest riders easily without pushing my bike to the limit. But something went wrong. I was doing a simple turn just behind Barros when suddenly I found myself on the ground with the bike beside me. I think I lost the front.” The World Championship points table now shows Rossi with 145 points, Melandri with 87, Max on 77 and Sete fourth overall with 73. A fraught 250cc race was won by local superstar Dani Pedrosa (Team Movistar Honda RS250RW) who triumphed in a fierce race from Casey Stoner (Aprilia) and heroic Andrea Dovizioso (Scot Racing Team Honda RS250RW), who finished third despite riding injured. Dani got a poor start from pole and was outside the top ten on lap one, but by lap three he was sixth after setting a fastest lap. Early front-runner Sebastian Porto (Aprilia) had crashed out on lap two and it was Randy de Puniet (Aprilia) who led before he too crashed on the next lap. Hector Barbera (Fortuna Honda RS250RW) then inherited the lead although within a lap Alex de Angelis (Aprilia) stole it from him. The front group was bunched tightly and the order was De Angelis, Barbera, Jorge Lorenzo (Fortuna Honda RS250RW), Dani, and Dovi. Simone Corsi (Aprilia) and Hiroshi Aoyama (Team Movistar Honda RS250RW) were riding hard to get on the tail of that group and Casey Stoner (Aprilia) was also on a charge to the front. By mid-race Dani was up to second, and then he took the lead as Lorenzo hit the rear of de Angelis and took them both out of the race. As Pedrosa established a two second lead over Stoner, Dovi had moved up to third despite riding with heavy bruising to his right side after a heavy practice crash yesterday. Corsi then punted Barbera out of the track after they touched under braking into turn one. And as Pedrosa established a five second cushion over Stoner, Dovi held third while Aoyama eased past Corsi for fourth. Randy de Puniet finished sixth after remounting. Yuki Takahashi (Scot Racing Team Honda RS250RW) finished seventh equalling his best result so far. Dani said, “That was a tough weekend. Qualifying was hard and it was struggle to get the right set-up here. I had to ride really hard to get to the front after my bad start and the bike was sliding at the front from about half-race distance. That was great team effort to get the win.” Dovi said, “I’m so happy, that was fantastic result. Dani won well here but I’ve had a lot to deal with this weekend. There was the pain itself and then a hard decision over whether to ride or not. Now it’s all gone well and that’s as much as I could have hoped for after being in hospital yesterday.” Pedrosa heads the World Championship points table with 123, Stoner lies second with 96, Dovi third on 93 and Aoyama comes into the reckoning with 58. Mattia Pasini won the 125cc race from Marco Simoncelli (both Aprilia) with Mika Kallio (KTM) third. World Championhsip points leader (until now) Thomas Luthi (Elit Grand Prix Honda RS125R) was seventh while Tomoyoshi Koyama (Ajo Motorsport Honda RS125R) finished fifth. Luthi got the holeshot from the third row of the grid, but by lap two Pasini was in control of the race and he led until the flag 21-laps later. Luthi gradually slipped down the order as tyre grip became an issue for the young Swiss rider. Kallio did his best to stay in touch with the flying Pasini but the Finn was always at least two seconds adrift of the Italian as the order established itself in the second half of the race. Simoncelli was the only man on track who could make an impression in the closing laps eventually stealing second from Kallio. Koyama said, “At the beginning of the race I had a lot of chatter from my rear tyre in the high-speed turns. So I changed my riding style and ran through them a gear lower and that helped me get back some ground. Then it was hard to get past Poggiali so I out-braked him.” Luthi said, “That was a race of slides. My rear tyre was gone after about ten laps and that was my own fault because I chose too soft a compound. The engine was very good all race and I did my best but that was all I could achieve today.” The World Championship classification is now even tighter than ever: Pasini 84 points, Luthi 83, Kallio 82 and Gabor Talmacsi, who finished fourth today, 75 points. HONDA TEAM QUOTES: MotoGP: Sete Gibernau, Movistar Honda: 2nd: “The team have done a great job and I had a good feeling with the bike today. I set a good pace over the opening laps which gave me a couple of tenths advantage and allowed me to lead for the majority of the race. At eight laps to go the left side was sliding too much and I wasn’t able to maintain my pace. I’m disappointed for the fans, who have given me great support all weekend, but I’m sure they enjoyed the excitement in the race and a great show all round.” Marco Melandri, Movistar Honda 3rd: “It was a tough but incredible race for me. I got a good start and tried to stay with the lead riders over the opening laps. I had a good pace and even managed to lead for a few laps but I ran wide when Nicky Hayden passed me and Barros also came through to send me back to fifth place. The fight with Barros and Nicky for third meant that I lost contact with the front two and I was never able to make the ground up. Even so, I am really happy with third place. I won a personal battle today my race pace was much better compared to Mugello and the podium confirms that we are getting constantly better. I want to say a special thanks to the whole team, to Fausto and to Michelin, that has helped me a lot in the right tyre choice.” Alex Barros , Camel Honda: 4th: “I’m quite happy because it was a while since I had a race like this. I enjoyed myself and even thought I would have obviously preferred to have got on the podium, I think I had a nice battle with Marco and Nicky. I got away well and had a good first lap, tagging along with the front group straight away. Towards the sixth lap though, I began to have a problem when braking. I just couldn’t brake properly and went too deep on a couple of occasions. So I had to work with the problem, without losing ground. Towards the end I overtook Nicky and then waited until the last lap to try and pass Marco too. I wanted to get him at turn six, but I was too far back, I then tried it a turn nine and didn’t manage it. It’s a shame, but in the end it was a good race and now we can look forward to the next one at Assen, a track which I really love.” Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda Team: 5th:The whole race was a bit of a dog fight really. We were really going at it. I got a good start and made a few overtakes stick in the opening laps. I got up to third and wasn’t that far behind the leaders when I made my fastest lap of the race trying to close the gap. Then Melandri came past with a big move that cost me time. I got back to third and just tried to get a steady rythmn and pull away. The last few laps were amazing we were all just back and forth – we were just duking it out. I so wanted that podium but it just wasn’t to be. It’s fruntrating to have such a good overall weekend and go away with a fifth. On the positive side the bike went well, the Michelins hung on well and my boys did a great job.” Max Biaggi, Repsol Honda Team: 6th: “It went bad. We rode a different bike from the one we used at Mugello, with a set-up meant to improve braking. In those sections the feeling was good but it really worsened handling and cornering, with consequent problems for the tires’ life. I could never take part in the game and it makes me very sad. I look to the next Assen Grand Prix knowing that it’s not going to be easy, but we must push harder.” Troy Bayliss, Camel Honda: 8th: “Qualifying didn’t go as planned yesterday, but in the free practices I was quick, so I knew that in the race today I could go fast. I had a start though which will rank alongside the worst in my whole career. Incredible, I couldn’t believe it, I was something like seventeenth or eighteenth at the end of the first lap. I got my head down though and began to fight back, riding consistently at a good pace. We’re improving, but now we need to make another step forward and I’m hoping we can do it when testing here tomorrow.” Makoto Tamada, Konica Minolta Honda: dnf – crash”What happened? I wasn’t pushing my bike so much. I could remain with the fastest riders easily without pushing my bike to the limit. I was serene and charged up at right level to remain there; my goal was to conquer the podium. Yes, because everything, the bike, the tyres, and the set up of the bike found in these days of work was more than satisfying. But something went wrong; I was doing a simple turn just behind Barros when suddenly I found my self on the ground with the bike beside me. My sensation is that the front tire lost adherence and made me slip, but before making a final evaluation of what happened we have to analyze the images showed on television and check the telemetry. I am very sorry for my Team; I thought the time to give them back what they have done for me in this beginning of the season was arrived.” 250cc: Dani Pedrosa, Telefonica Movistar Honda: 1st: “I’ve never won three in a row before so to do so at my home race is fantastic. I’m really happy because we’ve worked very hard all weekend and it was so tough at the start of the race. I was a bit nervous as the start I didn’t know if first gear was in properly, let the clutch go too quick and almost stalled it. I was really surprised. I got going again but it was a bad start a schoolboy error. It was difficult to get to the front in the race although I put my rhythm together as soon as I saw that the pace wasn’t too hot. Once I was leading I managed to get a few crucial seconds ahead and held on to the gap until the end. We’ve also had front tyre problems here although that’s been the same in every category. We’ve worked all weekend to improve my position on the bike so that the tires wouldn’t suffer as much. We’ve had three great races so I hope that continues at Assen”. Andrea Dovizioso, Team Scot: 3rd: “First of all I want to thank my team for the great work they have done. I have heavy pain in my shoulder: it was a bad briuse but in Clinica Mobile have done good ‘work’. I started as normal and I could run with the leaders. We have chosen a too soft tyre and,on the fifth lap, in a corner I lost the front”¦ I used my knee to not crash out. I was in the first group but I couldn’t recover the gap from Pedrosa because of the problem with the front. From the middle of the race the pain started to get bad again to “¦ I gritted my teeth. Considering this morning I didn’t know if I had the force to start I’m now very happy. During the race I gave my best. After the crash of yesterday these 16 points are really a good result but, even if the championship is still long to the end, I’m sorry to loose important points. The Spaniard has one year experience more but one good race is enough to reach the top of the standing. Lorenzo is really competitive but today he made a mistake colliding with Alex De Angelis, who, with Aprilia, was making a good race. I reached the podium thanks to this mistake, too”. Hiroshi Aoyama, Telefonica Movistar Honda: 4th: “We’ve made an important step forward with respect to Mugello and that gives me a lot of optimism. On the third lap I got my finger stuck on the brake and it made my run off track, which cost me 8 seconds. I came back on prepared to give it everything and move forward through the positions, so I’m really happy with fourth.” Yuki Takahashi, Team Scot:7th: “I’m happy even if I could have done a better result. I had some rear end problems and chattering in the fast corners, but I could catch the seventh place in the last corner of the last lap. Tomorrow we have a test session and we hope to solve our setting problems”. Alex Debon, Wurth Honda BQR:11th: “The 11th place is not so bad after a very, very difficult week for us. We had a problem with the front end in qualifying but the bike was better in the warm up. The big problem for me was my engine. We could not get it how we wanted it to run, it felt as if it was rich off the corners it would not accelerate. I spoke with the tam and maybe we will stay at the track and test tomorrow to see what was wrong.” Erwin Nigon, replacement for the injured Dirk Heidolf, Kiefer Castrol Honda: 13th: “I am very happy for my team they listen to me and I listened to them. The race was good for me. I’m happy with my race but not happy that I could not go with Guintoli when pushed. The Honda is good for my style I had only raced Aprilia and Yamaha before but this is my best result at Catalunya. The only small problem I had today was running into the very fast corners. Other than that it was a good race for me and the team. I’m very happy.” Héctor Barberá, Fortuna Honda: 16th: “I was racing ith Corsi for fourth place when we clashed, twice. My bike was not the same afterwards so I had to settle for a place outside the points.” Jorge Lorenzo, Fortuna Honda: dnf: suffered a double fracture of his left collarbone. To ensure the quickest possible recovery, the best thing will be to operate as soon as possible to place a small titanium plate over the broken bone. Lorenzo is now in a Barcelona hospital. Radomil Rous, Wurth Honda BQR: did not race due to injuries sustained in practice. Jakub Smrz, Molenaar Honda: dnf crash: “I got a really bad start but I started passing riders in front of me. I wanted to get to the group with Debon and Takahashi but then I crashed at the fast right-hander when the front end closed on me. It was so fast there was no way I could save it. Now we go to Assen my favourite circuit where I will have a new chassis.” 125cc: Tomoyoshi Koyama, Ajo Motorsport Honda: 5th: “At the beginning of the race I had a lot of rear end chattering, especially in the high speed corners. So I changed my riding style a little and used one gear lower at some places and that helped a lot. As the race went on I was fighting with Poggiali but I couldn’t get out of the slipstream and pass him so I had to outbrake him. A good race and I’m happy I could fight for this result.” Thomas Luthi, Elit Honda: 7th: “That was a race of slides for me, my rear tyre was finished after ten laps. We just chose a tyre that was far too soft for the conditions and the pace of the race. The engine was very good and I did the best I could in the situation. I got a good start and everything was fine till I started sliding. It was a hard race but I really enjoyed it.” Fabrizio Lai, Kopron Racing: 10th: “I couldn’t do a better result. In the last races we have had some engine problems and it wasn’t possible to solve them at the circuit: unfortunately Barcelona is only seven days after Mugello. The maximum speeds speak for themselves. Now we have to work hard at home to be competitive again in Assen. 21 points from the leader in the standing are not a big problem”. Alvaro Bautista, Seedorf RC3 Tiempo Holidays Honda: 14th: “I tried to push from the first lap but the engine would not pull like it had I qualifying. Then I ran into tyre problems, we chose too soft a compound for the race. The only positive thing I can take away from here is we have almost completely resolved the problems we had with the front end.” Aleix Espargaro, Seedorf RC3 Tiempo Holidays Honda: 15th: “This has been a very hard week for me not at all easy. We had a few problems at the beginning of practice but had found our way before final qualifying. This morning the bike was really good. I got a good start but at the fourth corner Masbou touched me and crashed. From then on I just raced hard and even though my tyres were finished at the end I raced with D Meglio. It was a hard last lap but I beat Di Meglio to get the last point.” Mike Di Meglio, Kopron Racing: 16th: “My bike had a good maximum speed but I had problems in the corners where the engine lost power. I hoped to catch at least one point but Espargaro overtook me in the last corner”. Toshihisa Kuzuhara, Angaia Racing Honda: 21st: “I couldn’t ride as well as I did yesterday in the corners. The engine was OK today and I was in a good position when I was hit by another rider on the back straight and that dropped me back into a slower group and I could not get away again.” Sandro Cortese, Kiefer Boss Castrol Honda: 23rd: “For the first nine laps of the race everything was very good then I had the same front brake problem I had in final qualifying. Once the tyres started to go off I had to be slow into the corners and use our good acceleration to get off the corners to beat the riders I was with.” Raymond Schouten, Molenaar Honda: 25th: “I’m a little bit disappointed. I got a good start but Olive crashed at the first corner and I had to go into the gravel trap to miss him. When I got back on track I was second last. After that I just tried as hard as I could and passed some riders. My lap times were good and but for the incident wit Olive I could have been close to the points. That was the best I have ridden all season and it ame at the right time because the next ace is at my home track at Assen.” Alexis Masbou, Ajo Motorsport Honda: dnf crash. Results MotoGP Race Classification MotoGP : (25 laps = 118.175 km) Pos/ Rider / Nat / Team / Motorcycle / Time/ KM/H 1 / Valentino ROSSI / ITA / Gauloises Yamaha Team / YAMAHA / 43’16.487 / 163.848 2 / Sete GIBERNAU / SPA / Movistar Honda MotoGP / HONDA / 43’17.581 / 163.779 3 / Marco MELANDRI / ITA / Movistar Honda MotoGP / HONDA / 43’24.297 / 163.356 4 / Alex BARROS / BRA / Camel Honda / HONDA / 43’24.691 / 163.332 5 / Nicky HAYDEN / USA / Repsol Honda Team / HONDA / 43’24.760 / 163.327 6 / Max BIAGGI / ITA / Repsol Honda Team / HONDA / 43’28.538 / 163.091 7 / Colin EDWARDS / USA / Gauloises Yamaha Team / YAMAHA / 43’35.249 / 162.672 8 / Troy BAYLISS / AUS / Camel Honda / HONDA / 43’59.118 / 161.201 9 / Shinya NAKANO / JPN / Kawasaki Racing Team / KAWASAKI / 44’03.125 / 160.957 10 / Ruben XAUS / SPA / Fortuna Yamaha Team / YAMAHA / 44’03.179 / 160.953 11 / Carlos CHECA / SPA / Ducati Marlboro Team / DUCATI / 44’16.844 / 160.126 12 / Loris CAPIROSSI / ITA / Ducati Marlboro Team / DUCATI / 44’20.351 / 159.914 13 / David CHECA / SPA / Fortuna Yamaha Team / YAMAHA / 44’20.472 / 159.907 14 / Roberto ROLFO / ITA / Team D’Antin Pramac / DUCATI / 44’26.745 / 159.531 15 / Kenny ROBERTS / USA / Team Suzuki MotoGP / SUZUKI / 44’40.218 / 158.729 Fastest Lap (Unofficial new record): Valentino ROSSI 1’43.195 164.903 Km/h Lap 23 Lap Record: Sete GIBERNAU 1’44.641 162.624 Km/h 2004 World Championship Positions: 1 ROSSI 145, 2 MELANDRI 87, 3 BIAGGI 77, 4 GIBERNAU 73, 5 BARROS 65, 6 EDWARDS 57, 7 HAYDEN 47, 8 CAPIROSSI 43, 9 NAKANO 40, 10 CHECA 33, 11 BAYLISS 32, 12 JACQUE 25, 13 XAUS 24, 14 HOPKINS 16, 15 TAMADA 16. 250cc Race Classification 250cc: (23 laps = 108.721 km) Pos / Rider / Nat / Team / Motorcycle / Time / KM / H 1 / Daniel PEDROSA / SPA / Telefonica Movistar Honda 250 / HONDA / 41’29.428 / 157.223 2 / Casey STONER / AUS / Carrera Sunglasses – LCR / APRILIA / 41’35.065 / 156.867 3 / Andrea DOVIZIOSO / ITA / Team Scot / HONDA / 41’40.025 / 156.556 4 / Hiroshi AOYAMA / JPN / Telefonica Movistar Honda 250 / HONDA / 41’47.066 / 156.116 5 / Simone CORSI / ITA / MS Aprilia Italia Corse / APRILIA / 41’48.927 / 156.001 6 / Randy DE PUNIET / FRA / Aprilia Aspar 250cc / APRILIA / 42’02.663 / 155.151 7 / Yuki TAKAHASHI / JPN / Team Scot / HONDA / 42’06.836 / 154.895 8 / Sylvain GUINTOLI / FRA / Equipe GP de France – Scrab / APRILIA / 42’06.958 / 154.888 9 / Mirko GIANSANTI / ITA / Matteoni Racing / APRILIA / 42’12.242 / 154.564 10 / Alex BALDOLINI / ITA / Campetella Racing / APRILIA / 42’13.039 / 154.516 11 / Alex DEBON / SPA / Wurth Honda BQR / HONDA / 42’13.319 / 154.499 12 / Roberto LOCATELLI / ITA / Carrera Sunglasses – LCR / APRILIA / 42’15.228 / 154.382 13 / Erwan NIGON / FRA / Kiefer-Bos-Castrol Honda / HONDA / 42’27.618 / 153.631 14 / Hugo MARCHAND / FRA / Campetella Racing / APRILIA / 42’33.784 / 153.261 15 / Gregory LEBLANC / FRA / Equipe GP de France – Scrab / APRILIA / 42’33.827 / 153.258 Fastest Lap: Daniel PEDROSA 1’47.373 158.486 Km/h Lap 5 Lap Record: Daniel PEDROSA 1’47.302 158.591 Km/h 2004 World Championship Positions: 1 PEDROSA 123, 2 STONER 96, 3 DOVIZIOSO 93, 4 AOYAMA 58, 5 DE ANGELIS 56, 6 LORENZO 54, 7 PORTO 49, 8 DE PUNIET 46, 9 BARBERA 44, 10 CORSI 38, 11 TAKAHASHI 30, 12 DEBON 29, 13 GUINTOLI 27, 14 GIANSANTI 19, 15 LOCATELLI 15. 125cc: Race Classification 125cc (22 laps = 103.994 km) Pos / Rider / Nat / Team / Motorcycle / Time / KM / H 1 / Mattia PASINI / ITA / Totti Top Sport – NGS / APRILIA / 41’15.125 / 151.256 2 / Marco SIMONCELLI / ITA / Nocable.it Race / APRILIA / 41’24.159 / 150.706 3 / Mika KALLIO / FIN / Red Bull KTM GP125 / KTM / 41’27.533 / 150.501 4 / Gabor TALMACSI / HUN / Red Bull KTM GP125 / KTM / 41’33.381 / 150.148 5 / Tomoyoshi KOYAMA / JPN / Ajo Motorsport / HONDA / 41’33.565 / 150.137 6 / Manuel POGGIALI / RSM / Metis Racing Team / GILERA / 41’33.669 / 150.131 7 / Thomas LUTHI / SWI / Elit Grand Prix / HONDA / 41’36.585 / 149.956 8 / Julian SIMON / SPA / Red Bull KTM GP125 / KTM / 41’36.691 / 149.949 9 / Lorenzo ZANETTI / ITA / Skilled I.S.P.A. Racing Team / APRILIA / 41’44.154 / 149.502 10 / Fabrizio LAI / ITA / Kopron Racing World / HONDA / 41’44.596 / 149.476 11 / Andrea IANNONE / ITA / Abruzzo Racing Team / APRILIA / 41’45.608 / 149.416 12 / Michael RANSEDER / AUT / Red Bull ADAC KTM Juniors / KTM / 41’50.339 / 149.134 13 / Sergio GADEA / SPA / Master Aspar / APRILIA / 41’53.764 / 148.931 14 / Alvaro BAUTISTA / SPA / Seedorf RC3 – Tiempo Holidays / HONDA / 41’54.684 / 148.876 15 / Aleix ESPARGARO / SPA / Seedorf RC3 – Tiempo Holidays / HONDA / 41’59.343 / 148.601 Fastest Lap: Mika KALLIO 1’51.744 152.287 Km/h Lap 6 Lap Record: Hector BARBERA 1’50.903 153.442 Km/h 2004 World Championship Positions: 1 PASINI 84, 2 LUTHI 83, 3 KALLIO 82, 4 TALMACSI 75, 5 SIMONCELLI 72, 6 LAI 63, 7 POGGIALI 51, 8 SIMON 45, 9 KOYAMA 43, 10 FAUBEL 30, 11 OLIVE 26, 12 NIETO 25, 13 GADEA 23, 14 DI MEGLIO 23, 15 ESPARGARO 16. More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse: Catalan Grand Prix, Catalunya Race Day, Sunday June 12 2005 DUCATI RIDERS FIND CATALUNYA A TOUGH CHALLENGE Ducati Marlboro Team riders Loris Capirossi and Carlos Checa could not replicate their fine recent showings at Mugello during the Catalunya Grand Prix, as each had to make a compromise choice of rear tyres for the 25-lap race. The resurfaced Montmelo circuit proved abrasive and each rider had to modify their ambitions before the start, despite riding to their full abilities throughout. Capirossi had a mid-race fight for four laps with his team-mate Checa, until the Spaniard dropped back after a braking error. Checa recovered his position in the race, finishing in 11th place. Capirossi went 12th, with each rider earning championship points. “We have been struggling a lot with rear grip,” said Livio Suppo, Ducati MotoGP Project Manager. “Together with the Bridgestone technicians we made a tyre choice for safety sake, with a hard compound rear. When we made the change this morning we knew it would be less competitive, but much safer. We have to work together with Bridgestone and we knew that this was a partnership we would have to grow. We know that they are working hard and we have to accept that there will be difficult days, but of course it’s hard after race like at Mugello. The difference in the surface from Mugello decided everything. When we took the decision to change our tyre supplier it was not an easy choice but we knew it was a choice with a lot of potential, and we still believe it.” CHECA UNABLE TO SHINE AT HOME Carlos Checa had a tough afternoon of work in front of his home crowd, his lack of rear traction reducing his possibilities with his bike in full race trim. A battle with his team-mate mid-race was followed by a dramatic moment when leading a group of riders, as he ran on past his braking point at the end of the main straight. A spirited fight back put him 11th in the race. “There was no possibility to race we did at Mugello,” said a disappointed Checa. “We had a problem with the rear tyre life here, and the performance was nothing special. I made a mistake during the race as well, when in front of Bayliss and Xaus. The handlebars had been shaking from side to side as I went down the straight and when I hit the brakes I think my pads had been pushed back. I had to make a couple of grabs on the lever, and that made me lock up the front when it gripped again. I got past the riders again but by that time my tyre performance was down, so for the last seven laps I decided just to ride to hold my position and finish the race. This was not the race for us, but considering everything, I am reasonably satisfied.” CAPIROSSI 12th AFTER TOUGH DAY Loris Capirossi was as high as seventh after one lap of the recently resurfaced Catalunya circuit, but after a few laps his pace dropped as the rear tyre grip reduced. He had to settle for 12th place, but was philosophical about his experience. “It was a tough weekend,” stated Capirossi, who had a last minute change to his race preparations. “We worked a lot and made quite a few changes in set-up. Yesterday afternoon we were OK. This morning I went out with the rear tyre we chose yesterday, and we were OK again. After warm-up I was advised to use a much harder compound rear. This was almost an obligatory choice, but after a few laps I had very little grip from the rear. It was as if it was raining. But anyway, it was important to finish the race. Now we can put this race into the past and we can focus on Assen.”

Final MotoGP Qualifying Results: 1. Sete GIBERNAU, Honda, 1:42.337 2. Marco MELANDRI, Honda, 1:42.390 3. Valentino ROSSI, Yamaha, 1:42.723 4. Max BIAGGI, Honda, 1:42.756 5. Nicky HAYDEN, Honda, 1:42.847 6. Loris CAPIROSSI, Ducati, 1:42.992 7. Colin EDWARDS, Yamaha, 1:43.109 8. Carlos CHECA, Ducati, 1:43.129 9. Alex BARROS, Honda, 1:43.159 10. Makoto TAMADA, Honda, 1:43.207 11. John HOPKINS, Suzuki, 1:43.291 12. Shinya NAKANO, Kawasaki, 1:43.607 13. Kenny ROBERTS, Suzuki, 1:43.787 14. Alex HOFMANN, Kawasaki, 1:43.864 15. Troy BAYLISS, Honda, 1:44.122 16. Ruben XAUS, Yamaha, 1:44.193 17. Roberto ROLFO, Ducati, 1:44.934 18. David CHECA, Yamaha, 1:45.310 19. Shane BYRNE, Proton KR, 1:45.636 20. James ELLISON, Blata, 1:46.750 21. Franco BATTAINI, Blata, 1:47.599 More, from a press release issued Gauloises Yamaha: GAULOISES YAMAHA PAIR SET SOLID RACE PACE AT CATALUNYA Gauloises Yamaha Team riders Valentino Rossi and Colin Edwards are confident of mounting a strong challenge in tomorrow’s Catalunya Grand Prix despite suffering unexpected setbacks in this afternoon’s single qualifying session, which limited them to third and seventh place respectively on the starting grid. Both riders set a fast and consistent race pace throughout the day but, in the chase for a quick one-off lap time in the intense afternoon sunshine, Rossi lost time trying a tyre that did not work for him whilst Edwards was held up by slower riders on a lap that would have almost certainly put him on the front row of the grid. Despite the minor setbacks the pair have confirmed their progress from a positive opening day yesterday, making key adjustments to the bike settings in order to find improved machine stability in the fast corners of the sweeping Catalunya circuit. Tomorrow they will enjoy the support of a predicted crowd of over 100,000 people, with local favourite Sete Gibernau (Honda) starting from pole after clocking a new outright record time of 1’42.337 this afternoon. Gibernau’s team-mate Marco Melandri was second fastest and will line-up alongside Rossi on the front row of the grid for the 25-lap race. VALENTINO ROSSI (1’42.723, 26 laps) “Tomorrow will be tough for the riders in these conditions and for sure 25 laps will make it a long, long race. For the tyres it will be very hard work because this track is so demanding on both the front and the rear, although the conditions were better today than yesterday. We did a lot of work this afternoon to fix all the problems and in the end I am happy because we did a good job. I lost ten minutes in the middle of the session testing a tyre that didn’t work, so we have to work very hard with Michelin because the tyres are so important for this race. At the end I didn’t have time to use my last qualifying tyre and I didn’t ride 100% on my fast lap so I’m happy to be on the front row and I’m looking forward to tomorrow. The guys on the front row will be favourites, but there will be lots of other fast riders out there.” COLIN EDWARDS (1’43.109, 25 laps) “I’m not happy with that at all I know I could have gone much faster. Santa Claus came early for us last night and Michelin brought us a really good front tyre, so my pace on a race setting was pretty good, in the low 1’43s. At the end I put on a qualifying tyre and went out for a warm-up lap, but then when I went for my lap time I ran into three guys in the first corner who were just sat there, looking around and wondering what to do. I tried to take that lap slowly and save some rubber for another try but the front cooled down too much and, even though I pushed as hard as I could, I had no front grip. It’s a shame because I know I could have easily done a 1’42.5, which would have put me on the front row. I guess I’ll just have to ride extra hard for the first few laps in the race”¦ again! “ DAVIDE BRIVIO TEAM DIRECTOR “I think both riders are looking very good to meet their targets in the race. Vale and Colin were both able to make a very good lap time on their race setting so that is very positive. For different reasons both riders were not able to get the best possible result out of the qualifying session. For Valentino it’s not so bad because he stayed on the front row but Colin starts a little bit behind. There are a handful of riders who have got the lap times to be at the front and our guys are amongst them. It is a credit to our team, who have done an excellent job in very hot conditions this weekend. Hopefully it will be an exciting race!” More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki Racing Team: KAWASAKI RIDERS IN SEARCH OF MORE PACE AT CATALUNYA Kawasaki riders, Shinya Nakano and Alex Hofmann, ended a frustrating qualifying session in 12th and 14th positions respectively at the Catalunya Circuit this afternoon. Both riders had anticipated much stronger performances, but were hampered by a lack of grip as they tried for faster times on soft qualifying rubber. Nakano posted his fastest lap, at 1’43.607s, on race rubber and could not improve when he switched to qualifiers late in the session. Hofmann was just 0.2s slower than his teammate and also mystified at the lack of pace and grip in the warmer afternoon session. Both riders had been more consistent, and almost as fast, in the cooler morning free practice session as they evaluated race suspension and tyre set-ups. Nakano’s free practice time on race tyres was 1’43.8s, just two tenths slower than qualifying. Also in free practice Hofmann did a string of low 1’44s laps, almost the equal of what he achieved in qualifying. Grip levels appeared to change dramatically when track temperatures rose for qualifying as the sun broke through threatening lunchtime clouds. Tyre supplier Bridgestone have provided a wide range of new tyres for evaluation this weekend and, while there has been an improvement, both riders and technicians are searching for another step forward. Nakano, who finished a brilliant seventh in this race last year, is predicting a long and hot struggle in the forecast warm and humid conditions. Shinya Nakano: #56 – Twelfth – (1’43.607) “It was very strange, I was faster on a race tyre than the soft qualifying rubber. The positive point was that our race pace is improved from yesterday, but this is going to be a very difficult race for us. I’m looking for and need more traction and grip in the high-speed corners. I’ll give it 100% in the race, but I would prefer to be able to qualify closer to the front than the fourth row.” Alex Hofmann: #66 – Fourteenth – (1’43.856) “I’m not happy with this qualifying result. I got 100% out of the qualifying tyres, but this was the best time that was possible. The performance in the morning free practice with race set-up was more positive, I was able to do 1’44.1s laps comfortably. This will be our race pace, but it is going to be a long and hot race that will require a lot of consistency from the set-up. It wasn’t easy this afternoon with a lack of grip, perhaps because of the higher temperature.” Ichiro Yoda: Technical Director “Our tyre performance has improved a little from the IRTA test here in March, but we still need more edge and drive grip; this sums up our performance today. We have concentrated heavily on tyre testing this weekend.” More, from a press release issued by Dorna Communications: Gibernau to start from pole in front of record home crowd Sete Gibernau raised the hopes of a home victory for over 100,000 fans at the Gran Premi Gauloises de Catalunya with a new pole record at the Montmeló circuit on Saturday. With a record crowd expected to descend on the circuit tomorrow, Gibernau provided the perfect appetiser with a dominant end to this afternoon’s qualifying session, setting a string of fast laps including a best time of 1’42.337 to remain just out of reach of his hungry team-mate Marco Melandri, who lapped just 0.053 seconds slower than the Spaniard. “I’m still not totally happy even though I’m on pole position because we’re still not as competitive as I would like to be,” explained Gibernau, who also started from pole position here last season. “Basically the bike doesn’t seem to work as well when the temperatures rise and it is a problem we also found at Mugello. In any case it is obviously nice to be on pole position for my home race and I want to thank all my team and Michelin for their help. Tomorrow will be a long race but I’m ready.” Valentino Rossi completed the front row of the grid in third place after encountering tyre problems midway through the session and then later admitting that he “didn’t ride at 100%” on his decisive qualifying lap. Rossi’s Yamaha team-mate Colin Edwards also encountered problems as he ran into a group of slower riders during his own assault on the grid positions, dropping from a potential front row start all the way down to seventh place in a typically unpredictable finale. Max Biaggi ran out of time as he rushed to make a final tyre change at the end of the session, returning to the track as the chequered flag was being prepared and then running into the gravel as he pushed to make it to the line in time for a final flying lap. However, the Italian will be satisfied to have dropped no lower than fourth place on the grid as he continues his resurgent form following a disappointing start to the season. Biaggi’s Honda team-mate Nicky Hayden and Ducati rider Loris Capirossi, who took the factory’s only MotoGP win at this circuit two years ago, also made the second row as they took advantage of Edwards’ misfortune to move up to fifth and sixth place respectively. Carlos Checa and Alex Barros join Edwards on the third row in eighth and ninth, with the fourth row consisting of the hard-charging trio of Makoto Tamada, John Hopkins and Shinya Nakano. David Checa, who today stepped in for injured Yamaha rider Toni Elías, qualified 18th fastest. Dani Pedrosa knocked over 1.5 seconds off his provisional qualifying time to snatch pole position for his home event, stopping the clock at 1’46.238 to dislodge Jorge Lorenzo from the top of the time sheets. Lorenzo will be confident of his chances in the race, however, after lapping 0.018 seconds quicker than his compatriot’s pole time in the morning free practice. The teenager starts from second on the grid and is joined on the front row by Aprilia team-mates Sebastián Porto and Randy de Puniet. Andrea Dovizioso, who lies second in the championship, did not ride this afternoon after suffering minor injuries in a high-speed crash this morning. The Italian is hopeful of being declared fit for tomorrow’s race, however, with his provisional time from yesterday enough for ninth place on the starting grid. Mika Kallio returned to the top of the pile in the 125cc class with his fourth pole position of the season just six days after losing the World Championship lead to Thomas Lüthi. Kallio clocked a best lap of 1’51.451 to hold off the challenge of Mattia Pasini by just 0.064 seconds, with Lorenzo Zanetti also making the front row for the first time in his career behind Marco Simoncelli. Lüthi, who holds an eight-point advantage over Kallio, qualified tenth fastest. More, from a press release issued by Camel Honda: Camel Honda duo in good shape for race The two Camel Honda riders were unable to make the most of their obvious potential in the qualifying practice for the Catalan GP, but over two days of practice they have proved they have a good rhythm in race conditions. Both Alex and Troy rode quicker with the race tyres in the morning that with the qualifying tyres, so they expect to make an attack in the race tomorrow. Sito Pons Camel Honda “Even though Alex didn’t get the result we expected having seen the positive results in the morning, tomorrow he starts from the third row, a position that should allow him to get a good start and hang on to the front runners. If he can, then for certain he will be able to fight for the podium because in these two days he has done some good work with the team, improving the set-up of the bike and getting a good pace under his belt. As regards Troy, I don’t understand how he slipped down the order this afternoon; I think that something didn’t work, because in the previous sessions he went well. In any case, he can ride in a high 1’43 pace, so tomorrow he should have the chance to make a good result.” Alex Barros Camel Honda 1’43.159 9th position “My objective today was to do better than the last race in terms of qualifying, and that was the case, although I’m not happy with the third row, I could go better. I made a slight error, maybe two, going a bit deep into a couple of corners, and I paid for it; I’m gutted, because the second row was there for the taking for us. This morning we managed to get the forks working well enough and I even rode faster than this afternoon. The bike is pretty much set-up and we just need to clear up any doubts over tyre choice for the race. We will have a meeting with Michelin this evening and in tomorrow morning’s warm-up we will check this area.” Troy Bayliss Camel Honda 1’44.122 15th position “Obviously I’m not too happy with how the qualifying session went. There’s only one this year and the final minutes are more crucial than ever. Just in that vital last stretch of the session I was unable to improve on this morning, when with race tyres I went quicker. It’s a tough starting position for me then, and my race will be decided by my start – so I’ll give everything to claw some positions back.” “ More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse: DUCATI MARLBORO RIDERS MAKE STRIDES IN SPAIN Ducati Marlboro Team riders Loris Capirossi and Carlos Checa used the improving track conditions at Catalunya to secure sixth and eighth places on the grid, after a day spent working out final race set-up for Sunday’s 25-lap Grand Prix. Both riders made huge improvements in lap time, bettering their 2004 qualifying efforts at the 4.727km Catalunya circuit, with Checa also going a over a second faster than yesterday, despite suffering a fall this morning. “That was a very positive finish to our day because we made ground consistently,” said Ducati MotoGP Project Manager Livio Suppo. “Carlos had a crash this morning, but thankfully with no adverse consequences, and each rider was able to make good use of their qualifying tyres in the timed session. We have good race tyres but we still miss something. We know that at some circuits we can take an advantage but at this track probably we do not have. But we are at the start of a growing partnership with Bridgestone and we can be reasonably happy for the race.” CAPIROSSI ON ROW TWO AFTER FINAL CHARGE Loris Capirossi made great leaps in qualifying this afternoon, running his fastest lap almost a second better than his first day Catalunya best. Working hard to find the optimum setting for race conditions, his charge to a second row starting position was a necessarily late one. “This afternoon was much more positive than yesterday and this morning,” stated Capirossi. “We have made a lot of modification in the set-up of the bike to suit the tyres, and their durability for the race. With these changes the bike is not super-competitive compared to our normal race set-up but it seems to be OK for the tyres. I’m am satisfied with the front tyre especially, as I had a lot of problems with it yesterday. This makes us more confident for tomorrow. We will need a good start and from the second row I should be able to get away with the leaders. Today I lapped in the 44s in full race trim, which is not bad, but a lot of riders were also very fast. So we will have to see what happens tomorrow.” CHECA ON THIRD ROW FOR HOME RACE Checa had to wait until the very last minute of qualifying to ensure his third row start, improving his previous best times substantially to go eighth fastest. The Ducati Marlboro Team man had been up in third place at one stage, early in the final hour of qualifying, and found some of the confidence in his race set-up that he was missing on day one. “We are struggling to find competitiveness at this GP, but we have improved a lot since yesterday and this morning,” said the Spaniard at his home race. “The main problem is the that the other competitors also improved a lot and I think the asphalt is in much better condition, so everyone could go faster. I am quite satisfied in many regards, and in our circumstances, eighth position is acceptable. We will keep working through warm-up as I would like to improve even more for tomorrow.” More, from a press release issued by Suzuki: So close but so far for Hopkins in Catalunya Team SUZUKI MotoGP racer John Hopkins was less than a second from pole position after today’s qualifying session for the Gran Premi Gauloises de Catalunya. Suzuki’s young star found himself back on the third row for the start of tomorrow’s race. Hopkins (P11, 1’43.291) was only 0.954 of a second behind home favourite and pole-setter Sete Gibernau and only 0.3 seconds away from a second row start. Hopkins was disappointed with his final qualifying place: “I’m gutted to be 11th. We’ve been in the top-ten all weekend and I don’t feel that I got the best out of the bike. “The team are trying to console me by saying if I was a fraction of a second quicker I would be on the second row, but I need to get good qualifying positions to get away with the front-runners early on. “The Suzuki GSV-R has improved this weekend, that’s another step in the right direction. We still need more but it’s good to see the Factory understands the way we need to go. “I’ll now put this qualifying behind me and get on the bike tomorrow and give it 100 per-cent for the race – as I always do.” Kenny Roberts Jr (P13, 1’43.787) will start tomorrow’s Catalan Grand Prix from the head of row five. Roberts Jr and his crew used this morning’s free practice to further work on the new engine development parts for the Suzuki GSV-R and confirm some race settings. Roberts Jr said: “I tried everything I could. I’d liked to have been a bit quicker but as ever the qualifying tyre situation doesn’t really tell the race story. “The Factory has made a good step this weekend with the new engine parts. But we need that step to be made significantly larger in order to get the best out of the GSV-R and compete on level terms.” Team SUZUKI MotoGP Manager Paul Denning was full of praise for both his riders: “A great effort again by both the guys and to see them in 11th and 13th places really doesn’t do them or their crews’ justice for the amount of work they’ve put in. “John got into some traffic on his final qualifying run and aborted the lap, but unfortunately there wasn’t enough time to put in another tyre before the end of the session. So we don’t know what might have been. He’s very disappointed but as a Team we are not disappointed in him for his efforts. “Kenny is not a huge gap away from John on qualifiers. He’s been working hard on set-up and is consistently in the low 44’s on race tyres. I hope he will get a decent improvement in tomorrow’s race after the disappointment in Mugello.” Team SUZUKI MotoGP – who this weekend announced a one-off title partnership deal with Red Bull for the USGP – will be racing in the Gran Premi Gauloises de Catalunya from the Circuit de Catalunya near Barcelona in Spain at 14.00hrs CET on Sunday 12th June. More, from a press release issued by Telefonica Movistar Honda: CRUCIAL HOME POLE FOR SETE GIBERNAU Sete clinches the ninth pole position of his career as Marco Melandri takes second place in a hot qualifying session CATALUNYA GP – MOTOGP OFFICIAL QUALIFYING The Telefónica Movistar Honda MotoGP team will start tomorrow’s Catalunya Grand Prix from the front of the grid, with Sete Gibernau on pole position and Marco Melandri immediately to his right as the pair aim to excel in a race where the high temperatures and tyre choice could be the key. In the free practice this morning last year’s MotoGP World Championship runner-up was already on the pace, finding a good set-up for his bike and gathering the confidence to ride on the limit in the afternoon. With 15 minutes remaining, Sete moved to the top of the time sheets with a lap some two tenths of a second inside his 2004 pole record and 2.3 seconds inside his own circuit record. Marco Melandri was also on top form once again at a circuit he feels comfortable with after positive winter tests here. In the afternoon he was the only rider capable of getting close to his team-mate, with the pair separated by just 0.053 seconds at the end of the session. Fausto Gresini’s team hope to celebrate their 150th Grand prix in style tomorrow as they look to add to an impressive total of 26 victories and 72 podiums. SETE GIBERNAU (1st, 1’42″337): “We’ve done a good job today, especially in the morning the pace was very good. But we can’t get carried away at this stage because the race will be very tough tomorrow if the temperatures stay like they were during qualifying today. We haven’t tested too much in warm conditions and with a few extra degrees on the track this afternoon the grip levels were much lower and the performance of the bike was very different. We have to take a good look at the data and prepare ourselves as well as possible for the race.” MARCO MELANDRI (2nd, 1’42″390): “Today was a very positive day. Yesterday we found the right path to work along and we continued to! make improvements today. The track conditions changed a lot from the morning to the afternoon and the heat made the bike slide around quite a lot. Michelin helped us to find more grip on the qualifying tyre and we also set a good time on race tyres. I made a small mistake in turn one on my fast lap but I’m very happy with this second place.” More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing Information: GIBERNAU LAYS DOWN CHALLENGE WITH HOME POLE Sete Gibernau (Team Movistar Honda RC211V) made his rivals sit up and take notice of his determination here in Catalunya with his second pole position of the season. His lap of 1m 42.337 seconds could not be bettered by second-placed Marco Melandri (Team Movistar Honda RC211V) or reigning World Champion Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) who qualified third fastest. With both track and ambient temperatures higher than yesterday at 32 and 27 degrees, data acquired and set-up achieved in yesterday’s sessions was of reduced value as riders worked to replicate race distance performance and put in flying laps on qualifiers in this one hour timed session. At the halfway stage it was Colin Edwards (Yamaha) who topped the timesheet with his team-mate Rossi second fastest, but Melandri and Gibernau were well-placed as third and fourth fastest riders with Max Biaggi (Repsol Honda RC211V) and Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC211V) fifth and sixth at this stage. Makoto Tamada (Konica Minolta Honda RC211V) was the first rider to put in a hot lap when he elevated himself to fifth fastest with 25 minutes to go. The Japanese ace is returning to form after a lay-off due to an injured wrist. With 18 minutes to go Melandri showed his speed by snatching pole while Rossi moved ahead of his team-mate to second fastest. But minutes later Gibernau put in his quick lap to obliterate his own 2004 pole time of 1:42.596 by 0.259 seconds. With a full 13 minutes left it was now the turn of his rivals to better the Spaniard’s time. Hayden briefly moved onto the front row as second fastest with 11 minutes to go and Loris Capirossi (Ducati) was holding third fastest spot on the front row at this stage too. With five minutes left on the clock Gibernau and Melandri had established their dominance as first and second fastest with Hayden in third making it an all-Honda front row until Rossi squeezed his best time in with just two minutes left. Max and Nicky secured fourth and fifth on the grid for vital start advantage from the second row while Alex Barros (Camel Honda RC211V) qualified ninth on row three with Tamada tenth fastest and Troy Bayliss (Camel Honda RC211V) a disappointing 15th. Sete said, “We’ve done a good job today, especially in the morning. Our pace was very good. But we can’t get carried away because the race will be very tough especially if the temperature is the same as today. With the higher temperatures this afternoon there was much less grip. We need a good look at the data to make sure we make the right choices for tomorrow.” For Marco it was another strong performance. He said, “Today was very positive, we found the right way to go yesterday and continued to improve today. The heat made the bike slide a lot but I got good grip from my Michelin qualifiers and we made some good times on race rubber too. I’m happy with second place.” Max said, “That was a very important day. We were working hard trying to choose the settings for the bike and we used up all our time on this. I missed out on the front row but the important thing is to get a good start. It seems the worst is over for us.” Nicky was disappointed not to be on the front row, and said, “The front row would have been nice. As usual I’ll need a good start and I’ll need to be on my ‘A’ game throughout the race. I was up front all through the session although I hoped for a little bit more from my qualifying tyres. I got a good clear run but couldn’t improve my lap time.” Alex Barros said, “My objective today was to do better than the last race in terms of qualifying, although I’m not happy with the third row. I made a slight error, maybe two, going a bit deep into a couple of corners, and paid for it. I’m gutted, because the second row was there for the taking. This morning we managed to get the forks working well enough and I even rode faster than this afternoon. The bike is pretty much set up and we just need to clear up any doubts over tyre choice for the race.” Makoto said, “I expected more. When I was entering the turns the tyres didn’t give me enough confidence to push to the limit and this made me lose some precious time. But for tomorrow we’ve found the right tyres, which should allow us to be competitive if the temperature remains the same. Now I want to concentrate on tomorrow’s race, where the start will be crucial for me.” Troy Bayliss was upset with 15th. “Obviously I’m not too happy with how the qualifying session went,” said the Aussie There’s only one this year and the final minutes are more crucial than ever. Just in that vital last stretch of the session I was unable to improve on this morning, when with race tyres I went quicker. It’s a tough starting position for me, and my race will be decided by my start so I’ll give everything to claw some positions back.” Dani Pedrosa (Team Movistar Honda RS250RW) starts the 250cc race from pole for the third time this season and the rapidly improving Jorge Lorenzo (Fortuna Honda RS250RW) lines up alongside him as second fastest qualifier. Aprilia riders Sebastian Porto and Randy de Puniet are third and fourth. Andrea Dovizioso (Scot Racing Team Honda RS250RW) crashed heavily in the morning free training session and did not ride this afternoon after sustaining heavy bruising to his right shoulder and rib area. He will make a decision on whether or not to race after the morning warm-up session tomorrow. But if he does elect to ride his best lap time of 1:47.495 seconds was still good enough to give the young Italian a start from ninth on the grid. More encouragingly Hiroshi Aoyama (Team Movistar Honda RS250RW) qualified fifth fastest, equalling his best grid position on the season, while Hector Barbera (Fortuna Honda RS250RW) netted his fifth second row start of the year in seventh. Dani said, “After yesterday where we struggled a bit, it was a great effort from the team to get this pole here at the home race. But now we have to make sure we get a good start because it will be another tough race here tomorrow.” Jorge said, “We did four sessions here and I was fastest in three of them. This is very positive. In the last session I didn’t have quite enough front grip and that’s why I missed out on pole. Tomorrow I’ll just do my best and also try to enjoy it.” Dovi said, “Tomorrow I’ll do the warm-up, but I won’t be playing the hero. I know I have to try and get some points but I have to be in good enough shape to be able to take those points if I ride.” The 125cc qualifying session belonged to Mika Kallio (KTM), who grabbed his fourth pole of the season with a 1m 51.451 second lap. Mattia Pasini qualified second fastest with Marco Simoncelli third and Lorenzo Zanetti completing the front row in fourth (all Aprilia). Current World Championship points leader Thomas Luthi (Elit Grand Prix Honda RS125R) could not get on terms with the front-runners here and he will start tomorrow’s race from row three as tenth fastest qualifier. The man who found form here was Japanese star Toshihisa Kuzuhara (Angaia Racing Honda RS125R) who rode his best qualifying session yet this season to snatch a second row start from fifth on the grid. Fabrizio Lai (Kopron Racing World Honda RS125RW) qualified eighth fastest to edge onto the second row while Tomoyoshi Koyama (Ajo Motorsport Honda RS125R) who rode to a strong fifth place at Mugello last week starts from row three in 12th. Kuzuhara said, “I made my best lap when I followed Kallio. Then when I went for another quick lap to try and better my time I crashed. The bike will be fine for tomorrow and so will I, so I look forward to the race.” Luthi said, “I’m a little confused. I used the same tyre as this morning but had a lot of chatter from it. The engine wasn’t quite as good as it was in the morning either. The team will sort the engine out for me, but the chatter is more of a concern.” Honda Rider Quotes: MotoGP: Sete Gibernau, Movistar Honda: 1st:: “We’ve done a good job today, especially in the morning the pace was very good. But we can’t get carried away at this stage because the race will be very tough tomorrow if the temperatures stay like they were during qualifying today. We haven’t tested too much in warm conditions and with a few extra degrees on the track this afternoon the grip levels were much lower and the performance of the bike was very different. We have to take a good look at the data and prepare ourselves as well as possible for the race.” Marco Melandri, Movistar Honda: 2nd: “Today was a very positive day. Yesterday we found the right path to work along and we continued to make improvements today. The track conditions changed a lot from the morning to the afternoon and the heat made the bike slide around quite a lot. Michelin helped us to find more grip on the qualifying tyre and we also set a good time on race tyres. I made a small mistake in turn one on my fast lap but I’m very happy with this second place.” Max Biaggi, Repsol Honda Team: 4th: “It’s been a very important testing day. We’ve been working to choose the bike for the race and we used all the time we had. For a few thousandths of a second we missed the first row, but it’s ok anyway. The important thing now is to make a good start. The team is working always better day by day. The worst is gone.” Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda Team: 5th: “As we’ve been quick all weekend it would have been nice to get onto that front row but it wasn’t to be. We’ll, as usual, have to make a good start and stay with the boys and I’ll have to bring my A-game tomorrow. This weekend has been good so far. We’ve been up front in all the sessions and I was actually hoping to get a little more from my qualifier. No excuses, I got a good clear run but just didn’t make the lap time. It’ll be a hot pace tomorrow. Everyone is going really quick here that’s what makes it fun.” Alex Barros, Camel Honda: 9th: “My objective today was to do better than the last race in terms of qualifying, and that was the case, although I’m not happy with the third row, I could go better. I made a slight error, maybe two, going a bit deep into a couple of corners, and I paid for it; I’m gutted, because the second row was there for the taking for us. This morning we managed to get the forks working well enough and I even rode faster than this afternoon. The bike is pretty much set-up and we just need to clear up any doubts over tyre choice for the race. We will have a meeting with Michelin this evening and in tomorrow morning’s warm-up we will check this area.” Makoto Tamada, Konica Minolta Honda Team: 10th: “I expected more, but I found some complications with the qualifying tyres probably also because this is only my third qualifying session of the season. When I was entering the turns the tyres didn’t give me the right confidence to push my bike to the limit and this made me lose some precious time. But for tomorrow we found the right tyres which should allowed us to be competitive if the temperature will remain the same of these firsts two days. In addition during this weekend we have tried many different setting solutions and we consider our self satisfied on the work done. This set up we have found will allow us to be perform well also in the next GPs. But now I want to mainly concentrate on tomorrow’s race, where the star will be fundamental for me.” Troy Bayliss, Camel Honda: 15th: “Obviously I’m not too happy with how the qualifying session went. There’s only one this year and the final minutes are more crucial than ever. Just in that vital last stretch of the session I was unable to improve on this morning, when with race tyres I went quicker. It’s a tough starting position for me then, and my race will be decided by my start – so I’ll give everything to claw some positions back.” “ More, from a press release issued by Fortuna Yamaha: READY TO RIDE IN FRONT OF HOME CROWD Rubén Xaus and David Checa who replaces the injured Elías as in Mugello- will both ride in their home Grand Prix tomorrow. The two FORTUNA-YAMAHA riders hope to get some extra performance from being able to ride in front of the masses of Spanish fans who will fill th Montmeló stands tomorrow. Both riders are confident of making progress in their adaptation to the team. For Checa it was an intense day, given that in just two practice sessions he had to set the bike up, after Toni Elías’ decision yesterday to take no more part in the weekend due to his injuries not being fully healed after his Le Mans incident. Ruben Xaus (11): (Free 3: 1.44.952, 16th +3.637 19/21 laps) (Qualifying: 1.44.193, 16th +1.856 – 19/24 laps) “We are improving daily. Today the step forward was thanks to the qualifying tyre. It’s a shame that when we put on the second set, there was a lot of traffic on track and I didn’t get time to use a third. I think that tomorrow I will be able to maintain a pace around 1.44. Last year I was sixth here and both myself and the team are eager to improve this result because we are all putting in a lot of effort to make it happen.” David Checa (94): (Free 3: 1.46.493, 19th +3.637 24/26 laps) (Qualifying: 1.45.310, 18th +2.973 – 24/25 laps) “I’m happy with what I got out of just an hour and a half on the bike. I enjoed my ride on the M-1 more than in Mugello today, because I know it a little better. Tomorrow, in the warm-up, I will make some small changes which should give us some improvements. In any case, I’m lacking confidence in the front end, although tomorrow I’m going to give 100% so I perform well in front of all the fans.” Antonio Jiménez, Chief Mechanic: “David did a great job today. You can’t ask more of him, above all taking into account the lack of time he has had to set the bike up. Now we just need to work a bit more in the warm-up. I’m sure I’ll do well tomorrow.”

Final 125cc Grand Prix Qualifying Results: 1. Mika KALLIO, KTM, 1:51.451 2. Mattia PASINI, Aprilia, 1:51.515 3. Marco SIMONCELLI, Aprilia, 1:51.562 4. Lorenzo ZANETTI, Aprilia, 1:51.949 5. Toshihisa KUZUHARA, Honda, 1:52.005 6. Gabor TALMACSI, KTM, 1:52.052 7. Hector FAUBEL, Aprilia, 1:52.056 8. Fabrizio LAI, Honda, 1:52.223 9. Manuel POGGIALI, Gilera, 1:52.285 10. Thomas LUTHI, Honda, 1:52.407

Saturday’s 250cc Grand Prix Qualifying Results: 1. Daniel PEDROSA, Honda, 1:46.238 2. Jorge LORENZO, Honda, 1:46.617 3. Sebastian PORTO, Aprilia, 1:46.706 4. Randy DE PUNIET, Aprilia, 1:46.852 5. Hiroshi AOYAMA, Honda, 1:47.082 6. Alex DE ANGELIS, Aprilia, 1:47.342 7. Hector BARBERA, Honda, 1:47.454 8. Casey STONER, Aprilia, 1:47.486 9. Simone CORSI, Aprilia, 1:47.650 10. Sylvain GUINTOLI, Aprilia, 1:48.207 11. Yuki TAKAHASHI, Honda, 1:48.217 12. Jakub SMRZ, Honda, 1:48.661 13. Steve JENKNER, Aprilia, 1:48.961 14. Chaz DAVIES, Aprilia, 1:49.012 15. Alex DEBON, Honda, 1:49.150 Final Combined 250cc GP Qualifying Times: 1. PEDROSA, Honda, 1:46.238 2. LORENZO, Honda, 1:46.617 3. PORTO, Aprilia, 1:46.706 4. DE PUNIET, Aprilia, 1:46.825 5. AOYAMA, Honda, 1:47.082 6. DE ANGELIS, Aprilia, 1:47.090 7. BARBERA, Honda, 1:47.454 8. STONER, Aprilia, 1:47.486 9. Andrea DOVIZIOSO, Honda, 1:47.495 10. CORSI, Aprilia, 1:47.650 11. GUINTOLI, Aprilia, 1:48.207 12. TAKAHASHI, Honda, 1:48.217 13. SMRZ, Honda, 1:48.661 14. JENKNER, Aprilia, 1:48.961 15. DAVIES, Aprilia, 1:49.012

Saturday Morning MotoGP Practice Times: 1. Marco MELANDRI, Honda, 1:42.856 2. Nicky HAYDEN, Honda, 1:43.009 3. Sete GIBERNAU, Honda, 1:43.026 4. Alex BARROS, Honda, 1:43.041 5. Colin EDWARDS, Yamaha, 1:43.172 6. Makoto TAMADA, Honda, 1:43.287 7. Max BIAGGI, Honda, 1:43.325 8. Valentino ROSSI, Yamaha, 1:43.356 9. John HOPKINS, Suzuki, 1:43.697 10. Troy BAYLISS, Honda, 1:43.745 11. Shinya NAKANO, Kawasaki, 1:43.848 12. Loris CAPIROSSI, Ducati, 1:44.026 13. Kenny ROBERTS, Suzuki, 1:44.065 14. Alex HOFMANN, Kawasaki, 1:44.133 15. Carlos CHECA, Ducati, 1:44.210 16. Ruben XAUS, Yamaha, 1:44.952 17. Roberto ROLFO, Ducati, 1:45.064 18. Shane BYRNE, Proton KR, 1:46.385 19. David CHECA, Yamaha, 1:46.493 20. James ELLISON, Blata, 1:47.391 21. Franco BATTAINI, Blata, 1:47.951

ENTRY LIMITATIONS IN PLACE AT LAGUNA SECA ROUND OF AMA SUPERBIKE CHAMPIONSHIP PICKERINGTON, Ohio (June 10, 2005) — Entries into the three AMA classes featured at the upcoming Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, July 8-10, will be limited due to space constraints AMA Pro Racing announced today. Riders competing in the AMA Superbike Championship, Pro Honda Oils Supersport Championship presented by Shoei and Repsol Lubricants Superstock Series will be approved for competition based on criteria outlined in the event entry form. Although the number of entries has been limited at past AMA-sanctioned races at the Laguna Seca facility due to space, the challenge this year is even greater. In addition to AMA riders and teams requiring space, the weekend’s heavy schedule includes all participants competing in the MotoGP World Championship event as well as the Yamaha and GE-sponsored Superstars of Super Karts race. Additionally, two-separate TV production companies will be working out of the paddock. Ron Barrick, Road Race Series Manager for AMA Pro Racing said his team was working proactively with track officials to ensure that everyone’s needs were being addressed. “With an event of this magnitude there are bound to be logistical challenges,” said Barrick. “We are in constant communication with Laguna Seca sorting through the myriad of details. It will require a bit of ‘compromise’ on the part of everyone, but we’re confident we’ll get through it. The bottom line is that there is just so much space to go around and we’re working in cooperation with Laguna Seca personnel to make sure it’s distributed equitably.” Roadracingworld.com Editorial Note: The entry form criteria follow, and no, we don’t know why it says “60” in one place and “65” in another. MAZDA RACEWAY LAGUNA SECA IS PRE-ENTRY ONLY! The entries are limited to 60 riders per class. The pre-entries will be selected using the following criteria: 1. Riders that have scored points prior to the entry due date (June 24) during the 2005 season will be selected in the order of their standing. Points must be from the same class that the pre-entry is submitted for. 2. Riders ranked in the top 20 from the 2004 season in the order of their standing. Ranking must be from the same class that the pre-entry is submitted for. 3. Rider pre-entries not meeting the criteria listed in points 1 and 2 will be accepted – if the 65 entry limit has not been reached – in the order they are received at the AMA Pro Racing office. “¢ When 2 or more entries arrive on the same date, they will be sorted by postmark dates. “¢ Entries arriving and postmarked on the same date will be sorted by a lottery drawing. “¢ Faxed entries will be sorted by date and time received in the office. 4. Rider substitutions may only be made if the originally entered rider is injured, has a verifiable illness or a substantial reason confirmed and approved at the sole discretion of AMA Pro Racing. Only riders meeting the criteria in points 1 or 2, as well as riders deemed at the sole discretion of AMA Pro Racing to have exceptional racing qualifications, will be permitted as substitutes. It is the rider’s responsibility to contact the office to confirm their entries for each class they select to participate in. If your entry is not accepted you will receive a letter stating which class(es) you have been denied entry into. Pre-entries for Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca will not be accepted after June 24, 2005