From a press release issued by Gauloises Fortuna Yamaha:
ROSSI TAKES PROVISIONAL POLE IN PORTUGAL
Gauloises Fortuna Yamaha rider Valentino Rossi made a successful start to the Portuguese Grand Prix today by taking provisional pole on day one in Estoril. His team-mate Carlos Checa finished the afternoon 11th fastest, spending much of the session in the top five. After yesterday’s downpours, the weather stayed dry with patches of sunshine, making for a fast qualifying session with eight riders posting times under 1:39s, four of these bettering last year’s pole position time.
Rossi went to the top of the time sheets just over ten minutes into the hour-long session, whilst Checa moved into second shortly after with a time of 1:39.163. With fifteen minutes remaining Sete Gibernau (Honda) went ahead of Rossi, surrendering the lead to Alex Barros (Honda) half a minute later. Gibernau then stole the top spot back again with his fastest lap of the day of 1:38.067.
This was only good enough for second, however, as Rossi then put in a flying lap of 1:38.036 with just over a minute remaining. Barros finished third fastest with a time of 1:38.215, followed by Honda riders Makoto Tamada (1:38.342), Max Biaggi (1:38.609) and Yamaha rider Marco Melandri (1:38.710). Checa was unable to better his earlier time as he touched tyres with Gibernau on his flying lap and could not pass him.
VALENTINO ROSSI (1st, 1:38.036)
“We are ahead now but there is still more work to do, although we did some really good work today and finished first. It’s difficult to set up here because it’s an old style track; very tight and full of bumps. For sure it will be tough here, especially against Gibernau and Barros who are looking strong. We have found the right tyre today and this was very important. It’s going to be a hard race.”
CARLOS CHECA (11th, 1:39.163)
“Everything is working well so far, but there’s room for improvement. We’re losing time on a few parts of the track but the bike feels quite good. I touched tyres with Gibernau on my last lap when I had qualifying tyres on and couldn’t pass him. This meant I missed my chance to improve my last lap time. I hope the weather stays okay tomorrow. At the Brno test we changed the balance of the bike slightly and it feels more comfortable, so I am confident for the weekend.”
JEREMY BURGESS, ROSSI’S CREW CHIEF
“It was imperative for us to get on the front row, and that’s what we did. In Brno we had limited dry track time during the race weekend, but in the test there on Monday we had some time to test Michelin tyres and the ones we selected were ready for here. Our priority here today was front row, especially because it might rain tomorrow.”
More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki Racing Team:
TOUGH OPENING DAY AT ESTORIL FOR FUCHS KAWASAKI
Today’s first qualifying session for Sunday’s Portuguese Grand Prix at Estoril proved to be a tough one for the Fuchs Kawasaki pairing of Shinya Nakano and Alex Hofmann.
A problem with the exhaust system on his number one machine at the start of this afternoon’s session meant that Nakano was limited to using his spare Ninja ZX-RR, and the track time lost as a result cost the Japanese rider any chance of securing a top ten starting position on the provisional grid.
In addition, the spare bike wasn’t fitted with the latest version of the Öhlins forks which had produced much-improved braking stability at the recent Brno tests.
Over the notorious Estoril bumps Nakano could not reproduce the ‘feel’ and chassis balance he found with his number one bike in the morning free practice session, despite running a total of 26 laps.
Meanwhile Hofmann’s first outing on the Ninja ZX-RR at the twisty and demanding 4.1 km Estoril track was a difficult one, as he worked to overcome a lack of feeling from the front end.
The 24-year-old German rider lacked feedback from the front suspension on corner entry today, but is optimistic that with revised settings from Kawasaki and Öhlins engineers, and another day’s MotoGP experience on the Estoril track, he will produce faster times tomorrow.
Nakano’s bikes were fitted with the standard spec ZX-RR motors, while Hofmann’s machines ran some development parts – including a new, twin-pipe Akrapovic exhaust.
However Hofmann had little time to evaluate engine performance, as he struggled to find a comfortable front end set-up.
Shinya Nakano: 14th (1:39.751)
“I think I was unlucky today when I could only use one bike for qualifying. In free practice I had excellent feeling and had found some good tyre options with my main ZX-RR race bike, which was fitted with the new forks. When I switched to the spare I just couldn’t get the same feeling, especially under braking. For the moment I prefer the response of the standard ZX-RR motor, and with two bikes running tomorrow I’m confident of going faster.”
Alex Hofmann: 18th (1:40.623)
“My main problem was with the front suspension set-up over the bumps, on the brakes, into the corner. This is not a track that rewards you with fast times if you lack front end confidence. The new forks felt great at Brno last week, and I’m sure it is just a matter of fine tuning the set-up as I’ve never ridden a MotoGP bike here before. I was battling the front so much I couldn’t really concentrate on any engine work today, so hopefully it will stay dry tomorrow because I have a lot of catching up to do.”
More, from a press release issued by Dorna:
Rossi establishes early dominance at Estoril
Valentino Rossi took provisional pole position for the Grande Premio Marlboro de Portugal today, smashing Loris Capirossi’s previous pole record by almost half a second to clock 1:38.036 on his first visit to the Portuguese track riding the Yamaha. With cool and cloudy conditions in the morning making way for bright blue skies and warm sunshine in the afternoon, Rossi was able to swiftly find a dry set-up for the M1 and used it to fight off the challenge of four Honda riders, three of whom lapped inside Capirossi’s previous benchmark of 1:38.412.
“We are ahead now but there is still more work to do, although we did some really good work today and finished first,” commented Rossi, who has taken victory at this circuit for the past three consecutive seasons. “It’s difficult to set up here because it’s an old style track – very tight and full of bumps. For sure it will be tough here, especially against Gibernau and Barros who are looking strong. We have found the right tyre today and this was very important. It’s going to be a hard race.”
Sete Gibernau was the closest of the chasers, lapping within just 0.031 seconds of his title rival, whilst Alex Barros completes the front row in third place after setting the pace for much of the session and clocking the fastest time in the morning free practice despite crashing. Makoto Tamada heads up the provisional second row from team-mate Max Biaggi, whilst Marco Melandri was the next quickest Yamaha behind Rossi, qualifying in sixth place.
With Nicky Hayden out of action due to the broken collarbone injury sustained in a supermoto crash last weekend, Colin Edwards was the final Honda, qualifying seventh fastest to confirm the Japanese factory’s traditional strength at the Portuguese track. John Hopkins continued his impressive run of form on the Suzuki with the eighth fastest time whilst Capirossi, who started from the front of the grid here one year ago, completes the provisional third row in ninth place on the Ducati.
Sebastian Porto beat his own previous pole record in the 250cc class at Estoril today, his lap of 1:41.638 almost a tenth under the time which gave him his debut pole at this circuit two years ago. Porto, who took victory in the last round at Brno, was just 0.007 seconds quicker than last year’s winner Toni Elías whilst series leader Dani Pedrosa made gradual progress throughout the session to lap just 0.041 seconds short of the Argentinean.
Randy de Puniet completes the front row in fourth place after failing to improve his best time in the late charge for grid positions, whilst a last lap effort from Alex de Angelis bumped him up to the front of the second row in fifth. Hiroshi Aoyama escaped unhurt from a crash to qualify sixth fastest, with Manuel Poggiali and Fonsi Nieto joining the Japanese youngster on the provisional second row.
Andrea Dovizioso and Simone Corsi took the top two positions on the provisional grid for the 125cc race, sealing an impressive one-two for the Scot Honda team. Corsi had topped the time sheets on the penultimate lap after an elbow-to-elbow tussle with Casey Stoner, but was beaten to provisional pole by his fellow Italian on the very last lap. Roberto Locatelli also staged a late pole attack to move up to the front row in third place, relegating Stoner to fourth. Marco Simoncelli contested top spot throughout the session but was eventually relegated to fifth place and is joined on the provisional second row by Jorge Lorenzo, Steve Jenkner and Hector Barberá.
More, from a press release issued by Proton Team KR:
Aoki in and out at Estoril
Nobuatsu Aoki: 20th, 1:42.286
Proton Team KR rider Nobuatsu Aoki was 20th fastest in today’s first qualifying session for Sunday’s Portuguese GP, qualified, but unable to show his true pace after an afternoon of persistent niggling problems with the engines in both of his Proton KR V5 machines.
Aoki is riding alone at Estoril, with team-mate Kurtis Roberts out of the race as he recuperates from wrist and shoulder fractures sustained at Brno two weeks ago.
The problems were a return of oil-control problems that the team thought they had long since laid to rest. The result was the risk of oil getting on to the back tyre, preventing the Japanese rider from staying out on the track to build up pace and rhythm at the twisty circuit, with the slowest average speed of the year.
This was disappointing, because the Proton KR V5’s strongest suit is handling and cornering, which should pay dividends at the Portuguese circuit.
Today’s first qualifying sessions took place in bright sunshine. There is one more day of practice and qualifying before Sunday’s race, but rain is forecast for tomorrow. If the timed session is wet, then today’s dry-weather lap times will determine starting positions.
Nobuatsu Aoki
A terrible day. I’ve been suffering oil leaks with both machines – on one of them even after the engine was changed. I was getting oil on my boots, and the only thing to do when that happens is to get back to the pits straight away.
Kenny Roberts -Team Principal
Things are getting a little better all the time, but we are so busy producing race engines that we’re not able to put improvements into the system as quickly as we would like. We’re still struggling with grip and reliability, but the acceleration and speed are improving, so there is some progress.
More, from a press release issued by Camel Honda Racing Information:
Makoto and Max finish day one at Estoril with 4th and 5th fastest times
The yellow RC211Vs of the Camel Honda team finished the first set of practices for the GP of Portugal with the fourth and fifth fastest times in the afternoon qualifying session. After yesterday’s rainstorms the practices took place in the dry, however tomorrow’s forecast is for more unstable weather. Many riders therefore looked to get a solid qualifying time in to assure good grid position for Sunday’s race. This was particularly the case for Makoto Tamada, somewhat down the grid in Brno the Japanese rider today worked flat out to secure a provisional second row slot. Max Biaggi is still looking for more pace and tomorrow’s sessions will be important to get the best out of the bike.
Sito Pons – Camel Honda (Team Principal)
“We’re working hard on getting the bikes set up for Sunday’s race and we’re also looking to eliminate the chattering that Max has pointed out on the front end. So we have to improve still, especially in terms of rhythm, in order to pick up those precious two or three tenths which make you competitive. We will also be looking for a better grid position tomorrow.”
Max Biaggi – Camel Honda (Michelin Tyres) – 5th – 1:38.609
“I was more or less where I expected to be after this morning’s free practice. We still haven’t been able to sort out the vibrations that come when I’m braking and when I’m pushing it, so that’s still slowing us down a little. We’re obviously keen to resolve this issue and we’ll try and do it tomorrow so we’re not fighting the problem in the race on Sunday. At the moment this hitch is meaning I have to ride a bit too prudently and I’m losing several tenths around the whole track.”
Gianluca Montiron – Camel Honda – (Makoto Tamada Team Manager)
“Makoto got a good lap together at the end of the session. The weather forecasts all predict rain and so Makoto wanted to ensure himself a good grid position in case tomorrow’s practice sessions are in the wet. In tomorrow’s sessions we will refine the final details of the set-up as well as making the tyre choice for the race.”
Makoto Tamada – Camel Honda (Bridgestone Tyres) – 4th – 1:38.342
“I still haven’t found the perfect suspension-tyre combination nor the ideal equilibrium on the bike for this track, but I’m confident about Sunday’s race. Today at the end of the practice I tried to get a good grid position for Sunday, seeing as rain is predicted for tomorrow. The second row provisionally means that I’m a lot more calm about Sunday now. Tomorrow’s my mechanics and I will have time to fine-tune the set-up do we get the sort of pace up which can make the difference in the race.”
More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse:
Tough start for Ducati Marlboro men
Ducati Marlboro Team riders Loris Capirossi and Troy Bayliss had a tough start to their weekend at Estoril, where Capirossi is due to ride his 100th premier-class race. The Italian and the Australian finished this afternoon’s opening qualifying session in ninth and 12th positions and with plenty of work to do in the run-up to Sunday’s race.
“It’s not been a great day for us,” said Ducati Marlboro Team director Livio Suppo. “We had a really good test session at Brno after the Czech GP but we haven’t been able to use the settings we used there because this circuit is totally different. This morning the track was very slippery which prevented us from making a lot of progress on set-up, but at least conditions were better this afternoon so we could get plenty of data. We are now examining that data and hopefully that will allow us to move forward tomorrow.”
Unfortunately latest weather forecasts predict rain for Saturday at Estoril.
Capirossi ninth on his number two bike
Loris Capirossi ended this afternoon’s session in ninth spot, despite having to ride his number two bike in the latter part of the session. The Ducati Marlboro Team man ended the outing 1.035 seconds off the best lap time set by provisional pole position man Valentino Rossi.
“This afternoon’s session started pretty well but then we had a problem with my number one bike,” said the Italian. “So for the final 15 minutes I jumped on my other machine, but unfortunately I found some difficulties with that bike’s brakes. It’s a shame because I know I could have been faster. Now we work for tomorrow and I just hope the weather will help us. We need to get things right because this is always a tough race, with a lot of laps, so we really need to find a good set-up.”
Bayliss missing something at Estoril
Troy Bayliss didn’t find the ultra-bumpy and slipper Estoril circuit to his liking today. The Ducati Marlboro Team rider ran inside the top ten for much of the afternoon qualifier, slipping to 12th at the end of the hour, albeit only 1.243 seconds off provisional pole position.
“I’m trying hard but I don’t seem to be able to go any faster at the moment,” said the former World Superbike champion. “We’re a second off pole and we’re missing something to be that fast. I felt the bike to be a little unstable on the brakes and I’m also lacking some rear traction, but we’ll keep trying and working at improving things before Sunday’s race.”
More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki:
Suzuki riders quick to find pace in Portugal
Team Suzuki MotoGP riders John Hopkins and Kenny Roberts Jr were eighth and tenth fastest in today’s first time qualifying session for Sunday’s Portuguese GP, after placing third and second respectively in the morning’s free training.
The pair lost positions as the weather warmed up over the day – the morning had been cool and overcast, the afternoon was bathed in bright sunshine. But while Roberts was concentrating on developing a new setting combination, Hopkins lost his chance of regaining a top position when he had engine trouble with his preferred motorcycle just before fitting soft qualifying tyres at the end of the session. He had to switch to his spare machine, which was not set in the same way as the first, and “just make the best of the situation”.
Today’s qualifying positions could be crucial, with rain forecast for tomorrow afternoon’s final timed session.
The Suzuki teamsters had plenty of new ideas and settings to try, after fruitful tests at Brno after the last round there. Continual development not only of the Suzuki GSV-R MotoGP prototype but also the new-this-season Bridgestone tyres has brought the team closer and closer to regaining competitive positions.
The Portuguese GP, 11th of 16 World Championship rounds, marks the end of the European season, with the GP family taking off for a series of four “flyaway” GPs before returning to Valencia for the final round at the end of October. One more day of training and qualifying remains before Sunday’s race.
John Hopkins – Eighth position, 1:38.822
This morning was good – everyone’s pace was a little bit down, but in recent races Kenny and I have both been quick to get up to speed. I come to races now knowing I can run with the front guys, and that’s what I expect. In the afternoon we had a few minor problems that we sorted, and I was able to stay in the top ten. But it ended up real disappointing. On the last run before fitting qualifying tyres I had an engine problem with my A-bike. I had to switch to the B-bike, which had completely different settings and also some different parts. There was a bit of a mix-up with tyres, but I had to get on that bike and make the best of it. They’ve called rain for tomorrow, so this afternoon was really important for qualifying positions, and I wanted better. I felt I could definitely challenge for the front row. It’s one of those things – we’ll have to see what the weather brings tomorrow. I’ll give 110 percent, as always.
Kenny Roberts Jr. – Tenth position, 1:39.078
It was a little damp this morning, and we’re right there when nobody has a lot of track time. We found a new setting at Czecho that is completely different from what I’ve been using, and is not ideal . it’s worse in some ways, but better for corner speed and acceleration grip. This afternoon we were working on trying to get the bike balanced. The setting compensates for our relative lack of horsepower and acceleration. The guys are going to look into all the possibilities tonight.
Garry Taylor – Team Manager
We had a bit of a messy session in the afternoon, after a great start in the morning. Like everybody else, we were trying to get a time on the board in case it rains tomorrow, but we got thrown by some unexpected problems. I’m sure we’ll get back on track tomorrow.
More, from a press release issued by Telefonica Movistar Honda/Gresini Racing:
Gibernau keeps hs guard up and his feet on the ground
Sete Gibernau was one of four riders to lap inside Loris Capirossi’s pole time from last year on the first day of action at Estoril. The Spanish rider only lost pole with six minutes to go but was happy with the work done and with second place, just 0.031 seconds behind Valentino Rossi. It was a close fight between the two riders, as has become tradition this season, with Sete clocking his best time on lap 23 of 26, using the Honda RC211V he rode to victory at Brno two weeks ago. The Telefónica MoviStar Honda rider decided to begin set-up work on the bike he knows best, leaving development of the latest version delivered by HRC in the Czech Republic and tested on Monday and Tuesday after the race on one side, probably until tomorrow. Colin Edwards has been working to find the best possible set-up balance for his bike and a late decision to switch to the same setting he used at Donington proved correct.
Sete Gibernau (2nd, 1:38.067): “We came here on the back of a good result in the Czech Republic and it is important not to get too carried away and continue working with the same level of concentration as we have up to now. Today we weren’t able to get the best out of the bike or myself, although the final result is positive. I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s session because I know we can improve and we have plenty of margin to do so.”
Colin Edwards (7th, 1:38.738): “We have tried various different set-up solutions and tyres and at the end of the session I felt quite comfortable. I used the same setting as at Donington and I think it can work well here. I am more worried about tyre choice to minimise the effects of chattering, but we’ve got time to keep working on that tomorrow”.
Fausto Gresini (team manager): “It’s a good result – we’ve made the most of the two hours practice today and we’re well placed. Sete was in good form, as always, and we’re getting used to his battles with Valentino Rossi until the end. His time is good and he is pretty clear about his set-up for the race. Colin hasn’t been able to make consistent progress but his final time isn’t bad. Hopefully he can take a step forward tomorrow.”
More, from a press release issued by d’Antin Ducati:
POSITIVE START FOR HODGSON AND XAUS
[03.09.2004]
Estoril (Portugal), 03.09.04 The first day of practice at the Grand Prix of Portugal was positive for both d´Antin MotoGP riders, given that both Neil Hodgson and Rubén Xaus were riding for the first time at the Estoril circuit, finishing in thirteenth and sixteenth places respectively.
This peculiar Portuguese track was a pleasant surprise for the duo, and the British rider’s rapid adaptation caught the eye in particular early on, whilst Xaus made a gradual improvement throughout the day.
NEIL HODGSON: “Everything went well today, and I’m happy. It’s my first time here and I’m happy, the circuit’s quite nice. Given the circumstances I think that it has been a positive day, although I feel I can go even quicker. We need to improve the set-up in general, but especially in the weight distribution because it’s hard to turn the machine, but if we can refine it a little, I’m sure I’ll improve my time. Whatever happens, I think the position isn’t too bad and I’m optimistic.”
RUBEN XAUS : “This is a new circuit for me and that always means it is harder to adapt. In the afternoon things went better than in the free practice. I had a few problems with the brakes because we haven’t made a final decision yet and here that’s fundamental because you brake from 330Km/h down to 70 Km/ h on the straight. I didn’t use qualifying tyres today because I didn’t think I could have done them justice, so tomorrow we will have to sort this out and improve, and I’m the first to recognise that. I like the track, it’s a bit different, and you need to get the set-up spot on.”
More, from a press release issued by MS Aprilia:
Fabrizio builds confidence on Aprilia debut
MS Aprilia Racing newcomer Michel Fabrizio made an assured and confident start to his RS3 Cube debut in today’s opening qualifying session for the Portuguese GP.
Standing in for injured British rider Shane Byrne, the Italian finished 17th quickest for a place on the provisional sixth row of the grid. Fabrizio, who was released by the WCM team to make a one-off appearance for Aprilia, set a best time of 1.40.586s. After a short test at the Mugello circuit in Italy to familiarise himself with the Cube machine, Fabrizio was relieved to see threatening clouds that hung over the 4.1km circuit not materialise into the torrential downpours of yesterday. Desperate for dry track time to adapt to the bike, Fabrizio suffered a small crash during this morning’s session on his way to clocking the 19th best time. He made huge leaps forward this afternoon, reflected in his impressive lap times as he slashed almost three seconds off his best of 1.43.353s set this morning.
Estoril is the slowest circuit on the world championship calendar, and the tight and technical layout make it a challenging experience for riders and engineers to find the right set-up, with the track surface notoriously bumpy. Adding to the challenge for Fabrizio, today was his first proper chance to use Michelin slick tyres, while he was also trying to adapt to the extra horsepower. He said: “Today was a good start, but I made a mistake on my last lap with the qualifying tyre otherwise my time would have been better. I’m still happy because this was my first day on the Cube. On the soft tyre, the bike is not so easy to control in the slow corners. The team is very good, I’m trying to understand what the engineers are telling me and they have helped me a lot. I am just looking and learning to get as much experience as I can because this is a great chance I’ve been given by Aprilia.”
Jeremy McWilliams finished today’s session in 19th position, clocking a best time of 1.40.714s. He said: “It’s not where I planned to be. We had some problems with grip coming out of the slow corners. It isn’t a tyre problem, so we have to make some rear suspension changes overnight.
Today’s times could be all-important with unpredictable weather expected for the rest of the weekend. Estoril’s Atlantic coast location traditionally throws up varied conditions with gusting winds and heavy rain showers a common feature at the Portuguese venue.
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