From a press release issued by FGSport Group:

The Suzuka 8 Hours race is the most important race of the year for the Japanese factories.

Honda will be represented by an HRC CBR1000RRW Fireblade ridden by Ryuichi Kiyonari and Yuki Takahashi, as well as the Seven Stars Fireblade of Toru Ukawa and Hitoyasu Izutsu and the two Sakurai Fireblades of Osamu Deguchi / Kenichi Kiyonari and Tadayuki Okada / Chojun Kameya.

Leading Suzukis will include the Kenz Motul GSX-R1000 of Keiichi Kitagawa and Katsuaki Fujiwara, and the Yoshimura Suzuki ridden by Atsushi Watanabe and Yukio Kagayama.

The Yamaha factory will be represented by the YSP Presto YZF-R1 of Shinichi Nakatomi and Wataru Yoshikawa, the Team Challenger bike ridden by Yoshihiko Fujiwara and Nobuyuki Ozaki, and the Club Yamaha pairing of Keiji Okumura and Daniel Stauffer.

Kawasaki’s leading entry is the Beet Motul ZX10R of Kazuki Shimizu and Daisaku Sakai.

Suzuka wouldn’t be Suzuka without the Formula Extreme entries that add colour and excitement to the entry list. The Boxer Sports Club BMW R1100S and the Ducati Monster of La Bellezza Speed return, along with Asahina’s Samurai, the Over OV23-XV, Surf Suzuki’s SV1000S and a pair of Honda CB1300SFs.

Stats:

A total of 79 teams are entered.

10 will run in the Superbike class, 1 in SuperProduction, 1 in Stocksport, 51 in the Japanese Superbike class, 9 in Formula Xtreme Division 1 and 7 in Formula Xtreme Division 2.

46 teams will use Dunlop tyres, 14 will use Bridgestone, 12 will use Michelin and 3 will use Pirelli tyres. The rest are unconfirmed at the time of writing.

There are 35 Hondas entered, 21 Suzukis, 14 Yamahas, 5 Kawasakis, 1 BMW, 1 Asahina, 1 Over and 1 Ducati.

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

According to news reports from Italy, Piaggio will make an offer for Aprilia.

According to a statement issued by the Board of Directors of Piaggio, the aims of the company’s bid for Aprilia include “to protect the assets and heritage of Aprili’s human resources and professionals, as well as gauranteeing its precense in the country. The possible integration between Piaggio and Aprilia would give life to one of the most important groups worldwide in the two wheeled sector, with revenue of more than 1.4 billion, production volumes of over 600,000 units, 8 production plants, more than 6,000 employees, a full range of products.”

From a press release issued by KSW Insurance:

KSW Racing’s Anthony Fania Jr. will return to Superbike at Mid-Ohio.

Away since the March Daytona crash with Suzuki’s Aaron Yates, Fania has been cleared to race and looks forward to competing in the remaining three scheduled AMA Superbike rounds aboard the KSW GSX-R1000.

From a press release issued by Safety First Racing:

Safety First Racing completed another successful weekend at Laguna Seca. On Wednesday, Team Owner Kevin Hanson spoke to approximately 130 kids at the Monterey Sports Center and Whispering Pines Day Camp in Monterey. On top of promoting safety and the importance of wearing a helmet, the kids ranging in ages from 7-12 years old, were treated to a real life story when Hanson described crashing his American Suzuki GSX-R1000 at over 130 mph at Fontana earlier this year and how his Suomy helmet and Vanson leathers suffered several impacts. Hanson told the kids, “I walked away from that incident unhurt as a direct result of the high quality of safety gear I was wearing that day.”

Regarding the racing aspect of the weekend, Hanson stated that he was very pleased with his new rider, 16 year old Jessie “The Kid” Janisch in Superstock. “Laguna was Jessie’s third AMA weekend and he continues to improve every weekend. He had never been to Laguna before and got one practice session and then qualifying. What impressed me was within his first 10 laps on the track he was already into the 34s. Jessie qualified 20th and ran a good solid race and finished 16th with several laps during the race in the 31s.” Hanson further stated, “I think if we hadn’t lost out on the second practice session being a waste due to a red flag, I’m confident Jessie could have turned some 30s during the race. Thankfully, since 1-800-Motorcycle came on board, it has freed me up to focus on the business aspect of things so I can provide Jessie with all the key tools in the toolbox to be sucessful.”

Hanson was quick to praise Jim Rashid from 4 & 6 Performance for his crewchief/mechanic abilities. “I can’t tell you how fortunate I am to have Jim on board for the remainder of the year,” replied Hanson. “Jim G.M.D. Computracked the bikes at his shop in Chicago after Brainerd and discovered the swingarm was bent on one of the GSX-Rs following a turn 1 crash. Jim straightened the swingarm and then optimized both Suzuki bikes so they were identical for Laguna. Jim’s been around a long time and knows how to build racebikes. For example, after Jim set up the suspension for Jessie, we didn’t make one suspension adjustment all weekend other than a gearing change,” Hanson stated.

Safety First Racing is looking forward to furthering their results at Mid Ohio due in part to the added practice that is available earlier in the week. “Jessie has never been to that track as well. The key for Jessie at this juncture is for us to get him as much track time as possible on the GSX-R1000s since he’s used to riding 600s all of the time,” commented Hanson.


From a press release issued by Corona Extra Suzuki:

“PISTOL” BEN ATTARD GRABS SUPERSPORT 5TH AT SUN-SOAKED LAGUNA SECA

Young gun Ben Attard took another step closer to the podium with his first top five finish at a beautifully sunny Laguna Seca World Superbike weekend. The nail-biting SuperSport race capped off a full weekend of combined AMA National and World Superbike racing, drawing an estimated 93,000 fans to the “dry lagoon” a few miles east of California’s scenic treasure, historic Monterey Bay. In the nights leading up to race day, crowds of fans flooded the “Bay” area and tricked out sport-bikes and cruisers abounded. Team Corona hosted events every night including two on Fisherman’s Wharf – the center of evening “bench-racing” for the event. Both were unqualified successes, giving fans a chance to see race bikes up close and meet the riders in person for autographs and, in some cases, nice long chats.

Scott Greenwood (89) settled into his third stint in AMA SuperStock and his first time at Laguna Seca, aboard the Corona Suzuki GSX-R1000, posting 11th fastest in practice sessions leading up to Saturday’s event. A qualifying session shortened by oil on the track spelled trouble and with only a few laps available Scott qualified 16th. In the race, Scott rode conservatively and improved his position to finish 14th and gaining more valuable experience in what has become one of America’s most competitive races.

A last minute medical release after a long recuperation from injury found Marty Craggill (134) putting his leg over the Corona Suzuki Superbike for the first time since the Fontana round. Craggill qualified 13th but in the race quickly got up to speed and improved his position, running in 11th until a red flag came out stopping the race. Without enough time before the restart to fix a nagging clutch problem, Marty did not get off quickly and fell back to 14th where he ultimately finished the race. All in all, though, Marty’s ride proved impressive to anyone intimate with the pain and discomfort he’s been in for months. Now, the two-time Australian Superbike Champion is looking forward to the next race at Mid-Ohio and another chance to improve his condition and performance.

As with every AMA event he’s raced this season, Ben came to Laguna Seca having never seen the track before. But, even with limited practice time, he put his Suzuki GSX-R 600 on the second row, qualifying 6th, his best this season. Determined to finish even better, Attard got a great start in the thick of the lead group of factory riders, only to see the race red-flagged by another rider crashing at the first turn. At the restart, Ben again got in the thick of the lead pack. A couple of “hairy” moments caused him to fall back as far as 8th position, but in a determined push to finish well he worked his way past a number of more experienced riders to take his first top five finish in AMA racing. After the race an elated Ben said; “I got hung-up behind some guys and then over-cooked it a couple of times trying to get by. Once I calmed down it all came together. A few more laps and I could have been up front!” he joked!

The Team had a wonderful time visiting Monterey, participating in evening events promoting Corona Extra and Suzuki as far away as Palo Alto. The weather was particularly great, allowing Team hospitality staff to make over a hundred guests from Joe Rocket and other Team Partners comfortable under the shade of a brand new custom-designed awning where the best tasting food in the paddock was washed down with Modelo brands Corona Extra, Corona Light, Modelo Especial, Negra Modelo and Cerveza Pacifico Clara. From where we sat, everyone had a splendid time!


More, from a press release issued by Jason DiSalvo’s publicist:

Pole Position and 2nd Place Finish Move DiSalvo into 3rd Overall in the 600 SuperSport National Championship


Jason DiSalvo of Stafford N.Y. returned from the AMA/ World Superbike races at Laguna Seca Raceway in Monetary CA where he competed July 9, 10 and 11th. Having posted the fastest times in all practice sessions for the entire weekend Jason went on to set pole position in the 600 SuperSport class and 2nd to pole in the 1000 SuperStock class.

During the Supersport race starting from the 1st row pole position Jason ran a consistent race to finish 2nd.

In the 1000 SuperStock class Jason went to the lead in the first lap and led the race until the 5th lap. Having chosen a medium hard rubber compound Jason was unable to hold grip giving up first, then in a wild off track excursion in turn 11 running into the gravel pit and back on to the track finishing 5th “the week in California was good with only 3 races left I have to stay consistent to hold my 3rd place “, commented Jason.

DiSalvo races next at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington Ohio where many local friends and family will be in attendance.

From a press release issued by Harley-Davidson:

Harley-Davidson’s Second Century Momentum Builds With Another Record Quarter

Milwaukee, Wis., July 14, 2004 — Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE: HDI) today announced record revenue and earnings for its second quarter ended June 27, 2004. Revenue for the quarter was $1.33 billion compared with $1.22 billion in the year-ago quarter, an 8.9 percent increase. Second quarter diluted earnings per share (EPS) were 83 cents, a 25.8 percent increase compared with last year’s 66 cents.

“We are pleased to report another excellent quarter for Harley-Davidson,” said Jeffrey L. Bleustein, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Harley-Davidson, Inc. “The record results we have delivered through the first six months of this year are in line with the Company’s previously stated long-term direction of sustainable growth.”

U.S. retail sales of Harley-Davidson® motorcycles were 18.8 percent ahead of last year for the quarter and up 16.5 percent for the first six months. “Our dealers report that floor traffic is brisk, driven by keen interest in the entire Harley-Davidson experience and in particular, the Sportster® motorcycle family which was completely redesigned for the 2004 model year. The redesign, which was intended to broaden the appeal of that product line, is clearly achieving its purpose. Tomorrow we will bring even more excitement to our customers when the 2005 model year motorcycles and related new products will be unveiled to our worldwide dealer network at our summer dealer meeting in San Diego,” said Bleustein.

Motorcycles and Related Products Segment – Second Quarter Results
Second quarter revenue from Harley-Davidson motorcycles was $1.02 billion, an increase of 6.8 percent over last year. Worldwide shipments of Harley-Davidson motorcycles in the second quarter totaled 82,034 units, up 6,009 units or 7.9 percent over last year. The Company’s shipment target remains 317,000 Harley-Davidson motorcycles for 2004.

Second quarter revenue from Parts and Accessories (P&A), which consists of Genuine Motor Parts and Genuine Motor Accessories, totaled $230.1 million, a 12.7 percent increase or $25.9 million more than the year-ago quarter. Over the long term, the Company expects P&A revenue to grow at a rate slightly faster than the motorcycle unit growth rate.

Second quarter revenue from General Merchandise, which consists of MotorClothes® apparel and collectibles, totaled $53.1 million, up 21.5 percent or $9.4 million over the same period last year. Over the long term, the Company expects General Merchandise to grow at a rate lower than the motorcycle unit growth rate.

Second quarter gross margin for the Motorcycles and Related Products Segment was 37.9 percent of revenue compared to 36.4 percent in the second quarter of last year. Favorable gross margin was primarily impacted by plant efficiencies, including those that generally occur at the end of the model year. Some of these efficiencies are not expected to be maintained in the second half of the year due to new model year startup.

Operating margin increased from 21.9 percent in 2003 to 25.2 percent in 2004 due primarily to higher gross margin and a change in the timing of marketing related costs in 2003 when compared with 2004. In 2003, operating expenses were higher in the first half of the year to support the 100th Anniversary activities and programs. In 2004, operating expenses will be higher in the second half of the year, which is more typical of the Company’s operations.

Motorcycle Retail Data – Six Month Results
Retail sales of Harley-Davidson motorcycles in the United States were up 16.5 percent, or nearly 20,000 units for the period January through June 2004, when compared to the same period last year. Harley-Davidson retail sales were up approximately 100 units in Europe or 0.7 percent and down approximately 380 units in Japan or 7.3 percent, respectively, when compared with 2003. Harley-Davidson retail sales changes in Europe and Japan are generally tracking with motorcycle sales in the heavyweight markets in those locations.

Financial Services Segment – Second Quarter Results
Harley-Davidson Financial Services, Inc. (HDFS) reported second quarter operating income of $49.0 million, up $4.5 million or 10.2 percent from the year-ago quarter. The Company’s second quarter securitization of $626 million in motorcycle retail loans resulted in a gain of $19.3 million, which compares to a securitization of $425 million and a gain of $22.2 million during the second quarter of 2003. The gain as a percentage of the amount of loans securitized was lower when compared with last year’s gain due to the costs of a new enhanced dealer participation program and rising market interest rates. Based on the current competitive market and interest rate environment, the Company believes the full impact of these changes will result in future securitization gains in the range of 2.0 to 2.5 percent.

Annualized credit losses on a managed portfolio basis as of the end of the second quarter were lower at 0.63 percent in 2004, down from 0.75 percent in 2003.

Over the long term, the Company expects the HDFS growth rate to be slightly higher than the Company’s motorcycle unit growth rate.

Share Repurchase
During the quarter, the Company repurchased approximately 1.3 million shares of its common stock. This brings share repurchases to 9.1 million shares on a year-to-date basis.

Cash Flow – Six Month Results
During the first six months, operations generated cash of $609 million. The Company invested $64 million in capital expenditures, paid dividends of $53 million and repurchased shares at a cost of $474 million.

Harley-Davidson, Inc. – Six Month Results
For the six month period, revenue was $2.49 billion compared with $2.33 billion, a 6.9 percent increase over the year ago period. Diluted earnings per share were $1.52, compared with $1.28, an increase of 18.8 percent compared to the same period last year.

Through the first six months of this year, shipments of Harley-Davidson motorcycle units were 156,124, a 6.5 percent increase over last year’s 146,633. Harley-Davidson motorcycle revenue was $1.94 billion, a 5.8 percent increase over $1.83 billion in revenue in 2003. P&A revenue totaled $399.3 million, a 9.7 percent increase over last year’s $364.0 million. General Merchandise revenue totaled $107.5 million, a 7.3 percent increase compared with $100.1 million during the same period in 2003.

During the same period, HDFS operating income was $99.3 million, a 13.1 percent increase over last year’s $87.8 million during the first six months.

Company Background
Harley-Davidson, Inc. is the parent company for the group of companies doing business as Harley-Davidson Motor Company, Buell Motorcycle Company and Harley-Davidson Financial Services. Harley-Davidson Motor Company, the only major U.S.-based motorcycle manufacturer, produces heavyweight motorcycles and offers a complete line of motorcycle parts, accessories, apparel, and general merchandise. Buell Motorcycle Company produces sport and sport-touring motorcycles. Harley-Davidson Financial Services provides wholesale and retail financing and insurance programs to Harley-Davidson dealers and customers.

Forward-Looking Statements
The Company intends that certain matters discussed in this release are “forward-looking statements” intended to qualify for the safe harbor from liability established by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can generally be identified as such because the context of the statement will include words such as the Company “believes,” “anticipates,” “expects” or “estimates” or words of similar meaning. Similarly, statements that describe future plans, objectives, outlooks, targets or goals are also forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated as of the date of this release. Certain of such risks and uncertainties are described below. Shareholders, potential investors, and other readers are urged to consider these factors in evaluating the forward-looking statements and cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements included in this release are only made as of the date of this release, and the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update such forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.

The Company’s ability to meet the targets and expectations noted depends upon, among other factors, the Company’s ability to (i) continue to realize production efficiencies at its production facilities through the implementation of innovative manufacturing techniques and other means, (ii) successfully implement production capacity increases in its facilities, (iii) successfully introduce new products and services, (iv) avoid unexpected P&A /general merchandise supplier backorders, (v) sell all of the Harley-Davidson motorcycles it plans to produce, (vi) continue to develop the capacity of its distributor and dealer network, (vii) avoid unexpected changes in the regulatory environment for its products, (viii) successfully adjust to foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, (ix) successfully adjust to interest rate fluctuations, and (x) successfully manage changes in the credit quality of HDFS’s loan portfolio.

In addition, the Company could experience delays in the operation of manufacturing facilities as a result of work stoppages, difficulty with suppliers, natural causes, terrorism or other factors. Risk factors are also disclosed in documents previously filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Copyright 2004, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

When a new issue of Roadracing World & Motorcycle Technology magazine enters distribution, the cover is posted on this website.

The magazine is distributed by U.S. mail, UPS and FedEx. All issues are sent on the same day, regardless of the distribution method. Subscriber copies are sent via U.S. mail. Bundles of newsstand copies are sent via UPS ground. In some cases, new issues are sent FedEx overnight for distribution at races where Roadracing World has a display booth, or where we have made special arrangements for a racetrack distributor to display and sell the magazine in the paddock.

In the case of the latest issue (August 2004), two boxes were sent FedEx overnight to Laguna Seca, where the magazine was sold at the Roadracing World display booth starting on Friday, July 9. A box of issues was also sent via FedEx overnight to New Hampshire International Speedway for sale in the paddock by Street & Comp, by special arrangement.

It is the policy of Roadracing World to not provide advance information regarding product evaluations, motorcycle tests, dyno tests or any other editorial features to anybody prior to the magazine actually entering distribution.

Questions regarding this policy may be directed to the publisher.

From a press release:

The 1st Annual AMRA & Stratotech Park Super Mini Bike Races

The Alberta Mini Roadracing Association and Stratotech Park are pleased to announce the 1st Annual Super Mini Bike Races. Stratotech Park is one of the finest road racing facilities in North America. It is located just outside of Fort Saskatchewan on highway 825. On July 24, 2004, from 8 AM to 5 PM, Stratotech Park will host the 1st Alberta Mini Roadracing Association Super Mini Bike races.

The Alberta Mini Roadracing Association is a non-profit group to promote amateur miniature motorcycle racing (up to 150 cc) in Alberta, for the purposes of recreation and fun, their objectives are to:

• Provide introduction to the amateur sport of motorcycling and motorcycle racing in a safe, closed environment without the greater speeds of full-sized motorcycle racing;

• Foster development and improvement of racing skills at all levels from beginner to expert;

• Provide an environment in which our young members can learn and be coached from our more experienced members;

• Foster camaraderie and sportsmanship amongst its members;

• Promote a positive image of motorcycle racing in regards to safety, technique and attitude;

• Provide the opportunity to participate in motorcycle roadracing without the greater expense of full-sized motorcycle racing, by operating in a non-profit manner that strives to minimize member costs while ensuring a viable, economically stable association.

This will be a special event as it will be the official introduction in Canada to two of newest race bikes to be sold in Canada, the Honda NSR 50 and the Metrakit Mini GP XL “Cup” bike.

The bikes raced by the AMRA range from 50cc for beginners, to the formula 80 bikes for the seasoned vet. All classes will be present and visible to the public. New for the 2004 season the AMRA is offering a youth road racing series, kids from the age 8-10 will dice it up on the top portion of the track on 50cc (xr50’s) mini bikes or 2.5 and 4.5 restricted hp pocketbikes.

There is no entry fee for visitors, all we ask is that you bring a donation for the Food Bank.

Dealers of all makes and models are welcome to attend Stratotech Park for the event and set up a booth. The only fee required to set up the booth is a mini related prize that will be awarded at the event.

Dealers can bring bikes and products to this event to show to the public or race, the only requirement is that the items are used in one of the classes raced by the AMRA and must pass tech inspection.

If you wish to race, your bike must fall into a race category, have the proper safety gear and you must purchase a CMA membership.

Please see the AMRA website at http://www.amra.ca for the various classes and additional information.

For more information on this event, please contact any on the following:

AMRA c/o Blackfoot Motosports
Jay Fox
1-800-665-6735
[email protected]
http://www.amra.ca

Stratotech Park
Dan Beith
780-998-9995
[email protected]
www.stratotech.ca

Mini GP Canada Ltd.
Rob Ferrier
780-984-5525 or 1-800-910-5525 [email protected]
http://www.minigpcanada.com

From a press release issued by Telefonica Movistar Honda/Gresini Racing:

PREVIEW GP OF SACHSENRING

Round 8, The Sachsenring, a slow and torturous track

The Championship arrives at its exact half of the 2004 season here at Sachsenring for the GP of Germany.

Situated 100 km south of Dresda, in what was known as East Germany, the Sachsenring is a likeable for its changes of level, but being that it is short and torturous it isn’t very loved by the MotoGp riders. Here the 250 cc times are very similar to the MotoGp ones. There are not very many overtaking points and lapping is more frequent than usual.

Throttle control is everything at the Sachsenring being that the MotoGp is able to use the complete power of its engines only for 15% of the distance of a lap. Here the agility of the bike is more important than the power of it, especially during the first part of the track, the slowest and most torturous part, so much so that this track seems more like a go kart circuit than a MotoGp one.

In fact, the first corners are all about gear and direction changes, the throttle doesn’t really count much. The tyres are particularly strained in the series of six left corners at the half way point. The German track in fact is a slow one, technical and very demanding of the tyres.


#15 SETE GIBERNAU, THIRSTY FOR VICTORY

The German public, made up of real motorcycle fans and intenders, will definitely remember Sete Gibernau’s win during the 2004 race, when at the last lap he won after a long and spectacular duel with Valentino Rossi.
Theatre of one of the best races of the Spaniard’s career, the German track is particularly difficult for these heavy and powerful MotoGp machines. This track requires physical and mental strength to withstand all 30 laps of the race.

Called to repeat his German victory, Sete Gibernau arrives at the Sachsenring strong and determined. The Rio fall has not altered the leading positions in the riders championship because the GP of Rio was the spectacle of falls (fortunately without consequences) of Valentino Rossi and Sete Gibernau, the two riders at the head of the Championship.

“In Rio I made a small mistake and I paid very dearly for it. It is a shame as we worked well all weekend and I was riding on a 1:49, a pace that would have allowed me to fight for the victory. We lost an occasion but I am strong and positive as myself as a rider and the entire team have now gained a very high level of competitiveness. We’ll see you at the Sachsenring.”


SETE GIBERNAU AND THE SACHSENRING TRACK


What are your memories regarding this track?

Sachsenring is a slow and difficult track for MotoGp. I have nice memories of this circuit as I won last season, I disputed one of the best races of my life.

Which is the best sector of the tack?

It is a difficult and torturous track, I can’t say I have one area which I particularly prefer.

Which is the best place to overtake?

For sure the last two corners, (left –left), this is the best place to overtake : hard Braking and overtake.

Which is the fastest sector?

After the main straightaway, the piece of track that is in descent is for sure the most difficult and quickest of the entire track.

The secret to a good lap?

The setting has to be perfect, in this track it is important to open throttle – only in certain points – without being to aggressive.



#45 COLIN EDWARDS, A FORWARD PASS IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP

Texas Tornado arrives at the exact half of the 2004 Championship, exactly half of the races in program for this season, fourth in the Riders Championship. In constant progress of bettering his results, Colin Edwards, with his Rio Gp has consolidated his position and has arrived closer to the leaders of the Championship. The team awaits from him another step forward at the Sachsenring.

COLIN EDWARDS AND THE SACHSENRING

“When I think of the Sachsenring I think of Fire”, Colin smiles but certainly last years experience, when his RS cube lit on fire because the tank lid came off, was a strong and scary experience for the Texan who fortunately came out of it without any serious injuries (only some superficial burns in fact).

“The Sachsenring is strange, very tight. In the first sector (turns 1,2,3,4) it is not possible to overtake. After turn 4, which is a right corner, an infinite series of left corners begin which bring you to do 360° on the same side. During this sector the tyres are under a lot of strain on the left hand side, therefore the choice of the tyre here is fundamental because they must not overheat.

After this long series of left hand corners, the track radically changes, you meet a right descending corner (here you must be particularly careful during the first laps because the right side of the tyre may still be cold). The last uphill corner is spectacular. Generally this isn’t a tack that requires a lot of physical strength because it puts the left side of your body to the test. This isn’t a circuit I particularly like.”

The best place of overtake?

The Sachsenkurve braking

The best Sector?

The Sachsenkurve.


THE TEAMS COMMENTS

Fausto Gresini, Team Manager

“The Team Telefonica MoviStar Honda MotoGp has arrived to its eighth appointment leading the team Championship, a great satisfaction which demonstrates the quality of work which the team and riders bring forward race after race. Sete Gibernau is heading the Riders Championship, tied for points with Valentino Rossi, while Colin Edwards is in fourth place. In Rio we lost a good occasion: it is really to bad for Sete had a good lap pace and was going really quick, I am sure he would have fought for the victory. Colin’s race was ok, but I would like to see him up front fighting for the podium. His contribution in fact is very important to make our team even stronger.”

From a press release issued by Pirelli’s advertising and PR agency, Plummer Menapace Group:

PIRELLI RECAPS LAGUNA SECA: VERY PLEASED WITH PERFORMANCE

Competitive Lap Times, Great Racing, Even Without The Added Bonus of Wild Card Entries

(Rome, GA) When the smoke cleared and the final calculations and comparisons were finished on Pirelli’s first visit to the fabled Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca as the World Superbike spec tire, coupled with the AMA race action, there were smiles on the faces of the Pirelli engineers. And the announced three-day Laguna crowd of 93,000 seemed to enjoy themselves as well.



In a word, the Pirelli folks were proud. Saturday’s World Superbike Qualifying times showed less than one second separating the first ten riders, less than two seconds between the first twenty, and that’s with the two fastest riders’ lap times in the 1:26s. This compares to a qualifying gap of over four seconds between the first and tenth AMA Superbike riders.

“This is the spirit of the spec-tire rule, closer action, closer times, every racer on the same tires, no special back-door tires for a couple teams,” said a Pirelli spokesman. “This is why Formula 1 and MotoGP are also talking about a spec tire.”

Comparing the fastest lap times on race tires showed race-one winner Chris Vermeulen at 1:26.793 for the 28 laps. (A mere .7-second gap separated his fastest and slowest lap times over the race distance). This was just .6 behind the fastest pre-red-flag AMA Superbike lap time, and just .8 behind the fastest time after the re-start (when the teams had an opportunity to switch to fresh tires). Further, in the second World Superbike race, less than one second separated the fastest lap times of the top ten racers. “This shows the excellent consistency of the Pirelli tires being used by all of the World Superbike riders, also a very important point of the new tire format. And our tires are production tires, the same tires an American racer can buy, the same tires for every World Superbike racer. We race what we sell and we sell what we race.”



Rookie World Superbike competitor Vermeulen captured the season’s first double win, taking both Laguna Seca races on his Ten Kate-sponsored Honda CBR1000RR, the first SBK Laguna double since Ben Bostrom’s in 2001 on a Ducati. Vermeulen’s was a remarkable performance considering that neither he, his team, nor his “non-factory” bike had ever before tested or competed at the challenging hilltop Laguna road course. (The bike still has the stock swingarm and no trick HRC racing parts, compared to the special factory bikes and equipment of AMA and British Superbike competition.) It was the second and third wins in a row for the immensely-talented, “searingly fast” young Australian, who just turned 22 years old on June 19. His first victory at Silverstone a couple weeks ago was also the first for the new CBR1000RR, a bike that, coincidentally, is available in the States with Pirelli’s super-sticky Diablo Corsa track/street radials as original equipment. Vermeulen also put Honda in the World Superbike record book as the series’ first-ever 1000cc, four cylinder-engined winner. But Vermeulen is no stranger to either Hondas or Pirelli tires: he rode a Pirelli DOT Supercorsa-shod Ten Kate CBR600RR to last year’s World Supersport championship by one of the widest margins in that series’ history.

Vermeulen won the first race by 4.1 seconds, despite a poor start that left him in eighth on the first lap. It was one of the largest victory margins of the season, although still comparatively modest. Big victory margins have been rare this year, with the spec-tire rule delivering on one its promises to provide much closer, hard-fought, “level playing field” racing. Not at all like some of 17- and 18-second margins seen last year. In fact, there have already been six different winners in the first 14 races of the season (there are two races in each round), compared to last season when Ducati Fila’s Neil Hodgson won all of the first 12 races before Laguna Seca. Once Vermeulen got past early leader James Toseland on the factory Ducati Fila 999RS, he was gone, leaving the battle to those behind him. And quite a battle it was. But fan-favorite Frankie Chili and his unique PSG-1 Ducati “998.5”, as he calls the 998 chassis housing a 999 engine, got the best of the close-packed followers for second. Chili set a record of his own, competing in his 230th World Superbike race. Superpole winner Steve Martin and his DFX Ducati 999RS, was third.

The second race was a close-fought battle between Vermeulen and the 23 year-old Toseland, with only .465 seconds separating them at the checkered flag. Toseland’s teammate, Regis Laconi, was third.

Giorgio Barbier, Pirelli Racing Development Manager, commenting on the weekend’s racing said, “The important thing about today is to note that last year race two was slower than race one, while today the second race was seven seconds faster. The best lap time was a little bit slower. It was also interesting to see that the best and worst laps of Chris Vermeulen were within 0.7 seconds of each other. This demonstrates a good consistency from the tires, so we can work on the pure performance of the tires now. The pity is that because the AMA Superbike race was stopped and restarted we did not get the chance to see a comparison over full race distance. There was no significance in the fact that the four-cylinder machine won both races today. In my opinion this bike is a very good base to go racing from. Everyone used the softest rear tire we had in race two, and the vast majority chose it in race one. At the end of the day, even in our short comparison to the AMA races, our tires were very good.”

AMA RESULTS

Pirelli holds a completely different place in AMA racing, being the tire choice for most of the AMA’s top privateers. Three of them finished in the Laguna Superbike final’s top 10: Lion Racing’s Jacob Holden in eighth, Triangle Cycle’s Larry Pegram, 9th, and Prieto Racing’s Geoff May, 10th. Holden only recently began competing in the class at the Road America round, and this was his best finish of the year, a very consistent effort marked by his holding the position through both parts of the red-flagged final; he also had a ninth in Saturday’s Superstock race. May, on the other hand, provided one of the weekend’s gutsiest performances. Not known as a crasher, he nevertheless suffered two of them at Laguna, resulting in injuries that made it difficult for him to get into his leathers and boots. But he was still able to fight to ninth before the red flag. Hitting a false neutral on the first turn of the re-start dropped May all the way back to 20th, yet he fought his way to another top-10 finish. May has finished in the top 10 in every Superbike race thus far in 2004 – which is why he and his Suzuki GSX-R1000 with a “bone-stock” engine currently hold an amazing fifth place in the championship standings.

There are eight Pirelli privateers in the Formula Xtreme point standings even though it is admittedly a two-rider race for the championship. Three of them finished in Laguna’s top 20. Larry Pegram, fifth in points, finished eighth; Heath Small, eighth in the standings, finished 13th; and Nathan Hester still holds the number-seven spot despite his disappointing 20th at Laguna. Two Pirelli riders who don’t normally compete in the series finished ninth and tenth: Lion Racing’s Nicky Moore and Hal’s H-D’s Mike Ciccotto on a Buell XB9R, respectively.

Championsonline.com’s Michael Barnes and his Pirelli Supercorsa-mounted Yamaha R6 earned another hard-fought eighth place in the factory-bike dominated AMA Supersport class, a finish that kept him in eighth place in points.