From a press release issued by Team Suzuki News Service:

SUZUKI 1-2-3 AT ASSEN WORLD ENDURANCE

2003 World Endurance Series. Round 2. Assen. 25 May

Suzuki GSX-R1000 teams dominated the second round of the World Endurance Championship at Assen on Sunday taking all three places on the rostrum.

The Zongshen 2 Suzuki GSX-R1000 of Jerman and Bonhuil finished just 2 seconds ahead of the Suzuki GB Phase One GSX-R1000 of Ellison and Pridmore after 83 laps and 200 miles of the Dutch circuit.

The Zongshen 1 team of Nowland and Mertens was third and they now lead the championship ahead of The Suzuki GB Phase One team, followed by the Zongshen 2 team, the 22 Police Nationale team and the Fabi Corse team. All of these top five teams in the series are mounted on Suzuki GSX-R1000 machines and in fact no less than 19 of the top 25 teams are Suzuki GSX-R1000 mounted!


More, from a press release issued by Ten Kate Honda:

TEN KATE HONDA TAKE FOURTH IN ENDURANCE RACE

Ten Kate Honda grabbed fourth place in Sunday’s 200-mile World Endurance race at Assen in Holland aboard the new CBR600RR machine.

Riders Karl Muggeridge and Dutchman Barry Veneman – the latter replacing the injured Chris Vermeulen – stormed into the lead from pole position against a field of 1000cc-mounted World Endurance championship regulars.

But two lengthy pit stops relegated the Dutch team to an eventual fourth place on their debut in the Endurance World Championship.

Team manager Ronald ten Kate explained: “We always knew it would be difficult to perform a really fast pit stop like the World championship regulars, they have the quick release equipment for changing wheels and quick-fill gear for refuelling. We lost about two minutes on the other teams, one minute on each of the two stops so I’m sure we could have won it but the event served its purpose of giving us valuable track testing time.”

There was, however, some joy for the team as Muggeridge won the Dutch Open championship race at Assen. The Australian pipped fellow Honda rider Veneman to victory while the British Championship Vitrans Honda team took fourth place with Dean Thomas.

Vitrans rider Michael Laverty was in a safe third place but crashed at the final corner on the last lap as he came across five backmarkers. Laverty escaped injury and he and Thomas will now contest next Sunday’s fifth round of the World Supersport championship at Oschersleben in Germany.

Ten Kate concluded: “The weekend proved successful and reinforced the performance of the CBR600RR. Karl’s bike did all practice and qualifying, the endurance race and the Dutch Open race!”

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By David Swarts

Today is the birthday of American Honda’s Miguel Duhamel, but no one seems to be sure exactly how old this living legend is–or if it really matters.

The 2002 AMA Media Guide has Duhamel’s birthday listed as May 26, 1967, but the 2003 AMA Media Guide lists Duhamel’s birthday as being in 1968. Whether he is 35 or 36 years old today, Duhamel’s place in the AMA record book as the all-time leader of Superbike race wins (26), Supersport race wins (40) and Supersport Championships (5) is certain.

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Sete Gibernau won the red-flagged-and-restarted Fench Grand Prix, beating Valentino Rossi across the line by 0.165-second after Rossi ran wide in the final corner on the last lap. Alex Barros finished third.

Under new MotoGP rules, the race was not scored on aggregate time. Instead, the order at the end of the 13-lap restart determined the final finishing order.

Carlos Checa and Troy Bayliss crashed before the race was stopped for rain, and Makoto Tamada, John Hopkins and Andrew Pitt crashed on the wet track after the restart.

Colin Edwards was the best-finishing American at 10th, with Nicky Hayden 12th and Kenny Roberts the 16th and last finisher.

Spanish riders swept the weekend, with Dani Pedrosa winning the 125cc race and Toni Elias winning the 250cc race.

Results, 13-lap Restart
1. Sete Gibernau, Honda, 24:29.665
2. Valentino Rossi, Honda, -0.165 seconds
3. Alex Barros, Yamaha, -1.793
4. Olivier Jacque, Yamaha, -29.912
5. Max Biaggi, Honda, -31.493
6. Jeremy McWilliams, Proton KR3, -33.946
7. Tohru Ukawa, Honda, -35.447
8. Noriyuki Haga, Aprilia, -36.231
9. Garry McCoy, Kawasaki, -51.254
10. Colin Edwards, Aprilia, -61.802
11. Norick Abe, Yamaha, -1 lap
12. Nicky Hayden, Honda, -1 lap
13. Ryuichi Kiyonari, Honda, -1 lap
14. Shinya Kakano, Yamaha, -2 laps
15. Marco Melandri, Yamaha, -2 laps
16. Kenny Roberts, Suzuki, -2 laps
17. Andrew Pitt, Kawasaki, DNF, crash, -10 laps
18. John Hokpins, Suzuki, DNF, crash, -11 laps
19. Makoto Tamada, Honda, DNF, crash, -12 laps
20. Troy Bayliss, Ducati, DNS, crash
21. Loris Capirossi, Ducati, DNS, mechanical
22. Carlos Checa, Yamaha, DNS, crash
23. Nobuatsu Aoki, Proton, DNS, mechanical




250cc Results
1. Toni Elias, Aprilia, 26 laps, 43.55.538
2. Randy de Puniet, Aprilia, -3.740 seconds
3. Roberto Rolfo, Honda, -4.562
4. Fonsi Nieto, Aprilia, -4.972
5. Naoki Matsudo, Yamaha, -5.122
6. Sylvain Guintoli, Aprilia, -6.100
7. Anthony West, Aprilia, -29.672
8. Alex Debron, Honda, -34.885
9. Christian Gemmel, Honda, -35.013
10. Joan Olive, Aprilia, -35.559

125cc Results
1. Dani Pedrosa, Honda, 24 laps, 41:58.500
2. Lucio Cecchinello, Honda, -2.337
3. Andrea Dovizioso, Honda, -2.427
4. Casey Stoner, Aprilia, -11.278
5. Pablo Nieto, Aprilia, -11.814
6. Youichi Ui, Aprilia, -12.592
7. Stefano Perugini, Aprilia, -18.930
8. Steve Jenkner, Aprilia, -25.206
9. Thomas Luthi, Honda, -29.471
10. Masao Azuma, Honda, -33.910


More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

French GP, Le Mans
Race Day
Sunday, May 25 2003

DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM LEADS AGAIN BUT RUNS OUT OF LUCK

Ducati Marlboro Team riders Loris Capirossi and Troy Bayliss had a luckless time at Le Mans this afternoon, both riders exiting from the French Grand Prix in the early stages.

Capirossi led from the start and enjoyed a brief tussle with Valentino Rossi (Honda) before encountering a minor technical glitch that forced his withdrawal. Bayliss tumbled out a few laps later, the Aussie uninjured in the fall.

The day marked a major change in fortunes for MotoGP’s youngest team, which has led every GP so far this year and scored two podium finishes and one pole position.

“In racing you have to expect bad days, you can’t always have good days,” said Ducati Marlboro Team director Livio Suppo. “The most important thing is that both the riders are okay.”

Ducati Marlboro Team technical director Corrado Cecchinelli added: “This was always going to be a difficult race because we only had dry track time on Friday, though that wasn’t the reason for Loris’ and Troy’s problems. The worst thing is that we have learned very little about this track for next year. But now we go to Mugello, with our hearts and minds set on achieving the best-possible result at our home GP.”

CAPIROSSI SIDELINED BY QUICKSHIFTER GLITCH
Loris Capirossi had real hopes of another great result on his Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici at Le Mans today, but those hopes were dashed just minutes after he’d used his V4’s awesome power to lead away from his third consecutive front-row start.

“I got a very good start,” said the Italian who is mostly recovered from the stomach problems that had put him in hospital on Tuesday. “I fought with Valentino, who passed me, and then I started having problems with the quickshifter. It was killing the power for longer than necessary whenever I changed gear, so it was impossible to continue.”

BAYLISS TUMBLES OUT OF FRENCH GP
Ducati Marlboro Team rider Troy Bayliss started today’s French GP in fine style, rocketing into the top ten from a fourth-row start. But pretty soon the Aussie was having trouble – neither he nor his bike had ever run at Le Mans before this week, and with only two hours of dry-track time behind them, he had a far from perfect bike set-up. Bayliss crashed out at the La Chapelle right-hander.

“I’ve been struggling with the bike all weekend,” he said. “We’ve been having a few little problems and it was the same in the race, then I crashed. It was a strange crash, I’m not really sure what happened.”



More, from a press release issued by Fortuna Yamaha:

French Grand Prix
Sunday, 25 May 2003
Le Mans, France

A DAY OF STOPS AND STARTS FOR FORTUNA YAMAHA

The Fortuna Yamaha Team looked set for a strong result in the French Grand Prix after MotoGP rookie Marco Melandri yesterday qualified on the front row for the 28-lap race, with team-mate Carlos Checa in a solid sixth. Although both riders initially began the Le Mans main event in fine form a number of unexpected factors, including a race restart and a high-speed crash, eventually contributed to a disappointing result for the factory team.

Melandri, in only his second race this season, produced a lightning start to be well in the top five at the end of the opening lap. The 20-year-old Italian then showed form that belied his limited four-stroke experience, slipping past Yamaha wild card entry Norick Abe to take fourth position. He then continued with this impressive momentum to outride fellow Italian Loris Capirossi (Ducati) on lap three, to take third – behind race leader Alex Barros (Gauloises Yamaha Team) and Valentino Rossi (Honda).

By lap six, however, rear traction concerns saw the 250cc World Champion slip back through to eighth before the race was red flagged due to rain on lap 16. With the introduction of the new race restart, which only takes into consideration the rider position on the track at the time of the red flag and not the time advantage, Melandri restarted an unpredictable wet race from eighth on the grid with full-wet front and an intermediate rear. The combination proved incorrect for the slowly drying track conditions and Marco ended the French Grand Prix in 15th place.

Aggressively taking control of both race starts, Barros finally succumbed to the pressure of Rossi and race winner Sete Gibernau (Honda) – the trio in a class of their own today. Meanwhile hometown hero Olivier Jacque (Gauloises Yamaha Team) made up for his poor qualifying performance to finish fourth.

“At the beginning of the first half of the race I had a good feeling with
the bike but later I started to have some problems with the rear,” said
Melandri. ” I felt a little bit nervous because the bike felt a bit strange.

In the second half of the race the track was quite wet and we used an intermediate rear, which was maybe a bit of a gamble. The front straight was dry but other parts of the track were quite wet. I felt fine physically overall but my fingers got a bit tired from using the front brake. I’m quite pleased with the way the weekend turned out but would have liked to have done better today. That’s the gamble you have to make with tyres in wet races. I’m looking forward to Mugello as it’s my home Grand Prix and I want to do well in front of my fans there.”

For Carlos Checa it was another disappointing weekend when – after a sturdy start that placed him seventh on the opening lap – the Spaniard highsided his YZR-M1 exiting the first hairpin on lap two. In an attempt to save himself from the fall Checa was flung over the ‘bars and his left hand caught under the bike – resulting in a badly grazed thumb. Although unsure of exactly why his race ended in this fashion Checa felt that he may have hit a wet patch, which could have contributed to the fall.

“I lost the rear and just couldn’t keep control of the bike,” said the disappointed Spaniard. “I’m really not sure if I touched a wet patch or not, but I got on the gas and then I lost control. Gibernau had just passed me and I was next to Biaggi, we were in a very close group and on the exit of the corner I kept the inside line and at that moment the bike just stood up and threw me off. I had followed that same line on the previous lap so I don’t know why it happened. It’s one of those falls where it’s impossible to say why.

“I went to the Clinica Mobile because my hand was under the bike when I slid off and I have grazed my thumb quite badly. They have cleaned it up and covered it – apparently it will take a few days to heal properly.”

Team Director Davide Brivio had a philosophical approach to the day’s events, “It was a real shame that Marco couldn’t keep the pace he deserved today but we chose an intermediate rear for him and it didn’t pay off this time. He has performed brilliantly this weekend and I would like to congratulate him on his recovery since Suzuka. He is sure to put up a good fight for the next race in Mugello and we look forward to seeing what he can do there.

“I’m really disappointed for Carlos and his team because they have worked very hard this weekend to find the right set-up and they’ve not had much luck so far this season. We’re not sure what caused his fall but we think it could have been a wet patch on the track. We will analyse the lap data and try to find out. Anyway the main thing is that he is not hurt, except for some skin damage on his hand, which should heal fairly quickly.”



More, from a press release issued by John Hopkins’ publicist:

Crash ends miserable French Grand Prix for Hopkins

LE MANS, France – The French Motorcycle Grand Prix went from bad to worse for Suzuki rider John Hopkins. Sunday’s race ended in a high-side crash after only two laps were completed, this after Hopkins had suffered two crashes on Saturday. It marked the first non-classified finish for Hopkins this season.

“This is one of those weekends I’d just as soon forget,” said a battered Hopkins. “My shoulder was the worst thing, but now my whole body is bruised and I can’t tell what hurts the worst.”

The crash, which happened during the third lap while Hopkins ran in 13th, left Hopkins bewildered. “I don’t know what I did wrong,” he said. “It happened mid-turn under neutral throttle. I did the same thing I’d done the lap before. It was like every crash I had this weekend – no warning. It’s frustrating when you don’t know the reason you go down.

“We changed the engine mapping to deal with the ultra-slick track. Maybe that had something to do with it, it’s hard to say. I probably made a bad tire choice. I went with a cut rear (slick) and a full rain front. We thought it would dry out a little more than it did.”

The team has canceled scheduled testing and Hopkins will try to rest and heal before the next round in Mugello, Italy.

“Basically I’m just going to rest for the next couple of weeks,” Hopkins said. “I’m pretty discouraged right now, but things like this are part of racing. I just have to move on.”

Hopkins dropped from 10th to 14th in the world championship standings.



More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki:

MOTOGP CHAMPIONSHIP 2003
ROUND 4 – GRAND PRIX POLINI DE FRANCE
25TH MAY 2003 – MOTOGP RACE

McCOY SCORES FIRST TOP TEN FINISH FOR KAWASAKI

King of Slide, Garry McCoy, gave the Kawasaki ZX-RR it’s first top ten finish with a storming ride to ninth place in today’s two part French Grand Prix at Le Mans, watched by a near capacity crowd of 73,000.

McCoy’s mastery of the wet conditions in the second half of the race gave Kawasaki their first top ten Grand Prix finish since Kork Ballington took the two-stroke KR500 to seventh place in the San Marino GP at Mugello in 1982.

While McCoy celebrated his best result of the season so far, his Fuchs Kawasaki team-mate, Andrew Pitt, was left ruing the decision to run an intermediate rear tyre in the second part of the race. The 26-year-old Australian crashed out of the race at the final corner on lap four as a result of standing water cooling the rear tyre and not allowing it to get up to working temperature.

The French GP, scheduled for 28 laps, had started in dry but overcast conditions and was stopped by race officials with 13 laps remaining when a rain shower hit the Bugatti Circuit. At the time of stoppage Pitt was 17th and McCoy 19th, the positions from which they started the second part of the race.

McCoy had shown the wet track potential of the Dunlop-shod Kawasaki in final qualifying on Saturday and he continued his mastery of the slippery conditions by storming his way from 19th to sixth place at the end of lap one. As the race unfolded on a drying track, the Australian worked to conserve his treaded, soft compound rear tyre and was rewarded with an impressive ninth place.

Garry McCoy – 9th Position
“This result is great for Kawasaki and great for me. It was a real poker game for tyres at the restart. From the back of the grid I could see all the tyre warmers coming off the other bikes and a lot of them had intermediates, not wets, and I thought; ‘crikey, here we go I’ve picked the wrong tyre.’ We maybe went just a little too soft in the rear, because towards the end it felt like a slick, but then the Dunlop wets have worked great all weekend, so in the end we had the tyre to do the job. Hopefully this will put everyone in a good frame of mind as we head to Mugello.”

Andrew Pitt – DNF
“By the time we got to the line the rain had stopped and the track looked as if it was going to dry out pretty quick. Right at the last minute we decided to stick an intermediate in the rear, which turned out to be a mistake. The track didn’t dry out as quickly as we thought it would and, at the final corner on lap four, the bike just stepped out and that was the end of that.”

Harald Eckl – Team Manager
“I’m very happy for Garry and the team to finish ninth. In the wet our bike works well, although we know there is still a lot of work to do in dry conditions. But, overall, this is great motivation for all of us. The restart rule is a tough one – to go half distance and then only have the second part count for the result – but it’s great for the spectators and it was a fantastic race. It was difficult to make a tyre choice for the changeable conditions in the second part of the race and Andrew unfortunately went the wrong way. Thankfully he was not injured when he crashed and I’m sure he’ll be looking to make amends at Mugello in two weeks time.”

GRAND PRIX POLINI DE FRANCE – MOTOGP RACE RESULT
1. Sete Gibernau (SPA) Telefonica Movistar Honda 24:29.665; 2. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Repsol Honda +0.165; 3. Alex Barros (BRA) Gauloises Yamaha Team +1.793; 4. Olivier Jacque (FRA) Gauloises Yamaha Team +29.912; 5. Max Biaggi (ITA) Camel Pramac Pons +31.493; 6. Jeremy McWilliams (GBR) Proton Team KR +33.946; 7. Tohru Ukawa (JPN) Camel Pramac Pons +35.447; 8. Noriyuki Haga (JPN) Alice Aprilia Racing +36.231; 9. Garry McCoy (AUS) Kawasaki Racing Team +51.254; NC. Andrew Pitt (AUS) Kawasaki Racing Team +10 Laps


CHAMPIONSHIP POSITIONS AFTER 4 OF 16 ROUNDS
1. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Repsol Honda 90; 2. Max Biaggi (ITA) Camel Pramac Pons 67; 3. Sete Gibernau (SPA) Telefonica Movistar Honda 63; 4. Alex Barros (BRA) Gauloises Yamaha Team 46; 5. Troy Bayliss (AUS) Ducati Marlboro Team 40; 6. Tohru Ukawa (JPN) Camel Pramac Pons 32; 7. Olivier Jacque (FRA) Gauloises Yamaha Team 26; 8. Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda 22; 9. Colin Edwards (USA) Alice Aprilia Racing 18; 10. Norick Abe (JPN) Yamaha Racing Team 18; 19. Garry McCoy (AUS) Kawasaki Racing Team 7; 22. Andrew Pitt (AUS) Kawasaki Racing Team 1



More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki News Service:

SUZUKI GAMBLE GOES SOUR AT FRENCH GP

Le Mans, France – Sunday, May 25, 2003

Team Suzuki rider Kenny Roberts soldiered on through a rain-interrupted French GP at the Bugatti circuit at Le Mans today, finishing 16th after a gamble on tyres went wrong.

Team-mate John Hopkins crashed out on the treacherous wet surface, after taking the same gamble.

The race, scheduled to run for 28 laps, had been stopped after 15, when rain that had ruined Saturday practice made a slight return. For the first time, new rules were applied, so that the positions in the first race only determined starting positions for the second 13-lap sprint to the flag.

Roberts had been making fair progress in the first race, and was up to 11th at the head of his group after starting from 17th when the new white flag with a red cross was displayed. Hopkins had started 11th on the grid, but had dropped back to 16th, battling inconsistent engine braking – abbreviated practice meant there had not been enough time to set up the sophisticated electronic system.

The sprinkling of rain had ended when the riders formed up again on the grid, on a dry surface on the front straight, and with the clouds clearing away. The Suzuki teamsters decided to gamble that the rest of the track would soon dry, and selected intermediate rear tyres to make the most of it. In fact, the back part of the circuit remained wet, and the gamble didn’t pay off.

Hopkins paid the greater price, with a third fall of the weekend on the slick tarmac. He landed heavily on his already injured right shoulder, and although no fractures were found, he was bruised and beaten up, and is likely to pull out of tests scheduled for tomorrow.

Roberts also realised at once that his rear tyre would not allow him to any chance of riding competitively, but with the team and factory engineers amassing vital data for the effort to bring the new Suzuki GSV-R MotoGP machine to its full potential, the 2000 World Champion continued to the finish, the last of only 16 riders to finish.

The race was won by Sete Gibernau, from Valentino Rossi and Alex Barros – the trio that had run away up front, using full wet tyres.

KENNY ROBERTS Jr. – 16th Position
I was having an okay first race in the dry. I was able to be a little bit aggressive against some of the guys at the back, and get somewhat of a feeling for the bike. The character of the track meant I didn’t have to worry about running into the back of anyone under brakes. At most tracks this year I’ve been very tentative in that area, because that is one thing we are having some problems with. For the second race, we needed to gamble to have a shot to be in the top five. I knew it was wet, and I knew it was a gamble. At some race tracks, it would have dried out very quickly, but here parts of the track stayed wet to the end. So it was a bad choice if we were thinking about finishing tenth or 11th, but a good gamble if we wanted the top five. It didn’t work out.

JOHN HOPKINS – DNF – crash
In the first race, we had some engine management problems, and I was losing positions when it started to rain. For the second, it was a wrong choice of tyre. I went into a left-hander and the bike just slid out from under me. I landed pretty hard, and I’m feeling pretty beat up now, but nothing is broken. I need a bit of a break to get better. It wasn’t a good day.

GARRY TAYLOR – Team Manager
This may have been a GP, but it felt like a 24-hour endurance race. We were outgunned all weekend, but nobody could say John wasn’t trying, with three crashes over the weekend. Kenny rode really hard in the first race, but in the second it was obvious pretty early that our tyre gamble wasn’t going to pay off, but Kenny stayed out there plugging away in an effort to get more information. The riders are doing everything they can. We need some help from the factory engineers to get the new bike working the way it should.



More, from a press release issued by Fortuna Honda:

Le Mans, Sunday May 25.

Repeat Podium for Roberto Rolfo after hard race at Le Mans

Le Mans France, my 25. Roberto Rolfo again placed his Fortuna Honda on the podium, this time at the French Grand Prix, held at Le Mans. Rolfo was one of the heroes’s of the race, after a hard race he was able to overtake his rival Fonsi Nieto, on a last lap full of courage and great value to the team. The French Grand Prix was not a stroll in the park for the Fortuna Honda team and Roberto Rolfo, because they had to work hard to overcome their problems with machine set up on the new RS250RW. All the difficulties did not hinder the progress of the Altadis rider, who had only one day of dry practice, from repeating his success of 14-days.

Third place at Le Mans is a great result for Team Fortuna Honda, more so if we take into account the conditions that limited the possibility of the always-brave Roberto Rolfo.

The Altadis rider doesn’t need to say that the French race has been very hard because of only having one day of dry practice. Despite the conditions the team did a lot of valuable work. That’s why this podium finish has extra value, because everything did not run like clockwork.

Roberto Rolfo. “We still have a lot of work ahead of us. This third place finish gives us a lot of satisfaction but we have to think how the race developed and the problems w still have o resolve on set up. Honda have promised us new material in the near future, in fact we need more acceleration to be t a really competitive level. Here at Le Mans it has been possible to see the effort we have to make to stay in the slipstream,” said Rolfo.

“Having said all that the analysis we can make is that we have lost second place in the championship but the top group are all very close after a complicated meeting for us because of set up difficulties we found in practice,” concluded the Fortuna Honda rider.



More, from Desiree Crossman, with John Hopkins:

Today was a long day. It seemed like it dragged on. Not to mention I don’t know where my head was today. I was running around taking pictures for the site, and when I went to download them, I had no compactflash card in it. So I was NOT taking pictures at all. It helps to check it sometimes, I had to run around and get the same ones again. (BTW, I got a new camera from Andorra. Gemma got it for me, tax free whoo-hoo!)

John was already in pain from the crashes yesterday, and nothing was on his side today.

The race was red flagged with 13 laps to go ’cause of rain. So we had to go back out to the grid and do the whole grid thing again for the “second” race. Talk about a mad house! They have this new rule, where if it’s red flagged, the riders must stop and go back into the garage. Then, we have to re-grid, cause’ you know they want a show put on, so we go and re-grid. It was a 13 lap race. Can’t you just go in for 5 minutes, switch a tire and go back out. Must we all go back out? But hey, what do we know, or what do I know. I know it would abit easier for everyone to say the least.

Anyway, in the second race, Alex was in the lead. Olivier, Max, and Tohru had to start from the pit, but they ended up placing well. Alex was in the lead, and Sete took over. Then it was Rossi and they were all going back and forth. Alex ended up dropping back a bit but he got third. Vale and Sete were battling on the last lap, on the last corner. Vale ran abit wide and Sete came underneath him and it was almost a photo finish! Good battle. But before that, John crashed. He highsided again and landed on his injured shoulder. I hopped on the scooter and drove to where he was at, I couldn’t get in though ’cause there was a gate. One guy was nice enough to open it and let me through so I could pick him up. When I called John, he was a bit dizzy and was walking funny towards me. He banged his head pretty good.

We rode back to the garage and watched the race, that’s where we saw the battle with Sete and Vale. After, we went back to the motorhome and I helped John get out of his leathers, he can hardly move. It’s just one of those shitty weekends. The whole “2nd” race started because rain decided to start coming down for about 5-10 minutes, and then it went to sunshine again. What kind of crap is that? It was a strange day indeed.

Anyway, I’m happy Gaz scored some points, he got 9th and deserved it. Kenny got 16th. Colin and Nori ended up going alright here so the 2nd race was in their favor. I guess it’s favor or enemy here at this track ’cause it seemed to be John’s this weekend.

Well I have to go check up on him, and hopefully we will fly to Austria tommorrow. He was suppose to test, but I highly doubt it now. Tuesday is our itinerary to fly but guess what? There’s a strike, what’s new? So like I said hopefully we’ll fly out tommorrow, ’cause if that doesn’t happen we fly on Wed morning. That’s too long.



More, from a press release issued by Proton Team KR:

PROTON KR EQUAL-BEST SIXTH IN TWO-STROKE FAREWELL

Round 4: French GP, Le Mans
Race: Sunday, May 25, 2003

Jeremy McWilliams: Sixth position
Nobuatsu Aoki: DNF – breakdown

Proton Team KR rider Jeremy McWilliams closed a chapter of history at today’s rain-hit French GP, claiming sixth position in the restarted race. It was his best finish of the year, and equaled the three-cylinder two-stroke’s previous best results in what was almost certainly the independent lightweight machine’s last race.

Team-mate Nobuatsu Aoki was bitterly disappointed to be denied the chance also to exploit the difficult conditions, where the nimble lightweight is at its best. The race had started dry, and he had already retired out on the track with a seized engine when it was stopped by a shower of rain.

Under new rules applied for the first time, the first 15 of the scheduled 28-lap race counted only to determine grid positions for the restart, for a final 13-lap sprint. McWilliams started from 12th on the grid, with his KR3 machine on full wet Bridgestone tyres. After just one lap on a track that was streaming wet in some areas, even though the rain was over, he was up to sixth, and soon afterwards moved up to fifth. He lost one place again in the closing stages, forced to back off on a tyre worn “almost down to the canvas” by wheelspin on the treacherous surface.

At the back of the pit, three of the all-new V5 990cc four-stroke Protons were waiting. They arrived at Le Mans two days before the race, and both riders took the exciting and thunderous new machine for first circuit shake-down runs – it had only run in straight-line airfield tests before that. In a highly promising public debut, McWilliams set tenth-fastest time in a rainy final practice session, also setting fastest time on the two-stroke.

The bike, built in record time at the team’s Banbury base in England, is scheduled for full tests at Le Mans tomorrow. It is hoped that the V5’s race debut will be the Italian GP, in two weeks.

Today’s restarted 13-lap race was narrowly won by Sete Gibernau, from fellow Honda rider Valentino Rossi, and Yamaha rider Alex Barros.

JEREMY McWILLIAMS
There was nothing left of my tyre at the end of that race … No tread, and it was just a case of survival. The track was so slippery – it was the worst grip I’ve ever felt in my life, like riding on marbles. I was getting so much wheelspin it was hitting the rev limiter in every gear, but I was passing other people who had even worse wheelspin. A horrible race, but it was a good way to say goodbye to the two-stroke.

NOBUATSU AOKI
My engine seized in the first race, and ruined the day. I am really sad, because it was the last race with the two-stroke, and I wanted to finish well with it. Unfortunately, the rain just came a little bit too late for us. Still, another story starts tomorrow.

KENNY ROBERTS – Team Owner
The weather went in our direction in the end, but it was a bit too late. It was teasing us again. I knew we were in trouble from the restart, when it was dry on the front straight. Jeremy’s bike was geared for the wet. He did a great job with what he had. Now it’s goodbye to the two-stroke. The only time you will see it again is in parade races, unless we run out of spare parts for the new bike before Italy. I don’t expect that to happen, because the parts that were giving teething troubles until now have been fine this weekend. We have three of the new bikes here to test tomorrow.



More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing:

HONDA RACING INFORMATION

Results French Grand Prix at Le Mans.
Raceday Sunday May 25
Weather: Dry then wet
Track Conditions: Dry sections, some wet sections
Temperature: Ambient 13°C
Attendance: 133,770 (estimated, weekend)

GIBERNAU SCORES HIS SECOND WIN FOR HONDA

After Valentino Rossi (Repsol Honda RC211V) had given himself a clear three second lead at the half way stage of the 28-lap Le Mans race a fall of rain brought out the red flags to stop the action. Sportingly, Rossi was the first to raise his hand as the riders slithered on slick tyres in a suddenly wet track. The restarted race was, however, won in fine style by Welkom GP victor Sete Gibernau (Telefonica Movistar Honda RC211V) who fully deserved his second maximum score of the year.

The new MotoGP regulations state that any race halted for rain will be re-started to completion of the full race distance, but only the second leg will count for the race result. Thus Rossi’s first leg advantage was negated and the grid for the restart formed up in the positions after the first 15 laps.

A magnificent last lap tussle between Rossi and Gibernau saw Rossi run off the track in his attempt to re-pass the Spaniard and smoke his spinning rear tyre exiting the final corner in an effort to recapture Gibernau before the finish line.

It was an excellent performance from Gibernau, hard fought and full of risk. “We could sit here talking about this race until the same time next year,” said the drained Spaniard. “Valentino (Rossi) or Alex (Barros) could have won this race. In the first part, in the dry, Valentino had it won; Alex and I were looking for second place. When the rain came down my team set up the bike perfectly and I have to thank them for that. The last lap from the inside was a great race for us – also for the fans I’m sure. Even if we were so close together in those conditions, it was a very fair race, everybody behaved like gentlemen. It’s just great to have won such a race. I’m so happy for everybody in the team.”

For Rossi, second was only a slight disappointment, and the championship leader came away with an enhanced points advantage.

“That was a good show for everyone!” exclaimed Rossi. “In the dry we had a good setting and it was possible to go away, but the

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Beth Wyse

Practice for the WERA National Challenge Series at Virginia International Raceway got underway in rainy conditions, but the track dried in time for racing, and Tray Batey and Brian Kcraget each won two races.

Batey’s first win was in Heavyweight Twins on his Suzuki TL1000R. Bill St. John on a Ducati 996 kept Batey from breaking away in the early laps, but Batey was eventually able to build a lengthy margin of victory. The race was red-flagged after five of six laps had been completed, for a bike down in a dangerous area.

Batey’s second victory was also shortened by a red flag. He rode his Vesrah Suzuki GSX-R750 to a win in Pirelli Formula 1. Batey was building a long lead over Tim Bemisderfer when rain began to fall and the red flag came out on lap four.

Local star Brian Kcraget rode his Honda RS125 to a win in both 125cc GP and Formula 2. He checked out from the rest of the field in both races.

Greg Moore earned his first Open Superstock win, taking the lead from Mark Junge on the second lap. Moore, on a Suzuki GSX-R1000, took the win while Junge managed to hold onto second despite his GSX-R1000’s frame being bent from a crash the previous day.

Junge later won the 600cc Superstock race on his Suzuki GSX-R600. Moore was initially just behind Junge, but crashed on the third lap.

Josh Hayes showed up for the weekend and won 750cc Superstock on a Suzuki GSX-R750. He started from the third row since he had only earned points in the season opener at Jennings GP, and had to work his way past Vesrah’s John Jacobi and Batey. Hayes took the lead on the fourth lap, and Batey stayed close behind him on the final two laps.

David Weber pulled ahead at the start of the 600cc Superbike race to win on his XT Racing Suzuki GSX-R600. Greg Myers was catching up to him on a Yamaha YZF-R6 when the red flag came out with one lap remaining for a crash. Myers and Weber are teammates, giving XT Racing the top two spots on the podium.

Doug Duane rode his Suzuki GSX-R750 to victory in 750cc Superbike. Weber built a long lead in the opening laps, but Duane worked his way into second and started chasing Weber. Duane took the lead on the fourth lap, and beat Weber by inches.

In Lightweight Twins, a.k.a. The SV650 Race, Bradley Champion won over Martin Musil. Champion’s typical long margin of victory has been dwindling this season as Musil continues to pick up the pace.

The WERA National Series will have a month-long break before round five at Talladega.

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

250cc Final Qualifying Results:

1. Manuel Poggiali, Aprilia, 1:39.229
2. Franco Battaini, Aprilia, 1:39.324
3. Randy De Puniet, Aprilia, 1:39.341
4. Fonsi Nieto, Aprilia, 1:39.570
5. Toni Elias, Aprilia, 1:39.802
6. Sebastian Porto, Honda, 1:39.936
7. Sylvain Guintoli, Aprilia, 1:40.835
8. Naoki Matsudo, Yamaha, 1:40.948
9. Roberto Rolfo, Honda, 1:41.073
10. Anthony West, Aprilia, 1:41.168
11. Erwan Nigon, Aprilia, 1:41.275
12. Hugo Marchand, Aprilia, 1:41.447
13. Joan Olive, Aprilia, 1:41.609
14. John Stigefelt, Aprilia, 1:41.642
15. Hector Faubel, Aprilia, 1:41.767

107 Percent of Fastest Time: 1:46.175

27. Katja Poensgen, Honda, 1:46.421, DNQ


More, from a press release issued by MS Aprilia Team press information:

ANOTHER GREAT UNDERTAKING

As always happens here in Le Mans the weather conditions are unsettled with many sudden changes of temperature. Although the threatening sky both sessions took place on a dry track and after having achieved the third lap time in the morning, Manuel Poggiali improved hid performance in the afternoon obtaining the a fantastic pole position. It’s the first pole for the Aprilia rider confirming that he is improving race after race. Here in 2001 Manuel won his first ever race and he feels satisfied today as well.

Manuel Poggiali: “It’s my first pole position on 250 class and I feel happy! Anyway this position is not so important for the race. even if the weather conditions are worse tomorrow I will get for sure my first pole position. Anyway I am expecting a dry session tomorrow as I need to settle some other things. In particular the rear tyre slipped to much while the front one was perfect. At the end I made also a few mistakes trying to improve my lap time. The difference between the 125 and 250 on this track is not so big: just a couple of trajectories but the rest is still the same”.

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Southern California weather conditions are perfect for riding on the racetrack, and California Speedway just happens to be hosting Fastrack Riders this weekend.

A heat wave broke just in time for Friday’s Fastrack sessions on the AMA National course at California Speedway. Riding continues today and tomorrow.

If you go out to California Speedway today, feel free to say hi to new Roadracing World Assistant Editor Steve Atlas.

From a press release issued by John Hopkins’ publicist:

Hopkins hopes to race in French Grand Prix after suffering injury

LE MANS, France – Suzuki Grand Prix rider John Hopkins qualified on the third row for Sunday’s French Motorcycle Grand Prix in Le Mans. He turned in the qualifying run in Friday’s dry session, but crashed twice Saturday on a wet circuit and injured his right shoulder. X-rays came up negative, but Hopkins is extremely sore after the two falls. He hopes to race Sunday, but is unsure at this point.

Hopkins rode the factory Suzuki GSV-R to a time of one minute, 36.673 seconds on the famous 4.2 kilometer Le Mans circuit on Friday, which put him 11th on the grid. Saturday’s session was wet and Hopkins suffered a crash in the morning session and then again in afternoon qualifying. He hurt his shoulder in the first crash and aggravated the injury further in the afternoon crash.

“It’s been a difficult weekend. Friday we had some mechanical problems in the morning practice and again later in qualifying,” Hopkins said. “I was stranded out on the course at one point and had to run back to the paddock to get my B-bike. That’s the bike I turned my qualifying run on.”

Hopkins was the leading qualifier among the four American GP riders.

Hopkins was unavailable for comment after his Saturday accidents. He did tell his manager Doug Gonda that initially he was hoping for a rain race, but after experiencing how poor the traction was on the wet Le Mans circuit he’d lost all enthusiasm for racing there in the rain. Hopkins was just one of many riders to crash on the slick racing surface.

Last year Hopkins finished 11th in the French Grand Prix after qualifying 19th.

Hopkins said he was going try, if at all possible, to make the starting grid for Sunday’s race.


More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki News Service:

SUZUKI MEN FIND PROBLEMS IN FRANCE


Le Mans, France
Saturday, May 24, 2003:

Team Suzuki riders John Hopkins and Kenny Roberts Junior will start tomorrow’s French GP from the third and fifth rows of the grid, after persistent rain at the Bugatti circuit at Le Mans meant that yesterday’s dry-weather first-session lap times remained unbeaten on the slippery track.

Roberts was 14th fastest in the final wet timed session – an improvement in his position. But Hopkins ran into misfortune as he found the limits of grip on the streaming Le Mans tarmac. The Californian, who turned 20 two days ago, fell in the morning, injuring his right shoulder. Then he fell again in the afternoon, exacerbating the injury.

Directly after the session he went for X-rays, to check for possible fractures.

“Hopper” blamed a lack of grip for his crashes, while team-mate Roberts also complained of a shortage of traction from the all-new 2003 Suzuki GSV-R GP machine. This is one of the areas that the team and factory engineers are tackling, in the fast-forward development programme of the all-new machine, as they work flat out to unleash the obvious potential of the technically adventurous but still very new 990c V4 four-stroke prototype racer.

A full complement of factory racing staff at Le Mans included the engine designer Kunio Arase, showing the level of the Suzuki factory’s commitment to maximising the performance of the new bike as soon as possible, so that it can match the success already achieved this year in other branches of racing. On the day after tomorrow’s race, the fourth of 16 rounds in the World Championship, Suzuki have scheduled yet more tests to follow up three days in Spain last week. French racing legend Jean Michel Bayle will again ride the machine, to add another dimension to the information and data for the engineers to weigh up.

Today’s result was doubly frustrating, since Roberts is noted for his wet-weather prowess. Instead of his usual top position, however, he was not even in the top ten.

Forecasts for tomorrow suggest there may be more rain for the race.


JOHN HOPKINS – 11th Position, 1:36.673
I’m a bit sore, and I’m heading off for an X-ray now. This morning I was really fighting for grip, and on a real slippery section – the chicane at the end of the back straight – I crashed. I didn’t think I’d done anything different, but the bike spat me off the high side, and I landed right on my shoulder. I was feeling pretty painful in the afternoon, but I went out to try some adjustments to see if we could get some more grip. I was trying a lot of different things. Then as I shut off the gas to go into the corner after the same chicane, the rear suddenly went out from under me. I was fighting to save it, and I think I made the shoulder injury worse.


KENNY ROBERTS Jr. – 17th Position, 1:37.033
In the wet, the problems are the same as in the dry, except multiplied. We already use more traction to go fast with new tyres in the dry than other people require. In the wet, it’s much worse. We require more grip to do a dry lap time than most of the other bikes on the grid, therefore when it is wet we are going to suffer even more. We’re a long way off the pace, and that kind of gives you a good idea of our difficulties.

GARRY TAYLOR – Team Manager
We are having lots of problems at the moment, but practically everyone from the factory who could be here is here, so we have high hopes of finding a direction for the future. In a way, it’s good that so many designers and engineers are here to share the experience and frustration. Now we need to make something positive out of it.



More, from a press release issued by Proton Team KR:

Proton Fastest at Streaming Wet Le Mans

Round 5: French GP, Le Mans
Final Qualifying: Saturday, May 24, 2003

Jeremy McWilliams: 12th, 1:36.720
Nobuatsu Aoki: 20th, 1:37.515

Proton Team KR rider Jeremy McWilliams reeled off a string of fast laps to put his three-cylinder two-stroke KR3 fastest in today’s final qualifying session for tomorrow’s French GP – almost a full second faster than the next man. Team-mate Nobuatsu Aoki also excelled, less than a second slower than McWilliams in spite of some self-imposed tyre limitations, and was third overall.

The times left riders and team praying for more rain tomorrow. The French GP is expected to be the last ever race for the 500cc two-strokes, and best ever results would be distinctly possible on a wet track. Grid positions remained unchanged, however. Overall times on today’s streaming wet track were more than 15 seconds slower than yesterday’s dry-session laps, which determined final starting order.

Fastest lap was not McWilliams’s and the team’s only achievement today. The 39-year-old Ulsterman did almost as many laps on the brand new V5 990cc four-stroke, and the best of them was less than two seconds slower than his time on the two-stroke, and would have put him tenth overall in the session.

This was remarkable, since the new bike had never even been round a corner before it arrived here for first shake-down tests yesterday. Still using guessed-at settings and gearing, and with the engine in a basic state of tune, the promise is clear. When it starts to race, probably at the Italian GP in two weeks, the new Proton V5 will be not only the youngest, noisiest and possibly prettiest bike there, but will pose a clear future threat to the established giants of the new-for-2002 four-stroke MotoGP class.

The bike was built in record time at the team’s Banbury base, in a project that is still less than a year old, underwent straight-line airfield tests in the week before the French GP started, and the only two bikes in existence were then rushed to Le Mans for a nerve-racking but ultimately triumphant public debut.

Jeremy McWilliams
The four-stroke was pretty good in the wet. It surprised me as much as anybody else. It’s so smooth and easy to ride. Of course it’s bigger and clumsier than the two-stroke, but the lap time’s there, and I wasn’t going anywhere near as hard as I could have, because I didn’t want to risk damaging my only new bike. We really needed those laps, to get a lot of data. It’s a pretty good start, for a bike that only arrived and ran on a circuit for the first time yesterday. On the two-stroke – almost a second faster than anybody else is okay in my book. I’ll be praying for rain tomorrow. We could aim for a top ten finish in the dry, but if it is wet we could think of getting on the podium.

Nobuatsu Aoki
I did two laps on the four-stroke than found some problem with the clutch, so I stopped to concentrate on the two-stroke. Things are going quite well. This morning we tired a soft rear tyre, and I wanted to use it again this afternoon, but Bridgestone only have two each, so I must save it for tomorrow in case it rains. Their engineer put some cuts in a medium-soft rear for me this afternoon, but it was not as good as the soft one. I think I could have gone a second faster. Now we just need rain tomorrow.

Kenny Roberts – Team Owner
The data from that session on the four-stroke gained us three days. We need all the time we can get, because in seven or eight days we will be going to Italy for the next GP. We know we will have to change the power band – it’s too broad now, and we need more at the top end. But we haven’t even had to take a motor out yet this weekend, and we’re a lot further along than we expected. I’ll be praying for rain also tomorrow … but every time I do that it always turns out fine.



More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing:

Final Qualifying French Grand Prix at Le Mans Saturday May 26
Weather: Rain
Track Conditions: Fully Wet
Temperature: Air 14°C, Track 13°C

ROSSI FASTEST THANKS TO RECORD BREAKING FRIDAY TIME

After a dry and sunny first qualifying session on Friday May 23, overnight rain continued to fall on the 4.180km Le Mans circuit throughout the Saturday sessions, preventing any of the 23 entrants from improving their times or grid positions. The starting order for Sunday’s 28-lap MotoGP race was therefore determined by the times set on day one, leaving Valentino Rossi (Repsol Honda RC211V) on pole position. His best lap time of 1:35.208 was the new qualifying lap record, and a circuit best lap, with Rossi fully 0.777 seconds ahead of his closest rival Alex Barros (Yamaha).

On the wet second day Rossi also showed a competitive turn of speed, a factor that may have particular relevance if, as very possible, raceday also dawns wet. Second fastest on day two, behind the Proton KR two-stroke triple of Jeremy McWilliams, Rossi is in good shape for the 28-lap race, whatever the conditions.

“I’m very happy for the pole position and to make a good lap time,” said Rossi of his dry session. “We have not so bad setting on the bike in the dry conditions and I am happy today because the wet is not my favourite condition. Anyway, we were fast and we worked very much to find the best settings for the wet. We made some adjustments to the shock and we worked on tyre choice for the race – and it’s possible to be nearly the fastest today as well. I hope tomorrow we have good conditions for the race though.”

Loris Capirossi (Ducati) and Marco Melandri (Yamaha) made up the balance of the front row, with Max Biaggi (Camel Pramac Pons RC211V) taking fifth place, the second highest Honda qualifier.

Experienced campaigner and former Le Mans race winner Biaggi was another rider who spend his energies on Saturday perfecting the settings for the slippery Le Mans track surface. Crashing during Friday’s dry conditions failed to dent Biaggi’s confidence one bit. “We spent today concentrating on finding the best wet set-up,” said the four-time 250cc champion. “The forecasts are that it will rain tomorrow so we had to work hard on that. I am confident because I have had good results at this track in the past. This is no guarantee for the race tomorrow of course, especially if the weather changes between wet and dry, but I hope it will be dry in any case.”

Sete Gibernau (Telefonica Movistar RC211V) was seventh in both wet and dry conditions, and experimented with his wet set-up in timed and untimed sessions today. “We have a lot still to test. This morning we followed one path, and this afternoon another,” said Gibernau. “I am still positive, we are doing as many kilometres with the bike as is possible and this is the most important thing. In Jerez I couldn’t get any race experience with the bike and this is what I need to push the front guys again. Now we have to be careful and maybe take one step back now to take two forward in the future.”

A disappointing day for Tohru Ukawa (Camel Pramac Pons RC211V) put him in a lowly 15th, but eighth overall on the grid in the dry. “We do not have a good wet set-up yet and we have try to make some more changes to the settings tomorrow,” explained Ukawa. “Not small changes either, I think we have to make a big step. The track is very slippery in wet conditions and it is very easy for the tyres to lose grip. I had a crash early in the day and ran off the track under braking in the afternoon but I have no problems with injury.”

Young Honda hotshot Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC211V) found the greasy surface a challenge on Saturday, crashing out twice as he gained experience of Le Mans’ peculiarities. “Bit of a rough day really – this morning in the rain I was really having some fun and was running pretty high up the leader board for a while,” said the ever-enthusiastic Hayden. “I came in and we put in a different tyre and it felt good. I managed one lap and on the second lap it felt like it had a bit more grip and I got kinda excited – and pushed the front and that was it. One of those things. Then this afternoon I as trying to get comfortable again I lost the front!”

Makoto Tamada (Pramac Honda RC211V) made progress in the wet, and starts the race 15th, on the fourth row of the grid. “I found one tyre which was particularly good in the wet and I did a lot of laps on this one. In the morning I was riding carefully because this is my first full day of testing in the wet with Bridgestone tyres. In the afternoon I pushed harder and went 10th.”

Ryuichi Kiyonari (Telefonica Movistar RC211V) found his first experience of riding a MotoGP machine in the wet something of a trial, despite going 17th on today’s times. Overall, he starts from 23rd on the grid. “My objective is to pick up experience, get to know the bike and adapt to this championship as quick as possible. This morning I crashed. Another new experience! I am impatient to get started tomorrow – I don’t know what awaits me but I know the bike is very fast. A friend of mine was right when he said that the RC 211V was a monster!”

Friday’s qualifying times were also the ones that really counted in the 250cc class, even if there is a strong possibility of rain on raceday. Thus Sebastian Porto (Telefonica Movistar Junior Team RS250RW) was the second fastest Honda rider in the wet, posting the seventh quickest lap time, but he was overall quickest RS250RW rider on the grid, in sixth. “Today I had some strange problems with traction in the rain, I couldn’t stop the wheel spin,” said the Argentinian. “Improving that situation will not be difficult, if it rains tomorrow we will be okay. If the weather is dry for the race I also have really good set up for a dry track.”

Championship leader Manuel Poggiali (Aprilia) topped qualifying, from his fellow Aprilia pilots Franco Battaini, Randy De Puniet, Fonsi Nieto and Toni Elias.

Roberto Rolfo (Fortuna Honda RS250RW) eased into the top ten in the dry session, going ninth overall, and his sixth fastest time on Saturday was the fastest Honda lap in the wet.

“I’m happy with the improvements we made from this morning’s free practice session and qualifying,” said Rolfo. “Our job was to find a good compromise between the chassis and the engine power and to try and keep the bike at the same level as our main rivals. I think we have found a good solution for the race, if the conditions are the same as today. Whatever the conditions I will start the race with the conviction of holding on to my championship position.”

The weather conditions had the same effect on the 125 Grand Prix class as all the others, leaving Andrea Dovizioso (Team Scot Racing RS125R) at the head of the combined qualifying times, thanks to a new pole position record of 1:43.565, set in Friday’s dry session. Running off the track after a near crash under braking in the last seconds of Saturday’s wet session did nothing to undermine his confidence for the race itself. “In the dry the bike is very good, in the wet, not so good. I had a crash on the first lap in the wet, the bike was sliding everywhere. In the dry I have no real problems round here, just a little problem on the front end but the bike was soft on the rear so we can fix that. My impression of the bike settings in the dry is good, I can fight for the win. In the wet?”

Youichi Ui (Aprilia) held onto second overall, leading Jorge Lorenzo (Derbi) and Casey Stoner (Aprilia) on the front row of the grid for Sunday’s 24-lap race.

Alex De Angelis (Aprilia) set fifth best time on Friday, keeping Daniel Pedrosa (Telefonica Movistar Junior Team RS125R) in sixth. “The problems began to build up from then halfway point of the afternoon session,” said the young Spaniard. “I was on a fast lap when I literally came up behind four riders who had stopped. Knowing that I couldn’t improve I returned to the box to change my tyres but I still wasn’t able to go quicker.”

Swiss Thomas Luthi (Elit Grand Prix RS125R) completed the top ten, with team-mates Mika Kallio (Ajo Motorsports RS125) and Masao Azuma in 14th and 15th places respectively. Kallio led Azuma and the entire field on the wet qualifying times, a good omen should the weather remain wet through raceday.

Honda rider quotes Le Mans – Saturday:


Valentino Rossi , Repsol Honda Team: 1st: “I’m very happy for the pole position and to make a good lap time. We have not so bad setting on the bike in the dry conditions and I am happy today because the wet is not my favourite conditions. Anyway, we were fast and we worked very much for the settings for the wet. We made some adjustments to the shock and we worked hard on tyre choice for the race – and it’s possible to be nearly the fastest today as well. I hope tomorrow we have good conditions for the race though.”

Max Biaggi, Camel Pramac Pons: 5th: “We spent today concentrating on finding the best wet set-up”. “The forecasts are that it will rain tomorrow so we had to work hard on that. I am confident because I have had good results at this track in the past. This is no guarantee for the race tomorrow of course, especially if the weather changes between wet and dry, but I hope it will be dry in any case.”

Sete Gibernau, Telefonica Movistar Honda: 7th: “We have a lot still to test. This morning we followed one path, and this afternoon another. I am still positive, we are doing as many kilometres with the bike as is possible and this is the most important thing. In Jerez I couldn’t get any race experience with the bike and this is what I need to push the front guys again. Now we have to be careful and maybe take one step back now to take two forward in the future. I feel more comfortable every time I ride the bike but I have to keep working on the set-up and not rush things like at Jerez. I would like tomorrow’s race to be dry to test the bike and pick up more experience so that I can be in good shape for Mugello”.

Tohru Ukawa, Camel Pramac Pons: 8th: “We do not have a good wet set-up yet and we have try to make some more changes to the settings tomorrow,” explained Ukawa. “Not small changes either, I think we have to make a big step. The track is very slippery in wet conditions and it is very easy for the tyres to lose grip. I had a crash early in the day and ran off the track under braking in the afternoon but I have no problems with injury.”

Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda Team: 13th: “Bit of a rough day really – this morning in the rain I was really having some fun and was running pretty high up the leader board for a while. I came in and we put in a different tyre and it felt good. I managed one lap and on the second lap it felt like it had a bit more grip and I got kinda excited – and pushed the front and that was it. One of those things. Then this afternoon I as trying to get comfortable again I lost the front. I don’t have a lot of experience in the wet – but with the dirt track experience in the States I do quite enjoy it. Got a fourth row start – don’t have a lot of set-up experience here – we’ll just have to see tomorrow!”

Makoto Tamada, Pramac Honda Team: 15th: “I really liked the “rain” solution for the tyres and I did many laps with them to push the bike pretty well to its limits. While I concentrated in the morning on not making mistakes, as I was trying to get a good feeling for the bike in the wet, I went flat out in the afternoon. I like riding in the wet and I don’t think I’m at all bad in these conditions. Even so, I need to find out more about how Bridgestone tyres behave, especially on such a powerful bike, and today gave me some real insight into the matter. With bikes like these, you really need to have perfect control of the throttle and know how to measure out the power of the engine to perfection. If we happen to be working on the dry tomorrow, I’ll be in attack mode. I’m starting out on fourth row, so I know it won’t be easy to overtake and it’s best to overtake only when braking. First the weather, then the strategy. We ‘ll see.”

Ryuichi Kiyonari, Telefonica Movistar Honda: 23: “My objective is to pick up experience, get to know the bike and adapt to this championship as quick as possible. This morning I crashed… another new experience! I am impatient to get started tomorrow – I don’t know what awaits me but I know the bike is very fast. A friend of mine was right when he said that the RC 211V was a monster!”.

Fausto Gresini, Team Manager:
“It is always difficult to get a good result in the wet – for everyone. I am satisfied with how the day has gone: Sete will start from the second row whilst Kiyonari continues to gather experience. I hope that tomorrow Sete gets a good start, especially if it is raining because it is vital to be in the lead group. With Kiyonari we are moving on the right track – he has to keep learning and not worry about the result.”



More, from a press release issued by Fuchs Kawasaki:

MOTOGP CHAMPIONSHIP 2003
ROUND 4 – GRAND PRIX POLINI DE FRANCE
24TH MAY 2003 – QUALIFYING PRACTICE 2

KAWASAKI RIDERS MASTER RAIN AT LE MANS

Fuchs Kawasaki riders, Andrew Pitt and Garry McCoy, took maximum advantage of wet conditions at Le Mans to achieve their best session performances to date during today’s final qualifying period, with both riders impressively finishing in the top twelve on the time sheet. Not surprisingly, both Pitt and McCoy anticipate their best results will come with a continuation of today’s almost constant rain showers during tomorrow’s 28-lap MotoGP race.

Australian rain master McCoy was sixth fastest in the wet and slippery conditions this afternoon, while fellow countryman Pitt continued his impressive rookie form at the 4.1km Bugatti circuit with the 11th fastest lap time. With wet conditions typically placing a greater emphasis on rider ability the ZX-RR Ninja pair showed the potential of Kawasaki’s MotoGP project, which is still very much in a test and development phase.

Kawasaki’s tyre partner Dunlop also played a vital part, with a range of revised front and rear rain tyres that both riders reported gave both improved grip and feel. A new front tread pattern also improved the rider’s confidence in the front end in today’s treacherous conditions.

Unfortunately today’s brilliant wet weather performances count for nothing in terms of final grid positions, as Friday’s faster dry times will count and Pitt and McCoy will share the sixth row of the grid in 21st and 22nd place respectively.

Andrew Pitt – 21st – 1:37.647
“I felt pretty comfortable out there in the rain, although like everyone I would prefer to race in the dry. I’ve done a lot of laps and I’m happy with how things are going on my first visit to the Le Mans circuit. In the morning session the bike was moving around at the rear quite a bit, but we changed a few things and it’s much better now; not so loose on corner entry. The feel and stability of the new wet front tyre gives you a lot of confidence and we’ve done enough laps today to know which tyres to race on if it does stay wet for tomorrow. If it’s dry, then that’s okay too, as we identified a good set-up and race tyre during Friday’s dry qualifying session.”

Garry McCoy – 22nd – 1:38.956
“It’s never a lot of fun racing in the rain, but for once I’ll be happy if it’s raining tomorrow. I guess what the rain does is equal out the bikes a bit more and gives the riders a chance to show their ability. It also helps a lot when you get rain tyres like Dunlop supplied us with today. They were definitely a step up from what I’ve used in the past, a little unbelievable, especially the drive grip. For me the front tyre now rolls into the corners better, there is a more progressive feel and that helps in the rain. I didn’t change the bike much today, just softened up the suspension and got plenty of track time getting used to the whole package and working out the tyre options.”



More, from a press release issued by Pramac Honda:

Le Mans (France) Round 4 – 23/24/25 May – 2003
Saturday 24 May – Qualifying

Tenth place in the rain at Le Mans

Makoto Tamada worked well on the soaking track at Le Mans. As forecast yesterday, rain disrupted today’s test sessions. Yesterday’s practice sessions were thus confirmed for tomorrow’s starting grid, putting Tamada, who made 15th quickest time, on fourth row. For Makoto, today was his first real experience in the MotoGP on Bridgestone tyres in the rain, so the 10th fastest time he made today is adequate confirmation of the adaptability this great Japanese rider possesses. Enormous progress was made from this morning’s free practice – again in the rain – to this afternoon: modifications to the set-up of the RC211V and some excellent tyres for the wet gave Tamada extra speed and his team technicians were fully satisfied with his lap times. The latest satellite pictures suggest that there is going to be a clear about-turn in weather conditions tomorrow and that the track will probably already be dry when the race takes place. In any case, the two sessions today made it possible to collect a considerable amount of data and test a number of different “rain” solutions. Particularly for the front tyre, which had very generous grooving that the rider liked more than any other.


Makoto Tamada (Pramac Honda Team):
10th in today’s practice in the wet: 1:53,639
15th on the grid, with yesterday’s time: 1:36,868
“I really liked the “rain” solution for the tyres and I did many laps with them to push the bike pretty well to its limits. While I concentrated in the morning on not making mistakes, as I was trying to get a good feeling for the bike in the wet, I went flat out in the afternoon. I like riding in the wet and I don’t think I’m at all bad in these conditions. Even so, I need to find out more about how Bridgestone tyres behave, especially on such a powerful bike, and today gave me some real insight into the matter. With bikes like these, you really need to have perfect control of the throttle and know how to measure out the power of the engine to perfection. If we happen to be working on the dry tomorrow, I’ll be in attack mode. I’m starting out on fourth row, so I know it won’t be easy to overtake and it’s best to overtake only when braking. First the weather, then the strategy. We’ll see.”


More, from a press release issued by Alice Aprilia Racing:

LE MANS – The rain became the main protagonist of this second qualification day at Le Mans circuit. The technical staff of Alice Aprilia Racing team tried to find the right setting for the wet but it’s not so easy as the bike still needs some improvements to become competitive in the dry as well. Anyway they worked a lot to get the best result after this second qualifying session. The weather forecast for tomorrow are unsettled but in any case the Aprilia riders want to join the fight!

COLIN EDWARDS: “We had to set up the bike over again: new setting for wet conditions today. I would have had more time to improve the bike in the dry but we have been forced to work for a wet race. I am not expecting a mixed weather conditions: wet or dry nothing else otherwise I will be forced to join the fight. This is not my favourite situation but I have to adapt my rising style to the others!”

NORIYUKI HAGA: “The asphalt is a real disaster! It’s like ice and for sure I hope in a dry race as the feeling with the bike is not enough. If the race conditions are unsettled tomorrow will be like a lottery. I hope to be lucky!”

FRANCESCO GUIDOTTI (Team Coordinator): “Today we have not enough traction as well and the situation becomes worse in the wet. The rain slowed down our improvements so we are not so competitive. Besides we will start from the fifth row but I know that Colin and Nori will join the fight anyaway!”


More, from a press release issued by Fortuna Yamaha:

WET LE MANS FINAL QUALIFIER CEMENTS MELANDRI’S DEBUT MOTOGP FRONT ROW START

As predicted the weather for the French Grand Prix took a turn for the worse during the final qualifying session today, however cementing MotoGP rookie Marco Melandri’s debut front row start for tomorrow’s 28-lap race. The young
Italian posted a 1:36.161 time aboard his Fortuna Yamaha Team YZR-M1 in yesterday’s dry qualifier to be the fourth fastest, from a field of 23
entries. This will only be Melandri’s second MotoGP race, since the high-speed incident in Suzuka that put him out of contention for the first two races this season. The talented 20-year-old will start Sunday’s main event alongside riders in the calibre of polesitter and defending MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi (Honda, 1:35.208), Alex Barros (Gauloises Yamaha Team, 1:35.985) and third place qualifier Loris Capirossi (Ducati, 1:36.019).

With no opportunity to improve his time in the wet conditions Melandri spent both free practice and qualifying focusing heavily on finding a competitive wet weather set-up in preparation for what could possibly be a wet Le Mans Grand Prix tomorrow. Although the 2002 250cc World Champion feels confident that he and the team have found what they were looking for Melandri is still
hopeful for a dry race for both himself and the fans.

“I’m actually not as happy as I was yesterday as I couldn’t go really fast today because of the weather,” joked Melandri. “But I can’t complain
because I’m on the front row and it’s only my second race of the year with the M1. Riding this bike in wet conditions is completely different to
riding it in the dry but I do have some wet weather experience from winter tests, as we had some really bad weather in our tests in Jerez. Seriously I am delighted with today’s result because two weeks ago I was on the fourth row, which was a totally different situation. I also