Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Final MotoGP Qualifying Results:

1. Valentino Rossi, Honda, 1:49.038
2. Loris Capirossi, Ducati, 1:49.340
3. Sete Gibernau, Honda, 1:49.808
4. Max Biaggi, Honda, 1:49.876
5. Troy Bayliss, Ducati, 1:50.042
6. Shinya Nakano, Yamaha, 1:50.171
7. Nicky Hayden, Honda, 1:50.679
8. Tohru Ukawa, Honda, 1:50.684
9. Makato Tamada, Honda, 1:50.775
10. Carlos Checa, Yamaha, 1:50.856
11. Alex Barros, Yamaha, 1:50.876
12. Colin Edwards, Aprilia, 1:51.007
13. Garry McCoy, Kawasaki, 1:51.179
14. Olivier Jacque, Yamaha, 1:51.385
15. Ryuichi, Kiyonari, Honda, 1:51.500
16. Marco Melandri, Yamaha, 1:51.566
17. Nobuatsu Aoki, Proton, 1:51.576
18. John Hopkins, Suzuki, 1:51.802
19. Kenny Roberts, Suzuki, 1:51.839
20. Noriyuki Haga, Aprilia, 1:51.870
21. Jeremy McWilliams, Proton, 1:52.180
22. Andrew Pitt, Kawasaki, 1:52.715
23. David De Gea, Harris WCM, 1:53.373
24. Chris Burns, Harris WCM, 1:54.667


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

BRAZIL GP/2nd QUALIFYING SESSION

PROGRESS FOR COLIN
Positive improvement for Colin Edwards in the starting grid: the Alice Aprilia Racing Team American rider will start form the third row thanks to his 12th lap time. Anyway there are still some chattering problems for the Rs Cubes and the team keeps on working hard in order to solve them in tomorrows warm up session. This session has not been positive for the Japanese rider Nori Haga who tried different solutions without improving his yesterdays lap time. He also slipped out of the track without any serious damage at the end of the session.

COLIN EDWARDS: “It’s a pity because the chattering did not give me the chance to ride as I like. I like this track and the bike has a good grip: without that problem the situation could be different”.

NORIYUKI HAGA: “No comment”.

GIGI DALL’IGNA (Project Leader): “Today we are satisfied about Colin’s progress. We worked hard to improve the situation even if we still have to find a solution for the chattering problem. Unfortunately we did not get the same progress with Haga: we tried to use a front tyre of 17 inches but we obtained only one crash in the last part of the session”.


More, from a press release issued by Fortuna Yamaha:

FORTUNA YAMAHA EXPECT TOUGH RIO GRAND PRIX

Despite set-up changes and determined effort from Fortuna Yamaha’s riders and their crews, today’s final qualifying pace-setters were fast in the extreme, leaving Carlos Checa and Marco Melandri to start tomorrow’s Rio Grand Prix from 10th and 16th places respectively. Checa and his crew focused all their resources on altering the overall balance of his YZR-M1 overnight, and as a result made a significant improvement to his first qualifying lap time during this afternoon’s session. Team-mate Melandri was not so lucky, and despite many changes to his set-up from yesterday, was still unable to improve his lap time greatly due to lack of grip.

With track temperatures pushing 35 degrees, the opening half of this afternoon’s session saw little improvement on the leader board compared to yesterday. Yet as the session came to a close the action increased, and defending MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi (Honda, 1:49.038) eventually claimed pole. The Italian was closely followed by Loris Capirossi (Ducati, 1:49.340) and Sete Gibernau (Honda, 1:49.808), who crashed heavily on his final flying lap in an effort to dislodge Rossi from the prime position. Gibernau walked away unhurt, while provisional polesitter Max Biaggi (Honda, 1:49.876) completed the front row.

Carlos Checa joined the frenzied effort for front row places, gaining six places on the grid from 16th to 10th, finding a 1.410 second improvement on his provisional qualifying peformance. This progress came despite the hindrance of increased track temperatures as the traditionally warm Rio sun made its first appearance this week, leading to a reduction in track surface grip levels.

“We made a step today on engine and chassis set-up,” said Checa, who is scheduled to make his 120th start in the premier Grand Prix class in tomorrow’s race. The Spaniard will become only the eighth rider to have reached that milestone “We basically lost yesterday’s practice session so it was difficult to move to a better level today in the limited time that we had. We changed back to my Brno set-up today, which was our starting point. There wasn’t enough time today to do more, so we will try something else tomorrow morning. It’s clear that the race will be quite difficult for us tomorrow.”

Despite a marginal improvement on his first qualifying lap time, a frustrated Marco Melandri dropped from 15th to 16th place on the starting grid. The 21-year-old overcame some of his set-up concerns but could not improve feeling with his Yamaha YZR-M1 machine, and was frustrated with his lap time of 1:51.566. Melandri’s crew will now take another look at how any improvement can be made for a competitive race day set-up.

“It was another disappointing day for me,” said the Ravenna-born rider. “Once again I couldn’t get any grip and couldn’t get a good lap time as a result. We changed many things but I still didn’t have a good feeling no matter what we tried. We will analyse the data again tonight and try something different tomorrow morning. Starting from 16th place on the grid will certainly not be easy.”

“Both riders made a small improvement since yesterday,” said Fortuna Yamaha’s Team Director Davide Brivio. “They went back to their basic settings and Carlos moved to tenth place today, now we hope that he can improve even more tomorrow. Marco improved his lap time very slightly but still doesn’t have any grip so isn’t comfortable to push. Tomorrow he will start from the fourth row which is not going to be easy but he’s been there before in Brno and made quite a good recovery – I hope he can do that again.”


More, from a press release issued by Pramac Honda Racing Press Information:

Tamada, ninth, secures top speed in practice. All set to start in first place on third row.

Once again, the Japanese rider of the Pramac Honda Team put in a good practice session, posting the ninth best time overall and the absolute top speed in the qualifying sessions. The considerable temperature excursion since yesterday – an increase of no less than 10 degrees – demanded a sudden rethink in terms of tyre compounds. The team technicians were able to choose from the vast range of Bridgestone tyres and jump straight away up two steps on the hardness scale to select the most suitable tyres. After just a few laps, Makoto Tamada was already showing he was able to put up a competitive and constant place that augurs well for tomorrow’s race.

The engine of Makoto’s RC211V bike was also spiced up a bit and the top speed in the qualifying sessions showed that it had been a job well done.

Makoto was not quite so effective in getting the fastest lap time for the pole, even though he took two tenths off the time he made yesterday. But even so today’s time puts him in a satisfactory ninth position overall: in the top spot on the third row of the starting grid.

MAKOTO TAMADA (PRAMAC HONDA TEAM): 9th – 1:50.775

“Today too we tried out a few things and, more than anything, we adapted the bike to changes in weather conditions. The difference in terms of grip was much more obvious during the free practice this morning, but this afternoon, partly thanks to all the changes we made, things were working out much better. I think I’ve got the choice of tyres for the race pretty well sorted out, but I must say I’m sorry to be starting out ninth: I’d have preferred to be on second row for I certainly could have got there. What matters now is that I need to put up a good pace and maintain a constant rhythm in the race like I did today. It could well make the difference.”


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

Aoki slashes lap time, McWilliams hits gremlins


Nobuatsu Aoki: 17th, 1:51.576
Jeremy McWilliams: 21st, 1:52.180

Team Proton KR rider Nobuatsu Aoki cut more than two seconds off his previous best lap time on the Proton KR V5 at Rio today, narrowly missing a position on the fourth row of the grid. It is his best yet qualifying position on the new four-stroke machine, which will start only its sixth race tomorrow.

The Japanese rider made huge strides in the afternoon session, as his pit crew tackled problems one by one. He was able to ride the new machine more aggressively, and the 2.132-second improvement round the 4.933km Nelson Piquet circuit reflected his increasing comfort, and ability to use his riding skills.

Team-mate Jeremy McWilliams also improved, but not as much as he had expected, after missing a gear at the end of his fast lap and “hobbling over the line”. He felt the error had cost at least half a second, but he was thwarted by mechanical problems with both his V5 machines, and was unable to prove the point. He will start tomorrow’s race from the sixth row of the grid.

The Proton KR V5 is a radical new design, with a unique 60-degree vee angle. But the machine is still in its infancy, in only its sixth race, all of which have been more like public test sessions, as the team work flat out not only to improve the performance, but also to solve the teething troubles inevitable with a brand new machine. The progress has been highly impressive, with the Protons achieving a first double race finish at the last round in Portugal. Work continues at the team’s base in England, not only on improving power output in the short term, but also on next year’s Mk2 machine.

Today’s practice took place in fine, sunny conditions, with threatened rain staying well away.


Nobuatsu Aoki
I’d like to say thank you to my mechanics. They made a lot of effort to keep the engine performing well to the end of the session, after it had been losing power in the morning. It seems as though the heat is hurting the performance, but they found ways of making it run cooler. One way was to put in cold fuel, a little at a time. More important was a change to the engine mapping, which reduced the temperature, and it was going strong for the full session, so I was able to push hard. As I said yesterday, they already made some chassis settings that also worked very well. It’s coming better all the time.

Jeremy McWilliams
I came very close to a very sore crash when one of my bikes leaked oil onto the back wheel. I was lucky not to fall. It was a leaking output shaft seal, and the mechanics fixed it, but it also put oil all over the tyre I wanted to try for the race. Luckily we did some endurance testing in the morning, so think I’m okay on tyre choice. I switched to my second bike, but that had a gearbox failure, and also chucked out its oil. I did my fast lap on the other bike, but I missed a gear on the last corner, and hobbled across the line. I lost half a second, but I wanted to finish the lap because I didn’t think I’d get another chance. It was a lot of drama for very little. But the set-up is okay, and as long as I don’t have to go back to the early-spec engine I think we can have a good race.

Chuck Aksland – Team Manager
It was a really positive day, especially for Nobu, and he’s in a lot more competitive position than he has been until now. Jeremy unfortunately had a gear break, and had to switch to his second bike, which wasn’t ideal for a qualifying time. But we made a lot of progress today, and it was just unfortunate that Jeremy didn’t have a better afternoon.


More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

Ducati Marlboro men on rows one & two at Rio

Ducati Marlboro Team riders Loris Capirossi and Troy Bayliss starred in this afternoon’s final qualifying session, placing themselves on the first and second rows of the grid for tomorrow’s Rio GP, the squad’s first-ever race in South America. Capirossi led the session for several minutes but eventually had to settle for second, just 0.3 seconds off pole position, while Rio first-timer Bayliss was a superb fifth fastest, just 0.166 seconds off a front-row start. “Both our riders in the top five – it doesn’t look like this is our first time at this track!” grinned Ducati Marlboro Team director Livio Suppo. “Loris worked hard once again today, doing a race simulation and concentrating on finding a fast rhythm for the race. Things were harder for Troy because he’s never been here before, but at the end of the session he rode a great lap and is looking good for the race. We made no revolution with either rider’s settings, just small adjustments to give them more traction. Now we look forward to the race; if both our guys get good starts, I think we can leave Rio with a good result behind us.”

Capirossi scores tenth front row start
Loris Capirossi ran strong as ever this afternoon, moving into pole position during the hectic closing stages of the session, finally ending up a close-run second behind World Champion Valentino Rossi (Honda).

“I’m very happy,” said Capirossi after achieving his tenth front-row start of 2003. “We are always up front now, regardless of the racetrack, and that shows how great the bike is. We are able to find a good set-up whatever the style of track, which is a great help to me. We worked some more on settings today and did a race simulation to help us choose our race tyres, but the changing weather conditions make tyre choice difficult – it was cold yesterday, hot today and we still don’t know what to expect for tomorrow. My target is simple – to run with the leaders, then see what we’ve got left at the end of the race.”

Rio Rookie Bayliss’ best grid slot since Jerez
Ninth yesterday in his first Rio qualifying session, Ducati Marlboro Team rider Troy Bayliss improved to a magnificent fifth this afternoon. This is the Australian’s fifth successive second-row start and his best grid slot since he qualified second for May’s Spanish GP.

“We made really good improvements every session, which is nice,” said the understandably delighted former World Superbike Champion. “And after this afternoon I’ve got some fairly high expectations for the race; hopefully I’ll get a good start and be able to run up front. I’m still not sure which bike I’m going to race (Bayliss has one bike fitted with the latest, large-diameter Ohlins fork, the other with the Ohlins fork he’s used since the start of the season), because there’s a few other differences to them, like suspension links. We’ll try a few more things in warm-up, then decide.”


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

HOPKINS CRASHES IN QUALIFYING FOR RIO GRAND PRIX

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (Sept. 19, 2003) – John Hopkins crashed his factory Suzuki GSV-R MotoGP bike early in Friday’s final qualifying session. Hopkins reported the rear end of the motorcycle stepped out coming through the third-gear final corner of the Nelson Piquet Circuit. He tried to save it, but the bike caught and pitched several times before throwing him violently to the ground. Hopkins suffered impact injuries to his left hand his right foot and both lower legs. He is questionable for Saturday’s MotoGP.

The crash was especially disappointing for Hopkins since he qualified 13th in Thursday’s session and was hopeful he could secure a decent starting position.

“Things went pretty well in yesterday’s qualifying,” Hopkins said. “I was just hoping that the other teams wouldn’t find much more improvement since I knew we were near the limits of the bike already on Thursday.”

In today’s qualifying the team decided to try a harder compound tire in hopes of having a set-up that would last the entire race on Saturday.

“I wasn’t real thrilled going out there on the harder compound,” Hopkins admitted. “The bike was really only working well with a very soft compound and I thought I could make that last during the race. But the team felt we’d have a better chance if we could get the bike to work with a harder compound.

“I was sliding the bike everywhere and hoping that the tires would come in, but they didn’t. The crash happened so fast. I tried like crazy to save it, but it threw me into a somersault and beat me up pretty good.”

Since Hopkins is not in contention for the championship he thinks he may sit out the race Saturday.

“We’ll see how I feel,” he said. “But I’m getting stiffer as we speak so it’s pretty doubtful. Unless there’s a minor miracle I’m probably going to call it a weekend. There’s no sense in me going out there injured and ride around for nothing.”

Hopkins will likely fly back to his home in California and recuperate in preparation for the Pacific Grand Prix of Motegi in two weeks.


More, from a press release issue dby Team Suzuki:

HOPKINS BATTERED IN HEAVY CRASH

Jacarepagua, Brazil – Friday, September 19, 2003:
Team Suzuki rider John Hopkins was lucky to walk away from a heavy crash in today’s final qualifying session for tomorrow’s Rio GP. But while the Anglo-American racer escaped without broken bones, he suffered a number of painful injuries, and is a doubtful starter for the race.

Hopkins had already qualified 18th on the time he set in yesterday’s first session, and was working on trying to improve overall race prospects when he fell after completing only seven laps.

The accident happened on the last corner of the 4.933km Nelson Piquet circuit outside Rio. The Suzuki GSV-R snapped sideways mid-corner, and Hopkins hung on for a wild rodeo ride until he was thrown off on the corner exit. The bike followed him as he tumbled.

Hopkins was carried away, but climbed off the stretcher as it reached the trackside barrier, to cross the track back to the pits over an advertising hoarding that doubles as a circuit-workers’ footbridge. His injuries were investigated immediately at the medical centre, and though no fractures were found, he was by now in considerable pain, with injuries to both legs and his right foot, his lumbar region, and with his left thumb badly sprained.

Team-mate Kenny Roberts Jr. qualified one place lower, in 19th, after slashing more than seven tenths of a second off his best lap time of yesterday, after a day of major experiments with different chassis and suspension settings. He will start the race, at the track where he tied up the 2000 500cc World Championship for Suzuki, from the fifth row of the grid.

Today’s practice took place in warm and sunny conditions, the threat of more rain dissipating overnight.

JOHN HOPKINS – 18th position, 1:51.802: The only rear tyre we’d been able to run is a real soft compound that I estimate would probably only last a quarter of race distance. We’ve been having big problems with the tyre going off, and we’ve been trying hard all weekend to get the bike set right so it can use a harder tyre, which I was using on that lap. It was sliding everywhere, and spinning up. Then on the last turn it stepped out real early and caught me way off guard. It pitched me up and started bucking me, flipping between my legs – I had a footpeg stab me in one leg, and then another on the other shin, and then when it tossed me off my thumb seemed to get jammed and bent right back. I’m in a lot of pain right now, and with the situation we’re in, in no position to fight for a championship, I’ll see how I feel in the morning, but I might sit this race out, and wait for some improvement.

KENNY ROBERTS – 19th position, 1:51.839: This morning we did a gigantic circle with bike settings and approaches to the machine for this circuit. We tried three major setting differences during the morning session, and kind of came back to a more normal setting. At this place, we’re just really struggling. You’re deep on the brakes, and when you lean it over, if the back wheel’s not in line you can’t finish the corner off properly, and we’re really struggling in that area. We’re going to try and do our best, and hope the other guys race each other too hard, make some mistakes, and help us out a little bit.

GARRY TAYLOR – Team Manager: John was trying very hard, and when you need to go for every possible bit of speed, occasionally this sort of stuff is going to happen. John is really tough, but right now I’d be very surprised to see him race tomorrow. One thing that needs looking into is there was no way for him to get back. He had to walk over the Cinzano footbridge, which is really just scaffolding with a couple of ladders each end. I’ve never seen a rider do that before – and you could see the pain come in when he was halfway over the bridge. Dr Costa and Dean Millerlooked into his injuries immediately at the medical centre, with special concern over a big impact in the area of his left scaphoid (wrist bone), and his right foot. X-ray’s show that no bones were broken. Kenny kept on pushing, and made a good improvement in his time. He has a good chance of making the points tomorrow.


More, from a press release issued by Harris WCM:

FINAL QUALIFYING FRIDAY ­ 19TH SEPTEMBER

David de Gea – 23rd 1:53.373

“I spent half an hour of this afternoons qualifying session in the garage, there were some problems with the clutch. Eventually I got back on the track and finished with about 15 laps in total.

I improved from yesterday and I pushed hard with the last two qualifying tyres at the end of the session. I still know it’s possible to go faster and I wait for tomorrow to do that.”

Chris Burns – 24th 1:54. 667

“I have both the old four stroke (from the Portugal GP) and the new four stroke bike here and we decided that today I would ride the old four stroke for most of the session and race the new four stroke tomorrow. The bikes are totally different, they feel like completely different bikes in both braking and engine power.

I’m struggling a bit switching from one bike to the other but that¹s the situation I’m in and I’ll just try my best. I have 20 minutes in warm up tomorrow to get use to the new bike, which I am riding for the first time this weekend. I’m still getting to know the track having not been here before also. Anyway, tomorrow could be the day I finish my first GP of the Season.”

Peter Clifford – Team Manager

“Not a bad day, in as far as both bikes ran strong and we are making progress. Again minor frustration’s are keeping us from achieving what we should of done in qualifying today.

Comparing with the last GP in Portugal, it’s a touch disappointing but perhaps we’ll have a better result in the race.”


More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing Press Information:

HONDA RACING INFORMATION

Rio Grand Prix at Jacarepagua

Final Qualifying 19 September

Track temperature: 35 degrees
Humidity: 50%
Ambient temperature: 28 degrees, dry and sunny


ROSSI ON POLE AFTER RECORD BREAKING SESSION

Valentino Rossi (Repsol Honda RC211V) had to ride to the full extent of his powers to take pole position at the 4.933km Nelson Piquet circuit in Rio, pushing the qualifying record to a new best of 1:49.038 in the process. In what turned out to be a three-way duel for supremacy between Rossi, Loris Capirossi (Ducati) and Sete Gibernau (Telefonica Movistar Honda RC211V) the action was all packed into the final ten minutes, with the relatively warm track temperatures also playing their part in proceedings.

Theoretically, the warmer track on day two, after a grey and cool opening session on Thursday, should have offered greater scope for improvement in lap times but the opposite appeared to be true at the bumpy Brazilian circuit. It thus took some time for the riders to find their optimum set-ups, and they had to devote a lot of time and effort in finding good race set-ups. Once they had finally fitted qualifying tyres, it was a different story.

Loris Capirossi had propelled himself to a clear lead on the times sheets in the final few minutes, outpacing Gibernau with a last throw of the dice but Rossi was waiting in the wings, riding aggressively to secure the pole position by a margin of 0.302 seconds.

Despite a last attempt by provisional pole position man Max Biaggi (Camel Pramac Pons RC211V) to reinstate himself at the top of the timesheets his last lap was an imperfect one, and he had to settle for a front row start in fourth.

On the second row Troy Bayliss (Ducati) leads off top Yamaha rider thus far Shinya Nakano. Nicky Hayden ran out seventh, with Tohru Ukawa eighth, the last man on the second row.

The real test for the race will be tyre selection, as the track has already presented problems in this area, proving to be very hard to read as the weather changes.

All being well, Rossi is the best-placed rider pre-race and is in a good position to go about adding to his already impressive Rio race record.
“To make the pole position is always good,” said Rossi. “Today we tried hard because yesterday we didn’t have enough time to test the qualifying tyre. Today the plan was to try two but we were only able to use one because we worked a lot on race set-up for tomorrow. 1:49.0! I rode very well and the qualification tyre was very good.”

Sete Gibernau fell at the very end of the practice session, and this affected his post-qualifying mood somewhat. His all important front row start will nevertheless come into play for him when the race gets underway.
“Today we have done a good job once more with the set-up of the bike but we still have a few things to sort out,” said Gibernau. “I have found a really good rhythm in the corners but I am losing too much time in the straights. I am doing all I can to make it up but I need some help from Honda. Luckily I wasn’t hurt in my crash and I hope to solve our problems in the warm-up.”

For Biaggi, the second day was a disappointment compared to the first but he nonetheless starts from the front row, in fourth.
“I tried very hard to improve on my lap time from yesterday but it was not possible,” said Biaggi. “We did not have the improvement in set-up that would have made us take the next step, but I tried to be consistent. I went very hard on my last lap to try and go faster than yesterday. I may have made a couple of small mistakes on that lap but it was not going to be fast enough to take pole.”

The continual improvement in Hayden’s best lap time was put down to his ability to improve his own performance and his final sixth place qualifying spot was also the result of following his team leader Rossi in the latter stages of the final one hour session.
“That session had a little bit of drama in it for me but I’m pretty pleased with the result,” said Hayden. “I had a little problem early on and had to park it out on the circuit. I had to run back to the pit, have a drink of water and get back out again. At the end of the session I came in got a new tyre and went out behind Valentino and ended up doing my best time.”

Tohru Ukawa (Camel Pramac Pons RC211V) was pleased to have improved his time from Thursday, but disappointed that it make little difference to his overall qualification, as other riders also went faster. “We managed to improve our times from yesterday but not enough,” said Ukawa in pitlane. “In this morning’s session we were not so bad but when I tried to go faster in the hotter afternoon session the rear would start to spin. The hotter track was probably part of the cause. We must try something in warm-up tomorrow and it will be very difficult to choose a race tyre. That’s the same for everybody.”

Makoto Tamada (Pramac Honda RC211V) went ninth on his first visit to the tricky and bumpy Rio circuit, his commitment evident to all, including the timekeepers. He too was affected by the peculiar track conditions.
“Today we tried a few things and more than anything we adapted the bike to the track conditions,” said the Bridgestone race tester. “I think we have the choice of tyre for the race pretty much worked out, but I must say I am sorry to be starting out ninth; I would have preferred to have been on the front.”

Rookie MotoGP rider Ryuichi Kiyonari (Telefonica Movistar Honda RC211V) can feel a sense of satisfaction after his final qualifying ride, securing 15th spot out of 24 on his first visit to Rio. “I am very happy to have improved my time by 2.4 seconds,” beamed Kiyonari. “I think this is my best qualifying performance and I am feeling very good about tomorrow’s race.”

The final 250ccc qualifying session saw most but not all of the top riders improving their lap times from the cool first day. Tony Elias (Aprilia) was the quickest rider, from Manuel Poggiali (Aprilia). The intense competition in the 250cc class was such that Roberto Rolfo (Fortuna Honda RS250RW) was third, after having to use his time from Friday as his best of the weekend, making small errors in final qualifying.

He was unperturbed by this turn of events and looks forward to another close 250 race.
“We did really good work yesterday but I made a mistake on the last lap so I think I can go faster than this,” said Rolfo. “The track changed today but we have good settings for the race.”

Sebastian Porto (Telefonica Movistar Junior Team RS250RW) went sixth after something of a confusing day at the track he won his first 250ccc Grand Prix at last year. Porto also thinks he is in good shape for a strong raceday performance, but there will be one particular area of concern for all the riders on display.
“Here it is very important to have a good engine and it’s not so bad,” said a satisfied Porto. “The bike works well, the chassis particularly. The big question is the tyre. I was very surprised that it was hotter today, but there is less grip.”

An outstanding final qualifying lap from Daniel Pedrosa (Telefonica Movistar Junior Team RS125R) held off the consistent threat of Alex De Angelis (Aprilia) to give the young Spaniard a start from pole position in the 125 class. The clear championship leader is in the perfect position as he attempts to take his fifth win of the season.

A good day of qualifying for another Honda rider delivered Andrea Dovizioso (Scot Racing Honda RS125R) to third place on the grid, with Gabor Talmacsi (Aprilia) in fourth spot. The second row of qualifying featured the Derbi of Jorge Lorenzo at its head, with Stefano Perugini (Aprilia), Hector Barbera (Aprilia) and Steve Jenkner (Aprilia) following on.

Young Swiss Thomas Luthi (Elit Grand Prix team) secured 12th place for the third row start, while 2002 Rio race winner Masao Azuma (Ajo Motorsports RS125R Honda) ended two days of qualifying 17th overall.

Pedrosa is ready for the fight, even if he feels there is still room for improvement.
“I’m still having a little problem with the bike set-up on the bumps,” said Pedrosa, “but them everybody is. I was ninth until that last lap so I’m glad I could get a slipstream and then head up a big group of riders across the line.”

Dovizioso was happy with second place but hopes to find the right conditions on raceday. “I am almost OK for the race bit we have to check the life of the tyre,” he stated. “Twenty-one laps is a long way here. The engine is overheating a little bit but otherwise everything is OK.”

Luthi was another with tyres to consider for raceday. “I’m happy with a t

From a press release issued by GSE Racing, which races in the FIM Superbike World Championship as HM Plant Ducati:

GSE quits World Superbike racing

Following the statement of intent issued in the aftermath of the Dutch round of the Superbike World Championship, Team Principal Darrell Healey has confirmed that GSE Racing is quitting the Superbike World Championship series at the end of the 2003 season.

GSE Racing has achieved notable success in both British and World Superbike Championships over the past seven years. Above all, it has nurtured the undoubted talent of Troy Bayliss and Neil Hodgson to win the British Superbike Championship in 1999 and 2000. They have both now gone on to become World Superbike Champions with Ducati Corse in 2001 and 2003 respectively.

However, GSE Racing has not succeeded with its ambition to secure full manufacturer support at World Championship level in 2002-03. This would have been the team’s next logical step in its quest for continued success. Therefore, GSE Racing has decided not to continue in its support of the Superbike World Championship after the French round of the series at Magny-Cours on 19 October.

GSE Racing Team Principal Darrell Healey said: “The current situation surrounding the future of the Superbike World Championship has created a vacuum which has resulted in the demise of any future interest that GSE Racing may have in the series. We are unable to proceed with Ducati and there are no other manufacturer options open to us at this stage due to the uncertainty surrounding the series.

“It would appear that MotoGP is attracting the interest of the leading manufacturers and therefore the future of international motorcycle racing lies in that class. I don’t feel that GSE Racing, the other top teams and the manufacturers in Superbike have been consulted in what I would consider to be an appropriate manner. This has resulted in a position of stalemate which in effect has prevented the team in moving forward.

“GSE Racing is currently assessing its future position. There are a number of exciting opportunities open to us and I hope that we will be in a position to make a further announcement about this in the near future. We may be quitting the World Superbike racing scene but the future could still be a bright one within motorsport and the motorcycle industry at large. GSE Racing has been the number one British team over the past five years and the high level of expertise contained within the team should provide us with a stable platform for the future.

“On behalf of everyone associated with the team, I would like to thank my colleagues within the GSE Group for their support of GSE Racing. In addition, we are indebted to the support that Ducati Corse and HM Plant have shown to the team, particularly during our three-year stint in World Superbikes. And finally, I would like to express our sincere appreciation to Dunlop and all the other sponsors, suppliers and staff who have helped us throughout our Superbike racing career. Without them, our success story to date would not have been possible.”

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Provisional 125cc Grand Prix Qualifying Results:

1. Alex De Angelis, Aprilia, 1:58.443
2. Gabor Talmacsi, Aprilia, 1:58.509
3. Jorge Lorenzo, Derbi, 1:58.607
4. Gino Borsoi, Aprilia, 1:58.812
5. Andrea Dovizioso, Honda, 1:58.889
6. Daniel Pedrosa, Honda, 1:58.909
7. Hector Barbera, Aprilia, 1:59.136
8. Mirko Giansanti, Aprilia, 1:59.213
9. Pablo Nieto, Aprilia, 1:59.273
10. Stefano Perugini, Aprilia, 1:59.290
11. Arnaud Vincent, Aprilia, 1:59.352
12. Thomas Luthi, Honda, 1:59.358
13. Steve Jenkner, Aprilia, 1:59.552
14. Marco Simoncelli, Aprilia, 1:59.757
15. Fabrizio Lai, Malaguti, 1:59.832
16. Lucio Cecchinello, Aprilia, 1:59.901
17. Casey Stoner, Aprilia, 2:00.087
18. Roberto Locatelli, KTM, 2:00.295
19. Youichi Ui, Gilera, 2:00.515
20. Emilio Alzamora, Derbi, 2:00.598

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Provisional 250cc Grand Prix Qualifying Results:

1. Toni Elias, Aprilia, 1:53.460
2. Roberto Rolfo, Honda, 1:53.827
3. Fonsi Nieto, Aprilia, 1:53.872
4. Randy De Puniet, Aprilia, 1:53.874
5. Manuel Poggiali, Aprilia, 1:54.084
6. Sebastian Porto, Honda, 1:54.192
7. Franco Battaini, Aprilia, 1:54.282
8. Sylvain Guintoli, Aprilia, 1:54.568
9. Naoki Matsudo, Yamaha, 1:56.103
10. Hector Faubel, Aprilia, 1:56.121
11. Hugo Marchand, Aprilia, 1:56.177
12. Anthony West, Aprilia, 1:56.305
13. Alex Debon, Honda, 1:56.347
14. Joan Olive, Aprilia, 1:56.379
15. Eric Bataille, Honda, 1:56.539
16. Erwan Nigon, Aprilia, 1:56.557
17. Chaz Davies, Aprilia, 1:57.104
18. Dirk Heidolf, Aprilia, 1:57.493
19. Jaroslav Hules, Honda, 1:57.607
20. Johan Stigefelt, Aprilia, 1:57.622

25. Katja Poensgen, Honda, 2:01.051

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Thursday Morning 125cc Grand Prix Practice Times:

1. Emilio Alzamora, Derbi, 2:05.552
2. Casey Stoner, Aprilia, 2:06.024
3. Stefano Perugini, Aprilia, 2:07.024
4. Youichi Ui, Gilera, 2:07.378
5. Alex De Angelis, Aprilia, 2:07.494
6. Daniel Pedrosa, Honda, 2:08.766
7. Jorge Lorenzo, Derbi, 2:09.913
8. Pablo Nieto, Aprilia, 2:10.059
9. Hector Barbera, Aprilia, 2:10.589
10. Thomas Luthi, Honda, 2:10.862
11. Andrea Dovizioso, Honda, 2:11.077
12. Masao Azuma, Honda, 2:11.235
13. Arnaud Vincent, Aprilia, 2:11.786
14. Marco Simoncelli, Aprilia, 2:11.854
15. Gino Borsoi, Aprilia, 2:11.859
16. Simone Corsi, Honda, 2:12.040
17. Julian Simon, Malaguti, 2:12.649
18. Gabor Talmacsi, Aprilia, 2:12.656
19. Roberto Locatelli, KTM, 2:12.898
20. Robbin Harms, Aprilia, 2:13.034

24. Mika Kallio, KTM, 2:13.849

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Thursday Morning MotoGP Practice Times:

1. Valentino Rossi, Honda, 1:51.043
2. Sete Gibernau, Honda, 1:51.626
3. Max Biaggi, Honda, 1:52.166
4. Loris Capirossi, Ducati, 1:52.235
5. Shinya Nakano, Yamaha, 1:52.388
6. Tohru Ukawa, Honda, 1:52.696
7. Carlos Checa, Yamaha, 1:52.796
8. Olivier Jacque, Yamaha, 1:52.826
9. Makoto Tamada, Honda, 1:52.937
10. Alex Barros, Yamaha, 1:53.057
11. John Hopkins, Suzuki, 1:53.280
12. Marco Melandri, Yamaha, 1:53.500
13. Troy Bayliss, Ducati, 1:53.532
14. Colin Edwards, Aprilia, 1:53.605
15. Nicky Hayden, Honda, 1:53.627
16. Kenny Roberts, Suzuki, 1:53.809
17. Noriyuki Haga, Aprilia, 1:54.442
18. Garry McCoy, Kawasaki, 1:54.613
19. Nobuatsu Aoki, Proton, 1:54.813
20. Jeremy McWilliams, Proton, 1:54.919
21. Andrew Pitt, Kawasaki, 1:55.209
22. Ryuichi Kiyonari, Honda, 1:55.844
23. David De Gea, Harris WCM, 1:56.218
24. Chris Burns, Harris WCM, 1:57.237

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Thursday’s Provisional MotoGP Qualifying Results:

1. Max Biaggi, Honda, 1:49.876
2. Loris Capirossi, Ducati, 1:50.212
3. Sete Gibernau, Honda, 1:50.234
4. Valentino Rossi, Honda, 1:50.322
5. Shinya Nakano, Yamaha, 1:50.844
6. Alex Barros, Yamaha, 1:50.876
7. Makoto Tamada, Honda, 1:50.957
8. Tohru Ukawa, Honda, 1:51.240
9. Troy Bayliss, Ducati, 1:51.254
10. Olivier Jacque, Yamaha, 1:51.385
11. Garry McCoy, Kawasaki, 1:51.395
12. Nicky Hayden, Honda, 1:51.420
13. John Hopkins, Suzuki, 1:51.802
14. Noriyuki Haga, Aprilia, 1:51.870
15. Marco Melandri, Yamaha, 1:52.099
16. Carlos Checa, Yamaha, 1:52.266
17. Kenny Roberts, Suzuki, 1:52.583
18. Jeremy McWilliams, Proton, 1:52.848
19. Andrew Pitt, Kawasaki, 1:52.857
20. Colin Edwards, Aprilia, 1:52.883
21. David De Gea, Harris WCM, 1:53.521
22. Nobuatsu Aoki, Proton, 1:53.708
23. Ryuichi Kiyonari, Honda, 1:53.913
24. Chris Burns, Harris WCM, 1:55.314


More, from a press release issued by Pramac Honda Racing Information:

SEVENTH QUICKEST, MAKOTO TAMADA MAKES SEVENTH PROVISIONAL PLACE IN RIO.

On the circuit for the first time, Makoto sliced two seconds off his afternoon’s time and came seventh in the first day in Brazil. Not a bad result by any means. The team technicians worked hard on the calibration of the suspension and enabled Makoto, who in the morning reported considerable vibration due to the uneven terrain, put the problem to rest in the afternoon’s qualifying round. Makoto’s RC211V was thus able to match up almost exactly to the harshness of the terrain and give the rider the right feeling to go really fast.

This meant the tyre tests could be carried out today and the initial choices could be made. Now that he is happy with the front tyre, Makoto still needs to make his choice of rear since he pointed out that the grip on the corners was not perfect when the tyre remains down for a long time.

The weather – cloudy but without rain – should stay exactly the same for tomorrow. This means it will be possible to test the tyres better and find the ideal solution. This initial day of tests in Brazil also shows how a good basic level of settings has been obtained for the RC211V, enabling Makoto to get straight into the job of working on the individual characteristics of each different circuit.

MAKOTO TAMADA (PRAMAC HONDA TEAM): 7th – 1:50.957

“I like Rio. I like the circuit, and already in the afternoon the bumps weren’t a problem for me any more. The front of the bike’s fine now, the tyre’s great, but we’ve still got to do some work to get better grip at the back. On the tyre bead, when the bike leans down for a long time, I still don’t have the grip I’d like to have, so I can’t open up the gas fast enough. This is a snag we know about and we’re trying to get it solved. We’ve been working very well on the settings and we’ve still got time to achieve the result we’re aiming for.”


More, from a press release issued by Harris WCM:

QUALIFYING THURSDAY ­ 19TH SEPTEMBER

David de Gea – 21st ­ 1:53.521

“I like this track very much, yes very much, I am happy with my time from today but I think it is possible for me to faster tomorrow. Today a 53.5, tomorrow I am aiming for a 52.5 ­ 52.8.

My mechanics are working on some problems that I had through the session with the exhaust, but overall I am happy with today.”

Chris Burns – 24th 1:55.314

“I haven¹t been to this track before and I find the track a little tricky to learn quickly. I’m happy though that I¹ve had a full day of qualifying on the four stroke without too many dramas, which is a good sign for tomorrow.

Today I rode both the 4 stroke that I rode in Estoril but qualified today with the even newer engine we have here. So I was switching back and forth, which is a bit of a handful, but the new engine is faster and I just have to get on with it and keep my head down. I’ll think about the track tonight to work out how I can improve my time tomorrow.”

Peter Clifford – Team Manager

“Overall a good day. Chris struggled a little bit with the new circuit and minor frustration’s with the motorcycle but David enjoyed his day I’m sure, even though he had a couple of technical problems that prevented him from being further up the grid.

It leaves me optimistic that both guys can improve tomorrow.”


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

BRAZIL GP/1st QUALIFYING SESSION
WAITING FOR A BETTER POSITION ON GRID
Chattering problems for the RS Cube of Alice Aprilia Racing Team. Colin and Nori did all the best to get a good lap time but all th e technicians are working hard in order to improve: the main objective is a better grid positions for tomorrow. They already made some changes on the setting especially in the front. Unfortunately a technical problem for the American rider forced him to use the bike no. 2 with different regulations compared with the first one.

COLIN EDWARDS: “I feel disappointed cause the day was not so positive but we are trying to get a better setting for tomorrow in order to start from the firsts positions for the race. I am ready cause I studied the track today: this is my first time on this circuit”.

NORIYUKI HAGA: “Well. there’s a lot of things to do but I got a good lap in the final part of the session. Anyway we will have to work hard tomorrow as well”.

GIGI DALL’IGNA (Project Leader): “Unfortunately we still have chattering problems on this track as well. We are ready to try different settings tomorrow concentrating our efforts in the fork. We had a technical problem on Colin bike no. 1 and he was forced the use the second one with different regulations. So we lost the chance to exploit the qualifying tyre. its’ a pity!”


More, from a press release issued by Fortuna Yamaha:

DARK SKIES IN RIO AS FORTUNA YAMAHA TEAM COMPLETE FIRST QUALIFYING

The first day of the Rio Grand Prix proved more than challenging for Fortuna Yamaha Team riders Marco Melandri and Carlos Checa as they struggled with set-up difficulties in today’s qualifying session. Both riders endeavoured to find a suitable base set-up for the slick and bumpy Nelson Piquet circuit and focused on feeling rather than lap times, finishing this afternoon’s session 15th and 16th fastest respectively. Although weather conditions gradually improved throughout the day after a damp morning, the dry but gloomy afternoon qualifying session didn’t offer any relief for Yamaha’s Factory squad, who moved to Brazil from the European continent earlier this week with the rest of the MotoGP paddock.

Camel Pramac Honda Pons rider Max Biaggi led the rider board today with a lap time of 1:49.876, breaking his own circuit best lap record of 1:50.568 which gave him pole position here last year. Biaggi was closely followed by riders Loris Capirossi (1:50.212), Sete Gibernau (1:50.234) and Valentino Rossi (1:50.322), completing the provisional front row for Sunday’s race. The Rio Grand Prix marks the first of four intercontinental ‘flyaway’ races, followed by rounds in Japan, Malaysia and Australia.

After initially producing the 12th fastest time in this morning’s practice, Melandri showed some promise of improvement during this afternoon’s hour-long qualifying session. However he eventually finished 15th, with a best lap time of 1:52.099. Although the 250cc World Champion was able to show flashes of speed on his YZR-M1, instability over the bumpy tarmac hindered his feeling and consistency and, in turn, a competitive lap. Stability will be the target of Melandri’s crew and engineers this evening when they will work to put the 21-year-old back in the hunt for another front row start.

“That was a really difficult day, and I’m quite disillusioned because I thought I could start from a comfortable set-up straight away,” said Melandri, who has started from the front row of the grid twice this season.

“Instead I feel quite a long way behind the top riders and I can’t get a good feeling. It’s hard to know which tyres to use here, so we have to work hard to sort out these problems. I tried using softer tyres towards the end of the session but it didn’t make that much of a difference and I couldn’t even try for a fast lap. I really hope tomorrow will be better.”

Today’s qualifying session was equally disappointing for team-mate Carlos Checa, who produced one of his most determined rides in last year’s Rio Grand Prix. The Spaniard was unable to match his morning practice performance of seventh fastest, despite improving his lap time significantly. Checa sits in 16th place on the provisional starting grid with a time of 1:52.266.

“We have probably tested too many things today,” said a frustrated Checa, “and I couldn’t find the right way to go with the bike. We altered more than the suspension; we altered both the chassis and the engine set-up. I started this morning with my base set-up from Estoril, but the balance didn’t feel right and I didn’t have the confidence to push at all, so we have changed many things. We have lost one day doing this. For tomorrow we will go back to the base set-up. I hope that we can make up for lost time and that the weather stays dry so I can get a better lap time and grid position.”

Team Director Davide Brivio said, “We have some serious work to do tonight! Both riders had difficulties finding the right direction for setting. We need to check all the information from today and sit the riders down with the engineers to discuss every possibility. For sure we can improve tomorrow. Both riders were so busy changing their set-ups that, for different reasons, they were unable to try for a hot lap. We need the weather to hold out for tomorrow so they can move up the starting grid.”


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

Proton KR pair on fast learning curve in Rio

Jeremy McWilliams: 18th, 1:52.848
Nobuatsu Aoki: 22nd, 1:53.708

Team Proton KR riders Jeremy McWilliams and Nobuatsu Aoki made an encouraging start to the radical new four-stroke Proton KR V5’s sixth race at Rio today – but ran into problems in the afternoon that slowed progress of the fast-developing new racer.

Both riders lost track time to small but costly problems. All the same, results were encouraging, after the team achieved the new bike’s first double race finish at the Portuguese GP two weeks ago. The four machines in Rio are basically the same as those used in Portugal, but the all-too-public race development programme continues to give improvements, while back in England engineers are working on the next upgrade to the unique 60-degree V5 engine. The sweet-sounding KR V5 is already on the heels of back end of the pack of factory MotoGP four-stroke racers, although still in relatively rough prototype form.

The 4.933km Nelson Piquet circuit at Jacarepagua outside Rio poses special problems because of its extremely bumpy surface. This makes it a severe test not only of chassis design and integrity, but also of geometry and suspension settings. The newness of the KR V5 means that riders and team technicians are still learning fast, as they work towards base settings of a machine that raced for the first time only in June, at the Italian GP.

McWilliams was concentrating on suspension developments, and was in and out of the pits trying different rear suspension links. The down time meant he completed only 14 laps in the afternoon, compared with more than 25 for most runners. Aoki ran 12 laps, but ran into engine trouble that kept him off the track for the last half of the session – a disappointment after his latest chassis adjustments yielded a significant improvement.

Today’s first practice took place in overcast conditions, with some rain leaving the track damp in the morning. The forecast for tomorrow is for similar conditions, and rain would prove costly to Proton Team KR, needing as much track time as possible to push the development forward.

Jeremy McWilliams
I didn’t get anywhere near enough laps today. We’ve been making too many changes . clutching at straws to try and find more rear grip, and none of them really worked out. They’re changes that we haven’t tested before at the bike’s first time at this track, and today we went almost full circle, getting back to more or less where we started in the morning. The lap time was better, but it was hard work. We’re messing with rear suspension links, trying to get the rear to grip over the bumps. I’m losing the racing line because the bike won’t settle and dig in. It’s not the tyres. It’s a chassis issue. It will take us until tomorrow afternoon to get it right. We really need for it not to rain.

Nobuatsu Aoki
I have a bad cold, but that’s not the real problem. One of my bikes has some engine problem . just no power. The other was working well, then halfway through the session there was an oil problem, and I pulled in. I tried the other bike again, but only for a couple of laps, so that was the end of my session. Until then, things were going pretty well. The biggest benefit is that I was able to use a new Bridgestone rear tyre for the first time – it’s not new, but we couldn’t get it to work before. This afternoon I tried it again, and immediately went one second quicker. It’s easier to turn, and to control the slide.

Chuck Aksland – Team Manager
We were struggling a bit this afternoon. On Jeremy’s side it’s a set-up thing, with chassis that work differently from morning to afternoon. We’ll have to look at the data to understand what is happening. We are struggling to keep Nobu’s engine going. He was doing good, with his lap times coming down, until he had that problem.


More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

Ducati Marlboro Team Immediatly on the pace at Rio

Ducati Marlboro Team rider Loris Capirossi was in the thick of the battle for provisional pole position at Jacarepagua this afternoon, even though this is the Italian factory team’s first visit to the high-speed circuit outside Rio de Janeiro. The Italian ended the day second quickest, just 0.336 seconds off provisional pole position. Team-mate Troy Bayliss had never ridden the track before this morning but was a promising ninth fastest this afternoon, 1.378 seconds off pole.

“This track isn’t so complicated,” explained Ducati Marlboro Team technical director Corrado Cecchinelli. “The only thing we’ve really got to work on is grip, because the surface is pretty slippery. We started today with the set-up we ran at Estoril, with different gearbox ratios, and we were pretty close from the start. Once we had made some changes Loris was able to run up front, while Troy just needs another day to keep learning the track, so we hope for good weather tomorrow.”

Capirossi second by a fraction of second
Loris Capirossi was in the hunt for provisional pole position throughout today’s first qualifier. Three minutes from the end of the session the Ducati Marlboro Team went fastest, but was then demoted to second in the final minute. However, Capirossi and his crew learned plenty from their first day together at this bumpy, slippery circuit and are confident of upping their pace tomorrow.

“I’m really happy because we improved the settings from this morning,” said the Italian, currently fourth in the World Championship. “We worked mainly on suspension and gearbox set-up and we were able to run a good pace. This is only our first day here with the Desmosedici, but things are going well and they can be better tomorrow because we’ve already found the right direction in which to work. This afternoon’s session helped us to understand what kind of pace we’ll be able to run here, because we are always working towards the race.”

Rio newcomer Bayliss 0.014 seconds off row two
Ducati Marlboro Team rider Troy Bayliss quickly got to grips with the Jacarepagua circuit, ending the day ninth fastest, just one hundredth of a second off the provisional second row. Australian Bayliss has his two Desmosedicis equipped with different Ohlins forks here – one bike uses the latest, larger diameter Ohlins, the other is fitted with the forks that he’s used for much of the season.

“It’s not a bad track,” said the hard-riding MotoGP rookie. “It’s easy enough to learn but like most places it’s getting the last little bit out of it which isn’t so easy. The only thing that most people are complaining about is that there isn’t much grip, so we’re working on the settings to improve feel from the rear, and we’ve a few ideas about what to do for tomorrow. I’ve liked the new forks since I tested them at Mugello last week. Why? Because they give me a better lap time! They just seem more stable under braking. I’ve been using the new forks most of today but I may give the old forks a bit of a try tomorrow just to see how they go.”

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Thursday Morning 250cc Grand Prix Practice Times:

1. Toni Elias, Aprilia, 1:54.086
2. Manuel Poggiali, Aprilia, 1:54.729
3. Sebastian Porto, Honda, 1:54.946
4. Roberto Rolfo, Honda, 1:55.015
5. Fonsi Nieto, Aprilia, 1:55.030
6. Franco Battaini, Aprilia, 1:55.239
7. Randy De Puniet, Aprilia, 1:55.356
8. Sylvain Guintoli, Aprilia, 1:56.348
9. Erwan Nigon, Aprilia, 1:56.742
10. Alex Baldolini, Aprilia, 1:57.102
11. Naoki Matsudo, Yamaha, 1:57.159
12. Anthony West, Aprilia, 1:57.261
13. Hugo Marchand, Aprilia, 1:57.358
14. Joan Olive, Aprilia, 1:57.413
15. Hector Faubel, Aprilia, 1:57.459


25. Katja Poensgen, Honda, 2:02.748

FIRST PERSON/OPINION Via e-mail: His considerable talent on a motorcycle was surpassed only by his success at being a giving, caring person. Jody helped me numerous times at the track with helpful hints, sage advice and cheerleading support. His impact on me was far greater than our casual friendship might imply. We have lost one of the truly good guys. Reg Kittrelle Scotts Valley, California FIRST PERSON/OPINION Via e-mail: I was shocked when I logged on this afternoon. I couldn’t believe what I had just seen, Jody Hendley R.I.P. Jody was a way cool bro from So Cal. I remember my club racing days with John Hilton. Jody was always around and he was always pleasant to be around. And it was always cool to see him at the AMA nationals riding that ‘0l 883 in the Superstock and twins classes. He tried so hard. He was always thinking positive, even on his bad days. My condolences to his family. Joey Lombardo LBC FIRST PERSON/OPINION Via e-mail: I feel I have to pass on a few general memories and statements about Jody, and the impact he had on a lot of people. From the first time I met Jody, it was quite obvious that he was an exceptional person. You see, the first time I met the man was in turn 9 at Willow Springs, and I had just started racing. Riding my semi-new 96 YZF 750 in practice, I was (I thought) railing through turn 9 and going no faster than any man could go. Then here comes this orange monstrosity by me just before the apex – and I could not believe it, I had just gotten passed by a Hardley Able-to. So I had to go meet this guy. Well the person who I thought I was going to meet was way different in my mind than the person that I talked to. One of the most sincere, nice and quality individuals that I have ever met in my life. For the 3 or so years that followed, every time I saw him at any track, or if he saw me, we always had a few words, a handshake, a smile and appreciation for each other. Appreciation – not for any particular reason, mind you, or at least none that I could fathom. Just the fact that we were around, and enjoying racing. I wish there were more like you around Jody. A whole lot more. The world is definitely a lesser place for his passing. I never met Jody’s family, but please know that he was one of the best people I have ever met in my life, and he will definitely be missed. My sincere condolences. Godspeed Jody. Steve Sturm WSMC #98 Glendora, California

From a press release issued by KTM:

990 DUKE (PRE SERIES MODEL)
An uncompromising motorcycle for the streets with minimalist equipment, stronger than the common Naked Bike Twins, ultra light and with a more aggressive, more independent appearance. The 990 DUKE for street use with the 75° fuel injection-V twincylinder LC8 engine. Planned series debut autumn 2004. You will find detailed information starting overleaf.

990 DUKE: PRE SERIES MODEL
KTM definitely moves into the street motorcycle market with this model, but not without remaining true to the brand’s philosophy: with clear-cut identity, groundbreaking technology, and a sports-orientation which is already found in the core segment of off-road motorcycles.

ENGINE

Weight of the LC8 engine?

> The engine weighs 58 kg, approximately 20% lighter than the competition.
>The low weight results from the intelligent engine concept.
> Each component constructed from the viewpoint of durability and low weight.

Engine concept

> Two cylinder, 999 cc displacement.
> Short stroke V-engine with 75° cylinder arrangement
> Electronic fuel injection.
> The LC8 engine is vertically split at different levels for a spacesaving arrangement of the crankshaft and the two shafts of the six gear transmission.
> A space-saving “Multifunction Shaft” rotates in the V between the two cylinders, this supports two counter weights, drives the water pump and the centrifuge of the engine case vent, and serves as an idler for the starter and the two timing chains.
> The gear chains drive in the symmetrical (turned at 180° degrees) cylinder heads, each with 2 overhead camshafts.
> A nearly linear torque curve for a predictable performance pattern.
> Dry sump lubrication with a 3-liter oil tank under the water radiator.
> Series performance 122 hp at 9000 rpm, 99 Nm at 7000 rpm.
> 6-gear transmission gradation and cylinder heads distinguish themselves from the Adventure version.

CHASSIS

Frame concept

> Extremely robust, self-supporting, chromium molybdenum tube frame (round tubes).
> Total weight under 9 kg.

Weight / Tank volume?
> Dry weight 179 kg, at least 15% lighter than what is typical for the class.
> Ready incl. fuel 195 kg.
> The weight distribution is 51% in the front and 49% in the rear.
> The low mounting of the engine (no oil pan) and the positioning of the battery lead to an extremely low centre of gravity and optimal handling.
> The tank volume of the 990 DUKE is around 15 litres.

Shock elements / Seat height
> White Power shock absorber linked directly to the swing arm.
> the shock absorber is both in pressure (high, low speed) and in rebound and spring preload fully adjustable and holds 160 mm suspension travel.
> The fork is a 48 mm White Power USD fork “Multi Adjuster” with 135 mm suspension travel.
> The seat height of the 990 DUKE is just barely over 850 mm.

Cockpit / Equipment
> Centrally arranged, analogue tachometer and multifunctional cockpit display: daily kilometre (mileage) counter, tank stopdistance display, total kilometres (mileage), speed, time, low fuel warning light, cooling temperature, control lights.

Lighting
> Characteristic, extremely lightweight front headlight (only 800 grams) with very high luminance factor.
Brakes
> BREMBO radial hand brake cylinder with 320 mm double disc and 4-piston Brembo brake calliper (with 4 brake pads) in the front.
> 240 mm rear wheel disc brake with single-piston Brembo brake calliper.

Tyre equipment
> Wheel dimensions of 3.5″ in the front and 5.5″ in the rear for guaranteed optimal handling.
> Tyres come into use standard with the dimensions 120/70-17″ resp. 180/55-17″.

All declarations apply to the 990 DUKE pre series model, September 2003 stand, and are subject to technical changes up to the series debut.

990 DUKE: TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION (STATUS SEPTEMBER 2003)

ENGINE…2-Cylinder, 4-Stroke, V 75°
Displacement…999,8 cc
Bore x Stroke…101 x 62,4 mm
Performance…122 HP / 9000 rpm
Max. torque…99 Nm / 7000 rpm
Compression ratio…11,8 : 1
Starter…E-starter
Transmission…6 gears, dog clutch engagement
Fuel…95 ROZ
Mixture conditioning… Electronic fuel injection
Control…DOHC
Valve…spur-gear driven tooth-type chain
Lubrication…Pressure circulation lubrication
Engine oil…Motorex Power Synt 4T, SAE 10W-50
Primary drive…67 : 35
Cooling…Liquid cooling
Clutch…Wet multi-plate clutch, hydraulically operated
Ignition…Denso battery ignition
Spark plug…NGK DCPR 8 E

CHASSIS
Frame…Chromium molybdenum tubular space frame, powder-coated
Subframe…Aluminum
Handlebar…Aluminum conified
Suspension front…WP-USD 48 Multi Adjuster
Suspension rear…WP- Multi Adjuster
Suspension travel front/rear…135 / 160 mm
Brake front…Double disc Ø 320 mm
Brake rear…Disc Ø 240 mm
Rim front/rear…3,5 x 17 ” / 5,5 x 17″
Tire front/rear…120/70 – 17″ / 180/55 – 17″
Transmission ratio…17:38
Battery…12 Ah
Steering head angle…66,5°
Wheelcaster…103 mm
Wheelbase…1438 mm
Ground clearance (unloaded)…165 mm
Seat height (unloaded)…855 mm
Tank capacity…approx. 15 l
Dry weight…approx. 179 kg
Weight (ready to race)…approx. 195 kg


660 SMS „FACTORY REPLICA”

This year the SMS will be offered in two different displacement models: 660 and also for the first time a 450cc. These motorcycles were built for racing and are not street-legal.

The 660 SMS is powered traditionally by the strong LC4 motor, with it is torque and sound performance. It is the ideal motorbike for the open class which it dominates mostly with private riders on a national level.

The 450 SMS, which is equipped with the well known racing motor from the enduro- and motorcross field, is adored for its agility and its light weight. It was therefore made to be THE bike for the small class, especially for young talents it allows the chance to show what they can do. It will be buildt on the base of a 450 Racing SX-basis with reinforced frame etc.

Features 660SMS
> Adjustable geometry of the chassis.
> Small plastic tank with single-piece carbon-spoiler-cowl for freedom of movement and first class handling. The reinforced seat base is made of carbon with an improved fit to increase stiffness and service life.
> Radiator air deflector guarantees an optimum of air supply.
> Carbon rear end with integrated air box is made of carbon to save additional weight, to increase the volume of the air box and to ease
the assembly of the air filter.
> Carbon front number plate for optimal aerodynamics and sleekly optic.
> The carbon used in all carbon parts is Boeing grade prepreg hardened at 180 degrees. The quality of the carbon fibre is up to aero space standard.
> 48mm WM SXS fork and SXS suspension strut with special layer and stiffer fork springs as well as improved tuning of the damping cater for a first class response. The setting was taken over directly from the factory team.
> Milled aluminum triple clamp.
> Racing Brembo brake system with milled 4-piston fixed brake caliper and 16mm radial pump.
> Dunlop slicks.
> Front brakes with cooling air scoop for optimal braking performance.
> Supermoto footrests for the enhancement of the inclined position.
> Akrapovic exhaust system with titanium silencer.

News 660SMS
> Highflow cylinder head.
> New positioning of the rear suspension reservoir for weight reduction, easier mounting and better access to the carburettor as well as a bigger range of excentric setting.
> Stainless steel seat mounting shackle for higher load carrying capacity and longevity.
> Adjusted exhaust mounting for enhanced torsional stiffness.
> Carbon rear end mounting with high strength aluminum alloy eye bolts.