From a press release issued by Fortuna Yamaha:

FORTUNA YAMAHA TEAM LEAVE JEREZ DISAPPOINTED WITH SPANISH WEATHER

The heavy downpours that have plagued the Fortuna Yamaha Team throughout their first test of 2003 continued today. The track in Jerez, Spain was so rain-soaked that there was no opportunity for riders Carlos Checa and Marco Melandri to venture out on their YZR-M1s.

“We have essentially wasted two testing days but now we will have a chance to go to Valencia”, said Team Director Davide Brivio. “At least we will return to Jerez for the IRTA test in February. I think we will have a chance to do some work then. Early feedback is important in winter but there is nothing we can do. Now we will evaluate whether we are able to slightly modify our testing plans before the first GP.”

The Fortuna Yamaha Team will test in Valencia, Spain on 25, 26 and 27 January.

From a press release issued by Kawasaki:

KAWASAKI NAMES TOM ORBE TO NEW V.P. MARKETING POSITION

New addition brings extensive automotive industry experience from Nissan and Ford

IRVINE, Calif. (Jan. 22, 2003)—Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A. today announced the addition of longtime automotive industry marketer, Tom Orbe, to its staff. Orbe joins Kawasaki as vice president, marketing and will, through an intermediate transition period, report to Bob Shepard, executive vice president, marketing group.

Most recently, Orbe was CEO and president of Marel, LLC, a Newport Beach-based management and marketing consulting organization. From 1982 to 2001, he held numerous positions with Nissan Motor Corporation U.S.A., most recently as vice president and general manager of the Infiniti Division. He also served as vice president of marketing with responsibility for both Nissan and Infiniti brand advertising, promotions, research, and pricing.

Orbe began his automotive career with Ford Motor Company, where he held several marketing and business management posts with both Lincoln-Mercury and the Ford Division.

He holds a Master of Business Administration with an emphasis in marketing/management from Monmouth University, and a Bachelor of Science, Marketing from Chaminade University.

From a press release issued by Kawasaki:

MCCOY RECOVERING – PITT PUSHING AHEAD

Phillip Island/AUS ­ Wednesday, January 22nd, 2003: After a heavy fall off his Fuchs Kawasaki Ninja ZX-RR on the first day of testing in Phillip Island, Australian Garry McCoy took the second day off in order to recover from heavy bruising and a mild concussion. Even though he didn’t feel well enough to ride, McCoy showed up at the race track in the afternoon to visit his Kawasaki Racing Team and to observe the preparations of his bike with a new chassis that finally had been released by the Melbourne customs authorities. Team-mate Andrew Pitt and test riders Akira Yanagawa and Alex Hofmann enjoyed a mainly sunny day with easing winds, and all three of them further improved their lap times.

Garry McCoy (did not ride):
“With concussion, you normally need two days of rest, and probably seven days without any sporting activities, which is why I preferred not to ride today. I do feel a little bit better, but obviously not 100 per cent, and after spending the afternoon in the paddock, I’m now going back to my hotel room. I hope to have another good night’s sleep, and we’ll see how I feel tomorrow. If I don’t feel too bad, I want to go out there and do a few laps, just to have confidence in riding the bike again. The next test is about a month away, and I would like to leave thinking about other things than just this crash. It’s the first time in my life that I have concussion, and I just want to forget about it and do some laps, even if I go slow. The other thing is that the new chassis that I wanted to use here didn’t arrive until lunchtime today anyway. Not riding gave the guys in my team a bit of extra time to get the bike fully prepared for tomorrow!”

Andrew Pitt (82 laps ­ best time in 1:33.70):
“The rear swing arm on my bike started to cause some sort of strange vibration, so we put a new one in for the afternoon, and the bike immediately felt better again. We also tried some tyres, and the ones that didn’t have that much grip were good fun, because they allowed me to slide and smoke some rubber on the exit of the fast last left-hand corner. But we also found a tyre that was working quite well, and as we made some more good steps with the set-up of the bike, I’m pretty happy. In the morning, I did my fastest lap in 1:33.7, which I couldn’t improve in the afternoon only because we were trying so many things. I¹ll have another go at a better time tomorrow morning!”

Akira Yanagawa (56 laps ­ best time in 1:33.86):
“My wife and my two children arrived today, and having my family around seems to make me faster ­ almost by another second! I did my best lap time on race tyres, because when I went out with a softer compound, it caused a small problem with the rear end pumping. This tyre has more grip for sure, but the pumping slowed me down. Today we also tried another gearbox set-up, which made the bike easier to ride. But we still have the rear end pumping and a problem with the injection system to fix. It’s not even easy to pin-point what was wrong with it, because the response when opening the throttle seemed to change all the time. We need to have a good look at our data to work it all out!”

Alex Hofmann (81 laps ­ best time in 1:35.22):
“We did a lot of tyre testing again, but the Dunlop container still seems to be full! There are a lot of details that we find here and there, and we are making steady progress. I’m happy because my lap time came down once again. I’m only one and a half seconds behind the other guys, which is certainly not bad with my older generation bike. I feel good on this track, and my only problem is that every time I go out, I have to adjust to different circumstances. But that’s what tyre testing is all about, and I keep learning a lot!”

Copyright 2003, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By David Swarts

Best Lap Times Compiled From Team Sources Following Recent Tests:

1. Valentino Rossi, Honda RC211V, 2:02.65
2. Max Biaggi, Honda RC211V, 2:02.8
3. Tohru Ukawa, Honda RC211V, 2:03.4
4. Daijiro Kato, Honda RC211V, 2:03.7
5. Loris Capirossi, Ducati Desmosedici, 2:03.9
6. Troy Bayliss, Ducati Desmosedici, 2:04.0
7. Sete Gibernau, Honda RC211V, 2:04.3
8. Kenny Roberts, Suzuki GSV-R, 2:05.1
9. John Hopkins, Suzuki GSV-R, 2:05.46
10. Nicky Hayden, Honda RC211V, 2:05.47
11. Shinichi Itoh, Honda RC211V, 2:05.6
12. Andrew Pitt, Kawasaki ZX-RR, 2:06.31
13. Garry McCoy, Kawasaki ZX-RR, 2:06.40
14. Makoto Tamada, Honda RC211V, 2:06.5
15. Alex Hofmann, Kawasaki ZX-RR, 2:06.62
16. Akira Yanagawa, Kawasaki ZX-RR, 2:06.73

2002 MotoGP Pole Position: Barros, Honda RC211V, 2:04.487

2002 MotoGP Circuit Best Lap: Barros, Honda RC211V, 2:04.376

2002 Race Fastest Lap: Max Biaggi, Yamaha YZR-M1, 2:04.925

From a press release:

Florida racer Marco Martinez is proud to announce the grand opening of Champion Motorcycle, a full service, high performance bike shop. Champion Motorcycle will provide a variety of services to include full service and repairs to cruisers, street, and race bikes, and sales of parts and accessories and used motorcycles. The shop will focus on high performance engine building and dyno tuning.

Champion Motorcycle is located at 11850 South State Road 84, Suites A11-A12, Davie, Florida, 33325, and will be open Monday through Friday from 9:00 am – 7:00 pm, and Saturdays from 10:00 am – 5:00 pm. The phone number is 954 236-5559, and the website address is championmotorcycle.com.

From a press release issued by MonsterMob Ducati:

TEAM MONSTERMOB TAKE TO THE TRACK

MonsterMob Ducati riders Shane Byrne and Stuart Easton finally got their hands on the Ducati machinery that they will contest their respective 2003 British Championships aboard, when they completed a successful two-day test at Valencia last weekend.

The 26-year-old Byrne was immediately impressed by the pair of brand new Ducati 998FO2 racebikes, which have been specially built for him at the Bologna factory over the winter, and despite treating the test primarily as a familiarisation exercise, the Isle of Sheppey rider was happy with his progress:

“It was a good test and ideal because it was at a circuit I’d never ridden at so I had nothing to compare it to. It was good to start working with the team and we tried a few different settings so I wasn’t particularly bothered about lap times. We ended up combining our ideas and we got a setting somewhere near to the one I want which is positive. I just can’t wait to get out on the bike again as I’m gagging to have another go!” declared ‘Shakey.’

Byrne was gradually upping the pace towards the end of the first day but weather conditions deteriorated on day two meaning he couldn’t go faster but the progress that was made was invaluable.

Meanwhile, defending Supersport champion Stuart Easton took to the reigns of his revamped 748 Ducati and was also on the pace at the Spanish circuit.

The 18-year-old Scot mixed it with a number of world Supersport regulars as he increased the pace but ended up sliding off his machine in the latter stages, luckily without injury:

“It was good to get back out on the bike again although I was disappointed to crash. I was just trying a little too hard and I lost the front” said the Hawick rider.

From a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM – PRESS INFORMATION
SEPANG (Malaysia)
22 January 2003

SEPANG TESTING CONCLUDES POSITIVELY FOR DUCATI
WITH IMPROVEMENTS FOR BOTH CAPIROSSI (2:03.9) AND BAYLISS (2:04.0)

The third and final day of testing at Malaysia’s Sepang circuit for the Ducati Marlboro Team was conditioned by the rain that had fallen overnight. As a result the final session began late morning, with high temperatures (air 30°C / track 40° C) and high humidity.

Capirossi and Bayliss immediately went out onto the track as soon as conditions allowed in order to complete the Desmosedici work schedule. Today mainly revolved around the accumulation of data and information for a bike that is still in its development phase and, for Bayliss in particular, who has never seen many of the circuits on the MotoGP calendar. This was the first appearance at Sepang for the Desmosedici, and losing half a day due to rain unfortunately means the loss of vital track time.

The tests however concluded with a positive balance sheet and evident satisfaction on the faces of the entire Ducati Marlboro Team.

“Three days of tests in an extreme climate provided us with useful information for the development of the engine and the bike” declared Ducati Corse Technical Director Filippo Preziosi. “In particular we obtained positive results regarding the engine reliability with high water temperatures. After this new experience, we can now continue with the development of the bike, trying to define the best settings for each type of circuit, but above all testing different solutions for the fundamental parts of the bike such as the frame, the swing-arm, the steering yoke and ergonomic components. We can only be satisfied with the times obtained as well as the information provided. Thanks to the professionalism demonstrated by Troy and Loris in giving feedback on the components being tested, we are making major progress in the development of this project.”

Both riders succeeded in improving their times on this final day of testing, in particular Troy Bayliss, who despite never having seen the circuit before, ended the test with a time of 2:04.0, improving his first day’s time by 2.5 seconds. Loris Capirossi was also on the pace, setting a 2:03.9 (the 2002 GP pole time was 2:04.4). The times recorded confirm the bike’s constant improvement and the positive feeling established by both riders with the Italian bike.

“I’m really happy with the tests and in particular with today’s results” declared Troy Bayliss. “I can see a constant improvement and being quicker than the first day by 2.5 seconds is confirmation of that. I’m establishing an excellent feeling with the bike, thanks also to a series of minor modifications to the set-up and riding position. There are still a lot of things to improve and I am sure than we can go even quicker. I can’t wait to go to Jerez to continue the development work. As well as the circuit, I’ve never been in such torrid heat before, you have to be really fit to race in these conditions.”

“If we consider that we have never been to the circuit before and had no reference data, the results are much better than expected” declared Loris at the end of the session. “We didn’t come here to set quick times, that would have been asking too much. Nevertheless we were able to work a lot on the set-up and try out different tyres and configurations. We still have a few traction problems with the tight curves on this track, but we are on the right path. We’re making constant progress and a couple more days testing would have given us the chance of doing a fantastic job. To sum up, the test was important and we obtained a lot of information. We are up there with the rest and we have a lot of potential to improve, I can see it’s going to be a great championship.”

From a press release issued by Yamaha Belgarda:

Big Changes At Yamaha Belgarda

Amsterdam, Netherlands
22/1/2003

Team Yamaha Belgarda have signed MotoGP star Jurgen van den Goorbergh to spearhead their 2003 Supersport World Championship campaign. The 33-year-old Dutchman attended last weekend’s team test in Valencia, Spain, where he showed great promise aboard the new 2003 YZF-R6.

The good news of Jurgen’s arrival comes at a sad time for the team as they learn of the departure of riders Paolo Casoli and Jamie Whitham, who will both be retiring from racing for health reasons.

Casoli has spent the winter months convalescing from a cranial trauma he sustained in a crash while testing last November. This week a full neurological examination by Professor Carlo Bollini at the Bellaria Hospital in Bologna has shown the 37-year-old Italian is completely over the trauma but retains some mild tissue damage (anencephaly) which, in the case of another crash, could lead to more serious complications. Casoli, who in all other respects can lead a normal, healthy life, has chosen to follow the advice of his doctors and retire from racing.

“The doctors have been very honest, they told me that if I crashed again I could have big problems and ruin my future; this is too much of a risk that I don’t feel like taking,” explained Casoli. “I am very sad to leave in this way after 20 years of racing at the highest level. In 2003 I would have had a very fast Yamaha, new tyres and the ambition to win the Supersport World Championship. I couldn’t wait to face this challenge. But I have to think about my family, too, they are my main reason for life. I have a son, a wife and wonderful parents who would have worried too much knowing the risks I was taking. So I prefer to stop.”

By an unlucky twist of fate, Paolo’s team-mate Jamie Whitham, another 20-year veteran of racing, has also seen his career cut short by health concerns: This time glaucoma of the left eye. At the end of last season he first encountered slight vision difficulties and sought medical treatment, though the full impact of the problem has only now become evident. Jamie maintains near normal vision for daily activities but the impairment becomes more acute during the stresses of top-level competitive racing and this has led to his decision to retire. Doctors have suggested that the cause of the problem may be the chemotherapy treatment that Whitham received in 1995 after being diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease – a form of lymphatic cancer, from which he made a full recovery.

“I was aware of this problem at the end of last season and discussed it with the team,” said Whitham. “I didn’t notice it again during the first two winter tests when we were in the wet and riding quite slow, but it became a problem while I was testing at full speed in the dry last weekend. I just can’t give that last 10% with any confidence – and confidence is what racing is all about. I wouldn’t want to put myself or anyone else in danger, plus the guys at Belgarda are more like a family than a team and they deserve to have a rider who is 100% fit. I know the bike is going to be good – good enough to win the championship – so it’s important that they have the best possible rider. It’s been a really hard decision to make – I’ve been racing all my life and all my friends are in racing. I know I’ve got be philosophical but I’m really going to miss it.”

Claudio Consonni, Yamaha Belgarda’s racing director, admitted to feelings of both pleasure and pain by the developments: “I feel split down the middle today. I feel very sad to see two such great riders and friends as Paolo and Jamie leave. We are very close to them both and hope they will remain part of the Belgarda extended family. On the one hand it‘s very exciting for us to have signed Jurgen and I’m sure he will be give us a great chance at the title this year. He has the right skill and mentality and we are very optimistic.”

Asked about his move from MotoGP to Supersport, Jurgen had the following to say: “After MotoGP I think World Supersport is the most important and competitive race class, where all major manufacturers are represented. I have already tested the new R6 and have a very positive feeling for both the bike and the team. It can’t be easy for such a close team to lose both riders at once, I’m aware I have a big gap to fill and certainly hope I can meet the challenge.” Together with his army of enthusiastic Dutch race fans, Jurgen will be supported in his challenge of the 2003 Supersport World Championship title by Yamaha Motor Netherlands.

Yamaha Belgarda will test with 24-year-old Italian, Simone Sanna, on the 26th and 27th of January in Valencia. The ex-GP125 rider has already had trials on World Superbike machinery this past winter with impressive results.

Jurgen van den Goorbergh profile
Since making his grand prix debut in the 1991 250cc French Grand Prix, Jurgen van den Goorbergh has finished the top privateer in the 250cc and 500cc World Championships on four occasions. After accomplishing this accolade for two consecutive seasons in the 250cc class, he switched to the 500s in 1997 and subsequently achieved two pole position qualifications (Barcelona and Brno in 1999) and has started from the front row of the grid a total of seven times. For last year’s MotoGP season the Dutchman achieved his first full factory ride and despite season-long difficulties with tyre development, he finished inside the top ten on four occasions, qualified on the front row in Australia and finished an equal career best fifth at the same race. Van den Goorbergh’s extensive racing history and experience in bike development are expected to give Yamaha’s new YZF-R6 every opportunity for success in the coming season.

Jurgen van den Goorbergh biography
Date of Birth: 29 December 1969
Place of Birth: Breda, Holland
Resides: Monaco
Marital Status: Married to Misha
Height/Weight: 1.74m / 65kg
Hobbies: Training (cycling, running, weights), skiing, enduro, trials
Favourite Circuits: Suzuka, Phillip Island, Brno
First Race: 1988 Yamaha TZR250 Cup Race
GP Debut: 1991 French Grand Prix 250cc

Career
2003: Yamaha Belgarda World Supersport Team – YZF-R6
2002: MotoGP World Championship – 13th, 5th place in Phillip Australia
2001: World 500cc Championship – 13th
2000: World 500cc Championship – 13th
Best Privateer
1999: World 500cc Championship – 16th
Qualified on pole position in Barcelona & Brno
1998: World 500cc Championship – 15th
Best Privateer
1997: World 500cc Championship –19th
1996: World 125cc Championship – 11th
Best Privateer
1994: World 250cc Championship – 17th
World 250cc Championship – 12th
Best Privateer
1993: World 250cc Championship – 32nd
1992: World 250cc Championship – 25th
1991: First GP 250cc France – 18th
Dutch Championship 250cc – 1st
European Championship 250cc – 3rd
1990: Dutch Championship 250cc – 2nd (Yamaha)
European Championship 250cc – 5th
1989: Dutch Championship 250cc – third (Yamaha)
Benelux Championship 250cc – 1st
1988: First race: Yamaha TZR Cup – 3rd
1986: Started race training with a RD350cc
1973: First ride in trials (aged four)

From a press release issued by Honda Canada:

Honda Canada Inc. /Orion Motorsports announce Superbike plans for 2003

Orion Motorsports is pleased to announce, in conjunction with Honda Canada Inc., Parts Canada, Hindle Exhausts, Alpinestars and HJC plans for the 2003 racing season.

Honda Canada and Orion Motorsports have re-signed teenage sensation Kevin Lacombe of Granby, Quebec to ride for the team in 2003. 600 Sportbike champion runner-up in 2002, Lacombe will be back to compete on a new spec Honda RC 51 as well as the all new CBR 600RR. Lacombe has been spending the off-season racing his CR 250 and CRF 450 in the Quebec Ice Racing Championships.

Lacombe’s teammate for 2003 will be Queensland, Australia native Robbie Baird. Thirty-one year old Baird has also signed on to ride the new spec RC 51 and the all new CBR 600RR in 2003. Robbie is the reigning Australian Formula Xtreme champion (Australia’s version of Superbike) and blazed to an amazing seven wins and 4 pole positions during 2002. While he did not compete regularly in the 600 class, he still managed to show his 600 style by winning the Phillip Island Grand Prix round of the 600 Australian supersport championships.

Team manager Kevin Graham is very excited about the 2003 season. “I’m very happy with our line-up so far. Both, Kevin and Robbie were easy decisions for a team manager to make. Both riders are friendly, outgoing and very fast riders. Each is capable of displaying just how spectacular our Honda Sportbike line-up is for 2003. With the new spec RC 51 and all new CBR 600RR coming, we knew that we would have the bikes to beat and now we have the riders to do the job.”

Testing for the team will begin in late January at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway where Robbie and Kevin will test the new-spec RC 51 and all-new CBR 600RR.

The Honda Canada/Orion Motorsports team is very happy to announce the extension of its relationship with distributor Parts Canada. Both Kevin Lacombe and Robbie Baird will be sporting the new line of Alpinestar leathers, boots and gloves and will also be wearing HJC helmets in 2003.

Crew chief for Kevin Lacombe and team fuel injection specialist, Scott Petrie is back with the team for a second season. Honda 600 guru, Bill Rising will be spinning wrenches on Lacombe’s CBR 600RR in hopes of gaining another 600 championship for Honda Canada.

Andrew Cuttler will be head man for new recruit Robbie Baird. Andy is excited about working with the all-powerful RC 51’s and is elated to have the chance to work with the Aussie ace. Robbie’s 600 mechanic will be announced shortly. Tina Lewis will also be continuing with the team in 2003 assisting with logistics and maintaining the team’s web page.

Negotiations are currently underway to add a third rider to the team. A corporate partner will be named as title sponsor of the team and will be announced in the coming weeks. Please click on to www.orionmotorsports.ca and www.cdnsuperbike.ca for regular updates, photos and progress with the team.

From a press release issued by Pramac Honda Press Information:

Sepang – (Malaysia) – 20/21/22 January 2003

Private tests

Wednesday 22 January

Last day of tests for the Pramac Honda team in the heat of Sepang.

Despite the thunderstorms during the night, the heat was still scorching for the final day of tests in Malaysia, where Makoto Tamada and Shinichi Itoh have been making their debut on Bridgestone-tyred Honda RC 211Vs. The very damp track dried out only in the early afternoon, and almost all the riders at Sepang went out on their bikes only at 1:30 p.m. So it was a very intense afternoon for the Pramac Honda team and for Bridgestone, who nevertheless did manage to complete their programme. In view of the huge amount of data collected and the number of materials tested in the three-day session, the initial results are considered to be very positive. Tamada and Itoh also clocked up 165 and 170 kilometres respectively over the three days. It is as though they had both completed 8 Grand Prix races at Sepang, where the World Championship race is 21 laps.

Lots of kilometres and lots of data, which has made the Bridgestone technicians very happy, as Mr. Hiroshi Yamada, manager of the motorcycle racing division of the Japanese tyre manufacturer confirmed: “We’ve gathered some extremely important data that will let us proceed with development work on our MotoGP and four-stroke project. We now have a clear idea of Makoto Tamada’s style of riding. This will let us focus our research more precisely to adapt to his style and, in more general terms, to find the best way to make further progress. We tried out a number of solutions for the rear tyre and they showed that the new model created for the MotoGP has much better balance and far greater grip than what we were using last year. We haven’t done duration tests yet, but the first results are very interesting. We know we’ve got plenty of work to do at ‘home’ to prepare for the next tests, but it’s always like that when you’re developing a new project.”

Makoto Tamada: 2:06.5 – “I’m pleased with these three days of tests, even though I still haven’t found the perfect set-up for my bike. I’m not worried about it though, because I know my potential and these tests helped me get a better feeling for the bike and adapt it to my aggressive style of braking. We’ve got lots of information from these tests that will help us improve even further in the next sessions.”

Shinichi Itoh: 2:06.5 – “I tried out many different tyres and different solutions to get a good idea about everything we need to analyse. I think I’ve been able to do a good job, and we’ve sure got a huge amount of data. I think we’ll soon be able to bridge the gap between us and the leaders.”

The next session of tests for the Pramac Honda team will be in mid-February