Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By David Swarts

Graves Motorsports Yamaha’s Chuck Graves won four of the five WSMC races that he entered Sunday at Willow Springs International Raceway, including the featured Toyota Cup WSMC Unlimited Formula One Grand Prix.

Riding a Yamaha YZF-R6 and a Yamaha YZF-R7/R1 hybrid Superbike, both on Dunlop tires, Graves won in Roadracing World 600cc Superstock, 600cc Modified Production, Open Superbike and the 10-lap Formula One final.

In the Formula One race, Graves led Jeremy Toye, Stoney Landers, Jack Pfeifer, Richard Headley and Kevin Lacombe into the first corner. Graves, Toye and Headley pulled away from the field just before Headley slowed with a blister on the 16.5-inch Dunlop rear slick of his 2002 Ducati 998RS Teststretta.

In winning, Graves led every lap with Toye, riding a Superstock Suzuki GSX-R750 on Dunlop slicks, never more than a few bikelengths behind. Headley held on for third ahead of GSX-R750-mounted Landers, Pfeifer, Lacombe, Vincent Haskovec on a Ducati 748RS, Clinton Whitehouse, Stephen Hewitt and Claudio Szyszkowski.

The only time Graves was beaten during the day came in the Hyper-Club WSMC Formula Two Grand Prix. Graves took the early lead and looked set to runaway with low-1:24 lap times, but Haskovec charged through the field on his new Ducati to catch Graves on lap five of six. Haskovec and Graves went back and forth several times in the final laps, before Haskovec led out of the final corner on the last lap. Graves was in the perfect position for a draft pass to the line but came up inches short. Haskovec won in a line call over Graves with young gun Jason Perez third on a Suzuki GSX-R600, Robbie Dowie fourth on another Suzuki GSX-R600 and Roadracing World Editor John Ulrich fifth on a Yamaha TZ250.

Nicolodi Racing’s Haskovec also won the red-flag-shortened Formula Twins race on his Ducati 748. The Formula Twins race was marred by a bad crash in high-speed turn nine when Formula Twins class leader Headley tried to overtake a 250cc Grand Prix class competitor, Keith Almond, late in the race. (The Formula Twins field started as a second wave behind 250cc Grand Prix and ahead of the 125cc Grand Prix third wave.)

According to Headley, he was trying to pass Almond on the outside of the final corner when TZ250 rider Almond pushed wide, the two made contact and went tumbling off into the run-off area at over 100 mph. Headley was relatively uninjured. According to Race Director Danny Farnsworth, Almond had “somewhat stable” vital signs but was unconscious when he was airlifted to a local hospital.

Other WSMC race winners on the day included Lee’s Cycle’s Jeremy Toye (750cc Modified Production, 750cc Supestock), Dianetics’ Stoney Landers (750cc Superbike), Team Orthopedics’ Jack Pfeifer (Open Modified Production, Open Superstock), Concept 5’s Jason Perez (650cc Superbike) and Frank Aragaki (250cc Grand Prix).

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

South African 125cc Grand Prix Results:

1. Manuel Poggiali, Gilera, 41:26.120, 24 laps
2. Arnaud Vincent, Aprilia, +0.270 second
3. Daniel Pedrosa, Honda, +0.826 second
4. Steve Jenkner, Aprilia, +1.098 seconds
5. Pablo Nieto, Aprilia, +1.187 seconds
6. Alex De Angelis, Aprilia, 1.583 seconds
7. Gino Borsoi, Aprilia, +1.830 seconds
8. Simone Sann, Aprilia, +12.839 seconds
9. Masao Azuma, Honda, +13.942 seconds
10. Andrea Dovizioso, Honda, +19.201 seconds

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

South African Grand Prix 250cc Results:

1. Marco Melandri, Aprilia, 42:52.972, 26 laps
2. Franco Battaini, Aprilia, +2.962 seconds
3. Fonsi Nieto, Aprilia, +5.213 seconds
4. Roberto Rolfo, Honda, +6.290 seconds
5. Roberto Locatelli, Aprilia, +6.675 seconds
6. Randy De Puniet, Aprilia, +8.102 seconds
7. Emilio Alzamora, Honda, +22.571 seconds
8. Sebastian Porto, Yamaha, +24.171 seconds
9. Alex Debon, Aprilia, +28.161 seconds
10. David Checa, Aprilia, +36.261 seconds
11. Naoki Matsudo, Yamaha, +47.211 seconds
12. Jay Vincent, Honda, +47.886 seconds
13. Haruchika Aoki, Honda, +53.106 seconds
14. Dirk Heidolf, Aprilia, +62.767 seconds
15. Leon Haslam, Honda, +64.093 seconds
16. Toni Elias, Aprilia, +73.435 seconds
17. Jarno Janssen, Honda, + 1 lap


More, from an Aprilia press release:

MS Aprilia Racing Press Information
2002 MotoGP World Championship
Welkom (RSA) 19/20/21 April 2002
250 Class – Sunday 21 April

Sensational victory for Marco Melandri at Welkom

Three Aprilia 250s on the podium.

A clean win by Marco “Macio” Melandri whose roar was heard loud and clear in the land of lions. Three Aprilia 250s on the rostrum: Battaini 2nd, Nieto 3rd. The last time Aprilia made a clean sweep of the podium was in Barcelona, 1998 (Rossi-Harada-Capirossi).

Marco built up his victorious strategy with a shrewd choice of race tyres – very hard on both front and rear. To this he added a great launch off the line and a gradual build-up which enabled him to increase his lead over the pack with stunning perseverance, until he was over eight seconds clear. Once he had a good gap, Marco just had to think about keeping his cool and concentration right the way through to the chequered flag.

This is Macio’s second victory in the 250 class, which he adds to another seven victories in 125.

Marco Melandri # 3 (MS APRILIA RACING) – 1st – 42’38.066

“Hard tyres for the race and a fast start: after three laps I realised I could move out ahead and gradually build up to make my escape. The most important thing in the second half of the race was to keep up my concentration, and indeed I lowered my pace even though the tyres would have let me stay down at 1′ 37” . I wanted to keep my advantage under control and, at this point, I decided on a “tactical” race. The bike and engine were as generous as ever, even though it felt like I had 500 revs less when I got onto the track, but then it cleaned out and everything went fine. It was hot and the tyres slipped, but I had no problems. I’m really happy: this result has paid off a lot of hard work I did this winter preparing for the championship. I made an enormous effort, so I think I’ll dedicate this important victory to myself. The entire team did a fantastic job. A lot of work was done during the test sessions over the past few days, and we sure saw the results today.”

Marco Melandri
Victories: 9 (2 –250) (7 – 125)
Poles: 7 (1 –250) (6 – 125)
Podiums: 31 (14 – 250) (17 – 125)

Fujiwara on pole at home round

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

By Glenn Le Santo

Japanese World Supersport rider Katsuaki Fujiwara will start Sunday’s
World Supersport race from pole position.


Fujiwara claimed pole after winning a fierce qualifying battle with Suzuki team mate Stephane Chambon, who finished second fastest. Last year’s race winner Paolo Casoli will start from third on the grid and Honda UK rider Karl Muggeridge claimed his first front row start of the season.

Fabien Foret was pushed back onto the second row after a day spent struggling with chattering problems. Another rider suffering from chatter was Yamaha rider James Whitham who qualified back in ninth. “It feels like I’ve got a square back wheel, I could get off and push it around some corners faster!” grumbled the British rider.

Wild Card rider Tatsuya Yamaguchi collided with Iain MacPherson and won’t start tomorrow’s race. MacPherson was unhurt but after three crashes in one weekend he’s down to one bike for Sunday’s free practice and race. Christian Kellner is also doubtful for the race after a massive crash in qualifying.

World Supersport Final Qualifying Times:

1. Katsuaki Fujiwara, Suzuki, 1:32.334
2. Stephane Chambon, Suzuki, 1:32.369
3. Paolo Casoli, Yamaha, 1:32.506
4. Karl Muggeridge, Honda, 1:32.607
5. Fabien Foret, Honda, 1:32.853
6. Chris Vermeulen, Honda, 1:32.890
7. Piergiorgio Bontempi, Ducati, 1:32.989
8. Christian Kellner, Yamaha, 1:33.079
9. Jamie Whitham, Yamaha, 1:33.155
10. Werner Daemen, Honda, 1:33.161
11. Tatsuya Yamaguchi, Honda, 1:33.371
12. Alessio Corradi, Yamaha, 1:33.375
13. Andrew Pitt, Kawasaki, 1:33.384
14. Iain MacPherson, Honda, 1:33.402
15. Jorg Teuchert, Yamaha, 1:33.437
16. David De Gea, Honda, 1:33.880
17. Kevin Curtain, Yamaha, 1:33.925
18. Stefano Cruciani, Yamaha, 1:34.175
19. Antonio Carlacci, Yamaha, 1:34.460
20. James Ellison, Kawasaki, 1:34.613

More from a Ten Kate Honda press release:

Ten Kate Honda still searching for ideal Sugo set up

Things didn’t go according to plan for the Ten Kate Honda team at Sugo today. After a successful first day’s qualifying the team took a step
backwards as unexpected problems beset the last session of qualifying.

“We all expected a little more from final qualifying,” admitted Team Manager Ronald ten Kate. “Iain MacPherson had bad luck today, he had
only ridden three laps before an unfortunate collision with one of the Wild Card riders wrecked his bike. We had hoped to get him into a rhythm so he could build up to a good qualifying performance but the crash threw those plans out of the window. With only one bike and not a lot of
time left in the session it was a real struggle for Iain.”

MacPherson confirmed Ronald ten Kate’s sentiments, “I’m just not having any luck this weekend,” said MacPherson. “I haven’t been able to
complete as many laps as I needed to all weekend. In final qualifying I only managed three laps before I got tangled up with Yamaguchi and
crashed.” Later, on his spare bike, MacPherson looked set for the front row as he raced through the first three splits only marginally off the
pole pace. Unfortunately a big slide stopped his charge. This time MacPherson’s luck held and he saved the slide without crashing.

Fabien Foret just missed a front row start when fellow Honda rider Karl Muggeridge pushed him off the front row late in the session.

“We took a step backwards on set up today,” observed Foret. “Yesterday things seemed to be going in the right direction but the changes we made today reversed our progress. I would have liked to have got on the front row but the race is the important thing. Now we need to work hard to try to get things right for the race.”

Ronald ten Kate realises there’s plenty of work still to be done before Sunday’s 25 lap race, “We want to give our riders the best possible set
up for the race so they can both show their true potential. We have a great package, the two riders, the Pirelli tyres, the WP Suspension and
the Honda CBR600FS bikes, they are all first class components. But we just need to find the set up that allows them all to work together
properly. You can be sure the whole team will work very hard to achieve that goal.”

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

First to 19th separated by 1.5 seconds!

Final MotoGP Qualifying Times:

1. Valentino Rossi, Honda RC211V, 1:34.660
2. Loris Capirossi, Honda NSR500, 1:34.692
3. Tohru Ukawa, Honda RC211V, 1:34.875
4. Max Biaggi, Yamaha YZR-M1, 1:35.064
5. Garry McCoy, Yamaha YZR500, 1:35.378
6. Kenny Roberts, Suzuki GSV-R, 1:35.396
7. Carlos Checa, Yamaha YZR-M1, 1:35.476
8. Shinya Nakano, Yamaha YZR500, 1:35.508
9. Olivier Jacque, Yamaha YZR50, 1:35.554
10. Sete Gibernau, Suzuki GSV-R, 1:35.560
11. Nobuatsu Aoki, Proton KR3, 1:35.695
12. Jurgen vd Goorbergh, Honda NSR500, 1:35.717
13. Alex Barros, Honda NSR500, 1:35.718
14. Daijiro Katoh, Honda NSR500, 1:35.728
15. Norick Abe, Yamaha YZR500, 1:35.804
16. Jeremy McWilliams, Proton KR3, 1:35.995
17. John Hopkins, Yamaha YZR500, 1:36.092
18. Regis Laconi, Aprilia RS3, 1:36.161
19. Tetsuya Harada, Honda NSR500, 1:36.164
20. Pere Riba, Yamaha YZR500, 1:37.623


More, from an Aprilia press release:

MS Aprilia Racing Press Information
2002 MotoGP World Championship
Welkom (RSA) 19/20/21 April 2002
MotoGP – Saturday 20 April – qualifying sessions

Cube makes progress with each session. Eighteenth place does little justice to painstaking work by technicians and Régis Laconi

Eighteenth place on the starting grid hardly does justice to the enormous work done by Régis Laconi and the technicians who have been working with such dedication on the RS Cube. Yet progress has been made in every session over the last two days. The top speed recorded today in the final qualifying sessions – 1:36.161 is just 1.5 seconds from Rossi’s pole. It is worth noticing how, after Suzuka, today’s grid has all the competitors grouped within a bare 2.9 sec. Just the slightest improvement on the fast lap would make it possible to move up some precious places. During the free practice in the morning, Régis immediately lowered yesterday’s qualifying time and, on a number of occasions, he went flat out for the fastest lap time. In his penultimate attempt, after a few in which he was held up by heavy traffic, he managed to squeeze into 15th provisional place. Unfortunately he did not manage to make the final rush he needed to ensure a better starting position.
# 55 Régis Laconi – (MS APRILIA RACING) – 18th 1:37.536
“Yet again we improved on the morning, taking off over a second, but it still wasn’t enough to claim a better place on the grid tomorrow. I needed just a few wee tenths to move up the ratings. Sometimes a bit of traffic, but never a really good group to latch onto and make use of for the fast lap. I prepared the bike for the race with very hard tyres: they give a bit less grip at the outset, but last much better over long distances. The work we’ve done on the set-up is great, and the Cube behaved perfectly over the rough track, even when entering the second curve in the sector where you’re breaking all the way. In view of tomorrow’s race, today’s performance was positive: we’re one and a half seconds from the pole, which just shows we’re able to make excellent progress. The warm-up will be useful to get the last few details sorted out. Then the Cube will be off on the second race in her still very young life.”


And now this from John Hopkins:

“I’m very happy with the time that I got today. It’s amazing how close the times are and I’m excited because I’m only 1.4 seconds off pole which is my best yet. I’m improving little by little. This morning, we tested the tires and found what we were going to use for the race. Set up wise, we tested here and there but decided to use the same original set up from yesterday
afternoon. This morning’s session, we did half of a race distance on the tire we chose for the race and Garry and I actually decided on the same one. I got down to a pretty descent lap time. I went a bit faster then the Friday session. The track is getting better now that we’ve been on it more. When we first got on it Friday, it had about a half inch of dirt all around. It’s a key element to stay on line cause’ there is a good chance you could go down. It’s going to be really hard to pass, so a good start will lead to a good
race.

“During the qualifying session, the last 25 minutes, we were using softer and softer tires until I got a good rythm going. I was able to put in a strong lap time on a qualifier on the last lap which was completely by myself. The track is as bumpy as Loudon, without riding on the oval yet similar to Willow Springs. All in all, the tests have been good, and looking forward to tomorrows race.”

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

250cc Qualifying Times:

1. Franco Battaini, Aprilia, 1:37.604
2. Marco Melandri, Aprilia, 1:38.066
3. Roberto Rolfo, Honda, 1:38.118
4. Randy De Puniet, Aprilia, 1:38.134
5. Fonsi Nieto, Aprilia, 1:38.185
6. Raul Jara, Aprilia, 1:38.542
7. Roberto Locatelli, Aprilia, 1:38.546
8. Casey Stoner, Aprilia, 1:38.624
9. Alex Debon, Aprilia, 1:38.657
10. Naoki Matsuda, Yamaha, 1:38.792
11. Emilio Alzamora, Honda, 1:38.798
12. Sebastian Porto, Yamaha, 1:38.814
13. Horuchika Aoki, Honda, 1:38.943
14. David Checa, Aprilia, 1:39.152
15. Toni Elias, Aprilia, 1:39.304

125cc Qualifying Times:

1. Daniel Pedrosa, Honda, 1:42.522
2. Manuel Poggiali, Gilera, 1:42.580
3. Pablo Nieto, Aprilia, 1:42.588
4. Arnaud Vincent, Aprilia, 1:42.614
5. Lucio Cecchinello, Aprilia, 1:42.852
6. Steve Jenkner, Aprilia, 1:42.975
7. Angel Rodriguez, Aprilia, 1:43.152
8. Gino Borsoi, Aprilia, 1:43.164
9. Jaroslav Hules, Aprilia, 1:43.216
10. Stefano Bianco, Aprilia, 1:43.219

More from an Aprilia press release:

MS Aprilia Racing Press Information
2002 MotoGP World Championship
Welkom (RSA) 19/20/21 April 2002
250 Class – Saturday 20 April – Qualifying Sessions
Marco Melandri second fastest in qualifying sessions. Eight Aprilia 250s in top nine places.
Right from the early stages of the free practice in the morning,
an all-out battle was fought for the very top end of the ratings. Marco Melandri repeated the feat he managed to pull off yesterday, making the quickest time in the session. Then came the afternoon qualifying sessions but, near the end, intense traffic prevented Macio from bringing to bear all the potential at his disposal and he failed to make first place. So Marco is second. He was fastest on race tyres and will be out on the front row of the grid tomorrow.
Pole goes to Franco Battaini (Aprilia) – 3rd Rolfo (Honda) – 4th De Puniet (Aprilia).
Marco Melandri # 3 (MS APRILIA RACING) – 2nd – 1’38.066
“I did the last ten minutes of the session in first gear. What I mean is I was often blocked by a number of other riders. That’s when things get really hot and everyone’s trying to climb up and go even faster, then they slow down, try to tailgate those in front, and then shoot off again. In these conditions – on the borderline of fair play – it’s hard to find a free piece of track and go for pole. The bike’s fine – I’m really pleased, because the indications we picked up yesterday were right and got us working in the right direction. The bike in its race configuration is all set to go, so I’m confident about tomorrow. This is an important race: the best riders didn’t post that many points in Suzuka, so we’ll be starting off about level.”

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Haga makes it two home riders on pole in Sugo

By Glenn Le Santo

Noriyuki Haga set the fastest Superpole time at Sugo to join Japanese Supersport rider Fujiwara on pole for tomorrow’s racing.

Haga put in a sensational lap at 1:28.806 to finish Superpole just ahead of provisional pole sitter Neil Hodgson, who was a fraction behind at 1:28.823. The Ducati riders appeared to be losing time at the chicane, Hodgson had been a couple of hundredths of a second up on Haga until the final spilt.

Hodgson had his own unique explanation for his slight loss of time in the last split, “I did a race simulation in the warm up, a full 25 laps. Consequently I got into the habit of just taking it slightly easier out of the chicane. In Superpole I didn’t open the throttle quite hard enough–as if I was on race tyres. That probably cost me pole position.”

Haga is in determined mood for the race, “It’s very important for me to win here at my home track,” said ‘Nitro’ Nori who says he has no problems with the chicane, “I love chicanes, I’ll be really aggressive there and try to win the race that way.”

Makato Tamada made it two Japanese riders on the front row by taking third on the grid. Tamada won both races on his Cabin Honda last year and declared that he’ll do his best to repeat that performance again this year.

Ben Bostrom was fourth fastest to make it two Ducatis on the front row. Ben’s brother Eric finished Superpole down in eighth on his Kawasaki.

Ruben Xaus had another disastrous Superpole, coming 12th and behind teammate Troy Bayliss, who’s seventh on the grid for tomorrow’s races.

World Superbike Superpole
Sugo, Japan 20 April 20, 2002

Superpole times:

1. Noriyuki Haga, Aprilia RSV1000 1:28.806
2. Neil Hodgson, Ducati 998, 1:28.823
3. Makoto Tamada, Honda RC51, 1:28.861
4. Ben Bostrom, Ducati 998, 1:29.216
5. Colin Edwards, Honda RC51, 1:29.259
6. Akira Yanagawa, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, 1:29.545
7. Troy Bayliss, Ducati 998, 1:29.626
8. Eric Bostrom, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, 1:29.914
9. Takeshi Tsujimura, Yamaha YZF-R7, 1:29.981
10. Wataru Yoshikawa, Yamaha YZF-R7, 1:30.188
11. James Toseland, Ducati 998, 1:30.287
12. Ruben Xaus, Ducati 998, 1:30.377
13. Yuichi Takeda, Honda RC51, 1:30.745
14. Chris Walker, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, 1:30.796
15. Gregorio Lavilla, Suzuki GSX-R750, 1:30.918
16. Lucio Pedercini, Ducati 998, 1:31.291

And the rest of the grid:

17. Hitoyasu Izutsu, Kawasaki ZX-7RR, 1:29.612
18. Juan Borja, Ducati 998, 1:30.593
19. Marco Borciani, Ducati 998, 1:30.762
20. Mark Heckles, Honda RC51, 1:31.620
21. Kenichiro Nakamura, Honda RC51, 1:31.830
22. Alessandro Antonello, Ducati 998, 1:32.012
23. Steve Martin, Ducati 998, 1:32.117
24. Ivan Clementi, Kaw ZX-7RR, 1:32.190
25. Broc Parkes, Duc 998, 1:32.226
26. Mauro Sanchini, Kaw ZX-7RR, 1:32.573


More, from an Aprilia press release:

SUPERBIKE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP – Fourth Round

JAPAN – Sugo Circuit, 3,737 m. – Second Qualifying Sessions

APRILIA IN POLE POSITION FOR JAPAN GP

SUGO (Japan), Saturday 20 April 2002 – Sensational pole position for Aprilia in the Japan GP, in the fourth round of the World Superbike Championship in Sugo. On the home circuit of the Japanese manufacturers, all officially participating in the production-bike championship, Noriyuki Haga took the Playstation2-FGF Aprilia Team RSV Mille to top spot in the ratings with a fantastic 1’28″806 lap, seven tenths from the official track record. For Aprilia, in the Superbike championship since 2000, this is the first pole at Sugo, and its eighth overall. Noriyuki Haga scores the second pole in his career, his first at home. The others on the front row will be Hodgson (Ducati), Tamada (Honda) and Bostrom (Ducati). World champion Bayliss (Ducati) made seventh time and will be launching his bike from second row.

MORALE AT ALL-TIME HIGH – Haga sliced six tenths off the fastest lap Aprilia had made on this track in 2001, demonstrating the remarkable progress made on the V2 from Noale. The Japanese ace also notched up some great laps in race configuration – the battle will be fought out in two 25-lap legs on the 3,737-metre Sugo circuit.

NORIYUKI HAGA (Playstation2 – FGF Aprilia Team rider) said: “I’d already made pole in Spain, in ’98, but the session was a bit mixed up by the rain: I rode on the dry, and all the others in the wet. So I really consider this as my first time. Making pole at Sugo, my home track, is just fantastic. I’d like to dedicate this pole position to Aprilia, to my team and to my family who’ve come out in force. Now we need to concentrate on the race: I’ve never won two legs on the same day, and I’d just love to have the satisfaction…”

GIACOMO GUIDOTTI (Technical Manager, Playstation2 – FGF Aprilia Team) commented: “We’re very excited about this result: we’ve done our utmost to get it since the season kicked off with some difficulties. The key to the race is in the tyres: we’re trying to find a set-up that’ll let us keep up a fast pace throughout the race. We’ve done some tests and we’re pretty satisfied. We have two different tactics to choose from: a really fast start to get out ahead, or we keep the tyres for the final fight, which we think is going to be very tough. Even so, we’re under no illusion: it’s going to be a very hard race. We’ll make the finishing touches during the warm-up to give Noriyuki all the potential he needs.”


More, from a HM Plant Ducati press release:

Superbike World Championship
Round four: Sugo, Japan
Saturday 20 April 2002
Qualifying/Superpole

Hodgson scorches to second placed start at Sugo

HM Plant Ducati/GSE Racing star Neil Hodgson clocked an incredible time of 1:28.823 in his flying Superpole lap around the 3.74-mile Sugo circuit to claim second place on the grid for Sunday’s races. His team-mate James Toseland made a solid improvement upon his earlier times and will start from 11th.

Hodgson was just edged out of the prime starting position by home turf rider Noriyuki Haga – the margin was just 0.017s. After topping the timesheets during the second practice session, and in the process setting the second fastest ever lap time at the track, the HM Plant Ducati/GSE Racing rider stormed to Superpole glory aboard his Ducati 998 F 01.

“Sugo is extremely technical but also massively rewarding,” said the 28-year-old Burnley-born rider, “and the chicane is totally unique. Some of the turns also have a useful camber, so I’m carrying a huge amount of speed through them. Roberto [Bonazzi], my Chief Engineer from Ducati Corse has been fantastic – he’s managed to help me find a great set-up that works really well on race and qualifying tyres. Dunlop has also done a really good job here. This all combines to give me a feeling of total confidence in the HM Plant Ducati. The wild cards test here all the time, so to be going faster than them is a great achievement. It’s been a good weekend so far and I certainly don’t intend to let anyone down tomorrow.”

James Toseland was disappointed not to fair better, but still managed to pick up seven places during the day. Toseland is in only his second season aboard a Superbike, and is already showing signs of greatness. “The pace is incredibly hot this season and I’ve improved a lot since yesterday,” said the 21-year-old from Sheffield. “My race set-up is spot-on and I’ve got a lot of grip, so I’ll be looking for a top eight finish. I’ve been running really well recently and I fully intend to keep up this high level of performance.”

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

250cc Qualifying Session One Times:

1. Franco Battaini, Aprilia, 1:38.408
2. Marco Melandri, Aprilia, 1:38.463
3. Fonsi Nieto, Aprilia, 1:38.723
4. Alex Debon, Aprilia, 1:38.737
5. Emilio Alzamora, Honda, 1:39.149
6. Casey Stoner, Aprilia, 1:39.151
7. Toni Elias, Aprilia, 1:39.165
8. Roberto Rolfo, Honda, 1:39.324
9. Sebastian Porto, Yamaha, 1:39.366
10. Raul Jara, Aprilia, 1:40.008
11. Shahrol Yuzy, Yamaha, 1:40.023
12. Roberto Locatelli, Aprilia, 1:40.265
13. David Checa, Aprilia, 1:40.465
14. Randy De Puniet, Aprilia, 1:40.507
15. Vincent Philippe, Aprilia, 1:40.756
16. Naoki Matsudo, Yamaha, 1:40.762
17. Hugo Marchand, Aprilia, 1:40.788
18. Haruchika Aoki, Honda, 1:40.966
19. Dirk Heidolf, Aprilia, 1:41.011
20. Jay Vincent, Honda, 1:41.012
21. Taro Sekiguchi, Yamaha, 1:41.099
22. Leon Haslam, Honda, 1:41.250
23. Hector Faubel, Aprilia, 1:41.264
24. Jarno Janssen, Honda, 1:41.720

More from an Aprilia press release:

MS Aprilia Racing Press Information
2002 MotoGP World Championship
Welkom (RSA) 19/20/21 April 2002
250 Class – Friday 19 April – qualifying sessions
Marco Melandri makes second best time and provisional front row. Quickest qualifying time achieved by Franco Battaini (Aprilia).
Marco Melandri, who led the way in the morning’s free practice, came second in the timed laps. A tough track even for the 250s: bumps and unevenness put the riders’ skills to the test – this can be clearly seen in the times, markedly lower than those posted last year. Marco worked on setting up his RSW 250 but, more than anything, he concentrated on finding the right front tyre for Sunday’s race.
Marco Melandri # 3 (MS APRILIA RACING) – 2nd: 1’38,463
“There’s no end of potholes on the track: you have to follow the trajectories you know. If ever you stray, you risk finding a new one you haven’t come across before. Things weren’t quite right, or at least we weren’t getting the most out of it. We’ve still got a few more tests to do. More than anything, I want to find a more efficient front tyre solution, and we’ve still got some comparative tests to do on the rear one. The one I liked best after trying it out in the two sessions today almost certainly wouldn’t get me through the entire race. The frame isn’t the same as last year’s, so we still need to do some work on the settings: each track this year’s going to need new adjustments to suit this new component.”

Copyright 2002, Roadracing World Publishing, Inc.

Hodgson Goes On Top Before Superpole

By Glenn LeSanto

Britain’s Neil Hodgson nipped into provisional pole in the last moments of final World Superbike qualifying in Sugo.

It means Hodgson will have the luxury of knowing exactly what he needs to do in Superpole as the fastest qualifying rider does his flying lap last, after watching all the other riders do their laps.

As the session ended Ruben Xaus crashed at the third corner, followed shortly by Noriyuki Haga. Oil flags were then waved, slowing the session and ruining all chance of posting faster times by any riders who had been saving their best for last.

Before Hodgson’s lap Makato Tamada and Colin Edwards had been scrapping over provisional pole. Usually, it’s the riders on Dunlops doing well at Sugo, which is a Dunlop test track, but Edwards, like eighth-fastest Troy Bayliss, is a Michelin rider.

Hitoyasu Izutsu finished with the sixth fastest time, despite not riding at all today after breaking his arm in a crash yesterday. His time becomes void and all the riders behind him will move up a place, giving Juan Borja, who was 17th-fastest, a Superpole place.


Combined qualifying times:

1. Neil Hodgson, GB, Ducati, 1:28.778

2. Colin Edwards, USA, Castrol Honda, 1:28.949

3. Makoto Tamada, Japan, Honda, 1:29.208

4. Noriyuki Haga, Japan, Aprilia, 1: 29.416

5.Ben Bostrom, USA, Ducati, 1:29.423

6.Hitoyasu Izutsu, Japan, Kawasaki, 1:29.612

7.Wataru Yoshikawa, Japan, Yamaha, 1:29.723

8.Troy Bayliss, Australia, Ducati, 1: 29.773

9.Akira Yanagawa, Japan, Kawasaki, 1:29.823

10.Yuichi Takeda, Japan, Honda, 1:29.909


Superpole still to come.


World Supersport
Saturday morning free practice
Sugo, Japan

1. Paolo Casoli, Italy, Yamaha, 1:33.022
2. Stephane Chambon, France, Suzuki, 1:33.232
3. Katsuaki Fujiwara, Japan, Suzuki, 1:33.265
4. Christian Kellner, Germany, Yamaha, 1:33.616
5. Andrew Pitt, Australia, Kawasaki, 1:33.807
6. Alessio Corradi, Italy, Yamaha, 1:33.875
7. Tatsuya Yamaguchi, Japan, Honda, 1:33.892
8. Piergiorgio Bontempi, Italy, Ducati, 1:33.900
9. Fabien Foret, France, Honda,1:33.903
10. James Whitham, GB, Yamaha, 1:33.921
11. Karl Muggeridge, Australia, Honda, 1:33.978