Event: Jerez Test Day Two – Rossi Date: 27th November 2008 Ambient temperature: 12 degrees C Track temperature: 22 degrees C Humidity: 32% ROSSI SIGNS OFF FOR WINTER HOLIDAYS WITH FASTEST TIME IN JEREZ World Champion Valentino Rossi set the fastest time in Jerez today on the final day of testing for the year. His Fiat Yamaha team-mate Jorge Lorenzo was third fastest, making it a successful concluding test for the year’s leading team. Rossi spent most of his time today on the new 2009-prototype M1, working on developing the setting and also trying out some new parts for the engine, amongst other things. He set his best time of the day on his 52nd of 54 laps, dipping nearly seven tenths of a second under the lap record with a time of 1’39.429. The Italian and his team will now have two months to recover from a hard season while the MotoGP testing ban is in force. The next on-track action will be at Sepang in Malaysia on 5th, 6th and 7th February 2009. Valentino Rossi: Position: 1st Time: 1’39.429 Laps: 54 “The track was a bit drier today and so we were able to improve even more and do a great job. We worked a lot on the new bike and tried some different parts to yesterday, including for the engine and we were quite fast. It seems we’re going in the right direction with this new bike and I am happy about this. I hope that the information we have gathered here will help the engineers to improve the bike and I look forward to the next evolution in Sepang. I think these first tests with the one-tyre rule have been quite positive and Bridgestone have done a good job so far, although for sure they will have a difficult job to decide which tyre for which track. Anyway, I hope that we will have some exciting battles next year with everyone at the same level with their tyres. Now I am looking forward to some holidays and next week I will go to Wales for the rally, which I hope will be a lot of fun. It’s been a fantastic year and I am really happy I have finished at the top today, it’s not a big thing but it gives a good feeling to me and all the team and means we can enjoy our holidays confident that we are in good shape!” Davide Brivio Team Manager “This has been a positive test for us, and we have finished the year very well. Despite the cold weather allowing us just a few hours to test over these two days, we have been able to go through more or less our entire programme and check everything on the agenda. This means that we have given a lot of valuable information to our Japanese engineers, and this will help them in their development work over the winter. Valentino finished fastest today, which is a great conclusion to the year, and shows that we’re on the right track with the 2009-prototype M1. Now we have some time for rest and so I would like to thank all of the team once again for their hard work and wish them happy holidays!” Test Times 1. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha Team 1’39.429 2. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda 1’39.447 3. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Fiat Yamaha Team 1’40.426 4. Toni Elias (SPA) Team San Carlo 1’40.448 5. Alex De Angelis (RSM) Team San Carlo 1’40.486 6. Nicky Hayden (USA) Ducati Marlboro Team 1’40.486 7. Mika Kallio (FIN) Alice Team 1’40.564 8. Colin Edwards (USA) Tech 3 Yamaha 1’40.604 9. Sete Gibernau (SPA) Grupo Francisco Hernando 1’40.856 10. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Repsol Honda 1’40.966 11. Niccolò Canepa (ITA) Ducati Test 1’41.077 12. James Toseland (GBR) Tech 3 Yamaha 1’41.740 13. Vittoriano Guareschi (ITA) Ducati Marlboro Team 1’42.906 14. Yuki Takahashi (JPN) JiR Team Scot Honda 1’42.918 More, from another press release issued by Fiat Yamaha: LORENZO THIRD FASTEST AT YEAR-ENDING TEST IN JEREZ Fiat Yamaha Team rider Jorge Lorenzo finished the final test of 2008 in third position today, signing off his successful rookie year in strong form before a well-deserved two-month break. His team-mate Valentino Rossi was quickest, with Dani Pedrosa second. It was another cold day in Jerez and Lorenzo did not make his first foray on track until 1.30 pm, completing 58 laps before ending his day at 5pm. The 21-year-old spent the entire time today on a test bike, which carries some new prototype parts, familiarising himself with the different machine, working on establishing a base setting and continuing to improve his feeling with the new single-brand tyres. He showed his improvement with a best lap of 1’40.426, just over 0.3 seconds off the current lap record. There is now a testing ban for the MotoGP paddock until the end of January, and the next time the riders will be in action will be at Sepang in Malaysia on 5th, 6th and 7th February 2009. Jorge Lorenzo Position: 3rd Time: 1’40.426 Laps: 58 “Today we concentrated on the evolution bike, which has some prototype parts, with a new setting from Valentino. It seems we had a small advantage with this bike and I was able to improve my time, so I am happy about this. This ‘new’ bike is also more stable under acceleration, with less wheelie and the throttle is a bit easier to handle so these are important improvements. The final conclusion of these two days is very positive I think, although we know there is still a lot of margin to improve, both in the bike and in my riding style and of course we need to keep working to better understand the new tyres. Now we start a long holiday and I am looking forward to starting training immediately, because since Valencia I have really been too busy! It will be good to have two months off with my friends and family but I am also looking forward to February in Sepang, when hopefully I will get to try the new engine.” Daniele Romagnoli Team Manager “This has been a very good test for us, and today we improved our lap time by quite a lot compared with yesterday. Jorge focused on the new bike today and he likes it and was able to make some good laps. The team worked on finding a new setting, which helped us to improve our lap time and, although there is a lot more to work on, it seems with the new bike we have more potential to improve than with the old one so this is very encouraging. We are very happy about Jorge’s lap time because he is the first rider who is using new tyres, behind Valentino and Dani who have had a lot more experience with them. Of course we need more time to understand the tyres and how we can use them to their full potential, but we have time. Now finally we have a long winter break for the team, but Yamaha will continue to work hard to improve our bike before the next test in Sepang in February.” More, from a press release issued by Repsol Honda: PEDROSA AND DOVIZIOSO FASTER AT JEREZ MotoGP tests, Jerez, Spain Thursday, November 27 2008 Repsol Honda riders Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso completed their final test of 2008 at Jerez today, both men continuing the useful progress they made yesterday despite limited track time. Overnight rain forced the pair to make a late start, both riders waiting until lunchtime before considering the track dry enough to make riding worthwhile. Pedrosa improved on his impressive pace from yesterday, once again lapping comfortably inside his own lap record aboard a 2009 prototype RC212V. Dovizioso, riding only his second test sessions with the factory team, also upped his pace aboard his prototype 2009 RC212V. MotoGP now begins its traditional winter break from testing, reconvening at Sepang, Malaysia, on February 5, 6 and 7 2009. Dani Pedrosa, fastest lap: 1m 39.447s (lap 47 of 47 laps) “After working with the engine yesterday, today we concentrated on the chassis. We worked to improve the behaviour of the machine during braking and in the turns. The only problem was the weather, which meant that we didn’t get so much time on the bike today. We had to wait for the track to dry, so we didn’t start until 2pm, and we finished at five. But we worked well and got the most out of those three hours. I found a good feeling with the bike this afternoon, so now we can sit down and analyse all the data we’ve gathered here in order to be ready for our next testing appointment at Sepang next year. I don’t have any special plans for the holiday season. During December I have some promotional events to do for some sponsors and then I will relax and enjoy some time with my family and friends.” Andrea Dovizioso, fastest lap: 1m 40.966s (lap 31 of 46 laps) “We didn’t have too much time to try too much today. Our target was to find the best riding position for my style. We made quite a few changes to the position and we understood many things. We didn’t really have time to make any other big changes. We are working to try and find a good setting for the Bridgestone tyres, but this isn’t so easy because the tyre construction is very different to what we’re used to. We saw last season with other riders who switched to Bridgestone that it takes a while to find the best setting. Anyway, I am happy because the 2009 prototype machine feels better than the 2008 bike in both engine and chassis. The engine is smoother and it is easier to feel the limit with this bike, which makes it easier to ride fast. I wasn’t so fast here but it is still early days and now we have many ideas to try at Sepang. Dani was very fast and that proves the bike has a great potential.” More, from a press release issued by Pramac Racing: CONCLUDED THE LAST TEST OF 2008 IN JEREZ KALLIO SEVENTH, CANEPA ELEVENTH 2008 testing are over for the Pramac Racing Team with the two new riders, Mika Kallio and Niccolò Canepa, who concluded respectively in seventh and eleventh position. Mika made it to finish with only just a tenth of a second over the third position occupied by Jorge Lorenzo and this underline the good feeling found with the Ducati Desmosedici GP9 Sat by the Finnish rider. Niccolò has worked hard on the set up of the bike, concluding just over half a second from his teammate. Notwithstanding the rain that came down during the night, the track had dried out quickly allowing the riders to ride for many laps from 2pm till 5.30pm. After the winter break the Pramac Racing Team will be back on track for the Sepang test next 5th, 6th and 7th of February. Mika Kallio — Pramac Racing rider (7th best lap time in 1:40.564; Total laps 54 “It has been a good start for us. Apart Rossi and Pedrosa, that are at the moment too fast, we are only a tenth of a second from the third position occupied by Lorenzo. Yesterday I was a bit worried because this track was a bit too difficult with this bike, but instead today we have worked really well and we made it to achieve a good result. Of course lap times don’t count so much right now, but it give us good hopes for the next season.” Niccolò Canepa — Pramac Racing rider (11th best lap time in 1:41.077; Total laps 48 “I am very happy by the work done in these two days. Our final position is not the best but we are only half of a second from the third position and it’s not too bad at this moment. I made it to improve my last year lap time on this circuit by more than one second and a half. Today we have concentrated to find a good rhythm and I had to get used to the new rear brake positioned on the handlebar. Everything’s going in the right direction.” More, from a press release issued by Marlboro Ducati: MOTOGP TESTING CALENDAR CONCLUDES FOR 2008 AT JEREZ DE LA FRONTERA Jerez de la Frontera, (Spain). The Ducati Marlboro Team completed their final test of 2008 today with Nicky Hayden fifth fastest at the end of a day that saw a particularly late start to the action on track. Despite slightly warmer temperatures than Wednesday, overnight rain made for a damp track surface until the early afternoon. Hayden took to the track shortly before 2pm and, like yesterday, he steadily improved his pace with each outing. The American worked calmly and methodically despite the limited time available as he continued to get comfortable with the Ducati and Bridgestone tyres. Both the rider and the team were satisfied with his progress. The next on-track appointment for the Ducati Marlboro Team is a three-day test from 5th-7th February 2009 at the Sepang Circuit in Malaysia. Nicky Hayden – 5th fastest – 1’40.486 (70 laps) “We’ve made a big improvement today. It was important to have back-to-back days with similar conditions because at Valencia we only had one dry day and we weren’t able to check that the changes we made to the bike overnight had worked. Today my feeling with the bike was much better from the first run and it is important that we’ve taken over a second and a half off my best time from yesterday. We are still a second off the top guys and I know the last second is the most difficult to find but at the same time we’re less than a tenth off third fastest and the team is working well, I feel more and more comfortable with the bike and tyres and I can head home with a clear mind. I was pleased that Casey wanted to be here at the test. It has been useful to speak with him and Filippo (Preziosi) and it shows how tight the team is and how well everybody wants to do next season! I just want to finish by saying ‘Happy Thanksgiving’ to everybody in America!” Jerez Circuit Record: Dani Pedrosa (Honda – 2008) 1’40.116 Jerez Pole Record: Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha – 2008), 1’38.189 Unofficial lap times, Thursday 27th November 1. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 1:39.429 2. Dani Pedrosa (Honda) 1:39.447 3. Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) 1:40.426 4. Toni Elias (Honda) 1:40.448 5. Alex De Angelis (Honda) 1:40.486 Nicky Hayden (Ducati) 1:40.486 7. Mika Kallio (Ducati) 1:40.564 8. Colin Edwards(Yamaha) 1:40.604 9. Sete Gibernau (Ducati) 1:40.856 10. Andrea Dovizioso (Honda) 1:40.966 11. Niccolo Canepa (Ducati) 1:41.077 12. James Toseland (Yamaha) 1:41.740 13. Vitto Guareschi (Ducati) 1:42.906 14. Yuki Takahashi (Honda) 1:42.918 More, from a press release issued by Honda: PEDROSA FASTEST RCV RIDER AS HONDA MotoGP MEN CONCLUDE FINAL TEST OF 2008 Five of Honda’s six MotoGP riders completed a useful two-day test session at Jerez today, their final outing of 2008 before the sport’s traditional midwinter testing moratorium. Weather conditions were not ideal, with bitterly cold winds on the first day, then overnight rain which kept most riders off track on day two until after lunch. But lap times were quite fast, despite low temperatures, because the recently resurfaced track proved both very grippy and very smooth. Factory Repsol Honda men Dani Pedrosa and Andrea Dovizioso both tried 2009 prototype RC212V machines and were impressed by the bike’s overall performance. The design concept for the machine is enhanced controllability, from both engine and chassis, and so far this aim seems to have been achieved. Pedrosa worked methodically as ever, devoting the first day to trying different engine settings and the second day to working with chassis set-up. He ended up a very close second fastest, well inside his own lap record, established during his runaway victory at last April’s Spanish GP. Dovizioso was delighted by the performance of the 2009 prototype RCV, which he judged much improved against the 2008 factory RCV he rode for the first time at last month’s Valencia tests. San Carlo Honda Gresini riders Toni Elias and Alex de Angelis also went well, running end-of-2008 spec satellite bikes, as used by the team’s outgoing rider Shinya Nakano in the final 2008 MotoGP race at Valencia. De Angelis enjoyed this spec machine, which fits him better and gives him a much-improved feeling. Elias also had a very helpful two days, his second test outing since returning to Honda machinery after one season with Ducati. Elias rode Honda MotoGP bikes in 2005 and 2006. Class rookie Yuki Takahashi continued his acclimatisation process aboard the Scot Honda RC212V, improving his pace during both days. This was only the former 250 rider’s second ride on a MotoGP machine, so his approach was the same as it had been at Valencia to get steadily up to speed without taking any big risks. Today he improved his feeling with the electronics and the tyres and bettered his Wednesday lap time by almost 1.4 seconds. Randy de Puniet (LCR Honda) missed the tests because he wanted to rest a wrist injury suffered during the late stages of the 2008 season. The Frenchman will return to action with his fellow RCV riders at the first test session of 2009 at Sepang, Malaysia, on February 5, 6 and 7. Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team), fastest lap: 1m 39.447s “They resurfaced the whole track in August and the new asphalt is very grippy and smooth, so I was able to do some good lap times despite the cold temperatures. On the first day we focused mainly on the engine and did some work on electronics, working to improve corner-entry performance and so on. Today we concentrated on the chassis. We worked to improve the behaviour of the machine during braking and in the turns. Once again the weather was problem, so we didn’t get so much time on the bike today. We had to wait for the track to dry, so we didn’t start until 2pm, and we finished at five. But we worked well and got the most out of those three hours. I found a good feeling with the bike this afternoon, so now we can sit down and analyse all the data we’ve gathered here in order to be ready for our next testing appointment at Sepang next year.” Toni Elias (San Carlo Honda Gresini), fastest lap: 1m 40.448s “I’m very happy to be back in the Gresini team and back on a Honda. We started out yesterday working step by step because I want to work in a calm, logical manner to avoid mistakes. We worked mostly on the rear end, because I have had some traction problems. We tested some different set-up solutions, focusing on adapting the bike to the new Bridgestone tyres. I’m happy because today we found a good compromise between bike set-up and the tyres and I also has a better feeling with the rear tyre. My lap times were faster and I felt more comfortable. Of course, we need to keep working but I think we did a very good job here, preparing for the Sepang tests when we will get the bike that we will use during the 2009 season.” Alex De Angelis (San Carlo Honda Gresini), fastest lap: 1m 40.486s “It was a very important test session. We worked mainly on the set-up, studying the behaviour of the new Bridgestone tyres. With the new tyre regulation it’s very important to adapt the bike to the tyres and not vice versa as was the case before. Of course, we will keep working on the settings to find the best set-up that will allow us to get the maximum out of the bike. I have to say that the first impressions are positive. I like this bike both the engine and the chassis are better, so I have a better feeling than with the bike I used last season. This bike is also better for my size. Today we made a big step forward. We worked on chassis geometry and I could go quite fast, ending up very close to the third fastest guy. Since Valencia I’m working with a new crew chief Antonio Jimenez, who worked with Nakano last year and I’m very happy with this new arrangement.” Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda Team), fastest lap: 1m 40.966s “Conditions were not perfect here, but we had many things to try and to adjust, which is why we were first on track yesterday morning! Again today we didn’t have too much time, because the track was wet this morning. Yesterday we did three or four exits with the 2008 bike and then moved to the 2009 prototype machine, and the feeling was immediately much better, so we have stayed focused on that bike. The whole package is better with the 2009 bike, the engine is smoother and it is easier to feel the limit with the chassis, which makes it easier to ride fast. Today our target was to find the best riding position for my style. We made quite a few changes to the position and we understood many things. We didn’t really have time to make any other big changes. We are working to try and find a good setting for the Bridgestone tyres, but this isn’t so easy because the tyre construction is very different to what we’re used to. We saw last season with other riders who switched to Bridgestone that it takes a while to find the best setting. I wasn’t so fast here but it is still early days and now we have many ideas to try at Sepang. Dani was very fast and that proves the bike has a great potential.” Yuki Takahashi (Scot Racing Team Honda), fastest lap: 1m 42.918s “I had fun during these two days, it is a nice feeling to ride a Honda MotoGP bike, but the real fun will come later when I have reached full confidence with the machine. My goal here was to ride as much as possible, to do as many miles as possible, always working to better understand how the bike reacts to technical changes, because the whole package is new to me. It wasn’t appropriate to try too hard here just to seek a quick lap time, especially because next year we will have a new motorcycle. This morning we didn’t ride because it was cold and damp. Even this afternoon when conditions were better it wasn’t worth taking any big risks. At Valencia, after the last race of 2008, I rode without really using the electronic controls, but here I started working with the set-up of the electronics.” VALENCIA LAP TIMES 1: Valentino Rossi (Yamaha): 1m 39.429s 2. Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda Team): 1m 39.447s 3. Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha): 1m 40.426s 4. Toni Elias (San Carlo Honda Gresini): 1m 40.448s 5. Alex De Angelis (San Carlo Honda Gresini): 1m 40.486s 6. Nicky Hayden (Ducati): 1m 40.486s 7. Mika Kallio (Ducati): 1m 40.564s 8. Colin Edwards (Yamaha): 1m 40.604s 9. Sete Gibernau (Ducati): 1m 40.856s 10. Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda Team): 1m 40.966s 11. Niccolò Canepa (Ducati): 1m 41.077s 12. James Toseland (Yamaha): 1m 41.539s 13. Vittoriano Guareschi (Ducati): 1m 42.906s 14. Yuki Takahashi (Scot Racing Team Honda): 1m 42.918s