Friday 16th November, 2007 Sepang, Malaysia LORENZO MAKING STEADY PROGRESS IN SEPANG The Fiat Yamaha Team completed an intense second day of testing in Malaysia with 2008 rider Jorge Lorezo today, despite a wet track first thing delaying the start of action until after midday. Heavy rain overnight and an overcast sky throughout the morning meant the Sepang track took a long time to dry out but, once the sun finally shone through the clouds, the temperature quickly rose into the low 30s, the asphalt dried and work got underway. Lorenzo continued to work on general set-up with his new team, concentrating specifically on improving his braking and also completing a few laps on the new 2008 prototype M1. He improved on his time from yesterday, completing 48 laps and setting the 10th fastest lap of the day in a time of 2’04.021, with the quickest lap of the day set by John Hopkins in a time of 2’02.200. Tomorrow will see the team complete one final day of testing before they head home to Europe. Jorge Lorenzo (10th, 2’04.021, 48 Laps) “Today was hard work and I am honestly quite tired after six hours of riding in this heat! We worked on a lot of new things with the setting and I feel like I am making progress in some areas. I’m still having trouble under braking though and I don’t feel so comfortable with the front end; we made some improvements today in this area but I know we have more to do and I still have a lot to learn and some changes to make to my riding style. I was able to do a few laps on the new 2008 bike today, which I enjoyed and, even though it was only a few laps, my feeling about it is quite good. The most important thing at the moment though is to improve the feeling with the front end and so we will try again tomorrow! I hope that we have a completely dry day so we can use all of the testing time and have a good last day.” Daniele Romagnoli Team Manager “When we finally got started early this afternoon Jorge was having some difficulties on the brakes and wasn’t completely comfortable in the front end. We therefore adjusted some settings and worked on giving him a better feeling so he was able to do more laps at a time. He is improving but the major factor we need to work on still is the braking. Tonight we will check some data and analyse the situation together with the rider to work out how to improve things for him tomorrow. We are making progress but we have a lot of work to do still and we hope the weather will remain dry so we can take full advantage of our final day.” Masahiko Nakajima Fiat Yamaha Team Director “Today Jorge did almost six hours straight and this is a long time to be concentrating and riding in this heat, so I think he’s a little bit tired tonight! We had the time to try many things today and it seems that we’ve found a good direction in which to work towards the right base setting for him, so this is something positive. He also completed a few laps on the new 2008 prototype bike, just to get his initial feeling, which is quite positive. We’ve continued to work with him specifically on stability under braking and acceleration and he’s definitely making progress and improving in these important areas as he becomes more used to the bike, but there is still more work to do. The braking point is something quite progressive so we hope that tomorrow he can make the next step in this area.” Unofficial Lap Times 1. John Hopkins (Kawasaki) 2’02.200 2. Chris Vermeulen (Suzuki) 2’02.344 3. Randy de Puniet (Honda) 2’02.550 4. Andrea Dovizioso (Honda) 2’02.591 5. Loris Capirossi (Suzuki) 2’02.698 6. Nicky Hayden (Honda) 2’02.800 7. Colin Edwards (Yamaha) 2’02.831 8. Anthony West (Kawasaki) 2’03.093 9. Yamaha Test Team 2’03.706 10. Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) 2’04.021 11. James Toseland (Yamaha) 2’04.278 12. Yamaha Test Team 2’06.157 13. Yamaha Test Team 2’06.464 More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing: MotoGP test Sepang second day November 16, 2007. De Puniet the fastest Honda rider at Sepang Hayden test the 2008 RC212V The second day of the three-day MotoGP test at Sepang, Malaysia got off to a slow start as the rain drenched track surface did not begin to dry until late morning with the first riders taking to the track at noon. Repsol Honda factory rider Nicky Hayden tested both his 2007 RC212V and the 2008 prototype RCV he will race next season. The American went out on the ’07 machine to start his days work and was quickly setting times a second faster on the machine than his best time of yesterday. Satisfied he had collected sufficient data for an engine comparison test Hayden then switched to the new machine. He worked on engine mapping as the team worked hard collecting valuable data necessary to upgrade engine performance in preparation for the next MotoGP test at Jerez on November 27-29. Hayden also tested a range of new front tyres for Michelin. The 2006 world champion also had a close encounter with a Cobra during the afternoon session hitting the snake with his knee in the fast T 11 corner. Hayden emerged unscathed from their meeting and will test tomorrow – sadly the snake will not be there to watch his progress aboard the new RCV. LCR Honda rider Randy De Puniet was again the fastest Honda rider at Sepang and slashed eight-tenths of a second off his best lap time set on the opening day. The Frenchman has adapted quickly to the characteristics of the RC212V and is clearly enjoying his new career at LCR. He spent the majority of the day testing a range of Michelin tyres in combination with the Ohlins suspension the team will run in 2008. De Puniet ran over 20 laps on the same set of tyres gaining a feel for tyre performance over a long distance. The test revealed more plus points than negative with the tyre-suspension combination and the hard working De Puniet ended the day in buoyant mood. Andrea Dovizioso is beginning to get to grips with the RC212V Honda 800cc four-stroke. The young Italian continued to chase an ideal base line set up for the JiR Scot Honda working on improving his feeling for the Michelin tyres he will race with for the first time in his career. Dovizioso was out on track for 57 laps of the 5.542 km circuit consistently lapping in the 2m 03s bracket before putting in three very fast laps in the 2m 02s bracket that saw him end the day as fourth fastest man with a time of 2m 02.591s, over one second faster than his best time of yesterday. Honda rider quotes and lap times. Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda: 2m 03.093s – 65 laps. “Overall I’m really pleased with today, it’s been very positive. We could have ended up with no track time today after getting to the circuit and having to wait three hours for the track to dry. In the end it was a good day. I went out on the 2007 machine first to confirm a few things and within a handful of laps I’d gone one second faster that yesterday so that was pretty encouraging. Then I devoted most of the afternoon to the 2008 machine. We played around with the engine mapping and tried some front tyre options from Michelin. We’re still looking for a bit more power but it’s not easy, the machine is brand new so all the team is learning. After the Valencia test last week we thought it might be a tough ask to come to Sepang and do as well as we have today – we thought we’d be further away, so to do the lap time this afternoon and match the 2007 machine lap time is very positive. And I smoked my first snake, the poor thing. I was just heading through turn 11 when the snake sat up and I saw it but I was committed on the apex of the corner. I picked the machine up and tried to avoid him but caught him with my knee. I’m pretty sure it was a cobra and I’m sorry for it.” Randy De Puniet, LCR Honda: 2m 02.550s – 81 laps. “I am very tired, I did 81 laps all in the heat of the afternoon. But it was positive, especially the tyre testing with Michelin. I tried four different rear race tyres and found one that was very good, very consistent, with many laps between 2’02.5 and 02.8. My best time today was set using the latest Michelin tyre, 0.5s faster than yesterday. Although this is just the first day of testing the Ohlins suspension on the Honda I have a good feeling and I’m we can find a faster set-up. With Honda we also worked on the engine mapping, to reduce the level of traction control and improve the braking stability. I’m very happy and the main thing is that over many laps the Honda is physically easier and less tiring to ride than my previous bike.” Andrea Dovizioso, JiR Scot Honda: 2m 03.591s – 57 laps. “Another good day for us. Once more I spent the day getting acquainted with the RC212V. We are getting to know each other better, but it is still difficult adjusting from the two-stroke 250. Engine braking is the big thing you have it on a four-stroke 800, but very little on a two-stroke 250! This affects my entry into the corners, although I still feel fast in the middle of the corner. It will all come with time! The team and I will look at the data tonight and see where I can make up some more time and improve my performance. The middle and exit of the corner is still easier on the MotoGP bike than on a 250 thanks to the electronics. I’ve improved my feeling from the front-end of the Honda after some setting changes and after testing some new Michelin tyres which is very important.” More, from a press release issued by Repsol Honda: MORE LAPS FOR THE REPSOL HONDA RC212V AT SEPANG The Repsol Honda Team again dodged the rain at Sepang in Malaysia today as they continued machine development work in preparation for the 2008 season. A wet track in the morning delayed the start of testing and it was 12.30pm before Nicky Hayden ventured out to resume the engine comparison work he began yesterday aboard the 2007 RC212V. Once complete, the 26-year-old American spent the rest of the afternoon lapping on the 2008 machine, working on engine settings and testing front tyre options in conjunction with Michelin. The 2006 World Champion declared himself satisfied with progress today having recorded a fastest lap time of 2m 02.800s on race tyres, a promising pace which put him within half a second of his fastest race lap in the Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang in October. Hayden also experienced the Malaysian wildlife at close quarters today when his knee collided with an unfortunate snake at Turn 11 of the 5.548km (3.447-mile) circuit. The Repsol Honda rider emerged unscathed from the encounter but the snake was not so lucky. A final day of testing takes place here tomorrow. Quotes MotoGP Nicky Hayden, Fastest lap: 2m 02.800s 65 laps “Overall I’m really pleased with today, it’s been very positive. We could have ended up with no track time today after getting to the circuit and having to wait three hours for the track to dry. In the end it was a good day. I went out on the 2007 machine first to confirm a few things and within a handful of laps I’d gone one second faster than yesterday so that was pretty encouraging. “Then I devoted most of the afternoon to the 2008 machine. We played around with the engine mapping and tried some front tyre options from Michelin. We’re still looking for a bit more power but it’s not easy, the machine is brand new so all the team is learning. After the Valencia test last week we thought it might be a tough ask to come to Sepang and do as well as we have today we thought we’d be further away, so to do the lap time this afternoon and match the 2007 machine lap time is very positive. And I smoked my first snake, the poor thing. I was just heading through turn 11 when the snake sat up and I saw it but I was committed on the apex of the corner. I picked the machine up and tried to avoid him but caught him with my knee. I’m pretty sure it was a cobra and I’m sorry for it.” Official results MotoGP 1. John HOPKINS (KAWASAKI) 2’02.200 2. Chris VERMEULEN (SUZUKI) 2’02.344 3. Randy DE PUNIET (HONDA) 2’02.550 4. Andrea DOVIZIOSO (HONDA) 2’02.591 5. Loris CAPIROSSI (SUZUKI) 2’02.698 6. Nicky HAYDEN (REPSOL HONDA) 2’02.800