Mika Kallio reports “The feeling has arrived”  In the days following the GP of China, Red Bull KTM 250 rider Kallio improved the skills of a group of motorcycle enthusiasts in a rider’s training at home in Finland. But his 5th place also boosted Kallio’s own confidence for Le Mans. Q: After a difficult start into your first 250 cc season, you scored fifth place at the Grand Prix of China. Was this the turning point for the better? A: We definitely found a better way of setting up and using the bike in China, which was a big relief. The start of our season was not as satisfactory as it might have been. We had some rare mechanical problems with the bike on two occasions and that meant I wasn’t able to finish in two races. This was also quite a big mental set-back because the first three races are very important for a rider. If you go well, you develop a good feeling for the races to come. Now, after the results we had at the Grand Prix in Shanghai, this feeling has arrived. It might have come a bit later than expected but it’s definitely there now! Q: You struggled in most of the practice sessions before getting everything right for the race. What makes it so difficult to find the right set-up? A: We don’t know exactly. Everything went quite well during the winter tests, including my lap times, but just before the racing season we started to run into difficulties with the chassis set-up and that proved tricky to resolve. The fact that I didn’t have any experience in the 250 cc category was also a contributing factor. I couldn’t quite put my finger on specific problems and decide what would be the best way to react to them. This is coming to me more naturally now that I have a few races under my belt. The way we managed to improve the bike in China gives me confidence. Q: The characteristics of the stop-and-go Le Mans race track are completely different to the fast Shanghai circuit with its long straights and long, interlinking corners. Will this be better or worse for you and KTM? A: Le Mans with its late-braking action and its shorter corners should be better for us. The problems that we’ve had so far have been with the chassis. The bike was not turning as well as it should and there was a certain lack of rear grip. We managed to improve the handling and got the bike to turn better in China, but we still struggled with rear end grip. This meant we lost a lot on the long corners of the track. The fact that Le Mans doesn’t have these long corners should make it easier for us. I also have quite a good feeling with the bike under brakes and it seems that I’m hitting the braking points well. This is also very important in Le Mans. Q: The Le Mans track is about braking hard, but also about accelerating hard. How does your KTM compare to the fastest Aprilia? A: KTM and Aprilia have quite similar acceleration so this is not a problem for us. Compared to Honda, our acceleration is even a little better. Again, the problem is with the chassis set-up. If you can’t open the throttle early enough, you lose speed going onto the next straight, and this obviously also hurts your top speed. If we can further improve our set-up and find some more grip on the corner exits, then we will be on a par with Aprilia. Q: World Championship leader Jorge Lorenzo seems to be a class of his own at the moment. Which other 250 cc rider has impressed you in the season so far? A: I would say Julian Simon. Like me, he is a newcomer to this class but he’s been quite good in every race so far. And we have to remember he rides a Honda, which is not on the same level as Aprilia or our KTM. Alvaro Bautista has also done really well, but he also has been on a really good bike. Q: How do you feel about Casey Stoner’s success with Ducati? A: It’s nice to see him win races and lead the world championship. Everybody knows how fast he is but he had many crashes in former years. Now he has found a good way to reach the limit, but not to exceed it, and obviously his bike is also very good. It’s also nice to see that there is not so much difference between MotoGP and the other classes, as far as rider talent goes. Casey Stoner proves to all of us that if you are fast in the two-stroke categories, you can also do well in MotoGP! More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing: French Grand Prix at Le Mans 18, 19 and 20 May 2007 DANI GOING ALL OUT TO REPEAT HISTORY IN FRANCE The MotoGP season now enters its most intense phase with seven races over the next ten weeks and no one will be more focused on getting the most out of this gruelling period of racing than Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V). Dani has triumphed here at Le Mans on a 125cc machine in 2003 and the Spanish idol achieved two 250cc wins at the Bugatti circuit in 2004 and 2005. He also set the pole position here with a lap time of 1m 33.990 seconds in his debut MotoGP season and will be looking to achieve even more this weekend as he starts his 100th Grand Prix He currently lies third in the overall points standings after achieving two podium finishes and a fourth place so far. He was deprived of a finish in Turkey after getting knocked off in a first lap incident. Amazingly, he has now gone 12 races without a win and in terms of Dani’s incredible success rate this represents something of a barren spell. But Dani is nothing if not determined and this weekend represents a perfect chance for him to get back on terms with the series points leaders Casey Stoner (Ducati) and Valentino Rossi (Yamaha). His team-mate and reigning World Champion Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC212V) will be equally keen to get his season back on the rails after a troubled start to his title defence. But the genial American, although currently ninth overall, knows he has the skill and the means to hit back here. He said, “I really need get a good result for myself and for the team in France, and we’ll definitely be going all out for that. I wouldn’t say Le Mans is one of my favourite tracks, but that’s just because I’ve never had a very good result here, which can take the fun out of any track I guess. So I hope all that changes this weekend. We’ve still got some distance to go to get the bike working for me and put ourselves in a position to fight for wins, but the guys are right behind me and I know Honda’s pushing hard to improve the performance and Michelin too.” Nicky is not alone in describing the Bugatti circuit at Le Mans as ‘not a favourite’ in the way that say Mugello, Assen or Brno might be, but some riders like it. A ‘name’ track with a rich recent history, it’s a racing environment capable of producing entertainingly close racing. And with no winter testing conducted here pre-season, all riders will face a fresh challenge. The 4.180km track is a compact circuit and although few riders claim to enjoy riding here, they all have huge respect for it. Le Mans requires courage in parts, a delicate throttle hand in others and absolute commitment in the many heavy braking areas. The track was built in 1965, modified and shortened in 2003 and then totally resurfaced in 2004 to the general relief of most riders. Located 150 miles south-west of Paris, the Bugatti circuit at Le Mans employs some elements from the longer public roads circuit but remains modestly within its own confines. Turn one is a blisteringly fast uphill right with a following chicane that requires expert judgement to get right. Many rookie riders overshoot or brake too early allowing rivals past. Much of the rest of the track is a succession of hard braking and tight exits that put a premium on machine balance. It might not be that technical but it is a challenge. In all it comprises nine right hand turns and four lefts with two tight complexes before the flat out start/finish straight into turn one, which was modified last year. Machine set-up requires stability on the brakes and chassis settings that allow quick turn-in but not at the expense of having to tame a wheelie-prone machine on the throttle out of the many slow turns. Many of the overtaking opportunities here are afforded under braking and the longest straight is only 450m long. Dani said, “Le Mans is a circuit where I’ve had some good races in previous years so I’m hoping this visit will be the same. Since it’s the first time we will ride the new 800cc machines at Le Mans, our primary target will be to find the right way to set up the bike especially the gearing because there are many sections of acceleration out of slow corners and it’s very important to have the best possible drive at these points. Let’s hope the weather stays clear and gives us enough dry track time to do this.” Marco Melandri (Gresini Honda RC212V) won here last year and needs a win again to stay in touch in the World Championship standings. He said, “I like it here and it should suit our bike a little more. It’s a little early to be making predictions and we’ll have to wait until we get there to check out the weather conditions, which can change quickly. The Bugatti track is full of hard braking and it needs a riding style that favours braking and opening the gas with perfect timing according to each particular corner. There are a couple of hard acceleration points but there are no really long straights and that should help.” Marco’s team-mate Toni Elias (Gresini Honda RC212V) said, “I’ve had some good results here in the past. I actually scored my first podium here back in 2001 when I finished third in the 125cc race and I also won the 250cc race in 2003. Last year we suffered a lot with tyres because I couldn’t get them up to the right temperature. This year the tyre situation is completely different and we should be in the right shape to challenge at the front of the field again. This could be a decent chance to register a good result.” “I’ve had good results here before,” said Carlos Checa (LCR Honda RC212V). “The engine power is not so important like in Istanbul and Shanghai so we have more chance of finishing near the front. I hope the weather’s good and we find the best solutions for the tyres because Bridgestone is very strong now. Michelin is working hard together with my technicians and I am pretty confident for the weekend. All the RC212V riders are suffering the same problems with the engine power and the front chatter and I’m sure that HRC can find a solution soon.” Shinya Nakano (Konica Minolta Honda RC212V) said, “We didn’t have a good weekend last time out in China, but I know the team and I will bounce back for Le Mans. I’m hoping we’ll be much stronger on race tyres here as I really enjoy the circuit layout. Last year at the French Grand Prix I almost got pole, but was eventually bumped back to second. This shows I can do it, so I’m very much looking forward to getting on the pace from the very first practice session.” Kenny Roberts (Roberts KR212V) who has been struggling with chassis trouble so far this season said, “We’ve an updated version of the chassis we’ve been running and this one is nearer to the original centre position we started with nothing drastic, only adjustments. Tyres have been an issue at some races but this week we are racing in Michelin’s back yard so we hope they’ll have something for us.” In the 250cc class Andrea Dovizioso (Scot Honda RS250RW) is on the hunt for another win to take him closer to series points leader Jorge Lorenzo (Aprilia) who has scored three pole-to-flag wins this year to Dovi’s one. Just like in 2006 these men are the pre-eminent riders in the class. Dovi currently has 68 points to Lorenzo’s 95, but this is a track that might well suit the nimble handling characteristics of the 2007 Honda RS250RW. The Italian former 125cc World Champion has the riding skills and racecraft to capitalise on any advantage. Dovi won here on a 125 in 2004 and was second here on a 250 last year. “Le Mans should suit the Honda and we need to get the gearing absolutely right to make sure we have maximum acceleration out of the turns, then we can use our chassis to best effect on the brakes into the turns too. We’ve done OK here in the past and we’ve got to take maximum advantage of any chances we get this season.” Dovi’s team-mate Yuki Takahashi (Scot Honda RS250RW) will not ride here this weekend as his wretched run of luck continues. He has just undergone an operation on his broken left arm, while still not fully recovered from a broken leg sustained at the end of last season. Julian Simon (Repsol Honda RS250RW), currently seventh overall, said, “I think the race in France may favour the Hondas. It has fewer long straights and the technical aspect has a lot of influence. It’s a layout with a lot of braking sections in which the riding style is very important. I think even though we’re racing here for the first time with a 250cc machine, if we work hard and well during the practices, we’ll be able to achieve a good result.” His team-mate Shuhei Aoyama (Repsol Honda RS250RW) said, “I like the French Grand Prix because I took my first podium in the World Championship last year at Le Mans. It’s a very technical circuit, with a lot of corners, which I like. You could say it’s a ‘Honda track’ too.” The 125cc class is currently the domain of Aprilia and Derbi riders, but again Le Mans represents a chance for Honda’s young lions Esteve Rabat (Repsol Honda RS125R) and Bradley Smith (Repsol Honda RS125R) to break into the top places as Rabat managed so determinedly in China two weeks ago with a fighting third. He said, “I’ll try to do the best I can as always. And we’ll try to continue learning and evolving. I don’t know anything about the track, I’ve only played it on Play Station, so the information I’ve got is minimal. I’ll have to learn the layout, to start from zero again and it will be hard work. But let’s see if the twisty layout fits my riding style.” Smith said, “I’ve already been here before so that’s a positive for us and last year I had no experience with the bike’s settings. I think I even managed to be second fastest in wet conditions last year and I believe I can even do a good job if it’s dry. I’m really looking forward to this race.”