MotoGP Results Motegi, Japan September 24, 2006 1. Loris Capirossi (Duc GP06), Bridgestone, 24 laps, 43:13.585, 99.384 mph 2. Valentino Rossi (Yam YZR-M1), Michelin, -5.088 seconds 3. Marco Melandri (Hon RC211V), Michelin, -8.378 4. Sete Gibernau (Duc GP06), Bridgestone, -9.712 5. Nicky Hayden (Hon RC211V), Michelin, -11.944 6. Toni Elias (Hon RC211V), Michelin, -18.108 7. Dani Pedrosa (Hon RC211V), Michelin, -19.937 8. Colin Edwards (Yam YZR-M1), Michelin, -22.492 9. Kenny Roberts (KR211V), Michelin, -26.824 10. Makoto Tamada (Hon RC211V), Michelin, -30.970 11. Chris Vermeulen (Suz GSV-R), Bridgestone, -39.263 12. John Hopkins (Suz GSV-R), Bridgestone, -39.440 13. Kousuke Akiyoshi (Suz GSV-R), Bridgestone, -45.595 14. Carlos Checa (Yam YZR-M1), Dunlop, -49.571 15. James Ellison (Yam YZR-M1), Dunlop, -69.085 16. Alex Hofmann (Duc GP05), Dunlop, -71.748 17. Shinya Nakano (Kaw ZX-RR), Bridgestone, -1 lap, DNF, crash 18. Casey Stoner (Hon RC211V), Michelin, -12 laps, DNF, crash 19. Randy de Puniet (Kaw ZX-RR), Bridgestone, -16 laps, DNF, crash 20. Naoki Matsudo (Kaw ZX-RR), Bridgestone, -16 laps, DNF, retired 21. Jose Luis Cardoso (Duc GP05), Dunlop, -23 laps, DNF, crash MotoGP Point Standings After Motegi (After 15 of 17 races) 1. Hayden, 236 2. Rossi, 224 (-12) 3. Melandri, 209 (-27) 4. Capirossi, 205 (-31) 5. Pedrosa, 202 (-34) 6. Stoner, 119 7. Roberts, 110 8. Edwards, 104 9. Hopkins, 101 10. Gibernau, 95 11. Vermeulen, 91 12. Nakano, 83 13. Elias, 81 14. Tamada, 81 15. Checa, 60 16. de Puniet, 31 17. Hofmann, 25 18. Ellison, 21 19. Cardoso, 8 20. Akiyoshi, 3 More, from a press press issued by Dorna Communications: CAPIROSSI HEADS ALL-ITALIAN PODIUM AT MOTEGI Loris Capirossi repeated his 2005 victory at Twin Ring Motegi in the A-Style Grand Prix of Japan today, doing so in a similar fashion to his runaway win in the Czech Republic a month ago. The Ducati rider, starting from pole, was only troubled in the early stages by Marco Melandri, but broke free and never looked back en route to a third win of 2006. Unlike most of the races so far this season it was hardly a classic, but the Japanese race was extremely tense and added further excitement to the battle for the world title, as Valentino Rossi took second place and cut the gap between himself and Nicky Hayden to 12 points with the American finishing off the podium once more. An all-Italian podium was completed by Marco Melandri, who gave Honda the constructor’s title at their home circuit and himself moved up to a definitive third position in the classification having started the race level on points with Dani Pedrosa. Sete Gibernau took another fourth spot, holding off a last lap challenge from Shinya Nakano that saw the local hero crash out of the race and allowed Hayden to move up a place to fifth, preventing his lead in the standings being cut even further. Toni Elias rounded off the top six with one of his finest rides of the season, the Spaniard having made it hard for Hayden to pass him early on. Dani Pedrosa, who never really took to the circuit this weekend, came in seventh after having dropped right down the order on the first lap, finishing ahead of Colin Edwards. Kenny Roberts and Makoto Tamada, the highest placing home rider, rounded off the first ten across the line. Aside from Nakano’s late crash, there were also incidents for Jose Luis Cardoso, Casey Stoner and Randy de Puniet, without serious consequences for either rider, whilst John Hopkins ran off track before recovering impressively to finish 12th. Despite early predictions of a typhoon approaching the remote Japanese track, the crowd were treated to glorious sunshine with hardly a cloud in the sky. 250cc Grand Prix Hiroshi Aoyama was the crowd-pleasing victor of the 250cc A-Style Grand Prix of Japan this afternoon, edging out Alex de Angelis at his home race. Meanwhile in a tense duel behind the lead pair, Jorge Lorenzo extended his lead over Andrea Dovizioso in the championship by three points to 27, after relegating the Italian to a second consecutive fourth place when he passed with just over three laps to go. After de Angelis took the holeshot with a fantastic reflex start, a four-rider pack developed as the San Marino rider duked it out with Aoyama, Yuki Takahashi and Dovizioso. Takahashi would prove pivotal to the race, as a crash at the midway point directly in front of Dovizioso slowed the Italian down, allowing him to be caught by the previously off-pace Lorenzo. Roberto Locatelli, who also had one of his trademark shotgun starts, took fifth, ahead of Shuhei Aoyama, Hector Barbera and wild card rider Ryuji Yokoe. Marco Simoncelli and Ratthapark Wilairot completed the top ten. 125cc Grand Prix Defeated by Alvaro Bautista in the World Championship last weekend, Mika Kallio claimed a modicum of revenge over his rival with a last gasp overtaking manoeuvre at Motegi. The KTM rider and the Spaniard were battling amongst themselves in familiar scenes from this season, and Kallio was able to make his final pass stick and extend his lead just enough to take the chequered flag first. Kallio’s fellow KTM rider Julian Simon also managed to stave off a Master MVA Aspar team attack, as he took a podium spot ahead of Mattia Pasini. Lukas Pesek and Hector Faubel completed the top six, ahead of highest finishing local rider Tomoyoshi Koyama and the spectacular Bradley Smith. The Briton took a fantastic eighth, his best performance of the season and the highest finishing Honda rider in 125cc today in his debut ride at Motegi. After Sergio Gadea crashed out on the final lap, Nico Terol managed to sneak into the top ten behind Gabor Talmacsi. MotoGP MotoGP Winner – Loris Capirossi – Ducati “It was an amazing race, and we started to find a good setting over the weekend which stood us in good stead. Bridgestone brought in some new tyres which worked well, and then this morning I watched the pace in the warmup and saw how fast everyone was going. I took off at the start, but I know that Marco always follows closely and I knew I had to break away. After that I saw Valentino closing the gap, so I had to give another push and take me to safety. This is the best of the two wins that I’ve had in Japan.” 2nd position – Valentino Rossi – Yamaha “These 20 points are so important for the championship, but they are even more important at this track. It’s not my favourite but we did a great job right from the beginning. This morning we actually had a problem, but together with the team and Michelin we worked on it and found a solution. I followed Loris and Marco at the start, two riders who go very fast, but Loris broke away after he saw me on his tail.” 3rd position – Marco Melandri – Honda “It was a very good start. I tried to overtake Loris on the first lap in first lap, because I wasn’t sure if I could follow him. I never rode at such pace in practice, so I wasn’t ready to do so in the race. I had some rear slide, especially on left, when chasing Loris. When I lost a second I tried to catch him again, and then I lost the front end. The same thing happened when I was after Valentino, so I said “okay, twice is enough times for me to be lucky, I don’t want to use up my good fortune”.” More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki Racing: KAWASAKI STILL POSITIVE AFTER DIFFICULT MOTEGI RACE The curse of Motegi struck again for the Kawasaki Racing Team today as, for the second year in succession, all three Kawasaki riders failed to finish in this afternoon’s Japanese Grand Prix. But, despite the obvious disappointment of the final results, both Shinya Nakano and Randy de Puniet showed the potential of Kawasaki’s latest Ninja ZX-RR, fighting for top ten positions before crashes brought their Japanese Grand Prix weekend to a premature close. Nakano was quick away from the line, slotting in behind the leading group of riders and matching their pace during the opening laps of the race. As the leading trio managed to pull out a gap at the front of the race, Nakano was quick to pass Casey Stoner, who crashed out of the race shortly afterwards, and started to close on Sete Gibernau in fourth place. The 28-year-old Kawasaki rider waited until the final lap before trying a pass on Gibernau, diving up the inside of the Spaniard at the end of the back straight. Nakano got into the turn a little too hot, and was left with no option but to pick his bike up mid-corner, as Gibernau cut across his front wheel to firmly close the door. Nakano’s front tyre touched Gibernau’s rear wheel as he attempted to recover, launching the Kawasaki pilot over the top of his Ninja ZX-RR and out of the race. Randy de Puniet’s crew were forced to change the engine on his Ninja ZX-RR after this morning’s 20-minute warm-up session, and the 25-year-old Frenchman noticed an immediate difference on the opening lap of the race. The more aggressive power delivery of the replacement engine caused his rear Bridgestone to spin up out of the turns, forcing the Kawasaki pilot to ride more on the front tyre, with predictable results. De Puniet lost the front of his Ninja ZX-RR and crashed out of the race on lap nine, while fighting for ninth place with Colin Edwards and Makoto Tamada. Kawasaki’s wild card rider, Naoki Matsudo, was also forced to retire from the race on lap nine, after a mechanical failure on his Ninja ZX-RR left him with no other option but to return to the pits. Despite the disappointment of the Motegi weekend, the Kawasaki Racing Team are confident that the latest specification Ninja ZX-RR is capable of allowing Shinya Nakano and Randy de Puniet to end the season on a high, with strong performances in the final two races at Estoril and Valencia. Shinya Nakano: DNF “What can I say; I was here to race, so I had to try for fourth place on the last lap. I’d already decided that if the gap were too big at the end of the straight then I wouldn’t risk a pass. But the opportunity was there, so I took it. I got into the turn a little bit too hot, and both tyres were sliding by the time Sete shut the door on me. I could have held onto the brakes, but then we’d both have crashed, so I picked the bike up and tried to run straight on. Unfortunately, I clipped Sete’s rear wheel and crashed. I’m sorry for the team, because the bike and tyres have been good all weekend, my lap times were consistent and we were looking forward to a good result this afternoon. In the end, the result is that I’ve given them some work to do fixing the crashed bike. But, like I said, I came here to race, so I had to go for it. Now we must look forward to the final two races, because I think it’s still possible to improve my final position in the championship standings.” Randy de Puniet: DNF “What a disappointment. Practice and qualifying went well for us yesterday, and we proved again during morning warm-up that our race set-up was good, but then we had to swap an engine ahead of the race and it changed the whole character of the bike. The rear was spinning up too easily out of the turns, and I lost a lot of time early on in the race when the rear threatened to come round on me a few times. From that point I was riding more on the front, and that’s when I crashed. We now need to find out why my race engine felt so different to the engine we ran this morning, so we can avoid the same problem at the last two races of the season.” Naoki Matsudo: DNF “I had some problems with the engine right from the start of the race; it felt down on power from the off and the problem seemed to be getting worse with each lap. I tried to keep the bike running as long as I could, but it just wasn’t possible to continue past lap nine. It’s disappointing not to finish my only MotoGP race of the season, but I’ve learnt a lot this weekend, and this will help me with my test and development duties for Kawasaki in the future.” More, from a press release issued by Camel Yamaha: ROSSI CLOSES THE GAP WITH ANOTHER HARD-EARNED PODIUM Camel Yamaha Team rider Valentino Rossi now trails MotoGP World Championship series leader Nicky Hayden (Honda) by just twelve points with two rounds remaining thanks to his fourth consecutive podium, his eighth from the last ten races, in Japan today. Rossi took second place in a race dominated and won by Loris Capirossi (Ducati), with Marco Melandri (Honda) completing the podium in a carbon copy of the front row order. The 20-point reward for Rossi moved him another nine closer to Hayden, who finished fifth behind Sete Gibernau (Ducati). Colin Edwards had shown promise of mounting a podium challenge himself this weekend but unfortunately his excellent practice pace on race rubber did not translate into the top result he was hoping for. Despite making a good start from tenth on the grid the American was forced wide by another rider into turn one and lost several positions, dropping back to twelfth. However a determined ride from that point onwards saw him battle back to eighth place a position he also now holds in the championship after moving above John Hopkins (Suzuki). VALENTINO ROSSI (2nd; +5.088) “I’m really happy with this second position today. It wasn’t a great battle like in Sepang, but my rhythm was really good and my bike worked very well. We had a few problems in warm-up this morning and, like always, my mechanics, the Yamaha engineers and Michelin did a great job to make some last-minute changes to our race set-up. At the start my M1 was a little bit hard to ride but slowly I found my rhythm and then bit by bit I started to come closer to Marco. Once I passed him I started pushing to try to reach Loris and made the fastest lap, but once he realised I was coming closer he opened the throttle again and he was just too fast for me to catch. My bike worked brilliantly since Friday morning and I want to thank everyone for all their hard work, it seems that when everything is working for us then it’s hard for the others! 20 points is a great result for me at this track, which isn’t one of my favourites, and now we’re only 12 points behind in the championship. We have two races left and if we can continue in this way then it’s possible!” COLIN EDWARDS (8th; +22.492) “I got off the line pretty well but then (Dani) Pedrosa pushed me out a bit on the exit of turn one and I had to chop it. I lost speed and then about three people went by me so I was playing catch-up from then on. I had to spend some time getting past (Makoto) Tamada and (Randy) De Puniet but then I got my head down and just kept going in the same rhythm. I was doing good lap times, consistent with what we were doing all weekend, but it wasn’t enough to make up for our grid position and the problems in turn one. About 15 laps in I hit a bit of a wall, couldn’t hold the load on the rear tyre and started losing corner speed, so life was more difficult from then on. Of course I’m really disappointed; we had a plan but it was messed up by our starting position and turn one. On the bright side we were able to run the same good pace we ran all weekend for most of the race, but it seems a few others, my team-mate included, found a bit extra today and what we had just wasn’t enough!” DAVIDE BRIVIO CAMEL YAMAHA TEAM DIRECTOR “Today was a very important race for us because we have been able to reduce the gap by another nine points, which keeps us on target. Our goal today was to finish on the podium and we did that so we are happy, even though Loris had a pace that Valentino wasn’t quite able to follow. Unfortunately Colin couldn’t quite live up to the high hopes he had raised before the race so we will investigate the reasons for that. We still have two races left and we want to help get him back to the front of the pack. The last three weeks have required a lot of energy, effort and concentration from the whole team and I am delighted the way every one of them has responded. Now we need them to keep it going for two more races and hopefully we will continue to get our rewards.” More, from a press release issued by Bridgestone: BRIDGESTONE CELEBRATES RECORD SEASON WITH HOME HAT-TRICK JAPANESE GRAND PRIX Bridgestone Motorsport is today celebrating a record season in MotoGP after Ducati rider Loris Capirossi stormed to a sensational Japanese GP victory, the third consecutive Motegi win on Bridgestone tyres. Starting from pole after a dominant qualifying lap yesterday, Capirossi was able to keep his lead into the final corner to fend off a strong initial challenge from Marco Melandri throughout the early laps before gradually extending his advantage on Bridgestone tyres all the way to the chequered flag. The result takes his and Bridgestone’s 2006 season win tally to three and brings the Japanese tyre manufacturer’s total number of podiums this season to nine. Bridgestone’s previous season best came in 2005 in which it scored two wins, eight podiums and three poles. Sete Gibernau underlined the excellent performance of the Ducati-Bridgestone package by taking fourth place after a close battle with Kawasaki’s Shinya Nakano who crashed out from fifth position on the final lap of the 24-lap race. Gibernau rode a spirited race to take his equal best result of the season after a fourth place in Jerez and last weekend in Australia. None of Kawasaki’s three riders completed the race after a strong weekend which had seen them regularly among the frontrunners. In addition to Nakano’s last lap fall from fifth, Randy de Puniet crashed out on lap eight, the same lap as wildcard entry Naoki Matsudo was forced to retire with a technical problem. Suzuki also experienced a tough afternoon with John Hopkins making a valiant recovery back to 12th after being forced off track by another rider early on in the race. He finished just one place behind Motegi rookie Chris Vermeulen and one in front of the team’s wildcard rider Kousuke Akiyoshi who enjoyed a great race to finish ahead of more experienced MotoGP riders. Loris Capirossi Ducati Corse Race Winner: “It is difficult to ask for a better weekend than that. Thanks to all the team and to Bridgestone who came to Motegi with a good focus and many good tyres. We had a strong pace from Friday already and in qualifying I was able to do a great lap for pole. I got a good start to the race and had a good rhythm lapping in the 1m47s. This is a very important victory for us, also for Bridgestone in their home GP, so this win is for the whole team.” Bridgestone Corporation Senior Vice-President and Member of the Board, Tatsuya Okajima, in attendance at today’s GP commented: “That was an incredible achievement for Ducati, Loris and Bridgestone in Motegi today in front of our home crowd and hundreds of Bridgestone employees and management members. It is an honour to take our third victory of the season in the Japanese Grand Prix and to celebrate our most successful season in MotoGP after just five seasons in the sport. I would like to extend my sincerest appreciation to all of our teams Ducati, Kawasaki and Suzuki for such a big effort this weekend, and to all of our supporters here in Japan and around the world.” Hiroshi Yamada – Bridgestone Motorsport – Manager Motorcycle Racing: “Congratulations to Loris and Ducati for this fantastic result today. It was a close battle with Marco to start with, but after a while Loris was able to expand his lead and to take this historic win, ours and Ducati’s third of the season to make 2006 our most successful season ever. Sete was also close to taking his debut 2006 podium, but his fourth place was nevertheless a positive result and a good reward for his hard efforts this weekend. It was a special feeling for Bridgestone to take our third win here at Motegi in a row in front of the many fans, Bridgestone employees, guests and VIPs that we have welcomed this weekend. We have used some new shape rear tyre specifications specifically developed for this race and our tyres have performed competitively this weekend, as in recent races. I am just sorry that Kawasaki and Suzuki riders were not able to capitalise on this during the race for various reasons. A special mention must go also to Akiyoshi for such a commendable weekend as a Suzuki wildcard. After three races, we take away two second places and today’s victory, which combined with Loris’s Brno win, have seen Bridgestone tyres at the heart of the racing action and challenging for race wins. We will continue to put our maximum effort into the final two races back in Europe, knowing that the competition will be fierce and intense right up to the finish.” Bridgestone Race Results Front Rear P1 Loris Capirossi Ducati 43m13.585s Winner Slick Hard Slick Medium P4 Sete Gibernau Ducati 43m23.297s +9.712s Slick Hard Slick Medium P11 Chris Vermeulen Suzuki 43m52.848s +39.263s Slick Hard Slick Medium P12 John Hopkins Suzuki 43m53.025s +39.440s Slick Hard Slick Hard P13 Kousuke Akiyoshi Suzuki 43m59.180s +45.595s Slick Medium Slick Hard DNF Shinya Nakano Kawasaki 41m34.655s +1 lap Slick Hard Slick Medium DNF Randy de Puniet Kawasaki 14m38.163s +16 laps Slick Hard Slick Medium DNF Naoki Matsuda Kawasaki 14m51.515s +23 laps Slick Hard Slick Medium Weather: Dry. Air 27°C, Track 43°C, Humidity 11% More, from a press release issued by Marlboro Ducati: MAJESTIC CAPIROSSI WINS AGAIN IN JAPAN Ducati Marlboro Team rider Loris Capirossi scored a majestic victory at sun-blessed Motegi this afternoon, beating his 2005 race-winning time by a massive 17 seconds to record his second consecutive Japanese Grand Prix success. Team-mate Sete Gibernau had a fine ride to fourth, just 1.3 seconds away from scoring his first podium for the team. Capirossi was in breathtaking form, starting from pole position and leading from the first lap to the chequered flag, gradually building an advantage over his closest rivals Marco Melandri and Valentino Rossi. And when Rossi moved past Melandri into second and tried to make a run on the leader, Capirossi responded in devastating fashion, recording a 1m 47.5s lap with just five laps remaining to put the matter beyond doubt! He crossed the line a full five seconds ahead of Rossi to move into fourth place in the championship, 31 points down on the series leader with two races to go. Gibernau rode hard to defend fourth place during the final laps, Shinya Nakano crashing out when he was just a few centimetres behind the Spaniard three corners from the flag. Capirossi’s impressive win was applauded by 600 local Ducati fans in the Ducati grandstand at Motegi; Japan is one of Ducati’s most important national markets. Both Capirossi and Gibernau stay at Motegi tomorrow for an important test of the factory’s new 800cc GP7 which the team will race in 2007. Loris Capirossi, Ducati Marlboro Team, winner, 4th overall, 205 points “I think that was a pretty amazing race. It all started on Friday when my team immediately found a good setting and Bridgestone came here with many good new tyres. I was able to find a good rhythm in practice and we were very fast in warm-up, so our target was to get a great start and just go. I got the start, but Marco tried to overtake me on the first lap. I said to myself it’s better he doesn’t come past because I didn’t know if his pace was as fast as mine. After six or seven laps I started to take a small advantage, then after half-distance my pitboard told me Valentino was coming. At that moment I was going a little bit slow and when I saw Valentino coming very quick I had to go faster again. My pace was very good, 47s all race. This victory is very important to us and I don’t think the championship will be over until the last race. To win here in Japan is a fantastic thing for us to do, and also for Bridgestone. My thanks to all my team and to all our sponsors.” Sete Gibernau, Ducati Marlboro Team, finished 4th, 10th overall, 95 points “That wasn’t so bad but I can’t be happy. We missed the race because I was too slow at the beginning. I didn’t get a grip of the bike until past half-race distance and that was my mistake. I didn’t even feel anything from Nakano. Actually after that right-hander I looked back to see if he was going to try and attack into the next fast left but he wasn’t there, so I flicked it into the turn and then I looked back on the start-finish and he wasn’t there. I just feel sorry for him and I’m glad he doesn’t seem to be badly hurt. Now we’ve got two races left, so two more goes at the podium this year, we just need to keep our heads down from the first lap to the last.” Livio Suppo, Ducati MotoGP project manager “It is a really great feeling to win for the second year running in Japan. The team did a great job once again this weekend, Bridgestone worked so well too, so our thanks to them and to Shell Advance for their vital technical support. However, it was Loris who was unbelievable today, truly unbelievable! Sete rode a good race but he lost too much time during the first few laps”. More, from a press release issued by Fortuna Honda: MARCO MELANDRI: THIRD PLACE ON AN ALL-ITALIAN PODIUM A good day too for Toni Elias, who clinches sixth place The Grand Prix of Japan belonged to Italy today as tricolore riders filled the podium once again: Loris Capirossi, Valentino Rossi and Marco Melandri taking the spoils at Motegi. Marco Melandri was one of the stars of a spectacular race, his third place finish handing the Constructors’ World Championship title to Honda for the 17th time in the premier-class. Marco made a great start from the front row, moving into second place behind Loris Capirossi, who set a hot pace from the beginning. After a couple of tentative attempts to take the lead, the Fortuna Honda rider then turned his attentions to defending second place for fourteen laps until eventually conceding to Rossi. It was a satisfactory outing for Toni Elias, who took a creditable sixth place today. Toni also made a good start and did his best to stay in touch with the lead group, who were lapping in a sensational pace of 1’47. Toni lost a little more ground as each lap went by but fought bravely in the second group to take a hard-earned sixth place. Marco’s seventh podium of the season leaves him third in the championship on 209 points, 27 behind series leader and fellow Honda rider Nicky Hayden. MARCO MELANDRI (3rd in the race, 3rd in the championship on 209 points): “It is nice to be on the podium at Honda’s home race and I’m happy to have given them the constructors’ title. Today the pace set by Loris was extremely fast but the balance of my bike was also good and the tyres worked really well. After a tough warm-up, when we struggled a little to get the right feeling with a harder rear tyre, I went for slightly softer rubber for the race. At the start I felt I had the pace to lead the race because the feeling with the bike and tyres was perfect. Then when the tyres started to go off I first took some risks to maintain my position but then I decided not to take any further risks and bring it home in third place. I’m enjoying myself at the moment and now we’re going to two tracks I like. I just have to focus on having fun and giving it my best shot every Sunday.” TONI ELIAS (6th in the race, 13th in the championship on 81 points): “I’m happy with sixth place even though I was hoping for better. I started well and tried to go with the lead group but it wasn’t possible because they had a pace that was a couple of tenths quicker than I was capable of. I got involved in the second group with Gibernau, Hayden and Nakano, focused on my rhythm and pushed as hard as I could, even though I was missing a little rear traction. Now I am looking forward to Portugal because we have taken another step forward here.” More, from a press release issued by Pramac D’Antin: IN MOTEGI ALEX HOFMANN PUSH TO THE MAXIMUM, AND CARDOSO IS UNLUCKY The PRAMAC D’ANTIN MOTOGP riders faced the Japanese Grand Prix with the maximum care on their DUCATI DESMOSEDICI GP6 “Sat”. After a good start and 24 laps to the maximum, ALEX HOFMANN ended the race in 16th position, close to the points’ area. JOSE LUIS CARDOSO, despite the big motivation he showed, didn’t finish the race as he went out of track during the second lap. There are two races left to close the 2006 MotoGP World Championship. These will take place in Europe; the first in Portugal on the next 15th October in Estoril, the second and last one in Valencia, as the classic appointment of the end of the season. ALEX HOFMANN #66 (16th): “I gave all I could during 24 laps but I didn’t managed to bring back home the result I wanted. I had a constant pace and the bike was stable. My feeling with the front was good and the braking was alright, but I had problems in acceleration. I couldn’t exploit it to attack the other riders, the lack of grip on the rear didn’t allow me to make anything more. Anyway we made the maximum and I have to thank everybody”. JOSE LUIS CARDOSO #30 (not classified): “Unfortunately, the race hasn’t been as I expected. I started with big motivation but, at the beginning of the second lap, I ended out of the track at the end of the straight line, in front of the pit-boxes. The motorcycle remained stuck in the sand and I was forced to retire myself. Now we’re going back to race in Europe and I hope that the last two races will be favourable to me”. EMANUELE MARTINELLI – Track Engineer of Alex Hofmann: “HOFMANN kept a pace that we didn’t expected. Today’s temperature was slightly higher than during the last days and this partially helped us. The motorcycle was balanced alright but the traction difficulties on the rear didn’t allow us to make anything more. The data of these last three races will be useful to analyze what happened and try to keep on developing the motorcycle in the right direction”. More, from a press release issued by Honda Racing: HONDA WINS CONSTRUCTORS’ AND TEAMS’ TITLES This key MotoGP race was won by pole-sitter Loris Capirossi (Ducati) from Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) in second and with Marco Melandri (Fortuna Honda RC211V) third. World Championship points leader Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda RC211V) was fifth at the flag. But as Hayden watched his points lead shrink to 12 points over his nearest challenger Rossi, Honda clinched both the Constructors’ World Championship and the Team prize via the Repsol Honda outfit. With two rounds to go Honda cannot be caught, but with a further 50 points up for grabs in the Riders’ series Hayden is now under acute pressure. Capirossi stole into the lead into turn one at the lights with Melandri Marco close enough to him to edge past only to be re-passed by the Ducati man on that opening lap. Rossi lay third, with Sete Gibernau (Ducati) fourth, Shinya Nakano (Kawasaki) fifth and Casey Stoner (LCR Honda RC211V) sixth. Stoner was flying and moved up to fourth on lap two setting an early fastest lap of this 24-lap race of 1m 47.910s. Capirossi responded immediately on lap three to record a 1m 47.797s time. Then it was Melandri’s turn on lap four with a 1m 47.552s lap. The pace would get hotter still. Hayden had suffered a poor start and the Kentucky Kid was labouring in seventh place on lap six. Capirossi, Melandri and Rossi had separated from Stoner in fourth and Gibernau in fifth by lap seven. The gap to Stoner was 2.3 seconds, when Gibernau relieved Casey of fourth. By mid-race distance the leading trio had put four seconds between themselves and Gibernau. But of more significance was the advantage Capirossi was pulling out over Melandri and Rossi one second and rising. Stoner had now dropped down the order to eighth. Casey couldn’t hold it either and crashed out of that position on lap 13 while Capirossi worked on stretching his lead even further. Rossi had now pounced on Marco for second and he then applied pressure on Capirossi. The Ducati man responded by working even harder on attacking the closing laps of this punishing track. Hayden was trying desperately to reel in Nakano for fifth place and the gap stood at one second in the closing stages. Capirossi was a full 2.2 seconds ahead of Rossi and Melandri was not making any impression on the second-placed Yamaha man either. This looked like the order the flagman would see as the final lap began but Nakano would crash at the bottom of the hill after running into the back of Gibernau’s machine in a last gasp bid to wrest fourth place from the Spaniard. Gibernau stayed on to secure that place, while Nicky inherited fifth from the over-ambitious Nakano. Capirossi took the flag by a full five seconds in front of a 63,000 crowd here, with Rossi a clinical second and Melandri a valiant third. The World Championship lead is still Nicky’s with 236 accruing to the American Honda man. But Rossi now has 224 and Melandri 209. Capirossi sits fourth with 205. The Constructors’ Championship is now Honda’s. The factory has amassed 319 points to Yamaha’s 262, with Ducati third on 218 points. Repsol Honda has won the Teams’ prize with 438 points to Camel Yamaha’s 328, with Ducati again third on 307. Marco said, “It’s nice to be on the podium at Honda’s home race and I’m happy to have given them the Constructors’ title. Today the pace set by Loris was extremely fast but the balance of my bike was also good and the tyres worked really well. After a tough warm-up, when we struggled a little to get the right feeling with a harder rear tyre, I went for slightly softer rubber for the race. At the start I felt I had the pace to lead the race because the feeling with the bike and tyres was perfect. Then when the tyres started to go off I first took some risks to maintain my position but then I decided not to take any further risks and to bring it home in third place.” Hayden said, “Well that’s another fifth place which isn’t great obviously. Lap one was pretty wild and luckily in the first couple of corners I made up a lot of positions because my start was a bit of a disaster that was the worst part of the race for me. Luckily that first lap turned out as good as it did because otherwise the result could have been much worse. I tried to come through the pack but it’s hard you’re coming past fast guys and in this class it’s really tough. Luckily we’ve got a couple of days here to test now.” Toni Elias (Fortuna Honda RC211V), who was sixth, said, “I’m happy with sixth place, even though I was hoping for better. I started well and tried to go with the leading group but it wasn’t possible because they had a pace that was a couple of tenths quicker than I was capable of. I got involved in the second group with Gibernau, Hayden and Nakano, focused on my rhythm and pushed as hard as I could, even though I was missing a little rear traction. Now I am looking forward to Portugal because we have taken another step forward here.” Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC211V) finished seventh, and said, “My race didn’t go well at the beginning. In the first left-hander Elias made a mistake, I was just behind and I couldn’t avoid him so I went off track. Everybody passed me, I was near the back of the field and I was making mistakes trying to pass people. My race pace was quite good but the problem was we didn’t manage to get this pace early in the practice sessions this weekend. I’m happy to have won the Rookie of the Year though because I got it in the 125cc and 250cc classes, so it’s nice to get it also in MotoGP.” Ninth-placed finisher Kenny Roberts (Roberts KR211V) said, “Felt great this morning. Seems like when I get out on my own and get in my own rhythm and I don’t have to slam the brakes on or really accelerate hard, I’m OK. But when I’ve got to start doing that I start getting sucked in and it feels like I’m going to run into the back of people. And when I get on the gas at the same time I just spin, so it’s like I keep a certain distance and then I’m OK. It’s like I’m riding just too much corner speed. And we’ve been trying to fix that. That was obviously one of the things we were trying to get more rear grip so I can avoid doing that.” “I’m really sorry for my home race result,” said tenth-placed Makoto Tamada (Konica Minolta Honda RC211V). “I was competitive at the start and I made up some positions during the first lap. The feeling with my bike was better than yesterday but not sufficient to turn with the necessary pace to stay with the leading group. It’s very sad for me to race like this but the worst thing is that I have not found the way to overcome this situation yet.” A dejected Stoner said, “For two laps from the start the bike felt OK, and I was up to fourth place after passing Gibernau. Unfortunately in the morning warm-up the team decided to put an extra turn of preload on the front and it was fine with a full load of fuel. But as the fuel went down I had no feeling at the front, the rear was lifting under the brakes and I was running wide. I’m disappointed, because since free practice 3, we had the perfect set-up and we didn’t need to change anything. I wasn’t happy with the race, I should have been able to run low 1’47s, and I really have no explanation for the crash, I don’t know what I did wrong.” Hiro Aoyama (KTM) won the 23-lap 250cc race from Alex de Angelis (Aprilia) with series points leader Jorge Lorenzo (Aprilia) third. Andrea Dovizioso (Humangest Racing Honda RS250RW) could only manage fourth place after leading the early laps. De Angelis got the holeshot off the line but was passed by Dovi later in the opening lap with Yuki Takahashi (Humangest Racing Honda RS250RW) third, Aoyama in fourth and Lorenzo at this stage a distant fifth by 1.5 seconds. He drifted further back further to 2.02 seconds by mid-race. But Dovi had lost control of the race by this stage too. The Italian title challenger dropped to fourth as first de Angelis and then Aoyama took control at the front. The KTM rider set a fastest lap of 1m 52.800s as he piled on the pressure on his pursuers. Takahashi had by now fallen while holding third place. Hiro Aoyama and de Angelis were comfortably clear of Lorenzo and Dovizioso at the flag with Roberto Locatelli in fifth and Shuhei Aoyama (Repsol Honda RS250RW) sixth. David de Gea, standing in for the injured Martin Cardenas, (Repsol Honda RS250RW) also fell without injury. Dovi said, “This is bad luck. Yuki crashed out in front of me and I lost ground to Aoyama; he had a good rhythm and I wasn’t able to catch him afterwards. And at the end, also Lorenzo got close to me as his Aprilia was faster. I was losing on the straights and so I tried to attack in the braking points. Here it was important to gain points but we have lost them instead; 27 points is a big gap with only two races remaining. Yuki and I didn’t set any strategy as I think that it is right that both riders ride their own race and I want to win by myself without any help.” “I’m very disappointed,” said Aoyama. “I made a good start, but as the first lap went by I lost several positions. The other riders managed to outbrake me in the corners and there was nothing I could do, then I would pass them back and wanted to push, but it was very difficult, the lap times were very similar. As the race went by the grip of the tyres was better and I was able to improve my times, but so did the others. I don’t really know the reason but it’s sad.” Takahashi said, “In the turn I crashed out and had suffered some problems in the previous laps too. I fell off because in the middle of the turn, when I shifted down, the engine was too powerful and I couldn’t avoid the crash. I’m really disappointed because this race was important for me in front of my supporters and also because I compromised Andrea’s result.” Ratthapark Wilairot of the Thai Honda Castrol Endurance Team finished a creditable 10th. He said, “My aim was to finish within top five so I couldn’t achieve this goal but I am satisfied with the result. My start was not so bad but I couldn’t improve my pace. The second half was a fight under pressure to keep the position. I really enjoyed taking part in the race and want to thank Honda, Bridgestone, and all the other sponsors.” The World Championship points table now shows Lorenzo leading with 265 points to Dovi’s 238 with de Angelis third on 187 points. Aprilia heads the Constructors’ Championship with 316 points to Honda’s 255. Mika Kallio (KTM) won the 125cc race from Alvaro Bautista (Aprilia), denying the newly crowned World Champion an eighth victory of the season. Hector Faubel (Aprilia) was third. The 2005 World Champion Thomas Luthi (Elit Grand Prix Honda RS125R) fell on lap four of this 21-lap race while lying in 11th place leaving a four-rider pack, which included Lukas Pesek (Derbi) in fourth, to fight for the win in the closing stages. Bautista and Kallio had then left Faubel six seconds behind as the final laps unfolded and it was Kallio who overhauled the Spanish World Champion to take the win on the final lap. Bradley Smith (Repsol Honda RS125R) rode a fine race to finish in eighth place. This is the first top ten of the rookie British rider’s season and he also finished as first Honda. Luthi said, “The crash was my mistake I made a small mistake before the start/finish straight and lost contact with the group. Even before the crash I knew I had problems. It’s important to stay in the slipstream here but once I lost that I was in trouble. That meant I had to be really hard with the brakes but I lost the font-end real quick and could not save it, then the back-end went and I crashed with Di Meglio it was my mistake.” Smith said, “It’s definitely been better than expected. With a ninth position start it’s been very good for me. I know how to crack on in the first three laps, but I sat and watched the group in front. But after Di Meglio and Luthi went down I knew that I had to go with the group because they had already broken away. I pushed and I pushed and I caught Koyama and I brought Koyama to Talmacsi and I passed him. I was trying a 120% to get away but it just wasn’t to be.” Bautista has already secured the Riders’ title for 2006 with a 300 point haul, Kallio lies second on 226 points while Mattia Pasini (Aprilia) has 185 points. Aprilia leads the Constructors’ Championship with 323 points to KTM’s 231 with Honda third on 153 points HONDA GP RIDER QUOTES MotoGP: Marco Melandri, Fortuna Honda: 3rd: “It’s nice to be on the podium at Honda’s home race and I’m happy to have given them the Constructors’ title. Today the pace set by Loris was extremely fast but the balance of my bike was also good and the tyres worked really well. After a tough warm-up, when we struggled a little to get the right feeling with a harder rear tyre, I went for slightly softer rubber for the race. At the start I felt I had the pace to lead the race because the feeling with the bike and tyres was perfect. Then when the tyres started to go off I first took some risks to maintain my position but then I decided not to take any further risks and to bring it home in third place. I’m enjoying myself at the moment and now we’re going to two tracks I like. I just have to focus on having fun and giving it my best shot every Sunday” Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda: 5th: “Well that’s another 5th place which isn’t great obviously. Lap one was pretty wild and luckily in the first couple of corners I made up a lot of positions because my start was a bit of a disaster that was the worst part of the race for me. Luckily that first lap turned out as good as it did because otherwise the result could have been much worse. I actually got hit by another rider on the first lap and bent the clutch lever up which didn’t help. I tried to come through the pack but it’s hard you’re coming past fast guys and in this class it’s really tough. Towards the end I started closing, closing, closing on Nakano and Gibernau and then I made a little mistake in Turn 5 and they picked up the pace too. Actually my bike worked pretty good today, and the Michelins did too. My rhythm wasn’t bad – I was much faster than I was able to go here last year and I guess that’s one positive thing to come out of today. And luckily we’ve got a couple of days here to test to see if we can sort it out.” Toni Elias, Fortuna Honda: 6th: “I’m happy with sixth place, even though I was hoping for better. I started well and tried to go with the leading group but it wasn’t possible because they had a pace that was a couple of tenths quicker than I was capable of. I got involved in the second group with Gibernau, Hayden and Nakano, focused on my rhythm and pushed as hard as I could, even though I was missing a little rear traction. Now I am looking forward to Portugal because we have taken another step forward here.” Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda: 7th.: “My race was didn’t go well at the beginning. In the first left hander Elias made a mistake, I was just behind and I couldn’t avoid him so I went off the track. Everybody passed me and I was near the back of the field which made it really difficult and I was making mistakes trying to pass people. After that the leading group had gained a big lead, and anyway I was not as fast as them today. But I tried to recover as much as possible and I finished seventh, which is not such a good result for me this season. My race pace was quite good but the problem was that we didn’t manage to get this pace early in the practice sessions this weekend. I’m happy to have won the Rookie of the Year though because I got it in the 125cc and 250cc classes, so it’s nice to get it also in MotoGP.” Kenny Roberts Jnr, KR Honda: 9th: Felt great this morning. Seems like when I get out on my own and get in my own rhythm and I don’t have to slam the brakes on or really accelerate hard, I’m OK. But when I’ve got to start doing that I start getting sucked in and it feels like I’m going to run in the back of people. And when I get on the gas at the same time I just spin, so it’s like I keep a certain distance and then I’m OK. It’s like I’m riding just too much corner speed. And we’ve been trying to fix that. That was obviously one of the things we were trying to get rear grip out of it so I can avoid doing that. Team Owner Kenny Roberts: It just wasn’t there all weekend. This is the new chassis. Again, we have very little time, very little experience with it. It could very well be two, three-tenths off; we don’t know that. In the morning warm-up it was fine and then the race gets hotter. These are just things you learn. Everybody’s so damn close. It doesn’t take much to tune yourself out of a half a second a lap. We’ve always had a stopping problem and that’s really an area where we want to work that’s largely a suspension and maybe a little bit of aerodynamic work to make it stop better. It’s always stopping on its nose and moving; you can’t really out-stop anybody. That’s a problem we’ve had since we started the project. Makoto Tamada, Konica Minolta Honda: 10th: “I am really sorry for my home race result. I was competitive at the start only; I made up some positions during the first lap. The feeling with my bike was better than yesterday but not sufficient to turn with the necessary pace to stay with the leading group. It is very sad for me to race like this but the worst thing is that I have not found the way to overcome this situation yet.” Casey Stoner, LCR Honda: dnf crash: “For two laps from the start the bike felt OK, and I was up to fourth place after passing Gibernau. Unfortunately in the morning warm-up the team decided to put an extra turn of preload on the front and it was fine with full load of fuel. But as the fuel went down I had no feeling on the front, and the rear was lifting under brakes and I was running wide. I’m disappointed, because since free practice 3, we had the perfect set-up and we didn’t need to change anything. I wasn’t happy with the race, I should have been able to run low 1’47s, and I really have no explanation for the crash, I don’t know what I did wrong.” 250cc: Andrea Dovizioso, Humangest Honda: 4th: “This is bad luck. Yuki crashed out in front of me and I lost ground to Aoyama; he had a good rhythm and I wasn’t able to catch him afterwards. And at the end, also Lorenzo got close to me as his Aprilia was faster than me. I was losing on the straights and so I tried to attack in the braking points, but there has been nothing to do. Here it was important to gain points but we have lost them instead; 27 points are a lot with only two races remaining. Yuki and I didn’t set any strategy as I think that it is right that both riders ride their own race and I want to win by myself without any help”. Shuhei Aoyama, Repsol Honda: 6th: “I’m very disappointed. I made a good start, but as the first lap went by I already lost several positions. The other riders managed to outbrake me in the corners and there was nothing I could do, then I would pass them back and wanted to push, but it was very difficult, the lap times were very similar. As the race went by the grip of the tyres was better and I was able to improve my times, but so did the others. I don’t really know the reason but, it’s sad.” Ratthapark Wilairot, Thai Honda Castrol Endurance: 10th. “My aim was to finish within top five so I couldn’t achieve this goal but I am satisfied with the result. My start was not so bad but I couldn’t improve my pace. The second half was the fight with the pressure to keep the position. I am very impressed to take part in the MotoGP 250cc race and want to thank Honda, Bridgestone, and all the other sponsors.” Fabrizio Perren, Stop and Go Racing: 15th. “I am a little disappointed because I raced so hard today. My start was good and the bike was running really well, if it was not for the fast local wild cards I would have been in a better position. In the closing stages I was racing ahead of Baldolini but last lap I got into a big slide at the chicane and he passed me. I just did not have time to try and re-pass him. “ Arturo Tizon, Wurth Honda BQR: 21st.”I got a very good start but at the first corner I got boxed in and 24th at the end of the first lap. I tried to get to the group of riders ahead of me but I could not. The bike was good and the only problem I had was with the front brake, it faded towards the finish. Not a good day, I didn’t score any points.” Yuki Takahashi, Humangest Honda: dnf crash: “In the turn I crashed out I suffered some problems also in the previous laps; I fell off because in the middle of the turn, when I shifted down, the engine was too powerful and I couldn’t avoid the crash. I’m really disappointed because this race was important for me in front of my supporters and also because I compromised Andrea’s result”. David de Gea, replacement rider for Martin Cardenas, Repsol Honda: dnf crash.: “I made a good start, but I kind of pushed too hard in the first lap and wasn’t able to avoid the strong braking in the rear part of the circuit, the second gear corner. I went on the brakes and when the tyre came back onto the ground the bike just destabilised and I wasn’t able to regain control. I tried to stop it but Ballerini was right in front of me and I just couldn’t avoid touching him, that’s when I crashed. I’m physically OK, nothing serious.” Aleix Espargaro, Wurth Honda BQR: dnf brake problems. “I got a good start but at the first corner I was in trouble with the brakes and I ran wide. From then it was always going to be hard for me. In the warm up we used up a set of rear brake pads and Nissin gave us a harder compound to use in the race but they were not good and I just could not get the bike stopped, so I had to stop.” Arnaud Vincent, Molenaar Honda: dnf technical problem. 125cc: Bradley Smith, Repsol Honda: 8th: “It’s definitely been better than expected. With a ninth position start it’s been very good for me. I know how to crack on in the first three laps, but I didn’t really, I sat and watched the group in front but after Di Meglio and Luthi went down I knew that I had to go with the group because they had already broken away. I pushed and I pushed and I caught Koyama and I brought Koyama to Talmaczi and I passed him. I was trying a 120% to get away but it just weren’t to be. It’s so difficult leading from the front without a slipstream they can always stay in the area, never pass you, just stay there. I tried to break away for about twelve laps. I’m pretty tired now but over the moon with the result.” Gabor Talmacsi, Humangest Honda: 9th: “After this morning’s warm up I was confident for the race as we have found a better set-up of the bike compared to the practice. But, during the race I had the same problems with the front as in the practice sessions and so I made too many mistakes. Anyway, I did my best and at two laps to go I couldn’t recover any further positions”. Fabrizio Lai, Seedorf Racing World: 11th: This morning I felt a marble statue. Then I recovered slowly, helped by the doctors of the Clinica Mobile and so I tried to come up my bike: the pain was incredible but I have decided to take the start. During the race,the bike seemed to be very heavy and I wasn’t able to ride it: I lost positions until the twentieth. But,after ten laps, I began to feel better because the bike was lighter with less gasoline. So I set my teeth and advanced one position after another. At the end it’s notso bad: sincerely I didn’t think to be able to finish the race, indeed I’m eleventh too.” Tito Rabat, Wurth Honda BQR: 12th. “I got a good start and could follow Olive and Terol. but Terol went away from us. Later I passed Olive and got away from him. and was racing with Lai. And we passed each other a few times but on the last lap he passed me again and I could not get passed him again. A good fun race but I really wanted to beat Lai. My team gave me a good bike and I thank them very much. The engine was strong and the chassis very good.” Hiromi Iwata, Plus One Honda: 27th: “I was going OK for the first lap but after that my lap times didn’t improve. I couldn’t shift down well and went out of the track. I couldn’t improve my position till the finish. My machine was slower than the others and I was slow at the corners. Because I wasn’t doing well, my determination went down as well. I have to use the experience I gained during this weekend to the All Japan Championship races. Michele Conti, Seedorf Racing World: 28th: I was not able to learn this track with its narrow corners. So we tried to use the large rear tyre in the race (the bike is easier to drive) but the situation isn’t changed: I was in a group of faster Aprilia and I was not able to overtaken them.” Joey Litjens, Molenaar Honda: 29th. “That was a really painful race for me my back is very sore. 21- laps round here has left me completely exhausted but I finished. Everything about the bike was good the only problem was the pain in my back.” Toshihisa Kuzuhara, S-Way Honda: 30th: “I am very tired but I really enjoyed the weekend. I was following one rider and then he let me go in front. But when I got in front of him, I lost my rhythm. It was a good experience for me and was a good practice for my All Japan races.” Iori Namihira, Honda Suzuka Racing: 31st: “This morning’s warm-up was a little better than before. During the race, it was a fight among three riders and I tried to get in front but failed. Although my result is not so good, I learnt a lot from them and I will try my best to get on the podium regularly for the All Japan championship races.” Thomas Luthi, Elit Honda: dnf crash. “The crash was my mistake I made a small mistake before the start finish straight and lost contact with the group. Even before the crash I knew I had problems its important to stay in the slipstream here but once I lost the slipstream I was in trouble. That meant I had to be really hard with the brakes but I lost the font end real quickly and could not save it, then the back end went and I crashed with Di Meglio it was my mistake.” Kazuma Watanabe, Humangest Honda: dnf : “I was doing a pretty good race improving lap by lap even though my rhythm wasn’t enough good to recover more positions. Anyway, the bike was working good and for this I want to thank the team for the chance they have given to me and for working very hard during this weekend. In the last lap I high-sided and lost the control of the bike so I crashed out, luckily I got a light contusion on my right ankle; I’m very sorry for the mistake I made”. Mike Di Meglio, FFM Honda: dnf crash. More, from a press release issued by Michelin: MICHELIN MAN ROSSI SETS NEW MOTEGI LAP RECORD Michelin man Valentino Rossi (Camel Yamaha Team YZR-M1-Michelin) scored a hard-fought runner-up finish in today’s Japanese Grand Prix to move closer to World Championship leader Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda Team RC211V-Michelin). The Italian smashed the Motegi lap record by 0.68 seconds while chasing winner Loris Capirossi (Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici). Marco Melandri (Fortuna Honda RC211V-Michelin) finished the race in third spot, Michelin riders filling eight of the first ten finishing positions. With just two races remaining of this year’s 17-round series, Michelin riders also dominate the championship standings, Rossi now 12 points behind Hayden, who finished today’s race in fifth place, and 15 points ahead of Melandri. “We didn’t win today but this wasn’t a bad result, with two riders on the podium, eight riders in the first ten and Valentino and Marco setting the fastest two laps of the race,” said Nicolas Goubert, Michelin’s director of motorcycle racing. “Our new front tires were the big improvement here this year. The construction of our wider profile front and the new narrow profile front, which we introduced midseason, deliver an advantage during braking and as the riders lean into the turns, and braking performance is primordial here. Congratulations to Loris who rode a great race and also to Valentino who was 14 seconds faster than our top rider here last year. Now we are looking forward to the last two races, with the top three riders separated by just 27 points it’s going to be very exciting!” “This isn’t my favorite track, so this is a good result for us,” said Rossi. “We were fast from Friday and when we had some problems in morning warm-up my team and Michelin were able to solve them.” Melandri, who won last Sunday’s Australian Grand Prix, said: “My bike and tires worked so good that I was able to run a much faster rhythm than I had run during practice.” Top five Michelin riders’ tire choice: Valentino Rossi: narrow profile, medium compound front, hard compound rear Marco Melandri: wider profile, medium compound front, medium compound rear Toni Elias: wider profile, medium compound front, medium compound rear Nicky Hayden: wider profile, medium compound front, medium compound rear Dani Pedrosa: narrow profile, medium compound front, medium-hard compound rear. More, from a press release issued by Rizla Suzuki: RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP IN THE POINTS AT MOTEGI Rizla Suzuki MotoGP racers Chris Vermeulen and John Hopkins, plus Team Test rider Kousuke Akiyoshi all scored points in today’s Japanese Grand Prix. Vermeulen and Hopkins finished in 11th and 12th places respectively with Akiyoshi making his Grand Prix debut just behind them. Vermeulen was racing at Motegi for the first time and gave a solid performance on his Suzuki GSV-R, Akiyoshi was also particularly impressive in his first ever MotoGP race and beat seasoned racers to score a fine 13th place. Hopkins’ result could have been even better but for the fact that he was knocked into the gravel by another rider as he was trying to charge through the field. He re-joined the race in last position but made a spirited comeback to make up eight places by the end. Hopkins keeps up his consistent run of points scoring, which now stretches to 12 races and is only bettered by World Championship leader Nicky Hayden. Today’s race was held in brilliant sunshine and watched by over 63,000 enthusiastic fans, who were treated to a home victory for Bridgestone, as Loris Capirossi on his works Ducati raced to victory. Rizla Suzuki MotoGP will now return to Europe for the penultimate round of the 2006 MotoGP season, to be held at Estoril in Portugal, where both Hopkins and Vermeulen will be planning to score valuable points in their quests for top 10 Championship positions. Chris Vermeulen: “It was difficult starting from 15th with a lot of very fast guys in front of you. It made the first lap very hard, but we did get a reasonable start and got into a bit of a race with a few guys. Unfortunately the front guys were too fast for us this weekend. Our race pace was not what we wanted it to be and I think we have got some work to do when we get to Estoril to get back up there challenging!” John Hopkins: “I had a horrible beginning to the race. I just went out and tried to hard, I was out-breaking myself at nearly every corner. Then I was mixing it up with Dani Pedrosa and he out-braked himself on a right-hander and clipped my front wheel and I went off the track. From there it was a case of seeing what I could salvage and I was able to make up quite a few places. I had a bit of a tussle with Chris on the last lap but I just couldn’t get past him. Not really happy at all and I plan on working harder and finishing off the final two races very strong!” Kousuke Akiyoshi: “I have had a very good weekend here at the Japanese Grand Prix and to get points from my first race is very special. I would like to thank Suzuki and Bridgestone for this chance and supporting me all weekend. I hope I can race in another Grand Prix and do even better next time.” Paul Denning Team Manager: “Although we scored some valuable points this was not what we had hoped for in Japan, especially as the Bridgestone tyres work so well here and the pace John had shown all weekend with the exception of the last part of yesterday’s qualifying had been very promising. John’s particularly disappointed as he knows what might have been, and but for the fact that he was punted off by another rider, his race pace showed that he was capable of a much higher finish. Every credit must go to him for battling back through the field and getting well into the points. “Chris and Akiyoshi san will have both learnt a lot from their first Grand Prix races at the Motegi circuit and it was very pleasing to see them both battling with each other and more experienced riders throughout the majority of the race. “We now have to re-group before we go to Portugal and take forward all that we have been through during this tough and sometimes disappointing three week tour. We know we have the potential to do a lot better and we will certainly be pushing as hard as we can in the final two races of the season!”