From a press release issued by Repsol:


Three-week break to regain strength and prepare the intense second half of the 2004 season

After nine GPs staged so far, 18 free practices, 18 qualifying practices and eight countries visited, the World Championship has reached its halfway point and finally the well-deserved summer holidays. In fact, we speak about holidays but in reality, we should be talking about a couple of days to rest, that, for most of the riders, are nothing but a small “break” in the Championship to heal the wounds of the battles, regain strength and make a balance of the first half of the season. We talked to the Repsol riders in England to know their plans for the coming weeks.

Nicky Hayden

What are your plans for the holidays?
“The season so far hasn’t been the way I would have liked, so I don’t think that I should be rewarding myself with big vacations. After England I’ll go home to the States and work-out a lot to get back stronger.”

Do holidays mean absolute inactivity or do you continue with your fitness programme?
“No, there’s not much time left for inactivity, but to dedicate some time to yourself and disconnect a bit from the pressure and the press. I’ll keep on training to keep my physical shape. The season is being hard and we shouldn’t neglect the physical shape.”

Do you miss racing during holidays?
“Of course, I’m a race rider! A couple of weeks of rest are good, but I’m sure that after some days at home I’ll be looking forward to get back, counting the days to Brno.”

Make a balance of this first half of the season.
“There are a lot of positive things to highlight. We didn’t have a good start, but the motorbike, the team and I have been working hard and we’ve been improving race by race. We keep on fighting and we won’t give up.”

What’s been the best so far?
“Two consecutive podium finishes have been highly satisfying.”

And the worst?
“Probably the mechanical problem we had in Barcelona. I felt very motivated and I was convinced of being able to get on the rostrum, but we had bad luck.”

Prospects for the rest of the season.
“The latest races have been better, but what I’m really looking for is my first victory in the class. Podium finishes are good, but I want more. We’re working hard and I’m sure that we’ll get back stronger after the break.”

If you could ask for something new for Brno, what would it be?
“Victory. The bike is working well; I only want to get good results to get more confidence. I can make it.”

Alex Barros

What are your plans for the holidays?
“I’m going to spend these days in Brazil – it’s winter now, over there – with my family. My son does kart racing, so I’ll join him at the training or at races. I’ll basically use the holidays to be with my family. I also have my office there so I’ll have a look around to see how everything is going. I also want to see if my new prepared car is ready to start having fun with it.”

Do holidays mean absolute inactivity or do you continue with your fitness programme?
“No, not at all, in fact I don’t call these days holidays. They are only a couple of days to rest before restarting activity. The season hasn’t finished yet, so we have to keep on working, focussed and not neglecting the physical shape. It would be different if we were talking about November, then we may be talking about holidays. It’s too early.”

Do you miss the races during holidays?
“Maybe after two weeks. I don’t at the beginning, because I get back home, with my children, my family…But once you’ve spent two weeks only working out, away from the races, you start missing it.”

Make a balance of this first half of the season.
“It hasn’t been a good first half. I expected much more. I wasn’t physical at a hundred percent at the beginning and I had to be patient, but two or three races later, when I began to feel well, the crashes came and the lack of good results.”

What’s been the best so far?
“Racing with the Repsol Honda Team, any rider’s dream come true.”

And the worst?
“With no doubt, the crashes, that hindered us from getting better results.”

Prospects for the rest of the season.
“Good ones, I hope. I personally think that things are going to be better in the second half. We started with some problems, but things started to get better in Germany already. I can’t tell the same about last Sunday in England, but things went well during practice. So I think that the prospects are good.”

If you could ask for something new for Brno, what would it be?
“We have good power, but what I would really like is a little bit more traction and the bike turning better in angles.”

Rubens Xaus

What are your plans for the holidays?
“Everyday is a holiday for me! I have several plans but nothing definite. First I’ll spend some days at home, to see the family and friends. Then I’ve planned a trip to the USA, actually to San Antonio, to visit some good friends and then to Los Angeles, invited by one of my sponsors, the X-Games (Supercross, supermotard, skate, BMX…). Then I’ll come back and spend some days in Alicante and in Andorra before going to Brno.”

Do holidays mean absolute inactivity or do you continue with your fitness programme?
“Holidays means calmness, but I like sports and everywhere I go I look for a fitness centre to workout a couple of hours. If I don’t workout I don’t feel well, it’s like brushing your teeth or eating, it’s part of every day life. I also do Supermotard, wakeboard, paddle… The truth is that I hardly ever stop.”

Do you miss the races during holidays?
“It isn’t a long break. A little bit less than three weeks and I won’t stop at any moment. Last year I had a one and a half month holiday and I really felt it. From the physical and the mental point of view it’s better for me if the races are one immediately after the other. You’re more tired but you don’t have time to get distracted. The hardest part is that you’re hardly ever at home.”

Make a balance of this first half of the season.
“I entered the “big circus”, and I’m positively surprised because I’ve met a lot of marvellous people that have treated me very well. When I arrived, my credentials were of a little irregular rider but I’ve proven that I’m a good rider. I’ve been riding among the best and my aim was and still is to learn every day. I wanted to get on this bike and I made it. I’m in a small team, not a factory team like the one I was used to be when I raced on Superbikes the last four years, but I’m satisfied, happy and having fun. We’ve made better and worse races, but always fighting, trying to finish in the points.”

What’s been the best so far?
“Having been able to lead a MotoGP race in Mugello, even if it was only a bit over a lap, and having been able to race in Barcelona in front of my people. Making all those who followed me before feel a bit prouder of me. When they speak about Ruben Xaus now, the others know who they’re talking about.”

And the worst?
“The bad luck I had during the first races and the suffering during the last races because I didn’t know the circuits. We had progressed a lot since the start of the season and it seems that we’ve got a bit stuck lately. The bike is not a new bike, it’s last year’s bike and it’s normal to have some trouble. In addition, those are bikes that have been ridden by people that didn’t know them either and that have been in other people’s hands. It’s like a second-hand car, it always has something…”

Prospects for the rest of the season.
“Very similar to the beginning of the season. There will be some difficult and some easier races. What I have to do is to keep on working hard. I’ll try to be among the top ten on the tracks I know and to learn and avoid mistakes to try to score on those I don’t know.”

If you could ask for something new for Brno, what would it be?
“I want everything to work out fine. I won’t ask for a better bike because I couldn’t make the right use of it now, but maybe I would ask for more softness and a better traction.”