From a press release issued by Dorna Communications: Pedrosa takes practice top spot as clouds clear in Estoril bwin.com Grande Premio de Portugal Friday April 11th Report Day 1 MotoGP Dani Pedrosa rose from sixteenth to first in the free practice standings after the Estoril Circuit dried out after a rainy start to the day. As such Spain’s current World Championship leader concluded the opening sessions of the bwin.com Grande Premio de Portugal in positive fashion. The Repsol Honda rider and winner of the last round in Jerez, Pedrosa laid down a fastest time of 1´38.507 to lead the way, edging out Fiat Yamaha´s Valentino Rossi by under a tenth of a second. Rossi was the sole Bridgestone rider in a Michelin-dominated top six, in direct contrast to the wet morning session where Japanese rubber reigned supreme. The disparity between the two manufacturers under different conditions could make the weather one of the crucial factors of both Saturday´s qualifying session and Sunday´s all-important race. Thankfully for Rossi, he showed no after-effects from a morning crash which flung him from his Yamaha M1, and he was able to run a respectable pace over the course of his 26 lap stint on track. The second fastest Yamaha was just under four-tenths of a second slower, that of Tech 3 rider Colin Edwards. The Texan has some new firepower at his disposal this weekend, namely the pneumatic valve engine given to both he and teammate James Toseland at Estoril. Edwards’ countryman and 2007 Portugal poleman Nicky Hayden was fourth fastest, despite taking a couple of wide lines in the afternoon session. He was in turn just quicker than Jorge Lorenzo, the Fiat Yamaha rookie who has taken pole position for the first two races of the current season. Andrea Dovizioso was once again the fastest satellite Honda rider, onboard his JiR Team Scot RC212V, whilst there were signs of problems for reigning World Champion Casey Stoner as he languished in seventh place. The Australian had been quickest in the damp morning conditions, but a few wobbles onboard his Ducati Desmosedici GP8, including an innocuous lowside on his opening run meant he was down the order at the end of the day. San Carlo Honda Gresini Honda´s Shinya Nakano, LCR Honda´s Randy de Puniet and Kawasaki star John Hopkins were the final riders to go round within a second of Pedrosa´s time, with Loris Capirossi completing the top ten with his Suzuki GSV-R. De Puniet ran off track during the session, whilst there were bigger problems for Toni Elias. The Alice Team rider had steam pouring out of his satellite Ducati down the home straight, and was unable to complete any more than 10 laps of the circuit at which he took his only MotoGP victory to date in 2006. A flu-stricken Alex de Angelis added to his woes with a spectacular highside in the afternoon. 250cc On a mission after his Jerez heartbreak, Marco Simoncelli took provisional pole for the 250cc race in Estoril in an assured afternoon display. The Metis Gilera rider clocked a time of 1´41.427, just 0.047 ahead of second placed rider Alex Debon. The duo make up a strong factory Aprilia presence on the quarter litre front row, with Mapfre Aspar´s Alvaro Bautista also on the first line of attack with his top of the range RSA. Separating the Italian factory representatives was Mika Kallio, the Red Bull KTM rider who is on an impressive podium streak in the category. Having finished third and first in Qatar and Jerez respectively, this weekend could see the Finn at the top of the 250cc classification for the first time in his career, and a start from an equal or better position than today´s third place would put him in a great position to do so. The man whom he will have to usurp is current leader Mattia Pasini, who thus far heads the second row ahead of Repsol KTM´s Julian Simon, Red Bull KTM´s Hiroshi Aoyama and Pepe Team Toth Aprilia´s Hector Barbera. There was a small crash for Jerez podium finisher Yuki Takahashi, who put his JiR Team Scot Honda into the gravel during the session. 125cc A renowned wet weather specialist, Mike di Meglio showed his dry skills in the opening qualifying session for the 125cc race in Estoril. The Frenchman recorded a time of 1´47.990 to give him the early advantage of a provisional pole at the Portuguese track, nearly four tenths ahead of Nico Terol. Two weeks on from his first ever front row and podium, Jack&Jones WRB rider Terol continued to shine as the Estoril circuit dried out, with the second fastest time of the afternoon in the class. Michael Ranseder pencilled his name on the grid sheet for the front row onboard his I.C. Team Aprilia, with series leader Simone Corsi joining teammate Terol on the frontline. Tomoyoshi Koyama heads the provisional second row, but his fast times came at a cost. The Japanese rider suffered a huge highside late in the session, flinging him into the gravel and bruising a toe. Sandro Cortese and the Bancaja Aspar duo of Sergio Gadea and Gabor Talmacsi also put themselves on an initial second row. The rider who has taken pole position at the opening two races, Bradley Smith was off the pace in the first qualifying run. The Polaris World man could only clock the 23rd fastest time, and the Briton will be praying that the rain stays away from Estoril tomorrow as he looks to make a significant improvement. More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse: Friday Apr 11 2008 Portuguese GP – Free Practice DEMANDING DAY ONE FOR DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM IN PORTUGAL After dominating the opening free practice session for the Grand Prix of Portugal on a damp and cold morning at Estoril, Casey Stoner struggled to seventh place this afternoon as the track dried out and temperatures rose slightly. The World Champion was one of a number of riders who fell victim to the tricky track conditions, crashing on the exit of the chicane but escaping injury as he laboured to find a good feeling with the front end of his Desmosedici GP8. Marco Melandri experimented with a new set-up strategy but was unable to report any major improvements. However, his final outing did bear some fruit and the Italian will be looking to make quick progress tomorrow. The weather forecast again looks to be unstable for tomorrow, with improvements expected for Sunday. CASEY STONER – (Ducati Marlboro Team) – 7th fastest; 1’39.202 “These are completely different problems to the ones we had in Jerez. So far I’m still having absolutely no feeling with the front end and I can’t explain why we crashed on an out lap, going slow, with the bike upright. I was literally cruising, just picking the bike up on the way out of the corner and the front decided to give up on me. We’ve had such good feeling with the front in the past and lately it’s gone – there aren’t even any close saves, the grip is either there or it’s not. I had these problems throughout the session today – so many times I had the front end on my knee and had to pick it up, so something is clearly not right. For one reason or another the bike doesn’t feel the same as it has done in the past and we just need to try and figure it out, but I’m sure with a few set-up changes we can get there. It wasn’t our best day but we’re still not far off the pace.” MARCO MELANDRI – (Ducati Marlboro Team) – 15th fastest; 1’41.112 “We spent all day working down a particular route that led to nowhere and we lost a lot of time. The conditions have been mixed, with damp and dry moments, but it was like riding in the wet. It’s not easy but it is the same for everybody. At the moment we’re not on it, I can’t ride as I want to. Tomorrow we’ll go backwards a little with the set-up and hope that the situation improves.” More, from a press release issued by Bridgestone: Unsettled weather makes for tricky start in Estoril Round 3: Portugal Free Practice Estoril Circuit Friday 11 April 2008 Fiat Yamaha rider Valentino Rossi was the highest placed Bridgestone-shod rider in today’s free practice sessions at the Estoril Circuit. Rossi finished the day in second place just 0.040s from lead rider Dani Pedrosa, as unsettled weather conditions interrupted initial preparations for Sunday’s Portuguese Grand Prix. Three further Bridgestone riders frequented the top ten in this afternoon’s classification with Ducati’s Casey Stoner in seventh, Honda Gresini’s Shinya Nakano in eighth and Kawasaki’s John Hopkins in tenth position. The morning practice was held in damp conditions after early morning rain, but continued to dry throughout the hour, as eight Bridgestone users made the top ten using wet weather tyres. Track conditions were still tricky for riders this afternoon as they carried out an initial evaluation of the slick tyres at their disposal for Sunday’s race. With limited dry practice time today, Saturday morning’s hour-long session will be important for riders to hone their bike set-up and to conduct more detailed analysis of the tyre specifications. Track temperatures were significantly lower than last year’s Estoril practice, which was held in September, and lap times were accordingly slower with Pedrosa and Rossi’s leading pace today six-tenths slower than last year’s practice best, and a full second off 2007’s fastest race lap. Estoril has been one of Bridgestone’s most challenging race venues in recent years since the partial resurfacing of the track back in 2006. Tyre Talk with Shinji Aoki – Bridgestone Motorsport Manager, Motorcycle Race Tyre Development Did Bridgestone obtain any useful results from today’s two practice sessions? “This morning’s session was held in difficult damp to drying conditions but we used the chance to assess our base wet weather tyres. Although the track was continuously drying we could see some encouraging initial results. The dry afternoon session was spent looking at different slick specifications for both front and rear, but the track was still not ideal so it made for a difficult session for the riders. We would usually run harder compounds at this track because it is quite tough on the tyres, but the cooler surface means we have used softer specs today to give the riders a better feeling from front and rear.” How does Bridgestone work with its teams to improve the grip in these conditions? “We have looked at different tyre specs today to find the most suitable tyre but in these conditions we need more immediate grip from the tyres. Generally, if we cannot find improvements from the tyre spec itself, then the teams can make adjustments to the bike settings to try and work the tyres more. This will hopefully give the riders more feeling from the front and rear. The weather has been quite unsettled all week, but there is a chance we will see gradual improvements tomorrow and Sunday, which would be welcome.” Bridgestone-shod Riders’ Combined Practice Session Results Pos. Rider Team Session 1 (pos) Session 2 (pos) Gap P2 Valentino Rossi Fiat Yamaha Team 1m48.599s (P2) 1m38.547s (P2) +0.040s P7 Casey Stoner Ducati Corse 1m47.900s (P1) 1m39.202s (P7) +0.695s P8 Shinya Nakano San Carlo Honda Gresini 1m48.754s (P3) 1m39.309s (P8) +0.802s P10 John Hopkins Kawasaki Racing Team 1m49.530s (P5) 1m39.474s (P10) +0.967s P11 Loris Capirossi Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1m49.903s (P7) 1m39.591s (P11) +1.084s P12 Chris Vermeulen Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1m50.123s (P8) 1m39.946s (P12) +1.439s P14 Alex de Angelis San Carlo Honda Gresini 1m51.195s (P14) 1m41.033s (P14) +2.526s P15 Marco Melandri Ducati Corse 1m50.761s (P13) 1m41.112s (P15) +2.605s P16 Anthony West Kawasaki Racing Team 1m48.873s (P4) 1m41.572s (P16) +3.065s P17 Sylvain Guintoli Alice Team 1m50.278s (P9) 1m41.875s (P17) +3.368s P18 Toni Elias Alice Team 1m51.392s (P15) 1m43.262s (P18) +4.755s Weather: Session 1 / Damp-Drying Air 13°C, Track 15°C, Humidity 55% More, from a press release issued by Rizla Suzuki: Rizla Suzuki MotoGP finds clear direction on first day in Portugal Rizla Suzuki MotoGP racers Loris Capirossi and Chris Vermeulen both made steady progress during today’s rain-affected practice sessions at Estoril in Portugal. Heavy overnight rain had left the 4.182km Portuguese circuit very wet for this morning’s practice and although strong winds dried out the surface it still made conditions very difficult as a dry line appeared. With many wet patches on the track and air temperatures only getting up to 14ºC made getting a correct setting for both riders’ Suzuki GSV-Rs quite demanding throughout the day. Capirossi (P11, 1’39.591, 39 laps) continued to search for the optimum setting from his machine in the afternoon session and consistently improved on his times, eventually finishing just over a second behind today’s fastest rider, Dani Pedrosa on his factory Honda. Vermeulen was just one place behind team-mate Capirossi as he recorded the 12th quickest time of the day with a best lap of 1’39.946 from his 46 laps. Suzuki’s Australian star believes there is a lot more to come from both himself and his machine over the rest of the weekend. Rizla Suzuki MotoGP has one more practice session on Saturday morning followed by qualifying in the afternoon. Sunday’s race is round three of the 2008 MotoGP World Championship and gets underway at 13.00hrs local time (12.00hrs GMT). Loris Capirossi: “It’s been really hard today, because this morning we didn’t really learn anything because the track was very bad due to the weather. We used slick tyres this afternoon but the conditions were still really poor, it was very cold and we just couldn’t find the best solution. We have worked a lot on the settings and did make some progress at the end of the day, so now we have a very good opportunity to go really well tomorrow.” Chris Vermeulen: “We had a bit of everything today condition wise. It started out wet this morning but dried out quite a lot, but not enough to go out on slick tyres so we finished the session on wets. We were riding around on a half dry track so it was very slippery, but it was fun and we were able to see how a wet tyre would perform in a race if it started out wet and then dried up. This afternoon it hadn’t rained but there were still some small wet patches because there had been so much rain. The track was mostly dry and with it being so cold it was difficult to get heat in the tyres, but eventually we got the bike working quite well and made some big steps. We have some more things to try tomorrow and hopefully they will keep us heading in the right direction!” Paul Denning Team Manager: “This morning’s session was a bit of a right-off in terms of any real meaning as we head towards this weekend’s race unless those conditions repeat themselves on Sunday! This afternoon finished a lot better than it started with Loris only a second off the fastest rider. The gap isn’t too bad but we still have quite a bit of work to do tomorrow if it’s dry to give the riders feel and confidence in the rear of the bike in these cooler conditions as we move towards the race. If we can do that we have a better base to challenge the front-runners on Sunday!” bwin.com Grande Premio de Portugal Day One Practice Classification: 1. Dani Pedrosa (Honda) 1’38.507: 2. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) +0.040: 3. Colin Edwards (Yamaha) +0.125: 4. Nicky Hayden (Honda) +0.181: 5. Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) +0.361: 11. LORIS CAPIROSSI (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +1.084: 12.CHRIS VERMEULEN (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +1.439: More, from a press release issued by Kawasaki Racing: BATTLING THE ELEMENTS AT ESTORIL Typically unpredictable Atlantic coast weather greeted the protagonists of the MotoGP World Championship today at Estoril. After heavy rain on Thursday night, the 18-strong field headed out for the first practice session of the weekend on a damp track. Kawasaki Racing Team riders, John Hopkins and Anthony West, were on great form during the morning session, both riding with a wet set up. West rode to fourth fastest on the timesheets on the last of his 20 laps, putting in a time of 1’48.873, under a second off leading man, Casey Stoner. Hopkins, just behind his team mate, came in fifth and headed the field on highest speed when he got his Ninja ZX-RR up to an eye-watering 307.601kmh. Somewhat heroic, given the conditions. By the afternoon session, the surface of the 4.182km, Portuguese circuit was dry but high winds were a problem. However, lap times soon plummeted and both Kawasaki riders remained on promising form. Hopkins put in two fastest laps, putting him on provisional pole twice during the first half of the session, and the Anglo-American ended the practice with a best time of 1’39.474, putting him tenth fastest and less than a second off speediest man of the day, Dani Pedrosa. West took over seven seconds off his earlier time, ending the day with a best lap of 1’41.572, just short of Marco Melandri’s time and ahead of the Ducatis of Sylvain Guintoli and Toni Elias. The ZX-RR began to show off its real abilities in the dry too, with Hopkins posting 314.5kmh and West, 313.5kmh: putting them among the quickest in the field. However, with further changeable weather forecast for the weekend, it may be the times from the morning, which have more relevance for the final outcome of the event”¦ Either way, the Kawasaki squad has busied itself during the course of the day, trying a new chassis and various settings to add to their hoard of data; so it was a constructive start to the Portuguese round. The team now looks ahead to tomorrow afternoon’s qualifying session prior to the race itself, which is scheduled for 13:00 hours, local time, on Sunday. John Hopkins #21: 10th – 23 Laps – 1’39.474 “This morning the conditions were poor and it was incredibly windy, so we used the session to check our wet set-up, which went well. We found a good setting at the Jerez post-race test last week, which offered more machine stability and rear grip, so the dry track time this afternoon was used to improve on that. We also had a new chassis to try and this made the bike feel easier to ride, resulting in our times being quite consistent. Overnight, we will analyse the data collected today to build on the work we’ve done with the new chassis. I like it here: it’s a late, hard-braking circuit and it’s vital we qualify on the first two rows because it’s quite difficult to make passes. I’m aiming for a top five grid position, which I think we should be able to achieve.” Anthony West #13: 16th – 25 Laps – 1’41.572 “It’s certainly quite difficult here as the track conditions really aren’t ideal. This morning we used our wet setting, which I felt quite comfortable with. In the later session the track was slippery in some places but dry in others. With that and the wind, it was difficult to make any real progress with the new chassis we were using, as I couldn’t feel how much the wind was affecting the machine stability. Estoril isn’t a track I go particularly well at, so we have a lot of work to do here. I hope that tomorrow we can have either wet or dry conditions, not a combination of both, so we can make steps forward in set-up.” Naoya Kaneko Kawasaki Technical Manager “This morning we checked our machine settings in wet conditions and both riders went well, so I am confident that we have a good wet set-up. In the afternoon, the track was dry but the times of all the riders were quite a lot slower than last year, due to overall conditions. This means it’s been quite difficult to make any comparisons to the data we already have. Both riders had different chassis specifications to try today and we have been testing these with various settings. The feedback from John and Anthony is positive, although it’s hard to come to any conclusions as the wind around the circuit makes it difficult for the riders to trace the same line on every lap. I hope the conditions are better tomorrow so that we can gain a clearer view of how the machines are performing, as well as collecting data to improve our set-up further.” Free Practice Times 1. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 1’38.507; 2. Valentino Rossi (46) Fiat Yamaha +0.040; 3. Colin Edwards (USA) Yamaha Tech 3 +0.125; 4. Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda Team +0.181; 5. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Fiat Yamaha +0.361; 6. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) JIR Team Scott +0.664; 7. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro Team +0.695; 8. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Honda Gresini +0.802; 9. Randy De Puniet (FRA) Honda LCR +0.825; 10. John Hopkins (USA) Kawasaki Racing Team +0.967; 16. Anthony West (AUS) Kawasaki Racing Team +3.065 More, from a presss release issued by Dorna Sports: TOUGH WEATHER DAY FOR BRITS The fortunes of the British riders matched the mixed match of weather that surrounded the Estoril circuit during the first day of practice for the bwin.com Grand Prix of Portugal. James Toseland crashed at slow speed in the afternoon MotoGP practice session that was held in dry but blustery conditions around the 2.599 mile circuit. The Yorkshire man was in good company with five times Estoril winner Valentino Rossi crashing on the damp track in the morning and current World Champion Casey Stoner falling on the first lap of the afternoon session. Both Bradley Smith and Danny Webb crashed in the first 125 cc practice session when the track was cold and slippery. PEDROSA CONTINUES WHERE HE LEFT OFF Championship leader Danny Pedrosa continued where he left off from his victory in Jerez a couple of weeks ago by leading the way after two MotoGP practice sessions. The Repsol Honda rider, who has never won in Estoril, led the way from the Yamaha duo of Rossi and American Colin Edwards in the afternoon session in which less than one second covered the first ten riders. Toseland, who has finished sixth in his opening two MotoGP races, was 13th riding the Tech 3 Yamaha using the new Yamaha engine for the first time. “I crashed on my first lap in the afternoon when on a cold tyre,” he explained. “I was perfectly OK and I’m really pleased with the new Yamaha engine which will make a great difference.” World Champion Stoner also crashed on the first lap during the afternoon and seemed to be having problems with the front end of the Marlboro Ducati throughout the one hour session and eventually finished seventh fastest. Alex De Angelis was another faller on that first lap while 2006 Estoril winner Toni Elias’s Alice Ducati expired in a cloud of smoke. TOUGH DAY FOR THE YOUNGSTERS It was a tough day for the young British stars in the 125 cc class. Smith, who has started the opening two grands prix from pole, was uninjured in his morning fall but could only qualify a lowly 22nd in the afternoon due to handling problems which his Polaris World team are confident they can rectify in time for tomorrow afternoon’s final qualifying session. Webb lost a toe nail in his morning crash but qualified one place in front of Smith, riding the Degraaf Aprilia while 15 year old Scott Redding was the fastest of the trio on his Estoril debut. He qualified 19th on the Blusens Aprilia. In the 250cc class Ulsterman Eugene Laverty was 20th, riding the Blusens Aprilia. More, from a press release issued by Fiat Yamaha: LORENZO OVERCOMES ESTORIL WEATHER TO FINISH FIFTH ON FIRST DAY Fiat Yamaha Team rider and current championship runner-up Jorge Lorenzo was forced to contend with wind and rain at Estoril today as the Portuguese coastal circuit was battered with bad weather. Already faced with the task of adapting to riding a MotoGP bike on a circuit which he admits is not amongst his favourites, it was an added complication for the 21-year-old but he coped admirably with the task and finished the day in fifth position. Conditions for the morning session were very wet and the Mallorcan made a tentative start, finishing 12th but nonetheless pleased to have improved his wet pace from the last time he rode the M1 in the rain, at the Jerez test back in February. The typically changeable conditions saw the sun come out this afternoon and the track was almost completely dry for the second session, meaning Lorenzo and his crew were able to put in some fruitful work with their setting to finish the day just 0.361 off the lead. Lorenzo’s team-mate Valentino Rossi had an equally encouraging day despite a heavy fall this morning, finishing second overall with a best time of 1’38.547. Jorge Lorenzo Position: 5th Time: 1’38.868 Laps: 44 “We’re fifth and we need to improve but it’s only my first time at Estoril with the MotoGP bike and so I know I have to work slowly, step-by-step. The biggest problem at the moment is the weather because it’s changing so often; one it’s minute raining, the next it’s sunny but it’s also very windy. It makes it quite hard to prepare! Everyone knows that this isn’t one of my favourite tracks but I am not thinking about the past now, only about what is in front of us. We need to keep our focus and work very hard to find the best setting, and we also need to work on the situation with the tyres because it’s not perfect at the moment. I was definitely more confident in the wet this morning than I was at the Jerez test so I am happy about this, but there is still more to do. One very good thing is that the new electronics we tested in Jerez are working well and so we’re pleased about this. I think it’s going to be a very competitive weekend with everyone very strong so we have another big job to do tomorrow!” Daniele Romagnoli Team Manager “We’ve arrived here at a different track with a big task facing us, but overall we’ve had a good session today. Of course we need to improve our pace more but we will try some more things tomorrow. We’re lacking a bit of stability in the hard braking areas and also the bike is a little bit unstable on the gas, but tonight we will analyse things and prepare a programme to improve the setting tomorrow. It’s been a tricky day because of the weather and Jorge has done well to cope and finish fifth. Now we will concentrate on making some more steps forward tomorrow and I am sure we will be in good shape.” Combined Free Practice Times 1. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda 1’38.507 2. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha Team 1’38.547 3. Colin Edwards (USA) Tech 3 Yamaha 1’38.632 4. Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda 1’38.688 5. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Fiat Yamaha Team 1’38.868 6. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) JiR Team Scot MotoGP 1’39.171 7. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro 1’39.202 8. Shinya Nakano (JPN) San Carlo Honda Gresini 1’39.309 9. Randy De Puniet (FRA) LCR Honda MotoGP 1’39.332 10. John Hopkins (USA) Kawasaki Racing 1’39.474 11. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1’39.591 12. Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Rizla Suzuki 1’39.946 13. James Toseland (GBR) Tech 3 Yamaha 1’40.055 14. Alex De Angelis (RSM) San Carlo Honda Gresini 1’41.033 15. Marco Melandri (ITA) Ducati Marlboro 1’41.112 16. Anthony West (AUS) Kawasaki Racing 1’41.572 17. Sylvain Guintoli (FRA) Alice Team 1’41.875 18. Toni Elias (SPA) Alice Team 1’43.262 Estoril: Lap Record K. Roberts JR (Honda) 2006, 1’37.914 Estoril: Best Lap V. Rossi (Yamaha) 2006, 1’36.200 More, from another press release issued by Fiat Yamaha: ROSSI MAKES STRONG START DESPITE MORNING UPSET IN ESTORIL Valentino Rossi finished the first day of practice for the Portuguese Grand Prix in confident mood today, riding his Fiat Yamaha Team M1 to second place on a day of contrasting weather conditions at Estoril. The Italian, the most successful rider in MotoGP history at this circuit, was luckily unhurt in a nasty crash during this morning’s wet first practice session and went on to make some good progress this afternoon, finishing the day just 0.040 seconds off the leader. After heavy rain overnight and showers throughout the morning, the track was very wet for the first session. It was only the second real chance for Rossi and his crew to try the Bridgestone wet-weather tyres and this, added to the fact that there has been no pre-season testing at this track, meant it was a less-than-straightforward session for last year’s winner and his crew. His crash came mid-way through the practice but he was unhurt and was able to continue on his second bike, finishing second and quite pleased with his wet-weather pace. This afternoon’s session was a much cheerier affair with the sun and wind combining to dry the track out almost completely, and Rossi took full advantage to work on his set-up and tyres, finishing with a best time of 1’38.547. His team-mate Lorenzo was fifth in a time of 1’38.868. Valentino Rossi Position: 2nd Time: 1’38.547 Laps: 43 “I am happy about today’s result. To be second in both sessions, in the wet and the dry, is not bad at all and the conditions were quite difficult! My Bridgestone tyres in the wet worked very well and I had a great feeling, so I’m really happy about this. Maybe I had a bit too much feeling in fact because I was pushing a little bit too hard when I fell! It was quite a big crash and I hit the ground hard but fortunately I am fine and I just have a bit of pain in my hip. After that with my second bike I was able to go even faster so this made me very happy. This afternoon was good again, even if the track wasn’t perfect and the wind was tricky, but this is Estoril and we know that the weather can always change from minute to minute so we have to be ready to adapt. Tomorrow we need to keep improving, whatever the weather, and be ready to fight in any conditions! Thanks to my team for working very hard to rebuild my bike, it was a big job!” Davide Brivio Team manager “We expected quite a difficult situation today with the weather and this was how it turned out. This morning it was wet and windy and then this afternoon it had mostly dried but not completely, so it was still quite tricky conditions. It was actually very important for us this morning to have another chance to test the Bridgestones in the wet and we were able to gather a lot of important data and make some good comparisons to the Jerez test. Valentino had a crash but this is all part of the learning curve with the new Bridgestone wet tyres and luckily he wasn’t hurt so there was no harm done. The most satisfying thing about today is that we were fast in both kinds of conditions, so this is a good sign for the weekend because it seems the weather is going to keep changing! After this morning the team were faced with a big task to build the bike from scratch between the sessions and they did a fantastic job, so I want to say a big thank you to them!” More, from a press release issued by Team JiR Scot Honda: First day of practice for Andrea Dovizioso The first session of the first day in Portugal saw Andrea Dovizioso achieving a good position by setting the sixth fastest provisional time. The first part of the day was affected by rain and, while weather conditions improved by the afternoon’s second free practice session, they were still far from perfect. Because of this, lap times fell far short of record pace but the JiR Team Scot rider was able to take advantage of the weather to gain more experience of riding at Estoril in variable conditions – something which could be a factor in the race. In the afternoon, Dovizioso concentrated on final race set-up for his Honda RC212V, trying to find a good balance and to understand in which direction to work towards for final qualifying and the race itself. Cirano Mularoni Team Manager, JiR Team Scot “This morning has been very strange and not so useful because of the rain but the team was eventually able to find some good information which could prove very valuable in the next two days. Andrea worked hard to try and understand how his bike works on rain tyres and in the dry conditions in the afternoon he tried to establish where we are from a technical point of view. Andrea was pretty happy. He found a good feeling for this track in conditions which were similar to those in which he has enjoyed success here in the smaller classes in the past. For this reason we can look forward to more improvement tomorrow.” Andrea Dovizioso Rider, JiR Team Scot MotoGP HONDA RC212V Best time: 6th – 1’39″171 “The big difference between riding a MotoGP bike and a 250cc bike at this circuit is that the race track has some very slow corners where you have to be very good in using first and second gear. On a bike with so much horsepower, this requires a lot of sensitivity in using the throttle, especially when you exit the corners. This is why we are going to work a lot tomorrow on the electronic engine management system to find a better set-up. I had a good pace in the afternoon and I was increasing my performance progressively so I think we are in a position to do even better tomorrow. Estoril is a race track that I like a lot and this helps me to find a good feeling with the bike. I hope, for this reason, to be as fast as possible in the race.” Gianni Berti Technical Co-ordinator, JiR Team Scot “In one way practice was very useful to verify how the Michelin tyres work in changing weather conditions. In fact, in the first session, Andrea was able to use the full wet tyres. When the track dried out in the afternoon, he started with a well-known set-up on the bike and soon found the direction which allowed him to go even faster. We did three medium runs of about half race distance in a bid to understand how competitive we could be during a full race distance. The balance of the day was positive and we will be able to start the practice session tomorrow with the target of doing even better.” More, from a press release issued by Yamaha Racing: Rossi makes strong start despite morning upset in Estoril Valentino Rossi finished the first day of practice for the Portuguese Grand Prix in confident mood today, riding his Fiat Yamaha Team M1 to second place on a day of contrasting weather conditions at Estoril. The Italian, the most successful rider in MotoGP history at this circuit, was luckily unhurt in a nasty crash during this morning’s wet first practice session and went on to make some good progress this afternoon, finishing the day just 0.040 seconds off the leader. After heavy rain overnight and showers throughout the morning, the track was very wet for the first session. It was only the second real chance for Rossi and his crew to try the Bridgestone wet-weather tyres and this, added to the fact that there has been no pre-season testing at this track, meant it was a less-than-straightforward session for last year’s winner and his crew. His crash came mid-way through the practice but he was unhurt and was able to continue on his second bike, finishing second and quite pleased with his wet-weather pace. This afternoon’s session was a much cheerier affair with the sun and wind combining to dry the track out almost completely, and Rossi took full advantage to work on his set-up and tyres, finishing with a best time of 1’38.547. Valentino Rossi – Position: 2nd Time: 1’38.547 Laps: 43 “I am happy about today’s result. To be second in both sessions, in the wet and the dry, is not bad at all and the conditions were quite difficult! My Bridgestone tyres in the wet worked very well and I had a great feeling, so I’m really happy about this. Maybe I had a bit too much feeling in fact because I was pushing a little bit too hard when I fell! It was quite a big crash and I hit the ground hard but fortunately I am fine and I just have a bit of pain in my hip. After that with my second bike I was able to go even faster so this made me very happy. This afternoon was good again, even if the track wasn’t perfect and the wind was tricky, but this is Estoril and we know that the weather can always change from minute to minute so we have to be ready to adapt. Tomorrow we need to keep improving, whatever the weather, and be ready to fight in any conditions! Thanks to my team for working very hard to rebuild my bike, it was a big job!” Davide Brivio – Team Manager We expected quite a difficult situation today with the weather and this was how it turned out. This morning it was wet and windy and then this afternoon it had mostly dried but not completely, so it was still quite tricky conditions. It was actually very important for us this morning to have another chance to test the Bridgestones in the wet and we were able to gather a lot of important data and make some good comparisons to the Jerez test. Valentino had a crash but this is all part of the learning curve with the new Bridgestone wet tyres and luckily he wasn’t hurt so there was no harm done. The most satisfying thing about today is that we were fast in both kinds of conditions, so this is a good sign for the weekend because it seems the weather is going to keep changing! After this morning the team were faced with a big task to build the bike from scratch between the sessions and they did a fantastic job, so I want to say a big thank you to them!” Lorenzo overcomes Estoril weather to finish fifth on first day Fiat Yamaha Team rider and current championship runner-up Jorge Lorenzo was forced to contend with wind and rain at Estoril today as the Portuguese coastal circuit was battered with bad weather. Already faced with the task of adapting to riding a MotoGP bike on a circuit which he admits is not amongst his favourites, it was an added complication for the 21-year-old but he coped admirably with the task and finished the day in fifth position. Conditions for the morning session were very wet and the Mallorcan made a tentative start, finishing 12th but nonetheless pleased to have improved his wet pace from the last time he rode the M1 in the rain, at the Jerez test back in February. The typically changeable conditions saw the sun come out this afternoon and the track was almost completely dry for the second session, meaning Lorenzo and his crew were able to put in some fruitful work with their setting to finish the day just 0.361 off the lead. Jorge Lorenzo – Position: 5th Time: 1’38.868 Laps: 44 “We’re fifth and we need to improve but it’s only my first time at Estoril with the MotoGP bike and so I know I have to work slowly, step-by-step. The biggest problem at the moment is the weather because it’s changing so often; one it’s minute raining, the next it’s sunny but it’s also very windy. It makes it quite hard to prepare! Everyone knows that this isn’t one of my favourite tracks but I am not thinking about the past now, only about what is in front of us. We need to keep our focus and work very hard to find the best setting, and we also need to work on the situation with the tyres because it’s not perfect at the moment. I was definitely more confident in the wet this morning than I was at the Jerez test so I am happy about this, but there is still more to do. One very good thing is that the new electronics we tested in Jerez are working well and so we’re pleased about this. I think it’s going to be a very competitive weekend with everyone very strong so we have another big job to do tomorrow!” Daniele Romagnoli – Team Manager “We’ve arrived here at a different track with a big task facing us, but overall we’ve had a good session today. Of course we need to improve our pace more but we will try some more things tomorrow. We’re lacking a bit of stability in the hard braking areas and also the bike is a little bit unstable on the gas, but tonight we will analyse things and prepare a programme to improve the setting tomorrow. It’s been a tricky day because of the weather and Jorge has done well to cope and finish fifth. Now we will concentrate on making some more steps forward tomorrow and I am sure we will be in good shape.” Edwards lapping fast, Toseland learning fast at windy Estoril Colin Edwards rode his updated Tech 3 Yamaha to the third fastest time on an opening day of free practice at the Estoril circuit in Portugal hit by unpredictable conditions. Riding the latest spec pneumatic valve YZR-M1 motor for the first time today, Edwards shrugged off a disappointing morning session run in rapidly changing wet/dry conditions to figure prominently throughout this afternoon’s wind affected but dry session. Once he’d climbed to the top of the timesheets for the first time after just 12 minutes, Edwards never dropped outside of the top three as he took full advantage of the extra acceleration and top speed from the latest Yamaha engine. MotoGP world championship leader Dani Pedrosa and 2007 Estoril winner Valentino Rossi only beat his best lap of 1.38.632, as the engine upgrade saw Edwards clock the fourth fastest top speed this afternoon. British rider James Toseland ended an eventful day with a best time of 1.40.055. With no previous experience of the challenging Estoril circuit, this morning’s rain-hit hour did little to help shorten his steep learning curve. But Toseland showed what a fast learner he is with his time just 1.5s off the leading pace and 13th quickest. Toseland used his spare machine for the session after he suffered a low speed tumble at turn seven on his first lap out of the pits. Colin Edwards – Position: 3rdTime: 1.38.632Laps: 44 laps “This morning was a bit of nightmare and I couldn’t understand why. The bike wouldn’t go anywhere. It was spinning but we found something before this afternoon and just got going. I felt good immediately with a setting that is pretty much what I’ve run in Qatar and Jerez. But the new engine is phenomenal. It is so good and I’m so happy. With the old engine when you went from third to sixth gear it didn’t really go anywhere. Whereas now, every time you shift a gear it feels like it’s building more steam. I got behind Valentino and for the first time I can remember I was able to stick with him on the straight. Normally he’d just get smaller as he disappeared into the distance. We have been lacking three-tenths at a track like this with a long straight, and now we have it in hand and it feels good. So I’m really, really happy and thanks to Yamaha because it is a big improvement. I’ve done some pretty consistent runs on used tyres but I always go good at this track. I feel comfortable and the bike and engine feel fantastic.” James Toseland – Position: 13thTime: 1.40.055 Laps: 42 laps “It is quite a difficult track just on the basis that you have got such tight corners, particularly at the end of the high speed straight where you have to get the braking point for the slow first corner dead right. Then there’s the tricky chicane, which you just have to ride round and round to get the hang of it. A cold tyre caught me out on my first lap this afternoon. I think with the rain this morning the track wasn’t so clean. I went into the corner steady and at a pace where you don’t even think about crashing. Next thing I was on sat on my backside and twisted my right ankle again that I hurt in testing at Jerez. But I’m really happy with progress. I’m not too far off already and we effectively lost a session this morning with the weather. The new engine is definitely better. It has more acceleration and the lines you take are different because the power comes in quite aggressive when you are hard on the throttle. But you can exit the corner better with the extra power. It is a big step forward and I’d like to thank Yamaha. They always said the latest we would get the engine was Estoril and they stuck to that promise. Free Practice Pos., Rider, Manu., Nat., Total Time 1, Daniel Pedrosa, Honda, ESP, 1’38.507 2, Valentino Rossi, Yamaha, ITA, 1’38.547 3, Colin Edwards, Yamaha, USA, 1’38.632 4, Nicky Hayden, Honda, USA, 1’38.688 5, Jorge Lorenzo, Yamaha, ESP, 1’38.868 6, Andrea Dovizioso, Honda, ITA, 1’39.171 7, Casey Stoner, Ducati, AUS, 1’39.202 8, Shinya Nakano, Honda, JPN, 1’39.309 9, Randy De Puniet, Honda, FRA, 1’39.332 10, John Hopkins, Kawasaki, USA, 1’39.474 11, Loris Capirossi, Suzuki, ITA, 1’39.591 12, Chris Vermeulen, Suzuki, AUS, 1’39.946 13, James Toseland, Yamaha, GBR, 1’40.055 14, Alex De Angelis, Honda, SMR, 1’41.033 15, Marco Melandri, Ducati, ITA, 1’41.112