Kawasaki - Le Mans - Press Release

[MadKaw]

MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2004
GRAND PRIX DE FRANCE - LE MANS BUGATTI CIRCUIT
13TH MAY 2004 - EVENT PREVIEW

NEW TRACK SURFACE PROMISES FASTER LAP TIMES AT LE MANS

The world famous Bugatti circuit in Le Mans plays host to the third round of the 2004 MotoGP World Championship this weekend, and after enduring a rain lashed outing at Jerez two weeks ago, Fuchs Kawasaki's Alex Hofmann and Shinya Nakano are both hoping for a dry race on Sunday.

Le Mans, home of the world renowned 24 Heures de Mans car and motorcycle endurance races, has undergone a transformation over the winter months, with resurfacing work removing the variations in track surface that proved so problematical for riders in the past.

Comprising nine right-hand and four left-hand corners, with only one long straight, the stop and start nature of the Bugatti circuit makes machine set-up extremely tricky. Mainly slow corners linked by short straights necessitate hard acceleration out of the turns, but into the corners the bike must be stable on the brakes and capable of being turned in quickly. Not an easy combination to achieve, especially in the limited track time available to Hofmann and Nakano prior to Sunday's 28 lap MotoGP race.

But achieve it they must if the success enjoyed by the Fuchs Kawasaki team in the opening two rounds of the season, at Welkom and Jerez, is to continue this weekend in France.

The man responsible for providing Alex Hofmann with the best possible package for Sunday's race is his Crew Chief, Christophe Bourguignon. Known by everyone in the paddock as 'Beefy', the 35-year-old Belgian joined the team at the end of 2003 and has already forged a close relationship with his rider. A crash in South Africa, and the rain at Jerez, means that Hofmann has not had a chance to realise his potential so far this season; a situation he is keen to rectify at Le Mans this weekend, both for himself and for his hardworking crew.

Having spent four years riding for a French team Shinya Nakano enjoys a loyal following amongst the thousands of race fans who will turn out for Sunday's French Grand Prix, with the result that the 26-year-old Fuchs Kawasaki rider regards this event as being like a second home race. Nakano arrives at Le Mans in determined mood, after giving the Fuchs Kawasaki Racing Team their first top ten finish of the season last time out at Jerez.

Alex Hofmann: No.66
"I tested here last year, but I haven't raced at Le Mans since 2001 and the track has changed considerably since then. This circuit is also very different to the two tracks we've raced on already this year, so it will be interesting to see how well the Ninja ZX-RR suits the stop and start nature of the layout, especially now that the whole track has been resurfaced. We haven't tested at this circuit with the new bike, so finding a good set-up could prove difficult, but I've every confidence in my crew and their ability to provide a bike for Sunday's race that will work well around here."

Shinya Nakano: No.56
"Having ridden for a French team for such a long time, the French Grand Prix is like a second home race for me. I just hope that the French fans who gave me so much support in the past will continue to do so now I've switched teams for this year. The track surface here used to be extremely slippery, especially in the wet, but I went out for a look at the new surface when I arrived here and it definitely seems to be a big improvement. I've been told that the new surface means there is a lot more grip to be had, so I just hope it stays dry this weekend so that we can test it out for ourselves. It's a difficult track to set a bike up for, but I'm confident that we'll be able to find a good package for the race on Sunday."

[MadKaw]

MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2004
GRAND PRIX DE FRANCE - LE MANS
15TH MAY 2004 - QUALIFYING PRACTICE 2

NAKANO DISAPPOINTED WITH FOURTH ROW AT LE MANS


Shinya Nakano will start tomorrow's 28-lap French Grand Prix from the fourth row of the grid, after a difficult final qualifying session at Le Mans this afternoon saw the Fuchs Kawasaki rider slip down the timesheet to 12th place.

Although disappointed with his grid position, Nakano only had to look across the Fuchs Kawasaki pit box at his teammate to see how much more frustrating racing at this level can be. After a difficult day yesterday, Alex Hofmann bounced back this morning with a much improved set up on his Ninja ZX-RR and, having matched his best qualifying time from yesterday on race tyres, the 23-year-old German rider looked all set to improve further during this afternoon's final qualifying session. But mechanical problems with both his Ninja ZX-RR machines sidelined the luckless Hofmann, forcing him to sit out the session after completing just four laps of the 4.2km Le Mans circuit.

While not quite as serious as those of his teammate, Nakano also suffered problems during this afternoon's final qualifying session, with a rise in temperature adversely affecting the handling of the Fuchs Kawasaki Ninja ZX-RR that had worked so well around the Le Mans circuit in the cooler conditions of morning practice. Riding around the problem as best he could, the 26-year-old Japanese rider still managed to improve slightly on his time from yesterday, but it wasn't enough to stop him slipping one row further down the grid.

Qualifying may not have matched expectations, but Fuchs Kawasaki Team Manager, Harald Eckl, remained confident in the ability of both his riders to fight their way through the field in tomorrow's French Grand Prix.

Shinya Nakano: 12th (1'34.362)
"We had a good package for free practice this morning, and my times on race tyres were pretty consistent. But the temperature went up this afternoon and the bike felt very different to ride. The weather is likely to be the same for tomorrow's race, so we will have to see if we can improve the chassis balance for these conditions tonight. I ran into traffic on my first flying lap this afternoon, but was able to improve slightly on yesterday's time right at the end of the session. The lap times of the top guys are pretty close, so the race will be tough tomorrow. Starting from the fourth row of the grid will make it doubly difficult for me, but I think that a top ten finish is a real possibility, and that's exactly what I'll be aiming for tomorrow."

Alex Hofmann: 19th (1'35.718)
"What can I say? It's disappointing enough when you miss out on part of a qualifying session due to a small problem with the bike, but to miss virtually the whole of this afternoon's session is so frustrating. Worse still is the fact that we'd make big steps forward with the bike during free practice this morning, to the point where I was able to match my qualifying times from yesterday on race tyres. Obviously we were looking to build on these improvements during final qualifying this afternoon, but mechanical problems put paid to that idea. Starting from so far down the grid there will be no room for a race strategy tomorrow; it's just going to be a case of getting my head down and going as hard as I can from the off if I am to finish in the points."

Harald Eckl: Team Manager
"To say it's been an unlucky weekend so far for Alex would be a bit of an understatement. He hit traffic on all his flying laps in qualifying yesterday, and then today he's sidelined with two mechanical problems early on in the timed session. I just hope these problems haven't knocked his confidence too much, because I'm confident that he is still capable of fighting his way up to a points scoring finish tomorrow. Traffic was also a problem for Shinya in qualifying today, with the result that he's ended up further down the grid than he'd hoped for. The front of the field are all pretty close on lap times, so the race tomorrow will be far from easy, but I remain confident that Shinya is capable of giving the team another top ten finish here."



QUALIFYING PRACTICE 2 - COMBINED TIMES
POS RIDER CTY TEAM TIME/GAP

1. SETE GIBERNAU SPA TELEFONICA MOVISTAR HONDA
1'33.425
2. CARLOS CHECA SPA GAULOISES FORTUNA YAMAHA
+0.150
3. MAX BIAGGI ITA CAMEL HONDA TEAM
+0.154
4. VALENTINO ROSSI ITA GAULOISES FORTUNA YAMAHA
+0.243
5. COLIN EDWARDS USA TELEFONICA MOVISTAR HONDA
+0.445
6. MARCO MELANDRI ITA GAULOISES FORTUNA YAMAHA
+0.495
7. NICKY HAYDEN USA REPSOL HONDA
+0.541
8. MAKOTO TAMADA JPN CAMEL HONDA TEAM
+0.632
9. LORIS CAPIROSSI ITA DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM
+0.670
10. TROY BAYLISS AUS DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM
+0.786
11. ALEX BARROS BRA REPSOL HONDA
+0.917
12. SHINYA NAKANO JPN KAWASAKI RACING TEAM
+0.937
19. ALEX HOFMANN GER KAWASAKI RACING TEAM
+2.293

[MadKaw]

Heres the missing one from last weekend.. they didn't send this out for some reason..!!

MOTOGP 2004
ROUND 3 - LE MANS, FRANCE
16 MAY 2004 - MOTOGP RACE
DISAPPOINTMENT FOR FUCHS KAWASAKI AT LE MANS
The Fuchs Kawasaki Racing Team suffered cruelly at the hands of Lady Luck at Le Mans this afternoon, with Alex Hofmann and Shinya Nakano both forced to retire from the French Grand Prix as a result of mechanical problems.

Alex Hofmann's race lasted just five laps before a sudden loss of power and a sliding rear end alerted the Fuchs Kawasaki rider to a problem with his Ninja ZX-RR. A glance down at the oil on his boot was enough to let the 23-year-old German rider know his race was run, and he immediately pulled off the track to avoid dropping oil on the racing line.

After a bad start, Shinya Nakano had worked his way through the field to 11th place when a fractured oil line deposited a film of oil over the rear tyre of his Ninja ZX-RR and, like his teammate before him, the 26-year-old Japanese rider was forced to retire from the race and start the long walk back to the paddock.

Although obviously disappointed with the bad luck that befell both his riders today, team boss Harald Eckl is confident the run of form that saw Nakano qualify twice on the second row of the grid, and claim the Fuchs Kawasaki Racing Team's first top ten finish of the year at Jerez, would return for the Italian Grand Prix at Mugello in two week's time.

Alex Hofmann: Retired (lap 6)
"This is definitely one weekend I want to forget. My crew worked really hard to rebuild both bikes overnight and after setting my fastest lap of the weekend in morning warm up hopes were high for this afternoon's race. I didn't get such a good start, but I'd settled into a rhythm and started working my way up the field when the rear started sliding around and the engine suddenly lost power, leaving me with no other option but to retire. I'm so frustrated, not just for myself but also for my crew. The boys have worked real hard this weekend and they didn't deserve to be repaid with a mechanical failure in the race. Hopefully we can put this weekend behind us and concentrate on preparing for the Italian Grand Prix at Mugello in two week's time."

Shinya Nakano: Retired (lap 16)
"It just wasn't our day today. I had a few problems with the clutch and struggled to get the bike off the line at the start, which dropped me back down the field. I managed to work my way back through the pack in the early stages of the race, and by the halfway point I was convinced that there was a realistic chance of a top ten finish. I knew I had a problem when the rear tyre started sliding badly, but it was only when my foot kept slipping off the footpeg that I realised there was oil on my boot. I didn't want to risk a crash, nor cause anyone else problems, so I pulled off the track. It's disappointing, but this is a new bike and we're competing at the very highest level, so the odd problem is to be expected. On a positive note, the bike matched up well against the opposition when I was coming through the field, so we're definitely moving in the right direction in terms of development."

Harald Eckl: Team Manager
"Without a doubt this has been a very disappointing weekend for us, and I just hope that we've had a whole season's worth of bad luck in one go and that the rest of the year will be easier. It looks like we're going to be very busy in the two weeks before the Italian Grand Prix, but I'm confident that we'll come back stronger than ever at Mugello."