Kawasaki Racing Team - Dutch GP

[MadKaw]

MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2005 Download PDF
ROUND 5 - GAULOISES DUTCH TT, ASSEN
17 JUNE 2005 - EVENT PREVIEW


KAWASAKI PAIR CONFIDENT AHEAD OF DUTCH TT
Kawasaki riders Shinya Nakano and Alex Hofmann will be part of the 75th anniversary celebrations for the Dutch TT at Assen (June 23-25).

The Dutch TT holds a unique place in the world of motorcycling and is the only Grand Prix that has continuously counted towards the FIM World Championship since inception in 1949.

The race has some firmly entrenched traditions. It is always held on the last Saturday in June and much of the current racetrack was part of the original circuit formed on narrow public roads south of the Assen township.

Once 16 km in length, the original road course has undergone constant changes and safety upgrades, including some for this year's 75th Dutch TT.

For 2005 the circuit length has been reduced by 30 metres to 5.997 km and given favourable weather this should lead to new qualifying and race records.

However the most noticeable change is one that will benefit spectators who travel from around the world for the special atmosphere of the Dutch TT.

The new Geert Timmer 'floating' grandstand will be in use for the first time. The stand offers not only panoramic views of the circuit but has allowed the expansion of run-off areas to improve safety.

The current investment in circuit upgrades has ensured Assen has a long-term future as part of the MotoGP World Championship with a contract renewal until 2016, recently agreed with championship organisers Dorna.

And following the latest performance upgrades to the Ninja ZX-RR both Nakano and Hofmann are looking forward to strong performances at Assen this year. Hofmann, from Germany, will again have the support of a large contingent of travelling fans at Assen.

Nakano qualified an impressive fifth fastest in 2004. Since then the ZX-RR motor has undergone a major revision with further upgrades, both mechanical and electronic, for evaluation at Assen

Both factory Kawasaki riders anticipate the current specification ZX-RR will be more suited to the unique layout of Assen with its constant sequence of high-speed corners and fast changes of direction under acceleration.

Nakano in particular came away from the previous race in Barcelona in a positive frame of mind in terms of bike performance, despite the tyre endurance problems that hampered his race performance.

Joining the Kawasaki Racing Team as a sponsor for the first time at Assen will be e-services company, Trinicom. Trinicom is the European leader in Web Self Service, Email response and Agent support software.

Shinya Nakano: #56
"Assen is a real challenge, especially the fast section at the start of the lap. You need good traction and high-speed handling plus exact racing lines to achieve maximum performance. I expect the latest profile Bridgestone tyres will help with steering response on the ZX-RR in the fast sections. Because it is not possible to test at Assen I will use the first practice day to check braking points and corner lines, plus collect set-up data. I think we have a good technical direction with the ZX-RR right now, I saw a positive comparison when I was able to follow Colin Edwards early in the race at Barcelona."

Alex Hofmann: #66
"Hopefully Assen will kick start my season after some bad luck recently. The Dutch TT is a good motivation for me because it is like a second home race, the organisers say about 40% of the spectators are from Germany. It's a fast, roller-coaster style of track and one of my favourites. I think I'm ready for anything at Assen, especially if it rains as it often does. Our test in Barcelona was wet so I got to try the latest Bridgestone wet tyres, which were very good, plus I felt comfortable using the ZX-RR motor with revised configuration and tuning."

[MadKaw]

MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2005 Download PDF
ROUND 7 - GAULOISES DUTCH TT, ASSEN
23 JUNE 2005 - FREE PRACTICE


HOFMANN AND NAKANO BATTLE ASSEN HEAT WAVE
Heat wave conditions, unusual for Assen at TT time, made life difficult for Kawasaki riders, Shinya Nakano and Alex Hofmann, during today's free practice sessions ahead of Saturday's Dutch TT.

Track temperatures soared to 48 degrees at the sun-baked Circuit van Drenthe during the afternoon session, much higher than the 35 degree temperatures of recent years at this race.

While the warm weather was a welcome change for riders and spectators at a normally cool Assen, they did little to assist in Kawasaki's search for an ideal race set-up.

Tyre assessment for Saturday's 19-lap race was the main focus today, and will remain so tomorrow for Kawasaki and Bridgestone technicians.

A revised range of Bridgestone tyres have been made available for the unique demands of the Assen circuit, although today's test results were inconclusive according to Ichiro Yoda, Kawasaki's Technical Director.

Rear tyre drive-grip and race distance endurance will be further assessed in tomorrow's two hours of practice and qualifying.

Following last week's test session at the Catalunya circuit in Barcelona revised engine management settings, aimed at improving rear-end control under acceleration, are being used on the factory ZX-RR machines at Assen.

Nakano finished with the tenth fastest time toda,y while Hofmann was just behind in twelfth. Hofmann's fastest lap came in the cooler morning session.

Shinya Nakano: #56 - Tenth - 2'02.280
"The afternoon session was very difficult; I lost the good feeling I had with the bike during the cooler morning session. I improved my lap time, but it wasn't easy. The main problem is rear-end pumping and grip under acceleration on corner exit. We are still looking for a tyre direction for the race and we will try some different tyres tomorrow, hopefully with better rear-end performance. The changes to the track are better for safety, but everyone is still adjusting their braking points, they are different from last year."

Alex Hofmann: #66 - Twelfth - 2'02.409
"It's amazing for it to be so hot at Assen, but the heat did not favour our performance potential at this track. For sure we need to improve our rear-end grip and set-up for the race, at the moment it's good for a couple of laps, but the race is over 19 laps. I had a good rhythm in the morning session and we got a lot of set-up work done, but I'm looking for more, I want to push into the top ten in qualifying tomorrow."

Ichiro Yoda: Technical Director
"Our main work today was tyre evaluation with Bridgestone, and we still have a lot to do. We need to confirm the mileage and grip for the race distance; today the performance was not ideal, with a slippery feel for both riders at the rear end. Drive grip on the right hand side of the tyre is very important at Assen, and we have further tyre options from Bridgestone to test tomorrow. The front is okay; the rear is our main focus. We have also implemented a new engine management strategy here and this is helping the riders with throttle control."

FREE PRACTICE - COMBINED TIMES
1. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati Marlboro Team 2'00.757; 2. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Gauloises Yamaha Team +0.083; 3. Sete Gibernau (SPA) Movistar Honda MotoGP +0.280; 4. Alex Barros (BRA) Camel Honda +0.296; 5. Marco Melandri (ITA) Movistar Honda MotoGP +0.485; 6. Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda +0.733; 7. Carlos Checa (SPA) Ducati Marlboro Team +0.767; 8. Colin Edwards (USA) Gauloises Yamaha Team +0.831; 9. Max Biaggi (ITA) Repsol Honda +1.272; 10. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Kawasaki Racing Team +1.532; 11. John Hopkins (USA) Team Suzuki MotoGP +1.532; 12. Alex Hofmann (GER) Kawasaki Racing Team +1.652

[aardvark]

And Hoffman in 10th. This should be a shit hot race.

[greenmeanie]

And Hoffman in 10th. This should be a shit hot race.

Better still Nakano is 4th.

Full MotoGP qualifying times from the Dutch TT at Assen, round seven of the 2005 world championship.


1. Valentino Rossi ITA Gauloises Yamaha 1min 58.936 secs
2. Sete Gibernau SPA Team Movistar Honda 1min 59.247 secs
3. Marco Melandri ITA Team Movistar Honda 1min 59.632 secs
4. Shinya Nakano JPN Kawasaki Racing Team 1min 59.76 secs
5. Nicky Hayden USA Repsol Honda 1min 59.784 secs
6. Colin Edwards USA Gauloises Yamaha 2min 0.006 secs
7. Loris Capirossi ITA Ducati Marlboro 2min 0.136 secs
8. Alex Barros BRA Camel Honda 2min 0.232 secs
9. Max Biaggi ITA Repsol Honda 2min 0.281 secs
10. Alex Hofmann GER Kawasaki Racing Team 2min 0.298 secs
11. Makoto Tamada JPN Konica Minolta Honda 2min 0.656 secs
12. John Hopkins USA Team Suzuki MotoGP 2min 0.81 secs
13. Carlos Checa ITA Ducati Marlboro 2min 0.883 secs
14. Troy Bayliss AUS Camel Honda 2min 1.216 secs
15. Kenny Roberts USA Team Suzuki MotoGP 2min 1.836 secs
16. Ruben Xaus SPA Fortuna Yamaha 2min 1.854 secs
17. David Checa SPA Fortuna Yamaha 2min 2.639 secs
18. Roberto Rolfo ITA D'Antin Ducati Pramac 2min 2.704 secs
19. Shane Byrne GBR Team Roberts 2min 3.442 secs
20. James Ellison GBR Blata WCM 2min 3.488 secs
21. Franco Battaini ITA Blata WCM 2min 6.527 secs

[Colette]

Is this on Foxtel today or what??

Last MotoGP they said it would be on Main Event for free, but I can't find any mention of it on the web site or in the online TV Guide...

Anyone know anything about coverage?

[MadKaw]

MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2005 Download PDF
ROUND 7 - GAULOISES DUTCH TT, ASSEN
24 JUNE 2005 - QUALIFYING PRACTICE


SUPER SHINYA IN SUPERB FORM AT SUNNY ASSEN
After a blistering performance during this afternoon's final timed session at Assen, Kawasaki's Shinya Nakano will start tomorrow's Dutch TT from fourth place on the grid; his best qualifying position of the season so far.

Nakano was joined in the top ten today by young German teammate, Alex Hofmann, who will start from tenth position, equalling his best qualifying result of the season.

With tropical track temperatures nudging 50 degrees, Nakano was one of just five riders to break the two minute barrier in qualifying on the high-speed, 5.9 km Circuit van Drenthe.

The one-hour session on the recently modified circuit was managed perfectly by Nakano's pit crew, led by the experienced Fiorenzo Fanali.

Nakano used the first of his three allocated soft qualifying tyres early in the session to grab provisional pole, which held for almost 30 minutes. He then dropped down the order as he concentrated on vital race tyre evaluation for Bridgestone.

Nakano was then serviced by two precision pit stops in the final minutes, for two further runs on qualifying tyres. He improved his time by 0.6s on his final lap, to leapfrog from ninth to fourth, and finished the session as the top Bridgestone qualifier.

Hofmann was also in excellent form and was regularly in the top ten, but missed his chance to go faster as the session closed in a busy period of fast laps.

Most importantly, today's practice and qualifying sessions produced improved performance from a new compound and construction Bridgestone tyre, which was supplied to Kawasaki for the first time today.

Combined with improved chassis balance, the latest tyres showed consistent speed and endurance, which has given the Kawasaki team an optimistic outlook for tomorrow's 19 lap race.

Shinya Nakano: #56 - Fourth - 1'59.760
"From the beginning of the session I had a very good feeling, especially from the new Bridgestone tyre. My team did an excellent job of managing our test programme and my pit stops, and this gave me a chance to go fast. I had very good balance from the ZX-RR today and was able to hold high corner speeds, but it wasn't an easy day in these very humid conditions. Our race package looks okay for tomorrow and I'm looking forward to starting so far up the grid for the first time this season."

Alex Hofmann: #66 - Tenth - 2'00.298
"I'm a little bit angry with myself; I'm tenth while Shinya is fourth and I would like to be closer to him. But overall I had some good pace today from our race tyres and just concentrated on race rhythm. On the last lap there was a lot of gambling going on by all the riders for a fast time. There has been a lot of tyre work here, but just as in Barcelona we will see how it ends up in the race, but it looks positive after today."

Ichiro Yoda: Technical Director
"We had much better spring balance and set-up for this track today, and the Bridgestone qualifying tyres worked very well in these conditions. The new compound and construction race tyre that Bridgestone supplied appears to be very consistent for pace and endurance, so I'm expecting a strong result tomorrow. Bridgestone did an excellent job today."

Harald Eckl: Team Manager
"Two riders in the top ten on a fast circuit like Assen is another impressive performance from the ZX-RR and Bridgestone. Now I just hope the weather doesn't change too much and play an influential role in the race. Our package looks strong and both Shinya and Alex are in top form. There is definitely more to come."

QUALIFYING PRACTICE - FINAL TIMES
1. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Gauloises Yamaha Team 1'58.936; 2. Sete Gibernau (SPA) Movistar Honda MotoGP +0.311; 3. Marco Melandri (ITA) Movistar Honda MotoGP +0.696; 4. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Kawasaki Racing Team +0.824; 5. Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda +0.848; 6. Colin Edwards (USA) Gauloises Yamaha Team +1.070; 7. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati Marlboro Team +1.200; 8. Alex Barros (BRA) Camel Honda +1.296; 9. Max Biaggi (ITA) Repsol Honda +1.345; 10. Alex Hofmann (GER) Kawasaki Racing Team +1.362

[aardvark]

And Hoffman in 10th. This should be a shit hot race.

Better still Nakano is 4th.

My post was supposed to say:

Nakano qualified 4th. And Hoffman.......

Dunno what happened to the first bit?

[Phil]

Is this on Foxtel today or what??

Last MotoGP they said it would be on Main Event for free, but I can't find any mention of it on the web site or in the online TV Guide...

Anyone know anything about coverage?

its on main event (the PPV channel). its cause wimbledon and super saturday are hogging the sports chanels.

its free tho.

[Jonno]

Farggin tennis isnt a sport it's an elite money making venture, put the bikes on!!!

[icebreaker]

Phil what time is it on??????

PPV channel only shows till 6pm and doesn't show anything else...

House warming tonight could include 20+ watching the racing pissed...

Go Nakkers!!!

[Phil]

Phil what time is it on??????

PPV channel only shows till 6pm and doesn't show anything else...

House warming tonight could include 20+ watching the racing pissed...

Go Nakkers!!!

not sure, doubt it would be before 1930 tho.

[Jonno]

Phil what time is it on??????
PPV channel only shows till 6pm and doesn't show anything else...
House warming tonight could include 20+ watching the racing pissed...
Go Nakkers!!!

Fark, you guys want me to think about moving back to Vic, love too but well just cant, excuse is it's cold...brrr. Oh how many members live in sth gippy?

If I move back thats where I will be.. lovely cold wet windy bass straight arvo' breeze straight of antartica, no diff' to PI I spose'.

Go nakkers

cya

[Colette]

Thanks Phil - that's what I thought was supposed to happen, but I was sure they said 11am? Anyway, there's always channel 10 at midnight if I miss it.

[matchan]

I think it starts at 8pm, on 955 digital,you don't need to book just turn it on, I rang them to check. Also, I believe that the 250s are on first then motogp and 125 last.

Matt

[Colette]

I think it starts at 8pm, on 955 digital,you don't need to book just turn it on, I rang them to check. Also, I believe that the 250s are on first then motogp and 125 last.

Matt

Cheers for that, Matt.

When I called them the guy had no idea what I was talking about (and I told him that before hanging up, lol) .