Kawasaki Sportsbike Riders Club - Australia - Online Forum

MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2006
KAWASAKI RACING TEAM PRESS OFFICE
24 JANUARY 2006 - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NAKANO AND DE PUNIET FASTER IN SEPANG

Kawasaki riders, Shinya Nakano and Randy de Puniet, both improved their lap times during the second day of testing at Sepang today, before the onset of rain brought the test to a premature end.

Despite the weather, both Nakano and de Puniet managed to complete their planned test schedule, which included tyre testing with Bridgestone and the evaluation of revised engine and chassis components on their Ninja ZX-RR machines.

Nakano tested four different rear tyres on his Ninja ZX-RR during the morning session, with one new tyre in particular offering an advantage around the twists and turns of the 5.548 km Sepang circuit, and allowing the Kawasaki rider to improve on his lap time from yesterday by over a second.

Nakano also evaluated revised engine and clutch components, before testing a redesigned, more aerodynamic fairing on his 2006 Ninja ZX-RR.

De Puniet also tested a number of rear Bridgestone tyres today, as he worked to identify a suitable tyre for his race simulation tomorrow. The 24-year-old Frenchman walked away uninjured from a crash whilst testing a new fairing, before going on to improve on his previous best lap time by more than a second.

The Kawasaki Racing team will return to Sepang tomorrow for the third, and penultimate, day of testing.

Shinya Nakano: #56 - 2'02.65 (50 Laps)
"Today we focused mainly on an important tyre test with Bridgestone. They had a number of rear tyres for us to test, and one in particular definitely offered an advantage in terms of traction. The tyre uses a different drive compound, and it was on this rear tyre that I set my fastest time, over one second quicker than my best time from yesterday. We also tested some new components on the bike, including a modified chassis designed to improve stability. We will continue testing with this chassis tomorrow, as we work to improve overall set-up of the new bike. It's been a busy, but productive, day."

Randy de Puniet: #17 - 2'02.55 (50 Laps)
"Our main aim today was to test some new tyres from Bridgestone, and to identify the best tyre for my race simulation tomorrow afternoon. We also tested some modified components on the bike, including a redesigned, more compact fairing. It was during this part of the test that I had my first crash in MotoGP. I'm not sure what caused it, the rear just came round on me as I got off the throttle and down I went. It was a fairly big crash, but I walked away uninjured, and we were able to complete the rest of our test schedule before the rain appeared at four o'clock. I improved my lap time by more than one second, so I'm happy with the way things have gone today."

Naoya Kaneko: Technical Manager
"Both riders were kept busy with tyre testing today, as it is important that we supply Bridgestone with the test data they need to continue their development for the season ahead. On the chassis front we tested a new fairing on bikes. Designed to be more compact and aerodynamic, Shinya's comments on the new fairing indicate that it offers the same level of protection as the old. This is an area we will look at again in future tests. Finally, we also managed to evaluate some revised engine components and completed our test schedule despite the onset of rain in the

Go Randy...

Finally Naker's has a team mate who can keep up... In this case beat him by .1 of a sec...

That puts them into the top 6 from day 1'st testing times... But I'm sure everyone else improved, pushing them out to top 10/11 again.

1. Gibernau 2'01.66
2. Capirossi 2'01.83
3. Edwards 2'02.00
4. Hayden 2'02.02
5 Pedrosa 2'02.26
6. Hopkins 2'02.40
7. De Puniet 2'02.55
8 Stoner 2'02.57
9 Rossi 2'02.62
10 Nakano 2'02.65



Go Teaem Green...

The results are all over the shop. Could make for an interesting year.

Not good that the Green Machine is still a second off the pace.

I reckon De Puniet could actually get Kwika's first ever Motogp win this year in the wet. I think the rider compo is perfect Nakkers has developed into a consistent finisher & an awesome development rider. While De Puniet will be able to push the bike for the odd result & plenty of crashes. Hope the parts cupboard is FULL.
Rossi will beat Hayden from Melandri for the tittle though, I Cant wait.
Cheers Brett

Nakano just got into the 2'01's (2'01.70)..... 7th fastest

DeP. is 8th with an improved time of 2'02.18



we're def getting better... certainly looks promising if the boys in green can put in some race performances...

Yeah, definately some way to go but the results are very promising.

Looking forward to this season!

MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP 2006
KAWASAKI RACING TEAM PRESS OFFICE
25 JANUARY 2006 - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

KAWASAKI CONCLUDE SUCCESSFUL SEPANG TEST

The Kawasaki Racing Team concluded their final day of testing at the Sepang circuit today, with Shinya Nakano and Randy de Puniet both setting their fastest lap times of the test during the afternoon session.

Both Kawasaki riders were subjected to a heavy workload over the three-day test, completing a combined total of more than 300 laps around the 5.548km Sepang circuit, as they continue the development of Kawasaki's new Ninja ZX-RR MotoGP machine.

Nakano started this morning's session by running comparison tests on different set-ups, before switching bikes to evaluate a revised chassis. He then ran an 18-lap race simulation in the afternoon, in which he saw a significant improvement in his average lap time compared to this same test last year.

Nakano's Kawasaki teammate, de Puniet, also concentrated today on comparing suspension settings, as he worked with his crew to refine the set-up of his Ninja ZX-RR. In the afternoon the 24-year-old Frenchman improved upon his lap time by 0.5s, before having to abandon a planned race simulation due to a minor technical problem.

Nakano and de Puniet also tested a revised exhaust system on their Ninja ZX-RR machines, which both riders agreed offered better throttle response at the bottom end of the rev range.

The Kawasaki Racing Team will travel directly from Malaysia to Australia, to participate in a further three-day test at Phillip Island, starting on Tuesday 31 January.

Shinya Nakano: #56 - 2'01.27 (72 Laps)
"Today was very demanding because we did a lot of laps, but we also managed to complete our test programme, which is very important at this stage with a new bike. We tested some different settings and components this morning, with positive results, before running an 18-lap race simulation during the afternoon. My lap times on race tyres were consistent, and very close to Loris Capirossi's race times from last year, so we ended the test on a positive note. We still have some work to do during the next tests in Australia and Malaysia, but we have already made a lot of progress with the new bike and we definitely have a clear direction for future development."

Randy de Puniet: #17 - 2'02.18 (62 Laps)
"We tested a lot of different suspension components, both front and rear, today to identify the best set-up on the bike. We also ran a race simulation in the afternoon, but I had to cut this short due to a small problem on the bike. I improved on my previous best lap time by almost 0.5s, so today has been very positive for us. Overall, this has been a successful test. We've completed a lot of work and seen an improvement in lap times every day. Hopefully we can continue the same trend at Phillip Island next week."

Harald Eckl: Team Manager
"This has been a successful first test for the new bike, and I'm confident that the information we have collected will be converted by Kawasaki's engineers into further improvements to the engine before we return to Sepang in February. Both riders were very positive about the chassis and the handling of the bike, and I think we've made a definite step forward in this area. Shinya's fastest lap today was almost 0.5s faster than Loris Capirossi's pole position time from the race here just four months ago, and I think this indicates best of all the progress we've made over the winter. Randy has also impressed during this test with his consistency, and also how close his lap times are to Shinya's. I'm confident that with the new ZX-RR and our two riders we will see a clear improvement in our championship standing during the 2006 season."

Great stuff

U Beauty !.

randy

From Crash.net:

Obtaining accurate test times is always something of a black art, but when numerous different teams - and the official MotoGP website - all agreed that Shinya Nakano's fastest day three lap at Sepang was of 2min 1.7secs, it seemed conclusive...

However, Nakano's Kawasaki Racing Team - and they should know - insist that their Japanese star actually set a best time of 2mins 1.27secs, which propels Nakano from seventh to fourth on the overall test timesheets - behind only Ducati team-mates Sete Gibernau and Loris Capirossi, plus the lead Honda of Marco Melandri.

"Shinya's fastest lap was almost 0.5secs faster than Loris Capirossi's pole position time from the race here just four months ago, and I think this indicates best of all the progress we've made over the winter," confirmed Kawasaki team manager Harald Eckl, referring to Capirossi's 2min 1.731secs Malaysian GP pole time.

But Nakano - who spent Wednesday evaluating a revised chassis and exhaust system for the all new ZX-RR - also made clear improvements in terms of race pace during an 18-lap simulation.

isnt that a great shot of randy....he might surprise a few people

Vid Clip from Sepang test:

http://x400.putfile.com/videos/b5-2306503877.wmv