FIRST FRONT ROW START FOR NAKANO AND KAWASAKI

[icebreaker]

FIRST FRONT ROW START FOR NAKANO AND KAWASAKI

Fuchs Kawasaki rider Shinya Nakano will start his Ninja ZX-RR from the front
row of the grid in tomorrow's Malaysian Grand Prix at Sepang, after setting the third fastest time in today's
closely fought final qualifying session.

The Japanese ace was at his brilliant best today, delivering Kawasaki's first front row start since the factory team joined the MotoGP World Championship in October 2002.

It was an early birthday present for the popular Nakano, who turns 27 tomorrow, and his personal best qualifying of the season so far.

Nakano cut 1.3s seconds from his provisional qualifying time to advance to the front row, and in the process become the fastest rider on Bridgestone tyres.

He was one of just seven riders on the 24 rider grid to go under the previous Sepang qualifying record of 2'02.48s, held by Valentino Rossi.

Nakano's fastest lap was timed perfectly, tucking in behind Rossi late in the session to post a time just 0.4s off pole position.

More importantly, Nakano ran a string of consistent and fast laps at race pace that indicates he has a strong bike and tyre package for tomorrow's 21 lap Grand Prix.

While Nakano swept to the front row, his German team-mate Alex Hofmann was frustrated to have slipped to 13th, and a start position on the fifth row of the grid.

Hofmann could not reproduce the rhythm that saw him fifth fastest on the provisional grid yesterday, and his late session bid to improve his time was delayed by traffic on the 5.5km Sepang circuit. Hofmann's Friday time stood for his qualifying place.

However, like Nakano, he has a strong race set-up, although he would clearly prefer to be starting closer to the front to maximise his race opportunity.

The pace of Nakano's Ninja ZX-RR in today's practice and qualifying session was boosted by revised rear geometry settings, and adjustments - both electronic and mechanical - to the engine braking system.

In the hot and humid conditions of Sepang, with track temperatures of over 45 degrees, control of rear end slides is critical to fast, consistent lap times, as demonstrated by Nakano's impressive pace today.

Shinya Nakano: 3rd (2'02.278)
"A great result today, especially after the disappointment of the Qatar GP when my bike stopped while I was in third place. I'm very motivated for a good result here and, as always, the support from Kawasaki and Bridgestone has been fantastic; it is really great to come back to the garage and see everyone smiling. I got a tow behind Rossi for a fast time, but the changes to the bike today have given me a strong set-up on race tyres. Everything is working very well."

Alex Hofmann: 13th (2'03.321)
"I'm not happy with today. I just didn't have the rhythm of yesterday, although I'm happy with the race set-up and the Bridgestone tyre choice here. The problem is that starting so far back on the grid means I have to make a good start to have any chance in the race. On my final fast lap I thought I could go quicker, but I came up on the outside of Loris Capirossi and I think he just didn't see me - that cost quite a lot of time. And the two fast straights in the final sector are not really made for me."

Harald Eckl: Team Manager
"Firstly, congratulations to Shinya and to everyone at Kawasaki and Bridgestone for all the hard work that contributed to this fantastic qualifying performance. The indicators are that our performance is on an upward curve, not only in qualifying but in race conditions also. I have no doubt that we can expect something special from Shinya in the race. Alex is disappointed, but he has a higher potential than 13th place, he just needs more experience to be able to deliver the times he is capable of when it really counts."

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

1. VALENTINO ROSSI ITA GAULOISES FORTUNA YAMAHA 2'01.833
2. ALEX BARROS BRA REPSOL HONDA +0.395
3. SHINYA NAKANO JPN KAWASAKI RACING TEAM +0.445
4. SETE GIBERNAU SPA TELEFONICA MOVISTAR HONDA +0.450
5. MAKOTO TAMADA JPN CAMEL HONDA TEAM +0.561
6. NICKY HAYDEN USA REPSOL HONDA +0.566
7. MAX BIAGGI ITA CAMEL HONDA TEAM +0.613
8. JOHN HOPKINS USA SUZUKI GRAND PRIX TEAM +0.755
9. CARLOS CHECA SPA GAULOISES FORTUNA YAMAHA +0.769
10. MARCO MELANDRI ITA GAULOISES FORTUNA YAMAHA +1.019
11. LORIS CAPIROSSI ITA DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM +1.027
12. COLIN EDWARDS USA TELEFONICA MOVISTAR HONDA +1.181
13. ALEX HOFMANN GER KAWASAKI RACING TEAM +1.488



Courtesy: http://www.kawasaki-eckl.com

[kempy]

AWESOME! Go nakano! Hoffman really can't cut it this year. Bugger him off and team up yanagawa with nakano I say. No one deserves the kawasaki #1 and #2 seats more than those two.