Tamada And Laconi Ready For Another New Experience
Nurburgring, Germany, 9 June 2008
PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse riders Makoto Tamada and Régis Laconi will begin the German WSB weekend confident of a fresh start on their Ninja ZX-10R machinery, at a circuit new to most current WSB riders. The Nürburgring circuit was last used for World Superbike racing in 1999 and therefore few riders will have any worthwhile insider’s track knowledge of the circuit when it comes to raceday itself.
Of the two Kawasaki men, Laconi has at least some experience of the circuit that replaced the classic full road-style track on the GP calendar many years ago. He raced a very different type of machine then and being in control of a 200bhp Superbike now, his latest Nürburgring experience will feel very different from when he was a 250GP rider.
Tamada has absolutely no prior knowledge of the track, but is undaunted by this fact in his rookie season of WSB competition. He has already posted some confidence-boosting performances this year, as he carries on a program of continuous improvement on his new-for-2008 machine.
Régis Laconi: “I rode there many years ago, when I was racing 250GPs. I had a nice race and I liked the place, so I hope that we can be one of the ones who make the best job in finding set-up. We will use the new swingarm there again and that has been a real advance for us. We can work with it from now on.”
Makoto Tamada: “I have never ridden on the Nürburgring before, but I hope we can find the settings on our machine that will let us get a good result. We have been making improvements all year and it would be nice to bring them all together for the race in Germany.”
Fujiwara And Walker Up For The Fight
Nurburgring, Germany, 9 June 2008
Katsuaki Fujiwara and Chris Walker from the GIL Kawasaki team look to Germany as an ideal opportunity to move back up the championship table on their Ninja ZX-6R machines.
With Walker knocked off at the previous round in Monza, and Fujiwara 15th, each rider is keen to notch up as many points as possible on raceday, but first each must conquer a track which is a new test for virtually every rider in WSS.
Like the Superbike class, the Nürburgring was last used for WSS racing in 1999 and its changes of elevation and fast corner entry sections will make it a challenge for the riders, even if safety considerations place the trackside grandstands quite far from the on-track action, and thus reduce the atmosphere compared to some other circuits.
Katsuaki Fujiwara: “I will enter the Nürburgring race with the same determination to succeed that I bring to every round. We have had some high points this year and I will be focussing on them to allow us to make the best finish possible. I think it helps us that we will start from such an even level this weekend, as most riders won’t have been here before.”
Chris Walker: “I haven’t raced at the Nürburgring but I have been there before, when I drove a motorhome down there for Terry Rymer. That was a long time ago! I’ve seen around the old long track so it will be nice to race on the modern GP track now. Part of the reason I am looking forward to it is that although there may be a couple of WSS riders who have been there before, it should be a pretty level playing field for most of us. I always like to go places that are new and exciting.”