MotoGP – Italy holds its breath … –

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Italy holds its breath…

MotoGP - Italy holds its breath ... -

Will Rossi get a sixth straight Mugello victory on Sunday afternoon? Will he be beaten by his compatriots Capirossi and Melandri? Unless Stoner and his Ducati take it upon themselves to push the Doctor to the limit again ? Suspense !

It is on the superb Mugello track, a few kilometers north of the city of Florence, that the Italian Grand Prix will take place on Sunday, an event awaited by thousands – millions? – from tifosis and other MotoGP fans, Site readers in the lead !

Set in the middle of the Tuscan hills, the Mugello is one of the most beautiful and technical circuits in the world. "There is a bit of everything: changes in altitude, a long straight line which usually makes the races very tight because the suction phenomenon is very important there and there are a lot of rapid changes of direction, decisive to achieve a quick turn", describes Nicky Hayden, third in the 2006 edition behind Rossi and Capirossi (read).

With 41 meters of height difference between its lowest point – Bucine – and its climax – Poggiosecco -, Ferrari’s private circuit represents an unparalleled challenge for mechanics and tires … which could very well suit the Ducati and Bridgestones of Stoner and Capirossi, but also of Barros and Hofmann !

Because as Jean-Philippe Weber, head of motorcycle racing at Michelin underlines: "from a performance point of view, we can say that all the Japanese manufacturers are almost tied for these first five races. Only Ducati seems, at present, to have an undeniable advantage"…

One of the most beautiful tracks in the world

Fortunately, the Mugello is not limited to its only "almost" straight line of 1,141 meters! Honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki and Yamaha will have to take advantage of the remarkable Italian "pif-paf" to pick up the Ducatis and place themselves in their aspi before climbing the straight line..

These pif-paf are in reality incredible "chicanes" which are negotiated around 130 km / h, that is to say the maximum speed authorized on the French highways! However, in these sections, Michelin believes it has an advantage over its competitors Bridgestone and Dunlop…

"5% lighter than the 16.5 inch when mounted on a rim, the 16 inch provides less inertia which improves the handling of the motorcycle", calculates Jean-Philippe Weber…

The tire war continues

"At Mugello the front tire is very important, which should be good for our new 16 inch front which allows our riders to be very aggressive in the corners.", outbid the French engineers,"confident the tire will perform well at Mugello as the circuit has plenty of downhill corner entries, where the riders demand grip and confidence to attack the curves"…

To complete the difficulty of the tires, the Mugello also has "some uphill curve exits, such as turn 1, Arrabiata 1 and Arrabiata 2, which constrain the rear a lot, especially as the positive camber (banked turn, Editor’s note) gives riders a boost of confidence and grip and they can open the throttle harder".

Once again, the choice of 31 tires on Thursday evening will be crucial for the race on Sunday … And the weather forecasts are not different – even contradictory! – which circulate here and there which will simplify the task of the teams…

Rossi undefeated in 5 years

But Valentino Rossi himself is counting on the presence of a frank sun to shine on his favorite track! "It’s a fantastic trail, even though the straight is long", explains the Doctor:"we know we’re going to have to fight a big battle. At least we can count on the weather … I hope !"

Winner of the last five Italian editions, Valentino Rossi arrives on his land with the duty to erase his misadventure in Le Mans. "We were hoping that Le Mans would allow us to regain some points from Stoner, but unfortunately the weather was against us", regrets the seven-time world champion.

Suddenly, the Doc ‘is counting on his national GP to reduce the gap that separates him from the championship lead: 21 points behind Stoner after the first five GP … "I have won here many times, including the last three years with Yamaha and have done some of my best races.", recalls n ° 46.

Stoner still leading the championship

A record to make Casey Stoner blush, yet leader of the category after three victories, a 3rd and a 5th place. At Mugello, the young Australian counts his second place obtained three years ago as his best result … in 125! And to think that Rossi’s victory in this same category goes back ten years !

Rightly considering that his Ducati GP7 should be "very strong"on this track which offers the second longest straight line on the MotoGP calendar," the "rider at the start of the season is also preparing to experience a contested Grand Prix.

"It would be nice to win, but it will be very hard to beat Loris and the other ItaliansHowever, a podium place shouldn’t be out of reach. After all, Hayden was well third last year, Gibernau 2nd in 2004 and Ukawa 3rd in 2002 – although it is true that the driver Japanese had the advantage of riding on one of only two RCV.

And what about Alex Barros, winner of the Italian GP in 2001 (an event that took place in two stages: dry then wet). We remember that Rossi – Hawaiian surfer for the occasion – had slipped on the track while Capirossi, victim of the same puddle a few moments later, had better managed aquaplaning to reach the finish unscathed just in front of Biaggi.

The return of Capirossi ?

But memories like these, there are for every Italian Grand Prix as it is true that this winding and wide track allows the pilots to take different trajectories and to meet every minute thirty, bubbles in the pots, in the straight line !

Stoner therefore expects his teammate Capirossi to return to play at the forefront during his national GP. Absent from the debates since the start of the season, the Italian indeed wishes to take advantage of the Mugello stage to find his best level..

"Last year Valentino and I had a great battle for victory", is often Capi-T-Rex … And to explain its drop in speed, Loris invokes a lack of feeling on the GP7. But"Ducati works with me to polish the bike and make it match my style !, adds the Italian, whose aggressive handling does not seem so different from that of Stoner…

Melandri’s confirmation ?

Third Italian to want to hum the Fratelli d’Italia on the top step of the podium, Marco Melandri knows he will have a lot to do during practice: "during the two days of testing in France (after the GP, Editor’s note), we worked a lot on the suspensions but we did not solve all the problems that I encountered entering a turn", indicates n ° 33.

This weekend, Marco has a very specific ambition: to finally climb the Italian podium in the premier class! "A national Grand Prix is ​​both exciting and demanding", summarizes Marco who had narrowly missed – 12 hundredths to be exact – the third step in 2005…

Italian riders, the two Alexs of the Antin Pramac team will also be at home, so to speak. Winner in 2001, Barros arrives in Tuscan country "confident"despite the fate that seems to be hitting him.

The favorite Ducati

In China, the Brazilian, mown down by Elias, regains the track late and achieves an extraordinary race at the same pace as the leading men, but he crosses the line in excellent penultimate (read). And two weeks ago in France, the veteran saw his hopes ruined by the rain when he had "the perfect settings of the Ducati -Bridgestone duo" !

Conversely, his teammate Hofmann did very well in the French deluge: his 5th place represents his best result in MotoGP! Morale swelled, the German rider knows his Ducati should shine with its power and he is aiming for the top 10 this weekend.

Shinya Nakano will not be a pilot like the others either, since he is evolving within the Italian team JIR Konica Minolta! "I have to give my best all weekend long !", concludes the Japanese…

Nakano too slow in curve !

Having studied his disappointing start to the season very closely, Super Shinya knows where his lack of success stems from: "I can’t manage to keep enough speed in the corners, but I’m sure we can do better on this circuit", assures n ° 56 !

However at the level of the speed of passage in curve, the old terror of the 250 knows a radius. "I won the 250 Grand Prix in 2000 and still consider it one of my best races. So why don’t we aim for a good result with this 800 ?", reasons the Honda rider !

A good performance in Italy could finally start his season: "if Shinya is efficient and performing at Mugello, I think he will be in good shape for the next race, as the characteristics of the Catalunya circuit are similar to those of the Mugello track", assures Gianluca Montiron, his team manager.

Two Italian teams

Also a member of a French team – green, white, red of course! -, Carlos Checa is confident: the driver of Lucio Cecchinello took advantage of the two days of testing at Le Mans to "test different types of rear tires, in order to improve the stability of our rear axle".

And the results obtained with Michelin seem conclusive: "now we are very competitive in the winding sections, but we still lack a little power", specifies Carlos.

As for his young compatriot Toni Elias, he will be keen to have a good weekend because the team manager of the Spanish star – Fausto Gresini – is also Italian. MotoGP places being expensive and coveted (read), Lucio and Fausto will have to show Honda that their team can be competitive !

"Last year, I climbed from 12th to 7th place and this season I’m aiming much higher", warns Elias who must also defend his place on the RC212V … Delighted by his race simulation the day after the French GP, the driver n ° 24 expects a"any other challenge"on the Italian track…

The Suz want more !

Winner of the French Grand Prix, Chris Vermeulen does not intend to fall asleep on his laurels: "it was a great result for me and my team, but it was last weekend and now we have to start from scratch for Mugello", notes the Australian.

Landed in the premier class last year, Chris did not shine during the Italian stage: "I struggled to gain grip and finished the race only 14th", recalls the No. 71 of the Suzuki team.

After a victory and a podium – last year at his home in Phillip Island – the former Mondial Superbike rider wants to achieve the same results in the dry: "we are capable of it", assures Vermeulen !

As proof, his teammate John Hopkins climbed on the podium in China in dry track conditions! Disappointed to have run in the rain at Le Mans after "working so hard in the dry"during the tests, the Anglo-American could be the surprise of the weekend…

"I really like the Mugello track, it’s fast and smooth and I think it should match the 800 well", predicts John. Especially since for this Italian meeting, Suzuki has planned to deliver new parts to its pilots !

Transform "the test"

Among the disappointed at Le Mans, Colin Edwards is undoubtedly on the front row: author of a breathtaking pole obtained in the very last partial, the American remained literally invisible during the race….

Naturally, the Texan Tornado looks to the future: "it gets really crisp with six events in eight weeks, the first being Valentino’s home race and the last being mine", rejoices the number 5 of Yamaha !

On the occasion of these two particularly important GPs – Mugello and Laguna Seca – Edwards hopes that the two official M1s will climb on the podium, as they did in Jerez at the start of the season. "And we will have to try to do the same thing between the two !"adds Colin !

Repsol in the red

After his heavy fall at Le Mans, Nicky Hayden will finally try to launch his 2007 season … The world champion showed last year that he could be very fast on the transalpine circuit – third to 7 tenths behind Rossi! -, but what will happen to the Honda 800, visibly less suited to his driving style than was his 990? ?

Dani Pedrosa, who shares the box with World Number One, crossed the checkered flag just 1.3 seconds after Nicky last year for his first MotoGP participation. Faster than his teammate riding the official RC212V since the opening of the new season, will the young Spaniard finish ahead of the Kentucky Kid on Sunday ?

Another driver to ride for the second time only in the premier class on the demanding Mugello track, Randy de Puniet should not be too handicapped by his fall at Le Mans: " I am practically recovered thanks to the physiotherapy program that I followed", assures the French pilot.

Small form for De Puniet and OJ…

The Kawa driver even arrives with good morale: "last year the bike was good but it lacked top speed. In Mugello, top speed and handling of the bike are very important and this year the Ninja ZX-RR is efficient in these areas.", explains the No. 14 of the Greens.

Setting himself the goal of finishing in the top 8, Randy would like to do better than in Istanbul and in China where he had finished 8th … Answer on Sunday !

Olivier Jacque will perform his – big? – return to MotoGP, after having been forced to watch on television the six anthology laps achieved by his young compatriots De Puniet and Guintoli at Le Mans. "I was even more disappointed, because I love to run in these conditions !", affirms OJ who would have liked to participate in this GP like no other…

"I have regained the use of my arm and although it is still a bit stiff, I can extend it almost completely. I am able to ride a MotoGP machine at a good level", reassures the famous n ° 19 even if he cannot"predict how this weekend will go"… Patience !

Phenomenal Guintoli !

Sylvain Guintoli, one of the five drivers to have scored points at each GP with Stoner, Rossi, Melandri and Vermeulen, will also be closely monitored. Obviously, we all hope that his lead in the French Grand Prix will be followed by many others. !

However, Sylvain does not want to skip the steps. To his Shark helmet maker who asks him if he’s already thinking about next year, pilot Yam calmly replies: "no, it’s still too early. It’s up to me to continue to improve and to prove that I have my place in MotoGP. I know if I have a good season things will flow by themselves": just like what happened for Checa, former Dunlop Tech3 rider and today riding a Honda on Michelin rubber…

However, the French pilot does not wish to leave the French structure: "what I would like is that we develop good tires and that I can win races with Tech3". A dream come true in the year 2000 for OJ, 250cc world champion in the same team! Nakano his teammate had finished this same season in 2nd position … What to inspire Tamada !

We are family !

Finally, the Roberts team will work double this weekend, as Kenny Senior will not only hire his son Junior but also Kurtis, the younger brother! "Kurtis is a pilot the team understands very well and we can interpret the feedback he provides.", explains the dad:"the basic settings of the KR212V will be our main job this weekend and with two bikes that should speed up the movement", hopes Kenny Sr.

See you on Monday for the exclusive "Giro per Giro" by J. Arsouille !

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