MotoGP – The red tide reaches Australia –

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The red tide reaches Australia

MotoGP - The red tide reaches Australia -

A week after Sepang, the Ducati, Kawasaki and Honda teams met at Phillip Island. With qualifying tires, the official Ducatis are logically at the top of the list. What about racing tires ?

The winter tests are continuing at an infernal pace: hardly the Malaysian tests completed that the four Honda teams (Repsol, Fortuna, LCR and KR joined by Konica Minolta), the two Ducati teams (Marlboro and Antin) and the team Kawasaki immediately set sail for Phillip Island !

Despite a second rainy day, the Australian summer allowed the thirteen MotoGP mercenaries to complete important tests. After two series of tests carried out on the hot and sweaty circuit of Sepang, the 25 ° C and the "small" 50% humidity of the Australian island gave the pilots and their mechanics the opportunity to put to the test their previous settings.

For Ducati, Loris Capirossi and Sete Gibernau have succeeded in "confirm the potential of the Desmosedici GP6 on both qualifying and race tires". Author of the best time in practice in 1’30.06, Sete is however far from the pole obtained by Nicky Hayden in 2005 (1’29.337). The track, flooded Tuesday, remained dirty and greasy on the last day, limiting this do the lap times.

"We have taken a small step forward in terms of engine brake management software"Sete explains."With Bridgestone we are still trying to make riding the bike more predictable. We have a lot of progress to make and we will have to work hard in the next tests."admits the Catalan who prefers not to attach too much importance to the lap times.

His teammate Capirex tested two different chassis: "one is steeper than the other and in our next tests in Sepang we will be deciding which one to use for the season. They each have advantages and disadvantages but for now I prefer the more rigid"says the Italian. As for the tires, Loris, who set the fourth fastest time in the race configuration, knows that Bridgestone still has some progress to make,"and I’m sure they will make them come true"he concludes.

Also on Ducati GP6, Cardoso and Hofmann are less swift, their Dunlops remaining a tone below the competitors. Alex Hofmann continues his efforts and continues to push his gums to their limits (read).

After another fall on Monday, the German preferred not to drive in the rain on Tuesday and resume service on the last day: "I was not physically 100% but we did some good tests"consoles Alex, who turned in 1’32.4.

Identical time for his teammate Jose Luis Cardoso who appreciated the qualities of Dunlop rain tires: "we got times not very far from the first pilots"rejoices the Spaniard. But in the pouring rain, it was Nakano, his Kawasaki – whose new dress was unveiled – and his Bridgestones who did best….

With the second place of Olivier Jacque in China (read), and that of Kenny Roberts in England (read), the Kawa and the Bridgestones have proven that the rain does not scare them and could even become a precious ally. Shinya Nakano was the fastest on Tuesday on a wet track.

Like Edwards on his M1, Shinya takes advantage of the winter tests to experiment "new braking benchmarks and new trajectories". And it works! On the last day, the Japanese registered a remarkable 1’30.59 in qualifying tires, just a quarter of a second above Capirossi’s stopwatch on the same tires..

Although we don’t have Shinya’s best time on race tires, the concern we encountered at the last Australian GP – the right side of the tire was losing grip prematurely – is in the process of being resolved. Randy de Puniet, during his simulated 20-lap race, recorded his best time on his 17th lap (1’31.77). He could have "even better"without a rear wheel jerk problem that Shinya also deplores.

These jerks during acceleration have been reduced thanks to better rear suspension settings. "New tires, with different compositions and profiles, reduce this jerkiness but penalize the grip"Says technical manager Ichiro Yoda,"when others improve the grip but worsen the "chattering"". The solution will perhaps be provided via the evolutions of the engine which will be made"during the next tests"assures Harald Eckl.

On the Honda side, efforts are also continuing. The first of the times achieved on race tires, Marco Melandri is also the driver to have rolled the most. The Italian did not however expand on his impressions: "We had a lot of work and after 133 laps (Wednesday, Editor’s note) I can say that I am satisfied. I found a good pace and the bike is going very well. I think we are working in the right direction and look forward to the next trials"… And we the first GP !

Across the Fortuna garage, Toni Elias tries to make the most of his teammate: "I tried its settings. I had a good feeling and I know which way to go". Edwards who admitted to taking advantage of the Doctor’s settings last year – both of them have the same build – had a superb 2005 season. Toni could well do the same in 2006 !

Within the official Repsol team, the necessary groundwork continues and despite his fall on Wednesday afternoon, Nicky Hayden is satisfied: "we’ve tried tires for Michelin and there are some rear tires that I really like. As I was ready to do a long series of laps I lost the front and fell, nothing serious but I was going fast and we decided to stop".

Even the presence of rain on Tuesday did not dampen the Kentucky Kid’s optimism. Nicky took the opportunity to work on her style and her performance on wet tracks: "I felt pretty good and learned a few things. It was important because it’s no secret: last year I had some problems at this level !".

The young Dani was not unworthy either on a circuit which he does not like: "it was very important to gain experience on this track for the race". Here is one who does not lose the north !

For his part, Casey Stoner – also a 2006 rookie – was delighted to "rediscover" his national track, riding the RCV. The young Australian was very consistent and quick, setting the sixth fastest time on the race tire, three hundredths behind Pedrosa.

During these tests, Makoto Tamada made his comeback. The Japanese with 91 laps on the clock on the last day achieved exactly the same time as Randy de Puniet: 1’31.77. "Very satisfied"from this time and his tests in general, Makoto admits that he still has"a lot of work to do before finding the ideal settings for the 2006 RCV". Despite the slight delay conceded, the Japanese are delighted with their extended winter break:"I am fully recharged" !

Finally, the KR Honda was also present, Kenny Junior turning a second slower than the vice-world champion Marco Melandri. To close this gap, Kenny Senior believes that: "the chassis would need more rigidity", in order to better exploit the power of the Japanese V5.

For all of these teams, the next meeting is set for February 14, 2006, again in Malaysia. But by then the Yamaha and Suzuki tests will take place in Qatar, starting next week. Stay connected !

Phillip Island Testing:
Times communicated by the teams

Pilot Team Tires> Qualifying Race
Sete Gibernau Ducati Marlboro Bridgestone 1’30.06 1: 30.92
Loris Capirossi Ducati Marlboro Bridgestone 1’30.25 1: 31.07
Shinya nakano Kawasaki Racing Bridgestone 1’30.59 –
Marco melandri Fortuna Honda Michelin – 1’30.60
Nicky hayden Repsol Honda Michelin – 1’30.90
Dani Pedrosa Repsol Honda Michelin – 1’31.10
Casey stoner LCR Honda Michelin – 1’31.13
Kenny roberts jr KR Honda Michelin – 1’31.64
Randy de Puniet Kawasaki Racing Bridgestone – 1’31.77
Makoto tamada Konica Minolta Honda Michelin – 1’31.77
Toni Elias Fortuna Honda Michelin – 1’32.15
Alex hofmann D’Antin Ducati Dunlop – 1’32.4
Jose luis cardoso D’Antin Ducati Dunlop – 1’32.4

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