Cycle News - Archive Issues - 2000's

(Left) Alex Barros finished second on the Honda West Pons NSR500. (Right) Rossi celebrates another victory. He's one step away from being the last 500cc World Champion. The Spaniard .gained a place every lap, and passed McWilliams on the fourth, only for the Ulsterman to push him firmly back the next time around. At this stage, Naoki Matsuda (Petronas Yamaha) and Roberto Rolfo (Oxydo Aprilia) were with the group, the Aprilias of Fonsi Nieto and Roberto Locatelli soon to lose touch behind. Matsuda stayed with the two fast men until lap 10, when he too lost touch, his rear tire sliding badly. Then it was just McWilliams and Alzamora, all the way until the final lap. And then Alzamora pounced, managing to fend off the angry McWilliams to the flag. "I'd been having trouble with toosoft front forks all race, and I couldn't brake like I wanted to. He passed me at one place where I was having the most trouble, and though I tried again under brakes at the far hairpin, it only made me run wide, and then I lost his BRIEFLY••• The new premier class of the Motorcycle World Championship will drop all numbers next year, and be called simply MotoGP (or Moto-gup, as it is pronounced here in Japan). Doma boss Carmela Ezpeleta, at a special press briefing, announced this along with further details of regulation changes that take bike GP racing ever closer to car Fl. The smaller classes will retain their 125 and 250 titles. but the former 500cc class will simply carry the name of the series, to emphasize their central role in the series. as weil as taking account of the fact that the regulations permit 990cc fourstrokes and 500cc two-strokes to compete. he said. This would also allow possible future changes to the capacity limits. Ezpeleta confirmed the factory entries for 2002 as follows: Honda - four riders, two for HRC. and their second two-rider team split into two separate one·rider teams. run by Fausto Gresini and Erv Kanemoto. There are also two satellite teams, Pons Honda and Shell Advance - total eight riders; Yamaha - two riders. plus three two-rider satellite teams (Red Bull, Tech 3. Antena 3) - total eight riders; Suzuki - two riders (Kenny Roberts Jr. and Gibemau): Aprilia - two riders, as yet unknown: MZ - ditto: Proton - ditto. This completes the 24 entries allowed for the premier class. with one space remaining for a wild card entry. Ezpeleta also announced that from next year there will be a new championship for teams, in addition to those already in piace for riders and manufacturers. "The total points of each rider in the team will be combined." he said. He expected there would be at least eight 990cc four-strokes on the grid next season - two each from Yamaha, Honda, Aprilia and MZ. Ezpeleta confirmed -that MZ and Sheil Advance would have contracts for next year, while other contracts run until 2006, the end of Domas current lease of rights from the FIM. This will leave space in 2003 for Ducati and Kawasaki. both of whom have announced their intention to take part from that year. Suzuki also announced that they expect to compete with a V-four four-stroke from 2003. draft on the back straight, n he said later, pleased with third, but disappointed at the defeat at the hand of a hated rival. The next group was closing at the finish to within three seconds, with Nieto nipping back in front of Rolfo Sauber appears to be out of bike GP racing for the present with their name crossed off the list of potential entries on the morning of the official announcement of the teams. "I spoke to Sauber at 8 a.m. Japanese time this moming. and they confirmed they have not been able to comply with all the conditions," said Ezpeleta. "The only way they will be able to race is if they can join one of the existing teams, ~ he added. Persistent rumors have linked the part-Malaysian-owned Petronas Sauber outfit with Team Roberts, sponsored by Malaysian car manufacturers Proton. However, Roberts and team manager Chuck Aksland have consistently denied this possibility. "We are 99-percent sure to run our two-stroke next year," said Aksland two weeks ago. Neither Roberts nor Aksland were present at Motegi. The three-cylinder Petronas Sauber is expected to make its public debut at the Malaysian GP, with two days of testing planned for the following week, with former GP rider Niall Mackenzie and a second rider, possibly Australian Mark Willis 125cc GRANO PRIX Elias took off in the lead from Ui, while the crashing started in the very first turn, with Smrz and wild a Superbike.·· said Doohan. "II's not like a production bike where everyone can ride it at the limit. When the tires go off after 10 laps. iI's going to need finesse. and only a few people will be able to ride It properly. ThaI's the way iI's always been with GP bikes. and thaI's the way it should be. Considering it has only been off the test bench a handful of months. it's really good. It's hard to say because we weren't at race pace, but it feels like the way it is now. iI's probably capable of a top-five finish in this GP. Doohan particularly praised the straight-line speed. "I think iI's faster than a 500." he said. The bike felt different from the last time he rode it. at the Suzuka 8 Hour. Given the choice as to which he would race on Sunday. two-stroke or four-stroke, he said: "II's a bit early to say - but you tend to prefer the beast that you know. But for racing next March, after more testing and development. definitely the four-stroke," opined the five-times 500 champion. Three·time World Champion Spencer concurred with the diagnosis, "Usually with bikes, even before you get up to race pace, you can feel if iI's going to be good. This reminded me of the first time I rode the three-cylinder NS. From the start, it felt well-balanced and capable." He compared it with Honda's previous four-stroke. the ovalpiston NR500, which he raced in 1981. "That had no torque. and if you missed your shift point by even a few meters you could drop out of the range. This is a much friendlier motor, with a good spread of power." Both rode two demonstration laps on race day. New rules for the premier GP class require riders to qualify for an FIM Grand Prix Super License from next year. But the system, which would rule out a number of riders in this year's 500 class, is so discretionary that many dismissed it as little more than window-dressing. borrowed from Fl racing for the sake of it. The qualification criteria are precise: to have finished in the top 15 of 500 or 250 class in one of the previous two seasons. or the top three of the 125 class or World Superbikes. In addition, however. licenses may be approved by the GP Commission, or by the FIMITWP (Doma)/IRTA (teams association) for one-event riders. "It is up to the teams to nominate their riders, then the GP Commission will consider the cases of those who do not qualify," said Carmela Ezpeleta. Valentino Rossi was due to test the four-stroke at Sepang after the Malaysian GP in three weeks - but Honda has cancelled tests of the four-stroke due to the unstable world situation. and the reluctance of the company to allow their engineers to travel. His next chance· world affairs permitting - will be at Jerez in November, .. Rossi said he was wilting to stay in Japan and test after this race, but we thought it would be better to finish the World Championship first." said RCV project leader Heijiro Yoshimura. The racing doesn't start until next year - but Honda has won the decibel war. Legendary former champions Mick Doohan and Freddie Spencer both took the new RCV five-cylinder 990cc racing four-stroke for several demonstration laps on Friday, with more planned for the next two days. And while most people still felt the bikes couid safely be louder, the fruity tones of the unique engine made a far better impression than the relatively whisperquiet Yamaha M 1 four-stroke. That bike was widely criticized for being too quiet when it made its public debut at Barcelona earlier this year. Both riders are Honda employees. but even so they looked entirely sincere - and glowing with enthusiasm - as they heaped praise on the machine. "'fs defjnitely a GP bike, and not The RC211V at Motegi was the third version of the bike, said Yoshimura. in an exclusive press briefing. "The changes have been mainly to the chassis," he said. with only detail engine modifications. They included revision to chassis stiffness ratios, and to the under-seat fuel tank. to allow a more comfortable riding position (Rossi had complained of being cramped), and an alteration of the rear swingarm pivot point. "This was to improve traction, and also rider feel." said Yoshimura. Spencer and Doohan had both commented that the engine braking was not a problem ... It is adjustable with the slipper clutch, - said Yoshimura. "The rider can set it to how he likes it. Both Spencer and Doohan are two-stroke riders, so we set it with the minimum of braking." Asked if they were to follow Yamaha's rumored course of action. in reducing the power, he said: "The basic concept is to increase the power, and to gain the character to make it all usable," he said. They were experimenting with traction control systems. but "TC for a motoncycle is a very difficult issue. compared with an Fl car," he said. The specter of destrucUon of tires by the high-power four-strokes was not to be taken seriously, he said. "The aim is to make the bike less hard on tires than the current 500s." They had not tested the four-stroke and two-stroke back to back. but had been able to compare data. he continued. "Ukawa rode the RCV at Suzuka last week. and though his lap time was .3-seconds slower than his qualifying time on the NSR at the GP earlier this year, over 15 laps his average was .2-seconds quicker than in this year's race. At all tracks used so far, the four-stroke had shown stronger acceleration than the NSR; and costwise the four-stroke and twostroke were "almost equal" over a season of racing. He would not give details about the engine. .. We have decided the firing order now, but I cannot tell you," Nor would he reveal how many crankshaft main bearings the engine had. Will World Champion-elect Valentino Rossi race a four-stroke next year? It looks that way, with HRC's official two-rider team Rossi and Tohru Ukawa - both expected to race the new V-five. Their other two-rider team. actually two one-rider teams, will see Erv Kanemoto running an as-yet unnamed rider. The paddock grapeVine insists it will be Dutchman Jurgen van den Goorbergh, though the rider remained tight-lipped, for the moment. The second team will see former 125cc champion Fausto Gresini move up a class with current runaway 250cc points leader Daljiro Katoh. Michelin's exclusive reign in the 500cc class will come to an end in 2002. with both Bridgestone and Dunlop entering the class along with the new four-strokes next season. Bridgestone confirmed their entry. after testing this year with Erv Kanemoto and riders Nobu Aoki and Shinichi ltoh. Their announcement was not specific, but so far it is only certain that they will equip the Kanemoto team next season. though other teams may yet be tempted. Dunlop will definitely equip new 500cc rider Katoh, confirmed race boss Jeremy Ferguson. The 250cc star has used Dunlops throughout his career. "We are having talks with a number of teams, and there are other possibilities," he added. Pressed for more information. he said that Aprilia was" a strong possibility... by inches on the last lap. Locatelli was less than two seconds behind at the end; Matsuda all alone another six seconds adrift. The rest followed, evenly spaced Battaini, Sekiguchi, wild card Ohsaki and Randy de Puniet. The next battle was for 12th, with David Checa (Honda) prevailing over Miyazaki's Yamaha, Tomas' Honda and Lanzi's Aprilia for the last point, the lucky ones in a big gang that was close all the way to 19th place. Boscoscuro and Edwards also crashed out. This all put some life back into what had become the dullest of the three title battles. Katoh now leads by 24 points, 247 to Harada's 223. Melandri has 169, Rolfo 147 and Nieto 127. n e _ lIS • OCTOBER 17,2001 11

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