Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
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To the Victor Goes the Beemer Sete Gibernau won a new BMW for his eHorts at the Catalunya MatoGP-test. Nicky Hayden (right) ended up third fastest in the race far the BMW. p- r • (Below) Kenny Raberts Jr. and John Hapkins left Spain happy with the new Suzuki. By and large, these times were the best of the weekend, except for those of a few riders. Taking all practice sessions into account, Biaggi was second overall, ahead of Rossi, and Barros was fourth. Was Rossi sandbagging? His angry gesture after missing out on the car might have been over- ly theatrical, but anyone looking to find that he was doing fast secete Gibernau took the first honors of the S new MotoGP season at official testing at Catalunya, Spain, March 2S-27 - leaving his home circuit with the keys of a BMW hatchback in one pocket, and the psychological advantage in the other. The prize was for 40 minutes of officially timed qualifying on the third of three days of testing, and the Telefonica MoviStar Lap times on the fuily resurfaced 2.9-mile Catalunya circuit put the top 17 riders inside last year's lap record, making direct comparisons difficult. At the same time, top speeds tion times but slowing so as not about the car, but it was a new car. I was Honda rider made a convincing run of it. of free practice and was another favorite for taking the lead in the time sheets from early leader Alex Barros and his Camel Honda, the crucial 40 timed minutes, but the new really pushing. I'll have to settle for some nice easy payments at my pa's garage. I should be okay for a ride this summer thanks to Second Chance Autos." Makoto Tamada's new Konika Minolta Honda, now on Michelin tires, was less than a tenth behind, saying aftelWard he was still gaining familiarity with the qualifying tires. Then came Suzuki's john Hopkins, who Repsol Honda rider had his guns spiked in pronounced and staying there to the end - when his the closing minutes of the session, when his advantage was an impressive four-tenths. factory Honda failed to start after qualifying tires had been fitted. Even after they added more fuel, the V-five wouldn't spark up, and he stalked back into the garage, ahead of dis- improvement to the Suzuki. He nosed ahead of Colin Edwards, who had earlier been placed second in his first public run on the Gauloises Yamaha, faster than Rossi on the second day but failing to improve on the third. "I'm not disappointed, but I'm not totally happy," Edwards said. "The main focus was to run through a bunch of stuff. At the moment, I'd say we have a top-fIVe bike on our hands. We need to keep working, test a bunch more Valentino RossI's final efforts put him second, and if the Gauloises Yamaha rider was bluffing in order to keep secret the strength of his hand, he did so in usual theatrical style, punching the air in anger after failing to topple his Spanish rival. While clearly pleased, Gibernau would not attribute much importance to what is little more than a 40-minute preseason TV were lower than last year's. when a massive tailwind pushed Loris Capirossl's Ducati to 21 S.B6 mph. This year he was again fastest, at 208.22 mph. Max Biaggi had topped the first two days consolate new crew chief Erv Kanemoto, and threw a glove down angrily before managing a wry smile for the cameras. The explanation was equally vexing. Biaggi had crashed that bike in the morning on oil spilled by the Proton KR KTM. That himself "ecstatic" with the settings, and make sure we've got the number-one bike in time for the first race." to reveal full lap-time potential would be disappointed. Rossi was fifth on the first day and ninth on the second, and his section times matched his positions. "On Thursday and Friday, we had some problems, and we didn't really understand why," Rossi said. "We tried to follow a different way, and it wasn't right. Today was much better, but I made a small mistake in my hot lap, and I was second:' Crew boss jerry Burgess was not dismayed by the results, however. "Valentino could have gone faster than he did," he said, "but I don't think he would have beaten Sete's time. We were back and forth a bit here, reconfirming things, but we tested well at Sepang and Phillip Island, and we're ready enough to race. You have to race sometimes to find out where you are." He anticipated a hard year, with Gibernau and Biaggi the main threat. "Sete is strong, and Max is heading into Biaggi placed eighth, with Alex Barros also having a disappointing run in the crucial his last opportunity," Burgess said. The new Yamaha was, Burgess said, "the bike we built over last year." The new 40 minutes for ninth. Loris Capirossi was top Ducati in 10th, slightly higher rev ceiling and better power ahead of the Kawasakis of Shinya Nakano character. "I'm not sure we have much show for Dorna and BMW. The important part was the rest of the three days, and the forthcoming three days at Jerez, in preparation for the first round of the series at Jerez on April 10. "Today I won nothing," he said. "just fol- then it failed at the crucial moment. The team found an electrical connector had been shaken loose in the crash. "I always said I was not here just to win a car, but I am disappointed because I didn't lowed our plan. I did a race simulation in even have a chance to take up the chal- and Alex Hofmann, Ducati test rider Shinichi more power, but it's a little better on the the morning, and that went okay. In the afternoon for the session I put on qualifying tires for the first time and did a lap, and they gave me a car. That's nice, but reaily more for the crowd. My goal was not to lenge," Biaggi said. "These things happen." Repsol Honda's Nicky Hayden was third, Itoh and 14th-fastest Kenny Roberts Jr., who was the only rider to tumble during the qualifying window. Then came Camel Honda's Troy Bayliss, Fortuna Yamaha's Toni Elias, initial jump out of the corner, which is win the 40-minute session, but to use three days of testing to improve the bike." Rossi had said he wanted the car "to give to my mother," but was thwarted by "a smail mistake on my hot lap." bike was repaired and returned to use, but a quarter of a second down on Rossi, with new Telefonica Honda rider Marco Melandri another three-tenths down in an impressive showing after switching from two disappointing seasons with Yamaha. "I was real happy to be fighting with the front guys and was trying real hard," Hayden said. "Everyone was saying they didn't care More To Come From Honda Ducati test rider Vittoriano Guareschi, second Fortuna Yamaha rider Ruben Xaus, Suzuki tester Nobuatsu Aoki, d'Antin Ducati rookie Roberto Rolfo, KTM's Shane Byrne, and the WCM pair of James Ellison and engine had improved performance, with a where we got beat last year, which forced Valentino to have to make it up under brak- ing and through the turns." More significant was how handling improvement had been incorporated in the new bike. "We were getting a far amount of movement at the rear of the bike, which we have been able to improve," Burgess said. Michael Scott Franco Battaini. received quite a lot of new parts here, and of course as normal, not everything works - this this out if you do race simulations." Gibernau would not be drawn on season's 88 percent, and we arrived here at BO per- stuff for the chassis and the engine. In the race whether he or factory rider Max Biaggi MotoGP RCV is still in progress, according cent, so we are in the right direction," would be the main development riders to Telef6nica MoviStar's Sete Gibernau, with Gibernau said after topping the time sheets at the Catalunya test. '1\nd I feel we are a lot simulation we learned a lot, especially that under braking when the tire is used we need more stability. The bike is floating too much, "I do not even know what he is doing, but I know that I am communicating very well with HRC engineers, and they are listening to what I am saying," Gibernau said. Honda's development of this new engine and chassis parts still undergoing tests at Catalunya and the forthcoming tests at Jerez. "Right now I would say it is at about 8S or 8 better prepared at this time of the season than I did last year. But the level is still not what it should be, and we have to work. We have MARCH 3D, 2005 • CYCLE NEWS and it can't turn in so well. This is not a problem on new tires, but onty when their per- formance goes down. And you can only find for HRC.