DESMOSEDICI GP5 ENDS SEPANG TESTING WITH RECORD TIME
Capirossi sets quickest time during the three-day test (2m00.54s),
the Italian improving the Malaysian circuit’s official
pole record by 1.3 seconds.
 Sepang
(Malaysia) 25 January 2005 – The Ducati Marlboro Team
ended the three-day test session at the Malaysian circuit
with smiles all around from the results of the development
work on the new Desmosedici GP5. The team leave Sepang with
the knowledge that they are heading in the right direction,
even though there is still a lot of work to be done in view
of the difficult championship that lies ahead. The only regret
was the forced absence of Carlos Checa, who had to remain
in bed all day with a high temperature and a massive headache.
“These were three positive days, especially because
we were able to get down to some real testing” declared
Loris Capirossi. “We worked methodically on the suspension
settings and tyres and managed to find the right balance.
I’m very satisfied with the latest technical innovations:
the chassis, the swing-arm and the ECU have all made improvements
to the Desmosedici. With Bridgestone tyre development is continuing
non-stop and in the next test session at Sepang we will be
concentrating on the rear tyre to further improve duration
over a race distance, which is already quite good. In any
case, irrespective of the times we set, we have to continue
along this path without getting all carried away. But I have
to admit that it’s great to be competitive!”
“I had intended to get back out on the track again,
but my headache was still giving me problems and sadly I had
to stay in the hotel”, declared Carlos Checa. “Loris
did a great job and I can’t wait to return to Sepang
in a couple of weeks to finally get a chance to ride my Ducati.”
“This was a positive test”, declared Livio Suppo,
MotoGP project manager. “The GP5 seems to have started
off well and the Bridgestone tyres have already proved themselves
to be at an excellent level both in race and qualifying set-up.
It was a real pleasure to see a smile back on Loris’s
face again and watch him ride in the way only he knows how!
It was a pity about Carlos, but I am sure that he will be
OK for the next tests and will return to Sepang with even
more determination. A big thanks to all of our partners, and
in particular to Shell Advance, who are allowing us to obtain
these results”.
Loris Capirossi 2m00.54s
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