MOTOGP WORLD CHAMPIOSHIP REACHES MID-POINT WITH BRITISH
GP
Preview - Donington
 The
2006 MotoGP World Championship moves past half-distance at
Donington Park this weekend with Loris Capirossi still third
in the points chase despite the injuries he sustained in the
big turn-one crash at Catalunya on June 18. Unluckily that
race was the first of three back-to-back MotoGP events, so
the determined Italian contested last weekend's Dutch TT with
painful chest injuries, finishing the race a valiant 15th.
Last Monday he underwent further chest scans and should be
in better shape for Donington.
Team-mate Sete Gibernau, who broke his left collarbone in
the same accident two weeks ago, will once again be replaced
by Alex Hofmann, who took 12th place at Assen in his first
ride with the Ducati Marlboro Team. Gibernau's broken collarbone
was plated in an operation at Barcelona's Dexeus hospital
on June 20. Latest x-rays, taken on June 26, suggest that
the injury is healing well, so the Spaniard is already in
training and hoping to return to action at the German GP on
July 14/15/16.
LORIS CAPIROSSI, Ducati Marlboro Team rider, 3rd
overall, 100 points
"Last weekend was really, really tough for me, so we
are hoping that Donington will be better. I rode in a lot
of pain at Assen, every bump felt like the stab of a knife,
even though I used pain-killers. But I have had further check-ups
since then and they confirmed that I am basically okay.
I am currently taking painkillers and when I get back onto
the bike on Friday morning I will finally be able to see how
efficient the treatment and the rest have been.
I am still third overall, so the championship isn't over
yet and every point could be vital at the end of the season.
I am looking forward to Donington. It's a special place to
me because I won my first GP there in 1990. I really love
the circuit because it's a great challenge to ride it well.
The important thing is having useable power delivery because
there are a lot of part-throttle sections. We have made many
improvements to our power delivery over the past few months
so I'm looking forward to feeling the performance of the GP6
at Donington. My favourite part of the circuit is the fast,
flowing section, downhill through Craner, then uphill to Coppice."
SETE GIBERNAU, Ducati Marlboro Team rider, 13th overall,
44 points
"I'm still aching but my head no longer hurts and the
collarbone operation was a success. Before fixing the collarbone
with a plate, the surgeons had to remove an old plate which
affected my shoulder muscles. It still hurts but I am now
training again. We are working in the swimming pool to get
the shoulder muscles moving again and to make sure the wounds
drain as quickly as possible. I want to get better quickly
and get back on track with my team."
ALEX HOFMANN, Ducati Marlboro Team rider, 16th overall,
16 points
"What I learned at Assen will help me a lot at Donington.
I feel more confident now because I have completed a race
with this bike and tyre package, so I can start the weekend
a good step ahead of where we were this time last week. I
won't have to start again from zero, plus I know the track
quite well, so things should improve for us. We already have
some ideas to adapt the set-up to suit me better because the
four hours of practice we had at Assen weren't enough to find
my perfect settings. We analysed the data from the race and
that will make us stronger. I usually find my way around Donington
pretty well, I just hope it's not as wet as it was last year!
Like any racer, I like the first part of the track but I'm
not so keen on the second part. Anyway, I can't wait to get
started on my second weekend aboard the factory GP6."
THE TRACK
Donington Park is dominated by fast, sweeping corners that
crucially interlink with each other. Through these sections
a fluid riding style and high corner speed are much more important
than brute horsepower. But just to complicate matters, the
Melbourne loop section (added in 1986 to bring the venue up
to minimum GP length) features three dead-stop turns where
last-gasp braking and vicious acceleration are all-important.
Getting a MotoGP machine to work through these two contrasting
segments requires engineers to find a compromise in chassis
settings.
Donington has hosted GPs since 1987, taking over from Silverstone,
which became Britain's World Championship venue after the
notorious Isle of Man TT circuit was deemed too dangerous.
Lap record: Colin Edwards (Honda), 1m 29.973s, 160.968kmh/100.021mph
(2004)
Pole position 2005: Valentino Rossi (Yamaha), 1m 27.897s
DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM RIDER DATA LOGS
LORIS CAPIROSSI
Age: 33 (born April 4, 1973)
Lives: Monaco
Bike: Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici GP6
GP starts: 238 (68xMotoGP, 59x500, 84x250, 27x125)
GP victories: 26 (4xMotoGP, 2x500, 12x250, 8x125)
First GP victory: Britain, 1990 (125)
First GP: Japan, 1990 (125)
Pole positions: 40 (7xMotoGP, 5x500, 23x250, 5x125)
First pole: Australia, 1991 (125)
World Championships: 3 (125: 1990, 1991, 250: 1998)
Donington 2005 results: Grid: 11th. Race: 6th
ALEX HOFMANN
Age: 26 (born May 25 1980)
Lives: Switzerland
Bike: Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici GP6
GP starts: 85 (43xMotoGP, 41x250, 1x125)
First GP: Germany, 1997 (125)
Donington 2005 results: Grid: 15th. Race: 8th
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