Ducati Marlboro Team preview
2005 MotoGP World Championship, round 2 of 17
Qatar Grand Prix, Losail, April 6/7/8
DUCATI MARLBORO MEN TURN UP THE HEAT
The Ducati Marlboro Team travels to the Middle-East leading
the 2006 MotoGP World Championship after a sensational start
to the season in Spain, where Loris Capirossi took his Desmosedici
GP06 to a brilliant win in front of 131,000 fans.
The Italian squad dominated Jerez: Capirossi and Sete Gibernau
qualified first and second fastest, Capirossi won the race
in spectacular style, a perfect weekend only spoiled when
while Gibernau bike's encountered a technical glitch. Both
riders proved that they are super-fast on qualifying tyres
and race tyres, proving that the long winter's work undertaken
by the team, Ducati and Bridgestone has been abundantly fruitful.
The latest version of the Desmosedici V4 has lost none of
its speed but offers improved rideability and consistency,
the main priorities of the winter development programme.
LIVIO SUPPO, Ducati MotoGP project manager
"Jerez was a great weekend - Loris took pole, the win
and the fastest lap and Sete was second in qualifying and
fastest in warm-up - it was just a shame that he had a problem
in the race. We go to Losail leading the championship but
we've got to keep our feet on the ground. It's a long season
so we need to keep our focus to ensure we fulfil our potential.
Loris is on a confidence high, hopefully he can celebrate
his 33rd birthday (on April 4th) in the best possible way!
Sete has proved he's fast and I'm sure he'll soon get the
good results he deserves."
LORIS CAPIROSSI, World Championship ranking: first
"I had a perfect bike and perfect tyres at Jerez and
we have a simple target for Qatar - to do the same all over
again. We are quite confident but we know it won't be easy.
The toughest thing in Qatar can be the weather. Two years
ago it was almost 40 degrees, which made riding really tough.
I hope it will be cooler this time because we're there in
early April, not early October. The most important thing for
this track is to have a well-balanced bike that changes direction
well. As always, tyres will be important and the Bridgestone
rear has improved a lot since last year, it's got a much better
contact feeling.
"We have a plan to ride streetbikes - I'll have a Ducati
999 - around the track (with fellow riders' safety commission
members Valentino Rossi and Kenny Roberts Junior) on Thursday
night, to see if it's feasible to run future Qatar GPs in
the dark, when it will be much cooler. They have erected floodlights
at several corners, so it will be an interesting experience!"
SETE GIBERNAU, World Championship ranking: no score
"What happened at Jerez was a pity but these things sometimes
happen in racing. Everyone had worked so hard over the winter
and we showed in practice and qualifying that we are fast.
Now we just need a result to prove it. Despite that disappointment
we are ready to fight again. We are learning all the time
and I have a great team behind me, so I'm looking forward
to getting back on track in Qatar.
"I've got nice memories of Qatar - I won the race in
2004. It's a good circuit, quite particular, with a little
bit of everything and some special turns like the triple right-hander
which is really spectacular. Apart from that, it's sandy and
it's hot! There are a lot of changes of direction during a
lap at Qatar so you need the bike to turn good. But like I
always say, MotoGP is so close now that you need a bike that
does everything well, you can win or lose because of the tiniest
difference in bike performance."
THE TRACK
Dominated by a 1.1km straight, the remainder of the 5.4km
Losail track is a sinuous high-speed switchback, with most
corners leading into one another, rather than separated by
straights. The circuit was designed using elements of other
famous tracks.
The chief issue at Losail can be sand. Windblown desert sand
made the circuit treacherously slippery during the inaugural
2004 Qatar GP but the track has improved a lot since then.
The heat is another major consideration at Qatar. In 2004
ambient temperatures nudged 50 degrees, asking much from riders,
bikes, tyres and pit crew. This year's race has been scheduled
six months earlier, so conditions should be cooler.
Lap record: Nicky Hayden (Honda), 1m 57.903s,
164.270kmh/102.073mph (2005)
Pole position 2005: Loris Capirossi (Ducati Marlboro Team),
1m 56.917s
DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM RIDER DATA LOGS
LORIS CAPIROSSI
Age: 33 (born April 4, 1973)
Lives: Monaco
Bike: Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici GP6
GP starts: 232 (62xMotoGP, 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)
Losail 2005 results: Grid: 1st. Race: 10th
SETE GIBERNAU
Age: 33 (born December 15, 1972)
Lives: Switzerland
Bike: Ducati Marlboro Team Desmosedici GP6
GP starts: 161 (66xMotoGP, 76x500, 19x250)
GP victories: 9 (8xMotoGP, 1x500)
First GP victory: Valencia, 2001 (500)
First GP: Spain, 1993 (250)
Pole positions: 12 (11xMotoGP, 1x500)
First pole: South Africa, 2000 (500)
Losail 2005 results: Grid: 2nd. Race: 5th
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