PREVIEW / GRAND PRIX OF CHINA
READY FOR ANOTHER NEW CHALLENGE
Following on from the success of Marco Melandri’s first
victory of the season in the Grand Prix of Turkey at Istanbul,
the MotoGP World Championship heads east this week towards
a track that holds special memories for Team Fortuna Honda.
Marco Melandri feels in strong shape after his Turkish win
and he is looking forward to the Grand Prix of China, where
he climbed onto the third step of the podium to crown a very
positive weekend, having lapped second fastest in free practice
and qualifying, last year. “I’m going to China
feeling fully charged after that great win in Istanbul and
the fantastic job done by the team. As in Istanbul the track
in Shanghai last year was also to my liking straight away.
In 2005 I was fast in the dry during practice and also in
the wet during the race. So I’m feeling relaxed, I feel
good and I know that we’ll be starting out with a good
base set-up. I’m ready for another evenly-contested
race. The front straight is really long and it should be really
good fun to watch.”
The visit to China also represents a return to a happy hunting
ground for Toni Elias. “I really like the Shanghai circuit,”
says the Spaniard, who has shown flashes of his speed and
potential already this season. “Last year I got a good
feeling from it virtually straight away. I went well in practice
and it looked like being a good race for me but then we had
a torrential downpour. In 2005 Shanghai was completely new
but this time I’m approaching it in a different way.
I really like the bike, I know we have a good base set-up
and I hope I can put the experience I have gained over these
first few races into good use and come out with a good result.”
THE TRACK
Following the pencil trail of Herman Tilke, the MotoGP World
Championship heads to Shinghai – another circuit designed
by the German architect.
Built in 2004 to host the Formula 1 World Championship, Shanghai
is an ultra-modern facility with a spectacular infrastructure:
huge grandstands with capacity for 150,000 fans and offering
views of almost the whole circuit, and two imposing seven-story
VIP and hospitality towers at each end of the paddock.
From a technical point of view the track features two extremely
long straights, where the powerful MotoGP bikes reach speeds
of over 320km/h, a series of tight corners including two that
turn almost 360° and really put the tyres to the test.
Designed initially for F1, Shanghai is long and wide and offers
plenty of overtaking opportunities.
Marco discusses the track: “It is
a very particular circuit with two long straights –
one measuring 1202 metres, which is the longest in the championship.
The first corner is probably the strangest I have seen because
it is really long and you have to change gear whilst lent
over and there is a dramatic change in level. It is important
to have a smooth line through turns 3, 4 and 5, and a really
good exit from turn 7 in order to get plenty of speed up for
the straight. Then you have to prepare yourself for a hard
braking zone at the end of the straight (the hardest in the
championship), which is fundamental for a good lap.”
FOCUS: How the world championship paddock is transported
In Europe all the team’s material travels in the trucks,
which also serve as offices but as if by magic are able to
transport the paddock from one country to another. But how
is that material moved outside of Europe? It’s a tough
one. The team’s material is packed into boxes and shipped
out on a special charter flight. There is a lot of red tape
to get through the border control and it requires a lot of
organisation to get the boxes through customs – firstly
at the airport and then at the circuit itself. In China the
whole customs process can take up to 48 hours.
TRAVELLING BY NUMBERS:
3 - the amount of Boeing 747 aircraft that carry the materials
for the teams, Dorna and the TV.
260,000kg – the total weight of the material transported.
200kg - the total weight of all the documents, bound in 194
books.
40 – number of trucks used to transport the boxes from
the airport to the circuit.
IN DETAIL:
90,000 kg - only MotoGP material
10,600 kg - TEAM FORTUNA HONDA material, packed into 33 boxes
(4 for the bikes alone, 5 for spare parts, 2 for telemetry
equipment, 11 for garage structure, 2 for wheels, 6 for engines,
1 for office material and 2 for the riders)
8,000 kg - material provided by MICHELIN (tyres and equipment)
The costs vary from one circuit to another. For example,
the trip from Istanbul to Shanghai is around 3 euros per kilo,
whilst the return from Shanghai to Le Mans is more than double
that.
The most difficult customs are in China and the easiest are
in Malaysia.
This data has been supplied by TEMPORA, the Italian company
that organises transport of MotoGP material to the races outside
of Europe. Tempora have a team of seven staff members moving
from track to track, controlling the material both in the
air and on the ground and actually travelling with the material
on the cargo aeroplanes. The national motorcycle federation
in each country organises support for Tempora for operations
on the ground.
SHANGHAI
Circuit: Shanghai International circuit
Built: 2004
Latest modification: 2004
Length: 5281 m
Width: 14 m
Pole position: Left
Right corners: 7
Left corners: 7
Longest straight: 1202 m
MotoGP race: 22 laps, 116,182 km
RECORD:
Circuit record: A.Barros (Honda) 2’13”716 (2005)
Pole position: Sete Gibernau (Honda) 1’59”710
(2005)
Rce 2005: 1st V.Rossi (Yamaha), 2nd O. Jacque (Kawasaki) 3rd
M.Melandri (Honda)
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