Chinese GP - preview
READY FOR ANOTHER NEW CHALLENGE
Following the pencil trail of Hermann Tilke, the MotoGP
World Championship heads east this week towards Shanghai -
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
and a demanding track.
Following on from the success of Marco Melandri's first victory
of the season in the Grand Prix of Turkey at Istanbul, the
riders of the Fortuna Honda team heads toward a track that
holds special memories for them.
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.
I was doing well on wet, I was third when for a mistake on
the starting grid I had to do a ride through loosing important
positions. 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."
2006 World championship
1. Nicky Hayden (Usa/Honda) with 52 points
2. Loris Capirossi (Ita/Ducati) with 51 points
3. Marco Melandri (Ita/Honda) with 45 points
7 . Toni Elias (Sp/Honda) with 32 points
THE TRACK
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 From a technical point of view
the track features two extremely fast and long straights,
a series of tight corners and two curves that turn almost
360°. at each end of the paddock.
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.
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