RAIN STRIKES ON DAY ONE AT DONINGTON PARK
 Heavy
rain dominated the proceedings on the first day of the British
Grand Prix, the eighth round of the MotoGP World Championship.
The Team Honda Gresini riders splashed their way through
standing water on the track as they worked hard on chassis
and suspension settings, as well as evaluating Bridgestone's
wet tyres, trying to adapt them to the challenging demands
of Donington Park.
Melandri again concentrated on the cycle part of his bike
as he slashed three seconds off his best lap time between
the morning and afternoon sessions.
Local weather forecasts are predicting similar conditions
for the rest of the weekend, leaving Melandri and Elias with
no option but to continue working hard on their wet set-up
in tomorrow's final free practice and qualifying sessions.
MARCO MELANDRI (9th, 1'45.684): "It's
been a difficult day. This morning we started out with the
setting from Le Mans but the track conditions were actually
very different. The track surface is really slippery and the
bike was difficult to ride. In the afternoon we went back
to the standard chassis, which we had already tested in the
wet. I managed to knock three seconds off my best time from
the morning but we still have work to do. I'm fast in the
first half of the track, where I can let the bike run, but
I'm struggling in the slower final section, where the power
comes on a little more briskly. We'll try and improve that
area tomorrow."
TONI ELIAS (15th, 1'47.178): "The rain
made life difficult for us in free practices today. The track
was really slippery and I didn't feel comfortable on my bike.
I can't say I'm happy because I'm down on the time sheets,
three seconds off the top. We're struggling but we'll keep
working on the chassis and suspension to see if we can find
a better setting for this difficult and technical circuit."
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