Testing: Jerez
WEST MAKES HIS MARK AT A WET JEREZ
Kawasaki's Anthony West stamped his mark on proceedings during
the BMW award qualifying practice held today at the Jerez
circuit in Spain. The Australian posted the fourth fastest
time aboard his Ninja ZX-RR in difficult conditions, which
his injured teammate John Hopkins opted not to ride in.
West ended the 40 minute session just 0.219 seconds behind
second placed Valentino Rossi, as Casey Stoner took the honours,
and the BMW car that was up for grabs, by topping the timesheet.
In third place was Nicky Hayden, making West the first rider
on the timesheet who hasn't won a MotoGP World Championship.
26-year-old West also gathered valuable data in the less
than ideal wet, but drying, conditions to learn more about
the handling of his Ninja ZX-RR. The Kawasaki rider completed
three tyre evaluations for Bridgestone and is hoping for dry
weather tomorrow, so that he can continue working with his
crew to refine the overall set-up of the bike before the conclusion
of the three-day test in the afternoon.
John Hopkins entered the circuit during the wet session this
morning and, despite suffering the effects of his Phillip
Island injury, posted the 10th fastest time and completed
a total of 12 laps.
The 24-year-old Anglo-American continued with vital work
on refining the machine set-up to suit his personal preferences,
but found the wet conditions harder on his injured abductor
muscle because of the requirement to hang further off the
machine in the turns, and the tendency for the bike to move
around more in the wet conditions.
Rather than run the risk of aggravating the injury further,
Hopkins opted to sit out this afternoon's timed session, although
he will test again during tomorrow's third and final day at
Jerez should the weather conditions improve.
Anthony West
4th - 15 Laps - 1:50.799
"Although we are closer to where we need to be time-wise,
I am not completely happy with today. In the wet conditions
this morning we tried some different settings to improve the
bike handling and turning to suit my style more. This afternoon
we continued with some tyre evaluations for Bridgestone, although
the condition of the track was not brilliant as it was wet
in some places and completely dry in others. However, for
us this has been valuable, as it has given us the worst scenario
in terms of track conditions, which gave us an indication
of machine handling on a wet but drying track. There are definitely
some areas for improvement, and hopefully we will get some
dry test time tomorrow to use the data we have collected,
so we can leave here with a clear progression plan prior to
the Qatar test."
John Hopkins
DNS
"Conditions during the timed session this afternoon were
far from ideal when you're carrying an injury, which is why
I opted to sit it out. My priority has to be regaining full
fitness for the first race, and I didn't want to risk aggravating
the injury just to try and win a car I don't need. I tested
what I needed to test this morning and I think we made some
progress with changes to the electronics and traction control
systems to suit my personal preferences. I will ride tomorrow,
depending on the weather, but it is still going to be quite
limited due to the pain I still have from the Phillip Island
injury."
Michael Bartholemy
Kawasaki Competition Manager
"I am pleased with today as everything is starting to
come together and we know where we are at in relation to the
other teams. Conditions were not brilliant out on track today,
but I think John made the right decision by not riding, as
it is important he is fit for the first race. I think Anthony
has shown that he is really not far off the pace and I am
happy with his result. During the afternoon he tried three
different tyres and the last one he used was working for him
well, despite the fact the track was mainly wet but also dry
in some places. I hope tomorrow that the weather improves
so that John is able to ride, and also so Anthony can improve
his lap times in dry conditions, which has been our main aim
since starting pre-season testing."
1. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro Team 1'49.263; 2. Valentino
Rossi (46) Fiat Yamaha +1.317; 3. Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol
Honda Team +1.522; 4. Anthony West (AUS) Kawasaki Racing Team
+1.536; 5. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) JIR Team Scott +2.049; 6.
Shinya Nakano (JPN) Honda Gresini +2.331; 7. Loris Capirossi
(ITA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP +2.631; 8. Randy De Puniet (FRA)
Honda LCR +2.716; 9. Sylvain Guintoli (FRA) Alice d'Antin
Ducati +2.795; 10. Marco Melandri (ITA) Ducati Marlboro Team
+2.975; DNS. John Hopkins (USA) Kawasaki Racing Team
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