TOUGH DAY FOR HOPKINS AS WEST SEES IMPROVEMENTS
The opening day of practice for Sunday's Grand Prix of Catalunya
was one of mixed fortunes for the Kawasaki Racing Team, with
Anthony West finishing 18th fastest, and John Hopkins setting
the 14th fastest time, despite a crash that sidelined him
for most of the afternoon practice session.
Overnight rain meant that track conditions were far from
ideal for the opening practice session this morning, but the
situation had improved considerably by the time the MotoGP
riders took to the track for their second hour of practice
this afternoon.
Unfortunately, Hopkins was unable to take maximum advantage
of the almost perfect conditions due to a crash just seven
laps into the session, when he lost the front in the second
part of the chicane. The 25-year-old Anglo-American managed
to hold the bike up on his knee, but then lost the rear as
he tried to recover front grip.
The Kawasaki pilot landed heavily on his back, leaving him
battered, bruised and unable to ride again for the rest of
the hour-long session. Hopkins will face a further examination
in the morning by Clinica Mobile staff, who will then make
the final decision as to whether he is fit to ride in tomorrow's
practice and qualifying sessions.
West, although frustrated with his fastest lap time today,
regained his confidence in the front-end of his Ninja ZX-RR
after set-up changes eliminated the problems he encountered
during last weekend's Italian Grand Prix at Mugello.
Together with his crew, the 26-year-old Australian will focus
tomorrow on improving rear traction on corner exit, which
is critical to a fast lap time at Catalunya, where the riders
are accelerating hard for long periods on the side of the
tyre.
John Hopkins
#21 - 14th - 1'44.043
"The first few laps on the bike this afternoon felt quite
good, but when I started to push the front tucked going into
turn two. When I gave it some gas to pick the bike up the
rear came round on me and spat me over the highside. I landed
heavily on my back, and it was painful enough to stop me riding
again during the session. I had the injury checked out at
the Clinica Mobile, but they have insisted that I undergo
another examination tomorrow before they pass me fit to ride.
If I'm allowed to ride then my back is going to be sore, but
I'll just have to grit my teeth and do the best I can."
Anthony West
#13 - 18th - 1'44.865
"The position may remain the same, but we have made some
progress with the bike today. We've all but eliminated the
problems I had with the front-end of the bike in Mugello,
and that's given me more confidence to push the front harder.
Now we need to refocus on improving rear traction, which is
so important here at Catalunya. So, while I'm not yet happy
with my lap time or my position on the timesheet, I'm pretty
pleased with the small steps we've made today, and I hope
we can continue in this way tomorrow."
Naoya Kaneko
Kawasaki Technical Manager
“Anthony has made a big step forward today with the
front-end set-up of his machine. He feels more confident,
although he’s still suffering with rear grip troubles.
It’s important for us to try and improve these issues
step by step, and we now must concentrate on giving him the
ability to turn and exit corners more smoothly. The situation
with John is unclear at this stage, but I am confident that,
with the experience of his crew, we can make up for lost time
during tomorrow’s sessions if he's fit to return.”
1. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda Team 1'43.017; 2. Loris
Capirossi (ITA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP +0.006; 3. Valentino Rossi
(ITA) Fiat Yamaha +0.073; 4. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro
Team +0.082; 5. Alex De Angelis (RSM) San Carlo Honda Gresini
+0.216; 6. Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP +0.351;
7. Shinya Nakano (JPN) San Carlo Honda Gresini +0.425; 8.
James Toseland (GBR) Tech 3 Yamaha +0.462; 9. Nicky Hayden
(USA) Repsol Honda Team +0.597; 10. Colin Edwards (USA) Tech
3 Yamaha +0.651; 14. John Hopkins (USA) Kawasaki Racing Team
+1.026; 18. Anthony West (AUS) Kawasaki Racing Team +1.848
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