Will Spanish Eyes be smiling for Rizla Suzuki MotoGP at
Jerez?
Rizla Suzuki MotoGP travels back to Europe for the second
round of the 2007 MotoGP World Championship this week, looking
to expand upon a strong showing in Qatar.
 Both
John Hopkins and Chris Vermeulen have been encouraged by their
first round performances. Hopkins finished fourth in Doha,
despite being below-strength due to injuries sustained at
the same circuit in testing last month. Suzuki’s Anglo-American
star is determined to carry the momentum to Spain and ride
to the maximum of his and the GSV-R’s ability.
Team-mate Vermeulen finished a creditable seventh in Qatar
and believes his route to success lies in getting a better
qualifying position. He qualified in 13th for the first round
and fought his way through the field. Vermeulen has had little
chance to test Bridgestone’s qualifying tyres and was
planning on a thorough evaluation at last week’s Qatar
test – after the race – but strong winds at Losail
meant this was not possible.
Jerez is the most visited Grand Prix on the calendar, housing
nearly a quarter-of-a-million people at trackside throughout
the three days last year. The 4.423km circuit is a great racing
circuit due to its undulating layout, hard-braking corners
and endless camber changes. This is a track that should suit
the new 800cc bikes with their higher cornering speed and
a fast exciting race should be provided for the massive crowds
to enjoy.
Rizla Suzuki MotoGP will also be joined at Jerez by Team
Test rider Kousuke Akiyoshi. He is making not only his race
debut at the Jerez circuit, but also his first European MotoGP
appearance. He tested at Jerez with the team last month and
will be looking to get a good result in his first wild-card
race of the season.
All three Rizla Suzuki MotoGP racers will take to the track
on Friday for two free practice sessions. This is followed
by a further free practice session on Saturday morning and
then the hour-long qualifying session to determine grid positions
for Sunday 27-lap race, which gets underway at 14.00hrs local
time (12.00hrs GMT).
John Hopkins:
“I am ready for this race! I am hoping to be fully
fit, unlike Qatar, and to give it all I’ve got. We tested
here a couple of times and I know that I have the pace to
run at the front. Jerez has a lot of heavy braking but my
hand is ok now, and I’ve been training really hard in
Miami to make sure that I’m 100% when the lights change
to ‘go’ on raceday!”
Chris Vermeulen:
“I was not that pleased to finish seventh in Qatar,
but from where I started on the grid it was a good result.
I realise that I have to get a better place to start from
so that I can challenge with the front guys. The new tyre
rule might have had something to do with the qualifying tyres
I chose, but this week I will be sure to get what I want and
make the most of them. I like the Jerez circuit and know that
I can perform well on race tyres there so I am really looking
forward to getting out there and going for it!”
Kousuke Akiyoshi:
“I am very happy to have the chance to race at Jerez.
I did my first GP in Japan last year, but this will be something
very different to that. I want to perform well and make sure
that I can get a good result.”
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