Second-row start for Hopkins and Rizla Suzuki MotoGP at
season opener
 Rizla
Suzuki MotoGP racer John Hopkins will start the first Grand
Prix of the season at Doha in Qatar tomorrow from sixth place
on the grid.
Hopkins (P6, 1’55.833, 45 laps) continued to battle
against the pain he is suffering from his recent crash and
was never outside the top-six on the timesheets during this
afternoon’s qualifying session. He actually topped the
leader board early on in the session and was on target for
a front row start right up until the final minutes of the
hour.
Suzuki’s Anglo-American performed very positively all
day on Bridgestone’s race tyres and was fourth quickest
overall – before qualifying tyres were used - a position
that that gives the Team great confidence for tomorrow’s
race.
Chris Vermeulen also performed well on race tyres and moved
up to eighth place overall, as his crew worked hard to get
his Suzuki GSV-R set-up for the demanding conditions of the
5.380km desert circuit. Unfortunately for Vermeulen his qualifying
tyre choice that was made on Wednesday – in line with
the new tyre rule – proved costly. He was unable to
capitalise on his improving form during the qualifying session,
mainly due to the hard compound tyre not suiting his style
or bike settings as track temperatures reached 47°C. Vermeulen
(P13, 1’56.639, 47 laps) will start from the front of
the fifth row.
Today’s pole position was set by former World Champion
Valentino Rossi on his Factory Yamaha, with a new circuit
record of 1’55.002.
Tomorrow’s 22 -lap race will get underway at 15.00hrs
local time (12.00hrs GMT) as both Rizla Suzuki MotoGP racers
will be aiming to score valuable points from the inaugural
race of the season.
John Hopkins:
“From where we started the weekend I’ve got to
say that I am pretty happy to be starting from the second
row. We’ve got a lot of work done over the last two
days and the set-up of the bike is really good right now.
We have a good race tyre that should go the distance and has
lots of grip, so cheers to Bridgestone for that and for making
the improvements that were needed. As far as qualifying goes
I think we chose a bit too hard a compound on Wednesday –
but I guess that is all part of the new rule. We had a bit
of movement and it wasn’t stuck to the track like the
Bridgestone qualifiers usually are. Considering the pain I’ve
been in this weekend I’m pleased with where we are and
I’m sure that the adrenaline will kick in come race
time. I can’t wait to be racing and trying to run at
the front - I’m sure I’ll have a good time out
there!”
Chris Vermeulen:
“This afternoon the wind changed direction and it made
it a bit more difficult out there. For the tests and up until
this afternoon it had been a strong headwind down the straight,
but then it turned around and was not as strong so it was
all a bit different than what we were used to. I got up to
speed on the race tyre and felt quite comfortable. I moved
into the top 10 and think I will be able to find a bit more
speed tomorrow. The qualifiers just didn’t give me the
right grip and I wasn’t able to go much faster than
I had been already. It’ll make it a bit harder tomorrow
having to start from 13th, but that’s racing and we’ll
try our best to get closer to the front.”
Paul Denning:
“Considering John started the weekend not knowing if
he would be able to race at all, a second row start is a fantastic
result and a good reward for his bravery and commitment. He
hasn’t put a race distance together so far this week,
but I’m sure come race day the adrenaline will see him
through to the end. John has a good race pace and I think
he has the capacity to go a bit quicker when the time comes
and situations dictate it.
“It’s been a difficult weekend for Chris up to
yet, and whilst his race pace has improved step-by-step it
just didn’t work for him on the qualifiers today. Fifth
row is not an ideal place to start but he can do some good
times on the race tyres and I know he will be giving it everything
he can come tomorrow afternoon. He’s always been a great
racer even if qualifying doesn’t go so well!
“The tyres seem to have decent durability and we are
hoping for a good solid Grand Prix from both riders tomorrow,
and to get some respectable points under our belts.
Commercialbank Grand Prix of Qatar Qualifying Classification:
1. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 1’55.002: 2. Casey Stoner
(Ducati) +0.005: 3. Colin Edwards (Yamaha) +0.231: 4. Toni
Elias (Honda) +0.356: 5. Dani Pedrosa (Honda) +0.359: 6. JOHN
HOPKINS (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +0.831: 13. CHRIS VERMEULEN
(RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +1.637:
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