Hopkins planning to go out on a high note
Rizla Suzuki MotoGP racer John Hopkins will start his final
race with the Suzuki Factory Team from the front of the third
row of the grid tomorrow, after qualifying in seventh place
at Valencia this afternoon.
Hopkins (1’32.165, 26 laps) will be looking for one
his normal good starts as he sets off on his 81st Grand Prix
in Suzuki colours. The Anglo-American star looked comfortable
in the early part of this afternoon’s qualifying whilst
still using race tyres, and was running a podium position
pace. Hopkins worked hard with his crew and Bridgestone to
select the best available tyres for tomorrow’s 30-lap
race and is confident of a good finish.
Chris Vermeulen (P10, 1’32.617, 31 laps) will have
a slightly tougher job than Hopkins at tomorrow’s start,
as he will begin the race from the middle of the fourth row.
Suzuki’s Australian racer completed a long test on race
tyres during this afternoon’s session and was very pleased
with the results. He will also be looking for a good start
as the 4,005m long Spanish circuit is notably difficult to
pass on.
Today’s qualifying was staged in warm and dry conditions
with temperatures in the 20’s. Pole position was taken
by Spaniard Dani Pedrosa on his factory Honda.
Tomorrow’s race is the 18th and final round of what
has been the longest premier motorcycle championship in history,
and the race that gets underway at 14.00hrs local time (13.00hrs
GMT) will also be the 100th race since the start of the MotoGP
era and the introduction of the four-stroke regulations in
2002.
John Hopkins:
“I’d have liked to have at least been on the
second row, but I’m not too unhappy with where we have
qualified. It was definitely our best session of the weekend
this afternoon, and we have made some improvements to the
machine. We worked hard with Bridgestone to find a consistent
tyre to use in the race and we are really happy with what
we have got. The crew have done an excellent job again this
weekend to get the bike prepared and I feel really good as
well, so now it’s time to get a good start tomorrow
and end my Suzuki career on a high. I am going for that podium
– that’s the ultimate plan!”
Chris Vermeulen:
“It was quite a difficult session as I didn’t
really get on with the qualifying tyres today. We’re
on the fourth row and that’s going to be tough here
as it’s a difficult track to pass on. At the start of
the afternoon I did a 15-lap run on race tyres, the lap times
were very consistent and the tyre showed good durability,
so we think we will be strong right to the end of tomorrow’s
race. The bike is working well, so now it’s down to
me getting away from the line and using my elbows to push
my way through in turn one!”
Paul Denning – Team Manager:
“The guys gave it their best shot this afternoon, but
the positions didn’t quite end up being what we were
looking for. Qualifying changes the game significantly in
terms of the potential of different riders over a one-lap
dash, but the good news for us is that Chris and John both
found extra pace on race tyres this afternoon. Chris completed
a long run on his chosen race tyre and was able to maintain
good lap-times right to the end and John was right on podium
pace with his race tyre lap-times.
“We shouldn’t take it for granted, but we can
be confident that John will get away from the line as well
as he always does and try to fight with front group immediately.
All of us in the team, at Suzuki and at Rizla are 100% behind
John for his final Grand Prix with us. Chris has a slightly
harder job from the fourth row but he is pumped-up and we
all believe he can do really well tomorrow!”
G.P. bwin.com De La Comunitat Valenciana Qualifying
Practice Classification:
1. Dani Pedrosa (Honda) 1’31.517: 2. Casey Stoner (Ducati)
+0.086: 3. Nicky Hayden (Honda) +0.386: 4. Randy de Puniet
(Kawasaki) +0.446: 5. Sylvain Guintoli (Yamaha) +0.557: 7.
JOHN HOPKINS (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +0.648: 11. CHRIS VERMEULEN
(RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +1.100:
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