Rizla Suzuki heads into the night for Qatar test
 Rizla
Suzuki MotoGP is on its way to Losail in Qatar for the first
running of MotoGP bikes under floodlights during the two-day
IRTA test later this week.
The 5,380m long Losail International Circuit will be illuminated
by thousands of high-tech light bulbs as Loris Capirossi and
Chris Vermeulen take the track for the last test before the
start of the 2008 MotoGP World Championship – at the
same venue - next month.
Capirossi has already experienced riding at the desert circuit
under floodlights, as he was one of the chosen MotoGP stars
to test out the feasibility of racing at night when he tested
the new system last year on a Suzuki road-bike.
Rizla Suzuki MotoGP still has some important work to conduct
during the two-day test to ready itself for the first race
a week later, and will be hoping that Capirossi and Vermeulen
will get up to speed and adapt to the totally new conditions
quickly.
The Losail track will also provide a lot of new set-up questions
for both the crews and for Bridgestone, as they try to come
to terms with the colder night-time temperatures that can
be experienced in the desert of Qatar.
Rizla Suzuki MotoGP begins its test at 17.00hrs local time
(14.00hrs GMT) on Thursday 28th February, with both days of
testing going on until mid-night local time.
Loris Capirossi:
“I tested in Qatar on a Suzuki GSX-R last year under
the lights, and the track was very good. It was very bright
and almost like day-light, I could even use a dark visor!
It is going to be a new thing for all of us and I am really
looking forward to riding my GSV-R there at night. We still
have many things to test and I hope we will be able to get
through all the programme so we are ready for the first race.
It is going to be very strange riding through the night and
not finishing till mid-night, it will be like doing a 24hr
race!”
Chris Vermeulen:
“We still have a lot to do at this test as we are still
looking for the best set-up for this year’s bike. We
didn’t get as much dry track time as we wanted at the
last test in Jerez so we need two good days at Qatar to get
the best out of the bike. It is a very exciting thing to be
riding the bike at night, but that will also present us with
some extra problems that we will need to overcome as well,
like where to put the lights on the bike and managing to stay
awake!”
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