Strong start for Rizla Suzuki trio
Rizla Suzuki MotoGP’s three-pronged attack at the USGP
at Laguna Seca in California got off to good start during
the first day of practice, with all three riders showing promise
for the weekend ahead.
Chris Vermeulen (1’22.847, 61 laps) led the way for
the boys in blue with the fifth fastest time of the day as
he again showed his liking for the 3,610m American circuit.
Vermeulen got a podium position here last year and will certainly
be looking to emulate that this weekend.
Loris Capirossi (1’23.185, 58 laps) is still feeling
the after-effects of the crash at Assen last month, and the
physically demanding Laguna Seca circuit did nothing to help
his recuperation. Capirossi again dug deep into his reserves
to overcome the pain that he is suffering to record the 10th
fastest time of the day and show signs that he has more to
give as the weekend progresses.
Wildcard rider Ben Spies (1’23.244, 52 laps) was just
one place behind Capirossi as he posted the 11th quickest
time despite this being only the second MotoGP race that he
has competed in. He has also hampered by a big crash in this
morning’s session, but was able to walk away from the
incident uninjured. Spies was also in action in the AMA Superbike
practice today where he was second fastest behind Suzuki team-mate
Mat Mladin.
Today’s two sessions were held in varying weather conditions,
this morning was overcast and very cool whilst this afternoon
was in bright, warm sunshine. This caused huge differences
in temperatures with the track at 26ºC this morning and
53ºC this afternoon. Casey Stoner on his Bridgestone-shod
Ducati was again very dominant as he posted a time over three-quarters-of-a-second
faster than his nearest rival.
Rizla Suzuki MotoGP will continue with its practice tomorrow
in a further free session followed by an hour of qualifying
in the afternoon. Sunday’s race is round 11 of the season
and the event gets underway at 14.00hrs local time (21.00hrs
GMT).
Chris Vermeulen:
“I was looking forward to coming back here as it’s
a track we’ve had success at on the Rizla Suzuki, and
it’s a track I really enjoy with its character being
so different to the European circuits. Today was quite difficult
though and we struggled quite a bit to get a good feeling
with the bike. We made some steps forward this afternoon and
went quite a bit quicker and closer to the front, but we will
have to make some more of those steps tomorrow to get right
up there. Hopefully we’ll be able to do that and make
sure we are challenging for the podium come Sunday.”
Loris Capirossi:
“This track is very physical and quite a bit harder
for me to ride on than at Sachsenring, but I worked hard with
the crew to make the bike work the best for me around here
and in the end we found a solution that was not too bad. We
will still need to work quite a bit more tomorrow to get it
right. The weather conditions today didn’t help because
we had lots of hard tyres for the high temperatures but it
was too cold to make use of them. For tomorrow I hope the
weather is better, but I really want this weekend to pass
in the best possible way and then I can get three weeks rest.
It is really hard for me because every time I ride I have
to have treatment on the wound to clean it and then have it
dressed, but I want to do my best here so I will block it
out and be as strong as I can!”
Ben Spies:
“It was a good day today as a whole. Obviously the
crash this morning hurt my confidence a little bit, but I
got faster the whole session this afternoon and a couple of
tenths quicker would have put us right up there, as it is
so close. I think we can build on this and get faster and
faster all weekend and I’m really looking forward to
it.”
Paul Denning – Team Manager:
“We’ve had a reasonable first day here at Laguna,
with all three riders doing a good job. Chris has been incredibly
consistent at his fastest pace but still needs more out of
the bike to be able to challenge for the front. So that has
to be our target, to find the right solutions tonight to help
him to do that.
“This is a very physical racetrack and Loris is clearly
struggling with the injury, but as ever he is giving 100%.
Ben has acquitted himself very well despite the setback of
this morning’s crash and looked strong this afternoon.
We’ve still got work to do for all three guys, but we’re
confident we can take decent steps tomorrow.”
Red Bull U.S. Grand Prix Free Practice Classification:
1. Casey Stoner (Ducati) 1’21.826: 2. Nicky Hayden
(Honda) +0.808: 3. Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) +0.853: 4. Alex
de Angelis (Honda) +0.982: 5. CHRIS VERMEULEN (RIZLA SUZUKI
MOTOGP) +1.021: 10. LORIS CAPIROSSI (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP)
+1.359: 11. BEN SPIES (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +1.418:
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