2005 MotoGP: SHANGHAI CHINA

2005 MotoGP : R3 of 17: MAY 1, 2005, SHANGHAI CHINA

CIRCUIT:

• Circuit opened in 2004 for Formula 1 GP; cost $250 million US dollars
• Track length: 5.451 km ; 14m wide
• 1.202 km long straight ; two 360-degree turns

RACE RESULT:

MAY 1, 2005 - WET TRACK

• 1 Valentino Rossi, Yamaha M1
  "It was the biggest surprise of my career to win today"
• 2 Olivier Jacque, Kawasaki Ninja ZX-RR +1.7s
  ** fill in for Hofmann; best ever result for Kawasaki **
  "I still don’t really understand how it all happened. It’s magic, better than winning the world title. When I arrived as a replacement rider on Thursday I said I felt like 'a hair on the soup' but today I felt like fish in water. I was comfortable with the conditions, had good grip from the tyres and my team gave me a confidence-boosting set-up. It’s strange to be here on the podium, I’m not sure how to feel."
• 3 Marco Melandri , Honda RC211V
  "I'm very happy of this result. It could have been a great weekend for the team if it was dry. unfortunately the rain spoiled everything. This morning I had difficulties i made only a few laps. At the first laps of the race I was not very confident and lost a lot of positions. lap by lap I started to know better my bike on wet and started to go faster. Being 9th,I started to recover positions till I was 4th. In the last laps I saw that I could push harder so I finished third. I'm very happy for this result and my 2nd position in the championship."
• 4. Sete Gibernau (SPA) Honda
  "I'm very disappointed because during the weekend we had done a good work. this morning on wet I was confident and made 8 fast laps in a row. For the race we chose a harder tyre that, according to Michelin technicians, should have given us advantages with less water on track than this morning. During the warm up lap i had not a good feeling but i couldn't change tyre. The bike vibrated since the beginning and i had no confidence. I did my best to finish the race and get as much points as possible in these difficult situations."
• 5. Max Biaggi (ITA) Honda
• 6. Jurgen van den Goorbergh (NED) Honda ** fill in for Tamada **
  “I’m very happy. There was a lot of water and it was impossible to see who I had in front of me, but thanks to the great settings we found in warm-up I was able to pass many opponents. I have to thank the team both for their welcome and their competence.”
• 7. John Hopkins (USA) Suzuki
• 8. Colin Edwards (USA) Yamaha
• 9. Nicky Hayden (USA) Honda
• 10. Ruben Xaus (SPA) Yamaha
• 11 Barros 12 Capirossi 13 Ellison 14 Elias 15 Ukawa 16 Rolfo
• DNF: Kenny Roberts ,
  Bayliss “I could have got a result today. I had really good feeling in the hard rain in the warm-up and I was confident for the race. But the race wasn’t the same. I got a lot of wheelspin and then I lost the rear on the fourth lap. Sometimes racing’s like this.”

RACE REPORT: YAMAHA

Gauloises Yamaha Team rider Valentino Rossi made history once again today, becoming the first rider to take a MotoGP victory at Shanghai, with a stunning performance in torrentially wet conditions at the inaugural Grand Prix of China. Despite starting from sixth place on the grid Rossi took control of the race on the fifth lap, passing early leader Kenny Roberts (Suzuki) and opening up a clear gap over the chasing pack.

It was an advantage the reigning World Champion would never let slip, holding his concentration for the next 17 laps despite the attentions of surprise challenger Olivier Jacque (Kawasaki), riding in place of the injured Alex Hofmann. Jacque passed Sete Gibernau (Honda) for second place with seven laps to go and closed in on Rossi at the front, but was unable to seriously threaten the Italian's second victory from the opening three rounds of the championship.

With Marco Melandri (Honda) eventually passing Gibernau on the final lap to snatch third place, Rossi's advantage at the top of the World Championship now stands at 25 points over his Italian compatriot. A determined performance from his team-mate Colin Edwards, who rode from 13th on the grid to take the flag in eighth, means the Gauloises Yamaha Team now lead the teams' championship, with Yamaha also on top in the manufacturers' standings.

The Fortuna Yamaha riders Ruben Xaus and Toni Elias finished the Grand Prix of China in 10th and 14th position respectively. Building on his impressive qualifying performance Elias made a great start, which saw him move into third position on the opening laps. The 'MotoGP Rookie' looked set to demonstrate his true potential, but bad fortune robbed him of the chance to remain with the lead riders. It was deemed the Manresa rider had badly positioned his bike on the starting grid and as a result the circuit officials imposed a 'drive-through' penalty that saw him have to return to the pit-lane before rejoining the race. His team-mate Xaus was thinking only of scoring points and making up some of the ground lost in the championship points race, and eventually finished in tenth place.

Valentino Rossi (Gauloises Yamaha Team) 1st: "Out of all the victories in my career, this was the one I least expected - I am really surprised. It is the first time I have won in the wet on the Yamaha, so it is a special victory. We had some problems with the set-up of the bike this weekend but the team made some modifications overnight, changing the front fork setting, and already in the warm-up it felt good. I got off to a good start in the race and I was quite surprised to be at the front so quickly. There was a lot of water on the track so I had to keep my concentration at 100%. I was smooth and in control all the way to the end, and the race worked out perfectly for me. All I can say is big thanks to Jeremy Burgess, the rest of the team and Yamaha because we have worked especially hard for this win."

Colin Edwards (Gauloises Yamaha Team) 8th: "I got a good jump from the line but there were a couple of guys trying to be heroes in the first corner and they messed things up for me a little. After that I just tried to make up positions but the spray made it difficult and it was risky to get off the racing line. As soon as I had clear track in front of me my pace was as good as the guys at the front, but I had a problem shifting down through the gears and, coupled with the tyre wear, I couldn't do much more than bring it home in eighth. I'm disappointed but it's good to have a race in the wet and we know we're on the right line for the rest of the season. "

Davide Brivio, Gauloises Yamaha Team Director: "It was a fantastic day for us - Valentino was simply great. It was our first race in the wet since Jerez last season and I think we saw how much the bike has improved, so a big thank you goes out to all the team and engineers, who have worked hard under a lot of pressure. Colin's starting position made it hard for him but his pace was good and he picked up some important points. It's a pleasure for us to take the first win in China and it was important because we're now leading in the rider, team and manufacturers' championships. Now let's continue like this!"

QUALIFYING:

GRID, APR 30, 2005

• 1 Sete Gibernau , Honda RC211V 1m 59.710s
  "We are focused, the team is great and we are being competitive ... We made a great step today and I think we have improved quite a bit. We don't need to win every race, but we need to be competitive every race."
• 2 Marco Melandri , Honda RC211V +0.16
• 3 Loris Capirossi, Ducati
• 4 Hopkins, Suzuki
• 5 Hayden, Honda
• 6 Valentino Rossi, Yamaha
  "We tried a lot of things yesterday and today with the set-up but I'm still having problems, mostly because of a lack of front feeling. This is causing the tyres to not work properly, more on the right than the left. We made slight alterations to the forks today and we have some more things to try in the warm-up tomorrow. After the session I had a long briefing with my crew to decide where we can make any improvements. Unfortunately it wasn't possible to start from the front row and I'm only in sixth position, which is not ideal. If all is okay tomorrow, including the work we do tomorrow morning, I might be able to finish on the podium. It's going to be a really difficult race because it's such a demanding circuit - I think it's going to test the riders and the bikes to the maximum."
• 7 Checa, Ducati
• 8 Elias, Yamaha
• 9 Roberts, Suzuki
• 10 Nakano, Kawasaki
• 11 Barros 12 Bayliss 13 Edwards 14 Biaggi 15 Jacque
• 16 Xaus 17 Rolfo 18 Ukawa 19 Vd Goorbergh 20 Battaini 21 Ellison

FRI PRAC, APR 29, 2005 - RAIN, WET TRACK

• 1 Kenny Roberts, Suzuki 2m 14.59
  "We had a good first session and spent time getting settings correct as we had no data to go on. The second session was wet so it was difficult to learn much from the bike settings - especially if the race is dry.We're still concentrating on making the bike more consistent for race distance in the dry. As far as being quickest in the second practice, that was down to my team and Suzuki having the right tyre at the end of the session. It shows we are trying hard, but that's always the same irrespective of position.We still have a long way to go but hopefully the bad luck I have suffered in the last couple of races will not re-surface."
• 2 Alex Barros, Honda 2m 15.07
  “The Shanghai track is very technical and very slow, practically all the corners are first- or second-gear. There is a long straight where you reach maximum speeds, but then there are some really hard braking areas. It’s good for overtaking manoeuvres, because the braking zone is a lot bigger, and you have more chances to make passes. In the first practice when we worked in the dry, we had a few problems with the front end and with the set-up in general, which I’m sure can be improved. In the wet though, I was ready. I began the second session with wet tyres on and rode well, then I stuck in some intermediates, but needed to be a bit more prudent on them at first. At the end though I was able to go quicker with them. I hope that tomorrow it is dry, because we need to make improvements in those conditions.”
• 3 Sete Gibernau, Honda 2m 15.36
• 4 Bayliss
• 5 Biaggi
• 6 Rossi
  "My first impressions of the circuit yesterday were very good but after riding on it today I must admit it wasn't as much fun as I expected. It is actually quite tight and technical and is very much a Formula 1 track, so all the riders have a lot of hard work to do finding the right setting for the bikes here. It is not ideal for a MotoGP bike. Also the conditions in the afternoon were strange because the track was warm but it wouldn't dry, so it was like half and half. It was a shame because the asphalt is good and there is plenty of grip in the dry. As far as the setting is concerned we are having some problems in the fast corners. We hope it is dry tomorrow because we have a bit of work to do and also some of my rivals are very fast in the wet. Personally I would really prefer it if it doesn't rain on Sunday."
• 7 Melandri
• 8 Edwards
• 9 Checa
• 10 Elias 11 Battaini 12 Jacque 13 Hopkins 14 Ukawa 15 Capirossi 16 Hayden
• 250/125 GP

YAMAHA PRACTICE REPORT: Gauloises Yamaha Team riders Valentino Rossi and Colin Edwards got their first true taste of the Shanghai International Circuit on a tentative first day of action at the inaugural Grand Prix of China today. With the riders using the first free practice session to learn the track layout in the morning, they were denied the opportunity to improve their set-up and lap times in the afternoon due to damp and muggy conditions.

Both Rossi and Edwards took things carefully in the second session, with a spell of light rain, ambient temperatures reaching 31ºC and humidity levels of 76% all making grip levels very unpredictable. The pair set the sixth and eighth fastest times respectively this afternoon, with the constantly changing conditions making life difficult for their Gauloises Yamaha engineers. However the team still took the opportunity to collect a wide range of data, which may prove especially useful with variable weather forecast for the rest of the weekend.

A dry line did begin to form at the end of the session but never enough to allow the riders to challenge Nicky Hayden (Honda) for the best time of the day. Hayden clocked a lap of 2'02.327 in the morning session, which was delayed by two and a half hours due to a technical problem with the circuit's medical helicopter.

It proved to be a complicated day for Fortuna Yamaha duo Toni Elias and Rubén Xaus; the former felt that the poor weather seriously hindered his ability to make the most of the new track, with it being such a technical circuit and this being the Rookie's learning year. Meanwhile Xaus felt good in both the wet and the dry and was looking forward to day two.

BEFORE RACE:

• Van den Goorbergh to ride for injured Tamada
  TAMADA: "I will have surgery to my right hand with the hope that recovery time will be as short as possible. I will do all I can to be at the team's disposal for the next Grand Prix in Le Mans. I wish good luck to Jurgen and to my team for this weekend"
  GOORBERGH: "I can't believe it ... It worked well for me because I recently separated from my team in the World Supersport series and the chance to come back to MotoGP and race in such a historic event here in China was perfect. I haven’t ridden a Grand Prix bike for a while but I have confidence in my ability, I have plenty of experience and I hope to pay back the faith shown in me by the team.”
• ROSSI (YAMAHA): “My first impressions are very good. The facilities are very nice – you could come here for a holiday, never mind a race! Also the track is incredible. I expected it to be fast but having had a look at it today it is actually quite tight and technical. All the riders have a lot of hard work to do finding the right setting for the bikes here.”
• BARROS (HONDA): "it is a very technical track and I expect it to be very physical because there are only two straights where you can relax a little on the bike. We’ll have to keep an eye on the weather but the surface looks good and we should enjoy ourselves. Everybody is starting from zero here but I like conditions like that.”
• GIBERNAU (HONDA): "Shanghai track will be a real challenge for both the teams and the riders. We all begin from scratch and we only have four practice sessions – that is three hours of free practice sessions, and a one-hour qualifying session. These hours will be decisive for the starting grid, learning to interpret the track, finding the right set-up and being as competitive as possible. And I’m curious about racing in China, an interesting country with a lot of tradition.”
• BAYLISS (HONDA): "I don’t know the circuit, but I think that we will learn it straight away. Apart from the crash in Estoril we were running a good race, and in Shanghai we’ll try to do the same. My confidence on the bike is improving all the time and I’m working really well with the team.”

YAMAHA: Set-up report YZR-M1

• The MotoGP World Championship now makes its way to Shanghai, China for the first time in the championship's illustrious 56-year history. The new circuit, billed as the "the venue for the new millennium" was completed last year and was used for the first time during an international event when the F1 circus made its debut in China. Now it's the turn of the MotoGP boys and the racing promises to be just as intense as the first two rounds.
• The circuit was designed by architects Hermann Tilke and Peter Wahl and its layout was inspired by the shape of the Chinese character 'shang', which stands for 'high' or 'above'. Other symbols represented in the architecture of the circuit facilities originate from Chinese history, such as the team buildings, which are arranged like pavilions on a lake to resemble the ancient Yuyan-Garden in Shanghai. One if the circuit's most impressive features is the extraordinary main grandstand, which hosts some 29,000 seats and provides a spectacular view of almost 80 percent of the circuit.
• Whilst none of the MotoGP riders will have previously been able to test at the Shanghai circuit until free practice gets underway on Friday morning, its winding turns and high-speed straights promise plenty of opportunities for overtaking and are sure to provide more close MotoGP racing in Sunday's inaugural Chinese Grand Prix. In Valentino Rossi's own words: "I think the circuit will be very good; it is wide, fast and technical."
• The 5,451m track also promises to provide an interesting challenge for the engineers. With a virtually equal ratio of nine left and seven right-hand corners, as well as two long straights followed by hard braking zones, the emphasis will again be on finding a balanced base setting for the Yamaha YZR-M1. The longest straight runs parallel to the Dragster track between turns 13 and 14 and has a length of 1,175m, which should permit top speeds in excess of 320km/h, whilst technical corners such as a snail-like narrowing section between turn one and turn three are unlike any other corner in the championship calendar.
• Rossi and his Gauloises Yamaha Team-mate Colin Edwards spent last week's test at Estoril working specifically on their set-up for Shanghai, making further progress with the general setting of the 2005 version YZR-M1 and finding a comfortable base which they will now take to China. Whilst initial gearbox settings have already been calculated on the circuit layout, both riders will use Friday morning's free practice session to gather data about the peculiarities of the track, such as bumps and grip levels, before making specific adjustments in the build-up to Sunday's race.
• The true nature of Shanghai will only reveal itself during the first practice sessions, but the relatively fast corners that abound around the track will clearly require stability from chassis and suspension set-up. The track will demand an almost constant agility at the same time as offering stability driving off the sides of the tyres - no easy feat without factoring in the many unknown variables.
• The main target will be a good stable turn-in characteristic and a set-up that offers easy changes in direction; supported by a high level of feel from both the front and rear. Weight bias will start of as neutral as possible to prevent the front overloading in the midpoint of the turn, while also ensuring good drive off the sides of the rear.
• Despite 240 plus horsepower power delivery will need to be funneled to provide the best midrange torque and predictability to drive off the countless turns, while still factoring in the one kilometer straight. But all else aside, to finish first, first one must finish - and tyre endurance will be the key.