2006 MotoGP - END OF SEASON TEST

JEREZ - END OF SEASON TEST - Nov 30, 2006 *FINAL TEST OF 2006*

• 1. Dani Pedrosa E Repsol Honda 1:39.910
  2. Valentino Rossi I Camel Yamaha Team +0.213
  3. Marco Melandri I Gresini Honda +0.614
  4. Chris Vermeulen AUS Rizla Suzuki MotoGP
  5. John Hopkins USA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP
  6. Shinya Nakano J Konica Minolta Honda
  7. Colin Edwards USA Camel Yamaha Team
  8. Alex Barros BRA Pramac D'Antin MotoGP
  9. Loris Capirossi I Ducati Marlboro Team
  10. Casey Stoner AUS Ducati Marlboro Team
  11. Tady Okada J Honda
  12. Vittoriano Guareschi ITA Ducati Marlboro Team
  13. Jeremy McWilliams GBR Ilmor SRT
  14. Andrew Pitt AUS Ilmor SRT

BRIDGESTONE REPORT - DEC 1, 2006

• Bridgestone MotoGP: November Testing Debrief
• Question / Answer with Hiroshi Yamada - Bridgestone Motorsport - Manager Motorcycle Racing
• Just one month since Bridgestone ended the 2006 MotoGP season in style with a 1-2 in Valencia, preparations for the new 800cc era are already well underway. New additions to the Bridgestone family, Gresini and D'Antin, have joined Suzuki, Kawasaki and Ducati in providing the Japanese tyre manufacturer with invaluable feedback ahead of 2007 .
• How has the approach to winter testing changed this year with the introduction of the new 800cc bikes? "Generally, our approach to winter testing has followed the same lines as previous years with a specific focus on evaluating the performance of our standard specification tyres with the new bikes. We have studied the behaviour of the tyres on both 990cc and 800cc bikes to allow us to determine the basic direction of tyre development for front and rear tyres for the coming season."
• What type of tyres has Bridgestone been evaluating in Sepang and Jerez tests? "In addition to our standard 2006 specification tyres, we have also tested a variety of new tyre shapes and constructions in response to the demands of the 800cc bikes. Tyres are just one element of the package, so we have been working closely with all five of our teams in these first winter tests to begin tuning the tyres together with the bike and rider."
• How do the characteristics of the 800cc bikes affect tyre performance? "So far, we have seen that lap times have been largely unaffected by the switch to 800cc bikes and, in some instances, have actually improved, albeit in different conditions. Rather than development of a specific "800 tyre", we are looking at natural progressions and evolutions of our existing tyre technology for 2007. The reduced power output of the 800cc may mean that we can adopt softer compounds at some circuits, but we may need to develop harder compounds to cope with the increased cornering speeds at others."
• What is the development plan between now and the next test in January? "We will carefully analyse the information collated from the post season tests and look into finalising a direction for the all-important tests in January and February. We will look at developing tyre constructions for 2007 that complement the increased cornering speeds while at the same time compensating for the overall reduction in power."
• How much progress has been made with Bridgestone's new teams D'Antin and Gresini? "We have been very pleased with the initial tests with both D'Antin and Gresini teams. Together with our existing teams, Suzuki, Ducati and Kawasaki, we have hit the ground running in post-season tests and have seen some encouraging results. Of particular note, Suzuki has excelled with some very quick lap times. We head into the winter break with some valuable feedback from all of our teams. We will be supporting four different manufacturers and, since the characteristics of each bike are different, we have a lot of work to help all our teams to achieve the best results possible, but we are ready for the challenge."
• Does the addition of two new teams place more strain on resources? "The new tyre regulations for next season that demand a limit of 31 tyres per rider, per weekend have made it possible for us to supply more teams. We will be producing fewer tyres for each GP weekend, so we will have a greater production capacity in our Tokyo factory. As such, we expect a relatively smooth transition to accommodate the two new additions to the Bridgestone family, Gresini and D'Antin."
• With five teams and ten riders, will Bridgestone be under increased pressure in 2007? "It seems that Bridgestone will be supporting a majority number of bikes in MotoGP next season, and we are very proud to be such a major contributor in the motorcycle racing world by supplying more teams. We will be further enhancing the healthy competition we enjoy with our rival tyre manufacturers, which is something that we look forward to. The new tyre regulations add an unknown dimension to the competition next year, but I hope that we are in a position to challenge for victories on a regular basis."

YAMAHA REPORT - NOV 30, 2006

• YAMAHA SIGN OFF FOR 2006 WITH A POSITIVE FINAL DAY IN JEREZ
• The long 2006 MotoGP season finally drew to a close for Yamaha today as the team rounded off the year with a final day's work in Jerez, before the start of the winter testing ban tomorrow. Rossi and Edwards spent their last day on track continuing with general development work of Yamaha's new prototype 800cc motorcycle, testing different chassis, new suspension settings and a variety of new tyres for Michelin under sunny Spanish skies.
• The fastest lap of the day was set by Honda rider Dani Pedrosa with a time of 1'39.910, followed closely by Valentino Rossi who set a time of 1.40.123 on his 69th and final lap of the day, nearly half a second under his own lap record pace. Edwards was seventh fastest in the unofficial time sheets after a best lap of 1'41.254 from 41 laps.
• After 17 races and more than 30 additional days of testing this year, Rossi, Edwards and the entire Yamaha MotoGP set-up will now head home for the winter holidays. They will reconvene for the first test of 2007 in Sepang, Malaysia on 22nd January.
• VALENTINO ROSSI (2nd - 1'41.254, 69 laps) "We had a very good test today; it's been very productive for us because we were able to check many different things for our new bike. We continued to test tyres with Michelin in order to find the correct direction for their development and we also kept working with the chassis and were able to try some different suspension settings. We've got some very good information for the Yamaha engineers and now they will work hard over the winter in order to have everything ready for the next test in January. The weather was good today, warm and sunny and in these conditions it was fun to ride on this track, which is one of my favourites. This has been an important test and I am really pleased with the level that we have got to in a short space of time. Of course we still have a lot of work to do, but now it's finally the end for this year and it's time to have a rest so we can come back ready to fight in January!"
• COLIN EDWARDS (7th , 1'41.254, 41 Laps) "I had a small technical problem near the end of the day so I had to stop a little bit early, but other than that it's been another good day all round. We tested quite a lot more front tyres but honestly the best tyre package we found was what we tried first thing in the morning straight out of the box; that felt pretty good! Other than that we just kept on playing around with the general set-up, trying to learn as much as possible about the new bike. We tried a different chassis today, it's one Valentino's been testing and it's definitely the best one so far. We weren't really looking for times but we ran pretty consistently in the low 41's all day and I definitely felt like I could have found a bit more if I'd needed to push hard. Overall it's been a really good test and I am pretty excited about the new bike; we've come on in leaps and bounds in just the six days I've ridden it. Now I am heading home and looking forward to a nice relaxing Christmas with the family before we get going again in January!"
• DAVIDE BRIVIO , CAMEL YAMAHA TEAM DIRECTOR "We've been able to do a great job throughout these November tests and everyone has worked very hard. All three tests have been very important for us in order to get as much information as possible for Yamaha to work with over the winter, the engineers have done a good job with the bike and now they will put everything together over the break. In January we will have our final 2007 bikes and then we can start our real preparation for the long season ahead."

DUCATI REPORT - NOV 30, 2006

• FINAL 2006 TESTING SESSION CONCLUDES AT JEREZ
• The Jerez de la Frontera circuit, the venue for a fantastic opening round win for Loris Capirossi in the MotoGP championship eight months ago, was also the scene for the final testing session of the year which concluded today.
• Good weather conditions allowed the Ducati Marlboro Team and the Test Team to complete the scheduled work load. At the end of the morning, when the track surface had reached a reasonable temperature, the Italian team's riders went out on the track for the final day of testing before the end-of-season winter ban comes into force. Today both riders were busy trying out a series of new Bridgestone tyres as well as carrying out suspension and engine development work.
• Loris Capirossi completed 49 laps, setting a quickest time of 1m41.492s.
• "It was quite a positive day today. We still need more time to develop the GP7 and adapt it better to my riding style. I still can't get it to do what I like but the base is good and I am sure that in the month and a half before the next test in Sepang they will get to work back in the factory on the basis of the indications from this test. Today we didn't use any qualifying tyres but instead concentrated on the new rubber that Bridgestone brought along, which proved to be suitable to the characteristics of the 800 and which I liked quite a lot. Now it's time for some hard-earned rest after a fantastic but extremely tough season!"
• Casey Stoner did 52 laps of the Jerez track with a best time of 1m41.595s.
• "Every day we are gaining more and more experience. There are still a few things to improve but considering the number of tests before the first race in 2007 I think that we will be competitive next year. Today we focussed on the engine to help smooth out the harsh power delivery under acceleration at the rear. We saw a lot of progress throughout the day and I am satisfied with the work that we got through".
• In 2006 the Ducati Marlboro Team has been on the track for a total of 80 days on 17 different circuits (10 in Europe and 7 overseas): 51 for races and 29 for testing.
• A vital contribution to the development work has also been made in the background but with exactly the same passion, by the Test Team, Vittoriano Guareschi and the engineers and technicians of Ducati Corse. Together, and with the indispensable support of technical partners Bridgestone and Shell Advance, they have continued with the development work and helped with the cross-over of knowledge from the track to the production line.
• Everyone has made a contribution to the results of the 2006 season, the best yet for Ducati in MotoGP: 4 fastest laps, 3 pole positions, 9 podiums and 4 wins.

JEREZ- END OF SEASON TEST - Nov 29, 2006

• 1. Valentino Rossi Camel Yamaha Team 1:40.688
  2. Dani Pedrosa E Repsol Honda +0.111
  3. Colin Edwards USA Camel Yamaha Team +0.498
  4. John Hopkins USA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP
  5. Chris Vermeulen AUS Rizla Suzuki MotoGP
  6. Casey Stoner AUS Ducati Marlboro Team
  7. Loris Capirossi I Ducati Marlboro Team
  8. Marco Melandri I Gresini Honda
  9. Shinya Nakano J Konica Minolta Honda
  10. Alex Barros BRA Pramac D'Antin MotoGP
  11. Tady Okada J Honda
  12. Vittoriano Guareschi ITA Ducati Marlboro Team
  13. Jeremy McWilliams GBR Ilmor SRT
  14. Andrew Pitt AUS Ilmor SRT

JEREZ - END OF SEASON TEST - Nov 28, 2006

• 1. Valentino Rossi I Camel Yamaha Team 1:41.745
  2. John Hopkins USA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP +0.416
  3. Colin Edwards USA Camel Yamaha Team +0.548
  4. Dani Pedrosa E Repsol Honda + 2.285
  5. Loris Capirossi ITA Ducati Marlboro Team
  6. Chris Vermeulen AUS Rizla Suzuki MotoGP
  7. Marco Melandri I Gresini Honda
  8. Casey Stoner AUS Ducati Marlboro Team
  9. Shinya Nakano J Konica Minolta Honda
  10. Jeremy McWilliams GBR Ilmor SRT
  11. Andrew Pitt AUS Ilmor SRT
  12. Vittoriano Guareschi ITA Ducati Marlboro Team
  13. Alex Barros BRA Pramac D'Antin MotoGP

SEPANG - END OF SEASON TEST - Nov 17, 2006

• 1. John Hopkins USA Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 2:01.640
  2. Chris Vermeulen AUS Rizla Suzuki MotoGP + 0.400
  3. Colin Edwards USA Camel Yamaha Team + 0.790
  4. Nicky Hayden USA Repsol Honda Team
  5. Makoto Tamada J Tech 3 Yamaha
  6. Toni Elias E Fortuna Honda
  7. Carlos Checa E Honda LCR
  8. Tady Okada J Honda
  9. Nobuatsu Aoki J Rizla Suzuki MotoGP

YAMAHA REPORT, SEPANG, NOV 17, 2006

• EDWARDS ROUNDS OFF FIRST 800CC TEST IN POSITIVE FASHION IN MALAYSIA
• Colin Edwards completed his first test of the 800cc era with another good morning's work at Sepang today, making more progress on the development of Yamaha's new prototype machine and finishing the day with the 3rd fastest time in the process. Edwards once again spent the time working on general set-up with his team, especially chassis and suspension, as well as testing some new tyres for Michelin.
• Suzuki rider John Hopkins was fastest again with a best lap of 2'01.64, followed by his team-mate Chris Vermeulen, who recorded a time of 2'02.04. Edwards was third with a time of 2'02.43 after 32 laps. The Camel Yamaha Team will reconvene for the final test of 2006 in Jerez, Spain, on 28th-30th November, when Colin Edwards will be re-joined by team-mate Valentino Rossi.
• COLIN EDWARDS (3rd -- 2'02.43, 32 Laps) "Today was another really good day. I was quicker again and it felt really good to be able to consistently run fast times comfortably. We got a lot of great work done on a variety of things, even though we only tested in the morning. We did a fair bit for Michelin, they've got some good stuff and it seems pretty clear what the right direction is for us to go in with regards to tyres. We've played about with the chassis and the suspension, as well as a few other things, and when we came to add everything together you could see we were making some good progress. As far as getting input for the final bike they're going to roll out for us next year, I think we've done a pretty good job during these three days. I'm really happy with my first test on the 800, we seem to get on okay and now I am looking forward to the next test in Jerez, where I am sure Valentino and I together can make even more progress."
• DANIELE ROMAGNOLI, COLIN EDWARDS' CREW CHIEF "This has been an encouraging first test for our team and for Colin with Yamaha's new 800cc bike. We've changed quite a bit with the overall set-up and we've definitely made some big improvements from the bike we first tried on Wednesday. We've also worked quite a lot on tyres with Michelin and found some options that seem to be working well for us. The most important thing is that Colin already seems to be getting on very well with the bike, he can ride it well and he's been fast all week. We're very satisfied with this first test and it seems like we're in good shape for this stage of development."

YAMAHA TEST REPORT - NOV 3, 2006

• Rossi gets started on his new campaign with the Yamaha 800 in Valencia
• Just a couple of days after the dramatic finale to his rollercoaster season, Valentino Rossi was back out on track in Valencia yesterday and today, already thinking about next season’s revenge as he got to grips with Yamaha’s new 800cc motorcycle. After the final race of the 990cc era on Sunday, most of his MotoGP rivals were also out on their new bikes as the teams began the long winter of testing in the build-up to the first race next March.
• Having only ridden the Yamaha 800cc bike briefly on two previous occasions, this test was the first chance for Rossi and his team to assess it in detail and really begin to work on its development. They concentrated on a variety of different set-ups throughout the test with the aim of gathering as much data as possible to aid the Yamaha engineers in their task. Discounting some times from riders who chose to start off on their 990 bikes, which included Rossi for some laps yesterday, the Italian set the seventh fastest lap time of the 800s overall with a time of 1’33.10 yesterday.
• Rossi’s team-mate Colin Edwards will get his first taste of the new bike at Sepang in two weeks time before both riders head to Jerez together for the final test of the year at the end of the month.
• Valentino Rossi “It was really good to have two days to rest after such a sad day on Sunday and I’m already feeling much better, in fact I wish the season started in two weeks time! We actually started off the test by doing some laps on the old 990cc bike as we wanted to have one more go at understanding why we lost! Then it was time to finally put it all behind us and get on with the new campaign. It’s been great to be able to try the new bike straight away, when the 990 is still fresh in my mind, as it’s easy to compare and understand the differences. Our bike is already quite good; it’s at a good level for this early stage of development. This is the third time I’ve ridden it and it’s got better each time because they’ve been working hard in Japan. They haven’t made so many big changes yet, just small things like the engine setting, but already it’s a bit faster. Yesterday we were fastest, which was exciting, but today we’ve been trying some different things and we were quite a lot slower. Anyway I’m not worried about that, the most important thing at the moment is to get as much information as possible and really start to understand and get to know the bike. This has been a useful test, I’m already feeling very motivated about the new bike and I am sure that next time I ride it in Jerez it will be even better!”.
• Davide Brivio – Camel Yamaha Team Director “It was nice to start the 2007 season straight away and not to dwell on the past and this has been a very important test for us with our new 800cc bike. Yesterday Valentino was quite fast which was encouraging. Today we worked on some different things and so he was a bit slower, but at this stage all this information is extremely useful in order to help develop the bike for the next test. Next Colin will have his chance to try the bike and give his opinion and this will also be very important for our engineers. It’s been interesting for us to have a look at our competitors here this week; everyone is already fast so it’s clearly going to be another hard and competitive season and we know we’re all going to have to work very hard through the winter!”

VALENCIA - END OF SEASON TEST - Nov 2, 2006

• 1. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Honda 800, 1’32.66
• 2. Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Suzuki 800, 1’32.69
• 3. John Hopkins (USA) Suzuki 800, 1’32’95
• 4. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati 800, 1’33.96
• 5. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati 800, 1’33.02
• 6. Nicky Hayden (USA) Honda 800, 1’33.03
• 7. Alex Barros (BRA) Ducati 990, 1’33.40
• 8. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Yamaha 800, 1’33.78
• 9. Jeremy McWilliams (IRL) Ilmor 800, 1’35.90
• 10. Andrew Pitt (AUS) Ilmor 800, 1’36.40

VALENCIA - END OF SEASON TEST - Nov 1, 2006

• 1. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Yamaha 990, 1’32.70
• 2. Toni Elias (SPA) Honda 990, 1’32.73
• 3. Marco Melandri (ITA) Honda 990, 1’32.90
• 4. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Yamaha 800, 1’33.10
• 5. John Hopkins (USA) Suzuki 800, 1’33.14
• 6. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati 800, 1’33.17
• 7. Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Suzuki 800, 1’3318
• 8. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Honda 800, 1’33.21
• 9. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati 800, 1’33.43
• 10. Alex Barros (BRA) Ducati 990, 1’33.64
• 11. Nicky Hayden (USA) Honda 800, 1’33.66
• 12. Jeremy McWilliams (IRL) Ilmor 800, 1’35.80
• 13. Andrew Pitt (AUS) Ilmor 800, 1’36.60s