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Yamaha Motocross riders show solid speed in horrible conditions

Yamaha Motocross Team rider Joshua Coppins cut through driving rain in Great Britain yesterday to claim third position overall in the MX1 class at the Hawkstone Park International. Team-mate Marc de Reuver also grabbed a top five position withfourth. Only two motos from three were completed after a heavy shower washed out the surprisingly well-attended meeting.
The ‘reliable’ English rain coated the Shropshire venue throughout the day and transformed the dark, deep and rough Hawkstone sand into a thick and very demanding terrain. After riding on dry, hard surfaces in Italy and through wet mud in France last week this was another set of conditions for the two new riders in the Rinaldi line-up to cope with on their 2007 YZ450FMs.
Coppins fronted the first moto from Kevin Strijbos and Ken de Dycker but in the end was powerless to defend his lead from the sand-schooled Belgians. Strijbos took the win and would also scoop the overall from his countryman while the New Zealander was third. De Reuver, who had registered pole position in morning qualification, was as high as third behind Coppins and De Dycker in the formative stages of the race. The Dutchman was feeling comfortable but lost control momentarily on a jump around the ten minute mark causing a crash. He remounted and confirmed fifth.
The second moto saw the MX1 field even more spread out with the sand proving tough to consistently conquer without mistakes. On this occasion the Yamahas flew in formation with De Reuver sealing third spot by over ten seconds from a more conservative outing from Coppins.
The Superfinal, which traditionally sees the top 20 MX2 finishers go against the best 20 placed MX1 riders, was cancelled after being red flagged two laps into the 25 minute and 2 lap distance. A rain flood then closed the meeting with spectators already sparse around the soaked inclines. The moto was halted after a heavy crash by Bike it Yamaha UK Dixon Racing’s Carl Nunn. The MX2 British Champion had earned seventh overall in the smaller category but had to be taken to hospital after needing medical attention on the circuit. Initial fears concerned the 27 year old’s back but so far the indication is that Nunn is OK.
“Qualifying went better than in the last few races, which I was happy about,” remarked Coppins. “I was pretty happy with my starts, apart from the second race, but this is something I wanted to improve and it worked out well. I had some arm-pump in the first moto and did not ride that well. In the second I went down once and found it difficult out there. I was right behind Strijbos in the last heat until Nunn unfortunately went down; I hope he is OK. We were starting to look better in that last race; I was smoother and carrying mote corner speed.”
”It seems like at the moment when we go to different tracks it takes me a little while to adjust well in a variety of conditions,” he evaluated. “Today there was a lot of mud and in Valence it was also wet but the track was hard, and then in Italy the weather has been ideal. It takes me a little bit of race day to find the strong parts of the bike but that is good because we are finding different kinds of races and getting a broader idea. I feel that I still need to improve in conditions like today and in France last week but all-in-all I can’t complain with another podium result; that’s four Internationals in a row with two wins. I am now looking forward to having a little break and then working on my physical training. I am also pleased because this is the first time that I am leaving the Hawkstone International healthy. Last year I hurt my back, the year before it was my shoulder and then before that I couldn’t even race here so I am happy to come away in good shape!”
“Pole position in the morning felt very good, I was riding quite smooth and feeling confident for the race,“ said De Reuver. “In the first heat I was behind De Dycker and Coppins and I made a mistake on the first lap but I caught up so easily that I was sure that it was going to be my race. I was too nonchalant because I lost the bike just once and it made me crash. I fell on my head and it took me a lap or two to realise where I was but then I could make some good times again.”
”I had the holeshot in the second heat but over-ran the corner and Strijbos and De Dycker got past me,“ he continued. ”I stayed in third the whole race and did my laps ahead of Josh and with the same speed as De Dycker but Strijbos was faster today. I was third at the start in the Superfinal and I pushed my way past a lot of riders to reach sixth inside half a lap! Then Nunn crashed; I hope he is OK. I was pleased with today and hope I can keep things going like this a little bit.”
De Carli Yamaha rider Antonio Cairoli meanwhile took second place overall at Castiglione del Lago for the second round of the MX2 Internazionali d'Italia series and leads the competition overall by 12 points from Manuel Monni.
The Yamaha Motocross Team now have a break before heading to Gemert for the first race in the 2007 Dutch Championship. After this final pre-season test the team head for Valkenswaard in the Netherlands for the inaugural meeting of 15 Grand Prix in the FIM World Championship on April 1st.
Moto One MX1: 1. Kevin Strijbos 2. Ken de Dycker 3. Joshua Coppins 4. Max Nagl 5. Marc de Reuver 6. Gordon Crockard 7. Steve Ramon 8. Bas Verhoeven 9. Marvin van Daele 10. Jussi Vehvelainen 11. Marco Kovalainen 12. Mike Brown 13. Sven Breugelmans 14. Patrick Roos 15. Brad Anderson
Moto two MX1: 1. Kevin Strijbos 2. Ken de Dycker 3. Marc de Reuver 4. Josh Coppins 5. Max Nagl 6. Tanel Leok 7. Steve Ramon 8. Billy MacKenzie 9. James Noble 10. Marvin Van Daele 11. Gorden Crockard 12. Mike Brown 13. Lauris Freibergs 14. Patrick Roos 15. Jussi Vehvilainen
Alex Asigno
Alex Asigno

Yamaha Factory Team racers ready for 800cc opener

Yamaha Factory Team riders Valentino Rossi and Colin Edwards begin their assault on the 2007 MotoGP World Championship next weekend as the most eagerly anticipated season in recent history finally fires up in Qatar. Saturday's race is the first of eighteen mouth-watering events across thirteen countries and four continents that will decide the destiny of the most coveted prize in motorcycle racing. For the first time since the turn of the millennium, Rossi starts out as a challenger to the throne.
After finally conceding his title to Nicky Hayden (Honda) in a dramatic last chapter to the 2006 campaign at Valencia in November, the ever-popular Italian has worked tirelessly alongside his engineers on development of Yamaha's all-new YZR-M1, which features an 800cc capacity engine in accordance with new technical regulations. The revised rulebook also stipulates a reduced fuel capacity of 21 litres and a maximum of 31 tyres (14 front and 17 rear) per rider during a race weekend, piling extra pressure on the teams and adding even more intrigue for the fans as the season gets underway.
Rossi's hopes of a winning start are substantiated by two victories from three previous visits to the Losail International Circuit since its inauguration in 2004. His confidence has been further boosted by an outstanding performance in the final pre-season test at Jerez, where he set the fastest lap in a televised 40-minute 'qualifying' session and capped an excellent winter of development work that has taken in seventeen days of hard graft at circuits in Spain, Malaysia and Qatar.
The equally diligent work of Rossi's dependable team-mate Colin Edwards, who was close behind Rossi in third during last week's 'qualifying' session, has contributed greatly to the swift evolution of the 800cc version YZR-M1 and the pair are now bursting to go racing. The 'Texan Tornado' is promising to whip up a storm in the desert and maintain a strong front throughout the year, as he looks to capitalise on a pre-season that has seen him side-by-side with Rossi at the top end of the time sheets at virtually every circuit they have visited.
Bike set-up at the Losail International Circuit is complicated by a host of slow corners that are preceded by fast changes of direction. The tight hairpin at turn six, for example, comes with a quick right-left change under braking, calling for a delicate balance between stability and agility. The most important section is the three fast rights at the end of the lap because this is where the rider can make up the most time, making stability at maximum lean angle an absolute must so that he has confidence to open the throttle with the bike still on its side.
Valentino Rossi - "Fast and fun" The sight of Rossi and his new M1 in high-speed harmony during that final pre-season test at Jerez will have mesmerised his fans and demoralised his rivals, sending out a clear warning that the most successful motorcycle racer in recent history wants his title back. The 28-year-old has had just one thought in his mind since shaking hands with Nicky Hayden on the warm-down lap at Valencia and he is convinced that this season's ambitions will not be hampered by the misfortunes that ultimately denied him tenure of the number 1 plate for a sixth straight year.
"After the great test in Jerez we're going to the first race feeling confident and happy," says Rossi. "Last year we had some problems at the final test that left us feeling worried going to the first race but more than anything Jerez proved that we're in a very different situation to last year and confirmed the great job we've done with the new M1 over the winter. Now it's finally time for the first race and it's time to see if all our hard work pays off. Everyone is very excited and very motivated after what happened last year and our aim is very simple - to win!"
"I like Qatar a lot, it's fast and fun to ride and I have won there twice. Of course it's quite hot and dusty so tyre choice will be very important, especially with the new rules. The other key factor is going to be the fuel consumption - I think it is something everybody is worried about this season but we are all in the same boat. We know the bike should work well at the first two races but the championship is very long. Dani Pedrosa has looked the most consistent in testing but I think Nicky Hayden, Loris Capirossi and my own team-mate Colin Edwards will be in the fight for the title."
Colin Edwards - "A level playing field" After stating earlier in the pre-season that the YZR-M1 is the best 800cc bike in the field, Colin Edwards has seen nothing to change his mind over the past two tests and the 33-year-old is now on the brink of what he hopes can be his best season since joining MotoGP in 2003. The former double World Superbike Champion has scored six podiums in that time, one of them coming at Losail in 2004, and he is confident of adding significantly to that tally this year - starting on Saturday at a circuit he feels provides a level playing field between him and more seasoned Grand Prix riders.
"Qatar is a great track, I love it and I always feel that it's a level playing field because we've only been there a few times as opposed to some of the European circuits where other riders have basically grown up," observes Edwards. "I'm feeling really confident going back there for the first race, especially after our last test there when I was pretty fast every day, and the progress we made at Jerez last week. The track suits my style and I felt really comfortable there during the test, so hopefully we can translate that to the race conditions."
"We had some problems in the race last year but I am feeling completely different now because this bike is a whole new ballgame. After working really well on smooth tracks like Sepang and Qatar we managed to adopt it to the bumps at Jerez with a completely different setting so I'm really confident that we have a great package for the whole season. I've said throughout pre-season that the target this season is to win races, so I'm looking forward to getting started."
Davide Brivio - "Let's go racing!" Yamaha Factory Racing Team Director Davide Brivio echoes the confidence of his riders after watching them lap in record pace at all three of the circuits the team have visited during their exhaustive winter testing programme. Last Sunday's success in the competitive timed session provided an extra injection of excitement and motivation to the team's mood, as the Italian reports, the riders are not the only members of staff who are counting down the days to the new season's opening showdown.
"Finally we're going racing!" smiles Brivio. "I think this season will be very interesting because it is the first time in several years that Valentino isn't starting as the defending champion and there are many young riders who are now ready to fight for the title. We have had a good winter of testing and we feel that we have made a good job of preparing for the new season. Now we're excited to go racing and see exactly how prepared we really are."
"Qatar will be the first time everybody shows their cards for real and we are all very curious to see what level we are at compared to our rivals. The mood in the team is optimistic because both Colin and Valentino have been amongst the top riders all through the winter so providing everything goes OK then we can expect to be competitive. Let's go racing!"
Valentino Rossi : Information Age: 28 Lives: London, UK Bike: Yamaha YZR-M1 GP victories: 84 (57 x MotoGP/500cc, 14 x 250cc, 12 x 125cc) First GP victory: Czech Republic, 1996 (125cc) First GP: Malaysia, 1996 (125cc) GP starts: 174 (114 x MotoGP/500cc, 30 x 250cc, 30 x 125cc) Pole positions: 45 World Championships: 7 Grand Prix (1 x 125cc, 1 x 250cc, 1 x 500cc, 4 x MotoGP)
Colin Edwards: Information Age: 33 Lives: Conroe, Texas Bike: Yamaha YZR-M1 First GP: Japan, 2003 (MotoGP) GP starts: 66 x MotoGP World Championships: 2 World Superbike
Qatar Lap Record (990cc) Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 2006, 1'57.305
Qatar Best Lap (800cc) Casey Stoner (Honda) 2006, 1'55.683
2006 Qatar Grand Prix Results 1. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Yamaha 43'22.229 2. Nicky Hayden (USA) Honda +0.900 3. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati +1.494 9. Colin Edwards (USA) Yamaha +22.920
Alex Asigno
Alex Asigno

Corser and Haga star in Phillip Island thriller

Noriyuki Haga scored his first podium finish of the season as the Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team served up some terrific entertainment at Phillip Island today.
Having secured front row starts on their still-developing YZF-R1s, Haga and team-mate Troy Corser were able to run with the leading group in both races. Corser was straight into the thick of things in the day's opener and the Australian lowered the lap record as he bridged a small gap to leading pair James Toseland (Honda) and Troy Bayliss (Ducati). With lap times under qualifying pace, Corser ran with the leading group for the first half of the race but was unable to maintain the pace of the leading duo. With his lap times dropping by two seconds on worn tyres, Troy was passed on lap 20 by Max Biaggi (Suzuki) with Haga relegating him to fifth on the final lap.
In the day's second race the Yamaha riders were able to take advantage of the slightly slower pace in the opening laps to preserve tyre life. That allowed both men to stay part of the five rider battle for the lead until the closing stages, when Toseland upped his pace to take the win from Bayliss. Haga rode brilliantly to take the final position on the podium, holding an off a determined late charge from his rivals, while Corser was unlucky to miss out on fourth after being slipstreamed by Biaggi across the line.
Team YZF Yamaha's Shinichi Nakatomi scored points in both races today, taking 13th place each time. The Japanese rider improved his performances as the weekend progressed to score six championship points.
 
Today's results see Toseland extend his championship lead to 16 points over Biaggi. Haga lies fourth in the standings, on 50 points, with Corser a further five points adrift in fifth place. The series takes close to a one-month race before moving to Donington Park for the championship's 20th anniversary meeting on 1 April. The English circuit played host to the very first world superbike race on 3 April 1988 and returns to the calendar for the first time since 2001. Before then the teams will have a test at the Valencia circuit in Spain, when the Yamaha teams hope to try out a range of new settings and parts on their YZF-R1s.
Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "I have had a cold this weekend and I did not feel very good throughout practice. The second race was tough because of the higher temperature but it was also good fun. After the start I was fighting with four other riders but I tried to save the rear tyre as much as possible for the last few laps. The grip was definitely better than in the first and I was thinking that I could push in the last five laps. But when the front guys went I realized that I could not push hard enough and decided to try and go for the third. I'm happy with a third place. The team has done a very good job this weekend and I hope that we will have some new parts to make us more competitive in the next race."
Troy Corser (Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "I'm disappointed because when I come to Phillip Island I expect a minimum of two podiums, and I thought I rode well enough to achieve that. But that's racing. We changed the bike for the second race and it was definitely better for the tyre, although I also rode a little differently because I knew what to expect from the tyre. At the end of the day we weren't fast enough. The rest of the bike was really good but we just needed some more legs down the straight. We'll go to Valencia and try and improve the bike before going to Donington Park. That's another track I really like so we'll just need to see what happens there."
Shinichi Nakatomi (Team YZF Yamaha) "I am quite happy with my performance today. In the first race I was riding in a group for a few laps but made a mistake and lost some time. I was able to improve my lap times for the rest of the race and I was pleased that my overall race time was 10 seconds faster in the second race. I was able to have a good fight with Josh Brookes and tried a last lap attack, although I was not able to get past. I now have a better feeling with the bike and the team is working hard to give me more performance for the next race."
Massimo Meregalli (Team Coordinator - Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "We made a big improvement between the races. We made some suspension changes and the hotter temperatures also made a big difference. In past years we have not had such great results here so for me getting a podium is a good result. We still have a small gap to make up but if we continue like this then I am sure we will be able to close it."
Circuit Length: 4445 Temp: 21 Crowd: 63250 Weather: Sunny     2007 WSB Phillip Island 04/03/2007 Race 1 - 22 Laps Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 Troy Bayliss Ducati AUS 34'11.276 2 James Toseland Honda GBR 0'2.096 3 Max Biaggi Suzuki ITA 0'10.143 4 Noriyuki Haga Yamaha JPN 0'18.923 5 Troy Corser Yamaha AUS 0'19.742 6 Lorenzo Lanzi Ducati ITA 0'24.765 7 Ruben Xaus Ducati ESP 0'27.404 8 Max Neukirchner Suzuki GER 0'34.614 9 Fonsi Nieto Kawasaki ESP 0'35.339 10 Steve Martin Honda AUS 0'36.238 11 Roberto Rolfo Honda ITA 0'38.067 12 Joshua Brookes Honda AUS 0'47.078 13 Shinichi Nakatomi Yamaha JPN 0'58.571 14 Jakub Smrz Ducati CZE 1'8.000 15 Alessandro Polita Suzuki ITA 1'22.584
Race 2 - 22 Laps Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 James Toseland Honda GBR 34'16.990 2 Troy Bayliss Ducati AUS 0'0.274 3 Noriyuki Haga Yamaha JPN 0'6.916 4 Max Biaggi Suzuki ITA 0'7.013 5 Troy Corser Yamaha AUS 0'7.052 6 Ruben Xaus Ducati ESP 0'23.176 7 Lorenzo Lanzi Ducati ITA 0'26.471 8 Michel Fabrizio Honda ITA 0'26.486 9 Max Neukirchner Suzuki GER 0'26.486 10 Roberto Rolfo Honda ITA 0'37.936 11 Jakub Smrz Ducati CZE 0'41.308 12 Joshua Brookes Honda AUS 0'48.672 13 Shinichi Nakatomi Yamaha JPN 0'48.717 14 Fonsi Nieto Kawasaki ESP 1'13.095 15 Alessandro Polita Suzuki ITA 1'13.882
Best Lap Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time Troy Corser Yamaha AUS 1'31.826
 Rider Standings 04/03/2007
Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Points 1. James Toseland Honda GBR 90 2. Max Biaggi Suzuki ITA 74 3. Troy Bayliss Ducati AUS 64 4. Noriyuki Haga Yamaha JPN 50 5. Troy Corser Yamaha AUS 45 6. Lorenzo Lanzi Ducati ITA 44 7. Ruben Xaus Ducati ESP 32 8. Max Neukirchner Suzuki GER 31 9. Yukio Kagayama Suzuki JPN 23 10. Roberto Rolfo Honda ITA 20 11. Fonsi Nieto Kawasaki ESP 20 12. Michel Fabrizio Honda ITA 12 13. Joshua Brookes Honda AUS 11 14. Steve Martin Honda AUS 11 15. Shinichi Nakatomi Yamaha JPN 10
Manufacturer Standings 04/03/2007
Pos. Manufacturer Points 1. Honda 90 2. Suzuki 74 3. Ducati 70 4. Yamaha 53 5. Kawasaki 20
RACE REPORT 04/03/2007 Parkes takes podium in tough supersport race    Yamaha World Supersport team's Broc Parkes took a hard fought third place in the world supersport round at Phillip Island today, although there was a touch of disappointment for the Australian as he led for all but the final three laps of the race.
Starting from the second row, Parkes quickly took the lead and pulled away from the chasing pack - heading the four-way battle for second by almost two seconds at one stage. The 25-year-old looked set for a third career win, only for his lap times to drop off in the closing stages of the 21-lap race. Frenchman Fabien Foret (Kawasaki) overtook the Yamaha to take the win with round one winner Kenan Sofuoglu (Honda) also getting past Parkes. Despite his problems Broc was able to bring his R6 home in third place.
Team-mate Kevin Curtain had been one of the favourites for the win at Phillip Island and he was the early leader as the front group sped off at under qualifying pace. The 40-year-old Australian looked comfortable in the four-rider battle for second when his lap times faded dramatically at around half distance. As in Qatar eight days ago Curtain experienced rear traction problems and was forced to ride on and secure as many points as possible. Despite posting lap times over five seconds from the leaders, Curtain refused to give up and was rewarded with five championship points for his 11th placed finish.
It was also a tough day for Yamaha Team Italia Lorenzini by Leoni rider Massimo Roccoli. Despite qualifying back on the fifth row the Italian had been riding impressively in the top ten for much of the race. However, he was forced to stop when his bike cut out and, despite rejoining, was unable to score any points.
Sofuoglu's second place sees him extend his championship lead. The Turkish rider lies on 45 points with second placed Foret on 38. Yamaha's Curtain is fourth in the standings, on 25 points, with Parkes' 16 points moving him up to seventh in the championship with two of the 13 rounds gone.
Broc Parkes (Yamaha World Supersport team) "I got a good start from the second row and felt that I was a bit quicker than a couple of guys in front so I decided to try and go. I was able to open up a gap of a little more than a second and I tried to keep that pace. I felt the rear go pretty quickly at about nine laps to go so I just got my head down and tried to keep it going. The grip really went off though and I made a mistake out the back of the circuit. Once Fabien and Kenan came past they had much better rear grip than me and I didn't have any answer to them. I had done a lot of testing on that tyre (specification) and I knew it was good for the race. Unfortunately we didn't run the full race last weekend so maybe we still have a little more work to do on our chassis settings. It's a little disappointing to be just a couple of laps away from the win but we've come away with some good points and it's a good result compared to last week."
Kevin Curtain (Yamaha World Supersport team) "I don't know what to say, I'm just feeling really fed up just now. We've got no luck at the moment and I'm really disappointed. It'd been a good weekend and I was confident that I could have a good result today, but the tyre went off and, to be honest, I'm surprised that I was even able to stay on the bike let alone score some points."
Massimo Roccoli (Yamaha Team Italia Lorenzini by Leoni) "I made a good start and thought I could make a top ten finish when the bike just stopped out on the circuit. I pressed the starter and it fired again after about 30 seconds. I was able to rejoin the race but it was too late and I could not score any points."
Circuit Length: 4445 Temp: 20 Crowd: 63250 Weather: Sunny     2007 WSS Phillip Island 04/03/2007 Race 1 - 21 Laps Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 Fabien Foret Kawasaki FRA 33'46.218 2 Kenan Sofuoglu Honda TUR 0'0.704 3 Broc Parkes Yamaha AUS 0'2.243 4 Sebastien Charpentier Honda FRA 0'6.415 5 Katsuaki Fujiwara Honda JPN 0'15.085 6 Pere Riba Kawasaki ESP 0'15.192 7 Robbin Harms Honda DNK 0'22.846 8 Barry Veneman Suzuki NED 0'24.509 9 Lorenzo Alfonsi Honda ITA 0'24.509 10 Yoann Tiberio Honda FRA 0'29.413 11 Kevin Curtain Yamaha AUS 0'29.706 12 Gregory Leblanc Honda FRA 0'29.759 13 Sebastien Gimbert Yamaha FRA 0'35.318 14 Craig Jones Honda GBR 0'43.153 15 David Salom Fuentes Yamaha ESP 0'43.410
Best Lap Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time Sebastien Charpentier Honda FRA 1'34.976
 Rider Standings 04/03/2007
Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Points 1. Kenan Sofuoglu Honda TUR 45 2. Fabien Foret Kawasaki FRA 38 3. Katsuaki Fujiwara Honda JPN 27 4. Kevin Curtain Yamaha AUS 25 5. Pere Riba Kawasaki ESP 21 6. Robbin Harms Honda DNK 19 7. Broc Parkes Yamaha AUS 16 8. Barry Veneman Suzuki NED 15 9. Sebastien Charpentier Honda FRA 13 10. Lorenzo Alfonsi Honda ITA 10 11. Massimo Roccoli Yamaha ITA 9 12. Gianluca Nannelli Ducati ITA 8 13. Vesa Kallio Suzuki FIN 6 14. Craig Jones Honda GBR 6 15. Yoann Tiberio Honda FRA 6 18. Sebastien Gimbert Yamaha FRA 3
Manufacturer Standings 04/03/2007
Pos. Manufacturer Points 1. Honda 45 2. Kawasaki 38 3. Yamaha 36 4. Suzuki 15 5. Ducati 8
Alex Asigno
Alex Asigno

Yamaha men take front row in Australia

Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team riders Troy Corser and Noriyuki Haga will start tomorrow's second round of the Superbike World Championship from the front row of the grid after impressive superpole performances at Phillip Island today.
High winds made life difficult for the riders at the coastal circuit today. Haga was the first of the R1 riders to head out on his grid-deciding qualifying lap after finishing regular qualifying in eighth place. The Japanese star put together a smooth lap of 1:32.879 to head the time sheets with seven riders remaining. Four men came and went without besting the Yamaha rider until Corser, third in regular practice blasted to a 1:32.605 lap. World champion Troy Bayliss (Ducati) was the last man to go out on his superpole lap and grabbed the pole position with James Toseland (Honda) second.
With no new parts available since last weekend's race in Qatar, today's testing programme focused mainly on fine tuning the R1's chassis and suspension to make maximum use of the front tyre in tomorrow's 22-lap races. Both Corser and Haga were able to make considerable headway in their preparations, completing race simulations in both the morning and afternoon practice sessions.
Shinichi Nakatomi of Team YZF Yamaha will start from 17th on the grid after improving his Friday time by half-a-second. The Japanese rider was denied an opportunity to make the afternoon superpole when rain started to fall 15 minutes from the end of the morning's second qualifying session.
Troy Corser (Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "I almost got blown off the bike as I rolled out on my warm-up lap and that prepared me for the big gust of wind that hit me as I went into turn one on my superpole lap. That caused me to lose the front end and I ended up running wide through the Southern Loop as I tried to make up time. That's not normally the way I would attack superpole but it worked out fine in the end. I hope it (the weather) is a bit more calm because it can get a bit hectic when you go into a corner three abreast and get hit by a gust of wind. The bike's going real well here and I'm pleased to be on the front row. We just need to see how it goes tomorrow."
Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "The wind made the superpole lap very difficult and I am very surprised, but of course happy, with the result. Because of the wind it was easy to make a mistake, especially coming into the corners. I took some tight lines and did not really make mistakes. It's my best lap time of the weekend so I am pleased. I expect a difficult race tomorrow. We know that the tyre can work very well for around 10 laps but we still need to try and make it work longer. We have already decided which tyre we will use but I still have to think about the suspension settings, so maybe I will not sleep so well tonight!"
Shinichi Nakatomi (Team YZF Yamaha) "Yesterday we had many problems with chatter but today we were able to get a better feeling with the bike. Unfortunately it started to rain 15 minutes before the end of the morning qualifying session and I was unable to make a time to qualifying for superpole. We are still working to improve the set-up but I am hopeful we can make up some positions in the races tomorrow."
Massimo Meregalli (Team Coordinator - Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "It's always good to have both riders on the front row so of course it has been a good day today. We have been lacking a little bit in the final section of the track but our lap times are good and I think that we can challenge for the podium tomorrow."
Circuit Length: 4445 Temp: 22 Weather: Windy     2007 WSB Phillip Island 03/03/2007 Superpole Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 Troy Bayliss Ducati AUS 1'32.145 2 James Toseland Honda GBR 1'32.198 3 Troy Corser Yamaha AUS 1'32.605 4 Noriyuki Haga Yamaha JPN 1'32.879 5 Max Biaggi Suzuki ITA 1'32.928 6 Fonsi Nieto Kawasaki ESP 1'33.132 7 Max Neukirchner Suzuki GER 1'33.188 8 Ruben Xaus Ducati ESP 1'33.367 9 Regis Laconi Kawasaki FRA 1'33.368 10 Lorenzo Lanzi Ducati ITA 1'33.969 11 Steve Martin Honda AUS 1'33.994 12 Joshua Brookes Honda AUS 1'34.731 13 Michel Fabrizio Honda ITA 1'35.215 14 Jakub Smrz Ducati CZE 1'35.327 15 Roberto Rolfo Honda ITA 1'36.295
Qualifying 2 Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 Troy Bayliss Ducati AUS 1'31.887 2 James Toseland Honda GBR 1'32.040 3 Troy Corser Yamaha AUS 1'32.666 4 Fonsi Nieto Kawasaki ESP 1'32.769 5 Lorenzo Lanzi Ducati ITA 1'32.774 6 Max Biaggi Suzuki ITA 1'32.795 7 Max Neukirchner Suzuki GER 1'32.799 8 Noriyuki Haga Yamaha JPN 1'32.961 9 Yukio Kagayama Suzuki JPN 1'33.154 10 Ruben Xaus Ducati ESP 1'33.260 11 Regis Laconi Kawasaki FRA 1'33.453 12 Steve Martin Honda AUS 1'33.678 13 Roberto Rolfo Honda ITA 1'33.683 14 Michel Fabrizio Honda ITA 1'33.690 15 Karl Muggeridge Honda AUS 1'33.783 18 Shinichi Nakatomi Yamaha JPN 1'35.088
QUALIFYING 2 REPORT 03/03/2007 Curtain so close to home pole    Yamaha World Supersport team rider Kevin Curtain missed out on pole position for tomorrow's Australian round of the Supersport World Championship by the narrowest of margins today.
The local fans' favourite got to within three-hundredths of a second of pole sitter Fabien Foret (Kawasaki) but crashed out when he pushed too hard and lost the front end of his YZF-R6 in the closing minutes of the 45-minute qualifying session.
Curtain and his R6, pole sitters in Qatar eight days ago, have been fastest in three of the weekend's four sessions but Foret's time from yesterday's first qualifying session proved untouchable in today's final session.
Curtain and team-mate Broc Parkes were both able to fractionally improve upon their Friday times in today's session, although the circuit generally seemed 'slower' - most likely due to high winds and a mid-morning rain shower. Curtain today posted a 1:35.199 lap time while Parkes' Saturday time was just seven-thousandths of a second quicker than his best from Friday, a 1:35.830. 
As a result of today's action, the Yamaha men retain their overnight grid positions with Curtain second and Parkes sixth. Of the other Yamaha riders, David Checa was one of the big improvers - taking almost a second from his Friday time to qualify in tenth. His Yamaha GMT94 team-mate Sebastien Gimbert joins him on the third row, in 12th, although Yamaha Team Italia Lorenzini by Leoni rider Massimo Roccoli failed to improve and will start 17th.
Kevin Curtain (Yamaha World Supersport team) "It would have been nice to have gotten the pole but front row is the main thing. The wind made things difficult this afternoon but I pushed hard and got close but unfortunately I got caught out going into Honda corner and lost the front. It's all good though and I'm happy with what we've got for the race. That's when we get the points, not today."
Broc Parkes (Yamaha World Supersport team) "I'm happy with my set-up and am confident we can have a good race. I'd have liked the front row but I couldn't quite find that last little bit this afternoon. Generally I'm stronger in the race than in qualifying and I'm able to run strong lap times over the distance. If I can make a good start and get away with the leaders I'm confident that we can be right up there tomorrow."
Circuit Length: 4445 Temp: 24 Weather: Sunny     2007 WSS Phillip Island 03/03/2007 Qualifying 2 Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 Fabien Foret Kawasaki FRA 1'35.166 2 Kevin Curtain Yamaha AUS 1'35.199 3 Sebastien Charpentier Honda FRA 1'35.346 4 Kenan Sofuoglu Honda TUR 1'35.480 5 Gianluca Nannelli Ducati ITA 1'35.814 6 Broc Parkes Yamaha AUS 1'35.830 7 Barry Veneman Suzuki NED 1'35.867 8 Katsuaki Fujiwara Honda JPN 1'36.230 9 Yoann Tiberio Honda FRA 1'36.248 10 David Checa Yamaha ESP 1'36.372 11 Pere Riba Kawasaki ESP 1'36.398 12 Sebastien Gimbert Yamaha FRA 1'36.403 13 Robbin Harms Honda DNK 1'36.404 14 Vesa Kallio Suzuki FIN 1'36.522 15 Vladimir Ivanov Yamaha RUS 1'36.656 17 Massimo Roccoli Yamaha ITA 1'36.922
Alex Asigno
Alex Asigno

Yamaha riders working ahead Down Under

In a close first qualifying for Sunday's Australian round of the Superbike World Championship, Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team riders Troy Corser and Noriyuki Haga rode strongly to set the fifth and eighth fastest times respectively. Corser, the 1996 and 2005 world champion, was the quickest of the YZF-R1 riders - setting a best time of 1:32.900 on the first lap of his final run. Haga, celebrating his 32nd birthday today, recorded his daily best of 1:33.244 on just his second flying lap and spent the rest of the session on endurance testing duties. The team was able to take advantage of data gathered during testing at Phillip Island in January, although further development work meant that the settings require further refinement. With that in mind the team continued working on finding a good race set-up for Sunday's race. The development work carried out since that January test has endowed the R1 with greater rear end grip, making the riders' focus on fine-tuning the front suspension of their machines.
Shinichi Nakatomi, sole rider in Team YZF Yamaha, ended the day 18th out of 22 entrants. The 28-year-old Japanese rider recorded a best lap of 1:35.572.
The superbike riders will have another two hours' of track time tomorrow, before the grid deciding Superpole session. Fastest man in today's timed practice was James Toseland (Honda) with a 1:32.040. World champion Troy Bayliss (Ducati), Fonsi Nieto (Kawasaki) and Lorenzo Lanzi (Ducati) complete the overnight top four.
Troy Corser (1.32.900 - Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "We're just trying different stuff. The chassis, or at least the set-up, of the bike is different from when we tested here so I've gone for a whole new setting. The back of the bike is working a lot better (than in testing) so now we're able to work on the front. Friday is important for getting the bike ready but as far as the lap times go it's just about getting into the top 16 and not about being the fastest. I'm pretty pleased with how it's gone today and we've still got a few other things to try that should help us move forward tomorrow. The days of worrying about being fastest on a Friday are long gone for me. As long as we're there or thereabouts let's concentrate on getting the bike set up for the race, because that's what's important."
Noriyuki Haga (1.33.244 - Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "The main thing I am looking to do is to make the bike turn more easily. Our lap times are not too bad but I have to work the front tyre too hard to make the bike turn and because of this the tyre is wearing out too quickly. We changed the bike setting between the morning and afternoon but it did not really make much difference. Tonight we will try some new things and tomorrow is another day - so who knows what will happen!"
Shinichi Nakatomi (1.35.572 - Team YZF Yamaha) "We made a lot of changes today and it has cost us some time. We can improve tomorrow and hopefully will be able to make a faster time."
Massimo Meregalli (Team Coordinator - Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "After our test here in January I was expecting more problems today but it looks like we have solved many things. Also we are looking now to see what changes we can make tonight to improve the rider feeling a little bit more. I have spoken to the riders and they are quite content. Both say that they have no major problems and have a good direction to work in tomorrow."
Circuit Length: 4445 Temp: 23 Weather: Dry     2007 WSB Phillip Island 02/03/2007 Qualifying 1 Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 James Toseland Honda GBR 1'32.040 2 Troy Bayliss Ducati AUS 1'32.641 3 Fonsi Nieto Kawasaki ESP 1'32.769 4 Lorenzo Lanzi Ducati ITA 1'32.774 5 Troy Corser Yamaha AUS 1'32.900 6 Max Biaggi Suzuki ITA 1'32.998 7 Yukio Kagayama Suzuki JPN 1'33.154 8 Noriyuki Haga Yamaha JPN 1'33.244 9 Ruben Xaus Ducati ESP 1'33.315 10 Max Neukirchner Suzuki GER 1'33.523 11 Michel Fabrizio Honda ITA 1'33.690 12 Steve Martin Honda AUS 1'33.748 13 Karl Muggeridge Honda AUS 1'33.783 14 Roberto Rolfo Honda ITA 1'33.865 15 Jakub Smrz Ducati CZE 1'34.092 18 Shinichi Nakatomi Yamaha JPN 1'35.572
QUALIFYING 1 REPORT 02/03/2007 Provisional front row for Yamaha men at Phillip Island    Yamaha World Supersport Team riders Kevin Curtain and Broc Parkes made a good start to their home race at Phillip Island today, ending the first qualifying session second and fourth respectively. Having set the fastest lap of the morning practice, Curtain racked up 15 laps in the afternoon qualifying session as he prepares for Sunday's 21-lap race.. The session was stopped 10 minutes before the end due to an accident, but when the action resumed Curtain went out and set a 1:35.425 lap, marginally slower than his best from the morning session but still good enough for second on the overnight grid.
Curtain's fellow Australian Parkes was another rider working on getting his R6 ready for race day. The 25-year-old put in 10 straight laps on his first run, testing tyre durability in the warm conditions. Like his team-mate he fitted new tyres for his final run, recording a best lap of 1:35.837 just as the chequered flag came out.
Yamaha GMT94's French rider Sebastien Gimbert ended the day 10th in what is only his second meeting on the YZF-R6, one place ahead of Russia's Vladimir Ivanov on his privately-entered Yamaha. Yamaha Team Italia Lorenzini by Leoni's Massimo Roccoli heads up the fourth row of the provisional grid, in 13th, with David Checa 16th on the other Yamaha GMT94 machine.
Fastest man in today's session was former world champion Fabien Foret (Kawasaki) with a 1:35.166. Final grid positions will be determined after tomorrow's second 45-minute qualifying session.
Kevin Curtain (1.35.425 - Yamaha World Supersport Team) "A good day. The bike is working really well and we were able to get in a lot of laps on the tyres. We've tested here already and now we're working towards the race. Tonight I'm satisfied because there were no dramas or major concerns. Tomorrow we'll work some more on getting the maximum out of the bike over the race distance and hopefully that'll pay dividends for us on Sunday."
Broc Parkes (1.35.837 - Yamaha World Supersport Team) "Qatar was a real disaster for us so it was great to have a good opening day here and get all that behind us. After testing here in January we've come with a good set-up so it's more a case of making a good bike better than trying to solve problems. Again we'll try a few things tomorrow and I'm confident we'll be ready to race come Sunday."
Circuit Length: 4445 Temp: 24 Weather: Dry     2007 WSS Phillip Island 02/03/2007 Qualifying 1 Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 Fabien Foret Kawasaki FRA 1'35.166 2 Kevin Curtain Yamaha AUS 1'35.425 3 Gianluca Nannelli Ducati ITA 1'35.814 4 Broc Parkes Yamaha AUS 1'35.837 5 Kenan Sofuoglu Honda TUR 1'35.868 6 Sebastien Charpentier Honda FRA 1'35.902 7 Katsuaki Fujiwara Honda JPN 1'36.230 8 Yoann Tiberio Honda FRA 1'36.248 9 Pere Riba Kawasaki ESP 1'36.398 10 Sebastien Gimbert Yamaha FRA 1'36.627 11 Vladimir Ivanov Yamaha RUS 1'36.656 12 Robbin Harms Honda DNK 1'36.734 13 Massimo Roccoli Yamaha ITA 1'36.922 14 Vesa Kallio Suzuki FIN 1'36.967 15 Barry Veneman Suzuki NED 1'37.050 16 David Checa Yamaha ESP 1'37.114
Alex Asigno
Alex Asigno

WSB: Round 2 - Phillip Island, Australia

After an exciting opening round in Qatar last weekend, the Superbike World Championship makes its only trip to the southern hemisphere when it visits the fast and flowing Phillip Island circuit for the Yamaha-sponsored Australian round.
Following a promising debut with the 2007 YZF-R1 in Qatar, Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team riders Troy Corser and Noriyuki Haga are looking to build on their fine start with a good performance on a track that should suit the R1's sweet-handling chassis.
Corser marked his debut with the official Yamaha team by winning the superpole event and finishing on the podium in race two, while both riders demonstrated the speed of the new R1.
For Corser, the Australian round is the one chance he will get to race in front of his home fans this season. The world superbike veteran actually made his debut at the same circuit 15 years ago in his first stint as a Yamaha rider. Speaking from last Saturday's race in Qatar, he commented: "We're off to Phillip Island next and I think my Yamaha will work really well there. It's a track I really like and I think we can bag a couple of good results there for sure. It's a pity about the first race today, we had a big vibration at the rear (caused by the tyre not gripping the rim correctly) but that's how it goes sometimes. It was so bad that I thought about pulling in, but we could still score some points. It was good to get on the podium in the second race but I guess that I am still a little disappointed, because I felt we could have been there in both races. But don't worry, we'll make up for it in Phillip Island!"
Haga too managed to score a fine result in the day's second race with a fourth position. He's due a good result on 'The Island'. The Japanese rider had his first win outside of Japan there in 1998, although to date that is his only victory Down Under. The official Yamaha squad, along with the nominated Pirelli tyre test teams from the other four manufacturers, tested at Phillip Island just over a month ago, something Haga hopes will help them get the most out of their bikes this weekend.
"We tested at Phillip Island in January," he says. "We were able to do a lot of laps and work on a setting for the race, so I hope that this will help us this weekend. Remember, we only had our first shakedown at the end of last year and we are learning more about it with every session. We learned a lot about the bike in Australia and, although we could not get good life from the front tyre, it was working very well in Qatar."
In the Supersport World Championship, Yamaha World Supersport team rider Kevin Curtain lies second in the championship following his second place in Qatar. The Australian was in spectacular form all weekend and managed to score pole position on Saturday. The R6 man looked impressive in the race too, leading the opening laps but had to settle for second due to a lack of rear end tyre traction. Now the veteran star has vowed to put on a big show for his legions of fans at Phillip Island. He said: "I don't believe in saying 'I'm going to win this or I'm gonna do that' because I believe that it can bring bad luck or bad karma. What I do know is that I am really fired up for my home race and will be giving it absolutely everything I've got. I've ridden this track so many times that if I'm going to win anywhere then it will be there. Our team has made some big progress with the bike over the winter, not so much in terms of outright power but certainly in terms of making it easier to ride. We've tested at Phillip Island earlier in the year and we were able to run some fast laps, so I'm really hoping for more of the same this weekend."
Curtain's team-mate and countryman Broc Parkes was also afflicted by grip problems in Qatar. The 25-year-old had to pull in when his rear tyre wore out but is keen to rack up his first points of 2007. "Qatar was disappointing," he said. "But we have to put that behind us. We had a great test at Phillip Island and it's always exciting to be racing at home."
Alex Asigno
Alex Asigno

Coppins enjoys first International Yamaha victory

Yamaha Motocross team rider Josh Coppins showed why he is seen as one of the favourites for the FIM MX1 Word Championship this year as he scored his first International win in blue colours and scored his second success inside a week after proving his great shape in the opening round of the Italian Championship at Montevarchi last Sunday. The New Zealander posted results of third, third and first with the YZ450FM over three motos at a dark, cold and rainy Valence circuit in Southern France yesterday. Excessive rain through Saturday evening meant that the hillside setting 100km south of Lyon was a mushy and puddle-strewn terrain for Sunday’s racing timetable. Further predicted showers thankfully remained absent though and the slippery course dried as the afternoon drew on. The small venue was crowded by a decent spectator turn-out and the high-profile entry list that included works teams from four manufacturers provided worthy entertainment.
The best race of the day was the second of the three. Overall victory was disputed between David Philippaerts, Kevin Strijbos and Coppins and the trio pulled away from the pack in Motos two and three. The first coming together of the three protagonists in heat one witnessed a close chase with the triplet separated by no more than two seconds for the latter half of the 20 minute and two lap distance. Coppins built his momentum to be crawling all over the back of stubborn leader Philippaerts approaching the last circulation, but was then mugged by Strijbos and had to accept third spot.
He gained suitable revenge in the final act however and left his junior rivals unable to match his speed at the front even though the French spectators were treated to another tight finish with little over a second dividing the first two past the chequered flag. ‘I am happy with today. It is my first time on the bike in these conditions and I am learning each time I ride,’ said Coppins. ‘I had three good starts and was on the podium three times which is what I was looking for. I knew that if I won the last race I would get the ‘overall’ so I pushed harder. In the first two heats I took it easy and concentrated on being smooth. I wanted to pass Philippaerts in that second race but I got stuck in a rut behind him and Kevin came up fast with some really good lines. He had obviously been passing others with those lines and got by me. I wasn’t going to enter a big fight at that stage and I completed my own race.’
Marc de Reuver was not befriended by lady luck. The Dutchman did not have the best pick of gates after timed practice although was able to take an eight place in the first race. He was then hit by Tanel Leok and crashed in the second moto and had a decent start thwarted in heat three when Billy Mackenzie fell in front of him on the third corner. He grabbed 15th overall with final positions of eight, 15th and a non-score.
‘I did not have such a good time from qualification and this did not help,’ he lamented. ‘I did not get a bad start in the first heat but there was so much mud that there was only one line. I had eight and thought I could do better in the next one. I had another decent start in the second heat from my position but on the jump after the finish line I collided with Leok in the air and was completely last by the time I restarted. In the third race I had a good line around the corner before the finish because everybody was struggling around the inside and Mackenzie thought the same thing but he crashed. I was half a metre behind him which brought me to a stop. I fell again later on and it seemed to sum up my day.’
Ricci Racing’s Kenneth Gundersen was struggling to make an impact on the YZ250F in a format that placed MX2, MX1 and MX Open machines into the same category. The Norwegian had a forgettable day, but insisted the results of 18th, 17th and DNS in no way indicate the progress of his preparation for a World Championship bid. ‘It was a really bad day because I had bad starts and crashed in the first corner of both motos,’ he said. ‘It was good training and that’s it. It is difficult to race in the open class with a 250. If you are at the front from the start then it is OK but if you have to pass then it is very hard. Everything is going really well though. We had a great week in Italy and I feel very prepared for this year.’
The Yamaha Motocross Team have little time for rest as they head north through Europe this week to Great Britain and the sand of Hawkstone Park for their fourth meeting inside four weeks.
Overall result 1. J. Coppins (NZL) Yamaha 2. D. Philippaerts (ITA) KTM 3. M. Nagl (RFA) KTM 4. K. Strijbos (BEL) Suzuki 5. T. Rattray (AFS) KTM 6. B. Mackenzie (GBR) Kawasaki 7. S. Pourcel (FRA) Kawasaki 8. J. Bill (CH) Kawasaki 9. N. Aubin (FRA) Yamaha 10. F. Renet (FRA) Honda 11. A. Boissière (FRA) Kawasaki 12. M. Vanni (FRA) Honda 13. S. Frossard (FRA) Kawasaki 14. D. Allier (FRA) Kawasaki 15. M. De Reuver (NL) Yamaha
Alex Asigno
Alex Asigno

Rossi ready to race after masterful performance in Jerez

Valentino Rossi ended his pre-season preparations in fine style today after taking top honours in the traditional 40-minute ‘Qualifying’ Practice session at Jerez, smashing last year’s pole time and becoming the fastest man ever round the Spanish circuit in the process. There was double satisfaction for Yamaha as Rossi’s team-mate Colin Edwards, who took this same accolade in treacherously wet conditions at Catalunya last year, finished the session third.
After a one-two in this morning’s free practice, Rossi and Edwards were feeling confident for this afternoon’s timed shoot-out and with several qualifying tyres each to try during the session, had plenty of chances to see what their 800cc Yamahas could do under pressure. Loris Capirossi (Ducati) took an early lead before Dani Pedrosa (Honda) took control with just over half the session gone. Rossi soon joined him at the top and an exciting battle ensued between the Italian and the Spaniard as they swapped the lead several times over the last twenty minutes, with Edwards remaining in close contention throughout. In the closing stages of the session Rossi produced a perfect lap to set an outstanding time of 1’38.394, almost seven-tenths of a second faster than Capirossi’s pole time from 2006. Pedrosa was unable to find an answer despite crossing the line seconds before the chequered flag and mounting a last-gasp effort to usurp Rossi from the top spot.
Today’s result marks the end of a long but satisfying pre-season testing campaign for the Yamaha Factory Team, who leave Jerez in good shape and high spirits ahead of the first race of the season in Qatar on 10th March.
Valentino Rossi (1st, 1’38.394, 17 Laps) “After this morning, when my Yamaha worked very well, I knew that I had a chance to try to win this competition. However I knew it was going to be a hard fight as well and I definitely expected Pedrosa to be as strong as he was. It was a fun battle with him, the first real one of the year! Anyway with every qualifying tyre I tried it felt better and better and I was able to go faster; in the end my time was fantastic and my Yamaha really flew! The most important thing about this is that it shows what great work we’ve done over the winter, everyone has tried so hard and this is a nice way to say thank you to them all. This new bike is working really well with the new tyres, both with race and qualifying tyres, so this is very important too and I would like to say thank you to Michelin. It was fun to see just how far I can push this new bike and it has answered me brilliantly, I felt very confident in my Yamaha today and I was able to ride it on the limit. Colin was also very fast so this once again shows how well our bike is working. Of course this isn’t even the first race and now we have to wait until Qatar, but we’re definitely in good shape and I am excited about the season ahead!”
Colin Edwards (3rd, 1’39.300, 16 Laps) “That was good fun today! This morning everything really came together for both Valentino and I and we knew that we were going to be able to push hard this afternoon. The Michelin qualifiers worked great and, after some of the problems we had last year, that’s a massive relief for us. I had a few more issues than Valentino in the timed session, nothing serious but our setting wasn’t quite the same as his and I wasn’t able to match his pace, but we know what we need to work on and anyway we were still in the top three and pretty fast. Honestly both Valentino and I are just so happy with everything, it all seems to work and it seems all the effort over the winter has paid off this time! It’s good to have finally finished testing and to be leaving here on such a high note; it gives everyone that extra kick for the first race. I can’t wait to finally get to Qatar now and start racing!”
Davide Brivio - Team Director “This is only an appetiser before the real racing begins, but anyway it’s always nice to win this competition for the third time in four years and it gives everyone real confidence for the first race. The fact that Valentino was on top and Colin third is really great and it’s especially important that it’s happened here at Jerez, where we struggled quite a bit last year. This is very satisfying for everyone and it shows we’ve worked very well in the right direction throughout winter testing. Of course the race is a different story, so now we will focus on Qatar and hope it goes well for us there too.”
Lap Times 1. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Yamaha 1'38.394 2. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Honda 1'38.527 3. Colin Edwards (USA) Yamaha 1'39.300 4. Nicky Hayden (USA) Honda 1'39.556 5. Randy de Puniet (FRA) Kawasaki 1'39.832 6. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati 1'39.873 7. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati 1'39.887 8. Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Suzuki 1'40.043 9. Kenny Roberts (USA) Team KR 1'40.083 10. Carlos Checa (SPA) Honda 1'40.100 11. Toni Elias (SPA) Honda 1'40.202 12. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Honda 1'40.242 13. Makoto Tamada (JPN) Yamaha 1'40.307 14. Marco Melandri (ITA) Honda 1'40.396 15. Olivier Jacque (FRA) Kawasaki 1'40.551 16. Alex Hofmann (GER) Ducati 1'40.681 17. Alex Barros (BRA) Ducati 1'41.038 18. Kousuke Akiyoshi (JPN) Suzuki 1'41.805 19. Sylvain Guintoli (FRA) Yamaha 1'42.215 20. Vittoriano Guareschi (ITA) Ducati 1'43.008 21. Andrew Pitt (AUS) Ilmor 1'43.026 22. Shinichi Ito (JPN) Ducati 1'43.073 23. Jeremy McWilliams (IRE) Ilmor 1'43.202
Jerez Lap Record (990cc): Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 2005 – 1’40.596 Jerez Best Lap (800cc): Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 2007 – 1’38.394
Alex Asigno
Alex Asigno

Promising day for Rossi and Edwards after foggy start in Jerez

Following yesterday’s heavy rain, thick fog delayed the start of the second day of testing in Jerez this morning before giving way to sunshine and a dry track, providing the Yamaha Factory Team with the chance to get some important work under their belts. Valentino Rossi and Colin Edwards both focused on general set-up work today and were pleased to see good improvements to the performance of their 800cc Yamahas since their last test here in November. Rossi and Edwards were consistently fast throughout the day, with Rossi topping the time sheets until the last stages of the session before being overtaken by Marco Melandri (Honda), who set the day’s best lap in a time of 1’40.383. Rossi finished just behind him in a time of 1’40.408, under the existing 990cc lap record, which he himself set in 2005. Edwards, having been in the top three for most of the day, also slipped down the order at the end as several riders opted to try qualifying tyres ahead of tomorrow’s 40 minute timed ‘qualifying’ shoot-out, which begins at 1405 CET.
Valentino Rossi (2nd, 1’40.408, 65 Laps) “Today was a very good day for us and we’ve done some great work. After today we’re happy because we can understand that we did a great job when we were here in November. We started with the same setting and the bike was fast straight away, then afterwards we tried a new setting from January and February, with the suspension and other things, and it felt even better. I had a great feeling with the front and also with the rear, and I had a lot of confidence with my bike. The balance was good under acceleration and I was able to go fast and in a good rhythm. Tomorrow we’ve got some more things to try and also some more tyres from Michelin, so we hope to make even more improvements. We’ll also get the chance to try a qualifying tyre and to see how we go against our rivals in the ‘qualifying’ session, which will be interesting. So anyway, we’ve got another day and some more work to do, but the situation is already good and I am feeling happy.”
Colin Edwards (9th, 1’41.204, 69 Laps) “Today we started where we left off yesterday, trying to work out how to adapt the good setting from Qatar to this track. We figured a few things out in the morning and kept on making progress and actually what we’ve found is quite a long way from the Qatar setting and also from the old setting we used here, but anyway it works great! It felt good all day and I was doing consistently quick times, before we put in our ‘first-choice’ tyre from Qatar near the end and then it felt really fantastic. It really is a great tyre, so hopefully Michelin will have lots of those for me this season! I was right up there on the time sheets until the end when a few people put qualifiers in, but that wasn’t on our agenda today and we’ll have a go at that tomorrow. Of course there’s the competition tomorrow and it’s definitely the day to make a statement, so we’ll see how it goes!
Davide Brivio – Team Director “Today we did a great job with Valentino, we found a very good balance and a good setting and he was able to be fast from his first lap and always at the top, until the very end. It was also a good day for Colin and he was also fast throughout. Tomorrow is our last day of testing before the championship starts so it’s very important, then we also have the competition in the afternoon. We’re in good shape with both riders so it should be an interesting day.”
Lap Times: 1. Marco Melandri (ITA) Honda 1’40.383 2. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Yamaha 1’40.408 3. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Honda 1’40.581 4. Alex Hofmann (GER) Ducati 1’40.748 5. Toni Elias (SPA) Honda 1’40.952 6. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati 1’41.071 7. Carlos Checa (SPA) Honda 1’41.096 8. Randy de Puniet (FRA) Kawasaki 1’41.151 9. Colin Edwards (USA) Yamaha 1’41.204 10. Makoto Tamada (JPN) Yamaha 1’41.234 11. Nicky Hayden (USA) Honda 1’41.259 12. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Honda 1’41.269 13. Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Suzuki 1’41.363 14. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati 1’41.590 15. Olivier Jacque (FRA) Kawasaki 1’41.777 16. Kenny Roberts (USA) Team KR 1’41.783 17. Alex Barros (BRA) Ducati 1’41.845 18. Sylvain Guintoli (FRA) Yamaha 1’42.364 19. Shinichi Ito (JPN) Ducati 1’43.209 20. Kousuke Akiyoshi (JPN) Suzuki 1’43.610 21. Vittoriano Guareschi (ITA) Ducati 1’44.143 22. Jeremy McWilliams (IRE) Ilmor 1’44.458 23. Andrew Pitt (AUS) Ilmor 1’44.589
Jerez Lap Record (990cc): Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 2005 – 1’40.596 Jerez Best Lap (990cc): Loris Capirossi (Ducati) 2006 – 1’39.064
Alex Asigno
Alex Asigno

Corser gives Yamaha debut podium

Troy Corser gave his Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team something to cheer with a hard fought podium finish in the second race at today's opening round of the 2007 Superbike World Championship in Qatar.
With team-mate Noriyuki Haga digging deep to finish fourth, it was a promising start for the 2007-model YZF-R1, which was making its world championship debut at the Losail circuit.
Having proved its pace by taking Corser to pole in qualifying, the new R1 wasn't quite able to repeat its performance over the race distance - although things started promisingly as the red Yamahas hit the front on the opening laps of the first race. The R1s fought a four-way battle for the lead with Max Biaggi (Suzuki) and James Toseland (Honda) but it soon became obvious that the Corser and Haga were suffering more than their rivals in the warm conditions when they started to fall off the pace after six laps. Haga struggled for front end grip as his tyre wore while Corser's machine vibrated heavily due to his rear tyre spinning on the rim. In the circumstances both men rode well to bring their machines home in the top 10, Haga eighth and Corser ninth.
In the second race the Yamaha men were able to battle with Biaggi and Toseland for around 11 laps before dropping off the pace. Corser and Haga were able to stay closer to the leading duo and maintained their third and fourth places to the flag, the Japanese rider only just fending off Fonsi Nieto (Kawasaki) as he crossed the line.
Team YZF Yamaha's Shinichi Nakatomi scored points for 12th place in the opening race, although the Japanese rider finished just outside the points, in 17th, in the second.
Biaggi and Toseland each took a win and a second place to jointly lead the championship. The Italian won the day's opener, his first ever superbike race, while British rider Toseland held the advantage in the second. Corser's podium sees him leave Qatar fourth in the championship while Haga heads to next weekend's second round, held at Australia's Phillip Island circuit, sixth in the standings.
Troy Corser (Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "The first race was really tough because but the tyre was more consistent in the second and that meant that I could stay with James and Max for longer. I decided to stick with the same tyre choice and tried to put the problems we had in the first race out of my mind. I was ok when I was with them as the slipstream helped me make up a little bit down the straight, but when they made a break I didn't have an answer to them. Overall though it's been a positive start. It's my first weekend with Yamaha, on a new bike, and we've finished on the podium. We've got a very good chassis and I feel really comfortable riding the bike, so if we can make the tyres last then there's no reason why we can't get a good result at Phillip Island next weekend."
Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "It has been a difficult day because after about six laps my front tyre is gone! For race two we made some changes and used the softer rear tyre, but already we used the hardest option on the front. I did the best possible today and I am looking forward to next weekend."
Shinichi Nakatomi (Team YZF Yamaha) "It was good to score some points in the first race. We are learning about this new bike all the time so we will be stronger as the year goes on. The second race was more difficult as more riders finished but I am hoping to get more points next weekend."
Massimo Meregalli (Team Coordinator - Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "While we were all very happy with our performance in qualifying yesterday we also knew that it would be difficult in the races today. We have a new motorcycle this year and tyre wear was a problem at this race especially with Noriyuki, maybe because of his riding style. But we were not the only team to experience problems and thankfully we understand what has happened and how we can work to improve the bike. There are many positives to take from this weekend and if Troy hadn't have had his problems in the first race I am sure he would have been on the podium twice."
Circuit Length: 5380 Temp: 26 Weather: Sunny     2007 WSB Qatar 24/02/2007 Race 1 - 18 Laps Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 Max Biaggi Suzuki ITA 36'10.115 2 James Toseland Honda GBR 0'1.483 3 Lorenzo Lanzi Ducati ITA 0'13.906 4 Yukio Kagayama Suzuki JPN 0'14.819 5 Troy Bayliss Ducati AUS 0'17.305 6 Max Neukirchner Suzuki GER 0'24.931 7 Roberto Rolfo Honda ITA 0'25.165 8 Noriyuki Haga Yamaha JPN 0'27.320 9 Troy Corser Yamaha AUS 0'31.237 10 Ruben Xaus Ducati ESP 0'31.669 11 Steve Martin Honda AUS 0'42.355 12 Shinichi Nakatomi Yamaha JPN 0'46.845 13 Alessandro Polita Suzuki ITA 0'59.207 14 Jakub Smrz Ducati CZE 1'0.296 15 Dean Ellison Ducati GBR 1'21.043
Race 2 - 18 Laps Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 James Toseland Honda GBR 36'9.433 2 Max Biaggi Suzuki ITA 0'0.738 3 Troy Corser Yamaha AUS 0'7.386 4 Noriyuki Haga Yamaha JPN 0'14.984 5 Fonsi Nieto Kawasaki ESP 0'15.033 6 Yukio Kagayama Suzuki JPN 0'15.911 7 Lorenzo Lanzi Ducati ITA 0'16.664 8 Troy Bayliss Ducati AUS 0'23.249 9 Ruben Xaus Ducati ESP 0'24.282 10 Max Neukirchner Suzuki GER 0'33.480 11 Regis Laconi Kawasaki FRA 0'34.004 12 Michel Fabrizio Honda ITA 0'37.297 13 Joshua Brookes Honda AUS 0'42.064 14 Karl Muggeridge Honda AUS 0'42.359 15 Alessandro Polita Suzuki ITA 0'46.206 17 Shinichi Nakatomi Yamaha JPN 0'51.300
Best Lap Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time Max Biaggi Suzuki ITA 1'59.194
 Rider Standings 24/02/2007
Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Points 1. Max Biaggi Suzuki ITA 45 2. James Toseland Honda GBR 45 3. Lorenzo Lanzi Ducati ITA 25 4. Troy Corser Yamaha AUS 23 5. Yukio Kagayama Suzuki JPN 23 6. Noriyuki Haga Yamaha JPN 21 7. Troy Bayliss Ducati AUS 19 8. Max Neukirchner Suzuki GER 16 9. Ruben Xaus Ducati ESP 13 10. Fonsi Nieto Kawasaki ESP 11 11. Roberto Rolfo Honda ITA 9 12. Steve Martin Honda AUS 5 13. Regis Laconi Kawasaki FRA 5 14. Shinichi Nakatomi Yamaha JPN 4 15. Michel Fabrizio Honda ITA 4
Manufacturer Standings 24/02/2007
Pos. Manufacturer Points 1. Honda 45 2. Suzuki 45 3. Ducati 25 4. Yamaha 24 5. Kawasaki 11
RACE REPORT 24/02/2007 Podium for Curtain in tough Qatar opener    It was a day of mixed emotions, and results, for the Yamaha World Supersport team in Qatar but overall it was a good day for Kevin Curtain, grabbing 20 important points after finishing second in today's opening round of the 2007 Supersport World Championship.
Starting from pole position, Curtain was able to quickly build up a lead. However the Australian was unable to shake off the attentions of Sebastien Charpentier and Kenan Sofuoglu (both Honda) and was involved in a three-way battle for the lead in the opening half of the race.
The Yamaha man pushed his rivals hard but was unable to quite keep his rivals in touch as an incorrect rear tyre selection caused his machine to spin up and lose fractions of a second. Curtain rode a lonely but sensible race to maintain a podium finish and was rewarded when world champion Charpentier crashed out of the lead two laps from the end, moving the Yamaha man up to second place at the flag.
Similar tyre selection problems meant that team-mate Broc Parkes' bad luck at the Losail circuit continued when he was forced to retire after five laps, his second retirement at this venue in as many years. The Australian had seemingly solved the chatter problems that plagued him during qualifying as he moved up from seventh on the grid to fourth place at the end of the first lap. However he suffered severe tyre degradation and, unable to maintain race pace, he was forced to retire for safety reasons.
Yamaha Motor Italy Lorenzini by Leoni racer Massimo Roccoli had a good day in Qatar. Coming from the third row, the 22-year-old from Rimini made a rocket propelled start and was as high as fourth on the opening lap. He settled into a race-long battle with Gianluca Nannelli (Ducati) in the lower half of the top 10, holding off his fellow Italian to take seventh place by one tenth of a second.
Katsuaki Fujiwara (Honda) took third place to join Curtain and Sofuoglu on the podium. With just one race gone, the championship standings are as per today's results: Sofuoglu leading the way on 25 points with Curtain five behind in second place.
Kevin Curtain (Yamaha World Supersport team) "Second place is a good start in terms of the championship, although I'm disappointed I didn't have a chance to fight for the lead. In the end we used the wrong tyre and the bike was spinning up everywhere, so in the circumstances it's a good result. We've made some good progress with the bike over the winter and I'm looking forward to racing at my home circuit next week. Phillip Island is a place I know like the back of my hand and I'll be giving it 200 percent to try and go one better than we have today."
Massimo Roccoli (Yamaha Motor Italy Lorenzini by Leoni) "Not such a bad start to the season. I made a very good start and was able to have a good battle with Nannelli and a few others. I said yesterday that top 10 would be a good result so seventh is a pleasing start to the season for me."
Broc Parkes (Yamaha World Supersport team) "I'm really disappointed but when the tyre went off my lap time dropped by around three seconds and I just couldn't continue. We've had a tough weekend as we couldn't seem to get as good a set-up or lap time as we did in testing, although I was confident we could get some decent points today. I made a good start but after a few laps the tyre was gone and I had to pull in because it was too dangerous to stay out."
Circuit Length: 5380 Temp: 26 Weather: Sunny     2007 WSS Qatar 24/02/2007 Race 1 - 18 Laps Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 Kenan Sofuoglu Honda TUR 37'22.452 2 Kevin Curtain Yamaha AUS 0'3.413 3 Katsuaki Fujiwara Honda JPN 0'6.228 4 Fabien Foret Kawasaki FRA 0'13.759 5 Pere Riba Kawasaki ESP 0'13.857 6 Robbin Harms Honda DNK 0'14.534 7 Massimo Roccoli Yamaha ITA 0'18.650 8 Gianluca Nannelli Ducati ITA 0'18.775 9 Barry Veneman Suzuki NED 0'19.291 10 Vesa Kallio Suzuki FIN 0'20.595 11 Javier Fores Honda ESP 0'20.817 12 Craig Jones Honda GBR 0'22.398 13 Lorenzo Alfonsi Honda ITA 0'26.903 14 David Salom Fuentes Yamaha ESP 0'28.568 15 Gianluca Vizziello Yamaha ITA 0'34.516 Best Lap Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time Sebastien Charpentier Honda FRA 2'3.921
Rider Standings 24/02/2007 Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Points 1. Kenan Sofuoglu Honda TUR 25 2. Kevin Curtain Yamaha AUS 20 3. Katsuaki Fujiwara Honda JPN 16 4. Fabien Foret Kawasaki FRA 13 5. Pere Riba Kawasaki ESP 11 6. Robbin Harms Honda DNK 10 7. Massimo Roccoli Yamaha ITA 9 8. Gianluca Nannelli Ducati ITA 8 9. Barry Veneman Suzuki NED 7 10. Vesa Kallio Suzuki FIN 6 11. Javier Fores Honda ESP 5 12. Craig Jones Honda GBR 4 13. Lorenzo Alfonsi Honda ITA 3 14. David Salom Fuentes Yamaha ESP 2 15. Gianluca Vizziello Yamaha ITA 1
Manufacturer Standings 24/02/2007 Pos. Manufacturer Points 1. Honda 25 2. Yamaha 20 3. Kawasaki 13 4. Ducati 8 5. Suzuki 7
Alex Asigno
Alex Asigno

Final Test Gets Underway for Yamaha at Rain-Hit Jerez

Yamaha Factory Racing riders Valentino Rossi and Colin Edwards started their final pre-season preparations today as the Official MotoGP Test began in Jerez. The Andalusian circuit, which will play host to the second round of the MotoGP World Championship in March, will provide the teams with the last chance to fine-tune their 800cc MotoGP motorcycles before the season gets started in Qatar. After three consecutive races in warmer climes, it was a wet return to European shores this morning when the MotoGP paddock was subjected to a heavy rainstorm and as a result Rossi and Edwards were not able get out on track until the early afternoon. However even after that the low temperatures meant that track failed to dry properly and it remained quite damp in places, causing the Yamaha pair to take it gently throughout the afternoon as they concentrated on trying to find the right set-up ahead of a hopefully drier day tomorrow.
The timesheets were topped today by Honda rider Marco Melandri, who set a time of 1’42.563, a full two seconds off Rossi’s old 990cc lap record, which still stands from 2005. Edwards came in at 11th position with best lap of 1’43.845 with Rossi behind him in 13th after a lap of 1’44.494.
Colin Edwards, Position: 11th Time: 1’43.845 Laps: 38 “Actually that was a really useful day for us, despite the weather! Obviously the times don’t really show it, but I’m not worried about those because the conditions really limited what we could do with regards to going fast. It wasn’t nice out there with the patchy conditions and it was really quite dangerous; it was obvious that whoever took the most risks was going to be fastest today! Anyway, we came here with our ‘smooth-track’ setting which worked so well in Qatar and tried it here, which is much bumpier. The good thing about today is that we think we now understand why it doesn’t work so well on bumpy tracks and so tomorrow we’re going to work on changing that and getting it to work everywhere. That’s the aim for tomorrow and hopefully we’ll be successful in that task, which will put us in much better stead as far as adjusting the bike to different tracks goes. We were obviously nowhere near our times from December today but we know the bike is better than it was then so I am sure that once the track dries out properly and it gets a bit warmer, we’ll get a lot faster.”
Valentin Rossi Position: 13th Time: 1’44.494 Laps:36 “The most important thing about this test for us is that it gives us the chance to see how our new bike has changed from the test here in December to now. We’ve had three tests in between and the bike has changed quite a bit, plus we’ve had some new parts for the engine and the bike is a bit faster. Today wasn’t great because the conditions were bad, it didn’t really dry out all day so it wasn’t possible to go so fast. Anyway though, I am impressed at some of the times of my rivals in these conditions! I was quite fast at the start when it was quite wet, but really it wasn’t enough to do a real wet-weather test. So after today we still can’t see how much we’ve improved from the last test, but hopefully tomorrow will be better. We’ve found some interesting things though and I think it will be better tomorrow. Of course the objective of this weekend is to be ready for the race when we return here and I hope we will also be able to go faster than we did here in December. The biggest changes since we were here last have been made to the suspension, especially in the front, but today we couldn’t really see the potential of these changes. If it becomes warmer we will also try to find some good tyres for this track, so let’s hope for sunshine!”
Davide Brivio, Team Director “Today was a bit disappointing because we obviously have a lot of work to get through here and the weather really delayed us, but anyway both riders found out some interesting things about their bikes in these conditions and gathered some good information. We hope that the weather will be better tomorrow so we will be able to see how much our bike has improved since the last test here. It’s a bit cold at this time of year, but hopefully the sun will come out and we will be able to really get started!”
Unofficial Lap Times 1. Marco Melandri (ITA) Honda 1’42.563 2. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati 1’42.634 3. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Honda 1’42.706 4. Carlos Checa (SPA) Honda 1’43.206 5. Alex Barros (BRA) Ducati 1’43.214 6. Randy de Puniet (FRA) Kawasaki 1’43.315 7. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati 1’43.476 8. Alex Hofmann (GER) Ducati 1’43.673 9. Toni Elias (SPA) Honda 1’43.687 10. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Honda 1’43.817 11. Colin Edwards (USA) Yamaha 1’43.845 12. Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Suzuki 1’44.052 13. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Yamaha 1’44.494 14. Olivier Jacque (FRA) Kawasaki 1’44.659 15. Makoto Tamada (JPN) Yamaha 1’45.081 16. Sylvain Guintoli (FRA) Yamaha 1’45.208 17. Vittoriano Guareschi (ITA) Ducati 1’45.603 18. Shinichi Ito (JPN) Ducati 1’45.826 19. Nicky Hayden (USA) Honda 1’45.901 20. Kenny Roberts (USA) Team KR 1’45.937 21. Kousuke Akiyoshi (JPN) Suzuki 1’47.191 22. Jeremy McWilliams (IRE) Ilmor 1’47.696 23. Andrew Pitt (AUS) Ilmor 1’49.365
Jerez Lap Record (990cc) Valentino Rossi (Yamaha) 2005 - 1’40.596
Jerez Best Lap (990cc) Loris Capirossi (Ducati) 2006 - 1’39.064
Alex Asigno
Alex Asigno

Corser on pole as 2007 R1 continues impressive debut

Troy Corser lived up to his reputation as the king of superpole in Qatar today, setting a blistering lap time to grab pole position for his first races with the Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team.
The new-for-2007 YZF-R1 has made an immediate impact in its first world championship outing with Noriyuki Haga setting the pace yesterday and Corser taking pole today. Haga continued his great form in superpole and will join his team-mate on the front row for tomorrow's races.
Corser, who will sit on pole for the 39th time tomorrow, didn't have the ideal preparation for his superpole lap after crashing at the end of the preceding free practice session. The Australian rider had gone out to test the soft qualifying tyre used for superpole but slid off as he entered the second turn.
His job looked doubly difficult when superbike newcomer Max Biaggi (Suzuki) became the first man to record a sub 1:59 lap time in superpole. Corser, who elected to run a tried and tested race tyre rather than the super-sticky qualifier, simply put the crash behind him and stormed to a 1:58.402 lap - one-third of a second quicker than the Italian and the fastest ever superbike time around the Losail circuit.
Team-mate Haga was delighted to secure an all-important front row start for tomorrow's 18-lap races. The Japanese star also opted not to use the softer qualifying tyre, preferring to use the softest race option instead. Haga's lap was, by his own admission, less than perfect but the combination of the R1's power and Haga's own skill and determination helped him stop the clock in 1:59.294, good enough for fourth place on tomorrow's grid.
Team YZF Yamaha rider Shinichi Nakatomi was the first rider to set off on his superpole lap after ending the two hours of qualifying in 16th position. The Japanese rider was unable to improve his time or qualifying position and will start the races from the fourth row after recording a time of 2:02.301. Despite failing to go faster on the soft superpole tyre, Nakatomi feels he has a good set up for the races and can make up positions as he regularly did last season.
Troy Corser (Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "I'm delighted to get the pole, although I think that Yamaha and the team are even more excited! You always just go out to have a clean lap and not make any mistakes. The front row is what you want but pole is always a nice bonus.
"I had a little crash just before the superpole. I went out on the qualifier and I don't really know what happened. I guess that I was probably taking it too easy because the back end just slid away as I turned in for the second corner. It was unfortunate. I got caught out yesterday as well, when went down on some oil, but I'm thankful that I slid down the way I did, because it could have been a nasty highside.
"It's a new bike and Nori and I are working really well together in the box. We're both doing our own things but we're also sharing a lot of information, especially on the suspension settings and tyre selections, to get the best out of the bike. I've got a really good feeling with the team and even though we've only been working together a short time we're working together well and it can only get better. The track is getting better the more we ride on it and I thought the tyres worked pretty well today. I did a lot of laps with James (Toseland) in practice and our lap times were pretty good. If we can make a good tyre choice then I think we should be up the front tomorrow."
Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "I'm very happy to be on the front row. During the superpole I made a mistake with my braking early in the lap, so I pushed hard and made another small mistake. But the lap time was good and the front row is always the target. We did a lot of work on the suspension today as we are trying to get the maximum from the tyre in race condition and I think that we can feel the benefit of this tomorrow."
Shinichi Nakatomi (Team YZF Yamaha) "I think we are ready for the races. This is what we concentrate on during the practice and I have been able to make lots of consistent laps. We are learning more about this new bike all the time and I think we can improve more tomorrow."
Massimo Meregalli (Team Coordinator - Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "We did not really expect to make the pole after Troy's crash but he was very focused and did a great job. Noriyuki's superpole lap was also done on the soft race tyre, rather than the qualifier, because he prefers to use this. So Troy on pole and Nori on the front row is a great result for the team and I hope we can continue the good results in the races tomorrow."
Circuit Length: 5380 Temp: 26 Weather: Sunny     2007 WSB Qatar 23/02/2007 Superpole Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 Troy Corser Yamaha AUS 1'58.402 2 Max Biaggi Suzuki ITA 1'58.724 3 James Toseland Honda GBR 1'59.005 4 Noriyuki Haga Yamaha JPN 1'59.294 5 Lorenzo Lanzi Ducati ITA 1'59.537 6 Troy Bayliss Ducati AUS 1'59.668 7 Yukio Kagayama Suzuki JPN 1'59.964 8 Max Neukirchner Suzuki GER 2'0.098 9 Fonsi Nieto Kawasaki ESP 2'0.240 10 Roberto Rolfo Honda ITA 2'0.414 11 Ruben Xaus Ducati ESP 2'0.429 12 Michel Fabrizio Honda ITA 2'1.085 13 Regis Laconi Kawasaki FRA 2'1.176 14 Karl Muggeridge Honda AUS 2'1.411 15 Joshua Brookes Honda AUS 2'1.581 16 Shinichi Nakatomi Yamaha JPN 2'2.301
Qualifying 2 Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 James Toseland Honda GBR 1'58.681 2 Troy Corser Yamaha AUS 1'58.922 3 Noriyuki Haga Yamaha JPN 1'58.955 4 Lorenzo Lanzi Ducati ITA 1'59.286 5 Max Biaggi Suzuki ITA 1'59.369 6 Yukio Kagayama Suzuki JPN 1'59.457 7 Troy Bayliss Ducati AUS 1'59.507 8 Max Neukirchner Suzuki GER 1'59.830 9 Fonsi Nieto Kawasaki ESP 1'59.919 10 Roberto Rolfo Honda ITA 2'0.077 11 Ruben Xaus Ducati ESP 2'0.244 12 Regis Laconi Kawasaki FRA 2'0.329 13 Michel Fabrizio Honda ITA 2'0.350 14 Karl Muggeridge Honda AUS 2'0.839 15 Joshua Brookes Honda AUS 2'0.936 16 Shinichi Nakatomi Yamaha JPN 2'1.076
QUALIFYING 2 REPORT 23/02/2007 Yamaha's Curtain storms to Qatari pole    Kevin Curtain made his intentions for the 2007 Supersport World Championship clear by blasting his Yamaha YZF-R6 to pole position for tomorrow's opening race at the Losail circuit in Qatar.
The Australian had endured a tough day in yesterday's practice, destroying his preferred machine when he was an innocent victim of a pile-up during the first practice session, but the Yamaha World Supersport team rider gave a virtuoso performance in today's second session, improving his time by almost two seconds. Curtain instantly improved his Thursday time and topped the timesheets for most of the session, although it was his perfectly timed run right at the end of the session that finally grabbed the pole and gave his rivals no time to respond. The Yamaha man's 2:02.081 lap was a whole second quicker than last year's pole position and gives the 2006 championship runner up the third world championship pole of his career.
Curtain's team-mate Broc Parkes battled set-up problems throughout the qualifying sessions and will start tomorrow's 18 lap, 97km, race from the second row after improving his time and one place from yesterday's opening session. Parkes stopped the clock at 2:03.396 on the second of his three qualifying runs and although he went out to try and move up the grid at the end of the session, he was unable to improve his time. Italian youngster Massimo Roccoli improved his opening day time by over a second to make round out the top ten and make it three YZF-R6s in the first three rows.
Joining Curtain on the front row for what is expected to be a closely fought race will be Sebastien Charpentier, Katsuaki Fujiwara and Kenan Sofuoglu (all Honda). Last season's race saw Curtain finish second to eventual champion Charpentier on the still-developing R6's race debut.
Kevin Curtain (Yamaha World Supersport team) "Today's been a great start for us and, to be honest, a little unexpected after what happened yesterday. I was a big victim of the oil on the track yesterday and I have to thank my mechanics for building me a brand new bike overnight, because the other one was destroyed. Thanks to them we were able to get on and concentrate on the work we wanted to concentrate on yesterday. The bike is working very good here and we've been able to do a lot of work on the chassis and suspension over the winter, so hopefully we can take advantage of that here this weekend."
Broc Parkes (Yamaha World Supersport team) "It's been a frustrating few days so far because when we came testing here I was able to do 2:02 laps all day long but so far this we've had a lot of problems with chattering and we can't quite put our finger on why that is. We've virtually turned the bike upside down but we've not been able to make much progress. We know that the bike's quick because Kevin's right on it, which is great for the team but frustrating for me. I know we'll try a few things for tomorrow and hopefully that will help us solve the chatter problem and put in a good race."
Circuit Length: 5380 Temp: 30 Weather: Sunny     2007 WSS Qatar 23/02/2007 Qualifying 2 Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 Kevin Curtain Yamaha AUS 2'2.081 2 Sebastien Charpentier Honda FRA 2'2.183 3 Katsuaki Fujiwara Honda JPN 2'2.376 4 Kenan Sofuoglu Honda TUR 2'2.752 5 Fabien Foret Kawasaki FRA 2'3.266 6 Pere Riba Kawasaki ESP 2'3.342 7 Broc Parkes Yamaha AUS 2'3.396 8 Gianluca Nannelli Ducati ITA 2'3.477 9 Yoann Tiberio Honda FRA 2'3.806 10 Massimo Roccoli Yamaha ITA 2'3.921 11 Barry Veneman Suzuki NED 2'4.142 12 Vesa Kallio Suzuki FIN 2'4.142 13 Robbin Harms Honda DNK 2'4.308 14 Javier Fores Honda ESP 2'4.489 15 Davide Giugliano Kawasaki ITA 2'4.687 24 David Checa Yamaha ESP 2'5.334 25 Sebastien Gimbert Yamaha FRA 2'5.414
Alex Asigno
Alex Asigno

New 2007 R1 leads the way in Qatar

Yamaha's new-for-2007 YZF-R1 demonstrated that it is a weapon to be reckoned with in world superbike competition, with Noriyuki Haga scoring provisional pole on the bike's world championship debut in Qatar today.
The Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team rider topped the timesheets for much of the session onboard the MotoGP-inspired R1, with the Japanese rider particularly happy with his performance because he was concentrating on finding a good set-up to last Saturday's 18-lap race rather than going for an ultimate pole position time. Haga's 1:59.019 provisional pole time was set on race rubber and is the fastest ever superbike lap of the Losail circuit, being over half-a-second faster than Troy Bayliss' qualifying lap last year, and a full second quicker than his own race record.
There was double delight for the Yamaha Motor Italia squad as team-mate Troy Corser also ended the day on the provisional front row. The Australian was also under Bayliss' previous best, posting a 1:59.440 to end the day fourth on the timesheets in his debut with the Italian squad.
Having tested at the circuit just a few weeks earlier, the team arrived in Qatar with a good base setting for their R1s. Despite this, the squad still had a great deal of work to get through in order to get the best out of their machines for Saturday's races. With track temperatures approaching 45 °C on the tarmac, tyre selection could prove critical this weekend. Corser and Haga have access to newer-specification Pirelli tyres this weekend than they had during testing, giving them a heavy programme of tyre testing in the practice sessions.
Shinichi Nakatomi ended the day 15th on the Team YZF Yamaha entry. The new squad, born out of the Yamaha Motor France-entered team of 2005 and 2006, is chiefly responsible for development of Yamaha's YEC range of customer race parts and using the world series to test and improve the range. The Japanese rider, entering his second year in the series, posted a time of 2:01.964 to gain a provisional place in tomorrow afternoon's grid deciding superpole session.
In today's tight qualifying session it was British rider James Toseland (Honda) who pushed Haga closest, recording a time of 1:59.056 to take second in the overnight standings. Joining them and Corser on the provisional front row is former 250cc world champion and Yamaha MotoGP rider Max Biaggi (Suzuki), who was third fastest on his superbike debut.
Noriyuki Haga (Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "I am surprised to be fastest because when we tested here I did not have a really good feeling with the bike. This morning I tried the set-up we left the test with but the feeling was still the same. For the afternoon we changed a few things and made a big step and I am now happy with the way the bike turns. We worked hard to find a good setting for the race and I still want to get better tyre life. For six or seven laps the tyre is very good but then we find that the rear falls away a lot on the right side. The new bike is working well. We only had our shakedown tests a few weeks ago but luckily we are able to carry forward many of the parts and knowledge from the previous R1 so we already have a very good base to work from."
Troy Corser (Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "I'm fairly happy with that. The track feels different from when we tested here and that's had an effect on how the bike is performing. We need to improve the front end tyre feel and there are quite a few little things for us to try out tomorrow. For sure it would have been nice to have had a few more tests before the first race but we've got a good base to work from and fourth is a pretty decent start."
Shinichi Nakatomi (Team YZF Yamaha) "No so bad! We made an improvement of two-and-a-half seconds between the morning and afternoon and I hope we can make some more improvement as we learn more about the set-up of the new machine."
Massimo Meregalli (Team Coordinator - Yamaha Motor Italy WSB Team) "We tested here a few weeks ago because we understood the importance of being competitive from the very first race. We found a good base setting at the test and, but for a few small changes, only the tyre options are different. We're happy with how it's gone today but it is hard to really judge how competitive we can be on race day at this moment. Both riders have been able to complete around 11 to 12 laps on the tyres but we still have to do some more endurance testing tomorrow."
Circuit Length: 5380 Temp: 25 Weather: Dry     2007 WSB Qatar 22/02/2007 Qualifying 1 Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 Noriyuki Haga Yamaha JPN 1'59.019 2 James Toseland Honda GBR 1'59.056 3 Max Biaggi Suzuki ITA 1'59.369 4 Troy Corser Yamaha AUS 1'59.440 5 Lorenzo Lanzi Ducati ITA 1'59.459 6 Troy Bayliss Ducati AUS 1'59.507 7 Yukio Kagayama Suzuki JPN 1'59.805 8 Ruben Xaus Ducati ESP 2'0.244 9 Roberto Rolfo Honda ITA 2'0.258 10 Fonsi Nieto Kawasaki ESP 2'0.309 11 Michel Fabrizio Honda ITA 2'0.467 12 Max Neukirchner Suzuki GER 2'0.626 13 Regis Laconi Kawasaki FRA 2'0.733 14 Joshua Brookes Honda AUS 2'0.936 15 Shinichi Nakatomi Yamaha JPN 2'1.948
QUALIFYING 1 REPORT 22/02/2007 R6 men show Middle Eastern promise   Kevin Curtain   
The Yamaha World Supersport team made a promising start to Saturday's opening round of the 2007 Supersport World Championship at a hot and sunny Losail circuit in Qatar today, ending first qualifying with both riders on the provisional second row.
Last year's championship runner-up Kevin Curtain was the fastest of the YZF-R6 runners, setting a best lap of 2:03.941 around the long and fast desert circuit. Team-mate Broc Parkes was just five hundreds of a second behind his fellow Australian to take eighth place in a tight session that saw the top eight all in the 2:03 bracket. Encouragingly both of the Yamaha Motor Europe entered machines were able to run consistently at race pace, putting in consistent 2:04 lap times during their runs.
The season certainly got off to a spectacular start when Curtain's R6 was destroyed in a pile-up just minutes into the morning practice session. The accident claimed four Yamaha riders with Yamaha GMT94's David Checa and Sebastien Gimbert, as well as Italian privateer Gianluca Vizziello, all going down on oil deposited by another rider's machine. Thankfully all riders escaped without injury and were able to return to the circuit when the session was restarted, allowing the protagonists to work on finding a good set-up for Saturday's 18 lap race.
Yamaha Motor Italy Lorenzini by Leoni rider Massimo Roccoli ended the day 11th on his YZF-R6, with supersport newcomer Gimbert and team-mate Checa ending the day 17th and 21st places respectively. Fastest man on show was Japanese rider Katsuaki Fujiwara (Honda) who recorded a 2:03.258 lap in the last minute of the session. Italian Gianluca Nannelli (Ducati) and Honda team-mates Kenan Sofuoglu and Sebastien Charpentier complete the provisional front row.
Kevin Curtain "Not a bad day but the crash this morning was a real downer. Someone blew up right on the racing line and four of us went down, with Broc and a few others doing real well to stay up. The bike was totally destroyed in the crash and that set me back as the spare bike wasn't set up quite the same. That's a shame but we know we are competitive and can make some improvements for tomorrow."
Broc Parkes   
Broc Parkes "It's been a decent enough start today. I almost crashed on the oil in the morning session and the two big delays were a little strange. The times are all very close and we're on the pace. I think that we are already in decent shape but hopefully we can get further up the grid tomorrow."
Circuit Length: 5380 Temp: 25 Weather: Dry     2007 WSS Qatar 22/02/2007 Qualifying 1 Pos. Rider Manu. Nat. Total Time 1 Katsuaki Fujiwara Honda JPN 2'3.258 2 Gianluca Nannelli Ducati ITA 2'3.477 3 Kenan Sofuoglu Honda TUR 2'3.608 4 Sebastien Charpentier Honda FRA 2'3.744 5 Fabien Foret Kawasaki FRA 2'3.862 6 Kevin Curtain Yamaha AUS 2'3.941 7 Pere Riba Kawasaki ESP 2'3.949 8 Broc Parkes Yamaha AUS 2'3.991 9 Robbin Harms Honda DNK 2'4.308 10 Barry Veneman Suzuki NED 2'4.484 11 Massimo Roccoli Yamaha ITA 2'4.953 12 Davide Giugliano Kawasaki ITA 2'5.054 13 Yoann Tiberio Honda FRA 2'5.399 14 Vesa Kallio Suzuki FIN 2'5.450 15 Javier Fores Honda ESP 2'5.456
Alex Asigno
Alex Asigno

Yamaha Factory Racing Team To Run In Special Blue Livery In Jerez

Yamaha’s Factory MotoGP Team will take part in the Official MotoGP Test in Jerez this weekend sporting a special blue Yamaha livery.
The livery reflects the familiar blue colours used in other Yamaha racing disciplines and also makes a direct connection with the blue colours and the famous Yamaha speedblock stripe used on the high-performance Yamaha R1 and R6 machines throughout the world.
The one-off livery will be used by Valentino Rossi and Colin Edwards over the three days of the test, including during the traditional televised timed ‘qualifying’ session on Sunday.
Davide Brivio, Team Director “We’ve chosen this important pre-season event to run in full Yamaha livery and it’s a nice chance to thank everyone in the company who has worked so hard over the winter. This could be the only opportunity to see Yamaha MotoGP bikes in this special blue livery as the design and colour will change again for the first MotoGP race in Qatar. I hope our fans and the all Yamaha network will appreciate and enjoy this special event!”
Alex Asigno
Alex Asigno

Yamaha riders rule at Italian championship season opener

Yamaha’s main contenders for the MX1 and MX2 world titles proved to be ready for the upcoming challenge by winning both heats in both MX1 and MX2 classes at the first Italian championship race held at Montevarchi in dry, but cloudy conditions.
Yamaha Motocross Team MX1 star Joshua Coppins and Antonio Cairoli of Team Yamaha de Carli competing in MX2 had to ride hard for their moto victories, resisting pressure from several world title contenders including their team mates and other fellow Yamaha riders. Particularly in MX2 the dominance of YZ250F riders was striking with the top six in the overall day result being Yamaha mounted.
The Yamaha Motocross Team does not intend to compete in all the races of the Italian championship, but saw the race at the Montevarchi track as a good opportunity to work on the setting of their YZ450FM for hard packed tracks. Team manager Carlo Rinaldi was happy with the progress made; “The Montevarchi track is a good place to develop the hard track set up before we start the world championship. We made good progress this weekend and we hope to finalize the hard track set up next week at Valence, after which we will move up north to Belgium to start testing and develop the sand set up”.
“I’m happy to see that both riders are competitive and content with the bike as we have it now. The setting between Josh and Marc is not as different as one may expect. Of course the riders have some different requests and Marc may look more aggressive on the bike, but actually there is not much difference in how our riders work the engine and control the throttle.’
“Overall we are very confident and our preparations go smoothly. In moto one Josh had to work hard for the win with Philippaerts and Nemeth, but in race two it was easier for him. It was good to see that Josh had both hole shots. Marc isn’t far behind either, I hope we can have a good test session in Belgium to give Marc a flying start come the first race in sandy Valkenswaard, his home track.
The Yamaha Motocross Team joins most of the other top teams coming weekend at the second big international preseason race at Valence, France.
MX1 – Overall result 1. Josh Coppins, NZ – Yamaha 50 2. David Philippaerts, ITA – KTM 44 3. Kornel Nemeth, HUN – Suzuki 40 4. Marc De Reuver, HOL – Yamaha 36 5. Cedric Melotte, BEL – Aprilia 31 6. Antoine Meo, FRA – Honda 30 7. Manuel Priem, BEL – TM 26 8. Cristian Beggi, ITA – WRM 26 9. Alex Salvini, ITA – Yamaha 26 10. Andrea Bartolini, ITA – Yamaha 23
MX2 – Overall result 1. Antonio Cairoli, ITA – Yamaha 50 2. Kenneth Gundersen, NOR – Yamaha 44 3. David Guarneri, ITA – Yamaha 38 4. Manuel Monni, ITA – Yamaha 38 5. Nicolas Aubin, FRA – Yamaha 31 6. Jeremy Tarroux, FRA – Yamaha 31 7. Deny Philippaerts, ITA – Honda 26 8. Matteo Bonini, ITA – Yamaha 24 9. Filip Neugebauer, CZ – Kawasaki 24 10. Paulin Gaultier, FRA – Honda 19
Alex Asigno
Alex Asigno

Yamaha teams ready for season opener at Qatar

The green light comes on for the Superbike World Championship's 20th anniversary this weekend with Yamaha expecting great things in all the classes for 2007.
Round one of the 2007 series takes place at the impressive Losail circuit in Qatar, where Yamaha Motor Italia's 'dream team' will look to capitalize on an impressive testing display at the Middle Eastern circuit just over a week ago.
The squad goes into the season with a new and much improved YZF-R1 for Troy Corser and Noriyuki Haga. The latest version of the legendary superbike comes loaded with sophisticated engine management electronics as standard, including Yamaha's YCC-T (Yamaha Chip Controlled Throttle) - the so-called 'fly-by-wire' system that should provide a huge help in transferring the 16-valve engine's 200+ bhp to the back tyre as smoothly as possible.
The team has tested twice in Qatar over the winter period with Corser, who has won two of the four races held at the Losail circuit, under the lap record in last weekend's test. The two-times world champion feels he is ready to go for the start of his 11th full superbike campaign, saying: "The team has made me feel very welcome and I'm really enjoying working with them. There's always a lot to do when you have a new bike and the new R1 is no exception. Of course, a little more time on the bike would have been good but I think we'll be ready for the first race. It's going to be another tough season - but then the Superbike World Championship is always tough. There are many good riders and many good bikes, so I don't think any rider is going to find it easy. I may be one of the 'senior' members in the series now, but my passion for racing and winning is the same as when I first started. It's hard to explain the feeling you get on a racebike when everything is working well. It's a tremendous buzz and one that I'm going to enjoy as long as I am having fun. I want to repay Yamaha's faith in me and I'd like to go into the record books by becoming the first rider to win on three different bikes. That would be some achievement!"
Aiming to stop Corser in his quest for a third world title will be his team-mate and Yamaha stalwart Haga. The Japanese rider has finished third in the series for the past three seasons but sees the arrival of the Australian rider as a positive thing rather than a threat. "I have a big respect for Troy," he says. "Not only is he a very fast rider, he also understands how to get the best from the bike. We have had many great and hard battles over the years but he is a good friend off the track. For me the goal is always the same at the start of the season and this year is no different. We want to win the title and I hope we can work well together in developing the new R1 and challenge for the number one. So far testing has gone quite well and the new bike has a lot of potential. But it's the racing that matters and I think that everybody is looking forward to the start of the season."
Yamaha also has high hopes in the world supersport class, where Kevin Curtain came so close to winning the championship last season. For 2007 the structure of the factory's official team has changed, with Yamaha Motor Europe taking over the running of the squad from German distributor Yamaha Motor Germany, although the organization remains largely the same, retaining the team's staff and base in Neuss.
With the current model R6 already having a year's development under its belt the squad is confident of being able to challenge for the top step of the podium from the opening race. Curtain and team-mate Broc Parkes have enjoyed a good winter testing programme, working mostly on suspension and fine-tuning the groundbreaking 600cc machine's electronic systems in a bid to improve ride ability and reduce rear tyre wear over race distance. The team also has the advantage of having tested in both Qatar and Australia, venues for the opening two rounds of the 2007 campaign, with Curtain topping the timesheets at both locations.
"Testing's gone really well," confirms Curtain. "Our lap times have been good and the team has made lots of small improvements that make the bike easier to ride. This time last year we had a new bike and had to play catch up for the first two races but this year hopefully we'll be able to take advantage of the continuity of having the same basic package. After coming so close last year our team is probably more motivated than ever and I really want to get the best possible results for them in these first two races."
Alex Asigno
Alex Asigno