Premiers essais à Assen : Réactions des pilotes

[FracK]

VALENTINO ROSSI – ( 2’00.840 – 30 laps)

“In the morning the bike was already good but we made a few modifications in the afternoon and, to be honest, it wasn’t quite as good as it had been in the morning and we lost some of the feeling. Anyway, we have a very good base to work from and tomorrow we can try something different. The changes to the track have taken a little bit of the taste away, but they were made for safety reasons, which means they are very important. Despite the changes it is still Assen and it is always a great pleasure to ride here, it’s a very special track. Once again the bike is working well right from the start and I think if we can improve the balance and the setting a little more, then we can make a good result in Saturday’s race.”

COLIN EDWARDS (2’01.588, 38 laps)

“It’s better than it looks! When everything is working perfectly and you find yourself in eighth place then it looks like you have a problem, but we have some very clear ideas where we can improve and we still have plenty of time. I feel like I can find another half-second tomorrow. I’ve been struggling for traction since Mugello so we’ve retraced our steps a little with the setting, made a pretty major change to the rear of the bike and it feels a lot better. I’m losing a few tenths in the new sections because I haven’t worked out which is the hot line through there yet but, like when you visit a new track, it always helps to sleep on it. Also, the corners at Assen are so unbelievably fast compared to anywhere else that it always takes me a day to get used to where I can brake – and where I don’t have to! At some tracks you can turn up and the bike works straight away but Assen is not one of them. It puts a lot of load on the bike and unless you find the right setting you can’t go fast. ”



Shinya Nakano: #56 - Tenth - 2'02.280

"The afternoon session was very difficult; I lost the good feeling I had with the bike during the cooler morning session. I improved my lap time, but it wasn't easy. The main problem is rear-end pumping and grip under acceleration on corner exit. We are still looking for a tyre direction for the race and we will try some different tyres tomorrow, hopefully with better rear-end performance. The changes to the track are better for safety, but everyone is still adjusting their braking points, they are different from last year."


Alex Hofmann: #66 - Twelfth - 2'02.409

"It's amazing for it to be so hot at Assen, but the heat did not favour our performance potential at this track. For sure we need to improve our rear-end grip and set-up for the race, at the moment it's good for a couple of laps, but the race is over 19 laps. I had a good rhythm in the morning session and we got a lot of set-up work done, but I'm looking for more, I want to push into the top ten in qualifying tomorrow."

CAPIROSSI FASTEST WITH RACE TYRES

Loris Capirossi grabbed 'pole position' on his final lap of the day. And the Ducati Marlboro Team rider set the pace while riding his number-two bike with race tyres, not a super-soft qualifying tyre.
"We are in a much better situation than we were at Barcelona two weeks ago but we still need to work on bike set-up to get more out of the tyres," said Capirossi. "The front is fine but we're still trying to find a good rear for the race. I did my fastest lap right at the end of the session on my number two bike with a race rear I hadn't used before, so we'll test that tyre for more laps tomorrow. At the moment we're not super-competitive in race trim, but Bridgestone are working so hard that we have a lot of new tyres to try here.
"I don't like the new part of the track. I preferred the original layout they got rid of a few years ago. It was very fast, you could really make a difference through there."

CHECA FEELING CONFIDENT IN SEVENTH

Carlos Checa enjoyed his first day on a Ducati at Assen, making excellent progress into this afternoon's session after a steady start this morning.
"This morning I didn't feel so comfortable on the bike but I felt much more confident this afternoon," said the Ducati Marlboro Team man. "At first the rear was moving around too much and the front end felt unstable in the fast sections, so it was difficult to keep the front on the ground. The team worked well to make some good improvements on the overall balance of the bike, so now we just need to keep working. But the faster you go, the more difficult it is to improve.
"The new chicane is quite delicate - there's not much room and it's easy to run off the track. Usually when you modify something you should make it better, but I think they've made it worse. It's a shame."










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