FRUSTRATING DAY AT HOME FOR KAWASAKI RACING TEAM
17 September 2005 - Kawasaki Racing

Kawasaki Racing Team riders, Alex Hofmann and Shinya Nakano, have qualified twelfth and fourteenth respectively for the teams'' home race at Motegi tomorrow.

It was a frustrating day and both riders admit they face a tough assignment in the 24-lap Japanese Grand Prix on the difficult-to-pass Motegi track.

Both Nakano and Hofmann used the standard specification Ninja ZX-RR motor in today''s practice and qualifying, as they will for tomorrow''s race. The upgraded motor, which was tested by Nakano yesterday, will undergo further evaluation and development before making its race debut

After thirty minutes of the one hour session Nakano had secured a place in the top ten with the seventh fastest time. With 20 minutes remaining he was the fastest rider on the track, and 0.4s inside provisional pole after two sectors, when his Ninja ZX-RR stopped with an engine problem.

Nakano could not improve his time after switching to his spare machine.

With nine minutes remaining Hofmann was also in the top ten with the ninth fastest time. The hard-riding German then set his best time on his 24th and last lap, but slipped to 12th in the final burst of fast lap times.

Both Hofmann and Nakano have been highly impressed by the endurance, edge and drive grip of the latest generation of Bridgestone tyres.

However the stop-go 4.8 km Motegi layout with tight corners and short straights provides few overtaking opportunities, although both Kawasaki riders say they have comfortable set-ups for the race distance.

The warm and humid conditions, with a track temperature of 40 degrees, continued for today''s qualifying with a similar forecast for tomorrow''s race.

Alex Hofmann: #66 - Twelfth - 1''47.594
''My qualifying position is not what I was looking for at Kawasaki''s home race, but then I haven''t been as close to Valentino Rossi on the grid before! It is not easy for us, we are still giving away too much top speed to our rivals, so we just have to fight with what we have at the moment. Overall I have a good rhythm on the bike, but it will be tough in the race. I did my qualifying time alone when there were a lot of guys turning this into a 125 session, waiting for a slipstream and trying to follow other riders.''

Shinya Nakano: #56 - Fourteenth - 1''47.787
''I am very upset about this situation. It is very difficult to overtake here and to be starting on the fifth row makes my job tomorrow all the more difficult. I had a good feeling on my main race bike using the standard motor, but then on my attack lap for a fast time I had a broken engine. I switched to the spare bike, but I had a different feeling and could not go faster. What is clear is that the new Bridgestone tyres are very, very good here - both more edge grip and better drive traction.''

Ichiro Yoda: Technical Manager
''I''m a little bit disappointed and, for sure, Shinya is a little angry. Shinya did some fast laps but then he had an engine problem, perhaps some internal parts, we need to check. Shinya used the standard ZX-RR motor today, we need to modify and understand the new motor before we race it.''

QUALIFYING PRACTICE TIMES
1. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati Marlboro Team 1''46.363; 2. John Hopkins (USA) Team Suzuki MotoGP +0.498; 3. Marco Melandri (ITA) Movistar Honda MotoGP +0.504; 4. Makoto Tamada (JPN) Konica Minolta Honda +0.680; 5. Max Biaggi (ITA) Repsol Honda +0.726; 6. Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda +0.803; 7. Sete Gibernau (SPA) Movistar Honda MotoGP +0.805; 8. Kenny Roberts (USA) Team Suzuki MotoGP +0.894; 9. Carlos Checa (SPA) Ducati Marlboro Team +0.960; 10. Alex Barros (BRA) Camel Honda +1.199; 11. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Gauloises Yamaha Team +1.200; 12. Alex Hofmann (GER) Kawasaki Racing Team +1.231; 14. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Kawasaki Racing Team +1.424

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