- Kenny Roberts - "We are still
learning about the new for 2001 bike, so I thought it was important to
find a good race set-up today rather than go for outright lap times. I
am confident that we can run at this speed in the race on Sunday after
testing race tyres and set-up today. Tomorrow I hope to improve that
even more and then have a go at putting in a fast lap. But at the end
of the day it doesn't matter who qualifies first, it's who wins on
Sunday that gets the points."
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- Tohru Ukawa - "The track wasn’t
in the same conditions than during our last tests here. "The
surface didn’t have the same grip, therefore my best time has been a
bit down on what I expected. "But I am happy anyway with this
practice session, I just hope to improve tomorrow if the weather
allows it. "This afternoon, I had a scary moment when Cardoso and
I almost ran into each other. "I was forced off the track in
Spoon corner, and then I decided to stop a little before the end of
the session. "But I’m satisfied, we found a good set-up, thanks
to all the testing we did here, and we found good tyres, too."
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- Alex Criville - "I’m quite
happy. We are less than a second off Biaggi’s time, who was fastest
in today’s first qualifying, and I felt comfortable riding. "It
was important to put in a good time today, because rain is forecasted
for tomorrow. "The practice went well, I was fourth fastest in
the morning and now in the afternoon I finished seventh. "I went
out with a soft qualifying tyre to make a run for my best time, but
the most important thing remains finding a constant pace for the race.
"We have to continue working step by step, the championship is
still ahead of us, and I am still not 100 per cent physically.
"My left hand injury is still bothering me."
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- Sete Gibernau - "I am still
getting to know the bike and it is taking time for me to find its
limits. Every time I ride I feel as though I am learning much more and
improving. I am sure I will improve tomorrow and I am looking forward
to the race on Sunday."
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- Jurgen Van Den Goorbergh - "It's what we expected - I hoped to be one second quicker, but both times at the end of the session when I was trying for a lap time I was slowed by other riders, which cost me time, so today's lap time is not the last word and I am not too unsatisfied.
"At the same time, we're not where we want to be - we can't make up in two hours what the others have had three days to work through.
"We have also just received some new dampers here, and we have to find the right set-up.
"Both my bikes are running very well, and we have a good speed on the straight.
"We just need to work on suspension and tyres, and I need to be a bit more aggressive with my riding, and I am sure we can get into a better position for a good race finish.
"I don't think the other riders can improve so much, and I believe consistent 2:08 lap times will be the pace of the race.
"I'll be aiming at achieving that. "One problem compared with the other bikes is with traction coming out of the corners.
"I am using 17-inch tyres, but their 16.5-inch tyres have better grip when the bike is leaned over.
"We might try 16.5-inch tyres tomorrow if the weather is good, though I am worried about chatter problems with that tyre."
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- Mark Willis - "Morning
Practice went well and we completed 16 laps without any real problems
but at the end of the session we started to have a small problem with
fuel starvation. "We thought we had cured the problem before
the qualifying session but unfortunately I only did about 4 laps
before the problem came back. "I was in and out of the pits
trying different things but failed to complete a full flying
lap. "It's a bit disappointing but with a new bike these
things are expected. We hope to have it fixed for
tomorrow. "I am still finding my way around the circuit as I
have only done about 8 laps here on a superbike in '97. It is a long
track with many blind corners so I am just trying to come to grips
with it. Hopefully we can get 2 good sessions in tomorrow."
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