MotoGP 2003 - Round 15 - Preview - Phillip Island

After ten months of testing and racing across five continents, Fuchs Kawasaki riders Garry McCoy and Andrew Pitt finally touchdown at home for the Australian Grand Prix at Phillip Island this Sunday.

Phillip Island is expected to bring a welcome relief from the heat and humidity of last weekend's Malaysian Grand Prix, where Pitt finished just outside the World Championship points. Track knowledge and cooler conditions are expected to provide a platform for both Kawasaki riders to aim for a points scoring finish in their home Grand Prix.

The pre-race preparations will be more intense than usual, with Pitt and McCoy engaged in a series of media and corporate appearances that are all part of the demands of modern MotoGP competition, especially racing at home for a high profile factory team.

But both Australians know what to expect from previous international success. Pitt was Supersport World Champion in 2001 with Kawasaki, while McCoy has five career Grand Prix victories to his credit.

And the Phillip Island visit is not just a home race for the riders. The Kawasaki race team has a solid representation of Australian technicians in the garage, all of whom will also enjoy the opportunity of racing in familiar surroundings.

As the ambitious and constantly evolving Kawasaki Ninja ZX-RR project enters its second year of GP racing there is no lack of motivation to aim for the best possible result at Phillip Island with the support of family, friends and home fans alike.

The Phillip Island circuit, with its amphitheatre style seaside location, is a spectacular race track setting. The undulating layout combines the challenging test of a high speed straight, a sequence of long and fast curves and two hairpin corners that provide the ultimate test of braking skills.

Andrew Pitt - "I just love racing at Phillip Island; it's almost like being on holidays with the beach and staying in Cowes. Plus a bunch my mates will be there for the race so it will be good to catch up with everyone. I think most riders enjoy racing here and, like Assen, it is one of the great tracks on the calendar. Phillip Island has always been a tough test on tyres but I'm sure the Dunlop guys are ready for that; they've made some good progress this season and the cooler weather should work in our favour. The speed of the ZX-RR will be strong on the first half of the circuit, which is really fast, but the back section, up past the hay shed to Lukey Heights, could be hard work for us."

Garry McCoy - "It's always exciting racing at the Island with a big crowd, but it's also a lot of extra work with the media, team and sponsorship schedule; everyone wants some of your time. I would like qualify on the front row again like last year, but that will depend on how the ZX-RR and our tyres shape up with the track and hopefully cooler weather. The Island is fast and the Kawasaki is not short of power, but the long, high speed corners make it hard for us to get on the throttle early; I reckon we'll be hanging off the bike through the fast stuff out the back."

Harald Eckl - Team Manager - "All season our goal has been to develop the Ninja ZX-RR for a top performance at Phillip Island, and our early aim was the podium because Garry and Andrew know this track very well. Unfortunately, at this stage of our new MotoGP programme, we have not reached the point of being able to provide our riders with a bike that will allow them to really show their home fans what they are capable of and a podium position is out of reach in our first season. But as always, Andrew and Garry will be highly motivated and again we are expecting strong support from our tyre partners Dunlop, who have been working hard on the special demands of Phillip Island."