MotoGP 2003 - Kawasaki Preview Assen

The Kawasaki Racing Team will continue its three man assault on the MotoGP Championship on June 28 at Assen, venue for round seven of the 16 race series.

The Dutch TT will see Fuchs Kawasaki test rider Alex Hofmann rejoin the Ninja ZX-RR squad alongside the Australian combination of Garry McCoy and Andrew Pitt. Assen will be Hofmann's third wild card outing of the season; the 23-year-old German having finished 16th in the Spanish GP at Jerez and an impressive 14th at the Italian GP at Mugello to score championship points.

Following the recent Catalunya Grand Prix, Hofmann joined Pitt and McCoy for a two-day test session in Barcelona, where the team continued its machine and tyre test programme for the still advancing ZX-RR MotoGP project. Refinement of base-line chassis settings and evaluation of a revised specification of Kawasaki's already impressive 990cc, in-line four motor were on the Barcelona test agenda.

Assen, and the following British Grand Prix at Donington, are mid-season bonuses for Pitt, as the Australian knows both circuits intimately from his Kawasaki World Supersport 600 career. Pitt goes to Assen confident that he can move forward and score points after the setbacks of recent races.

Slidemaster McCoy is always happy to be back at the challenging Assen track, a supreme test of riding skill and inch-perfect racing lines with its combination of high speed sections and unique, positive camber curves that remain from the original public road course.

After two weeks of heat wave conditions at the Mugello and Barcelona races, Kawasaki's trio of riders are looking forward to the cooler weather of northern Holland. Assen is another new venue for the Ninja ZX-RR, but both the track and the conditions should suit Kawasaki's Dunlop shod MotoGP machine.

Garry McCoy - "Assen is a one-of-a-kind track; there's no other track quite like it and I really enjoy being there. First time out on the ZX-RR it will be important to get the bike set-up for the fast sections of the track and the quick changes of direction, so hopefully our recent testing will provide some answers for that. Assen will be a lot cooler than the last few races and that should open up our tyre choice and give us a few more options for the race. Dunlop had their best result of the season at Assen last year and, on the banked turns, you're not on the edge of the tyre as much as you are at tracks with flat turns in really hot weather, where we've sometimes been a little short of grip."

Andrew Pitt - "Assen is an awesome circuit and I love racing there, but it is critical that you have a bike that steers quickly under acceleration around the fast changes of direction, and that has been a bit of a problem for us at some tracks this season. The last couple of races have been really tough for me, but Assen is a track I already know and that should allow me to get some feel and confidence back in the front end and, hopefully, come away with a decent result."

Alex Hofmann - "Assen is definitely one of my favourite tracks; it's fast, a bit like a rollercoaster and I have always felt really comfortable riding there. It won't be as hot as Mugello, so our tyre and chassis package should work a lot better for us. The fast and flowing nature of the circuit also means that there is little hard acceleration at Assen, as you can carry the speed through the turns, and that is good for us also. I had quite a good balance with the bike at Mugello and, hopefully, we can move a few more steps forward at Assen and I can finish in the points once again."