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MotoGP
2005 - Round 7 - Assen MotoGP Second Practice - Ducati Report June 23rd, 2005
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MotoGP
2005 - Round 7 - Assen MotoGP Second Practice - Ducati Report June 23rd, 2005
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| Ducati Marlboro Team rider
Loris Capirossi rode a stunning final lap to outpace
Valentino Rossi at sun-blessed Assen today, bettering the
reigning World Champion by 0.083 seconds. Team-mate Carlos
Checa was just seven tenths slower than Capirossi, ending
the two sessions in seventh spot.
"It's only Thursday, so this
doesn't mean much but it's always nice to be fastest," said
Ducati MotoGP project manager Livio Suppo. "The Desmosedici
has always worked well at Assen, and Loris really loves this
track. Two years ago here he got pole position for us and
last year he ran a good pace in our first race with the Twin
Pulse engine. Carlos is also going pretty well, once again
he's having to learn a new track with the Ducati. We have
some new engine parts for this race, which we tested after
the race at Barcelona; they are designed to improve midrange
driveability." "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." 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." |
MotoGP Championship
2005
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