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The Ducati Marlboro team took overall honours at the Japanese Grand Prix, with their riders coming in 1st and 4th positions, in what has been a happy hunting ground for local tyre manufacturer Bridgestone at its home grand prix. Unfortunately fellow Bridgestone team Kawasaki were less fortunate, with all three of its riders failing to finish including a final lap fall for Shinya Nakano. Suzuki fared a little better with Phillip Island runner-up Chris Vermeulen leading a Suzuki blue procession of team mates Hopkins and wildcard rider Kousuke Akiyoshi in 11th, 12th and 13th positions.

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Ducati Marlboro Team rider Loris Capirossi scored a majestic victory at sun-blessed Motegi this afternoon, beating his 2005 race-winning time by a massive 17 seconds to record his second consecutive Japanese Grand Prix success. Team-mate Sete Gibernau had a fine ride to fourth, just 1.3 seconds away from scoring his first podium for the team.

Capirossi was in breathtaking form, starting from pole position and leading from the first lap to the chequered flag, gradually building an advantage over his closest rivals Marco Melandri and Valentino Rossi. And when Rossi moved past Melandri into second and tried to make a run on the leader, Capirossi responded in devastating fashion, recording a 1m 47.5s lap with just five laps remaining to put the matter beyond doubt! He crossed the line a full five seconds ahead of Rossi to move into fourth place in the championship, 31 points down on the series leader with two races to go.
Gibernau rode hard to defend fourth place during the final laps, Shinya Nakano crashing out when he was just a few centimetres behind the Spaniard three corners from the flag.

Capirossi’s impressive win was applauded by 600 local Ducati fans in the Ducati grandstand at Motegi; Japan is one of Ducati’s most important national markets.
Both Capirossi and Gibernau stay at Motegi tomorrow for an important test of the factory’s new 800cc GP7 which the team will race in 2007.

Loris Capirossi, Ducati Marlboro Team, winner, 4th overall, 205 points
“I think that was a pretty amazing race. It all started on Friday when my team immediately found a good setting and Bridgestone came here with many good new tyres. I was able to find a good rhythm in practice and we were very fast in warm-up, so our target was to get a great start and just go. I got the start, but Marco tried to overtake me on the first lap. I said to myself it’s better he doesn’t come past because I didn’t know if his pace was as fast as mine. After six or seven laps I started to take a small advantage, then after half-distance my pitboard told me Valentino was coming. At that moment I was going a little bit slow and when I saw Valentino coming very quick I had to go faster again. My pace was very good, 47s all race. This victory is very important to us and I don’t think the championship will be over until the last race. To win here in Japan is a fantastic thing for us to do, and also for Bridgestone. My thanks to all my team and to all our sponsors.”

Sete Gibernau, Ducati Marlboro Team, finished 4th, 10th overall, 95 points
“That wasn’t so bad but I can’t be happy. We missed the race because I was too slow at the beginning. I didn’t get a grip of the bike until past half-race distance and that was my mistake. I didn’t even feel anything from Nakano. Actually after that right-hander I looked back to see if he was going to try and attack into the next fast left but he wasn’t there, so I flicked it into the turn and then I looked back on the start-finish and he wasn’t there. I just feel sorry for him and I’m glad he doesn’t seem to be badly hurt. Now we’ve got two races left, so two more goes at the podium this year, we just need to keep our heads down from the first lap to the last.”

Livio Suppo, Ducati MotoGP project manager
“It is a really great feeling to win for the second year running in Japan. The team did a great job once again this weekend, Bridgestone worked so well too, so our thanks to them and to Shell Advance for their vital technical support. However, it was Loris who was unbelievable today, truly unbelievable! Sete rode a good race but he lost too much time during the first few laps”.

Afternoon session temperatures. Ambient: 27 degrees Track: 43 degrees

Press release courtesy of Ducati Marlboro Team

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Camel Yamaha Team rider Valentino Rossi now trails MotoGP World Championship series leader Nicky Hayden (Honda) by just twelve points with two rounds remaining thanks to his fourth consecutive podium, his eighth from the last ten races, in Japan today. Rossi took second place in a race dominated and won by Loris Capirossi (Ducati), with Marco Melandri (Honda) completing the podium in a carbon copy of the front row order. The 20-point reward for Rossi moved him another nine closer to Hayden, who finished fifth behind Sete Gibernau (Ducati).

Colin Edwards had shown promise of mounting a podium challenge himself this weekend but unfortunately his excellent practice pace on race rubber did not translate into the top result he was hoping for. Despite making a good start from tenth on the grid the American was forced wide by another rider into turn one and lost several positions, dropping back to twelfth. However a determined ride from that point onwards saw him battle back to eighth place – a position he also now holds in the championship after moving above John Hopkins (Suzuki).

Valentino Rossi (2nd; +5.088)
“I’m really happy with this second position today. It wasn’t a great battle like in Sepang, but my rhythm was really good and my bike worked very well. We had a few problems in warm-up this morning and, like always, my mechanics, the Yamaha engineers and Michelin did a great job to make some last-minute changes to our race set-up. At the start my M1 was a little bit hard to ride but slowly I found my rhythm and then bit by bit I started to come closer to Marco. Once I passed him I started pushing to try to reach Loris and made the fastest lap, but once he realised I was coming closer he opened the throttle again and he was just too fast for me to catch. My bike worked brilliantly since Friday morning and I want to thank everyone for all their hard work, it seems that when everything is working for us then it’s hard for the others! 20 points is a great result for me at this track, which isn’t one of my favourites, and now we’re only 12 points behind in the championship. We have two races left and if we can continue in this way then it’s possible!”

Colin Edwards (8th; +22.492)
“I got off the line pretty well but then (Dani) Pedrosa pushed me out a bit on the exit of turn one and I had to chop it. I lost speed and then about three people went by me so I was playing catch-up from then on. I had to spend some time getting past (Makoto) Tamada and (Randy) De Puniet but then I got my head down and just kept going in the same rhythm. I was doing good lap times, consistent with what we were doing all weekend, but it wasn’t enough to make up for our grid position and the problems in turn one. About 15 laps in I hit a bit of a wall, couldn’t hold the load on the rear tyre and started losing corner speed, so life was more difficult from then on. Of course I’m really disappointed; we had a plan but it was messed up by our starting position and turn one. On the bright side we were able to run the same good pace we ran all weekend for most of the race, but it seems a few others, my team-mate included, found a bit extra today and what we had just wasn’t enough!”

Davide Brivio - Camel Yamaha Team Director
“Today was a very important race for us because we have been able to reduce the gap by another nine points, which keeps us on target. Our goal today was to finish on the podium and we did that so we are happy, even though Loris had a pace that Valentino wasn’t quite able to follow. Unfortunately Colin couldn’t quite live up to the high hopes he had raised before the race so we will investigate the reasons for that. We still have two races left and we want to help get him back to the front of the pack. The last three weeks have required a lot of energy, effort and concentration from the whole team and I am delighted the way every one of them has responded. Now we need them to keep it going for two more races and hopefully we will continue to get our rewards.”

Press release courtesy of Camel Yamaha Team

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The Grand Prix of Japan belonged to Italy today as tricolore riders filled the podium once again: Loris Capirossi, Valentino Rossi and Marco Melandri taking the spoils at Motegi. Marco Melandri was one of the stars of a spectacular race, his third place finish handing the Constructors’ World Championship title to Honda for the 17th time in the premier-class. Marco made a great start from the front row, moving into second place behind Loris Capirossi, who set a hot pace from the beginning. After a couple of tentative attempts to take the lead, the Fortuna Honda rider then turned his attentions to defending second place for fourteen laps until eventually conceding to Rossi. It was a satisfactory outing for Toni Elias, who took a creditable sixth place today. Toni also made a good start and did his best to stay in touch with the lead group, who were lapping in a sensational pace of 1′47. Toni lost a little more ground as each lap went by but fought bravely in the second group to take a hard-earned sixth place. Marco’s seventh podium of the season leaves him third in the championship on 209 points, 27 behind series leader and fellow Honda rider Nicky Hayden.

Marco Melandri (3rd in the race, 3rd in the championship on 209 points)
“It is nice to be on the podium at Honda’s home race and I’m happy to have given them the constructors’ title. Today the pace set by Loris was extremely fast but the balance of my bike was also good and the tyres worked really well. After a tough warm-up, when we struggled a little to get the right feeling with a harder rear tyre, I went for slightly softer rubber for the race. At the start I felt I had the pace to lead the race because the feeling with the bike and tyres was perfect. Then when the tyres started to go off I decided not to take any risks and bring it home in third place. I’m enjoying myself at the moment and now we’re going to two tracks I like. I just have to focus on having fun and giving it my best shot every Sunday.”

Toni Elias (6th in the race, 13th in the championship on 81 points)
“I’m happy with sixth place even though I was hoping for better. I started well and tried to go with the lead group but it wasn’t possible because they had a pace that was a couple of tenths quicker than I was capable of. I got involved in the second group with Gibernau, Hayden and Nakano, focused on my rhythm and pushed as hard as I could, even though I was missing a little rear traction. Now I am looking forward to Portugal because we have taken another step forward here.”

Press release courtesy of Fortuna Racing

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The curse of Motegi struck again for the Kawasaki Racing Team today as, for the second year in succession, all three Kawasaki riders failed to finish in this afternoon’s Japanese Grand Prix.

But, despite the obvious disappointment of the final results, both Shinya Nakano and Randy de Puniet showed the potential of Kawasaki’s latest Ninja ZX-RR, fighting for top ten positions before crashes brought their Japanese Grand Prix weekend to a premature close.

Nakano was quick away from the line, slotting in behind the leading group of riders and matching their pace during the opening laps of the race. As the leading trio managed to pull out a gap at the front of the race, Nakano was quick to pass Casey Stoner, who crashed out of the race shortly afterwards, and started to close on Sete Gibernau in fourth place.

The 28-year-old Kawasaki rider waited until the final lap before trying a pass on Gibernau, diving up the inside of the Spaniard at the end of the back straight. Nakano got into the turn a little too hot, and was left with no option but to pick his bike up mid-corner, as Gibernau cut across his front wheel to firmly close the door.

Nakano’s front tyre touched Gibernau’s rear wheel as he attempted to recover, launching the Kawasaki pilot over the top of his Ninja ZX-RR and out of the race.

Randy de Puniet’s crew were forced to change the engine on his Ninja ZX-RR after this morning’s 20-minute warm-up session, and the 25-year-old Frenchman noticed an immediate difference on the opening lap of the race.

The more aggressive power delivery of the replacement engine caused his rear Bridgestone to spin up out of the turns, forcing the Kawasaki pilot to ride more on the front tyre, with predictable results. De Puniet lost the front of his Ninja ZX-RR and crashed out of the race on lap nine, while fighting for ninth place with Colin Edwards and Makoto Tamada.

Kawasaki’s wild card rider, Naoki Matsudo, was also forced to retire from the race on lap nine, after a mechanical failure on his Ninja ZX-RR left him with no other option but to return to the pits.

Despite the disappointment of the Motegi weekend, the Kawasaki Racing Team are confident that the latest specification Ninja ZX-RR is capable of allowing Shinya Nakano and Randy de Puniet to end the season on a high, with strong performances in the final two races at Estoril and Valencia.

Shinya Nakano: DNF
“What can I say; I was here to race, so I had to try for fourth place on the last lap. I’d already decided that if the gap were too big at the end of the straight then I wouldn’t risk a pass. But the opportunity was there, so I took it. I got into the turn a little bit too hot, and both tyres were sliding by the time Sete shut the door on me. I could have held onto the brakes, but then we’d both have crashed, so I picked the bike up and tried to run straight on. Unfortunately, I clipped Sete’s rear wheel and crashed. I’m sorry for the team, because the bike and tyres have been good all weekend, my lap times were consistent and we were looking forward to a good result this afternoon. In the end, the result is that I’ve given them some work to do fixing the crashed bike. But, like I said, I came here to race, so I had to go for it. Now we must look forward to the final two races, because I think it’s still possible to improve my final position in the championship standings.”

Randy de Puniet: DNF
“What a disappointment. Practice and qualifying went well for us yesterday, and we proved again during morning warm-up that our race set-up was good, but then we had to swap an engine ahead of the race and it changed the whole character of the bike. The rear was spinning up too easily out of the turns, and I lost a lot of time early on in the race when the rear threatened to come round on me a few times. From that point I was riding more on the front, and that’s when I crashed. We now need to find out why my race engine felt so different to the engine we ran this morning, so we can avoid the same problem at the last two races of the season.”

Naoki Matsudo: DNF
“I had some problems with the engine right from the start of the race; it felt down on power from the off and the problem seemed to be getting worse with each lap. I tried to keep the bike running as long as I could, but it just wasn’t possible to continue past lap nine. It’s disappointing not to finish my only MotoGP race of the season, but I’ve learnt a lot this weekend, and this will help me with my test and development duties for Kawasaki in the future.”

Press release courtesy of Kawasaki Racing Team

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Rizla Suzuki MotoGP racers Chris Vermeulen and John Hopkins, plus Team Test rider Kousuke Akiyoshi all scored points in today’s Japanese Grand Prix.

Vermeulen and Hopkins finished in 11th and 12th places respectively with Akiyoshi – making his Grand Prix debut – just behind them. Vermeulen was racing at Motegi for the first time and gave a solid performance on his Suzuki GSV-R, Akiyoshi was also particularly impressive in his first ever MotoGP race and beat seasoned racers to score a fine 13th place.

Hopkins’ result could have been even better but for the fact that he was knocked into the gravel by another rider as he was trying to charge through the field. He re-joined the race in last position but made a spirited comeback to make up eight places by the end. Hopkins keeps up his consistent run of points scoring, which now stretches to 12 races and is only bettered by World Championship leader Nicky Hayden.

Today’s race was held in brilliant sunshine and watched by over 63,000 enthusiastic fans, who were treated to a home victory for Bridgestone, as Loris Capirossi on his works Ducati raced to victory.

Rizla Suzuki MotoGP will now return to Europe for the penultimate round of the 2006 MotoGP season, to be held at Estoril in Portugal, where both Hopkins and Vermeulen will be planning to score valuable points in their quests for top 10 Championship positions.

Chris Vermeulen
“It was difficult starting from 15th with a lot of very fast guys in front of you. It made the first lap very hard, but we did get a reasonable start and got into a bit of a race with a few guys. Unfortunately the front guys were too fast for us this weekend. Our race pace was not what we wanted it to be and I think we have got some work to do when we get to Estoril to get back up there challenging!”

John Hopkins
“I had a horrible beginning to the race. I just went out and tried to hard, I was out-breaking myself at nearly every corner. Then I was mixing it up with Dani Pedrosa and he out-braked himself on a right-hander and clipped my front wheel and I went off the track. From there it was a case of seeing what I could salvage and I was able to make up quite a few places. I had a bit of a tussle with Chris on the last lap but I just couldn’t get past him. Not really happy at all and I plan on working harder and finishing off the final two races very strong!”

Kousuke Akiyoshi
“I have had a very good weekend here at the Japanese Grand Prix and to get points from my first race is very special. I would like to thank Suzuki and Bridgestone for this chance and supporting me all weekend. I hope I can race in another Grand Prix and do even better next time.”

Paul Denning - Team Manager
“Although we scored some valuable points this was not what we had hoped for in Japan, especially as the Bridgestone tyres work so well here and the pace John had shown all weekend – with the exception of the last part of yesterday’s qualifying – had been very promising. John’s particularly disappointed as he knows what might have been, and but for the fact that he was punted off by another rider, his race pace showed that he was capable of a much higher finish. Every credit must go to him for battling back through the field and getting well into the points.

“Chris and Akiyoshi san will have both learnt a lot from their first Grand Prix races at the Motegi circuit and it was very pleasing to see them both battling with each other and more experienced riders throughout the majority of the race.

“We now have to re-group before we go to Portugal and take forward all that we have been through during this tough and sometimes disappointing three week tour. We know we have the potential to do a lot better and we will certainly be pushing as hard as we can in the final two races of the season!”

Press release courtesy of Rizla Suzuki MotoGP

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The PRAMAC D’ANTIN MOTOGP riders faced the Japanese Grand Prix with the maximum care on their DUCATI DESMOSEDICI GP6 “Sat”. After a good start and 24 laps to the maximum, ALEX HOFMANN ended the race in 16th position, close to the points’ area. JOSE LUIS CARDOSO, despite the big motivation he showed, didn’t finish the race as he went out of track during the second lap.

There are two races left to close the 2006 MotoGP World Championship. These will take place in Europe; the first in Portugal on the next 15th October in Estoril, the second and last one in Valencia, as the classic appointment of the end of the season.

Alex Hofmann #66 (16th)
“I gave all I could during 24 laps but I didn’t managed to bring back home the result I wanted. I had a constant pace and the bike was stable. My feeling with the front was good and the braking was alright, but I had problems in acceleration. I couldn’t exploit it to attack the other riders, the lack of grip on the rear didn’t allow me to make anything more. Anyway we made the maximum and I have to thank everybody”.

Jose Luis Cardoso #30 (not classified)
“Unfortunately, the race hasn’t been as I expected. I started with big motivation but, at the beginning of the second lap, I ended out of the track at the end of the straight line, in front of the pit-boxes. The motorcycle remained stuck in the sand and I was forced to retire myself. Now we’re going back to race in Europe and I hope that the last two races will be favourable to me”.

Emanuele Martinelli - Track Engineer of Alex Hofmann
“HOFMANN kept a pace that we didn’t expected. Today’s temperature was slightly higher than during the last days and this partially helped us. The motorcycle was balanced alright but the traction difficulties on the rear didn’t allow us to make anything more. The data of these last three races will be useful to analyze what happened and try to keep on developing the motorcycle in the right direction”.

Press release courtesy of Pramac D’Antin MotoGP