Australia receives the Repsol Honda Team with sun and cold temperatures
Nicky Hayden sets the third fastest time and team mate Dani Pedrosa, still convalescent of his injured right knee, is seventeenth in Phillip Island
The high temperatures and humidity rate in Malaysia have given way to quite different figures only five days later: the 18º C and 28% humidity of Australia have been a heavy change for the whole caravan following the 2006 World Championship. Despite the cold weather, the usual wind at Phillip Island did not show up this time and that made things much easier for the riders, considering that there have been hardly any crashes.
The first contact of the Repsol Honda Team, with Phillip Island was trouble-free. Nicky Hayden got back into action today, after his fourth place in Sepang, ready to work on the good line from the first day to achieve a good result and to defend his leadership. Ninth in the morning, the young North American rider of the Repsol Honda Team set the third fastest time of the day while he was preparing tomorrows assault on one of the front positions of the starting grid. And while Hayden was setting the third fastest clock of the day, team mate Dani Pedrosa got back into action after his epic third place in Sepang. Only one week after the frightening crash in Sepang, where he injured his right knee, the brave Repsol rider was back on his bike today, visibly stiffened, something normal considering the pain and the physical effort of having to ride in his state.
But despite the pain, Dani has been working with his team on the setup of his bike, looking forward to the race on Sunday. He finished seventeenth today, more than two seconds behind the fastest time, surprisingly set by the French rider Randy De Puniet. Bad start of the Australian Grand Prix for the riders of the Repsol Honda Team 250cc. Martín Cárdenas only managed to cover three laps at the Australian track this morning during the first free practice session.
The Colombian rider felt intense pain in his left collarbone, the same he had fractured during the first lap of the Dutch Grand Prix, during a hard braking manoeuvre on turn four of the Australian track, a slow downhill right-hander. After visiting the Clinica Mobile and making an X-ray, the doctors found out that Cardenas has a new fissure in the same fracture he had in Holland, and that there is some movement in the plate and screws he got. After the diagnosis, they have decided that the rider should travel tomorrow from Melbourne to Colombia to undergo a new surgery to solve these physical problems. And the day hasnt been easy for team mate Shuhei Aoyama either. On a completely unknown circuit for the Japanese rider, Aoyama discovered that Phillip Island is especially difficult for him which was reflected in the back positions he achieved after his first contact.
Sixteenth in the mornings first free session, Shuhei finished tenth in the afternoon, although he is not really happy and hopes to improve tomorrow. In the minor class, positive comeback for young British rider Bradley Smith at the Phillip Island circuit. Smith, who was back into action today after the radius fracture in his left arm he sustained during the Czech Grand Prix, set the ninth fastest time in the mornings free practice and the sixteenth in the first qualifying practice, a good result considering that this has been Smiths first time at the Australian track.
Rider´s comments
Nicky Hayden:
Its been a reasonable start to the weekend compared to the last few races which is good. We made a bit of an improvement this afternoon and tried a few settings that worked better on the bike. The biggest thing right now is to try to find some more traction and get the bike to transfer weight without hurting the front too much. Weve definitely got some ideas about how to improve it and right now Turn 10 is my worst point getting out of that slow corner and into the next left. The bike feels ok in a few spots, though weve definitely got some work to do I need to be able to get into the 1m 30s consistently tomorrow. So all the boys in my team will put their heads together and come up with something to keep it going in the right direction tomorrow.
Dani Pedrosa:
Today I was really just checking my physical condition and also the conditions of the track because the temperatures here are very different to the last race in Sepang. From being away from racing for four days I felt pretty good but now to be back on the bike is pretty difficult it feels really sore. I had some painkillers this afternoon to ease it a little but no injections. Its going to be important to step up my current pace, and well see if we can do it tomorrow. I ran off the track this afternoon because I touched the brake on the downhill section and lost the front it went completely straight on, and I released the brake but it was too late to stay on track. I will just keep taking things step by step this weekend hopefully they will be big steps!
Martín Cárdenas:
I started the free practice session as always, getting the pace step by step. In the third lap I arrived at turn four, a downhill right-hander where you have to brake quite strong and I suddenly felt intense pain in my left collarbone, the same I injured in Assen. I thought that it might be some wrong movement I made or that the cold was affecting me more because it is a rather recent injury, but I noticed that there was something more during the rest of the lap and therefore I decided to get back to the garage and go to the Clinica Mobile. There they found a fissure in the same area of the collarbone I fractured in Assen. Unfortunately I wont be able to race here nor in Japan and the only thing I want to do now is to solve this problem well to be able to be back soon and in perfect conditions.
Shuhei Aoyama:
Im not happy at all, because we haven’t been fast enough today. We lost a lot of time this morning with suspension problems. The really practice actually started in the afternoon, because we spent the morning lapping and checking the bike. The track is difficult and we are having problems, but despite a few problems with the machine I think that the real problem is the rider. I would need some more time to practice here. It is difficult to understand the circuit and I tried to lap on my own, but I just couldnt, so I decided to follow other riders. Everything is so different than in Malaysia and its really cold here.
Bradley Smith:
Its nice to be back after the break, after the problem with my arm. The feeling on the bike this morning was slightly better than in the afternoon, and there are a few things I have to sort out tomorrow. But, anyway, after the time off, this is a lot better than the first day qualifying that I found in previous races and its a good base for the second qualifying session tomorrow. The track is nice, different, and I like it. Its very fast which is something I like. It took a while to get used to it but you just have to follow the other drivers and then your lap times drop, so its enjoyable.
Standings
MotoGP
- R.Puniet (Kawasaki) 1’29.745
- L.Capirossi (Ducati) 1’30.310
- N.Hayden (Honda) 1’30.471
- S.Gibernau (Ducati) 1’30.693
- S.Nakano (Kawasaki) 1’30.716
17. D.Pedrosa (Honda) 1’32.304
250
- J.Lorenzo (Aprilia) 1’33.215
- S.Guintoli (Aprilia) 1’33.984
- A.de Angelis (Aprilia) 1’34.033
- H.Aoyama (KTM) 1’34.123
- A.Dovizioso (Honda) 1’34.239
10. S.Aoyama (Honda) 1’35.158
NC. M.Cárdenas (Honda)
125
- M.Kallio (KTM) 1’36.664
- T.Luth (Honda) 1’37.311
- H.Faubel (Aprilia) 1’37.330
- J.Olivé (Aprilia) 1’37.369
- A.Bautista (Aprilia) 1’37.384
16. B.Smith (Honda) 1’38.192
