Et bien Nakano courera seul....
Citation:
NAKANO RIDES ALONE FOR KAWASAKI AT ESTORIL
Kawasaki Ninja ZX-RR rider, Shinya Nakano, completed a heavy work load of testing during today's two hours of free practice at Estoril, finishing in the top ten with the eighth fastest time.
The Japanese ace will be Kawasaki's sole representative in Sunday's Portuguese Grand Prix following the forced withdrawal of teammate Alex Hofmann.
As a consequence Nakano is carrying the full responsibility of evaluating tyres, chassis and engine settings. The 27-year-old Japanese rider is in strong early season form coming off an impressive fifth in last Sunday's Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez.
Hofmann fractured the scaphoid bone in his left wrist when he crashed in a pre-event promotion in Estoril on Wednesday. Wisely, team management have decided to rest Hofmann to allow him a full recovery for the next race, the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai.
The Kawasaki Racing Team do not have the benefit of previous test sessions at Estoril, and today was the first appearance at the demanding 4.1km Atlantic Coast circuit for the 2005 model Ninja ZX-RR.
Apart from Bridgestone tyre tests, Nakano and Kawasaki engineers worked on crucial adjustments to the engine control systems for the recently introduced big-bang firing order motor.
The data collected today will prove invaluable in fine-tuning race set-up in tomorrow's practice and qualifying sessions. Apart from electronics, it is hoped revised gearbox ratios will improve acceleration and top speed.
After rain showers interrupted the morning free practice, the afternoon session was conducted in sunny but cool conditions. Track temperatures started at 32 degrees, but dropped to 27 degrees by the end of the session.
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15/04/2005, 17h26
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