KAWASAKI PRE-SEASON TEST - JEREZ, SPAIN
24 FEBRUARY 2005

CHASSIS CHANGES LEAD TO IMPROVEMENT FOR HOFMANN

Better weather greeted the Kawasaki Racing Team as they arrived at Jerez this
morning, to start the second day of a planned three-day test at the venue for
the opening Grand Prix of the 2005 season.

Alex Hofmann made the most of the improved weather conditions to complete 81
laps of the Jerez circuit, during a test schedule focussed on evaluating revised
chassis components on his screamer-engined Ninja ZX-RR.

Despite cold track temperatures and reduced grip, due to dirt on the back part
of the circuit, the 24-year-old German rider saw an improvement in his lap time,
which he attributed to more traction from the rear and better acceleration out
of the turns.

Shinya Nakano returned to the circuit aboard his Ninja ZX-RR today, after
sitting out most of yesterday's test as a result of a minor, but painful, injury
sustained during his first on track session.

The 27-year-old Japanese rider completed 57 laps of the Jerez circuit, as he
worked with engineers from Japan and Europe to improve throttle response on the
big bang version of Kawasaki's 990cc, inline four-cylinder Ninja ZX-RR motor.

Kawasaki test rider, Kazuki Shimizu, was again on hand today to assist Nakano
with development work on the new ZX-RR engine.

The Kawasaki Racing Team will complete their three-day test schedule at the
Jerez circuit tomorrow.

Alex Hofmann: 81 laps (1'42.4)

"Today we tested the modifications made to the chassis after the Sepang test at
the beginning of the year. Track conditions weren't really ideal for testing
today but, overall, the results have been positive. I managed to improve my lap
time and the bike definitely feels better accelerating out of the turns; it just
seems to hook up better when you get hard on the gas. We'll continue the
evaluation tomorrow."

Shinya Nakano: 57 laps (1'42.69)

"The focus today was again on the big bang engine. We know from the Sepang test
that this engine has a number of advantages over the old one, but there is still
a lot of set-up work to do if we are to realise it's full potential. This is
what we concentrated on today. At the moment we are working to improve throttle
response, because the throttle still feels a little disconnected from the engine
when you get on the gas, but we also need to collect the data necessary to
further the development of the big bang Ninja ZX-RR. We will run the same engine
again tomorrow, but with slightly different settings."