ROUND 2 - AUTODROMO DO ESTORIL, PORTUGAL
15 APRIL 2005 - FREE PRACTICE 1

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.

Shinya Nakano: #56 - Eighth - 1.39.535

"The biggest impression today was how much easier the big-bang type engine is to
use at track like Estoril, especially around the infield section. This has been
a problem track for us in the past, but today I'm very confident we will have a
good race set-up. I had to collect a lot data today, and we still have many
settings to adjust. Tomorrow I will try different gearbox ratios and hopefully
get some more top speed, and also try and improve front stability over the bumps
here. Already I have two good choices of race tyres from Bridgestone and we will
also confirm that selection tomorrow."

Ichiro Yoda: Technical Director.

"Shinya did a lot of tyre testing today with Bridgestone and it seems we already
have excellent options for the race in regards to grip and endurance from the
new generation tyres. Technically we need to assess data from the engine control
system to improve acceleration and top speed; also gearbox ratios are not yet
perfect. Spring balance, front-to-rear, is also on our list tomorrow, so Shinya
will again have a lot of work to do."

FREE PRACTICE - FINAL TIMES

 1. Alex Barros (BRA) Camel Honda              1'38.516
 2. Sete Gibernau (SPA) Movistar Honda MotoGP    +0.549
 3. Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda              +0.556
 4. Colin Edwards (USA) Gauloises Yamaha Team    +0.628
 5. Carlos Checa (SPA) Ducati Marlboro Team      +0.684
 6. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Gauloises Yamaha Team  +0.930
 7. Max Biaggi (ITA) Repsol Honda                +0.961
 8. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Kawasaki Racing Team     +1.019
 9. Toni Elias (SPA) Fortuna Yamaha Team         +1.216
10. John Hopkins (USA) Team Suzuki MotoGP        +1.253