ROUND 11 - GAULOISES GRAND PRIX CESKE REPUBLIKY
26 AUGUST 2005 - FREE PRACTICE

HOFMANN AND NAKANO BACK ON THE PACE AT BRNO

The MotoGP season resumed at Brno today, with a super-competitive opening day of
practice ahead of Sunday's Czech Republic Grand Prix.

Kawasaki riders, Alex Hofmann and Shinya Nakano, were in the thick of the action
and finished the day 12th and 14th respectively on the time sheets. Fourteen
riders were within one second of the fastest lap set by Valentino Rossi.

It was a day of intense work for Nakano and Hofmann, combining the challenging
task of finding speed for the front-end sensitive Brno circuit and tyre test
duties for Bridgestone.

There are a range of evolution rear tyres at Brno, combining revised compounds
and constructions, with the aim of improved edge grip and race consistency.

Nakano and Hofmann were enthused to be back on their Ninja ZX-RR machines after
the holiday break and made dramatic improvements to their lap times between the
morning and afternoon sessions.

Both riders suffered from a lack of front end feel and tyre response especially
through the fast chicanes and turn one.

Revisions to front spring balance and chassis geometry proved to be the right
direction, and further changes are expected to provide a more precise set-up for
Sunday's 22-lap race.

Nakano improved his time by 1.3s between morning and afternoon sessions, while
Hofmann went 0.7s faster.

The notorious Brno bumps are also proving to be a set-up challenge, especially
in the fast corners.

Alex Hofmann: #66 - Twelfth - 2'00.146

"It's great to be back riding and I found some good speed this afternoon,
although I'm struggling through the first section of the lap, especially turn
one. The front set-up is not perfect and I'm not completely confident of the
front feeling, especially as you come off the brakes and turn-in. The track is
getting old, like everyone I guess, and there seem to be more patches and bumps
than last year. Even so I enjoy Brno and I think we can find an even better
balance tomorrow."

Shinya Nakano: #56 - Fourteenth - 2'00.227

"I was happy to be back on the bike, but not very comfortable in the morning
session - I couldn't feel the grip level at the front end. But I had better
front contact response in the afternoon, although we are still not at 100% with
the bike. I need better settings for the high-speed changes of direction and
perhaps the bumps, worse than last year, are also making the bike unsettled.
Even so, the times are close and I think that by Sunday I will have a chance for
a good result."

Ichiro Yoda: Technical Manager

"Both riders had a problem with front feeling and grip today, more a set-up
problem than tyres. This track requires very agile handling for the fast changes
of direction and that perhaps is a weak point for us at the moment. But, we have
some set-up ideas for tomorrow, both for the chassis and mid-range engine
response, and will continue to improve. We also have a lot of work to do to
fully evaluate the new Bridgestone tyres."

FREE PRACTICE 2

 1. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Gauloises Yamaha Team 1'59.278
 2. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati Marlboro Team    +0.088
 3. Sete Gibernau (SPA) Movistar Honda MotoGP     +0.176
 4. Marco Melandri (ITA) Movistar Honda MotoGP    +0.191
 5. Kenny Roberts (USA) Team Suzuki MotoGP        +0.477
 6. Carlos Checa (SPA) Ducati Marlboro Team       +0.529
 7. Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda               +0.555
 8. Colin Edwards (USA) Gauloises Yamaha Team     +0.665
 9. Alex Barros (BRA) Camel Honda                 +0.713
10. John Hopkins (USA) Team Suzuki MotoGP         +0.765
12. Alex Hofmann (GER) Kawasaki Racing Team       +0.868
14. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Kawasaki Racing Team      +0.949