ROUND 15 - POLINI AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX, PHILLIP ISLAND
15 OCTOBER 2005 - QUALIFYING PRACTICE

NAKANO QUALIFIES TOP TEN AT SUNNY PHILLIP ISLAND

Kawasaki rider, Shinya Nakano, recovered from a harmless crash to qualify in
tenth place for tomorrow's Australian Grand Prix at Phillip Island.

While Nakano heads the fourth row of the grid, his French teammate, Kawasaki
test rider Olivier Jacque, will start from thirteenth in his return to racing
after missing the Qatar Grand Prix.

Track conditions were near perfect for qualifying, sunny and cool, with the
usually gusty winds of Phillip Island staying calm for the one hour session that
saw Nicky Hayden qualify on pole position.

After crashing at the first hairpin Nakano returned to the track on his spare
Ninja ZX-RR and posted his fastest lap, half a second under the track record,
with 12 minutes remaining.

Unfortunately Nakano's spill upset his normally fast and smooth qualifying
rhythm, and the Japanese ace was disappointed not to be starting further up the
grid.

Overnight improvements to machine set-up, and further evaluation of a new range
of Bridgestone tyres, have allowed Nakano to find a consistent race package.

In his first race appearance at Phillip Island on the Ninja ZX-RR, Jacque has
made a dramatic improvement over two days of practice and qualifying, dropping
his times by more than three seconds.

Jacque was more comfortable today with improved grip levels and more stable
set-up, although he is still finding the limits of braking performance,
especially on the hard braking required for the first hairpin.

Again today the 4.4km Phillip Island circuit, with its dominant sequence of fast
left-hand curves, presented the problem of generating heat and grip into rear
tyres.

Tomorrow's 27-lap race is the 15th round of the MotoGP World Championship, with
Nakano aiming to consolidate his top ten position in the championship standings.

Shinya Nakano: #56 - Tenth - 1'30.628

"I'm okay after the crash, I just bumped my head a little and have a small
bruise on my right foot - but for sure I can race at 100%, luckily I have
nothing broken. I crashed on entry to the first hairpin while trying a different
specification rear tyre, but the the right-side was not working at all. I was
hoping for a stronger qualifying, but for the race I think we have a consistent
package, our race tyre performance is good, but it will not be easy to stay with
the front group. There is no big problem, just many small things that we could
improve for better overall lap time - even small improvements to braking
stability and traction would help a lot."

Olivier Jacque: #19 - Thirteenth - 1'31.079

"Today was a more comfortable day, I'm much happier with the grip level, and I
am now more confident for my first time here on the ZX-RR. My times have come
down in every session since Friday morning and I think there is more to come,
but now it is time to race. However, another two hours of practice would be
good! It's just a matter of set-up, especially in the fast corners and for
braking stability. I went straight-on a couple of times at the Hairpin, so in
the race I know I have to be less optimistic about braking performance. And
through the fast left handers I need to concentrate on finding more corner speed
and traction. In two days we have made some good steps, hopefully I can move
forward in the race."

Harald Eckl: Team Manager

"Shinya was unlucky to crash in these circumstances and it put him out of rhythm
for the session. Compared to other circuits this appears not be one that favours
Shinya and I expect this will not be an easy race for the Kawasaki team."

QUALIFYING PRACTICE - FINAL TIMES

 1. Nicky Hayden (USA) Repsol Honda             1'29.337
 2. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Gauloises Yamaha Team   +0.106
 3. Sete Gibernau (SPA) Movistar Honda MotoGP     +0.392
 4. Carlos Checa (SPA) Ducati Marlboro Team       +0.438
 5. Colin Edwards (USA) Gauloises Yamaha Team     +0.606
 6. Max Biaggi (ITA) Repsol Honda                 +0.733
 7. Toni Elias (SPA) Fortuna Yamaha Team          +0.757
 8. Marco Melandri (ITA) Movistar Honda MotoGP    +0.985
 9. Makoto Tamada (JPN) Konica Minolta Honda      +1.287
10. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Kawasaki Racing Team      +1.291
11. John Hopkins (USA) Team Suzuki MotoGP         +1.330
12. Alex Barros (BRA) Camel Honda                 +1.420
13. Olivier Jacque (FRA) Kawasaki Racing Team     +1.742