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ALEX BARROS DOMINATES IN PORTUGAL: POLE, FASTEST LAP AND VICTORY

Author: Camel Media Services
Posted on: Monday, Apr 18 2005



All this in a virtual home race for the Brazilian rider, son of Antonio; Portuguese. He was unable to claim the official circuit record by just a few thousandths of a second, but he was undoubtedly the top man out on track today. The track conditions were insidious, on lap nine the first spots of rain moved the race director to bring out the white flags to signal that a bike change was allowed, then on the twenty-third lap the Camel Honda mechanics warmed up the spare bike, ready for anything, but Alex didn’t come in. Later he would say that it hadn’t even crossed his mind, but those same conditions betrayed his team-mate Troy Bayliss, who got a great start from the fifth row, moving up to seventh as he put on a great show. However the Australian was caught out on the twentieth lap, but he managed to pick up his machine, get back into the race and even move a couple of positions back up the order to snatch eleventh place, picking up five useful points.

Sito Pons – Camel Honda
"I’m delighted! For Alex and for the team. Alex deserved this result because he rode as both myself and all the team know he can. His motivation and determination are only equated by the faith we have in him. That’s what you need to be able to give your best. We will be alongside him in the fifteen races that remain, and we will be aiming
for more results like this one. Once more, congratulations to him and the Camel Honda team and all our supporters. It’s a shame about Troy’s crash, because he was having a great race and was fighting back strongly. If he hadn’t have crashed I think he would have got into the top five. Nevertheless he had the courage to get back on board, get involved once more and come home eleventh. He’s getting more and more confident with the bike, and his time will come."

Alex Barros – Camel Honda – 1st place
"I made a strike today, I’m unbelievably happy, this has been a perfect weekend. I have to thank both the team and Michelin, they have given me great things to work with. We’ve taken every session here, pole position and victory too. I also want to thank my sponsor Camel, who have filled me with confidence. This morning the conditions were difficult, and in the warm-up we went out on wet tyres but the track wasn’t that damp. The race was even more complicated. The track was virtually dry at the beginning but then there were a few drops. There was a moment when Sete took a bit of an advantage, then he slowed and I caught him up. I began to push and push, trying to put pressure on him, even though I could feel the raindrops on my helmet and on the bike.
Then he lost the front end and crashed out, he was at the limit. They put out the white flag, but I didn’t think about coming in for one moment, it wasn’t raining enough for that, and it wasn’t even worth putting on intermediate tyres. It was a tough race, the track was in
difficult conditions, but the satisfaction is enormous. Valentino pushed me hard at the end, and though I tried to respond, I lost a few seconds on the last laps, but only because I was preparing my celebrations!"

Troy Bayliss – Camel Honda – 11th place
"It might seem strange, but I’m quite Happy with my race. I was starting down the order a bit, but I managed to get a good start. I got to seventh, and was having a good battle with Hayden, pushing to the limit, when I crashed out. The bike stalled, and automatically thinking
about last year’s bike I thought my race was over, that I wouldn’t be able to start it again. I tried it anyway and it started up again. I got going again and even though the handlebars were all twisted I picked up some points by bringing the bike home. It will go better next time. Congratulations to Alex, he was great today, I’m happy for him and for the team."


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