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TROY BAYLISS START WELL AT LAGUNA SECA

Author: Camel Media Service
Posted on: Saturday, Jul 09 2005



There was a great deal of interest in finding out the riders’ first impressions of the Californian track and the modifications it has undergone, above all from those riders who have already raced at the track like the two Camel Honda team riders.

Both Barros and Bayliss consider the track to be safer than in the past, even if several areas will still need further improvements. However both of them were quick from the off, above all Troy Bayliss, who rode fastest at a track which requires confident and aggressive riding, which the Australian evidently has in abundance.

Sito Pons – Camel Honda
“I have done a lap of the track and I can see that a lot of important things have been done to improve safety, even though there are still things to be done. Also in terms of organisation we’re paying for over ten years of absence of Laguna Seca from the world championships: I mean for things like internet and intranet connections, the signals to the monitor and those kinds of things that help the day to day running of the team. I hope however that things will be sorted out over the coming hours. As for the rest I’m happy that such a great amount of interest has been awoken in America for MotoGP, in all my experience I’ve never seen it like this, and it’s evident not only from ticket sales but also from the coverage the national press is giving the event. It is so important for the world championship to race here and I’m satisfied that we can see both our riders amongst the quickest from the beginning. Both Troy and Alex have raced at Laguna before, and gone well, and I hope that they can keep their level of competitiveness throughout the weekend.”

Alex Barros – Camel Honda – 1’25.048 - 7° tempo
“Compared to eleven years ago this track is much safer. Although the asphalt seems the same, so it’s even more bumpy and undulating than before. Coming into the straight there’s a particularly big dip. In any case, this track requires you to ride very aggressively and be very physical, especially with the MotoGP bike compared to the 500cc. It’s not a circuit where you can get away with not riding a clean line. At the moment it’s hard to work out how to set the gearbox and the suspension; it’s dirty out there and there’s not a lot of grip but gradually as it cleans up things will become clearer and we can begin to think about tyres too. The times are sure to come down accordingly.”

Troy Bayliss – Camel Honda – 1’24.547 - 1° tempo

“I haven’t been to this track for three or four years now. The track is practically the same just with a few more bumps which seem to appear more every year. They’ve done a good job in improving the safety, they’ve moved several walls and the impression it gives is that overall it is much safer. It’s still a hard track though, where you have to be very aware, but it’s a track I really like, also because the last time I was here I got a good result. I’m feeling good on the bike, but it will be a long weekend and this is just a good start, my best so far this year. So, concentration, determination and hard work are what we
need now.”


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