After an unusual first day of practice, which was spent mostly regaining confidence at the track, this morning Alex and Troy focused on the set-up of their RC211V and preparing for the crucial qualifying session this afternoon. They were consistently amongst the top group throughout the whole session, finishing with second and fourth overall, and seem to have shown that they are in the sort of shape which will see them challenging in the race tomorrow.

Sito Pons – Camel Honda
“I’m pleased with how things are going, the whole squad is working well and both Troy and Alex have been amongst the top four throughout, and always at the top level. This means that today we should be fighting for the front row and getting a good position on the starting grid. Alex is working well on set-up and has found a fast and consistent rhythm, whilst Troy has made a huge step forward, and as always we are working 100% to get him in to position to show his talent.”

Alex Barros – Camel Honda – 1'24.045 – 4th fastest
“Things are progressing well, today the grip was much better, and we were able to put in some good work on the set-up. We worked on the electronics and the suspension and we have begun to choose which tyres we will use. We still haven’t tested everything we wanted to, but we’re going well, and we have some very clear ideas. I also feel a lot more comfortable than yesterday, I’ve found the necessary automatic mode for this track and am able to ride much more easily and it’s not so
tiring.”

Troy Bayliss – Camel Honda – 1’23.797 – 2nd fastest
“I feel good, we’ve made another step forward with the race tyres this morning, and I have managed to improve my time too, going under 1’24. Just after, at the end of the session, I lost the front and slid out but it was nothing really. However we will probably try and get a better setting for the front forks because even in the early laps I wasn’t happy with how they behaved, but everything else is going well, I’m focused and confident and we’re working well.”