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Randy De Puniet fastest Honda rider under the floodlights at Qatar MotoGP test

In MotoGP

29 febbraio 2008

The 2008 MotoGP riders and team managers attended a spectacular inauguration ceremony tonight as the Losail circuit, venue for Qatar Grand Prix, became the first fully floodlit MotoGP circuit when the race organization switched on the awe inspiring lighting system.

The 5.380 km circuit now boasts 1,000 poles ranging between three and nine meters tall the height of the poles determined by the distance from the track strategically placed to reduce the shadow effect. Forty-four 13 megawatt generators, installed in batches of three, pump out enough power to illuminate 70 football pitches!

Riding 320 km plus 800cc grand prix machines in normal conditions is the biggest challenge in two-wheel motorsport riding them under floodlights brings a whole new dimension into play and the riders entered the fray in cautious frame of mind. Some riders found it relatively easy to get up to speed for others the artificial light gave them problems identifying points of reference.

Repsol Honda factory team rider Dani Pedrosa had problems with the shadows on the track top and found riding tiring on the eyes. Still suffering some discomfort to the hand he injured in early season testing the Spaniard is playing catch up on his rivals but managed to put in consistently fast lap times ending the first floodlit practice session with eighth fastest time.

Pedrosa’s Repsol Honda team mate, American Nicky Hayden, started the test with the base line set up employed at the last MotoGP test at Jerez, Spain. After acclimatizing to the conditions he found riding under lights not too much different to a day time race.

JiR Scot Honda teamster Andrea Dovizioso has racing experience under lights albeit from his childhood Pocket bike career. Dovizioso, a 2008 MotoGP Rookie, took time to identify reference points as the reflected light varied from corner to corner. The Italian, a former 125cc world champion has quickly come to terms with the RC212V after a career spent in the smaller capacity classes finding the transition to big four-stroke machines has been almost seamless.

San Carlo Gresini Honda rider Alex De Angelis was one of the quick to learn brigade. The young Sanmarinese had tested at the circuit in November and was impressed with the improvements made in the meantime. Once his night vision was dialed in De Angelis used the base set up the team have established for the MotoGP Rookie’s RC212V to test tyres for Bridgestone testing both soft and medium compounds.
His San Carlo Honda team-mate, Japanese star Shinya Nakano took longer to adjust to the experience but after two hours he felt confident enough to test a variety of tyres in combination with suspension settings.

Frenchman Randy De Puniet found the conditions ‘Strange’ but experienced no problems with shadows while riding his LCR RC212V. He used the base set up he and his team technicians have developed during winter testing making only minor adjustments before working with Michelin on tyre testing.

Honda rider lap times and quotes.

Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda: 1m 56.621s
“The track seems to be well lit but there are a lot of shadows and it’s very tiring on the eyes. I rode on my own throughout most of this evening’s session, so I don’t yet know how the floodlights will be in a race situation. Compared to the last test session in Jerez, my physical condition has improved, I still feel pain when I’m Braking and the hand has swollen a bit, but it’s better than it was at Jerez. It’s been quite a difficult evening, we are struggling with the bike, we haven’t found the right set-up, so tomorrow we will continue working to prepare a base set-up for the race weekend here, which is next week.”

Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda: 1m 57.010s
“I quite enjoyed myself, it’s a little bit different, I thought it was pretty fun. We need to get faster but the actual feeling is quite good and it’s a pretty cool experience. I haven’t ridden with anyone yet to see how that’s going to be, but as far as the lines and stuff, it’s not really much different from daytime. I haven’t had any problems with the shadows, just a bit of the glare off some of the lights is a bit strange, but the actual track, the grip, the tyres seem okay, so I think it’s good. Last year we struggled a lot here so we basically started with our Jerez settings, just checking a few things right now and trying to dial it in.”

Alex De Angelis, San Carlo Gresini Honda: 1m 56.571s
“I tested here in November so it was not a big surprise for me. They did a great job, it’s fun riding here. I also did some overtaking and I found no problem with the shadows. Maybe the problem could be the start when we are all together. We tested several tyres tonight and we found some interesting solutions. As for the bike we haven’t changed so much. It’s not good to make big changes from the base set up.”.

Andrea Dovizioso, JiR Scot Honda: 1m 56.121s
“At the beginning it was a little difficult to identify the individual points of reference. When I was a child and I was riding pocket bikes at night I remember that I had to make only small variations to my riding style. Here instead it’s much more demanding because the track is a bit up and down and the points of reference change colours from one point to another because of the reflection of the lightning. As for the bike I’m happy because I can adapt quite easily to every new track even if I have no point of reference.”

Randy De Puniet, LCR Honda: 1m 56.062s
“It was strange , especially at the beginning. In fact outside the track everything is dark, but I had no special problem on track with the shadows. The conditions are cool at night and I’m satisfied. The feeling with the bike and the tyres is good. We have a good base set up so I didn’t change too much. I tested some tyres for Michelin tonight.”

Shinya Nakano, San Carlo Gresini Honda: 1m 57.223s
“it’s like driving a car in the highway in the night! The track is lighted but you have to get used to it. After a couple of hours I started to understand some things and to get used to the new situation and also lap times improved. We start with soft tyres and then used the medium because the tyres are working well. We also worked on suspension setting, trying different solutions in order to find the right balance.”

Overall lap times on day one at Losail.
1.    Casey STONER (Ducati Marlboro Team) 1:55.330
2.    Jorge LORENZO (Fiat Yamaha) 1:56.019
3.    Randy DE PUNIET (Honda LCR) 1:56.062
4.    Andrea DOVIZIOSO (JiR Honda Scot ) 1:56.121
5.     James TOSELAND (Yamaha Tech3) 1:56.251
6.    Alex DE ANGELIS (Honda San Carlo) 1:56.571
7.   John HOPKINS (Kawasaki) 1:56.614
8.    Dani PEDROSA (Repsol Honda) 1:56.621
9.    Valentino Rossi (Fiat Yamaha) 1:56.749
10.    Colin Edwards (Yamaha Tech3) 1:56.762
11.    Toni ELIAS (Alice Ducati) 1:57.007
12.    Nicky Hayden (Repsol Honda) 1:57.010
13.    Shinya NAKANO (Honda San Carlo) 1:57.223
14.    Chris VERMEULEN (Rizla Suzuki) 1:57.522
15. Loris CAPIROSSI (Rizla Suzuki) 1:57.551
16.    Marco Melandri (Ducati Marlboro Team) 1:57.593
17.    Sylvain GUINTOLI (Alice Ducati) 1:57.644
18.    Anthony WEST (Kawasaki) 1:57.787