Grand Prix of Spain - Top performance of Shinya Nakano - and of Bridgestone’s new tire generation
Jerez de la Frontera – (April 10, 2005) -- Super Shinya Nakano rode his Kawasaki Ninja ZX-RR to an impressive fifth place in today’s season-opening Spanish Grand Prix, keeping a group of much faster bikes under control with impressive cornering speed and remarkable consistency. The new big bang version of his four-cylinder machine proved its potential as much a new generation of Bridgestone rear tires with a new construction, new compounds and a new shape for improved traction under acceleration. Nakano’s team-mate Alex Hofmann confirmed the promising package with a similarly strong ride. Well within the top ten for most of the race, the young German only dropped back to eleventh on the last laps, after losing the top speed battle against a group of ultra-fast Honda machines. Whereas local hero Carlos Checa bounced back from a difficult start into the weekend to take tenth place despite a left shoulder injury, his team-mate and Ducati superstar Loris Capirossi had to settle for 13th position after struggling with set-up problems all weekend long. Bruised from a practice crash, Suzuki rider John Hopkins fell short of his own expectations with 14th place. His team-mate Kenny Roberts stranded with an engine failure.

Shinya Nakano – Kawasaki Racing Team– 5th position: “I was able to ride within the leading pack for the opening laps, and my Bridgestone tires felt really good and competitive. By mid-race, it became a little more difficult to control the slides, but the consistency was still there, and the life of the rear tire was extraordinary – Bridgestone has made another big step in development. It was fun to ride with Alex Barros and to be able to keep his pace, and it was great to get a strong result at the opening race of the season, a real boost for Kawasaki, for Bridgestone and for myself. As everybody could see, our new bike with the big bang engine has a lot of potential, and even though we still have a long way to go, we are definitely on the right track!”

Carlos Checa – Ducati Marlboro Team – 10th position: “I was in the group battling for sixth at the beginning, but then Tamada and I touched each other under brakes, and this hurt my left shoulder again. Considering the circumstances and the technical trouble we had initially, tenth place is not so bad at all – honestly, I didn’t even expect to finish the race.”

Alex Hofmann – Kawasaki Racing Team – 11th position: “The performance of our tires was really good this weekend, and the fact that Shinya’s lap times hardly dropped on the last laps shows that the latest tire generation pays off not only in terms of traction but also in terms of tire life. As far as my own race goes, I enjoyed fighting with the group that was battling for fifth, but when it counted towards the end, I dropped back because I still lack some experience – on the straights, I was easy prey for a few of the Honda guys, and to be overtaken like that made me lose my rhythm. But at least I got a first whiff of how it feels to go with the top contenders!”

Hiroshi Yamada - Motorcycle Racing Manager – Bridgestone Motorsport: “Congratulations to Shinya and Kawasaki, who scored very good results in both qualifying and the race. Shinya’s lap times were very consistent. The difference of his best and his last lap in the race was only 0,5 seconds, which means that our tire life and consistency was very good, and that we have arrived at top level in terms of tire performance. We changed the shape, the construction and the compound of our rear tire for this race, and the result confirms that we are going the right direction. We are very sorry for Ducati and Suzuki who had aimed at stronger results. I’m sure they’ll do much better in the next race!”

Bridgestone Results: 5. Shinya Nakano (JPN) Kawasaki, 46.10,815, 10. Carlos Checa (SPA) Ducati, 46.22,834, 11. Alex Hofmann (GER) Kawasaki, 46.25,439,13 Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati, 46.45,528, 14. John Hopkins (USA) Suzuki, 47.02,502, DNF Kenny Roberts (USA) Suzuki Temperature Track Air Weather Afternoon 32 C 15 C Sunny, windy