KONICA MINOLTA Honda are confident of better things at this weekend’s race at Jerez in southern Spain. At the first round in Qatar ten days ago, a steady start saw Shinya Nakano come home in 10th place, while other championship challengers crashed around him. Finishing the race was the aim for the former 250GP runner-up, but as the season progresses, both Team and rider are confident of improved results on the new-for-2007 800cc V4. The KONICA MINOLTA Honda Team have been scrutinizing the data from Qatar at their technical headquarters in Verona to ensure that the lack of corner-entry confidence that afflicted Shinya at the Losail circuit isn’t a problem in Spain. It is hoped that the tighter Jerez circuit should better suit both the bike and the 29-year-old Japanese rider’s style.
Gianluca Montiron – Team Manager KONICA MINOLTA Honda
“We all expect maximum effort from each other, the rider, Team and myself – this is why we compete, so we will give 100% at Jerez. Qatar was the first race in a long season, so I think we will have to be three or four races in before we have a clear vision of where we are in comparison with our competitors and at every race we will work hard to close the gap on the leaders. For Jerez, we are aiming to be in the top five or six positions. I believe we have the best technical package in MotoGP, but everything must work at 100% for us to give the best package to Shinya and then he can improve too. We acquired a lot of information from Qatar GP, they’ll be useful to make steps ahead in all sectors. ”
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