Sunday pm - Capirossi Lights up Rizla Suzuki
One of the greatest sights among many at this epic race was to see
Loris Capirossi bounce into a top six placing so rapidly after his arrival at Rizla Suzuki.
The team seemed to falter at times during winter testing and in the first round at Qatar, but the 34-year-old Italian - the most experienced rider on the grid with 268 grand prix starts under his wheels - showed all his legendary fire when he shoved
James Toseland aside to claim fifth place.
What's the secret to the progress he has made from his eighth-place finish at Qatar?
"We were not in the best shape at Qatar," he admitted. "The week before the race we tested four or five different bikes, with different chassis and engines - everything - and we found the best solution.
"We used that setting in the race at Qatar, but it was not right. Now we are happy with it. The balance of the bike is really good now. It's very good on braking, and the engine is strong."
Capirossi's rear tyre deteriorated after seven or eight laps at
Jerez after he had made the third fastest lap of the race. But he was still able to get stuck into that fierce battle with Toseland,
John Hopkins and
Andrea Dovizioso, and duff up the younger riders.
Sunday pm - Toseland Rips it Up
You could never accuse James Toseland of making a dainty start to his new career in
MotoGP racing.
In his debut outing at Qatar he had a fairing-barging incident with double 250cc world champion
Jorge Lorenzo, and at Jerez he and
Chris Vermeulen came together so hard that it tore the Australian's leathers on the upper arm, knocked one of the handlebar-ends off the Suzuki, and bent its brake lever up.
"He could have come past a lot smoother than he did," Vermeulen reflected later. "He used me to turn. If you treat people with respect, they will give respect back to you. It's all going to come back to him at some point."
