MotoGP Rd 2: Gibernau crashes, Barros/Honda win, Rossi extends title lead

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Barros celebrates after the event

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Shinya Nakano, Kawasaki, Eighth: "That was not an easy race, especially with rain on some fast sections of the course. It was very difficult to see if the track was wet, so I had to keep checking my visor and windscreen for water. It is very difficult to ride a MotoGP bike on slick tyres on a wet track. My lap times were what I expected, but the front group seemed to be able to go faster than in practice and I couldn’t stay with them from the start. I got some good points today, but I’m never happy to be eighth, we need to keep working on engine performance."

Ichiro Yoda, Kawasaki, Technical Director: "I am happy for the points from this race in these very difficult conditions. This weekend was a good opportunity for us to analyse our weak points and the areas in which we need to catch up, and quickly. Clearly the main area is engine development and engine management systems. Our chassis and Bridgestone tyres are performing well."

Harald Eckl, Kawasaki, Team Manager: "I’m satisfied for the result in the prevailing weather conditions, which were not easy for the riders. Shinya didn’t have the best start, but he did a very good job with constant lap times, to score some very valuable points for the team in the championship."

Loris Capirossi Ducati Marlboro Team , ninth: "Overall I'm happy it's finished because I am not suffering too much pain anymore. Now with a free weekend I will be able to continue my therapy. The track conditions were really unbelievable. Some places it was wet, other places dry and no one stopped in the pits, because it would have been pointless. Luckily only a few riders fell and none fell down in the last three or four laps, when it began raining even more heavily. I tried to be careful and to finish so I brought home some points. The bike has improved and we are working on it very well so I'm confident for next races, when I'll be 100%".

Ruben Xaus (Fortuna Yamaha Team) tenth: “Throughout the weekend we improved our pace and because of this I was looking forward to a dry race. I had to start from the fourth row, which wasn’t easy, and I couldn’t find a really good rhythm until the latter stages of the race. Of course by then it was too late to do anything. It was a very difficult race and to be honest I was just happy to survive. I spent most of the race running around on my own and that made it very lonely and the race seemed to drag on forever. I hope Shanghai is dry!”

Troy Bayliss, Camel Honda, eleventh: “It might seem strange, but I’m quite happy with my race. I was starting down the order a bit, but I managed to get a good start. I got to seventh, and was having a good battle with Hayden, pushing to the limit, when I crashed out. The bike stalled, and automatically thinking about last year’s bike I thought my race was over, that I wouldn’t be able to start it again. I tried it anyway and it started up again. I got going again and even though the handlebars were all twisted I picked up some points by bringing the bike home. It will go better next time. Congratulations to Alex, he was great today, I’m happy for him and for the team.”

Kenny Roberts Jr Team SUZUKI MotoGP, twelfth: “It was pretty dangerous out there and we just never knew what the weather was doing. I couldn’t make the bike do what I wanted it to, so we still have some issues to address before the next race. We are testing tomorrow, so I hope that will help us to find the solutions. “It’s good to get my first race finish - I was disappointed with last week’s result and although I wasn’t where I wanted to be in today’s race, it’s still important to score points.”

Paul Denning Team SUZUKI MotoGP Team Manager: “It was good to see John up there with Colin and Marco and pulling away from the Hondas of Troy Bayliss and Nicky Hayden. John was riding the bike to its absolute limits and beyond, and was very unlucky not to get a great result. I am very unhappy with the result, but very happy with the effort and potential John displayed. Kenny had a difficult weekend and to see him score points after a race with other riders showed his commitment to try and overcome all the setbacks that have hampered him here in Portugal.”

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