NEWS

"On Friday and Saturday we struggled to put in good lap times and then this morning, for the warm up, the bike felt much better. I’d say that in the end I was 80% happy with the bike – though I’m still learning how to set it up."

"At the start of the race I fought hard to come through the pack – it was a good feeling - then I came up behind Barros. I tried to pass him up the inside – I think I was good on the brakes, especially into the hairpin – but he is difficult to overtake. Then about 5 laps from the end the tyres started to get very tired and the front began to chatter a little, so I decided to just take it easy and go for the finish."

"On Friday and Saturday we had good things on both bikes and for the warm up we managed to put them together into one package. The gains came mainly from the rear suspension, the tyres and a little bit from chassis settings. The last 5 laps weren’t so good, but over the rest of the race Nori’s times were very consistent. We’ve all been working very hard since the beginning of the season and this result will definitely give him and the whole team a major boost - hopefully today will prove the turning point."

"Fortunately it was dry this morning for the warm up and we were able to try out Hamish’s suggestions – virtually everything he came up with worked – and by the time I was on the starting grid I was pretty happy with the bike. The first corner of the race was a little exciting and then I settled down, found a rhythm and started working my way through to eventually finish first in my group. All in all it has been a hell of a weekend, the race went almost perfectly and I have ended up with the best 500 result so far of my career."

Hamish Jamieson (Jason Vincent’s Race Engineer)

"All in all I think it was a very worthwhile experience – especially from Jay’s point of view. He was in a very high-pressure situation, but he stayed calm all weekend and we managed to find a good set up despite the difficult weather conditions and the lack of time. During the race he rode well, the bike stayed consistent throughout and left him in a strong position at the end. The boy did good!"

Nori Haga 12^th – 1’33.487 (at 1.523)

"Not so good – we didn’t have enough time to fine tune the settings. Our main problem at the moment is the rear squatting under acceleration, making the steering heavy through the first part of the circuit. Tyre choice will also be a bit of a gamble."

Colin Davies (Nori Haga’s Race Engineer)

"This morning we managed to improve the bike but not the time, and then this afternoon conditions were obviously less than ideal. We’ve got a couple of things to try tomorrow morning, notably concerning rear suspension. I reckon that for the race Nori should be able to go round close to his qualifying time."

Jason Vincent 19^th – 1’34.731 (at 2.767)

"Qualifying hasn’t turned out as well as I’d hoped – but most of that is down to the weather. We had so many things to try and we simply didn’t get a chance to ride enough with slicks on. Now all we can do is hope that tomorrow’s warm up is dry and that we can test what’s left to test in the 20 minutes. Above all we’d like to improve the front feel and get a little more traction at the rear. Hamish has some good ideas so hopefully it will all work out. Obviously starting from 19^th is going to be difficult, but I’m not far from the other factory bikes and should be able to get amongst them. To be honest, I’m more of a racer than a tester, and tomorrow is the day that matters."

Hamish Jamieson (Jason Vincent’s Race Engineer)

"This morning we managed to make the bike feel better, though we didn’t improve Jay’s lap times. Then this afternoon the poor weather conditions probably costs us more than the others. Providing warm up is dry tomorrow we should be able to make some more progress, and while it is very difficult to make any prognosis for the race, I’d be disappointed if he isn’t up there with the other factory bikes."

"One bike is good, but the other needs more work on the settings. We started off well this afternoon but couldn’t go for a fast lap as we ran out of time. I hope that it stays dry for tomorrow so that we get the chance to try out some other settings. In general I like this circuit and if everything goes well I think I should be able to qualify on the second row of the grid."

Colin Davies (Nori Haga’s Race Engineer)

"We started off pretty well, and apart from a few small problems, one chassis is working fine. Unfortunately the other bike didn’t prove so effective and we ended up losing a bit of time. The problem here is to find a compromise setting that performs on both the fast, smooth part of the circuit as well as the tight, twisty section. We have however found a good rear tyre, and if we can put all the other pieces of the jigsaw together tomorrow, I reckon we should be able to get into the ‘31s’."

Jason Vincent 19^th - 1’34.731 (at 2.767)

"Up until today I had only ridden the bike for an hour and a half at Mallory Park, so obviously we are racing against time. Having said that, the team isn’t putting any pressure on me, I’ve been made to feel very welcome and we seem to be working well together.

Today we tried a few different settings, we’re going in the right direction, and I reckon we now have a good base setting. Hopefully tomorrow it will be dry and I can concentrate on getting my lap times down. If everything goes according to plan I’m aiming to qualify in the top 15 and finish the race in the top 10."

Hamish Jamieson (Jason Vincent’s Race Engineer)

We are very impressed with how quickly Jay has adapted and the quality of feedback he is giving. Basically we started off with Garry’s bike and the main problem so far has been getting the gear ratios right. I think it would have helped if he could have got a tow off someone, but even so he has made good progress. Hopefully we’ll be able to continue going in the right direction but I think his knowledge of the circuit will really pay when it comes to race day."

For other Year 2001 Grand Prix reports

Assen, Netherlands 2001

Barcelona, Spain 2001

Mugello, Italy 2001

Le Mans, France 2001

Jerez, Spain 2001

South Africa 2001

Suzuka, Japan 2001

Testing 2001

For more old GP Reports go to

Year 2000 Grand Prix