Sepang test washed out

Loris Capirossi topped the final washed out day of testing at Sepang.

The track was damp all day and the riders didn’t manage to put in many laps before the rain started in earnest.

Capirossi put in the fastest lap of the day at 2:01.92 followed by Valentino Rossi almost 0.7 seconds down.

Kawasaki rider Shinya Nakano put in a strong performance to finish with the third fastest time.

Rossi siad he was happy with the progress at the test despite two disrupted days.

“We have made some good progress to solve the problem with the vibration. We have some new data now and we understand better why it’s happening, and how to finally fix it. We’re not yet at 100% and I think we can go faster, but I am feeling confident. Before the Jerez GP we might receive a small improvement for the engine, and hopefully we will have a bit more power.”

The day wasn’t totally wasted though. The downtime forced by the rain was put to good use by Rossi and his crew as he celebrated his 27th birthday with a large cake.

Unnoficial times:

Loris Capirossi (ITA) Ducati, 2:01.92

Valentino Rossi (ITA) Yamaha, 2:02.06

Shinya Nakano (JPN) Kawasaki, 2:02.20

Colin Edwards (USA) Yamaha, 2:02.33

John Hopkins (USA) Suzuki, 2:02.34

Randy de Puniet (FRA) Kawasaki, 2:02.47

Sete Gibernau (SPA) Ducati, 2:02.65

Carlos Checa (SPA) Yamaha, 2:02.66

Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Honda, 2:02.70

Nicky Hayden (USA) Honda, 2:02.86

Makoto Tamada (JPN) Honda, 2:02.87

Marco Melandri (ITA) Honda, 2:03.00

Toni Elias (SPA) Honda, 2:03.64

Alex Hofmann (GER) Ducati, 2:04.18

Kenny Roberts (USA) KR Honda, 2:04.30

Jose Luis Cardoso (SPA) Ducati, 2:04.82

James Ellison (GBR) Yamaha, 2:05.70

Sepang Lap Record: 2:02.993