23.05.03 / Jerez - Barcelona - Cannes: News and Current Events!
Jerez: Almost a perfect weekend!
Only almost, because I would rather have had the point for myself. But considering the fact that my bike was only finished on Thursday about 11:30 pm, everything was completely new and I only had 4 hours to find my Set Up, that I have only one machine and it isn't exactly technically superior to the other greenhorns, I still have to say that I am satisfied under these circumstances. And then Andrew, not exactly dumb tactically, goes and gets a 4 second lead at the start by giving Nicky Hayden the task of holding me up a little. It worked, and the point is his, but on June 8th there will hopefully be a technical chance to get the same kind of revenge!!! See u in bella Italia ...
Barcelona: 2 test days on the Circuito de Catalunya!
On Monday after the race we made a bee line to the two day test sessions in Barcelona. Dunlop had rented the track with Aprilia and Suzuki and with us, in particular with me laying plenty of test material on the tarmack. I could burn some rubber with my former idol JMB - Jean Michel Bayle who was back in the saddle for Suzuki again. He was my hero before - in Barcelona I could block him - JMB is simply a cult!
Cannes: The Film Festival of the Burn Outs!
Then from the tests to the beautiful and the rich on the Côte d'Azur. Sun, beach and Film Festival, a fine diversion after 5 days in the ZX-RR saddle. Together with Valentino Rossi, John Hopkins, Colin Edwards, Oliver Jacque and Garry McCoy we were able to lighten our moods a bit on the Promenade. Together with the actor Ewan McGregor - known from roles in "Star Wars" and "Moulin Rouge" - we came as pre-ambassadors for the film "FASTER" www.fastermovie.com rolling down La Croissette and leaving clouds of smoke and plenty of rubber all over noble French territory. During the final photo shoot in front of the Hotel Majestic numerous photographers were waiting for Mister McGregor - but standing there in person ...
12.06.03 / Kawasaki Press Release
HOFMANN AND MCCOY IN THE POINTS FOR KAWASAKI
Alex Hofmann, making only his second wild card appearance of the season for Kawasaki, opened his World Championship account with a hard fought 14th place in today's baking hot Italian GP at Mugello.
The 23-year-old German rider made a brilliant start from the fourth row of the grid, making up places in the early part of the race before becoming embroiled in a battle with Honda riders, Nicky Hayden and Ryuichi Kiyonari, for 12th place. The top speed advantage enjoyed by the Honda pairing proved too much for Hofmann to overcome, forcing the German rider to eventually settle for 14th place and his first championship points of the 2003 season.
Hofmann was joined in the points by his Fuchs Kawasaki team-mate, Garry McCoy, who finished 15th. The Australian had planned on making a fast start, in a bid to run with his German team-mate, but the plan was thwarted at the first turn when he was slowed by the two riders in front of him and Hofmann managed to pull out a slight gap.
Mugello rookie Andrew Pitt, who faced a steep learning curve this weekend, endured a long and lonely ride to 16th place, just missing out on scoring points in his first outing on this demanding Italian circuit.
Alex Hofmann
"I got a very good start and it was a lot of fun fighting with the guys early in the race, and obviously I'm happy to get some points today. For many laps I had a good battle with Hayden and Kiyonari, but for the moment they have a slight speed advantage - although it is very positive for Kawasaki that we have been in there fighting with them. Our qualifying was good, but that is just one lap and what we were looking for today was progress over a race distance. The front end was very stable today and I only lost a little bit of rear grip towards the end."
Harald Eckl - Team Manager
"We scored some points today, which is good, but the main thing is that we're starting to bridge the gap to the teams at the front, and this gives us confidence that we are making progress. The steps may be small, but this is a new project in a very competitive class, so we are happy each time we do move forward. It was unfortunate for Alex that, at the moment, we are down a little on top speed, otherwise Hayden and Kiyonari would not have been able to draft back past him on the straight every time he made a pass on them through the turns."
15.08.03 / Kawasaki Press Release
HOFMANN SECURES FULL TIME KAWASAKI RIDE FOR 2004
Today the Kawasaki Racing Team and Alex Hofmann reached an agreement that will see the 23-year-old German rider contest all rounds of the 2004 MotoGP World Championship aboard the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-RR.
Hofmann joined the Kawasaki Racing Team as European test and development rider at the end of the 2002 season and, since taking on the role, the former German and European 250cc Champion has worked tirelessly alongside engineers from both the Kawasaki Racing Team and Kawasaki's race division in Japan to develop the Ninja ZX-RR MotoGP machine.
In addition, Hofmann has impressed with strong performances in his outings as a Kawasaki Racing Team wild card rider, with his best result of the season so far being a hard fought tenth place finish during this year's rain lashed Dutch TT.
It is these wild card performances that have led to Hofmann's future becoming the subject of much speculation in recent weeks, with his name being linked to a number of high profile teams. However, after lengthy discussions between Kawasaki in Japan, the Kawasaki Racing Team and Hofmann's manager, Dieter Theis, an agreement has been reached whereby the young German rider will continue his test and development role for the remainder of the season, before stepping up to a full time MotoGP ride with the Kawasaki Racing Team in 2004.
This weekend's Czech Grand Prix at Brno marks the last of Hofmann's planned wild card appearances aboard the Ninja ZX-RR this season.
Harald Eckl - Team Manager
"The discussions have been long, but I'm happy to be able to finally confirm the fact that Alex Hofmann will be riding full time for the Kawasaki Racing Team in 2004. Alex first came to my attention as a 16-year-old and, even then, it was obvious that he had the natural talent to compete at the very highest level. Since then I have watched his progress with interest and, at the end of the 2002 season, I had no hesitation in recommending him to Kawasaki for the role of European test and development rider."
"This season Alex has impressed with his mature and consistent approach, both to his test and development duties and to his wild card appearances for the team. During the past six months he has adapted well to the Ninja ZX-RR and developed his riding style to get the best from the bike; a fact borne out by his results as a wild card rider. Alex has enormous potential and I am confident that we will see him develop further as a rider in 2004. His work on developing the Ninja ZX-RR this season will also mean that we will be able to supply him with more competitive machinery in 2004."
"Alex will be the only German rider in the MotoGP class, so it is fitting that he should ride for a German team. There is of course another advantage to Alex's nationality; for the first time I will be able to understand exactly what my rider is saying!"
Alex Hofmann
"The fact that I've had offers from other MotoGP teams for next season is probably the worst kept secret in the paddock at the moment! Maybe if I had only been looking at next year then the decision as to who to ride for would have been a lot easier to make, but I have had to think beyond 2004 and I believe that staying with the Kawasaki Racing Team is the best option in terms of my future MotoGP career."
"If someone had told me two years ago that I'd be starting my first full season in MotoGP at the age of 23 I wouldn't have believed them. But it's happened and my job now is to make the most of this opportunity, both for myself and for Kawasaki. We've worked hard to develop the Ninja ZX-RR this season and I'm confident that the progress we've made so far will allow Kawasaki to field a much stronger package in 2004. Both Kawasaki and Harald Eckl have shown a lot of faith in my ability by giving me this chance, now it's down to me to prove their faith is justified."
Dieter Theis
"A number of other factory teams in the MotoGP paddock were interested in securing Alex's services for the 2004 season, but both Alex and I were keen to continue our relationship with the Kawasaki Racing Team and are therefore happy that we have managed to reach an agreement for next season. Kawasaki has shown a lot of faith in Alex this season and, as a loyal and consistent rider, he felt that it would be wrong to break the terms of his contract and depart from the team."
"However, the contract details were not the main reason for Alex's decision to stay with the Kawasaki Racing Team for 2004. Alex is new to the MotoGP class and it is important that he is part of a team that is capable of developing his abilities as a rider. For many years Harald Eckl has been involved in developing young talent and I am confident that with his guidance Alex's full potential will be realised. I am also confident that the development work being carried out by Kawasaki in Japan, in conjunction with the team's engineers in Germany, will result in Kawasaki being able to provide Alex with competitive machinery with which to contest next year's World Championship."
08.09.03 / 2004 is "GREEN" !
That's no longer a secret of course, but reason enough for me to be happy about the whole next season in the saddle of the ZX-RR. Since, in the past few weeks, you were able to read something in the newspapers almost weekly about my future, I have held back with news in my website.
But the speculations are over with and #66 is already back in action.
I am sure that I have made the right decision for my carreer and can hardly wait to start as an official works rider in my first complete Moto GP season. Of course it will be a tough job for the team and for me, but I believe firmly that a few things will be changed during the winter and we will be able to show the first steps toward the top.
But since I unfortunately cannot stand to just sit in front of the television for the last races, I am busy with my new KX 250 -back to the roots - so as not to get rusty !
That works really well even with the dirt :-) ...
So we will see each other regularly in 2004 then - in green and as always with the #66 !
26.09.03 / MX 4 FUN !
Well it has become pretty quiet around #66 without races ! The contract has already been signed even though the season isn't even over yet - what a boring winter I am facing ;-) !!!
Enough time to remember old times - back into the mud ! Now my KX 250 finally has to believe again and it won't hurt my fitness either.
