The much-talked-about split section off of the start at Anaheim III reportedly actually won’t be used off of the start, but every lap after that, the riders will have two lane choices, which may make for some tight racing tomorrow night.
In practice today, Ricky Carmichael was the first rider to triple-triple the rhythm section by the first-base line, and he was the only rider to consistently make a large jump over a step-up in another section in the first practice. Mickael Pichon tried it, but he came up short and nearly crashed. He made the triple-triple right away, though.
All of the French contingent looked fast in the 250cc class, but David Vuillemin looked faster than basically everybody but maybe Carmichael, unofficially. He and teammate Chad Reed went at if for a few laps, but Vuillemin eventually made the pass and pulled away.
Sebastien Tortelli was sporting a new haircut, courtesy of Rick Johnson, and he looked strong, as did his teammate Stephane Roncada. Otherwise, all of the usual suspects looked strong, as Ezra Lusk looked very smooth, and Mike LaRocco, Ernesto Fonseca and friends all showed flashes of speed.
KTM’s Jeremy McGrath looked perfectly fine as he got ready for tomorrow’s hot lap during opening ceremonies. He wasn’t quite up to race speed, but then, he likely wasn’t trying to be. He did throw a string of picturesque Nac-Nacs off of the triples near the end of the first session, though.
Yamaha’s Tim Ferry was a no-show during Friday practice, and his team manager just said he was testing. According to him, the rumors of Ferry’s fall at the Yamaha test track within the past couple days weren’t true.
James Stewart Jr. looked fast as usual, as did Travis Preston. All of the top 125cc guys were doing the same triple-triple that the 250cc riders were jumping, but Danny Smith was actually the first to complete the obstacle.
It will be interesting to see who stands out during practice tomorrow, as the long whoop sections that will be placed both before the first triple and after the second triple will be cut in by then. Plus, the riders will have transponders on their motorcycles, so the fastest rider will be much easier to determine.
