MotoGP Sepang Test

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Repsol Honda riders top three in Sepang test

The Repsol Honda Team made full use of the second day of testing at the Sepang circuit to continue working on the 2011 RC212V prototype. All three riders went back on track at 10h30 and began with a kind of "time attack" that placed them in the top three positions on the time sheets from the start to the end of the session.

Stoner was able to do 2'00.342 on his fourth lap, immediately after beaten by Dani Pedrosa who on his fourth lap stopped the chrono at 2'00.229. A few minutes after Andrea Dovizioso set his best lap time on his eighth lap with 2'00.531. In his final outing of the day Stoner set the fastest lap of the day with 2'00.171, confirming his good feeling with his new machine. Both the Spaniard and Australian outclassing Rossi's 2009 Pole Position and Circuit Best Lap of 2'00.518.

During the whole day the factory Repsol Honda riders concentrated on their own program with Dani Pedrosa trying a modified front fork that Ohlins brought here after his comments on the first test. The Spaniard was doing also some tyre testing for Bridgestone and going through different set-up work.

Casey Stoner also focused on the new front fork, a 2011 model - looking for the best set-up possible and in the afternoon he tried out some new rear shocks on his RC212V.

The target of Andrea Dovizioso today was to continue working on the engine braking and gain some tenths in corner speed and more grip with some chassis settings. He also tried also a front tyre for Bridgestone and some settings for the clutch.

CASEY STONER ? 1st - 2'00.171
"We tested a lot of different things including the 2011 fork and new shocks and we found quite a lot of chattering with them. We spent 90% of the day on one bike trying different configurations, changing the geometry to get the new fork working with the bike but didn't find anything that felt really good, but these things are necessary to do before the start of the season. We're slowly starting to lean more towards the standard frame but tomorrow will give us more confirmation on this. We found the new forks to be quite amazing in the braking points, in hard breaking I didn't need to use half as much pressure and I was able to stop for the corner much quicker, but found a lot more chattering in the last part of the corner. We managed to reduce this but we just seemed to lack the extra feeling that the alternative forks were giving".

DANI PEDROSA ? 2nd - 2'00.229
"Today we were testing mainly suspension parts, a new front fork in the morning that gives us a more positive feeling on braking, and a rear shock in the afternoon that improves the feeling with the rear tyre, so I'm satisfied with the work we've done together with Ohlins. We also tried different settings for the chassis and I'd like to be in the position tomorrow to decide which one we will use for this season. Now, both chassis give me a good feeling and I have to put my head down and think about it because it's a very important decision. Since coming into MotoGP, this test together with the 2006 winter test on the 990 cc. bike, is the best pre-season. In 2006 I remember we had a very good last test that allowed us to face the first race well prepared and with a lot of confidence; and now it feels very similar. The bike is responding in the areas we need, although the first race is where you see clearly where you win and where you lose. I think Yamaha will be closer than they are now, so we have to keep an eye on them".

ANDREA DOVIZIOSO ? 3rd - 2'00.531
"I'm repeating myself, but I'm very very happy. It was a surprise to do 2'00.9 in the first test and we've been able to do 2'05 today, which is great. Normally I'm not so fast in testing, so to be competitive like this is very good. Today, the track conditions were better, as usual in the second day of testing, but another good point is that we have improved our lap times from the first test, and our rivals haven't so much. In terms of tested items, today we did nothing in particular, just tried a few things that you don't have time to test during the season, and we were consistent all day. The plan for tomorrow is to do a simulation, and it will be a good training to start the season in Qatar with more information about how the tyres and bike work in race distance".

Testing Results
1 - Casey Stoner - 2?00.171 - AUS - HONDA - Repsol Honda Team
2 - Dani Pedrosa - 2?00.229 - SPA - HONDA - Repsol Honda Team
3 - Andrea Dovizioso - 2?00.531 - ITA - HONDA - Repsol Honda Team
4 - Ben Spies - 2?00.824 - USA - YAMAHA - Yamaha Factory Racing Team
5 - Jorge Lorenzo - 2?00.931 - SPA - YAMAHA - Yamaha Factory Racing Team
6 - Marco Simoncelli - 2?01.033 - ITA - HONDA - San Carlo Honda Gresini
7 - Hiroshi Aoyama - 2?01.439 - JPN - HONDA - San Carlo Honda Gresini
8 - Colin Edwards - 2?01.738 - USA - YAMAHA - Monster Yamaha Tech 3

 

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Lots of potential for Bautista on second day

Publish Date: Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Rizla Suzuki?s ?lvaro Bautista made good progress but lost a large amount of test time at Malaysia today due to a severe headache that sidelined the Spanish star.

Bautista (P10, 2?02.035, 35 laps), had already begun today?s wide-ranging programme and had tested new Marchesini wheels, Ohlins rear shock damping specs, and electronic mapping strategies before the pain and dizziness made it unsafe to test further. He received attention at the Clinica Mobile and rested for a few hours. Thereafter, he was able to continue with the day?s testing and to set his fastest time of the day ? which was 0.2 seconds better than yesterday?s best.

Nobuatsu Aoki was again on hand to continue with his own test programme at the 5,548m Sepang circuit. He completed another 46 laps to give yet more data for Suzuki to use as it prepares for the new season. Honda?s Casey Stoner was again the quickest rider at the test.

Bautista will be hoping to be back to full fitness tomorrow as the pre-season test schedule reaches its final third. The last day at Sepang will give the teams only three more days testing ? with the final two at Qatar in two weeks? time ? before the 2011 MotoGP season kicks off on Sunday 20th March, also at Qatar.

?lvaro Bautista:

?It seems like at this moment the bike has better durability than the rider! This has been bad luck to get sick at two consecutive tests ? I feel very drained but I am confident that I will be ok tomorrow after maybe 12 hours sleep! But there was also some positive points today ? we tested a new rear swing-arm which improved the rear grip by a reasonable step and also a new engine map which helped the bike punch off the corner better. My best lap was with race distance already completed on the tyres, so for sure I can go quicker with new tyres but today my condition was not the best for a ?qualifying? style lap. I?m frustrated but happy ? we have improved the Suzuki quite a lot since the end of 2010.?

Second MotoGP Official Test Sepang Day Two Classification:

1. Casey Stoner (Honda) 2?00.171: 2. Dani Pedrosa (Honda) +0.058: 3. Andrea Dovizioso (Honda) +0.360: 4. Ben Spies (Yamaha) +0.653: 5. Jorge Lorenzo (Yamaha) +0.760: 10. ?LVARO BAUTISTA (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +1.864: 19. NOBUATSU AOKI (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +4.411:

 

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SECOND DAY AT SEPANG

The second day of winter testing at Sepang has concluded, after that the MotoGP riders donated, at the beginning of the day, in support to the Malaysian population recently hit by floods. After this for Ducati Pramac Racing riders, Loris Capirossi and Randy De Puniet was time to step on track. 39 laps for the Italian, who ended the session at 15th place, with 20 thousands of a second later than teammate De Puniet (for him the laps were 35), with the 14th fastest lap time in 2.02.604.
The white-green duo could not perform has hoped and tomorrow, in the last day of testing, they will adjust the bike in order to improve.


Randy De Puniet - Pramac Racing Team - 14th fastest lap time in
2'02.604

"It did not go as I expected. I still find a bit of trouble when breaking and also when entering the corners. Every time I try to push harder the lap time goes up. Tomorrow we will use the basic set up of yesterday, because today was not convincing. The goal,for tomorrow is to improve the lap time and find the right set-up for the start of the season."

Loris Capirossi - Pramac Racing Team - 15th fastest lap time in
2'02.624

"Today we focused on the development of certain technical details, and tomorrow we will try to lower our lap time. We studied different solutions trying to figure out the areas for improvement. I am confident and I think the last day of test tomorrow we can do something good to lower our best lap time as up to today we did not use soft tyres."

 

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YAMAHA FACTORY RACING - 2011 PRESS RELEASE

Sepang

24.02.2011

Successful Test for Yamaha Factory Racing in Sepang

Texan rider Spies wrapped up his three day test at lunchtime today having completed 32 laps in the morning session. Although the team had kept back four sets of soft tyres for this final day, only two were used in less than ideal conditions to set a faster lap time. Despite this he managed to record his fastest time of 2'00.678, his personal best for the circuit and 0.86 under the pole position time of his team mate Lorenzo from last year's Malaysian Grand Prix race.

Lorenzo's final afternoon session was played out in dramatic fashion, the World Champion completing a 20 lap race distance run under dark skies split by forked lightening. The Mallorcan kept a consistent pace throughout, confirming the improvements of his M1 and, as with his team mate, lapping consistently under last year's race times and beating his pole lap of last season's Malaysian GP race by 0.534 seconds.

Ben Spies, Yamaha Factory Racing Rider, 5th, 2'00.678, 32 laps
"It was a productive test, we got through a lot. I had one small mistake but on the plus side we had a lot of stuff we accomplished so it's all good. We still have some work to do obviously but we're not too far off race pace. We need to figure out how to get the bike a little bit quicker for a few laps, definitely for qualifying and the beginning of the race. It wasn't the most ideal conditions today for a quick lap, I did go to put in a few this morning and was pretty pleased with the time. I'm looking forward to a few days rest now in cooler temperatures at home before Qatar! The team have been awesome again, I'm really pleased with how we're working together."

Jorge Lorenzo, Yamaha Factory Racing Rider, 7th, 2'01.003, 48 laps
"I feel quite tired, after two and a half days of testing I've finished with a long 20 lap run. The results have been quite good, we had a very consistent pace and I was happy to have improved some things with the bike. I think we've made some big steps forward with traction and feel, although we still need to improve our lap time."

Wilco Zeelenberg, Yamaha Factory Racing Team Manager
"It was a good day today to wrap up, I am satisfied with the results of the long run. Jorge was very consistent and the grip didn't drop that much towards the end, he kept a good pace which is a strong point for him and important that we didn't lose that. Of course we saw our competitors were very fast this morning but it's only the second test of the year, I think Qatar will be a very different story. We've improved the package compared to the last time we were here racing here which was our goal. Of course we have more work to do and we will continue to work on it."

Massimo Meregalli, Yamaha Factory Racing Team Director
"We've definitely had a good test, we've improved the traction of the bike a lot and also the handling. Compared to the last test Ben's improved by a considerable time so he's quite satisfied with the set up. There is still a gap to the fastest riders but in terms of long runs we are very competitive so we will go to Qatar knowing we can achieve a good result.

Jorge found a good set up this afternoon and achieved a really good long run so we have achieved the targets we set before we came here, I am very satisfied with the team and how we have performed."

Todays Test times:
Casey stoner Honda 1'59.665
Dani Pedrosa Honda 1'59.803
Marco Simoncelli Honda 2'00.163
Andrea Dovizioso Honda 2'00.541
Ben Spies Yamaha 2'00.678
Colin Edwards Yamaha 2'00.966
Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha 2'01.003
Alvaro Bautista Suzuki 2'01.194
Hiroshi Aoyama Honda 2'01.328
Hector Barbera Ducati 2'01.346
Valentino Rossi Ducati 2'01.469
Nicky Hayden Ducati 2'01.469
Loris Capirossi Ducati 2'01.493
Cal Crutchlow Yamaha 2'02.034
Randy De Puniet Ducati 2'02.155
Tony Elias Honda 2'02.410
Test rider Yamaha 2'02.457
Karel Abraham Ducati 2'02.506
Test rider Yamaha 2'03.016

 

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LAST DAY OF TESTING AT SEPANG

Third and last day of testing for the MotoGP at Sepang. Satisfaction for Loris Capirossi, who ended the session, after 39 laps, with the best time in 2'01.493, just a few thousandths of Hayden and Rossi, the Ducati Official Team duo. Were not enough 42 laps for Randy De Puniet to improve yesterday's position. The French, however, was able to lower his lap time of 449 thousandths with his 2'02.386. The next appointment is fixed on March 13, in Qatar, where the riders will face the last test before the start of the season.

Loris Capirossi - Pramac Racing Team - 13th fastest lap time in 2'01.493
"Today we worked better. We have done important development on the bike. My lap time is almost identical to that of the team Ducati, for us this is cause for great satisfaction. We still have a lot to work, with the right method the results will come".

Randy De Puniet - Pramac Racing Team - 15th fastest lap time in 2'02.155

"I can not be happy for this day. I found in my bike the same trouble, especially when breaking and also when entering the corners.I remain confident for the next test in Qatar, where Ducati has always achieved good results".

 

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Bautista ends Sepang test on a positive note

Publish Date: Thursday, February 24, 2011

Rizla Suzuki has completed the second pre-season test with ?lvaro Bautista taking almost half-of-a-second off his best ever time at the Malaysian circuit.

Bautista recorded a fastest time of 2?01.194 from his 34 laps around the 5,548m Sepang track to give him eighth place overall on the timesheets. Despite a slow front end crash at turn nine earlier in the day ? that Bautista walked away from uninjured ? Suzuki?s Spanish star was able to continue with the comprehensive test schedule, despite still suffering with the after effects of yesterday?s headache that caused him to require clinical treatment.

Bautista was able to try some new Bridgestone tyres today as well as a number of geometry settings and refine some of the earlier settings that he tried during the first two days of the test. Honda?s Casey Stoner finished the test as the quickest rider as he became the first person to lap the Sepang circuit in a sub two minute time.

Suzuki?s engineers now have two weeks to work on the data from this test before the final pre-season test of 2011 takes place at Qatar. The first race on the 2011 calendar will be held under floodlights on Sunday 20th March also at Losail in Qatar.

?lvaro Bautista:

?I felt a little better this morning, especially after the Clinica guys gave me a special vitamin drip. On my first run I made my best Sepang time so far, but actually I made a couple of mistakes and it really should have been a 2.00 something, after that everybody was using older tyres and the track is getting hotter so it gets less easy to make similar times, but I was happy to be able to make mid 2.01?s on old tyres. The test wasn?t the best on my side, because my condition wasn?t great and I didn?t make the long run today ? sorry to Suzuki?s engineers about that ? but we have improved the bike in areas that I really believe will help us in different conditions. The Suzuki is now stable, has good feeling and it?s fast ? I hope we have the same feeling in the colder conditions of Qatar - now I just want to race!?

Paul Denning ? Team Manager:

?A little bit of a strange test but at least we got some clear results! Thanks also to Nobu and the factory engineers for their efforts; they got through a lot of very detailed work that will help us in the future. ?lvaro is maybe a little disappointed in his ultimate pace, but eighth overall on the sheets is really nothing to complain about given that we all know the difference between ?lvaro ?the rider? and ?lvaro ?the racer?. The team has been working very well and very calmly, and it now feels like time to race. The competition this year and the depth of field is absolutely brutal, we hope that Rizla Suzuki and ?lvaro is part of the fight!?

Second MotoGP Official Test Sepang Day Three Classification:

1. Casey Stoner (Honda) 1?59.665: 2. Dani Pedrosa (Honda) +0.138: 3. Marco Simoncelli (Honda) +0.498: 4. Andrea Dovizioso (Honda) +0.876: 5. Ben Spies (Yamaha) +1.013: 8. ?LVARO BAUTISTA (RIZLA SUZUKI MOTOGP) +1.529:

 

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Honda sweeps top four spots of Sepang test

Casey Stoner (Repsol Honda RC212V) led a Honda sweep of the top four spots by topping the time sheets for the third day in a row by running the fastest ever lap of the Sepang Circuit in Malaysia.

The 2007 World Champion wasted no time getting up to speed, taking advantage of the relatively cooler morning temperature to dip under two minutes on his second tour of the 5548m track. Stoner?s lap of 1m, 59.665s was half a second faster than he?d gone on Wednesday and a target that proved untouchable. The only rider to make a serious run at Stoner was team-mate Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V). The Spaniard also dropped below two minutes on his second lap, then improved his time on his third lap to finish at 1m, 59.803s.

After his morning run for the record, Stoner worked with his technicians to decide which chassis to use going forward, as well as testing the electronics on the engine braking system. Then followed a simulated race run of 16 laps ? the race is 20 laps ? during which his pace was much faster than that of the 2010 race-winner. Pedrosa wasn?t as certain on his chassis choice ? he tested both the 2010 and a modified 2011 version ? and will reserve his final decision for the test in Qatar just prior to the season kick-off. He also worked through various engine mapping and suspension solutions.

Third on the day went to Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Honda Gresini RC212V), the fastest rider at the previous test here three weeks ago. The Italian second year MotoGP rider was fastest on the seventh of his 46 laps. His best time of 2m, 0.163s was also under the previous best lap of 2m, 0.518s set by his close friend Valentino Rossi in 2009. After putting his name among the leaders, Simoncelli spent most of the afternoon doing a simulated race run of 21 laps. ?Super Sic? couldn?t match his Wednesday race pace, but put it down to choosing the harder Bridgestone rear tyre, which wasn?t as effective today.

So complete has been Honda?s domination of the pre-season testing, that Honda RC212V riders have not only been fastest on all six days, an unprecedented feat over the first two tests, but other than the first day of the early February test Honda riders finished one-two every day.

And today Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda RC212V) made it four Hondas in a row by nearly joining his fellow Honda riders under the previous record lap. Like Stoner, Pedrosa, and Simoncelli, Dovizioso used the harder compound front Bridgestone and the softer rear tyre to set his fast time early on. His successful outing finished with a 15-lap endurance run. The one hitch in his test was a lack of mid-corner grip while running with a full fuel tank, something he and his team will work to resolve in the test prior to the first round in Qatar.

Hiroshi Aoyama (San Carlo Honda Gresini) was fastest in the hot middle of the day. His best lap of 2m, 1.328s came on his 20th of 48. The time was his fastest ever at Sepang as he continued the development work on the Honda RC212V. The Japanese star found a good baseline from which to improve at the final test of the pre-season in a few weeks? time.

Toni Elias (LRC Honda MotoGP) had an exhausting day of development. The Spaniard opted not to perform a race simulation, instead working in short bursts to improve the set-up of the Honda RC212V. Other than a five-lap run early in the day, the 2010 Moto2 World Champion never ran more than three laps in a row, while trying to find his comfort zone after a year away from the premier class.

The teams now have just under three weeks before the March 13-14 final pre-season test at the Losail Circuit in Qatar. For the first time ever, the race weekend will be spread over four days, with the first day of practice on Thursday, March 17 and working up to the season-opener under the lights on Sunday evening, March 20.

HONDA MotoGP RIDER QUOTES

Casey Stoner (Repsol Honda RC212V): 1st, 1m, 59.665s
?We had a good day comparing the chassis' again and I'm happy we have made our decision on which one we'll use for the season. We also tried a lot of electronics with engine braking and found improvements in a few areas, and some losses in others so we need to rectify these. The chassis we've chosen always behaves in the way we want it to; no matter what set-up we use, we are also able to adapt it fairly easily. So when we get to Qatar in a few weeks we'll be able to test different set-up's at the same time and get more track time on it. Some changes can be quite time consuming to do, so having the two bikes with identical chassis will be useful. The test here has been very productive for us; we did a long run here today - almost race distance - and gathered some key information. I'm feeling more and more comfortable on the RC212V and I can't wait to get to Qatar.?

Dani Pedrosa (Repsol Honda RC212V): 2nd, 1m, 59.803s
?We did a very good three days testing; both tests here in Sepang have been very positive. We improved the braking and worked a lot with different chassis configurations and electronics. It's been a much better winter test than last year, even if we know that everybody will improve for the first race. I'm leaving Sepang satisfied and I think testing in Qatar will give further opportunity to check our work at another circuit, with a different layout and track conditions to what we have had here. I've spent more or less the same time with last year's chassis and the modified 2011 chassis and my best lap time was with the 2011 version, but it will be nice to check it again in Qatar and take there the final decision. I think the bike and myself are in a good shape and we are getting to Qatar with more confidence than last year, but we need to keep our feet on the ground because we had many problems at the beginning of last season and then we improved a lot, so the others can do the same. Nothing is clear until we start racing.?

Marco Simoncelli (San Carlo Gresini Honda): 3rd, 2m, 0.163s
?I am very happy for the time I did this morning. But today we were a bit confused during the race simulation. Yesterday, with the hard rubber I could be very fast, but this afternoon, from the beginning, I was considerably worse; I could not do the same time. Anyway, I'm pretty calm, because the performance today was determined by a choice of tyres, which was not just a good idea - maybe it would be better to opt for a soft rubber like other people did - and I was fast in in the race simulation. But I repeat, we are not at all worried and even go away from Malaysia very happy with the work done in these three days and also happy to change the track because after six days of evidence in these two tests at the Sepang circuit, I was quite exhausted by now.?

Andrea Dovizioso (Repsol Honda RC212V): 4th, 2m, 0.541s
?The good point is that we are really fast, and to have the first two tests like this is a great thing. Also, when we tried the race simulation we were fast, so this is confirmed that we are strong and can fight. However, after completing the simulation I discovered a problem in the front - as I had in some races in 2009 - after a few laps I lose some grip in the middle of the corner. I will leave this test very happy, but we're far from perfect. We need to study what we changed that caused this problem as it occurred after we added just five litres more of fuel. Anyway, even with this problem I completed many fast laps and we are very fast compared to last year. I feel without the problem I had in the front of the bike, I would be able to achieve a similar pace to Dani and Casey, so I'm happy about this.?

Hiroshi Aoyama (San Carlo Gresini Honda): 9th, 2m, 1.328s
?Finally we have finished these tests, which have been very challenging for me. We have done so much work that I was partly satisfied and partly not. The team supported me a lot and together we are able to understand the way to go about the technical solutions to be taken for the season. In the end I'm happy and I can not wait to arrive in Qatar for the next test and begin to build on the great work on this circuit. I am happy to work with these guys and I hope to shortly give them satisfaction.?

Toni Elias (LCR Honda): 16th, 2m, 2.941s 2m, 2.410s
?If we consider the three days in total we took a step forward on suspension set-up and chassis geometry. Now that we have a much clearer idea of the direction to go in I am happy with the work we have done. I?m not as happy with my lap time, but we were too busy working through other things. These days we have done several comparative tests and found a different feeling on the bike compared with the first outing here three weeks ago. Now we will check the data we gathered to be more competitive in Qatar for the last test session before the season starts. I want to thank the guys for their efforts because they are helping me a lot to adapt to this bike.?

 

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LAST DAY OF TESTING FOR DUCATI MARLBORO TEAM IN MALAYSIA

The Ducati Marlboro Team concluded the second Malaysian test with the knowledge that important work awaits them over the two weeks before the next outing, in Qatar. After a positive start, the progress was slower than what the team had hoped for, with Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden finishing the third day 11th and 12th, respectively.

The Italian rider lost an entire day of testing, as he spent Wednesday in bed with a bad flu. Today he was back aboard the GP11, but despite hard work with his crew and lowering his best time compared to Tuesday, the necessary margin of improvement is still significant.

Nicky Hayden had similar difficulty making steps forward, despite his feeling with the bike improving steadily over the three days.

Next the team will meet with its fans on March 4 in Bologna. After that, the riders will be back on track on March 13 and 14 at Qatar?s Losail International Circuit for the final winter test, prior to the MotoGP season opener at the same venue.

Valentino Rossi (Ducati Marlboro Team), 11th, 2:01.469 (59 laps)

?We can?t be satisfied with this test because we didn?t reach our goals, which were to finish close to the top six and especially to reduce the gap to the front. Instead, we?re 1.8 seconds back, and our rhythm is also lacking. After the first day, we thought we could do it. We had started well and were able to make the bike work with the hard tyres, which is good. After that though, we didn?t take steps forward. Although we have some good ideas for the electronics that I?m optimistic will solve those problems relatively easily, I?m not as confident about the chassis setup. We tried hard, but we haven?t yet managed it. I?m able to brake hard, but I?m still having trouble in mid-corner. It was definitely a disadvantage to only ride two days instead of three because we had to rush at the end and try many things in order to understand as much as we could. We were prepared for that possibility, but it started to drizzle, making it impossible to push. There could be some good solutions for the future, but we weren?t able to confirm them. This circuit hasn?t traditionally been favorable to the Ducati. The next test is in Qatar, where the track is different, so we?ll see if we can go faster there.?

Nicky Hayden (Ducati Marlboro Team), 12th, 2:01.469 (71 laps)

?We?ve tested a lot of options over the course of this test, like different geometry and electronics. We?ve just been trying to improve the feeling and eliminate stuff that didn?t work, focusing mainly on finding a base setup that could work for this season. We?re still behind, not because of any major problem, but a combination of little details that prevented us from getting the results that we?d hoped for. I?ve got a good bike and team, and we definitely need to do better than this. We?ve got a lot more work to do, but we?ve made progress this week, and we?ve still got some options we can try at the next test. It?s going to be a competitive season, no doubt. A lot of guys are going fast and pushing hard. We?ll have to work hard to try to take full advantage of this bike?s potential. It?s been three long days, and our team?everybody from engineers to mechanics to tire guys to suspension guys?has worked really hard the whole time.?