Official Test at Misano ? 12th and 13th April

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Official Test at Misano ? 12th and 13th April

Just one week before the first European round of World?s Superbike Championship at Valencia the second official test is scheduled for the riders. The test will be held at Misano/Adriatico on Wednesday 12th and Thursday13th April. All riders take part. Only Team Winston ten Kate Honda is missing.

Alex Barros raced at Misano several years ago. But the track was modified meanwhile and therefore the course now is new for him. There are two main tasks Alex will focus on at Misano.
Alex will do as many kilometres as possible to become acquainted with the course. The aerodynamics of his Klaffi Honda Fireblade has been improved. Now Alex has to check this new aerodynamic package on the track. ? Alex and the team will spend two busy days at Misano.

Immediately after the test at Misano the team moves to Spain. The first European race takes place 21st to 23rd April at Valencia.

 

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FPR pair on track in Italy

The opening day of the second official World Superbike test at Misano,
Italy, provided more encouragement for the Foggy PETRONAS Racing pair
of Steve Martin and Craig Jones.

Although the cool conditions did not resemble those expected for the
June race, Steve was able to run two race simulations and finished the
day 11th fastest of a near-complete World Superbike field.

However, spots of rain towards the end of the afternoon session
prevented the Australian, from using a qualifying tyre and finishing further
up the standings.

Team-mate Craig Jones, on his first outing at the circuit, made steady
progress throughout the day and finished with a creditable time of
1:37.999, only just over half a second slower than Steve?s fastest time in
the races here last year.

Steve said: ?We had a nice safe day and, although it is a pity we
weren?t able to use a qualifier, I am more concerned about finding a setting
for the race than doing fast times during these two days. I was also
able to test an engine specification with a lighter crankshaft and, while
there was no noticeable difference, I did go faster on that bike by
around half a second.?

Craig said: ?I was happy to do more than 80 laps and my times came down
gradually throughout the day. I hit a bit of a brick wall mid-way
through the afternoon session but conditions were not too great then and
times were dropping. I like the circuit as it has lots of flowing corners
and the very fast corner on to the back straight and I am hoping to
start tomorrow where we left off today as I think it is now just a case of
getting more track experience. But I am still learning more about the
bike with every session and am not too far off the point when I can
start pushing for lap times.?

Day one times, Superbike World Championship official test, Misano,
Italy: 1 Bayliss 1:34.460; 2 Nieto 1:35.253; 3 Corser 1:35.274; 4 Lanzi
1:35.355; 5 Kagayama 1:35.641; 6 Haga 1:35.911; 7 Pitt 1:35.926; 8 Xaus
1:35.966; 9 Fabrizio 1:36.036; 10 Borciani 1:36.075; 11 Martin (Foggy
PETRONAS Racing) 1:35.608; 25 Jones (Foggy PETRONAS Racing) 1:37.999

 

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Mixed fortunes for FPR pair in Italy

Foggy PETRONAS Racing riders Craig Jones and Steve Martin experienced
mixed fortunes on the final day of the second official World Superbike
test at the Italian circuit of Misano.

Craig, on his first visit to the circuit, slashed nearly two seconds
off yesterday?s time to finish the two-day test in 25th, less than 1.5
seconds behind his Australian team-mate.

Steve had been 10th in the opening session, just half a second
separating him from fourth place. However, an afternoon of technical
frustration brought a premature end to his test and robbed him of the chance to
perform race simulations as he ended the test in 15th.

Troy Bayliss, with a lap of 1:33.317, again set the pace for a
near-full field, missing only James Toseland, his injured team-mate Karl
Muggeridge and Frankie Chili, who fractured his pelvis and ribs in a
high-side yesterday with a lap of 1:33.317.

Craig said: ?That was probably my best day on the PETRONAS FP1 and this
test has been very positive. We have made good progress after finding a
good base set-up yesterday. The bike is turning better than it was in
Valencia and that has given me more confidence. That is important
because sometimes you can get lost by making wholesale changes. I was able to
get down to 36.5s on race tyres and, although I probably still need to
find another 1.5 seconds, I feel I would have been able to go some way
towards that if we had had another day here and I only used the poorer
of the two qualifying tyres. I was faster than some fairly quick guys
through some sectors. I can see the light now and hopefully it?s not too
far away.?

Steve said: ?It was a very frustrating afternoon as I missed more than
half of the final session through engine issues. It?s clear that the
competition has come on a lot so we won?t really know where we are at
until the race here. If I had been able to use another qualifier in the
afternoon I would probably have gone faster but I am pushing right on the
limit. It would have been better to have finished the test on a more
positive note but at least we are confident we have a pretty good set-up
for next week?s race at Valencia.?

Day two times, Superbike World Championship official test, Misano,
Italy: 1 Bayliss 1:33.317; 2 Corser 1:33.824; 3 Haga 1:33.870; 4 Lanzi
1:33.933; 5 Walker 1:33.984; 6 Laconi 1:34.085; 7 Nieto 1:34.181; 8
Kagayama 1:34.266; 9 Xaus 1:34.315; 10 Pitt 1:34.469; 15 Martin (Foggy
PETRONAS Racing) 1:34.862; 23 Jones (Foggy PETRONAS Racing) 1:1:36.135

 

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Haga Third Fastest and Top Yamaha Rider At Misano

Misano Adriatico, Italy
13/4/2006

Noriyuki Haga was once more the fastest Yamaha qualifier at an official
SBK test, and had he not found another rider in his path when running
qualifying rubber in the final afternoon session, he may even have had
the chance to improve his 1'33.870 best. Troy Bayliss (Ducati) was once
more the rider leaving a test session with the fastest time, a new
track record 1'33.317.

Haga, who had tested new triple clamps and rear suspension linkages on
his R1, decided not to continue in the very last moments of the two day
test, thanks to the residue left on the track surface after an oil
spill at the first corner. He thus had to rely on his best time from the
morning session, rather than the final one.

Haga's team-mate Andrew Pitt was a top ten rider on his R1, working
steadily through revised engine mapping and also losing out on a final
chance to set a faster time than his 1'34.469. Times in general were
tight, with 14 riders covered by just over a single second, from second to
15th place.

A strong ride in the final session from Sebastien Gimbert, on his
Yamaha Motor France Ipone R1, put him 11th fastest, a particularly fine
performance from a rider who had not ridden at Misano for 11 years. Norick
Abe continued to find Misano a difficult challenge on his Yamaha Motor
France Ipone R1, with his efforts to go faster often met by stubborn
resistance on the tight and twist Misano layout. World Superbike rookie
Shinichi Nakatomi was 20th out of 27 riders at Misano, during his first
visit to the Italian circuit, which forms the venue for round six of
the championships on 25 June.

Noriyuki Haga - Yamaha Motor Italia
"The balance of the bike was good today and I decided to test a soft
tyre. I found Kagayama in front of me but without that happening I think
I could have set a lap time closer to Bayliss. When the circuit got
covered in oil and then cement dust we decided to stop, so I could not use
a soft tyre in the afternoon session."

Andrew Pitt - Yamaha Motor Italia
"It would have been nice to be further up the list but I just didn't
put it together on a qualifying tyre. On race tyres the bike was good and
we improved it a lot. The bike is much the same as Valencia, which is a
good thing. We don't need to change it much now, which is what we've
been looking for for a while. We tuned in the electronics a bit more, to
make it even easier to open the throttle earlier. It was all pretty
good."

Sebastien Gimbert - Yamaha Motor France
"All the team worked very hard and the bike was very good compared to
the races in Qatar and Australia. For me it was not so hard to get the
bike working well here and set some fast times around the circuit. I am
very content with the progress and the good work we have all made."

Norick Abe - Yamaha Motor France
"We tried out many things. Last year I raced here and it was the first
time for me. It was the worst race of the year, and this time it still
felt no good. So maybe I don't like this track. Step-by-step we did
better than before, but compared to most other riders it was not so good.
Despite that, I think we are two seconds better than last year. The
tyres are much better than last year as well. But I would like to forget
this Misano test and just get to Valencia."

Shinichi Nakatomi - Yamaha Motor France
"I have never been here before so it was important to test and make a
race set-up for when we come back in June. It is a very different track,
with three fast left hand corners onto the back straight. We worked a
lot, and I did 162 laps to learn the circuit better."

Massimo Meregalli - Team Coordinator Yamaha Motor Italia
"We had a plan and we got all out work done, the only thing we could
not do was to go out at the end on soft tyres, because of the dust on the
track. But the test was good. The only question mark we have now is the
temperature of the track when we return for the race in June. We hope
that for the race the bike's performance, which was very good here, is
the same."

OFFICIAL SBK TESTS WSB:
Circuit: Misano Adriatico
Circuit Length: 4.060km
Temp: 16şC
Weather: Sunny
Lap Record: 1' 34.913 (Troy Bayliss, 2002)
Fastest Lap Ever: 1' 33.317 (Troy Bayliss, 2006)
Date: 12-13 April 2006

Classification:
Pos. Rider Manufacturer Nat. 1st Qualifying
1 T. Bayliss Ducati AUS 1' 33.317
2 T. Corser Suzuki AUS 1' 33.824
3 N. Haga Yamaha JPN 1' 33.870
4 L. Lanzi Ducati ITA 1' 33.933
5 C. Walker Kawasaki GBR 1' 33.984
6 R. Laconi Kawasaki ITA 1' 34.085
7 F. Nieto Kawasaki ESP 1' 34.181
8 Y. Kagayama Suzuki JPN 1' 34.266
9 R. Xaus Ducati ESP 1' 34.315
10 A. Pitt Yamaha AUS 1' 34.469
11 S. Gimbert Yamaha FRA 1' 34.618
12 F. Foret Suzuki FRA 1' 34.660
13 A. Barros Honda BRA 1' 34.683
14 M. Fabrizio Honda ITA 1' 34.852
15 S. Martin Petronas AUS 1' 34.862
19 N. Abe Yamaha JPN 1' 35.574
20 S. Nakatomi Yamaha JPN 1' 35.684

 

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Team Klaffi Honda - Official Test at Misano - Review

After the official test at Misano the whole team was absolutely contented with the results. Alex Barros and his crew focused on the set-up of his Klaffi Honda Fireblade and the new aerodynamic package. This modification of the aerodynamics is a further technical improvement of his bike.

Many of his competitors tried to set some unique fast laps. But Alex knows: ?You win a race in the second third of the heat. Therefore I always try to simulate race conditions when we are testing the bike. I choose the ideal race tyre for the track and I work a lot with the experts from Showa to optimize the suspension. The two days at Misano were very busy but successful.?

Team Manager Klaus Klaffenb?ck: ?Alex was the 10th fastest after the two-days-test but there are different conditions in a race. How fast Alex really is shows his top speed. With 290,7 km/h he was second after Xaus. So let?s wait for the upcoming race at Valencia.?