From a press release issued by Daytona International Speedway:

Dunlop Tire Test Wraps Up At Daytona

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla., (Dec. 12, 2002) — The annual Dunlop tire test in preparation for March’s Daytona 200 Week wrapped up on Thursday as motorcycle teams got about 90 minutes of track time in the morning before rain once again moved over the 3.56-mile road course at Daytona International Speedway.

The Dunlop tire test was originally scheduled for three days, but the sessions on Monday and Tuesday were washed out. The teams were able to log some significant hours on Wednesday and the test was extended for a half a day on Thursday because of the rain.

Ben Bostrom will leave the Dunlop tire test as the fastest rider. He posted the fastest lap of the test on Thursday morning when he toured the “World Center of Racing” with a lap of 117.965 mph (1 minute, 48.651 seconds) aboard his Honda RC51.

Bostrom, 1998 AMA Chevy Trucks U.S. Superbike champion, is returning to the United States after competing for three seasons in World Superbike. He replaces 2002 Daytona 200 By Arai winner Nicky Hayden in the American Honda family of riders as Hayden has moved to Europe to compete in MotoGP.

Rounding out the top three on the speed chart on Thursday was two-time Daytona 200 By Arai champion Mat Mladin (117.806) and Anthony Gobert (117.287).


Anthony Gobert on his Ducati Superbike at Daytona. Photo courtesy Daytona International Speedway.

Gobert is preparing for the March 9 Daytona 200 By Arai with his new team Ducati Austin. After riding the last two years for Yamaha, the Aussie is returning to Ducati, which he rode in 1998 and 1999 with Vance & Hines.

Ducati has never won the Daytona 200 while Gobert is also lacking the victory. He managed to score a podium finish last year despite being banged up from a crash in the Pro Honda Oils Supersport race earlier in the week.

“We’ve struggled a lot with setup,” Gobert said. “We’ve been running the same setup as what I did in 1999. I kind of wasn’t happy with the setup that year. I felt like we needed to do some work on it. We kind of struggled a bit with that. We’re trying to improve that.

“Unfortunately with the track time, we really couldn’t do a lot. We’re trying to test the tires for Dunlop and do a lot of things. It’s difficult to fit everything in. We’re doing the best we can. We do have a direction that we want to go in, but we just need time to test everything.”

Next up on the testing agenda at Daytona International Speedway is a three-day ARCA RE/MAX Series test session beginning Dec. 20. A section of the Oldfield Grandstands will be open and free to the public with access through the lobby of DAYTONA USA.

Tickets for Daytona 200 Week are available online at http://www.daytonainternationalspeedway.com or by calling the Speedway ticket office at (386) 253-7223.



More, from a press release issued by Mat Mladin’s publicist, Steve Reeves:

MLADIN POSTS SECOND FASTEST TIME AT DAYTONA

Daytona Beach, Florida, USA – Australia’s Mat Mladin has posted the second fastest time during the annual Dunlop tyre tests conducted at the famous Daytona International Speedway this week.

Making his first appearance aboard the all-new Yoshimura Suzuki GSX-R1000 that he will campaign in the 2003 American AMA Superbike Championship, Mladin recorded his fastest ever lap on race tyres around the ultra fast Florida circuit with a time of 1-min 48.789-secs on the final morning of the test. The three times American Superbike champion, along with American Honda’s Ben Bostrom were the only riders to break into the 1:48 barrier, with Bostrom setting the fastest time of the test with a 1:48.651.

The annual three-day test was severely hampered by wet weather, with the opening two-days being washed out completely, before clear skies allowed for a full day of testing on day three. The test organisers arranged for an additional half day of testing, but this again was cut short due to rain showers on the American east coast.

“My initial impressions of the new Suzuki GSX-R1000 that we will be using next year is very good and I feel that it has a lot of potential,” said Mladin, a two-times winner of the Daytona 200 Mile classic. “The main difference is obviously in the engine. The 1000 produces a lot more torque than the 750 did, but revs a bit lower than the smaller engine at the moment. There is still a lot of work to be done with the bike. It is brand new and we’ve had about a day on it. I didn’t get that much of an opportunity to match it against too many of the others out there, but I do know that we are a bit down on speed at the moment, but I’m sure that will come once we get some more testing under our belts.

“I’m happy that the team has made the decision to race the GSX-R1000 rather than overbore the 750 as per the rules for next years championship,” Mladin added. “It’s a new challenge for the team and I which adds to the motivation for the season ahead. I’m also happy that the championship is being run over more races as well. Having 18 Superbike races, with the possibility of a further round is all good. It makes for a better championship and does allow some scope if you do have a bad round. I’m looking forward to it.”

Mladin will return home for the Christmas break, before returning to America early in the new year to continue the testing program with his Yoshimura Suzuki team.

The 18-round 2003 Chevy Trucks US Superbike Championship commences with the Daytona 200 on March 9 and will feature seven ‘Double Header’ Superbike rounds.