Very positive tests Sébastien Gimbert was 11th during the tests at Misano, in the middle of a group of fast riders. Norick Abe was 19th (less than 2 seconds from Troy Corser who was in second position) in front of his team mate Shinishi Nakatomi. The Team Yamaha Motor France Ipone prepared as well as possible the next Misano race that will take place on June 25. “Our team has done a good job”, says team principal Martial Garcia. “The engine is now easier to use for the riders. Regarding the top speed, we are now in the middle of the result page, which is kind of logical for standard bikes with kits. Now our riders have more comfort when they use the engines of our R1s.” Sébastien Gimbert was only 15 hundreds of a second behind Andrew Pitt (Yamaha Motor Italia) at Misano, and he is in front of fast riders like Fabien Foret, Alex Barros, Michel Fabrizio et Steve Martin. Sébastien Gimbert : “Everything went well. The Team Yamaha Motor France Ipone did a great job on the engine which is now easier to use because it delivers its power with a more progressive way. I am racing the next 24 Hours of Le Mans on April 22 and 23, so I did not want to take chances. It is why I did my best time with reasonable caution. For instance, by the end of the test session, I worked to have a better set up for the bike when most of the riders were looking for quicker times. We have good settings for the chassis. We never had any problems during these two days of testing. The beginning of this season was not easy, but I have new hopes for the Misano race.” Norifumi Abe : “This track is not of my favourites. I did the best I could and I am sure that my results will be better for the next race.” Shinishi Nakatomi : “This is my first time at Misano and this track is not easy to learn. The part with three consecutive curves on the left is a bit complicated. This test session has been very positive and I am looking for good results for the June 25 race.” The Team Yamaha Motor France Ipone wishes a very good and quick recovery to Pierfrancesco Chili, who unfortunately had a fracture of the pelvis. We hope to see back with us as soon as possible the grand old man of Superbike. And congratulations to David Checa (back from injury) for his 9th position in Supersport. Results : 1. Bayliss (Ducati) 1m33.317s; 2. Corser (Suzuki) 1m33.824s; 3. Haga (Yamaha) 1m33.870s; 4. Lanzi (Ducati) 1m33.933s; 5. Walker (Kawasaki) 1m33.984s; 6. Laconi (Kawasaki) 1m34.085s; 7. Nieto (Kawasaki) 1m34.181s; 8. Kagayama (Suzuki) 1m34.266s; 9. Xaus (Ducati) 1m34.315s; 10. Pitt (Yamaha) 1m34.469s; 11. Gimbert (Team Yamaha Motor France Ipone) 1m34.618s”¦ 19. Abe (Team Yamaha Motor France Ipone) 1m35.574s; 20. Nakatomi (Team Yamaha Motor France Ipone) 1m35.684s World Championship standings: 1-Bayliss (75 points), 2-Toseland (74), 3-Corser (63), 4-Barros (55), 5-Pitt (45)”¦12-Abe (14), 21-Gimbert (3) Misano stats Practice record (2002): 1’33.525 Troy Bayliss (Ducati) 156.280 kph 2005 Yamaha Motor France practice times: Norifumi Abe: 1’37.534 / 25th and Sébastien Gimbert: DNS Lap record (best race time 2002): 1’34.913 Troy Bayliss (Ducati) 153.990 kph Round 3 of the Superbike World Championship: Valencia (Spain) April 23 More, from a press release issued by Team Klaffi Honda: 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 Klaffenböck: “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.” More, from a press release issued by Foggy Petronas Racing: 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 More, from a press release issued by Yamaha Racing: 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: 16ºC 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 Parkes quickest ever at Misano Misano Adriatico, Italy 13/4/2006 Yamaha Motor Germany rider Broc Parkes finished the second official test of the 2006 WSS season at the top of the timing sheets, with a new Supersport circuit record of 1’36.411 to his credit. His team-mate Kevin Curtain was fourth quickest, having set his fastest lap on the first day of testing, concentrating most of his efforts on machine set-up in preparation for the Misano WSS race in June. In addition to the regular set-up work on the all-new R6 machine carried out by the team, new and existing specifications of Pirelli control tyres were worked through by both Yamaha Motor Germany riders, with Parkes pleased to see the return of his favourite front tyre at this test. Yamaha Team Italia rider Gianluca Vizziello was an impressive third fastest overall, his best of 1’36.892 set in the very last of four Supersport sessions. He was one of three riders under the previous circuit best of former Yamaha rider Simone Sanna during the last session of the Misano test. Christian Zaiser (Ducati) was second fastest, with Vizziello’s team-mate, Massimo Roccoli, sixth. Broc Parkes – Yamaha Motor Germany “On top today and happy. The bike was awesome. The main difference for me today was the front tyre, that and getting to know the bike a lot better. At the end of last year we had a particular front tyre that I really liked but for some reason it was not in the allocation for the first races, but for me, as soon as I get it, I can go. This is also a pretty enjoyable track to ride around.” Kevin Curtain – Yamaha Motor Germany “This was a very good test for us, and we made the bike a lot better than it was last time we rode. We worked through heaps of stuff on the bike and a whole lot of front and rear tyres. There are no prizes for pole position at a test so I am not bothered about setting the fastest time. The main thing was improving the whole package, and we did that.” Gianluca Vizziello – Yamaha Team Italia “Today’s performance was the result of some very good development work. At the first two races of the year we had not had the bikes for very long, so most of the engine work was done just before the Valencia tests. Then is Spain we must have tried about ten different settings on the suspension, to find the best. We have put all the best parts together now and the bike was great at this test. I like Misano very much and the whole team did a very good job.” Official Misano Test WSS Circuit: Misano Adriatico Circuit Length: 4.060km Lap Record: 1′ 37.924 (Katsuaki Fujiwara, 2003) Fastest Lap Ever: 1′ 36.411 (Broc Parkes, 2006) Date: 12 – 13 April 2006 Temp: 16ºC Classification: Pos. Rider Manufacturer Nat. Best Time 1 B. Parkes Yamaha AUS 1′ 36.411 2 C. Zaiser Ducati AUT 1′ 36’507 3 G. Vizziello Yamaha ITA 1′ 36.892 4 K. Curtain Yamaha AUS 1′ 36.927 5 K. Fujiwara Honda JPN 1’37.339 6 M. Roccoli Yamaha ITA 1′ 37.372 7 G. Nannelli Ducati ITA 1′ 37’483 8 Y. Tibero Honda FRA 1′ 37.682 9 D. Checa Yamaha FRA 1’37.745 10 A. Aldrovandi Honda ITA 1’38.238 11 M. Sanchini Yamaha ITA 1′ 38.433 12 G. Leblanc Honda FRA 1’38.553 13 S. Chambon Kawasaki FRA 1’38.719 14 J. Brookes Ducati AUS 1’38.756 15 T. Tunstall Hoinda GBR 1’38.775 16 M. Berger Kawasaki FRA 1′ 39.214 17 M. Praia Honda POR 1’39.385 18 L. Nedog Ducati SLO 1’39.585 More, from a press release issued by Troy Corser’s publicist: TROY HAPPY. Troy left Misano circuit knowing that he and the team had done a good job and that it had been a productive two days. Although he couldn’t quite finish the fastest rider overall, he and the team know what they have to do before the next outing. Misano is known as a ‘twins’ circuit , so chasing the factory Dukes was always going to be a tough challenge. And it was a factory Ducati, with Troy Bayliss on board, that set the fastest lap of the two days. Troy finished second and all the top fifteen went under the official lap record! TROY Another good test and a very productive one. We made another little step forward and have got loads of information and ideas to take with us for the next time out. I worked quite a lot on the suspension and tried a different rear pivot and link. I also tried a different front end geometry – one that I’ve never tried before on this bike – and I was surprise how good the feeling was. The track has kept consistent over the two days (which is not always the case) and that’s been a bit of a bonus. Also, we’ve had no clutch problems here! I tried the new ‘big’ 200 tyre from Pirelli and think it could be an improvement. It’s got better side grip when you’re on full lean. It’s a little harder work changing direction, but I don’t feel it’s losing us any time – just harder work! There have been no real dramas, though I did take to the gravel this afternoon! In the tight right-hander opposite the pits, I think I must have got a ‘neutral’ and the bike just kept going on, when I should’ve had a gear. I had to straighten it up and take to the gravel and just managed to stop before the tyre wall. it was a close thing, bit no big deal really. See ya. Results (2-day) 1 Bayliss (Aus-Ducati) 143 laps, best lap 1:33.317, 2 TROY CORSER (Aus-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) 140 laps, best lap 1:33.824, 3 Haga (J-Yamaha) 111 laps, best lap 1:33.870, 4 Lanzi (I-Ducati) 127 laps, best lap 1:33.933, 5 Walker (GB-Kawasaki) 117 laps, best lap 1:33.984, 6 Laconi (F-Kawasaki) 145 laps, best lap 1:34.085, 7 Nieto (E-Kawasaki) 130 laps, best lap 1:34.181, 8 YUKIO KAGAYAMA (J-Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra) 141 laps, best lap 1:34.266, 9 Xaus (E-Ducati) 134 laps, best lap 1:34.315 10 Pitt (Aus-Yamaha) 122 laps, best lap 1:34.469