From a press release issued by Ducati Corse:

DUCATI FACTORY WSBK TEAM GETS DOWN TO WINTER TESTING IN VALENCIA

Valencia (Spain), 18 November 2004: One month after the end of the 2004 season, Ducati’s championship-winning World Superbike team got its 2005 campaign underway with a three-day test session involving several of the top SBK teams at Valencia in preparation for next year.

Reigning champion James Toseland and team-mate Régis Laconi were present at the Spanish circuit to test updated versions of the Ducati 999 Factory bikes for the first time in a session organised by the championship’s exclusive tyre supplier Pirelli.

In addition to tyre development for next year, the two Ducati riders also tested new electronic components, including a Marelli EFI engine management system, together with new Öhlins front forks.

Toseland, who was lapping in some difficulty due to a dislocated right thumb following a recent accident on an enduro bike, was third quickest behind pace-setter Troy Corser (Suzuki) and Laconi.

“It feels good to be back on the bike again” declared Toseland, “and Valencia is a good place to go testing. I cracked a bone in my right thumb last week so I’ve been in a bit of discomfort these days, but these things happen and it won’t be an issue in the future.

“Even though I only had one full day on the 2005-spec bike, the changes make it feel quite different. The front forks are one of the biggest improvements and the electronics are also a step in the right direction so now I’m looking forward to a full test at Jerez”.

After getting to within one-tenth of a second of Corser’s best time this afternoon, Laconi also expressed his satisfaction with the progress that had been made by Ducati during the tests.

“I gave my best these three days and we really did a lot of work” commented Régis. “We’re already faster with this bike than the 2004 version and everybody is working hard to make it even faster.

“With the new Öhlins front forks the feeling is already very good, and Pirelli brought along a new front tyre for everyone, which was a big help as it was exactly what I wanted.

“I wasn’t surprised to see Corser up at the front but I wanted to get as close as possible to him by the end of the tests,” he concluded.

Ducati Corse’s next World Superbike testing session will be at Jerez de la Frontera, Spain on December 16-17.

TIMES: 1. Corser (Suzuki) 1’36.0; 2. Laconi (Ducati) 1’36.1; 3. Toseland (Ducati) 1’36.8; 4. Pitt (Yamaha) 1’36.9; 5. Muggeridge (Honda) 1’37.2; 6. Gimbert (Yamaha) 1’37.3; 7. Lanzi (Ducati) 1’37.4; 8. Martin (Petronas) 1’38.5; etc.


More, from a press release issued by Yamaha Racing:

World superbike squad completes first test

The Yamaha Motor Italia world superbike team completed three days and 865km of testing at the Valencia circuit today, with Australian rider Andrew Pitt declaring himself satisfied with the YZF-R1’s debut outing.

Pitt completed a total of 215 laps on the YZF-R1 in the team’s shakedown test ahead of next season’s Superbike World Championship campaign. Despite running a hybrid machine with many stock parts, the team recorded competitive lap times and gained a great deal of data as they prepare to return to Italy for further development work.

For Pitt the test was a chance to familiarize himself with the R1 and the Pirelli tyres used in the championship. His best lap of the test was a 1:36.9, which compared favourably to the fastest time of the test – a 1:36.0 recorded by Suzuki’s Troy Corser.

Andrew Pitt
“This has been a really productive test and a good first outing. We’ve barely stopped over the last three days but the team is very motivated and very professional. I’m feeling good because we’ve been able to get through so much work. Considering the bike is only in its early stages of development, it shows great potential and today we were able to drop from a best lap of 1:38.5 on Wednesday to a 1:36.9.”

Massimo Meregalli (team coordinator)
“It has been a good test for us, unbelievably good in fact. Always on the first test you expect to have some problems but we had no technical faults at all. Andrew was able to do a total of 215 laps (75 on Tuesday, 80 on Wednesday and 60 on Thursday) and we were able to try out all the tyre choices available to us. He has worked so hard and we leave here in a positive mood and knowing what areas of the bike we have to work on and improve. We will probably now concentrating on developing the bike rather in the taking part in another test. We have to make some decisions on the specification of the bike, but we will have the advantage of using the 2005 kit parts as our base for the next test and overall the bike should be quite different.”


More, from a press release issued by Foggy Petronas Racing:

McCoy and Martin Make Tracks In Spain

Foggy PETRONAS Racing today completed a valuable three day test, with riders Garry McCoy and Steve Martin feeling very positive about initial set up progress made with their PETRONAS FP1s.

Garry’s track time was hampered during the afternoon however, following a crash which resulted in him being taken to hospital for assessment of his injuries.

The day’s efforts were spent on further necessary chassis and bike set up rather than the originally scheduled tyre test, although both riders did each use a few of the fifteen new rear tyres bought to the test by Pirelli.

The World Superbike sole tyre supplier also bought seven of their new fronts to the test, with all tyres having modifications to the tyre structure and also new material for the compounds, aiming for improved performance in thermal and mechanical stability.

Steve solidly built on his progress from the first two days, to end the test feeling very happy having found good base settings suited to him. Towards the end of the day he also achieved a very encouraging and competitive lap time in the 1:37s on one of the new qualifying tyres.

The 35 year old Aussie commented, “I said yesterday that you very often have to go round in circles to find where you want a bike’s set up to be, and from about lunch time today – when I felt we had done full circle – I really started to feel we were making some headway. I’m now feeling very comfortable on the bike and am happy with my times, considering the very different characteristics between the twin cylinder I’ve been used to riding for four year and the triple cylinder FP1.

“After riding flat out for three days without stopping for lunch I decided to stop an hour before the end of the day. We’ve been through so many things that I’d come to a point where I felt very comfortable, so thought it better to leave it there and on a high point. Now I’m just looking forward to getting back on the bike for further testing so that the bike and I can start to reach our combined potential.”

Having found chassis and rear suspension settings he was very comfortable with and setting consistent lap times in the low 1:39s, Garry planned to return to front suspension set up this afternoon. Unfortunately, his day ended a few hours prematurely following a crash caused by a missed gear change.

A trip to hospital confirmed that Garry has suffered a sprained right ankle and bad bruising to his left foot and right knee, with a week of rest advised for his recovery.

Garry said, “We were going really well today so it’s such a shame my day was cut short due to the crash. I feel battered and bruised but will be up and about again soon. We’ve made some good progress over the last few days but I just really want to get back on the bike and continue what we’ve started.”


More, from a press release issued by Troy Corser’s publicist:

TROY HAPPY, DESPITE TWO CRASHES

Although Troy tried his best, he was unable to get into the 1:35 second bracket in the third and final day of testing at Valencia today. The team had decided to run until 1530 today, but Troy’s second crash called a halt to their plans fifteen minutes or so before time.

Troy was desperately close to his target and ended with a lap of 1:36.00 – the fastest time of the day and the tests. Troy’s pair of crashes were slow speed tip-offs and he was unhurt both times. In the morning, he slid off in the middle of the second turn and in the afternoon he fell in the left-hander going on to the back straight. After first crash, the team altered the mapping and worked on the injection system, but the problem wasn’t cured. On both occasions Troy felt that the bike hadn’t slowed down when he rolled off the throttle and that was the cause of the crashes.

TROY:
“I am very happy with this first test, because I feel that we have all gelled together really well and already I feel we are a team. We spent a lot of time today testing tyres and working on the engine’s mapping to try and cure a bit of an over-run in the turns. We tries some different ideas, but I guess we didn’t fix it, because I crashed twice! Both were low speed affairs and I wasn’t injured at all, but it gave the mechanics some work to do!

The problem in both crashes was that I shut off the throttle, but the bike didn’t! Considering this is my first time on a four cylinder bike since ’97, the tests have gone really well because already I feel part of the bike. Now I’m looking forward to the next test and staying ahead of the opposition.

TIMES:
Troy Corser 1’36″0, Laconi 1’36″1, Toseland 1’36″9, Pitt 1’36″9, Checa 1’37″1, Muggeridge 1’37″2, Gimbert 1’37″2, Lanzi 1’37″3, Martin 1’37″3, Riba 1’38″1, Walker 1’39″1, Bussei 1’39″3, Sanchini 1’39″3, Da Costa 1’39″3


More, from a press release issued by FGSport Group:

CORSER AND SUZUKI FASTEST AT VALENCIA PIRELLI TESTS

Corser Conquers Despite Fall
After three days of glorious winter sunshine at the official Pirelli tests at Valencia in Spain, Troy Corser (Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra), proved to be the fastest rider overall, taking his 2003-spec Suzuki to a time of 1’36.0s. He experienced a fall on his final outing on the big Suzuki, when an inconsistent throttle response saw him lose the front on the entrance to the first uphill, infield left-hand corner. Uninjured, he nonetheless retired from track action, as most of the field continued to set fast laps for the final two hours, only being forced to quit by dazzle from the low sun and rapidly dropping temperatures.

Factory Pairing Test 2005 Ducati
Ducati Fila rider and 2004 World Champion James Toseland suffered the pain of his recently dislocated thumb for two and a half days, cutting short his participation in the final session to allow him time to get back for an important meeting in London with Ducati Motor Holdings president and CEO Federico Minoli. Regis Laconi, Toseland’s team-mate in 2004, as he will be again in 2005, shared the testing duties on the sole 2005 spec 999F05, the rest of the pairing’s time being spent working on their existing 2004 machines.

The primary difference in the 2005 model is the full factory Öhlins front suspension, all-new electronics package and the retention of the electric starter, as fitted on the original streetbike.

Laconi won the battle of the stopwatches inside the Ducati team, taking a 1:36.1; Toseland stopping with a 1:36.9 on the board.

Toil For Ten Kate Honda
Ten Kate Honda, down to one man after the withdrawal of Chris Vermeulen on day one, due to the power-sapping effects of recent wrist surgery, saw Karl Muggeridge complete his three-day stint on the CBR1000RR. A new inductee into World Superbike, after winning the World Supersport crown in 2004, Muggeridge himself suffered a huge crash on the second day, but soldiered on despite right wrist ligament damage, securing his quickest time of 1:37.2 on the final day.

R1 Meets Its 2005 Peers
Yamaha rider Andrew Pitt, another flying solo for the time being, tested his hastily assembled R1 racebike, and ran Nissin brakes for a period, while getting used to his new for 2005 machine. The 2001 champion made improvements every day, finally taking a best mark of 1:37.5. The Yamaha Motor France team, testing race kit parts for the 2005 Yamaha customers, saw Sebastien Gimbert post a pleasing 1:37.2.

Kawasaki Keen To Continue
Chris Walker and Mauro Sanchini (Kawasaki PSG-1) tested Bitubo suspension on their new for 2005 machines at one stage, with Walker returning to Öhlins units on the final day. He set a personal best of 1:39.0 with Sanchini in the 1:39.3 range.

Three Day Labour for Petronas
New 2005 signings Garry McCoy and Steve Martin worked hard to get used to their new and unique Petronas FP-1 machines, with McCoy crashing on both day one and day three. His latest tumble left him with a suspected broken ankle, but as yet tests have been inconclusive. Martin’s usual measured approach delivered him a best time of 1:37.3, McCoy’s lack of laps limiting him to a 1:39.6.

Caracchi Duo Prove to be Dynamic
Lorenzo Lanzi had a satisfying three days on the Scuderia Ducati 2004 spec 999RS setting a best of 1:37.3, while new WSS signing Gianluca Nannelli secured a 1:39.9 on the 749R.

Supersport Speed
Other teams in attendance included the new Ten Kate Supersport pairing of Sebastien Charpentier and Katsuaki Fujiwara, who went close to the best ever times at Valencia, despite a track which appeared to get more slippery as the day went on. Each rider set a fastest lap of 1:38.0.