JG SPEEDFIT KAWASAKI COMPLETE POSITIVE OPENING ROUND OF TESTING
5th February 2016 – The JG Speedfit Kawasaki MCE British Superbike Championship team of James Ellison, Leon Haslam and Peter Hickman completed a successful opening set of tests at Jerez and Aragon yesterday and now return back to the UK to build upon the information gained, ahead of the next round of testing in March.
The opening two days at Jerez last week marked the first time James Ellison, Leon Haslam and Peter Hickman experienced the full Superbike spec of the all-new Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R. Swapping bikes throughout the two days, the trio worked together through a number of various chassis, engine and electronic settings.
Making progress with each outing, the JG Speedfit Kawasaki team then headed north to the MotorLand Aragon circuit for a further two day test this week. Despite the first day seeing strong winds batter the circuit, resulting in a crash from Leon, the team were able to make significant steps forward as conditions improved on the final day. This now gives them a clear direction in which to develop the bikes further ahead of the next text at Cartagena in March.
Fans heading to the London Motorcycle Show next weekend will be able to see the new 2016 JG Speedfit Kawasaki livery, with the Superbike appearing on the Kawasaki stand. Peter Hickman will also be in attendance on the Saturday.
James Ellison said, “With the two days last week at Jerez and now the two days here at Aragon, we are really starting to find a good direction with the new Showa suspension. This was the biggest change for the team this year and has been a main focus throughout testing. We have been looking at the parameters of the suspension as it is all new to us and we have found a good direction today.
“We went quite a bit quicker than we did here at the last test in November and actually got real close to the World Superbike guys on race tyres, so that was something I was quite pleased with, and again all three of us were pretty close as well so we are all focused now on the next test and what we can improve. For me it has been a successful and positive test before our next test at Cartagena; I am really happy with how it has gone!”
Leon Haslam added, “We have just finished the two day test in Aragon and I am feeling pretty positive. I had a bit of a big crash on day one here with the high winds, but the boys worked really well to get me back out for the afternoon which was great. Day two has been positive; I got the times down and have been working on the chassis mainly. I am feeling pretty happy, James and Peter have been working with the 2016 electronics, and hopefully from the next test at Cartagena we can put it all together ready for when the season starts”
Peter Hickman added, “We have had two productive days at Aragon and have been able to get a lot of laps done, which has helped me to get me comfortable on the bike as obviously I’ve changed manufacturer and also the team have changed to Showa suspension. We are getting there; Aragon has also been an amazing circuit, I’ve not stopped smiling for the past two days and I am really happy with where I ended up. I stayed on the race tyres to get a good feeling and setting, especially now we’re not that far away from Silverstone!”
GBmoto Racing Team Manager Mike Kane concluded, “It has been a really positive four days testing for the JG Speedfit Kawasaki team. Jerez was the first time we ran the full spec version the Kawasaki ZX-10R and there were the usual setup niggles but the team worked really well and we were able to overcome them and continue moving forward. The weather proved difficult at Aragon, but by the end of the test all three were running impressive stints and lapping close to times being set by the full World Superbike spec bikes. We’ll now return to the UK, ready to take another step forward with the machines ahead of Cartagena.”