QATAR TESTS HAGA IMPROVES TIME TO GO FASTEST AT LOSAIL Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) suffered a late crash in the last of three days at Losail, but nonetheless secured the fastest time of the test with a 2’00.5. His fall resulted in no significant injury, leaving him in good shape for the start of the season at Qatar on February 25th. All riders in Qatar were on 2005 Pirelli spec tyres, with more improvements expected when the latest 2006 versions are made available. Second fastest on day two was Haga’s team-mate Andrew Pitt, with Superbike rookie Michel Fabrizio (D.F.X. Treme Honda) heading off his team-mate Pierfancesco Chili. 1. Haga (Yamaha Motor Italia) 2’00″5 2. Pitt (Yamaha Motor Italia) 2’00″8 3. Fabrizio (D.F.X. Treme Honda) 2’01″3 4. Chili (D.F.X. Treme Honda ) 2’01″4 More, from a press release issued by Yamaha Racing: Testing alongside Yamaha’s MotoGP teams, the Yamaha Motor Italia squad proved the performance and reliability of their new specification engine and fine-tuned the updated Magneti Marelli electronics in their three-day outing at the Losail circuit. The team’s 2006 YZF-R1s feature a host of new parts over the 2005 version, designed to give the bike improved power delivery and controllability for the riders. The squad also evaluated a number of chassis parts, including a new swingarm and 2006 specification Ohlins suspension. With Pirelli supplying only 2005-spec race rubber, the squad was able to concentrate fully on the machine performance rather than testing development tyres. Using these tyres, both riders were quicker on race tyres than at December’s Pirelli test, confirming the progress made by the team over the winter months. Haga was the faster of the two riders, setting a 2:00.4, with Pitt fractionally behind on 2:00.8. The Australian was slightly detuned on the final day after picking up a stomach bug but gamely completed his test programme, while Haga’s day came to a premature end when he suffered a spectacular highside just 30 minutes before the end of the session. The Japanese rider was uninjured in the crash, although his bike suffered damage. Noriyuki Haga “Not so bad a test although it was a shame to end with a crash. Going through the last of the high-speed right hand corners I lost the rear and had a big crash. I am ok but maybe I hurt in the morning! The new bike is a real improvement although we are still trying to find the perfect settings. The engine for sure is much nicer: less aggressive and stronger coming out of the corners, and the team has made some improvements in all areas. At the end we made some big changes to the front and, for me, it was a good direction. I am happy with the progress made by the team, but we have not tested with our rivals, so only at the first race will we know how competitive we are.” Andrew Pitt “I was happy with how it went over the three days. I feel some big improvements from last year, especially with the electronics and the engine braking. We got through a lot here and we’re running the 2006 suspension front and back now and it’s working well already. The lap times are good and consistent and there was none of the chatter problem that we have had here in the past, so that’s also a big step forward. There’s a few more things to try before the race and I’ve still got to find a front tyre that will work good over the race distance.”