From a press release issued by FGSport Group: MUGGERIDGE SETS RECORD TIME FOR DF RACING HONDA AT VALENCIA TEST Record times were set in two days of official SBK testing at Valencia in preparation for the third round of the championship here on April 6th. Australian Karl Muggeridge surprisingly took the top slot on his DF Racing Honda CBR1000RR machine, leaving the unofficial circuit record at 1’34.252, a fraction quicker than the mark set yesterday by Ruben Xaus (Sterilgarda Go Eleven Ducati), who was not present today. “This bike has got a lot of potential ” said a delighted Muggeridge, former World Supersport champion. “I didn’t go as well in race set-up but for the Spanish Round we’ll have some new electronic parts so I’m feeling confident. The DF Racing guys are doing a great job and I think we’re going to get some good results this season”. In the absence of Ducati Xerox’s Bayliss and Fabrizio, the Ducati attack was in the hands of Xaus yesterday and Lorenzo Lanzi, who was quickest for much of today. “We sorted out the problems that slowed us at Phillip Island”, said the RG Team rider “and now we’ve got an improved engine I can be up there with the other guys.” The Italian was followed by two Hondas of Spain’s Carlos Checa and Japan’s Ryuichi Kiyonari, both looking in good shape for the HANNspree Ten Kate team. Three Suzuki Alstare GSX-R1000 machines were next up, Fonsi Nieto improving in the afternoon to slip ahead of his German team-mate Max Neukirchner, who went off in the final session, while Yukio Kagayama was eighth quickest. Roberto Rolfo (HANNspree Honda Althea) and Makoto Tamada (Kawasaki PSG-1 Corse) rounded off the top 10. Also absent were Yamaha Motor Italia riders Troy Corser and Noriyuki Haga, as well as Max Biaggi of Sterilgarda, recovering from a wrist fracture suffered in Phillip Island. Superbike World Championship Final Times 1.Muggeridge K. (AUS) Honda CBR1000RR 1’34.252; 2. Xaus R. (ESP) Ducati 1098 RS 08 1’34.265; 3. Lanzi L. (ITA) Ducati 1098 RS 08 1’34.388; 4. Checa C. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR 1’34.493; 5. Kiyonari R. (JPN) Honda CBR1000RR 1’34.828; 6. Nieto F. (ESP) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1’34.911; 7. Neukirchner M. (GER) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1’34.984; 8. Kagayama Y. (JPN) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1’35.017; 9. Rolfo R. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 1’35.152; 10. Tamada M. (JPN) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1’35.581; 11. Laconi R. (FRA) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1’35.740; 12. Nakatomi S. (JPN) Yamaha YZF-R1 1’36.057; 13. Holland R. (AUS) Honda CBR1000RR 1’36.386; 14. Badovini A. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1’36.441; 15. Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Honda CBR1000RR 1’36.698; 16. Napoleone L. (FRA) Yamaha YZF-R1 1’37.696. Supersport World Championship Two days of testing for most of the top World Supersport teams also produced some impressive performances, in particular from the Italian duo of Gianluca Nannelli (HANNspree Honda Althea) and Massimo Roccoli (Lorenzini by Leoni Yamaha), who both set an identical quickest time of 1’37.159. The British pairing of Craig Jones (Parkalgar Racing Honda) and Jonathan Rea (HANNspree Ten Kate Honda) were next up in third and fourth place. More, from a press release issued by Alstare Suzuki: ALL POSITIVE FOR FONSI, MAX AND YUKIO. Team Suzuki Alstare riders Fonsi Nieto and Yukio Kagayama and Team Alstare Suzuki rider Max Neukirchner left the Ricardo Tormo circuit in Valencia in positive frames of mind after two days of intensive testing. Tests in Valencia have not always taken place in good conditions, but the weather here over the two days has been more or less perfect. Neither Fonsi, Max nor Yukio used qualifying tyres to set their best lap times, preferring instead on finding good bike set-ups in advance of the race here in just twenty days time. Aussie Karl Muggeridge (Honda) used a qualifying tyre to set the fastest lap of the two days. His time of 1:34.252 is well under the official Superbike lap record of 1:35.007 set by Neil Hodgson in 2003. Second quickest is Ruben Xaus (Ducati), with Lorenzo Lanzi (Ducati) third and Carlos Checa (Honda) fourth. Fonsi – 6th, 1:34.911 It’s been a lot of hard work for all of us because we know that this has always been a difficult track for Suzuki. Over these two days, we have tried many different things and worked on many different directions, but I am happy because we have found a good bike set-up for the race in early April. Our main job here was to get the bike ready for the race, so I didn’t push hard at all. I know we could’ve gone faster for sure, but our goal was to do as much work as possible, get a lot of information and that’s what we did, so I’m happy. Max – 7th, 1:34.984 I think we’ve done a lot of good work over the two days and we’re in good shape for the start of practice here in a few weeks. We had some small problems in the beginning, but had much less problems at the end, so we know we made progress. The only time I put a qualifying tyre on the bike, I crashed! It happened on the first right-hander, so probably that side of the tyre wasn’t up to temperature. But, if nothing else it has taught me something about what to expect when I do my Superpole lap! The crash took place at the end of the day and there wasn’t enough time to put on another qualifier and go for a quick lap. I did a long run today and I was very happy about that because I started with a 1:35.6 and was doing flat 1:36s at the end. Yukio – 8th, 1:35.017 The tests have gone well and I’m happy. I’m happy because we worked hard and we finished with positive results and a good set-up for when we come back for the race. My long run went very well (mid 1:35s) and I didn’t feel any real pain from my left collarbone. The only time I noticed it was when I was wearing my new set of leathers and they put a lot of pressure on it. But I am a racer and my job is to be here and test, not sit at home. I changed to an older set of leathers for the run and that was much better. I did not use any qualifying tyres, but concentrated on getting a good set-up for the race and also finding good grip from the rear. We also did a lot of work with the electronics and engine braking and these are the kind of things that you must test away from a race weekend because you never have enough time during practice and qualifying. Results (two days) 1 Muggeridge (Aus-Honda) 1:34.252, 2 Xaus (E-Ducati) 1:34.265, Lanzi (I-Ducati) 1:34.388, 4 Checa (E-Honda) 1:34.493, 5 Kiyonari (J-Honda) 1:34.828, 6 Fonsi Nieto (E-Suzuki Alstare) 1:34.911, 7 Max Neukirchner (D-Alstare Suzuki) 1:34.984, 8 Yukio Kagayama (J-Suzuki Alstare) 1:35.017 More, from a press release issued by HANNspree Ten Kate Honda: HANNspree Ten Kate Honda Superbike Team ready for Valencia race The Pirelli test in Valencia saw lap times tumbling down further for the HANNspreeTen Kate Honda squad as they completed the second and final day of testing on the Ricardo Tormo circuit. The new lap record set by Xaus yesterday was only short lived and blitzed by Karl Muggeridge while Carlos Checa and Ryuichi Kiyonari both continued their consitent pace and came close to the newly set fastest time. Hard working Kiyonari kept his pace throughout the sessions while he focused on testing different swing arms, links and brakes. Checa managed to improve upon James Toseland’s fastest lap time of 1’35,89 set in last year’s Valencia race with a new best time of 1’34.9 in a race simulation today. Struggling Sofuoglu failed to get to grips with his bike and was unable to improvehis performance during the final day of testing, leaving the Valencia circuit unsatisfied. The young Turkish rider still finds it hard to adjust his supersport style to his new bike. Having missed the important pre-season testing earlier this year, the Valencia test proved valuable time on-track for the team in the development of their new Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade. With the focus on testing new parts and race setups the team now leaves Valencia well prepared for the forthcoming race on April the 6th. Ronald ten Kate, Team manager: This test has been our first real opportunity to test the new engine and chassis parts we had developed but hadn’t been able to test before. The race pace is showing to be very good at the moment. We still have some new parts to develop before the next outing but will not put too many new parts on the machine before the race. At least we can now say we are on level ground again and from the start of the raceweekend should be capable of joining the frontrunners without having to make up 1,5 or 2 seconds like we had in the first two race. I am confidently looking forward to the race here in Valencia. Carlos Checa: We’ve had a positive second day of testing here in Valencia. We have been consistent in our lap times. We’ve tried different things today, swing-arms, links and tires. We spend a lot of time on that area to find out which base setting we’ll be using here for the next race. I’m confident with the base setting, with the qualifiers we tested we experienced some chatter problems again. We come better prepared for the next race here in Valencia then we did for Qatar and Australia so I leave here with a confident feeling. Ryuichi Kiyonari: We’ve tested lots of different parts here today, different swing arm, links and brakes. The machine setting was very good today and I feel we have made some good progress. I start to understand the machine better every time I go out on the track and I am happy with the improvement of my laps compared to yesterday’s times. We’re leaving here well prepared for the Valencia race in a couple of weeks. Normally we still have some work to do on Friday before the race but with the progress we have already made here we should be capable of find the right setting straightaway. Kenan Sofuoglu: This has been the hardest test I’ve ever done. I didn’t try anything different on the bike as the bike feels good, but I just do not seem to make any progress at the moment, which is very disappointing for my team and myself. I’m going home to Turkey now and hope to be in better shape when we come back here again for the next race. Official test results Superbike (combined): 1 K. MUGGERIDGE AUS 1’34.252 2 R.XAUS ESP 1’34.265 3 L. LANZI ITA 1’34.388 4 C. CHECA ESP 1’34.493 5 R. KIYONARI JPN 1’34.828 6 F. NIETO ESP 1’34.911 7 M.NEUKIRCHNER GER 1’34.984 8 Y. KAGAYAMA JPN 1’35.017 9 R.ROLFO ITA 1’35.152 10 M.TAMADA JPN 1’35.581 15 K. SOFUOGLU TUR 1’36.698 More, from another press release issued by HANNspree Ten Kate Honda: Supersport Team leaves Valencia with a positive outlook on the next race The Supersport team leaves the Pirelli test on the Ricardo Tormo circuit in Valencia with a positive outlook for the next race here in less then three weeks time. It didn’t take Andrew Pitt and Jonathan Rea long to pick up a consistent race pace in their race simulations on the final day of testing. While Andrew Pitt already recorded satisfying lap times in yesterday’s session, his young team mate initially struggled to find the right pace. After a breakthrough in the set up of his machine Jonathan managed to improve his lap times with a best lap of 1’37.557 which placed him only 0.4th of a second off the fastest lap time. Two crashed at the end of the afternoon session robbed Pitt of his changes to set his fastest lap in the two day test as he was pushing towards a best time of 1’37.4 before the red flag prematurely put and end to the session. Ronald ten Kate, Team manager: The results we’ve achieved here are very satisfying for the team. Both riders have proven to be capable of putting in consistent laps on a race distance, which will be important for the race here. We were faster in today’s session compared to last year’s race pace, but both riders still seem to struggle to force out that single fast lap on the qualifiers, its just not coming. We will make some small improvements on the bikes before the next race but overall we are ready and hopefully capable of bringing both riders to the podium. Andrew Pitt: Its been a good session today, unfortunately at the end of the session there was a crashed bike on the track and the marshals tried to stop me while I was on my best lap. We made an improvement with the new tyre, which we had been struggling to do earlier. The race pace is really good, I did a 16 lap run on one tire and still managed to stay in the 1’37’s until the end which shows how competitive we can be. We made a bit of progress on the qualifying, so I am happy with the results and am confidently looking forward to the next race. Jonathan Rea: We struggled quite a lot yesterday with nothing really. The bike felt really good but the lap times weren’t improving and I was beating myself up about that. Today I got the enjoyment factor installed again and rode with a smile. We had a big breakthrough with the setup today for which I want to thank my mechanics Gert and Michel. They put in a lot of work and helped me go out there today with a different attitude. Yesterday we were 1,1 seconds off the fastest lap time and today only 0.4. We managed to do a full race distance and show consistency throughout so everything is positive really and I’m leaving here with a good feeling. Official test results (combined): 1. M.ROCCOLI ITA 1’37.159 2 G.NANNELLI ITA 1’37.159 3 C.JONES GBR 1’37.236 4 J. REA GBR 1’37.557 5 K. FUJIWARA JPN 1’37.572 6 B. VENEMAN NED 1’37.748 7 A. PITT AUS 1’37.787 8 C.WALKER GBR 1’37.872 9 G.GOWLAND GBR 1’37.972 10 G.VIZZIELLO ITA 1’38.031 More, from a press release issued by PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse: Makoto Tamada (PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse) made great advances in finding a good race set-up for his 2008 specification machine, after a busy two days at the official tests in Valencia, Spain. Tamada Top Ten After Valencia Tests Régis Laconi (PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse) had a less happy time on his machine, working hard but not finding the same degree of improvement as his team-mate. Laconi was, however, very close to Tamada in terms of his single best lap time, with Tamada setting a 1’35.591 and Laconi a 1’35.740. Valencia hosts the third round of what is now a 14-round Championship on April 6, when the Superstock classes join the Superbike and Supersport teams for their first round of the season. Makoto Tamada: “Most of our time was spent working on revised chassis settings, and we got through a lot of things. I felt an improvement from our new swingarm and it gave me a better feeling. We had a bit less chattering and our brake control was good. The engine was the same spec as before but we tried a new engine braking system and traction control settings. We didn’t try a long run but the tyre feeling was definitely better this time.” Régis Laconi: “We lost some time in this test and I can’t say I am completely happy with the bike settings around here. We are getting a lot of chatter when leaning into right hand corners. We tried our best and we worked through a lot of things. We found out a lot of things so for the race I am sure we will be more ready.” More, from a press release issued by GIL Kawasaki: Katsuaki Fujiwara (GIL Kawasaki) used revised suspension settings on his Ninja ZX-6R to set the fifth best official testing time out of 19 riders at the tight and twisty Valencia circuit. Fujiwara Makes a Set-up Breakthrough The current lap record holder in race conditions at Valencia secured a best of 1’37.572 on his way to a top five place. He would have posted an even faster time but the session was red flagged near the end, and the final few minutes of testing were cancelled. Chris Walker (GIL Kawasaki) set a best time of 1’37.872 on the first day of the test and had a challenging second day, despite finishing well inside the top half of the rankings. Katsuaki Fujiwara: “I found a new direction in the settings and I am quite happy about the results of this test. We had better feel from the front as well. I would have set a faster time I think, but there was a red flag when I was on my fastest lap and then the session was ended. When we tested at the first two tracks, Qatar and Phillip Island, we found a good set-up but when we got there for the race, the track temperature was completely different – and the bike felt completely different. But today we had good performance even as the track temperature changed. That was the most important thing for us and the biggest improvement we have made. We have improved things a lot and found a good way for the future.” More, from a press release issued by Parkalgar Honda: PARKALGAR HONDA racer Craig Jones finished third fastest at the World Supersport two-day Valencia test in Spain, less than 0.1seconds away from the top spot on the time sheets. After a tough second round race at Phillip Island in Australia earlier this month, Parkalgar Honda and Jones were looking for a good performance at the test in advance of returning to race at the circuit in three weeks time on April 6th. “We achieved everything we needed from this test,” enthused Jones, who completed 108-laps over both days. “Right from the off this morning I was quick and led the timesheets. In the afternoon I was hoping for more of the same and to lead the test but a few issues with fuel pressure meant I was confined to the garage and had little chance of going faster. “At the end of the day I went out and tried for a quick lap but I ended up crashing uninjured at slow speed at the hairpin. Overall I am delighted with the test and will be coming back to go for the podium or better in the race.” Parkalgar Honda racer Miguel Praia was well inside his personal best for the track, finishing 13th overall, just over one second behind his team mate after completing 99-laps in total. Praia said: “I am very happy to be so much faster than ever before at Valencia, the test has been good for me and the whole team. I have a strong race set-up and think there is more to come for the race. I am back competing within the top 15 which is my objective.” Yamaha’s Massimo Roccoli was the fastest rider over both days of the test, which was held in perfect weather conditions. Parkalgar Honda Team Manager Simon Buckmaster said: “Yesterday was all about finding a good race set-up and today about developing that further. Both days have been a big success and while it would have been nicer for Craig to have topped the test, a fuel pressure issue meant he was robbed of track time in the afternoon. It’s clear that he will be a race contender when we return here. “Miguel has bounced back from a tough last race and is now into the top 15 and looking good on his bike. He can go for a top 10 finish in the race with confidence when we return. “Parkalgar Honda has some new engine parts and developments to try before the next round, so everything is looking positive and both team morale and rider confidence is high. We can’t wait to come back and race.” Final Test Times: 1. Roccoli (Yamaha Lorenzini by Leoni) 1’37.159; 2. Nannelli (HANNspree Honda Althea) 1’37.159; 3. CRAIG JONES (PARKALGAR HONDA) 1’37.236; 4. Rea (HANNspree Ten Kate Honda) 1’37.557; 5. Fujiwara (Kawasaki Gil Motorsport) 1’37.572; 6. Veneman (Ressoftware Suzuki) 1’37.748; 13: MIGUEL PRAIA (PARKALGAR HONDA) 1:38.558. More, from a press release issued by Sterilgarda Go Eleven: Ruben Xaus’s great moment goes on. At Valencia FG Sport Testing he scored the second best time although he could run only in the first of the two days in schedule. The Catalonian rider didn’t have the full equipment at his disposal, since many components arrived just yesterday in Italy from Australia and they were still under overhaul. In spite of that, he ran very fast both with the race tyres and the qualifying tyres which allowed him to be the first rider to set the new record of the track. In spite of all, the team is pretty worried about the competitiveness of the four-cylinders in the fast straights where both Xaus’s motorbike and the other Ducati got a gap of about 10 km/h. Ruben Xaus | Ducati 1098 RS | 2nd classified in 1’34″265: “Testing have gone really well although I’m pretty worried about the race. I would like to win again on this track as I did the last year when I achieved my first victory with the team Sterilgarda Go Eleven. That’s why we chose to take to the track for one day at least, although we didn’t have all the equipment. Anyway we did a good job and we got everything ready for my home-round. I would like to thank all the team: the guys worked non-stop since the Australian round, in order to give me the opportunity to be on the bike here at Valencia”. Final results: Day 1 + Day 2 1. Muggeridge K. (AUS) Honda CBR1000RR 1’34.252; 2. Xaus R. (ESP) Ducati 1098 RS 08 1’34.265; 3. Lanzi L. (ITA) Ducati 1098 RS 08 1’34.388; 4. Checa C. (ESP) Honda CBR1000RR 1’34.493; 5. Kiyonari R. (JPN) Honda CBR1000RR 1’34.828; 6. Nieto F. (ESP) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1’34.911; 7. Neukirchner M. (GER) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1’34.984; 8. Kagayama Y. (JPN) Suzuki GSX-R1000 1’35.017; 9. Rolfo R. (ITA) Honda CBR1000RR 1’35.152; 10. Tamada M. (JPN) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1’35.581; 11. Laconi R. (FRA) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1’35.740; 12. Nakatomi S. (JPN) Yamaha YZF-R1 1’36.057; 13. Holland R. (AUS) Honda CBR1000RR 1’36.386; 14. Badovini A. (ITA) Kawasaki ZX-10R 1’36.441; 15. Sofuoglu K. (TUR) Honda CBR1000RR 1’36.698; 16. Napoleone L. (FRA) Yamaha YZF-R1 1’37.696 The day before Alex Polita took to the track for his first testing on the bike which he is going to ride in the Superstock Championship, already won by the rider in the season 2006. The rider from Jesi focused is job on the set up and the feeling with the machine, since the engine seemed to be already well known by Alex. Although the championship is just around the corner, the team is planning another testing day in order to get everything ready for the first round of the season. Alex Polita | Ducati 1098 R | 1’37″2: “Everything perfect. I cannot find something gone wrong in this first testing. I found immediately a good feeling with the bike, so much that I felt as I had been driving that machine since a lot of time. I tested several set-up solutions and I think I’ve found the way to get the best from the motorbike. At the end of the testing day we tried a 9 laps long-run and the gap between the best and the worst time was only 4 tenths”. Marco Borciani | team manager: “I would like to thank the guys for the great work they did to bring the motorbikes here yesterday. Unfortunately the machines returned to Italy just few days ago – after the Qatar and Australian rounds – and we had to send many components to the service in order to get everything ready for the race on this track the next 6th of April. Ruben confirmed his great moment both using the race tyres (1’35″2) and the qualifiers. In spite of that I’m pretty worried about the gap from the four-cylinders. In particular I was stuck with a lap where Ruben was just behind Nakatomi. Although he was lapping 2 seconds faster than him, going into the straight with more power, Ruben could not pass the Japanese rider. Valencia is a strange track with lack of places to pass. I would like to send my congratulations to Polita too. He showed to be an excellent rider since his first testing. I was stuck with the easiness he found the feeling with the twin-cylinder, and I really liked the way he works. Now I’m waiting for news from Biaggi. I really hope he could be on the starting grid at Valencia. The next week we will know when the plaster will be removed”.