The start of the annual Dunlop tire test at Daytona International Speedway was postponed Friday morning due to a wet track caused by overnight rains and misty conditions. Weather conditions improved, the track dried and testing began around 2:40 p.m. local time. Riders and teams attending the test include: American Honda’s Neil Hodgson; Erion Honda’s Josh Hayes and Jake Zemke; Rockwall Honda’s Aaron Gobert; Monster Energy Kawasaki’s Jamie Hacking and Roger Hayden, Team Green Kawasaki’s Akira Yanagawa; Rockstar Makita Yoshimura Suzuki’s Tommy Hayden, Mat Mladin and Ben Spies; Michael Jordan Motorsports Suzuki’s Geoff May and Aaron Yates; Evan Steel Performance Suzuki’s Chris Peris; Yamaha’s Eric Bostrom and Jason DiSalvo; Graves Yamaha’s Ben Bostrom and Josh Herrin. Hodgson will ride his very-stock 2008 CBR1000RR Superbike for the first time and will continue testing on the CBR600RR he will ride in the 2008 Daytona 200. Hodgson will also use a 2007-spec CBR1000RR Superbike to test tires for Dunlop. Hodgson’s teammate Miguel Duhamel will not test at Daytona, as he is still recovery from several serious injuries he suffered in a crash while testing at Road Atlanta in August. 2007 AMA Formula Xtreme Champion Hayes will test tires on his CBR600RR Formula Xtreme and Supersport racers, while new teammate Zemke re-acclimates himself to the CBR600RR and his new team. Rockwall Honda’s Gobert has two CBR600RR FX bikes and two CBR600RR Supersport bikes at his disposal, while Team Owner Michael Worrell continues to look for a second rider. Roger Hayden will have to split his time between his 2007 Championship-winning ZX-6R Supersport machine and his all-new ZX-10R Superbike, while teammate Hacking will focus on his very new Superbike only. Hayden and Hacking will be supplemented at the test by veteran racer Akira Yanagawa, who will ride a ZX-10R prototype he has previously tested in Japan. The ZX-10Rs of Hacking and Hayden have never rolled a wheel onto a racetrack. Mladin and Spies will continue the evaluation of new forks and swingarms that they started testing at California Speedway in October. Spies, who will only race Superbike in 2008, will miss the last day of the test, Sunday, to have surgery to repair a lingering injury in his right shoulder. Newlywed Tommy Hayden, who is coming back from shoulder surgery, will test his Superbike and his new GSX-R600 Supersport machine this weekend. Hayden did a shakedown test on his GSX-R600 at Willow Springs two weeks ago, but he missed last year’s Daytona tire test due to injury. May, who is also coming back from shoulder surgery, will spend the next three days learning Dunlop tires and his new team, while Jordan Suzuki teammate Yates will work with a more powerful engine and new electronics on his GSX-R1000 Superbike. Canadian Peris will test his new GSX-R1000, which he plans to race in AMA Superstock and Superbike in 2008. Eric Bostrom and Jason DiSalvo will share one 2008-spec YZF-R1 Superbike and spend the rest of their time testing Dunlops on their 2007 bikes. Ben Bostrom and Herrin will test their 2008 YZF-R6 Supersport bikes for the second time this off-season. Riders will also need to learn the newly reconfigured International Horseshoe during the test. There will be no official AMA timing & scoring information provided at this test due to the AMA’s equipment being destroyed in a fire. More, from a press release issued by Daytona International Speedway: Dunlop Tire Testing For Daytona 200 Week By Honda Underway 2006 Daytona 200 By Honda Champion Jake Zemke Returns To Erion Honda DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. Overcast conditions and misty rain slowed the opening day of the annual three-day Dunlop motorcycle tire test at historic Daytona International Speedway. The top riders and manufacturers that utilize Dunlop tires finally got on track Friday mid-afternoon at DIS to kick off the first of three days of tire testing in preparation for the Feb. 29 March 8 Daytona 200 Week By Honda, which is highlighted by the prestigious 67th Daytona 200 By Honda on Sunday, March 8. Among the riders in attendance for the test include Yoshimura Suzuki’s Ben Spies, Mat Mladin and Tommy Hayden, Jordan Suzuki’s Aaron Yates and Geoff May, American Honda’s Neil Hodgson, Erion Honda’s Josh Hayes and Jake Zemke and Yamaha’s Jason DiSalvo, Josh Herrin and Ben and Eric Bostrom and Kawasaki’s Roger Lee Hayden and Jamie Hacking. For a couple of riders, the test serves as an opportunity to get more familiar with their new teams in advance of the 2008 season and Zemke the 2006 Daytona 200 By Honda champion is one of those riders. The 31-year-old Zemke leaves American Honda to join Erion Honda for the 2008 season a team that he rode for earlier in his career and will compete for the championships in Supersport class and the Formula Xtreme class, which kicks off its season with the Daytona 200 By Honda. The new team has Zemke pumped up about the upcoming AMA season. “I’m actually really excited about this year,” Zemke said. “I’ve got two bikes, two different classes. We’re going to be really competitive in both. We’re shooting for the championship in both classes.” While waiting out the rain during the lunch hour on Friday, Zemke said he was beginning to get “antsy” and was ready to get on track for the test. “For me, I haven’t ridden a 600 Supersport bike since ’03,” Zemke said. “I’m really looking forward to getting out there and getting comfortable again on a Supersport bike and also getting on the Formula Xtreme bike and getting things dialed in for myself and get ready for the 200.” For Zemke and all the riders, the three-day test is important in finding the right tire for the races in March at DIS as well as building chemistry with the team. “You’re looking for the best of both worlds,” Zemke said about the tire. “You want as much grip as you can have but it’s gotta last (for the Formula Xtreme bike) until your pit stop window which is usually around Lap 20-24. You got to have a tire that is going to give you as much grip as possible but also get you to your pit stop. Dunlop has done a great job over the years of giving us tires. Safety is their No. 1 issue and then they try to get us grip after that. They do a really good job at it.” Dunlop motorcycle tire testing continues through Sunday at Daytona International Speedway is open to the public with free access to the Oldfield Grandstand through the lobby of The Daytona 500 Experience. On Monday, Pirelli tire testing will kick off a two-day test. Among the riders expected to attend include 2007 Daytona 200 By Honda winner Steve Rapp, Roadracingworld.com Suzuki’s Chris Ulrich, Chaz Davies, former Superbike champion Doug Chandler and Brian Parriott Tickets for Daytona 200 Week By Honda are available at http:///www.racetickets.com or by calling 1-800-PITSHOP.