Rizla Suzuki’s Shane ‘Shakey’ Byrne and James Haydon completed nearly 400 laps during the last two days during a private test at the Guadix circuit in southern Spain. Haydon completed 209 laps and helped to push the development of the GSX-R1000 another step forward. Shakey clocked 181 laps of the 3km long track that boasts fast and slow corners as well as a 750m long straight. He ran through a multitude of tests and is happy to have made significant progress to the base set-up on his GSX-R1000.
Both riders recorded low 1minute 16second lap times, on par with the unofficial Superbike lap record for the track.
After a wet and cold pre-season test programme, the outing to Guadix was the first time both riders had the opportunity to push their 2006-specification race bikes to their limits in dry and warm conditions.
After the first round of the series, Shakey and Haydon lie equal seventh in the Championship as the action moves to the fast-flowing 2.5-mile long Donington Park circuit in Derbyshire. They plan to put the information they learned at Guadix to good use when the second round of Superbike racing starts at 11:55 on Sunday, April 9th.
Shakey Byrne “The test at Guadix was exactly what we needed after poor weather blighted our pre-season test programme in the UK. I now feel comfortable on the bike and can give good direction and feedback on any changes we make to it. All has gone well and I’m looking forward to Donington to see what we can achieve.”
James Haydon “The weather couldn’t have been any better for us and I’ve managed to record a lot of laps. From a riding point of view, that is invaluable; the more riding you do the sharper you are. We tested several new parts and various geometry settings in the last two days and feel we have made good progress. Donington Park is a different track to Guadix but we have gained some very good information that will help our competitiveness over the course of the season.”
Simon Green - Team Co-ordinator “This was a vital test for the team given how little opportunity we have had to test in warm, dry conditions. The entire team has worked flat-out to prepare for this test and it will hopefully prove very beneficial as we move towards the second round of the season. Our thanks also to Clive Greenhalgh, the Guadix circuit owner, for his help in making this test happen.”
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