For the first time in the pre-season schedule, the full compliment of Virgin Mobile Yamaha Racing riders took to the Leicestershire circuit today, 9 March, to put new machinery through exhaustive tests. Although Virgin Mobile Yamaha had completed a shakedown test at Croft two weeks previously, James Haydon had been called away on the eve of the test to attend the birth of his daughter. For James, today was the first opportunity to familiarise himself with the 2007 Yamaha YZF-R1.
James concentrated on gelling with the R1 and the switch to Pirelli tyres throughout the morning session. Minor changes were made to ride position and his riding style. The main focus at Mallory was to establish James’ needs, as this is the first comprehensive test on Pirelli rubber he has undertaken. With feedback evaluated, Pirelli and Yamaha will be able to supply James with the optimum tyres for the season ahead.
Tommy Hill was impressed with the progression of the new bike. His lap times were consistently on par with a solid race pace. With the bike less than four hours old from the crate the Mallory test proved an excellent testament to the Yamaha package. Both Tommy and James completed over three-race distance.
Billy McConnell and Tom Grant each put in over 70-laps laps onboard their respective Yamaha YZF-R6 Supersport bikes under blue skies. Tom was visibly impressed by the sheer speed of the Supersport machine over the Virgin Mobile Cup R6 he rode in 2006. With the morning spent building up a consistent lap pace, the afternoon was given over to more tyre and set-up development. Unfortunately, Tom tipped off at the Esses mid-way through the afternoon session. However, both rider and machine were unscathed and were able to complete another 20-laps.
Billy appeared comfortable with his days work. As a main contender for this year’s championship, the young Australian rider is still recovering from a wrist injury sustained while racing in Australia at the end of 2006. Settling in for 10-lap sessions, Billy attempted to make the most of the dry conditions to build up a consistent pace.
James Haydon:“It feels so good to be back in the saddle after what feels like the longest winter ever! I’m impressed with the R1 straight from the crate, a good package. The chassis works great and the engine has plenty of torque. It’s just a case of spending as much time on track as I can now to find my feet with Pirelli tyres.”
Tommy Hill: “We changed a few things since Croft, and have been working on improving the engine braking today. The bike has so much power, and Mallory is one of the most demanding circuits for hard braking, so it’s been a great test for that. I think we had the luck on our side with the weather. It was a little cold and windy, but good apart from that. Fingers crossed for Croft as we’ve got some new Pirelli tyres to test then. The bikes up to speed and I feel comfortable with the package so far.”
Billy McConnell: “Today was all about spending time on the bike and getting my right wrist back to full fitness. It’s all progressing well and the bike’s working good.”
Tom Grant: “I’m really looking forward to the coming season. I definitely made the right choice to run in Supersport and have benefited greatly from the few test sessions so far. The bike is so much quicker than the standard bike I rode with last year. Plus it has been an education riding on proper race tyres. The crash was a simple mistake, but no harm done.”
Rob McElnea, Team owner: “Really positive start for all four riders. It’s still very early in our pre-season testing and development programme. Our intention is to be positive with every test and this one had been just that. All the guys have finished the day on a real high and are getting more and more familiar with the new bikes. I’m really pleased with all of the team, they’ve worked fantastically to get everything ready in time, and we’re looking forward to next weeks test at croft.”
Steffen Baum, Pirelli:“The Pirelli Supersport tyre is well established and has been shown to be competitive. We need to see how this tyre will react with the Yamaha set-up. We are working closely with Billy and Tom Grant to make sure our tyres benefit the bikes. The main focus with James was to make a smooth transition to Pirelli. With Tommy it’s easier, we are simply finding a new tyre that he can feel comfortable with on track.”
The season opener at Brands Hatch is now only a month away. Virgin Mobile Yamaha will use the official team launch at Croft next Tuesday and Wednesday for further tests, before the official BSB test at Snetterton over the weekend of 23 – 25 March.
Related Linkswww.virginmobileracing.com
Related News
Related Articles
