Positive WSB test for Suzuki

From Team Suzuki Alstare

VALENCIA, SPAIN -- 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 last week.

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 Nieto, Neukirchner nor Kagayama used qualifying tires to set their best lap times, preferring instead on finding good bike set-ups in advance of the race here in just 20 days time.

Aussie Karl Muggeridge (Honda) used a qualifying tire 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 was Ruben Xaus (Ducati), with Lorenzo Lanzi (Ducati) third and Carlos Checa (Honda) fourth.

"Our main job here was to get the bike ready for the race, so I didn’t push hard at all," Nieto said. "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."

Results (two days)

1. Karl Muggeridge (Aus-Honda) 1:34.252, 2. Ruben Xaus (E-Ducati) 1:34.265, 3. Lorenzo Lanzi (I-Ducati) 1:34.388, 4. Carlos Checa (E-Honda) 1:34.493, 5. Ryuichi 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