Alex Lowes | MotorCycle News

Yamaha man edges out Rea as testing gets underway

Images GeeBee/2Snap

Making their final preparations ahead of the 2019 season opener, 16 WorldSBK and 12 WorldSSP riders were out on track around Circuito de Jerez Ángel Nieto for the opening day of testing at the Andalusian circuit.

Despite chilly temperature, the Motul FIM Superbike World Championship riders were able to take full advantage of the good weather, putting in a considerable number of laps and working all day through their testing programs. With the track having been resurfaced over the winter break, they all had to wait for the tarmac to warm up before continuing with the work they had planned for the day.

WSBK Test Jerez Alex Lowes — Alex Lowes tops day one

Completing a positive day one of testing, Pata Yamaha WorldSBK rider Alex Lowes closed the day at the top of the timesheets, impressing with a 1’40.422.

Waiting for track condition to progress, reigning world champion Jonathan Rea sat out the opening hours of the day and came out of his garage around 1400. Working on testing different components for his ZX-10RR, the Kawasaki Racing WorldSBK rider has been focusing in getting the overall package ready for Australia, he will continue with the same program tomorrow. After a few laps done in the afternoon he was soon at the top of the timesheet before Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) took the lead, pushing the WorldSBK champion back into second position just 0.008s behind him.

WSBK Test Jerez Jonathan Rea — Jonathan Rea

Sitting in third the new Kawasaki Racing WorldSBK team recruit Leon Haslam, continued the familiarisation process with the WorldSBK machine. The British rider focused in putting in as many laps as possible, adapting to the new bike and learning the electronics. Thanks to a fastest lap in 1’40.885 he ended the day just 0.435 s off his teammate.

Impressing with his overall pace, Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Racing ZX-10RR) finished the day in fourth position.

WSBK Test Jerez Toprak Razgatlioglu — Toprak Razgatlioglu

Testing a combination of chassis parts, settings and electronics Dutchman Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha WorldSBK Team) set the fifth fastest lap.

WSBK Test Jerez Michael VanDerMark — Michael van der Mark

Working on their full factory configuration for the first time, the brand new GRT Yamaha WorldSBK team took their time to get acquainted with the new package. Both Marco Melandri and Sandro Cortese were able to get used to their machine and finished the day in sixth and seventh positions respectively.

WSBK Test Jerez Ducati V — Ducati Panigale V4R

Following just behind Chaz Davies and Alvaro Bautista had a lot of things to work on as they continued to improve their Ducati Panigale V4 R.

WSBK Test Jerez Chaz Davies — Not all clean sailing for Chaz Davies on day one

Davies completed a positive first day, despite suffering a small crash through turn 5 late in the afternoon. The Ducati rider ended the day eighth with a best lap in 1’41.375.

WSBK Test Jerez Alvaro Bautista — Alvaro Bautista

Spanish star Alvaro Bautista took his time to get used to the WorldSBK machine as he had only two days on the V4 before returning to Jerez today.

Davies and Bautista were not the only Ducati riders on track as also Eugene Laverty (Team Goeleven) and Michael Ruben Rinaldi (BARNI Racing Team) were out taming their Ducati Panigale V4 R. The Irishman, made his debut on the new Bologna factory bike today, while Rinaldi was working on new suspension.

WSBK Test Jerez Michael Rinaldi — Michael Ruben Rinald

Spaniard Jordi Torres (Team Pedercini Racing) rounded out the top ten. The Spaniard put in 82 laps as he tested new components for his Kawasaki ZX-10RR. Another Kawasaki rider, Leandro Mercado (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) finished eleventh as he got to know his new crew.

WSBK Test Jerez Tom Sykes — Tom Sykes – No transponder on the BMW men during the opening day of the test…..

The BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team were also out on track testing today. Both Markus Reiterberger and Tom Sykes were working on getting familiar with their bikes as well as a trying different electronic strategies. The BMW riders elected not to run timing transponders on the opening day of the test thus we can’t tell you how they ranked in what is their first real test of the new S 1000 RR.

There were also FIM Supersport World Championship teams taking to the track around Jerez. Federico Caricasulo (BARDAHL Evan Bros. WorldSSP Team) closed the day as fastest World Supersport rider, ahead of Raffaele De Rosa (MV AGUSTA Reparto Corse) and teammate Randy Krummenacher.

Action resumes on track tomorrow for day two of testing at Jerez.

WSBK/WSS Jerez Day One Unofficial Times

Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) 1’40.442
Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 1’40.450 +0.08
Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) 1’40.877 +0.435
Toprak Razgatlioglu (Turkish Puccetti Kawasaki) 1’41.001 +0.559
Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team) 1’41.047 +0.605
Marco Melandri (GRT Yamaha Team) 1’41.119 +0.677
Sandro Cortese (GRT Yamaha Team) 1’41.203 +0.761
Stefan Bradl (Honda Test Team) 1’41.370 +0.928
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’41.375 +0.933
Alvaro Bautista (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 1’41.857 +1.415
Jordi Torres (Team Pedercini Racing) 1’41.973 +1.531
Federico Caricasulo (Bardahl Evan Bros Yamaha) 1’42.847 +2.405 (WSS)
Leandro Mercado (Orelac Racing VerdNatura) 1’42.886 +2.444
Eugene Laverty (Team Goeleven) 1’43.376 +2.934
Raffaele De Rosa (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) 1’43.370 +3.288 (WSS)
Randy Krummenacher (MV Agusta Reparto Corse) 1’43.854 +3.412 (WSS)
Lucas Mahias (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) 1’43.948 +3.506 (WSS)
Michael Ruben Rinaldi (BARNI Racing Ducati) 1’43.973 +3.531
Hikari Okubo (Kawasaki Puccetti Racing) 1’45.317 +4.875 (WSS)
Alessandro Delbianco (Althea MIE Racing Team) 1’45.437 +4.995

Source: MCNews.com.au

Ducati V4R takes to wet Aragon track on day two

KRT and Yamaha sits out the rain after Rea set day one pace

The first 2019 pre-season test came to a wet end at Spain’s Aragon circut, as heavy rain in the morning meant only two out of six riders took to the track on Thursday. But it wasn’t a wasted day as the Ducati Panigale V4 R was able to take to the track for the first time under wet conditions.

Continuing to understand their new bike, Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) took to the track for 22 laps, despite being careful to not cause more issues with his shoulder. Experiencing the all new V4 R in the rain for the first time, it was important to get as much track time under his belt as possible.

Chaz Davies

“Despite the forecast, yesterday I was hoping we might get lucky and have a dry track in the morning, but unfortunately it wasn’t the case. The day started and finished wet. We had to ride in the rain at some point anyway, so that’s what we did today and actually it went OK. I wasn’t looking for the limits of the bike in these conditions, keeping also an eye on my shoulder, but we still managed to tick off a few items on our list. We’ll start in Jerez from where we finished here. We have a good base to begin with and our ideas are quite clear, which is the most important thing at this stage.”

Serafino Foti, Team Manager

“Overall the test has been positive, even though unfortunately conditions weren’t ideal today. We still did a few laps in the wet to verify the behavior of the Panigale V4 R, collecting important information while at the same time avoiding unnecessary risks. We’ll head directly to Jerez from here to continue our development program, hopefully in more favorable weather. We want to make the most of the last testing days before the new year.”

For Michael Ruben Rinaldi (BARNI Racing Team), he was keener to get out on track and try out the V4 R in the rain, and the track began to dry in the early afternoon. Following a sensational opening day with his new bike, he was just making the most of the time he has, as in 2019 the Italian will not only have a new bike to contend with but also new circuits. Rinaldi was able to put in 25 laps on Thursday.

WSBK Test Aragon Michael Rinaldi — Michael Ruben Rinaldi

The Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team will resume action at Jerez de la Frontera (Spain), where Alvaro Bautista will make his debut alongside Davies, on November 26 and 27.

After topping the unofficial timing screens on the opening day around Aragon, Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) and his new team-mate Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK) opted to sit out of Thursday’s on track action. Putting in 139 laps between them on the opening day, they will now shift their focus to the Jerez test in 10 days’ time.

Rea’s technical crew had used this test to make back-to-back comparisons between the 2018 and 2019 official WorldSBK machines, with Rea stating that he feels there is a lot of potential in the new bike already. Rea set his fastest lap times on the 2019 machine.

Jonathan Rea

“Day two of our test was cut short by wet weather so we were not able to refine the base set-up of our new 2019 Ninja ZX-10RR – but first impressions were positive after back-to-back tests with the 2018 machine. It is clear that the potential of the 2019 bike is much higher. To achieve that potential we need to delve into more set-up changes and that will require more time. It needs a bit more of a base setting because the new engine character has more power and more potential, especially under acceleration and on the brakes. That requires a little bit of a different riding style, so I need to understand that together with all my crew, in the next weeks. It was a simple back-to-back test here but in Jerez we can start to test more items with the chassis, electronics and some engine components.”

Pere Riba, Crew Chief for Jonathan Rea

“Our test was good. With our new engine upgrade we have some new parts and it ‘talks’ differently to the rider. That needs time for us to understand how to give the best to Johnny, especially in terms of feeling. Apart from that, his lap times were really fast and we have already collected positive information. It is a shame that is was raining today and we decided not to test in the wet. All the items we needed to try need dry conditions, or else you cannot understand them properly.”

Leon Haslam set an impressive 1’51.479 lap on his first day back in the paddock he knows well from his earlier WorldSBK career. Rains arrived early today and continuing throughout, so the decision was made not to take to the track.

Leon Haslam

“The test was positive and I am getting to know all the guys in the team. We missed some track time on the opening day, but even then it could have not gone any better. We got quicker each time we went out and the pace was quite competitive, considering we were not looking for that. We were just evaluating and understanding things. We are taking it step-by-step and we have another two days at Jerez to test again before the winter break. So far, so good.”

Marcel Duinker, Crew Chief for Leon Haslam

“I was very happy and confident from the very beginning of the tests. We have a BSB champion in our house with a lot of experience on different bikes, different championships and different tyres. Day one went very well. We had two different bike set-ups to put us in the correct direction for chassis development. He clearly chose one of them and with some minor changes towards the end of day one, Leon was in the ballpark with our closest competition, who had won several races in the past few years. So from this point of view I am very happy, but unfortunately day two was wet. After this single day on track and with the positive results, we are confident we will continue doing well in Jerez.”

The Pata Yamaha Official WorldSBK Team duo of Alex Lowes and Michael van der Mark also decided to sit out of day two of the test.

WSBK Test Aragon Andrew Pitt Alex Lowes — Alex Lowes with crew chief Andrew Pitt

Lowes was able to set the second fastest unofficial time of the test on Wednesday, and they were able to work through a lot of small updates to their YZF-R1 machines with chassis, suspension and electronics.

WSBK Test Aragon Alex Lowes — Alex Lowes

Times from MotorLand Aragon Day Two (Wet)

Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati) 2.04.513
Michael Ruben Rinaldi (BARNI Ducati) 2.07.961

Times from MotorLand Aragon Day One (Dry)

Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team) 1.49.668
Alex Lowes (Pata Yamaha) 1.51.157
Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing Ducati) 1.51.180
Leon Haslam (Kawasaki Racing Team) 1.51.479
Michael Ruben Rinaldi (BARNI Ducati) 1.51.656
Michael van der Mark (Pata Yamaha) 1.51.852

Images by GeeBee

Source: MCNews.com.au

MotorCycle News

Tag Archives: Alex Lowes

Alex Lowes tops opening day of Jerez WSBK Test