Three-time World Superbike Champion Troy Bayliss has done his first laps of Mugello on the Ducati's MotoGP Desmosedici GP9 which is the first time he has ridden a MotoGP bike since the end of the 2006 season.
Bayliss, who last rode a bike at the end of the 2008 when he helped launch the 1198 road bike at Portimao, put in some shake-down laps at the Italian circuit alongside regular test-rider Vito Guareschi.
"This is literally the first time I've ridden a motorcycle since we unveiled the 1198 after the end of last season at Portimao", said Bayliss. "It was nice to shake off a bit of rust and with Mugello being such a physical circuit it was a good workout!
"The last time I rode a GP machine was at Valencia, which was the 990cc, but the 800cc isn't exactly lacking power and I just spent today getting a feel for it. I can't wait to get back out there tomorrow and on Thursday and hopefully by the end of the session I'll be able to give some useful feedback to the team."
