Britain’s Tom Sykes and Chaz Davies have wrapped up the first World Superbike winter test of 2015 - held at Motorland Aragon - and were able to spend all day on track after yesterday was interrupted by inclement weather.
Kawasaki’s Sykes completed a total of 65 laps with a best time of 1’50.5, improving on his personal fastest lap set last April on the Spanish track by almost three tenths, though not quite as quick as Haslam’s 1’49.664 Superpole lap set six months ago. The Huddersfield rider used a combination of last year’s bike and a hybrid of one with 2016 parts.
“I’m happy. We worked in a good direction and, generally speaking, we have made a good step forward in terms of feeling compared to the one I had with the 2015 model,” said the 2013 WorldSBK Champion about his final day of testing. “We still have plenty of track-time scheduled before the next season begins but without a doubt Aragon is a good place where to get useful information about the new bike.”
In the Ducati garage, Chaz Davies continues with his testing programme as he evaluated many new parts brought to the test by the Italian manufacturer. The Welshman also worked tirelessly today, eventually amassing 70 laps of the Aragon circuit, the fastest of which was completed in 1’50.8s – three and a half tenths faster than his quickest race lap this year.
"Today was a very busy but positive day. We worked a lot with the new electronics and particularly with the engine brake that is very important to me. The updates introduced for 2016 are positive and in the end the bike seems to be very stable and consistent, especially at the front. We also made an interesting comparison between the racing setting used here in April, that from the end of the season and, lastly, the 2016 version. The positive trend has been confirmed, both in terms of feeling with the bike and lap times, an important aspect that confirms we’re moving in the right direction and that gives us confidence for the new season.”
Both teams will return to action next week at Jerez (November 3-4) where unlike Davies, Sykes will be joined by team-mate Jonathan Rea, whose wife Tarsh yesterday gave birth to their second child, Tyler Jon.
