WSBK – World Superbike: first tests 2016 in Spain – Very first sessions in Aragon

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World Superbike: first tests 2016 in Spain

WSBK - World Superbike: first tests 2016 in Spain - Very first sessions in Aragon

Last week in Aragon, this week in Jerez: the Kawasaki team is seriously preparing for the 2016 WSBK season! The Greens were accompanied for their first fall outing by Ducati, and for the second by Yamaha, back with Guintoli.

Very first sessions in Aragon

The two best teams of the Superbike World Championship (edition) started their winter program last week: Ducati and Kawasaki rode respectively two and three days on the Aragon circuit (in the northeast of Spain), in reduced staff.

For the Reds, Davide Giugliano is still kept out of the way because of his back injury. The Roman driver was able to take off his corset just before the final in Qatar, but will not be able to put on his leather before the start of 2016 … Still several weeks to shoot for n ° 34.

For his part, Jonathan Rea – aka the happiest man on the planet (read our) – stayed with his girlfriend to attend the birth of their second boy. Thus, the new "Number One" of the discipline left alone Tom Sykes to develop the new Ninja ZX-10R…

After spending the first two days roughing up the first settings if not in the rain, at least in the wet (67 laps), the English Ninja took advantage of the excellent weather conditions on October 29 to complete the 5,077 meters of the Catalan circuit in one stroke record.

Timed in 1’50.6 by his team, Tom actually turned three tenths of a second faster than his shadow: at the controls of his 2015 factory Ninja, the n ° 66 had set the lap record during the first round. Superbike contested last April (1’50.890).

Last week "Major Tom" was still piloting a "hybrid" version of the ZX-10R: "the team worked tirelessly to assemble and disassemble parts throughout the day", he underlined, grateful to have been able to spend a maximum of time on track (72 laps).

"The overall performance of the Ninja ZX-10R in these tests makes me excited. The overall lap times were very regular. The feeling was easier to find than before. This is only the start, but it really is a good start for our winter program", concluded last Friday Mister Sykes.

Also slowed down by the rain on his first day, Mister Davies had to do a series of laps on the second day (70 laps) to get as much work as possible … and go down three tenths of a second below his personal lap record in the race, like tom !

Credited with a 1’50.8, the n ° 7 of the official Ducati team saved time by working "on the new electronics and especially on the engine brake, which is very important to me. The updates introduced for 2016 are positive and in the end the bike seems very stable and regular, especially at the front".

It is by comparing his settings for the month of April, those of the very end of the year – that he dominated, regularly beating Jonathan Rea himself! – and those of his Panigale R 2016 that the Welsh pilot was able to see the progress made.

"The positive trend has been confirmed, both in terms of feeling on the bike and lap times, which confirms that we are moving in the right direction and gives us confidence for next season.", estimates the 2015 vice-world champion.

While Davies has to wait two weeks before continuing his fall winter tests, Sykes went in the wake with the entire KRT to the circuit in Jerez (at the southern tip of Spain), where Rea, Lowes awaited them. … and Guintoli !

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