WIND
IN THE
P40
It's just a pity that the fourth ses-
sion was affected by rain, so we
didn't get a chance to make any
time attacks here in Australia
yet. But overall, we've covered all
areas of the setup and are ready
for the race weekend."
Vierge's teammate Iker Lecu-
ona rode well but is still not yet
100 percent from his injuries last
year.
"My body has healed, and I
generally feel good, but I've lost
muscle mass in my left shoulder
area, so I don't have my usual
strength to ride the bike," Lecu-
ona said. "Of course, that makes
things more difficult, especially
in the changes of direction,
and there are parts of the track
where I struggle a lot. After four
months, it feels really good to be
back on the bike, but at the same
time, it's frustrating because I
can't ride in my usual style."
The fastest WorldSSP rider at
the tests was Bo Bendsneyder
(MV Agusta Reparto Corse), with
returning WorldSSP rider Philipp
Ottl (Feel Racing WorldSSP
Team Ducati) second fastest,
despite a big crash on the final
morning. He will be medically
reviewed before race weekend.
"In the end, it's just testing—
there are no points," Bendsney
-
der said. "We're staying calm
and focused on our main job.
Of course, it's nice to start the
season this way, but the most
important thing will be Saturday
and Sunday afternoon when the
real points are on the line."
The best of the new Yamaha
YZF-R9s was in overall fourth
place and ridden by Can Oncu
(Yamaha Blu Cru Evan Bros).
Gordon Ritchie
Phillip Island WorldSBK Test
1. Nicolo Bulega (Duc) 1:28.680s
2. Andrea Iannone (Duc) +0.482s
3. Danilo Petrucci (Duc) +0.499s
4. Toprak Razgatlioglu (BMW) +0.567s
5. Alvaro Bautista (Duc) +0.797s
Moto2 refugee Bo Bendsneyder
put the MV Agusta on top in
WorldSSP testing.
