Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
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IN THE WIND P26 but they can't score any points. This idea of 'pointless' com- petition was floated about in the winter, and then shot down, but it has now appeared again. Whatever happens, the BB3 is now a reality, however many exist, and their official riders at least got the chance to ride them in Portimao. "We spent a lot of time at the track, instead of being on it," said Ayrton Badovini. "It's hard to believe that you could be some- where for so long and not have much time on the bike. The con- ditions were so bad on the final day [Tuesday] that I decided not to go out at all. I think that I prob- ably only managed 15 laps over- all in dry conditions. The rest of the time, it was either raining or the track was wet, so not ideal conditions to start working with a brand new bike. This test has been tough for all of us, but there are some positives and some things that we can work on next time out." Former BMW Superstock Champion Badovini knows the Evo BMW S1000RR engine in the BB3 very well. "Of all the things on the bike, the engine is the known quantity for me. It is our first prop- er time out and of course there were problems to overcome, but most, if not all, problems were small ones and ones that we know we can sort out." Proven World Supersport po- dium rider Christian Iddon said of his Bimota Evo Superbike: "We cannot control the weather, but despite the pretty awful condi- tions, I found the tests produc- tive - especially the last afternoon when I just went in and out and the team were able to try a few ideas and collect a lot of data. It was pretty cold, as well as wet, but I wanted to put in the laps and give the team as much info as possible. In conditions like we had these past days, it is hard to tell how the bike is going to be, but it feels stable and I like the way the engine makes power." Francis Batta, the owner of the Alstare team, explained what it took to get the BB3 on track, and why it is an Evo entry, not a full World Superbike machine. "It has been a very hard few months - well actually it's been pretty hard since November," Batta said. "From then, we've been working flat out getting the Superbike project from an idea to the track. For Bimota, rac- ing is very important and to get a brand new bike ready in such a short time has not been easy at all. Our biggest problem is the electronics - they are very com- plicated and it has taken a lot of time trying to understand them. Other things we have to attend to are the brake discs and the bike's aerodynamics. "We chose the EVO class be- (Left) Ayrton Badovini tested the new Bimota World Superbike at the Portimao circuit in Portual last week. (Above) The Bimota and its BMW S1000RR powerplant will race in the EVO portion of the World Superbike class starting this weekend in Aragon. PHOTOGRAPHY BY KEL EDGE