VOL. 51 ISSUE 48 DECEMBER 2, 2014 P27
DOVI FASTEST, APRILIA
JOINS THE PARTY
T
hankfully for the Ducati MotoGP, Avintia, Aprilia,
Forward and even Suzuki MotoGP teams, they
all got some good dry track time in at Jerez, despite
frequent bouts of rains, thunderstorms and wind on
Thursday, November 27, that caused track action to
be halted for a while.
The new pneumatic valve Aprilia engine went
semi-public in the hands of Alvaro Bautista and, for
10 laps, Marco Melandri, as Aprilia made its first big
step alongside their new partners Gresini into con-
temporary MotoGP racing.
Bautista was respectably quick for a first real run
on a bike that was said by his team to be only 75
percent of a final MotoGP bike at present.
Suzuki's emerging MotoGP effort was also at
Jerez, with Aleix Espargaro and Maverick Vignales,
but two engine failures blotted their otherwise use-
ful and respectably paced short test.
Fastest of all the Grand Prix teams was Ducati
MotoGP, as Andrea Dovizioso took his GP14.2 to
a lap of 1:38.9. Andrea Iannone was just a tenth
slower on his similar bike.
Gordon Ritchie
WORLD SUPERS
WINTER TEST
O
n Tuesday (November 25) afternoon and
across almost all of Wednesday (November
26) the wet testing weather at Jerez turned kinder
and the track was dry enough to allow some strong
times to be set by almost all of the World Superbike
regulars—new and old.
Everybody has a new spec of machine, with the
2015 rules and regulations meaning most would lose
top horsepower from stricter tuning regulations.
Alex Lowes, who feels his Voltcom Crescent Suzuki
will lose less engine power than most, was fastest of
all—on qualifying rear tires, as used by some others.
Aprilia Red Devils signing Leon Haslam was re-
juvenated on his 2015 official machine, while 2014
World Champions Sylvain Guintoli and Michael van
der Mark (World Superbike and World Supersport
respectively) had their first CBR1000RR rides for
the Pata Honda/Ten Kate team.
Randy De Puniet was fifth fastest in his first Su-
zuki test while new MV Agusta signing Leon Camier
was robbed of clean laps on a dry track.
World Superbike Best Times:
1. Alex Lowes (Suzuki) 1:40.730
2. Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki) 1:40.738
3. Tom Sykes (Kawasaki) 1:40.853
4. Leon Haslam (Aprilia) 1:40.865
5. Randy De Puniet (Suzuki) 1:41.296
6. Michel Fabrizio (Aprilia) 1:41.384
7. Davide Giugliano (Ducati) 1:41.4
8. Michael van der Mark (Honda) 1:41.437
9. Chaz Davies (Ducati) 1:41.5
10. Sylvain Guintoli (Honda) 1:41.639
Gordon Ritchie
PHOTOGRAPHY
BY
GOLD
&
GOOSE
Andrea Dovizioso
topped the time sheets
at the combined World
Superbike/MotoGP
winter test at Jerez.
Voltcom
Crescent
Suzuki's Alex
Lowes was
fastest in the
dry at Jerez.
