Jonathan Rea (Pata Honda World Superbike) took the 4936 m Imola track by storm to lead the timesheets in today's official WSBK test. The Ulsterman put in a competitive 1'46.625 lap-time at his last attempt, on new tyres, before the end of the afternoon's session, to snatch first position from Davide Giugliano (Althea Racing Aprilia).
The manufacturers' representative teams took a chance to test new rear compounds developed by Pirelli and especially designed to work best under high temperatures. Factory Aprilia duo of Sylvain Guintoli and Eugene Laverty, following the mixed emotions of last weekend, focussed mainly on the set-up for their RSV4, with the Irish rider able to find a breakthrough in terms of bike balance that made him more than happy about today's outcome.
Marco Melandri and Chaz Davies (BMW Motorrad GoldBet) kept working on chassis settings and new components, along with upgrades in electronics, to improve the stability of the BMW S 1000 RR under braking in order to carry more speed in corner entry.
Different tasks for Leon Camier and Jules Cluzel: the 2009 BSB Champion tried some changes in riding position and electronic settings in order to get a better drive out of slow turns, while the young Frenchman worked on the chassis to find a better overall feeling with his FIXI Crescent Suzuki GSX-R.
Carlos Checa and Ayrton Badovini completed 56 and 47 laps each in the first day of a busy week for Team Ducati Alstare, as Francis Batta's squad will be back on track at Misano World Circuit for a further two-day test, scheduled for July 3-4. STK1000 rider Lorenzo Savadori (Team Pedercini Kawasaki) jumped on WSBK team mate Alexander Lundh's ZX-10R as the Swedish rider is currently injured following the crash in Qualifying 2 last Saturday.
Communication Worldsbk - www.worldsbk.com -