FIXI Crescent
Suzuki's Leon Camier continued his good run of form
in the pre-season WSB tests by topping the timesheets
on the first day of the Official eni FIM Superbike World
Championship test at Phillip Island today.
Camier made consistent
progression this afternoon around the 4,445m Australian
circuit, before setting a fastest time of 1'31.243,
more than half-a-second quicker than Max Biaggi's
lap record. Camier completed 44 laps in the sweltering
Phillip Island heat as air temperatures reached 35°C
during the afternoon session. Camier had used this
morning as a shakedown test to assess his newly-built
Suzuki GSX-R1000 after the huge crash in last week's
tests and, following a few adjustments by his crew
during the lunch period, he put the Yoshimura-powered
machine to good use to storm his way to the top of
the charts.
Jules Cluzel made steady
steps forward as he utilised today's sessions to work
his way back to confidence following his operation
for the injury he sustained in last week's test. Cluzel
worked thoroughly and methodically as he completed
62 laps throughout the day. He gradually improved
his time and made consistent runs as he continued
his steep learning curve on the FIXI Crescent Suzuki
Superbike. Cluzel finished the day in 14th position
with a best time of 1'32.817, just a second-and-a-half
away from his team-mate.
FIXI Crescent Suzuki
has one more day of pre-season testing tomorrow as
it makes its final preparations in readiness for the
first races of the season this Sunday.
Leon Camier:
"We needed to change
some stuff after the bike had been re-built, so this
morning was there no big hurry to push from the start.
We changed the bike a bit in the lunch-break, because
unfortunately it didn't quite feel the same as it
did before I smashed it up last week! The feeling
came back and we also had to change quite a bit because
of the heat, I did the same lap-time in the cooler
conditions last week as I did in the heat today, so
I think we did a pretty good job. It's very close
at the top, so it doesn't really count for anything,
because the race will be difficult and the other guys
have got some time to perfect what they've got. We
are in quite good shape at the moment, but we know
there is still a lot to do for the rest of this week."
Jules Cluzel:
"I am happy with
the test today, because I did a lot of laps and improved
a little bit every time I went out. They weren't big
steps, because big steps with a Superbike are very
dangerous - as I managed to find out at the test last
Thursday! We tried many things today and didn't really
push for a fast lap time, but tried to work in the
best way and find the setting that is good for me.
Tomorrow we have another test and I will try to continue
to improve and then see what will happen from there."
Paul Denning - Team Manager:
"It's been a very
successful day's work, especially if we consider that
at the end of the unofficial test, Jules was in hospital
and Leon's bike was in the trees outside turn 12!
We had a few technical issues with Leon's newly-built
bike this morning, but the crew worked methodically
through those and Leon was able to use that to his
advantage this afternoon. He matched his time from
the unofficial tests, but in much hotter conditions
and coming back from the huge crash, so it great to
see his confidence build step-by-step and at the end
of the day show his true potential.
"Jules did a great
job today, because things were looking very difficult
after the first day of last week's test! Making a
lot of laps, regaining some feeling and confidence
and understanding the effects of the changes that
crew were making, means he has ended up with a good
base to take forward. His repaired arm isn't causing
him any problems on the track and we now have something
solid to work with tomorrow as we approach the first
round of the championship."
Phillip Island
- Official Test Classification: 1. Leon Camier
(FIXI Crescent Suzuki) 1'31.243: 2. Leon Haslam (Honda)
1'31.396: 3. Michel Fabrizio (Aprilia) 1'31.401: 4.
Eugene Laverty (Aprilia) 1'31.452: 5. Marco Melandri
(BMW) 1'31.485. 14. Jules Cluzel (FIXI Crescent Suzuki)
1'32.817. |
