Both Foggy PETRONAS Racing riders made strides forward during the first day of the official Superbike World Championship test at Valencia, Spain, today.

Steve Martin finished the day 13th fastest out of the full World Superbike field, with a time of 1:37.07 which bettered his previous fastest at the circuit on the PETRONAS FP1, despite experiencing an engine failure towards the end of the first session which caused a spectacular high-side from which he escaped uninjured. Team-mate Craig Jones also made in-roads into his previous best time at the circuit as he gained further valuable track experience and set-up knowledge.

The team were also able to compare a new engine development, featuring a new cam-shaft designed to improve the mid-range power spread, to that used at Phillip Island in the recent races.

Troy Bayliss, who is leading the championship after the opening two races, set the pace once again with a time of 1:35.220.

Steve, who was 10th fastest after the morning session, said: “I was lucky to get away with the crash but, although this may sound strange, I am glad that it happened in one respect. I haven’t really given my body a knock since my operation last year and it is good to get it over and done with and know that I am just as strong as I used to be. I have not been too worried about lap times as I only used two rear tyres in each session and I am sure I could have bettered my time if I had stuck a softer one in at the end. Our aim is to do consistent times on race times so that we can fully evaluate the different engine configurations. There is no doubt that the new camshaft provided more torque, but at the expense of top speed down the main straight. However, on race tyres, I was able to match my qualifying time from the race weekend last year, and was able to lap in the low 37s throughout the day.”

Craig said: “I am reasonably pleased because, although I did not do any quick times today, we have made progress and have a direction to go in with the bike’s set-up. I have found a front end set-up that I quite like and a back-end set-up that I also quite like. It’s just a question of putting together the whole package now. I have gone a second quicker than when we tested here last year and we have got a game plan for tomorrow to reduce the times further.”

First day times, Superbike World Championship official test, Valencia, Spain: 1 Bayliss 1:35.220; 2 Corser 1:36.080; 3 Barros 1:36.292; 4 Haga 1:36.309; 5 Muggeridge 1:36.327; 6 Lanzi 1:36.360; 7 Walker 1:36.450; 8 Kagayama 1:36.725; 9 Pitt 1:36.740; 10 Nieto 1:36.808; 13 Martin (Foggy PETRONAS Racing) 1:37.072; 28 Jones (Foggy PETRONAS Racing) 1:40.226

Gain in Spain for FPR

The second day of the Superbike World Championship official test at Valencia, Spain, today brought further encouragement for Foggy PETRONAS Racing.

Both Steve Martin and Craig Jones were able to make in-roads into their best laps of yesterday, while also testing new engine specifications.

Steve finished the morning session in 10th place, having shaved more than half a second off yesterday’s best lap. However, an afternoon of frustrating technical hitches prevented further progress for the Australian and he slipped to 13th in the standings.

Superbike debutant Craig sliced more than 1.5 seconds off his best lap around the tight and twisty circuit, while also experimenting with new stages of engine development.

Steve said: “The morning session was pretty positive and I managed to lap a lot quicker than last year. Tomorrow I need to improve the handling of the bike with the new specification camshaft, as I am having problems wheelying out of the corners, so we will change the weight distribution and ride heights. I want to do a long run on race tyres tomorrow and then put some qualifiers in, as some of the other riders have done today. But when it comes to the race we already know that it is going to be so tight as not to be funny!”

Craig said: “We made a lot of progress today and I was able to take a big chunk out of my time. If I can keep on doing that tomorrow I will end up with a decent time. A lot of the improvement is coming from just riding the bike and learning the track but I think I can still find a lot of time in the set-up of the bike. I am looking forward to going out in the morning and using the experience I have gained today to go quicker straight away.”

Second day times, Superbike World Championship official test, Valencia, Spain: 1 Bayliss 1:34.987; 2 Corser 1:35.571; 3 Haga 1:35.618; 4 Walker 1:35.827; 5 Kagayama 1:35.899; 6 Nieto 1:35.974; 7 Lanzi 1:36.009; 8 Muggeridge 1:36.034; 9 Xaus 1:36.175; 10 Pitt 1:36.215; 13 Martin (Foggy PETRONAS Racing) 1:36.413; 28 Jones (Foggy PETRONAS Racing) 1:38.759

Martin on song for FPR at Valencia

Steve Martin produced superb form on the final day of the Superbike World Championship official test at Valencia, Spain, to finish the three days as the fifth fastest rider.

The Australian hacked a further second off yesterday’s best time with a stunning lap of 1:35.178, two seconds quicker than his time on qualifiers at last year’s race. And he was then fourth fastest in today’s afternoon session with a time of 1:35.7, set on race tyres, and behind only Troy Corser, Nori Haga and Troy Bayliss, even though a high-side crash, from which he emerged unscathed, ended that session prematurely.

Team-mate Craig Jones also continued to make encouraging progress and was 24th fastest in a windy final session, having made significant in-roads into yesterday’s lap times.

Bayliss had earlier broken the lap record with a time of 1:33.758, while Karl Muggeridge was a casualty when he suffered a fractured vertebrae in a bizarre crash on entering pit-lane.

Team manager Jack Valentine said: “This has been an excellent day and it’s very motivating to have made massive steps forward again with the chassis. We keep on managing to find something extra out of it. Steve’s riding was awesome and it’s so good to be able to set those times at a circuit where we have struggled recently. Craig has continued to make progress. He is now not far behind some of the big name riders and he will continue to improve.”

Steve said: “Today was a good day. We made some more chassis changes, to the steering head and swing arm angles, to help stop the bike wheelying out of corners. The conditions in the afternoon were not fantastic, yet I went faster every time I went out in that session. Unfortunately I crashed and just have to put that down to one of those things that happens when you are pushing the limits. But I am happy that I came away with a decent set-up for the race at the end of next month and we are heading in the right direction going into the next test at Misano.”

Craig said: “I managed to improve my times from yesterday this morning before we had a few things go wrong with the bike. Then conditions didn’t enable me to go quicker in the afternoon session, which was a shame. But I have regained my confidence on the bike, so there are positives to take away from here. I am a lot more comfortable on the bike and, if I can get it turning a bit better, hopefully the speed will come.”

Final times, Superbike World Championship official test, Valencia, Spain: 1 Bayliss 1:33.758; 2 Xaus 1:34.659; 3 Lanzi 1:34.848; 4 Corser 1:34.993; 5 Martin (Foggy PETRONAS Racing) 1:35.178; 6 Haga 1:35.295; 7 Nieto 1:35.377; 8 Pitt 1:35.423; 9 Fabrizio 1:35.437; 10 Kagayama 1:35.538; 28 Jones (Foggy PETRONAS Racing) 1:38.020