List of the fastest laptimes from all three days of testing.

Pos No Rider Bike Time Diff Day
1 27 Casey Stoner Ducati 1’31.899 0.000 Day 3
2 99 Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha 1’31.939 0.040 Day 2
3 3 Dani Pedrosa Honda 1’31.944 0.045 Day 3
4 46 Valentino Rossi Yamaha 1’32.528 0.629 Day 2
5 69 Nicky Hayden Ducati 1’32.804 0.905 Day 3
6 4 Andrea Dovizioso Honda 1’32.825 0.926 Day 3
7 33 Marco Melandri Honda 1’32.935 1.036 Day 3
8 11 Ben Spies Yamaha 1’32.942 1.043 Day 2
9 36 Mika Kallio Ducati 1’32.988 1.089 Day 3
10 14 Randy de Puniet Honda 1’33.111 1.212 Day 2
11 65 Loris Capirossi Suzuki 1’33.211 1.312 Day 2
12 41 Aleix Espargaro Ducati 1’33.275 1.376 Day 3
13 40 Hector Barbera Ducati 1’33.786 1.887 Day 3
14 58 Marco Simoncelli Honda 1’33.857 1.958 Day 3
15 5 Colin Edwards Yamaha 1’33.929 2.030 Day 1
16 19 Alvaro Bautista Suzuki 1’34.163 2.264 Day 3
17 400 Hiroshi Aoyama Honda 1’34.821 2.922 Day 3
18 0 Toni Elias Gresini Moto2 1’37.279 5.380 Day 2
19 9 Kenny Noyes Promoracing Moto2 1’37.881 5.982 Day 2
20 5 Joan Olive Promoracing Moto2 1’39.227 7.328 Day 3
21 14 Ratthapark Wilairot Stop & Go Moto2 1’41.989 10.090 Day 1

Alvaro Bautista has completed his first test onboard the Suzuki GSV-R by continuing to improve on his lap-times at a sunny Valencia today.
Alvaro recorded a best time of 1’34.163 from his 41 laps during the final morning session of the three-day test, almost half-of-a-second quicker than he managed yesterday. He finished his first experience of riding a MotoGP bike on a very positive level and was extremely pleased with what he had accomplished during such a short spell on the machine. Bautista will now travel with Team Test-Rider Nobuatsu Aoki to Estoril in Portugal for a further three-day test next week.

Alvaro’s 2010 teammate at Rizla Suzuki MotoGP, Loris Capirossi (1’33.588, 43 laps) completed his test schedule at Valencia today by doing a final evaluation of some new aerodynamics and electronics systems as well as assessing some more Akrapovic exhaust systems. Capirossi will now have a complete break from riding the Rizla Suzuki GSV-R until February 2010 when MotoGP begins the test calendar for next year at Sepang in Malaysia.

Paul Denning, – Team Manager:
“These three days have been a good start towards the target of significantly improving Suzuki’s level in MotoGP in 2010. There haven’t been any fundamental changes to the bike here; those will come in February at Sepang, but the detailed work that Loris has completed, especially with the Akrapovic exhaust systems, new engine specifications and aerodynamics have made the bike easier and more consistent to ride. The lap-time isn’t spectacular, but it is a lot closer to the top group than it was during the race weekend so some progress has certainly been made.
Alvaro’’s transition to the four-stroke and to the team has been seamless; he looks very comfortable on the bike and appears to have ridden within his own abilities in this first test on the GSV-R. He has treated the three days not so much as a test, but as an extended track-day. He has certainly had some fun as well as beginning to understand the characteristics of the bike. Again today he didn’t run any of the updated parts, so to make consistent low 1’34s is a very positive start. He’’s very focused and is an enthusiastic character to have in the pit and we are looking forward to having an enjoyable and hard-charging atmosphere with Loris and Alvaro for 2010.”

Loris Capirossi and Álvaro Bautista continued in a positive direction during the penultimate day of testing at Valencia, as the pair made use of the improved conditions in Spain today.

Capirossi (1’33.211, 58 laps) produced his quickest ever lap on a Suzuki GSV-R around the 4,005m Ricardo Tormo circuit on race tyres, as he resumed from where he left off yesterday by trying the new parts that Suzuki has supplied for this test. Capirossi tested new-spec engine parts as well as continuing the evaluation of the Akrapovic exhaust systems and some new electronic strategies.

Bautista continued with his acclimatisation of the Suzuki GSV-R following his step-up in class to MotoGP. Using the same specification bike as was raced the previous weekend – without any on the new parts – he circulated the Spanish circuit a further 73 times today, eventually fishing with a best time of 1’34.540, over a second quicker than his fastest lap from Monday.

The Rizla Suzuki pair has a further half-of-a-day of testing tomorrow morning at Valencia, which will signal Capirossi’s final outing on the GSV-R for 2009, with only Bautista travelling to Estoril next week to join Nobuatsu Aoki for a further three-day test.

Loris Capirossi:
“It has been a positive day because we have continued to develop the bike and we tested many different things. We tested a new engine specification and a couple of sets of pipes, as well as a different electronics system on the bike. We have improved today and the whole team is quite happy and for sure the way to go quicker is now not so far away. We have a couple more important things to try tomorrow, especially on the electronics side. I think that the condition we had in the bike today was easily the best for the whole weekend and this is why we went much better. We still need to concentrate really hard and tomorrow will be an important day as will the test next week in Portugal for Álvaro and Nobu, because we need to understand as much about the bike in these tests as possible.”

Paul Denning – Team Manager:
“We’ve got through a lot of work today and the conditions have been quite kind so that has helped us as well. The time difference from Loris to the front guys has reduced massively compared to race-day and this has been due to a number of modifications to the bike that the factory has introduced here. The most important one of those has without doubt been the change to the engine spec, which has helped a lot with the smoothness of power delivery and the way the bike exits the corners.

“Alvaro has been quietly impressive today. On every pit exit he has made 10 or 12 lap runs which have been ultra consistent and he has lifted his pace steadily all day. His bike is completely the same specification as was used in Sunday’s Grand Prix – without any of the test parts Loris has been running – so bearing that in mind his pace looks encouraging for the future. So far – in summary – it’s been a better test already than we expected and a little bit of light is on the horizon.”

Pos Rider Team Fastest lap Laps
1 Jorge Lorenzo Fiat Yamaha Team 1:31.939 62
2 Casey Stoner Ducati Marlboro Team 1:32.195 44
3 Valentino Rossi Fiat Yamaha Team 1:32.528 55
4 Ben Spies Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1:32.942 61
5 Nicky Hayden Ducati Marlboro Team 1:32.981 84
6 Dani Pedrosa Repsol Honda Team 1:33.025 46
7 Randy De Puniet Lcr Honda MotoGP 1:33.111 76
8 Mika Kallio Pramac Racing 1:33.125 84
9 Loris Capirossi Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1:33.211 64
10 Marco Melandri San Carlo Honda Gresini 1:33.326 85
11 Aleix Espargaro Pramac Racing 1:33.345 74
12 Andrea Dovizioso Repsol Honda Team 1:33.546 44
13 Hector Barbera Aspar Team 1:34.206 100
14 Marco Simoncelli San Carlo Honda Gresini 1:34.230 79
15 Alvaro Bautista Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1:34.540 74
16 Hiroshi Aoyama Scot Racing Team 1:35.261 88
17 Xavier Simeon Gresini Moto 2 Team 1:37.279 58
18 Joan Olive Promoracing 1:37.881 86

The first published laptimes of today don’t show Bati’s name, but according to our direct sources in Bati’s box he’s already been out for several runs with the Suzuki this morning. It appears that the team’s goal for these three days – just to let Bati enjoy and learn the bike and not be fussed about laptimes – is being thoroughly followed with Bati’s transponder probably turned off for the time being.

However, here are the other laptimes so far. We will update this post with new laptimes when they become available.

Standings at 1 PM

1. Stoner (Ducati) 1.33.215
2. Pedrosa (Honda) 1.33.493
3. Dovizioso (Honda) 1.33.546
4. Kallio (Ducati) 1.33.585
5. Spies (Yamaha) 1.33.696
6. Espargaro (Ducati) 1.33.887
7. Melandri (Honda) 1.33.889
8. Hayden (Ducati) 1.34.015
9. Capirossi (Suzuki) 1.34.018
10. Lorenzo (Yamaha) 1.34.187
11. De Puniet (Honda) 1.34.586
12. Simoncelli (Honda) 1.35.138
13. Barbera (Ducati) 1.35.501
14. Simeon (Moriwaki) 1.35.695 – Moto2
15. Aoyama (Honda) 1.37.399
16. Olive (Promo-Harris) 1.42.313 – Moto2

UPDATE: Times from 3 PM

Pos No Rider Bike Time Diff
1 99 Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha 1’31.940 0.000
2 27 Casey Stoner Ducati 1’32.196 0.256
3 11 Ben Spies Yamaha 1’32.942 1.002
4 46 Valentino Rossi Yamaha 1’32.965 1.025
5 69 Nicky Hayden Ducati 1’32.982 1.042
6 3 Dani Pedrosa Honda 1’33.092 1.152
7 36 Mika Kallio Ducati 1’33.125 1.185
8 65 Loris Capirossi Suzuki 1’33.277 1.337
9 14 Randy de Puniet Honda 1’33.306 1.366
10 41 Aleix Espargaro Ducati 1’33.345 1.405
11 33 Marco Melandri Honda 1’33.356 1.416
12 4 Andrea Dovizioso Honda 1’33.546 1.606
13 58 Marco Simoncelli Honda 1’34.458 2.518
14 40 Hector Barbera Ducati 1’34.835 2.895
15 19 Alvaro Bautista Suzuki 1’34.904 2.964
16 400 Hiroshi Aoyama Honda 1’35.745 3.805
17 00 Toni Elias Gresini Moto2 1’38.597 6.657
18 5 Joan Olive Promoracing Moto2 1’39.268 7.328

Álvaro Bautista made his MotoGP entrance onboard a Rizla Suzuki GSV-R at a cool and windy Valencia in Spain this afternoon.

Bautista has made the step-up from the 250cc class and performed well on his first ride on a four-stroke MotoGP machine. He completed 52 laps of the 4,005 Ricardo Tormo circuit as he familiarised himself with the difference in performance between the 800cc bike and his previous ride in the quarter-litre class, finishing the day with a very impressive lap-time of 1’35.772.

Rizla Suzuki has a full day of testing at Valencia tomorrow and another half-day on Wednesday morning, when both riders will continue with their respective test schedules to get the maximum preparation under their belts in readiness for the 2010 season.

Tom O’Kane – Crew Chief, Álvaro Bautista:
“I would firstly like to welcome Álvaro to the team and the whole crew is looking forward to working with him. I have been very impressed by the way he took to the bike today and his feedback has been excellent considering it is his first time on a MotoGP machine. His times are also very pleasing, but that is not the important thing right now. We need to get him familiarised with the bike and then we can start making adjustments and improvements that will help him to improve on his times. He has already gelled with the team and he looks like being a big asset to Suzuki.”

Paul Denning – Team Manager:
“The conditions today have been very similar to yesterday’s Grand Prix, which was a good thing because it has helped us compare things in particular areas where we have struggled. The new cowling design that Loris tested was not a fundamental fix, but it has certainly helped his confidence. Although the ultimate lap-time isn’t important the biggest benefit has been that his consistency and rhythm has improved a great deal. Along with some other detailed test items it has been a productive afternoon for Loris and small first step towards improving our level in 2010.

“We have been delighted to see Álvaro riding the bike today – as well as him smiling a lot and basically enjoying himself. He has never ridden a four-stroke motorcycle before – let alone a MotoGP machine – so to make a lap-time in the 1’35s within 50 laps of riding the GSV-R is very encouraging. He is already starting to feel a part of the bike and the team. Overall from both sides it has been a good first day of the test, so let’s hope we can continue upwards tomorrow.

“A quick ‘thank-you’ is also due to our new technical partner Akrapovic, who are working so hard to help us and already in the first test with their systems we have found a good step forward in power delivery.”

Alvaro Bautista kicked off his career in the MotoGP class today in the test sessions at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo at Valencia, and AlvaroBautista.co.uk was there to see the milestone and to bring you some exclusive pics and reports.

It was possibly even windier than it had been throughout the GP weekend, and Alvaro admitted to us on his arrival at the track that he was feeling a little bit nervous.
Nonetheless, despite the blustery winds, he took the bike out shortly after One and throughout the afternoon he completed 52 laps, finishing the day with a very impressive lap-time of 1’35.772, followed by a debrief in the box where all – including him – seemed very happy with the first day’s work.

As a member of the Rizla Suzuki Team explained, the core purpose on Day One was to get him out on the bike and to start to get used to it, and to be happy with it. And he certainly did seem to be happy with it.
He said that he thoroughly enjoyed the first day a lot, and although the bike was very powerful and it took some getting used to how to control it – and to control the movement on the many big curves that Valencia presents – he was very happy indeed.

Another happy man was Team Manager Paul Denning, who said:
“We have been delighted to see Alvaro riding the bike today – as well as him smiling a lot and basically enjoying himself. He has never ridden a four-stroke motorcycle before – let alone a MotoGP machine – so to make a lap-time in the 1’35s within 50 laps of riding the GSV-R is very encouraging. He is already starting to feel a part of the bike and the team. Overall from both sides it has been a good first day of the test, so let’s hope we can continue upwards tomorrow.”

It’s a very positive start, and there’s more testing over the next couple of days for Suzuki – with both Alvaro and Loris out on track.
And we’ll be aiming to post up more news and more picture sets to cover this milestone event for Alvaro, so keep your eyes peeled…

Photos © Copyright Michaela Genz

With the Valencian Grand Prix being celebrated only yesterday, old and new MotoGP stars were back on track again today for the first day of testing for the 2010 season in sunny, but windy conditions.

This of course included Alvaro who had his first on track encounter with his new Suzuki machine. Alvaro clocked the 15th fastest laptime overall and considering that he left two of three “real rookies” behind him and is not far away from Simoncelli who’s allegedly riding a factory-spec Honda at the moment, this first outing on the bike can surely be considered as a success.
Testing will continue tomorrow and conclude on Wednesday.

Official Laptimes, 09.11.2009

Pos Rider Team Fastest lap Laps
1 Casey Stoner Ducati Marlboro Team 1:32.660 32
2 Jorge Lorenzo Fiat Yamaha Team 1:32.685 45
3 Valentino Rossi Fiat Yamaha Team 1:32.826 37
4 Dani Pedrosa Repsol Honda Team 1:33.088 31
5 Nicky Hayden Ducati Marlboro Team 1:33.358 58
6 Ben Spies Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1:33.496 50
7 Andrea Dovicioso Repsol Honda Team 1:33.675 51
8 Mika Kallio Pramac Racing 1:33.726 52
9 Randy De Puniet LCR Honda MotoGP 1:33.775 61
10 Marco Melandri San Carlo Honda Gresini 1:33.839 59
11 Aleix Espargaro Pramac Racing 1:33.878 63
12 Colin Edwards Monster Yamaha Tech 3 1:33.929 35
13 Loris Capirossi Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1:34.144 55
14 Marco Simoncelli San Carlo Honda Gresini 1:35.229 51
15 Alvaro Bautista Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1:35.772 52
16 Hector Barbera Aspar Team 1:36.204 63
17 Hiroshi Aoyama Scot Racing Team 1:37.964 40
18 Kenny Noyes Promoracing 1:38.654 28
19 Ratthapark Wilairot Stop and Go 1:39.815 17
20 Joan Olive Promoracing 1:41.989 18