2011 World Superbike
Two days of World Superbike and World Supersport testing begins today at the Misano circuit in Italy, as the teams prep and test the new Pirelli tires that were prepared for the final three rounds of the Championship (Imola, Magny-Cours and Portimao).
Many top factory teams will be there, although some will be represented by test riders due to the main pilots being out with injuries or other circumstances. The top three teams that will be lacking top riders are Alitalia Aprilia, BMW Motorrad and BMW Italia WSBK.
For Aprilia, test-rider Alex Hoffman will be on hand testing the RSV4. On the BMW Motorrad squad, test-rider Steve Martin will be the test pilot, and normal rider Ayrton Badovini will be joined by Moto2 Champion and current LCR Honda MotoGP rider Toni Elias on the BMW Italia S1000RR.
Althea Ducati will have its sole, point-leading rider Carlos Checa testing the Ducati 1198R. Jonathan Rea will be the only man testing the Castrol Honda CBR1000RR, while the Yamaha Factory World Superbike team will be represented by the normal riders – Marco Melandri and Eugene Laverty.
Also running at full steam during the Misano World Superbike test will be the Kawasaki Racing Team of Tom Sykes, who won Round 10 at Nurburgring, delivering Kawasaki its first win since 2006, Joan Lascorz and the returning Chris Vermeulen.
The World Supersport teams will include Hannspree Honda Ten Kate, Kawasaki Motocard.com and Kawasaki Lorenzini by Leoni.