Suzuki MotoGP heads to Phillip Island for its second pre-season test of 2008, planning to continue with the promising results achieved last week in Malaysia.

Chris Vermeulen and Loris Capirossi return to the 4,448m Australian track for the second time on the 2008 Rizla Suzuki GSV-R following a behind-closed-doors test last November, although this time the two riders will be using the definitive new machine, rather than the 2008 prototype, that showed impressive potential first time out at Sepang earlier this month.

Phillip Island is one of the favoured test tracks on the Grand Prix tour due to its fast, flowing nature and it is a real test of both man and machine. The high average speed, rather than outright top speed, is the key to fast, consistent laps and the high speed corners make the circuit especially hard on tyres. Suzuki and Bridgestone will conduct thorough evaluations of the latest generation of tyres to access their performance around the demanding circuit and use the data collected to produce the best combination of tyres, not just for Phillip Island, but for other circuits as well.

Vermeulen and Capirossi will also undertake many other tests on the 2008 GSV-R including chassis and aerodynamic trials, and the assessment of other mechanical improvements and newly introduced electronic control strategies, as the Rizla Suzuki MotoGP outfit prepares for the first race of the season in March at Losail in Qatar on Sunday 9^th March.

Chris Vermeulen:

“We had an interesting test here last year and now it will be really important to see how we have progressed with the bike when there are other riders here to compare ourselves with. The bike performed well at Sepang and the new engine worked great, Suzuki has made a big step this year with the motor and now we need to get the rest of the package right so we can be as competitive as possible come the first race at Qatar. That is what we need to aim for and take each race as it comes, we need to battle for podiums from the start of the year and Qatar is our first target!”

Loris Capirossi:

“For me this will be a very important test as I know that Suzuki has had some problems at Phillip Island in the past. We tested here in November and both Chris and I were able to highlight some of the problems and the Factory has acted on them, so we hope to make steps forward during this test. We tried so many new parts at Sepang, produced from the information we supplied last year, and that shows that Suzuki is very positive and focussed for the forthcoming season. I now have to go to Phillip Island and make sure that I continue with good start I’ve made with Suzuki, for sure we have a long way to go, but I want to be ready and fully prepared to challenge when the season starts.”