The word ‘holiday’ doesn’t feature in the Superbike dictionary, with teams still hard at work during the run up to Christmas. Today marks the start of a three-day test session at Jerez, which should be interesting considering the riders involved.
First up is the factory Yamaha team, Toprak Razgatlioglu and Andrea Locatelli both ready for their first outing of 2023. The pair should benefit from a partly updated engine, as the team seeks additional horsepower so as to be able to be keep pace with Alvaro Bautista and Ducati.
Spotlight on Gardner and Aegerter
Alongside the Yamaha team is Honda, with re-confirmed riders Iker Lecuona and Xavi Vierge, and BMW Bonovo, which can count on the experience of Loris Baz and the fighting spirit of Garrett Gerloff, who will ride the M1000RR for the first time.
Team GRT will be firmly in the spotlight, attending the Andalusian test with its two new riders. We’re talking Dominique Aegerter and Remy Gardner of course, both ready for a first taste of the Yamaha R1.
Also in attendance is team MIE, with the re-confirmed Hafizh Syahrin and new-entry Eric Granado, as well as the Honda test team (Honda organized this test) and KTM. It should be an interesting few days, weather permitting that is, as the forecast looks less than ideal in Andalusia this week.