Pre-season testing complete – next stop Brands Hatch!

The final modifications had been completed by Austin Racing at their headquarters near Brighton. They had fitted their full GP2 exhaust system and Power Commander. After numerous runs on the dyno the bike was pushing out more power than last year and the real improvement has been made lower down the rev range. The power delivery is now very linear and is showing good torque.

The Brands Hatch track day was important as this was my opportunity to get the bike dialled in before the first round. Traffic was expected to be an issue with such a short lap at 1.2 miles. In total I completed 90 laps of the Indy circuit, which allowed me to develop a good understanding of the set-up, where the bike felt strong and where I could improve my riding. I made good progress during the morning sessions and felt comfortable on the bike. A new rear tyre was fitted for the afternoon sessions as the original tyre had completed over 200km. The new tyre immediately felt better, as you would expect, and I continued my progress throughout the afternoon.

The midrange definitely felt stronger and around a circuit like Brands Hatch you can really use that to your advantage, as there are no straights! The set-up data from last year paid off and the bike felt really good all day and the tyre life was good which bodes well for the first round. Also I had improved my lap times by nearly a second over last year's pace, which is encouraging especially with the constraints of a track day.

A track day at Donington Park was my last chance to make the final preparations to the bike before the first round of the championship this weekend. The weather was almost perfect for what we wanted to achieve and I completed a total of 60 laps of the GP circuit. I was pleased with how the day went and only a change to the gearing was required, which will give me a bit of a head start when we return to the Derbyshire circuit in September.

The base setting of the bike has only been modified slightly from last year and I am happy that it is where it needs to be prior to the first round. I am now looking forward to Brands Hatch and the first race of the season. Practice and Qualifying are due to be held on Friday, Saturday and Sunday with the race on Monday.

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