With the WorldSBK summer break kicking in after Round 9 at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in California, some teams have taken the opportunity to test at Lausitzring in German ahead of Round 10 at the European venue in September.

Aruba.it Racing – Ducati were amongst those present, with riders Chaz Davies and Davide Giugliano both out on track.

“All in all, it was a very positive test,” said Davies. “I’ve been a little bit disappointed in the last few races as I didn’t have the same feel on the bike that I used to, but we’ve made some small adjustments and seemingly we were able to get it back. The priority was to learn the circuit, and it turned out to be more fun that what I thought but needs some renovations. The bumps, in particular, make it not easy to learn. We did a lot of laps, and I think that we did a great time on race tyres, so we go on holiday tired and happy.”

“It was important for us to come test on this track before the race,” agreed teammate Giugliano. “The last time I rode here was in 2007, and I didn’t remember it too well. The track is beautiful and fun to ride, the only problem is the bumps. Anyway, we did a good job with the setup, evaluating a few solutions that should help us make another step forward in the last four rounds. We gathered some crucial data before the race.”

Althea BMW were another team present at the test, with regular WorldSBK race rider Jordi Torres joined on test duty by STK1000 teammate Raffaele de Rosa after the Italian also rode the SBK machine in Laguna Seca. De Rosa has been the team’s replacement of choice for injured German rookie Markus Reiterberger, who is recovering from a Race 2 crash at Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli.

“We’ve completed two useful testing days,” said Torres. “We were working on electronic aspects but also carrying out all those general tests needed so that we can understand exactly where we are and be as prepared as possible for the race. It went well. We tried new electronics from BMW that, although are in development and aren’t great, we think has potential. We tried different solutions with the swingarm, different wheels and some different things with the geometry. It went well and we’ve gathered a lot of information, which is the important thing. We want to develop it for next year. Of course we’ll have no idea of how we’re doing compared to the others until we get back here in September, but I’m satisfied with what we’ve got done. We’ve collected a lot of information; I’m just sorry Markus was not here with us, as he knows the track well and could have helped us!”

“I’m quite pleased because we’ve worked well, finding what we wanted to find,” agreed De Rosa. “There are some bumpy sections…but grip isn’t bad though and the layout is something a bit different to other tracks, with a lot of chicanes. All in all, it’s been really useful to come here in preparation for the race, and the remainder of the championship, seeing as we didn’t know the place at all… Now we’ll have to wait until September to see what we can do...”

Barni Racing Team were another presence at the track, with Xavi Forés getting down to work on his Panigale R.

“They have been two really positive days,” said the Spaniard of his time at the German circuit. “We were able to work on a lot of aspects that we’ve picked out throughout the season. They were important tests for us – Lausitzring is a challenging track, and the data we have will help us refine the setup more easily during the race weekend. Now I can start the summer holidays with good feelings ahead of the end of the season."

The Pirelli German Round kicks off on the 16th September at Lausitzring, with more teams expected to test at the venue beforehand as the last four Rounds of the season get closer.