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2023/02/01 - FIM Superbike World Championship 2023: Portimao-Test - Day two

Important data collected at Portimao's rollercoaster

WorldSBK rookie Dominique Aegerter continued to get used to the heavier and more powerful Yamaha superbike on the second and final day of the second winter test this year.

Doing 83 laps in once again good conditions with bright skies on Wednesday, Dominique Aegerter was one of the busiest riders at the demanding track in the outback of the Algarve coastline in the south of Portugal. The 32-year-old Swiss and his crew from the Italian GRT Yamaha Team had again planned a full day's program, which was finally worked off to the last point with positive results, even if the position at the end of the day remained behind expectations.

After the conclusion of the tests, all material was packed into freight cases for the transport to Australia. Before the start of the World Championship at the end of February, there will be an official two-day test at the fast and flowing Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit.

#77 Dominique AEGERTER (GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team, Yamaha YZF R1)
1´40.844 +1.809 (54/83)

"I am happy with what we have done over the last two days. Again, today we tested and tried many things on the bike and looked at the different tyre options. Unfortunately, we could not always use the full potential, such as with the qualifiers. But we got good information that we will continue to work with when it comes to developing a base setup that will help us throughout the season. But there were also basic things on the agenda, like improving the seat position, and there were also new parts that we got from Yamaha to try out and evaluate. After these two tests, with a total of four days with this bike, I see myself fully on course as far as the adaption to the Superbike and this category is concerned. Yesterday, however, I had a completely new experience when, for the first time, I had to stop the bike at the end of the straight at around 320 km/h. This was something I had not experienced before."

"As I have mentioned several times, this track has it all. There is this long straight and lots of uphill and downhill sections. On top of that, there are the many blind corners and a very wide track that allows you to choose different lines. With the latter, I still have a hard time finding the best and also fastest line for me and my riding style. But my experienced crew is trying to help me as much as possible. Nevertheless, I still need many laps and kilometres to understand everything better. That includes the bike first and foremost, and we need to get to know each other better as a team. The power of the engine and the electronics play a big role, with the electronics being the biggest task because they can be adjusted individually from corner to corner. So, we are still in a learning process. Maybe we did not do quite as well in this test as we did in Jerez, but things could be different again in Australia at a completely different track. I am looking forward to it when things get really serious there."

Zeitenliste WorldSBK Test Portimao – Day two:
1 Alvaro BAUTISTA / SPA / Aruba.it Racing - Ducati / Ducati Panigale V4R / 1´39.035
2 Jonathan REA / GBR / Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK / Kawasaki ZX-10RR / 1´39.044 +0.009
3 Michael Ruben RINALDI / ITA / Aruba.it Racing - Ducati / Ducati Panigale V4R / 1´39.144 +0.109
16 #77 Dominique AEGERTER / SWI / GYTR GRT Yamaha WorldSBK Team / Yamaha YZF R1 / 1´41.844 +1.809