YAMAHA COMPLETES SECOND 2005 SEPANG TEST
14 February 2005 - Yamaha Racing

Gauloises Yamaha Team rider Valentino Rossi recovered to continue testing in Sepang today, after missing the middle day of this three-day test yesterday due to a throat virus.

The reigning World Champion was still not feeling 100% fit, but managed to complete 35 laps, including a long endurance run, before finishing the day early at around 4pm. His team-mate Colin Edwards continued working until a little later and ended the test pleased with the progress made and a satisfactory, if tiring, long run.

Temperatures were once again in the thirties with 66% percent humidity, making this final day of testing hot work for the World Champion and his new team-mate. The pair continued to test Michelin tyres while making small changes to the set-up of their M1 motorcycles, and both made some improvements to their lap times. Rossi finished the day fourth fastest in the unofficial standings with a best lap of 2''01.275 and Edwards, who rode 81 laps, was ninth with a best lap of 2''01.641.

On day one of the three-day test Rossi completed 58 laps and was fifth fastest in the unofficial standings with a best time of 2''02.53, despite suffering from the fever which eventually excluded him from the second day. He spent much of the day testing Michelin tyres, whilst also doing some work on the engine braking settings of his M1. Like his team-mate, Edwards'' first day was largely focused on tyre work with he and his team also spending some time changing the front and rear settings. He set a fastest lap of 2''02.98 from a total of 63, which was the ninth fastest time of the day.

It was a less than ideal situation for the Fortuna Yamaha pairing of Ruben Xaus and Toni Elias - both riders carrying injuries from their previous Sepang outing in January. Despite this setback Elias managed to put aside the irritation of his fractured little finger to complete a constructive session aboard his YZR-M1. He worked hard and over the course of the day was able to complete a race simulation which provided crucial data for the engineers and team in general. His team-mate Xaus, however, was not able to do the same - deciding to sit out the third day allowing time for recuperation for the up-coming Phillip Island test.

At the completion of the three-day Sepang test the first three places were filled by a trio of Honda riders, with Makoto Tamada setting a time of 2''00.955, almost a second faster than Rossi''s pole position from the 2004 Malaysian Grand Prix. The Japanese rider was followed by Max Biaggi and Alex Barros with times of 2''01.015 and 2''01.159 respectively.

Both Yamaha teams now move on to Phillip Island, Australia, for another three days of testing. Yamaha will again be sharing the track with teams from Honda, Ducati, Kawasaki and Suzuki, from Friday, 18th through to Sunday, 20th February.

Valentino Rossi (Gauloises Yamaha Team) - 2''01.275 ''Unfortunately I caught a virus yesterday and I wasn''t able to test. I felt a bit better today and this morning we did a good job. We made some good laps and a race simulation, but I started to feel tired again over the last five laps. The bike is good and I have a good feeling with it; we''ve fixed some problems and tried some new tyres. Now I need to go and get some sleep so I can be ready to test in Phillip Island.''

Colin Edwards (Gauloises Yamaha Team) - 2''01.641
''The race simulation was hard and I had to take a bit of a breather at one point. There were about six laps when I was slower than I could have been. 81 laps is a lot for one day, especially the third day of a test, but we really needed to do the long run in order to get the information. We''re still working on the new bike, but I''m feeling a lot happier and we are making progress. The bike was great all day, very consistent and the tyres that Michelin have given us are great. I''m ready to move on now to some new scenery in Australia!''

Jeremy Burgess, Valentino Rossi''s Crew Chief
''We didn''t go through as much as we would have liked here due to missing a day, but what we did do was very good. We confirmed some things from the last test and we''ve certainly moved on this weekend, working mainly on tyres and improving the settings on the bike. Michelin have developed some good tyres. Now we go on to Phillip Island and I think we''ve got the same aim as every other team on the grid; to have the bike ready for the first race in April!''

Davide Brivio, Gauloises Yamaha Team Director
''After three tests in a row in Sepang, it is good to have a change and see how our new machine performs at a new track. Despite Valentino''s illness, we did a good job here with both our riders. Both did a race simulation and we collected a lot of good information from this. Now we move to Phillip Island to test again next weekend, where we will continue our preparation for the next season.''

Toni Elías (Fortuna Yamaha Team) - 2''03.60
I''m leaving Sepang feeling satisfied. Today we did a race simulation even though we know that the data we have gathered here won''t be directly applicable when we''re back here for the Grand Prix. The bike will have changed a lot by then. At the end of the 21 laps we managed to get a good result and all the information we''ve gathered from the simulation will be useful to improve the set-up of the M1. I am still learning, but I am happy with the way I''m progressing. The other riders are lapping very hard and they have all improved their times from the race here. I''m looking forward to riding at another circuit now.

Rubén Xaus (Fortuna Yamaha Team) - DNS
I had to end the test early because I''m still in a lot of pain from the injury I picked up ion the last test here at Sepang. I really wanted to get back on the bike but in the morning I had a long chat with the team boss Hervé Poncharal and we decided it wasn''t worth the risk so I went back to the hotel. I''m desperate to get back on the M1!

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