Successful Test for Honda

By Honda Communications Centre
November 29 2004

Honda Racing has completed a successful 2-day test at the Circuito de Velocided de Almeria in the SE of Spain. Karl Harris (CBR1000RR Fireblade), Eugene Laverty (Red Bull Honda Racing CBR600RR) and Chris Jones (Red Bull RS125) all benefited from invaluable track time on the 4km Andulucian circuit.

Harris and Laverty had already been in action at Cartagena earlier in the week, but new signing Jones was able to join them for his first pre-season test on the second day at Almeria.  The three Honda Racing competitors made good progress and are on schedule to meet their objectives by the start of the 2005 season at Brands Hatch in March.

Harris had an incident-free outing at Almeria, where the team helped him to iron out some of the difficulties he had experienced at Cartagena.  The newly developed Honda Racing CBR1000RR is responding well to the adjustments that the team have made to the set-up.

Laverty is still learning the obvious differences between the four-stroke CBR600RR and the RS125 that he had previously raced in the British 125GP Championship.  However, he is making good progress with his riding style and the general set-up of the Red Bull Honda to the extent that he has shown a marked improvement on previous tests.

The latest addition to the Red Bull Rookies Honda team also rose to the challenge of his debut test.  Fourteen-year-old Jones demonstrated why he was the number one choice for the prestigious place within the Red Bull Honda Racing structure.  He excelled on his first visit to the Almeria circuit and achieved some consistently respectable lap times.

Honda Racing Team Co-ordinator Havier Beltran summarised the encouraging progress made by the three riders:

“Karl has had a better test at Almeria and he was on a par with Michael Rutter and Ryuichi Kiyonari at the same circuit last winter.  There’s still a lot of work to be done but we’ve achieved a good starting point from which we can move on at the next test.  Karl will certainly benefit with the more miles he does on the CBR1000RR Fireblade.

“Eugene has really impressed over the past two days.  He’s done loads of laps and is within striking distance of perfecting his technique on the CBR600RR, which is still relatively new to him.  He’s got a methodical approach to testing and this certainly helps us to give him a better feel for the bike.

“Chris has had a remarkable debut all things considered.  Everything is new to him, but he has shown remarkable maturity.  He learned the track quickly and improved every time he went out on the Red Bull Rookies Honda.  He’s fast, stylish and was particularly impressive after only one day.”