Walker third fastest despite 'tough' day at Snetterton

Chris Walker had a ‘tough’ opening day of testing at Snetterton, despite finishing third only to Shane Byrne and Jakob Smrz, with windy conditions at the Norfolk track being less than perfect for the veteran rider.

“We’re making progress each and every time we go out on track, but it’s been a tough day today; the wind was so strong it was hard to be consistent. We concentrated on trying a few bits that weren’t as relevant to lap times, but I’m looking forwards to better weather tomorrow, because I want to try some new fork settings.”

“Today, every lap was different; I went into the Bombhole three times and ended up on three different bits of track every time. you can’t give the right sort of suspension feedback when it’s like that, so we parked it until tomorrow. We want to try some different valve settings; something that the World Superbike boys have just started using, so it’s very new, but it should give us more support on the brakes.”

However, Walker remains optimistic ahead of the final day of the two day test, finding a good pace as he slowly closes the gap to Byrne, who he says is the clear favourite for the title.

“It’s going well though. it’s amazing; since Donington, it’s still the same three or four up there, but the gap’s getting smaller. Shakey suddenly raises the bar right at the end of every test we do, but that’s the goal, isn’t it? He’s the man we all have to measure ourselves against. I was happy with my lap time, though – until i saw his!”