Kiyo makes Buildbase BMW debut

Ryuichi Kiyonari has tasted a British circuit on a bike other than a Honda for the first time, completing his first pre-season shakedown at Mallory Park on the Buildbase BMW alongside teammate James Westmoreland.

Despite wet conditions preventing the pair from being able to complete significant lap times, they were able to get in a long day of setup and testing at the Leicestershire track now partly managed by team boss Stuart Hicken.

Kiyonari said: “I was happy to be back out on track and the feeling I had with the BMW was good. We did have some dry time on the bike and had three sessions, but I want to go to Donington Park to do some more laps now! The bike feels good already, the power delivery is different, but I was happy and it was exciting to test the BMW. I want to go to Donington Park now, everyone we race will be there too, but I know we have now worked together on track so we can improve ready for Brands Hatch.”

Westmoreland added: “We didn’t have ideal conditions but it did give us the chance to work on the chassis settings which is something we haven’t had time to do at events last year so that was a really positive thing for us. I am happy that we can go to Donington Park now and be ready to join the other teams.”

Testing continues tomorrow at Donington and next Tuesday and Wednesday (8th and 9th April) at Snetterton, and both are open to the public, with a £5 admission fee for Donington and free entry for Snetterton.