Ben Spies happy after Indianopolis test

Ben Spies declared himself satisfied with a two-day tyre test session at the new Indianapolis circuit this week, even though was beaten to the best time by Ducati tester Niccolo Canepa.

This week’s test was the first serious shakedown at the 2.62-mile track, which will host its first MotoGP race on September 14.

Spies completed 205 laps to set a best time of 1.43.091, which was marginally bettered late on the final afternoon by impressive Canepa, who topped the timesheets with a best lap of 1.43.006.

“That was a good two days of testing,” Spies said. “Since we were focused on tyres, we didn’t make a lot of changes to the motorcycle. We found a good baseline and went out and turned laps.

“That’s probably the most laps I’ve ever done in a two-day test session. I’m ready to take a rest for sure, but I really couldn’t have asked for anything more from the test.

“The team was great to work with and Suzuki has given me a nice opportunity to do these MotoGP races. Naturally I would have liked for my time to hold up as the fastest after I left, but that wasn’t the main focus. I got what I needed and that was a lot of seat time on the GP bike.

“It takes a bit of getting used to how late you can brake and how early you can get on the gas with this motorcycle. I think I made a lot of strides in getting the feel for how the bike and tires reacts under various situations. Hopefully that will pay dividends for me when we go to Laguna in a couple of weeks.”

Essentially a tyre test to gain crucial data and information ahead of the race, Suzuki were happy with Spies’ performance as he got more time to work with Loris Capirossi’s cre chief Stuart Shenton.

“Ben gave us great feedback and even though he’s a newcomer to MotoGP it’s quite obvious that that he’s not lacking in experience,” said Stuart Shenton, crew chief for Suzuki regular Loris Capirossi.

“He didn’t put a wheel wrong and the speed, stamina and consistency he showed was impressive. What Ben did here in Indianapolis should give him a great deal of confidence as he prepares for his upcoming wildcard rides.”

Spies, who finished 14th on his Suzuki MotoGP debut last month, will make his second appearance later this month at the Laguna Seca clash.