Haga debuts on Yamaha

Noriyuki Haga has had his first chance to ride the R1 he will campaign this season in a three-day Yamaha test at Phillip Island.

Haga spent the first day, Sunday, just getting used to the four cylinder bike and setting it up so that he could ride it comfortably, he rode a Ducati 999 last season.

But by today he was starting to get in to his stride and set a best lap of 1:35.7.

The main issue with the bike was the ride height, which was far too high for Haga.

Haga was joined at the track by team-mate Andrew Pitt who is already used to the bike and spent most of his time working on the fuel injection and suspension settings, clocking a best lap of 1:35.3.

Pitt’s best time is still more than a second shy of Suzuki rider Troy Corser’s best lap when he tested at the circuit last week. Corser’s team-mate Yukio Kagayama was half a second faster than Pitt.

Haga admitted progress was not as fast he had hoped but was still positive: “This is only my first test on the bike so we are still a little bit behind where we would like to be, but I love a challenge!”

Supersport riders Broc Parkes and Kevin Curtain were also at the track to test their 2005 supersport R6s but both had an eventful weekend. Curtain managed to crack his collarbone when he highsided on the exit of the penultimate corner, while Parkes destroyed the radiator, windscreen and clocks on his bike by hitting a seagull.