Voltcom Crescent Suzuki ‘couldn’t be happier’ with Philip Island test

Crescent Suzuki team boss Paul Denning says he ‘couldn’t be happier’ with his team’s performance at the last WSB test before the 2014 season kicks off, with his all-British team of Eugene Laverty and Alex Lowes finishing off the two-day test in second and third.

“The last two days have given us the opportunity to assess where we are against the competition and to refine some of the new developments on this year’s GSX-R.

“There is always a lot to try, many things that could potentially be better but I couldn’t be happier with the riders and the team – we are making progress together and improving step by step.

“The competition is fierce and the level is very high, but I hope we can be part of the game come Sunday.”

Laverty, who was the fastest rider in Monday’s final session despite difficult conditions on track that caused a number of fallers, spent most of the test working on bike set-up, with the team having used pre-season testing to fix the electrical issues that have plagued them in the past.

“Good day today, good test in all. We’ve been trying a lot of things and probably the biggest step we made was right at the end. In the last fifteen minutes we made a big improvement with the rear settings so I’m really happy to finish the test on a high and to make good lap-times in the high temperatures.

“We have some detailed stuff to try over the race weekend but in general I’m very happy to be riding the Suzuki and we’ll keep pushing hard to improve further.”

British Superbike champion Alex Lowes was possibly the most impressive rider of the test, however, as the rookie took third place overall in his very first visit to the notoriously difficult Australian track and despite admitting there were still issues to address.

“The test has been good. I’m happy to be in the top-three overall over the two-days. I’ve worked really hard, I was consistent this afternoon, we had a few issues but it would be impossible not to be happy really. I don’t think many people expected me to be this close already and with a couple of days to reflect we should be in a stronger position for the weekend.

“I’m loving riding the GSX-R, it’s a bike you can really push and it seems to be a bit like me – the harder it’s worked the better it goes! Thanks to everyone on the team, we have a great atmosphere and I’m enjoying myself.”