Yamaha look to the future with important Motegi test
Rossi also had the chance to try two new prototype chassis for the 2008 YZR-M1, although he continued to use the latest evolution engine, the same as he ran in weekend's race. Sharing the track with just five other riders, Edwards put in the second fastest time of 1'47.947 whilst Rossi was fourth fastest with a lap of 1'48.213. There is now a two-week break for the paddock before MotoGP heads to Phillip Island for the Australian Grand Prix.Colin Edwards - Today was a pretty good day after what happened last weekend. We tested a new front tyre that I am really happy with and a couple of different rears. I think Michelin brought some good new material here and it's been encouraging to have the chance to try it out with the last three races in mind. We were so focused on the tyres today that we didn't touch the bike at all. It seems that the stuff we tried was pretty good, so I am much more confident for the next races. Now we go to Australia and the Yamaha seems to always work good there, so I look forward to getting on board again at one of my favorite tracks and getting some results.
Valentino Rossi - Today we made the very first test with the first prototype of next year's M1. It is not a completely new bike, because the engine is the same as we used yesterday in race, but we tested two different chassis. We used the same engine of yesterday in order to be able to better judge any improvement. One chassis was stiffer than the other and with the stiffer one I felt some vibration, but with the intermediate one my feeling was really very good. Of course this is the first step, but with that in mind it was a pretty good test. Now we must work on the engine for next year. After the last race in Valencia we will test the chassis again, and also a different engine, so I look forward to seeing it there. Today we also tested some new material from Michelin and did some good work, especially with a new front tyre, which gives me a very good feeling.