Bad Start To Oz World Superbike Testing For Ducati
Cycle News Staff | February 15, 2013
Team SBK Ducati Alstare is hopeful that the upcoming official World Superbike test at Phillip Island in Australia on Monday and Tuesday go a lot better than the just concluded two-day private test. After all, it couldn’t go much worse as both its riders ended up in the hospital.
Former World Champion Carlos Checa didn’t even complete a lap of the test after being hospitalized prior to the test with stomach pain and nausea, the Spaniard ultimately being treated for a blocked intestine. Checa’s teammate Ayrton Badovini, meanwhile, completed the first day of testing at Phillip Island, but crashed early on the second day and was sent to hospital for suspected broken ribs.
“For me, this is the first real test for the team as a whole – that is all the mechanics working together – and although the bike is new and very different to any previous Ducati, I am very happy with how this project is going,” said team owner Francis Batta in a team release. “It is a complex project, but a beautiful one and we’re all really looking forward to making it work as well as we can. It is unfortunate that Carlos couldn’t ride at all. He suffered some sort of stomach problem thTeam SBK Ducati Alstare is hopeful that the upcoming World Superbike test at Phillip Island in Australia on Monday and Tuesday go a lot better than the just concluded two-day private test. After all, it couldn’t go much worse as both riders ended up in the hospital.
