MotoReview

Okada has taken over RCV testing duties from compatriot Tohru Ukawa, and was pleased with the progress of the latest version of the bike which he tested today. The ex-Repsol rider feels there is a definite improvement over the machine 2005 tested at Sepang last month.

Over the course of the day Tadayuki completed 72 laps with a best time of 2'05.89, 4.23 seconds slower than the quickest time achieved today by Marco Melandri, also on a Honda RCV.

"Basically I am here to help the team with the transition from the 2005 RC211V to the eventual 2006 machine the team will race. We are working hard, not just on the settings but also on machine balance and I have to say that so far the machine I tested today is much better than the '05 bike I tried. Usually when you find several positive points with a newly developed bike you also find negative points but today everything has been positive. Nicky (Hayden) will test the bike tomorrow then we will sit down and discuss which is the best direction to take with in future testing."

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