Chris Vermeulen believes Suzuki are going in the right direction towards getting back on top of the MotoGP podium as he prepares for another season with the team in 2009.

After months of speculation that had him linked to a return to the World Superbike Championship, Vermeulen will embark on his fourth full MotoGP season with the Japanese manufacturer this year.

Coming after a tricky season in which two podiums in Germany and the USA proved his best results, Vermeulen has already gotten his 2009 preparations underway with a test at his home Phillip Island circuit.

Getting a chance to ride the latest rendition of the GSV-R, Vermeulen is prepared for a long winter of testing in order to get the bike up to the speed of rivals Yamaha, Ducati and Honda.

“It was me on the bike – they have been testing with technicians during the year, but they really needed me to test the aerodynamics of the bike,” Vermeulen told the Sunshine Daily Coast newspaper about experiments conducted in Japan.

“I've felt pretty weird, but hopefully that and the testing we've done down at Phillip Island will make us really competitive in the coming season.

“We done a lot of exhaustive testing – it's involved putting on a new chassis and then added other parts one at a time and seeing what works. A motorbike is made up of a million parts, but it just takes a few not to be functioning at optimum to slow you down.”

“I've always enjoyed giving them (the Suzuki team) as much feedback as I can. It's going to benefit me in the long run and Suzuki.”