"As for the race in Qatar, we’re still clearly on a high, but we are starting to 'mindset' again for Phillip Island," said Guidotti. "We only expected to be in the leading group, to be close to the front but not to win. We were very pleased with the performance of our rider and our bike, and the tyres worked perfectly.
"We did six days of testing in the winter at Phillip Island, three with the new bike, which formed the basis for the bike that won in Qatar and which we have here. The engine is very powerful, with a controlled delivery, and is very good at getting the power down. This is our current package," he added.
With Bayliss injured on the last day of the official Phillip Island test, Nieto's team-mate
Yukio Kagayama was fastest of all - but the unlucky Japanese will miss this weekend's event due after sustained a broken collarbone at Qatar.
Countryman
Noriyuki Haga also sampled the Qatar asphalt, but the 2007 title runner-up will at least be fit to try and give his season a kick-start on Sunday - when defending riders' champions Ten Kate Honda will also be hoping to make a belated podium impact with its new line-up of
Carlos Checa,
Ryuichi Kiyonari and
Kenan Sofuoglu.
Ten Kate's Supersport fortunes faired even worse at Qatar, with star rookie Jonathan Rea falling early in the race - and taking team-mate Andrew Pitt with him. Both will be carrying injuries this weekend, when Pitt and Qatar winner Broc Parkes will be expected to carry the home challenge.
Parkes stole a last gasp Losail win after Yamaha team-mate Fabien Foret firstly ran out of fuel on the last lap, then nipped ahead of a surprising Joan Lascorz on the dash to the flag.
Former 500cc and WSBK race winner Garry McCoy revealed that he made his Triumph debut last Saturday despite a recently broken leg and he will again be relying on a protective cast to support the injured limb during his home round this weekend.
