Corser happy after first hitout on S1000RR

Just a few days after his two-year tenure with Yamaha came to an end, Australian Troy Corser has thrown his leg over the BMW S1000RR he will ride in next year's championship.

Corser left the two-day test at Valencia in a positive frame of mind, although it was also a sobering experience for the two-time world Superbike champion.

"I am a bit surprised really because I didn't think I would feel as comfortable on the bike as I did," said Corser. "The base is very good and although there is a lot of work to be done, I feel very positive about our prospects.

"Even though I have had just two days on the bike, I feel it is my bike and I wasn't expecting that so soon. The team have now got a lot of info and telemetry data to work with for the next test, but I'm happy with the progress we made over the two days.

"There have been no problems except that I got hit by a bird towards the end of the test. It happened between turn one and two and it hit me just under the throat, above my chest protector, and it was a pretty heavy hit. It ruined my lap and it didn't do the bird any good either!"

BMW confirmed that Corser lapped in the 1:35 bracket at Valencia. The lap record is 1:35.007, set by Briton Neil Hodgson way back in 2003.

While Corser and new teammate Ruben Xaus were testing at Valencia, a number of teams stayed on at Portimao after last weekend's final round to give their new signings some track time.

Recently crowned British Superbike champion Shane Byrne was fastest on his customer-spec Ducati, ahead of American star Ben Spies (Yamaha) and Max Biaggi on the all-new Aprilia RSV4.

Meanwhile, seven-time F1 champion Michael Schumacher has continued his love affair with motorcycle racing, and tested Troy Bayliss' 2008 championship-winning bike at Portimao, as well as the Yamahas of Corser and Noriyuki Haga.