After being one of the leading contenders in World Supersport for the last couple of Seasons, Joan Lascorz is facing an even bigger challenge in 2011: his rookie year in World Superbike. With 52 races, three wins and 19 podiums to his name in World Supersport, "Jumbo" was immediately able to get dialled into the new Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R machine at Portimao despite the variable weather conditions.

On his third test with the Superbike (following outings at Almeria and Sepang), the rider from Barcelona can look forward confidently to his debut at Phillip Island where he will also be celebrating his 26th birthday on the day of the race, with the aim of scoring two good results.

"At Portimao I only wanted to ride in dry conditions so the first day was a good one to test in, and check how the bike and I were going. The bike was good and I was surprised that I was also good. Not 100% yet, but better", explained Lascorz. "The Ninja is really competitive and I was very surprised with the latest developments, it's improved a lot in several areas. I worked well with Pere and we found a good dry set-up but looking at my ideal times I could have been about 0.6 seconds better. In the wet I did not want to risk things too much, but we made some good laps when it was fully wet. I stopped when the track surface became inconsistent as I really is not want to risk a fall."

Joan Lascorz was also quick to thank the Kawasaki Racing Team for its support. "The Kawasaki team staff have been explaining very clearly to me where I can improve and I really appreciate that."