2016 Phillip Island World Superbike Test Day 1: Hondas Chase Down Kawasakis as Sykes Leads

With the World Superbike season almost upon us, the WSBK grid is at Phillip Island for two days of testing, ahead of the first event of the year which starts this weekend. Rain disrupted practice for WSBK, just as it had for MotoGP last week, though the consequences were less severe. The rain and track conditions saw a few people fall - some, such as Karel Abraham, quite hard - but everyone will be fit to start testing again tomorrow.With the start of the season so close, most of the work being done was on set up for the weekend, and it was once again the Kawasakis who came out on top, especially during the afternoon session. Tom Sykes ended up on top of the timesheets, much to the delight of the Kawasaki man, who has historically not fared well at the circuit. Sykes finished nearly two tenths ahead of his teammate, reigning world champion Jonathan Rea, a result which pleased him. In response to questions about Rea's statements at the Kawasaki launch that the bike had been built around Sykes, the Yorkshireman seized the opportunity to take a jab back, calling Rea's words 'a cheap comment'. Race Details 2016 read more