Alex Hofmann rides Garry McCoy's YZR 500 again

Germany's Alex Hofmann got his second taste of MotoGP action within two weeks today as he tested with the Red Bull Yamaha WCM team at Assen in the Netherlands. Hofmann, who is currently out of contract, had the chance to ride the Proton KR machine in private tests in Almeria a fortnight ago, and this time rode the Yamaha YZR500 already mounted by Garry McCoy and Jean-Michel Bayle so far this season. The opportunity arose for the 22 year-old after Bayle suffered a muscular injury in his arm during the Gran Premio Cinzano d'Italia. The Frenchman, who is already replacing the injured McCoy in the team, visited a physician after the race, and was advised that he should not ride at the scheduled tests in Holland as a precaution, and furthermore is rated as doubtful for next weekend's Gran Premi Marlboro de Catalunya.

Assen is one of the Red Bull Yamaha WCM team's designated test tracks, and so the outfit is entitled to test there before this year's Gauloises Dutch TT and as such had planned two days of tests. With Bayle out, it was left to Hofmann and American John Hopkins to work on the bike's set-up around the Assen track's new design, after having undergone major remodeling for safety reasons this past winter. The test represented another opportunity for Hofmann to put himself in the shop window, with the Mindelheim-born racer out of contract this season and looking to get back into the Grand Prix fold.

After a whole day on the track Hofmann remarked, "I'm really pleased to have got another opportunity to ride a 500cc machine; before these last two weeks I had always dreamed of having this chance. Obviously the bike has so much more power than the 250cc I have ridden for the last three years, and I am hoping that I can ride a similar machine on a regular basis in the near future." John Hopkins will continue testing alone tomorrow.