The final test of the 2005 MotoGP season began at the 5.548 km Sepang circuit close to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia today. Three Honda teams taking the opportunity to test their RC211V five cylinder 990cc grand prix machines before the winter break in a bid to provide HRC engineers with technical the vital feed back necessary to build the 2006 RCV.

The test is scheduled to last three-days but the teams lost much of the morning session when overnight rain left the track surface wet delaying serious work until after 11.00 am. Once the session was underway the teams concentrated their efforts on finding optimum settings for the RCVs before moving on to test the latest chassis developments and a range of Michelin tyres in preparation for the first test of 2006 scheduled for Sepang in late January.

The two-man Repsol Honda factory team will be comprised of Nicky Hayden and Dani Pedrosa in 2006 with the two men approaching the Sepang test with vastly different objectives. Former US Superbike Champion Hayden, a three-year MotoGP veteran, will bear the brunt of RCV testing at Sepang with his new team-mate, reigning double 250cc World Champion Pedrosa continuing his education at the top level in the senior category of motorcycle racing.

Hayden tested a combination of the latest chassis developments from HRC and a range of front and rear tyres. Pedrosa, from Barcelona, Spain, spent his day coring as many kilometres as possible on the 990cc 240 PS plus GP machine growing more and more confident as the day wore on.

The Gresini Racing MotoGP Fortuna Honda of double 2005 GP winner Marco Melandri and Toni Elias took to the track with the same intentions as their Repsol Honda counterparts.

Melandri, in his second season aboard an RC211V set the pace with a superb best lap time of 2m 2.019s while testing a range of new rubber for tyre supplier Michelin. Elias entering his second MotoGP season but his first for Honda was not chasing lap times as he adopted a step-by-step approach to the test.

The test was run in temperatures of 30 degrees with humidity in excess of 70% so stifling that Italian Melandri, still suffering the after effects of a serious bout of influenza decided the team would be best served if he ended the opening day early in order to save his strength for the remaining two-days.

Spaniard Elias began cautiously on the damp track eventually finding a comfortable rhythm that yielded a series of low 2m 04s laps.

Team Honda Pons arrived at Sepang with their all-new line up for the 2006 season, Spaniard Carlos Checa and Australian Stoner. The team riders spent the opening day of the test acclimatising to the RC211V looking for the optimal base settings that will allow them to start testing in earnest tomorrow.

For Checa, an experienced 500cc and MotoGP campaigner 2006 will be his first aboard a 4-stroke Honda. For Stoner next season will be his first ever season in the senior category of racing fooling his successful 125cc and 250cc 2-stroke career.

On the fast 5.548km circuit Checa's experience carried him to a best lap time of 2m 03.605s, with his young team-mate just over 0.5s slower, despite him loosing the front end of the RCV and sliding off into the gravel trap.

Nicky Hayden, Repsol Honda: 2m 03.027s - 52 laps."Decent days work looking back on it. Good weather this afternoon and we just kept chippin away at the job all across the board and we made good progress in some places. A few things I really liked about the bike today we tried some chassis changes and they help a lot like going into the corners the bike is better and that was good for my confidence. We also tested front and rear tyres for Michelin, which seem pretty good. We have to work hard at this test and get more consistent. A lot of guys are working hard for me here and we have to take a lot out of this test."

Dani Pedrosa, Repsol Honda: 2m 03.70s - 52 laps."I was looking to get a good feeling on the bike try to find the best riding position for me get comfortable. Then just ride and get more information for the team and gain experience with the bike, engine chassis and tyres. The mechanics need experience with the new group everybody has to grow up together. Today I think we made big improvement in confidence compared to the test at Valencia, I am now much more confident on the bike. Braking hard on this high bike was much better than the last time I tested it. We only tried two different types of Michelin tyres today. I don't have any experience of the Michelin tyres so we let Michelin do our thinking for me today because they know the tyres me and my chief mechanic, Michael Leitner, don't have the experience yet. But I could feel the front end pushing but I think this is coming from the big rear tyre. The step up to MotoGP is very big, much bigger than from 125 to 250. I like the Sepang circuit and this will help during this test. "

Marco Melandri, Fortuna Honda: 2m 2.97s - 61 laps. "It's only three weeks since I raced the bike I felt good and did a lot of laps. The track not in good condition but I found a decent rhythm. We spent the day working on the general bike settings for the bike before we started testing tyres for Michelin. I was injured when the race was held here but we improved the set up from the last time I tried the RCV here. We tried several front and rear tyres before I stopped my test one hour early. I was quite sick while I was in Japan last week so I didn't want to get too tired because we have two more days testing. Tomorrow we will try some chassis changes and HRC want us to try something new on the electronics."

Toni Elias, Fortuna Honda: 2m 04.059s - 49 laps. "The conditions wee not ideal today the track was quite wet in the morning but we got in a lot of laps. I made a lot of kilometres today and found a good riding position. I didn't get crazy with the set up by trying to many things just little adjustments. I felt more comfortable on the bike today than I did at the first test in Valencia I was very calm and comfortable not getting nervous about when we had some small problems. I am very happy with this team everything is completely new for my chief mechanic, Antonio Jimenez and me. Everybody has been very helpful and it has given me a lot of confidence for this test and the future. "

Carlos Checa, Team Honda Pons: 2m 03.605s - 38 laps."I enjoy riding this bike seems very positive but I still have to learn a lot about the bike. I am still in a little pain from my crash at Valencia earlier this month. For me it's a good experience to ride with this team. If you had told me at half way through the last season that I would be riding for the team with Santi Mulero as my chief mechanic I would have been very happy for my future. I feel we can grow together into a good team. At this test I want to do a lot of laps with the bike and try various set up options and test as many tyres as possible. Now we have found a good riding position I am ready to begin tyre testing tomorrow."

Sito Pons, Team Manager Honda Pons. "Today we have been working with the two riders to get them used to the feel of the bike and the tyres. Casey is completely new to the MotoGP class but he was very confident on the bike after just 10 laps today. He is a very talented rider and you can se how well he is riding already. Carlos is very experienced and will adapt to the RCV quickly. We have a good mix of experienced and raw talent in the team and I have confidence in both riders."

Casey Stoner, Team Honda Pons: 2m 04.259s - 59 laps. "The whole ay was pretty good except for the crash, the front end just went away from me. I need a lot of laps on the bike but we made an improvement from the test at Valencia the team have made the riding position better for me the size of the bike suits me better than a 250. I felt good out there, really comfortable but I have to take the test step by step. After the crash I didn't make much more progress."