de Puniet near Nakano.

Monday at Sepang saw Kawasaki riders Shinya Nakano and Randy de Puniet start their first test of 2006 with a shakedown of the new Ninja ZX-RR MotoGP machine, which features a completely redesigned engine and chassis.

A newcomer to the MotoGP class, de Puniet went on to impress with his consistency and speed during a 15-lap race simulation late in the afternoon. The 24-year-old Frenchman may still be adapting his riding style to the additional power and weight of a MotoGP bike, but his fastest lap today was just 0.2secs behind his more experienced team-mate, Nakano.

"Today was a good day for both myself and the team. I managed to put in a lot of laps aboard the new bike and my feeling was very good," said Randy. "At the end of the afternoon session I completed a 15-lap race simulation, with my fastest time of the day coming on the 11th lap.

"I had a good rhythm on the bike, the tyres and the bike were working well, and my lap times were consistent throughout. We will not make any major changes to the bike overnight ahead of the planned Bridgestone tyre test tomorrow. Overall, I'm pleased with today's test and I'm looking forward to getting back out on track tomorrow," he concluded.

"I was surprised at just how quickly Randy has adapted to the Ninja ZX-RR in such a short space of time," added team manager Harald Eckl. "During his race simulation today he was posting consistent lap times that were very close to Shinya's fastest lap. This is good for the team, to have two riders that are close enough on track to push each other, and also to develop the bike together."

Meanwhile, Nakano ended the day with the 11th fastest time, having lapped 1.56secs from fastest man Valentino Rossi after 43 laps.

"I was in and out of the pit box a lot this morning, but this is normal when you bring a brand new bike to the racetrack for the first time, as there are always a lot of small things that need adjusting or changing," began Shinya. "This afternoon I was able to put in more laps on the bike and, overall, my first impression is very good.

"The handling is a big improvement, and I can feel that the new engine has more power then the old. I need to spend more time on the bike to get a better understanding of the engine characteristics, but already I think this new bike has a lot of potential. There is still some work for us to do in terms of set-up, both the chassis and the engine, but we will continue with this process tomorrow, when we will also be running some important tyre tests with Bridgestone."

Both riders will continue the set-up and development of the new Ninja ZX-RR during tomorrow's test, when they will also complete a scheduled tyre test with Bridgestone.