Proton V5 not ready for Catalunya

Jeremy McWilliams and Nobuatsu Aoki are likely to be testing on their old 500cc two-stroke machines at the Moto GP Winter Test in Catalunya. The Proton 990cc V5 four stroke is so far behind in its development that the team hasn’t even had it running in the chassis yet.

The two riders will definitely be riding the two stroke machines at a private test in Barcelona a few days before the IRTA test as the team wants them to get as much riding time in as possible before the beginning of the season.

The aim is still to have the V5s ready for the March 15-16 IRTA test but development work is still going on at the factory. The bike has been loosely assembled at the factory but modifications to several different parts, including the seat unit and airbox, have prevented it from getting to the stage where it is ready to start up.

Team Manager Chuck Aksland commented that if the bikes weren’t ready before the Catalunya test then they would put the two-strokes out.

” It would be very risky to just put the bike together and take it out on a circuit like Catalunya, so we would like to run a shakedown test somewhere else to run through the systems first and make sure it is safe. ”

If you have chosen McWilliams or Aoki for your Fantasy Road Race team then maybe it’s worth reconsidering, or are you confident that they will be ready in time? Click the link on the right to go to our Fantasy Road Race discussion board or log on to www.mcnfrr.com to change your team.

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