MotoGP: Suzuki reveal 2008 GSV-R targets

With one eye already on the 2008 MotoGP world championship in testing in Brno, factory Suzuki team boss Paul Denning has underlined the key performance targets for next year’s Suzuki GSV-R 800 machine.

Suzuki has taken a huge step forward in performance in 2007, with John Hopkins and Chris Vermeulen claiming five podiums so far, including the Australian’s rain-soaked victory at the French GP in Le Mans.

John Hopkins and Chris Vermeulen are currently testing a new spec engine in the Czech Republic with a view to using it in the last six races of the campaign, but Paul Denning said some 2008 protoype parts could also be run.

Looking ahead to next season, when Italian veteran Loris Capirossi will join Chris Vermeulen, Paul Denning told MCN: “First of all we need to keep the current chassis balance and braking stability. The bike seems to work well at every track, so to keep the balance of the machine is the fundamental key and to make steps everywhere.

“Engine character and performance seems to differ track to track. For example the style of Laguna Seca, coming off the slow corners our bikes lived with all the bikes, and might have even accelerated better than the Ducati because the power was easier to put down.

“It was extremely competitive in Laguna but there are one or two tracks where the guys have asked for a bit more punch in the mid-range and high gear corners and that is something certainly that Suzuki is working on.

“The target will be to keep bike rideable but improve the throttle connection and response, and the riders confidence in the power delivery. We also need to give them a bit more power throughout the range.”