Pictures from Portimao

The 2010 World Superbike Championship officially opened this weekend with the first official test of the season in Portugal. With the first race of the season in Phillip Island just five weeks away, the weekend was an ideal opportunity for some to see how far they have progressed from 2009 whilst for others, it was an ideal opportunity to get to grips with their new machines. It was a good weekend for the Brits, with five of the top six being made up of riders who will carry the Union Flag in 2010 with Jonathan Rea coming out on top in the end. The cameras were out in Portimao and this is what they captured: Jonathan Rea was the quickest over the weekend, comfortable with the bike that came on so strongly in the latter part of 2009. For new teammate Max Neukirchner however, it was a case of getting used to the Honda. Leon Haslam, Neukirchner’s replacement at Alstare Suzuki, also performed strongly with the second fastest time. Cal Crutchlow was fourth fastest as he completes the move up from World Supersport. His teammate James Toseland switched back to WSB from MotoGP with a sixth fastest time. Another ex-MotoGP rider, Chris Vermeulen, had a slightly tougher time on his Kawasaki. As did Tom Sykes, the lowest ranked Brit, who has moved from Yamaha. But Shane Byrne was perhaps the surprise package of the weekend, beating both factory Ducati’s to third fastest. Read article

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