Milwaukee Aprilia World Superbike Team Prepare for First Test

The Milwaukee Aprilia World Superbike team are preparing for their first test ahead of the 2017 championship. They will test the RSV4 for the first time at the Jerez Circuit in order to set the stage for a strong 2017 campaign.

Announced in the summer of 2016, the Aprilia factory-supported team marks the partnering of Aprilia Racing and the UK-based Shaun Muir Racing. The team will field riders Eugene Laverty and Lorenzo Savadori and have set their targets high for the 2017 season, in which they will continue their relationship with title sponsor Milwaukee Power Tools.

The test runs from Monday 21 to Wednesday 23 November, and will give the team a chance to learn as much as they can about the RSV4 before the winter break.

You will also be able to stay up to date on the tests through Milwaukee Aprilia's social media profiles and website that will all be launched during the test.

“It’s a new and exciting chapter for SMR to work with Aprilia Racing, and there is a lot of optimism about what we can achieve," Team Principal Shaun Muir stated. "We are not underestimating the size of the challenge ahead of us, but without a doubt we are looking forward to the challenge.

This first test at Jerez is very important for us, and we need to integrate the Aprilia and SMR staff and form strong relationships. We also have two new riders to work with, and I think Eugene and Lorenzo will work really well together.

In Eugene we have someone extremely confident and competitive, with a lot of expectation on him after his previous stints in WorldSBK & MotoGP. In Lorenzo we have a relative newcomer in his second year of WorldSBK, and there is also expectation to see if he can consolidate on his strong finish in 2016. With a strong team two fast riders that can work together and exchange information, I think we will be in a good position going into 2017.”

"One racing season only finished a week ago, but I am itching to get going with 2017 in WorldSBK," Eugene Laverty stated. "The RSV4 is the bike I remember most of my success on, and I got to sit on it for the first time tonight which felt like coming home.

I'm already impressed by the preparations of SMR and Aprilia; to arrive at a test in November with the trucks and box prepped like a race weekend shows that the team are a very professional outfit and keen to get going. They are obviously very motivated and I am motivated to get winning again.

I'm not too unhappy about the prospect of wet weather for the test, because I'd like to test the Pirelli wet tyres ahead of next year. There is some stiff competition for us in 2017 and some of them are at this test, so I'm keen to get out on track and see how we stack up against them."

Lorenzo Savadori stated, "I am really happy to continue with Aprilia Racing in 2017, and it means a lot to me after my first year in WorldSBK with them. It is great to be here in Jerez with the SMR team, and I know that they work very hard for results.

I am really excited to get on the bike again and use some new parts that I didn't try this year. It is really important that I find a good set-up with the bike for 2017, and we will try hard to work on that this week. I didn't test very much this year, so I am glad we have some time before next year to prepare.

Everyone is excited for 2017 and to get strong results, and I am looking forward to working with my new crew chief and my new team."