Michael Laverty and the Tyco BMW made the next steps forward with the new bike during the second day of testing at Cartagena, declaring they were much closer to where they had hoped to be as they wrapped up for the day.

Laverty had been getting the initial laps under his belt on the opening day, but today's sessions marked a step forward for the team and feeling ready to push on as they prepare for the opening round of the season at Donington Park this Easter weekend (4/5/6 April).

Laverty said:

"It has been quite good today. We knew we would make a lot of progress after having the initial set-up day out of the way. We are still working hard on marrying up the Motec ECU, but the chassis and other areas are starting to feel really nice and starting to be able to push it and understand it a bit better and we are in the ball park.

"I am still getting comfortable on the bike with the riding position and we are much closer this afternoon and are in pretty good race pace territory. I am not quite where I want to be or need to be but we haven't even scratched the surface with setting changes. We are really happy with where we are at with the new bike; it still feels quite raw but I am happy and feeling positive with another four days ahead of us. It has a lot of potential that's for sure."

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