The Aprilia Racing Team successfully completed a three day test at Jerez with both Sylvain Guintoli and Marco Melandri, who were joined test rider Alex Hofmann. The factory squad of the Italian manufacturer worked hard to get ready for the second round of the 2014 eni FIM Superbike World Championship, which will take place at MotorLand Aragon on April 13th.

The sun shone in the first two days, allowing both riders to regain confidence aboard their respective bikes and to evaluate new parts for their bikes. Championship leader Sylvain Guintoli completed 160 laps of the Spanish track and showed no signs of fatigue, meaning his shoulder has fully recovered. On the other hand, Melandri continued his familiarisation with the vee-four Italian machine, focusing on different settings and electronic strategies whilst trying to further adapt his riding style to suit the bike better.

Marco Melandri: "Fortunately we were able to get a lot of work done, focusing on what we didn't like about Phillip Island. On the first day we concentrated on shock absorption on the bumps and going into turns, whereas on the second day we tried to lap and get the RSV4 to close out the turns better. It was difficult but in the end we managed to put together a package that will allow us to improve. We had some other ideas we wanted to try out as well but unfortunately we weren't able to do a lot of work on the third day. At Aragon I expect to see a leap of quality which is what we need to win."

Sylvain Guintoli: "For us these three days were important, first and foremost to get back into the saddle after Phillip Island. This has been a very long break and I needed to get some kilometres in with the bike. We also had quite a few details we needed to test, besides new electronics strategies, so these were some pretty intense tests. I'm happy with the refinements. When we get to Aragon we'll be strong and motivated and that's what's important."