Shane Byrne has described his new HM Plant Honda bike as a ‘missile’ as he took to the machine for the first time during testing in Spain.

Shane Byrne has described his new HM Plant Honda bike as a ‘missile’ as he took to the machine for the first time during testing in Spain.
The former BSB champion returns to the series in 2011 after two years spent on the world stage, Byrne pairing with former WSBK rival and 2010 BSB winner Ryuichi Kiyonari at HM Plant Honda.
The first time the 34-year-old has ridden anything other than a Ducati since the end of 2007, though he says he spent the first day at Calafat adjusting to the four-cylinder machine, he is already confident he will be fast on it.
"It's been a good day; if a bit windy here which catches you off balance at times but aside from that we have made a really good start. We put in a good number of laps and got some of the initial work done that is always needed at the start of the season. My initial reaction to riding the HM Plant Honda is that the Fireblade is flippin' fast, especially after a few months off!
The engine characteristics are obviously different to the Ducati which I rode last season but it does feel like a missile. We haven't made too many changes today, just tried to get my riding position right so I can adapt to the new bike and we have done some good work this afternoon on the electronics.
“I have some experienced guys working around me so tomorrow we are going to crack on and start making some changes."DISCLAIMER:Text may be subject to copyright.This blog does not claim copyright to any such text. Copyright remains with the original copyright holder.