With the Yamaha and Ducati factory riders in attendance, Troy Bayliss, freshly healed from a broken collarbone, set the fastest lap time in Qatar as testing ended prior to the start of the 2008 WSB series on February 23.
Bayliss, along with teammate Michel Fabrizio, has been developing the new 1199cc Ducati to good effect. Despite breaking his collarbone recently, Bayliss has been quick on the new bike almost from the start, and would have to be a favorite to take the WSB title again this year.
The Yamahas were right on the pace in Qatar, however. Troy Corser was just 2/10ths of a second behind Bayliss and is feeling good about his bike in advance of Round 1.
