Suzuki press release:

With Team Suzuki Alstare Brux rider Max Neukirchner out of action for  a while, there will be a familiar face in the Kyalami garage this  coming weekend. Former team member Fonsi Nieto will be taking Max’s  place in South Africa, joining up once again with Yukio Kagayama.

Fonsi raced for the team last year and so knows the crew very well,  but he has no experience of the GSX-R1000 K9 and will be starting the  first day of practice completely afresh.

The last time World Superbikes raced at the undulating and challenging  4.263 kilometre circuit was back in 2002, when both races were won by  Aussie Troy Bayliss. Since then, the track has stayed virtually the  same apart from minor revisions to the final chicane. These revisions  were not in place when some of the top teams tested last December, so  the race will be almost new territory for all concerned.

Yukio
When we tested in Kyalami in December, it was only the second time on  the new K9 bike, so we were having to do a lot and learn as much as  possible. The track is very bumpy and so it is very important to get a  good bike set-up. Of course, it is important to have a good set-up at  all tracks, but bumpy tracks pose more problems. Also, the track is at
high altitude, so the engine always feels down on power compared to  the tracks we normally race at. This weekend will be a big challenge  for the whole team, but everybody is working well and I hope we get
some luck and good results.

Fonsi
Firstly, I want to wish Max all the best for a quick recovery. His  crash at Monza was not his fault and he is lucky that the injuries are  not worse than the are. I am very grateful to Francis Batta for giving  me this opportunity to ride for the team again and I will do my best  to repay his faith in me.  Although I know the team, I do not know the  bike because it is a completely new and different bike to last year’s  model. So, I will have to learn the bike and learn the track at the  same time and that is not so easy, but I will do my best for sure.