Having ridden on the first day of official Kawasaki Racing Team development tests at Sepang on Monday, Queensland’s Chris Vermeulen will now continue his recovery towards full race fitness in Australia.

Vermeulen will therefore be able to restart his intense physiotherapy and exercise regime to allow him to recover full flex in his right knee joint, before taking his all-new Ninja ZX-10R on track again.

It’s now been revealed that Vermeulen will skip the official Portimao tests at the month in favour of recovering for Phillip Island’s pre-season testing on 21-22 February.

“Chris rode on day one of the Sepang tests and was very impressed with the performance of the new bike,” team manager Paul Risbridger said. “He has made great progress with his knee recently, and his recovery is well on schedule.

“After day one we all decided that he did not need to run on track any more at this stage and it was better for him to go home and carry on with his rehabilitation.

“We also came to a consensus that there was no point in him coming all the way back to Europe for the Portimao tests, as it would just interrupt his overall recovery.

“Riding the bike is not assisting his recuperation at this stage, so Chris will carry on with his very effective program of physiotherapy and exercise so that he is ready when it matters most, at the start of the new season.”

The Sepang sessions continue in a positive direction for KRT, with Vermeulen’s teammates Tom Sykes and Joan Lascorz carrying on as scheduled until the final day today.

Sykes and Lascorz have been working hard again today after taking a scheduled rest day on Wednesday, setting good lap times and trying out several different set-up options on the impressive new Ninja ZX-10R.

Australia’s Pedercini Kawasaki Superstock 1000 team rider Bryan Staring has had minimal laps during the test, plagued by afternoon showers on the opening three days.