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The new Honda RC213V-RS made its first on track appearance here at Valencia for FP1. Hiroshi Aoyama, announced yesterday as the newest Honda test rider, is riding the new bike this weekend. The other customer Honda riders, Nicky Hayden, Scott Redding and Karel Abraham, remain on this year’s RCV1000R.

While Redding and Hayden both lapped faster than Aoyama, the new bike was fast through the speed trap, registering 323.8kph. Abraham was the fastest RCV1000R rider, going 312.9kph.

The new bike was close to the current factory Hondas, with Marc Marquez clocking 325.0kph and Dani Pedrosa 329.0kph. The RC213V-RS does not have the seamless gearbox used by the Repsol Hondas, so its standard gear box should account for some of the speed difference.

Overall this is a very positive sign for next season, as the lack of top speed has been one of the main complaints about the RCV1000R.

Photograph: ©2014 by Scott Jones / PHOTO.GP – All Rights Reserved

[mgallery keyword=”Team Aspar Honda”]

Camera Info: Nikon D4 with Nikon 500mm f/4.0