Wayne Gardner Tests the WSBK Paddock at Portimao

A lot of time has gone by since Wayne Gardner won the 1987 500GP World Championship or the 8 Hours of Suzuka, but that didn’t stop the Austrialian motorcycling icon from doing the rounds at the WSBK Portimao testing paddock this past week. Hoping on a variety of bikes, Gardner got a chance to see what WSBK riders were dealing with this past season, and gave GPone his thoughts on how each bike performed around the Portuguese track. Click past the jump for his thoughts and a video.

Gardner who turned 50 this past October 11th, told GPone the following about the motorcycles he rode:

“Each of them has a different personality, and most of all the characteristics are very particular. I was impressed by the Yamaha which was very difficult to ride: my compliments to Ben Spies that brought it to victory, he did a great job. I was also impressed by the BMW’s, while the Kawasaki is the one that has the most potential. On this circuit, I had fun on the Ducati, it seemed made for those up and down hills that remind me very much of the English tracks, like Brands Hatch.”