
The Rizla Ruzuki MotoGP team travelled to Malaysia with three bikes. Regular riders Hopkins and Vermeulen will be joined by the team's test rider Nobuatsu Aoki. The Japanese rider received a wild-car and will ride an early prototype version of Suzuki's 2008 GSV-R, which he will also continue to test on the Monday after the race.
Speaking about the upcoming race Nobuatsu Aoki said: "I am really looking forward to the race and it is a great honour for me to be the first person to ride the 2008 GSV-R in an event. It is still in a prototype stage, but we have already done some testing on it and are very confident it will be good. I cannot wait to get out racing again it feels like a very long time since I last competed!"