Yamaha World Superbike riders got busy yesterday with a cook off in the team hospitality where they learned some tricks of the trade with Jamie Oliver’s Ministry of Food.

Marco Melandri and Eugene Laverty tested their culinary skills in front of a panel of journalists that took on the difficult role of judges for the occasion.

Melandri opted for a traditional “tuna pasta” dish while Laverty’s adventurous side surfaced as he turned his hand to a lightly spicy “salmon tikka and cucumber yoghurt served on Indian naan bread”.

With great concentration and precision the Yamaha riders proceeded to follow the help and instructions provided by Jamie Oliver’s team of professional staff to turn out two scrumptious main dishes before joining forces for the making of a “summer berry pavlova” to conclude.

After some initial indecision, the expert judges chose Laverty as the official winner of the first prize of the weekend, at his home round in Silverstone. Eugene was presented with a signed Jamie Oliver cook book from which he will undoubtedly find inspiration, in the kitchen.

Both Melandri and Laverty revealed their hidden talent this afternoon and proved that healthy cooking can be fun and easy!

“I really enjoyed the cook-off! The salmon tikka is a dish I’ll certainly be doing again,” Laverty exclaimed.

“I came away a winner, so hopefully this winning streak will keep up for the weekend. I intend to carry on where I left off today, so who knows… maybe I can do a triple!”

Today will mark first practice and qualifying sessions, where the Yamaha pilots will get back to what they know best as they look to secure a good start for Sunday’s races.

Both riders will be aiming for victory this weekend and to get a step closer to the leading position in the World Superbike Championship standings.