GINO REA CLOSES IN ON TOP TIMES After lapping 22nd fastest on the first day of the test here yesterday Team Federal Oil Gresini Moto2 rider Gino Rea today made solid progress and closed the gap to the top of the time sheets with the seventh quickest lap of the day. Intense set-up work is starting to bear fruit and Rea’s confidence with the Moriwaki MD600 is increasing accordingly. There is still a long way to go because the gap to the fastest lap today was still over a second but the team and rider have high hopes. Work tomorrow will be centred on suspension settings. Gino Rea (58 laps 1′ 43″ 486) “I have taken eight tenths off my best lap from yesterday and that is the first step towards doing much better tomorrow. There is still a lot of set-up work to be done but with the data we have gathered I am sure we can take another step forward.” Fausto Gresini “After a disappointing day yesterday Rea took a big step forward today. The gap to the top is still quite big but all the indications are there that he can close it down. I am sure that with the data they gathered today the guys can do a good job tomorrow and provide Gino with a higher performance Moriwaki to ride.” More, from a press release issued by Team Thai Honda Gresini Moto2: END OF JEREZ TEST FOR TEAM THAI HONDA GRESINI MOTO2 There was little progress for Team Thai Honda Gresini Moto2 on the final day of testing at Jerez today, where a host of Showa suspension setting changes and other set-up experiments failed to bear fruit. Rattapark Wilairot has yet to find an optimum feeling with his Moriwaki machine despite working intensely over the past three days and the team have work to do in order to improve his options in the first round of the season at the Losail Circuit, Qatar, on April 8th. Rattapark Wilairot (24th – 1′ 43″ 621) “We seem to be a long way from finding the optimum set-up and we have a lot of work to do if we want to improve our position from today. We need to sit down and think about things now and make sure we are ready for Qatar.” Fausto Gresini “Unfortunately we can’t say we’re happy today, we are behind and we have a lot of work to do to turn the situation around. I think Wilairot and Moriwaki can expect to be closer to the front so we have to look at the data we have gathered here along with the rider feedback and try to be as ready as possible for the first round in Qatar.” More, from a press release issued by Tech 3 Racing: Smith and Simeon conclude pre-season preparations in Jerez Tech 3 Racing riders Bradley Smith and Xavier Simeon ended their preparations for the 2012 Moto2 World Championship today with a positive and productive three-day test at the Jerez circuit in Spain. Smith and Simeon took full advantage of gloriously sunny but breezy conditions throughout the test to put in crucial development kilometres on the latest version of the new 2012 Mistral 610 machine. They got the chance to assess a new chassis and swingarm package and both declared themselves delighted with the modifications that improved braking stability and corner entry performance. A high-speed crash on the final afternoon at Turn 12 didn’t dent Smith’s confidence that he will be a consistent top six contender this season. He was consistently lapping inside the top 10 during the test and the 21-year-old’s fastest time of 1.42.978 secured him 14th place on the overall timesheets. Highlighting just how closely contested the Moto2 class is shaping up to be again in 2012, Smith’s pace was less than 0.5s from the top six. Simeon too got through a tremendous amount of development work for the Tech 3 Racing crew and he bounced back from a first day crash at Turn 5 to finish in an encouraging 19th place overall. The Belgian rider was able to lap consistently inside the 1.43 bracket and he is optimistic that the improvements made by Tech 3 Racing’s dedicated technical staff will allow him to regularly challenge for the top 10 in 2012. Today’s test completed a fruitful winter testing schedule for Smith and Simeon, and both now will travel to the first race in Qatar early next month full of confidence for the start of the third ultra-competitive Moto2 World Championship. Bradley Smith 14th 1.42.978: “It has been a very positive test, despite the crash at the end at Turn 12. It was a very fast crash and I’m just thankful I’ve got away with just a few bumps and bruises and I will be 100% fit and ready to go in Qatar. I was pushing hard on new tyres and just lost the front, but we have learned a lot about the Mistral 610 this week, which makes me optimistic for the season. We have some work to do when you look at the lap times of the guys at the front, but I’m convinced we have a competitive package. I can lap comfortably and consistently inside the 1.43 bracket but when I push for 42 it is not easy. But I am still really happy with the performance of the Mist ral 610. We have improved the overall balance of the bike, particularly with stability on the brakes and corner entry. The Tech 3 Racing Team have been working unbelievably hard throughout the winter and at every test we have improved the bike. I’m a lot more confident on this new bike we have tried here, so I am looking forward to going to Qatar and starting the season with a strong result.” Xavier Simeon 19th 1.43.259: “This has been a very good test and a positive way to finish the pre-season, so I can go to Qatar with a lot of optimism. The Mistral 610 has improved a lot during the winter and the Tech 3 Racing Team deserves a lot of credit for all their hard work and effort. I made a mistake on the first day when I crashed at Turn 5 on cold tyres but after that we did a very good job improving the set-up of the bike and getting lots of information for the future. Toda y I managed to set a 1.43.7 on old tyres, so it shows over race distance we have a very strong and competitive package. The only small issue is when I push a bit more the lap time doesn’t improve a lot. But today’s set-up was better because I felt more comfortable and in Qatar I am confident I will be battling for the top 10. The bike is really fast and consistent over a race distance, but we have to look at being quicker for one lap, which is important to get a good grid position.” More, from a press release issued by Speed Master Team: SATISFYING MOTO2 IRTA TEST FOR SPEED MASTER TEAM The last Moto2 test for the 2012 Championship took place in Jerez de la Frontera, from 19th to 21st March. Speed Master team ends the preparation for the round in Qatar with a positive result and a satisfying performance of both riders. Andrea Iannone, 6th in the overall classification, worked with his crew on the new Speed Up machine, trying out various options and parts to define and improve the bike for the first race. The rider from Vasto, once the needed solutions were outlined, set very good laptimes, confirming his competitivity. Mike di Meglio’s feeling with the Speed Up improved considerably during the three days at disposal, which meant he could get used to the bike and improve the setting according to his riding style. The Frenchman ended 0.414 seconds off from his team mate, still having a good margin to make further steps ahead for the Grand Prix of Losail. Andrea Iannone #29 6th with 1’42.534 “Today it was kind of a positive day. We managed to improve and to find a good feeling with the bike, I could ride in a better way and we had a more competitive pace than during the previous days. Generally speaking I can say I’m satisfied. We still have to get closer to the fastest guys, but we also have to consider that this was the first outing on a GP track with this bike and it has only few days of life: in the whole we already worked a lot. I’d like to thank my crew and Luca Boscoscuro, as well as all the people that work and believe in this project, who are doing their best to make it work. Now we can just wait for Qatar and cross our fingers, hoping that things keep going this way.” Mike di Meglio #63 13th with 1’42.948 “I’m really happy for how these test ended. During the last hour at disposal we made a big step. My objective was to set the laptime of 1’43.0 before leaving from Jerez: we set 1’42.9, so I can be happy with that. If we had had some extra laps, I think we’d have managed to improve even more. We are ready for Qatar, now we can just get to Doha and keep working.” More, from a press release issued by Italtrans/AGP Racing: Claudio Corti fastest at the end of three days at Jerez By four thousandths of a second, more or less 25 cm on the finish line, Claudio Corti set the fastest time at the end of a three-day of testing that, at Jerez de la Frontera, have concluded the winter season and opened a window on the first GP of 2012 (April 8th, in Qatar). Claudio placed himself at the top in each session: third in the first one, second in the second, and best of everyone in the last. Takaaki Nakagami, who finished the first two days second and sixth, respectively, clocked about the same time and qualified eleventh, just eight tenths behind the team-mate. Claudio Corti (1’41.983 – 1 °) “The most remarkable issue, in my opinion, is that while last year to get a fast time I had to follow someone, this year my pace is much faster, and I can get my best laps alone. Is it me? Or the new bike? All I know is that everything seems easier. I’m happy for myself but especially for the team: to be honest, given my 2011 results, if I were Italtrans maybe I would not give me a second chance this year. The team decided to support me, and I will do everything possible to repay them. It ‘a personal matter. Moreover, I am 25 years old. I want concrete things”. Claudio Macciotta (Claudio Corti race engineer): “What makes me happy is that we are consistent at a high level, and get good lap times with both old and new tires. And we still have some margin. Together with our technical partners, and thanks also to them, we have been able to work flat out. We hope we can show ourselves also in races, when the clock really count: it would be the best way to thank Italtrans “. Takaaki Nakagami (1’42.825 – 11°) “A good tests, as we did a lot of work. Nevertheless, I’m not quite happy with the result, because I am convinced we could get more. We had good ideas, and improved, but in some moments we went slightly backwards: thus, at the end of it, we didn’t improve as we could. The main issue is a light chattering into the corner, and we are not able to preserve enough new tires”. Pierluigi Aldrovandi (Takaaki Nakagami race engineer) “In my opinion, Takaaki is just missing experience. For example, he crashed after having improved by four tenth in the previous section. Anyway he’s working well, got a good result brushing the top ten is not bad at all – and I am certain he will improve and do even better.” Louigi Pansera (Team Manager) “We have worked according to our schedule, and got precious data. We must improve, because this is what everybody will do: each Grand Prix will be an acid test the championship will be exciting and a close-fought one. Thanks to everybody for the work done so far. Particularly to Claudio, who confirmed his qualitie.” More, from a press release issued by Marc VDS Racing Team: Jerez, Spain – 21 March 2012: Mika Kallio and Scott Redding will head for the opening race of 2012 in Qatar confident of making a positive start to the season, after a strong showing in the final three-day preseason test at the Jerez circuit in Spain. Kallio ended the Jerez test fourth fastest on combined times, just 0.318s off the fastest lap set by fellow Kalex rider Claudio Corti. Redding was just 0.3s further back in seventh position, despite struggling with illness and technical issues during the three-day test. Continuing his methodical approach to testing at Jerez, Kallio used the three days to improve further his feeling with the Kalex Moto2 machine, ahead of his final race simulation run this afternoon. The flying Finn posted his fastest time of the test on the fourth lap of the long run, with his average over the 23 laps just a few tenths off his fastest time. Redding struggled with illness initially, but as his condition improved so did his lap times. The 19-year-old British rider eventually finished the test seventh fastest, but felt he would have gone quicker if he hadn’t experienced problems with the official race engine, which was fitted in his Kalex Moto2 machine ahead of day two. Both Marc VDS riders now head to the opening race of the season in Qatar quietly confident, after a preseason test schedule in which they’ve featured regularly at the top end of the timesheet. The Grand Prix of Qatar, the first of 17 Moto2 races on the 2012 calendar, takes place over the weekend of 7th and 8th April. Mika Kallio #36: 4th – 1’42.301 “It’s been a good three days of testing here in Jerez. The plan was to get a little bit closer to the front and we achieved that today with fourth position and less than half a second off the fastest time, so I’m satisfied with that. During the race simulation the bike felt good for all 23 laps and my times were both fast and consistent, which means we go to Qatar in a good position. Conditions will be very different in Qatar, but the work we’ve done during testing means we’re pretty sure even now how we need to set-up the bike for the first race. Remaining calm is the key to the first race; we know we have the pace to challenge the front runners, so we just need to continue with the approach that’s worked so well for us during testing.” Scott Redding #45: 7th – 1’42.638 “It’s been a difficult three days if I’m honest. I was feeling ill ahead of the test and, although I started feeling better on the first day, my head wasn’t completely in it. The second day was better, but we had a recurring problem with the bike jumping out of gear when I was backshifting for the corners and it wasn’t really until the afternoon that I felt properly comfortable on the bike. Unfortunately, this coincided with the arrival of the wind, which had me and Marc Marquez off late on in the session. Today we had the same problem with the engine but, thankfully, it will be changed for the first race. Overall our test schedule has been really positive, but now I just can’t wait to start racing.” Michael Bartholemy: Team Manager “Mika’s methodical approach to testing certainly paid off today, with his fastest lap of the test coming during his race simulation this afternoon. He will be quick in Qatar, a track that he has done well at in the past, and I’m confident he’ll get his second season in Moto2 off to a strong start. Scott struggled a little with illness and an engine problem during these three days at Jerez, but he proved during the previous tests this year that he has the pace to run at the front, so he will head to Qatar with his confidence intact. After such a long break I think we’re all looking forward to the first race, where I hope we’ll make a strong start to the season.” More, from a press release issued by KTM: KTM’s Moto3 riders strong in 3-day tests at Jerez Leading KTM riders Danny Kent and Sandro Cortese were up with the best over three days of tests on the Jerez circuit in Spain for the new Moto3 class of MotoGP. Strong times registered by Cortese and Kent again underlined that they are in good shape ahead of the opening GP in Qatar. Kent and Cortese of the Red Bull KTM Ajo team are riding the new KTM Moto3 machine and remained in the top five on all three days of testing. On Monday Kent was third fastest and Cortese was fourth, on Tuesday Cortese was second fastest and Kent was placed third and on Wednesday Kent moved up to second and Cortese was fourth. Also performing well on all three days riding the KTM Moto3 bike was Malaysian rider Zulfahmi of the AirAsia-Sic-Ajo team who was fifth fastest on Day One and Day Three as teams continued to experiment with settings and equipment ahead of the start of the main season. Cortese of Germany said on Tuesday that he was concentrating on getting a good feeling for the new KTM bike. “I am quite happy and we are improving day by day. The KTM is working well and we have no big problems but the bike is still new and there are still things to sort out. I feel we can still improve a lot with the electronics and the engine but we will be ready to fight in Doha.” His factory teammate Danny Kent of Britain agreed. “We are changing a few things and still trying different parts but that’s what tests are for.” Pit Beirer, KTM’s Head of Motorsports was in Jerez for the tests and said the results had been promising and the riders and the KTM Moto3 bike had performed well. “These were good tests for us,” he said. ” We can say that over the three days we didn’t have even one technical issue so we are quietly confident that we will be able to fight for a good position in the first GP. The competition is tough but we expected that but all the riders are fit and in good shape.” Alex Baumgaertl team boss of KALEX-KTM, the KTM-driven Moto3 bike that is being fielded by the Bankia Aspar team with Alberto Moncayo and Hector Faubel as well as the Dutch RW Racing GP team with Luis Salom and Brad Binder said the tests had been a good opportunity to test new parts in good conditions. “We are pretty happy and we’re improving step by step but we still can close the gap to the front runners and do better. Now the equipment will be shopped to Qatar and we will concentrate on analyzing the data that we have gathered from these tests.” There will be a total of nine riders on KTM-powered bikes on the grid for the opening GP. It also heralds KTM’s return to the main MotoGP competition since the phasing out of the 250 and 125 cc classes. The Austrian manufacture however never really left the MotoGP paddock having retained a presence with the Red Bull MotoGP Rookies Cup competition that grooms young riders on KTM machines for a future career in top racing. Day Three Test Results 1 Maverick VIÑALES Avintia Racing Moto3 1:46.838 2 Danny KENT Red Bull KTM Ajo 1:47.262 3 Romano FENATI Team Italia FMI 1:47.408 4 Sandro CORTESE Red Bull KTM Ajo 1:47.437 5 Zulfahmi KHAIRUDDIN AirAsia-SIC-Ajo KTM 1:47.491 Other KTM 7 Alberto MONCAYO Bankia Aspar Team KALEX-KTM 1:48.045 11 Hector FAUBEL Bankia Aspar Team KALEX KTM 1:48.483 12 Luis SALOM RW Racing GP KALEX KTM 1:48.488 14 Arthur SISSIS Red Bull KTM Ajo 1:48.675 +0.119 +1.837 Day Two Test Results 1 Maverick VIÑALES Avintia Racing Moto3 1:47.386 2 Sandro CORTESE Red Bull KTM Ajo 1:47.625 3 Danny KENT Red Bull KTM Ajo 1:47.854 +0.229 4 Romano FENATI Team Italia FMI 1:48.375 5 Alexis MASBOU Caretta Technology 1:48.564 Other KTM 8 Alberto MONCAYO Bankia Aspar Team KALEX-KTM 1:48.751 9 Hector FAUBEL Bankia Aspar Team KALEX-KTM 1:48.863 10 Arthur SISSIS Red Bull KTM Ajo 1:48.937 11 Zulfahmi KHAIRUDDIN AirAsia-SIC-Ajo KTM 1:48.940 12 Niklas AJO TT Motion Events Racing KTM 1:49.176 13 Luis SALOM RW Racing GP KALEX-KTM 1:49.224 Day One Test times 1, Romano FENATI Team Italian FMI, 1:47.414 2, Maverick Viñales, Avintia Moto3 1:47.755 3, Danny Kent, Red Bull KTM Ajo 1:48.074 4 Sandro CORTESE Red Bull KTM Ajo 1:48.495 +0.421 5 Zulfahmi KHAIRUDDIN AirAsia-SIC-Ajo, KTM 1:48.562 Other KTM 6 Hector FAUBEL Bankia Aspar Team KALEX-KTM 1:48.577 8 Luis SALOM RW Racing GP KALEX-KTM 1:48.729 9 Alberto MONCAYO Bankia Aspar Team KALEX-KTM 1:49.022 12 Niklas AJO TT Motion Events Racing KTM 1:49.366 19 Brad BINDER RW Racing GP KALEX-KTM More, from a press release issued by JiR Team: Conclusion of the IRTA Tests in Jerez The last three days of testing has come to an end on the circuit of Jerez, now the teams will pack their stuff for the first round of the World Championship on Aprill 8th in Losail. In this final Andalusian session riders were provided for the first time with the official engines, thus allowing everyone to have the first meaningful classification and to have the first look at how everyone in the class compares. The two young guns of the JiR Team ran many kilometers today that let them define the basic setup for the two official MotoBIs. The Frenchman Johann Zarco did well in each session, being immediately in the first half of the classification with a good performance not so far from the top ten, while the Brazilian Eric Granado gave a very positive impression for how quick he had been in exploiting the precious information coming from the telemetry. In this issue the Team gave support to the riders, working hard on the machines’ preparation while all giving useful advice on all things to do with the machines. This team of engineers and technicians, supervised by the Team Principal Gianluca Montiron, have much experience in this respect. Now there will take place the usual phase of data analysis as they get prepared for the two official debuts that will be on April 1st for Eric Granado (in the Spanish CEV) and on April 8th in Qatar for Zarco for the first World Championship round. Gianluca Montiron We ended a three-day-session that I consider positive seeing the approach that both the riders had made. Eric made a good impression, he has been pretty fast without making any mistakes, his approach to the new class is getting better and better and he has the time to grow even more before his debut in the World Championship. Johann on his side had to gain back his confidence after the crash he had yesterday, but today he was pretty fast. We know that the path will be hard, but we have the strength and the knowledge to face a long and demanding Championship therefore I’m sure we will do well. Johann Zarco Best lap: 1’43.067 The first day wasn’t bad, I have a time of 1’44-1’43.600 as my target while yesterday I committed the mistake of starting a little too fast with new tyres and I crashed at the beginning of the day. The guys in the Team worked hard to fix my MotoBI and let me get on track as soon as possible but at that point the day was already compromised so I focused my work on other aspects than on a single lap time. Today we worked again with confidence, well focused and sharp, so I worked on my machines to look for a match with the stopwatch and I managed to make some good sessions, ending up with the 1’43.067 that puts me only less than half a second from the top ten in combined classification. Eric Granado Best lap: 1’44.338 These three days of testing was positive, day after day my times became better and better, especially in this last day, but I still have some room for improvement. We worked to find a correct position on the saddle and to apply all those little modifications that let me find the right feeling with my MotoBI. Now the Spanish Championship is waiting for me, I believe we’ve got the potential for some good results, even if I’m looking forward for my debut in the World Championship in Silverstone in June. Final combined classification: 1. Claudio CORTI – 1’41.983 2. Thomas LUTHI – 1’41.987 3. Pol ESPARGARO – 1’42.149 4. Mika KALLIO – 1’42.301 5. Marc MARQUEZ – 1’42.430