FIM Moto2 World Championship Private Testing
Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto, Spain
March 14-15, 2023
Unofficial Combined Times (all using Dunlop tires and Triumph engines):
- Pedro Acosta, Spain (Kalex), 1:41.309
- Aron Canet, Spanish (Kalex), 1:41.575
- Alonso Lopez, Spain (Boscoscuro), 1:41.575
- Tony Arbolino, Italy (Kalex), 1:41.732
- Sam Lowes, UK (Kalex), 1:41.851
- Albert Arenas, Spain (Kalex), 1:41.852
- Lukas Tulovic, Germany (Kalex), 1:42.078
- Somkiat Chantra, Thailand (Kalex), 1:42.093
- Joe Roberts, USA (Kalex), 1:42.174
- Barry Baltus, The Netherlands (Kalex) 1:42.190
- Jake Dixon, UK (Kalex), 1:42.238
- Manuel Gonzalez, Spain (Kalex), 1:42.307
- Be Bendsneyder, The Netherlands (Kalex), 1:42.401
- Fermin Aldeguer, Spain (Boscoscuro), 1:42.473
- Filip Salac, Czech Republic (Kalex), 1:42.566
- Jeremy Alcoba, Spain (Kalex), 1:42.567
- Darryn Binder, South Africa (Kalex), 1:42.622
- Sean Dylan Kelly, USA (Kalex), 1:42.832
- Dennis Foggia, Italy (Kalex), 1:42.870
- Zonta van der Goorbergh, The Netherlands (Kalex), 1:42.902
- Sergio Garcia, Spain (Kalex), 1:42.911
- Celestino Vietti, Italy (Kalex), 1:43.023
- Marcos Ramirez, Spain (MV Agusta), 1:43.130
- Lorenzos Dalla Porta, Italy (Kalex), 1:43.173
- Rory Skinner, UK (Kalex), 1:43.174
- Borja Gomez (Kalex), 1:43.254
- Izan Guevara, Spain (Kalex), 1:43.596
- Kohta Nozane, Japan (Kalex), 1:44.241
- Alex Escrig, Spain (MV Agusta), 1:44.371
- David Sanchis (Kalex), 1:44.622
More, from a press release issued by Marc VDS Racing Team:
Elf Marc VDS Racing Team kick off 2023 Moto2 preparations in Jerez
Less than two weeks away from the start of the 2023 Moto2 World Championship, Sam Lowes and Tony Arbolino stepped up their pre-season preparations with a successful two-day test session at the Circuito de Jerez-Angel Nieto in the Andalusia region of Spain.
The pair completed a mammoth 284 laps between them as sunny and warm conditions helped the pair reacquaint themselves with their Triumph-powered Kalex machinery after the long winter break.
Lowes and Arbolino begin their final winter test outing this Friday with a three-day session at the Algarve International Circuit in Portugal, which hosts the opening round of an intense 21-round season on March 26.
Sam Lowes
4th, 1’41.851, 146 laps
Fully recovered from the serious left shoulder injury that badly disrupted the final nine races of the 2022 campaign, Lowes tested his physical condition to the maximum with 146 laps completed during the test.
The main focus for the 32-year-old was to understand the performance of the new Triumph 765cc three-cylinder engine, which features an upgrade from 14,000 to 14,400 revs for the forthcoming season.
The Briton was also able to assess the new 2023 Kalex chassis and he showed excellent speed and consistency on Dunlop’s soft and hard rear tyre options to finish fourth on the timesheets with a quickest lap of 1:41.851.
“I don’t think this test could have gone much better”
“I’m so happy with how the test has gone, particularly from a physical point of view. I’ve worked really hard in the off-season on the shoulder, and everything feels normal on the bike. I was able to do a lot of laps on both days with some long runs, so from a physical perspective it was only positives. I haven’t been able to ride a bike properly since I first got the injury in early August last year, so it was a great feeling. The second day here has been very important because we got to assess the new engine and chassis together and obviously they are hugely important components that we need to fully understand. I also had some suspension parts from Ohlins, so it has been an intense test but a successful one. I would say 90 per cent of what we tried felt like an improvement, so we have finished the test in a good way. We now move to Portimao for the final test and that is a completely different track to Jerez, so it will be good to understand how well the new parts work there. But I had a good rhythm with no real issues in Jerez, so I don’t think this test could have gone much better.”
Tony Arbolino
2nd, 1’41.732, 138 laps
A hot streak of three podiums in the last four races of 2022, including two wins in Thailand and Malaysia, meant Arbolino was relishing the opportunity to get back to work at the Jerez test in readiness for the 2023 campaign.
Initially getting back up to speed on last year’s Kalex machine, Arbolino spent the whole of the second day on track in Jerez working on the upgraded Triumph engine and revised Kalex frame.
Constant progress was made throughout the test in terms of front feeling and Arbolino was once again one of the main protagonists with a best lap of 1:41.732 placing him in a superb second place.
“I’m positive we’ll be strong from the first race”
“It has been a very good test for me, and it felt great to be back with my crew again. The first day we worked a lot on myself getting back into the rhythm and being as best prepared as we can be for the first race in Portugal. The second day was very positive because it was the first chance for me to try the complete new package for 2023 and I was very happy with the performance we found. I felt comfortable with the race pace, and I think there is definitely some margin for us to improve with the time attack. We understand we can find more improvements with more time on the bike but this first test has gone very well. I’m positive we are going to be strong from the first race.”
More, from a press release issued by QJMotor Gresini Racing:
GOOD FEELINGS ON THE FIRST MOTO2 TEST OF THE SEASON IN JEREZ
The Team Moto2 QJMOTOR GRESINI RACING is finally back on track after three months of winter break. The sun was shining bright in Jerez, giving the riders the perfect conditions to regain the confidence on their bikes.
Positive feelings in both sides of the box, with Filip Salač 15th, only 0,001secs faster than his new teammate Jeremy Alcoba, in 16th position. The Czech rider was able to set a good pace on day two despite a crash with luckily no consequences on the rider. Official debut in the other side of the box for the rider #52, who used this first test to find the feeling with the new bike (he also tried the new engine) and the best way to work together with his new team.
The Team Moto2 QJMOTOR GRESINI RACING will now drive to Portimao, ready to set-up for there more days of test, from Friday to Sunday in the Portuguese track: the last chance to find the perfect set-up before the first race of the season.
15th – FILIP SALAČ #12 (1:42.566s – 110 laps)
“I’m so happy that we were finally back on track after the long winter brake. We worked hard in these two days but also enjoyed a lot! In the first day we tried most of all to get back the confidence with my bike and it was not easy as I haven’t ridden this bike for more than three months, but I really enjoyed it. On the second day we did immediately a good lap-time, but in the second exit I made a “beginners” kind of mistake and I crashed. Luckily I’m ok, the team did a perfect job repairing the bike, making me able to go back on track and have a good pace. We did’t try the soft tires as we’re still missing a step. In these two days we didn’t show our real potential, so I can’t wait to do it in Portimao!”
16th – JEREMY ALCOBA #52 (1:42.567s – 128 laps)
“It was amazing to feel the power of the Moto2 bike again. In this first test of the season I was able to find good feelings, especially in the morning sessions: in the afternoons was more difficult for me to be fast, we still need to ride more km to improve, and to understand how to work together with the team in the best way. I think we’ll be able to get where we want, our pace is good with the used tire, we have to improve instead with the new tire: this was a problem I used to have last year too, but in these days the feeling was better and the pace too. We have to work some more to take off one second on the fast-lap. We decided not to use the soft tire as we preferred to work on the bike rather than looking for the best lap-time but we’re not far from the first riders. I’m happy about the progress we made, now one day of brake and then off to Portimao: a track I like even if I had some trouble there last year, but it’s a chance to finish the work we began in these days.”
