From Monday to Wednesday this week (3rd-5th March), the Factory MotoGP™ teams of Honda, Yamaha and Ducati will be on-track at Phillip Island as they and two Moto2™ squads engage in a tyre-focused test at the Australian circuit.
Following last year’s Australian Grand Prix – when the premier class race was divided into two halves by pit-stops and the Moto2™ event was shortened, due to the abrasive new track surface leading to severe tyre wear – it was decided to organise this test at the island track which will host the 16th round of the 2014 season.
Fresh from their announcement in Malaysia to run under Open regulations for 2014, Ducati Team will be fielding riders Andrea Dovizioso and Cal Crutchlow, joined on-track by Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi – as well as Repsol Honda Team’s Dani Pedrosa.
It remains to be seen as to whether World Champion Marc Marquez, who continues to recover from a broken leg, will be replaced by an alternative rider. All MotoGP™ class representatives will be experimenting with Bridgestone’s new Phillip Island-specific tyres.
In the Moto2™ ranks, two leading teams have been selected by Dunlop to work on behalf of the tyre company, as Marc VDS Racing Team is represented by Mika Kallio and Tito Rabat while Mapfre Aspar Team Moto2’s Nico Terol and Jordi Torres will also be in action at the 4.4km (2.7mi) anti-clockwise circuit.
The Phillip Island track will be open between 9:30am and 5:30pm local time (GMT +11) on each of the three days of the test.