CRUTCHLOW GETS FIRST TASTE OF AUSTRIAN VENUE
In a two-day testing session at the new MotoGP venue at Spielberg in Austria today, Cal Crutchlow and the LCR Honda Team got their first look at the track which will host the next round of the world championships in early August. It was a crucial opportunity for the 30 year-old to learn the new layout, but also to give important feedback to Honda, with the manufacturer’s factory team absent from the test whilst a majority of the other MotoGP squads were there.
The weather was perfect all day, and after putting in 41 laps of the track, Crutchlow finished the day with a best lap of 1’25.438. It placed him 14th overall on the timing sheets, but unlike many others, the British rider didn’t use the softer tyre option, preferring to focus on finding the best setting for his Honda RC213V on harder race tyres.
The test continues in Austria for a second and final day on Wednesday.
#35 Cal Crutchlow, 1’25.438
“It was a very difficult day of testing today. We are in good spirits coming here from the podium at the Sachsenring, but I think it is clear that at the moment we are struggling with the bike around the Austrian circuit. We did the best job we could though, and we tried a lot of different settings. We didn’t try any soft tyres yet however, and just focused on the hard tyre all afternoon. I think there’s a lot of lap time in the tyres.”
“At the moment we’ve been trying a lot of electronic things, and we also made some geometry changes, but it has been quite difficult. Hopefully tomorrow we can make a good step forward with the LCR Honda Team. Together with the HRC guys we’ll work hard overnight to improve for when we return for the race weekend.”
More, from a press release issued by Aspar Team:
Pull&Bear Aspar Team riders complete first laps in Austria
Eugene Laverty and Yonny Hernández make strong starts in Austria, as Ducati dominate first day of tests ahead of August race
The MotoGP World Championship riders today got their first taste of the circuit in Austria that will host the tenth round of the season during the second week of August. The circuit is new to the calendar this year, so this test was an important first toe in the water to see how each bike and rider adapted. If there is one manufacturer it seems to favour it is Ducati, who had seven riders in the top eight positions today, including test rider Casey Stoner. Andrea Dovizioso (1’23.764) led the Italian factory charge ahead of Andrea Iannone, Scott Redding and Stoner. The Ducati domination was broken by Maverick Viñales in fifth position, with Hector Barberá, Eugene Laverty and Danilo Petrucci behind him.
The Pull&Bear Aspar Team were able to see how well their Ducatis performed at the Austrian circuit on this first day of the test. Both Eugene Laverty and Yonny Hernández began riding at 10am, an hour and a half after the track opened, and worked until 6pm. Laverty clocked up sixty laps with a best time of 1’24.751, a second off the pace of Dovizioso, as he laid the foundations for the Grand Prix here in a few weeks’ time. His team-mate Yonny Hernández completed a total of 72 laps of the Spielberg track, including a best effort of 1’25.171.
7th Eugene Laverty 1.24.751 (60 laps): “I like the track, it really seems to suit our bike. There are a lot of straights and hard braking and the Ducati is working well here so far. In terms of our programme at this test we have to think about the race here because it is the venue for the next round. We are going to try some ideas we have had during the season but at the same time it is important to prepare to try and make a good race here. So far the bike is working quite well – our problem usually is in long corners and here there aren’t any!”
11th Yonny Hernández 1.25.171 (72 laps): “I like the circuit here in Austria, it has some very fast straights. We spent this first day of the test doing some work with our front end setting, trying to find the limit and seeing where we can improve. There is plenty to work on in terms of our set-up for the race here.”
More, from a press release issued by Team Suzuki Press Office:
SUZUKI ECSTAR STARTS RED BULL RING MotoGP™ TEST
Team SUZUKI ECSTAR’s Maverick Viñales and Aleix Espargaró had their first taste of the Red Bull Ring in Austria for two-days of testing today ahead of round 10 of the 2016 MotoGP™ World Championship next month.
Both riders and the team’s focus today was to learn the new circuit and prepare a good base set-up; and initial impressions were positive. Tomorrow, both will work on focussing on more-detailed set-ups on their GSX-RRs for the race that takes place on August 14th.
Maverick Viñales:
“The circuit is really nice, the speed is very high and having the walls so close, you can really notice it. Beside this, the track is peculiar; it is a stop-and-go layout where the acceleration will be very important, and because of this, it may not be the most suitable for our machine, but the set-up will also play a role. It will be the first time here for everybody, therefore it will also be a game between teams to see who will be the most effective with the set-up and adaptation. It’s good we are making this test; at least we can set a base and work on it during the ‘Summer Break’ – otherwise it would have been very hard to arrive here without any knowledge.”
Aleix Espargaró:
“I liked the track, the layout is very tight and with a lot of hard-braking and fast acceleration. It won’t be easy for us but we have already made some steps forward. This morning I felt very confident and throughout the day we consistently-increased our knowledge with new data. Here we are not trying any major improvements on the machine; we are only trying the track and preparing for the race.”
RED BULL RING TEST – Day1 Results:
1. Andrea DOVIZIOSO – 1’23.764
2. Andrea IANNONE – 1’24.347
3. Scott REDDING – 1’24.461
4. Casey STONER – 1’24.502
5. Maverick VIÑALES – Team SUZUKI ECSTAR – 1’24.595
6. Hector BARBERA – 1’24.649
7. Eugene LAVERTY – 1’24.751
8. Danilo PETRUCCI – 1’24.992
9. Valentino ROSSI – 1’25.054
10. Aleix ESPARGARÓ – Team SUZUKI ECSTAR – 1’25.099
11. Yonni HERNANDEZ – 1’25.171
12. Jorge LORENZO – 1’25.175
13. Jack MILLER – 1’25.345
14. Cal CRUTCHLOW – 1’25.438
15. Loris BAZ – 1’25.994
16. Mika KALLIO – 1’26.056
17. Tito RABAT – 1’26.195
18. Tom LUTHI – 1’26.405
More, from a press release issued by Ducati Corse:
Ducati Team riders make a great start on first day of private testing at the Red Bull Ring in Austria
The first day of testing organized by Ducati at Zeltweg’s Red Bull Ring circuit, where the Austrian GP will be held on 14 August, came to an end this afternoon at 6 pm.
A total of 21 riders and test-riders from all manufacturers present in the MotoGP World Championship, were on hand to get to grips with the new Austrian circuit for the first time.
The Ducati Team lined up with its regular pairing of Andrea Iannone and Andrea Dovizioso, who were joined on this occasion by their special test-rider Casey Stoner.
The results of the first day of testing were excellent: Andrea Dovizioso set the quickest time of the day in 1’23.764, followed by his team-mate Andrea Iannone in 1’24.347, while Casey Stoner placed fourth, with a best lap of 1’24.502, behind Scott Redding (Pramac Racing) and a total of eight Ducati riders were classified in the top 10 (Barbera in sixth, Laverty in seventh, Petrucci in eighth and Hernandez in tenth).
Tomorrow the MotoGP riders will be out on track again from 8.30 am to 12.00 and then from 1 pm to 6 pm for the second and final day of testing.
Andrea Dovizioso (Ducati Team #04) – 1’23.764 (1st)
“Today went really well: the track has some aggressive first and second gear acceleration areas and quite long straights, so it is suitable for the characteristics of our bike, and as a result it was quite easy to lap quickly. It was great to be constantly quick on this track and, even though it’s not one of the biggest and most spectacular tracks in the championship, it is in any case interesting to lap on a new circuit. Now we have to understand what tyres Michelin will bring for the race because it was also an important test for them. Here the tyre wear is particularly high because the bike tends to slide about on maximum lean and it spins a lot on the straight, so doing an entire race distance without any problems is going to be rather difficult.”
Andrea Iannone (Ducati Team #29) – 1’24.347 (2nd)
“It has been a very positive day for us because the track is really nice and adapts well to the characteristics of our Desmosedici GP: in fact we went really quick and I immediately established a good feeling. We worked a bit on the bike and also tested some new chassis parts, but all in all we made very few changes because the sensations were always very positive. I also did a mini long-run of 10 laps and my pace was rather good, very close to my best lap, so I am happy with how this first day went.”
Casey Stoner (Ducati Team #27) – 1’24.502 (4th)
“You can’t get a much more picturesque circuit than this, it’s something very special. The circuit has some nice parts but it’s a bit strange for bikes because some of the corners don’t flow well together, which makes it somewhat difficult. In general today has been quite good, the surface is fantastic and very smooth, the grip level seems somewhat medium but we’ll put some more rubber down and get a little bit more feeling on the track. This test is a little easier than Misano, where it was very hot and I hadn’t been on the bike for a long time, whereas today I didn’t struggle and it was easier for me on the bike. Today we’ve been trying a lot of comparisons with the bikes, with wings, without wings, lots of things to get data and it’s all been quite positive.”