Ducati and Yamaha – 1 and 2 on Day Three in Qatar | MotoGP test
- From: TRS Media | Published: March 4th, 2009 - 9:55 am
The Ducati Marlboro, Fiat Yamaha and Monster Tech3 team reviews from Qatar:
The deserts of Qatar are the last place you would expect to find an English climate but that is exactly what has greeted the MotoGP riders over a three-day test that ended today with low temperatures making for tricky track conditions after Sunday’s rain and yesterday’s high winds. Three riders were caught out by the conditions – Loris Capirossi, Niccoli Canepa and Casey Stoner all crashing but fortunately escaping without injury.
The Ducati Marlboro Team‘s Australian rider was able to return to the track immediately, shaking off any after effects with a series of hot laps including two efforts inside the 1:56 mark. His quickest time of 1:55.744 would prove to be the fastest overall, even though he stayed in his garage for the final available hour as track conditions got even more difficult and dangerous.
Nicky Hayden can also look back on a positive test, the American finishing up in the top five of the unofficial standings, just a few tenths of a second off the second placed rider.
The next appointment for the Ducati Marlboro Team is the final test session of the 2009 preseason at Jerez de la Frontera, in the south of Spain on the 28th and 29th March.
Casey Stoner (Ducati MotoGP Team), fastest lap: 1:55.744 (on lap 22 of 31)
I’m obviously very happy with the lap time and the rhythm we put together today although I would have liked to have been able to get a few more laps in and test some more stuff. We knew the track conditions would get worse at around ten o’clock and that proved to be the case. The crash was on the way into turn 2 and it was very similar to the one here last year practically from an upright position. I got straight back on the other bike but with such an unpredictable track we decided to finish an hour early because the conditions were only getting worse. We still managed to try a few things with the electronics some of them good and some not so good and we confirmed the good feeling I had yesterday with the new swingarm, although we still need more time to work on it and that’s what we’ll be doing at Jerez. The wrist has responded quite well it’s not as painful as it was at Sepang even though the mobility still hasn’t improved much. We’ll have to see how at feels at circuits with harder braking and more left-hand corners, which is where I struggle the most.
Nicky Hayden (Ducati MotoGP Team), fastest lap: 1:57.225 (on lap 35 of 53)
That was definitely a good day and we’ve made plenty of progress so I’m really pleased. I was thinking this morning that this would be the right time to take a step forward because we’ve only got two more days of testing before the season started so it’s obviously very satisfying to have done that. There is still plenty to do but my team has worked well and now we have a lot of information to work on. I got a good feel for the new swingarm straight away but we still have work to do and we need to make more comparisons with the previous version before drawing definite conclusions. I would have liked to have done more laps but after ten o’clock the conditions were on the limit, to the point that there were a few guys crashing and running straight, so we decided not to take any risks. I also did a practice start today and a test at switching bikes quickly in case of a race interrupted by rain.
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Fiat Yamaha finish night test in promising style with second and third
The Fiat Yamaha Team finished the Qatar night test in good spirits this evening, with Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi second and third respectively in the standings.
Lorenzo made a huge improvement as he continued to adapt to the new Bridgestone tires and his new-found confidence led to a promising long run, in which he set a string of consistent laps. His best time of 1’56.733 left him second behind Casey Stoner and last year’s leading rookie is now confident of being on the pace at the first race in one months time.
After a strong showing yesterday, Rossi ran into a few problems later on this evening when the cold meant the grip level of the track went down significantly. He is confident however that in the warmer temperatures expected at the race in a months time he will be in better shape. He posted the third best time tonight, with a fastest lap of 1’56.972.
The team now returns to Europe for the final test of the year, the Official MotoGP Test in Jerez, Spain on 28th and 29th March.
Valentino Rossi – Position: 3rd Time: 1’56.972 Laps: 75
“In the early part of the evening we were fast enough but later on, when it became much colder and the grip went down, we suffered quite a bit. I started a long run but in fact I was getting slower and slower, so we didn’t finish and concentrated on trying some different things with the setting instead. Our position is not so bad; we’re third, close to Lorenzo. Stoner is very fast but I am not too worried because we have a good idea about our path for the race and I think that in one month, when it is hopefully a few degrees warmer, we will be okay. This is not a great track for me or for the bike and the target for the race will be to be to be better than last year! Next we go to Jerez for the final test and I am expecting to be strong there.”
Jorge Lorenzo – Position: 2nd Time: 1’56.733 Laps: 82
“I am so happy tonight because this session has been much, much better for us. The long run was especially good but in fact the whole evening has been an improvement, so I am very pleased about the job we have done. We’ve tried some different settings, which have helped, but mainly I have adapted and found a way to be comfortable, which means I can ride faster. I have a much better feeling with the Bridgestone tires and I was able to be very consistent throughout the long run and keep a good rhythm. Everyone has worked really hard to make this step and I am happy to finish this test on a good note. Now I am looking forward to the race!”
Davide Brivio – Team Manager
“Overall we’re satisfied with this test because we’ve found some good new things in the electronics and to improve the acceleration and in general we’ve been quite fast. Tonight we suffered later on when it was colder and there was less grip, but we’ve spent a lot of time working on a solution and we have gathered a lot of information which we will now study carefully. This is very important because this season we will have one practice session less at each race and we need to be ready!”
Daniele Romagnoli – Team Manager
“This has been quite a positive day for us. We found a good setting that enabled Jorge to find the confidence to be faster into the corners and at the same time day by day he has improved his riding style on the Bridgestone tires. I think the job we’ve done here will help us a lot when we come here for the first race in April.”
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Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team wrap up successful Qatar test
Monster Yamaha Tech 3 rider Colin Edwards continued his impressive winter testing form after a successful night test session in Qatar.
A best time of 1.57.515 left Edwards ninth on the final timesheets, though he was consistently in the top three for the majority of the test as he continued an impressive switch to Bridgestone tires. After a short rain shower severely disrupted the first night and windy conditions made lap times slower than normal race pace on the second evening, Edwards was able to lap at a consistent pace on the final night as he experimented with a range of chassis settings on his YZR-M1 machine.
With the first race back at the Losail International Circuit on April 12, Edwards also took advantage of the improved track conditions to complete a full 22- race simulation in readiness for the opening round. He was able to maintain a fast and consistent pace throughout thanks to the impressive endurance of Bridgestone tires. His best lap in the race simulation of 1.57.932 was set on his last lap.
James Toseland made encouraging progress throughout the test to post a best lap of 1.58.786 on the last night. That was 1.5s faster than his previous best time as he worked hard to gain more confidence with front tire grip. Toseland was also building up his own confidence after a spectacular crash in Malaysia last month, but he left Qatar in high spirits in 15th position having made positive steps forward with the development of his YZR-M1.
The Monster Yamaha Tech 3 Team concludes its pre-season preparations in Jerez on March 28/29.
Colin Edwards – Position: 9th Time: 1’57.515
“I am really happy with this test. It didn’t start well with the rain on the first night and the wind blew a lot of sand and dust onto the track on the second night, so the lap times were still way off normal pace. But I was still one of the quickest and I’ve got to say the Yamaha and Bridgestone combination is very impressive. I’ve just been concentrating on trying to find a good setting for the race, even though we expect the temperature to be a little warmer when we return but I’m really confident. I couldn’t believe my race simulation. The grip from Bridgestone is really incredible and I’m seriously impressed. The grip just gets better the more distance you run on it and I did my best lap in the race simulation on the last lap. That’s just not something I’m used to at all. All we’ve been doing is working hard as a team. Things are going great with Guy Coulon. We’ve got one more test in Jerez to work on a few more things but I’m ready to race. I feel stronger and more motivated than ever.”
Guy Coulon – Colin Edwards crew chief
“We have spent a lot of this test working on the chassis setting, though it has not been easy with the weather and track conditions. There wasn’t much of a window to work in because later on it gets really cold and humid, so there is not much grip. But we had no troubles during the whole test and Colin was really happy after the race simulation. It is the first one he has done on Bridgestone tires and we have gained a lot of experience and information. The consistency of the tires is very impressive and Colin was faster in the second half of the simulation. Now we have a better understanding of both the front and rear tires. And the big positive is that we didn’t change the setting too much from Sepang, so we have a bike that is working on two different tracks in very different conditions.”
James Toseland – Position: 15th Time: 1’58.851
“It has not been an easy test but on the last night I felt like we were finding a good direction and I was certainly feeling a lot more comfortable on the bike. The crash in Sepang hit my confidence and it took me a while to find my rhythm, but I feel I can go much faster now. There is still plenty of work to do but I was 1.5s faster on the last night, and I just need time on the bike. I had a bit of an issue with the feeling from soft front tire, which I had to run later on during the evening as the track temperature got cooler. I was comfortable with the hard front tire but it was too hard for the colder temperatures. I can still improve and I learned about the bike and the tires at this test, and at the end I’m only just over a second behind Colin and he has been consistently fast.”
Gary Reynders – James Toseland crew chief
“James finally found some confidence on the last night but we had a bit of a problem solving a movement issue he had with the soft front tire. We had a similar problem in Sepang but it is not chatter. It is more of a hopping movement under braking. We have tried a lot of different settings without really solving the issue, but the big positive is that now James feels that he can go faster. His confidence has returned and he feels he can push much harder. We’ll be working hard in Jerez to make some more progress and we’ll speak with Yamaha to see if they have some solutions.”
