Double MotoGP world champion Casey Stoner and his team-mate Dani Pedrosa set the pace on the third and final day of testing in Sepang, Malaysia…
The Red Bull-backed Repsol Honda riders are obviously raring to get the season under way after they both finished in the top three on the final day of testing in Malaysia.
Australia’s Stoner was the day’s quickest rider. On just his second lap the reigning world champion managed a sub two-minute lap (1:59.607, to be precise). Not bad given that he missed the first day of testing with a back problem.
Stoner had this to say: "We only managed two out of the three days but the weather has been really good to us and we've been able to do what we planned. The day I missed hasn't affected us too much and we've managed to complete our testing programme. Track conditions on the first day weren't that great anyway as the lap times were not so fast.”
"Now I'm looking forward to getting home to Switzerland to see Adriana and await the arrival of our baby!" – Stoner
“I'm still not feeling great with my back but the bike is okay. We've made progress in reducing the chatter and tried a few different things, like some small settings on the shock that we haven't tried before. It's been pretty positive. Now I'm looking forward to getting home to Switzerland to see Adriana and await the arrival of our baby!"
Stoner’s team-mate, Dani Pedrosa, notched up the day’s third fastest lap with a time of 2:00.256.
Pedrosa was sounding very confident post test: “Three days of testing is very tiring. When I woke up I was pretty sore and stiff, but once I got running it was a little better. Anyway, it’s been worth it. It’s the biggest test we have done on this bike and we have some great data to analyse ahead of the second test."
“The biggest thing to improve is braking, and we are also working on the electronics to improve management of the power and the grip level. The chatter is still there, and I know it's difficult to fix, but I’m sure Honda are working hard on it. In general, it’s been a positive test for us and we will come back here in three weeks with new ideas.”
© Repsol Honda
“This bike is physically more demanding, you feel the power in the acceleration, the speed under hard braking and also the extra weight, but it’s alright. I will keep working hard physically to prepare for the second test."
Elsewhere in testing, Alvaro Bautista performed well under difficult circumstances after replacing the late Marco Simoncelli at Honda Gresini. He was ninth fastest. Meanwhile, the Yamaha Factory Racing Team are looking strong after Jorge Lorenzo and Ben Spies ended testing second and fourth fastest respectively. Yahama's other team, Monster Yamaha Tech3, saw British rider Cal Crutchlow and Italian rider Andrea Dovizioso in the top ten. Valentino Rossi was fifth fastest.
Stoner, Pedrosa and the rest of the MotoGP crew will return to Sepang on February 28 for the second round of testing.
Want more?
Comments
Add a comment