After a long and boring winter test ban, MotoGP 2012 finally got underway with the first official test of the season at Sepang and what the various press releases had to say after Day 1:Yamaha Factory Racing:MotoGP 2012 finally got underway today with the first of three days of testing at the Sepang circuit in Malaysia.
Yamaha Factory riders Jorge Lorenzo and Ben Spies took their first ride on the 1000cc YZR-M1 since last year.
Both riders blew the cobwebs off quickly and settled down to an impressive pace, Lorenzo proving to be the fastest man on track with his team mate always close behind him.
The focus for the first day was to get back into the swing of riding and also to establish a good base set up.
Tomorrow and the day after Lorenzo and Spies will compare various new settings to provide valuable data for the second Sepang test in one month’s time.
Jorge Lorenzo -1st“I’m very happy with today.
For the first ride on the bike in some time, it’s been very positive.
Yamaha has worked very hard over the winter for this M1.
I can see very easily where I have to adapt my riding style for the bike and I can see a lot of potential.
We have many areas where we can improve so I’m looking forward to beginning again tomorrow.
I’m also very happy that my finger is fine and doesn’t affect my riding at all!” Ben Spies – 4th“I’m happy, it was fun to get back on the bike today, I haven’t ridden any type of motorcycle since Valencia.
It didn’t take too long to knock the rust off, we tried a few things in set up and every step we did made small improvements.
We have a lot to do in the next couple of days and a lot more in the second test.
It’s been a confidence inspiring start, Yamaha have put in a lot of effort for this season so we’ll work day by day to be even better.
”The focus for the first day was to get back into the swing of riding and also to establish a good base set up.
Tomorrow and the day after Lorenzo and Spies will compare various new settings to provide valuable data for the second Sepang test in one month’s time.
Repsol Honda :Due to early morning rain, track conditions were not good enough to go out on track until midday when HRC test rider, Kosuke Akiyoshi performed the first 10 laps on Dani Pedrosa’s bike and then jumped onto Casey Stoner’s machine to complete a further 4 laps and confirm that everything was working well.
Pedrosa set the second fastest lap of the day with a 2′02.
003 and completed a total of 48 laps on a bike similar to the one he tested in Valencia in November.
Pedrosa was the only Repsol Honda rider on track with the new RC213V as current World Champion Stoner pulled his back while warming up and preparing to go on track for the first time this season.
The Australian received treatment from a physiotherapist and after resting he hopes to begin his testing program tomorrow.
Dani Pedrosa:“Today was good, for the first laps I think it was important for me to come back and just ride again.
Of course, the first day I was a little bit stiff, not totally smooth on the bike, but we completed some laps and they were good.
Today was mainly a test for myself, to get used to the bike again, recover the feeling, feel the throttle and the brakes after a long time off.
The whole day I stayed with the same bike that I tested in Valencia in November and tomorrow the real test will start for us, we will work on the set up and probably try a modified chassis that Honda has brought here according to our requests after Valencia.
”Casey Stoner:“I was stretching this morning for a good twenty minutes preparing to go out on track for the first time and then all of a sudden, my back just locked up on me.
I couldn’t move or do anything.
I had to call someone to come and help me move into a position that was less painful! Then I had some physio on it straight away, trying to get it better for this afternoon, but it wasn’t feeling good.
I had some more physio after lunch but it still wasn’t easing up, I felt I could have gone out on the bike in the afternoon but we all agreed it would probably make it worse for tomorrow.
We have two more days testing here in Sepang, we know the track well and we are getting to know the bike, we just need some time to test the new parts we have here to give feedback to HRC.
I think tomorrow the track conditions will be better and as long as my back improves overnight we should get back on schedule with our testing tomorrow.
” Ducati:The 2012 MotoGP test season started with today’s first day of a three-day test at Malaysia’s Sepang International Circuit.
The Ducati Team took to the track with its Desmosedici GP12, and after official test rider Franco Battaini carried out the shakedown, Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden started the important work of finding a base setup.
Ducati Corse Technical Director Filippo Preziosi followed the team’s work from the garage.
Last night’s rainfall resulted in a damp track surface this morning, delaying the team’s start until around midday.
Valentino Rossi and his team progressed step by step, improving the lap time in each outing before finishing with the fifth-fastest time, .
735 seconds behind that of Jorge Lorenzo.
Nicky Hayden also began working on the GP12’s setup, although his physical condition was still affected by the injury to his left scapula.
The American finished the day tenth, having completed 25 laps.
Valentino Rossi (Ducati Team) 5th, 2:02.
392 (30 laps)“I’m happy because first impressions are important, and already in the first few laps, I could tell that I like the bike.
Ducati did a good job in a just a short time.
The bike is beautiful, but more importantly, it’s nice to ride.
The riding position has improved a lot, and it’s better on braking and corner entry.
I can brake like I want to and take the lines that I like, and I feel comfortable in general.
I was able to ride well and not make mistakes, and there’s a reason for that.
It means that the bike can be ridden.
It’s more agile in change of direction, and it wheelies much less.
We’re 7 tenths back today, and of course there’s still a lot of work to do before we can win.
We have to improve in some areas: acceleration, electronics, power delivery and setup.
I’d say we’ll be able to make a more accurate assessment at the end of the test, because let’s remember, the bike is just 40 days old.
To leave here a second back from the top would be okay because anyway, we know that there’s still much more to be done.
But one of the best things from today is that the bike reacts well to changes.
That enabled us to drop one or two tenths every outing, which means further progress should be possible.
”Nicky Hayden (Ducati Team) 10th, 2:03.
151 (25 laps)“It’s great to be back at the track with the team, riding a motorcycle.
We lost a little time this morning, but I hadn’t planned to ride the whole day anyway.
Obviously, I wish my physical condition were better.
On one hand I’m happy just to be here and not miss another test after missing the one in Valencia, but I wasn’t able to do a lot of laps, and definitely no long stints.
We know how important shoulders are on these bikes, and I didn’t have the strength I would like.
The bone itself was okay, but I had a lot of pain in the joint, although there was no problem with the ribs and very few problems with the wrist.
Anyway, it was great to try the new bike and get some information.
We made a step forward with the feeling at the front while braking and turning, but I need to find more edge grip and rear grip on entry, and a better balance with the electronics.
We’ll do some treatment to my shoulder tonight and see how I feel in the morning.
”LCR Honda:After 2-month break the premier class teams and riders were back in action today for the first official testing session held at Sepang track (Malaysia).
Day one was marked by a damptrack after the light rain fell during the night but around 11:00am riders could make their first contact with the Malaysia asphalt starting the development of their new 1000cc bikes.
17 MotoGP riders (3 of them riding a MotoGP CRT machine) lapped till 6pm chasing the best set up of their prototypes ahead tomorrow’s second day of testing.
Today’s pacesetter Jorge Lorenzo posted a best lap time of 2’01.
657 whilst his main contender Casey Stoner only finished 14th due to a pulled muscle in his back after few laps.
First outing for the reigning Moto2 World Champion Stefan Bradl aboard the LCR RCV who set the 11th lap time of the day starting his learning process of the Honda machinery.
Stefan – 2’03.
668: “I am quite satisfied about this first outing aboard the new bike.
After few laps I was impressed by the potential of my machine and I did not find it particularly physically demanding as I trained a lot in the winter break.
We mainly concentrated on my riding position adjusting the seat, the handlebar, the foot rest and so on… Later from 1 pm to 4:45 we worked hard including the electronic side, chassis regulations and tyres changing: I posted my best lap time on hard rubber.
So far I can say it was a productive day for everybody: now I need to look at the data to fix more adjustments for tomorrow”.
San Carlo Honda Gresini Racing:The 2012 MotoGP season officially got underway today with the first day of preseason testing at Sepang.
There was a melancholy feel to the day following the tragic events of October and the memory of Marco Simoncelli remains in the hearts of all those present, as it will for many years to come.
Shortly before lunchtime Álvaro Bautista took to the circuit on board the Honda RC213V for a shakedown that became more and more encouraging as the laps went by.
By the end of the session he had completed 45 circulations of the Malaysian track, with some impressive lap times and a positive early feel for the Honda RC213V.
Álvaro Bautista: Best time: 2’02.
869 (45 laps)“This was my first day on the RC213V and I am very pleased with it because I instantly felt comfortable riding a ‘thousand’.
Obviously after a three-month break from racing it is not easy to get back out there because you have to reset your mind and body to the task and rediscover your pace.
We have worked on adapting the bike to my riding style and I have just tried to get confident without worrying about lap times at this early stage.
”“I am satisfied because I am working well with the team and everybody is putting in a lot of effort.
Over the next two days we will work on general set-up and the electronics but I am already feeling positive because we are not too far off the fastest times and we haven’t started pushing yet.
”Cardion AB Motoracing Team: The official MotoGP Test at Sepang: Abraham finishes twelfthTwelfth place and 2,124s gap between him and the fastest rider Jorge Lorenzo aboard factory Yamaha.
This is the result of Karel Abraham after the first day of the official MotoGP test at Sepang in Malaysia.
For the first time in 2012 season, Karel Abraham tried out the new Ducati Desmosedici GP12 with 1000cc engine.
The Czech motorcycle rider set a best lap time on lap 36 and completed 45 laps – approximately 250 kilometres.
Except Dani Pedrosa, who completed 48 laps, Karel Abraham spent the most time aboard his bike with his 45 laps, as well as the Spaniard Alvaro Bautista from San Carlo Gresini team.
Karel Abraham:“Motocross was my only chance to ride a bike over the winter and it’s a great feeling to be back aboard the race bike.
Last time I tried this bike was at Valencia during the post-season test, so I was looking forward to this test.
We start with a new bike, we need to set-up everything and change a lot of things on the chassis.
Actually, we start from the scratch with electronics.
New 1000cc engine has a different course, but I’m trying to adapt on it.
Today we gathered a lot of data and now we can prepare the bike for tomorrow.
We can set a fast lap times only during the morning when the weather isn’t so hot and I’m not so tired.
The weather here is the same as always – big heat and high humidity.
I must admit that I don’t like this kind of weather, but it just belongs to this test.
”Martin Havlíček, mechanic of Cardion AB Motoracing team:“We completed 45 laps, we made some small changes and spent a lot of time working on electronics.
Now we are making some adjustments on the gearbox and tomorrow we want to try various set-up of the swingarm.
It’s a lot of work because the bike is completely different comparing to the last year’s Ducati.
Engine has a different course and Karel needed some time to adapt on it.
Then we gathered some data which will be important for tomorrow.
It’s a shame that we lost some time due to weather today.
Although the test began at 10:00 AM, some parts of the track were still wet after overnight rain and were drying up very slowly, especially around the roofed grandstands.
We are just beginning and there was no point to risk any crash and injury on wet track.
Tomorrow will be much more important day for us.
Weather forecast reports changeable weather, but we are hoping for sun and dry track.
”
