The Frenchman positioned himself in 18th place on the evening of the opening day, one second behind the reference time.
Mild weather awaited Loris Baz on Friday for the first day of the Australian Grand Prix on the sumptuous Phillip Island circuit. The French rider, who achieved a good tenth place a few days ago in Motegi in the face of the most precarious conditions, has gradually regained his bearings aboard the Ducati Desmosedici GP15.
Credited with the 20th time of the inaugural session, the Frenchman significantly improved the afternoon by finishing in 18th position half a second from the Top 10 behind Danilo Petrucci with a lap in 1'30.274, despite a fall in the final minutes .
Barely a second off the best time of the day, Loris Baz said he was satisfied with his start to the weekend, which he hopes to achieve on Saturday during qualifying by moving closer to Q2.
Loris Baz (18th – 1'30.274):
“The morning turned out to be complicated, we didn't really have the right settings on the bike. We kept the same tires throughout the session. In the afternoon, we worked quite well and managed to gain ground. We may be far behind in the rankings, but the gap has clearly narrowed. I think there were a few more tenths to grab at the end, but I made a mistake. »
“I am happy with what we have achieved, even if the sensations are not yet fantastic. We will try to continue in the same direction on Saturday by getting closer. The objective will above all be to have a better feeling on the bike to attack. »
“About the tires, I evaluated the soft and the medium. I completed many laps with the medium at the rear and it works quite well. For our choice, everything will depend on the track conditions, wind, temperatures and rain. »