#CzechTest MotoGP: Rossi the smartest!

Today was an official IRTA test day at the Brno circuit. In practice, this means that this day is not counted from the five days of private testing authorized by the regulations.

The Repsol Honda Team were present (Marc Marquez, Dani Pedrosa), Movistar Yamaha MotoGP (Valentino Rossi, Maverick Vinales), Ducati Team (Andrea Dovizioso, Jorge Lorenzo), Monster Yamaha Tech3 (Johann Zarco, Jonas Folger), LCR Honda (Cal Crutchlow), Aprilia Racing Team Gresini (Aleix Espargaro, Sam Lowes), Team Suzuki Ecstar (Andrea Iannone, Alex Rins, Takuya Tsuda), Red Bull KTM Factory Racing (Pol Espargaro, Bradley Smith) and EG 0,0 Marc VDS (Jack Miller, Tito Rabat).

The 3 Ducati satellite teams were therefore absent Octo Pramac Racing, Pull&Bear Aspar Team et Avintia Racing.

As a reminder, the best weather this weekend is to the credit of Marc Márquez in 1'54.981 while the track record also belongs to him in 1'54.596.

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Contrary to the weather forecast, the weather was excellent today at the Brno circuit.

This morning, with temperatures of 22° in the air and 32° on the track, the MotoGP riders were able to get their bearings and start refining their settings or trying new elements.

This afternoon, the work continued, quite intensively for some, like Tito Rabat ou Johann zarco have completed no less than 76 and 70 laps, or lighter as Sam Lowes who only completed 26 laps due to a technical problem before going to the Mobile Clinic due to a slight infection in his foot.

In terms of suspense, it is undoubtedly Valentino Rossi who holds the prize since if, as usual, the Yamaha rider arrived quite late in the morning, it was also he who concluded the day by being the only one to turn until the last second. Taking advantage of relatively cooler air than in the middle of the afternoon (25°) and a still decent track (35°), the Doctor allowed himself the luxury of achieving the best time of the day in his penultimate lap, two minutes from the end of the session.

In terms of technical novelties, it is Yamaha who tried the most new things with, as we have seen, a new fairing and Öhlins carbon fork. Let's add to this an Oscillating arm to Valentino Rossi and an advanced chassis for Jonas Folger in the Tech3 team while Johann zarco concentrated on trying to resolve his traction problems when exiting the corner.

At Honda, Cal Crutchlow tried the carbon fork in turn while Marc Marquez evaluated the 2018 prototype of a new front tire. At Marc VDS, Tito Rabat focused on settings providing more traction when exiting corners and stability when braking, while Jack Miller worked to gain traction when exiting corners but also to get his bearings with Michelin tires, after riding on Bridgestone at Suzuka.

At Ducati, Andrea Dovizioso tested the new fairing, a model identical to that of Jorge Lorenzo and therefore different from that of Danilo Petrucci.

At Suzuki, Andrea Iannone experienced a slight fall, without seriousness.

Alex Rins tried the chassis that his teammate has adopted since the Catalan Grand Prix.

At KTM, we worked on the electronics and braking when entering a curve.

At Aprilia, as said previously Sam Lowes had to end his session prematurely while Alex Espargaro continued to evaluate the new parts made available since this weekend by the Noale firm: airbox, exhaust, gearbox and swingarm, still on the frame with bolted legs.

Editor’s note: This article will be updated as the evening progresses and information is collected…

Pos		Pile	Team	HIGHLIGHTS	Deviations	Deviations	Tours
1		Rossi, Valentine	Yamaha Motor Racing	1:55.162			51 / 51
2		MARCHEZ, Marc	Repsol Honda Team	1:55.180	0.018	0.018	49 / 67
3		VIÑALES, Maverick	Yamaha Motor Racing	1:55.335	0.173	0.155	64 / 69
4		LORENZO, Jorge	Ducati Team	1:55.542	0.380	0.207	41 / 55
5		ZARCO, Johann	Monster Yamaha Tech 3	1:55.691	0.529	0.149	69 / 70
6		CRUTCHLOW, Cal	Honda LCR	1:55.768	0.606	0.077	23 / 48
7		PEDROSA, Dani	Repsol Honda Team	1:55.795	0.633	0.027	37 / 53
8		Folger, Jonas	Monster Yamaha Tech 3	1:55.830	0.668	0.035	41 / 48
9		IANNON, Andrew	Team SUZUKI ECSTAR	1:56.123	0.961	0.293	41 / 47
10		Espargaro, Aleix	Aprilia Racing Team Gresini	1:56.263	1.101	0.140	35 / 51
11		DOVIZIOSO, Andrew	Ducati Team	1:56.403	1.241	0.140	34 / 45
12		RABAT, Tito	EG 0,0 Marc VDS	1:56.535	1.373	0.132	68 / 76
13		MILLER, Jack	EG 0,0 Marc VDS	1:56.634	1.472	0.099	37 / 47
14		Rins, Alex	Team SUZUKI ECSTAR	1:56.637	1.475	0.003	61 / 69
15		ESPARGARÓ, Pol	Red Bull KTM Factory Racing	1:56.668	1.506	0.031	39 / 60
16		SMITH, Bradley	Red Bull KTM Factory Racing	1:56.976	1.814	0.308	43 / 51
17		LOWES, Sam	Aprilia Racing Team Gresini	1:57.851	2.689	0.875	18 / 26
18		TSUDA, Takuya	Team SUZUKI ECSTAR	1:59.749	4.587	1.898	25 / 51