As glimpse thanks to some videos, Suzuki was in private testing in Austin, the Monday after the Grand Prix of the Americas.
A day where time was less limited than during the free practice sessions, and where Maverick Vinales and Aleix Espargaro had the opportunity to compare their 2015 and 2016 chassis again.
At least, in the afternoon, since the two drivers barely drove in the morning.
Maverick Vinales: “The first part of the day we didn't ride because the track was incredibly dirty. My first lap was 2'08. Incredibly slow. Then the track improved and we were fast, faster than our race pace. Much faster. »
There, the possible replacement for Jorge Lorenzo at Yamaha makes our mouths water…
His race pace was roughly 2'06, compared to a qualifying time of 2'04.
To be able to compare to his racing pace, we assume that it was in the same conditions, but we will not know more.
Well, yes, a little...
Maverick Vinales: “We compared the old chassis with the new one and we are quite surprised, because it seems that the new one is a little better. So I want to kill myself! (smiles)
Phillip Island and Qatar offer many changes of direction, whereas here there is only one. The rest is quite slow. I still feel very strong in fast corners, like in sector #1, but I have problems on hard braking, like in sectors #3 and 4.
With the new chassis, the bike brakes better and I can turn a little better when braking hard. This has been our weak point all weekend, and with this chassis we are improving, so we will definitely think about trying to use it in Jerez.
Yes I think so. We have to be smart enough on Friday to give every chassis a chance. »
However, the story is not the same for his teammate, who prefers a 2015 chassis with which he has finally regained his sensations.
Alex Espargaro: “We tried this new frame with exactly the same settings as in Qatar, then with something that made it stiffer. It was interesting because it had a lot of impact, just by changing one part we can change the rigidity of the chassis. But overall, the 2015 chassis is better for me. I have better feedback in the turns. They are not very different but today in MotoGP, 3 tenths are enough to force us to go to Q1. So it's good enough to keep working on it. »
source: crash.net
2016 World Championship Ranking
| Pos | Pile | Motorcycle | Country | Points |
| 1 | Marc Márquez | Honda | SPA | 66 |
| 2 | Jorge Lorenzo | Yamaha | SPA | 45 |
| 3 | Valentino ROSSI | Yamaha | ITA | 33 |
| 4 | Pol Espargaró | Yamaha | SPA | 28 |
| 5 | Dani PEDROSA | Honda | SPA | 27 |
| 6 | Hector BARBERA | Ducati | SPA | 25 |
| 7 | Andrea Dovizioso | Ducati | ITA | 23 |
| 8 | Maverick VIÑALES | Suzuki | SPA | 23 |
| 9 | Eugene LAVERTY | Ducati | IRL | 21 |
| 10 | Alex ESPARGARO | Suzuki | SPA | 21 |
| 11 | Andrea Iannone | Ducati | ITA | 16 |
| 12 | Scott REDDING | Ducati | GBR | 16 |
| 13 | Bradley SMITH | Yamaha | GBR | 16 |
| 14 | Stefan BRADL | Aprilia | GER | 15 |
| 15 | Alvaro BAUTISTA | Aprilia | SPA | 14 |
| 16 | Michael PIRRO | Ducati | ITA | 12 |
| 17 | Tito RABAT | Honda | SPA | 11 |
| 18 | Jack Miller | Honda | AUS | 2 |
| 19 | Yonny HERNANDEZ | Ducati | COL | 2 |
| 20 | Loris BAZ | Ducati | FRA | 1 |
| 21 | Cal Crutchlow | Honda | GBR | 0 |
