Before closing the boxes to send them to Japan, where the Motegi-Phillip Island-Sepang trilogy will begin on October 15, the Moto3 and Moto2 teams spent a studious day at MotorLand to try out some settings that they had not yet had time to test, as well as a few new parts.
There will in fact be no time on site to test new equipment, and on the other hand it is necessary to limit as much as possible the weight of equipment transported, already heavily burdened by falling and broken parts.
35 drivers rode for 7 hours non-stop, including the leaders of the World Championships Joan mir (Moto3) and Franco Morbidelli (Moto2), but also Jorge Martín, Nicolo Bulega, Enea Bastianini and Arón Canet in Moto3, as well as Jorge Navarro, Sandro Cortese, Thomas Luthi, Marcel Shrötter, Fabio Quartararo, Xavi Virginie and Mattia Pasini in Moto2.
In Moto3, the Estrella Galicia 0,0 team rode Aron canet and Enea Bastianini. The tests focused mainly on the Öhlins suspensions, but it was significantly warmer on Monday than on Sunday, with a stronger wind.
Aron Canet completed 46 laps, then declared “ I'm very happy because we did a 1'58.8, which is a fast time considering the weather conditions. The asphalt didn't offer a very good level of grip due to the high temperatures, and the wind meant you could lose the front, but at least the work was positive because we were able to try solutions for the chassis, and suspension worked well. We also collected very valuable data for the other races ».
After completing 40 laps, Enea Bastianini explained that “It was a very productive day of testing, with a lot of data collected that will be very useful to us. We tested new configurations to improve our feeling with the rear suspension and the result was very positive. Our sensitivity with the motorcycle on the cold asphalt in the morning was much better. In Japan and Australia, we will probably have more of these conditions, so this is an important breakthrough. It was also very windy and, although this is a problem that bothers you when riding, I am sure that the work we have done will be positive for Phillip Island, where we usually have this problem."
In Moto2, the riders tried a new Dunlop tire, and Franco Morbidelli, sole representative of the EG 0,0 Marc VDS team in the absence of the injured Alex Márquez, focused on the development of Öhlins suspensions. The Italian also evaluated a Yutaka brake disc.
KTM riders tested a new suspension link and Brembo calipers as well as a slightly thinner disc to reduce inertia. At Suter, Marcel Schrötter then Sandro Cortese (Dynavolt Intact GP) each had the opportunity to ride on their machine equipped with the latest chassis. It was then the turn of Dominique Aegerter (Kiefer Racing) to dispose of it. Tom Lüthi (carXpert Interwetten) for his part focused on the settings of his Kalex, as did Fabio Quartararo and Edgar Pons (Pons HP 40).
Rookies Jorge Navarro (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2), Francesco Bagnaia and Stefano Manzi (Sky Racing Team VR46) worked on the development of Kalex parts for the 2018 season, including a new swingarm.
Photos: Estrella Galicia 0,0
