The last test of the 2023 off-season at Portimao is fast approaching, as it will begin at the end of this week and continue this weekend. For those disappointed with the last tests in Malaysia, this is the last chance to get things back on track and do the right validations. However, Pol Espargaró warns that they risk facing disappointments, the route in the Algarve not being revealing for this type of operation. Besides, he himself won't expect much from this point of view. On the other hand, he will already be working for the Portuguese Grand Prix which will open the season there on March 24…
Pol Espargaro has already established its program for the three days of testing in Portimao which will begin on Friday 10 and end on Sunday 12 of this month of March…” Apart from a few new fairings or aerodynamic parts, we won't test too much in Portimao » assures the Spaniard of 31 years on speedweek. " Portimao is not the place to try things » he said. Then he will deal with it in another way: “ it will be more about finding a good set-up for the motorcycle. When it's in place, we'll make sure we're quick ».
Then he finishes: “ and when we have done that, we will of course be able to test certain components of the frame to swing arms ». Pol Espargaro will therefore not allow himself to be overwhelmed and led astray like a Pecco Bagnaia at Ducati in 2022. The GASGAS rider finished 13th and best rider in the Pierer group in Malaysia. Tests which had left Francesco Guidotti the team manager of the official team KTM, a little hungry: “ expectations were quite high. We missed something, to be completely honest and fair. Perhaps the expectation was a little too high. I don't know. We must continue to work as much as possible in the coming weeks to find the next step for the second test in Portugal ».
Pol Espargaro: “ it's positive that despite different riding styles, we all made roughly the same decisions«
The RC16 driver Brad Binder had commented: “ the KTM needs a little more engine power out of corners and more traction ". For reasons of managing the tire stock allocated annually, KTM will not be in Portimao with its test structure. However, these alarm signals coming from the orange house do not seem to worry the red box GASGAS… “ The DNA of the motorcycle is the same than in my time, but the motorcycle has evolved a lot. It's significantly faster. The engineers and Dani Pedrosa, Jonas Folger and Mika Kallio as test drivers did a great job »Assures Pol Espargaro, which therefore includes the German who has barely arrived in the loop.
The rookie's teammate Augusto Fernandez even remembers the Sepang test in a different way than Francesco Guidotti, and it concerns the collaboration between KTM and GASGAS regarding the same RC16: “ this way of working worked very well during the test. The progression was so clear that all four pilots approved the same parts. Dani first chose the parts that worked well and little by little everyone chose the same parts. It's positive that despite different riding styles, we all made roughly the same decisions ". See you in Portugal on Friday to find out what happens next…
