MotoGP, Qatar J2 Test, Aleix Espargaró: “with the Aprilia, I feel strong”

During his assessment of the evening at Losail, the Ducati official Andrea Dovizioso was more than doubtful in an analysis of the timesheet that was difficult to interpret. This year, in MotoGP, everyone seems to have, at some point, their chance to shine. The proof with this sixth place of a Aleix Espargaró which shows a more than well-born Aprilia RS-GP 2019.

The rider of the Aprilia team, Aleix Espargaró, took sixth place on Sunday in Qatar during MotoGP testing. At the end of a solid lap in 1'55,173, he only lost 0,580 seconds on the best time ofAlex Rins accomplished on the handlebars of the Suzuki. “ Little by little, I feel better on the bike, although I must admit that there is still room for improvement. We need to find a little more balance, I think we are demanding too much from the front tire, it's not good ».

Overall, the Spaniard was happy with the progress: “ It's much better than Saturday, I feel good. We're getting closer to the first race, I can't wait. I feel strong ". Aprilia did not test any new parts on Sunday, apart from a fairing, but we must not forget thatI will espargaro is on the 2019 RS-GP since the Sepang test: “ with each outing, I felt better. The most important thing is that I feel good on a motorcycle. Little by little, my new chief engineer collects more and more information. We are trying to adjust the machine. We can still improve, especially on the brakes “, underlined the 29-year-old pilot.

This Monday will be particularly important in view of the first Grand Prix on March 10: “ this will be an important day to make final adjustments before the race. And of course, do a Grand Prix simulation. For me, this is the most important thing in preparing for the season. One lap is good, it's good to get into the box with P6, but what really matters is a solid racing simulation ».

He finishes : " I can't wait to see how far behind our opponents and the best drivers we are. I think the Aprilia was always competitive in the second half of the race. I can't wait to try it under these circumstances ". His teammate Iannone finished sixteenth and Smith twenty-second.

MotoGP, Qatar J2 Test: times

1	42	Alex Rins	Suzuki GSX-RR	1:54.593
2	12	Maverick Vinales	Yamaha M1	1:54.650	0.057	0.057
3	20	fabio quartararo	Yamaha M1	1:54.908	0.315	0.258
4	9	Danilo Petrucci	Ducati GP19	1:54.953	0.360	0.045
5	93	Marc Márquez	Honda RC213V	1:55.004	0.411	0.051
6	41	Aleix Espargaró	Aprilia RS-GP	1:55.173	0.580	0.169
7	30	Takaaki Nakagami	Honda RC213V	1:55.175	0.582	0.002
8	4	Andrea Dovizioso	Ducati GP19	1:55.205	0.612	0.030
9	35	Cal Crutchlow	Honda RC213V	1:55.247	0.654	0.042
10	44	Pol Espargaro	KTM RC16	1:55.255	0.662	0.008
11	36	Joan mir	Suzuki GSX-RR	1:55.280	0.687	0.025
12	43	Jack Miller	Ducati GP19	1:55.380	0.787	0.100
13	21	Franco Morbidelli	Yamaha M1	1:55.556	0.963	0.176
14	53	Tito Rabat	Ducati GP18	1:55.661	1.068	0.105
15	63	Francis Bagnaia	Ducati GP18	1:55.680	1.087	0.019
16	29	Andrea Iannone	Aprilia RS-GP	1:55.698	1.105	0.018
17	5	Johann zarco	KTM RC16	1:55.716	1.123	0.018
18	99	Jorge Lorenzo	Honda RC213V	1:55.742	1.149	0.026
19	46	Valentino Rossi	Yamaha M1	1:55.795	1.202	0.053
20	17	Karel Abraham	Ducati GP18	1:55.951	1.358	0.156
21	88	Miguel Oliveira	KTM RC16	1:56.274	1.681	0.323
22	38	Bradley Smith	Aprilia RS-GP	1:56.866	2.273	0.592
23	55	Hafiz Syahrin	KTM RC16	1:56.983	2.390	0.117