After the three days of shakedown and the three days of MotoGP testing which have just taken place on the Sepang circuit in Malaysia, we find ourselves with 19 riders in less than 8 tenths!
A cat would not find her babies there and, to get as fair an idea as possible of the current potential of each one, it is appropriate, beyond the combined ranking of the three days, to delve into the Analysis sheets available on the official MotoGP.com website, and, in particular those of the last day, where some drivers left aside the settings and other aerodynamic tests to attempt and succeed in a beautiful race simulation.
To tell the truth, there are not very many of them in this case, and we can thus eliminate from the top of the ranking Cal Crutchlow (5 laps maximum in rhythm), Francis Bagnaia (simulation of 15 laps, but in 2'01), Valentino Rossi (no simulation), Pol Espargaro (no simulation) and Jack Miller (no simulation).
So there remains the fastest man of these three days, fabio quartararo, with a very honest simulation of 12 laps in “big 1'59 / short 2'00” done at the hottest time of the day, Alex Rins with two mini-simulations of 7 laps faster but shorter than the Frenchman.
That's it for the Top 5 of the ranking, and we must continue in this one to observe the honest attempt to Danilo Petrucci (10 laps in 2'00), quite similar to that of his teammate ranked 15th, Andrea Dovizioso, apart from a slightly missed turn for the latter.
Let's leave aside temporarily Marc Márquez since we know he is still handicapped by his shoulder operation, let's observe a Joan mir in full progress and continue until the 16th position to find a Maverick Vinales having done a simulation of no less than 16 laps in roughly "1'59", with just a small hiccup during his eighth lap.
This simulation, certainly carried out at a cooler time of day, reveals a driver who is both fast and “who wants it”! Maverick Casa Particular in Viñales is now working to develop his machine and, a change from previous years, is not very concerned about his ranking during the tests: you will have to reckon with him!
However, the big surprise does not come from this new behavior of the official Yamaha rider, but fromAleix Espargaro who, riding the brand new Aprilia RS-GP 2020, simply performed a simulation of 13 laps that we do not hesitate to describe it as very impressive !
Its simulation has nothing to be ashamed of compared to the very consistent one of Maverick Casa Particular in Viñales , and if we take into account that the bike is brand new facing opponents that have been refined over the years, it is simply astonishing, even if it needs to be confirmed on another track!
The Granollers pilot did not hide his joy: “The racing simulation was impressive. I had a little problem on lap 13, when an exhaust pipe broke and I had to stop, but I felt really good on the medium tires, the racing tires. »
“I was very consistent on the pace, constantly in 1'59.5, often going even faster. Then, when there were about seven laps left at the end of the simulation, I felt the power drop more and more. I realized I had a problem with the exhaust and stopped. It's a shame because I felt really competitive and I think I could have been in 1'59 for the twenty laps, but the bike is very young so that's normal. »
“If we look at the pace and compare it with that of the Suzuki riders but also that of Quartararo, I was faster. I am very happy about it. Overall I'm happy, I would have liked to be even closer to the top in terms of speed, but we're talking 3 tenths of the fastest, so I'm happy. »
“The techs weren't really convinced to let me try a long run, but in my opinion it was really important to understand how it would go from a temperature point of view on the bike and how I felt after several laps . ".
Clearly, this 2020 season is full of promise!
