No rest for the wicked ! The MotoGP caravan remains in Misano, and the least we can say is that the teams will not be idle. Between the San Marino Grand Prix last weekend and that of Emilia Romagna next weekend, this Tuesday, the Misano track hosts an official test this Tuesday. During this test day, all drivers in the category will be able to participate and this will serve to continue working on the new Michelin tires.
Without rest between races, the MotoGP riders have a new meeting this Tuesday, September 15 on the Misano circuit. Before starting free practice on Friday to prepare for this Sunday's race – with the first Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix – all MotoGP riders take part in a very important official test day during which it will be important to continue to work with Michelin after the numerous criticisms of the new tires.
This was explained by Pol Espargaró during his press conference this Sunday, specifying that these tests would be used to resolve the problems in braking his KTM and, among these solutions, that of a new chassis. However, this test is conditioned by the technical freeze of the engines until 2022 and by the economic crisis derived from the coronavirus pandemic. This is why many riders will not have many new parts to try and will continue to develop the current version of their MotoGP prototype. Of course, with a particular focus on the Michelin tires which have caused so much controversy so far this year.
Very important test for Michelin
The last to complain about these tires was Maverick Viñales, this weekend's pole sitter who was unable to materialize in the race, with his fifth place this Sunday. “On Saturday I managed to break the track record, and on Sunday I don’t know how to drive? » Exclaimed the Spaniard at the end of the race. The Yamaha rider joins a list of disgruntled riders in which there already appeared figures like Andrea Dovizioso – the new leader of the category -, who is still looking for a way to make them work with his Ducati, especially after the podium of Pecco Bagnaia this Sunday.
“We will now stay here in Misano for a test on Tuesday, where I am sure there will be different tire configurations that the riders can test to see if it can be further improved and get an optimal configuration for their respective machines before the race which will take place next week on the same track", commented this Sunday Piero Taramasso, Head of Michelin, who continues to insist on the fact that times continue to drop and that we have already seen several records broken this season.
It will also be an opportunity for most drivers to test the use of radios on track, in order to receive information from Race Direction regarding incidents on track. Stefan Bradl had already tested this system last Friday, during free practice, with positive feedback.
“Initially it will only be used by race management to communicate recorded, predetermined messages about flags, penalties, things like that,” explained Carmelo Ezpeleta, Managing Director of Dorna, the promoter of MotoGP. “In the future, if teams and drivers agree, it could be open to communication from teams and even riders to teams. »
This Tuesday's test will be the penultimate of the season in MotoGP, before that of Portimao where Jorge Lorenzo will once again ride his Yamaha as a test rider. Due to the low influx of new parts, most teams will only have their official drivers, even Honda has not communicated the presence of Stefan Bradl – although replacing Marc Márquez in his absence – due to the lack of developments to try on motorcycles. A test which will therefore allow us to test various settings for this weekend, which is important in such a tight championship.
Although the test can be followed throughout the day thanks to Motogp.com Live Timing, we will find Simon Crafar and Amy Reynolds at 10:00 a.m. and 14:30 p.m. Facebook Live. Another good news with something new in this somewhat special year: the last hour and a half of these tests will be broadcast live on social networks. We will therefore be able to enjoy the last moments of testing on the Marco Simoncelli circuit, when there will be more activity on the track with a large influx of drivers.
