Sepang private mid-day J3 tests: Stoner under the eyes of Lorenzo

The morning began with beautiful sunshine, but with the track still damp from the night's showers. This did not overly worry Casey Stoner for whom the morning wait was part of the routine of these tests, and who took the opportunity to chat with Jorge Lorenzo, very present in the Ducati stand as well as at the edge of the track. This assiduity of the Spaniard favorably impressed the Italians on the team. Lorenzo studied in detail the way of working of Christian Gabarrini (above next to Stoner), technical manager of Casey's Desmosedici this week, but especially of that of Jorge for the whole season, starting next Monday here in Malaysia. Lorenzo was particularly interested in the feedback Stoner provided to Gabarrini and the Ducati engineers.

The Australian had two 2017 bikes, one with fins and one without, so he could make back-to-back comparisons. “ Deciding on the final fairing is really a dilemma because only one evolutionary step will be allowed during the year, explained Luigi Dall’Igna. The reason we are waiting is that we need more time to finalize it. We work specifically on aerodynamics ". Among the only two fairings authorized for 2017, one would be intended for fast circuits, and the other for those which are less so.

Lorenzo also went to the other part of the stand to speak with Michele Pirro, in particular about the reaction of the bike with the Michelin rain tires that the riders were forced to use in the morning during the first laps on the wet track . With only nine days of testing before the first race (the Qatar GP on March 26), Jorge must work hard to take advantage of every opportunity to learn. Stoner only moderately appreciated the situation: “ I don't know if it makes much sense to come and test here. It is very hot there and yet the track is wet in many turns. It takes too long to dry. It's as if a thin film of water remains on the asphalt, and when temperatures increase the situation gets worse. ».

For Stoner, the situation is clear: “ He will not be Lorenzo's coach, it will not be possible, commented Dall’Igna. I would like to point out that it was a question of him being the coach of all the Ducati riders, and not just that of Jorge. And for him, the page on the race seems definitively turned. If he asks us, we will be very happy to provide him with the equipment, but that will not happen ».

Lorenzo wasn't too worried about the disappearance of the fins: “ Without these fins there are not many problems. However, this is the case when you compare with a motorcycle that is equipped with it. There, the difference is big. But the style is the same for everyone. We have to adapt, and get good settings for the bike. »

At Yamaha, while Katsuyuki Nakasuga and Kohta Nozane were testing the M1, we noted with interest that Valentino Rossi was hiring an Asian rider for the first time in his teams, since alongside Dennis Foggia and Celestino Vietti Ramus, the VR46 team in CEV Moto3 2017 registered a third KTM for Apiwat Wongthananon, financed by Yamaha Motor Thailand.

Sylvain Guintoli continued testing the Yoshimura Suzuki for the Suzuka 8 Hours this Friday at Sepang, and Takumi Takahashi continued testing the new Honda Fireblade from the Musashi RT Harc-Pro team. Also present in MotoGP were Hiroshi Aoyama for Honda, Mika Kallio for KTM, Takuya Tsuda for Suzuki and of course Mike di Meglio for Aprilia.