Following the tests carried out mainly by Kawasaki and Yamaha at Motorland Aragon, all Ducati riders went to the Navarra circuit for two days for a final 2021 pre-season test.
The Circuito de Navarra (Spain) will host a WorldSBK round for the first time in history from August 20 to 22.
After a first day dedicated to familiarizing themselves with the new circuit, the two riders of the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team drove their Ducati Panigale V4R in a satisfactory manner on Thursday, bringing back very interesting data. Scott Redding et Michael Rinaldi completed the two days of testing by completing 170 and 165 laps respectively.
For the Aruba.it Racing – Ducati team now begins the wait for the first round of the 2021 WorldSBK season, which will take place from May 21 to 23 at the Motorland circuit in Aragon, Spain.
Scott Redding : “These two days have been extremely positive. The weather conditions helped us do very intense work. The feeling with the bike was really good and the race pace was extremely positive. To be honest, I had a lot of fun riding on this circuit which reminds me a lot of those of the BSB. We are ready to race and I can't wait to be in Aragón. »
Michael Ruben Rinaldi : " It was a very productive day. Compared to yesterday we took a big step forward and so I am very happy also because we were able to improve on a not easy track. But now I just want to think about Aragón. In the next few days I will train, try to relax and stay calm in order to arrive at the first race of the season in the best possible conditions. »
Chaz Davies (Team GoEleven), Axel Bassani (Motocorsa Racing) and Tito Rabat (Barni Racing Team) were also there, the Spanish pilot also showing satisfaction.
Although Alvaro Bautista is still diminished because of his recent chest injury in training last April, we hear the same story from Team HRC who had decided to invest in MotorLand Aragón once everyone else had left.
It is therefore Thursday and Friday that the Spaniard and his teammate Leon Haslam were able to fine-tune the settings of their CBR100RR-R with temperatures hovering around 27°.
Leon Haslam for his part had two contrasting days, spending most of the first in his box and performing most of his tricks the next day.
Leon Haslam : “The first day was a bit difficult because we worked a lot in the box and we didn't manage to do many laps during the day, while the second afternoon we had a lot of laps under our belt, which was great. So although we lost some time yesterday, we were certainly able to make up for that. We had a lot to do, but I think we made some really good steps forward with all the elements we had to test here. Our consistency has improved, and that was a priority for us. The times were good, also taking into account the high temperatures, so I'm quite happy with that and, as I say, the consistency was better. We have other areas to explore, but what we have done here has been very positive. Although we haven't had as much testing time on this track as the other teams, I think we are close. All we have to do now is change our mentality and switch to racing mode rather than testing mode: I'm looking forward to the first races. »
Unofficially, Leon Haslam, with a time of 1'50.651, would have beaten his teammate, author of a best lap in 1'50.843.
