Honda’s Marc MarquezThe third and final day of the Phillip Island MotoGP test was basically a crashfest. The following riders suffered crashes Friday at various spots of the 2.76-mile Australian circuit: Tito Rabat, Jack Miller, Maverick Vinales, Pol Esparago, Aleix Espargaro, Bradley Smith, Cal Crutchlow, Danilo Petrucci, Eugene Laverty, Jorge Lorenzo and Marc Marquez.All riders except Pramac Ducati’s Danilo Petrucci walked away unharmed; Petrucci was diagnosed with a fractured right wrist, and is currently being treated.
When the Phillip Island MotoGP wrapped up, Repsol Honda’s Marc Marquez was the day’s leader with a fastest lap of 1:29.158, but overall, Team Ecstar Suzuki’s Maverick Vinales was quickest with a 1:29.131.This was not only an important test for Vinales, but for the development of the GSX-RR ahead of 2016 MotoGP. Test data from bike’s new engine specifications, seamless gearbox, chassis and electronics configurations will now be analyzed ahead of the final test in Qatar.“First of all I must say I’m OK after the crash this morning: I went out with a new tire but probably the temperature was still too cold and I lost the front, but I didn’t suffer any injuries. Today has been another positive day, although I couldn’t improve my lap time, but we are aware of the reason why this happened,” Vinales says.“We focused on testing different configurations of the new chassis and this took us some time; maybe if I continued with the previous one I could have done a better time but it is important for us to us to work with a long term vision and exploit the tests for what they are. The development of the machine for the season is still a long way off and we still have much potential that we need to investigate.Suzuki’s Maverick Vinales“For sure I’m happy in how this test went overall, we made solid progress both in the single lap performance and for the consistency, even though the variable weather didn’t allow us to really test a race simulation.“For Qatar it will be important to further investigate the electronics; it is still a field where we miss experience as it’s completely new, but we have already done much work for this and collected a good amount of data, which will be useful for us. Of course ending a test at the top is a good feeling that makes you comfortable for the future, but we must keep our feet on the ground and stay focused on the development plan we have set.”Unlike Wednesday and Thursday, the riders were greeted with clear conditions and many were quickly up to speed, posting under the 1:30 mark with the new spec Michelin tires. But as riders pushed and pushed, the accidents began, the first to fall being Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS pilot Tito Rabat, the 2014 MotoGP Champion.Though two-time MotoGP Champion Marquez also suffered a light crash, he was able to wrap the day’s session up 0.141 ahead of Vinales, though the latter led overall due to his time on Thursday.LCR Honda’s Crutchlow earned third Friday, followed by Avintia Racing Ducati’s Hector Barbera and Movistar Yamaha MotoGP’s Valentino Rossi. Barbera’s teammate Loris Baz finished seventh, followed by Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa, Monster Yamaha Tech3’s Pol Espargaro, Movistar Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo and Ducati Team’s Andrea Dovizioso.Yamaha’s Valentino RossiOverall, Vinales aboard his Suzuki GSX-RR with the new seamless transmission leaves the test as fastest overall ahead of Marquez, Crutchlow, Lorenzo and Barbera.The third and final preseason test is set to begin March 2 in Qatar just ahead of the 2016 MotoGP season opener at the same track March 20.
2016 Phillip Island MotoGP Test Results, Day 3 (Friday):
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This week, in the first segment Editor Don Williams talks to us about the new Kawasaki Versys 650 LT. It’s the middleweight ADV style machine that uses the same 650 parallel twin motor as the Ninja 650, so it’s an excellent performer in a user-friendly, good looking package.
In the second segment, I chat with one of my dearest industry friends—now retired Honda PR executive, Jon Seidel. Jon’s fascinating career spans some 30 years with Big Red, and gave him some great experiences with some incredible machines. I was fortunate enough to be invited on many of the press launches that he organized. His new project is documenting and saving many of the old archives from years gone by—and incidentally, if you have anything that may be of value to the project, please contact us by email at producer@ultimatemotorcycling.com and we’ll pass it all on to Jon.
So on that note, from all of us here at Ultimate Motorcycling, we hope you enjoy this episode!
