Testing at Sepang started exactly where the 2015 championship left off: with a Yamaha 1-two. Unlike 2015, however, the 1st day of testing at Sepang was not even close. Jorge Lorenzo set the fastest time, properly over a second quicker than his Movistar Yamaha teammate Valentino Rossi.
But it was not just the time which was impressive – just over .four seconds off the quickest time set by Marc Márquez on the initial day of the 2015 test – but the outright speed which backed it.
Whilst the leading 5 riders – Lorenzo, Rossi, Dani Pedrosa, Danilo Petrucci and Andrea Iannone – all got beneath the 2’02 mark, Lorenzo had seven laps of 2’01 or more rapidly, exactly where the other individuals only had 1 each and every.
What’s more, 5 of those seven laps have been quicker than second-spot man Valentino Rossi’s best time, and three of them have been in the 2’00 bracket. When asked what the program was for Tuesday, Lorenzo answered “get some more sleep.”
The Spaniard had managed only two hours on Sunday, and barely got a wink. That is a rather worrying prospect for everybody else at the test.
Lorenzo’s explanation for his speed at Sepang was how nicely his riding style suited the Michelins. “For the moment it looks like for Dani or myself it is much better for our riding style,” he said. “It appears like the riders that brake later and tougher have more issues. But following one particular day we cannot make conclusions.”
Lorenzo had gotten on properly with the spec computer software, it barely hampering his style. That was less the case for the other Yamaha riders.
“Today, [the Marelli ECU] for me has been straightforward, in theory, but for Valentino it has been difficult, for the Tech three riders it has been tough and the Ducati appears extremely quick. So it is too quickly to make huge conclusions.”
Rossi may possibly not have been as quick as his teammate Lorenzo, but he also was pleased with progress made, especially with the electronics. Yamaha’s engineers had made a huge step more than the winter, he said, but this was hardly a surprise.
“Sincerely, I count on this,” he told reporters. “Because usually, when our engineers perform on the electronics, typically they repair the dilemma, simply because they are very good.”
The electronics were not up the level of the proprietary software program used by the factory teams, but as far as Rossi was concerned, this was a good issue. The largest differences had been in engine braking and acceleration, he mentioned. “Everything is a tiny bit worse. You can do less, but this is OK, I like it.”
Bologna’s Finest
Though Yamahas finished initial and second, it was the Ducatis which took center stage, with Desmosedicis of numerous flavors filling the best ten throughout the day.
Danilo Petrucci impressed on the Pramac Desmosedici GP15, Hector Barbera was remarkable on the Avintia Desmosedici GP14.two, and Andrea Iannone managed to preserve himself close to the front of the field all day on the factory Ducati Desmosedici GP15, while also taking the new bike out for a spin.
The only downside to the new bike is its name, where Ducati have produced a rod for their own back. Because this is 2016, and the Desmosedici has usually been named for the quantity of valves it has (desmo valve operation, plus sedici, the Italian for sixteen), Ducati wanted to do one thing unique.
So they have named the bike the Ducati Desmo 16 GP, which left both riders confused as to what to contact it. If the riders can’t get the name right, the possibilities of fans and journalists calling it anything other than the Ducati GP16 are very slim certainly.
The upside is that the bike seems to be pretty very good, even far better than the GP15. Andrea Iannone did not spend considerably time on the bike, just a handful of laps, but reported that the feeling was excellent.
He had not spent enough time on the bike to say anything definitive, and had ridden it on different tires to the ones he had employed on the GP15, but the very first impression was constructive.
Andrea Dovizioso had spent more time on the GP16, and was impressed at the progress the bike had produced over last year’s bike.
“Immediately I have a good feeling on the front in entry,” Dovizioso stated. “Also the entry with the throttle is a lot more precise. I was shocked with that feeling from the 1st lap. We have also much less movement in the rear in the traction region, exactly where with the Michelin we had a lot of movement, also since we have less electronics than the past. So the feeling was excellent and it looks like almost everything is much better.”
Honda Makes the Identical Error Once more
What do the Yamaha and Ducati have in frequent? Very good power delivery and a user friendly engine, and this is proving to be crucial to their competitiveness.
Honda appears to have failed to discover the lessons of the past, the new engine spec brought to Sepang becoming only a minor improvement over the engine attempted at Valencia and Jerez last year.
“It is the same engine with small modifications inside,” Marc Márquez explained, “but was a very small improvement on the connection of the gas. The initial touch. We should preserve functioning to locate greater acceleration, which is where I feel we lose more.”
Both the new engine and the Valencia engine have been extremely aggressive, Márquez’s conceded, but Honda needed to invest time functioning on the electronics to try to repair that.
Dani Pedrosa summed up the problems the new RC213V has. “Basically, braking, entry and exit, we have to make the bike work much better,” he mentioned. That is fundamentally a massive component of every corner, placing Honda at a huge disadvantage.
There were issues with the chassis, causing pumping on corner exit, and instability on the brakes into specific corners. It was not a particularly encouraging report from the Repsol Honda guys, and only the amazing smoothness of Dani Pedrosa had kept him inside the prime 3.
What is encouraging for Honda is that once you appear previous Lorenzo, the gaps to the rest of the field had been small. Pedrosa was only .063 behind second-place man Valentino Rossi, and Marc Márquez was half a second behind Pedrosa.
But the reality that Honda appear after once again to have produced an engine that is unrideable without having electronics is a worrying idea. Their strategy in current years has been to construct an aggressive engine and they try to handle it using electronics.
That was hard enough with their own proprietary software, with the much less sophisticated spec application, that might prove to be a bridge also far.
Suzuki Finds Lost Horsepower
Suzuki appear to have taken the polar opposite approach. Last year’s engine was underpowered, but the new GSX-RR brought to Sepang was a major step forward, Aleix Espargaro enthused. “The engine is more effective everywhere,” he stated. “We have a lot more power in the bottom and in the prime.”
It was a significantly bigger step than the engine introduced at Barcelona in 2015, which only had a small prime end energy increase, adding a couple of kilometers per hour in top speed.
The engine may possibly have been potent, but it was also extremely manageable. To test the feeling of the engine, Espargaro rode the new GSX-RR without having traction manage for most of the day.
It was important to be capable to compare the new engine to the old one particular, and that was accomplished greatest with as little intervention from the electronics as achievable. As soon as Espargaro was satisfied with the new engine, he started to work on dialing in traction handle with his group, and instantly began going slower.
Espargaro set his fastest lap on a bike with no TC engaged, and went a complete second slower when he turned it on. That is a considerably easier issue to fix than the opposite.
The Fab Four Becomes the Great Five
If fans had been searching forward to Monday, they are watering at the mouth at the prospect of Tuesday.
Casey Stoner is due to take to the track as portion of Ducati’s test program on Tuesday, and will be riding on track as MotoGP’s present Aliens – Valentino Rossi, Dani Pedrosa, Marc Márquez and Jorge Lorenzo – for the extremely initial time.
The comparisons with Stoner’s time from Saturday have been tenuous, since of the differing situations at the track, Stoner’s 2’02.1 set on an empty and dirty track, while the weather was hotter on Monday. On Tuesday, the wonderful 5 all take to the track for the first time, allowing direct comparisons.
How will Stoner do? Jorge Lorenzo believed that the Australian would swiftly be up to speed. “I think he can be in the prime three,” the reigning world champion predicted. “He usually liked Sepang and he has had the identical days as us so he can be really fast.” Tomorrow, we see what Lorenzo’s predictions are worth.
Photos: Ducati, HRC, Suzuki, & Yamaha
This article was initially published on MotoMatters, and is republished right here on Asphalt & Rubber with permission by the author.
Sepang MotoGP Test Monday Summary: Lorenzo Dominates, Ducati Impresses, & Honda Struggles
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