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Post by truenorth on Nov 8, 2022 6:48:15 GMT -8
Mat Oxley: Miller soon to go out on the KTM
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Post by truenorth on Nov 8, 2022 6:50:45 GMT -8
Yamaha Motorsports
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Post by truenorth on Nov 8, 2022 6:52:05 GMT -8
Simon Patterson: The day’s two most important bikes…
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Post by truenorth on Nov 8, 2022 6:54:19 GMT -8
Ricard Jove: Warming up the Honda of JoanMirOfficial and the Aprilia of moliveira88 and 25RaulFernandez
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Post by truenorth on Nov 8, 2022 6:54:50 GMT -8
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Post by truenorth on Nov 8, 2022 6:56:59 GMT -8
Simon Patterson: Ex-Suzuki riders both in plain colours today, and not allowed to speak to the media either
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Post by truenorth on Nov 8, 2022 6:59:33 GMT -8
David Emmett Times at the moment are fairly irrelevant. People are testing A LOT of stuff, more than usual at a Valencia test.
Maverick Viñales' reign as king of winter testing remains unbroken.
Mir, Miller, Raul F all on very similar pace, 1.3 off VIN, Rins 0.3 off them
Adapting well: Oliveira - up to speed very quickly Pol - much happer than he was at Honda
Mir is doing OK, but he is in for a Pol Espargaro year at Repsol Honda Jack Miller is going to be fine, but is taking time Raul F is not as good as his teammate. Again. Augusto F is doing perfectly well for a rookie
In trouble: Alex Rins
Alex Marquez. Lad is adapting very well. Looks like he is going to be fast this year.
Alex M, Oliveira best bike switchers so far.
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Post by truenorth on Nov 8, 2022 7:08:56 GMT -8
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Post by truenorth on Nov 8, 2022 7:11:45 GMT -8
Mat Oxley: 2023 prototype out front - 2022 bike at the back
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Post by truenorth on Nov 8, 2022 7:12:51 GMT -8
Mat Oxley: Zarco ready for his first run - presumably without a front shapeshifter, which are banned for next season. So he has to re-acclimatise
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Post by truenorth on Nov 8, 2022 7:14:08 GMT -8
David Emmett: KTM get into the ground effect game
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Post by truenorth on Nov 8, 2022 7:16:47 GMT -8
Alberto Puig and the situation of Honda: «When you are so far behind you know that you have to improve everything». The Catalan criticizes himself and talks about the step forward that the brand must take in 2023.
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Post by truenorth on Nov 8, 2022 7:18:18 GMT -8
Niki Kovács: Both alexmarquez73 and FabioDiggia49 have one GP21 and one GP22 for today's test. The GP22s are newly built, while Marco Bezzecchi has one of Jack Miller's bike next to his GP21. Don't wait for feedbacks from Joan Mir, Álex Rins, Jack Miller or Pol Espargaro today about their feelings with the new bikes. According to their 2022 contracts, they are not allowed to talk.
Simon Patterson: Oft. An unhappy Marc Marquez tonight. ‘With this bike, we can’t win the championship.’ Hoping for a lot more in Sepang in February
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Post by truenorth on Nov 8, 2022 7:20:13 GMT -8
David Emmett: 2022 Valencia MotoGP Test 1pm Times: Viñales Leads Espargaro In Aprilia 1-2 Submitted by David Emmett on Tue, 2022-11-08 12:32
Results:
Pos No. Rider Bike Time Diff Prev 1 12 Maverick Viñales Aprilia 1'30.325 2 41 Aleix Espargaro Aprilia 1'30.398 0.073 0.073 3 89 Jorge Martin Ducati 1'30.576 0.251 0.178 4 23 Enea Bastianini Ducati 1'30.592 0.267 0.016 5 10 Luca Marini Ducati 1'30.613 0.288 0.021 6 5 Johann Zarco Ducati 1'30.626 0.301 0.013 7 93 Marc Marquez Honda 1'30.676 0.351 0.050 8 72 Marco Bezzecchi Ducati 1'30.735 0.410 0.059 9 88 Miguel Oliveira Aprilia 1'30.936 0.611 0.201 10 33 Brad Binder KTM 1'31.084 0.759 0.148 11 20 Fabio Quartararo Yamaha 1'31.087 0.762 0.003 12 73 Alex Marquez Ducati 1'31.140 0.815 0.053 13 44 Pol Espargaro GasGas 1'31.183 0.858 0.043 14 63 Francesco Bagnaia Ducati 1'31.257 0.932 0.074 15 30 Takaaki Nakagami Honda 1'31.257 0.932 16 21 Franco Morbidelli Yamaha 1'31.289 0.964 0.032 17 49 Fabio Di Giannantonio Ducati 1'31.314 0.989 0.025 18 36 Joan Mir Honda 1'31.560 1.235 0.246 19 43 Jack Miller KTM 1'31.638 1.313 0.078 20 25 Raul Fernandez Aprilia 1'31.638 1.313 21 42 Alex Rins Honda 1'31.970 1.645 0.332 22 37 Augusto Fernandez GasGas 1'32.684 2.359 0.714 23 51 Michele Pirro Ducati 1'32.805 2.480 0.121
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Post by truenorth on Nov 8, 2022 7:54:28 GMT -8
Mat Oxley: Bastianini just had his first factory Ducati crash, while evaluating Ducati's new Aprilia-style ground-effect lower fairing
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Post by truenorth on Nov 8, 2022 8:13:01 GMT -8
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Post by truenorth on Nov 8, 2022 8:22:24 GMT -8
Mat Oxley: RNF playing with their new toy
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Post by truenorth on Nov 9, 2022 6:22:24 GMT -8
Marini quickest as Oliveira shines with Aprilia A good day for Ducati and Aprilia, but there are rumblings of discontent already coming from Honda The Valencia MotoGP™ Official Test is done and dusted, as teams and riders worked rigorously to get their 2023 campaigns up and running. As it has been for much of the season, it’s a Ducati at the top of the timesheets thanks to Luca Marini’s (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) 1:30.032. There was a VR46 double act too, with Marco Bezzecchi finishing the day third, with Maverick Viñales (Aprilia Racing) sandwiched between the two and 0.225s off P1 on what was a positive Test for the Italian manufacturers. Lap times weren’t the main order of the day though, with a number of riders settling into new surroundings, while some established names within teams had plenty of toys to play with as they work on their 2023 spec machines. Looking at the timesheet toppers first and, as they usually do during Tests, Ducati drew plenty of intrigue. While Marini and Bezzecchi produced quick lap times on their GP22s, as did sixth-placed Fabio Di Giannantonio (Gresini Racing MotoGP™), eyes were drawn to the factory outfit as World Champion Francesco Bagnaia and his new teammate Enea Bastianini set about planning their title campaigns. Looking at the timesheet toppers first and, as they usually do during Tests, Ducati drew plenty of intrigue. While Marini and Bezzecchi produced quick lap times on their GP22s, as did sixth-placed Fabio Di Giannantonio (Gresini Racing MotoGP™), eyes were drawn to the factory outfit as World Champion Francesco Bagnaia and his new teammate Enea Bastianini set about planning their title campaigns. For Pecco, he finished outside the top 10 but did get some testing done, trying out a new front fairing and wings, while his Desmosedici also donned Aprilia-style side fairings. Bastianini, who took a tumble in the afternoon, finished the day in P10 and also got to try the side fairings, as did Prima Pramac duo Jorge Martin and Johann Zarco. There was also a Ducati debut for Alex Marquez, and the new Gresini rider placed P15. Over at Aprilia, and it proved a fruitful Test for the Noale factory. They had three riders inside the top five. Viñales was the best of the bunch in second while Miguel Oliveira’s time on the RS-GP got off to a flyer, the RNF man ends the Test fourth on the timesheets, one ahead of Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing). They also welcomed Raul Fernandez into the fold at RNF, with the Spaniard riding the 2022 factory bike for the first time. P7 went the way of Valencia GP podium finisher Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing). The South African was riding on a new chassis that helped deliver him that P2 result at the weekend, while he also tried out a new tail unit and exhausts. The Austrian manufacturer also have Jack Miller teaming up with Binder on the factory team, with the Aussie set to work straight away. Meanwhile, Augusto Fernandez, the only rookie of the class, and Pol Espargaro join up with the Tech3 GASGAS Factory Racing venture. Having endured a tough two years at Honda, Espargaro couldn't contain his joy at being back aboard the RC16 after completing his first runs of the day. Yamaha were hard at work too as they plot their route back to the summit of MotoGP™, and nobody completed more laps than the recently deposed Fabio Quartararo. The Frenchman did 92 laps, testing out a new chassis, two new aero packages, large rear wings and the 2023 engine with his best time seeing him finish the Test P9. Conspicuous in their absence from the top 10 are Honda. Of their four riders, Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) was the best placed in 12th, and initial murmurs from the HRC camp are ones of discontent. The eight-time World Champion tested different chassis, exhausts, intakes a seat, a tail unit and a carbon clutch, but none of it has left him particularly impressed. On a positive note for the Japanese manufacturer, they handed RC213V debuts to ex-Suzuki pair Joan Mir (Repsol Honda Team) and Alex Rins (LCR Honda Castrol) and they immediately got to work, testing the chassis, intakes, exhausts, tail unit, Kalex swingarm between them. That’s a wrap from MotoGP™ in 2022, as teams and riders can now jet off some well-deserved holidays before action resumes in the new year. Make sure you stay tuned to motogp.com however, as we continue to bring you the latest reaction and reports, as well as exclusive interviews as the key figures reflect on the season gone.
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Post by truenorth on Nov 9, 2022 6:33:50 GMT -8
ANALYSIS: Which factory new boy performed best in Valencia? We've taken a look at the best times from the Valencia Grand Prix and the Valencia Test to see who gelled with their new machinery the most All eyes were on the seven premier class stars making their official debuts with new factories at Tuesday’s Valencia Test as we finally got answers to the questions we’ve been asking for months. Is the grass really is greener on the other side? Well, motogp.com has taken a look at all of the data from the Valencia Grand Prix and the Official Test to see who gelled best with their new MotoGP™ machines. First up, the rider that made the biggest leap forward on his new bike: RNF Aprilia’s Raul Fernandez. The Moto2™ record-breaker had a rookie season to forget on KTM’s RC16 but, despite finishing the Valencia Test 1.3 seconds adrift of Luca Marini (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) in 21st, the Spaniard did go over a quarter of a second faster than what he managed at the weekend. Fernandez’s best lap of Grand Prix was a 1:31.598 set in Free Practice 2 and, on only his first day with Aprilia’s RS-GP, the 22-year-old found a further 0.258 at the Test by setting a 1:31.340. Often body language is as much of a giveaway as the actual timesheets and former Honda man Pol Espargaro wasn’t shy about letting the world know just how happy he was to be back on a KTM RC16. The Tech3 GASGAS Factory Racing new boy was heard telling crew chief Paul Trevathan “I love it” following his first run and it’s easy to see why. Espargaro’s best lap of the Grand Prix was a 1:30.936 and he managed to go 0.179 seconds faster on Tuesday. The Spaniard's 1:30.757 is only two tenths of a second shy of his personal best lap around the Circuit Ricardo Tormo set in qualifying back in 2020. Despite being unable to better his lap time from the Grand Prix, RNF Aprilia’s Miguel Oliveira was arguably the story of the day at the Valencia Test. Fourth on the timesheets thanks to a 1:30.367, the Portuguese rider was only 0.131 seconds away from the lap that put him 14th on the grid for Sunday’s race. Furthermore, the five-time MotoGP™ race winner was able to dip beneath the 1:31 barrier on three further occasions throughout the day meaning there’s reason to be optimistic over the winter for the Noale factory’s new signing. Another man whose body language, or beaming smile to be precise, was a huge giveaway at how much he enjoyed his first day in new colours was Alex Marquez. Much like Espargaro, the two-time World Champion was left out in the cold at Honda during the second half of the season but seems to have found a happy home at Gresini Ducati. He ended up a quarter of a second shy of his best lap in Q1 at the Valencia Grand Prix but, quite incredibly, he went faster than his best lap from Sunday’s race on 35 separate occasions. Much was made of Joan Mir’s move to join Marc Marquez at Repsol Honda and it was a steady start for the 2020 MotoGP™ World Champion. Mir’s 1:30.914 was 0.693 seconds slower than he managed in Q2 on Saturday afternoon and he was able to better his best race lap on only five occasions throughout the Valencia Test. It was a similar story for Alex Rins too, who was 1.288 seconds adrift of the lap that placed him in the middle of the second row for the season finale. Jack Miller’s start to life at Red Bull KTM Factory Racing proved a challenge with the Australian’s best lap of the Valencia Test 0.953 seconds shy of his front row-worthy lap from the weekend. Thriller bettered his best race lap on three occasions, but the work of new teammate Brad Binder will leave the former Ducati man feeling positive. Binder set the fastest lap of Sunday’s Valencia Grand Prix en route to second place and dipped beneath that 1'31.192 ten times throughout the day. Last but not least, let's take a look at Augusto Fernandez (Tech3 GASGAS Factory Racing), who quietly impressed on his premier class debut. The new Moto2™ World Champion posted a 1:31.730 to finish his first day in MotoGP™ only 1.697 seconds away from the fastest man. By comparison, the last time we tested at Valencia, Brad Binder was making his MotoGP™ debut with KTM and closed the two-day test 2.518 seconds behind the fastest man, having set a 1:32.367.
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Post by truenorth on Nov 9, 2022 6:56:11 GMT -8
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