Rain cut short Monday’s MotoGP testing session at Brno, but despite the wet weather many of the teams managed to get feedback and data from 40+ laps.

Jorge Lorenzo was once again top of the timesheets and posted a fastest time of 1:56.269, while Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa both got into the 1:56 time-band.

Valentino Rossi was out on track, despite initial rumours suggesting that he was being banned from testing due to the announcement that he had signed for Ducati for next season.

Brno Test Times: Monday:

1. Jorge LORENZO Yamaha 1:56.269 (44 laps)
2. Casey STONER Ducati 1:56.844 (37)
3. Dani Test PEDROSA Honda 1:56.944(6)
4. Valentino ROSSI Yamaha 1:57.129 (50)
5. Dani PEDROSA Honda 1:57.424 (28)
6. Colin EDWARDS Yamaha 1:57.512 (41)
7. Ben SPIES Yamaha1:57.575 (42)
8. Andrea DOVIZIOSO Honda1:57.691 (48)
9. Loris CAPIROSSI Suzuki1:57.700 (51)
10. Nicky HAYDEN Ducati 1:57.991 (38)
11. Hector BARBERA Ducati 1:58.017 (47)
12. Marco MELANDRI Honda 1:58.070 (42)
13. Marco SIMONCELLI Honda 1:58.091 (35)
14. Aleix ESPARGARO Ducati 1:58.612 (53)
15. Hiroshi AOYAMA Honda 1:58.830 (46)
16. Mika KALLIO Ducati 1:58.926 (62)
17. Alvaro BAUTISTA Suzuki 1:59.454 (30)

Rider and Team Reactions

FIAT YAMAHA:

Jorge Lorenzo- Position: 1st Time: 1’56.269 Laps: 44

“This was an important and interesting test for us, both for the rest of the season and looking towards next year. We had a lot to do but unfortunately the rain forced us to stop early. As well as the ?new’ prototype machine for next year we also tried an engine upgrade and a new Ohlins suspension, but it’s too early to know if they will be better for our M1, which is already very competitive. We got quite a lot of information though so hopefully it will help the engineers to improve things even more.”

Valentino Rossi – Position: 4th Time: 1’57.129 Laps: 50

“I’m happier today because we worked hard to understand what happened during yesterday’s race and at the end we have a clearer picture. We worked a lot on the setting and we found out some things, which we hope will be useful over the rest of the season and help us to have some more good races. I tried a new engine for the 2010 bike and it’s not so different but there are some small things about it which I think can help; I hope we can use it soon.”

DUCATI MARLBORO:
CASEY STONER (Ducati Marlboro Team)
“We tried a new fork today and as far as we could tell the feeling is positive. Unfortunately we were only able to get a couple of hours in this morning because immediately after lunch it started to rain and we couldn’t complete the test. I hung about in the garage in case we got chance to go back out but the track stayed wet and there was no point. Our impressions of the fork are good but really the day was a bit of a waste.”

NICKY HAYDEN – (Ducati Marlboro Team)
“We got out there this morning and got a few hours of testing in because we really needed it. We had a few new settings we wanted to try as well as the new fork. The feedback was positive but at the moment but we need more tests. My hand was a little painful but honestly it wasn’t a major drama and I hope that with a week’s rest I can be fit for my home race.

REPSOL HONDA:

DANI PEDROSA

“This morning we started with our race set-up from yesterday and made some improvements to the rear grip which could help us in the upcoming races. I had a crash with the race bike late in the morning and took an impact on my chest which might be painful tomorrow, but luckily I was able to get back on the bike this afternoon without any problems. I tested an updated chassis and the initial results were positive, but I had only five laps on it before the rain ended the day for us. We weren’t able to test the new Ohlins suspension which is a pity because these were new parts for next year, but overall it was a worthwhile test.”

ANDREA DOVIZIOSO

“Today we tested the new Ohlins front forks and shock for next year and we will take a look at the data collected from those runs to verify the results. We also tested this year’s Ohlins components with modified settings, and the feeling was good so we’ll take those to the next race at Indianapolis. We made some adjustments to the front set-up which has improved the stability. Our plan was also to test some modifications to the electronic controls and we started this, but the rain interrupted us so we didn’t get through the full programme. Still, we did some valuable work today which should help us at the upcoming races.”

TECH 3 YAMAHA
Colin Edwards 5th 1.57.512 – 41 laps

“We made a change with the set-up for the race yesterday and I didn’t really have a good feeling with the bike, so we reverted back to the setting I was happy with on Saturday just to try and understand why I wasn’t able to run the same pace. I’ve learned not to race the bike with a setting that we hadn’t tested but we thought it would be fine. I tested some different front-end geometry to try and make more progress with the better turning performance we found earlier in the weekend and we’ve got some more ideas for the future. I tried a new Bridgestone front and I was really happy with that so it was a good test. Although I wasn’t happy with the result yesterday, I felt we made a breakthrough with the bike here and I’m really looking forward to challenging for my first top six finish of the season at the next race in Indianapolis.”

Ben Spies 6th 1.57.575 – 42 laps

“It was a good day. I can’t say too much about the new bike and honestly I’m not sure exactly what I rode. I just got on and rode what was given to me and I didn’t set any blistering lap times today but th at was not the objective. Today was all about giving feedback and getting some data on the new bike. The good thing is that I was pretty much on the pace of the bike I’ve been riding since February and that is a big positive because we’ve got plenty of time to work on that bike. We got lots of information so it was a productive day. It was a good weekend with my first front row start and a strong fourth place in the race and after today I’m heading to Indianapolis for another home race full of confidence. I love racing in front of my home fans and hopefully I’ll be able to get my best result of the season at Indy.”

Popularity: 1% [?]

Subscribe to the post comments feeds or Leave a trackback