Day 1 of the MotoGP CRT and Moto3 test at Cheste

Yesterday the Motorcycling MotoGP World Championship tests began at the Cheste circuit. Over these two days, the Valencian track is hosting several riders from the Moto3 category and three from the MotoGP CRT category, so we already have the first impressions of 2012 for some of the riders.

Regarding the CRT riders, the fastest was Randy de Puniet on the Aprilia from Team Aspar, setting a 1:35.30, while the newcomer to this machine, Aleix Espargaró, managed to place himself at 1:36.70. Things are heading in the right direction. There is still a lot of work to do to bring these lap times closer to those of the factory bikes, but step by step they are improving, and it seems the Frenchman has found his feel with his bike for 2012, while for the Catalan it is only a matter of time before his lap times improve.

From ten in the morning until five in the afternoon, they were working on the Valencian track with their machines, without interruptions and making the most of all the time available before the season opener in Qatar on April 8. The truth is that, for now, the two Aspar Team riders have expressed their satisfaction with their bikes for 2012: plenty of grip, precise electronics, and a good day, although a bit chilly for pushing hard and testing at Cheste.

As for the third CRT rider, Mattia Pasini, he was able to test his new bike. Like Espargaró, it was his first contact with this type of machine, so it was a day of impressions, although it did not start very well, as the Italian had a crash, fortunately nothing serious, and he finished the day with a lap time of 1:37.8.

Statements from Randy De Puniet:

The grip of the bike I tested today has improved a lot compared to the one I rode at the end of last year. It is an area where considerable progress has been made.

It was the first test after several months and I am very happy. I can see that a lot of work has been done this winter to develop the bike. This first contact has been very positive. I think we will keep improving tomorrow since there is a lot of room for progress. Today we mainly worked on traction control and trying to consolidate our braking points. Tomorrow we will focus more on the chassis side of the bike. It is still early, but we are seeing that this bike has enormous potential and offers us many options for development.

I am very motivated for this new adventure. I think there is a lot of work ahead and, although it is early, my goal is to be the CRT reference rider, to get as close to the factory bikes as I can.

Statements from Aleix Espargaró:

I am very happy because I have enjoyed myself enormously. It is the first time I have tested the CRT. I expected a lot of power and that is exactly what I found. On the other hand, I did not expect such a flexible and manageable chassis, which surprised me in a good way.

I have to admit that my first impression of this new bike has been fabulous. There had been talk of some drawbacks with the new tyres, and personally I found a bike that grips really well.

Today I met all the members of my team. They form a formidable unit and gave me a warm welcome, which is very important to me. Today we mainly worked on the electronics, on traction control and the anti-wheelie system.

From eleven to four we improved a lot. I think we have found a good base. Tomorrow we will go all out on the chassis to try to get the most out of it.

But the MotoGPs were not the only ones on track. Several Moto3 riders were also testing at Cheste, among them several of the favourite Spanish riders such as Héctor Faubel, Alberto Moncayo or Luis Salom, among others. As for their lap times, the fastest was our 39, Salom managed to lap in 1:43.2, while behind him Alberto Moncayo placed with a 1:43.3, and in third place, with an identical time, Faubel and Cortese with 1:43.7. The rider who did the most laps today at Cheste was Faubel, with 62 laps, followed by Moncayo with 52 laps and Ajo with 50 laps.

The rest of the riders placed themselves behind and went out on track, among them Ajo who set 1:43.9, followed by Danny Kent with 1:44.6; behind him Khairuddin with 1:45.5; Sissis with 1:45.9, and closing the order Binder with 1:47.2. The scare of the day was caused by Moncayo, who had a crash at the fifth corner of the circuit. Fortunately it was just a scare, and he will be able to go back out today to keep working.

Statements from Alberto Moncayo:

Today has been a very positive day. We have done quite a few laps and during all of them we drew many good conclusions.

The engine has improved a lot, smoothing out the abrupt responses it had in the training sessions we did before the break.
We have also worked on the chassis, whose improvements have come hand in hand with the good performance of the engine.

Today I met my entire technical team and I am very happy. We have connected very well and we can do great work. I was left wanting to improve a little more, but the track temperature dropped this afternoon and I made a small mistake that took me down. Nothing happened, so tomorrow we will keep working with the same enthusiasm.

Statements from Héctor Faubel:

I am very happy because, through hard work, we are improving the setup of the Kalex/KTM a lot. Since I first rode it until today it has improved noticeably, especially the engine. It seems to run a little less strongly than the last one we used. We think this is due to the development, so tomorrow we will do new tests. In any case, the most significant improvement from a mechanical point of view is reliability: the engine now gives much more confidence.

Today we worked quite a lot on the height and geometry of the bike, and we are certainly on the right track because I feel more and more comfortable. We are working closely with Kalex to improve the torsional stiffness of the bike; they have fully committed, which makes it easier for it to evolve.

MotoGP CRT times, day 1 of the Cheste test