MotoGP: Marquez on top again after productive day of Catalunya testing
Following Sunday's fantastic race at the Gran Premi Monster Energy de Catalunya, the MotoGPâ„¢ teams carried out a full day of testing at the Barcelona-Catalunya track on Monday, with World Champion Marc Marquez registering the fastest lap time.
The day started with the riders carrying out a 30-minute test of the shorter track loop at Turn 10, with the purpose of assessing whether its use could potentially enhance safety in the future. The riders will provide formal feedback on the trial to the Grand Prix Safety Commission at the next event in Assen.
The test took place in dry and sunny conditions throughout the day, with dark clouds briefly threatening mid-afternoon but no rain affecting proceedings.
Marc Marquez worked with his Repsol Honda Team on bike settings and electronics configuration, with the approaching visits to Assen and the Sachsenring in mind. Like most of the riders present, the World Champion also tried a new Bridgestone front tire with an updated composition which may be introduced later in the season.
Movistar Yamaha MotoGP riders Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi worked on a new 2015 specification engine and tried a new Akrapovic exhaust system on their factory Yamaha YZR-M1, with the Italian and Spaniard posting laps respectively three and nine tenths of a second slower than Marquez's 1:41.184 time.
Ducati Team's full-time riders tested updated software which Michele Pirro also used over the race weekend. The Italian test rider remains set to continue testing at Barcelona-Catalunya over the coming 48 hours.
Randy de Puniet tried a new engine with the Suzuki MotoGP Test Team and will continue his work at the track over the next two days. Suzuki are also focusing on chassis development and software evolution, whilst they will aim to find a suitable setup for racing at this circuit before they return to full competition next season.
Stefan Bradl worked on suspension geometry and electronics tweaks, whilst Alvaro Bautista wrapped up early after brake and suspension tests, still feeling the effects of his big crash on Saturday.
On the other side of the GO&FUN Honda Gresini garage, Scott Redding was testing new geometry settings and, along with the rest of the Open riders, had new Magneti Marelli software to try out.
Swiss Moto2â„¢ rider Dominique Aegerter tested Mike di Meglio's second Avintia Racing bike, putting in a huge workload of 90 laps as he gained his first experience on premier class machinery.