Submitted by David Emmett on
The Espargaro brothers took the honors on the first day of the Mandalika test, Repsol Honda's Pol Espargaro smashing Toprak Razgatlioglu's WorldSBK Superpole record of 1'32.877 by over four tenths of a second, and leading brother Aleix on the Aprilia by nearly half a second. With Brad Binder in third on the KTM, Suzuki's Alex Rins in fourth, Yamaha world champion Fabio Quartararo in fifth, and Ducati's Jack Miller in sixth, that made it all six MotoGP manufacturers in the top six.
The track was dirty, and it rained on and off, making conditions difficult and leading to occasional tumbles. No one was hurt, but the track remained tricky once you get off line. Times are likely to drop drastically as the weekend progresses.
Times at the end of Day 1
| Pos | No. | Rider | Bike | Time | Diff | Prev |
| 1 | 44 | Pol Espargaro | Honda | 1'32.466 | ||
| 2 | 41 | Aleix Espargaro | Aprilia | 1'32.937 | 0.471 | 0.471 |
| 3 | 33 | Brad Binder | KTM | 1'32.943 | 0.477 | 0.006 |
| 4 | 42 | Alex Rins | Suzuki | 1'33.058 | 0.592 | 0.115 |
| 5 | 20 | Fabio Quartararo | Yamaha | 1'33.108 | 0.642 | 0.050 |
| 6 | 43 | Jack Miller | Ducati | 1'33.114 | 0.648 | 0.006 |
| 7 | 12 | Maverick Viñales | Aprilia | 1'33.147 | 0.681 | 0.033 |
| 8 | 36 | Joan Mir | Suzuki | 1'33.244 | 0.778 | 0.097 |
| 9 | 4 | Andrea Dovizioso | Yamaha | 1'33.245 | 0.779 | 0.001 |
| 10 | 89 | Jorge Martin | Ducati | 1'33.358 | 0.892 | 0.113 |
| 11 | 30 | Takaaki Nakagami | Honda | 1'33.394 | 0.928 | 0.036 |
| 12 | 21 | Franco Morbidelli | Yamaha | 1'33.518 | 1.052 | 0.124 |
| 13 | 5 | Johann Zarco | Ducati | 1'33.592 | 1.126 | 0.074 |
| 14 | 49 | Fabio Di Giannantonio | Ducati | 1'33.683 | 1.217 | 0.091 |
| 15 | 73 | Alex Marquez | Honda | 1'33.700 | 1.234 | 0.017 |
| 16 | 88 | Miguel Oliveira | KTM | 1'33.748 | 1.282 | 0.048 |
| 17 | 93 | Marc Marquez | Honda | 1'33.776 | 1.310 | 0.028 |
| 18 | 23 | Enea Bastianini | Ducati | 1'33.954 | 1.488 | 0.178 |
| 19 | 25 | Raul Fernandez | KTM | 1'33.966 | 1.500 | 0.012 |
| 20 | 10 | Luca Marini | Ducati | 1'34.165 | 1.699 | 0.199 |
| 21 | 72 | Marco Bezzecchi | Ducati | 1'34.173 | 1.707 | 0.008 |
| 22 | 63 | Francesco Bagnaia | Ducati | 1'34.318 | 1.852 | 0.145 |
| 23 | 40 | Darryn Binder | Yamaha | 1'34.495 | 2.029 | 0.177 |
| 24 | 87 | Remy Gardner | 24 | 87 | Remy GARDNER |
Comments
A solution to the dirty track
Michelin should make a run of scooter tires, standard except with the rubber being the MotoGP soft compound. Then use them for scooter races the weekend before. Result...clean track with the proper rubber laid down!! :)
Why?
Do these tracks not have the equipment to clean a track? No street sweepers for rent? Seems like so many track owners don't care about spending a little to make the actual track safe.
This is
With the amount of time an
With the amount of time an effort that goes into a test like this, the track prep seems rather bush league. But then a part of me thinks that the season will have a more interesting start if nobody gets through their testing programs....
Evidently there is such
Evidently there is such machinery, not sure what. Guessing pressure washers. A few corners WERE cleaned. It also leaves it with no rubber, and not a solution that riders like (B.Binder said the two corners they did try cleaning were no better for traction).
Once the riders had all put in their mandatory 20 laps by 3pm, there was enough traction but only for a very narrow line.
Imagine learning a brand new track like that! Nightmare.
RichDesmond, I volunteer for the spinny scooter racing crew! I already have fresh Michelin Pilots on the Malaguti 150.
These guys are already over there, here is the Chang International Circuit "getting cleaned" RichDesmond style, go to 9min 40sec and watch for a half a lap, you'll get the idea. Let's do it!!
:)
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=FDVl_9KGlQQ&t=121s
It's a new circuit and it's
It's a new circuit and it's bang in the middle of rainy season. Maybe the ground isn't settled enough, if it ever could be, so when the tap goes on full it drags a lot of dirt with it....i wonder if it's heavy enough for the stones too.
Ground being settled?
Please don't bring up visions of COTA!
I don't mean the ground
I don't mean the ground shifting. I know that soil, rainy season, green field projects, it gets everywhere like a slimy coating. One minute it's a construction site, next a mirror, then the construction site returns with extra brown, the disturbed ground averaging itself across every imaginable surface, plus, until it's all done and dusted...sewers...yummy ! I just wonder whether it will take a while for the disturbed environment to settle and clean up, the track has just been through it's first rainy season.
Redundant comment.
Redundant comment.
Cannot really delete comments here. Once you type stupidly, you're stuck with saying something.