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2008-10-27 Valencia test - day 1 - claims and times
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First day of MotoGP testing in Valencia finally brought to us expected rider-team switches, so we were able to see what some riders may do on different machinery. One of the riders in spotlight was Nicky Hayden, who had first chance to ride Ducati Desmosedici's GP8 and GP9, setting time that was slightly off his time on Honda. Another rider that was in spotlight was Marco Melandri, who quickly adapted to Kawasaki and set impressive time, just 0.2 seconds of his new team-mate, John Hopkins. Read rider claims after first day in Valencia.
Casey Stoner:
The feelings from this first day of testing in Valencia with the GP9 have been definitely good. We tried many things, some worked well, others less so, but this is normal because the bike is quite different in its characteristics and in its reactions compared to the GP8. We still have other things to try but the feeling is already excellent and in fact we were able to lap consistently quickly. I am very happy with the behavior of the engine that seems to me to be more progressive and predictable. The bike is more stable in braking which is really saying something because the GP8 was already very efficient from this point of view. We have to work more on the rear set-up but the potential is good, it is just a question of finding the right set-up. Also as far as the tyres are concerned I am satisfied, above all the specification that we used this morning, with which we were able to maintain an excellent rhythm for thirty laps. A good start from this point of view. I think that Nicky is content with his first day at Ducati, he continued to improve during the day and I am sure that with a few more days with the bike he will find himself in good shape.
Dani Pedrosa:
Today we had perfect conditions for testing, it was sunny and the asphalt had good grip after yesterday’s race. We tested some new engine specs in order to improve the character of the engine and then we focused on testing the new tyres. At the beginning the feeling was not so good but working with the mechanics, we made some changes and the feeling improved considerably. It’s clear that next year the rider and the bike will need to adapt to the tyres. Today the track conditions were perfect so we had no problems with the limited number of tyres, we will need to check how this tyre system works with indifferent conditions.
Valentino Rossi:
Today we began work on 2009 and I was able to try the new bike for the first time. It is only the first prototype but my impression of it is very good and it seems they have done a good job. We are working on the engine in order to have more acceleration on the exit from the corner and there is a small change, not enough yet but in the right direction so this is important. We worked on the setting and the weight distribution and I was faster with the new bike so this is good! We need more time to understand the bike and more laps but this is only the first day and it is very positive. The other ‘big’ thing today of course is the new tyres and I am really happily surprised. This is not the best track to try them at as we don't have so much data for here but anyway they feel very good. I was expecting less grip but we had a lot and everyone was fast today. The track conditions are a lot better today than they have been during the weekend so this makes a difference, but anyway we can already see that they are quite good. I think Bridgestone have done a good job but of course it will be hard to know for sure until we have been to some different tracks. We have to wait and see. For me they feel good even in comparison with my Bridgestone tyres from all of the season so I am happy so far. I have a special ‘world champion’ helmet now which I like a lot and which I will use throughout the winter testing. As for the number one…I will keep my 46 of course but I will put the number one on my back as I did in the past.
Chris Vermeulen:
It was good to test at the track today, as we were able to compare with yesterday’s times and see how we were progressing against the best times from the race. We had some new parts from Suzuki on the engine, chassis and electronic sides, and we certainly found some positives and some negatives – which is what testing is all about – and we have certainly got a good direction to go in from that. Hopefully Suzuki can work on the things we’ve found here and produce something good for the Phillip Island test next month. We consistently made steps with lap-times today and the new Bridgestone tyres seemed to suit the bike well and the whole package seems to have adapted to the change.
Loris Capirossi:
I think that overall it was a good day for the first day of testing. I did a lot of laps and never stopped for a break all day, we think it might rain tomorrow so we needed to do a lot of things today. I think that Suzuki has made a good job to improve the engine, but we still need to work more in the same way to make it even better. The tyres were good and the feeling is that not different to what we have been using. It was good to have a full day’s working because we were able to try a lot of things and compare them in similar conditions. We need to believe 100% in the programme and I know we can still go a lot better than we are doing now!
Jorge Lorenzo:
I am really happy today because now everyone has the same tyres. I tried a test bike with some new parts and today we were just working on collecting information and understanding the new things. I think it was a good day and I made some good laps, so I am quite happy. I had a crash in the afternoon which was my mistake, it was at turn twelve and I opened the throttle too much when the tyre was cold, but I was not hurt and we were able to continue. Tomorrow we will try again with the new tyres and keep working and collecting information. Of course we need more time to be able to understand them and evaluate them properly, this is just the first day but we will go step-by-step. There is a long time before the new season but I am excited that we have started work already.
Andrea Dovizioso:
It’s been a really exciting day. The bike feels good, it feels like an evolution of my 2008 bike, like a step forward, which is what I expected, so I’m happy. Compared to my 08 bike, the factory bike has many positive points, in particular the engine is both smoother and more powerful. Right from the start the stability at the front was very good. With the electronics, I need more time to learn and understand them, especially traction control as there are so many settings. I also tried Bridgestone tyres for the first time today, they seem fine, but I need to slightly adapt my riding style to get the best from them. All in all it was a positive first day but I still have a lot to learn. With my new team we start working step by step and I like this system.
John Hopkins:
The front tyre we were allocated this morning feels identical to the one that Valentino and Casey have been using all year, but we've not been able to run on our bike before. Today we've had the chance to make some changes to the overall set-up of the bike, and it looks like we've made some real progress. I've now got a much better feeling from the front than I've had for some time, and that's given me back the confidence to push harder in the corners. We've also run back-to-back tests using both bikes on two different engine specifications, and that's allowed us to make a direct comparison and identify a clear direction for development. It's also been interesting to start work with my new crew chief, Naoya Kaneko, as he has a very structured approach to the rider debrief and I think this will make a difference when we're pushed for time during race weekends. Overall, it's been a pretty productive day and I'm really happy with the improvements we've made to the bike; it's completely different now and I felt more comfortable on it today than I have all season. If we get more dry weather tomorrow then I hope we can continue to make improvements to the bike.
Nicky Hayden:
It has been a very intense day and full of many things to test and to understand, but it was exactly as I expected it to be. I did just one run with the GP8 and then I switched completely to the GP9. Obviously there is a lot of work to do but I am happy, it was a good day that has allowed me to understand that the bike has good potential and, more than anything, I can say that I really enjoyed myself. This first day has given me an appreciation of the bike and the team. One of the things that really impressed me the most was the acceleration. I found myself pretty comfortable on the bike, and I really didn't make a lot of changes to levers and handlebars. We have not even changed a lot the settings, we have just made some small changes, some mapping settings, a couple of tyres, in order to try and understand the direction of the bike and to feel comfortable on it.
Test Times - Valencia day 1:
1. Casey Stoner (AUS) Ducati Marlboro 1'32.464
2. Dani Pedrosa (SPA) Repsol Honda 1'32.672
3. Valentino Rossi (ITA) Fiat Yamaha Team 1'32.921
4. Chris Vermeulen (AUS) Rizla Suzuki 1'33.142
5. Loris Capirossi (ITA) Rizla Suzuki MotoGP 1'33.325
6. Alex De Angelis (RSM) Team San Carlo 1'33.375
7. Jorge Lorenzo (SPA) Fiat Yamaha Team 1'33.550
8. Andrea Dovizioso (ITA) Repsol Honda 1'33.676
9. John Hopkins (USA) Kawasaki Racing 1'33.760
10. Marco Melandri (ITA) Kawasaki Racing Team 1'33.782
11. Randy De Puniet (FRA) LCR Honda MotoGP 1'33.832
12. Nicky Hayden (USA) Ducati Marlboro Team 1'33.960
13. Toni Elias (SPA) Team San Carlo 1'34.129
14. Sete Gibernau (SPA) Grupo Francisco Hernando 1'34.451
15. Mika Kallio (FIN) Alice Team 1'34.793
16. Olivier Jacque (FRA) Kawasaki Racing 1'34.925
17. Niccolò Canepa (ITA) Ducati Test 1'34.995
18. Yuki Takahashi (JPN) JiR Team Scot Honda 1'35.203
Comunidad Valencia: Record Lap
D.Pedrosa (Honda) 2007, 1'32.748
Comunidad Valencia: Best Lap
V. Rossi (Yamaha) 2006, 1'31.002
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