Did anyone have doubts if Marc Márquez would be able to go fast as he climbed for the first time to the Honda of the Repsol team? Well, if I had to be dispelled because in its premiere, Marc Márquez has managed to sign the seventh fastest time to just over one second of his teammate and fastest driver on the second day of testing in Valencia, Dani Pedrosa.
In the morning the rain gave no respite to the pilots and only some brave dared to go out on track. However after lunch it was a dry lane that allowed all runners to finally open the 2013 season. Dani Pedrosa was the first to go out on track with smooth tires and then followed by the rest of the grid. After 30 laps, the Spaniard stopped the clock in 1’32.322.
His new teammate, Marc Márquez, took to the track at about four in the afternoon. In just six laps he was already two seconds behind the best time and as he went out on track, he was gradually reducing his disadvantage with respect to the first position. After 28 laps he left the seventh fastest time, as we said, at just over one second: 1’33.403.
Another team that had a new face from Moto2 and had not yet been released was the Tech3 with Briton Bradley Smith. The one from Oxford left in the morning with the wet track and again in the afternoon leaving the eleventh fastest time to little more than two seconds of Dani Pedrosa.
His partner, the also British Cal Crutchlow was the second best driver on the asphalt of Valencia. Despite having a broken finger on Sunday, his best time was just over three tenths slower than that of the Repsol Honda rider. Cal took the opportunity to try small changes in his Yamaha for the new season.
On the Ducati side, Andrea Dovizioso has continued to become familiar with his new bike and finished sixth. Nicky Hayden took the opportunity to try new configurations and chassis in the Ducati and meanwhile, he got into fourth position. Another that is adapting is Andrea Iannone that in his case got the ninth fastest time and took the opportunity to shoot in the wet in the morning. The Ducati tester, Michele Pirros replaced Ben Spies again as a tester
Álvaro Bautista had the opportunity to test his 2012 mount against another with new component updates. For his part, Stefan Bradl has achieved the status of official driver within Honda and with a motorcycle very similar to that of Dani Pedrosa marked the third best time of the day.
As for the CRT, the Power Electronic Aspar team has worked hard with its two drivers, Randy de Puniet (tenth) and Aléix Espargaró (fifteenth) and the development of a new chassis. Danilo Petrucci has also tested a new Suter chassis in his Came IodaRacing Project.
The representation of the Avintia Blusens team has fallen to Héctor Barberá, in the process of adapting the MotoGP to the BQR-FTR. Hiroshi Aoyama did not go out today to shoot and will do a test in Jerez at the end of the month before the prohibition to train. Those who did not leave either were Colin Edwards or Claudio Corti.
Finally, the Yamaha Factory Racing team that yesterday had collected the gear and had gone to continue with the test in Aragon has not been able to dodge the rain. The day was quite unpleasant and even Jorge Lorenzo suffered a fall without consequences. Valentino Rossi on the other hand was happy with the bike and commented that the power difference between the 800 Yamaha that he took in 2010 and the current one is not so appreciable. I do not know if it means with this that the Yamaha does not go as much or that in the base it is still a very similar motorcycle regardless of the change of displacement.
Motorpasionmoto
