Less than 24hrs from the end to the 2013 season Yamaha Factory Racing riders Jorge Lorenzo and Valentino Rossi were back out on track today. This afternoon’s session was the first of three test days marking the start of the official 2014 pre-season test schedule.
Both riders spent some time evaluating the 2014 YZR-M1 alongside a 2013 reference machine. Lorenzo and Rossi also made some laps with the new standard ECU that will be used as part of the 2014 regulations. Today was Rossi’s first riding session with new crew chief Silvano Galbusera.
Jorge Lorenzo
“We tried many small things today and some have been very positive so we are quite satisfied. I feel good and I feel in good shape. We were able to give good information to the engineers so everything is going well so far and we are looking forward to continuing tomorrow.”
Valentino Rossi
“Today was very emotional, it was something different. We were working a long time with Jeremy so today was like a restart from the beginning but I’m happy and I’m satisfied with the day. I know Silvano already from Superbike as I did some testing in 2010 with the R1 together with him and I liked the way we worked. It’s just the first day but anyway it was a good day for me, I was faster and we worked well on the bike. The condition of the track and the weather were perfect so I enjoyed it a lot. We worked with both bikes, I liked the new one a lot, it has good power exit from the corners and the chassis gives a good feeling on the front so the first impression is very positive.”
Yamaha Factory Racing Press Release
Yamaha Factory Racing Press Release
