Nico Terol and Jordi Torres finish fourth and sixth in Valencia test, improving on their fastest times from the race weekend. Torres also had his presence in the team for 2013 confirmed officially
With the Valencia GP still fresh in the memory, the Moto2 riders moved straight on with their preparations for 2013. Despite having already ridden over three days at the last GP of the year, the intermediate class riders showed tireless energy to try out new things over the course of the seven hours of track time. The track opened at 10am local time, and closed at 5pm with only a lunch break in between to split stints. The conditions in Valencia were finally dry, with none of the interruptions that had affected the weekend. Some thirty riders were in action, including some newcomers moving up from Moto3.
Today was a day as productive as it was intense for MAPFRE Aspar riders Nico Terol and Jordi Torres. Both were early risers and went out on track shortly before 11am, then continued through to the end. Torres completed 72 laps, Terol 63. Besides the new clutch set to be used by all Moto2 riders next season, there were other changes made by the duo. Nico worked on the front fork, in order to get more traction on corner entry and confidence under braking. He also tried various tyre compounds, including a softer one in the last stint of the afternoon that received a positive review. It was at the end of the day that he clocked his best lap: 1’35.4 – four tenths faster than his qualifying time for the Valencia GP.
Likewise, Jordi Torres also dropped his lap times from the weekend by four tenths. The Spaniard focused on the geometry of his bike, looking for the best riding position for his frame. The development of this work was reflected in his lowering his times considerably. The Spanish Moto2 Champion in 2011 and recently crowned European Supersport titlist, Torres was confirmed today as a MAPFRE Aspar Team rider for 2013 –showing the confidence shown in him by the team since his incorporation as a replacement rider for the end of 2012.
4th Nico Terol 1.35.4 (63 laps): "After getting the podium yesterday, in today's test I enjoyed myself more than I have for a long time. The aim was to get used to the new clutch that all the riders will use next year. all pilots. At midday I put the old clutch in, so that I could test out the differences. I went pretty well with it, but we still have to work on it. We also put on different tyre compounds and we focused on changing the position of the forks. What we wanted was to do was find more feel under braking and be able to brake harder. We also wanted to get more grip. The truth is that we have found what we were looking for, especially in the last run out on track. Our times have even dropped from the weekend. I'm still savouring the success from yesterday, and the good feeling of this test mean that I end the time here very satisfied.”
6th Jordi Torres 1.35.5 (72 laps): “My chief mechanic had many changes scheduled for this weekend, but because it rained so much we had our plans changed. That meant that today in the sun we tried out all of the things that we had needed to look at. We basically worked on various changes to the bike’s geometry. Being such a big rider, we are playing around with many different types of positions, but I think that today we found one that was spot on. I am happy, because we put in good times here and had a good pace, even better than in qualifying for the race. The work was very positive, but it’s just a shame that at midday we had a crash at turn 4 due to the cold tyre. The bike spat me off but I wasn’t hurt, we simply lost a bit of time. It was confirmed today that I will remain with the MAPFRE Aspar Team for 2013. We can thus consider this test my first as a full-time GP rider. I am a rider who prepares mi practices well, which you could see today. I will work very hard this winter, and it will be a privilege to start a Grand Prix season from the beginning, rather than as a substitute. I want to thank the MAPFRE Aspar Team, which is here to win, and I will give everything to be up to the challenge.”
Mapfre Aspar Moto2 Press Release
You can give your opinion on our Facebook page here
Get the latest update on our Twitter page here
