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MotoGP Jerez Test (May 2017)

JPSLotus

JPSLotus

Joined Apr 2015
6K Posts | 5K+
NJ
Following Sunday's Spanish MotoGP, riders have returned to the Jerez circuit for the first official test since the start of the season.

One of the main tasks for today is to re-evaluate the stiffer front tyre construction, as used at last year's Valencia season-finale.

The construction was made softer after 'chatter' (vibration) problems at other tracks, however the likes of Valentino Rossi, most Honda riders and Andrea Iannone have since suggested the stiffer front would be better.

The stiffer tyre will be available in medium and hard compounds for each rider.


Testing began at 10am...

1. Maverick Vinales SPA Movistar Yamaha MotoGP (YZR-M1) 1m 38.635s
2. Marc Marquez SPA Repsol Honda Team (RC213V) 1m 38.637s +0.002s
3. Aleix Espargaro SPA Factory Aprilia Gresini (RS-GP) 1m 38.999s +0.364s
4. Dani Pedrosa SPA Repsol Honda Team (RC213V) 1m 39.018s +0.383s
5. Andrea Dovizioso ITA Ducati Team (Desmosedici GP17) 1m 39.030s +0.395s
6. Jorge Lorenzo SPA Ducati Team (Desmosedici GP17) 1m 39.124s +0.489s
7. Cal Crutchlow GBR LCR Honda (RC213V) 1m 39.319s +0.684s
8. Johann Zarco FRA Monster Yamaha Tech 3 (YZR-M1) 1m 39.528s +0.893s
9. Jack Miller AUS Estrella Galica 0,0 Marc VDS (RC213V) 1m 39.548s +0.913s
10. Tito Rabat GBR Estrella Galica 0,0 Marc VDS (RC213V) 1m 39.576s +0.941s
11. Scott Redding GBR Octo Pramac Racing (Desmosedici GP16) 1m 39.721s +1.086s
12. Andrea Iannone ITA Team Suzuki Ecstar (GSX-RR) 1m 39.774s +1.139s
13. Jonas Folger GER Monster Yamaha Tech 3 (YZR-M1) 1m 39.797s +1.162s
14. Danilo Petrucci ITA Octo Pramac Racing (Desmosedici GP17) 1m 39.879s +1.244s
15. Pol Espargaro SPA KTM MotoGP Factory Racing (RC16) 1m 39.959s +1.324s
16. Bradley Smith GBR KTM MotoGP Factory Racing (RC16) 1m 40.111s +1.476s
17. Hector Barbera SPA Avintia Racing (Desmosedici GP16) 1m 40.122s +1.487s
18. Mika Kallio FIN KTM Test Rider (RC16) 1m 40.382s +1.747s
19. Valentino Rossi ITA Movistar Yamaha MotoGP (YZR-M1) 1m 40.703s +2.068s
20. Sam Lowes GBR Factory Aprilia Gresini (RS-GP) 1m 40.784s +2.149s
21. Takuya Tsuda JPN Suzuki Test Rider (GSX-RR) 1m 40.798s +2.163s
22. Loris Baz FRA Avintia Racing (Desmosedici GP15) 1m 40.862s +2.227s

MotoGP Results - Jerez MotoGP test times - Monday (1:30pm)
Click to expand...

In other news there's no word if Rossi will be testing the 2016 chassis or not during this test.

Casey Stoner will be participating in the next official test at the Circuit de Barcelona Catalunya in 2 weeks time May 22nd-23rd. He will be on track with the factory Ducati riders.
 
Andrea Dovizioso: "Stiffer front tyre feels very similar, like when we tried it last year. So for me it doesn't matter (which)."

From Crash:

We spoke to Dovizioso, Redding and Petrucci at lunch time. Redding hadn't yet tried the stiffer front tyre, Dovi and Petrucci had but said there was hardly any difference compared to the standard 2017 tyre, so they would be happy to use either. But Petrucci also said the difference between the tyres might be bigger at a different type of track... He said there might be some sort of meeting at the end of the day to try and gauge who liked which tyre.
Click to expand...
 
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3pm lap times:

C_TmEc3XcAEcyWD.jpg:large
 
)Yamaha and their factory riders had a rude awakening from the illusion that they had developed a perfect chassis for the Michelins, one that could make them last for the entire race with excellent performance.

The problems shown at Jerez could manifest at other tracks. They will certainly sort it out, since they are master frame makers; it remains to be seen how long it will take. For the moment at every track they will hold their breath...

It seems that they rotated the 2017 engine slightly in the 2017 frame, so it's not possible to quickly assemble a hybrid bike putting the new engine in the old frame... Even assuming they still had 2016 frames in stock (probably all have been given to Tech3). Rossi joked that they would have to take a 2016 bike from the Iwata museum, and there probably is truth in that joke...
 
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Of course it will be the riders voting one type of carcass or the other. So no conspiracy there, unless "they" can blackmail the majority of riders... :rolleyes:
 
J4rn0 said:
That would be a really quick reaction by Yamaha... Seems too quick unless they had something new ready just in case.
Click to expand...

Over on motomatters David is reporting that Rossi and Vinales both had a frame to test, I think in that case it's preplanned...probably.
Edit.
That's also from gpone.com.
 
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J4rn0 said:
)Rossi joked that they would have to take a 2016 bike from the Iwata museum, and there probably is truth in that joke...
Click to expand...

There certainly is given that in 2006 they actually retrieved and cannibalised a 2005 M1 an Italian show exhibit. As we know, Marc still runs an upgraded 2014 frame. As tyres evolve, chassis must evolve this is primarily why manufacturers can be screwed if they are not progressive. It is after all a prototype series which means it is in constant flux and the factories that stand still such as Suzuki in 2001 will get destroyed. When Michelin brought a big new rear tire in 2006, it resulted in excessive chatter for every chassis. The customary Heath Robinson emergency fixes (like lead-filled axles to tune out certain flex frequencies) worked for HRC but not for Yamaha. Valentino Rossi was effectively stopped in his tracks by chatter for four races, and only reverting to the 2005 chassis enabled recovery.

Chatter, stability, chassis flex, and engine characteristics are inextricably linked like quantum entanglement. There is no textbook. The ’06 championship was a lost cause.
 
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From what I am reading it would appear that most riders are now favouring the stiffer front. That includes Rossi so I do expect that this will mean the stiffer front will be the new front tyre. Given the Hondas improvement and Yamahas inability to take full advantage early when it will have had its largest advantage I expect Marquez to take the title again this year.

With quotes like Vinaales' and Dovis as well Marquez adaptability is a huge advantage over Mav and Rossi and is a huge X factor in his championship defence.
 
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p4p1 said:
From what I am reading it would appear that most riders are now favouring the stiffer front. That includes Rossi so I do expect that this will mean the stiffer front will be the new front tyre. Given the Hondas improvement and Yamahas inability to take full advantage early when it will have had its largest advantage I expect Marquez to take the title again this year.

With quotes like Vinaales' and Dovis as well Marquez adaptability is a huge advantage over Mav and Rossi and is a huge X factor in his championship defence.
Click to expand...

It's not over till the fat lady sings.
MotoGP?

:fishing1:
 
p4p1 said:
Only a few weeks ago the championship was already over and Maverick was going to walk away with the title.
Click to expand...

Exactly, and there'll be more twists and turns to come, predicting the title winner this early in the season with the top four covered by 10 points is not wise.
 
danski said:
Exactly, and there'll be more twists and turns to come, predicting the title winner this early in the season with the top four covered by 10 points is not wise.
Click to expand...

It's definitely not fool proof. I wouldn't bet a substantial amount on it at all. However I think it's a fair assumption that given the tyre inconsistency, the improving Honda and potentionally new stiffer tyres Marquez should be the favourite. Before the season had started Krop wrote(going from memory here) about how he believes the Honda would be around about full strength in Mugello and by then Yamaha and Vinaeles may have a big enough gap to hold off the Marquez/Honda charge.

The big difference and the X-factor I was alluding to is that when Honda have an off day due to the tyres not suiting their bike for the track Marquez is still able to finish in the top 5, sometimes on the podium. His ability to nurse his tyres home is an underrated talent that he has and one that won him the title last year and could be a major factor this year. When Yamaha have had their bad day Vinaeles and Rossi struggled and truth be told were lucky that Bautista took himself and Miller out and gained a couple of positions. I would say they were lucky that Crutchlow crashed but it's just such a normality now.
 
p4p1 said:
It's definitely not fool proof. I wouldn't bet a substantial amount on it at all. However I think it's a fair assumption that given the tyre inconsistency, the improving Honda and potentionally new stiffer tyres Marquez should be the favourite. Before the season had started Krop wrote(going from memory here) about how he believes the Honda would be around about full strength in Mugello and by then Yamaha and Vinaeles may have a big enough gap to hold off the Marquez/Honda charge.

The big difference and the X-factor I was alluding to is that when Honda have an off day due to the tyres not suiting their bike for the track Marquez is still able to finish in the top 5, sometimes on the podium. His ability to nurse his tyres home is an underrated talent that he has and one that won him the title last year and could be a major factor this year. When Yamaha have had their bad day Vinaeles and Rossi struggled and truth be told were lucky that Bautista took himself and Miller out and gained a couple of positions. I would say they were lucky that Crutchlow crashed but it's just such a normality now.
Click to expand...

You're not factoring in Dani going on a run that he's well capable of.
You are factoring in Yamaha standing still and doing nothing .
I don't doubt Marquez's talent but at the end of the day he's as beatable as anyone.
 
danski said:
You're not factoring in Dani going on a run that he's well capable of.
You are factoring in Yamaha standing still and doing nothing .
I don't doubt Marquez's talent but at the end of the day he's as beatable as anyone.
Click to expand...

I don't think Dani is a genuine chance simply because of the rider comments about the inconsistency from round to round of the tyres. Dani has shown himself to not be adaptable compared to others and that is a major reason that despite his talent he hasn't won a championship. If this was the Bridgestone control tyre and he started showing some form I would agree with you that he's a threat. However when the tyres aren't working for the Honda Dani struggles too much.

I'm not factoring that the Yamaha will do nothing, I don't think one round is proof that there is anything is seriously wrong with the Yamaha given that last year the track was a total anomaly as well. The tyres are likely not going to get more consistent and my comments reflect that the riders aren't as adaptable as Marquez when the tyres don't suit.
 
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Valentino Rossi, P21: “It’s been a very important test for us. Although we weren’t amongst the fastest, we tried different tyres and it was interesting for the future. The new chassis didn’t work much better than the last. We tried other different things and we understood some important things for the future, and we think we’ve solved the problems.”
 
danski said:
You're not factoring in Dani going on a run that he's well capable of.
You are factoring in Yamaha standing still and doing nothing .
I don't doubt Marquez's talent but at the end of the day he's as beatable as anyone.
Click to expand...
I wouldn't mind Dani winning the title at all.

However the evidence of MM's premier class career is that he actually isn't all that beatable, and that the main rider capable of beating him is himself. Knuckling down to take second at Jerez suggests he is prepared to employ the approach he used for all but the last 3 races of 2016, which will make it very difficult for Dani to beat him on the same bike barring misadventure for MM.

Dani went on a run in 2012 after Stoner got injured and Lorenzo who had a large lead was riding for the title. The story of the rest of his career apart from constant injuries, which I of course also hope he will avoid this year, is him being untouchable 2 races a year when he and his team nail his set-up and he is totally confifdent on the bike, and variable competitiveness otherwise. If his form in those 2 races a year is his real form sure he could win a championship, he has been faster than Rossi in his prime, MM on the same bike, Lorenzo in championship years, and Stoner on both the 2007 Ducati and 2010 Honda on such week-ends in the past. I along with others think he needs track conditions which suit him and which favour a tyre that suits him for him to have one of those week-ends however.
 
VR worryingly slow. I didn't follow the testing. Was it down to greasy, hot conditions...with the fast times being made earlier?
AEsp doing well on the Aprilia, I don't think his teammate is furnishing him with any useful data.
 

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