Yesterday, the first day of MotoGP testing took place in Losail, where Álex Rins finished 19th on the timesheet. The Monster Energy Yamaha rider had to adapt to the changes that the Qatari circuit underwent last year, but managed to work on his YZR-M1 after making those adjustments.
The Spanish rider started by discussing his physical condition, admitting that he arrived in Qatar with some concerns: ‘The leg is fine. I was a bit scared because this week after Sepang I had some difficulties at home. I don’t know if it’s because of the cold in Andorra or the bone still consolidating or maybe the screws touching some nerves. I was a bit scared, but fortunately I felt good on the bike‘.
As for his Monday’s work, Rins summarized: ‘The day was a bit strange, I had a lot of difficulties in the morning because I didn’t come here last year and everything changes for me: the new asphalt, different colors on the track, new buildings… so honestly it was a bit difficult for me to catch the references. And after that, we were trying various things, various items, reconfirming after Sepang, and also a new exhaust, fork wings that apparently seem to be working a bit better – at least in the last minutes of the session with 20 laps on the tires, I set my best lap time, so it’s pretty good. I tried to do this extra work to have a more free Tuesday in terms of trying to work on the bike setup for the race‘.
About what solution power could find on the last day of testing, #42 said: ‘If we find something, it could be interesting to improve in braking and acceleration. That means everything. Honestly, I’m feeling better in braking compared to Sepang, but we still lack a bit of grip on corner exit – like corners 7, 8, all this acceleration, corner 15… it seems like the other constructors have a bit more than us. Maybe traction control or electronics are working a bit better than with us. I don’t know; we need to understand’.
