Damp but Positive Day 2 for Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP at Sepang Test
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Copyrights 2023 Yamaha Motor Racing Srl
Fabio Quartararo's and Franco Morbidelli’s patience was tested on the second day of the Sepang MotoGP Official Test. The eight-hour session was repeatedly halted by rain both in the morning and the afternoon. Still, the Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP teammates put in numerous laps and took 4th and 11th place respectively in today’s timesheets.
Sepang (Malaysia), 11th February 2023
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP’s Fabio Quartararo and Franco Morbidelli were back on track today for a second day of testing at the Sepang International Circuit, but rain showers in the morning and afternoon impeded their schedule. Still, the duo managed to get some laps in and work through a number of different items, taking 4th and 11th place respectively in today’s rankings.
Quartararo had hoped to get more laps in at the Sepang circuit today, but wet track conditions meant he had to be patient. Once a dry line had formed, the Frenchman was able to go out and test various items, and he ended the day with a good feeling. His best time of 1'58.897s, set on lap 8/34, put him in fourth place in today’s results, 0.161s from first, and in eighth in the Day 1 + Day 2 timesheets, 0.427s from the top.
After a solid first day of testing, Morbidelli was extra motivated to resume his work. As with his teammate, rain disrupted the testing plans he had scheduled for Day 2, but the Italian still got plenty of laps in. A 1’59.289s set on lap 8/44 saw him end FP2 in 11th place, 0.553s off today’s fastest time. His Day-1 time, a 1’59.118s, was faster though and put him in joint 14th position in the combined results, with a 0.648s margin to first.
Quartararo had hoped to get more laps in at the Sepang circuit today, but wet track conditions meant he had to be patient. Once a dry line had formed, the Frenchman was able to go out and test various items, and he ended the day with a good feeling. His best time of 1'58.897s, set on lap 8/34, put him in fourth place in today’s results, 0.161s from first, and in eighth in the Day 1 + Day 2 timesheets, 0.427s from the top.
After a solid first day of testing, Morbidelli was extra motivated to resume his work. As with his teammate, rain disrupted the testing plans he had scheduled for Day 2, but the Italian still got plenty of laps in. A 1’59.289s set on lap 8/44 saw him end FP2 in 11th place, 0.553s off today’s fastest time. His Day-1 time, a 1’59.118s, was faster though and put him in joint 14th position in the combined results, with a 0.648s margin to first.
Fabio Quartararo
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Rider
Franco Morbidelli
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Rider
Finally, we were also able to ride in the rain with the new engine, and it's important. With the updated engine, we needed to check how it was behaving on the wet. There are some things to work on that we can adjust, so it was good to have the chance to ride in wet conditions. I personally didn't have the chance to try the new aero combinations today, because right at the moment that I was going to try it, it started raining. But I will be able to try it tomorrow hopefully.