New Honda Moto3 bike responds well at U.S. track, with Rins fifth and Marquez seventh on first day of practice for the Grand Prix of the Americas.
A first day of practice for the Repsol Moto3 riders took place on Friday in Austin. Alex Rins, who won last year at the Texan track for his first GP victory, made a good start on his return to the circuit. In the morning, in the first free practice session, he dominated almost the entirety of the runout. He set the fastest time of FP1 with a 2:17.964 lap.
Teammate Alex Marquez, who crashed out of last year’s contest, finished fifth in the morning and was 6 tenths off his teammate. Marquez suffered a light crash while leading the session with around ten minutes remaining, and was unable to put in any further laps. He suffered a knock to his right shoulder, but a subsequent visit to the circuit’s medical center ruled out any injury.
In the second practice session an increase in atmospheric and track temperatures hampered setup work with the Honda –which prevented Rins and Marquez from fighting for the top positions on the timesheet. The fastest rider was Efren Vazquez, Rins was fifth and 0.758 off. Marquez was seventh, more than 1 second down.
Tomorrow sees the final free practice session, plus qualifying for the second round of the Moto3 season.
Alex Rins >> Audio
5th, 2:17.454, 30 laps, 165 km
“It was a positive and negative day at the same time. In the morning things went pretty well; with less grip and cooler temperatures on track, we felt quite comfortable and we set a good time. In the afternoon we made a few changes to the bike that did not work out with temperature being higher, but we always kept up the same pace. Tomorrow we will try to improve the setup and get a good qualifying lap time.”
Alex Marquez >> Audio
7th, 2:17.878, 24 laps, 132 km
“This first day was a little difficult. A crash this morning delayed us a bit in the afternoon. I believe that I still have to improve my lines at some points of the circuit, especially on the slow parts of the track. I also need a better setup, because I’m not feeling entirely comfortable in some parts. We have to continue to accumulate miles on the clock; I am lacking track time here and I still can’t find the best lines to take. Tomorrow we will focus right from the start and try to develop things with the qualifying session in mind.”
