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The Repsol Honda riders, who begin the final Official Test of the preseason tomorrow in Qatar, took part in a photo session before the start of the MotoGP season.
As the clock ticks down to the first Grand Prix of 2018, Marc Márquez and Dani Pedrosa are ticking off the traditional preseason formalities: They have already put in miles with their MotoGP bikes, taken part in a team presentation and press events, and now they have participated in the annual photo sessions. The Repsol Honda riders put on their leathers and, alongside their respective crews, posed for the cameras with their bikes, less than a month before the action gets underway at the season-opening Qatar GP at the Losail International Circuit.
For three days from tomorrow, Márquez and Pedrosa will test from 1pm through to 9pm (local time). The final hour of the third day will see the riders test on a wet surface, to evaluate the viability of the track under the floodlights in rainy conditions.
MARC MÁRQUEZ
“I’m happy with our pre-season so far, as we’ve started a bit better than last year, but we must remain concentrated and focused on the work ahead. Now we have to reconfirm everything in Qatar, which is a particular track, and not an easy one. We’re still working to best understand the new engine, working on the setup to adapt it as well as possible to my riding style. We already took a step forward from Sepang to Buriram, and we look forward to taking another one in Qatar. We’ve always focused our work on our race pace and consistency, and we’re generally happy with the feeling we have with the bike. We’ll try to be on the pace in Losail as well, and to get ready for the first race.”
DANI PEDROSA
“It will be very interesting to see how things go in Qatar, and also to have the chance to evaluate our engine there. So far we’ve tested it in two very hot places, and now we’ll need to set it up for a different situation and cooler conditions. Qatar is also dusty, and that will be another thing we’ll have to assess. Of course the goal is to arrive at the first race as prepared as possible. Another thing that will be different is the ‘wet test’ that we’ll carry out on the final day; having had rain in Qatar on a few occasions in the past, we’ve been asked to give our opinions about riding there in the wet. We’ll see what the artificially soaked track will be like, and what feeling we’ll have on it.”
