We have not seen them race since November and for petrol heads, this is painful. But last week, the boys of MotoGP came back to Sepang for the first tests of the season.
No prizes for guessing who came first on all three consecutive days at the Malaysian circuit, 2013 champion Marc Marquez. He not only came out on top, but he also smashed the track record by breaking Casey Stoner’s 2012 two minute record with a lap of 1m 59.533s on the final day of tests.
“I’m pretty happy with how the three days here in Sepang have gone and we have started the pre-season well. It’s true that this is only the first test and we still have work to do, but we’ve already been able to do a race simulation and it has all gone well,” Marquez said.
“We have tried many set-ups and we have gathered a lot of data, so we will be well prepared for the next test here. We still have some things to try out, so we must make the most of the days we have remaining here this pre-season. ”
“Physically I feel good, I haven’t stopped over this past month and have had a packed schedule, but I have been able to continue training. he added.
Racing legend Valentino Rossi came overall second place on the first and final day of testing and third place on the second day of testing on his Yamaha Factory Racing bike, achieving a top lap time of 1m 59.727s.
The positive results for the former six time champion follow the presence of a new crew chief Silvano Galbusera, after former crew chief Jerry Burgess left at the end of the 2013 season.
Brit rookie, Scott Redding, averaged 21st place on his Go&Fun Honda Gresini with a best time of 2m 02.833s during his first test in MotoGP after racing for Mark VDS racing Moto2 last season.
MotoGP will start second tests back at the Malaysian circuit from the 26th-28th February.
