MotoGP 2011: Final pre-season test at Qatar
The MotoGP 2011 season will officially kick-off in Qatar on March 20, after the final pre-season test session at the same venue. 19 premier class riders will test and give some final tweaks to their MotoGP machines during the test on Sunday, 13 March and
Monday, 14 March, Losail. As the new regulations set the comeback of 1000cc era, this final pre-season test will also be the last for 800cc MotoGP machines.
The first two pre-season tests have shown how back setters have run to the top, and the new 2011 RC212V has displayed the staggering progress by dominating the time charts of Sepang I-II test. In the first test, Marco Simoncelli of San Carlo Honda Gresini
was a top ranker in time standings, followed by the official Repsol Honda riders Dani Pedrosa and Casey Stoner, second and third respectively.
On the second pre-season test the Honda factory rider were the only ones to seat on the top positions. Casey Stoner and Dani Pedrosa were on top two places respectively, followed by Marco Simoncelli of San Carlo Honda Gresini on third, and Andrea Dovizioso
of Repsol Honda in fourth place.
The steady performing Factory Yamaha Racing duo, Jorge Lorenzo and Ben Spies will be seen again in action when they run their YZF-R1 on the track at late hours for testing. Ben Spies was the only rider to live the name by falling in the fifth place on time
standings, during the Sepang II test. The 2011 MotoGP World Champion, Jorge Lorenzo will be running and testing to defend his world title. Lorenzo was fourth in Sepang I test and seventh in Sepang II test. The American teammate, Spies will be performing for
a better take-off as Yamaha factory rider.
Several times World Champion, Valentino Rossi has shifted to Ducati but facing some lack of fitness in the result of last year’s injuries, Rossi was not able to outperform his rivals. He also missed a whole day of practice in Sepang II test due to sickness.
Colin Edwards of Monster Yamaha Tech3, Alvaro Bautista of Rizla Suzuki, and Hiroshi Aoyama of San Carlo Honda Gresini will also run to test their progress as they have had fairly good results during last two pre-season tests. The Ducati GP11 riders, Nicky
Hayden of Ducati Team, Hector Barbera of Mapfre Aspar Team, and the pair of Pramac Racing team Loris Capirossi and Randy de Puniet will be focused on their machines to set the pace for the first season race.
LCR Honda rider Toni Elias’s team will work hard to improve and tweak their RC212V for the first race. The rookies, Cal Crutchlow of Monster Yamaha Tech3 and Karel Abraham of Cardion AB Motoracing, will aim to prove their abilities to fight for the 2011
MotoGP title.
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