SEPANG I
TEST REPORT
P76
brought day two (of three) to an
early end, and caused "hard-
compound-only" tire use for a
rain-hit final day, skewing the
overall lap times by preventing
soft-tire time attacks.
When the crash brought
proceedings to an end, Pramac-
Ducati-mounted Danilo Petrucci
had narrowly shaded first-day
leader Lorenzo. On day three,
the defending champion was
back on top overall in spite of
the tire restrictions. His time of
1:59.580 compared well with
last year's best first-test-time
of 1:58.867, set by Marquez's
Honda, and with Pedrosa's 2015
pole of 1:59.053.
Riders declared the latest Mi-
chelins much improved from last
year's prototypes, but Lorenzo
was among several to fall during
the three days.
The unwary victim of the
crucial and spectacular 180mph
dismount was Loris Baz (Avin-
tia Ducati teammate to Hector
Barbera), right in front of the
pits. His bike suddenly shed
smoke, sparks, chunks of tire
and then the rider. Engine and
suspension failure were quickly
ruled out: the tire had flown
apart. This triggered a blame
game between Michelin and the
team (see separate news story).
That the French rider was unhurt
helped to avoid an even more
serious stain.
The other big story was Casey
Stoner.
The double World Champion
was back on a Desmosedici, in
THE FACTORY
REPSOL TEAM
ADMITTED THAT
ELECTRONICS AND
THE NEW EVO
ENGINE HAD "THE
MOST MARGIN FOR
IMPROVEMENT",
A POLITE WAY OF
REFLECTING THE
CONCERNS OF THE
RIDERS.
Casey Stoner
returned to
Ducati, fast
as ever. Three
years away
have done
nothing to dent
his speed.
