VOL. 53 ISSUE 7 FEBRUARY 23, 2016 P57
than a tenth ahead of teammate
Rossi, who left the tests with
one matter at least decided: he
preferred the upgraded 2015
chassis to the new 2016 version,
which was revised to suit Mi-
chelins as first tested last year.
"I feel good with the bike
and with the tires, and my pace
was not so bad," he said. "So
I'm quite satisfied." Rossi who
turned 37 two days after Val-
entine's Day, is lining up for his
20th season in GP racing.
The Yamahas were split by
Hector Barbera, best of the
Ducatis on the satellite Avintia
Desmosedici GP15. It was a
second strong performance for
the Spaniard, who was naturally
still really struggling to find the
best balance with the bike. How-
ever we used the 2015 engine
today, so maybe in Qatar things
will be a little bit better for us,
with a more updated version."
These two Hondas pushed
Jorge Lorenzo down to fourth
overall, as Movistar Yamaha's
defending champion failed to
improve on his day two time. His
plan for a race simulation was
cut short when he lost the front
and tipped over at the slow MG
Corner (Turn 10). He was unhurt,
but did not go out again. But he
was still making smooth prog-
ress, in familiar fast but mea-
sured fashion.
He was two places but less
over at Honda, thanks not only
to Marquez's strong lap times,
but also his verdict that, "we
are getting closer every day,"
he said. "It seems that here we
have found a base setup that
can work well. It's true that this
is a special track… what you
test might confuse you at other
circuits, but I am happy overall,"
he said.
Also encouraging for the for-
merly beleaguered HRC was Cal
Crutchlow placing third overall
on the satellite LCR Honda. The
English rider was using essen-
tially an old engine, and expect-
ed an upgrade for the final round
of tests at Losail at the beginning
of March. "Electronically we are
