MotoGP news

Lorenzo recovers on final day

Fiat Yamaha rookie Jorge Lorenzo finished the three day Official MotoGP Test in second position overall today, after setting an impressive lap on qualifying tyres at the end of a very windy day in Jerez.

It was a tricky three days for the youngest rider on the grid, who admits that he has struggled to adapt to riding a MotoGP bike in such changeable conditions and that he is still lacking pace on race tyres. However he proved with the Michelin qualifying tyre how fast he can be, setting a time of 1'39.252 on his 60th and final lap of the day, ahead of his team-mate Valentino Rossi in fifth.

There is now a ten-day break before the final pre-season test in Qatar. The test will take place at night to allow the riders and teams to prepare for the first race, which will be the first ever MotoGP night race.

"We've finished the three days second after a very fast lap this afternoon with the Michelin qualifying tyre, so I'm really happy about this," Lorenzo added. "With the race tyre however we're not in such good shape and we have quite a lot of work to do. We need to be faster but to do this I need to have more grip and more confidence. We need to speak a lot with Michelin in order to try to solve this, but I am confident that my team, the engineers and Michelin together will find the solution. Now the first race is very close and we don't have a lot of time, but we are working very hard. Overall though it's been an important three days and I am very happy that we're so good with the qualifying tyre. I am looking forward to something new in Qatar now; riding at night!"

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