Red Bull KTM continue work at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya

MotoGP 2019 IRTA test Catalunya (ESP)

High temperatures and windy conditions remained in place at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya as the MotoGP field formed again the day after the seventh Grand Prix of the season. 

Pol Espargaro worked through chassis, electronic and aerodynamic updates and the Spaniard managed 57 laps with the 16th fastest time before a small tumble ended his day late in the afternoon. Johann Zarco was 15th quickest and posted 70 laps as he also assessed a list of ideas and solutions to improve his comfort and speed. The pair counted on the presence of Dani Pedrosa who was busy through the whole day building up his knowledge of KTM’s factory machinery and imparting his vast experience where necessary.

Red Bull KTM Tech3 duo Miguel Oliveira and Hafizh Syahrin were also diligent with the next phases of development and adaption to their RC16 race bikes.

KTM will continue with a private testing day in Barcelona on Wednesday before turning their attention to round eight of 2019 MotoGP at the TT Circuit Assen in the Netherlands.

Pol Espargaro: “We tried a lot of chassis parts and also electronics because we had problems at the weekend through Turns 12 and 13. I had a small crash and could not make a faster time. We’ll have to see in the races to come if we have found some more improvements but we did some work on the aerodynamics and other aspects such as the change of direction with the bike. I’m happy. The bike we finished the race with here we will use in Holland because we have a good package and it will be interesting to see what we have now works in cooler conditions.”

Johann Zarco: “I got a new chassis and a different seat to try and improve. It is not an easy job because when I change things I feel better but it is not immediately visible so I need to push myself to get the faster lap-time and use the parts. I improved today compared to my qualifying time on Saturday so I am quite happy. Everyone was very fast today and it was pretty tough but we must keep working hard. I’m quite satisfied.”

Mike Leitner, Red Bull KTM Team Manager: “Another productive test day and we had five riders on the track and each of them had their special items to test. We have some positive and some negatives. In general we are happy. Pol had a small crash at the end of the day but it was not too dramatic. Johann focussed on certain things on his bike and re-checked some settings with suspension and chassis as well as aerodynamics. It was quite interesting, and now we plan for Wednesday. It’s good the riders will have one day off now because it can be tiring after a busy race weekend to test all day.” 

Sebastian Risse, Technical Director MotoGP: “Conditions tend to be difficult here and we’re happy to take this chance to improve our bike. We tried a lot of hardware: frame, swingarm, suspension and I think we made some progress, especially with Johann; I think we found some items that can really help him. With Pol the day was cut short unfortunately but we also confirmed some useful items. Overall, I think there was bigger progress for Johann. We’ll do some more work on Wednesday.”

Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya test times

1. Maverick Viñales (ESP), Yamaha 1:38.967
2. Franco Morbidelli (ITA), Yamaha +0.047
3. Marc Marquez (ESP), Honda +0.290
4. Alex Rins (ESP), Suzuki +0.367 
5. Fabio Quartararo (FRA), Yamaha +0.461
15. Johann Zarco (FRA), Red Bull KTM +1.230
16. Pol Espargaro (ESP), Red Bull KTM +1.234
20. Miguel Oliveira (POR), Red Bull KTM Tech3 +1.895
22. Hafizh Syahrin (MYS), Red Bull KTM Tech3 +2.195
25. Dani Pedrosa (ESP), Red Bull KTM +2.857