Movistar Yamaha MotoGP’s Jorge Lorenzo started the weekend as the fastest man in Silverstone after day one. Teammate Valentino Rossi was also on the pace during the first practice session ahead of Sunday’s British Grand Prix, but suffered from a lack of rear grip in the afternoon and finished tenth in the combined standings.
Championship leader Jorge Lorenzo made a strong start to this weekend’s British Grand Prix in today’s free practice sessions at Silverstone. He wrapped up day one as the fastest rider overall, 0.033 seconds clear of his closest rival. Valentino Rossi also needed little time to adjust in the morning, but faced a lack of rear grip in the afternoon. His fastest time of the day took him up to tenth in the combined practice times, 0,989 seconds off his teammate.
True to his usual form, Lorenzo’s name could be found at the top of the standings early on in the first 45 minutes free practice session with a 2’04.817 lap. He put in some great effort in the British sunshine to improve his time by more than a second throughout the morning practice, taking second place with a best lap of 2’03.499s.
The afternoon saw more of the same from the Majorcan. He was quick to top the timesheets, dropping the first 2’02 lap of the weekend on his first lap. His fastest time of 2’02.338 followed soon after and remained unchallenged for the remainder of the session, allowing him to take the lead in the combined practice times.
Determined to position himself as a key protagonist early on in the weekend, teammate Rossi was also on the pace right from the start of FP1. He took the top spot with his first flying lap and continued to progress. He was one of just three riders who dipped under the 2’04 mark in the morning practice, posting a 2’03.967, finishing in third place.
The Doctor worked hard to make another step forward in the afternoon. He shaved 0.640 seconds off his fastest lap in the morning session, but was unable to gain in terms of ranking and finished tenth in today’s combined timesheets.
Jorge Lorenzo
1st / 2’02.338 / 28 laps
“The feeling has been good from the beginning. I didn’t expect to improve so much in the afternoon session on my first run, but my lap time was suddenly a second quicker and was fast enough for me to stay in first position. We still need to improve our pace a little bit, because the track is very cold and this made the tyre go down a little bit after every run. We need to work on the bike to make it easier on tyre-life to be able to keep up a higher pace. The car racing at Silverstone is making the asphalt very bumpy, especially on braking, and I think it’s a bit slower compared to last year, but the bikes seem to be faster, making the lap times similar.”
Valentino Rossi
10th / 2’03.327 / 32 laps
“This morning wasn’t so bad, but we had some more problems this afternoon because we tried to modify the bike to improve the tyre-life but I wasn’t fast and strong enough. I didn’t feel very well on the bike and lost some positions. The practice in the afternoon was a bit difficult, but we were able to try some different things and now we will check the data and try to put it all together to be stronger tomorrow. Here in Silverstone the weather is always a big question mark and just like everybody else we would prefer all practice sessions to be dry, but that might not be possible because the weather is becoming worse. Fortunately I’m in the top ten, so it’s not a big problem if we have a wet practice tomorrow, but we all hope for a dry session so we can improve the setting.”
Massimo Meregalli – Movistar Yamaha MotoGP Team Director
“It was a much better start compared to last year, especially for Jorge, who has been the fastest and delivered very consistent times since the beginning of the weekend. After a good outing in FP1, Valentino had a more challenging FP2 session. He had problems stopping the bike in the beginning and suffered a lack of rear grip towards the end, but was still able to better his time. We have some ideas for further improvements for both riders that we would like to try tomorrow. The weather conditions for this weekend remain a bit of a question mark, but we are fully focused on the task ahead of getting another good result and are looking forward to qualifying tomorrow.”
Thrilling third position for Smith on day one at Silverstone
Monster Yamaha Tech3 Team rider Bradley Smith produced a superb start at his home Grand Prix weekend by storming to 3rd place overall at the end of the first day of action. The British rider, who is looking to conquer the 12th round challenge with a top point scoring result, kicked off proceedings at Silverstone by finishing the opening practice in 7th position aboard the Yamaha YZR-M1. This left him optimistic for the afternoon session where he sought to continue making adjustments to the setup of his MotoGP bike. When FP2 began, Smith determinedly pulled out of the pit lane and got straight to work in front of his fans. In the final third of the practice, the young Briton delivered a superb time of 2’02.531 on his 13th lap which saw him end the day in the top three and merely 0.193 back from the leading time. His confident run today leaves him fully charged for a strong performance in qualifying tomorrow.
On the opposite side of the Monster Yamaha Tech3 Team pit box, Pol Espargaro concluded the opening shake down of the British Grand Prix with a positive run to 7th position overall. The 24 year old Spaniard took to the track this morning and embarked on making steps forward with the setup of his Yamaha YZR-M1 in order to battle the fast flowing circuit. At the end of the practice, Espargaro produced his best time on his last lap, which left him in 9th position and ready for the action in the afternoon. Here, he continued getting up to speed at the Northamptonshire track and tirelessly completed a total of 17 laps which marked his determination as he sped to a solid time of 2.02’972 on his final run. This result saw him finish just four tenths behind his teammate and now the 2013 Moto2 World Champion optimistically looks on to the all-important qualifying session tomorrow at the 5.9 kilometre circuit.
Bradley Smith
3rd / 2’02.531 / 33 laps
“It was a great start to my home GP and it’s clear to see that the Yamaha is working really well here for me. I always have good confidence when I compete at Silverstone, especially with my riding style, and I’m not afraid of high speed circuits as we saw at Phillip Island last year. Initially we struggled a bit in FP1 as the track conditions were not fantastic, but in the afternoon the grip levels increased and we were then able to analyse both compounds of front and rear tyres which was positive. We are unsure of what the temperature will be on Sunday, so we need to be ready for anything. Yet, it’s fantastic to start the British GP in this manner and after signing my contract, there is no stress and I can completely focus on my job. The team made a fantastic effort today but of course, we expect the other guys to catch up tomorrow. Nevertheless, our performance here means that we can start FP3 with confidence as we aim to continue improving whilst working on the base setup for the race. Also, I must give a big thanks to everyone for coming out today and we’ll see what we can do tomorrow.”
Pol Espargaro
7th / 2’02.972 / 34 laps
“It has been a solid start to the weekend as we finished seventh overall which could turn out to be quite important if the weather conditions are going to change tomorrow. However, this morning we had to face a few issues due to the track conditions and the grip level was very low, so my confidence on the bike was not at its highest. But the team did a good job and the surface also became cleaner this afternoon, so we managed to find some setup solutions which made me feel much more comfortable on the bike. Therefore, this is of course, really positive for tomorrow. In addition, we have been able to evaluate both rear tyre options which gives us a clear direction for the rest of weekend. It goes without saying that there is still a big margin of improvement which can be made, so we will use this afternoon to have a deep look into the data in order to be prepared for all circumstances tomorrow.”
Long day of work for Forward Racing at Silverstone
Loris Baz ended Friday’s free practice in fourth place among the Open bikes while Claudio Corti is 25th at Silverstone, which this week is hosting the Grand Prix of Great Britain.
Baz, in front of everyone in the open class Brno, posted a good 2’03.977 in the afternoon, which earned him the 18th place just four-tenths off the head of the class. The Frenchman, particularly fond of the English track which has seen him win in the past in Super Bike, is confident for qualifying and the race.
Claudio Corti, who recorded a time of 2’06.275, is also happy with the work done today. The Italian, who in the morning was losing something in acceleration and struggled with the front, tried several new solutions in the afternoon session and improved his time by almost two seconds.
Loris Baz
18th / 2’03.977 / 31 laps
“I am satisfied with the work done today. The fact that I like this track very definitely makes things easier, but it is important to continue working to find the right feeling. I was fast since this morning and I was able to improve a lot. In the second practice, I tried some new solutions to better my ride and I lowered my lap time. Tomorrow I have to push even more: we are only four tenths off the head of the class but the real unknown is the weather.”
Claudio Corti
25th / 2’06.275 / 31 laps
“I took advantage of today to work on my riding style to suit my Yamaha Forward the best. I am satisfied and I improved significantly in the afternoon session. I miss something in acceleration and I lack a bit of feeling on the front, but I’m confident for qualifying. I made a good step forward from Brno and the goal is to get closer to the other Open bikes.”
2015 MotoGP United Kingdom
Silverstone 28/08/2015
1 Jorge Lorenzo Yamaha ESP 2’02.338
2 Marc Marquez Honda ESP 2’02.371
3 Bradley Smith Yamaha GBR 2’02.531
4 Daniel Pedrosa Honda ESP 2’02.573
5 Andrea Dovizioso Ducati ITA 2’02.761
6 Aleix Espargaro Suzuki ESP 2’02.872
7 Pol Espargaro Yamaha ESP 2’02.972
8 Andrea Iannone Ducati ITA 2’03.219
9 Scott Redding Honda GBR 2’03.284
10 Valentino Rossi Yamaha ITA 2’03.327
11 Danilo Petrucci Ducati ITA 2’03.339
12 Maverick Viñales Suzuki ESP 2’03.391
13 Hector Barbera Ducati ESP 2’03.618
14 Jack Miller Honda AUS 2’03.656
15 Cal Crutchlow Honda GBR 2’03.748
18 Loris Baz Yamaha FRA 2’03.977
25 Claudio Corti Yamaha ITA 2’06.275
Circuit Length:
5900
Weather:
Dry
Lap Record:
2’01.941
(Daniel Pedrosa, 1-1-2013)
Fastest Lap Ever:
2’00.691
(Marc Marquez, 1-9-2013)
Last Years Winner:
Marc Marquez
