MotoGP – Valencia Test Day 1 – A word from the protagonists

Casey Stoner (Ducati Marlboro Team) best time
“We tried a new engine configuration designed to improve driveability. For the moment everything is going very well, the engine output is more robust and we have improved traction by using the same settings we used at the weekend, which is positive. We also tried different forks and in general I am satisfied. On this first day we didn't do many laps, mostly trying to understand if we were going in the right direction. I really think so and I can't wait for tomorrow to get back on track, hoping that maybe the weather will be a little better, with less wind.”

Jorge Lorenzo (Fiat Yamaha Team), 2st half
“I was really excited to try this new version of the M1 today and had a lot of motivation to get back to work. The feeling out of corners is better and we already have more grip at the rear and it's a big improvement for me. We still need to work on acceleration, but I like what we have so far and I think we will continue to be as competitive as this year. We have to wait and see how the old and new bike compares on a different track, but I'm excited. I'm quite tired because this is already our fourth day here, but I'm happy to have one more day of rehearsals.”

Valentino Rossi (Fiat Yamaha Team), 3st half
“It was a very difficult job getting back on the bike, but today's test was very important for us. The new prototype we have is already better than the one we tested in Brno, so that's positive. I was faster than with the old bike so we know we are working in the right way and I hope we can improve tomorrow. Of course we still have a 2009 spec engine and there won't be an update until the next test in February, but the bike already feels more stable and has more rear grip. Tomorrow will be a big day before we can finally relax.”

Dani Pedrosa (Honda Repsol Team), 4th time – in the photo
“We tested with the new 2010 bike and today I also used Ohlins suspension. The key thing was to start getting used to the new suspension straight away, because the feeling is very different and we need time to find the set-up for the new chassis. We didn't do many laps this afternoon because, with this type of test, you spend a lot of time in the box. The feeling between the chassis and the suspension is really different, and I think this is normal when making a change of this type. The initial feeling is positive and I will go back to work tomorrow.”

Nicky Hayden (Ducati Marlboro Team), 5th fastest
“Today I was very excited, ready to get back on track to start working for next season. We have a direction to follow and many things to put into place but already on this first day we have made a lot of progress. We don't have many tires available, so we only used two sets, one hard, one softer, doing more or less the same times with both, a few tenths above my qualifying time on Saturday. On one of my bikes we tried some engine upgrades, some forks and a couple of different setups but we're just at the beginning and it's too early to have definitive impressions: for the moment I'm running more or less the same times with both. Overall I'm happy it was a good first day of testing.”

Ben Spies (Monster Yamaha Tech3), 6th time
“I'm really happy to finally be able to make my debut for Team Monster Yamaha Tech 3. They are a great team and it feels good and we can finally get to work with them. Today I was on a different bike, but with the same setup I raced with and it felt good. I improved my qualifying time so it was a positive and productive day. I'm really just focused on doing a couple of different things with my style and in the last couple of releases I've tried to do some very different things and it's worked. I'm slowly improving my lap times, so it's encouraging that I'm getting faster and feeling more comfortable, without even making any changes to the bike's set-up. We'll make some changes tomorrow, more for me, to see what I can hear, as well as looking for big improvements.”

Andrea Dovizioso (Honda Repsol Team), 7th time
“Today we tested the 2010 bike with the new frame and swingarm. It's very early, of course, but the first impression is positive and the feeling is that we are working in the right direction. The weight distribution is different, in order to improve the stability of the bike during braking and to better suit the Bridgestone tyres. We have two more days of testing here, and tomorrow we have the whole day to continue evaluating the new car.”

Marco Melandri (Team San Carlo Honda Gresini), 10th time
“It was a great day from entering the garage in the morning to getting on the bike. I had the pleasant surprise of seeing how the Honda 800 has changed since 2007, it is very different from the bike I was riding this year. I liked it, we immediately tried to roughen the work on the geometries so we found the path that I liked based on my past characteristics and tomorrow we would like to work a little more finely on the suspension calibration and on the small details, in short, overall I am very happy. The engine is a little different to use from the Kawasaki and therefore I have to get the feeling with the throttle control back, but I was quite constant and not far from the other Hondas and I understood that I have good margins for improvement. Not bad, not bad!”

Marco Simoncelli (Team San Carlo Honda Gresini), 14th time
“God damn travel! It's not bad though as an engine it pushes. The first impressions were that it is certainly not as easy as they say and therefore there is a lot of work to be done as happens with all things that are not learned through the grace received. At the end of this first day I passed on my impressions to the technicians and I'm sure that tomorrow I'll be better. We started with setups set for riders who were physically different from me and we immediately made some important changes, obtaining constant progress. We need to continue like this, very calmly without having too many demands for this first test, I have to understand the bike and which path to take for setup."

Loris Capirossi (Team Rizla Suzuki), 13th time
“This afternoon's test wasn't too bad for us, because the time was so similar to yesterday we were able to go back-to-back to compare a couple of things without having to worry about lap times. We will make some big changes tomorrow, because we have a lot of time and also a lot of things to try. We had a better feeling today than we had all weekend. It will be very important tomorrow to make sure that we understand the direction in which we are going, because it is clear that we can improve a lot.”