FEDERAL OIL GRESINI RIDERS SHINE ON 2020 TESTING DEBUT
A truly encouraging 2020 on-track debut for Team Federal Oil Gresini Moto2 saw the rider line-up take to the track for the first test of the year under the careful supervision of Fausto Gresini. The two new arrivals in the Faenza-based squad – Niccolò Bulega and Edgar Pons – completed an impressive number of laps and finished the two-day test fifth and eighth fastest, respectively.
The mild temperatures encountered at the Andalusian venue allowed the Federal Oil duo to complete their on-track schedule, which had as first priority the goal to recover the good feeling found last November with the Triumph-powered Kalex machines #11 and #57.
There was time for Bulega to continue yesterday’s work and to improve his best lap-time by half a second. Today the Italian logged a 1’41.9secs as he joined the front group of the middleweight class. Pons, who was very close lap-time wise to his teammate, mainly worked on the bike set-up while familiarising with the tyres, which are very different to the ones used in the recent past.
NICOLÒ BULEGA #11 1’41.903 (158 LAPS)
“It was a good debut: we worked hard to better understand the bike and the tyres, and I must say we did it. I’m happy, with the team there’s a great atmosphere: serenity and professionalism go side by side and it’s easier to work well this way. Generally speaking these have been two important days of work, I lapped a lot and I think we’re ready for the IRTA tests.”
EDGAR PONS #57 1’42.057 (161 LAPS)
“I’m happy… This was the first test after the winter break and everything seemed new and different from what I remembered. I must say we did a great job as a team; we found a good set-up and the lap-times were already competitive. We lapped a lot in these two days, and we were not very far from the top. We are improving in each and every outing while getting closer to the top: we are less than a second away with only four days of experience with this bike – not bad at all. I needed to make my riding style work with the bike and we managed to do so. I still need to get to know the tyres better, but I feel I’m improving each and every time out, both speed and pace-wise.”
