RODRIGO DOMINATES OPENING DAY IN FRONT OF HOME CROWD
#CatalanGP Free Practice. The grandstands are slowly being filled with people (24 thousand spectators are expected this weekend at Montmeló) and the Team Indonesian Racing Gresini Moto3 showed up at Barcelona in great form: Gabriel Rodrigo and Jeremy Alcoba have in fact played a big role by finishing first and sixth, respectively, on home turf.
With rain expected already from tomorrow – and most likely on Sunday – today’s lap-times are likely to be decisive for a direct access to Q2. Rodrigo was also the only rider able to break the 1’48secs barrier today: if we take into consideration the modified turn ten, the Argentine now holds the ‘new’ Moto3 record for the revised track.
1st – GABRIEL RODRIGO #2 (1’47.950)
“It’s been an excellent Friday: I felt good with every tyre option and with the new soft tyre I managed to put together a great lap, despite having been disturbed in the last sector. It’s hard to find anything that needs to be improved with the bike, maybe a little bit better performance at the end of the race, but aside from that I feel really good with my Honda. Maybe we can find something extra on corner exit, where the bike moves a little bit, but I think it’s a problem that everyone has here.”
6th – JEREMY ALCOBA #52 (1’48.499)
“I’m so happy to be racing at home and even more so with the crowd. We’re working hard with the tyres because this track is quite a challenge in that regard. We are still missing something to be with the leaders, but we’re competitive. The new turn ten is something still to be fully discovered, I like the new line, but I still need to figure out if I should attack it in first or second gear: both options are valid, with their pros and cons.”
