UPHILL FRIDAY FOR TEAM FEDERAL OIL GRESINI
The schorching July temperatures at Jerez de la Frontera did not help the hard work done done by Team Federal Oil Gresini Moto2, with their two standard bearers Nicolò Bulega and Edgar Pons finishing 16th and 27th at the end of the opening day of practice on the Spanish track. Both the Italian and the Spaniard focused their efforts on finding the best set-up and especially to get the best grip at the rear end of the bike.
Bulega was 0.738secs slower than today’s fastest opponent in today’s combined times, while Pons’s gap from the top was around 1.2secs. With the IRTA test results still in mind, the Federal Oil duo will resume their hunt to the Q2 direct seed tomorrow – as it is only a couple of tenths away.
The middleweight class of MotoGP will return to action from 10:55 local time (GMT +2), with qualifying one and two to get underway at 15:10 and 15:25, respectively.
16th – NICOLÒ BULEGA #11 – 1’42.148
“Things didn’t go too well and we had several setting issues. The heat surely didn’t help, but we need to find something to make up for it and to make up some ground. We’re seven tenths from the top at the moment, but we know that this is a big gap for Moto2. We’re charged up and tomorrow we’ll try to qualify directly for Q2.”
27th – EDGAR PONS #57 – 1’42.692
“It wasn’t an easy da. We were very quick in the IRTA test, but with these temperatures the setting we worked on back then does not work now. We’re working hard to find more grip, but I must say that especially in FP2 I found a better feeling with the bike. We have to give it all in FP3 with more human temperatures to go for the Q2 direct seed. We must not lose concentration, this is only the first day after four months of not racing, so we will work and the results will come.”
