MotoGP: Vinales Tops Final Test Before Jerez Season Opener

This weekend the 2020 MotoGP World Championship kicks off in Jerez for the Spanish Grand Prix, as grand prix motorcycle racing returns after its lengthy lay-off due to coronavirus. 

This weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix will mark the latest start to a Grand Prix season since the very first year of the World Championship back in 1949, when the opening round was held on the Isle of Man – the TT taking place on 17 June that year. The 2020 season is sure to be a bizarre one, with face masks and social distancing the order of the day, but as we have seen with other series, such as Supercross and Formula One, those things do not necessarily mean that the quality of the racing will be hindered, and hopefully this weekend MotoGP can prove that for itself. 

Historically, Jerez is perhaps not the best circuit for racing, at least not in the premier class and not in recent years. Not since 2012 has the winning margin in the MotoGP race in Jerez been less than one second, and on that occasion it was Casey Stoner who was victorious over Jorge Lorenzo. 

On that occasion the battle was between Honda and Yamaha, and it could prove to be the same this weekend, as well. 

Before proceedings get underway for the first race weekend of the season for the MotoGP class, there was a day of testing on Wednesday – somewhat necessary after a four-month break for most of the riders without touching their MotoGP machines. Almost all of the riders got up to speed fairly quickly, but – perhaps unsurprisingly – none more so than Marc Marquez who was underneath his race lap record, set in last year’s Spanish Grand Prix, in the first session on Wednesday morning. This was enough for Marquez to top the morning timesheets, proving the discoveries Honda made in the final hour of the Qatar test were true, and it is notable that none of the Honda riders used the 2020-spec aerodynamic package in this Jerez test. That said, the turning problems that Honda encountered last season appear to remain, as both Marquez and Cal Crutchlow attested to at the end of the day.

Marquez did not top the times in the more representative afternoon session. On this occasion it was Maverick Vinales who was fastest, just over one tenth ahead of Marquez’ fastest time from the morning. Vinales has shown before that he can be fast in the test sessions, but often when it comes to races the story can be different. However, it is noticeable that Vinales appears relaxed off the bike, and content with his performance, and his ability to be fast in the scorching afternoon is promising for Yamaha, with their recent history of suffering in hotter conditions where the grip is lower. 

Similarly, Vinales’ 2021 teammate, Fabio Quartararo, was very fast in the afternoon. The Frenchman was second behind Vinales aboard his Petronas SRT satellite Yamaha, albeit the same 2020 version that Vinales was using. Quartararo’s time was also faster than Marquez’ best effort from the morning, and proves that last year’s Spanish GP polesitter is once again here to embarrass the factory riders. The sophomore rider was also in need of as much track time as possible, due to the penalty he has been given for riding a motorcycle that does not comply with the regulations for training bikes a couple of weeks ago in Portimao. That penalty is to miss the first 20 minutes of FP1 on Friday morning. Not the end of the world, especially when he is riding so well and his bike is working for him so well, but no doubt he will be glad it happened on a weekend where he had three hours of testing before the race weekend started. 

Marc Marquez was third fastest in the overall times, but Alex Rins made sure it was three manufacturers in the top four of the combined times at the end of the day with his fastest time from the morning, a 1’38.193. Suzuki are perhaps the factory that lost out the most from the period without racing, as they looked the most prepared of any of the factories to race back in March. On the positive side, they’re speed looks intact from the winter, and their riders, with the confidence and security of new contracts to see them until the end of 2022, appear to be ready to take profit from that, with Joan Mir also posting competitive times in the afternoon, less than two tenths off his more experienced teammate. 

Valentino Rossi was fifth fastest on the combined times with his best effort coming in the morning. The nine-times world champion is currently confirmed to be in talks with Petronas Yamaha SRT to replace Fabio Quartararo in 2021, and that deal seems to be all but done. However, the pace in the afternoon will be a worry for Rossi, who admitted at the end of the day he is still suffering with the balance of the bike in the high temperatures. Fortunately for the 41-year-old, he and his team have one extra day to work on the bike this weekend, courtesy of the test. No doubt the Italian will have plenty to try on Friday, but whether any of it will work might be a different story. 

Behind Rossi and completing the top six in the combined times of the final preseason test was Aleix Espargaro, who once again allowed the Aprilia to impress with its speed. One areas where the new RSGP did not impress, however, was its reliability, which still seems to be an issue with the Noale marque’s grand prix prototype, Espargaro’s #41 RSGP dumping oil in the afternoon session which in turn brought down Alex Marquez and Danilo Petrucci, who injured his neck and head, although is expected to be able to ride at the weekend. 

The aforementioned Cal Crutchlow, struggling to turn, ended the day seventh fastest overall, ahead of top Ducati rider Jack Miller. Whilst the Australian is confirmed to be heading the way of the factory team in 2021, for 2020 he remains in Pramac, and so remains his speed. The #43 had an interesting time during lockdown, out motocrossing with the likes of Toby Price and restoring a 125cc two-stroke dirtbike, and it seems to have worked well for the one-time MotoGP winner who on Sunday might be Ducati’s best bet at ending their fourteen-year run without a win in Jerez. 

This is because, in addition to the injuries sustained by Danilo Petrucci in the aforementioned crash on Aleix Espargaro’s oil, Ducati’s number one factory rider, Andrea Dovizioso is still recovering from the collarbone fracture he sustained in a motocross crash whilst racing motocross a few weeks ago in Emilia Romagna. Dovizioso did not complain of any pain with the collarbone in the test, but whether after another two days of riding he will be able to complete the race at full pace, and a fast enough pace to make a good result, is up for debate. In addition to this, Dovizioso’s record in Jerez is not good, as the Italian has failed to reach a MotoGP podium at the Spanish circuit. It is not the place that Marc Marquez’ closest challenger of the past three years would like to start the season, much less with back-to-back races, but a good damage limitation job in Andalusia can put him in a good position later on when the calendar takes the paddock to Austria, where Ducati are undefeated since 2016 and where Dovizioso has won on two occasions. 

KTM were somewhat underwhelming in the Jerez test. Miguel Oliveira, who will replace Pol Espargaro in the factory KTM team next season, was the top RC16 on the combined times with his satellite Tech 3 machine. The Portuguese was eleventh, which sounds disappointing although his fastest time was only 0.633 slower than that of Vinales, and just under two tenths clear of Pol Espargaro who was thirteenth, 0.799 seconds off Vinales. 

One thing that is absolutely clear from the test is that the temperatures will be critical this weekend. The rider and team that best manages these unusual conditions will be the one to come out on top.