2020 MotoGP Season Approaches!
- February 8th, 2020
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I just finished watching the Day Two recap of the MotoGP #SepangTest and all I can say is, “Oh man, it going to be ON this season!”
After the winter break and three months off of these 300hp premier class beasts, riders from more than 10 countries returned to the track this weekend to begin testing their 2020 bikes, getting them dialed-in for next month’s opening round of the MotoGP World Championship in Qatar.
In his sophomore year, Quartararo got his 2020 factory bike today. He was super-competitve in his rookie year last year on a lesser machine. He is now on a the same full-factory platform as Rossi and Vinales. Oh, and he topped the sheets both days of testing, despite riding last year’s bike on Day One. PRAMAC’s Jack Miller had been fastest all day today, only to get pipped by Quartararo at the very end of the session.
2019 Champion Marc Marquez has been recovering slowly from shoulder surgery and went down on the out lap after 46 laps today. He claimed it was just a loss of concentration, wasn’t hurt, and didn’t aggravate his shoulder.
Marc is joined this year by his brother Alex, who took the MotoGP2 title last year and is quickly coming up to speed in the premier class.
Dovi is back on the new Ducati, which looks to have a bit more punch this year. Mir and Rins with Suzuki are holding strong and steady in the top seven – let’s see if the ‘zook has any more punch this year. Pol Espargaro on the KTM is in the top ten with Aprilla are in the hunt again too.
Nine-time World Champion Valentino “The Doctor” Rossi rounded out the top ten with a respectable time in what may end up being his final year in MotoGP. And the legendary Jorge Lorenzo makes his long-awaited return tomorrow for Day Three.
It’s difficult to know exactly what is going on and how relevant the times are given that it’s only the second day of testing this year. Some riders weren’t even using a soft rear today – which is expected to provide a 0.4 second improvement in lap times. Others may not be pushing hard, trying to dial in their new hardware as quickly as possible or just playing their cards close to the chest.
| POS | # | RIDER | GAP |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 | F. QUARTARARO | 1:58.572 |
| 2 | 43 | J. MILLER | +0.069 |
| 3 | 26 | D. PEDROSA | +0.090 |
| 4 | 36 | J. MIR | +0.159 |
| 5 | 21 | F. MORBIDELLI | +0.259 |
| 6 | 12 | M. VIÑALES | +0.321 |
| 7 | 42 | A. RINS | +0.406 |
| 8 | 44 | P. ESPARGARO | +0.417 |
| 9 | 93 | M. MARQUEZ | +0.525 |
| 10 | 46 | V. ROSSI | +0.544 |
Sepang International Circuit MotoGP Testing Day 2 Results from MotoGP.com
That said, the top ten riders’ best times today were separated by half a second. Six factories were split by six tenths… and Sepang is one of the longest and more difficult tracks in the championship.
I can’t wait to see what tomorrow’s session brings! 😀
2020 is shaping up to be one of the most competitive MotoGP seasons in recent history. The competition was fierce in 2019 and the race tactics were thrilling to behold. Time will tell, but to my eyes (and hopes) 2020 looks to be a season filled with epic battles reminiscent of the ones Kevin Schwantz, Wayne Rainey, Mick Doohan, and Wayne Gardner had back in the late 80’s and early 90’s.
Is it March yet? Let’s goooooooooo!!!! 😀 #BringIt
MotoGP.com FTW
