Good start to 2010 for Nico Terol

The 2010 season officially opened at 8pm this evening as the 125cc World Championship riders took to the Losail circuit for the first free practice of the campaign. The aperitif to a feast of action saw the riders make progress on their test pace, although they are still some way off circuit record lap times here, with the Spanish armada firmly in control.

Bancaja Aspar’s two riders started out positively but had enjoyed contrasting fortunes by the end of the hour, Nico Terol having dominated the opening stages before struggling with some rear grip issues in the fourth sector of the track and Bradley Smith held up by an engine problem after fifteen minutes that limited his progress. Nico also suffered engine problems late in the session, just as he fitted a fresh tyre, and the Spaniard was forced to stay in his pit for the final ten minutes. However, with his British team-mate reporting positive feedback from his chassis, both riders are confident of scaling positions tomorrow.

5th Nico Terol 2.08.454 (17 laps): “To be honest I am really happy, just because of the way we started the session. I was in the top three for the majority of the hour, with a really good rhythm. We had an issue with rear end chatter on my Aprilia but I am still satisfied. The team is working really well and I feel calm because I know we will solve it tomorrow. It was a shame because I was unable to finish the session out on the track but we have followed on well from the last test at Jerez, we’re going fast with pretty much the same settings on the Aprilia so we just need to work on getting the rear grip right and we’ll be ready.”