Adrian Martin Leads Aspar 125cc Squad In Tricky Conditions At Cheste
The Gran Premio de la Comunidad Valenciana got underway this morning at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit as the MotoGP paddock prepares to drop the curtain on the 2011 season. Early morning rain left the track damp for the opening 125cc session this morning before further afternoon rain led to a fully wet second free practice. On a crash strewn day Sandro Cortese was able to clock the fastest lap ahead of Johann Zarco and BANKIA Aspar rider Adrián Martín.
Martín shone brightly beneath the dark clouds at his home circuit, the youngster from nearby Chiva once again showing his talent for riding in wet conditions. His team-mate Nico Terol, who is hoping to clinch the World Championship here in front of his home crowd, worked hard to cope with the conditions without taking too many risks and finished the day in tenth place, with the team’s third rider Héctor Faubel in twentieth but confident of making major improvements to his pace tomorrow at what is also his home circuit.
3rd Adrián Martín 1.57.352 (26 laps):
“This Grand Prix is always special to me and I get a lot of motivation from the unbelievable support of the fans here. It has been an almost perfect start – we have been running at the front all day and I had a really good feeling with the bike. I had a little crash this morning because of the rain but that just made me want to push harder to try and improve. I gathered a lot of confidence this afternoon lapping on used tyres and working with the team to improve the set-up of the bike. We found a solution that gave us a lot of grip on the rear. This bike works well in the wet and I think we have a good setting for the dry too.”
10th Nico Terol 1.59.549 (30 laps):
“I usually feel very comfortable in the wet but today it wasn’t my day. I was too stiff on the bike and couldn’t get comfortable but we kept working and gathered a lot of data that will help us improve tomorrow if it rains again. I took things easy this afternoon because it was slippery and the last thing I need is a crash. I ended up tenth but I am not worried because I know we will improve tomorrow. This is a very important weekend for us so I am taking things step by step and staying calm and focused. We just need to find a softer suspension setting with the bike to give us more feel under acceleration.”
21st Héctor Faubel 2.00.545 (26 laps):
“I struggled to get a feeling this morning because the track was so slippery. We tried a few things to get the engine responding better to the conditions but we had a problem with it and had to stop a few minutes early, which was a shame. Even so we have improved as the day has progressed and the only rider who stood out today was Cortese, who is always good in the wet. We’ll have to keep an eye on the forecast for tomorrow – it will be a pain if it rains, for us riders and also for the fans but we have no say over that so we just have to keep working hard.”
Source: Aspar Media
