Álex Márquez stars in Spielberg premiere

Team Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS riders Franco Morbidelli and Álex Márquez played leading roles on the opening day of Moto2 action at the scenic and spectacular Spielberg track in Austria.

After a well-deserved three-week summer break, today’s opening day of practice felt anything like summer, with both practice sessions run in surprisingly cold conditions at the 2.684 miles venue, which is hosting a MotoGP World Championship round for the first time since 1997.

Spielberg’s breathtakingly fast layout and jaw-dropping undulation was expected to favour the attacking riding style of Márquez and the Spaniard didn’t disappoint in this afternoon’s session.

He was a serious contender for the top three throughout and a lap of 1.30.160 eventually put him seventh on the timesheets. He too was able to improve by a second in FP2 and his pace this afternoon bodes well for a strong top six challenge in Sunday’s 25-lap race.

Álex Márquez: 7th – 1’30.160
“I felt really good on the bike today and the most pleasing aspect is my rhythm. I made a long run and I was fast and consistent and it felt like the times were coming relatively easy. We can still improve my pace over one lap for qualifying but I think we have good pace and a good base to use as a solid platform for a strong weekend.”

Source – Team Estrella Galicia