Three manufacturers in the top three and a flurry of late times, Aragon’s busy Official Test sees plenty of new items rolled out.
New items and stories were promised; new items and an abundance of stories were delivered. The Official Test at MotorLand Aragon – following Round 8 of the year – gave us plenty to get stuck into, from late improvements, new aero packages, carbon fibre swingarms, fairing adaptations and a star debutant who impressed many. Maverick Viñales (Red Bull KTM Tech 3) edged out Marco Bezzecchi (Aprilia Racing) by 0.006s with a 1’47.694 on his last flying lap to go P1, with Marc Marquez (Ducati Lenovo Team) third, 0.049s covering the top three at the end of play.
KTM: plenty of new parts seen across both garages
KTM had another busy test, just like at Jerez in April. Starting with Viñales and teammate Enea Bastianini, they had a revised front fairing, very similar to Ducati’s, whilst both were spotted using the salad boxes (or mass dampers to be more technical) at the rear of the bike, which was hailed as a positive to dial out chatter, but only when set up correctly, otherwise it exacerbates the issue. This was previously seen in the pre-season tests, but only Bastianini has used it regularly. Viñales was up inside the top three in the afternoon heat, before a final flying lap took him to the top. ‘Bestia’ went faster than he did all weekend, coming away with P16.
Pedro Acosta (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and Brad Binder both donned new ‘stegosaurus’ wings, seen for the first time with the Austrian manufacturer. Acosta fell at Turn 7 before lunch but then went out without any rear aero at all, so experimenting was certainly the call of the day for the #37. Both riders tried a new side fairing too, potentially for engine cooling purposes. Acosta was out on track into the final hour and completed it a solid fifth, whilst the #33 of Binder set personal best laps in the closing 30 minutes to finish P13.
Besides the four regular riders, Pol Espargaro was present, taking 19th at the flag and doing important work. All KTMs continued well into the last hour, improving as the temperature dropped back down.
APRILIA: new aero and a debut for a new rider
Trialling a new front fairing and with good feedback, Aprilia. The shape is slightly altered and instead of it being more angular, it’s now simpler and has a straight down outer edge. Then, the wings on the front have also changed slightly, with a more pronounced side edge to them but really, it’s a minor update.
Other work included engine management, chassis setup and electronics, all to improve stability coming out of corners. Test rider Lorenzo Savadori was busy as usual but a crash at Turn 8 brought out a brief stoppage. Bezzecchi was a late improver up the order to P5 before topping the times on a 1’47.700, until ultimately finishing P2 by just 0.006s; Savadori was 20th.
Whilst the factory riders looked for corner exit stability, it was a whole different approach at Trackhouse Aprilia as Manuel Gonzalez (Trackhouse MotoGP Team) debuted on MotoGP machinery and was instantly quick. Deputising for the injured Ai Ogura, ‘Manugas’ was straight on the pace and despite a Turn 2 fall, impressed team boss Davide Brivio, who spoke of how “proud” he was to give a chance to a young rider who deserves it. The #18 improved in the final laps to move into P21, whereas team leader Raul Fernandez was also in action and improved late on to go P12. For all Aprilias, it was a vital test in hot temperatures, a weakness in 2024 and something they’ll continue to face as the season evolves.
DUCATI: Pecco enjoying new fairing, Marquez into 1’45s immediately
Ducati were working on a new fairing, previously seen in pre-season and whilst Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) enjoyed it but wasn’t 100% sure, Championship leader and teammate Marc Marquez echoed the #63. That was the main item for the factory team to test, not wanting to upset the good feeling that they enjoyed on Sunday. Asked whether or not this will be used for Pecco at Mugello, team boss Davide Tardozzi stated that it’s likely to be seen at Mugello, whilst also saying: “I think we have Pecco back.”
Come the close of the day, Marc was P2 whilst Pecco was ninth but the feeling was the main reference of success.
For BK8 Gresini Racing MotoGP, Fermin Aldeguer was in brilliant form and up inside the top two on the combined sheets for a good part of the day before finishing P4. He spent time working on front feeling after a weekend where he lacked total confidence. Teammate Alex Marquez took P8 and worked on suspension and electronics settings.
In the Pertamina Enduro VR46 Racing Team box, improving the feeling was key as well as getting set for their home Grand Prix at Mugello, something they dedicated a portion of the day to. Franco Morbidelli suffered a crash at Turn 10 in the closing stages of the day, but it was a good day besides that in P6. Teammate Fabio Di Giannantonio was 11th after getting to grips with Ducati’s new front fairing, he was doing plenty of running on that alongside Marc Marquez and Pecco.
YAMAHA: swingarms remain pivotal, V4 later in the week in Barcelona
Over at Yamaha and it was a productive day with plenty of items to try; whilst Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) had the same swingarm in the morning as he used throughout the weekend, teammate Alex Rins was using a newer version as well as back-to-backing it with the old one. On the aero front, the latest package continues to be used by Quartararo, and Rins, whilst keeping the old aero package at the front, tried other aspects of aerodynamic work. The #42 also crashed twice – once at Turn 12 and the other after running off at Turn 8 – but both riders finished early, choosing not to cause confusion with the extra grip created after three days of track action. P7 for Fabio, P18 for Alex.
At the Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP squad, swingarms were the biggest call of the day too, with both varieties showcased. Yamaha’s problem has been rear grip, and this is something that is always at a premium at circuits like Aragon and Barcelona-Catalunya. That’s why the full-time riders are here this week as well as Jack Miller and Miguel Oliveira joining official test rider Augusto Fernandez on track in Barcelona in a few days – where Fernandez and fellow official test rider Andrea Dovizioso will be using the latest version of Yamaha’s V4. For Miller and Oliveira, a steady but positive day, 14th and 15th respectively.
HONDA: evolution, not revolution
In the Honda camp, the main talking point centred on Joan Mir (Honda HRC Castrol) testing the carbon fibre swingarm, which test rider Aleix Espargaro first raced with at the Spanish GP. With the absence of Mir’s teammate Luca Marini, a lot of the testing load was placed on the 2020 World Champion’s shoulders. Mir was P10 and ensured all five manufacturers were present inside the all-important top ten, something to keep an eye on moving forward.
Team Manager Alberto Puig commented that other small items were being run during the Test by Mir. French GP winner Johann Zarco (CASTROL Honda LCR) also tried and liked the new swingarm, and rookie Somkiat Chantra (IDEMITSU Honda LCR) continued to chip away, but there was nothing radical in terms of engine and aerodynamic parts as HRC make small gains with the RC213V. Zarco took 17th whilst Chantra completed the order in 22nd.
So that’s a wrap from MotorLand Aragon! A weekend off arrives before we get going again at the iconic Mugello for the Italian Grand Prix. See you there.
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