Ajo Motorsport rider ends three-day test at the Spanish track satisfied with pace and eager to improve one-off lap times.

Zarco, Jerez Moto2 test March 2016

The first Moto2 Official Test of the year concluded on Friday at the Jerez Circuit, with reigning World Champion Johann Zarco undertaking just one of the three sessions scheduled for the final day. With his testing workload for the week completed, the Frenchman set a best lap of 1:43.025, less than one tenth off his best overall time for the three days –1:42.952, 14th– .

Fog and a track temperature below 20ºC prevented riders from going out in the first scheduled run of the day. It was in the second when all of the intermediate class were able to put in their opening laps. As he was yesterday, Zarco completed the second highest amount of laps in the session. With a best time of 1:43.025, the Frenchman finished 12th in the combined timesheet for the day –and stood out for his pace on used tyres.

Happy with all the tests undertaken this week, Zarco and his crew packed up before the final session of the day. The Ajo Motorsport Team will next travel to Qatar for the final Official Test, which takes place from March 11th-13th and preludes the opening Grand Prix of the season.

Results – Combined Standings Day 3
1. Sam Lowes (Kalex) 1:42.075
2. Lorenzo Baldassarri (Kalex) 1:42.174 +0.099
3. Alex Rins (Kalex) 1:42.186 +0.111
4. Takaaki Nakagami (Kalex) 1:42.372 +0.297
5. Jonas Folger (Kalex) 1:42.484 +0.409
12. Johann Zarco (Ajo Motorsport) 1:43.025 +0.950

Results – Combined Standings Day 1-2-3
1. Axel Pons (Kalex) 1:41.730
2. Sam Lowes (Kalex) 1:42.075 +0.345
3. Lorenzo Baldassarri (Kalex) 1:42.174 +0.444
4. Alex Rins (Kalex) 1:42.186 +0.456
5. Thomas Luthi (Kalex) 1:42.271 +0.541
14. Johann Zarco (Ajo Motorsport) 1:42.952 +1.222

Johann Zarco – Rider
“After three days it is a pity that I could not go as fast as I wanted to here. I have not had a good enough feeling to push harder. We have been trying many setups and I think we have the right one with which to go fast, but I haven’t shown that this week. It’s not a big drama, because with used tyres I am still very consistent and running a similar pace to my rivals; however, with the new rubber we haven’t been able to improve the lap times. That’s why I’m a little disappointed, but for now we don’t want to overreach and make a mistake before Qatar, which is where we will have the final test and the first race. Next week is all about working hard and getting strong for the start of the season.”

Aki Ajo – Team Manager
“It was important to have these three days of Official Testing here at Jerez. After the private test we performed here a couple of weeks ago, we are pleased to have been able to enjoy good conditions for riding. Being able to test with the rest of the teams on the grid is always good. Zarco and the whole team have done a great job, completing many laps, testing all kinds of setups and evaluating the results to find the best base for Qatar –the first event of the year. At this point in the preseason, the most important thing was putting in as many kilometres as we could to get useful feedback for the first race. Now it is time to focus on the last three days of testing, in Qatar.”