Jorge Martin and Tetsuta Nagashima take part in the opening day of the first Official Test of 2020.

Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 returned to Jerez, where they had previously ridden last week, to participate in the first Official Test of 2020. Maintaining the good pace that both riders demonstrated during the two days of private testing, Jorge Martin and Tetsuta Nagashima continued to develop their 2020 bikes. On Wednesday the intermediate class undertook three 50-minute sessions.

Nagashima continued to make great strides in his progress, as the Japanese rider lowered his personal best from last week by more than half a second. With a top lap of 1:41.445, the 27-year-old finished 6th on the combined timesheets for Wednesday. Tetsuta and his crew had an intensive test plan and completed a total of 74 laps.

Martin put in 52 laps of the Andalusian track, with a personal best of 1:42.236 that placed him in 20th position at the end of the day. The Spaniard used the first day for working on the setup of his bike, despite being hindered by discomfort in his foot, after a crash last Tuesday during the private test.

The Red Bull KTM Ajo Moto2 riders have two more days of Official Test action to come at the Jerez-Angel Nieto Circuit on Thursday and Friday.

Results – Day 1
1. Remy Gardner (Kalex) 1:40:848
2. Enea Bastiani (Kalex) 1:41.117 +0.269
3. Thomas Luthi (Kalex) 1:41.346 +0.498
4. Edgar Pons (Kalex) 1:41.435 +0.587
5. Aron Canet (Speed Up) 1:41.439 +0.591
6. Tetsuta Nagashima (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:41.445 +0.597
20. Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) 1:42.236 +1.388

88 JORGE MARTIN

“It was a bit of a tough day, especially at the beginning, since I still have some discomfort in my foot. I was not sure how I was going to feel on the bike today, but on each run out on track I felt better and I rode as my physical condition allowed. Our work today helped us to understand where we need to improve the bike and, in addition, we could set a good pace. Little by little we are finding our way, so the goal is to continue taking steps forward – as we have been doing so far.”

45 TETSUTA NAGASHIMA

“I’m very happy to return to Jerez. Today we tried out many different things, working on the setup of the bike. We are on the right track, as we are constantly improving. We still have two days of work to come, in which we hope to continue making big steps forward.”