Productive Dry Friday Sessions for Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp in Thailand
Productive Dry Friday Sessions for Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp in Thailand
Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp started their Thailand Grand Prix efforts full of vim. Manuel Gonzalez and Kohta Nozane made the most of the dry P1 and P2 conditions and secured 8th and 28th respectively in the combined session timesheets.
Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp were pushing early on in the Thailand Grand Prix weekend. With dry conditions in P1 and P2, Manuel Gonzalez and Kohta Nozane were determined to use the opportunity to get some hot laps in. They took 8th and 28th respectively in the combined session timesheets.
The dry morning session served as the perfect opportunity to work on bike set-up as the weather forecast for the remainder of the weekend remains uncertain. However, Gonzalez didn‘t have a great feeling with his bike at the Chang International Circuit in P1. Still, the Spaniard wanted to get some hot laps in to secure a provisional place in Q2 just in case. He ended the session in ninth place with a 1‘36.702s set on lap 14/18.
Having taken a liking to the Thai circuit, Manugasss gladly resumed his work in the quite hot afternoon session. With a new setting, he put in 18 more laps in sunny conditions as he prepared a bike set-up for an eventual dry qualifying and/or Race. He featured inside the top 4 early on and stayed there until the time attacks came in. He set a 1‘36.354s on his penultimate try to take 8th place in the P2 results and the combined Friday timesheets.
Nozane was completely new to the Buriram circuit and thus his main aim for P1 was to get in as many laps as possible to get comfortable with the track layout. The Japanese rider started work diligently and set his best time at the end of the session. He ended P1 in 30th place with a 1‘38.771s posted on lap 17/18.
The number-5 rider was keen to make a step in the afternoon, and got another 18 laps in. His efforts were rewarded: the Moto2 rookie found a big chunk of time compared to P1. In the last part of the session he started to get to grips with the track, and he ended the day in 27th place in the P2 and 28th in the combined rankings, with a 1‘37.502s best time, set on lap 16.
The Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp teammates will be back in action from 09:25 - 09:55 GMT +7 on Saturday for P3, followed by the qualifying sessions from 13:45 - 14:25.
Manuel Gonzalez
Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp
"It was a hard working day. In Practice 1, I was not comfortable with the bike, it was moving a lot, but I finished not far from the top. In P2 we tried a big change with the bike that improved my feelings, and my pace was fast. But when we put in the soft tyre and tried to push for a lap time, I struggled more, and it was not going as I wanted. We will be looking to improve in that area for tomorrow."
Kohta Nozane
Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp
"This was my first time riding in Buriram, so I find myself a bit on the backfoot, as most riders have raced here last year. I‘m having a bit of a hard time to adapt and close the gap in terms of experience, but I will keep trying, and I will study the data. I‘ll improve my riding tomorrow."
Gelete Nieto
Correos Prepago Yamaha VR46 Master Camp, Sports Director
"Manu wasn‘t feeling comfortable on the bike this morning. The setting was not optimal for him, he had some difficulties while riding. Anyway, he finished the first practice in 9th position: he‘s strong and fast even in these conditions. We changed the set-up for P2, and he was more comfortable. At the end of the practice, with the soft tyre, he was not having the feeling he expected. We need to work on it for tomorrow.
"After his first appearance at the Buriram track, Kohta improved a lot in P2. He needs to work on some small details. He has a lack of grip in some corners. He and the team will analyse the telemetry later this afternoon."
