Repsol Honda Team continue work at the Sepang Test
Joan Mir and Luca Marini were joined by the entirety of the MotoGP World Championship in Malaysia, the duo ending in 14th and 17th respectively on the factory Honda RC213V machines.
Having already finished a busy two days of on track action during the Shakedown, the Repsol Honda Team were back out for another three days of riding. Conditions remained stable throughout the day with an extended lunch break allowing the majority of MotoGP riders to avoid the worst of the Malaysian heat. Continuing on with a refined testing plan based on the Shakedown saw the pairing of Joan Mir and Luca Marini complete 81 laps.
Mir finished the day as the fastest of the two riders thanks to a best time of 1’58.741, set on lap 42 of 43. The #36 and his team spent Tuesday experimenting with the setup of his 2024 Honda RC213V, continuing to gain valuable information for the upcoming season. Tomorrow, the second day of the official test, offers a chance to further improve his feeling and lap time.
Meanwhile, Marini continued to quickly adapt to life on the Honda and ended just 0.3s off Mir’s best time. Improving his feeling with each and every exit, the Italian remained content with the work he and the team have managed to achieve in the two days of the Shakedown and today. With a number of items to test and work through, there’s still plenty on the agenda for the newest Repsol Honda Team rider.
Two more days of running are still ahead for the Repsol Honda Team as the Sepang Test continues at pace.
Joan Mir
“It’s only the first day so I am staying quite calm about everything as there’s still a lot more to come. We were able to improve Sector 3 and 4, our pace is good there. We were faster in the first half of the lap during the Shakedown. Today was about trying some new things and because of that it was the first day I think that we didn’t improve the bike. This can happen when you’re trying a lot of things. As I said, it is not a big problem because we will be back on track tomorrow. Tonight we need to compare our data.”
Luca Marini
“We have many things to try but everyone is working very hard and well. I am really satisfied with how the first days have gone because every time I get on the bike the feeling is better. It’s an enjoyable moment, learning the new bike, the new team and the new culture. We found something better in the last few days but of course there is still more to do. The step since Valencia has been good and everyone is working together well. The objective is to keep putting all the pieces together because there are many new things and improvements.”
Sepang Test Day 1
Pos. | Rider | Num | Nation | Team | Constructor | Time/Gap |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Martin Jorge | 89 | SPA | Pramac Racing | Ducati | 1'57.951 |
2 | Acosta Pedro | 31 | SPA | Red Bull GASGAS Tech 3 | KTM | 0.269 |
3 | Quartararo Fabio | 20 | FRA | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | 0.277 |
4 | Di Giannantonio Fabio | 49 | ITA | Mooney VR46 Racing Team | Ducati | 0.374 |
5 | Bastianini Enea | 23 | ITA | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati | 0.406 |
6 | Vinales Maverick | 12 | SPA | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia | 0.519 |
7 | Marquez Alex | 73 | SPA | Team Gresini Racing MotoGP | Ducati | 0.591 |
8 | Bezzecchi Marco | 72 | ITA | Mooney VR46 Racing Team | Ducati | 0.654 |
9 | Marquez Marc | 93 | SPA | Team Gresini Racing MotoGP | Ducati | 0.670 |
10 | Zarco Johann | 5 | FRA | LCR Honda | Honda | 0.719 |
11 | Rins Alex | 42 | SPA | Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP | Yamaha | 0.765 |
12 | Binder Brad | 33 | RSA | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | 0.773 |
13 | Espargaro Aleix | 41 | SPA | Aprilia Racing | Aprilia | 0.787 |
14 | Mir Joan | 36 | SPA | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 0.790 |
15 | Oliveira Miguel | POR | 0.799 | |||
16 | Bagnaia Francesco | 1 | ITA | Ducati Lenovo Team | Ducati | 0.862 |
17 | Marini Luca | 10 | ITA | Repsol Honda Team | Honda | 1.018 |
18 | Miller Jack | 43 | AUS | Red Bull KTM Factory Racing | KTM | 1.097 |
19 | Crutchlow Cal | 35 | GBR | Yamaha Test Team | Yamaha | 1.186 |
20 | Nakagami Takaaki | 30 | JPN | LCR Honda | Honda | 1.261 |
21 | Fernandez Augusto | 37 | SPA | Red Bull GASGAS Tech 3 | KTM | 1.592 |
22 | Fernandez Raul | 25 | SPA | RNF MotoGP Team | Aprilia | 2.169 |
23 | Pirro Michele | 51 | ITA | Pramac Racing | Ducati | 2.451 |
Location Information
Specifically built for speed and exciting racing, the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia is one of the world’s best. The 2,300 acre complex cost around £50m to construct and was built in just 14 months, holding its first Grand Prix in April 1999 and setting the standard for race circuits… read more.
Length | 5.543 kilometres / 3.444 miles |
Width | 25 metres |
Left corners | 5 |
Right corners | 10 |
Longest straight | 0.920 kilometres / 0.572 miles |
Constructed | 1998 |
Sepang International Circuit Klia Pahang Malaysia - View in Google Maps
Records
Pole Position | 1m 57.491s (169.8km/h) Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati, 2023) |
Race Lap | 1m 58.979s (167.7km/h) Alex Marquez (Ducati, 2023) |
2023 Race Winner | Enea Bastianini (Ducati) |
2023 Sprint Winner | Alex Marquez (Ducati) |