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The tests in Thailand will be important for all the riders, but they will be special only for two. This time, sport has nothing to do with it, because Valentino Rossi and Marc Marquez will celebrate their birthdays in Buriram, the Italian tomorrow, 16 February, and the Spaniard the following day.
Just 24 hours’ difference for the celebrations, but 14 years separate the two. Marc will blow out 25 candles, whereas the Doctor will have a few more. Marquez congratulated his rival.
“What Valentino is doing at 39 is truly impressive. It is something that every rider would want to do. He has always stayed motivated and competitive throughout all these years and no one had done it before him. He is able to improve every season. I just hope that he doesn’t keep doing that because he is already very fast - he joked - Anyway, he deserves it because he works hard.”
Marc then talked about the track, which is new for everyone.
“My first impression after a lap on the scooter is that it is a narrow circuit, very different from Sepang despite the very similar temperatures - he explained - It seems like a fast track, with two long straights where the Ducati will definitely do well, but then there is a very technical central part. For the moment, I like it. We’ll see what happens tomorrow on the MotoGP bike.”
Preparing in the best possible way to take full advantage of the 3 days of testing will be fundamental.
“The important thing is to talk to your team and try to get the gear ratios right, because if you get that wrong, it takes a lot longer to sort things - Marc warned - We studied the Honda SBK data to get an idea of which gears we’ll need and then we’ll figure out the details as we go. At the end of the day, this is what the tests are for and we can take our time.”
The Chang International Circuit is a particular track and it is not easy to draw similarities between it and another on the calendar.
“It’s hard to say whether or not it is similar to some other track. Some sectors make you think of Misano, but at the end of the day, they are two completely different circuits”, he concluded.
Dani Pedrosa’s task was similar to that of his teammate. Once through the sea of fans, he dove into a lap on the track to try to get as much information as possible.
“The first impression is that it is very hot, although there is less humidity than in Malaysia - he recounted with a smile - You start with a long straight and then the track gets narrow at the end. We’ll have to get onto the track with the MotoGP bike tomorrow to understand it better. The asphalt seems good enough, but we’ll have to see what kind of grip it has.”
Dani also had a look at the SBK riders’ data.
“It is only normal to use those who have already been here as a point of reference. I watched the races to see the lines and above all to try to understand what gear ratio to use. This is the most important thing. You also need to rely on experience and intuition to do a good job” he concluded.
