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MotoGP: Viñales and Espargaró Test Out Red Bull Ring

Suzuki Ecstar riders test the track for two days before round 10

July 21, 2016

Team Suzuki Ecstar racers Maverick Viñales and Aleix Espargaró got to test the Red Bull Ring for two days in Austria to get a feel for the circuit before round 10 of the 2016 MotoGP World Championship next month.

Both riders and the team focused on learning the new circuit and prepared a good base set-up and both racers had positive initial impressions and look forward to the race that takes place on August 14.

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Viñales thought the track was really nice and was glad that the test helped him prepare for the MotoGP race in August.Photo Courtesy of Suzuki

"The circuit is really nice, the speed is very high and having the walls so close, you can really notice it. Beside this, the track is peculiar; it is a stop-and-go layout where the acceleration will be very important, and because of this, it may not be the most suitable for our machine, but the set-up will also play a role," says Maverick Viñales. "It will be the first time here for everybody, therefore it will also be a game between teams to see who will be the most effective with the set-up and adaptation. It's good we are making this test; at least we can set a base and work on it during the 'Summer Break'—otherwise it would have been very hard to arrive here without any knowledge."

Espargaró also liked the track and felt confident after the tests at the Red Bull Ring.Photo Courtesy of Suzuki

"I liked the track, the layout is very tight and with a lot of hard-braking and fast acceleration," says Aleix Espargaró. "It won't be easy for us but we have already made some steps forward. This morning I felt very confident and throughout the day we consistently-increased our knowledge with new data. Here we are not trying any major improvements on the machine; we are only trying the track and preparing for the race."

Red Bull Ring Test — Day 1 Results:
1. Andrea Dovizioso – 1'23.764
2. Andrea Iannone – 1'24.347
3. Scott Redding – 1'24.461
4. Casey Stoner – 1'24.502
5. Maverick Viñales – Team SUZUKI ECSTAR - 1'24.595
6. Hector Barbera – 1'24.649
7. Eugene Laverty – 1'24.751
8. Danilo Petrucci – 1'24.992
9. Valentino Rossi – 1'25.054
10. Aleix Espargaró – Team SUZUKI ECSTAR - 1'25.099
11. Yonni Hernandez – 1'25.171
12. Jorge Lorenzo – 1'25.175
13. Jack Miller – 1'25.345
14. Cal Crutchlow – 1'25.438
15. Loris Baz – 1'25.994
16. Mika Kallio – 1'26.056
17. Tito Rabat – 1'26.195
18. Tom Luthi – 1'26.405