Six takeaways from MotoGP testing in Sepang

The reigning champ looks to have learnt from the mistakes of the 2022 pre-season and has turned up with an evolution of the bike Pecco Bagnaia (Team Lenovo Ducati) rode to the 2022 title win, rather than a revolutionary step forward. And with a Ducati rider on each and every podium during the 2022 world championship, it’s starting from a very strong base. And with only one (Alex Marquez, Gresini Racing) of its eight riders new to the Ducati fold, there’s data galore and the GP23 riders are speaking very highly of the updated engine. In fact, Jorge Martin (Prima Pramac) said he felt his package was “ready to race”. In the combined times at the end of the Sepang test, Ducati accounted for seven places in the top nine, with Luca Marini (VR46 Mooney) topping the timesheets.

Much like Ducati, Aprilia is starting from a solid base, and with four riders now giving feedback to the factory, development is likely to kick up another gear. It was all smiles in the factory garage in Sepang, with Aleix Espargaro confirming the 2023 RS-GP has made small improvements in all areas. But perhaps worryingly for the likes of Honda and Yamaha, he said there’s still more to come for the Portimao test in the form of another engine and aero package to test. “We have a lot of laps in front of us before the first sprint race in Portimao, so let’s wait and see,” he said, smiling. At the end of the three days, Vinales and Espargaro finished third and sixth quickest respectively, with new RNF Aprilia recruits Miguel Oliveira and Raul Fernandez 15th and 11th fastest from the 24 riders on track.

“Clearly we are not there yet,” said HRC’s team boss Alberto Puig. And with a fully fit Marc Marquez finishing the test in 10th place, two places ahead of his new teammate Joan Mir, it’s hard to argue. After Marquez stormed out of the circuit before the completion of the Valencia test, the expectation was that Honda would turn up to Sepang with an RC213V that’s taken a considerable step forward. But it’s not enough.

“We are a bit faster, but the others are a bit faster too, so in the end we are in the same position,” Marquez said. It’s not all bad news; there’s a strong line-up of proven race winners with Alex Rins and Mir joining the fold, all four riders have 2023 machinery, and Honda has a new tech guru in charge in the form of the very successful ex-Suzuki technical manager, Ken Kawachi. But Honda has plenty of work to do between now and the Portimao test if it wants to give its riders the material that’s capable of fighting the Ducatis and Aprilias.

Overall, Fabio Quartararo was happy with the YZR-M1 Yamaha that turned up to Sepang, the bike having made the top-speed and acceleration gains the Frenchman was hoping for. The good news is Quartararo recorded a top speed of 334.3km/h, only a few kays down on the improved Ducati. For top-speed context, it’s still Ducati at the top with Bagnaia’s GP23 registering 337.5km/h, matched exactly by Vinales and Aleix Espargaro’s Aprilia RS-GPs, with Marini and Bezzechi’s GP22s next quickest, both recording 336.4km/h. But the bad news is neither Quartararo nor teammate Franco Morbidelli could put together a quick time when they put a soft tyre on and went for a time attack. One quick lap when he needs it is the 2021 world champ’s great strength, which is why the word “bewildered” was bandied around when he finished 15th fastest. Let’s see if they can iron out the issues in Portimao.

Despite figuring in 13th (Pol Espargaro – GasGas), 14th (Brad Binder – Red Bull KTM), 18th (Jack Miller – Red Bull KTM) and 22nd (Augusto Fernandez – GasGas), the KTM riders all ended the test seemingly happy with what the factory turned up with. With a very heavy testing regime and no one with the time to do a time attack, Miller fans shouldn’t be too concerned about the lap times. While Miller, Espargaro and Fernandez spent a bit of time adapting to a new machine, the experienced Binder was lumped with a lot of the testing duties, and there was plenty to get through. KTM turned up with two different engines, two different aerodynamic packages and plenty of parts to try. The best news is Miller said he was “very happy” with the new engine, but he spent plenty of time at Sepang trying to “get comfortable” on the RC16.

Because there are no restrictions on updating certain areas of the bike like the chassis and swingarm throughout the season, and that the aero package needs to be homologated before the start of the season, aero testing took priority in Sepang. Although each rider is allowed one upgrade throughout the season, decisions need to be made early and given it’s the area in MotoGP that’s seen the most development in recent years, it’s clear the manufacturers have thrown a lot of R&D at aerodynamics over the winter break.