Jorge Lorenzo strutted his new crimson colours at the MotoGP Sepang test. It seems he’s going to need more practice to strut a bit faster as he came in 17th overall.
Not to be the one spelling doom and gloom from the outset, but Lorenzo’s first performance for MotoGP Ducati prior to the ’17 season has left a lot to be desired.
Chalk it up to him still getting used to the bike, but he finished 17th overall on the timesheets by the end of his ride. Lots of overtime is likely to be ahead for the Spaniard as he’ll have to hit the books and tweaks even harder than before.
Lorenzo was quick to pinpoint the root of the issue:
“In Valencia everything was easier, because I rode more or less the way that I’ve ridden for the past nine years and the times were there.
Here, however, riding the same way it was much harder to go quick, so I’m understanding that it’s a bike that requires a pretty different riding style than what I’m used to. – Jorge Lorenzo
Yet, leave it up to yaboi Jorge to retain a positive outlook regardless:
“Not disappointed, but surprised, because I expected I’d be more or less the same as Valencia, not very far. But I was very, very far.
What gives me confidence is we made a huge improvement during the day, and also to see three or four Ducati’s at the top. This demonstrates the bike has the potential to go very quick, at least for one lap.
Little by little we are getting closer and tomorrow we’ll be closer if the weather allows it.” – Jorge Lorenzo.
To think that Lorenzo doesn’t have much to prove would be a bit of an understatement. With Casey Stoner – currently only a test rider for Ducati – coming out on top of the list during the tests at Sepang, Jorge will have a lot of adapting to should he want to make his Ducati legacy an enduring one.
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