Talyta França
The Lusail International Circuit roared to life today with the beginning of the pre-season testing that anticipates the 2024 MotoGP World Championship. The tests are set to unfold until February 20th.
Kicking off at 2 pm, the 24 riders embarked on a series of tests, pushing themselves and their machines to the limit on the track. Among them, Maverick Viñales of Aprilia registered the best timings during the day with 1m 54.883s, 1m 54.067s, and 1m 53.472s consecutively.
The former Moto3 champion Viñales showed an improved performance then during the Sepang test, in Malaysia, emphasizing the focus on enhancing the Aprilia bike's abilities. “Our bike is working well and we did the [Sepang test] really calmly, understanding what is going on the bike, what is not,” said Vinales in an interview to MotoGP. “And in the next few days, we have one mission, which is to understand the aero package that benefits us the most. That’s our target for the test.”
However, all eyes were on Pecco Bagnaia, the two-time world champion from the Ducati Team. The Italian rider secured the best timing during the Sepang test including a new all-time lap record of 5.543km in a 1m56s marker. Despite a slower start at the Qatar Test today, Bagnaia climbed the ranks by the end of the last two sections, securing the fastest timing of 1m 52.04s after initially trailing behind Viñales.
In an Instagram post, the Ducati Corse expressed that the team has “all eyes on the prize”, affirming their commitment as they set the final preparations for the 2024 MotoGP World Championship.
With the testing phase set to conclude tomorrow, riders and teams use this opportunity to test any change and innovation in their motorcycle, as well as the team’s strategies ahead of the main event, scheduled for March 8th to 10th at the Lusail Circuit.
The 2024 MotoGP competition will be divided over three days, in which the first two days include practice sessions and qualifying races. The Grand Prix final race for the MotoGP, Moto2, and Moto3 categories is scheduled for the last day, on March 10th.
The tickets are now on sale, with a new three-day package ticket. For ticket prices and race schedules, check the MotoGP website.