ALBESIANO: “ALEIX'S SPEED AND THE QUALITY OF OUR PROJECT ARE CONFIRMED. WE ARE CONTINUING TO GROW”

The three days of tests on the Losail track have come to an end, the last tests before the Grand Prix Motorcycle Racing championship begins 26 March on the same track.

The new 2017 Aprilia RS-GP confirmed the growth trend seen in the first two tests at Sepang and Phillip Island. Aleix Espargarò got even closer to the leaders, particularly on the second day of testing when he finished in fifth place, just 66 hundredths from the leader. The Aprilia Racing Team Gresini Spaniard had what it took today to do even better, but two crashes slowed him down, especially the first which came as Aleix was doing his bests lap, already improved in T1 and his best partial yet in T2. The second crash even forced him to change bikes, removing any chance of lowering his time. Aleix, who also tested the new fairing Aprilia brought in two runs, focused on his race pace, confirming the good feelings he has had since the 2017 bike's début even in this situation. This means that his best time is still 1’55.121, done on Saturday, which earns him twelfth place in the three-day standings.

Sam Lowes, on the other hand, continued his progress with a time of 1’56.167. Also slowed by two crashes today, he finished the tests having done better than the day before. Yet another encouraging sign along the English rider's path to his MotoGP début.


ALEIX ESPARGARO'
“Even if today was not the best of the three days, I am still happy with our work. At the beginning I started with a good feeling, managing to be fast even on used tyres. Maybe it was partially because of these good sensations that I pushed a bit too hard with the soft tyre, crashing while I was doing a good lap. The bike was repaired quickly, but a second crash forced me to use the other RS-GP with a less advanced engine and electronics that were not perfectly dialled in. For this reason I was unable to improve in the second part of the session, but I see the glass as half full. We have improved our pace and our level is definitely better than our standings on the time sheets show.”

SAM LOWES
“It may seem strange, but just at the end of this last day, when I crashed, we found the right setup for the 2017 RS-GP to increase my confidence. We had some particular tests. We have a lot of things to try and sometimes that keeps us from focusing on pure performance. This is all part of my growth. Right now my sensations in the saddle are more important than lap times and I learned a lot even from the less positive situations. I am optimistic about the race. The work we did on the front of the bike gave me the confidence I was lacking and now the points zone, which is the goal I've set for the first race, appears to be well without our reach. We'll set up our first weekend based on what we found today - a nice starting base.”

ROMANO ALBESIANO - APRILIA RACING MANAGER
“We are finishing the tests well aware that we have a bike with very good chassis architecture, with excellent capacity going into corners, turning and grip when leaned over. We need to improve the traction when the bike is almost upright and engine performance that has improved but which, on tracks like this one, counts for a lot. We confirmed the progress our project is making here. Today Aleix was held up by two crashes but he had the potential to lap in the mid to high 54 range and to keep up with the leaders. He was fast on a track that is certainly not our favourite and he was efficient in terms of race pace, since he showed that he can lap easily at mid to high 55. Sam also did very well, despite the fact that he fell a couple of times too. He improved consistently over the three days, showing that he has the potential to do well. Now we have two weeks to finalize our work and turn up at the first race with goals that are within reach for us, well aware that we have room to improve throughout the season.”

FAUSTO GRESINI - TEAM MANAGER
"I am very satisfied with these tests. We showed that we have good potential. There is definitely still work to be done, but we are not far off. From the end of 2016 to now, we have taken tangible steps forward and that is a sign that the development over the winter break was important. We also need to consider the way our competitors have improved, compared to whom we were still able to reduce the gap and this is very significant. At a crucial moment for our project, everyone put forth their best effort, from Aprilia to the team. Now we are anxiously awaiting the first race where we will definitely be ready."

Aprilia was the nicest surprise on the second day of tests in Qatar, the last ones before the Grand Prix Motorcycle Racing championship opening round, also scheduled to be held in Qatar on 26 March.

Confirming the good sensations he had yesterday when, slowed by a crash, he had shown the potential to move up in the standings, Aleix Espargarò rode his 2017 Aprilia RS-GP to fifth place in the rankings for the day with a time of 1’55.121, just 66 one hundredths behind the leader, Viñales.

This is the best result yet that the 2017 Aprilia RS-GP has achieved in testing, only on its third outing of the season. Beyond the excellent time achieved, the Aprilia Racing Team Gresini Spaniard put 34 laps on the sheets, continuing development of the new bike and obtaining positive feedback throughout the long day of tests.

Sam Lowes, who tested the 2017 bike for the first time yesterday, also continued progressing, shaving more than 8 tenths off of his time from Friday and stopping the clock at 1’56.276, a performance that earned him twentieth place at the end of the day.

Carl Cox Motorsport has announced their progression to the very highest level of Road Racing in partnership with 13-time TT-winner Michael Dunlop

Bringing together the adrenalin fuelled worlds of music and motorsport, the partnership looks to bring the exploits of Dunlop to an even wider audience, as Carl Cox presents the enigmatic Ulsterman to his vast fanbase.

At just twenty-seven years old, Dunlop has already made TT history, being the first rider to lap the 33¾ mile circuit in under 17 minutes (with a 133.962mph average speed lap) and with 13 wins is placed fifth in the all-time standings.

In 2017 Dunlop will be campaigning machinery in the RST Superbike, Monster Energy Supersport, RL360 Quantum Superstock and PokerStars Senior TT races at the Isle of Man TT Races fuelled by Monster Energy as well as the North West 200, Ulster GP and other selected events. He will be running his own MD Racing team in the more production spec Superstock and Supersport classes with high visibility Carl Cox Motorsport branding.

Internationally renowned DJ Carl Cox has been a long-time admirer of the TT and the impressive performances of Dunlop. In fact Cox has for many years arranged his schedule around Mona’s Isle and the White Isle, playing end of TT Week sets in Douglas, Isle of Man, before his traditional Ibiza residency.

Cox has been supporting motorsport teams in events as diverse as the Ducati Tri-Options Cup in British Superbikes (winning the class twice), classic and sidecar racing in both the Northern and Southern Hemisphere whilst promoting new young talent in New Zealand’s 250cc Hyosung Cup.

The partnership was forged as Dunlop visited the traditional Cemetery Circuit races in New Zealand on Boxing Day, spending time with the Carl Cox Motorsport crew and trying out their sidecar for size.

Michael Dunlop explained;
"Carl is a household name and it’s great to have such a big character supporting the team this year. Carl Cox Motorsport have a presence across many different types of racing, so it will be great to see them so involved on the Roads. It is an exciting opportunity to link up with Carl who I know shares our enthusiasm for racing, and hopefully we can bring him and the team even more success.”

Carl Cox commented,
“We’re excited to be part of Michael Dunlop's upcoming season, and of course the 2017 IOM TT! Michael has been very supportive of us working together and I'm looking forward to some great, fast racing, forging a good team relationship and sharing all the memorable moments along the way. I can't wait to be there!”

Gavin Sokolich, Brand Manager Carl Cox Motorsport added:
“This will be our first year involved with a two-wheeled campaign at the IOM, and over the last two years we have been actively looking into which rider we could support. We've been fortunate enough to get to know Michael over the last year and we feel the two brands would easily work together. We're absolutely thrilled to be associated with such a talented rider and crew for this year's races.”

Follow Michael and the team at www.carlcoxmotorsport.com and www.facebook.com/carlcoxmotorsport/

IAM RoadSmart and Auto Express magazine teamed up to investigate commuters and their bad driving habits on a busy weekday … to find some drivers think nothing of eating, drinking or wearing headphones at the wheel – and some even decided applying make-up and reading a book was acceptable.

The surprising findings were recorded over the course of a day by Auto Express alongside Peter Rodger, head of driving advice at IAM RoadSmart, in two separate London locations.

The research, which is featured in the 1 March issue of Auto Express – the UK’s biggest selling car magazine - observed no less than 66 traffic violations, including 22 instances of hand-held mobile phone use (33%), 12 cases of wearing headphones (18%) and 10 instances of eating and drinking (15%).

Last week (1 March) the penalties for using a hand-held mobile phone whilst at the wheel of a car was doubled to a £200 fine and six points on your driving licence. Those committing the offence in their first two years of earning their driving licence face an instant driving ban.

Of the 22 cases of mobile phone use witnessed, Auto Express reported: “Most appeared to be either sending a text or using an app. And although some put their phones away when traffic continued to move, others started driving while texting.”

Although not in the same league as the use of smartphones, Peter added although eating and drinking is not illegal as such, it can lead to “driving without due care and attention” which is a serious offence - and their reaction times will almost certainly be slower.

But the two cases of people applying make-up and one of a taxi driver reading a book were the most surprising spots by the pair.

Sarah Sillars, IAM RoadSmart Chief Executive Officer, said: “We really need drivers to acknowledge that the use of smartphones can cause serious accidents and is just as socially unacceptable as drink-driving. No phone call is important enough to put other people’s lives in danger.”

Steve Fowler, Auto Express Editor-in-Chief, said: “Our survey was a real eye-opener and revealed what drivers get up to behind the wheel. Mobile phone use has reached an unacceptable level and the new laws are welcomed but this highlights that motorists need to focus more on the task at hand and avoid being distracted.”