In Touch PDF - Dunlop Motorsport

Moto3 JEREZ pREviEw
Moto3
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APRIL 2012 motorsport.dunlop.eu
After an exciting debut under the floodlights in Qatar, Moto3 will
meet the masses when the new World Championship makes its
European debut in the Spanish Grand Prix on April 27-29.
While Losail attracts comparatively limited trackside spectators, a
massive 123,750 fans flocked to last year’s (wet) Jerez event. The
Spanish supporters will have good reason to return in 2012, with
home rider Maverick Vinales leading the Moto3 championship after
victory in Qatar.
Vinales’ FTR-Honda was one of five different machines to score
points in round one, proving the level playing field created by
Dunlop’s exclusive supply of Moto3 tyres. 17 slicks are available to
each rider at each Moto3 round, with two different options to choose
from for both the front and rear.
While Vinales’ victory was hardly a surprise - the Avintia rider won
the last two races of the all-Dunlop 125cc era, then set the pace at
the final Moto3 pre-season test - a surprise challenger emerged
under the desert sky. Riding in his first ever grand prix, 16-year-old
Italian Romano Fenati (FTR-Honda) bolted into an early lead at Losail
- catching Vinales off-guard.
Vinales said: “I was taking things steadily until I saw Fenati escape
- then I had to make a big effort to try and cut the gap. I have to
congratulate him, because he rode really well.”
Fenati eventually finished second to Vinales by 4sec, but battle
could be renewed at Jerez, where Fenati hinted at his future form
by setting the third best lap time during pre-season testing.
Either side of the Team Italia FMI rider on the March timesheets
were factory KTM riders Danny Kent and Sandro Cortese.
Cortese claimed pole in Qatar, then won a fierce seven-rider fight
for the final podium position on race night, but crossed the line
18sec from Vinales and victory.
“We have to work hard to catch Vinales,” said Cortese.
Kent was two-seconds behind his team-mate, but only eighth,
such is the intense level of competition.
Malaysian Zulfahmi Khairuddin (KTM) has taken to his new
four-stroke like a duck to water, sixth at Losail marking his best grand
prix finish. Fifth in testing at Jerez, the 20-year-old will be another
rider to watch out for in Spain.
Although it’s very early days for Moto3, Jerez could see the first
125cc lap record broken. Vinales finished testing 0.2sec under
Julian Simon’s official record of 1m 47.057s, set on a
Dunlop-Aprilia in 2009.
motorsport.dunlop.eu April 2012
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