Loi builds up speed on second day

RW Racing GP and Livio Loi decided to skip the morning session of the second day of the IRTA test in Jerez. Too cold (12 degrees Celsius) and therefore too much risk of crashing. It turned out a good choice to concentrate on the other two sessions. Loi set a best time of 1.46,890 in the final part of the day, delivering him seventh place overall in the combined results.

It was clear by only watching the time sheets that Livio Loi gave it a good go in the third session. With a series of low 47’s and high 46’s he did quite a few consistent fast laps. “It was obvious the circumstances were best in the afternoon,” RW Racing GP team manager Jarno Janssen pointed out. “Over the day the conditions change a lot and Moto3 machines are sensitive to changing circumstances.”

Especially in the second session of the day it proved to be difficult to deliver fast times all the time. With 1.47,596 Loi was much faster than the first day, but his time was ‘only’ good enough for thirteenth.

“Not bad, but we all knew there was more in it,” Livio Loi said. “We went out on new soft tyres in the final session, like almost everyone else. My first 1.46 was the fourth time at the moment and I was still building up the speed. I improved my time, but lost a few positions. It’s just a test, but it is already really competitive, with a mix of Hondas and KTMs.”

RW Racing GP team manager Jarno Janssen once more underlined the relativity of the test. “It is important to gain confidence and find the speed, but without taking big risks. We don’t want any injuries or damage at this stage. We’ll have four more days of testing in Qatar ahead of the opening race of the season. But yes: today was a very good day and I’m really happy Livio is this fast without doing crazy things.''