The Avintia Esponsorama Racing riders took part in the first two free practice sessions of the Gran Premio Octo di San Marino e della Riviera di Rimini at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli, where rain made an appearance in the afternoon.
Xavi Cardelús was 13th in the combined free practice times with a time of 1:46.033, set in the morning session. In the afternoon with wet track, the Andorran rider set the 7th best time of the session.
André Pires has rode on the Misano circuit for the first time. The Portuguese rider finished 18th in the combined free practice times and, like the other riders, set his best time in the morning, stopping the clock at 1:58.513.
Tomorrow at 11:45, Cardelús and Pires will try to get a good position in the E-Pole of the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli and, in the afternoon from 16:20, the first race of the two that will take place this weekend will start.
“It was a difficult morning, but in the afternoon I felt better. As always in the rain, I have a good feeling that allows me to be fast. In dry conditions, we still need to improve as the set-up of the bike wasn’t quite right, but that’s normal in FP1. Tomorrow if we can improve some aspects of the bike and I can be a bit faster, we will make a big step forward. I hope the E-Pole will be in the wet to be as high as possible.”
“First day finished. Today I got to know this circuit for the first time and I’m liking it. The second free practice was in the rain and lap by lap I felt better on the bike. It was a good Friday.”
