Category: MotoGP

Reale Avintia Racing team rider Loris Baz, completed the second day of testing at Qatar with really positive feeling. 21 of the 42 laps he did today at the 3,34 miles circuit, were a race simulation and Baz finished very happy both with his pace and the performance of the Michelin tyres over the race distance. And although he thinks that it was possible to go slightly faster, he was overall happy with his performance in the second day at Losail International Circuit.

Following the race simulation the Reale Avintia Racing French rider went out again with a set of fresh tyres and pushed for a fast lap, ending the day 15^th on the timesheet with a time of 1’55.808.

“It was another good day at the office and I’m happy. At the beginning the feeling was not so good as yesterday, but we refined the set up of the bike and we were able to improve. Today we worked with the tyres for the race, I think that for us will be the rear hard and the front soft, and we did a race simulation with positive results. Of course I would go faster, but to be my first race simulation I was quite happy with the result. After the simulation I did went out again pushing for a lap time, and I think it was not so bad, because I did it on my own and I was not pushing and tacking risks. I’m very happy because is the first time I enjoy riding the bike for a long time, and for me this is the most positive fact of this test.”

The first of the three days of MotoGP official testing at the Losail International Circuit was really positive for Loris Baz, the only Reale Avintia Racing team representative today at Qatar. His teammate Hector Barbera decided to stay at home last Monday and take more time to recover from his collarbone, after only eight days since his surgical intervention.

Loris Baz felt really comfortable riding his Ducati Desmosedici GP15 from the first time out, and he was in the top ten with two hours remaining. The Reale Avintia Racing French rider did only 31 laps in the opening day at Qatar, as he decided to stop before schedule when the track temperature started to drop down. He had very good feeling with the bike and tomorrow he hopes to improve even more. Baz finished 17^th only 1.3s from Andrea Dovizioso, the fastest today riding the factory Ducati.

“The first day was really good. I did not have such a good feeling with the bike since one year ago and from the first laps I was going fast. Today I did not many laps, but this it is not so bad as we were able to keep some tyres for the next two days. Overall I’m very happy and we need to keep in the same direction tomorrow, try to improve even more and solve the issues we have in some turns, but I’m happy with the feeling I had today. We had not many stuff to test, because the base set up was working from the beginning, so I just tried Michelin tyres and I basically concentrated in getting some feeling with the track. Tomorrow we want to do a race simulation, and we will see how it goes.”

Andorra has been the ideal scenario for the launch that of Reale Avintia Racing team, that will compete one more season in MotoGP with Héctor Barberá and Loris Baz.
The Andorra Circuit has hosted press and guests who have attended a spectacular staging. Hector Barberá and Loris Baz Reale Avintia Racing team Ducat arrived by helicopter to the circuit placed at 2500 meters altitude.

Héctor Barberá confirmed today that he will not be in the Qatar test this week, so he can be able to recover his best form ahead of the first race.
Loris Baz will be in Losail and he hopes to continue his positive progression in the final test of the winter test, so he can get ready for the first race scheduled for March 26^th.

Reale Avintia Racing launch concluded with a special stunt show on ice by Emilio Zamora, wearing Barbera’s leathers and helmet. The guest thought for a while that Hector was riding the bike.

Media and guest also enjoyed driving ice cars at the Andorra Circuit.

“This injury came in the worst moment for us, and I won’t be able to attend to the next test in Qatar. It has no sense to risk before the first race and the best decision is to stay at home and work hard to be completely fit for the first race. To be honest, after all the issues we had during the first two test this injury was a big problem for us, but we have to be positive, because I’ll be totally fit when the championship stats. The team has been reinforced with Reale, and together with Avintia and all the sponsors they will be supporting us to get the best. The team launch was amazing and the bike is beautiful. Now we have to be ready from the first race and to fight for the top five, or at least be closer to this positions.”

“The team goes further every year with the launch, last year I had the chance to ride on the snow with my Ducati, and this time the bike coming by helicopter was simply amazing. Also Emilio Zamora’s show on Hector’s leathers was really funny. The bike looks great with the new sponsors and I’m looking forward to ride it again next Friday at Qatar test and continue with the positive progress made during the winter test. I felt great from the first time I tried the bike and I think this year we will be able to fight for top ten results in many races.”

https://youtu.be/IAhkjJh8m5k

Reale Avintia Racing rider Hector Barbera underwent successful surgery today in Barcelona. The surgery, performed by doctor Xavier Mir – Head of the Upper Extremities Surgery and Microsurgery Unit of the Hospital Universitario Dexeus and Head of Traumatology for MotoGP – was a success. Barbera had a fracture of the middle third of his left collarbone with five fragments and Dr. Mir needed one hour and a half to place a 6-hole titanium plate and fix the three smaller fragments with screws of small fragments. It was a difficult operation because and old callus from a previous fracture in the same collarbone, occurred in his teens.

The MotoGP rider crashes yesterday while he was training with a small bike at Circuit de la Comunidad Valenciana Ricardo Tormo test circuits and immediately travelled to Barcelona.

Héctor Barberá will stay in the hospital for 48 hours and he will be able to begin rehabilitation in 4 or 5 days. His participation in the Qatar test next week is still in doubt, but he will certainly have no problem to race in the first Grand Prix of the 2017 season in Qatar from 23 to 26 March.

Reale Avintia Racing riders Hector Barbera and Loris Baz finished the last day of MotoGP official testing at the Phillip Island circuit today. After two difficult days were the lack of feeling with the front end became a nightmare for the riders, this afternoon both riders found the right direction with the set up of their bikes.

Hector Barbera did 83 laps today, with a personal best of 1’29.791, 16^th today and 17^th in the combined time sheets, and just 0.543s from Andrea Dovisioso, the fastest Ducati at this test.

Also Loris Baz found the way to improve today at Phillip Island. The 24-year-old French, has been working really hard during the last three days to get feeling with the front of his Desmosedici GP15, and today, he finally found the right direction.

Action will resume in Qatar next month for Barbera and Baz, with the last test of the preseason at Losail International Circuit from March 10^th.

“The most positive after three days is that today we finally found the way. With two hours to go we touched the key and I began to feel good on the bike and I was faster, but the best is that my feeling is back. I have been very overwhelmed because this happened in Malaysia and every time since I got on this bike. We have finally found the solution! I started to feel good straight away, having fun riding the bike, but this was only for two hours and in the end we didn’t have any more tyres to try a flying lap. At the end I was able to improve a lot with a seven-lap-tyre, and I think that with fresh tyres it was possible to lap in 29 lows. So in the end we are happy. Now it is time to prepare well before the next test in Qatar.”

“It has been a difficult three days but today we found something. We have improved little by little to lap in 29 and we are not so far, but I am happy because we have found the way, and it has not been easy. Overall I leave Phillip Island satisfied, because we tried a lot of things and the team did a great job. My crew chief, Paolo did the right things and in the end of the day we leave with a clear direction. I think that I could go even faster with a new tyre at the end, so I’m happy, much more than I was until today at lunch time.”

The first test of the 2017 preseason has ended today at the Sepang International Circuit in Malaysia with Héctor Barberá and Loris Baz in 16^th and 20^th place in the combined time sheets after three days. Even though there is still a lot of work left to find the perfect feeling with their bikes before the first race, the test at Sepang has all in all been very positive .

Héctor Barberá had a crash with one hour to go and was left without a chance for a final time attack to improve his lap time. The Valencian rider lost the front on turn 5 at more than 170 km/h, but fortunately he walked away without injuries. The front end was a critical point on his Ducati Desmosedici GP16 over the three days of testing and he needs to continue to work before the first in race in Qatar on March 26^th. There are three more testing days scheduled at Phillip Island this month and another three at Losail in early March.

His teammate Loris Baz improved on the last day and finished just 1.5s behind Maverick Viñales, the fastest rider in Sepang. Baz also has work left to do in Australia, but his first impressions of the Ducati Desmosedici GP15 were good.

All MotoGP riders will return to action at Phillip Island in two weeks, with three more days of testing to further adapt to their new bikes.

“I don’t have enough feedback from the front of the bike and at the moment I don’t have the feeling that I would like. That’s the biggest limit I have right now. We’ve been trying many things and I’ve tried to push at the maximum, but at the end I crashed. I normally don’t crash often, but things are different with this bike. I also crashed when I raced it with the Ducati Team last season, I lost the front in both races and today it was the same again. We have to work to improve the feeling with the front. We are trying to work like last year, but this is a completely different bike and we have to reset for the next test in Australia. As far as lap times go, we are just a second behind the fastest rider, which is not so bad. Now we have to find the right direction at Phillip Island and keep improving to be ready for the first race.”

“Overall the test was good. Yesterday we tried several things that were not going as we expected, but today everything went much better and I am happy. I improved my lap times with a tyre that had more than ten laps. It also was at midday when it was very hot, so I think our result is positive. We are not far away and except from the second day, the feeling with the bike was very good. Now we’ll see how things develop in Australia. Phillip Island is my favourite circuit and we still have a lot of things to try, but I’m leaving Sepang, a track that is one of the most difficult for me, quite happy. We still have to continue working on my riding style to be smoother, and we also have to work with the bike to be faster with a full tank, which at the moment it still a little bit difficult.”

Avintia Racing riders Hector Barbera and Loris Baz concluded Jerez test ahead of schedule. Despite rain forecasts, the sun has shone on the Andalusian track in the first two days of testing, where several Ducati teams, plus Aprilia, Suzuki, KTM and Honda have come to Jerez to complete a three-day test, the last of 2016 season.

Héctor Barberá was the fastest yesterday on his Ducati Desmosedici GP 2016, but today he finished earlier than expected due to a mechanical problem. The Valencian has been left with the desire to improve his times with new tires, but overall, his feeling have been very good, and when he returns to action at the end of January in Malaysia, he hopes to have more support from Ducati keep going forward with his adaptation process to his new bike.

Loris Baz did a really fast lap today and he finished this test very happy, both with his bike and his new crew chief. The Frenchman got grips really well with the Desmosedici GP15, and following a difficult season aheads the winter break with a smile on his face.

“I am very happy because I have not had such good feelings with the bike for a long time. I think we have done two very good days of work, little by little I am getting confidence with the bike and this test has been very positive. We have tried a lot of things and we have a really fast pace, and today I did a very fast lap, although it could be better. But I’m happy because enjoyed riding my bike, now I can push hard with confidence and I understand what the bike and the tyres do. It has been a very positive test and I go with a relaxed brain to the winter break, because it has been a very difficult year, with a lot of doubts, so ending like this is fantastic.”

“I finished the last test of the year with a bittersweet taste. On the one hand, we could confirm the great potential of this bike and we have also tried several new Michelin front tyres that I really liked. But I am not happy enough, because in Valencia we had an issue with the gear box, and here happened again. I was forced to stop at three and I have not been able to do many laps today; I’ve spent all morning testing tyres, and when it was time to put fresh rubber for the time attack we had this problem. I wont have the second bike until the first test next year, and therefore, we were forced to finish the test ahead of schedule. I hope that in Malaysia everything works properly, because in the two races I did with the Ducati Team we did not have any issues, but we have had them in the last two test. I trust Ducati and I’m sure they will help us to get the full potential of my GP16”.

Avintia Racing riders started yesterday at Valencia the preparations for 2017 season and the first conclusions after two days of testing have been vey positive. Both riders started to work with the bike they will be racing next year, the Ducati Desmosecidi GP 2016 for Hector Barbera and the 2015 model for Loris Baz. Both had good feelings and they think the potential of the new machines is enormous.

Hector Barbera focused on working his position on the bike and together with his crew he tried to adapt it to his riding style more than trying to do a fast lap. He was ninth overall the first day just 0.3s from the fastest pace, while was fifteenth today. The Spaniard only worked with the softer compound rear Michelin tyre, because the track temperatures didn’t aloud him to use the hard compound on his Ducati during the course of the test. He had positive feelings and he is looking forward to improve next week in Jerez.

Loris Baz finished the two days of testing in Valencia with a big smile on his face. He had a new bike, but also a new crew chief, Paolo Zavalloni, and the first impression working together has been really positive. He found the bike very competitive and as his teammate feels there is a big potential to explore during the winter test.

“This has been a very positive test because we were able to work in my riding position on the bike and the feeling was better every time I went out on track. The pace was fast and consistent, and although maybe we failed to do a really fast lap, I’m happy with the improvement made during these two days. Four tyres for two days are not so much, and the hardest Michelin tyre was too hard for the track conditions and our bike. I knew the bike thank to the races I did in Japan and Australia, and I confirmed that this bike has a big potential. The preseason has just started and now we’ll go to Jerez for another test of three days, where I will try to get more information. We also saw riders changing teams and some new people, and I think we will have even more fun during next season.”

“I’m happy, because this has been a really good test and a good way to start. But mainly because with this bike we solved the problems we have been fighting with during all the season. We also understand why we struggled and basically it is because this bike is better, you can easily keep a constant pace and this one of the main problems we had last season. I also had the chance to work for the first time with my new crew chief, Paolo, and we started to know each other better. The first feeling was good and this was also positive. Finally we finished the year in good mood, although we had to wait for next season preparations. We will see how it goes in Jerez next week, where I hope to make a step forward.”

The Avintia Racing riders have put the finishing on the 2016 MotoGP World Championship today at Valencia. Hector Barbera has been fighting the whole race to finish tenth, and he was really close to getting this place after an intense battle with Alvaro Bautista during the last few laps of the race. He was finally eleventh and secured the Top 10 in the championship standings. With this, he reached the target he had set before starting the season in Qatar.

Loris Baz struggled again with the tyres. He suffered some grip issues on the front in the first laps, and then problems started with the rear tyre as well. But the brave French rider finished the race and also a championship that has been tough for him due to injuries and a lack of feeling with the bike.

The Avintia Racing riders will begin the preparations for 2017 on Tuesday. Hector Barbera will enjoy two days of testing to continue to adapt to the Ducati Desmosedici GP 2016 he recently raced at Japan and Australia. Loris Baz will switch to the GP15, a much more competitive bike with which he expects to find the right feeling ahead of the next season.

HÉCTOR BARBERÁ #8 P11

“We always said that our target was to finish the championship between fifth and tenth, but being realistic, this was almost impossible. If we look how many factory bikes are on the grid, we should be 14º or 15º with our bike. We finished with 102 points, and this after missing two good opportunities when I was replacing Iannone in the factory Ducati team. Without that we could be ninth overall. But anyway we did a great job this year, and some riders like Suzuki’s Aleix Espargaro or Bradley Smith are behind us. We had a third division bike, but the team was playing in the premier league. I always did my best, I got two fifth places, one fourth place, sixth… really good results. The word team was very important this year, I learned a lot and I also matured as a rider. On Tuesday we will start a new year, an even better year. I want to thank everybody that believed in me and all those who made this possible.”

LORIS BAZ #76 P18

“It was a really difficult race. In the first half I struggled with the front end, and then towards the end, it was the lack of grip on the rear what made things difficult for me. I also finished the race exhausted. Positive is that what we found yesterday seems to work. Anyway, we need to work so I can ride the bike without fighting in every lap. I’m looking forward to test on Tuesday and to start the new season. But I’m also ready to get surgery next month and be completely fit and ready for next season. My body is tired after this season and I need to start the next one in full strength. I learned one thing this year, and it is that being fast in the winter doesn’t count, the races are the important thing. I need to build my confidence and improve step by step before the championship starts in March at Qatar.”

Avintia Racing matched its best result in the team’s history today at the Malaysian Grand Prix, with Héctor Barberá in fourth and his team-mate Loris Baz in fifth place. Just before the start, another tropical storm came down over the Sepang track and it rained so heavily that the MotoGP start had to be delayed by 15 minutes. For the Avintia riders, the water on the track was good news, because after their great performances in qualifying on Saturday, both Héctor Barberá and Loris Baz preferred to have a wet race. After a cautious start, the Avintia Racing riders started to pass other riders and recover positions, with Baz leading the pair. But when the amount of water on the tarmac got less in the closing stages of the race, Barberá got stronger, took advantage of the changing conditions and went ahead of his team-mate to cross the finish line in fourth place. It was his best result since his MotoGP debut in 2010.

Loris Baz, who had the roles reversed and been fourth ahead of Barberá at the Czech Republic Grand Prix back in August, finished the race in fifth place. Even though he dropped behind Barberá, this result is worth gold for the Frenchman, who had struggled for a number of races to find back to his confidence, which he had lost due to several injuries.

The overseas triple of races offered everything for Team Avintia Racing, from Barberá’s adventure riding the official Ducati to the remarkable MotoGP debut of Mike jones and the joy of all team members with this fantastic result at Sepang. There is no better way for Barberá to return to Spain, where he will go into the final race of the season at Valencia with extra motivation.

HÉCTOR BARBERÁ #8 P4

“I’m really happy because this fourth place is incredible and also my best result in MotoGP ever. After two difficult races in Japan and Australia I really needed this result to get a boost of confidence and energy before my home race in Valencia. There is no doubt that this result came in the right moment. But although I’m very happy for myself, I’m also extremely happy for my teammate Loris, because he needed it even more than me. This result is fantastic for the whole team. We are showing this season that with hard work, big efforts and huge passion you can achieve important things. Avintia is the best example, because we don’t have the resources of many teams, but in passion we are world champions. We are in the top ten after 17 races, ahead of many factory bikes, and we go to Valencia determined to give our best again to close this fantastic season with the best possible result.”

LORIS BAZ #76 P5

“Before the race I was praying for rain, because the last three weeks have been really tough for me. After this weekend, we go back home with a big smile on our faces. If we look at the dry track time I’ve spent this year riding my bike, it is obvious that I’m far away from the pace, so I needed some confidence and you can only get that fighting and working hard every single day. But this result is what we were looking for to get a boost of morale and work even harder. This has been a really good race and I enjoyed battling with Hector. It was also an amazing result for the team. The race was difficult because with less water on the track my rear tyre was overheating, so this top five is fantastic. Valencia is my team’s home race and feels also like a home race to me as I have a house close to the circuit, so we will try to keep the momentum and fight for the best.”