Sepang MotoGP Shakedown Test results - Day 1 (FINAL)
Yamaha finished day one of the Sepang Shakedown test on top of the timesheets, with Cal Crutchlow taking one of three test machines to the top by the time a mid-afternoon downpour soaked the circuit.
The Yamaha test bikes do not specify a rider name (Katsuyuki Nakasuga and Kohta Nozane are also expected to test) but the Englishman, twelfth in last year's Malaysian Grand Prix as a stand-in at RNF, is understood to have been on the 'T2' machine when it set a 2m 1.146s.
While the track steadily dried after the rain shower had passed, and many riders returned to the circuit, they remained on wet tyres to the 6pm finish.
Factory test riders from all five MotoGP manufacturers, plus 2023 rookie Augusto Fernandez (GASGAS Tech3) are eligible to take part in the Shakedown, which runs from Sunday until Tuesday.
Moto2 champion Fernandez finished just 0.185s behind Crutchlow in second place, completing 28 laps on his main bike and 6 on the other.
Like Yamaha, the test riders from the other four factories are also using multiple bikes, with Stefan Bradl's best good enough for fourth for Honda (+0.459s), Michele Pirro seventh for Ducati (+0.969s) and Lorenzo Savadori tenth (+1.700s) for Aprilia.
New aerodynamic parts, kept under wraps during recent team launches, are expected to be one of the main talking points of the Malaysian tests and there were plenty of new carbon fibre-black fairings on show during day one, plus a new swingarm at Yamaha.
Jonas Folger was not only on track in his newly confirmed role as an 'official' KTM test rider but the only rider listed for the various RC16s, although Dani Pedrosa took part in some riding duties without a transponder fitted.
The best time listed for Folger was +2.5s for 12th, but there are reports that Pedrosa might have been even faster than Crutchlow...
Top Speeds
In terms of top speeds, the fastest recorded was 332.3km/h by Savadori (Aprilia), followed by 330.3km/h for both the Yamaha and Bradl (Honda).
That compares with a race best of 335.4km.h by Ducati's Francesco Bagnaia at the Malaysian Grand Prix, while the new Yamaha engine effectively matched the 330.2km/h set by Fabio Quartararo in qualifying and the race.
However, Quartararo's best speed during qualifying for example was almost two seconds faster than today. That suggests the Frenchman would have been exiting the final corner quicker and, if the top speed improves in proportion to the lap time, the new 2023 engine should have something extra. Time will tell...
The 2023 engine had shown promising top speed at Barcelona and Misano, but Quartararo and Morbidelli were left disappointed by its performance at Valencia last November.
The Shakedown test runs from Sunday until Tuesday, with the track open from 10am to 6pm each day.
The Official Sepang MotoGP Test, for all race riders, will then be held at the Malaysian Grand Prix venue from February 10-12.
| 2023 Sepang MotoGP Shakedown Test - Day 1 (FINAL) | |||||
| Rider | Nat | Team | Time | LapS | |
| 1 | Yamaha Test Bike T2 | N/A | Yamaha Test Rider (YZR-M1) | 2m 1.146s | 12 |
| 2 | Augusto Fernandez | SPA | Tech3 GASGAS (RC16)* | +0.185s | 28 |
| 3 | Yamaha Test Bike T1 | N/A | Yamaha Test Rider (YZR-M1) | +0.427s | 13 |
| 4 | Stefan Bradl | GER | Honda Test Rider (RC213V) | +0.459s | 20 |
| 5 | Lorenzo Savadori | ITA | Aprilia Test Rider (RS-GP) | +0.500s | 7 |
| 6 | Yamaha Test Bike T3 | N/A | Yamaha Test Rider (YZR-M1) | +0.801s | 14 |
| 7 | Michele Pirro | ITA | Ducati Test Rider (GP) | +0.969s | 29 |
| 8 | Stefan Bradl | GER | Honda Test Rider (RC213V) | +1.069s | 37 |
| 9 | Augusto Fernandez | SPA | Tech3 GASGAS (RC16)* | +1.331s | 6 |
| 10 | Lorenzo Savadori | ITA | Aprilia Test Rider (RS-GP) | +1.700s | 22 |
| 11 | Lorenzo Savadori | ITA | Aprilia Test Rider (RS-GP) | +1.793s | 9 |
| 12 | Jonas Folger | GER | KTM Test Rider (RC16) | +2.540s | 6 |
| 13 | Jonas Folger | GER | KTM Test Rider (RC16) | +3.509s | 6 |
| 14 | Michele Pirro | ITA | Ducati Test Rider (GP) | +12.234s | 17 |
| 15 | Lorenzo Savadori | ITA | Aprilia Test Rider (RS-GP) | +17.994s | 5 |
| 16 | Lorenzo Savadori | ITA | Aprilia Test Rider (RS-GP) | No Time | 1 |
| 17 | Lorenzo Savadori | ITA | Aprilia Test Rider (RS-GP) | No Time | 1 |
Official Sepang MotoGP records:
Best lap:
Jorge Martin SPA Ducati 1m 57.790s (2022)
Fastest race lap:
Jorge Martin SPA Ducati 1m 59.634s (2022)
Peter has been in the paddock for 20 years and has seen Valentino Rossi come and go. He is at the forefront of the Suzuki exit story and Marc Marquez’s injury issues.
