Fabio Quartararo, the defending MotoGP title holder, says he disagrees with the plan to cut the amount of testing period in the 2023 season.
The FIM, the authority of MotoGP, said on Thursday that testing for the 2023 season would be limited to just 8 scheduled days throughout the year, before this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix in Jerez.
As in 2022, 5 days of racing will be distributed among two and three-day tests in the pre-season, with two single-day post-race testing throughout the season and one at the end of the final round.
The post-race Valencia test, which was abolished over the last two years, will reappear in 2022, however the annual two-day Jerez outing has been scrapped.
Whilst Yamaha’s Quartararo claims that all riders will be affected by the modification in testing, he does not agree with the removal of a day of post-season racing.
“This year is the first time that we made two days in Malaysia [instead of three], and from my side I think it was enough,” Quartararo said when asked about the testing reduction.
“But to take off one day at the end of the season, I don’t agree with that.
“But at the end, it’s the same for everyone. So, it’s the same.”
Suzuki’s Alex Rins, who is equal for first place overall with Quartararo on 69 points heading into Jerez, thinks the impact of the testing limitation will be determined by how effectively a squad develops its 2023 bike.
“I mean, I think this depends on how the things you try work,” Rins added.
“For example, in our case we were lucky that the engine Suzuki brought in the pre-season worked super nice, and we had enough days of testing.
“But for sure if those parts, the engine, is not working so good, we would like to do more days.”
Marc Marquez, a six-time race winner, thinks that the impact of the testing limitation will vary by team, but believes that the swelling schedule – with 21 races planned for 2022 – necessitates a modification in the testing schedule.
“If for some reason you have some problems or what you receive is not working like the team expects, then I think you have margin enough because in the end you can set up the bike,” he explained.
“You will not receive new things.
“The engine that you have in Valencia in the first day is the engine more or less you will receive in Malaysia after the winter, and you will race with that engine.
“All the chassis, swingarm you can work on during the season.
“So, I agree [with the reduction] because you can’t keep the same days of testing if you increase the races.
“So, you need to find a balance because if not we don’t have more weekends in the year.”
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