M2: Marc VDS Valencia test summary

SUCCESSFUL FIRST TEST FOR MARC VDS RACING TEAM

Marc VDS Racing Team riders, Scott Redding and Mika Kallio, both declared themselves happy with progress made during the opening three-day test of the 2011 season at Valencia in Spain.

Redding was quickly back up to speed on the opening day at Valencia, despite more than two months off the bike during the annual test ban. Having missed the final day of testing at Jerez in November following a crash, the 18-year-old British rider used the second day at Valencia to resume the evaluation of new components and settings on his Suter Moto2 machine, before completing a full race simulation in the afternoon.

The Marc VDS rider improved his lap time throughout the test, posting his fastest ever lap around the Valencia circuit on his final run this afternoon. Redding leaves Valencia satisfied with his pace at the opening test and determined to improve further at Estoril in just four days time.

Kallio underwent major surgery on an injured collarbone just one month ago and only regained full movement in the affected arm the week before the Valencia test. Despite the injury causing him some pain on the bike, especially under braking, the 28-year-old Finn was regularly faster than his fellow newcomers to the ultra-competitive Moto2 class.

The Marc VDS Racing Team will now head direct from Valencia to the Estoril circuit in Portugal, where Redding and Kallio will participate in a further three days of testing, commencing on 16th February.

Scott Redding #45:
"Today I set my fastest ever lap around Valencia, so it's definitely been a successful test for us. The new bike has been set-up to suit me more, with a different footrest position and a longer seat unit, but these changes have also affected the balance of the bike. At the start the new bike was riding too much on the rear, but working with my Crew Chief Pete Benson and our Цhlins suspension technician, Mike Norton, we have been able to improve things a lot in this area over the past three days. Now we need to continue this progression at the next test in Estoril, which is just four days away."

Mika Kallio #36:
"This has been a very positive test and I'm quite happy with how things have gone. If I'd gone another half-a-second faster then I'd be leaving here completely happy. I didn't really know what to expect from my shoulder after the operation, but it's been more or less ok. We tried a lot of things on the bike during the test and, lap-by-lap, we saw improvements, but I still need more time on the bike to learn how to get the best from it. The more kilometres I do on the bike the more comfortable I feel, so I'm looking forward to continuing the process at Estoril next week."

Michael Bartholemy: Team Manager
"This first test has been a very positive start to the new season for us. Scott was very quick getting back up to speed on the opening day, which allowed us to start evaluating new components and different set-ups almost from the start. We know in which direction we need to go with the bike and Scott's lap times have improved with each set-up change we've made during the test. Mika underwent a fairly major operation on his shoulder just four weeks ago, and it's obviously an issue on the bike at the moment, but he's also made good progress here in Valencia. He fits into the team extremely well, his feedback is excellent and he's enjoying a good feeling with the bike. I'm confident that if we can carry this momentum through into the first race then we will be amongst the main contenders in Moto2 this season."

-source: marc vds