Álex Rins is still adapting to a new really in MotoGP, now as factory rider once again with Yamaha and in the second day of tests at Qatar there were signs of growth, he assured.
The spaniard who after leaving Suzuki was for one season with LCR Honda, even giving the brand the only win of 2023, first praised the evolutions made on one of the main aspects the Yamaha M1 was lacking in comparison to the competition: ‘Overall, I think Yamaha has improved the engine. On the straights, we were pretty strong, so they did a good job over the winter break’.
Rins after spoke of his own work and how he is trying to find a way to get more out of his bike: ‘We concentrated more on improving our set-up, trying to put the bike higher, lower, longer, shorter, to understand where we can improve, whether there’s room for improvement or not. And to be honest, I’ve taken a step forward compared with the first day in Qatar’.
With a time of 1:52.103s, Rins was 16th in the second day of tests at Losail and highlighted that there is still a long way ahead to get to the main riders: ‘We’re still a long way from the top. I’m 1:52s and Fabio is also 1s off the fastest, so we still have a lot of work to do to close that gap. If we want to fight for victory, we have to work even harder. But I think our way of working is the right one, so we’re ready to go’.