Whilst the 2009 MotoGP season may have come to a close at Valencia yesterday, track activity continued at an intense pace today at Cheste as the Gran Premio de la Comunidad Valenciana was immediately followed by the first test session for 2010. As it had been all weekend the wind was once again a handicap for the riders, who were on track from 1pm to 5pm. The three day session is a first opportunity for next year’s rookies to ride their new machines and there could have been no better place for Hector Barbera to make his debut on the Ducati Desmosedici than at his home circuit, where he celebrated victory in the last ever 250 race yesterday.
The Spaniard emerged on track at 13.35 and rode until 16.55pm without a break. Héctor completed five runs, clocking his best time on the penultimate of them with a lap of 1’36.13.
Héctor Barberá 1.36.13 (63 laps):
“To be honest I was a little nervous to begin with but I really enjoyed the day. The power of a MotoGP bike is incredible, you can’t even compare it to a 250. It wants to wheelie in every gear – you can’t just whack the throttle open – and you are at the end of the straight in a heartbeat. Today was my first time on the bike and it felt like a dream. I’m really pleased because the day went quite well and I felt pretty comfortable out there. I had never ridden a four-stroke before and I didn’t have any markers on the circuit for this bike so it was tricky at the start but I gradually got a feeling for it. I rode 63 laps in just a couple of hours but the time flew past. This was our first session and the objective was simply to get some laps under my belt and not crash, so I think we’re over the first hurdle. I’ve also spent the day getting to know all the new people in the team and listening to their advice, getting used to working with each other.”
