Movistar Yamaha’s Jorge Lorenzo says that he mistimed a switch to his second bike in free practice one which meant that, when he returned to track, he could only do a single lap due to the worsening track condition.
The Spanish rider likely cut a pretty disgruntled figure this morning when he drew back the curtains in his hotel room to reveal heavy rain lashing Phillip Island. Lorenzo has struggled more than most this season in wet conditions, the Spaniard failing to get on with Michelin’s wet tyres.
Indeed, the Spaniard wasn’t exactly desperate to get out on track when FP1 was given the green light this morning, Lorenzo preferring to see how the others got on first before heading out. His first run lasted just four laps, the Yamaha rider managing a best of 1m45.651s before boxing for his second YZR-M1 to compare set-ups.
Because of his cautious approach to the opening minutes of FP1, Lorenzo’s change to his second bike came when the track became even more saturated and he could only do one flying lap, which was one second off of his best effort.
Lorenzo was left down in 19th on the time sheets and heads into to tomorrow without any real reference in terms of set-up in the wet, putting him firmly on the back foot especially as rain is forecast.
“I exited pit lane quite late this morning and I didn’t make so many laps on the first run,” the three-time Phillip Island race winner said.
“I was progressing little by little, but I stopped too early and when I tried the second bike there was already more water on the track, so I did just one more lap. It was difficult to find a good reference to understand on which bike we were better on in these conditions.”
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