[kropotkin thinks...] - 2016 Phillip Island MotoGP Test Friday Round Up: What We Lear

[Ninjette Newsbot]

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What did we learn from the Phillip Island MotoGP test? We learned that the rule changes for 2016, new electronics and Michelin tires, have made learning anything from testing very difficult. To borrow a phrase from Donald Rumsfeld, we learned that there are still plenty of known unknowns, and even more unknown unknowns. The most interesting thing to come out of the test is that a few of the unknown unknowns turned into known unknowns.

To put it more simply and bluntly, we had our noses rubbed in our ignorance. What we learned from Phillip Island is that the teams and manufacturers are still slap bang in the middle of adapting to the new regulations, and that things are changing fast. Jorge Lorenzo's whitewash at Sepang does not mean we are in for a long and boring season, only that if we had to race at Sepang today, Lorenzo would end up winning by half a lap or more. At Phillip Island, there was nothing left of Lorenzo's advantage, and if they were to race today, the Movistar Yamaha man would struggle to get into the top five, let alone get on the podium. At Phillip Island, Marc Márquez looked like the man to beat, with Maverick Viñales the most likely candidate to do so.

What Phillip Island did teach us above all is that the first half of the season is likely to be pretty messy. A rider may rock up at one track and blow the competition out of the water, then next weekend struggle to even make it into Q2. One factory may lock out the top slots at one circuit, then miss out on the top ten the next. There are a lot of variables at play, and teams and most especially factories will need a while to get all of their t's dotted and i's crossed. Right now, the teams are finding out that it isn't just the devil that is in the detail, but a veritable coven of succubi, incubi, familiars, goblins and hags. It turns out gremlins are real, and someone has been sprinkling them generously with water.

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