30/09/2022

Positive start for Alcoba in Thailand, Schrötter strives for improvement

LIQUI MOLY Intact GP youngster Jeremy Alcoba started the weekend at the Chang International Circuit in Thailand in a promising ninth place. Team-mate Marcel Schrötter ended up in 17th place at the end of the day despite a good first practice session.

After a typhoon had caused heavy rainfall in Buriram on Wednesday and Thursday, the Moto2 class was able to hold both free practices in dry conditions on Friday.

Even though the LIQUI MOLY Intact GP riders completed their first exploratory laps on rain tires in the morning on a still slightly damp track, they both quickly switched to slicks to begin the real hunt for times on the 4.6-kilometer Thai circuit.

In seventh place in FP1, Marcel Schrötter raised hopes of a positive start. But unfortunately, the 29-year-old, who was not particularly comfortable with the softer tire, no longer managed to improve times in the much warmer afternoon. That ultimately saw him slip to 17th in the day's overall standings.

Jeremy Alcoba on the other hand was able to beat his 12th place from the morning as well as his lap time in the second practice session by almost half a second. With a good feeling, the young Spaniard lined up in ninth place at the end and tanked up a good portion of self-confidence for Day 2 in Thailand.

Results

FP1
1. Augusto FERNANDEZ/ SPA/ KALEX - 1'36.806
2. Somkiat CHANTRA/ THA/ KALEX - 1'36.838 (+0.032)
3. Jake DIXON/ GBR/ KALEX - 1'36.875 (+0.069)
4. Ai OGURA/ JPN/ KALEX - 1'37.083 (+0.277)
5. Filip SALAC/ CZE/ KALEX - 1'37.233 (+0.427)
7. Marcel SCHROTTER/ GER/ KALEX - 1'37.274 (+0.468)
12. Jeremy ALCOBA/ SPA/ KALEX - 1'37.498 (+0.692)

FP2
1. Jake DIXON/ GBR/ KALEX - 1'36.280
2. Alonso LOPEZ/ SPA/ BOSCOSCURO - 1'36.453 (+0.173)
3. Augusto FERNANDEZ/ SPA/ KALEX - 1'36.564 (+0.284)
4. Somkiat CHANTRA/ THA/ KALEX - 1'36.597 (+0.317)
5. Pedro ACOSTA/ SPA/ KALEX - 1'36.643 (+0.363)
9. Jeremy ALCOBA/ SPA/ KALEX - 1'37.025 (+0.745)
20. Marcel SCHROTTER/ GER/ KALEX - 1'37.395 (+1.115)

Marcel Schrötter

P17 - 1'37.274 (+0.994)

"We tried the harder tire at the beginning of FP2, which was positive. We were close to the time of the morning, and in warmer conditions. Compared to the others, who were mostly on the softer tire, we were doing quite well. And then with the soft tire, we had very bad timing. I rode onto the track alone. We have to manage that better in the future and look better at which moment we go out to be able to get a good time within a group, where you can use the slipstream. I didn't feel comfortable braking on the soft tire in the second run. I hope we can make a step there and be more competitive tomorrow morning."

Jeremy Alcoba

P9 - 1'37.025 (+0.745)

"I felt really good today, more than I expected. I had a good feeling before coming to Thailand because I thought the track was similar to Austria and I felt really good there. Of course, the weather change and the changing track and grip conditions were not easy. But the first feeling was immediately positive. This morning I was a little nervous, because in Japan the feeling was not so good on a wet track. I started a bit cautiously, but when I saw that the track was drying, I quickly went into the pits to change to slick tires. In the few laps I did in FP1 I was able to finish 12th and had a good feeling. In FP2 I was very confident even though it was very hot and the humidity was very high. With the soft used tire I was close to my fast lap from the morning. So with the new tire I had full confidence and the feeling was there. I am very satisfied. We improved, which is important because in the past we were sometimes faster in FP1 than FP2. Now we have to work for tomorrow. Maybe it can be a good weekend!"

Pictures Thailand GP

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