VR46 Moto3 takes all the headlines at Jerez test

The Team Sky VR46 KTM team have taken all the headlines at the first Moto3 test of the winter after the team’s duo of Romano Fenati and new boy Nicolo Bulega stole the limelight.

It was Fenati who ended top of the times over the three days of the test, but his rookie teammate got his own share of the attention by taking the top spot on the final day, ending the three days in third behind the Estrella Galicia Honda of Jorge Navarro.

Bulega’s teammate Fenati, managed to maintain his position on top of the time screens thanks to his 1:46.445 from the third session of the second day. The time was still 0.3s off Jack Miller’s best lap at the Jerez circuit, but 0.060s clear of his rivals. With all three of the SKY Racing Team VR46 riders inside the top ten, it appears the Valentino Rossi backed team have hit the ground running in 2016.

Of the top ten, five were KTM machines, the Austrian manufacturer aiming to reclaim the rider’s championship in the lightweight class after losing to Honda in 2014 and 2015.

Scotland’s John McPhee finished the test in 25^th place, but, learning a new crew and a new bike in the shape of the Peugeot-branded Mahindra, was pleased with his overall pace.

The Moto3 field now join their Moto2 cousins in the move to Qatar, with a final three days of testing kicking off on Friday ahead of the following weekend’s opening race of the season.