Team Estrella Galicia 0,0 MarcVDS team mates started the Malaysian GP in good shape and fully motivated with Alex Márquez taking the third best time of the day and Xavi Vierge 8th fastest.

• It was a positive first day of running for Moto2 Team Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS team-mates Alex Márquez and Xavi Vierge at the Sepang International Circuit, where they navigated a way through a dry track with some damp patches at the start of FP1.
• FP2 took place in punishing ambient temperatures of 33 degrees and humidity of 51%. In both of the dry sessions Márquez placed 3rd while Vierge finished 8th.

Alex Márquez, 3rd, 2:06.328, 30 laps, 166 km

• The current world championship leader was immediately fast in FP1, spending much of the session a full 0.8s faster than the 2nd best rider.
• After spending the whole session on the same set of tyres, Márquez ultimately ended FP1 in 3rd, with his best lap time of 2m’06.790 just 0.490s off Tetsuta Nagashima’s best effort.
• FP2 was similarly positive for the 23-year old. Márquez felt comfortable from the start and posted an impressive 5-lap run, with each lap in the 2’06s. He ended the day with the third fastest of the session and overall.

“In terms of rhythm I think we are strong”

“Today was really good! I was enjoying being on the bike from the first exit in FP1 when there were still some wet patches on track. Immediately I had a really good feeling and I was enjoying it – this was the main target for this weekend. In terms of rhythm I think we are strong, fast and constant. That’s so important here for the race distance. At the moment we’re missing a bit in terms of the time attack but we don’t need to be so worried about that. We need to focus on race pace and keep going like this. It looks like the weather will be a little less predictable tomorrow, so we have to be ready for all conditions!”

Xavi Vierge, 8th, 2:06.654, 30 laps, 166 km.

• In a solid first session, Vierge encountered a few early set-up issues but soon found a resolution with the help of his Team Estrella Galicia 0,0 Marc VDS crew. The 22-year old was eighth fastest in FP1 with a fastest time of 2’07.352.
• Vierge matched his performance in the afternoon, ending FP2 with the 8th quickest time (2’06.654), 0.686s back from first.
• Despite the heat, Vierge managed two 6-lap runs in FP2, with the 2nd including 3 laps in the 2’06s.

“It was a positive first day”                                                               

“I’m really happy with day one! Malaysia is always really difficult at the start of the day. It’s a really long track in hot conditions. We did a good job. In FP1 we were struggling a bit at the beginning. It’s good that we quickly found a solution so we could finish with a good feeling. In FP2 we followed the same line. We had good rhythm and also did some fast laps. We now have to focus on tomorrow to adjust the setting a bit more but overall it was a positive first day.”