Jerez, Spain – 14 November 2014: Tito Rabat and Alex Marquez got limited testing time at Jerez this week, as bad weather disrupted all three days of the Team Estrella Galicia Marc VDS Moto2 test.

Changeable weather meant that the Jerez circuit was never fully dry throughout the course of the three-days, but the fact that the rain was both light and intermittent meant that the track was never fully wet either.

It was the worse case scenario for reigning Moto3 World Champion Marquez, who got no dry track time for his debut on the Team Estrella Galicia Marc VDS Kalex Moto2 machine. However, the 18-year-old Spaniard impressed with how quickly he adapted to the bike in the tricky conditions.

Reigning Moto2 World Champion Rabat was also frustrated by the weather, as the conditions weren’t suited to the wet weather test program the 25-year-old Spaniard and his crew had planned. 

Team Estrella Galicia Marc VDS are hoping for better weather as they head for Valencia, where Rabat and Marquez will participate in a two-day test, which starts on Monday.

Tito Rabat // 1’42.8
“The first day we managed an hour on a semi-dry track and the lap times were good, but after this the conditions were mixed. This wasn’t so bad for us, as we learnt a lot in these conditions, but we could have done with some proper dry time. Now I will relax for two days before heading to Valencia, where I hope the weather will be kinder to us.”

Alex Marquez // 1’45.0
“The conditions here at Jerez weren’t ideal for testing the Moto2 bike for the first time but, in the end, I think we did some good work. We managed to test in both wet and mixed conditions here, which is also important. The first feeling with the bike was good, also with the team, and I hope that the weather will be better next week in Valencia, so we can get some dry laps and make another step.” 

Michael Bartholemy // Team Principal
“Weather wise it was worse case scenario for testing here at Jerez, especially for Alex who wasn’t making his debut on the Moto2 bike. Just as you thought the track was going to dry out it would rain again, but never heavily enough to actually make the track completely wet. The three days weren’t a complete waste, however, as Alex found a good feeling with the bike in the mixed conditions, while Tito tested a number of things that will come in useful should we experienced similar weather during a race weekend next season. Hopefully the weather will be better next week in Valencia, where we will test again on Monday and Tuesday.”