sepang – Scott Redding #45

Grip problems in Sepang ruin any chances of a decent finish for Scott

It was a difficult race for Scott Redding at today’s Malaysian GP on the Sepang circuit, hindered by the same grip problems that compromised his entire Malaysian weekend.

He is setting his natural disappointment and frustration aside to hope for a better run in the season closer at Valencia later this month.

SCOTT REDDING
“Unfortunately, my race today ended after six laps. We had problems with grip throughout the weekend and as soon as the tyres began to wear a bit, it was impossible for me to push. Riding very aggressively, the improvement in times was minimum, so I was forced to set my sights on just finishing the race.”

Scott qualifies thirteenth for Malaysian GP

Scott Redding will start from the first spot on the fifth row of the grid for tomorrow’s Malaysian Grand Prix at Speang, after doing the thirteenth best time in Q1.

The English rider, always at ease on a wet track, expected more of the day, but had to reckon with a lack of grip and a bit of difficulty getting the RS-GP to corner.

SCOTT REDDING
“Despite the thirteenth place, I expected even more from qualifying. I have always been strong in the wet, but we still haven’t managed to solve our problems. I struggle to turn and I am lacking grip. After a few laps, I stress the front tyre too much and that keeps me from finding my pace. We’ll try to find a solution in anticipation of the race which will be a difficult one.”

Sepang Testing – Team interview with Scott

In the Aprilia camp, there were great expectations for the début of the new RS-GP machines in the 2018 version. It was even more of a change for Scott Redding, astride the Italian V4 for the first time.

After initial contact in November at Valencia and Jerez with the 2017 bike, the English rider had a chance to test the 2018 RS-GP in Malaysia. This is the perfect time to make a preliminary analysis of the beginning of this new adventure with the Italian team.

What do you think of the new Aprilia RS-GP?

“The test in Malaysia has been a sort of shakedown, we had the new bike and I haven’t been riding the Aprilia since Jerez. At the beginning, when we simply put the 2017 setting on the 2018 bike, it didn’t work for me. For Aleix it wasn’t a big difference, but he has a lot more experience on this bike. We started to work on that, even experimenting, to make me feel comfortable on the bike. At the end of the three days I was happy, we found some solutions that we’ll keep using and, most important, we found the direction to work on for the future. I’ve been faster every day, cutting the gap with the front guys and I feel there’s still a lot of room for improvements”.

You’re young but you already have a great experience in MotoGP, is it helping you developing a new bike like the RS-GP?

“I have a good experience but not with a factory bike. I have a good ability to feel the bike and to explain the people developing the Aprilia RS-GP. It’s the first time I’ve been given the tools to be able do that and that motivates me a lot, I feel really in my place. I have a unique riding style compared to many other riders, I’m bigger, heavier, and now that I can go a little bit in the right direction for me we’ll see what we can do”.

How has it been the first approach with the team?

“It’s been good, I felt great from the first day. I have a good crew around me, very supportive and very straight down the line of what I need. In Sepang I think we found the right connection, the guys are starting to understand what I like on the bike and what I need to be fast. I feel all of the Aprilia guys believe in me and that’s what I was looking for. I’m really happy to have this opportunity”.

What is your goal for this season?

“To keep going forward, developing the Aprilia, working a lot in testing with the new bike. I want to put the Aprilia in the top-6, last year Aleix has shown that it is a result within our reach and I think the new bike has even more potential, there are still some new parts coming like the new engine. We still have some testing to do, after that my main priority will be to keep improving the bike race by race ad try to be as competitive as possible”.

Source: Aprilia Racing Team Gresini

Scott improves feeling with the bike on Sepang Test day 2

After the first and promising contact with the 2018 version Aprilia RS-GP, work in the Italian garage continued with the goal of exploring the potential offered by the new bike and testing some of the available technical solutions in order to define which package to take to the first race of the season.

Scott Redding improved his sensations, although his progress was slowed a bit by chattering. The new Aprilia Racing Team Gresini rider and his team will be focusing on this aspect for the final day of testing.

SCOTT REDDING
“We improved compared to yesterday, both in terms of times and my feeling with the new bike. The biggest limitation right now is chattering at the front which keeps me from making further progress. We did a few tests, but evidently we need a radical change. I can feel that the bike can be faster and Aleix is demonstrating that. Now we’ll analyse the data and decide what to try tomorrow.”

Scott gets 2018 testing underway at Sepang

The MotoGP 2018 season began today with the first day of tests in Malaysia. The Sepang circuit will have the riders busy doing three days that are fundamental for laying the foundation on which to build the new season. In the Aprilia garage, attention was focused on the début of the RS-GP in the new 2018 version, an evolution of the Italian prototype that aims to continue on the same path of growth begun last season.

Both Scott Redding and teammate Aleix Espargaro had a chance to ride the new bike after building confidence with the track and the MotoGP pace using the 2017 version RS-GP machines.

Scott, who was one of the first to go out on the track despite asphalt compromised by a morning storm, took advantage of most of the day astride the 2017 bike. The final part of the test, with the new bike, did not give Scott enough time to fully explore the potential of the RS-GP. This is an operation that will continue tomorrow and the next day.

SCOTT REDDING
“This morning in the wet with the 2017 bike I found a rather good feeling straight away and we continued to improve on every outing, reaching a good level of feeling. The first approach with the 2018 RS-GP was just a taste. We simply moved the settings from the old bike to the new one. I felt the potential, but it is a very different bike, so we will need to work to adapt it to my needs. We’ll focus on this over the next two days, both in terms of the position in the saddle and the settings.”

Scott’s Sepang charge hampered by tyre problems

On the Sepang Circuit in Malaysia Scott Redding ran a good and strong race, overcoming many difficulties.

The Shell Malaysia Motorcycle Grand Prix was declared “wet” as the rain started to fall half an hour from the start.

Scott got off to a very good start from P14 and after one lap he was already 8th. After overtaking Smith and Rins the English rider tried to catch Pedrosa.

Scott’s pace was strong and on lap six he recovered 8 tenths from the Spaniard. However, from lap 9 onwards, the soft rear tyre began to lose performance and Scott was forced to give up positions and ended up finishing 13th.

13th Scott Redding
“My race start was very good. The feeling with the medium tyre in the warm up lap was not good so we bet on the soft rubber. I pushed a lot and the feeling was very good until halfway through the race. Then the tyre started to drop and I started losing many tenths of a second each lap. I think it was a fairly positive weekend and this gives me confidence in sight of Valencia.”.

Scott Redding struggles in Sepang, finishes fifteenth

Octo Pramac Yakhnich team finished the long triple-header of MotoGp with a Top 10 won by Danilo Petrucci. Scott Redding sadly instead had to settle for a point having finished in 15th position.

The Shell Malaysia Motorcycle Grand Prix was marked by heavy rain that forced the race direction to delay the start. And it was a shame because during the warm-up in dry conditions, the signs were very positive.

Petrux and Scott struggled a lot in the early laps also due to the lack of visibility. Scott was not able to race aggressively as he had to deal with the lack of grip on the rear. For the Englishman the best he could do was to take fifteenth position at the flag.

15th – Scott Redding
“It was a very difficult race because I had no rear grip. I never found the feeling with the rear tire but I must admit that others who went out with the hard were still competitive. It was hard since the start. I also risked crashing on warm up lap. I tried to push but I was never able to find the rhythm in order to recover on the Top 10. I hoped it to be a dry race because over the weekend we had a good feeling in the dry. To be honest I did not expect to struggle so much.”

Source: Pramac