The Fieten Olie Racing GP team ended the 2023 year on a good note with the first test for the 2024 season at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia. Using Pirelli tyres, Barry Baltus set the ninth fastest lap time whilst Zonta van den Goorbergh finished in 18th place.
After the 2023 season came to an end on Sunday with the twentieth and final Grand Prix of the year at Valencia’s Circuit Ricardo Tormo, the new season started just one day later. At the same circuit, Barry Baltus and Zonta van den Goorbergh were in action to complete the first official test with Pirelli, the tyre supplier in the Moto2 class from 2024 onwards.
Under sunny conditions, lap times that had been set throughout the Grand Prix weekend were soon bettered, making the first real introduction to the Pirelli tyres pleasing. With a 1’33.451 Baltus finished ninth on the combined timesheet and with a 1’33.734 Van den Goorbergh ended this test day in eighteenth place. After a long and demanding season, a period of well-deserved rest begins with the winter break but there will also be hard work behind the scenes to make sure we arrive as strong as possible during the first tests in February.
Barry Baltus – P9: “We had quite a good test today, first of all I want to say thanks to the team for all their efforts. We used the Pirelli tyres and I had some difficulties in the beginning but after some quite significant changes to the bike it was better. We did a good lap time and it is nice to finish this day in a good way. Now the season is over and we can rest a bit, thanks to everyone who contributed this year to make this possible.”
Zonta van den Goorbergh – P18: “I am definitely happy with how it went today. We were able to get a good first impression of the Pirelli tyres. The day started a bit hectic with a big crash, I immediately had a good feeling with the bike but after about five laps it went wrong. Fortunately I didn’t suffer any injuries myself and the damage to the bike was not too bad. After that we had a good day in which I could ride at a constant pace and we could gather a lot of information, we didn’t really go for that one fast lap. This was the last day of 2024 and for us it is now over. We are going to relax now first and then a tough winter awaits us where we will work hard to be one step better next year.”
Jarno Janssen – Fieten Olie Racing GP team manager: “Today we had our first real test with the new tyres for 2024. It sounds strange after we finished the 2023 season yesterday but today we already started the new season. It was a good day with good conditions in which we were able to get a good impression of the Pirelli tyres. We have now been able to make a good comparison. Both riders are positive and the pace was therefore immediately very quick. Overall, we can be very satisfied with today’s results. We were also able to test some new parts that we got a better idea about. It is now time to go home after a very tough and intensive season. We have earned some time off and I want to thank everyone who has been involved in any way to make this year possible. See you in 2024.”
