Idemitsu Honda's Taka Nakagami ended today's final MotoGP test session in eighth place and cemented his position as top rookie as he outpaced the likes of Valentino Rossi, Maverick Vinales, Jorge Lorenzo and Danilo Petrucci.
Nakagami set a 1'30.456 which put him just 0.675s off the pace and tenth on the overall timesheet, some two-tenths ahead of fellow newboy and reigning Moto2 champion Franco Morbidelli.
“I’m really happy with the three days overall, both in terms of the lap time and the position in the field. We have made lots of improvements, with the bike, with the team - getting to know each other even better. I want to say a big thank you to the LCR Honda Idemitsu Team because I am very happy with our progress over these days," said the Japanese.
“To finish inside the top ten for the first time is a really good thing, but we still need to work hard in Qatar when we get there. Let’s see what happens, but I hope we can continue in this way and I’m sure it will be a good test over there before the season starts for real.”
