Tech 3 Racing's new Moto2 line-up of Danny Kent and Louis Rossi enjoyed a successful conclusion to the 2013 winter testing schedule in gloriously sunny conditions at the Circuito de Jerez in Spain today.

Working on final tweaks to improve the Mistral 610 machine ahead of the first race in Qatar on April 7, Kent and Rossi set encouraging lap times in the final pre-season showdown in Jerez, which will host the third round of the 2013 World Championship campaign in early May.

Kent continued to build his up his experience of the Mistral 610 machine, which is designed a nd developed exc lusively by the French-based squad, during the four-day test that took place in a mixture of dry and wet conditions.

Today's final sessio n was dominated by blustery conditions but Kent was still able to set his personal best time of the test to finish 20th on the combined timesheets. A lap of 1.44.350 was less than a second away from the overall top six and he finished just 0.074s behind fellow rookie and reigning Moto3 World Champion Sandro Cortese.

Frenchman Louis Rossi was satisfied with the work he carried out during this week's final test, and he is confident he could have been much higher than his final position of 28th on the leaderboard had not opted to focus on completing a full race simulation today. The long run provided Rossi and his Tech 3 Racing with valuabled data and experience ahead of the start of the fourth Moto2 campaign at the Losail International Circuit in Doha.

Danny Kent 20th – 1.44.350:

“Overall it was a good test and I think the final day was definitely the best one as I set my fastest lap time despite the windy conditions making it very difficult and unpredictable on track. We found a good setting with the suspension today that gave me some confidence and I am sure if I could have found that feeling earlier we could have been even faster. But testing is all about experimenting to be in the best possible shape for the season and overall I'm happy with the job we've done. Now I just want to kick off the season in Qatar hoping to take home my first points in Moto2 and starting 2013 on a high level. This is an incredibly difficult class but the Tech 3 Racing Team and I are highly motivated and ready for the challenge.”

Louis Rossi 28th – 1.45.181:

“Today was really interesting for me as I did my first race simulation and that made it difficult to improve our lap time from yesterday. We just wanted to do 27 consistent laps to show me how it feels like to ride in a full race situation with this bike. Honestly it was really long. But I learned a lot during the simulation and I'm quite happy about the test because after the difficult start we finished in not such a bad situation. I am convinced my potential is higher than my final position here and now we can be confident and really looking forward to the first race in Qatar.”

Herve Poncharal – Team Manager:

“I think this week was a really good way for the Tech 3 Racing Moto2 Team to complete our preparations for the 2013 season and overall it has been a productive and positive winter for us. Danny climbed into the top 10 during the last test session this afternoon and wh ile we know that the times were not as fast as yesterday because we had much more wind, the important thing is the gap to the leading group was much less and this has shown his high potential and that we are working in the right direction. It is not easy to step into this class because it is incredibly competitive, but Danny is doing the right thing and steadily building up his pace and confidence. He is very close to Sandro Cortese who won the title and many races in Moto3 last year, and this is the best benchmark for us. Louis has been improving his feeling with the bike and this afternoon he did his first race simulation, which gave him a lot of understanding about the performance of the bike and confidence for the first race. Now we are really looking forward to the first race in Qatar with the aim to see both of them fighting for their first Moto2 points.”

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