A wet test held after the chequered flag, with more than 60 water-trucks spraying the 5.380-km proved inconclusive, brought no firm answers to the crucial question as to whether racing would be possible under floodlights should rain hit on race weekend.
While several riders, including Marquez and Zarco, said they were ready to race if it was wet, Dorna’s safety officer Loris Capirossi told pressmen that opinions were mixed, and “I think we need another test on race weekend before we can be sure.”
One problem was the artificial conditions, with some standing water, but no falling rain. “The reflections were not too bad, we need to understand what would happen in proper rain, and also with 20 bikes together,” he said.
Some riders did four laps, Vinales and Morbidelli five. The top time came from Scott Redding (Aprilia), from rookie Morbidelli, Rossi, Crutchlow and Marquez. Dovizioso, Zarco and Petrucci didn’t complete a full timed lap; Simeon, Nakagami and Pol Espargaro stayed in the pits.
In 2009 a heavy rain storm just before the start of the MotoGP race resulted in it being postponed by 24 hours; last year rain washed out qualifying, and delayed a shortened MotoGP race by 40 minutes.
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- Rossi, wet/rain track simulation, Qatar MotoGP Test, March 2018
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- Vinales, wet/rain track simulation, Qatar MotoGP Test, March 2018