Aji and Matsuyama lead the way as O’Shea gets his first taste of life in the FIM Moto3™ Junior World Championship
As the start of the 2021 FIM Moto3™ Junior World Championship draws closer, preparations are well underway for the Junior Talent Team and they got back on track for two days of pre-season testing in Barcelona. With Tatchakorn Buasri currently sidelined due to injury, it was down to Mario Aji, Takuma Matsuyama and new arrival Eddie O’Shea to fly the JTT colours at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, with the three putting in a combined 120 laps over Monday the 29th and Tuesday the 30th of March.
The three were the only Moto3™ machines on track and focused on getting in plenty of running, as well as working together. Aji ended the test as the fastest of the three as the Indonesian prepares for his third season in the FIM Moto3™ JWCh, but impressive-rookie-turned-sophomore Matsuyama was hot on his heels. The two spent Day 1 getting back in the groove with their JTT machines before doing some longer runs of just over half race distance on Day 2, preparing for the return of FIM CEV Repsol competition near the end of April.
Rookie Eddie O’Shea, meanwhile, spent Day 1 focused solely on adaptation as he arrives fresh from a competitive season in the Honda British Talent Cup on a very different bike. Learning his way around the British Talent Team-liveried machine he’ll be racing in the FIM Moto3™ JWCh this season, O’Shea made impressive leaps up the timesheets and was within less than a second of Aji’s laptime by the end of Tuesday’s track action.
Aji, Matsuyama and O’Shea were all happy with the work put in during the test, laying good foundations for the season ahead. Now all that’s left to do is race! The first event for the JTT takes place at the Circuito do Estoril at the end of April, with only a few weeks now left on the countdown to the 2021 season.
