Jerez: Qatar’s QMMF Racing Team rider Xavier Simeon had a satisfying day and caused big smiles and a round of applause in their team garage when he stormed to fourth place in the second free practice session for the Spanish Grand Prix on Friday afternoon, which put him in sixth position in the combined classification of the day.
The 26-year-old from Brussels, Belgium, had found a good feeling with his Speed Up prototype immediately and is now full of confidence for qualifying on Saturday and the race on Sunday, since he can push to the limit without taking too many risks.
It was another story for team-mate Julian Simon, who had to settle for a disappointing 22nd place in front of his home crowd on the iconic Jerez circuit. A variety of issues with his bike cost him time and speed. But the 28-year-old Spaniard is determined to push on and find a solution for his problems, in order to move up on the starting grid and to put on a good show today.
Commenting on his achievement, Simeon who clocked 1.43,188 to be placed sixth, said: “I am very happy today, because I had exactly the same good feeling for the bike that I had at the last race in Texas. This means we made a big step with the bike, which is really positive. It also means that I can ride the way I like and I can push without taking all the risks of this world.”
“Now the task is to stay focused and to continue to ride well. But we can be very satisfied with the way the first day went and I hope we can improve further when it counts in qualifying. I will try to fight for a spot in the first two rows and if we achieve that, we can also have a very good race. I want to thank the team, because now I can really enjoy riding the bike, which is good for my confidence and for the next races to come,” he added.
Simon clocked took 1.44,038 to finish his best lap and said: “It was a difficult first day. We have problems in the fourth sector of the track and in the fast turns. The bike becomes unsettled and jumps too much. It also vibrates a lot and it is very difficult to ride altogether. We improved a little with the softer tyre option, but we still have to find more speed and I hope we can find a set-up that allows us to be more competitive, with faster and more consistent lap times. I want to climb up in the classification and achieve a good position on the starting grid, which I know we are able to do!”
The Peninsula
