Swiss chassis manufacturer Kalex has completed its first test with its 2019 Moto2 chassis using the Triumph 765cc engine, which will become the series' control motor next year.
British firm Triumph was confirmed as Moto2's new sole engine supplier from 2019 by series owners Dorna Sports last year, taking over from Honda, who has supplied its four-stroke, four-cylinder CBR600 motor to the class since its inception in 2010.
Kalex – who will supply chassis to 10 of the 15 teams contesting the Moto2 class this season – joined numerous other Moto2 and Moto3 teams at a private test in Valencia this week to begin work on its '19 challenger.
Jesko Raffin – who was denied entry onto the '18 grid due to a perceived lack of results last year – took up testing duties for the marque, and managed a best lap of 1:36.6s, which was just 1.5 seconds off of the Moto2 lap record at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit.
The Swiss rider evaluated both the current Kalex Moto2 bike and the '19 prototype, though was confined to just a day of running due to adverse weather on the final two days of the test.
“Overall, we are happy how things went during our first roll-out with the 2019 bike,” Kalex CEO and chief designer Alex Baumgartel said.
“It was, so to speak, a 'zero problem' roll-out. In addition, we were lucky with the weather on Monday when the conditions were very good for most of the day.
“Unfortunately, the two remaining days fell proverbially into the water. Apart from that, Jesko Raffin did a great job. He made no mistakes and he also convinced with enormously valuable statements.
“After he came back from the winter break a bit stiff, we started our program with the current bike which is equipped with an 'end-of'-life' [Honda] engine, which has significantly less power.
“The purpose of this exercise with two reference runs was to give Jesko the feeling for a racing bike after his four months break.
“Of course, he did his training program during the winter months, but he never was riding an on-road bike. But from the third run on, we focused exclusively on working with the Triumph bike.
“Jesko was immediately enthusiastic about it; after just five laps, his comment was 'the bike feels like a Kalex'. This was a huge relief for us.”
Baumgartel confirmed Kalex only used standard engine, electronics and clutch parts for this test, and feels it has “reached a level expected only for the second or third roll-out”.
As a result, the Swiss firm will not test again until it has received the race ECU for the engine.
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