Luthi returns to fitness ahead of Marc VDS MotoGP test debut
Thomas Luthi is aiming for a steady start to get up to speed with Marc VDS Honda as he prepares for his rookie MotoGP campaign at the first official test in Sepang.
Two-time Moto2 world championship runner-up Luthi will make his long-awaited step up to the MotoGP premier class in 2018 with Marc VDS Honda having spent 11 years in the intermediate 250cc/Moto2 class.
Thomas Luthi is aiming for a steady start to get up to speed with Marc VDS Honda as he prepares for his rookie MotoGP campaign at the first official test in Sepang.
Two-time Moto2 world championship runner-up Luthi will make his long-awaited step up to the MotoGP premier class in 2018 with Marc VDS Honda having spent 11 years in the intermediate 250cc/Moto2 class.
Luthi missed the final two rounds of the 2017 Moto2 world title battle against new team-mate Franco Morbidelli with a leg injury which was sustained in a qualifying crash at the Malaysian Grand Prix that also ruled him out of the post-season Valencia and Jerez tests.
As a result, Luthi will make his test debut for Marc VDS Honda at the first official test of 2018 in Sepang on the 28-30th January – while the Swiss rider did get a taste of MotoGP during a Honda test as reward for winning the 125cc world championship back in 2005 – and is eager to make up for lost time after missing the post-season tests.
“The main goal over the winter was to get back on my feet as soon as possible, so that I could start training properly again,” Luthi said. “It was quite a tough time for me, but I made steady progress and right now I feel good.
“I did some solid training on the MX bike with Julian Simon in Spain and my feeling on the bike was good, so now I'm even more motivating to make my MotoGP debut in Sepang.
“In Malaysia I think it's really important to stay calm and focus on learning and understanding the bike. For me it's a new challenge, but it was good to see Franco and how he worked to adapt to the MotoGP bike in Valencia, because now I have to do exactly the same. I'm really excited to go to Sepang and start the learning process with the Honda RC213V.”
Luthi will race alongside Morbidelli at Marc VDS Honda in MotoGP this year and standout as the only all-rookie pairing on the 2018 grid. Despite being a MotoGP rookie, Luthi will become one of the most experienced riders in the premier class paddock having joined the world championship at 125cc level in 2002.
