Noyes set for BQR Moto2 challenge

Kenny Noyes will ride in the Moto2 World Championship for a second season in 2011 after signing a deal with Racing Team by Queroseno. Joining Yonny Hernández and Esteve Rabat, the American will compete for the Avintia-STX team with the support of sponsors Fogi Racing and GPTech with all three riders competing on FTR machines.

“I’m extremely happy to be able to rider in the World Championship for another year,” said Noyes upon confirmation of his new team. “Last year we had some good results but lacked a little consistency, and this is what we’ll look for this season. The team looks to be a fantastic one, and I return to BQR with whom I rode in the CEV (Spanish National Championship). I also have support from American sponsors, who stepped in when it was confirmed my former team couldn’t continue, and with the FTR prototype it looks like a fantastic situation. With all the data that has been collected on the FTR last year, and with two fast team-mates, I think we can do well in terms of the information we’ll have.

Looking at the competition for the forthcoming season, Noyes said of the 2011 campaign: “Eight or ten new riders have arrived and they’re all fast. If the Moto2 races were tight and complicated last year, then this year they will be even more so. At the same time however I think I’ll be much better prepared for this and the technical team of BQR and FTR will be very strong. The category will be more difficult but I think I’ll do much better.”

Still cautious with his predictions despite being in a strong position heading into the pre-season Noyes, who scored a best result of seventh at both Jerez and Catalunya last season, said: “Last year we had a very good pre-season and first few races, but I had some problems with the new circuits because I had good experience but always of the Spanish circuits. This year we’ll be a little more prepared for this and I think the FTR is much more balanced bike, also the changes between the circuits will be a lot less noticeable than last year. To say you’ll be one of the favourites is complicated, above all in the Moto2 class, but we’ll work towards this.”

An off-season operation on a shoulder injury that has been bothering the 32 year-old Noyes since 2006 will hopefully make him more comfortable when riding, and he will take to the FTR for the first time in a Test at Catalunya on February 7th. “I’ll be around 80% more or less in physical terms, but for the final official Tests of the pre-season I’ll be 100%,” he concluded.