Cookie Consent by Free Privacy Policy website Damage limitation for Team Suzuki Ecstar in Aragon
settembre 23, 2019 - Suzuki Racing

Damage limitation for Team Suzuki Ecstar in Aragon

Comunicato Stampa disponibile solo in lingua originale. 

  • Alex Rins recoups to 9th place and regains 3rd in standings.
  • Unfortunate clash for #joanmir sees him fight back to 14th.
  • Difficult day for Team, now focusing on the fly-aways.

After a strong morning Warm-Up session for both Team SUZUKI ECSTAR’s riders, the Team were feeling positive for the 14th race of the season at #MotorlandAragon.

Lining up on the grid with the medium-hard tyre combination, the tension was running high for the whole field as clouds closed in and the threat of rain increased.

Joan Mir and #alexrins launched off the line and were together in the first corners of the 23-lap race. Rins was then involved in an incident with Franco Morbidelli at Turn 12 which saw the Italian crash, and sent Rins into the gravel trap, rejoining in 19th place. Rins then began to recoup his lost positions and was in 12th when Race Direction decided to hand him a long lap penalty for his involvement in Morbidelli’s crash.

The Spaniard promptly took the penalty loop and didn’t lose any further positions thanks to the buffer he had built up. He then began a battle with four riders for 9th place and put in several passes but struggled to hold position, in part due to the damage sustained to the aero package on his GSX-RR on the first lap. Rins was determined to finish well and he fiercely held on to 9th place before the chequered flag, regaining 3rd place in the championship standings.

Mir had been enjoying a strong weekend at one of his favourite circuits, but he struggled to find a good feeling under braking, and this resulted in a tough first part of the race for him. He then settled into a strong pace but incurred some contact from other riders – also reporting damages to his GSX-RR. His struggles continued until the end of the race, where he finished in 14th place.

Ken Kawauchi - Technical Manager:

“It was a hard race for Suzuki today. Our pace wasn’t bad this weekend, and both riders had good speed. But today both riders were involved with incidents, and we’re sorry that Morbidelli went out of the race. It was not easy for Alex or Joan to continue after the clashes, they lost positions, but I want to thank them because they didn’t give up and they scored points and got the best finishes they could in the circumstances.”

Davide Brivio - Team Manager:

“We knew it would be a hard race from the beginning, but in the end it was even more difficult than we were expecting. Alex did a really good start and slotted into 8th early on, but then he made a mistake, and we’re so sorry for Morbidelli and his team. Alex then took the long lap penalty because of the incident. It’s a pity because I think he had the pace to fight nearer the front, but it didn’t work out like that. On the plus side he regained 3rd in the championship, which is important. Joan was unlucky today after contact with another rider, but he also collected some points and did well to finish. We hope to recover in Thailand and have a better race for both riders.”

Alex Rins:

“First of all, I want to say sorry to Franky for what happened. I went to see him directly after the race to apologise. It was a difficult day, I had a long lap penalty, which I completely accept, but I then I had to try and fight back through the pack. Anyway, 9th position isn’t too bad given everything that happened during the race. I need to try and improve my qualifying, let’s see what happens in Thailand.”

Joan Mir:

“The race didn’t work out how I expected at all, and I’m really disappointed about it. On the first laps I went wide several times and I sustained some damage to my bike. I kept trying to recover positions throughout the race and although I took points, this wasn’t the race that we were expecting, and it’s not the result I hoped for. I’m really hoping that Thailand will be better for us, I want to finish well there."

GP of Aragon - Race Classification:

1. Marc MARQUEZ Repsol Honda Team 41'57.221
2. Andrea DOVIZIOSO Ducati Team +4.836
3. Jack MILLER Pramac #racing +5.430
4. Maverick VIÑALES Monster Energy Yamaha #MotoGP +5.811
5. Fabio QUARTARARO Petronas Yamaha SRT +8.924
6. Cal CRUTCHLOW LCR Honda CASTROL +10.390
7. Aleix ESPARGARO Aprilia #racing Team Gresini +10.441
8. Valentino ROSSI Monster Energy Yamaha #MotoGP +23.623
9. #alexrins Team SUZUKI ECSTAR +27.998
10. Takaaki NAKAGAMI LCR Honda IDEMITSU +31.242
11. Andrea IANNONE Aprilia #racing Team Gresini +32.624
12. Danilo PETRUCCI Ducati Team +33.043
13. Miguel OLIVEIRA Red Bull KTM Tech 3 +33.063
14. #joanmir Team SUZUKI ECSTAR +33.363
15. Tito RABAT Reale Avintia #racing +36.358
16. Francesco BAGNAIA Pramac #racing +41.295
17. Mika KALLIO Red Bull KTM Factory #racing +42.983
18. Karel ABRAHAM Reale Avintia #racing +43.880
19. Bradley SMITH Aprilia #racing Team +44.279
20. Jorge LORENZO Repsol Honda Team +46.087
21. Hafizh SYAHRIN Red Bull KTM Tech 3 +47.308
Not Finished 1st Lap
21 Franco MORBIDELLI Petronas Yamaha SRT

MotoGP World Championship Standings:

1. Marc MARQUEZ Honda 300
2. Andrea DOVIZIOSO Ducati 202
3. #alexrins Suzuki 156
4. Danilo PETRUCCI Ducati 155
5. Maverick VIÑALES Yamaha 147
6. Valentino ROSSI Yamaha 137
7. Fabio QUARTARARO Yamaha 123
8. Jack MILLER Ducati 117
9. Cal CRUTCHLOW Honda 98
10. Franco MORBIDELLI Yamaha 80
11. Pol ESPARGARO KTM 77
12. Takaaki NAKAGAMI Honda 68
13. #joanmir Suzuki 49
14. Aleix ESPARGARO Aprilia 46
15. Andrea IANNONE Aprilia 32
16. Francesco BAGNAIA Ducati 29
17. Miguel OLIVEIRA KTM 29
18. Johann ZARCO KTM 27
19. Jorge LORENZO Honda 23
20. Tito RABAT Ducati 18
21. Stefan BRADL Honda 16
22. Michele PIRRO Ducati 9
23. Sylvain GUINTOLI Suzuki 7
24. Hafizh SYAHRIN KTM 7
25. Karel ABRAHAM Ducati 5
26. Bradley SMITH Aprilia
27. Mika KALLIO KTM