THE FIRST 2023 MOTOGP WEEKEND ENDS WITH ONE CERTAINTY: APRILIA WILL BE A KEY PLAYER

BRILLIANT SECOND PLACE FOR A BATTLING VIÑALES, IN THE MIX FOR THE WIN DOWN TO THE FINAL LAP 
 
ALEIX BATTLES, ENDURES CONTACT, AND FINISHES NINTH. BUT HE IS THE FASTEST ON TRACK

There was no lack of thrills on the first weekend of the 2023 MotoGP season, held in Portimão. After the frenzied Sprint Race yesterday, the 25 laps today were no less exciting and they provided solid confirmation: Aprilia is and will be a key player in this championship season.

Maverick got off to a decisive start, immediately earning positions on the early turns. Armed with a pace that allowed him to catch up the leader, he engaged him in a long battle with the gap narrowed to just tenths of a second. His second-place finish is a proper conclusion to a weekend where both he and the entire team worked almost perfectly together. Knowing that there is a good starting base, now they’ll need to continue growing.

There were two sides of the coin for Aleix’s race. The race fast lap shows just what the Spaniard’s pace is, such that he had the potential to battle for the podium. However, starting from the fourth row worked against him in the early stages of the race, once again hindered by contact with Binder that forced him to ride a demanding comeback after losing 5 positions. His ninth-place finish does not do justice to what he demonstrated on the track, but Aleix himself cannot help but evaluate his first weekend of 2023 as more than positive.

We would be remiss not to mention hometown hero Miguel Oliveira, an absolute protagonist in the race, battling for the win until a rash move by Márquez brought his race to an early end. Initial checks seem to rule out any serious consequences, and this is the most important news. 

Aleix
"Overall, I’m pleased both with our weekend and with the speed we demonstrated. Unfortunately, once again today, our starting position overshadowed my pace a bit, which was decidedly good. On the early turns, I had contact with Binder, costing me a lot of positions, and then, when I had free track ahead of me, I managed to be fast, but I struggled a bit in overtaking. This was partly because I didn’t want to risk any pointless contact – I had already seen quite enough of that this weekend and I think that we riders should be the first to think reasonably and arrive in Argentina with less stress. In any case, the RS-GP proved to be fast and I couldn’t have asked for more. One thing is certain – we’ll need to be more incisive in qualifying."

Maverick
"This is a great result and I’m extremely proud of the work Aprilia is doing. Our bike is truly complete and competitive. But our goal is to stay out front, so we need to keep working this way, with a lot of grit, to improve even further. In the race, I tried to stay consistently close to Pecco, even when I dropped back to let my tyres cool and then close the gap again. I tried to keep the pressure on him all the way to the end and we finished really close, but he was good at not making any mistakes and not giving me any real openings to overtake. Now we’ll head to Argentina with lots of confidence."

The result was there on paper, but then it is all about making it happen, especially when starting from 12^thplace on the grid. Alex Marquez did not disappoint, as he made it back to the top five for the first time since over a year (he was fourth in 2021 at Portimao).
 
After a good start, the Spanish rider managed to quickly get up to speed and made the most of the opportunities given – also due to a few crashes ahead of him. The #73 battled for third with Bezzecchi for most of the race, then towards the end, he had more to defend his position from the determined KTM riders trailing him – with only Zarco able to pip him almost at the line. Still, the valuable points scored today give him plenty of confidence to pack for Termas.
 
On the other side of the garage, it was a weekend to forget for Fabio Di Giannantonio. After starting from last place on the grid, the Rome-born rider had to deal first with a coming together with Morbidelli, and then with a forearm problem that forced him to retire.

IN THEIR FIRST WEEKEND WITH FOUR BIKES ON THE TRACK, APRILIA PLACES THREE IN THE TOP SEVEN FOR THE SPRINT RACE THAT KICKED OFF THE MOTOGP SEASON

CONSISTENTLY IN THE LEADING GROUP, THE RS-GP MACHINES FINISHED FIFTH WITH VIÑALES, SIXTH WITH ESPARGARÓ, AND SEVENTH WITH OLIVEIRA WHO LOST THE PODIUM POSITION ON THE FINAL LAP

ALEIX: “WE ARE FASTER THAN WE THOUGHT”

MAVERICK: “WE’RE HERE, AND WE’RE EXTREMELY FAST!”

The first Sprint Race in MotoGP history launched the 2023 season, providing spectators with a great show and showing that Aprilia is an absolute contender in the championship, occupying three of the top seven position at its début with four RS-GP machines on the track. After taking three bikes through to Q2 – the two factory riders, Espargaró and Viñales, were joined by Miguel Oliveira from satellite team CryptoDATA RNF – the RS-GPs proved that they are extremely competitive in the race. Maverick Viñales, starting from the third row, demonstrated a pace worthy of the podium, but questionable contact with Álex Márquez initially and then the accident ahead of him involving Marini and Bastianini cost him quite a few positions. Armed with a great pace, consistently at 1’38/low 1’39, he recovered positions, but the short, 12-lap race kept him from moving any farther up in the rankings. His final fifth place, just 1.8 seconds behind the winner, and the speed he demonstrated rank him among the favourites for the race tomorrow.

Aleix Espargaró, who started from the fourth row, executed a similar comeback to finish sixth, just behind Maverick. The outstanding seventh-place finish earned by Oliveira, of the CryptoDATA RNF satellite team is worth a mention – a nice placement, but Miguel lost the third-place position, which he had been occupying until the final lap, when he ran long just a few turns from the end.

It was a great test of strength for the Italian manufacturer, since even young Raul Fernandez, on the satellite team, cut a fine figure, finishing eleventh after a great comeback from the twentieth spot on the grid.
In short, Aprilia has confirmed its role in the spotlight of this MotoGP season.

Aleix
"I am truly satisfied, not only with the result, but because I am convinced that our speed is better than we thought. Unfortunately, the Sprint Race was conditioned by less than perfect qualifiers. Starting twelfth is not idea, although both Maverick and I were among the best in the race today in terms of pace. Not bad, since I always say that I like to learn from small mistakes and we’ll exploit everything we learned today. Tomorrow things will be different. Rear tyre choice will be crucial and, looking at today, the RS-GP showed that it treats the tyres well."

Maverick
"I had fun in the race. We were extremely fast, especially in the second part. Unfortunately, I lost a bit of time after an accident ahead of me. From that moment on, I just focused on defending every position and giving it my all. From this first Sprint Race we learned above all that starting up front is crucial because in the beginning I had a lot of contact with other riders and that doesn’t help. At the end, I had rubber marks all over my leathers. In any case, we’re here and things are working properly! And that is the most important thing."

Portimao was the stage for the first, spectacular sprint race ever, which also marked the opening encounter of 2023. After a disastrous qualifying, with Alex Marquez only 13^th and Fabio Di Giannantonio all the way down in 21^st place, both Team Gresini Racing MotoGP riders managed to make amends by finishing the race – with the Spaniard also able to score a point thanks to a ninth-place finish. 
 
A mistake towards the halfway point of the race prevented the Spanish rider from battling with today’s fastest riders, but Marquez still did a good job to attack and at the same time to fend off Quartararo’s attacks – as he wrapped up the Sprint Race point-scoring top nine.
 
Fabio Di Giannantonio also did a good job as he tried to recovered the lost confidence as he made up several positions while also staying upright aboard his Ducati #49. The first full race of the season will get underway tomorrow at 14:00 local time (GMT +1).

HE FIRST WEEKEND OF THE 2023 SEASON GETS OFF ON THE RIGHT FOOT FOR APRILIA

MAVERICK VIÑALES AND ALEIX ESPARGARÓ GO STRAIGHT THROUGH TO Q2 IN PORTIMAO WITH THE SECOND AND NINTH TIMES

The MotoGP season opener was decidedly positive for the Aprilia Racing Team. With the new practice and weekend format, the two sessions on Friday already decide who goes straight through to the second qualifying session (Q2), which is where the first four rows of the starting grid are determined. Those positions will then be valid for both the race on Sunday and the Sprint Race which will be held on Saturday afternoon.

Maverick and Aleix confirmed their good sensations from the winter tests, tackling the two sessions today consistently maintaining a high pace. Stably at the top end of the standings throughout the two sessions they sealed their performance with a fast lap that placed them solidly in the top ten. Maverick finished in second place just 40 thousandths of a second behind the leader and Aleix placed ninth at +0.544.

This takes both riders straight through to Q2, the qualifying session for the leaders.

Aleix Espargaró
"I am extremely pleased because I had even better sensations than in the tests, which were already positive. It was clearly not easy for me to go back out on the track after Pol’s accident, but I’ve been doing this job for a long time and I know that these things happen. Fortunately, it seems that serious consequences were avoided. Having someone like Doctor Charte taking care of us riders is truly a great help. Tomorrow, we’ll focus entirely on the qualifiers because I’m convinced that the results of the Sprint Race will depend greatly on the start. With a good spot on the grid, we’ll be able to make a play for it."

Maverick Viñales
"This was not an easy result. There was a lot of work behind the scenes. We picked back up with the good sensations we had in the tests and we need to keep going in this direction. Before starting this morning I was a bit nervous, as often happens on the first day of a new season, but I’m at ease now after verifying our real level. I was fast on the fast lap but times were more than satisfactory on the long run too. As for testing the tyres, I have a pretty clear idea about the choice for the rear, whereas a lot will depend on the temperature for the front."