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Category: Moto GP
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The rain soaked asphalt of Misano heavily influenced the GP of San Marino and the Rimini Riviera. The rain that fell heavily even for the first laps of the race and the wet conditions caused numerous crashes. The Aprilia Racing Team Gresini riders also paid the price, crashing while they were battling for a good placement.
Espargaró crashed in the 14th lap while occupying ninth place. After a good start from the third row, earned thanks to his good performance in qualifying on Saturday, Aleix had found a spot in the group of riders battling for a spot in the top ten, a result that seemed to be well within his potential.
This time, Sam Lowes also has something to complain about. Feeling quite at ease in the conditions today, he was the protagonist of a fantastic comeback ride from 24th to tenth place, riding behind his teammate. His race also ended early due to a loss of grip at the front on the wet asphalt.
ALEIX ESPARGARO'
“The conditions today were truly difficult. This morning in warm up I did not feel good, but we made a few important changes to the RS-GP and in the early part of the race the feeling was decidedly better. Then I began to have problems with the front tyre before the crash. It's a shame because we have not been able to demonstrate our true potential for a few races now. I am disappointed, but I have not lost my spirit or the desire to continue fighting.”
SAM LOWES
“I can't be pleased about how the race ended, but on the track I was able to be competitive. I battled, overtook, maintained a good pace and the RS-GP worked brilliantly on the wet track. When the amount of water on the track began to go down, the front didn't give me the same confidence. I tried to slow down too, but I wasn't able to avoid the crash. Despite the result, the race is still incentive to give me confidence that I hope to take advantage of in Aragón where I won my last race in Moto2.”
ROMANO ALBESIANO - APRILIA RACING MANAGER
“First of all, I would like to say a few words about Sam, who was moving up in the order and had gotten into the top ten. A great result was definitely within his potential. It's too bad about his crash, but today the conditions were very treacherous and unfortunately they also led to Aleix's crash. We need to keep hanging in there, even if recently we haven't reaped much, we are sowing well. The potential is there and we are determined to demonstrate it soon with a good result.”
FAUSTO GRESINI - TEAM MANAGER
“The race was held in very difficult conditions and it was easy to fall victim to a crash - something that unfortunately happened to both our riders. We could have brought home a nice double top ten finish, because Sam was demonstrating good competitiveness today. In any case, I would like to thank the riders and the entire team for their great efforts. We will keep working as hard as possible to stay with the leaders more and more often.”
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30 YEARS OF SUCCESS FOR APRILIA: FROM MISANO 1987 TO 54 WORLD TITLES
The MotoGP weekend at Misano Adriatico marks thirty years since the first Aprilia win in World Grand Prix Motorcycle Racing, achieved in the 250 Class with Loris Reggiani on 30 August 1987, right here on the Italian circuit.
It was a win that launched a victorious sports history in all motorcycle categories. As of today, the Italian Racing Department's trophy case holds 54 world titles in the various disciplines, including 38 in World Grand Prix Motorcycle Racing with 294 GP wins.
That victory is also celebrated by FMI – Federazione Motociclistica Italiana who, on the occasion of the MotoGP round in Misano, awarded Aprilia in memory of that first world championship win. It is a tribute to a victorious technical and sports history that has trained extraordinary generations of riders and technicians.
Giovanni Copioli, Chairman of FMI – Federazione Motociclistica Italiana
“As FMI, we are proud to celebrate this anniversary, Aprilia's first world championship triumph, earned by no less than an Italian rider, Loris Reggiani, and right here in Misano. The purpose of this recognition is to pay due homage to an Italian Manufacturer which, beginning from that win, has brought home countless victories, earning an impressive number of titles and holding Italian motorcycling high. I am certain that Aprilia will soon continue this winning tradition, given their efforts and growth in the premier class.”
Romano Albesiano, Aprilia Racing Manager
“Looking back on Aprilia's first win today traces back over an extraordinary, all Italian heritage of victories. That fantastic performance by Loris Reggiani was the first step in a chain of 294 wins and 38 Grand Prix Motorcycle Racing Titles which are joined by 7 World Superbike Championship Titles and our offroad successes. Today, Aprilia Racing represents the most technologically advanced spearhead of the Piaggio Group with the goal, on the track, of bringing home those wins in the premier category that are missing from our collection of trophies, while continuing to mould technicians and extraordinary skills, persevering on that journey that we began thirty years ago.”
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THE SPANIARD RIDES HIS APRILIA TO FOURTH PLACE
It was a decidedly positive start for Aprilia at Silverstone, the twelfth round of the 2017 Grand Prix Motorcycle Racing Championship. Aleix Espargaró, with a brilliant lap in the finale of the afternoon FP2 session, rode his RS-GP to fourth place in the day's standings. In both the sessions held today, the Spaniard demonstrated a good feeling on the English track, well supported by an Aprilia that was on point straight away.
Aleix is suffering from a pinched ligament between his ribs that makes breathing difficult after a few laps, so he focused on brief outings. Constantly monitored by the Mobile Clinic, the situation does not seem worrisome, but careful dosing of efforts is advised. The rider will better assess his physical conditions in the FP3 session tomorrow.
Sam Lowes is also satisfied with his day, using the first two sessions to experiment with new setup solutions on his RS-GP with the primary goal of improving stability on rather bumpy asphalt. Along with his team, the English rookie identified the right direction in which to work without using the softest tyre in his final time attack.
ALEIX ESPARGARO'
"This is one of the tracks where I felt great straight away. The RS-GP really responds well here at Silverstone. It's a pity about the problem with my ribs that I suffered training with a kart. In the fast direction changes I suffer a lot and struggle to breathe well. I am working a lot with the Clinic and I hope to be in good conditions for the race."
SAM LOWES
"In FP2 we tried various things to find the right direction to go in terms of setup, especially to improve the stability of the RS-GP. I lapped with the hardest tyre and it seems to work well for us. Many of the riders improved a lot using the soft at the end of the session, so that leads me to believe that we could have been faster in terms of lap times. This morning I didn't have a good feeling, but in the afternoon we improved. I had fun and I think that we'll be able to continue improving tomorrow too."
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EIGHTH PLACE FOR THE SPANIARD IN FP2, SAM LOWES IMPROVING
Practice conditioned by the weather has by now become a constant factor of recent MotoGP rounds. Even in Austria, the first day began on dry asphalt but under looming clouds which obviously influenced the teams' plans.
Aleix Espargaró, not entirely at ease in the early laps of FP1, continued working on the setup for his RS-GP throughout the session, using only one set of tyres and without ever attempting the final time attack in view of qualifying as almost all the other riders on the track did. His fifteenth place time in FP1 therefore did not worry the Aprilia Racing Team Gresini, a sensation that was confirmed by Aleix's outstanding performance in FP2. After the rain, the Austrian track dried out progressively during the second session, allowing him to improve his time by almost one second. His 1'24.726 earned him ninth place in the combined standings and provisionally sends him straight through to Q2 tomorrow.
There was a lot of work for Sam Lowes, skilfully shaving off almost a half a second from one session to the next and eighteenth in the combined standings with a time of 1'25.270.
ALEIX ESPARGARO'
"I am happy with the way we finished the day, because this morning I did not have a good feeling with the RS-GP. Especially in braking, so much that we decided to try a big change in the geometry. Precisely for this reason, I did not use a soft tyre at the end of FP1, finishing quite far back in the standings. Fortunately, in the afternoon we had a dry track to work with, reconfirming the bike's improvements and gaining provisional access to Q2. I also tried the aerodynamic fairing. On this track, where wheelies are a problem, I found some benefits that we will continue to test."
SAM LOWES
"Things did not go too badly for the first day. I improved on the 2016 Aprilia times and that is a first important step for me. The first half of FP2 was a bit difficult because of the track conditions, but toward the end we had dry asphalt and a good temperature, continuing to do a lot of work on the bike. I had fun. At the end of the day we got close to the top ten times, so I am feeling optimistic about tomorrow."
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APRILIA UPGRADES PUT TO THE TEST BY A RATHER PARTICULAR TRACK
The second MotoGP race after the summer break has the top class teams taking on the historic Austrian Red Bull Ring. Opened in 1969, it has been completely revamped, becoming one of the most modern structures on the championship calendar. Its almost 6 kilometres of asphalt are characterized by long straights separated by demanding braking sections that put rider and bike to a rather severe test, but different than the other rounds on the calendar.
The technical upgrades introduced from the Brno race by the Aprilia Racing Team Gresini on the RS-GP machines piloted by Espargaró and Lowes were appreciated immediately by both riders. In fact, they see the Austrian track as the best possible test bench for them. After the good feedback received during the race weekend, the upgrades were confirmed in the post-race tests in the Czech Republic.
ALEIX ESPARGARO'
"The Austrian track is a strange one, very different from all the others on the calendar. Last year I had fun here. It is a track where the engine counts for a lot. With the steps forward we have made recently during the Brno weekend I am confident. I am truly curious too because already last year the Aprilia RS-GP had a good pace here and did one of its most competitive races of the season."
SAM LOWES
"During the Brno tests we did a lot of work in view of this race. The initial part of braking is where I still struggle to get the best out of the RS-GP, but I think that the tests on Monday helped us to take a big step forward. The new technical package Aprilia introduced in the Czech Republic should help us. This is a start-and-stop track where braking and acceleration are crucial."
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