Seventh place for Aprilia Racing in the Mandalika sprint race

MAVERICK VIÑALES BATTLES TO FINISH SEVENTH, ALEIX ESPARGARÓ SIXTEENTH

Maverick Viñales, after going straight through to Q2, had to reckon with several difficulties during the qualifying session due to the numerous yellow flags which kept him from improving his time. In the sprint race, Viñales had a good start from the tenth spot on the grid, diving into the battle for top five. After a solid race with a consistent pace, Viñales finished seventh as the best Aprilia across the line.

Aleix Espargaró started the day in an encouraging way, taking second in FP2. Nevertheless, during Q1, a crash on turn 1 with just three minutes left in the session compromised his chances of going through to Q2, which he missed by just one tenth of a second. Starting from behind, Espargaró had to deal with a complicated race and was unable to move up past sixteenth place under the chequered flag.

MAVERICK VIÑALES
“In Q2, I was penalised by two yellow flags just as I was doing my flying lap. I would have been able to be on the first or second row. I am satisfied because we had a nice result recovering from the back, but it’s a shame we weren’t able to start from the front. I defended well and battled, I can’t wait for the long race.”

ALEIX ESPARGARÓ
“In FP1, I was fast with the used tyre, but then things got complicated in Q1 with the crash. I still do not have grip, so when I try to push, I crash. Starting from so far back made the sprint race difficult.”

ROMANO ALBESIANO
“A good performance by Maverick, unfortunately ruined by the yellow flags during qualifying. In spite of this, he had a good start and maintained an extremely consistent pace which makes us optimistic for the long race. Aleix also struggled due to his starting position and his race suffered as a result. It’s a shame about Raúl who, in spite of the crash at the beginning, demonstrated a rather good pace, giving positive signs for the long race.”