Riders have to settle for fourth and fifth, respectively. Oliveira places ninth and Álex Márquez retires when riding fourteenth.
This weekend was not an easy one for Maverick Viñales. The Spaniard suffered numerous problems in practice and was unable to get up with the frontrunners in qualifying. Setting off from eleventh on the grid, Viñales made a great comeback on Sunday —especially so taking into account two first lap scares which left him sixteenth. He eventually got up to the podium fight and tussled with five riders for the win. In the end, the rostrum went to Cortese, Salom and Fenati.
Viñales and Álex Rins both had great races, competing with the more powerful KTMs of Cortese and Salom every step of the way. A group of ten riders exchanged places at the front for the entirety of the contest, but the Repsol riders waited for the perfect moment to make their push. On a heart-stopping last lap, Cortese made a break in search of victory, with Rins and Viñales competing for second place with Salom. A fast entry into the final corner put both Repsol riders slightly off track, and Romano Fenati took advantage to move past the duo. Rins placed fourth and Viñales fifth.
With this result, Rins continues in fifth position in the overall standings and Viñales loses ground in his title fight, dropping down to 46 points behind Cortese. Miguel Oliveira, who also challenged for the top spots in the race, lost touch with the front five on the final laps and placed ninth. Álex Márquez crashed out when riding in fourteenth.
Maverick Viñales >> Audio
5th at 1.145 sec.
“I got a good start, but on the opening corners I got clipped and I lost places. From that moment on I refocused and made a steady comeback, moving up to second by the time the final lap came around. I had a shot at victory, I tried and thought that I could close the gap on the straight —but it wasn’t to be. I couldn’t do anything more, because on the back straight I was losing half a second. I am happy, because I gave my all and we regained a lot of places in the race. I can’t ask for more, because I gave 100%.”
Miguel Oliveira >> Audio (port)
9th at 4.376 sec.
“We started ninth and we finished ninth, despite expecting to place higher up the order. I got a good start and was riding with the second group on the opening laps. I latched onto the leading pack later on and for most of the race I kept up a fast pace. Near the end I couldn’t maintain that pace and I had to settle for ninth. We are working well, so I hope that Aragón we can get a better end result.”
Álex Rins >> Audio
4th at 0.974 sec.
“”I am happy. It was a pretty tough race, because we started from low down on the grid, but gradually we got into the race and were able to join the leading group. I felt comfortable on the bike and moved up positions until I got to the top riders. We had a good pace for the entire race, but on the last five laps Cortese got away. That was mostly due to his engine, because he was leaving us behind on the straights. In general, I am satisfied. Regarding the incident with Maverick,I apologise to him and his team —despite the fact that I think I made a clean move.”
Álex Márquez >> Audio
Fall
“In the warmup we took a big step forward compared to yesterday’s practice sessions. I felt comfortable for the race and I knew that we could improve a little more. I started well and, despite starting from far back, I regained a lot of places. When I was in the top fourteen I was hit from behind. It happens in races, and I had to retire. I hope to have a good result at the Aragón GP next time out.”
