Marc Marquez and Dani Pedrosa place thirteenth and fourteenth, respectively, after both suffer crashes when leading on slick tyres in the rain.
The Aragon Grand Prix was a very tough race for Marc Marquez and Dani Pedrosa, who were two of the riders most adversely affected by the appearance of rain on the closing laps of the contest. Both had been fighting in podium positions with eventual racewinner Jorge Lorenzo when rain began to fall at MotorLand Aragon. The Repsol Honda Team riders stayed out on track as the asphalt became increasingly wet, electing not to switch bikes, but first Pedrosa and then Marquez crashed as a result. The pair would rejoin the race; Marquez placed thirteenth and Pedrosa fourteenth.
The race began with a completely dry surface, and after a series of opening laps full of overtaking, Marquez, Lorenzo and Pedrosa were out in front. The first spots of rain fell timidly halfway through the Grand Prix, but it was not until the final laps that several riders decided that it was time to change bikes. The Repsol Honda riders tried to stay out on slicks in order to ensure their positions at the head of the race, but their gamble did not pay off.
Despite this result, Marc Marquez continues to lead the MotoGP World Championship and is now 75 points ahead of Dani Pedrosa. In a fortnight, the reigning World Champion will have his first chance to clinch a second MotoGP title at the Japanese Grand Prix.
Marc Marquez >> Audio
13th, at 1:15.227sec.
“Today’s race was difficult because I, like many other riders in MotoGP, had never experienced track conditions like this before. It was a shame that it started to rain; if it hadn’t, then I think that Dani, Jorge and I would have made the end of the race really exciting for the fans. I think that we did a good job all weekend –it was just a pity about the crash. I tried to hold on because there were only a few laps remaining, but today I learned that in these situations it is better to use a different strategy.”
Dani Pedrosa >> Audio
14th, at 1:24.526 sec.
“It was a difficult race in extreme conditions, but we were able to ride a good first part and were in contention for the win. I made the wrong decision about when to come in to change bikes and didn’t make the switch on the lap that I should have. My tyres couldn’t hold out any longer and I crashed. Luckily I was able to remount and pick up two points from this race. It is a little disappointing to have gone so far and not taken a good result, but these experiences are useful for learning and heading to the next race stronger.”
