MISANO: RAIN UPSETS APRILIA’S PLANS
Home Grand Prix marked by changing track conditions.
The arrival of light rain during the early part of the race disrupted Aprilia’s plans. During the seventh lap, worsening weather forced both Noale-based riders to return to the pits for a bike change to wet setup. However, shortly after, the rain stopped, requiring Espargaró and Viñales to pit again to switch back to slicks. Maverick Viñales attempted to make a comeback, but the double pit stop penalized him, relegating him to sixteenth place. Aleix Espargaró, also affected by the double bike change, retired on the fifteenth lap.
#41 ALEIX ESPARGARÒ
P13 (DNF SPRINT)
“Another extremely disappointing weekend. The positive note is that the signals from the medium tire are quite reassuring. Clearly, the decision to change bikes when it started raining was wrong, but the bike in slippery grip conditions gave us clear feedback, similar to what we saw in the race in Aragón.”
#12 MAVERICK VIÑALES
P16 (P11 SPRINT)
“I interpreted the situation based on the feeling I had on the bike. When it started raining, it became really difficult to ride, I had no feeling with the bike, and that’s why I came in for a pit stop. It was raining quite a bit, especially in sectors 2 and 4. Then, shortly after re-entering the track, it suddenly stopped raining. This race doesn’t reflect our level: the speed and potential we have are higher. We need to delve deeper into the issue to understand why we can’t perform at our best.”