A week after his disappointment in the Czech Republic, Loris Baz (Reale Avintia Racing) made up for it nicely at the Red Bull Ring by taking ninth place at the end of a race that was, to say the least, competitive.
The Frenchman, who started from the fourth row on the starting grid, quickly moved up the hierarchy before getting involved in a fight for eighth place not far behind Valentino Rossi (Movistar Yamaha MotoGP). Betting on soft rubber at the front and medium at the rear, the Ducati rider felt comfortable throughout the race, holding off the Suzuki of Andrea Iannone (Team Suzuki Ecstar), winner of the Austrian event last year.
With just under ten laps to go, Loris Baz had to give in to threats from Álvaro Bautista, but he was nonetheless delighted with this race which he considers to be the best of his MotoGP™ career. , and for good reason. Not only did he equal his best result on a dry track after his performance at Le Mans this year, but he crossed the finish line just 19 seconds behind the Desmosedici GP17 of Andrea Dovizioso.
The Haut-Savoyard is now heading to Silverstone for the next meeting on the calendar; a track where he had a big scare last year, but where he also triumphed in WorldSBK.
Loris Baz :
“In my opinion, it was my best race in the dry, because the gap to the winner is much smaller and I kept the leading group in sight. The choice of tires proved difficult since I had completed many laps on the soft and did not feel comfortable with the medium. Faced with much higher temperatures, we were not reassured about the lifespan of the latter. Despite everything, I went with the soft at the front and the medium at the rear. I managed to overtake Iannone while keeping Viñales in my sights, but also trying to maintain the gap to what I was ahead of. Bautista had a slightly faster pace and I couldn't keep up with him when he passed me. I simply managed my tires as best as possible until the end, because that was the key to this event. In this difficult period, it's great to achieve these types of results. Silverstone is a circuit where I have both my best and my worst memories... It's a relationship of hate and love, but it's one of my favorite tracks. The Ducati performed well this weekend and we will see if we can repeat in Britain. We will have to continue the work, but I think we learned a lot in Austria, especially in terms of driving, to correct our problems. We must continue to score points until the end of the season. Until the next event, I wish Fabio (Quartararo) a speedy recovery, I know it's difficult and I hope he comes back quickly! »
