It was a particularly trying and difficult Italian Grand Prix for Cal Crutchlow and the LCR Honda team with a significant deficit for the British driver who had to start from 16rd place on the starting grid.
Once he had found his rhythm after struggling in the hustle and bustle of the first laps, the Coventry native was then plagued by difficulties with his braking system which forced him to moderate his driving in order to preserve the maximum his bike for the rest of the event.
Cal Crutchlow bravely pushed himself throughout the 23 laps of the GP, and after managing to make brief adjustments while riding, he then preferred to play it safe to cross the finish line in 11rd position and score five additional championship points.
The LCR Honda team will soon head to Barcelona to compete in the Catalan Grand Prix which will take place in two weeks.
Cal Crutchlow #35 – 11rd
“It won't have been too bad in the end. After only two or three laps, I immediately felt that there was a problem with one of the elements of the bike but in the end I'm just happy to have finished the event. There's no excuse to look for yourself, I finish 11rd and I sincerely think that even without the difficulties encountered I could not have done much better than that. I fought briefly at the start of the race with other riders but I was unable to overtake them because we probably lacked top speed with the bike.”
“It was certainly difficult but I felt that there was a need for everyone to finish this Grand Prix. We had to gather as much information as possible and that's what we managed to do even if the test was disrupted by problems. I never had the feeling at all that I was at the limit but I couldn't do more given the difficulties that thwarted us. I managed to complete a fast lap before having to drop my pace on the next one because I had to try to adjust a few small elements on the bike as best I could.”
“I'm generally quite satisfied with having made it to the end of the race, and if I had been able to stay in a group for long enough, I would very likely have had the possibility of being faster but that never happened. was the case! I played it safe in the first 10 laps before managing the situation to make sure I crossed the finish line.”
Lucio Cecchinello (LCR Honda Team Manager)
“This Grand Prix was complicated for us because the air temperature was very high and we encountered small problems with our braking system. But Cal nevertheless managed to finish the race and that is essential for us. Obviously I would have preferred him to be in the Top 10 or better but we have to accept this result and establish a schedule to make sure we provide him with a better bike.”
“We are all now hoping to achieve performances up to our potential for the next races and our entire structure shows great motivation to make this happen. We know our weak points and that is why we will work hard with our partners and Honda to improve ourselves over the coming weeks.”
Ranking in the 2016 MotoGP world championship: 19rd / 10 points
