The KTM rider was one of the fastest men in the race today and scored big points for the championship.
Pol Espargaro will have experienced the roller coaster in Aragón. After a rather complicated first weekend last week, with a final 12th place, this time things went much better and he took a very important fourth place in the championship.
In the top 10 on Friday, he was less successful in his FP3 and had to go through Q1 on Saturday which turned out to be conclusive since he progressed to Q2. Ninth at the start of this second Grand Prix in Aragon, he was quick from the first laps and quite easily overtook Johann Zarco, who was then in third position.
“The race was totally different from last week”, he explained. “I gained places from the start and easily, even if I could have done it a little better. The race pace was good and I was able to run in 1'49 while my rear tire was not incredible, I was able to brake hard with the medium. I was able to overtake and I really enjoyed this race, and when I have fun and the bike works well the results come. This fourth place is nice after last week's disaster and I think it's a deserved position because we have worked hard since Friday. »
Overall, the KTM riders were all in the running this weekend, and particularly the Tech3 riders, starting with Iker Lecuona, who surprised with his pace. The performances of the Spanish rookie have not gone unnoticed in Espargaró's team, but not only: “Using the medium tire at the front definitely helped us. With the soft it was a disaster, and we found better settings and that helped me, despite limited grip at the rear. Help came from the Tech 3 team and more particularly from Lecuona. Iker did a great job and using his settings really helped me. This fourth position is also thanks to him. »
With his top 4, Espargaró gained a place in the championship and is now 47 points behind Joan Mir, the leader. A significant gap but which, mathematically, does not put him out of the game, in particular to finish in the final trio, of which he is only 28 points away.
“We scored important points for the championship, because we are here”, he added. “Nakagami and Miller did not score any points and they are two drivers who are ahead in the standings. The championship is becoming very fun, there are a lot of drivers, I'm happy. There are three races left, two of them are in Valencia and the home drivers have the best chance of winning. I think if nothing weird happens, it will be decided in Portimao and that makes the championship super interesting. »
MotoGP Aragón-2 J3: classification
Classification credit: MotoGP.com
