Aprilia experienced a debacle during the Argentine Grand Prix. While the Autódromo Termas de Río Hondo seemed perfectly suited to the RS-GP, Noale's men experienced immense disillusionment throughout the weekend. If we omit the free practices, neither Maverick Viñales nor Aleix Espargaró were in the running in qualifying, during the
Sprint and above all, during the race. From the start, Viñales (5th on the grid) was swallowed up by his competitors, before suffering, like Aleix, a real descent into hell. Apart from the simple appearance of rain, it is difficult to find any further explanation.
« I couldn't ride as I wanted » declared Maverick Vinales in the columns of
GP One. " In the dry, the pace was good but we had no traction when accelerating on the wet track. I already knew something was wrong during the warmup. » he added. From an outside point of view, it was not difficult to see the lack of grip on the track: many drivers went wide, and some got trapped, like
Takaaki Nakagami, Joan mir ou
Pecco Bagnaia. " Poor visibility made the situation worse. I don't think I've ever driven in such bad conditions. »
Hi, Maverick! 👋#ArgentinaGP 🇦🇷 pic.twitter.com/2BEoDgNBQq
- MotoGP @ 🏁 (@MotoGP) April 2, 2023
According to the main person concerned, this problem was linked to “ tire temperature », a fact that is all the more crucial this season. Concerning the lack of traction, the Spaniard leaves South America with more questions than answers. “ I can't tell if it's a mechanical or electronic problem. The bike had difficulty gaining speed » confided Maverick Vinales.
Aprilia will absolutely have to find good momentum before the European tour. The race from Austin promises to be important, because it is always good to regain confidence before Jerez, which some see as a “new” start to the season. If it were up to him,
Maverick Vinales would already be back on the bike: “ The important thing is to work hard and the results will come. I would like to run again tomorrow to release this frustration. On the other hand, maybe this break will allow us to improve » he continued.
Photo: Michelin Motorsport
Last year, Aprilia did not shine at
Texas (10th and 11th), especially since Ducati had largely dominated (three Desmosedici in the first five places). Can they find solutions to come back stronger, no doubt in the company of a Miguel Oliveira
traced back ? To be continued.
Here is the ranking for the 2023 Argentine Grand Prix:
Classification credit: motogp.com
Cover photo: Michelin Motorsport
