Aleix Espargaró was among the most virulent and undoubtedly the most determined not to take part in the Texan competition on a Friday evening in Austin which highlighted a seriously degraded route. The official of an Aprilia factory, who is already digesting the loss of his second rider Maverick Viñales, bruised by the death of his 15-year-old cousin last weekend, says he will not race on Sunday. So there would be no RS-GP on the starting grid for the Grand Prix of the Americas because motorcycle racing is dangerous? We are waiting for Noale's response.
Aleix Espargaró has he become too involved in a context of heightened sensitivity? Indeed, the question of safety in motorcycle racing was not the one we wanted to discuss in a stand Aprilia deserted by one of its pilots, Casa Particular in Viñales, who has just lost a young member of his family who died while racing. But the route ofAustin imposed the subject and its only pilot in the running Aleix Espargaró took a stand. He says : " it's a joke to come here, for me we can't compete, it's very, very dangerous. I've never run on a track like this, it's a nightmare and it's very dangerous ».
Aleix Espargaró said he was excessively worried about the first few laps of the race: “ I don't even want to think about what might happen when 20 bikes start the race with full tanks arriving at turn 10. It's a joke. I don't know. If I have to go to the Security Commission, I would say that I will not participate in the competition. For me there is no way, it's very, very dangerous ».
Aleix Espargaró: “ the track is very dangerous and for me it is very dangerous to race here on Sunday«
The teammate of Maverick Vinales admitted to having opted for a survival strategy, making a few mistakes: “ We started the day with a very similar setup to the one we used in Misano, but it is clear that we will have to radically change the RS-GP. The asphalt is in bad condition, much worse than I remember and times show it. After discussion with the technicians, we decided to try to find stability in potholes, without taking into account the inconveniences that this configuration could cause. Given the danger and how easy it is to make mistakes, this is the only way to go ».
Finally, the Spaniard reminded that pilots' complaints about COTA potholes are nothing new: “ we have been complaining about this circuit for a long time and there has not been a complete resurfacing. Potholes are really, really dangerous. In 2015 the bikes were much worse than today and Marc's time against Marc's time six years later is two seconds slower. The track is very dangerous and for me it is very dangerous to run here on Sunday ", concluded Aleix Espargaro.
MotoGP Austin J1: times
Credit classification motogp.com
