Augusto Fernandez was the only rookie competing this season in MotoGP within the Tech3 team, still equipped with RC16, but this time dressed in GASGAS red. The 2 Moto2022 world champion did well in this first campaign with the elite, and all the better because in addition to facing the category, he had to quickly get used to the new format with a race sprint on Saturday in it. Nothing to breathe or have hours of study in the box, he had to assimilate quickly and well under pressure all the greater that, despite his more than encouraging results, he evolved very quickly like the temporary worker of 'an approaching Pedro Acosta. An injustice that his boss Hervé Poncharal wants to repair…
Hervé Poncharal is what we could call old school, in the noble sense of his values, which means that he first evaluates his driver in terms of results and work within the team, rather only by the aura and its juicy escapades. In this sense, he particularly appreciates a Augusto Fernandez of which he decided to embellish his 2023 results with this strong intervention: “ I think he's doing pretty well. The problem is that Augusto is an intelligent young man. This isn't someone who walks into the paddock with a fashionable outfit or a fantastic girlfriend ».
The tricolor boss specifies: “ it's like at school. You have a good student who works well and gets good grades. But he doesn't talk much and doesn't cause problems. Sometimes you don't even realize it's there ". So the boss of Tech3 recall the facts about motorsport total : " he finished fourth at Le Mans. Only two guys fell in front of him, I think. He would therefore have been sixth. He kept Aleix Espargaró at bay and was only a second behind Zarco, who was third ».
Hervé Poncharal: “ since the start of the season he has only been asked if he could keep his place because Pedro Acosta was arriving »
« But no one talked about it » he regrets. “ If it had been a driver with a different profile, we might have talked about it more. But since the start of the season, he has only been asked if he could keep his place because Pedro Acosta was arriving... I was sorry to hear these questions and see his face ", mentionned Hervé Poncharal. " And even if he said he had a contract for 2024, no one believed him ».
More Augusto Fernandez stay well at home Tech3, with his new teammate who will be the one who succeeded him on the Moto2 throne: Peter Acosta. " It was a difficult year ", recognize Augusto Fernandez. “ It wasn't easy mentally to learn how to ride a MotoGP quickly. But I have the level and the speed to get there ».
« I think the results don't fully show what we can do or how fast we currently have » assures the Spaniard of 26 years. “ This is also part of the learning process. Next year there will be no more excuses. I am confident that next year will be a good year. I am also excited about the new bike, which is certainly a step forward ". In any case, he can count on Nicolas Goyon to encourage him: “ Augusto showed great potential. But now he must confirm it and convert it into results. We are sure he will be strong next year ».
