Aleix Espargaró, at the end of the Qatar Grand Prix Sprint, positioned himself as a serious candidate for victory at Losai, highlighting the exceptional performance of his Aprilia 2024 against several Ducati riders impressed by his mount. Espargaró, who finished third after overtaking defending champion Francesco “Pecco” Bagnaia on the penultimate lap, maintained his position to the finish line, asserting the potential of his 2024 Aprilia RS-GP .
Aleix Espargaró, satisfied with his pace on the track, declared: “ our pace here is astonishing. This machine is of an exceptional level. For the main race, we have strong advantages, notably thanks to the durability of the rear tire. I am very happy ". Continuing his analysis, he added: “ in the second part of the sprint, I had an excellent pace. This makes me very optimistic for Sunday's race, especially after managing the first few laps better in this race. ».
When he speaks of “others”, he mainly aims « Pecco » Bagnaia on his Ducati, who finished just behind him. bagnaia, amazed by the performance of theAprilia in the last rounds, recognizes: “ the Aprilia was incredibly fast, four or five tenths faster. It was educational to follow Aleix. We will try to apply what we learned for the long race “, he admits, also mentioning vibrations at the rear wheel.
Marc Marquez: “ if things go like they did in the Sprint, then yes, Aleix Espargaró is the favorite »
Enea Bastianini et George Martin also in GP24 have expressed similar concerns regarding these vibrations. Martin, winner of the sprint, plans a demanding race on Sunday, emphasizing: “ we need to solve this vibration problem, because they made driving difficult in many turns this Saturday ».
Marc Marquez, for his part, considers I will espargaro as the favorite for the Grand Prix, despite his own fifth place with the model Ducati GP23 of the previous year. He is convinced thatI will espargaro, with his pace and tire management, dominates the competition: “ if things go like they did in the Sprint, then yes, he is the favorite. His ability to string together laps in 1'52 in the second half of the race was impressive ».
The majority of pilots, with the exception of Jack Miller (KTM) and Takaaki Nakagami (LCR-Honda), opted for a combination of medium tires in the sprint on Saturday, a trend which should continue for the Grand Prix according to Michelin . The teams will adjust their settings and the drivers will have to manage the grip on the 22 towers of the main race, promising a day of intense and strategic competition.
MotoGP, Qatar J2: the starting grid
MotoGP, Qatar J2: Sprint Race
Credit classification motogp.com
