First of the independent drivers during qualifying, Pol started from the second row of the starting grid in sixth position. He lost two places at the start of the race and was in eighth position at the end of the first loop. He gained a place with the fall of Dani Pedrosa on the sixth lap.
He was five seconds behind sixth placed Andrea Dovizioso, and was closely followed by his brother Aleix, Cal Crutchlow and Bradley Smith. He struggled throughout the race with Aleix, as Crutchlow crashed and Smith lost ground.
Gradually, he came back to the level of Andrea Dovizioso and overtook him two laps from the end, while resisting his brother's attacks. For his last race with the Tech 3 Yamaha team, Pol crossed the finish line in sixth position, again first independent as during qualifying. On Tuesday he will discover the new KTM of which he will be one of the two official riders in 2017.
For Pol Espargaro, “ This was my last race in black and green for Yamaha and today's result marks a positive end to my time with Tech3. This ending will keep my and the team's morale up over the winter break and is a nice way to end our journey together. We ended the season as it started, as the first independent driver, although it was a difficult year at times because, unfortunately, we didn't quite have the best place in the satellite team standings at the end. . However, we always did our best and I have to thank the Monster Yamaha Tech3 team for giving full flavor to the years we worked together. Also, I have to say thank you to them for teaching me how to ride a MotoGP bike. We shared happy moments and some a little less so. Our first year was great, but we had a difficult second year. However, in 2016, we tried to manage the situations as best as possible.
“As for today's race, I think the first few laps were crucial and unfortunately we lost a lot of time there. Afterwards, my pace was quite similar to the pace of the factory riders in front of me. During the whole GP I had my brother behind me, but I was never sure if he was struggling to stay with me, or if he wanted to overtake. Luckily I kept him behind, which allowed us to catch up with Dovi, who then acted as a barrier between me and Aleix and I took advantage. Once again, I have to say thank you to everyone in the team for their work over the last three years and I will have many good memories of Tech3. »
