Aleix Espargaro takes another podium at Le Mans and cuts the gap to World Championship leader Fabio Quartararo to four points – Aprilia leads the team standings
“I don’t know what to say. I don’t really know what’s happening right now. I’m just enjoying it,” said Aleix Espargaro, when asked about the fact that after seven MotoGP races he is just four points behind World Championship leader Fabio Quartararo (Yamaha) and now leads the team standings with Aprilia.
After finishing third in the French Grand Prix at Le Mans, Espargaro again scored a decent amount of points, this time finishing ahead of Quartararo, who came dangerously close to him towards the end but ultimately had to settle for fourth place.
But from the beginning: Espargaro initially lost three positions at the start and dropped back to sixth place as both Suzuki riders passed him. But both Alex Rins and Joan Mir crashed in the course of the race. And Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati), who was in the lead until lap 21, also crashed out.
Espargaro in danger of crashing a couple of times
This washed Espargaro up to third place. He was beaten only by race winner Enea Bastianini (Gresini-Ducati) and Jack Miller (Ducati) in the end. “It was really difficult,” the Spaniard admitted. “I was fast, but not fast enough to overtake Jack or Joan Mir at the beginning of the race.”
“The track was also very slippery. It was mainly about staying seated and avoiding a crash. Every time I tried to approach Jack, the front became unstable. I saw on the dash that the front tyre was literally on fire. So I let him pull and stayed half a second to eight tenths behind. “
“At the end I saw on the big screens that Fabio was getting closer,” Espargaro continues, revealing, “I had studied him over the weekend and I knew he was stronger in the middle of the corner and he was taking a lot of speed there. “
All of a sudden @FabioQ20 is staring at a podium just ahead of him! ⚔️FrenchGP pic.twitter.com/GTMS8yctXT
– MotoGP™ (@MotoGP) May 15, 2022
“So I knew that if I was even two metres off the line, he was going to pass me on the inside. It was difficult not to make any mistakes in the last ten laps and to set times of 1:32.0 minutes. But in the end it worked out and I am happy,” the Aprilia rider summed up his race.
At the finish, only 0.106 seconds separated him and Quartararo. But there was no attack. Espargaro knows why: “Every time I got closer to Jack, the pressure in the front tyre went up. It was impossible to overtake. I knew Fabio would have the same problem with me,” the 32-year-old analyses.
“He is a bit better in the middle of the corner, but not on the brakes. It was clear to me: if I don’t make any mistakes and brake late, I can hold the podium.” And he succeeded. Yet Le Mans is not exactly one of Espargaro’s favourite tracks.
Almost 100 World Championship points after seven races
“There are a lot of hard braking zones and I like the fast corners better. So I am even happier with the performance. It was difficult to block Fabio. To take a few points off him here at his home race in the dry is something I never expected.” No wonder the Spaniard is on cloud nine.
“I have the bike of my dreams,” he enthuses about the RS-GP. “The engineers have responded to my feedback and improved the bike a lot in pre-season. Now we are only four points behind Fabio, have almost 100 points after seven races and lead the team standings. It’s incredible.”
Asked about the strengths and weaknesses of his bike, Espargaro says: “I think the strength of the Aprilia is not the traction or the braking, but the balance. The bike works well more or less in all areas.”
“Today was the first time I suffered a bit in pure acceleration. The traction was not bad, but in pure acceleration it was impossible for me to keep up with the Ducatis in front of me today,” he admits. Nevertheless, the Aprilia rider hopes to maintain the momentum.
“I’m convinced we can fight for the title, but I’m not really thinking about it,” he says of his World Championship ambitions. “I will try to finish every race until Valencia on the podium and win a few. After a career that hasn’t always been easy, I just want to have fun. “
