Aleix Espargaro confirms Aprilia’s potential in Qatar – Spaniard is among the frontrunners and just misses out on a podium finish
By less than a second, Aleix Espargaro missed out on a podium finish at the 2022 MotoGP season opener in Qatar. The Aprilia rider was among the front-runners throughout the race and never finished worse than sixth.
“I’m not really disappointed,” commented Espargaro on his fourth place. “Of course I wanted to be on the podium. But the thing is that for the first time ever I felt I had the strongest pace. Maybe I was too conservative behind Marquez and Mir.”
“I didn’t expect their pace to drop so much. That cost me time. Still, I was able to catch up with the group in front of me again. But it was too late. I needed one lap to catch up with my brother. “
The winter tests had already shown that Aprilia had made progress with the RS-GP. Espargaro now confirmed this at the first race. “The important thing is our speed. We showed an incredibly good level,” he said happily.
“The race was very fast and I am happy to say that I was among the strongest riders. Overall, this weekend was good for us. For us it will be a test every weekend because we need to keep confirming that we are among the best. “
“It’s a pleasure to have the opportunities to fight against the best riders. For the first time in my career, this is the case.” Espargaro has ridden almost two hundred races in the premier class. He has never won – not even in the small classes.
Is Aprilia now to the point where a win is just a matter of time? “Yes,” says the Spaniard. “My confidence was higher than ever, but you always have doubts. You have to wait and see how the bike reacts. We confirmed again that we are in good shape.”
“It’s not easy to overtake someone like Marc and Mir and then ride away from them. I don’t think about whether I could become world champion. I want to have fun every weekend. Unfortunately it happens late in my career because I’m already 23 years old. “
Rathlessness for Maverick Vinales
Happiness was not in evidence for his teammate. After twelfth place, Maverick Vinales is at a loss: “The race was not as expected. I thought we would be further ahead. Unfortunately, the reality was different. I didn’t feel comfortable with the bike. “
“We have to understand. The race was normal. My pace was not fantastic. When you are struggling at the back … there’s not much to say. I am in the same spot with this bike as last year. We have to keep working.”
What is the biggest problem for Vinales? “For me it’s the turning. It feels strange. The feeling is similar to the past races, but in the tests I felt better. But here, from the first practice, my front wheel would have folded in every corner. “