The Avintia Racing rider, Hector Barbera, finished in fifth position in a dramatic flag to flag race with a mandatory safety stop to change bikes after the tyre problems experienced by Scott Redding on Saturday free practice. Barbera did a great start from the eighth place of the grid and was in the leading group from the beginning of the race, and after changing bikes in the ninth lap, he was fighting until the last lap with Pol Espargaro. In the final lap they overtook each other many times, and after some riders crashes, Barbera won the battle to his fellow countryman to see the chequered flag in fifth place. A great result after a difficult weekend with flu and fever attacks.
Barbera’s happiness contrasted with the disappointment of Loris Baz. After a great start from the fifth row, the Avintia Racing French rider was ahead of his teammate when they stopped to change bikes, but a rear tyre problem that produced some vibration and a lack of grip, forced him to stop. Big shame for Baz who had the pace to fight with Barbera for the top five.
The MotoGP World Championship heads now to the United States for the third round of the year at the Circuit of the Americas, in Austin, Texas, the next weekend.
HÉCTOR BARBERÁ #8 / @HectorBarbera P5
“I’m very happy because overall, this was a really strange weekend, but finally the hard work gave us a price. This morning I felt really good on the wet during the warm up, but then the race was held in the worst conditions for me, with the asphalt half wet, half dry. Under these conditions I always feel tense and when I was on the grid I knew the race was going to be hard. Jarno, my crew chief asked me to try, because it had no sense to be on the back, I did it and it worked. I immediately realized that I was fast and I was gaining confidence lap by lap. In the first half of the race I was battling with my teammate Loris, and then with Pol. On the last lap we overtook each other several times and we went long in one corner. Laverty came into the battle and he took the fourth place in the last corner. But overall, and after a difficult weekend, this fifth place is a great result.”
LORIS BAZ #76 / @lorisbaz DNF
“I’m disappointed and very frustrated, because were doing a good race today and fighting to be the best private bike inside the top 10 in the first part of the race. Before changing bikes I was seventh, but then nothing was working. I almost crashed in every corner during the first two laps and I don’t really know what happened. But it had no sense to continue like this, so I went back to the garage. It is the second time in my life that I retire in a race, but I could not ride the bike in this conditions. When I watch the race I get more angry, because today we had the chance to finish fourth. The only positive is that we race in Texas next weekend.”
