Motegi, Japon, September 27th - After making a good start, Tony Arbolino had to slow down over the second half of the Japanese Grand Prix. The Italian nevertheless finished sixth, the best performance of the weekend by an Elf rider.
For their first appearance in Japan in the MotoGP class, Raul Fernandez and Remy Gardner finished the race wheel to wheel. “It reminded me of last season when we were fighting for the Moto2 World Championship title," remarked the Spaniard. “I had a good pace and I think I could have finished closer to the top fifteen if I had lost less time with Remy. In any case I learned a lot today." Fernandez took the chequered flag in sixteenth with Gardner nineteenth. "I gave it my all today but I lacked the confidence in the front to go faster," admitted the Australian at the finish.
For his return to racing at the Japanese Grand Prix, Sam Lowes crashed heavily in practice. With the British rider preferring not to take the start, after having ridden very few dry laps in practice, Tony Arbolino defended the colours of the Elf Marc VDS Racing Team alone at the Motegi circuit. He finished sixth. “It was a tough race," he admitted. “It was really, really similar to Aragon. I had a good feeling over the first part of the race, but then it got worse. My arms were a little sore and I had to slow down. I know I have the potential to challenge for the win, but we need to keep working to get it right."
Both Deniz Öncü and Adrian Fernandez crashed during the warm up session, giving plenty of work to their mechanics and jeopardising their chances of winning at the Motegi circuit before the start of the Japanese Grand Prix. After setting the eighth fastest time in practice, the Turkish rider damaged the little finger on his left hand, which affected him throughout the race. “I still got a point for being 14th," said Deniz. “But obviously this is not the result I was hoping for here. I’m sorry for the team that I got caught out by a track that was dirty after rain from the day before." Adrian Fernandez also crashed on Sunday morning and fell again in the race as he battled his way into the top ten. The Spaniard was able to restart and finish eighteenth.
| CATEGORY | RIDER | RACE | CHAMPIONSHIP |
|---|---|---|---|
| MOTOGP |
Remy Gardner |
19th |
23rd (9 points) |
|
Raul Fernandez |
18th |
24th (8 points) |
|
| MOTO2 |
Sam Lowes |
DNS |
16th (51 points) |
|
Tony Arbolino |
6th |
5th (138 points) |
|
| MOTO3 |
Deniz Öncü |
15th |
6th (154 points) |
|
Adrian Fernandez |
18th |
20th (40 points) |
