MotoGP

Arbolino at the foot of the podium

Mugello, Italie, May 31th 2022 - Finishing fourth in the Moto2 race, Toni Arbolino achieved the best result of all the Elf riders in Italy this weekend.

Published on 31/05/2022
2 min reading time

MotoGP

Despite good practice times, the two Tech 3 KTM Racing Team riders were unable to capitalise on their improved form in the race, with neither managing to get into the points. Remy Gardner was nevertheless pleased to have coped with the physical demands of the Mugello circuit. “With a 30-second gap at the finish, Remy can't be happy," commented Hervé Poncharal. “Nor can Raul be satisfied with finishing 42 seconds behind the winner. But I want to see the glass half full. When I see Brad Binder finishing four seconds behind Bagnaia and being one of the fastest riders at the end of the race, I tell myself that we can only improve and that we must continue to provide the best technical and psychological support to our rookies. That's what we've been doing since the beginning and what we'll continue to do until the last chequered flag of the season."

Moto2

After good qualifying sessions, both the Elf Marc VDS Team riders looked to be in with a shout of a podium finish. Sam Lowes, who was third on the grid, made a good start and was up with the front-runners. As was Toni Arbolino, who started eighth but was soon up with the leaders. Then on lap nineteen, the Italian, who was following his teammate, briefly lost control of his bike, pushing Sam Lowes off into the gravel. Another setback for the Briton who frankly deserved better, and a penalty for Arbolino who had to observe a long lap for having knocked his teammate off. Despite this penalty, the Elf Marc VDS rider managed to cross the finish line in fourth place, twelve seconds behind the winner. “Even though the result is OK, I can't be happy with it," admitted Arbolino. “I want to apologize to Sam and the team. It was a long and intense race and at the time of the incident it was difficult for me to control the bike. I did everything I could to avoid making the contact that caused Sam to crash."

Moto3

Deniz Öncü was hoping for better, after taking his second pole position of the season at the Mugello circuit, the first being back in April in Portugal. The Elf rider started in the lead and was fighting for victory but was unfortunately the victim of a mistake by the Japanese rider Suzuki, who ran into him and knocked him off on lap 12. After having picked himself and his bike up, Deniz was able to reach the finish line in fifteenth position. But obviously, not with the result he deserved. "I'm really disappointed because I had the pace and the ambition to get a very good result," commented the Turkish rider. Starting from further back, Adrian Fernandez rode a solid race to claim his first top ten finish of the season. Although he benefited from his rivals’ crashes, the young Elf rider of the KTM team showed real progress throughout the weekend in Italy.

MotoE

The two MotoE races of the weekend in Italy were pretty much the same for the Tech 3 riders, with Hector Garzo struggling to get his bike through the fast chicane at Mugello and having to settle for two tenths of a place. Alex Escrig, who lacked the pace of his previous outings at Jerez and Le Mans, still managed to score some points. “The weekend’s results are far from what we were expecting," commented Hervé Poncharal. “I hope that our riders will find a way to be more competitive at the next round in the Netherlands."

CATEGORY RIDER RACE CHAMPIONSHIP
MOTOGP

Remy Gardner

19th

23rd (3 point)

Raul Fernandez

21st

24th (0 point)
MOTO2

Sam Lowes

DNF

14th (35 points)

Tony Arbolino

4th

5th (83 points)
MOTO3

Deniz Öncü

15th  

7th (71 points)

Adrian Fernandez

10th

22nd (13 points)
MOTOE Alex Escrig 15th and 13th 9th (32 points)
Hector Garzo 10th and 10th 8th (45 points)