Silverstone, UK, August 7th 2023 - Injured at Portimao, Pol Espargaro was finally able to take part in his first race of the season in England. The GASGAS Tech 3 rider even managed to finish in the points, despite still not being far from 100% fit.
Pol Espargaro, who suffered serious injury during practice for the Portuguese Grand Prix at the very start of the MotoGP season, was finally able to return to racing at Silverstone. However, the Spaniard has not yet fully recovered from his accident in Portimao. Sixteenth in the Sprint, twelfth in the Grand Prix, Espargaro nevertheless scored his first points. “I'm happy to have been able to get back on the bike," he admitted. “During the first few laps, I was a bit overwhelmed by the power and speed after all those weeks away from racing. My first few laps of the race were quite interesting, but I soon started to feel pain in my neck. It was difficult and I even thought about giving up when I saw several riders coming back to the pits to change bikes even though the track wasn't really wet. I told myself that there was a way of scoring points and I gritted my teeth.” A courageous Pol finished behind his team-mate. Eleventh at the finish line, Augusto Fernandez suffered more on Sunday in the dry than he had the day before in the wet. Fifth on the grid, his second ‘row two’ of the season, the GASGAS rider scored his first sprint points with eighth. “I felt really good in the rain," explained Fernandez. “On the other hand, I lacked confidence in the dry because we had very little time to work in these conditions.”
Sam Lowes was dreaming of a home podium, but he had to make do with seventh place. Ninth on the grid, the Elf Marc VDS Racing Team rider fought hard throughout the race. “The first few laps were complicated," explained the Brit. “I got off to a good start, but as always in Moto2, things got a bit hectic in the first few corners. Even if I would have liked to offer my fans a podium, I'm quite happy with my race.” Fourth on the grid, Tony Arbolino had a good first few laps in the leading group, but dropped to tenth at the chequered flag. A disappointing performance for the Italian, who lost the overall lead. He is now in second place, two points behind Pedro Acosta, the new leader. “It's now been two Grands Prix in a row that I haven't managed to get on the podium," lamented the Elf Marc VDS Racing rider. “I just don't feel comfortable with the front of the bike in the dry. I need to work solving the problem."
His Assen performance has been forgotten. Dani Holgado started the second half of the championship on the right foot with a return to the podium. Third at the British Grand Prix, the KTM Tech 3 rider even regained his lead in the overall standings. “The race was difficult because I had a lot of movement from the front of the bike," said the new championship leader. “But I'm happy because I was able to manage it without making any mistakes.” Filippo Farioli complained that his gearing was too short. The Italian finished 19th. The CFMoto Racing team riders also failed to finish in the points. Joël Kelso crossed the line in 16th place and Xavi Artigas in 21st.
The rain and cold that disrupted the British Grand Prix did not do the Tech3 E-Racing riders any favours. Alessandro Zaccone failed to finish either of the two races at the fifth round of the MotoE World Championship. “I crashed the first time when I was attacking in the rain as I was making up places," said the Italian. “And in the second race, I was hit by another rider. There was nothing I could do to avoid the crash.” Zaccone is now 11th in the overall standings, just ahead of his team-mate Hikari Okubo who finished 12th and 8th at the Silverstone circuit.
| CATEGORY | RIDER | RACE | CHAMPIONSHIP |
|---|---|---|---|
| MOTOGP |
Pol Espargaro |
16th and 12th |
28th (4 points) |
|
Augusto Fernandez |
8th and 11th |
13th (49 points) |
|
| MOTO2 |
Sam Lowes |
7th |
8th (67 points) |
|
Tony Arbolino |
10th |
2nd (154 points) |
|
| MOTO3 |
Dani Holgado |
3th |
1st (141 points) |
|
Filippo Farioli |
19th |
26th (2 points) |
|
|
Xavier Artigas |
21st |
9th (57 points) |
|
|
Joel Kelso |
16th |
19th (19 points) |
|
| MOTOE |
Alessandro Zaccone |
DNF and DNF |
11th (60 points) |
|
Hikari Okubo |
12th and 8th |
12th (54 points) |
