A PODIUM FOR JOAN MIR AFTER A TRAGIC WEEKEND IN MUGELLO

Team Suzuki Press Office – May 30.

GRAN PREMIO D’ITALIA OAKLEY
MotoGP™ Race Classification:

Joan Mir: 3rd
Alex Rins: DNF

The MotoGP™ race at the Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello got underway under a dark cloud after the tragic death of young Moto3 rider, Jason Dupasquier, was announced. Riders and members of the paddock gathered together on the grid ahead of the 23 lap race to pay their respects to the Swiss rider with a one minute’s silence.

Joan Mir and Alex Rins made determined starts and were running sixth and seventh by the end of the first lap. One lap later they had climbed one place each and the Team Suzuki Ecstar pairing were showing good pace. However, they spent many laps stuck behind Jack Miller as the race leaders were building a gap, but they didn’t let this dishearten them and they continued to use their excellent corner speed to their advantage, passing the Australian and setting their sights on podium places.

Both Mir and Rins got their heads down and chipped away at the gap to Miguel Oliveira, impressively taking just three laps to get on the Portuguese rider’s tail. On Lap 17 the Hamamatsu riders had their GSX-RRs in third and fourth, but on the next lap Rins lost the front of his bike at Turn 15 and suffered his fourth DNF in a row – he was luckily uninjured. Mir continued to push hard, not only maintaining a podium spot in third but giving his all to gain second place. At the chequered flag it was a close finish and the Mallorcan took a great third, which he dedicated to Jason Dupasquier.

Shinichi Sahara – Project Leader and Team Director:

“It’s been an up and down day; of course we’re very pleased with Joan’s efforts and his podium finish because he didn’t have an ideal grid position but he was able to make a good start and show great pace. Alex also had strong pace with the race tyres, and we were really aiming for a double podium today, which seemed possible, but unfortunately another crash for Alex meant it didn’t happen. Luckily he is fine. We won’t give up and we’ll continue to work towards better consistency.”

Ken Kawauchi – Technical Manager:

“This weekend has been very tough, but we are happy to get back on the podium. I want to thank and congratulate Joan for this great result, and also the team for all their efforts. It was such a pity for Alex today, he had podium pace and plenty of potential but unfortunately he crashed again. We will continue pushing to get both riders on the podium, and we move now directly to Barcelona where we will work hard and hope for a nice finish for Joan and Alex.”

Joan Mir:

“It was very difficult to put the helmet on today, a really hard day at the office. What happened to Jason was incredibly sad – we are all humans and part of a paddock family, so of course we feel all these emotions. It’s been the saddest podium of my career, and also for Fabio and Miguel I’m sure. I send my warmest wishes to Jason’s family and team and dedicate this podium to them. My crew did great job this weekend, the bike improved every day and I gave my absolute all, so I’m pleased to repay them with this 3rd place. I would also like to dedicate this result to our team member, Elvio, who was badly injured in an accident last year but was finally able to join us here in Mugello. Now it’s time to rest a bit and get prepared for Montmelo.”

Alex Rins:

“It’s difficult to say what happened today, because I was riding well behind Joan and holding strong positions and making passes. During the race I felt pretty good with the bike, but not quite the same feeling as during practices. I was struggling a bit with the front of the bike, and we need to analyse what happened because I can’t figure it out. It’s four DNFs for me in a row now, and that’s not normal, so we need to find out what’s going on, causing me to lose the front and crash out. Luckily I’m fine physically, but obviously I am feeling very disappointed. This weekend has been very tough for everybody, and my thoughts are with Jason Dupasquier’s family and friends. Now we need some time to refocus before Barcelona next weekend.”

GRAN PREMIO D’ITALIA OAKLEY – MotoGP™ Race Classification:

1. F. QUARTARARO – Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP – 41:16.344
2. M. OLIVEIRA – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +02.592
3. J. MIR – Team SUZUKI ECSTAR +03.000
4. J. ZARCO – Pramac Racing +03.535
5. B. BINDER – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing +04.903
6. J. MILLER – Ducati Lenovo Team +06.233
7. A. ESPARGARO – Aprilia Racing Team Gresini +08.030
8. M. VIÑALES – Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP +17.239
9. D. PETRUCCI – Tech 3 KTM Factory Racing +23.296
10. V. ROSSI – Petronas Yamaha SRT +25.146
11. I. LECUONA – Tech 3 KTM Factory Racing +25.152
12. P. ESPARGARO – Repsol Honda Team +26.059
13. M. PIRRO – Pramac Racing +26.182
14. A. MARQUEZ – LCR Honda CASTROL +29.400
15. L. SAVADORI – Aprilia Racing Team Gresini +32.378
16. F. MORBIDELLI – Petronas Yamaha SRT +37.906
17. L. MARINI – SKY VR46 Avintia +50.306
Not Classified:
T. NAKAGAMI – LCR Honda IDEMITSU – 34:13.504 – 20 laps
A. RINS – Team SUZUKI ECSTAR – 32:21.384 – 19 laps
F. BAGNAIA – Ducati Lenovo Team – 01:52.699 – 2 laps
M. MARQUEZ – Repsol Honda Team – 01:54.303 – 1 laps
E. BASTIANINI – Avintia Esponsorama – 00.000 – 1 laps

MotoGP™ World Standings:

1 Fabio QUARTARARO Yamaha 105
2 Johann ZARCO Ducati 81
3 Francesco BAGNAIA Ducati 79
4 Jack MILLER Ducati 74
5 Joan MIR Suzuki 65
6 Maverick VIÑALES Yamaha 64
7 Aleix ESPARGARO Aprilia 44
8 Brad BINDER KTM 35
9 Franco MORBIDELLI Yamaha 33
10 Miguel OLIVEIRA KTM 29
11 Pol ESPARGARO Honda 29
12 Takaaki NAKAGAMI Honda 28
13 Alex RINS Suzuki 23
14 Danilo PETRUCCI KTM 23
15 Alex MARQUEZ Honda 20
16 Enea BASTIANINI Ducati 20
17 Jorge MARTIN Ducati 17
18 Marc MARQUEZ Honda 16
19 Valentino ROSSI Yamaha 15
20 Iker LECUONA KTM 13
21 Stefan BRADL Honda 11
22 Luca MARINI Ducati 9
23 Michele PIRRO Ducati 3
24 Lorenzo SAVADORI Aprilia 3
25 Tito RABAT Ducati 1

Mugello Image Gallery:CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS

Championship points (round by round): CLICK HERE

For the original article Click Here