Solid sixth for Rins, eighth for Oliveira, but Aragon non-starter for Viñales

It was a day forget for Repsol rider Maverick Viñales. The young Spanish rider had an engine issue on the formation lap of the Aragon GP, just moments before the start of the race. This latest DNF takes him further away from the Moto3 title, dropping him down to third overall behind compatriot and race winner Luis Salom. Maverick is now 66 points off the leadership, with frontrunner Sandro Cortese finishing second today.

Two riders who were in with a chance of a win were Miguel Oliveira and Alex Rins. Both were in fighting mood throughout the race, with Rins even leading the contest at one point. However, every attempt to break away by the Repsol riders was held back by the mechanical superiority of the KTM machines. Finally, the duo were split from the pack, with Rins sixth and Oliveira eighth.

Álex Márquez also had a good showing in Aragón, taking fifteenth place and fighting against Nikolas Ajo for the duration of the contest.

Miguel Oliveira
“It was a very fun race. The track temperature affected our tyre wear, although we knew that the race was not going to be easy. The most important thing is that we placed very close to the lead pack, despite lacking power —above all on the straight, which is where we suffered the most. The first part of the race was positive and I end the weekend happy. Now we go to Japan, which is a completely new track for me and gives us a lot of work ahead.”

Álex Rins
“I was left behind a little at the start, but we recovered positions progressively on the opening laps. I gave my all, although it is evident that a lack of power affected our end result. However, we should be happy with the job that we did. I want to thank the entire team and everyone who supports me. It was a nice race and it gives us strength and motivation ahead of the Japanese Grand Prix.”

Álex Márquez
“We started from rather far back and nobody knew what pace the other riders would have. When we took off the pace was very fast, which meant that there weren’t so many battles because of how quick everyone was individually. We have to improve in qualifying, because the lead group always have that 1.5 seconds at the start of the race that is difficult to claw back later. Salíamos de bastante atrás y nadie sabía el ritmo que tendría cada piloto. We gained four places in the race, but in the end the rear tyre was shot. We hope for better in Japan and want to latch on to the lead group.”

Source: Repsol Media