MotoGP Press
Quartararo wins, Rins second as Aleix Espargaro makes history at Silverstone
The gap at the top increases, Rins gets back on form and Aprilia take a first MotoGP™ podium as six factories finish in the top six for the first time since 1972
Sunday, 29 August 2021
Fabio Quartararo (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) unleashed some serious speed at Silverstone on Sunday, the Frenchman on fine form to fight his way through to the lead and then put the hammer down to win the Monster Energy British Grand Prix. Behind, Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) stormed through for second place and a podium to bounce back from a tougher season so far, and in third place some history was made: Aleix Espargaro (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) held off Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team) to take Aprilia’s first ever podium in the MotoGP™ era.
Pol Espargaro (Repsol Honda Team) took the holeshot from pole, with Quartararo initially up into second. But Francesco Bagnaia (Ducati Lenovo Team) was on the move, past Aleix Espargaro into third and then attacking El Diablo. Drama struck just off that fight too as Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) and Jorge Martin (Pramac Racing) came together once with Martin up the inside, and then the eight-time World Champion tried to take it back. With Martin reacting to those ahead to have opened a small gap, the number 93 made it just ahead but then collected the rookie. He apologised and it was deemed a racing incident.
That early race action was still led by Pol Espargaro, with Bagnaia in second and Aleix Espargaro shadowing. The Aprilia then went for the lead but headed wide, and not long after that Quartararo started to make his moves. By 16 to go the Yamaha had worked his way to the front, and from there the hammer went down.
The battle behind raged on, with Pol and Aleix Espargaro ahead of Bagnaia and reigning Champion Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar). Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo Team) was in the mix too, but the rider starting to make serious progress was Rins.
By 13 to go, Rins was into third with Quartararo gone out front and Aleix Espargaro holding strong in second. Pol Espargaro was starting to fade slightly, but the big change was Bagnaia as the number 63 sunk to the back of the group, struggling to stay with them.
Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), meanwhile, was doing the opposite. The South African was on an absolute Sunday charge once again, and was past Mir and homing in on Pol Espargaro. Bagnaia had dropped well back and Alex Marquez (LCR Honda Castrol) had moved well forward, as a change up ahead then ultimately decided the podium. Aleix Espargaro headed wide, and Rins needed no second invitation as he moved into second.
Quartararo was gone, and by the final lap the key battle was focused on Aprilia, on the verge of making history. Rins was just out of reach although still tantalisingly close, but Miller was on the march. The Australian struck to momentarily break a thousand Noale hearts, but Aleix Espargaro hit straight back and made it stick. A few apexes were all that remained between the number 41 and history, and he kept ahead for that mythical first podium.
Quartararo made the masterclass look easy but far from it, Rins got back on the box after a tougher 2021 so far, and Aleix Espargaro ended a long, long wait for a podium – for man and machine. Not since 2014 has he been on the box, and Aprilia never have in the MotoGP™ era.
Miller was denied but came home top Ducati, with Pol Espargaro taking fifth and a great result from pole. And sixth went to Binder, the South African raising more eyebrows on race day and adding the final piece in a history-making race: Yamaha, Suzuki, Aprilia, Ducati, Honda and KTM in the top six makes it the first time since 1972 six factories have been in the top six.
Iker Lecuona (Tech 3 KTM Factory Racing) also put in a Sunday stunner to take seventh, not so far from Binder either as the Spaniard leapfrogged compatriot Alex Marquez, who took eighth. In the latter stages Mir faded to ninth, and he was only just ahead of another charging KTM as Tech 3 KTM Factory Racing’s Danilo Petrucci completed the top ten. Johann Zarco (Pramac Racing) was close behind too in P11, before a slightly bigger gap back to Enea Bastianini (Avintia Esponsorama), Takaaki Nakagami (LCR Honda Idemitsu) and then Bagnaia, who took P14 in the end. Luca Marini (Avintia VR46) picked up the final point.
RESULTS
After a monster weekend for Quartararo that sees him now sit 65 points clear of Mir in the Championship, the Frenchman seems to be holding most of the cards in 2021. But next up it’s Aragon and good hunting ground for his rivals. Can they fight back next time out? We’ll find out in two weeks!
Suzuki
RINS SHINES IN SILVERSTONE TO TAKE SECOND PLACE
Team Suzuki Press Office – August 29.
MONSTER ENERGY BRITISH GRAND PRIX
MotoGP Race Classification:
Alex Rins: 2nd
Joan Mir: 9th
The usual Silverstone atmosphere closed in on Sunday for the British Grand Prix – an air of unpredictability both in weather conditions and results – and the 67,000 fans present were treated to a tense 20 lap MotoGP™ race.
Joan Mir and Alex Rins were quickly into seventh and eighth on the second lap of the race, and the Team Suzuki Ecstar duo looked keen to make moves in the early stages. With a few riders between them and the top spots, it wasn’t an easy task to make up places. The mission to close down the Ducatis in front of them ended with both GSX-RR riders through on Lap 6. Rins then made a move on his team-mate, and the pair made a pass at Turn 7 on Francesco Bagnaia. By Lap 8 Rins had already moved into a podium place with third.
While Rins continued his quest to get to the front, but Mir was struggling a little with his feeling on the track. This is the first time the Mallorcan has raced at Silverstone on a MotoGP™ bike and he was holding a solid fifth place for several laps but towards the end of the race he began to lose places after struggling for feel on his front end. He therefore finished the race in ninth place.
Having got into second place on Lap 12, Rins did a great job of maintaining this position despite pressure from Aleix Espargaro during the last laps. Riding in his usual smooth style around a track he really likes, he was able to take his first podium of the season.
Mir holds onto second in the championship standings, while Rins moves up to 11th.
Alex Rins:
“I’m super, super, super happy because we’ve put in a lot of effort and work to get back on the podium. It hasn’t been easy, because even when I’ve had the pace, I’ve had crashes and problems. I was aiming for a Top 5 finish today, but in the end I felt really good and comfortable with the bike so I was able to push. I was fast but without taking risks or having to make aggressive moves. It’s a great feeling to be back on the podium and celebrate with all my team.”
Joan Mir:
“Well, honestly, the feeling today was really good and I was able to ride in a nice way and be in the positions that I wanted. I felt confident with my bike and I knew that I could have good race pace. Even if my results this weekend haven’t been really strong, I was feeling very strong in the race. But then I started struggling with the front end, which was completely unexpected, and I lost a lot of time in the last laps. This problem started from the 10th lap, and from then it was a bit of a struggle and I’m disappointed because I was hoping for a better result, even for my first time here.”
Shinichi Sahara – Project Leader and Team Director:
“Today was a mixed day for us. We’re very happy for Alex, finally he got a podium and he did a good job. This is his first podium of the year, so it’s very nice for all of us. It was a pity for Joan because he was in really good shape and he learned the track well, but then he had some issues with the feeling on the front end. We need to investigate what happened because it cost him quite a few positions. But he is still second in the championship, which is a great thing. We know that qualifying is our biggest issue at the moment, so we’ll continue to work and fight.”
Ken Kawauchi – Technical Manager:
“First I want to say congratulations to Alex, we’ve all waited a long time to see him on the podium again and it’s been a strong comeback. I hope he can continue in this way. Joan’s performance wasn’t bad, but he struggled with the feeling and in the end we couldn’t get the result we’d hoped for. But the season isn’t finished yet, we will continue to fight and let’s see what happens.”
MONSTER ENERGY BRITISH GRAND PRIX – Race Classification:
1. F. QUARTARARO – Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP – 40:20.579
2. A. RINS – Team SUZUKI ECSTAR – +02.663
3. A. ESPARGARO – Aprilia Racing Team Gresini – +04.105
4. J. MILLER – Ducati Lenovo Team – +04.254
5. P. ESPARGARO – Repsol Honda Team – +08.462
6. B. BINDER – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing – +12.189
7. I. LECUONA – Tech 3 KTM Factory Racing – +13.560
8. A. MARQUEZ – LCR Honda CASTROL – +14.044
9. J. MIR – Team SUZUKI ECSTAR – +16.226
10. D. PETRUCCI – Tech 3 KTM Factory Racing – +16.287
11. J. ZARCO – Pramac Racing – +16.339
12. E. BASTIANINI – Avintia Esponsorama – +17.696
13. T. NAKAGAMI – LCR Honda IDEMITSU – +18.285
14. F. BAGNAIA – Ducati Lenovo Team – +20.913
15. L. MARINI – SKY VR46 Avintia – +21.018
16. M. OLIVEIRA – Red Bull KTM Factory Racing – +22.022
17. C. CRUTCHLOW – Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP – +23.232
18. V. ROSSI – Petronas Yamaha SRT – +29.758
19. J. DIXON – Petronas Yamaha SRT – +50.845
Not Classified
J. MARTIN – Pramac Racing – 03:11.159 – 1 laps
M. MARQUEZ – Repsol Honda Team – 00.000 – 1 laps
KTM
Another strong race finale for Binder with 6th place at British Grand Prix
MotoGP 2021 – Round 12 of 18, Silverstone (GBR) – Race
Brad Binder scored 6th position at a bright but cool Silverstone circuit for the British Grand Prix and the twelfth round of 2021 MotoGP™ as the series returned to the UK for the first time since the summer of 2019.
– Top six for Binder as Iker Lecuona rides to second-best result of 2021 in 7th
– 10th place for Danilo Petrucci means third top-ten classification of the season
– Three KTM RC16s in the top ten at Silverstone at only third British GP since 2017
– Oliveira missed the points in P16
After the double-header at Red Bull Ring, MotoGP moved to the second fastest circuit on the calendar and the longest layout. Silverstone’s eighteen corners and near-6km length provided a technical test for both the riders and bike set-up and the choice between medium and hard compounds. Bright but windy and chilly summer conditions created a stable environment from Friday and the 20-lap MotoGP race was run in the dry and with grippy asphalt.
Brad Binder was the most advanced RC16 rider on the grid and began from 12th and the fourth row. The South African weathered a sluggish start to rapidly pick up his speed and hover on the edge of the top ten. From this position Binder became faster and more decisive with his overtaking moves to eventually work his way to 6th.
Equally proactive were Tech3 KTM Factory Racing riders Iker Lecuona and Danilo Petrucci. The Spaniard latched onto Binder’s exhaust fumes and followed his brandmate up to 7th for his second-best result this season and his second-highest in almost two years of MotoGP. Petrucci made ground to 10th and his third top-ten standing so far with the RC16. Miguel Oliveira was plagued with rear grip issues and finished one position outside the points in 16th.
The Gran Premio Tissot de Aragón will take MotoGP to the climes of Spain and the MotorLand Aragon circuit for round thirteen in two weeks time.
Brad Binder: “Today was a solid day, all things considered. I had a tough start to the race and struggled a lot in the first few laps but as the race went on I got stronger and stronger. I’m really happy with the rhythm I managed to keep until the end. I want to say a huge thanks to the team; this weekend has not been easy for us and the guys have worked non-stop. We tried everything and the best bike we had all weekend is the bike we had for the race.”
Iker Lecuona: “I’m really, really happy! Qualifying yesterday was difficult for me. I made some mistakes but I knew the pace was there. In Warm Up this morning, I felt really strong, finishing in P5 and I knew if I can recover some places, I can fight in the front group. The start of the race was ok, although I tried to save the tyre a bit because the conditions were cold. Lap by lap I managed to improve my lap time. On the last lap, I overtook the last rider to finish in P7, which is my second best result in MotoGP and it happened in the dry. I want to say thanks to my team because this weekend was very good and very strong.”
Danilo Petrucci: “It was a good top 10 result. We managed to hit the target we set yesterday. Unfortunately, I lost a lot of time in overtaking, mainly on the straights, so it was difficult for me to pass other riders. In the end, it was pretty decent. I think we could have been a little bit better. Anyway, it’s a good result. Now I really have a very good feeling on the bike, maybe Aragon will be even better with the KTM for us. We will fight for a good result there as well.”
Miguel Oliveira: “It was not the race we were looking for, at least the result. It felt like I didn’t have a lot of grip from the beginning. Nothing really clicked for me this weekend. Hopefully we can keep working with a positive attitude and get things going in our way again in Aragon.”
Mike Leitner, Red Bull KTM Race Manager: “In general we’re quite pleased with the result. It was tricky for us to find the right set-up for this circuit from Friday. Silverstone is one of the tracks where we haven’t done quite so many laps with our race package. In five years MotoGP missed two races here but Brad and Iker did a great job today and overtook a lot of riders. Danilo also made a lot of forward progress. We tried to help Miguel for set-up but he was struggling with rear grip. We’ll go to Aragon hoping to start in a better way.”
Petronas Yamaha
Disappointing end to BritishGP for PETRONAS Yamaha SRT
First MotoGP race at Silverstone in two years ends with Valentino Rossi 18th and Jake Dixon 19th
Hindered by grip issues in his final British Grand Prix, PETRONAS Yamaha Sepang Racing Team’s Valentino Rossi ended the MotoGP race at Silverstone 18th, with Jake Dixon one place behind in his home GP and premier class debut.
Rossi had a good start to his final BritishGP, holding onto his eighth place off the line. An early charge from the Italian saw him claim two places by the end of the opening lap. However, as the race unfolded Rossi experienced grip issues on the rear medium tyre in the cold conditions. Despite fighting hard to combat them, he was unable to successfully defend his position and crossed the line 18th. Valentino is now 21st in the championship standings with 28 points.
Today saw Dixon make his MotoGP debut in front of his home crowd, with the Brit standing in for the recovering Franco Morbidelli. After a respectable start and showing good pace in the early stages, Jake experienced tricky conditions with a lack of grip in the slightly cooler than expected temperatures at Silverstone. Despite this, Dixon made no mistakes and brought his Yamaha YZR-M1 home in 19th place.
The month of September will see two back-to-back races for the PETRONAS Yamaha SRT squad, with the first of those being the Gran Premio de Aragon (10-12 September).
Razlan Razali
Team Principal
It has been a very mixed weekend for us. It was a very difficult MotoGP race with rear grip issues for Valentino, which saw him drop from sixth to outside of the points. It was a baptism of fire for Jake, but I’m sure it was a nice experience to be riding in the MotoGP class for the first time at his home Grand Prix.
It was a solid eighth for Xavi in today’s Moto2 race. We like that he is consistent, but we also need him to be further up the order – preferably in the top-five. It has been a bittersweet experience for Adam, with the DNF today, but I’m sure that he has learned quite a bit this weekend. Hopefully this will help him to improve in the final rounds of the CEV championship.
In Moto3 Darryn was inside the top-ten and John just outside of it, but we expect more for our Moto3 riders. We wanted to maintain our third place in the teams’ standings but unfortunately today’s result has prevented this, and we are now fifth. The points are very close though so we will try to do better in Aragon.
The next round of the season is in Aragon, so we will work hard and try to keep the motivation high to continue to do better.
Valentino Rossi
18th (+29.758)
It’s a great shame because I felt good with the bike all weekend and I was quite fast. I had a good start and good first laps; I was in a place where I could fight. However, after six laps I had problems with the rear grip, which made me slow. This sometimes happens to us and we tried a lot of things, but in the end we couldn’t fix it. I think if the temperature was a little higher than I could have used the hard tyre and we are normally better on that, but I was cold so we had to use the medium. It’s sad because I wanted to have a decent race here at Silverstone, as there is a big crowd. I want to thank them all for their support. It has been a great pleasure to ride here with so many people here all weekend and thank you everyone for your love over the years.
Jake Dixon
19th (+50.845)
I felt good all weekend and felt really strong today, especially in morning Warm Up. The pace I had, I felt like I could stay with the guys in the back group. In the race I didn’t have the same feeling and the grip was different. It’s a bit frustrating. It was a great experience, although I wanted more from the race. The team did a great job and we made improvements during the weekend, but the race was out of our hands. I feel like I’ve done a good job; I was two seconds off the top guys in Qualifying after only a small number of laps. I can’t thank the British crowd enough, the cheers were fantastic every lap and it was such a nice feeling. It was so nice to see a packed out crowd at Silverstone and the atmosphere was sensational. It was an incredible feeling.
Ducati
Jack Miller closes the British GP at Silverstone in fourth place. Bagnaia finishes fourteenth
Jack Miller closed the MotoGP British Grand Prix, held this afternoon at the historic Silverstone Circuit, in fourth place after a fierce battle for the third step of the podium on the final lap.
Starting from the third row of the grid with the seventh-fastest time, the Ducati Lenovo Team rider made a good start which allowed him to remain within the front group fighting for the top positions. Fifth on the first lap, Miller dropped to seventh after a mistake on lap six. However, the Australian quickly found his rhythm again and continued to push, first overtaking teammate Bagnaia and then Joan Mir. After having closed the gap of more than a second on the trio of riders ahead fighting for the podium, Jack took advantage of Pol Espargaro’s mistake to take fourth place and then chase down his brother Aleix, with whom he engaged in a fierce battle for the third step of the podium on the final lap. After a last attempt to overtake the Spaniard, a few corners from the finish line, Miller finally had to settle for fourth, thanks to which he adds another 13 points to the overall standings that currently sees him fifth.
On the other side of the garage, it was an unlucky race for Pecco Bagnaia, who started from the front row from the second position but ended the British GP fourteenth. After a good start, which had allowed him to stay in the fight for the first positions, the Italian rider started to have some grip issues at the rear that did not allow him to maintain the same pace as his rivals and forced him to drop positions gradually. After today’s race, Bagnaia is in fourth place in the Championship, 70 points behind leader Quartararo. At the same time, Ducati and the Ducati Lenovo Team are second in the constructors’ and teams’ standings, respectively.
Jack Miller (#43 Ducati Lenovo Team) – 4th
“I would have been happier if I could have finished on the podium today, but I’m delighted with the result because we showed that we have good potential. If I had qualified better, maybe I could have done something more today in the race. Fortunately, I didn’t lose any positions after the start, and after a few laps, I found my rhythm again. I struggled a little bit to catch the front group in the last laps because I couldn’t brake in the same way as before, but I still managed to attack Aleix, which was a lot of fun! We’ll try again in the next race!”
Francesco Bagnaia (#63 Ducati Lenovo Team) – 14th
“Unfortunately, after a perfect weekend where I felt really strong, today in the race, something didn’t work. Now we’re going to analyse all the data and understand why I didn’t have any rear grip from the first few laps. I am very disappointed because I was sure I could have a really good race after being fast all weekend. Now let’s move on and try to come back stronger at Aragón”.
The Ducati Lenovo Team riders will return to the track for the thirteenth round of the 2021 MotoGP World Championship, the Grand Prix of Aragón, from 10th-12th September at the MotorLand Aragón in Alcañiz.
Yamaha
GRAND PRIX OF GREAT BRITAIN
RACE
The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team are celebrating a significant victory today. Nobody could match the level of Fabio Quartararo aboard his YZR-M1. He took the win at the Monster Energy British Grand Prix with a convincing 2.663s lead. Starting from P19, Cal Crutchlow was aiming for championship points but came just short and finished in 17th place.
LOCAL TIME: 13:00 GMT+1
AIR TEMPERATURE: 17°C
TRACK TEMPERATURE: 24°C
WEATHER: SUNNY / HUMIDITY 66%
MORE CIRCUIT INFO
1st
FABIO QUARTARARO
40’20.579 / 20 LAPS
17th
CAL CRUTCHLOW
+23.232 / 20 LAPS
Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP‘s Fabio Quartararo gave a masterclass at the Monster Energy British Grand Prix today. An impeccable race from start to finish earned him his fifth victory of the season and eighth podium. Cal Crutchlow rode a steady race. Starting from 19th, he crossed the finish line in 17th place.
Quartararo started from third position on the grid and slotted into second after the first corner. He had to relinquish two positions on the back straight before Turn 7, but it wasn’t for long. With 18 laps to go he overtook Francesco Bagnaia and had to close a small gap to the front duo. He managed it in no time. A lap later El Diablo took over second place from Aleix Espargaró and went on to set a provisional 2‘00.485s fastest lap of the race on lap 4. He then swiftly moved past Pol Espargaró in Turn 12 on the next lap.
With clear space ahead of him, the Frenchman was off. Another 2‘00.098s fastest lap of the race on lap 6 gave him an advantage of 1.320s, which sealed the deal. The rest of the race was a lonely ride and thus a real test of concentration, but the Yamaha man did a perfect job, steadily extending his lead to nearly 4 seconds. He managed the gap beautifully and took the win with a 2.663s advantage.
Cal Crutchlow began the race from 19th place and soon moved up two positions with riders crashing out in the busy opening lap. The Briton was spurred on by the crowds to push for championship points. He lost a bit of time sparring with some rivals which led to rear-tyre drop in the later stages, but he kept the bit between his teeth.
With 3 laps to go he overtook Valentino Rossi for 16th but then lost a place to Miguel Oliveira. He was unable to retaliate and ended the race in 17th place, 23.232s from first.
Today’s win extends Quartararo’s lead in the championship standings to 65 points, with a 206 points total. Replacement rider Cal Crutchlow hasn’t scored any points yet this season and occupies the 27th spot in the rankings. Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP stay in first place in the team standings with 301 points. Yamaha climbed up to first place again in the constructor championship with 234 points.
The Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP Team will be back in action in two weeks‘ time at the Motorland Aragón circuit for the Gran Premio de Aragón.
MASSIMO MEREGALLI
TEAM DIRECTOR
What a great win by Fabio! He looked in control throughout the entire race. We prepared for today’s race in a perfect way. All sessions, including Warm Up, were crucial, and we’re delighted that it led to Fabio winning the Monster Energy British Grand Prix. Still, we didn‘t expect him to pull away that easily. His 2’00.098s lap was the fastest of the race. He set it at the perfect time, and it was the nail in the coffin for the other riders. After that they didn’t stand a chance. Fabio really was on another level and managed the gap perfectly even without pushing 100%. We couldn‘t be more elated for him, our title sponsor Monster Energy, and for all the team and Yamaha staff to be able to celebrate such a dominating win. Cal had a more difficult race. He wanted to get into the points, but in the end he didn‘t quite manage that. He lost a bit of time at the start of the race battling with other riders, and towards the end he was one of the many who noticed a drop in the rear tyre, which we know happens here quite easily. Still, he managed it well and rode a quite steady race, so overall he ended the weekend with a positive feeling.
FABIO QUARTARARO
This win felt great! In Austria I was thinking of the championship when we were switching bikes, but here I thought of nothing. I was feeling great on the bike, and I enjoyed fighting for the victory. It was perfect. I enjoy racing like that, living in the moment. I felt great at the start and stayed calm. I only made a few mistakes, and I felt like I was really good on braking. It was better than expected, and because of that I had kind of a change in strategy during the race. When I had a 3s lead I said, ’Okay, now it‘s time to go slowly and not make any mistakes‘, and then on the last lap I was just enjoying the track, still riding slowly. I‘m so happy about this result. It‘s a really special win. When I won in Assen, I already had some fans there. I don‘t know how many fans there were here today, but it was massive, and it was great to share this moment with them. I want to thank them. For a Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP rider, it‘s always nice to win a Monster Energy Grand Prix, so I basically got it all, it‘s amazing! It‘s a great win for them, and also for my family and the team. I have a mechanic who couldn‘t come here, Daniele Grelli, so this one is for him. I can‘t wait to be with the crew to celebrate.
CAL CRUTCHLOW
I did enjoy the race. Obviously, I’m disappointed about where I finished, but overall I was pleased with my performance and pleased with the lap times I was doing. We came here to do a good job, and I feel we did that. During this weekend we worked in a great way with the Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP team, but I just started too far back. It was as simple as that, because I felt that I had a bit of a better pace to run with the guys nearer the front. In the mid-race I was quite pleased with my pace. It was probably a little bit faster than the pace I was doing over the weekend, so I stayed consistent. We saw a lot of guys dropping with the tyres, which we knew would happen. I was in the exact same boat with the rear tyre, but I was able to manage it well, which was quite pleasing. Overall, to be racing here in Silverstone in front of the home fans, I got great support. I’m glad they got to see three great races today. We can go away from here proud about our weekend.
Repsol Honda
Espargaro leads British Grand Prix and takes season best result
Pol Espargaro clinches his best finish of the season after leading his first laps in Repsol Honda Team colours, Marquez falls on the opening lap of the British GP.
Conditions were much the same as Sunday dawned as they had been for the previous two days; grey clouds lined the sky and a chill sat in the air. With the race expected to be run in largely the same conditions, the Repsol Honda Team got to work in Warm Up. Pol Espargaro was fast yet again, third and 0.135s behind the top spot. A fall during the session upset Marc Marquez’s plan but he still managed to put in the tenth fastest time.
From Honda’s first pole of the year, Pol Espargaro’s R213V shot forward as the Repsol Honda Team rider attempted to make his break. A strong volley of opening laps saw the #44 lead his first Grand Prix in the iconic Repsol Honda Team colours, Fabio Quartararo eventually working his way past on lap five. Espargaro did not relent as he set about battling Alex Rins and brother Aleix Espargaro for the final two steps of the podium, the trio locked together at mid-race distance. As his tyre began to wear, Espargaro changed his focus to defending his position on track. Crossing the line in fifth, Espargaro takes his best result to date as a Repsol Honda Team rider and concludes a productive weekend of confidence building.
It was a strong start for Marc Marquez as well behind his teammate, the eight-time World Champion keeping position among the leaders. Contact with Jorge Martin sent Marquez wide soon after, the pair coming together again soon after and both falling. This would end Marquez’s race. Unharmed, the #93 returned to the garage to debrief with his team before heading to apologise to Martin and his Pramac Racing Team for the contact. Marquez is now refocusing himself on the upcoming race in Aragon, his home round.
Although ultimately on race day it proved to be a weekend of two halves for the Repsol Honda Team, both Espargaro and Marquez showed significant and consistent speed over the course of the GP. Round 13 will be at the Aragon circuit, a track where the RC213V has excelled – having taken seven wins from the 12 Grands Prix held there since 2010.
Pol Espargaro
Fifth
“I enjoyed the race a lot, this was the feeling I was looking for after struggling. To be leading the race was something really special. We went with the soft rear because it gave us the best feeling, but it wasn’t enough to fight for the podium and there’s still some more work to do. Anyway, until the middle of the race I was there, fighting and enjoying it so much – even closing the gap to Rins and Aleix when my tyre was still performing well. As the grip dropped, I controlled the gap and finished the weekend well. It has been a great weekend overall, we’ve been able to show what we can do and now we head to Aragon where Honda has been very strong in the past.”
Marc Marquez
DNF
“First of all I want to say sorry to Jorge Martin, already I went to him and his team to say sorry after the race. It was my mistake; I was too optimistic with that overtake. Races are sometimes like this and today it was me who made the mistake. Overall the weekend has been quite good as we have been fast in a lot of sessions, even after a big crash on Friday. It’s a shame to make this mistake in the race because we had the pace to do something interesting here today.”
LCR
Takaaki Nakagami fought hard to secure a points finish at the British Grand Prix after a challenging weekend at Silverstone. The LCR Honda IDEMITSU rider displayed all of his customary determination to see the chequered flag, taking 13th position in round 12 of this year’s MotoGP World Championship.
There were encouraging signs for the Japanese star as he was second fastest in Sunday’s warm-up session. Sat in 15th on the grid, he also made a fine start and made up five places on the first lap, forcing his way into the top 10. Rear tyre issues later in the race meant he wasn’t able to maintain that position, but he completed all 20 laps and collected three more championship points.
Takaaki Nakagami – 13th
“So from P15 on the grid, I had a good start and was able to get up to P10 by the first or second lap. From the beginning I felt quite comfortable and had good pace on the bike and I thought I had an opportunity to have a good race today. But in the second half of the race I had a big drop in the rear tyre and it was really, really difficult to stay on the bike. Towards the end of the race, I dropped positions and lap time and ended up in P13 which is not the best, but I gave my all and I’m looking forward to the next one in Aragon.”
ALEX MARQUEZ CLAIMS IMPRESSIVE TOP-10 AT SILVERSTONE
29 August 2021 | British GP Race
Álex Márquez produced a superb ride at the British Grand Prix to claim another creditable top-10 finish in the MotoGP class at Silverstone. Starting from 17th on the grid in Sunday’s race, the LCR Honda CASTROL rider battled his way through the field to eventually take the chequered flag in 8th position.
Having spent the weekend adapting to the Northamptonshire circuit on MotoGP machinery, the Spaniard reserved his best for race day. He made a great start and, after passing team-mate Taka Nakagami, was into the top 10 on the fourth lap. He fought all the way to the end, moving into seventh at one point, but ultimately settled for eighth spot and a fifth top-10 of the season.
Álex Márquez – 8th
“Sunday at Silverstone and we can be happy and proud at the race we did, especially starting from 17th. It’s pretty difficult but today I did it. Our choice of the soft rear for the race was right for us. It performed as expected and helped with the rear grip which we’re missing, but we did good and the race went well. Now, I’m looking forward to Aragon and to take learnings from this weekend. We’re happy and I’m proud of the team, I’d like to thank them for their hard work during the weekend. ”
