The unexpected comeback
Important points and a convincing performance for Enea Bastianini, who just days after the official announcement of his signed contract with Trackhouse for 2027 finished the Aragon Grand Prix in eighth position. Starting 16th on the grid, ‘La Bestia’ recovered already from the early stages of the race, beginning a series of overtakes that ended only on the last lap on Diogo Moreira, crucial to achieving one of the best results of this season.
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A performance that, as admitted by Bastianini himself at the end of the race, surprised the Rimini rider of the Tech3 team: “It went better than expected! After what happened yesterday (Saturday), I wasn’t very confident for today. I destroyed the tire in the Sprint, but today it didn’t happen. This morning we tried a different setup. I didn’t understand it well because we didn’t have much time to get used to it in the Warm-Up, but we kept the setup for the race and lap after lap I found the feeling. I wasn’t as fast as the front runners, but I managed to overtake many. The fight with Diogo at the end was nice, he is hard to pass because he brakes very late. Our goal was to get into the top ten and I managed it with eighth place. So, in the end, it wasn’t a bad day!”.
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Difficulty with the tires
Confirmed for the home GP in place of Maverick Viñales and after the points earned at Silverstone, this time Pol Espargaró was not able to finish in the top 15, in a race still useful for the Spaniard to gain more and more confidence with the characteristics of the KTM: “I liked the race. I reduced the gap a bit from two of my teammates, but not from Acosta. I lack a lot of speed, but it’s only my second race after returning. Anyway, when the tires wear out, I feel it a lot. The feeling is that I don’t know how to adapt to these big changes when tire performance drops. This morning I was fourth and I was pumped for the race, but when there is this turbulence, you race with other bikes, with a full tank and used tires, you have to know what the bike will do, and I’m discovering it like a beginner! It’s complicated, but it’s nice to see that the bike suits Pedro. I hope to see Maverick back on the bike at Misano. Otherwise, I’m used to testing and I’m fast there, so we’ll see”.
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