Estrella Galicia 0,0 riders Aron Canet and Enea Bastianini took part in an unpredictable Japanese Grand Prix this Sunday. Adding to the uncertainty provided by the weather conditions at Twin Ring Motegi, the warmup session was red flagged due to oil on the track and reduced to 10 minutes, and the race itself was cut from 20 laps to just 13.
Aron Canet adapted to the circumstances in a warmup consisting of just five laps, clocking the fourteenth fastest time. In the race itself, he started well off the front row and occupied third place early on. However, he lost two positions on the following laps, settling into fifth and trailing the group chasing the leader of a wet race. At the end he was able to secure his position and achieve a solid fifth place in a difficult Japanese GP. Canet remains third in the overall standings with 184 points. He is 32 points behind rival for the runner-up spot, Romano Fenati, with 75 still to play for.
Enea Bastianini took the warmup calmly, setting the twelfth best time. At the start of the race he was able to move up to the front, and was in sixth place ahead of a group of riders pushing to the limit. As the laps went by, Bastianini lost ground and dropped down to twelfth. The tricky conditions on track and the incessant intensity of the rain finally left him in a discrete sixteenth position. The Italian now lies ninth in the World Championship with 103 points.
EMILIO ALZAMORA / “The conditions were varying repeatedly”
“Both the riders and the team had been working very positively over the weekend despite the rain, but the conditions have been varying repeatedly and that has forced us to work especially hard on adjusting the setup. However, today we encountered a track with more water on the surface, and more difficult to ride on than in previous days. Aron tried to stay with the lead group, but upon seeing that he did wasn’t comfortable, he preferred to finish the race in the best possible position. The runner-up spot seems to be slipping away from him, but there are still 75 points up for grabs at circuits where he is very fast. Enea also faced the practice sessions very positively. We had high expectations for the race, but the conditions on the track affected him more than they did other riders and he never felt good.”
ENEA BASTIANINI / “The rain hindered our progression”
“It was a very tough race because it was raining a lot, although at first I was riding quite comfortably. On the last few laps I lost a lot of feeling with the rear and could not accelerate because I immediately lost control of the back wheel. Even so, I was able to pass some other rider, but it was not enough to score points. It was a shame because the rain hindered the progression we had made all weekend.”
ARÓN CANET / “We still have the runner-up spot within reach”
“I found it very hard to ride fast because of the difficult conditions, so I think we still have to improve our setup in wet conditions. With so much water on the track it was very difficult to improve and, as it has not stopped raining, there was more and more water on the surface with every lap that went by. It has been the most difficult wet race of my life and to finish in fifth position is very positive, because with this result we still have the runner-up spot within reach. There are three races left and I think we can do it. With this result, we have also secured third position overall from [Fabio] Di Giannantonio and [Jorge] Martín. In Australia we will keep trying.”
