Bastianini Takes Fifth In Qatar After A Determined Comeback. Positive Debut For Di Giannantonio
Gresini Racing Team Moto3 racer Enea Bastianini crossed the finish line of the Grand Prix of Qatar in fifth place thanks to a determined comeback that saw him catching the leading group with just three laps to go: after a good start from the third row, the 18-year-old rider from Rimini lost some ground in the early stages of the race due to some issues on corner entry, but in the final stages he was able to improve his lap times closing the with the seven riders leading the race.
In the final stages Bastianini passed Livio Loi, then Jorge Navarro and Nicolò Bulega on the final sprint, thus closing fifth just 0.6 seconds behind winner Niccolo Antonelli and bringing home the first important points for the Championship.
His teammate, rookie Fabio Di Giannantonio, put on display a positive debut, racing till the end of race with more experienced riders from whom he learned many things that will be useful for the upcoming events. The 17-year-old rider from Rome crossed the finish line in 26th position, thus slightly improving the starting position obtained in Qualifying.
ENEA BASTIANINI (5th)
“Early in the race I was not feeling good with the bike: I did find it hard to release the brakes on corner entry as a result I could not turn the bike as I wanted. However, in the second half of the race I managed to be fast and so in the end I also closed the gap with the leading group, finishing in fifth place, so it’s not bad. Let’s say that it would have been different if we had been a little more ready, but we are only at the beginning of the season and we still have to work a little on the bike set up. For the moment it’s okay like that, we have collected important points and now we already look at the next few races, in which we will give our best”.
FABIO DI GIANNANTONIO (26th)
“I consider this race the starting point to progress: the result is not the best, since I have only improved a little my starting position, but I was able to learn a lot because I’ve raced together with Masbou and McPhee, who are very experienced riders. I noticed several aspects of their riding which we are going to analyze together with the team and I will try to put into practice for the coming races. All in all I’m quite happy, although I still lack a little of determination in the first laps to try to gain positions”.
FAUSTO GRESINI
“It was a quite positive first race: Enea struggled a bit in the first half of the race, but then he managed to bounce back in the final stages, taking the leading group and scoring his best performance, 2’06”5, in the final laps. We lacked something to fight for victory but we proved to be competitive. Now we are going to analyze all the data, but we are happy with this result: the Championship is long and we have brought home important points. Di Giannantonio collected a lot of experience and learned many things: finish the races and make kilometers will help him to grow and today he did so, therefore I’m pleased with his debut”.
