Gresini Racing » News MotoGP » APRILIA SHINES ON THE FIRST DAY OF PRACTICE IN MISANO

APRILIA SHINES ON THE FIRST DAY OF PRACTICE IN MISANO

17 September 2021

Aprilia and their riders shone on the first day of practice in Misano ahead of the GP on Sunday.

In the first session, which began in dry conditions, Maverick Viñales was the star, snatching first place with a time of 1’32.666 and proving to be consistently fast before the rain brought the session to a halt a few minutes ahead of schedule. Besides being pleased with the good placement, the most important thing for the rider and the team is the consistent progress Viñales is making in getting acquainted with the Italian bike and therefore increasing his confidence. This remains the goal for this part of the season.

Aleix finished easily in the top ten (1’33.102) despite a conservative tyre choice, having postponed a time attack until the afternoon session. However, the rain showers throughout the entire FP2 session threw a bit of a spanner in the works for him. The standings remained unchanged after the morning session’s times, but Aleix was one of the fastest in the wet, finishing with the eighth best time at 1’43.629. In FP2, Maverick rode the RS-GP in the rain for the first time, finishing with a time of 1’44.203 but coming away with good impressions in conditions that he hadn’t yet experienced.

ALEIX ESPARGARO’
“Not a very fun day because of the weather. Actually, if we look at our performance, I can consider myself satisfied. This morning, I put the soft tyre on the front to save the harder one that I prefer and I was still able to stay in the top ten. In the afternoon, I struggled a bit to find my confidence in the wet during the first laps, but then things improved quickly. I’m hoping for a dry track, both for qualifying and the race, because the feeling is definitely good.”

MAVERICK VIÑALES
“I’m especially pleased that I found good sensations straight away. Having already tested here, I am clearly more prepared than in Aragón, but we are still talking about a new bike and a new team. So, we’ll keep our feet on the ground, but it’s comforting to know that I have pace and speed, even in the wet, where I had basically never ridden with Aprilia. We are also improving in terms of how we work in the garage. The team is getting to know me and they understand which changes are the right ones to suit my needs. It’s a process and we are tackling it calmly and without getting caught up in the euphoria. What I want is consistency – to find a good base to work on so that we can be consistently fast.”