Red Bull GASGAS Tech3’s Pedro Acosta showed class, speed and no shortage of balls to come back from a crash while fighting for the lead of the Gran Premi de Catalunya and secure points for 13th position today. Augusto Fernandez also fell at a hot and sunny Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya while surging to the top ten but could not rejoin what was round six of the 2024 campaign.
Pedro Acosta propels from 5th on the grid into an early duel for victory. A crash at Turn 10 did not deter the rookie from chasing back through the pack to reach the top 13.
Augusto Fernandez suffers a DNF while pushing for track space on the fringe of the top ten
Daniel Holgado rushes to 6th in a gripping Moto3™ race while teammate Jacob Roulstone scores 8th
The sun burned brighter and the temperatures climbed further for the critical point of the Gran Premi De Catalunya on Sunday and round six of 2024 MotoGP. Red Bull GASGAS Tech3 formed-up on the grid in 5th and 19th positions and with recently turned 20-year-old Pedro Acosta vibing after his Sprint podium finish on Saturday.
Both riders were fully aware that the 24-lap Grand Prix posed a more difficult challenge compared to the 12-lap outing the previous day: the slick nature of the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya asphalt pushing tire conservation to the fore. The search for optimum traction was key to podium prospects.
As on Saturday, Acosta accelerated from the grid and into the leading pack from the disappearance of the red light on the grid. ‘Red’ was very much the theme as the GASGAS RC16 made bold moves and Pedro made his presence felt in the battle for silverware. Sadly, a front end slide into Turn 10 sent the #31 into the gravel. Acosta was able to pick-up his slightly damaged machine and throttled through the rest of the GP distance from last place to arrive at a creditable 13th and 3 championship points.
In the chase for maximum bounty mid-pack, Augusto Fernandez was looking sharp around the outskirts of the top ten but then lost the bike into Turn 10 with 18 laps to go and was out of the running.
MotoGP will now turn up the pace even further with the trip to the Autodromo de Mugello and the captivating climes of the Tuscan speedbowl track. The Gran Premio d’Italia will take place next weekend.
Pedro Acosta, 13th: “First weekend that we have been constantly competitive. Really competitive. A small mistake at a tricky track but happy anyway. We were always at the front and at a place that is not our best circuit. Focused now for Mugello and for sure it will be a good weekend also.”
Augusto Fernandez, DNF: “A shame to crash because I had a great start and I had the pace to make a real top ten result today. This was a big step for us and we have to take these small gains to keep the faith. We know we can do much better than where we are so the progress we are making is important. The crash was my fault but I don’t really understand why because I was managing the tire and was comfortable with the pace. We’ll try again in Mugello.”
Nicolas Goyon, GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3 Team Manager: “The scenario was perfect for Pedro after he learned a lot from the Sprint yesterday and he rode smart today. He took a small risk with the tire choice but he was sure about it. He was confident and we could see he was fast on track but we know it is easy to crash here. It’s a big shame but let’s keep positive about the situation because he was fighting for the win. I’d like to thank him for his never-give-up attitude. 13th was a small reward for a great weekend. Augusto had decent pace but was also caught out by a crash. Anyway, a lot of positives from this Grand Prix and we’ll move now to Mugello.”
<
Discussion about this post