Was this the best under-the-radar ride of the French MotoGP?

Two MotoGP test riders came away from last Sunday’s chaotic French Grand Prix in wet conditions with unexpected big results for their respective teams.

Takaaki Nakagami made his first MotoGP appearance as a wildcard for Honda at Le Mans having stepped away from full-time competition at the end of last year.

Qualifying last, Nakagami was one of a handful of riders to start the grand prix on wet rubber and benefited from the gamble as he came through to finish second-best Honda in sixth.

That marked his best grand prix result since the 2021 Styrian Grand Prix, when he was fifth for LCR Honda.

“I didn’t expect that chaos in the Sunday race,” he told MotoGP’s official website.

“Everyone told me Sunday would be maybe wet or dry, but it was super tricky.

“It was something that I didn’t expect, those difficult conditions.

“But anyway, I think my decision was correct.

“So, it was a tough one but I’m super happy I was able to finish the race and also a gift to the team. P6, of course, I didn’t expect. So, I’m so happy.”

Aprilia test rider earns best MotoGP result

Aprilia’s Lorenzo Savadori achieved his best ever MotoGP result in the French GP, as he came through from the back of the grid to finish ninth.

Savadori has been deputising for the injured Jorge Martin all season and had previously only scored one point in 15th at the Americas GP.

His best premier class result before the French GP was an 11th in 2023 at Assen, though Savadori believes he could have done even better than ninth at Le Mans had he not had a “huge drop” in grip from his medium rain tyres.

“It was a great race and a good result,” he said.

“It’s a shame about the huge drop in performance with the medium rain tyres, otherwise we would have been able to do something better.

“But in any case, some interesting things came out of this race.

“I’d like to thank all of Aprilia, the racing department, and the team, because we are all working at 100% to grow the bike.

“I would especially like to dedicate this good result to Fabrizio Borra, my physiotherapist who I have known since I was a kid, and who unfortunately has passed away.”