Future Ducati star credits "calmness" for much-needed MotoGP turnaround
Fermin Aldeguer was fifth in German Grand Prix
Gresini MotoGP rider Fermin Aldeguer says his best result in months at the chaotic German Grand Prix was the result of him staying “calm” during the 30-lap race.
The rookie has had a strong first half of his maiden campaign, with a podium at the wet French Grand Prix the highlight so far.
Since May’s Le Mans race, Fermin Aldeguer’s results have been mixed, with an eighth-place finish at the British Grand Prix, sixth at Aragon, 12th in Italy and a non-finish at Assen.
Having started the German Grand Prix weekend in difficult fashion with two crashes on Friday, Aldeguer missed the Q2 cut in a wet qualifying - though was bumped up to 12th following withdrawals ahead of him.
Only 10th in the sprint, he bounced back in the grand prix to finish fifth and just under two tenths from Yamaha’s Fabio Quartararo in fourth.
“I’m super happy because after the Friday, when we don’t start in the best way because with two crashes, without a good feeling in dry conditions, yesterday a good sprint in the wet,” Aldeguer told motogp.com.
“But today was a long race, 30 laps, first time for me, was a little bit long.
“But we take with calm, we do lap by lap improvements, trying to understand the bike better in these conditions because it was difficult to manage with a lot of crashes and mistakes.
“But to finish in fifth position we have to stay so happy. More points for the championship and happy with the progression.”
Aldeguer’s result has put him to ninth in the standings on 92 points and is 43 clear of Trackhouse Aprilia’s Ai Ogura in the rookie of the year battle.
The Spaniard’s fifth-place capped off a strong afternoon for the Gresini team, with team-mate Alex Marquez finishing second despite carrying injury from a crash at the Dutch Grand Prix.
This has strengthened Gresini’s position in second in the teams’ championship battle, with it now 72 clear of VR46 in third.
Valentino Rossi’s squad lost a second-place finish when Fabio Di Giannantonio crashed on lap 18 of 30, with it emerging from Sunday’s race pointless after Franco Morbidelli was also forced to withdraw due to injury.
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