Pol Espargaro ‘struggling to adapt’ to ‘race situations’ in MotoGP comeback

KTM’s Pol Espargaro says he ‘struggling to face situations’ in a race environment that he has more time to adjust to in tests, following the MotoGP Australian Grand Prix sprint.

The Spaniard has been drafted in by KTM to replace the injured Maverick Vinales at the Tech3 squad, who is still recovering from the shoulder he fractured in July.

Pol Espargaro qualified eighth on Saturday morning and converted that into a sprint point in ninth.

He believes his soft rear/hard front tyre choice made his RC16 “unbalanced” during the sprint, which stopped him from advancing further up the order.

But he also notes that the effects of riding with bikes around him are something that held him back, too.

“Saturdays are super stressful, more than Sundays, but I am really pleased with our day,” he said.

“My qualifying lap was really good, which gave me a lot of confidence.

“However, during the sprint, I was somehow not feeling super comfortable on the bike.

“I think that the tyre combination of soft rear and hard front made the bike unbalanced, which I am not really used to.

“One of my problems is that I struggle to face situations that appear when I am riding, like turbulence from the other bikes, small issues with the weight transfer.

“Normally in the tests, I am calmer, so I can adapt quicker, but anyway, I am happy overall.

“The body is sore for sure because we had not been on the bike for the last two months, but it is part of the game, and I love it.

“We have a good day ahead on Sunday, so let’s try pushing.”

Tech3 team-mate Enea Bastianini was a lowly 20th in qualifying, as he lacked confidence to push in time attack trim.

However, he rallied in the sprint to fight his way into the top 10.

“Qualifying was difficult, I was without confidence to push, and always outside of the line, so I did not find the chance to do a good lap time,” Bastianini explained.

“During the sprint, we improved.

“It was easier for me to stop the bike with the hard front tyre, and lap by lap, I improved my pace, sometimes it was really close to the top five, which is the positive of the day for us.

“Starting from P20 is bad, but we tried to make the best of it.

“We have come back to a more standard bike set-up, made just a few twists, and it felt better this afternoon.

“I am feeling good heading to Sunday, so let's be positive and try to do a good job in the main race.”