Tech3 duo persevere to complete challenging Americas Grand Prix

Tech3 Racing Team rider Isaac Viñales continued his learning process in the intermediate class by battling through the highly competitive field to finish 18^th in the 19 lap sprint today in Texas. The class rookie undertook a decent start from the head of the ninth row and later jumped up to 22^nd by the turn of the fourth lap. He then quickened his pace and closely followed his teammate as he determinedly looked to progress further. At the halfway point, he was running in 19^th and then as the end inched closer, he stole 18^th on the last lap before meeting the chequered flag in this position, having moved up seven places from his grid placement.

Meanwhile, Xavi Vierge delivered a relentless performance in Texas to finish his first Grand Prix at the Circuit of The Americas two places behind his teammate. The young Spaniard started from the 8^th row of the grid and lunged forwards when the lights flicked off. He quickly set into his rhythm and with four laps completed, Vierge had risen up two places as he focused on ascending higher. At the midpoint of the Grand Prix, he moved into 18^th and carried on his pace as the distance dialled down. On the final lap, Vierge continued his efforts before just slipping back to 20^th as the physically demanding GP drew to a close. Nevertheless, the 18-year-old will seek to clinch a point scoring result at the next Grand Prix at the Circuito de Jerez, which is a familiar track for the former CEV race winner.

Isaac Viñales

Position :  18^th - Championship : Not classified

“I am happy with how this event finished because we managed to make another step forward this week which leaves me fully optimistic for the next Moto2 race. The GP was long and demanding, but I gave my all, and we have to be pleased with the job that we did. With our setting, there was some chatter that we weren’t able to solve, so the race was always going to be more of a challenge. Having said that, I’m pleased to get some more Moto2 experience under my belt, which makes me feel confident for the next Grand Prix which is in my home country, where I am sure that we can clinch a good result."

 

Xavi Vierge

Position : 20^th - Championship : 24^th - Points : 2

“Overall, it was a tricky weekend for me and the Tech3 team, but we did our best. We had a tough time on Friday, but turned things around yesterday and we made some solid steps forward. This made me positive about the GP, but unfortunately, today was not our day. In the warm up, I tried to find the same feeling that we had yesterday but instead, we discovered a problem with the gears. In the race itself, I did my best but usually, my strongest point is braking late, but it was impossible to do this in the way I wanted to. Nevertheless, we will now focus on the next Moto2 Grand Prix at Jerez which is a track I know and I am certain that we can have a better time there.”

Hervé Poncharal - Team Manager : 

“It was a reasonably positive weekend for the Tech3 Moto2 Racing Team. After Argentina of course, we were hoping for another point scoring finish for one or both of our riders and the guys were close to achieving that, but it wasn’t quite enough today. Xavi did a good job throughout the weekend as he had to learn another difficult track. Still, he did pretty well in qualifying and we were optimistic for the GP. However, this morning in the warm-up we discovered that we had some gearbox issues. We tried to solve this in between the morning and the race, but in the Grand Prix, it got even worse. The positive news is that it was the third event of the championship so we will have a new engine in Jerez. Yet, I believe that we lost an opportunity to score several points as a top fifteen result was clearly on the cards. On the other side of the garage, Isaac rode the best GP of his young career in Moto2. He has been closer to his teammate in every race and for sure, this is promising. Anyway, both of them will know the track in Jerez because it is in their home country and hopefully we will be a lot more competitive and it goes without saying that this is the target. I want to wish a safe return to all the team who worked very hard and had a solid race, plus I believe everything will be different in Jerez.”