Team Suzuki Press Office – June 11.
Joan Mir: 10th – 1’20.574 (+ 0.556)
Alex Rins: 11th – 1’20.591 (+ 0.573)
Team Suzuki Ecstar’s riders made strides towards the Sachsenring race on Friday as both showed solid form. Alex Rins took to the track nursing the wrist injury he suffered in Catalunya, but he rode through the discomfort to finish just outside the Top 10, while Joan Mir kept himself among the fastest ten riders as he tried the new aerodynamic package on his GSX-RR.
Rins showed grit from FP1 onwards, putting in 13 laps in the morning session. A crash at Turn 1 with 17 minutes to go put paid to his progress, but thankfully the fall didn’t exacerbate his injury. Mir started FP1 in determined mood, looking good from the outset, and he completed a total of 23 laps which saw him gradually drop his times around the short Sachsenring circuit.
The ‘boys in blue’ showed further promise in FP2, as they both took chunks out of their morning times in the hot afternoon conditions. Mir spent the last part of the session with the aerodynamic package that was first tried in the Catalan Test, and a final push from both riders on hard-medium tyres saw them rise to the Top 5. At close of play on Friday Mir was 10th and Rins 11th.
Joan Mir:
“I feel good, we’re making steps forward and working hard, and this makes me happy. We’re getting there, slowly but surely – we’re still not quite where we want to be but we’re not far off it either. I’m keen to see what we can do tomorrow! We’ll try to improve and qualify well so that we can set ourselves on a good path for the race.”
Alex Rins:
“My wrist was a bit more painful than I expected. I suffered with it a bit in FP1, but I was hoping that for FP2 it would feel a bit freer and less painful, but it was actually the opposite; it was more uncomfortable in the afternoon. It could be that the high temperatures are making it feel worse, or just the fact that I was pushing for a fast time. We’ll see how I feel after resting tonight, and together with Livio and all the team we will make a decision following FP3 tomorrow.”
Livio Suppo – Team Manager:
“I’m very happy for Alex, he didn’t give up and kept the ‘no pain, no gain’ motto in his head! He was impressive, and he did some good laps. He’ll see how he feels this evening, but it seems that he’ll be able to continue. I’m also feeling pleased with Joan’s performance today; he was fast from the first exit, and he likes the new aero fairing, so we feel positive for tomorrow.”
GRAND PRIX OF GERMANY DAY 1 COMBINED CLASSIFICATION:
1 Francesco BAGNAIA Ducati Lenovo Team 1’20.018
2 Luca MARINI Mooney VR46 Racing Team 1’20.133 0.115 0.115
3 Jack MILLER Ducati Lenovo Team 1’20.211 0.193 0.078
4 Aleix ESPARGARO Aprilia Racing 1’20.219 0.201 0.008
5 Johann ZARCO Prima Pramac Racing 1’20.264 0.246 0.045
6 Jorge MARTIN Prima Pramac Racing 1’20.275 0.257 0.011
7 Fabio QUARTARARO Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP 1’20.399 0.381 0.124
8 Maverick VIÑALES Aprilia Racing 1’20.478 0.460 0.079
9 Fabio DI GIANNANTONIO Gresini Racing MotoGP 1’20.545 0.527 0.067
10 Joan MIR Team SUZUKI ECSTAR 1’20.574 0.556 0.029
11 Alex RINS Team SUZUKI ECSTAR 1’20.591 0.573 0.017
12 Takaaki NAKAGAMI LCR Honda IDEMITSU 1’20.616 0.598 0.025
13 Enea BASTIANINI Gresini Racing MotoGP 1’20.747 0.729 0.131
14 Pol ESPARGARO Repsol Honda Team 1’20.816 0.798 0.069
15 Franco MORBIDELLI Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP 1’20.856 0.838 0.040
16 Marco BEZZECCHI Mooney VR46 Racing Team 1’20.866 0.848 0.010
17 Miguel OLIVEIRA Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 1’20.915 0.897 0.049
18 Alex MARQUEZ LCR Honda CASTROL 1’21.053 1.035 0.138
19 Darryn BINDER WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team 1’21.113 1.095 0.060
20 Stefan BRADL Repsol Honda Team 1’21.117 1.099 0.004
21 Brad BINDER Red Bull KTM Factory Racing 1’21.268 1.250 0.151
22 Remy GARDNER Tech3 KTM Factory Racing 1’21.303 1.285 0.035
23 Andrea DOVIZIOSO WithU Yamaha RNF MotoGP Team 1’21.730 1.712 0.427
24 Raul FERNANDEZ Tech3 KTM Factory Racing 1’21.820 1.802 0.044
