Arrived in MotoGP in 2022 in the wake of Remy Gardner, Raúl Fernández never really adapted well to the Tech3 team’s KTM and spent most of the season looking elsewhere, mainly at Yamaha.
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But with a total of 14 points at the end of the season, it was finally on an Aprilia from the CryptoDATA RNF MotoGP Team that the young Madrid native began his second season in the premier class with some top-flight teammates. Miguel Oliveira in the structure of Razlan Razali, or Aleix Espargaró et Maverick Vinales in the Noale factory team. But also with a replacement beginner and namesake on the KTM of the French team ofHervé Poncharal, Augusto Fernándezwho, without making a sound, begins his merry way and is already ahead of him in the championship…
In an interesting video, Raúl Fernández explains his past difficulties but also his expectations and his pride in representing Aprilia, after the rainy Argentine Grand Prix.
« It’s true, the first day was difficult, but finally, with patience and hard work, we were able to overcome the bad day we had on Friday on Saturday. FP3 was in mixed conditions and I think we took a step forward, then in qualifying, it’s a shame that for a few thousandths of a second I didn’t get my first really competitive lap.
It is true that there are circuits where it is very difficult to overtake in MotoGP. For example, in Portugal I was able to get off to a good start and gain a lot of positions. I was able to move up five or six places and in the end I finished 11th. But here it was the opposite: A bad start, I lost positions and then it was almost impossible to overtake. I fought the whole race with Johann Zarco and it was almost impossible. I tried three times, and three times I went off. In the end, I finished more or less well but I was not happy with the result because it didn’t show the work and the step forward that we had made from Friday to Saturday.
On Sunday, in the race, I think I had the best start I’ve ever had with the Aprilia. I mean, I’ve never gone like this before and I haven’t lost any position. It is true that, on this bike, the clutch is a bit difficult and complicated to control, but I was able to manage to get a good start and have a good position. But I got a heat coming out of the fourth corner: I was far behind, Maverick and Brad touched each other, Brad crashed then hit me and broke my fairing. I was scared and I was last but I started to go up. It is true that it seems that we are missing a little something: I fought the whole race with Maverick and the same group, and it was a little difficult for us towards the end. I know the work we have done was not seen during the race, but I know we have done a good job and I am proud to represent such a great brand that fights very hard in all difficult times. We must be patient. »
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Although the Aprilias as a whole disappointed in the Argentinian Grand Prix after very promising pre-season testing and the victory acquired here last year with Aleix Espargarówe would like Raúl Fernández don’t be too patient because, at his former employer, the Rookie Augusto Fernández is progressing and has already scored points in the first two rounds, on a machine that has been known to be more difficult until now.
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For Austin, Raúl Fernández intends to turn the Argentine page and place his RS-GP satellite at a level more in line with what is expected of it, especially since he can count on the return of his teammate Miguel Oliveira.
« We had a tough race on Sunday in Argentina. All Aprilia riders and their teams are working hard to understand what happened there. Anyway, I think COTA is a good track for me. I really want to enjoy driving and that’s the main objective, in addition to trying to understand why we were slower in Argentina. Anyway, I think we took a step forward last weekend and in Texas we intend to confirm that step forward. »
We will see…
