IN THE POINTS FOR HIS 100TH GP: FERNANDEZ CLOSES THE TOP 15 OF ITALIAN GRAND PRIX IN MUGELLO

It was a special race day for Augusto Fernandez from GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3 who celebrated his one hundredth Grand Prix in Mugello, at the Gran Premio d’Italia, the sixth round of his rookie season in MotoGP™. Both Jonas Folger and the number 37 were not having the easiest weekend so far in Italy with difficulties to find their marks on the Tuscan layout, so the aim of the day was to try reversing the situation to end the weekend on a positive note before heading to Germany for the next round.

After a tricky Saturday involving a big crash and a disappointing Sprint, Augusto Fernandez did a reset overnight and headed to the twentieth position on the grid to start the Italian Grand Prix with the motivation to do well on the long hole. When lights went out at 14:00 (GMT+2), the rookie lost a position to Lorenzo Salvadori and seemed to struggle to get into the rhythm at the start. The tough track conditions (hottest of the weekend) added a difficulty for the rookie on the long distance, but he remained focused, trying to follow the others while concentrating on his own rhythm. As the race went on, he found progressively more confidence, his race pace improved and he started to catch up with the riders ahead of him, managing to overtake Salvadori on the ninth lap. He rode his fastest lap on lap 14 in 1’48.012 as he continued to get closer to Michele Piro and Raul Fernandez, and eventually passed them both within the final laps of the race. He passed the checkered flag in P15, and scored a point, a good reward after a tough weekend for the rookie.

Jonas Folger continued to struggle today at the Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello. After the Sprint, he was a bit disappointed with the lack of feeling on the track and had hoped to feel better today. He was starting from the back of the grid. When the lights went out, he remained at the back, trying to stay with the others, but went a bit wide in the second lap, meaning that he completely lost contact with the rest of the class. From there, he was alone and focused on his own, on his pace, with the main goal to complete the Grand Prix. With a few crashes in front, he passed the checkered flag in nineteenth as he completed his fourth round with the GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3.

It was a tough weekend overall for the team, who finishes on a positive note with a point scored by Augusto’s side. We will now focus on the next round as we are headed to Sachsenring, for the German Grand Prix, from June 16-18.

Position: 15^th

Championship: 14^th

Points: 31

"It was a tough weekend overall, so I am happy to score one point in the end. The race was long and hard, we learned a lot and it was important for me to finish it, especially on a difficult track like this one, and in these tough conditions. The start of the race was not great, I was struggling to get on with a good rhythm, but eventually I became more competitive towards the end of the race. We take the experience in, continue to learn, and I look forward to going to Sachsenring next week."

Position: 19^th

Championship: 21^st

Points: 7

"It was a difficult race today, I was hoping to make some improvements as I mentioned yesterday. However, I still had the same issues than in the Sprint, and they were even more accentuated because the race was a bit slower, with difficult conditions towards the end. Anyway, I learned a lot, and we have a lot of information to analyse with the engineers in order to fix these issues for the future, in my next testing. I hope that Pol Espargaro will be able to be in Sachsenring, and if so, I would like to thank GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3 for this opportunity and for welcoming me with open arms.””

TEAM MANAGER

"This point scored by Augusto Fernandez today brings a happy ending to a difficult weekend in Mugello. He struggled with the set up of his bike, with the track, which is one of the most difficult of the season. I would like to congratulate him on his attitude, although it was not easy, he never gave up and pushed all the way through. He had a difficult race start today, was struggling to find both grip and pace, but he stayed on his wheels, pushed, tried to understand how everything was working, and came back step by step. He managed to find his pace, even overtook a few riders. The last laps of the race were really good, even better than most of the class’, pushed until getting his P15, and scored one point. For this, we are very happy for him: this is the way to learn, and he has been working this way since the beginning. Unfortunately, Jonas Folger rode wide in the last corner at the start of the race, and lost contact with the rest of the riders from this point. He focused on staying on his bike, which is what he did. Decent result for us considering how the weekend went, time to pack quickly and travel to Sachsenring for the German Grand Prix next week.”

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