The Aragon GP finally ended with an exciting and solid race for Andrea Iannone and Alex Rins, with the Italian taking third place and the Spaniard following closely in fourth. The result is the outcome of a weekend that have been positive overall positive, as both Suzuki riders showed strong pace at the very technical circuit from Friday onwards.
As the race rolled around the large crowd were treated to a boiling atmosphere, with the air and track temperatures extremely high. Tyre choice was critical for the 23 lap race and thanks to the time spent checking different options during practice, Iannone and Rins were able to choose wisely. The pairing got excellent starts their 5th and 9th grid spots and immediately slotted into the front group with 3rd and 4th.
The intense and thrilling race saw both riders challenge the race leaders frequently, with Iannone snatching 1st place with just a handful of laps remaining. As the chequered flag flew Andrea Iannone was able to claim Suzuki’s first ever Aragon podium and his third of the season. Local rider Alex Rins continued his impressive form with his second consecutive 4th place.
“I think we’ve done a really good performance. I started well but [Jorge] Lorenzo had an unfortunate crash and that was a shame to see, it’s always bad to see a crash in front of you. But in any case I’m very happy about my race, I was fighting and pushing at 100% at the end of the race, but only at the end, because in the earlier laps I wanted to conserve the tyres”, Iannone said.
Podium feeling! ?. Cheers and congratulations! ?? @MotoGP #SUZUKing #AragonGP @andreaiannone29 pic.twitter.com/YO3y3THGVc
— Team SUZUKI ECSTAR (@suzukimotogp) September 23, 2018
Iannone happy to return on the podium
“So I tried to manage the throttle and my riding style because I knew it would be really important to have tyre life in the last laps. I think my strategy worked really well and the team and I have worked hard together. We were losing out down the straight but we’re so happy to return to the podium after some disappointing races.”
Alex Rins was very happy with his weekend as well – both for himself and the whole team.
“The race has been a very nice fight. I have learnt a lot battling in front and following [Marc] Márquez and [Andrea] Dovizioso and also fighting with Andrea. It has been great! This result is good motivation to keep pushing, and especially in Thailand which is a track that I like a lot”, Rins added.
It wasn’t a podium at home but @Rins42 looks happy with 4th ?#AragonGP ?? pic.twitter.com/cvI9yWTxBi
— MotoGP™??? (@MotoGP) September 23, 2018
