Juan Antonio Lladós
Austin (United States), 17 apr. The Spanish riders set the pace in the Grand Prix of the Americas that took place on Sunday at the COTA circuit (Circuit Of The Americas), in which they won in all categories at the hands of Alex Rins (Honda RC 213 V) in MotoGP, Pedro Acosta (Kalex) in Moto2, and Iván Ortolá (KTM) in Moto3.
The victory of Alex Rins, which places him third in the provisional World Cup standings, only surpassed by the Italians Marco Bezzecchi, who finished sixth, and Francesco “Pecco” Bagnaia, who fell to the ground, further narrows the differences in the World Cup classification when there are still eighteen grand prizes, with double points, to be played, or what is the same 666 points at stake.
This data leaves a competition completely open that has only just begun and that in the next appointment should recover at least two of its protagonists, the Spanish Marc Márquez and the Italian Enea Bastianini.
In any case, what became clear in Austin was the success of Lucio Cecchinello and Honda in taking over the services of Alex Rins, who did not have a motorcycle for the 2023 season when the Japanese manufacturer Suzuki announced its withdrawal from competition, since he He was the only pilot from the Ala Dorada brand who managed to finish the race and, moreover, as the winner.
Both the Repsol Honda rider, the Spanish Joan Mir, as well as Rins’ teammate, the Japanese Takaaki Nakagami, or the Ala Dorada tester, the German Stefan Bradl, ended up on the ground, an unequivocal sign that something is happening in HRC, which must solve as soon as possible the problems of a motorcycle that all its riders say has potential, but this has not yet been seen on the track.
Ducati’s dominance is another point to take into account, despite the Bagnaia “fiasco” in Austin, since their bikes are usually on the podium and the American race was no exception, with Luca Marini on the second step of the podium and for him his “first drawer” in the World Cup in MotoGP, something that Valentino Rossi’s “stepbrother” knew almost as if it were a victory.
The KTMs came to Austin in force and excelled throughout the weekend, but when the moment of truth arrived the pressure took its toll on both their riders, both Jack Miller and Brad Binder, who crashed , although the second one returned to the track to, in a display of pride, cross the finish line in last position.
One of lime and one of sand was that of the Aprilia riders. Aleix Espargaró was out of the race on the first lap when the rear suspension lockout system caught and crashed, while his teammate Maverick Viñales endured the pace and hardness of the American race to finish fourth and occupy the same position. in the World Cup provisional.
In Moto2 the Italian Tony Arbolino maintains the lead in the table, but the victory of his rival Pedro Acosta leaves him with just seven points ahead; 61 points from the first compared to 54 from the second.
Arón Canet, whose mistakes took him away from the leading positions and relegated him to the final eighth position, is third in the championship with 41 points, while Alonso López, also the protagonist of some “scares” during the Moto2 race, ranks fifth position with 32.
In Moto3 the situation is narrowing and now the Spanish Daniel Holgado (KTM), who won in Portugal, and the Brazilian Diogo Moreira (KTM) are tied at 49 points at the top of the table, although the first victory, for the first time in his sports career, it was for the Valencian from Puzol, Iván Ortolá. EFE
JLL/ea
