Tough start to the season for Elias

With a track temperature of 20°C the premier class riders got underway the first GP of the 2011 season at Losail race track at 22:00 local time with Stoner gaining his first victory aboard his RC212V ahead Lorenzo and Pedrosa.

LCR Honda MotoGP racer Toni Elias has not begun his 2011 season in the best way as the Spaniard has struggled to find the proper set up of his Honda machinery at the 5.380Km desert track. The Moto2 World Champion started from the last spot on the grid after a difficult 3-day practices and suffered a front-end crash at 3 laps to go when he was in 14th position. Elias escaped unhurt from the accident and will be back on track with his squad at Jerez de la Frontera on the 1st of April.

Toni Elias: “Well… this first week end has been very tough for me and the Team. Since the 2-day test prior to the race we have been struggling with the bike set up and even after. We have tried different adjustments to find the right feeling on this track but at the end we could only lap at low 1.58. And that was my lap time during the race from the first lap till the crash. We knew we could not do better than this as we knew our limit but I feel sorry for the crash. I want to cancel this bad week end and start again in Jerez”.

Source: LCR Honda