Aspar 125cc Squad: Montmelo Preview
One of the most demanding periods of the World Championship season is upon us as the Continental Circus embarks on a whistle-stop tour of some of the most famous circuits in Europe. It is a key part of the season for the riders, who have to stay fully focused if they want to carry their championship aspirations into the second half of the season. The first of five races in seven weekends for the minor category takes place this Sunday in Barcelona, the second Spanish race of the season, with Nico Terol defending his series lead from the challenge of a host of hungry compatriots.
With just three corners to go last year Terol’s podium challenge ended up on the floor and a resultant injury left him out of the next race. As he did last year the BANKIA Aspar rider arrives at Montmeló on top of the standings but a lot of water has passed under the bridge since then and he currently sits 36 points clear of his nearest challenger after just four rounds. Héctor Faubel has been fighting for the podium in the last three rounds but it has proved elusive so far, whilst the team’s third rider Adrián MartÃn, who joined his team-mates for a test at Aragon last week, is also hopeful of improved fortunes at their second home race of the year.
Nico Terol:
“I love Montmeló and I have great memories of the circuit, although obviously not last year because I crashed on the last lap when fighting for the podium. It was probably my biggest mistake of the season but it gives me added motivation going to the same race this time around. I want to do it for the fans and for myself. My objective is to fight for the win. We went to Motorland last week to test a new exhaust and chassis setting. I ended up with a really good feeling and we fulfilled our objective so I am looking forward to getting to Montmeló and confirming the work we did. I am going to leave everything out there this weekend. It is a technical circuit where you need to have a good set-up. The fast section through the last two corners is great fun and you can make up a lot of time. You also need the engine to work well because it has two very long straights.”
Héctor Faubel:
“I had my best race of the season so far at Le Mans and after finishing just short of the podium I am ready for anything at Montmeló. Hopefully I can repeat my performance from Jerez, when I was fighting for the win, but with a different outcome. Myself and the whole team are working really hard, in fact we went to Motorland last week for a test and the conclusions were really positive. Montmeló is a circuit. It has two long straights so you need an engine with plenty of power so that you don’t lose time. Hopefully we can confirm the work we did at Aragon and perform at 100%.”
Adrián MartÃn:
“I travel up to Montmeló determined to get a good result. Things went really well for us in Portugal and at Le Mans everything went well except the race. We were unlucky there but we went to Motorland for a test, which was great for us because we had chance to find some of the solutions we were looking for. I think we can be in the top eight this weekend and that is what we’re fighting for. Montmeló has never been particularly good to me but the same could be said for France and my feeling during practice was fantastic.”
Source: Aspar Media
