Mechanical failure ends Espargaro’s fight for top CRT spot at Assen

A chaotic start to the Dutch TT had a big effect on the MotoGP class, as on the opening corner Alvaro Bautista bowled series leader Jorge Lorenzo out of the race. That left Dani Pedrosa and Casey Stoner out in front without their main rival amongst them, and the duo quickly broke free. First across the line at the end of the race was reigning World Champion Stoner, who got past Pedrosa midway through the contest and took the win. Third place went to Andrea Dovizioso.

Today was an important day for the MotoGP World Championship. For the first time, one of the new bikes brought in by the CRT concept featured in the top ten places. The rider taking said bike across the line was POWER ELECTRONICS Aspar’s Randy De Puniet, who was able to reclaim some of the points lost in various setbacks earlier on in the season. The Frenchman did a magnificent job to take eighth place, eight points and a place in history.

Teammate Aleix Espargaró would also have been part of the milestone top ten, where it not for a problem with his engine. The POWER ELECTRONICS Aspar rider still holds the lead of the CRT class standings, but was forced to retire from today’s race with an engine failure on lap fourteen. That meant that he was out of the points for the first time in 2012.

Aleix Espargaró (DNF): “We had performed very well in practice. I knew that in the second half of the race I would be feeling more comfortable than my rivals, and that’s how it turned out. It was hard to move the bike around with a full tank, but after that I felt very comfortable. That makes it such a pity that in the final third of the race the engine failed and I had to retire. I had been having a great fight with Randy and I think that we could have got a good result together for the team, where it not for this misfortune. It leaves a bad taste in my mouth but these things happen. We’ve lost points but I shouldn’t worry, because we are working very well and I’m sure that we will be back at the front in Germany.”

Source: Aspar Team Press Release