Hector Barbera takes a superb fifth in Argentina
The Avintia Racing rider, Hector Barbera, finished in fifth position in a dramatic flag to flag race with a mandatory safety stop to change bikes after the tyre problems experienced by Scott Redding on Saturday free practice.
Barbera did a great start from the eighth place of the grid and was in the leading group from the beginning of the race, and after changing bikes in the ninth lap, he was fighting until the last lap with Pol Espargaro.
In the final lap they overtook each other many times, and after some riders crashes, Barbera won the battle to his fellow countryman to see the chequered flag in fifth place. A great result after a difficult weekend with flu and fever attacks.
The MotoGP World Championship heads now to the United States for the third round of the year at the Circuit of the Americas, in Austin, Texas, the next weekend.
Hector Barbera | P5
“I’m very happy because overall, this was a really strange weekend, but finally the hard work gave us a price. This morning I felt really good on the wet during the warm up, but then the race was held in the worst conditions for me, with the asphalt half wet, half dry. Under these conditions I always feel tense and when I was on the grid I knew the race was going to be hard. Jarno, my crew chief asked me to try, because it had no sense to be on the back, I did it and it worked. I immediately realized that I was fast and I was gaining confidence lap by lap. In the first half of the race I was battling with my teammate Loris, and then with Pol. On the last lap we overtook each other several times and we went long in one corner. Laverty came into the battle and he took the fourth place in the last corner. But overall, and after a difficult weekend, this fifth place is a great result.”
Source: Avintia