Xavi Vierge 17th and Isaac Viñales 21st in demanding Assen race

Tech3 Racing Team rider Xavi Vierge fought determinedly in the 8th round of the Moto2 World Championship today and finished in 18th after the weather disrupted the GP. The 18 year old began the Motul TT Assen from the ninth row after a challenging qualifying session.

Despite still experiencing some pain from the injuries sustained in yesterday’s fall, he launched off the grid and elbowed his way through to 20th by the close of the first lap, having overtaken five riders. He set into a consistent and strong rhythm, which saw him elevate up two more places by the mid point.

Then, Vierge continued pushing and dived inside Mattia Pasini on lap eighteen as the distance counted down. The unpredictable Dutch weather struck with five laps remaining and drops of rain started to fall, yet the former CEV race winner carried on his pace. However on the penultimate lap, the red flag was shown, which drew the event to a premature close due to the increasing rainfall which resulted in a 17th place finish for Vierge.

Meanwhile Isaac Vinales resolutely fought through the demanding race at the historic Dutch venue and he eventually crossed the line three positions behind his teammate. The intermediate class rookie kicked off his campaign from the eighth row, and after dropping back two places in the opening lap, he regained composure and forced his way up to 23rd by the sixth lap. He tirelessly carried on pushing as he homed in on the pack in front as the end inched closer.

He sealed 21st on lap nineteen, yet shortly afterwards, the weather conditions worsened and Vinales finally met the chequered flag in this position. He will seek to clinch a point scoring finish as the next round in Germany ahead of the mid-season break.

Xavi Vierge
“I felt the race went well even if the final result was not our target. I started the GP strongly and I was in the group of the top fifteen riders for the first five or six laps. However, after that, the tyre started to drop a little bit and I lost two or three tenths per lap with the top guys which was today’s issue. Nevertheless, after yesterday’s fall, I am pleased with what we achieved. I am also very happy with the work that the team did because after the crash in qualifying, they fixed my Mistral really well and it felt great today. Now my focus is Sachsenring where I aim to continue improving my riding style as well as the bike.”

Isaac Viñales
“We had a tough weekend but I am more or less pleased with my performance even if it was a demanding event. I had an issue with the setting and the grip which made the race challenging as there was a lot of wheel spin, yet I did my best and at the end of the day, I gathered some more valuable experience. Now I will start getting ready for the German Grand Prix where I am sure that we can have hit the ground running and close the gap to the front.”

Source: Tech3