Aprilia Racing caused Aleix Espargaro’s downfall in the Japanese MotoGP by leaving his motorcycle in fuel-saving mode when the crew left the grid.
With MotoGP operating on a two-bike system, Espargaro pitted at the end of the warm up lap at Motegi and jumped from one RS-GP to the other.
Despite the hasty swap causing his first bike to fall before his crew could catch it, the Catalan was consigned to a pit lane start when he had qualified sixth.
He circulated last in the 25-strong field until passing Suzuki Ecstar wildcard-turned-injury replacement Takuya Tsuda on Lap 3 and only got back to 16th by the chequered flag, missing the points by six seconds in a significant blow to his championship hopes.
According to Espargaro, his first bike was left in an ‘eco’ mode which is meant to only be used on the way from the pits to the grid, and which he could not switch off.
Making matters worse, the second bike had a soft Michelin tyre on the rear instead of the medium compound for 24 laps.
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“They made a mistake, and they didn’t remove the fuel-saving map which doesn’t allow you to go over 4000 to 5000 RPM or more than 100km/h,” explained Espargaro.
“I tried everything, but it was not working.”
He added, “I changed bikes in the pits, but the second bike had the soft rear tyre [instead of the medium] and I can’t ride with that tyre.
“I knew it from the beginning. The bike was just pushing the front. I was also very nervous and making a lot of mistakes, so I decided to stay out on track just to wait for a red flag or whatever, but it didn’t arrive.”
The Argentina Grand Prix winner felt another victory was possible if not for the mishap, noting he would have started one position ahead of Jack Miller (Ducati Lenovo), who ended up first to the chequered flag at Motegi.
Instead, he is now 25 points, the equivalent of a full race, behind championship leader Fabio Quartararo despite the Monster Energy Yamaha rider finishing only eighth.
The deficit relative to second-placed Francesco Bagnaia is an unchanged seven points, given the Ducati Lenovo rider crashed out on the final lap while attacking Quartararo.
However, that is no real consolation for Espargaro.
“For me, this is worse, because I lost a big opportunity,” declared Aprilia’s talisman.
“If they finished first and second, it would be worse for the championship, but I will not be that sad.
“I’m very sad because I knew today I was faster than them and it’s very difficult to be faster than ‘Pecco’ and Fabio.
“It’s very rare, for me.”
Indeed, two major unforced errors for the #41 entry this year would probably line up with the gap he now faces relative to Quartararo in the riders’ standings.
Espargaro lost a net nine points with his premature celebration at Catalunya in Round 9 of the season and, had he made the podium at Motegi, that would have been another 16 points while also costing the championship leader one by relegating him from eighth to ninth.
“This is our job and it’s a mistake that can happen everywhere,” said the 33-year-old regarding the eco map mistake.
“It’s a big mistake, a huge mistake, but we are humans, we are a team.
“Now I will go to the box, I have no strength, I don’t know how to do it, but I need to support [the team] because it’s a mistake and it can happen.
“I don’t care about the championship, I want to win in Thailand. It’s the only thing on my mind, try to win in Thailand.”
Practice at Buriram starts this Friday.
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