Aleix Espargaro toasted a dream double at his home round at the MotoGP World Championship at Catalunya on Sunday, but his immediate thoughts were with injured Francesco Bagnaia after a horror accident on the opening lap.
Championship leader Bagnaia high-sided from his Ducati at the first chicane and was hit by KTM’s Brad Binder, who had no chance of avoiding the stricken 26-year-old as he lay prone on the track, running over Bagnaia’s legs. The Italian has been taken to hospital with ‘severe polytrauma’, an update on Sunday confirmed.
Espargaro, who caught and passed his Aprilia Racing team-mate Maverick Viñales to secure a brilliant brace after he also triumphed in Sunday’s Sprint race, said: “I’m speechless and the first thing I want to say is that I’m really happy today nothing happened on the first start; lucky that Pecco is nothing really serious, they told me now, so this win is for Pecco because I was very worried.”
Espargaro felt the race was re-started too soon after the incident involving Bagnaia, which happened moments after Enea Bastianini sparked a multiple pile-up at the first corner involving Johann Zarco, Marco Bezzecchi, Fabio di Giannantonio and Alex Marquez.
“Especially after the first incident I was very worried, very nervous, and for me they didn’t give time enough,” said Espargaro.
“It was a bit close, the restart of the race, and I was a bit nervous and I was full of oil because the engine of Brad (Binder) exploded in front of me, so it was difficult and I was not really focused at the beginning.
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“Then I tried to reset the mind and for my riding style this win was very difficult because I let the bike flow in the mid-corner and the wind pushed me out.
“Maverick is a lot stronger to stop the bike and go, and it was difficult for me to follow. I made a mistake when I was trying to overtake and then I lost a lot of ground.
“I thought for a moment I would not catch him because he was very fast, but I go to the limit like qualifying for 25 minutes and I made it – very happy!”
Espargaro, who won the British Grand Prix at Silverstone in August, said his double on home soil in front of his family and friends at Catalunya was a moment he will treasure for the rest of his life.
“I’m speechless, it’s been an amazing weekend, a dream weekend. I would love to stop time and enjoy a bit more but unfortunately in a couple of hours I will be thinking and analysing Misano, but this weekend I will remember forever – it has been amazing,” said the emotional 34-year-old.
“To win at home is always special, we are growing and growing, and a one-two is amazing for the team. I’m very proud of what we have achieved and today this victory has been very tricky.
“With the wind, I was not comfortable riding, I was making a lot of mistakes and Maverick was very fast today, he pushed me to my limit.”
Espargaro was resigned to finishing second after two successive errors cost him crucial time as he pursued Viñales, but he was able to regroup and produce a battling finish to the race, passing his team-mate on the brakes into the first corner and edging ahead to win by three tenths.
“I made two consecutive mistakes,” he explained. “In corner one I went completely wide and then trying to recover in corner three I made a high-side and almost crashed.
“Then in the last two laps I pushed like hell but I said to myself ‘OK, this is second’, but then I said if it’s second, then at least make him sweat!
“Then I changed the map, I removed TC [traction control] and I went like qualifying mode. I gave everything and I forced him to push as well and destroy the tyres, and really I had nothing left.
“If the race was one or two more laps I would have to stop in the pits because the rear tyre was completely cooked.
“Hopefully we can keep the momentum because Austria and Misano are my two more difficult circuits. Austria arrived after [victory at] Silverstone and was a good test and now it is Misano after Barcelona victory, so let’s go for it.”
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