Poncharal: Augusto has shown that he belongs to MotoGP™

The Tech3 team will hardly forget the 1000th Grand Prix. On the one hand, the French team claimed their first home victory in 34 years, thanks to the brilliance of Dani Holgado (Red Bull KTM Tech3) in the Moto3™ class. The joy didn’t end there either, as MotoGP™ rookie Augusto Fernández (GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3) secured an impressive fourth place in Sunday’s race. After an excellent weekend, Herve Poncharal was delighted to speak to motogp.com to discuss an excellent weekend for his riders.

“We never thought we could win in MotoGP™ until the day Miguel (Oliveira) won in Austria. We’ve been racing in Moto3™ for four years. In Valencia, Deniz came close to winning… Then the barrier was finally broken in Portimao. But winning there has a completely different flavor because, whether in 125cc, 250cc, 500cc, Moto2™ or MotoGP™, we had always been cursed at home. Frankly, Dani (Holgado) has been the boss, but we know how competitive this category is , so much can happen that you are never sure of anything until the end.

“That said, we knew from qualifying that Dani had excellent race pace. And it couldn’t have come at a better time for this 1,000th GP – it was a nice touch. I can say we’ve enjoyed it.” Success as it was long awaited! I am very happy to have been able to share it with Dani. Beyond being a great driver, he is a very nice and humble guy. After this victory in Moto3™, I said to myself, ‘whatever happens in MotoGP™, it will still be a memorable day’.”

“Augusto had already impressed us on Saturday by avoiding Q1, something that hadn’t happened to us in a long time. Still, he beat Fabio Quartararo in front of his home crowd! When we looked at his time, we honestly couldn’t.” believe it. It was a moment of great joy and emotion. I think such a performance was a great morale boost for him. People started seeing him as a rider and not just a stand-in. Unfortunately, perhaps aiming too high, he crashed in the Tissot Sprint and again in Warm Up, forcing him to go out with his second moto. We honestly didn’t know what to expect so when in doubt we went with the soft front tyre. It was a risk considering the heat and the 27 laps to cover, but he had to get his confidence back.

“When Luca Marini (Mooney VR46 Racing Team) and Alex Márquez (Gresini Racing Team MotoGP™) collided, we thought: ‘Damn, now he’s behind the group’, even though he got off to a good start. To our surprise, he made a comeback and kept up a pretty good pace. In the end, he finished 4th, just 1.5sec behind Johann Zarco, and managed to hold off Aleix’s factory Aprilia. So yeah, not a podium or a victory, but for us, it’s the same. We must not forget that this is only his fifth race in MotoGP™. There have not been many rookies who have achieved such performances on equal terms.”

“The saddest part of all this are the questions that the media sometimes ask him, like ‘Aren’t you afraid of having to give up your position to Pedro (Acosta) next season?’ or when he heard ‘It doesn’t matter, he’s just waiting for Pedro to arrive’. It annoys me because since the beginning of the year he has been giving great performances that often go unnoticed, there will be those who say ‘yes, he finished 10th because there were crashes’… It’s true, but not only that! weekend he reached Q2, started with the seventh fastest outright time of the race and finished very close to the top three.

“Of course, the runner needs his team, and vice versa. So no matter what is said, once the lights go out, they are somewhat on their own. And here, he has clearly shown what he is capable of. Bravo! Frankly, I “I’m glad to see that he’s doing so well. Augusto is a very nice guy, discreet, hard-working… Like Dani, he also brings a kind of tranquility to the team. When you evolve in such an environment, you enjoy much more”. .”

Poncharal also had kind words for the recovered Pol Espargaró (GASGAS Factory Racing Tech3), absent since his big accident in Portimao, and the Tech3 team boss provided an update on the Spaniard.

“We exchanged messages regularly. In fact, during the race, when he was on the pit wall with his crew chief, Paul, he FaceTimed us. We could barely hear each other because of the noise, but we said hello. Everyone “That’s to say he’s very attentive to what is happening. He is working very hard for his part. I know that this week he underwent several tests to refine the possible medical green light. His goal would be to return to Mugello.”

“However, after speaking with Doctor Charte again this weekend, his injuries are quite significant. Therefore, it is best to wait until he is well healed before considering returning to competition. We are lucky that there is a break between Le Mans and Mugello… or so we hope. In any case, we won’t be playing with his health, especially when it comes to his spine. He could already physically ride a bike. The problem is if he falls or someone hits him. However, he is excited about it. It’s even sadder when you consider that Pol, Jack Miller (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) and Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing) were at a similar level over the winter.”