Team Suzuki Press Office – October 19. The second leg of the three back-to-back fly-away races travels to Phillip Island in Australia this weekend for the 16th round of the 2016 MotoGP™ World Championship where Team SUZUKI ECSTAR arrives with the enthusiasm following Maverick Viñales and Aleix Espargaró’s third and fourth places in last week’s Japanese GP.
The Australian circuit is also one of the best for Viñales and the Spaniard has been waiting for this weekend for many months. The solid improvements shown both by the rider and the machine in this second half of the season, with a podium in Motegi, makes him feel very confident for a positive race, that could eventually bring him good points to keep fourth place in the Championship.
Espargaró, who has recently been enjoying renewed competitively aboard his GSX-RR, scored his best season result at the Motegi round but more in general having seen solid improvements in the last races. The layout of the circuit looks suitable for his machine, the chassis a key point for the performance, and the steps forward by the Spaniard and his crew with the electronics management and set-up configurations sees him eager to race.
The Michelin® Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix at the Phillip Island Circuit, which is a 4.4 km (2.76 miles) track at the very south of Australia, blessed with breathtaking scenery and beautiful ocean views. It is made up of seven left-handed and five right-handed corners and is one of the fastest, most fluid, tracks on the calendar, providing some of the most spectacular racing in the MotoGP™ season. Sunday’s MotoGP™ GP will be raced over 27 laps for a total distance of 120.1 km (74.5 miles)
Maverick Viñales:
“I can’t wait to race at Phillip Island, it’s one of my best tracks and also one where I expect we can be very competitive and must aim for the podium. The weather conditions may play a role, but the circuit layout is one of the best for both our machine’s characteristics and my riding style. Very fast corners and fluid connections between corners make the track funny but also very hard to interpret, it also requires some bravery, and I like these conditions. The podium in Japan was very important because it confirmed our potential and also gave a further injection of enthusiasm to all the team and engineers; also the guys working in the factory, it’s nice to ride this wave of enthusiasm we have and take advantage out of it to make a very good weekend in Australia. Besides the single race, it’s also time to keep an eye on the Championship; now I’m in fourth place, which is better than my objective at the beginning of the season, and I definitely want to consolidate this position.”
Aleix Espargaró:
“Last weekend’s Japanese GP was somehow bittersweet for me: I’m very happy with the fourth place, which is my best result this season, but also a little disappointed because I was very close to the podium. However, that was the further proof that we are improving and we are finding more effective set-up and electronics configurations, and also my riding is getting better and better. The Australian circuit layout is very favourable to our machine’s characteristics; we will try to take out the best of it. I still desire to get a podium with Suzuki before we part and I will try my best to achieve this result.”
