The Grand Prix of Czech Republic kicked off this week end at Brno: the Moto2 race turned out to be an exciting one, as AXO rider Julian Simon clinched fifth position after a come-back race.
The Moto2 race was delayed until 12.20pm local time on Sunday, part of the domino effect caused by rain before the 125cc contest. The track was dry for the intermediate class' first visit to Brno, and the twenty laps provided the best race of the day. Simon was starting from ninth on the grid, and things got worse for the Spaniard as he took off slowly from the line. He was unable to tail the likes of Elias in their push for the front group, but rolled up his sleeves to make up eight places and finish fifth. Maintaining fourth place in the overall standings, the reigning 125cc World Champion is pushing hard to make the jump up to Moto2 race winner.
Julian Simon: "I think that this fifth place is a positive result, because I gave my all and couldn't have gone any master. It was a matter of getting a better start in order to be at the front at the beginning, and not doing that meant that the race wasn't so easy. I am still satisfied with the fact that I kept my head straight and was able to make the comeback. I grew in confidence through overtaking people in the group. When I just had Cluzel left I tried a pass on the last lap, but the bike went off line a little and I thought it best to back off and not take the risk. Despite my bad start, we finished with a good result that keeps us in fourth place overall. Our goal isn't to be fourth, but we have to keep on working to improve the bike. I hope that the situation will be better in Indianapolis. I will need to work on my starts, and my bike is lacking a bit of development, so we have to keep chipping away in order to move into a position to win races."
Despite the pole position sealed on Saturday’s Qualifying Practice, Bradley Smith could only manage to clinch sixth spot in the 125cc race, as he had grip problems on the early laps of the race that put paid to his chances of victory. He found his form as the track dried, but it was too late for the Briton to get onto the podium and he eventually finished sixth.
Bradley Smith: "To tell the truth, it was a pity how things turned out today. I was totally convinced that I had everything in place to have a good race, but things started to go sour on the grid. It was hard to know what decision to make, but we went for wet tires on the dry setting. I had big problems with grip at the start of the race and had to take risks on every corner, which lost me positions. When the track had dried completely ten laps before the end, I started to pick up the race pace. I am disappointed because we were on top all weekend and could have had a win, but the weather knocked us off balance. This isn't the result that I wanted from Brno, but at least I can say that I gave my all. We know what happened and now have to get back on form for Indianapolis."