The Italian showed his pace in the middle part of the race, though struggled with tyre wear over the final ten laps. “Super Sic” still put up a brave battle for fourth place with Andrea Dovizioso, only to lose out in the final corner when he was also passed by Ben Spies. Nevertheless, Marco has shown once again that he is prepared to battle with the best in the class. Hiroshi Aoyama has endured a tough weekend with physical problems and now he is simply hoping to be in better shape for next weekend at Laguna Seca.
Marco Simoncelli:
“It's a shame because fourth place would have felt completely different. I was faster than Dovizioso for the first half of the race and maybe I took too long to pass him, losing contact with the leaders in the process. We passed each other a few times and then the tyre wear was so bad on the left side I was really struggling and it was hard to control the bike. I tried everything I could on the last lap but it wasn't enough and Spies also came through. It is a shame, but this was still a good race for us because we were close to the front and if we can just find another couple of tenths in race trim we'll be fighting for wins.”
Hiroshi Aoyama:
“It wasn't an easy race, especially the first half, but I tried to finish it in the best possible way. Unfortunately my physical condition has been a problem all weekend and I have not found it easy. I have tried to get more confident with the bike from session to session but it has been hard. I am sorry for the team and I hope to be in better shape for the next race at Laguna Seca.”
San Carlo Honda Gresini press release.
