The CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team rider has finished third despite suffering a crash that limited his time on track
CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team rider David Alonso has started among the fastest in Germany and has finished the first day in Sachsenring inside the top 3. In the first practice, the track was not in ideal conditions after it had rained at night, which has left patches of water on the asphalt. Alonso has finished the morning session with the third best time, just nine thousandths off the second placed, José Antonio Rueda, and 0.189 off Adrián Fernández, who has led the session. In the afternoon, with the track already completely dry, Italian Stefano Nepa has been the fastest with a time of 1:25.283. Alonso's practice has been conditioned by a strong crash when he had only completed four laps. The Colombian has crashed in turn 11, at a speed of 199 km/h, and the team has had to work against the clock to repair the bike. The World Championship leader has missed a large part of the session, but that has not been an impediment for him, as on his second and last lap after returning to the track, he has been able to set the third best time of the day, just 64 thousandths off Nepa’s time.
His teammate Joel Esteban has started with good feelings. The Spanish has been sixth in the first practice session in Sachsenring, a track in which he competes for the first time this weekend. Esteban has managed to improve his time by almost four tenths from one session to the next, but in the second practice he has only been able to finish nineteenth. The CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team rider is satisfied with the work done on the first day, he has ridden alone and knows the points he must improve for tomorrow. Esteban will fight to get straight into Q2 and achieve a good starting position for the race.
3rd David Alonso 1:25.347 (+0.064): "I am lucky that I can be laughing now because the crash has been strong, I was going really fast. Honestly, I have to apologize to the team because it has been my mistake, in the previous corner I was off the line and I still have wanted to enter into turn 11, but there was no way. We have been lucky, since I have crashed near the garages, which has helped us accelerate repairing the bike. When I have gone out on the track again, I have detected a problem and I have return into the box to fix it. The team has done an incredible work. I have been able to go out again and do at least two laps. We will have to do the work that we have not done today and confirm that things are going well. I have had a good feeling in the few laps that I have been able to do, but tomorrow we have to confirm it by riding everything that we have not been able to ride today."
19th Joel Esteban 1:26.233 (+0.950): “I am happy with today. The first session has been positive, I have ridden alone and managed to finish sixth in my first time in Sachsenring. In the second practice session I have continued riding alone, and I have seen that we have several aspects to improve, especially in the second sector. If we do a great job this afternoon, tomorrow we will be able to fight.”