The CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team rider finished second at the Sachsenring, missing out on another victory by 63 thousandths of a second. Marco Morelli battled for a podium place right up to the final metres and crossed the finish line in fourth place
Máximo Quiles and Marco Morelli put in a great performance at Sachsenring. The Spaniard secured another podium finish – his tenth this year – after finishing in second place. His team-mate Marco Morelli came very close to joining him on the podium, but lost third place in the final metres and ultimately finished fourth. Sunday’s results have extended Quiles’ lead in the overall standings, which now stands at 104 points over his closest rival, Brian Uriarte. The rookie was this weekend’s winner, whilst Matteo Bertelle completed the podium in third place.
The Sachsenring race proved a real challenge for the riders of the CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team. The layout of the circuit itself, with mostly left-hand corners, meant tyre management had to be handled with the utmost care. Marco Morelli and Máximo Quiles, who started from second and fourth on the grid respectively, made a great start which allowed them to stay in the leading group – comprising up to five riders – for much of the race. Halfway through the race, Quiles took the lead in the final laps, but without taking excessive risks to continue scoring as many points as possible. The Spaniard was overtaken on the final lap and secured a more than satisfactory second place, but crossed the finish line just 63 thousandths behind the winner and heads into the summer break with a lead of over one hundred points in the overall standings. His team-mate Marco Morelli enjoyed one of his best weekends and remained among the frontrunners in every session. The Argentine struggled somewhat to ride smoothly in the opening laps, but rediscovered his best form and moved up to third place with half the race still to go. The CFMOTO Gaviota Aspar Team rider fought tooth and nail to join Quiles on the podium, but was overtaken by his rival in the final metres and finished fourth.
2nd Máximo Quiles (+0.063): “Today I’m a little angry with myself because I wasn’t as aggressive as I used to be. I don’t know why, but I didn’t show my usual fighting spirit. In the last few corners I felt better than Uriarte, but I think on the last lap I lost focus a bit and didn’t feel ready to fight for the win. I didn’t want to take any risks to avoid a crash, which would have meant throwing away twenty points. I preferred to play it safe to score points and I’m saving my aggressive side for the next race. These three weeks will be good for us to disconnect and relax; it’s been a very stressful and high-pressure start to the year, but we’ll come back stronger at Silverstone.”
4th Marco Morelli (+5.060): “It was a difficult race because it’s so many laps and you have to manage the tyres really well. I had a good start, which allowed me to stay in the leading positions. It’s something I’ve always struggled with, but this time I managed it. In the first few laps I didn’t have a good feeling with the rear tyre and I was really struggling in all the left-hand corners. Then I saw that Quiles and Uriarte had picked up the pace and I tried to overtake other riders to stay in third position. I held on until the last corner, when I tried to defend my position, but they overtook me. The important thing is that we were at the front all weekend. Now it’s time to recharge during the summer break to keep working like this in the next races.”
